Kate's Paper Creations

Colorful Seasons Seasonal Layers

So, I do like fall colors too and it is mid-August and I'm not ready for summer to end but we have to think ahead and fall is coming whether we like it or not.  I'm really not complaining, I like all the seasons and am thankful I get to live where I can enjoy them all.  

Here I used the Colorful Seasons stamp set and the Seasonal Layers Thinlits, this time with traditional fall colors.  I absolutely LOVE the new Mango Melody orange color that was added this year to the Stampin' Up! color line.  It has become one of my favorites next to Blackberry Bliss.

It's amazing how just a couple of layers can make a card so much more elegant and inviting.  We are making this one at my workshop today.  I pre cut all the die cuts because it is just too much to pass around the Big Shot.  They will get to see how to punch the tags with the Everyday Label punch and find out how we got that beautiful background.  You can get those instructions and a supplies list on my These Are My Stamps site.

On the inside of the card I simply added a 1/4" strip of Mango Melody card stock down the side.

Enjoy!

Kate

Colorful Seasons Seasonal Layers

Time to re-visit a returning favorite of mine.  The Colorful Seasons stamp set and Seasonal Layers Thinlits.  This is a beautiful stamp set that covers multiple seasons.  There are flowers for spring, snow flakes for winter and leaves for fall as well as a branch you can adorn for any season.

And, who said that leaves had to always be brown, green, orange or yellow?  Not me! I really like the color scheme I used for this card.  It is made using Blueberry Bushel one of the new IN colors for 2018-2020 and I am loving this blue.  It is awesome used full strength but it holds its own when stamped off as well.

Sometimes I like to do something on the inside of the card as well 

As usual you can find complete supplies list and instructions on my These Are My Stamps site so hop on over there for those.  

Remember, I do try to support my hobby through orders so please consider shopping for your stamping supplies through my online Stampin' Up! store.  Simply click on the shop now button and you'll be whisked off to my online store.  You can also shop through my TAMS site simply by clicking on the supplies list there.  Thank you!  Make note of the monthly hostess code too.

Kate

Pop Of Petals Graceful Garden

Hello again.  I have another Pop of Petals card for you today.  

This one incorporates the Four Petal Flower Punch and uses an additional stamp set and the Decorative Ribbon Border Punch to create a lovely card that could be used for Mother's Day, Birthday, or just a simple Thinking of You card.

See a supplies list and instructions on my These Are My Stamps site.

Thanks for stopping by.

Kate

Stamparatus Tips & Techniques

The Stamparatus is a stamp positioning tool that is available in the current Stampin' Up! annual catalog.  I was privaleged to be a part of the team of demonstrators that gave input on how this tool should be developed.  Even so, I have had to learn how to use this tool just like the rest of you.  I had never owned one before and didn't even know they existed until I participated in the development.  

There are lots of other demonstrators in the media world putting out all kinds of videos on various techniques and how to use the Stamparatus.  I am not set up to do videos but for those who purchase the Stamparatus from me I am providing a few extras like some laminated templates for doing the Wreath Technique, a laminated grid sheet to use on top of the foam mat, and an instruction sheet with tips, tricks and info on how to do 5 different techniques.

My instructions include how to for:

• Hinge Stamping
• Mirror Stamping
• Wreath Stamping
• Multi Step Stamping  and
• Multiple die cuts/punch Stamping

As well as variations of these techniques as applicable.  What I have put together is not comprehensive by any means but it is printable so you can follow along with the instructions while you are at your work table.

Let me share some pictures of cards I made using the various techniques:

Wreath Stamping:

Hinge Stamping: Horizontal and Vertical

Multiple Die Cut & Punch Stamping:

Multi Step Stamping:

Mirror Image Stamping

 

If you haven't yet purchased a Stamparatus I hope you'll consider purchasing yours through my on line store.  Simply click on the Shop Now button to the right and you will be directed to my online store.

Enjoy!

Kate

 

 

Stamp Room Organizing

Every time a new Stampin' Up! catalog comes out it puts me organizing mode.  You may be excited to know that the 2018 Holiday catalog from Stampin' Up! has 39 new bundles!  Yes, you got that!  39!  Amazing!  And we all like those bundles because fussy cutting is just not one of our favorite things to do.

However, this presented a little bit of a problem for me.  Storage.  I typically put all of the dies into regular stamp cases, label the spine and put a picture in the front.  I also place a picture in my library notebook and then both get labeled with the stamp set name they coordinate with.  This made it easy for me to just place them on a shelf in alphabetical order.  The stamp sets were also marked with the name of the coordinating dies so when I putlled it I would know which die set, if any, coordinated with it.

That was all fine and good but I have a limited amount of shelf space and it was getting very full so I'm trying something new.  I decided that instead of have two separate cases I would combine the stamp set and the coordinating die set into one regular stamp case.

That helped create much needed shelf space.  There are a few dies that do not have a direct coordinating stamp set.  Die sets like Layering circles, squares and ovals, Stitched Shapes, Happy Birthday Thinlits.  There were also a couple of dies that came with double stamp sets which I already placed into one case.  These sets remain on the shelf and I still have that "catalog notebook" that I mentioned earlier so I can look through it to find what I'm looking for.

So, we'll see if I like this new idea.  If I  don't I can always change it back to the previous system but for now I think I'm liking it.  One other advantage is that I don't have to buy extra cases for the die sets that way.

Let me know your thoughts.  Is this something you might give a try?  I'd love to hear from you.

Kate

Pop Of Petals Basket Weave & Quilt Top

I know the titles I put on these posts probably seem a little silly sometimes.  What I try to do is put major elements of the project in the title so it will show up better when a search is done on the internet.  I'm not very smart when it comes to creating an on line prescence but this is just one of my feeble attempts.

