Bee Mine~

 I'm hosting a class down at Paper Tales this weekend using Lawn Fawn Stamps to make a packet of sweet little Valentines.  The finished Valentines slide into glassine bags and are tied up with ribbon.

This morning I made an assortment of little candy favors to place around the table.

I used of scraps of the Valentine papers I have been using for projects in the last couple of weeks.  There will be no scraps to add to the box! YAY! 

Inside are Ghiradelli chocolate squares.  I used decorated kraft bags and sewn patterned paper pockets to slide the candies into before embellishing with the cute little Bee Mine set from Lawn Fawn.

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Stamps: Bee Mine by Lawn Fawn

Ink: Memento

Paper: Red, Pink, White, Yellow

Patterned Paper: Imaginisce, Crate Paper

Other: Oval and Banner dies, Ribbon, Baker's Twine, Button, Rhinestone brad, Dimensional foam

Sparkly Bubbles~

A little preview of my card over at the 

Fresh Squeezed Stamps blog

Head on over and check it out!

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Chalkboard.

As a rule I keep things simple, fast and CAS.  I have seen such great cards with the chalkboard technique and I thought I could bang one out fairly quickly.

I started with the focal image/saying and was very pleased with how it turned out.  Usually I "see" where I want the card to go when I start.  This time, only starting with the technique bogged me down.

I fussed for over an hour trying to get it to work on a base.  Patterned paper and cardstock was flying everywhere. Nothing worked.

Never mind the mess that happened when the embossing powder got loose and spilled everywhere. 

Oy, what a mess.

I ended up keeping it simple with kraft on kraft.

Finished card is 3-5/8 x 4-7/8

For those who aren't aware of this technique:

1. Stamp your image in white pigment ink onto black cardstock (or green or blue for other types of chalkboards) and heat emboss with white embossing powder.
2. Stamp your image again over the image and off to the side a little to create a shadow. No need to emboss.
3. Then, dab a tissue or foam onto your white pigment pad and gently swirl around on the black cardstock, creating a look reminiscent of chalk dust.

Kids today will only know of the dry erase smell. Chalkboards are pretty non-existant anymore in the classroom.

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Stamps: WPlus9 Cupid's Bow, Banner Love, Heartfelt Mix

Ink: White pigment, Versafine Onyx Black

Paper: GKD Kraft, Cherry Red, Black Onyx

Other: White embossing powder, Sewing machine, WPlus9 Cupid's Bow, XOXO and Banner die, Nestabilities Label One,  Corner rounder, Dimensional foam

Paper Chaos~

Paper.  A necessary component of this craft.  And it gets chaotic, quickly.

My "usual" means of controlling is to just put it in an identified drawer of one of these storage containers, neatly at first, and then the scraps and bits and pieces take over.

I spent Friday pulling out all the patterned paper that I have accumulated in the past couple of years that has been lying in the drawers.  Since I was on somewhat of a hiatus for a while, many of the papers are no longer available.  Useful for personal projects, but not for design work or pub work.

First I determined what was still current in nature, that meant visiting manufacturer websites, some easier to navigate than others, to determine if what I had was still in their inventory.  I kept current full sheets full.  Any sheet that had been cut into (no matter how much)  I cut into 6 x 6 piece(s), if there was enough left for a 4 x 4 piece, then I cut that as well.  All retired papers were cut into those 2 sizes, period, no matter how much I liked them. The rest of of the scraps were taken away by the recycle trash truck that afternoon.  There are now 3 empty drawers in the unit, perfect for keeping projects that are still a work in progress inside and off my counter.

I filed these "new" scraps into a filing box that I picked up at Michaels a few years back.  Each manufacturer is separated by an identified tab; current in the front of the box, retired in the back.

The retired may eventually be offered up as a blog prize or gifted to a local school.  

For now, it's organized chaos. 

Another task I have been working on I will share later.  It's been a very handy app!

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Olive You!

A little sneak peek of my CAS project over at the FSS blog today:

Fresh Squeezed Stamps

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Valentine Cookies~

It's Squeeze-A-Palooza time over at Fresh Squeezed Stamps!

Use the free digital image or the inspiration pictures to make a card or project.

There are prizes involved, so head over and post your creation!

I used this inspiration picture to make the card; yummy cookies in shades of red, pink and white.

