Thinking Stamping: April 2020

Thursday 30 April 2020

Honey Bee for GDP 238

This week's sketch at Global Design Project gave me a chance to have a play with a favourite of mine from the January-June Mini Catalogue, the Honey Bee bundle. It is retiring on 3 June, so if you have it on your wish list, don't delay in ordering.

The Golden Honey Specialty DSP was a huge favourite during Sale-abration, so many of you will recognise the DSP in this card, which I'v coloured in Rich Razzleberry with a brayer.

The sweet little cluster is formed from various elements of the bundle but I've added in a border from Ornate Borders, one of the pre-release items from the 2020-21 Annual Catalogue which you can order already.

I wanted to add in some of the new Gilded Gems to finish off this card - but after my craft room cleanup, I couldn't find them! Some Champagne Rhinestones made a good substitute.

Don't forget that if you love this Honey Bee bundle as much as I do, you need to order it asap as it is only available while stocks last.

If you live in New Zealand and don't have a Stampin' Up Demonstrator, I'd love to be yours. I can help you with ideas, get you catalogues and provide you with Stampin' Up products. You can leave a message in the comments or contact me using any of the methods listed in the Contact Me tab at the top of the page. You can shop with me from anywhere in New Zealand by clicking on the SHOP NOW button in the sidebar or clicking on any of products below.

Product List
NB: Golden Honey DSP is now retired.

Honey Bee Bundle

[153792]

$87.25

Rich Razzleberry A4 Card Stock

[119981]

$18.50

Whisper White A4 Card Stock

[106549]

$20.50

Gold Foil Sheets

[132622]

$10.50

Golden Honey Specialty Designer Series Paper

[152311]

$0.00

Rich Razzleberry Classic Stampin' Pad

[147091]

$15.75

Early Espresso Classic Stampin' Pad

[147114]

$15.75

Regals Stampin' Write Markers

[147155]

$62.50

Clear Wink Of Stella Glitter Brush

[141897]

$14.00

Sponge Brayers

[141714]

$17.00

Ornate Borders Dies

[152724]

$71.00

Stampin' Dimensionals

[104430]

$7.25

Champagne Rhinestone Basic Jewels

[151193]

$12.50

Monday 27 April 2020

Geared Up Garage for PP488

After a recent discussion with a friend about bits boxes and white paper off-cut boxes, today I decided to do something about them. I don't know about you, but so often a good clean out is a form of procrastination. In this case, I was hoping that if I cleaned up my desk I'd find my mojo hiding there somewhere and be able to get on with some creating.

I'm not entirely sure I found it, but I did find in my bits box something of interest. Some time ago, I did a class using Geared Up Garage and I taught my people how to make faux metal out of paper. There in the bottom of the box was the piece I made as demonstration, along with another thing we did in that class: using small stamps to create a tone-on-tone DSP.

Since my mojo was still on a go-slow, this week's sketch from The Paper Players came to my rescue with some inspiration.

So, here it is - the bits box bonanza:

The faux metal gears were made on Crushed Curry to get the golden underglow, then built up with layers of different browns and partial layers of clear embossing. A fun technique!

The strangest thing is that the stamped panel and the embossed card front are both Sahara Sand, even though they look different. The inner panel has been stamped, the edges sponged and then mounted on a narrow border of embossed copper foil. The card base has been embossed using the Subtle folder. Somehow, these two treatments make them seem as though they are different colours. After looking at the photo, I even had to go back and check the original card with my colour swatch!

So the results of this afternoon's activities were: this card, a much reduced bits box, a much smaller (and tidier) white off-cut box and a MUCH fuller paper recycling bin. 😀

Product List

Geared Up Garage Cling Stamp Set

[148590]

$44.00

Garage Gears Dies

[148521]

$69.00

Soft Suede A4 Card Stock

[119982]

$18.50

Sahara Sand A4 Card Stock

[121695]

$18.50

Copper Foil Sheets

[142020]

$10.50

Card Stock A4 Crushed Curry

[131288]

$18.50

Soft Suede Classic Stampin' Pad

[147115]

$15.75

Sahara Sand Classic Stampin' Pad

[147117]

$15.75

Early Espresso Classic Stampin' Pad

[147114]

$15.75

Versamark Pad

[102283]

$20.00

Clear Stampin' Emboss Powder

[109130]

$12.50

Subtle 3D Embossing Folder

[151775]

$20.00

Stampin' Dimensionals

[104430]

$7.25

Friday 24 April 2020

Forever Blossoms for AYSI 224

At As You See It, we were blown away by both the number and quality of the entries in last week's Rainbow challenge. Talk about tough choices! I hope this week's Speed Stamping challenge excites you all just as much.

