Aqua Mist and Cake

Papertrey's Piece of Cake stamp set is one I've had since last fall and never used. Shocking, I know. I have been going through my Papertrey stamps and trying to use some of the older ones. I love them and buy most of them, but some have yet to see ink! I decided to use Papertrey's new Aqua Mist palette ink, ribbon, and cardstock. I cut my rectangles using nestabilities and then stamped the cake image. I stamped the flowers using Water Lily Green palette ink. The colors work very well together. I wanted to try a different way for making my bow, but I think it turned out a little big. The centers of all the flowers have clear Stickles, making them nice and sparkly. I love how Geny lines the inside of many of her cards and stamps inside so I did that to my card. You can see a hint of the flowers in the corner inside. Lining the insides makes them look so finished. This card could easily be used for a wedding or a birthday. Be sure to stop by this weekend or next week! I have some exciting news to share.
Recipe
Stamps: Piece of Cake (Papertrey Ink), Cardstock: Stamper's Select, Aqua Mist (Papertrey Ink), Ink: Aqua Mist, Water Lily Green, Ribbon: Papertrey Ink; Other: nestabilities, stickles

Thinking of You

This is the third Bella that I bought when I decided to try them. This is the one that I always wanted! I love her outfit! I used Kirsten's sketch. I have had the oval nestability dies for a while and I think this was my first time using them. The patterned paper was created using Papertrey's new polka dot set. I love that set! It makes it so easy to add polka dots. I colored Snowbunny Bella with copic markers. Then, I added liquid applique and fun flock to her coat and boots, making them nice and fuzzy. My scalloped oval needed a little more pop so I added white dots using the Signo white pen. Thanks for stopping by and have a great day!

Recipe

Stamps: Snowbunny Bella (Stamping Bella), Faux Ribbon, Polka Dot Basics (Papertrey Ink); Ink: Palette; Other: copic markers, liquid applique, fun flock, dew drops, velvet ribbon, signo white pen, cardstock (DCWV)

Baby Carriage Card Tutorial

This is my first tutorial so I will try to make every thing as clear as I can. If you have questions, feel free to email me or post a comment. I will edit the end of the post to answer any questions. This tutorial is how to make the baby carriage cards shown here and here.
Supplies
4 1/2 x 8 1/2 piece of cardstock for the base
4 1/2 x 4 1/2 piece of patterned paper
Cuttlebug
Nestabilities large and small circle sets
cuttlebug tag die
brads
paper piercer
straight edge scissors
scalloped edge scissors
pencil
adhesive
First, take your piece of 4 1/2 x 8 1/2 cardstock (I used Papertrey's new Aqua Mist cardstock) and score it in the middle. Fold it over like you would a regular card. Place your largest nestability circle die on top of your cuttlebug plates. Place the piece of cardstock so that a small portion where it is folded is just inside the circle. You don't want to cut a complete circle. You want a small flat spot on the edge of the circle so that your card will stay attached and you will be able to open it.








This is what your card should look like after you run it through the cuttlebug to cut it out. See the flat edge on the circle.




These are the materials I used to make the patterned paper for my baby carriage. I hand stamped my patterned paper using Papertrey Aqua Mist ink and a small stamp from Butterfly Kisses. Now, cut the patterned paper using the next largest nestability circle die.

Next, draw a triangle on your piece of circle patterned paper and cut it out using the straight edge scissors.

It's beginning to look like a baby carriage! My 4 year old son always recognizes the shape once I get to this point.

Now, lay your patterned paper over your cardstock card base. See the flat edge toward the top. You want it slightly off center so that your card will open correctly. Don't adhere the patterned paper yet. Just trace the outline where you cut out the triangle.

I hope this next step makes sense. Draw two lines just inside those that you made when you traced the triangle. You don't want to cut the first lines because we want the edge to be matted. Use straight edge scissors to cut the line on the bottom (I erased the lower line first and then cut the upper one).

Now cut the inside line on the top using your scalloped scissors. I use the line I drew as a guide to keep my cut straight. Afterwards, erase any lines that you can still see.

My scalloped scissors didn't give me a nice and crisp cut towards the top so I used a file to smooth the edges of the scallop. This step is optional, of course, since you might be happy with the cut you got.

Now, adhere your patterned paper to your card base leaving a nice mat around all edges. When you use the nestabilities to cut out something thick like these two layers for the card base, it often leaves a slight embossed center even if you didn't emboss it. I use this slight embossing as a guide to center my patterned paper.

Next, cut out 4 cardstock circles using your second smallest Nestability circle die and two patterned paper circles using your smallest die.

Center one of your patterned paper circles over a cardstock circle and pierce a hole in the center. I didn't use any adhesive since you will be holding it on with a brad.

Keep your wheel on your paper piercing tool and decide where you want to place it on the front of the card. I generally place it just on the edge of the patterned paper circle. Pierce the hole and attach the wheel with a brad. Repeat to add the second wheel.

