Occasions Mini Blog Hop Rue Des Fleurs

Welcome!!  It’s so nice to have you visiting my little blog!  You’ve arrived at tour stop #8.. Created By You!  Today’s projects will all feature the new Occasions Mini Catalog Stamp Set:  Rue Des Fleurs (page #22).

The tour officially begins at Noon (EST) and runs through Midnight (PST) Sunday January 1st.  Hopefully you’ve arrived here from stop #7 - Kim’s blog:  Stitchin 'n Stampin On Paper!  Kim will be showcasing the Heaven Blessed Stamp Set, how fun is that?

Should you get lost along the way, you can see all the stops on the tour by visiting The Main Tour Thread at Stampin’ Addicts!

Earlier this morning I shared two CAS thank you cards using the Rue Des Fleurs Stamp Set, and for the tour I’ve got additional fresh and fun new ideas… and since we’re only allowed 4 photos on the tour, I’ll share additional how to info and details in next week’s post!

Don’t you just love this watch laden umbrella?   It was stamped in Early Espresso Classic Ink, and hand colored with a regal rose marker to make the image pop.  Now, you may want to run and get your sunglasses for the next one, LOL.

The same image with a brighter palate, Calypso Coral, Lucky Limeade, and Basic Black.  Ooh..and a sneak peek of a few more new Occasions Mini and Sale-A-Bration exclusive products too!

The next one is more of a 3-dimensional collage card, and my personal favorite… hope you like it too!

The background image and butterfly are from the creative Elements stamp set.  You can see a bit of the new doily sizzlit… which I covered with a fine layer of Champagne Shimmer Paint.  I modified the new blossom flower punch a bit, changing it to a 5 petal flower… come back next week and I’ll tell you how!  Now, don’t you just love the Rue Des Fleurs Stamp Set!!

The next stop on today’s tour is #9 – Mickey Roberts Blog:  Paper Conversation, where she’ll be showcasing the new stamp set Apothecary Art… can’t wait to see what she did with it!!

Throughout the tour, you’ll see these buttons… to take you on to the next stop, or back to the prior stop… it’s an easy way to guide you through the tour…

Click this one to go to stop #9, Mickey Roberts’ blog…

Or you can go back to Kim’s blog, Stop #7 by clicking this one!

Enjoy the tour, I’ll be back on Monday with some new details and extra photos

Have a very safe and Happy New Years’ Weekend!

Hugs,

Sharon

Technorati Tags: blog tour,stampin addicts,occasions mini catalog,sneak peek,rue des fleurs,calypso coral,lucky limeade,creative elements. stampin up store,sale a bration,new year,blog hop,paper,conversation,fresh and fun,stampin n stitchin,blogs

Sharon Field

Rue Des Fleurs CAS Blog Tour Sneak Peek

Welcome, and Happy New Years’ Weekend!  I know many of you are early risers and readers… and others only come here for the regular Super Saturday Tutorials… LOL. Today, I’ve got something else up my sleeve… The Stampin’ Addicts Occasions Mini Blog Hop and Tour!

The tour doesn’t begin until 12 noon EDT… and not wanting to disappoint my readers, I decided to create two posts today… both posts will feature my blog tour spotlight stamp set:  Rue Des Fleurs… LOL, the tour rules only allow four photos, and I made way too many projects!

This morning I’m sharing one card done two ways… both in a very Clean and Simple (CAS) style, and both featuring the fabulous fun new Occasions Mini stamp set Rue Des Fleurs!

The card above is perfect for my senior stamping groups… mounting both stamps on one large block, they only have to ink and stamp once!  The 3.75 x 5” focal VV card stock was popped with dimensional dots, and color was added along all card stock edges using an Early Espresso Stampin’ Write Marker, but could just as easily be dragged through the ink pad to add color.

This one is stepped up a notch… adding an extra Very Vanilla Layer, both were cut using the new Occasions Mini Catalog Edgelits “Adorning Accents” dies!  (The dies may be found on page 7 of the mini catalog… at the bottom of the page, and have matching/coordinating embossing folders too, isn’t that cool?)

After die cutting the card stock, the top two layers were also outlined with an Early Espresso Marker, stamped and glued together before adding three early espresso brads using a mat pack and paper piercing tool. 

