Friday for the Birds

Today’s post combines several of my Fabulous Finds!

Take a look:

Such a simple card — and fast. When I got this vintage-style stamp set from Prima Marketing, I had to play with it right away. So I just stamped everything in the set with a cranberry ink. (The sentiment is from Hero Arts, stamped in black.)

I ran a piece of card stock through my Sizzix Big Kick using a new-ish Tim Holtz Texture Fades folder.

Not a glam card, but easy and fast.

Because that is such a simple card, I thought I would share another easy, fast card. And I do mean fast! This uses a darling stamp from Alpha Stamps.

I stamped the image on white scrap paper, colored the boots red and layered on black and then red scraps. Stamped Just Because (Technique Tuesday) and layered in the same way.

I embossed the card front using a Tim Holtz -designed Sizzix embossing folder, rounded the corners and added the elements. So easy!

For more cool stamps, visit www.alphastamps.com

Thanks for stopping by!

Fabulous Finds Friday — October Afternoon

I’m probably the last kid on the block to discover the fabulous papers of October Afternoon. These vintage-look papers are full of wonderful colors and designs — even the names are cute: Good Junk, Needs Paint, Ice Cream, Strawberry Jam, Picnic Table, etc.

I was lucky enough to work with some of these nifty papers while writing an article for Crafts ‘n things magazine. The article (in the October issue — how fitting!) is about how to create a vintage look in card making using papers, inks, stamps and embellishments. (Do check it out!)

Here is a fun card I made using October Afternoon papers, stamp and embellishments:

Won’t this be a great card to welcome a new baby?  The paper (including the tiny scrap on the lower half!), alphabet card and even the tiny flower stamp are all from October Afternoon. The flower is from Prima and the rick rack is from Making Memories.  

Here’s another:

The bottom paper is from the Fly A Kite collection, the flower is from Stampendous! and colored with watercolor pencils, then blended. There’s a dash of Ranger Stickles on the flower and I edged the paper with brown ink to make it more vintage. The sentiment is an oldie from Rubber Stampede.

For more information, visit www.octoberafternoon.com. And please check out the October issue of Crafts ‘n things! www.craftsnthings.com

Thanks for stopping by!

Scrap Mosaics

On Friday I wrote about my compulsion to use up more and more scraps. I showed how I cut up some scraps and adhered them to (scrap!) cardstock. 

Here are some more cards made using those scrappy mosaics:

I still had some scraps left, so I pulled out my trusty Sizzix die cutter and made these:

(stamps, Hero Arts)

And two more using punches:

(stamps, Hero Arts)

Whoa…. I should have used a ruler to make those lines! Talk about wobbly! (stamp, Inkadinkado; crown punch Martha Stewart; circle punch McGill)

Thanks for coming back!

Oh, Scrap! Use ’em Up!

I am on a never-ending quest to clean off my studio space by using up all the scraps that I can’t bear to toss.

In my never ending attempts at organizing I have put my scraps in a variety of containers — boxes, ziplock baggies, coupon holders, photo albums, etc.

Here is one folder full of scraps I’ve been saving since the Pleistocene era: 

The folder was bulging. Time to cut some scraps loose! I chose two color schemes, pulled some scraps and cut them into strips:

I ran a piece of cardstock (yes, SCRAP cardstock cut from an old folder!) through my Xyron adhesive machine and randomly started sticking down pieces untill the entire piece was covered:

Look at the cool background pieces I have! (Here’s a tip: If you have any gaps in the paper, sprinkle on gold or silver embossing powder. Adds a nice touch of metallic.)

Here’s a quick card: 

I simply punched some squares, edged them in black, and glued them to the squares in this window pane card. I added some scrappy punched butterflies. 

Stay tuned for more scrappy cards!

Fabulous Finds Friday — Vintage Prima

I’ve always been a huge fan of Prima flowers. I love the colors, the selection, the … everything. I have enough flowers to decorate a bridal party.

Now that Prima has added stamps, I’m in heaven. Here is a darling stamp set with a vintage flair:

(And I love that the set comes with its own bling. Can you see the line of rhinestones at the top?)

I had to play immediately, so came up with a fast — really fast — card:

(Card front embossed using a new Tim Holtz Texture folder. Sentiment from Hero Arts. You can’t see it, but there is a touch of sparkly Ranger Stickles on the bird’s crown. But yikes! Where are the flowers?)

And here are some fast tags:

Thanks for stopping by! For more on Prima, go to www.primamarketinginc.com