#TGIF175 Tic Tac Toe Winner!

Who doesn't love a quick game of tic tac toe?  This is a stamp lovers fun version of the game.  Pick three in a row and you are a winner!  Join us and all the fun at #TGIF175.

Can you figure out which row I went for?  Did I even win a game?

Yes, I won the purple, water coloring, and washi tape vertical row.   I think these washi tape balloons are pretty dang special.  I added washi tape to Gorgeous Grape, Highland Heather, and Berry Burst cardstocks and then stamped the balloon image from the Blow Out the Candles Stamp Set with Jet Black Staz On Ink.  Once the ink was totally dry I cut each balloon using the matching die from the Candles and Confetti Framelits.

Card Details

Gorgeous Grape, Shimmery White, Highland Heather, & Berry Burst Cardstocks

Blow Out the Candles Stamp Set & Candles and Confetti Framelits

Stitched Labels Framelits

Pick a Pattern Washi Tape

Jet Black Stazon, Gorgeous Grape, Highland Heather, & Berry Burst Inks

Aquapainter

Stampin' Dimensionals

A Great Pair Card

Check out this fun jungle themed inspiration board.  It is our latest challenge at Hand Stamped Sentiments.  I could not resist pulling out two awesome sets from the Stampin' Up! Annual Catalog and their matching framelits.  I stamped with the Animal Outing Stamp Set and layered the images in all kinds of foliage cut from the Tropical Leave Framelits.

Monday Montage Blog Hop

Happy Monday everyone!  Greetings and welcome to another Monday Montage Blog Hop.  I missed our hop two weeks ago as I was on a flight returning home from Puerto Vallarta Mexico so hopping was a bit tricky, but I am home and have stamped lots of things in the past two weeks.

One card that I made a couple days ago that came together easily is this one.  I credit the ease to the amazing suite of products in the Nature's Poem collection.  Wow, the stamps, framelits, papers, and embellishments in the suite are gorgeous and totally user friendly.

My card base is Thick Whisper White, which I love, and next I layered the Nature's Poem DSP on a panel of Blackberry Bliss Cardstock.  The Stitched Shapes circle die cut is Mint Macaron and the leaves are stamped with Petal Pink and Mint Macaron with Blackberry Bliss.  I used a sponge to add the Blackberry Bliss ink to the image.  I applied it lightly as I didn't want it to over power the pink. The smaller leaves are 2nd and 3rd generation of Blackberry Bliss while the greeting is full strength. This gives greater depth and interest without having to pull out more ink pads.  I heart stamping off to achieve lots of levels of color.

I have enjoyed sharing with you today.  Your next stop along the hop is with Julie Warnick.  She has stamped up something which you are going to love.

to Dani

to Julie

Monday Montage Hoppers

Amy O'Neill - Amy's Paper Crafts

Breelin Renwick - Craft-somnia Momma

Cathy Casey - Sugar Shack Designs

Dani Dziama - Dani's Thoughtful Corner

Elizabeth Price - Seeinginkspots

Julie Warnick - Creating on the Run

Kaitlyn Zumbach - Create with Kaitlyn

Melissa Stout - The Stamp Doc

Wendy Weixler - Wickedly Wonderful Creations

#TGIF173 is Tropical Chic

We are hosting an inspiration challenge this week at #TGIF173.  This one is timed perfect for me since I just spent almost two weeks in Puerto Vallarta basking is the sun.

I had no idea where this card was going to go when I first started creating it.  I knew I wanted to "paint" the sand, water, and sky with stamps and ink and Glossy White Cardstock, but after that I had no plan.  To "paint" a background it's easy.  You must have glossy paper or it won't work.  You ink up with dye based ink and pounce, swipe, and drag an inked up stamp over and over again to cover your paper.  The more ink you offload onto the paper the easier it is to blend.  For this card I used the striped stamp from the Tropical Chic Stamp Set to create my painted background.

After I finished my background I decided to cut the word sunshine as my anchor image for my card.  To that I layered in florals and foliage to finish up my beachy card.  Just before adding the flowers I decided the white edges were to stark so I sponged them with Grey Granite Ink and fell in love with the look.  It instantly reminded me a vintage Hawaiian postcards.  