LOL, I’ll have to share/show my Senior Stampers the stepped up version too… they’ll probably want to make it in the next session even though it is quite similar to the first card!

Speaking of Seniors.. I’ve finally updated my calendar with all new classes, technique classes, and more… I’m adding a new club in the new year too… check out my Classes and Events tab, and register early, use the Contact Me form!

Stay tuned, and be sure to check back around noon for the start of the Stampin’ Addicts Blog Tour!  I know everyone has been working very hard on their projects.

PS.. the tour will go through Sunday/Midnight PST…. so I’ll see you again on Monday morning.  I look forward to reading your comments.

Have a safe and happy New Year!

Hugs,

Sharon

Technorati Tags: rue des fleurs,occasions mini catalog,stamping,clean and simple,very vanilla,cas,classes and events,contact me,blog tour,die cut,edgelits,adorning accents,brads,mat pack,paper piercing tool

Sharon Field

Rue Des Fleurs & This Weekend’s Blog Hop

Rue Des Fleurs is just one of many wonderful fresh and fun new stamp sets showcased in the Occasions Mini Catalog available on January 4th 2012.  It’s a stamp set which immediately stole my heart, and my chosen showcase set for this weekend’s Stampin’ Addicts Blog hop and tour!

I’ve already provided you one sneak peek project, a card made for the Stampin’ Queens Sketch Challenge HERE… and over the next few days, I’ll be sharing additional samples and ideas for using this wonderful new stamp set too!

When I first viewed the Rue Des Fleurs stamp set, a million ideas popped into my head… literally, a million!  If you know me well, you totally know that’s not only possible, but frightening.  The problem becomes…where to start??

LOL, I chose to begin with the flower adorned corset image.  Stamped in Early Espresso Classic Ink, it was easy to enhance with markers in shades of pink… and pink rhinestones too!

Stacking the trim image along the left side… didn’t quite get them aligned.  LOL, had I used the Stamp Ma Jig, it wouldn’t have been a problem… but since I eyeball almost everything… well, you know!

Ultimately my Rue Des Fleurs card needed a little something else to provide balance… and a rhinestone enhanced flower did the trick!  This flower was punched using the new blossom punch, embossed with perfect polka dots TIEF and then sponged with crumb cake classic ink.

So… I thought I didn’t NEED another flower punch, but after playing with this one, it wasn’t a matter of NEED, but necessity!!

Tomorrow morning I’ll be sharing two quick and easy, 2 minute CAS cards using the Rue Des Fleurs Stamp Set… and around noon EDT, you’ll see another NEW multi dimensional and layered card using this stamp set along with other elements from the new Occasions Mini Catalog…. be sure to catch a ring side seat for the tour,  you won’t want to miss these samples and ideas!

PS… I’ve got a surprise announcement for the tour too!  Be sure to stop by and leave a comment (hint, hint… )

I look forward to reading your comments!

Hugs,

Sharon

Technorati Tags: stampin addicts,blog tour,rue des fleurs,early espresso,pool party,card stock,blossom punch,occasions mini,blog hop,surprise

SQSC19 Fun Poppy Parade Birds on A Wire

Poppy Parade is one of my favorites from  the In-Color Collection 2010-11, it’s also the color of the currently popular “Angry Birds”…such a pretty fire engine red/orange color!

Today’s sketch challenge features the cute, not angry bird image from the “Best Of Everything” and birthday sentiment from the “A Word For You” stamp sets featured in the 2011-12 Idea Book and Catalog (IB&C).

The fun flag background is Designer Series Paper from the Big Top Birthday designer series paper pack, and perfectly set the stage for my poppy parade birds on a wire!

The DSP was punched just above the pennants using a 1-1/4” circle punch and backed with tempting turquoise card stock before adding the cut out birds with dimensional dots.  Aren’t they fun?

I didn’t happen to have just the right brad for my brad bow… so I just changed the silver brad to a sparkly silver one using heat ‘n stick powder and fine cosmo glitter.

Today’s card was put together in less than 5 minutes, with the help of a little printed designer series paper.  With bright colors, happy birds and just a little glitter, this birthday card would be fun surprise for both young and old!

