Blog around the block with SUDSOL!

Welcome!!! You've arrived at the first stop on the SUDSOL blog tour!

Today, I'm sharing some new goodies as well as some oldies with you - ENJOY!

First up is a card I created based on an idea in the new Occasions Catalogue. I liked the idea of a piece of cardstock embossed with the new Honeycomb Folder in the middle of the card, so that was my jumping off point.

My next step (since this was originally a swap card for a special group of ladies with whom I swap each month), was to figure out which papers in my stash were well stocked - LOL! Hey...you gotta use what you have, right? So, I went with Pretty in Pink because a) I had a lot of it and b) it's one of the colours in the new Tea for Two Designer Series Paper. If you don't already have this new paper you're going to LOVE it when you do get it. It's got lots of pretty subtle colours with a few darker ones to offset those.

The Collage Curios set is (so far) one of my favourites from the new Occasions Catalogue. When I saw the teeny, tiny Eiffel Tower, I immediately thought about Artistic Etchings and just knew it would be a cute match.

For this image, I stamped the background stamp in Baja Breeze and then using my Stamp-a-majig added the Eiffel Tower in Island Indigo. I then punched it out using my 1" circle punch and matted it on a 1 1/4" scallop circle punched from Island Indigo. If you missed out on the 1 1/4" scalloped circle punch when it was available in the Holiday Catalogue, it's been added to the carry over list and is STILL available (lucky you!).

I stamped the large Eiffel Tower from Artistic Etchings in Island Indigo and cut it out before adding it to the front of the card. The last step was attaching the tiny Eiffel Tower image with a Stampin' Dimensional.

My next card will have you falling in LOVE with Hearts a Flutter. :)

This card was one I swapped at Leadership with the lovely and talented Lyssa Zwolanek. She hosts the most amazing swaps - LOVE THEM!

I started off with a base of Primrose Petals (one of the colours in the More Amore Specialty Designer Series Paper pack) and then added a layer of Very Vanilla that I stamped with one of the small hearts from Hearts a Flutter and then sponged using Primrose Petals Ink. I added a strip of the paper from More Amore which was also sponged.

The main image panel consists of a 2 3/8" scalloped circle in Real Red, the large heart from Hearts a Flutter stamped in Primrose Petals and then diet cut using the matching Framelit set of the same name. I then stamped and punched the "love" image from Tiny Tags to which I added a teeny, tiny linen thread bow and a rhinestone.

I hope you've enjoyed visiting today and that you'll continue on with the blog tour. Next stop is Diana Soling and I just know you're going to see some AWESOME stuff!

CONTINUE on the Blog Tour
SUDSOL	Diana Soling

STAMPS: Collage Curios, Artistic Etchings, Hearts a Flutter, Tiny Tags
INK: Baja Breeze, Island Indigo, Primrose Petals, Real Red
PAPERS: Very Vanilla, Baja Breeze, Pretty in Pink, Island Indigo, Primrose Petals and Real Red Cardstock; Tea for Two and More Amore DSP
ACCESSORIES: Punches, Big Shot!, Dies, Embossing Folders, Linen Thread, Stampin' Dimensionals, Basic Rhinestones, Ribbon

Artistic Etchings...in PINK!!!

Happy Saturday peeps! It's Divas Sketch Challenge day! I've been working on a MOST adorable project (not quite done yet, but stay tuned!) and it used Pink Pirouette, Pretty in Pink and Rose Red. Since I had them out...

I started off chopping up the little squares for the Designer Series Paper panel. They're just 7/8" square! They were matted on a piece of Rose Red Cardstock and then on a piece of Whisper White Cardstock.

The Eiffel Tower was stamped on Whisper White in Rose Red and fussy cut. The sentiment was also stamped on Whisper White in Rose Red and flagged before being adhered to the card using Stampin' Dimensionals.

What do you think?