After die cutting several sizes and colors of hearts I stamped white polka dots from You Said It, Sister on the red and pink hearts before scattering them on the panel, raising some on dimensional foam.

A Punny Valentine provided the greeting that was stamped in black onto a banner strip and popped up with dimensional foam over a striped strip.

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Thank You from

from the bottom of my heart~

Quick (5 minutes, maybe 10)  card to send off to my audiologist.  Having lost my hearing in my left ear over 20 years ago and struggling for many years without much clarity, my recent visit changed my life.

CHA was so clear and I could actually hear and participate in conversations when there was loads of background noise.  Usually, I am nodding along without hearing very well, hoping I hadn't nodded to something undesirable!

Anyway, I cannot think of any time that I sent a doctor a thank you card, but she deserves it.

For her time and patience for my many questions.

For me, the Phonak CROS is the perfect solution for my particular hearing loss.

Now, if the tinnitus would just go away!

Stamps: Simple Hearts  by Tami Mayberry for Gina K Designs

Ink: Versafine Vintage Sepia

Paper: GKD Pure Luxury Ivory

Patterned Paper: October Afternoon

Other: Corner rounder, Heart punch, Satin ribbon, Sewing machine, Dimensional foam

Productive Day~

Five sets of six each, thirty cards in one day for my friend who is sending Valentine's packages to the troops.

Stamps are from the following companies:

Gina K Designs

Fresh Squeezed Stamps

Lawn Fawn

WPlus9

All cards are A2 sized and use Imaginisce and Authentique patterned papers.

Cardstock by GKD, SU!, Neenah and Recollections

Ink: Versafine Onyx Black and Memento

Dies by WPlus9

Big Heart punch by SU! (probably no longer available, I have no idea), Corner rounder punch

Twine by The Twinery

Staples, Dimensional foam

Time to have a bite to eat and put my feet up for the night!

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A Riff and a bit of CHA

This project is a riff off the make 'n' take that we did in the Scor-Pal booth. Those particular measurements I can do in my sleep now! :)

I modified this one just a bit so it would accomodate the Sweethearts box.  In addition, I made the flaps on the ends of the inside box tuck in (not adhered down) so that there is no peek-a-boo going on through the sides of the cover.

The original version, Card & Gift Box in One may be found in the Scor-Pal projects book: 

Scor, Fold, Create

And this is the inside view; a card and a box in one.  

Images are from Here's the Scoop by Lawn Fawn and will be used in an upcoming class at Paper Tales. :)

Inks: Red, Pink, Gray, Black

Paper: GKD Bubble Gum Pink, Cherry Red, Neenah Solar White, 

Patterned Paper is Bee Mine and Heart Attack from the Love Me More Collection by Imaginisce

Other: Scor-Pal, Loose glitter, Corner rounder, May Arts ribbon, Lawn Fawn twine, Eyelet, Button

And a few CHA pics.  

Most of the show is a fun memory, between working the booth or forgetting to take pictures, I don't have many pictures to share.

Cath Edvalson, Moxie Fab herself, and my shoulder recovery pal. 

Both of us suffered for about the same amount of time with different shoulder issues and would message each other over the past year to see how things were going.

It was great to hug her without pain!

Cindy Lawrence, if only we lived on the same coast. But we are the entire US apart from each other.

Even so,  one of my besties.

 The crew at the Scor-Pal booth: Patti Jo, Diana and Roy.

I am so happy to be back with Scor-Pal again!  Two of the kindest people to be associated with

in this industry.

With Deb, Jess and Jeanne at The Greeting Farm booth.

Lots of fun times in the booth during the day and great friends at dinner in the evenings, CHA is a fun experience to be able to experience and I am so happy to be part of the festivities.

I did miss the bagpipes this year, wonder where they were opening day?

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Elegant Valentine~

Here's a sneak peek of a card I made using Olive You by Fresh Squeezed Stamps.  

Head on over to the FSS blog to see the rest of the card. :)

Fresh Squeezed Stamps blog

Thanks for stopping by!

V.~

GKD Inspiration Blog Hop: Sweet Treats and Darling Divas

The Design Team for Gina K. Designs welcomes you to another fabulous Inspiration Blog Hop! Gina and the Design Team will inspire you with many beautiful ideas! And as you hop through their blogs, make sure to leave a comment on each of them because we will choose a few random comments and those stampers will each win a grab bag of Gina K. Designs products! To see the full list of winners check the Big News forum at Stamp TV a few days after the hops.