My ink colors include:  Grey Granite, Balmy Blue, Coastal Cabanna, Tranquil Tide, Shaded Spruce, Old Olive, Mango Melody, Flirty Flamingo, and Melon Mambo.

Stitched All Around Stampin' Up! Artisan Blog Hop

Hello and welcome everyone to my Seeinginkspots Blog and the August Stampin' Up! Artisan Stitched All Around Blog Hop.  Did you land here from Connie Collins' Constantly Stamping Blog? Did you see her cool use of the framelits?  

I too have a pretty cool idea to share with you using the Stitched All Around Framelits to add faux zippers to your paper crafting projects.  Take a look at this festive Bermuda Bay birthday card complete with a center front zipper and the cutest Berry Burst candle embellished zipper pull!

Simply tug on the zipper pull to open the card...

...and reveal a gift card or money or a sweet sentiment or a photo or whatever.

Here is a quick photo tutorial of how I assembled my card.
Step 1.  Design and put together the inside.
Step 2.  Add some Tear and Tape Adhesive to two sides only.

Step 3.  Create the front panel zipper by adding two rows of faux stitching with the straight stitch thinlit.  Use a piece of cardstock to align and evenly space the thinlit.  The photo below shows the thinlit lined up right against the Lemon Lime Cardstock which is just resting on top of the Bermuda Bay piece.

Step 4.  Use the circle shaped framelit to cut a partial circle out of one end of the two rows of faux stitching.
Step 5.  Fold back and forth on the stitch lines to "prime" the unzipping action.  Without this step the pulling down rips more than unzips.
Step 6.  Add the zipper pull just under the notched out partial circle with twine.

For all of my cards I decided I would combine the Stitched All Around Stamp Set with the Blow Out the Candles Stamp Set.  I just think this new photopolymer birthday themed set is totally versatile and cute.  And, the Stitched All Around Bundle pairs with everything!

The Stitched Labels Framelits are SO amazing with all the cool details.  I thought the balloon strings weaving through the label framelit was so fun and added dimension and interest.

If you take a close look I have added faux cross stitching to the edges.  To get the stitching straight I ran it through the Big Shot after adding the DSP layer.  Just but the framelit right up against the edge of the DSP for perfectly straight stitching lines.

I have to tell you that the Stitched Labels Framelits are a MUST have for every stamper.  The options are wide.  You get all sizes and shapes of labels some simple and some more intricate.  And then you get two stitching pieces and even a quilting type piece--the set is awesome.

Take a close look at the quilting piece that is included as part of the Stitched Labels Framelits set.

Are you seeing all the crafty possibilities with the Stitched Labels Framelits?  It truly is a unique and "must have" set of tools to add to your collection.  Emma Goddard is up next and she has some more totally exciting things to share with these framelits and the Stitched All Around stamps.

2018 Artisan Design Team

Cathy Caines | Charlet Mallet | Connie Collins | Elizabeth Price

Emma Goddard | Jenni Pauli | Jennifer Frost | Jessica Winter

Kayla MacAulay | Kim McGillis | Lauren Alarid | Linda van Wely-Zwolle

Rhoda McPherson | Sarah Lancaster | Susan Wong | Sylvia Schreck

Product List 

Stitched All Around Stamp Set | Stitched Labels Framelits | Animal Expedition DSP

Blow Out the Candles Stamp Set | Candles & Confetti Framelits | Candle Embellishments

Thick Whisper White  Cardstock | Lemon Lime Twist Cardstock | Bermuda Bay Cardstock

Berry Burst Cardstock | Silver Foil Paper | Stazon Black Ink Pad | Lemon Lime Twist Classic Ink

Bermuda Bay Classic Ink | Berry Burst Classic Ink | Aquapainter

Adhesive Backed Sequins | Basic Rhinestones | Solid White Bakers Twine

Tear and Tape Adhesive | Stampin' Dimensionala | Mini Glue Dots

Blow Out the Candles

It  is time for a yellow and blue make green color challenge.  Hand Stamped Sentiments is hosting a fresh and lively color combo challenge that could be mixed up into just about any type of card or project.  I chose to whip up a simple b-day card that could work for any age male or female.