STAMPS: Artistic Etchings, Loving Thoughts
INK: Rose Red
PAPERS: Whisper White, Rose Red and Crumb Cake Cardstock; Pink Pirouette, Pretty in Pink and Rose Red DSP
ACCESSORIES: Stampin' Dimensionals

Happy Stampin'!

P.S. You're probably wondering who won the Paper Craft Crew Blog Candy from last week...I used a random generator and the winner is *drum roll please*

MelissaNovember 1, 2012 11:30 AM

Loving the cherry cobbler and your coloring is so perfect!

Melissa, please send me your snail mail addy and I'll get this off to you!!!

Artistic Etchings for the Creative Crew!

Well, actually, it's NOT exactly FOR the Creative Crew (though it is part of my creating for the crew), it's for my downline Teresa who celebrated her wedding anniversary last month! If you're looking for a demonstrator in the Edmonton area, she's your girl!

Have a look at the card, and I'll talk you through it:

I started off with Summer Starfruit...and darn if that colour isn't growing on me - LOL! I guess if you use it enough, you kind of get used to it! Heather Summers will be proud - HA! :)

The Designer Series Paper layer is from Comfort Cafe and is one of my FAVOURITE paper packs from this years Catalogue. On the next layer (Very Vanilla), I decided to do some collage stamping. That's where you put a WHOLE bunch of stamps (in this case six, from Artistic Etchings) on one big block (clear stamps are AWESOME for this technique!) and ink it up. Then, just stamp all at once. For this card, I wanted a bit more fill, so I took a few of the individual stamps and stamped those images again. So, even if you're a die hard "woody" (wood mount stamp enthusiast), you should own at least ONE clear mount set so you can do this fun technique.

As I was stamping the collage, my eye kept focusing on the "amour" word and I thought this would make a GREAT anniversary card! I decided to send it off to Teresa and her hubby Todd. I KNOW it got there late, but I also know it was very much appreciated.

Here's a close up of the little "love" tag from the Tiny Tags set.

Isn't that little tag just DARLING?? I love that Tiny Tags set and the matching punch. Just too adorable!

You'll notice I went a little nuts with the Colour Spritzer. Ever since I've been following my dear friend Ann Schach, that tool is never far from my creating space!

What do you think?

STAMPS: Artistic Etchings, Tiny Tags
INK: Summer Starfruit, Cajun Craze
PAPERS: Very Vanilla and Summer Starfruit Cardstock; Comfort Cafe DSP
ACCESSORIES: Punch, Clear Block, Colour Spritzer, Stampin' Dimensionals

Happy Stamping!

Stampin' Queens meets Dynamic Duos!

Happy Wednesday! It's Stampin' Queens Sketch Day! I still had out my colours from yesterday's card, so I just kept on using them. :)

Here's the sketch:

And here's my card:

I moved the circles around a bit and chose the Eiffel Tower for the bottom instead of a third circle.

Don't you just LOVE that little "hello" tag?? I just love, love, LOVE adding tiny details to my card. I think of them as little surprises. :)

What do you think?

STAMPS: Artistic Etchings, Tiny Tags
INK: Old Olive, Rich Razzleberry
PAPERS: Whisper White Cardstock; Old Olive and Rich Razzleberry DSP
ACCESSORIES: Punch, Baker's Twine, Stampin' Dimensionals

Happy Stampin'!

Artistic Thanks in Island Indigo

Are you ready for the CUTENESS? This is my second post for today, so please scroll down to see what else I've been up to!

As I was going through my email this morning I came across a card that inspired me to put away the laptop and create RIGHT AWAY. I can tell you...that doesn't happen very often!

Check this out:

Cute, right? It's a 3 x 3 notecard. These are such fun to make! I love the way I can use up little scraps of paper to create something wonderful!

Here's a little close up of that one perfect pearl in the crown:

To me, it seemed to be the perfect touch!