Flip your baby carriage over. Now, you can see the front wheels and will be able to line up the back wheels. Add adhesive and the back wheels. We need the four wheels so that you can stand your card up.

Now, cut out a tag using the cuttlebug die and a piece of cardstock. I was able to cut a tag out from the edge of my scraps that were left over when I cut out my card base.

Now, stamp your sentiment on your tag (I used Water Lily Green Palette ink) and adhere it to your card base with a brad. I used the Blessed new baby sentiment from the Just Hatched stamp set.

I decided my patterned paper needed a little more pop. So I added tiny little dots to the centers of my images using Water Lily Green palette ink and my embossing tool. This is a great way to add tiny little dots. Just tap your embossing tool on the ink pad, "stamp" it in the center, and reink.

And here is my finished baby carriage card. I would LOVE to see your cards. If you make one, please post a comment so I can check it out!

Recipe

Stamps: Just Hatched, Butterfly Kisses (Papertrey Ink); Cardstock: Aqua Mist, Stampers Select (Papertrey Ink); Ink: Aqua Mist (Papertrey Ink), Water Lily Green Palette (Stewart Superior); Other: Nestabilities, cuttlebug die, cuttlebug, silver brads

nestabilities embossing

One of the best features of nestabilities (in my opinion) is the ability to emboss your shape that you just cut out. I love the depth it adds to even the most classic and simple cards. Now, occasionally, the die might not emboss as well as you would like. So, today I have a tip for making the embossing more crisp. The first photo shows a rectangle that I just cut and embossed with a nestability die and my cuttlebug. It is still in the die. It is kind of hard to tell in the photo, but I would like embossing to be more prominent.

My tip for making the embossing more crisp is simply to take an embossing tool (or I am using a rub on tool here in the photo) and trace along the embossing line while the shape is still in the die.
Now, you can pop the diecut shape out of the die. Here you can see the embossed rectangle removed from the die. The embossing is nice and crisp (though hard to capture in this photo ). I love this feature of the nestabilities and can't wait for the large rectangle dies to come out in a couple months!

ink storage

I thought I would add a post now and then with some tips that may be useful to some of you. My first tip is labeling my Palette ink pads. I saw a post on Lauren's blog where she labeled her Palette inks using one of Papertrey's label stamps. She stamped the label and put in on top of the ink pad so that she would have an accurate color representation for each ink pad. I loved this idea! I took her idea and altered it a little to fit my needs. My ink pads are stored in little cubbies. So, I wanted to be able to see the ink pad colors on the ends of the ink pads. I stamped the labels just like Lauren did using Papertrey stamps, but I cut just a little section out of the label and adhered it to the end of my ink pads instead of on top. This way, I can see what colors I have and what color I want to use at a glance. Thanks so much, Lauren, for the idea to use the labels. I love being able to see what ink colors I have and finding which one I want without having to take them all out.

ETA: I was storing my Palette ink pads upside down when I took these photos, but I now store them upright.

baby rattle card

There seems to be a theme to my cards lately! lol I didn't not plan it, but I seem to be making quite a few baby cards lately. This is the last card that I entered in the Papertrey Gueststar stamper contest (sorry to flood you with them all at once). I thought this card turned out so cute and was my favorite of my submissions. It's funny how different people are drawn to different things. I drew the template for the card, traced it and cut it out. I sponged the white cardstock pink with Palette ink. Then, I used the Faux Ribbon set to make the center line on the top. Next, I used the little flowers from Butterfly Kisses to make the pattern on the top of the rattle. The sentiments came from the Mixed Messages stamp set and the little flowers from Beautiful Blooms. I'd be happy to provide the template for personal use if anyone is interested. Thanks for stopping by and have a great weekend!

Recipe
Stamps: Mixed Messages, Butterfly Kisses, Beautiful Blooms, Faux Ribbon: Papertrey Ink
Cardstock: Stampers Select: Papertrey Ink
Ink: Palette
Ribbon: May Arts
My own template for the rattle shaped card

papertrey baby carriage

This was another of the cards I made to enter in the Papertrey Gueststar stamper contest. It wasn't chosen, but I still love how it turned out. The patterned paper on the carriage is stamped using the Beautiful Blooms stamp set. I like how some of the flowers coordinate with the cuttlebug flower die making it easy to cut them out. A few people have requested a tutorial on how to make these baby carriage cards so I'll try to get one done next week.

Recipe
Stamps: Mixed Messages, Beautiful Blooms: Papertrey Ink
Cardstock: Stampers Select: Papertrey Ink
Ink: Palette
Other: nestabilities, cuttlebug dies for tags and cut out flowers

Papertrey Honorable Mention

I woke up this morning to a bunch of emails congratulating on honorable mention for this card for the Papertrey Gueststar Stamper contest. Woohoo! Be sure to check out the other honorable mentions and vote for your favorite. I'd love to win, of course, but pick your favorite. What I love about this contest is that you get to see so many amazing different ways to use the stamp sets. I had a blast making this using all stamps, ink, and nestabilities. There is no colored cardstock or patterned paper in this card. All patterned papers are stamped and colored cardstock is white cardstock that I sponged with ink to match my colors. I do this often when I don't have any cardstock to match my project. I love using Papertrey stamps! Nichole's stamp designs just make it so easy and I have a blast using them!