This card started its life as an ATC, but I liked it so much better when I placed it on a base of ivory.

I used one of the fun new images from the Diva Collection created by a new illustrator to Gina's team: Debbie Corbari

Stamps: Balanced Diva by Debbie Corbari for GKD

Ink: Versafine Onyx Black

Paper: GKD Pure Luxury Ivory, Kraft, Ocean Mist, Black Onyx

Other: Ocean Mist Grosgrain from the new GKD Color Companions, Clear Embossing Powder, Copic Markers, Corner rounder, Banner die, Staple, Sewing machine, Dimensional foam

Tags. I just love them. Here I made a tag using Sweet Treats, this month's One Free with Three set.

Instead of coloring, I chose to paper piece the bird and package using GKD Pure Luxury cardstock.

Stamps: Sweet Treats

Ink: Versafine Onyx Black

Paper: GKD Pure Luxury Ivory, Turquoise Sea, Bubblegum Pink, Ocean Mist, Jelly Bean Green

Other: Button and Gingham check ribbon from the new line of GKD Color Companions. 

Linen thread, Baker's twine, Corner Rounder, Dimensional foam

Be sure to check out these amazing designs:

Gina

Debbie

AJ

Becky

Beth

Carolina

Carolyn

Cathy

Latisha

Laurie

Lee

Melanie

Michelle

Sean

Sharon

Tami

Theresa

Valerie

Remember to comment to be entered to into a random drawing for a GKD prize package!

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GKD Inspiration Hop: Birds and Blossoms, Simple Hearts and Spoon Me

The Design Team for Gina K. Designs welcomes you to another fabulous Inspiration Blog Hop! Gina and the Design Team will inspire you with many beautiful ideas! And as you hop through their blogs, make sure to leave a comment on each of them because we will choose a few random comments and those stampers will each win a grab bag of Gina K. Designs products! To see the full list of winners check the Big News forum at Stamp TV a few days after the hops.

As cardmakers we are expected to always have a cards/packaging at the ready; sometimes we just don't.

 Stamping on shipping tags is a simple and quick addition for a small gift.

Stamps: Birds and Blossoms by Theresa Momber for GKD

Ink: Memento Rich Cocoa, Pistachio, Desert Sand

Patterend paper strip by Echo Park

Other: Green button from GKD Color Companion Line, Linen thread, Dauber, Small brown bag

For this fun little project I combined Tami's Simple Hearts and Becky's Spoon Me to create a fun little Valentine's set.  The tag that presents the package is made from images from Simple Hearts.

Each Valentine is made using a different image and its coordinated sentiment from Spoon Me.  Images were fussy cut and adhered to each card with dimensional foam.

The addition of a little sewing and using the same colors keep it unified.  Slide each Valentine into a fun little kraft bag and wrap it all up using gingham ribbon from GKD's new line of Color Companions.

Stamps: Simple Hearts by Tami Mayberry and Spoon Me by Becky Oehlers for GKD

Ink: Versafine Onyx Black, Memento Love Letter, Peanut Brittle

Paper: GKD Pure Luxury Cherry Red, Kraft, White

Other: Clear Embossing Powder, Sewing machine, Ticket corner punch, Dimensional foam

For even more inspiration, please visit these Designer blogs:

Gina

Theresa

Becky

Tami

AJ

Beth

Carolina

Carolyn

Cathy

Debbie

Latisha

Laurie

Lee

Melanie

Michelle

Sean

Sharon

Valerie

Now don't forget to leave a comment on each blog.  There will be random lucky winners of a GKD surprise package!

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GKD Inspiration Hop: Stately Flowers, Lovely Lady Bug and Stamp It Big~

The Design Team for Gina K. Designs welcomes you to another fabulous Inspiration Blog Hop! 

Gina and the Design Team will inspire you with many beautiful ideas! And as you hop through their blogs, make sure to leave a comment on each of them because we will choose a few random comments and those stampers will each win a grab bag of Gina K. Designs products! To see the full list of winners check the Big News forum at Stamp TV a few days after the hops.

Botanical print inspired card using Stately Flowers 6.

Larger pinecone was stamped on an ivory scrap and colored with Copic markers before adhering to the stamped panel with dimensional foam.