And did you notice that tiny little thanks? Here's a close up:

Is that not the cutest thing you've ever seen in your WHOLE life? It's from a brand new stamp set in the 2012-2013 catalogue called Lovely Little Labels. And do you know what the BEST part is?? You can buy an itty bitty punch pack with the most fun little labels to punch out your sentiments and images from this set. There's even a teeny tiny postage stamp!

I also used some of the various images from Lovely Little Labels to fill in some of the white space after I stamped the Artistic Etchings collage.

One of the wonderful things about our clear mount stamps, is that you can add a bunch of them to a larger clear block and stamp them all at once! Like this:

Cool, eh? I just inked them all up at the same time, stamped off and then stamped them onto the 2 3/4" square layer of Whisper White Cardstock.

What do you think?

STAMPS: Artistic Etchings, Lovely Little Labels
INK: Island Indigo
PAPERS: Whisper White and Island Indigo Cardstock
ACCESSORIES: Punch, Basic Pearls, Stampin' Dimensionals

Happy Stampin'!

Freshly Made Artistic Etchings for Dynamic Duos

Oooooh! I just LOVED this week's Dynamic Duo Colours! Check this out:

How lovely and soft and spring like. I knew JUST what I wanted to do and I teamed with the Freshly Made sketch for this week. This is what I came up with:

Do you love it? I started off with a So Saffron base and then added the So Saffron and Pool Party Designer Series Paper. The sentiment was stamped using Whisper White Craft Ink and I embossed it using white embossing powder.

I stamped the focal image on Whisper White Cardstock using both Pool Party and So Saffron.

Here's a few close up shots:

the brads

the sentiment

What do you think?

STAMPS: Artistic Etchings (YAY! Not retiring!)

INK: Pool Party and So Saffron Classic Ink; Whisper White Craft Ink

PAPERS: Whisper White, Pool Party and So Saffron Cardstock; Pool Party and So Saffron DSP

ACCESSORIES: Punch, Ribbon, Embossing Powder, Heat Tool, Stampin' Dimensionals

Happy Stampin'!

It's Wednesday! That must mean STAMPIN' QUEENS!

Happy Wednesday friends! What's on tap for you today? Will you have time for some stamping fun? I sure hope so!

Here's today's Stampin' Queens card:

Do you love it??

I had some leftover 3 x 3 Love Notes from a pack that is a few years old...no, I don't remember how old - OOPS! It had some Rose Red Love Notes in it, so that was my jumping off point. Next, I consulted my Colour Coach (WHAT? You DON'T have one? Contact me today and we'll take of that!) and matched up my Rose Red with Not Quite Navy and River Rock.

I stamped the Eiffel Tower image from Artistic Etchings onto Very Vanilla Cardstock after stamping it off (I wanted a lighter image) and layered all my pieces before tying the Very Vanilla Taffeta bow around them all. I then added the stack to the card base.

I stamped the sentiment in Not Quite Navy onto Very Vanilla and punched it out using the large oval punch. It was then matted onto a piece of Not Quite Navy Cardstock, punched with the scallop oval punch. I adhered it to the front of the card using Stampin' Dimensionals and added Basic Pearls for the finishing touch.

I stamped the Eiffel Tower in Rose Red on the envelope so that it would match the card.

Here's the sketch on which the card was based:

I hope you'll play along with us this week! We'd LOVE to see your work!

What do you think?


STAMPS: Artistic Etchings, Occasions Alphabet
INK: Rose Red, Not Quite Navy
PAPERS: Very Vanilla, Rose Red, River Rock and Not Quite Navy Cardstock
ACCESSORIES: Ribbon, Punches, Basic Pearls, Stampin' Dimensionals

Happy Stampin'!

Flashback Friday!

Welcome back to another round of Flashback Friday! My apologies for the late posting, but with the kids out of school they are occupying a lot of my time...and giving me more laundry!!