Recipe
Stamps: Mixed Messages, Faux Ribbon, Beautiful Blooms: Papertrey Ink
Cardstock: Stampers Select: Papertrey Ink
Ink: Palette
Other: velvet ric rac: May Arts, nestabilities

baby carriage card

I created this card to enter in the Papertrey guest star stamper contest and then ended up not entering it (I decided to make a different one that I will share next to enter). I made this cute little card to resemble a baby carriage. It was really quite simple, but if anyone would like me to do a tutorial, let me know. I cut the shape of the card using the largest nestability circle (you could use a punch also). Just make sure you leave a little section that is not cut completely so that your card stays attached. Next, cut the patterned paper for your carriage. Then, cut the triangle shape out to make the shape of the carriage. You do this with the patterned paper first so that you know where to cut the card base and have the matted edge. I used scallop scissors to cut the upper part of the carriage. For the wheels, I cut more circles using the nestabilities. The tag came from a cuttlebug die. I stitched around the edge of the card, but I'm not sure you can see that very well in the photo. Last, attach the tag and wheels using brads. Hope everyone is having a great Valentine's day. I need to go get those cookies in the oven!

Recipe
stamps: Mixed Message: Papertrey Ink
patterned paper: Lilykate by Basic Grey
flowers: Prima
other: nestabilities, cuttlebug die, brads, sewing machine, scalloped scissors

Sweet Baby Onesie

I love the inspiration I get from reading Lauren Meader's blog. A while back she posted some baby onesie cards that were so cute! She has a tutorial for them here. I didn't use the tutorial to make mine so mine is a little different, but I think both versions are such a cute idea. Mine just looks a little more like a onesie dress with the way it flares out more. Anyway, the onesie is made to be the same size as a regular A2 card. I used Papertrey's Green Thumb and Mixed Messages stamp sets for the strawberry and the sentiment. I masked the sleeves, collar, and where the snaps are and sponged Palette ink directly onto my card. My punches has a hard time punching through the Papertrey cardstock so next time I would use a lighter weight cardstock for the base. I ended up cutting the collar by hand after my punch marked the area for me. I scored the sleeves and bottom with my scorepal. I love how the little eyelets at the bottom look like snaps and really complete the card. These would make the most adorable baby annoucements.

Recipe
Stamps: Green Thumb, Mixed Messages: Papertrey Ink
Cardstock: Stampers Select: Papertrey Ink
Ink: Palette
Other: eyelets, Scorepal

Bella Birthday

I got my first bellas! Since I decided to try unmounted rubber stamps instead of only acrylic stamps, a whole new world has opened up. This Partygirlabella was so cute, I couldn't resist her. I started out with an idea for the layout of this card after I saw a sketch on Debbie Olsen's blog. I stamped the image using Brilliance Graphite Black ink on Papertrey Stamper's Select cardstock and heat set. Then, I colored the image using copics. I added liquid applique and glitter to the cupcake for a little sparkle. I stamped the sentiment from Papertrey's Mixed Messages on the tag using Palette Noir. The ribbon is from SU!, but I think it is retired (cranberry). I love this shade of red! This second photo shows my completed images and the copic colors used to color her. Can you believe that many colors go into that one little image?! Someone once asked me if I thought copics were worth it and I have read threads on SCS where people debate if us "normal" stampers really need them. Well, I don't know that they are for everyone and they are very expensive, but I love mine. I like the vibrance of the images and being able to blend the colors. Watercoloring has never been my thing. It looks beautiful when other people do it, but I prefer my copics.

Recipe

Stamps: Stamping Bella, Papertrey Ink

Cardstock: Papertrey Ink, DCWV

Patterned Paper: JoAnn's (it's that same stack as yesterday)

Ribbon: Su! Cranberry (retired)

Tools: copic markers, Making Memories punch, liquid applique, prisma glitter, tag

Little Penguins

I got some new stamps in the mail today and they are so cute! They are my first set of CC Designs stamps from All That Scraps. They come already mounted on EZ Foam and with a cd case for storage. These little penguins are so adorable! Of course, I had to ink one of them up right away. I cut the mat for my image first using my nestabilities in my cuttlebug. Then, I stamped the penguin and the Papertrey sentiment in Brillance Graphite ink. I heat set the ink and then used copics to color the penguin and balloons. I used the colorless blender to take a little color away from the penguin's tummy, balloon, and beak to add a little dimension. In the photo, the red balloon looks a little splotchy, but it is a reflection from the glaze I put on the balloons and the penguin's beak. Remember, you can always click on the photos if you want a bigger image so you can see details better.

Recipe:
Stamps: CC Designs. Papertrey
Patterned Paper: JoAnn's (it was a huge stack of paper, but not DCWV)
Ribbon: May Arts
Tools: copics, nestabilities, dimensional glaze