I've gotten so many requests for a tutorial on using the Stamp-A-Ma-Jig tool. I've been meaning to make this video for ages, and I finally got it done! :)
The Stamp-A-Ma-Jig is one of my all-time favorite tools - I really don't think I could make a card without it. It's a stamp positioning system that allows you to see exactly where your image is going to stamp. It's especially useful for sentiments, and sets that involve layering stamps on top of one another to create a detailed image. (Stampin' Up! refers to this as "two step stamping," and these sets now tend to be photopolymer for easy lining up. But the Stamp-A-Ma-Jig is indispensable for older clear-mount or wood-mount two-step stamps.)
Another thing I love about the Stamp-A-Ma-Jig? It allows me to "try out" different positions for a stamp before I commit to anything on my card. Say I can't decide where I want my sentiment to be. Or maybe I stamped one flower, and I can't decide if I want a second flower to its right or its left. Since the Stamp-A-Ma-Jig imaging sheet is clear, I can move it around on my card to see exactly what my stamped image will look like in all the places I'm considering stamping it. Awesome! :)
So are you intrigued? Or maybe you're one of the folks who's always kind of wondered about the Stamp-A-Ma-Jig, but never really figured out what it's all about. Go ahead and check out my video demo below, or over on my YouTube channel. Let me know if you have any questions.
Oh, and by the way, here's the finished card that I'm working on in the video. It uses one of my favorite new sets, Garden in Bloom. The sentiments are from a super cute and clever set called Words of Truth. "I love you more than grilled cheese" is my favorite sentiment from this set! LOL.
Hey there! So... no Start-to-Finish Sunday video today. (Sorry!) Why, you ask? Well, because I'm kicking off my annual Christmas in July week a day early! Today is my Intro post over on Catherine and Cathy Create, and I decided to share one of my favorite things: Textured Impressions Embossing Folders from Stampin' Up! And I wanted to create a bonus card featuring an embossing folder and some of the new Holiday Catalog goodies that you'll be able to shop for on August 1st! So check it out...
I used one of my favorite embossing folder techniques on this card. It's so easy and just takes a few extra seconds. You just ink the folder itself either with a brayer, or by swiping the ink pad directly across the folder, carefully place your cardstock inside, and run it through your Big Shot just like normal. (Check out my video tutorial on this technique.) For this card I used the Beautifully Baroque embossing folder.
Here's a close-up of the results of this technique. Isn't that pretty? And it's even more stunning in person. I love it with this tone-on-tone effect (this is Baked Brown Sugar cardstock and ink), or you can mix and match colors for a totally different look.
And here's where that sneak peek comes in! :) Three things here that you'll be able to shop for on August 1st - that's this Thursday! You can see here two stamp sets, Wonderful Wreath (#132748 wood only) and Christmas Messages (#131790 wood/#131793 clear), and one of the DSP collections, Season of Style. So pretty!
And this is the card I shared on Catherine and Cathy Create. I just love how a little bit of embossing can instantly elevate a simple card! If you've already been over to Catherine and Cathy Create, you may be here because I promised a supply list for this card. So, without further ado, here it is! Thanks for stopping by, and I hope you'll be back tomorrow through Friday for 5 wonderful Christmas in July projects! :)
Welcome Welcome Welcome to the Young Crafters Unite Blog Hop! Isn't this exciting? :)
If you're here from Jess Larsen's blog, then you're in the right place! If you've come across my blog by another way, I highly suggest you head on over to the Young Crafters Unite homepage and start at the beginning. This hop is huge and it's jam-packed with amazing talent. Plus, every comment you leave on the participating blogs (through July 4th) will increase your chances to win prizes from Lawn Fawn, Simon Says Stamp, and Paper Smooches. Sweet!
What makes me a Young Crafter is pretty much the obvious: I'm young, and I'm a crafter. I'm also still (yes, still) relatively new to the world of contemporary paper crafting, and I like to think of myself as something of an apprentice (in that I'm learning from them, not that I aspire to take over for them!) to "the greats," which, in my opinion, includes amazing ladies like Kristina Werner, Jennifer McGuire, Stephanie Howell, and Lisa Spangler (just to name a few!).