Let's get started with Sketch # 20:

I chose Baja Breeze and Whisper White for this one. I have a few male customers, so this is going to one of them. Are you one of my customers who's placed an order in the last year? Do you want to be? One of the perks of being my customer is that I send out cards ALL. THE. TIME. So, if you're one of MY customers, look for a card in your mailbox!

The set I used is Uncharted Territory and I'm happy to report that it is still in the 2011-2012 Idea Book and Catalogue. Since The Open Sea didn't make it into the new Catalogue (there's always next year!), this will be my new go-to set for boats.

Sketch # 21:

As some of you know, I'm hosting my very first Stamp-a-Rama event in August! We'll be using the Playful Polka Dots Simply Scrappin' Kit. I designed and completed all the projects and still had LOTS of Paper left over from the kit, so I'm STILL using it!

I also used one of my FAVOURITE sentiments from the Smarty Pants Stamp Set.

Sketch # 22:

I created this one as a love not card (3x3) and I'll be giving it to some of my girlfriends over the weekend - shhhhh!

I used a greeting from the Happy Greetings Set which is in the Summer Mini (only available till August 30th) and MORE of the Designer Series Paper and cardstock from the Playful Polka Dots kit.

Sketch # 23:

I've been doing some custom work for a new client. Her save the date cards are quite unique and require a special folder. I designed one like a gift certificate holder with which she was quite pleased. This card is the same basic design and can be used to hold a gift certificate.  It's 3 7/8" x 8 1/2".

I used even MORE paper from the Playful Polka Dots Kit and a stamp from the Short and Sweet Set. The card is further embellished with the Scallop Trim Border Punch and some Daffodil Delight 3/8" Taffeta Ribbon.

Sketch # 24:

I just started taking John Sanpietro's Stamping Business Basics course and one of the first things we were to do was determine our OBJECTIVE for doing what we do. It couldn't be about the MONEY specifically, but we had to choose something to work toward to keep us motivated to keep working the business.

My daughter suggested world travel - pretty awesome since I've never left the North American continent. So, my FIRST objective is a trip to Paris. I've always wanted to have breakfast on the Champs Elysées, so this is my motivation!

I used images from the Artistic Etchings Set and a sentiment from On the Grow since it seemed PERFECT for this card.

Sketch # 25:

This one uses Fabulous Florets and paper from the Pocketful of Posies Pack. The colours I used remind of a paper called (I think) Tea Garden.  Everything old is NEW again!

I stamped the flowers for my background using Pear Pizzazz and Calypso Coral. Then I stamped my focal flowers using Pear Pizzazz, So Saffron and Calypso Coral.  LOVE this combination! The Calypso Coral flower was stamped three times and cut out to add dimension.

The sentiment I used is from the set You're a Gem, which was first in the Occasions Mini earlier this year and is now in the Idea Book and Catalogue.

Well, that's it for today! I have a BUSY weekend with my girlfriends and my downline planned, so I likely won't be back till it's time for MDS Monday.

Next Wednesday, I am heading to Boston to hang out with Brenda and Mary Anne as we have our own CONBRENTION!!! We couldn't go to Stampin' UP! convention this year, so the three of us are going to have our very own version.  Can't wait!!  Brenda says she even has pillow gifts for us - WOOT!

While there I will DEFINITELY be posting about all the fun and crazy things we're doing as well as posting about any news we hear from Convention.

Have a GREAT weekend and Happy Stampin'!

STAMPS: Short and Sweet, Uncharted Territory, Happy Greetings, Smarty Pants, Artistic Etchings, On the Grow, Fabulous Florets,  You're a Gem
INK: Baja Breeze, Old Olive, Melon Mambo, So Saffron, Soft Suede, Pear Pizzazz, Calypso Coral, Versamark
PAPERS: Baja Breeze, Old Olive, Melon Mambo, So Saffron, Soft Suede, Pear Pizzazz, Daffodil Delight, Pumpkin Pie, Whisper White
ACCESSORIES: Punches, Stampin Dimensionals, Big Shot, Dies, Ribbon