Anyway, today I am sharing a card I made using the Pop of Petals stamp set, the Quilt Top and Basket Weave embossing folders.

I've been having a lot of fun with the wonderful embossing folders that Stampin' Up! has added this year.  Embossing adds so much depth and interest to a card and they are so easy to use.

As I usually do I have prepared an instruction sheet and supplies list on my These Are My Stamps site and you can shop either from there or here.  I appreciate those of you who support me by shopping with me.  I put a lot of work into creating these for you and it's really nice to get a word of encouragement too.

So, enjoy!

Kate

Pop Of Petals

Hello Happy Stampers,  I am now getting ready for my August workshop and I will be featuring the Pop of Petals stamp set that coordinates with the Four Petal Punch.  This is a really cute stamp set and there are a number of different designs that can be made with it. 

For my first card I just stamped, no layers really except the white on Highland Heather.  I used all different colors of greens for the various leaves and stems and added some color for the various flowers.  I did stamp the butterfly with Tuxedo Black Momento ink, colored it with markers and cut it out attaching it with dimensionals.  

A very simple fairly quick card to make.  As usual you can link to my These Are My Stamps site where there are instrucitions and a supplies list.

Thanks for stopping by and remember I appreciate your feedback and if you don't have a demonstrator please consider shopping with me through my on line store.  You can easily  get there by clicking on the link to the right of this post or by clicking on the supply list at my TAMS site.

 

Enjoy!

Kate

Pop Of Petals and 4 Petal Punch

Ok, so most of you who follow my blog know that in addition to being a Stampin' Up! demonstrator I am also a Silhouette Cameo electronic paper cutter owner.  These two wonderful avenues make what I do so much easier and opens a whole new world of possibilities.

For instance, let's say you have a stamp set that you really like and wish there were die cuts for.  I run into that sometimes and I know we all like those "bundles" that Stampin' Up! offers.  Well, I recently purchased the Pop of Petals stamp set.  It coordinates with the 4 Petal Punch that will punch out the various flower shapes.

BUT, there are also some really cool leaves, stems, and small flowers in the set as well and there are no dies for them.  Now, I don't know about you but I like to add dimension to my cards by adding layers and these would be great for that.  Of course, you can always cut them out by hand, often called "fussy cutting" and I do that when I only have one or two to do but if I want to make more I look to my Silhouette Cameo.

With the Cameo software I can stamp the images onto a piece of white card stock in a nice dark color, scan them into my computer, open them up in the studio software and trace them.  Once I've done that I can create cut lines to cut out mulitiples and either stamp or color them after they are cut out.

One other great feature is I can make a template to use with the Stamparatus and set it up to ink all those cut outs perfectly every time.  So, you see how one product complements the other.

I've done that for this card that I'm sharing with you today.  Stampin' Up! followers don't despair.  I will be sharing several cards that don't incorporate use of the Cameo.

After stamping the images I scanned them as a jpg.  Then open the jpg in Silhouette Studio and use the Trace option to trace the images.  Then I cut out a template that I could use with the new Stamparatus stamp positioning tool and cut out however many of the pieces that I wanted from plain white card stock.

To get the stamps placed in the best possible way I began by placeing an inexpensive piece of copy paper behind the template and then placed the stamps and tested the placement by inking and stamping through the template to the copy paper.  It took just a few tries to get the placement just right.  Then I was ready to place the plain white card stock cut outs in the template, ink the stamps and begin stamping.

Once they were stamped I used my Paper Piercing tool to pick them out of the template.

The one with the purple flowers I colored with Mossy Meadow and Highland Heather markers, the others I just used a Mossy Meadow ink spot to ink.

I'm planning to use some of these with the Varied Vases stamp set.  The stem on this card I was able to cut out mulitples with the Cameo and then I just inked them with a sponge dauber.

The flowers are just stamped and punched out with the punch.  Just a hint, when stamping these pay attention to the orientation so that the punch will line up right when you go to punch them out.

Enjoy!

 

Sheltering Tree Wall Decor

I have been going to do a four season layout using the Sheltering Tree stamp set for some time but just hadn't gotten around to it.  Then the other day I was doing some internet browsing and saw several renditions of this idea so I decided it was time to make one for myself.

Someone posted on Facebook adding scripture to the images and I really liked that idea so I did the same.  I apologize I did not write down the name of the person who did that and I couldn't find the post after but I did case this idea making it my own in choice of colors.

The frame is from Studio Decor and can be found at Michaels.  In the store the price was $29.99 but with a 40% off coupon it was only $19.56 with tax and I felt that was affordable.  It is 8 x 20 from the Collage Collection.

I will post exact measurements and instructions on my These Are My Stamps site but it is important to note that I set up the art piece in my Silhouette Cameo so I could do my own printing of the text portion and then I stamped the rest.

I love stamping and making things and I love having scripture all around me so this is a win win for me.  I hope you like it and will give it a try.

 

Kate

A Good Day Delicate Lace Edgelits

I just couldn't resist putting the Pineapple Punch and Blueberry Bushel colors together.  This card just screams spring to me.  Bright, crisp, fresh!  I like the sentiments found in A Good Day stamp set as they aren't too big or too small and they coordinate so well with our punches and dies.

It seems as though everyone I speak to has been ready for some sunshine and we have had some these past few days and that is the inspiration for this card.  I hope you like it, let me know what you think.  I don't know if you can really see it but the Subtle Dynamic textured impressions folder was used on the Blueberry Bushel background.  This folder is quickly becoming one of my favorites because it adds some texture to the card without creating a specific background so it's more generic and can go just as well with flowers as a more masculine look.

Hope you enjoyed today's card.  Details can be found by going to my These Are My Stamps site.

Kate