I have used the Blow Out the Candles Stamp Set and the matching Candles and Confetti Framelits along with some supporting help from the Stitched Labels Framelits.  I only used Whisper White Cardstock and the ink pads in the challenge colors.  A bit of Dazzling Diamonds Glitter accents the candles and frosting while a shoestring bow of Night Of Navy Medium Bakers Twine ties it all up.

Dimensional Layered Frames Tip

A while back my tip was shared by Stampin' Up! on Instagram.  I thought it would be fun to show it here on my blog for those who are not on Instagram.  So, without further adieu...

...Give your cards a huge presence by creating dimensional layered frames.  This is the perfect type of card to tuck in a gift bag, to attach to a present, or to hand deliver as it's a bit too bulky to send in the mail.  To make a dimensional frame for you hand stamped artwork follow the steps below for a 5" square card:

Step 1.)  Adhere a 3 5/8” square piece of  DSP to a 4” square piece of cardstock.  Next, score along all four edges of the top DSP layer using a Scoring Blade in a Stampin’ Trimmer.  

Step 2.)  Clip out the four corners along the scorlines using Paper Snips.  

Step 3.)  Fold upward on all the scorelines.  

Step 4.)  For the second layer cut a 4 1/2” square piece of cardstock, score 1/4” on all four sides, then clip out the four corners along the scorelines.

Step 5.)  Add Stampin’ Dimensionals to the back of the first layered piece.  

Step 6.)  Align the first layer into the second larger layer and fold up the sides. 

Step 7.)  Add your artwork.

Creation Station Artistic Expression

It's the first Sunday of the month which means it is time for a Creation Station Blog Hop.  What is Creation Station?  We are a group of Stampin' Up! Demonstrators from around the world who love to stamp and blog what we create!  This month we have a fabulous theme and it is huge.

"Artistic Expression" is our theme which means we can craft up projects with any products from pages 127-179 of the SU! Annual Catalog.  I chose to create with the Pick a Pennant Stamp Set and the Playful Pennants Framelits.

If you know me, you know that I LOVE banners and make lots of them.  To have a stamp set and matching framelits to whip up banners on cards well...that is a definite yes for me.  For this hop I have not only been chomping at the bit to make cards with banners, but I finally saw the movie Coco and was delighted with the story and was blown away and inspired by the saturated colorful palette.  

Both cards include vivid hand painted watercolor backgrounds.  The first with Blueberry Bushel and Gorgeous Grape and the second with Mango Melody and Flirty Flamingo.  Both cards also feature the Pick a Pennant Stamp Set and greetings from Bunch of Blossoms.

For the blue card I cut the pennants from colored cardstocks first and then stamped the details.  I did half the opposite with the mango card.  I stamped the pennants, then cut them out, and last I stamped the striping details.

Your next stop along our "Artistic Expressions" hop is with Linda Van Wely.  She is one top notch, amazing, and ultra creative stamper.  Thanks for stopping by and seeing what I've been stampin'.

to Linda Van Wely

Products List Card 1

Pick a Pennant Stamp Set | Playful Pennants Framelits

Bunch of Blossoms Stamp Set | Watercolor Paper

Basic Black Cardstock | Blueberry Bushel Cardstock | Highland Heather Cardstock

Balmy Blue Cardstock | Gorgeous Grape Cardstock | Whisper White Cardstock

Stazon Jet Black Ink | Whisper White Ink Pad | Blueberry Bushel Ink Pad | Gorgeous Grape Ink Pad

Scalloped Tag Topper Punch | Black Baker's Twine | Mini Stampin' Dimensionals

Products List Card 2

Pick a Pennant Stamp Set | Playful Pennants Framelits | Bunch of Blossoms Stamp Set

Stitched Shapes Framelits | Watercolor Paper | Mango Melody Cardstock | Whisper White Cardstock

 Mango Melody Ink Pad | Flirty Flamingo Ink Pad | Stazon Jet Black Ink

Black Baker's Twine | Mini Stampin' Dimensionals