Today’s Stampin’ Queens Sketch Challenge diagram includes ribbon, layers and four punches… pretty Clean and Simple I(CAS) design, don’t you think?  Certainly you’ve got some fabulous DSP and stamps that would make a great card!  We’d love to have you play along with the Design Team this week… You know the drill!

I’m busy prepping for this weekend’s Stampin’ Addicts Occasions Mini Blog Hop!  Can’t wait to share my sneak peek featured stamp set, and links to all the creative ladies on the hop!

See you tomorrow!

Hugs,

Sharon

Technorati Tags: birds,big top birthday,designer series paper,angry birds,stampin addicts,stamping,circle punch,poppy parade,dimensionals

Water Coloring Greeting Card Kids UDI67

Here we are with another new year right around the corner, and another Utah Divas International color challenge!  Today’s card is a very basic design with a water colored focal image, a little folded ribbon and just a couple of layers.

The Very Vanilla Card Stock background was stamped using the large pine image from the Lovely as A Tree stamp set.  After inking the image with Garden Green classic ink, an Early Espresso marker was used to color the tree trunk. 

I colored right over the Garden Green ink, then stamped direct to paper (DTP) three times, without adding more ink… just a little moist air to the inked image before stamping.

The umbrella girl is from the Greeting Card Kids Stamp set… she’s one of my favorites!  After embossing the image onto water color paper, she was colored using re-inkers and an aqua painter.

The card needed a little ‘something’ in the upper right corner - a bow or knot just didn’t seem right… but a little Bashful Blue folded ribbon filled the space while keeping a flat profile.

To create the folded ribbon, I simply ran SNAIL (double sided adhesive) along one side of the ribbon and then folded it back and forth.  After placing the ribbon onto the card front, each of the folded loops were secured in place with mini glue dots.

Here’s today’s UDI67 Color Challenge…. kind of funny to see the inspiration piece as Christmas bulbs a couple days after Christmas, but lovely just the same!

Come and play along with the Utah Divas International Design Team this week using the colors Real Red, Garden Green, Very Vanilla and More Mustard OR Brushed Gold on your hand stamped project.  You know the drill!

As we approach the new year, we’re also rolling out a new Mini Catalog… there’s only a week or so left to order those special items from the current Holiday Mini Catalog! Be sure to visit my online stampin’ up store to have your exclusive catalog items delivered right to your door!

See you tomorrow with a new challenge from the Stampin’ Queens!

Hugs,

Sharon

Technorati Tags: udi color challenge,very vanilla,lovely as a tree,greeting card kids,bashful blue,folded ribbon,holiday mini catalog,shop online online stampin up store,water coloring

More Guest Stamper Christmas Cards

Another Christmas has come and gone, the packages unwrapped and garbage cleared… Hope you’re rested and warm, and that Santa was good to all of you!

Today I’m sharing a couple more guest stamper creations received through the mail…

A pretty Rich Razzleberry, Whisper White, and Pewter Christmas card from my good friend and fellow blogger Ret Cudmore!  Ret cleverly used images from the Artistic Etchings Stamp Set to create an beautiful embossed hanging ornament!

The crown became the ornament cap… can you see the upside down crown?  How cool is that?  She even added some penned accents along the cards’ whisper white layer.  A very Clean and Simple card, yet elegant and lovely too!

This one was tucked with Christmas gifts, from a Christmas gift exchange I participated in this year… I just love polar bears!!  The card is not handmade, but it’s furry and fabulously cute, don’t you think?  Thank you Lisa K!  Can’t wait to play with all my new goodies and toys!

I’ve got more cards, but haven’t really had time to photograph them all… and just realized I have one from my friend Candy that I hadn’t even opened yet!  LOL… I’m sure it’s very special, better dig through my bag and find it!!  Maybe I’ll share a couple more towards the end of the week…. would you like that?

Tomorrow I’ll have a new Utah Divas International color challenge card to share, and on Wednesday another Stampin’
Queens Sketch Challenge with a fresh new design I think you’ll love.

Hugs,

Sharon

Technorati Tags: cas,clean and simple,elegant,artistic etchings,guest stampers,ornament card,rich razzleberry,whisper white,polar bear,christmas cards,christmas ideas

Merry Christmas to You and Yours!