For my hop project, I wanted to do something really exciting. (Well, ok, at least it's exciting to me. I hope you agree. lol.) The theme of the hop is My Favorite Things, and I have to admit I was a little bit stumped by this at first. My original plan was to wander around my craft space and choose, say, 10 of the items I'm loving the most lately, and then make a card with them. But I thought that might be too risky. So I decided to interpret the theme a little differently...
Let me be honest with you here for a moment. Lately, there have been a lot of things in my life that I'm not so thrilled about. But I'm working on it. I'm working on being happier, being more motivated, and enjoying my journey. And along with that theme, two of my favorite things right now are challenging myself and setting goals. So here are the challenges I set out to accomplish with this project:
1. Document more of my everday life.
2. Try out more scrapbooking.
3. Use my Studio Calico kits.
4. Allow a project to take more than one sitting. Don't feel the need to finish now, or rush through
things.
So, without further ado (aka my propensity for blah blah blah), here's my project...
I'd seen a few of these accordion envelope mini-albums in various places online (most recently this beyond-amazing one that was featured on the October Afternoon blog), but I couldn't find a tutorial for them. So I decided to challenge myself to figure it out :)
Each "page" is an envelope where you can tuck photos, journaling, and memorabilia. The envelopes themselves are decorated, giving space to glue things in a more traditional scrapbook fashion.
I also made some little inserts to make more room for journaling, making lists, and gluing treasures.
Now, because I couldn't find a tutorial for this type of book, I decided to make one! Ok, two actually :) But since this has already been a very long post, and I'm sure you're anxious to get back a-hoppin', I'll let you know that the next stop on the hop is Brittney Baker's blog. I can't wait to see what she's created! And don't forget to comment along the way!
For those of you interested in how I made this mini-album, you can watch my videos below. Part 1 is about the inside, and Part 2 shows how I made the covers. Thanks for stopping by!
'Tis the season for gift giving, treats, traditions, and small luxuries. So I've decided to put together a couple posts throughout the month with some things I've found recently that I love. Gift ideas, recipes, project ideas... anything seasonal that I stumble upon and want to share! :) So, without any further ado (aka babbling from me) - here are my first picks!
I found this recipe on the poppytalk blog back in September. My dad loves all things Scandinavian - Swedish especially - so I immediately emailed them the recipe, and then promptly forgot about it. And then my mom brought it over for our pizza-and-tree-trimming party last night. She said it was so easy to make, and very different from other cake recipes, that she actually questioned whether there was a mistake in the recipe. And it is so delicious! The perfect combination of lemon, almond, and vanilla. I have a feeling this will definitely become a go-to recipe.
For a few years, I didn't even have a winter coat, I just wore my LL Bean fleece. Last year, though, I started to feel super cold in October, and I knew the fleece just wasn't going to cut it for the rest of the winter. On a whim, walking by Eddie Bauer at the mall, I decided to look at their down jackets. Hands down, the adorable bright red one I walked out with just a few minutes later was the best money I've ever spent. I just purchased this vest as a treat for myself, and - surprise, surprise! - I am absolutely in love. It has the best fleece lining in the color and pockets - it feels like a really expensive stuffed animal! :)
I just discovered the amazing online boutique of this garden and home store in Pennsylvania. All I can say is, too bad I had all my shopping finished before I found it. They have the most beautiful selection of home decor, accessories, and stunning gift items for your favorite gardener. My faves? Vintage icicle ornaments, a brightly colored scarf on a spool, a hot cocoa treat set, a vintage fruit crate. Love.
This is a small, Quincy, MA-based company run by a brother-sister team that got its start peddling t-shirts on college campuses around the Boston area. I went to Boston University, and then lived in Quincy for a year while working in Cambridge, so I'm all about supporting my neighbors. And this company has such a cool concept: They make super fun tees that say love in various languages. A friend of mine (who also lives in Quincy!) made me aware of the company when she was raving about how much she loved the tee she got from them. I can't wait to get one for myself! :) But I'm sharing their site because I think these T-shirts would be fantastic gifts for husbands/boyfriends, teenage kids, best girlfriends - almost anybody on your list!
OK, that's it for my first round of December picks. I'll try to do at least a post a week for the rest of the month. Hope you enjoyed this assortment of recent fun finds! Let me know if you've come across anything you think is share-worthy!