Supplies:

Stamps: Stately Flowers 6 by Melanie Muenchinger for GKD, Botanicals

Ink: Memento Desert Sand, Rich Cocoa, Versafine Onyx Black

Paper: GKD Dark Sage, Black Onyx, Kraft and Ivory

Other: Sage grosgrain ribbon ( to form a ribbon tab) from GKD Color Companion line, Copic Markers, Banner die, Staples, Dauber, Dimensional foam

Here I combined Lovely Lady Bug and Stamp It Big to create a Valentine for my daughter.

Supplies:

Stamps: Lovely Lady Bug by Beth Silaika and Stamp It Big by Caroline King for GKD

Ink: Memento Love Letter, Versafine Onyx Black

Paper: GKD Pure Luxury Ivory

Patterned Paper: Authentique

Other: Cherry Red grosgrain ribbon from the GKD Color Companions, Notebook punch, Clip, Dimensional foam

Here's another combination of Stamp It Big and Lovely Lady Bug to create a non-traditional Valentine for my teenage son.  

Supplies:

Stamps: Stamp It Big by Caroline King and Lovely Lady Bugs by Beth Silaika for GKD

Ink: Versafine Onyx Black

Paper: GKD Pure Luxury Turquoise Sea, Jelly Bean Green, Blue Raspberry, Kraft, Black Onyx

Check out all the amazing designs and inspiration:

Gina K

Melanie 

Beth

Carolyn

AJ

Becky

Carolina

Cathy

Debbie

Latisha

Laurie

Lee

Sean

Sharon

Valerie

Remember to comment for your chance to win!

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GKD Color Companions now available!

Coordinated Inks, Papers, Ribbons, Buttons and more are now available 

at  Gina K Designs with the new Color Companions line of products.

click here : Color Companions to see what's new and exciting!

My inks just arrived this afternoon and I am headed to CHA in the morning so I haven't been able to play with them yet.  But at the release party tonight several DT members were able to, the coverage is phenomenal!

The buttons and ribbon are divine and we all know the paper is the best!

Look for the Inspiration Blog Hops next week!

If you are heading to  CHA, look for me at the Scor-Pal booth.

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FSS Release Day 3: You Said It, Sister~

The dot strip from the set has many uses, a few of which are:
It may be used as a border
 It can be stamped repetitively as a background
Or used as shown here: stamping it onto a piece of cardstock and die cutting a shape from it.
Here, the circle and arrow were die cut using the stamped strip.

To see the rest of today's designers projects, see this set in its entirety and to enter to win your own copy of You Said It, Sister, please visit:

click here: Fresh Squeezed Stamps

Stamps: You Said It, Sister by FSS

Ink: Versafine Onyx Black, Memento Love Letter, Desert Sand

Paper: Ivory, Kraft, Red, Black

Text patterned paper

Other: Arrow/Circle die, Banner die, Sewing machine, Black mini brads, Dauber, Dimensional foam

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FSS Release Day 2 : My Punny Valentine

A clean and simple project using beachy colors with just a tad of Stickles glittered shovels;
what a fun way to let someone know you dig them for Valentine's Day.

To see the rest of today's designers projects, see this set in its entirety and to enter to win your own copy of My Punny Valentine, please visit:

click here: Fresh Squeezed Stamps

Supplies:

Stamps: My Punny Valentine

Ink: Versafine Onyx Black

Paper: Sand, Suede, Blue, Pink

Other: Banner die, Baker's Twine, Distressing tool, Corner rounder, Dimensionals

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Fresh for 2013~

 click here: A little Fresh for 2013

Amy Kolling

Amy Tsuruta

Chunyuan Wu

Jennifer Ingle

Maureen Merritt

Val Stangle

Looking forward to playing with this new line of stamps that are based right here in So Cal!

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Getting Crafty in 2013!

The illustration team for 2013 :

Becky Oehlers

Beth Silaika

Carolyn King

Debbie Corbari

Melanie Muenchinger

Tami Mayberry

Theresa Momber

with art by Heather Rolin and Rupa Shevde

 

The design team for 2013 :

Lee Murphy- DT coordinator

AJ Otto

Carolina Buchting

Cathy Tidwell

Latisha Yoast

Laurie Schmidlin

Michelle Woerner

Sean Fetterman

Sharon Harnist

Valerie Stangle

I am so tickled to be working with these fabulous illustrators and designers!

V.~