Wishing you and yours a Very Merry Christmas and holiday season!   Today I’m spending a quiet day with family, so I thought I’d share some of the very creative and fun Christmas Cards I received this year!

This first one is from my friend Cindy, who has bee stamping with me for about a year… Love how Cindy combined the designer series paper and images on this card, isn’t it cute?

I especially love how Cindy shaded her snowman with Bashful Blue classic ink, and added snow to the Christmas tree… very fun!

Oh.. and didn’t she do a great job of coloring the snow as well?  Cindy doesn’t have a stamping blog, but if she decides to start one I’ll be sure to let you know! 

LOVE the bright colors in this one too… very “Florida” card from my friend Princess Lisa!  I was pleasantly surprised when her card arrived in the mail, LOL…  I sent one to her too… but she probably won’t get it until after Christmas as my cards were mailed quite late!

Lisa also added rhinestone and pearl accents to the stamped images which were marker’d direct to stamp… too cute!!  Lisa has a blog too:  Crafting With Princess Lisa be sure to leave her a sweet comment!

See you tomorrow with a couple more cards I’ve received in the mail… and then we’ll be back to the regularly scheduled program here at Created By You!

Have a great day!

Hugs,

Sharon

Technorati Tags: quick post,christmas cards,crafting with princess lisa,cindy ware,rhinestone jewels,pearl jewels,snowman,stamps,card stock,whisper white,designer series paper

Super Saturday: Embossing on Fabric

Merry Christmas Eve!  Can you believe Christmas is tomorrow?  Hope you’re ready!!

Today’s Super Saturday Tutorial was inspired by experimentation, play and, well… a little desperation!  Although I have most of my posts planned for the forthcoming week, I didn’t have a planned Super Saturday Tutorial! 

This is the card made with a piece of embossed denim… deciding to emboss the fabric was actually because of a creative opportunity… or a mistake, LOL.

If you look closely at the photo above, you can view remnants of the filigree stamped with Lucky Limeade Classic Ink.  I thought since I had applied Whisper White Craft Ink to the denim, perhaps it would stand out more. 

There were two problems though… even though I had heat set the fabric with my embossing gun and allowed it to dry overnight, it apparently was still wet.  Some of the ink transferred to the fabric, but mostly the craft ink just transferred to the background stamp… oops!

So… stage 2, heat set the fabric using parchment paper and iron, then used Versamark ink and embossing powder instead… much better results!

Then embossed the lighthouse from Uncharted Territory as my focal image using more gold e.p…. and my card was done!  (Don’t look too closely at the photo… must have digitized it while editing, LOL.)

I decided the process was a bit too complicated, so opted to simplify, instead using a plain piece of denim.

The denim was stamped with the filigree background stamp using versamark ink and embossed using pewter stampin’ emboss powder from the Holiday Mini Catalog.  After inking the edges with a Versamark Pen, the fabric was embossed a second time with Pewter embossing powder too!

I did have a piece of Stampin’ Up! Holly Berry Bouquet Christmas fabric free which I received from Stampin’ Up!  I’m a quilter, and a total fabric snob… and prefer very tightly woven fine cotton fabrics and consider Stampin’ Up! fabric better suited for crafting than sewing.

So I’m going to walk you through clean and simple embossing on fabric to show you the variations which may be produced.

Super Saturday Tutorial:  Embossing on Fabric

Supplies

• Versamark Ink
• Embossing Powder
• Heat Tool
• Background Stamps*
• Iron and Ironing Board
• Parchment Paper
• Craft Ink**
• Embossing Buddy***

* Used in today’s Super Saturday Tutorial: 

• Filigree
• En Francais

** If you don’t like the color of your fabric, apply craft ink, cover with parchment paper and iron to set.

***This item is not currently available through Stampin’ Up!

Step by Step Tutorial – Basic Embossing on Fabric:

1. Iron fabric if it is creased or wrinkled, to flatten.
2. Ink background stamp using Versmark Ink, stamp directly to fabric.
3. Apply desired color of Embossing Powder, and set with heat tool.

This sample was stamped with the filigree background stamp, and embossed using gold stampin’ emboss powder.