Speed stamping challenges both excite and daunt me. I'm always keen to give them a go but I'm always a bit worried I won't create anything worthwhile when I can't labour over each decision.

The secret to speed stamping is to have mentally made all your decision before you start. The second secret is to have assembled your gear. And I mean gear, not kits. Have the embossing folder you plan to use already on the desk and not in the drawer with everything else. Have the stamps you intend to use blocked up already. Have the heat gun plugged in and ready to switch on. But the moment you start using any tools: cut the card, ink up the stamp, emboss a strip of card, punch a shape - then you've started and clock should be ticking.

For this card I went with an all-over stamped pattern and a big sentiment. With a stamp as lovely as Forever Blossoms, it's hard to go too wrong.

After stamping all over a piece of Whisper White, I ran it through the embossing machine using the Subtle folder. Then I distressed the edge in Rococo Rose.

The big sentiment from So Sentimental, and cut out with the coordinating Stitched So Sweetly dies, is white-embossed and popped up on dimensionals. I had time to add in some white Polka Dot Tulle Ribbon, although if the clock had been running closer to the end, I'd have omitted this.

The final time - 9 minutes and 5 seconds. Of course, the other thing about Speed Stamping is that the time doesn't include cleaning up the craftermath!

We'd love to see what you can put together with flowers and ten minutes of actual making time.

You can see what the rest of the team have done over at As You See It Challenge site and you can link up your entries there too.

Product List

Forever Blossoms Cling Stamp Set (English)

[151457]

$48.00

So Sentimental Bundle (English)

[153828]

$101.50

Rococo Rose A4 Cardstock

[150888]

$18.50

Whisper White A4 Card Stock

[106549]

$20.50

Rococo Rose Classic Stampin’ Pad

[150080]

$15.75

Versamark Pad

[102283]

$20.00

White Stampin' Emboss Powder

[109132]

$12.50

Whisper White 5/8" (1.6 Cm) Polka Dot Tulle Ribbon

[146912]

$15.75

Subtle 3D Embossing Folder

[151775]

$20.00

Rhinestone Basic Jewels

[144220]

$10.50

Stamping Sponges

[141337]

$8.50

Wednesday 22 April 2020

Painted Poppies for CI76

Isn't this latest challenge palette at Colour Inkspiration luscious? So rich and autumnal, perfect to play with as we race towards winter.

If you haven't played with us before, we are a group of Stampin' Up Demonstrators from the South Pacific. Challenges are shown and entered via our Facebook Group page. If you don't belong, and would like to, click here.

Each challenge, Top Picks and a winner are chosen by the crew and the winner offered a chance to Guest Design with us for a future challenge.

If you don't have an exact challenge colour, feel free to replace it with whatever you have that's closest. Black, White, Very Vanilla, Crumb Cake and metallics are free colours, as are flesh toned Stampin' Blends.

The red and orange combination got me thinking about the poppies that mum had in her garden, so I reached for Painted Poppies. I've coloured them using Cherry Cobbler and Pumpkin Pie Stampin' Blends, both light and dark. I've used the small splatter stamp with Pear Pizzazz to suggest the ground.

Because I wanted the eye to focus on the poppies and the sentiment, I've mounted the front onto Thick Very Vanilla and kept all the colour in the centre.

I was going to use Stitched Rectangles to cut out the poppies but instead used a newish acquisition, the Stitched So Sweetly dies. The scalloped edge and line of stitching in these dies adds interest and a stylish finish to the panel. Between the Very Vanilla and Cherry Cobbler layers, I added in a rectantle of Pumpkin Pie while making sure to fit it inside the stitching line of the larger rectangle.

I'm very fond of the Layered Leaves embossing folder (most embossing folders, truthfully!) so used that for the card front.

I used part of one of the sentiments from Peaceful Moments but split it so the first half, 'You shouldn't have' is on the front and the last part, 'but I'm glad you did' is on the inside.

To finish off, I added in a Clear Faceted Gem and filled two flower centres with Basic Rhinestones but coloured them using the dark Pumpkin Pie Stampin' Blend.

We'd love to have you join in and show us what you've made with these rich, autumnal colours. You can see what the rest of the Crew have done and link up your entry by visiting Colour Inkspiration. If you're asking to join the group, don't forget to answer the simple question you'll be asked before joining.

Product List