I thought it was still a bit too plain and uneventful… so embossed a second piece with the En Francais background stamp, and embossed using gold Stampin’ Emboss Powder:

Better… but what if?  So, I got a little crazy, LOL… and used both background stamps…

A little too much maybe?

Next weekend’s posts will feature fabulous, fresh and fun sneak products and ideas from the Occasions Mini Catalog and a Blog Hop too! 

I hope you have a wonderful Christmas Eve and a Very Merry Christmas filled with Happy Memories!

Hugs,

Sharon

Technorati Tags: filigree,stamp,holly berry bouquet specialty,embossing,pewter stampin emboss powder,gold embossing powder,tutorial,technique,embossing on fabric,en francais,versamark,ink,pen

Christmas with the Animals Composition

Do Zoo animals celebrate Christmas too?  We all know those who purchase Christmas presents for their cats and dogs… Do zookeepers and animal handlers do that too?  Why not!!

Today’s stamping share is a bit different…it’s not a card, it’s a composition using several animal stamped images and a Christmas format.  Hope you enjoy it!

There were several stamps used to create this Animal Christmas Composition, all which may be found in the Stampin’ Up! Idea Book & Catalog 2011-12 Issue:

• Christmas Collage #121279* page 150 (background)
• Natures Nest #113826* page 122 (dragonfly and turtle)
• Petite Pairs #122495 WM   OR #122497 CM page 164
• Zoo Review #122197 WM OR #122199 CM page 105

* These stamp sets are currently available ONLY in Wood Mount (WM), not Clear Mount (CM) format.

After stamping the  turtle, polar bear and dragonfly images, each was masked with a post it note before stamping the Christmas Collage Stamp using Marina Mist Classic Ink.

I really struggle to color dragonflies and turtles, but am finally getting a little better at the dragonflies I think…

After coloring the turtle with markers, water color crayons and an aqua painter, the shell was covered with Crystal Effects (CE).  Unfortunately, my CE was a little bit dry, so it didn’t float evenly on top of the very vanilla card stock resulting in some little voided areas.

Seeking a Creative Opportunity, I resolved the problem by simply touching up the void areas using a versamark pen, clear embossing powder and heat tool… which resulted in a wonderful textured shell.

The base card stock was Very Vanilla, and I wanted a nice white Polar Bear image… so the stamped image was covered using a whisper white Water Color Crayon, direct to paper (dtp).  After letting it set a moment or two, additional color was added using the same water color crayon and an aqua painter.

To add a little more texture, the polar bear was then thumped with the brush end of a versamark pen, after covering the image with clear embossing powder it was heat set.  I really like how the texture came out, don’t you?

The bells were colored with a Sahara Sand marker, then bling’d with tiny blue rhinestones… adding a bright touch and extra dimension to the Christmas Composition too!

I also used a mat pack and paper piercing tool to pierce the gold embossed ribbon image from the Christmas Collage background.  The holes were then used to thread ribbon through/around the bells.

I hope you enjoyed today’s Christmas Animal Composition… and look forward to reading your comments.

Tomorrow I’m staying home to stamp some more… I have been playing around with denim… hmm.

Hugs,

Sharon

Technorati Tags: zoo review,christmas collage,very vanilla,marina mist,petite pairs,natures nest,polar bear,embossing,ATC,collage,canvas

FAQ Tips for Searching Blogs and Google

Ah, Christmas is just a few days away... and I'm up to my eyeballs (as usual).  My DH says I work better under pressure, accomplish mountains of tasks, LOL... so here I am chopping away at the mountain, with no card to share today!  

But... wait... I've got something else to share!  Having had a ton of questions and emails on how to find things on my blog, I thought today I'd share some tips for searching my blog which will also work for you to search Google too!

TIPS FOR SEARCHING CREATED BY YOU!

• First of all, in the upper left corner of Created By You, just above my blog banner, there is a tiny search box.  Preceded by an orange “B” (for blogger), you can use the box to search past and recent posts!  For instance, if you want to find an Ornament, simply type “ornament” into the box and hit the magnifying glass just to the right of the box.
• If you want to search for a specific word combination, try using delimiters.   Delimiters are beginning and ending quotation marks that keep a specific phrase together, i.e. “Christmas Ornament”.   This works particularly well with Google search engines but not so well with the blogger search box… kind of hit and miss.
• For instance, if I search on “owl treat” there two projects that appear before the frequently asked for candy corn owl treat project.  The results in blogger search produce a bunny treat, and another post featuring the word owl before producing the actual project.

So… try thinking about specific words in the post to search on.  I remembered that the owl treat also included candy corn.  So I changed my blogger search box content to:  owl and “candy corn”.  Using the word AND between the search criteria allows you to produce a search inclusive of both terms… owl, and the delimited candy corn.  The result:  The owl treat was the second post that appeared!  Much better!

ARCHIVE SEARCH ON THE Created By You Blog:

• Another thing I’m often asked is “how do I view your archives?”  Yes, I do have an archive button on my blog… and it can be found in the left side bar of my blog, just below the facebook fan following photo of me!
• The archive is a drop down box, simply click on the arrow to the right and the monthly archival list will appear. 
• Click on a month to expand the selection further.

THE TUTORIAL PAGE ON CREATED BY YOU

My Tutorial Page needs updating… and will be soon   If the particular post you are seeking happens to be a tutorial, use this method to search Created By You:

• Go to the Tutorial Page HERE.
• Use the scroll bar to the right to page quickly through and select the tutorial you’re seeking!
• Click on the photo of the project and the related post will populate the screen!

I hope you enjoyed today’s interim post… if you have any questions, feel free to contact me!

Enjoy your pre-Christmas holiday!

Hugs,

Sharon

Technorati Tags: tips,tutorial,google,blogger,search,delimiters,faq,frequently asked questions,created by you,today's tips for bloggers

Occasions Mini Sneak Peek Rue Des Fleurs

Today’s Stampin’ Queens Sketch Challenge is a really simple sketch, and the perfect setting for the new Rue Des Fleurs Occasions Mini Catalog Stamp Set!  Fortunately, the Labels Framelits were in my Occasions Mini pre-order… which made completing this sketch really quick and easy too!

The color palette used in today’s SQSC18 challenge is Early Espresso, Very Vanilla, Crumb Cake, Blushing Bride, and Very Vanilla… don’t they look pretty together?

The floral corset image from Rue Des Fleurs was inked with early espresso classic ink, then colored with blushing bride, regal rose, melon mambo, and wild wasabi markers.  Tiny pearls were added to the corset and label framelit die cut, and then along the outer edges which had been sponged with Crumb Cake Classic Ink too.

The focal image had been stamped onto Very Vanilla Card Stock, even after embossing with the Vintage Wallpaper Textured Impressions Embossing Folder (TIEF) the contrast was a bit too harsh.  So, to remedy the situation, I simply sponged with Very Vanilla Craft Ink along all the edges and embossed raised portions.In a similar fashion, the next layer (Very Vanilla) was embossed using the Stripes TIEF and sponged with Pretty In Pink Classic Ink. 

BIG SHOT Double Embossing TIPS: Place card stock in TIEF, run through Big Shot Machine, and then sponge before the second embossing will make the sponging effect more prominent. When you turn the card stock 90 degrees, to emboss a second time, a larger piece will need to be processed twice.  ALWAYS feed the loose end of the card stock through the big shot machine first… this will avoid the “popping” sound and creating unwanted creases. On the third run, simply line up a portion of the TIEF with existing embossed pattern, again feeding the loose end first through the machine.

“Thanks” was inked and stamped using Regal Rose Classic Ink, fussy cut around the stamped image, and edges were sponged with Crumb Cake Classic Ink too.  This sentiment is also part of the Rue Des Fleurs Stamp Set!

Did you get a glimpse of the pretty stitched/folded ribbon?  That’s another new product sneak peek!! 

As you can tell by today’s SQSC18 sketch… I took a couple liberties, changing it up a bit… but that’s OK, you can too!   Why not play along with the design team this week.. you know the drill!  Visit the Stampin’ Queens Sketch Challenge Blog to add your creation using the linky tool!

Hugs,

Sharon

Technorati Tags: rue des fleurs,sneak peek,pretty in pink,crumb cake,very vanilla,framelits,challenge,sketch,occasions mini catalog,textured impressions embossing folders,2012,corset,stamps,paper,ink