Tagged: Big Shot

July 25, 2014

Blendabilities LOVE and How Perfectionism Can Ruin Your Creativity

Maybe you’ve noticed I’ve been absent from this space for far too long!!! And I’ve missed it. A lot. I love having a reason to get up and create everyday. And I’ve missed you. You’re amazing, and you keep coming back, and you continue to order from me. Thank you!!

So what’s with the title? Perfectionism is the reason I’ve been absent. Now I could say it is grandbabies and moving and school and volunteer work and, and, and, but truthfully, it’s perfectionism. See, if I couldn’t do blog everyday, with all the bells and whistles I wanted to add, then I just couldn’t do it. Which is ri-di-cu-lous!

In fact, right now I want to change everything about my website. And I mean everything! I want a different layout, a different color scheme and a different header, etc., etc. But I’m going to embrace the here and now, and remember Rome wasn’t built in a day, for heaven’s sake. I’m sure you would rather for me to post three or four imperfect blog posts every week on my imperfect blog than just disappear. Am I right? Well, I hope I’m right, because that is my new No-More-Perfectionism Manifesto.

How has perfectionism stopped you this year? Join me and embrace your imperfections and enjoy your creativity!! Don’t let perfectionism ruin your creativity!

I am in love!!! Yes, it’s true! My new, true loves are the Stampin’ Up! Blendabilities markers!!! Oh My Goodness!!!!!!!! Seriously, folks, FUN, FUN, FUN! I love coloring. Ask my grandkids. I can color Ariel, Barbie and Scooby Doo like nobody’s business. So give me a new tool for coloring and I’m in heaven. Love, love, love!

But patience is NOT my strong suit. If you look closely at the flower above you’ll notice that it is not perfectly blended. (Yep, there’s that perfect word again.) If you’ve used alcohol-based markers, like Copics before or you’ve seen a demonstration, you know that working in small areas is ideal because it allows the color to blend together while it’s still damp or something very scientific like that. But I, on the other hand, do not like the idea of using four different markers on one petal before moving on to the next one. People, that’s seriously time consuming!

Each color comes in a three pack. Brilliant! No blending guess work. My approach on this flower was to start with the darkest color of the Cherry Cobbler assortment, coloring in the shadows of the petals. Then I used the medium Cherry Cobbler marker and pulled the darker color out a little further. And finally coloring with the lightest shade, I blend out to the petal edges. I love the look of white spaces in watercoloring so I left some small white spaces. I then went in with the lightest Pumpkin Pie shade and blended into the white spaces for some additional color interest and depth.

I used the Daffodil Delight Blendabilities markers for the flower center. I then added a few of the tiniest pearls. Be sure to use the Memento stamp pad with your blendabilities. The Memento stamp pad and Whisper White card stock are a perfect pair for “blendabiliting”. Yep, I made that up. “Blendabiliting.” I think I will be doing a lot of that. I hope you like my very first blendabilities project. There are many more to come!

This card also features other great, new products: the Something to Say stamp set, the Moonlight Designer Series Paper stack and the Hello Honey Stitched Satin Ribbon.

(All supplies are Stampin’ Up! and can be ordered through my online store. Thank you! I love my customers! <3 )Stamps: Blended Bloom wood-mount #135906, Something to Say wood-mount #134177 or clear-mount #134180

Ink: Momento Stamp Pad #132708

Paper: Whisper White cardstock #100730, So Safron cardstock #126957, Moonlight Designer Series Paper stack #133701

Extras: Big Shot Die-cutting Machine #113439, cuddlebug embossing folder (the Lovely Lace ef #133737 would make a great substitute), Hello Honey Stitched Satin Ribbon #133671, Corner Punch #135346, Dimensionals #104430

Quick Links:

Shop Stamping Julie Stampin’ Up! store .
Subscribe to monthly My Paper Pumpkin craft kit. You’ll love getting these kits in your box each month. Sign up now and get 50% off your first two months!! Yay!
Weekly Deals! Check out this week’s deals.
Buy 3 Designer Series Paper packs and get one FREE

Enjoy! Julie

June 18, 2013

Really Good Greetings Thank You Flowers

I’ve had the idea for this thank you card swimming around my head since the introduction of the new Stampin’ Up! In Colors – Strawberry Slush, Baked Brown Sugar, Coastal Cabana, Crisp Cantaloupe, and Pistachio Pudding. If you look closely you’ll see that the front panel is scored into sections, then in each section is a Floral Fusion Sizzlets flower with the ‘gee, thanks’ (from the new Stampin’ Up! Really Good Greetings stamp set) stamped in the top middle section in Strawberry Slush.

I even made a matching envelope. The envelope was stamped with the flowers from Betsy’s Blossoms in Strawberry Slush. I’m making a coordinating envelope with almost every card these days. It doesn’t take much to do and I think it makes the card extra special. But if you are like me you are wondering about the dimensions on this card.

I had to do some real math to get this panel to work out just right. Here’s my math. The card base measures 3-3/4″ x 5-1/2″. The front panel is 3-1/2″ x 5-1/4″. The front panel is scored across at 1-3/4″ and 3-1/2″ and then turned and scored crosswise at 1-3/4″. When you are done, each scored section is 1-3/4″ square. Of course, the Simply Scored Scoring Tool made this a super simple task!

The new Strawberry Slush In Color is definitely one of my favorites, so I used that to stamp the greeting. If you stamp your greeting on an angle, you didn’t have to worry about lining it up just right to make it straight. Plus, I think it adds more whimsy and interest to the card. What do you think?

Each flower was centered with a circle of contrasting cardstock and topped with a rhinestone. I just love the self-adhesive rhinestone Basic Jewels. And I love the fact that they also come with a few rhinestones attached in a line, which was perfect to underline ‘gee, thanks’.

Here’s the card recipe:

(All supplies are Stampin’ Up! Click on the product link to visit the online store for pictures, details & ordering.)

Stamps: Really Good Greetings wood-mount #130330 or clear-mount #130333, Betsy’s Blossoms wood-mount #131955 or clear-mount #126006

Ink: Strawberry Slush #131178, Crisp Cantaloupe #131176, Pistachio Pudding #131177, Coastal Cabana #131175, Baked Brown Sugar #131174

Paper: Whisper White #100730

Extras: Big Shot #113439, Sizzlets Floral Fusion #115959, Simply Scored Scoring Tool #122334, Itty Bitty Shapes Punch Pack #118309, Rhinestones #119246, Dimensionals #104430

GRAB YOUR GREETINGS AND SAVE! 25% off three popular stamp sets. Ends June 30th.

Enjoy! Julie

June 13, 2013

Mosaic Madness Bridal Shower Gift Card

I cannot even tell you how much fun I had playing with these new products!!! Label Love and Mosaic Madness stamp sets with the matching embossing folder and punches, and new colors – Crisp Cantaloupe, Smoky Slate, Pistachio Pudding, and Coastal Cabana.

Remember my cute niece Danideej from here, here and here. She’s getting married!! I went to Nashville, Tennessee, to attend her bridal shower, and I wanted a special card to include with her gift. I made this card with Danielle in mind.

This card measures 4-1/4″ square. The white panel is 4″ square and embossed with the Modern Mosaic embossing folder. I always trim out my panel first before embossing. If you do it the other way around, you run the risk of damaging the embossing while you’re trimming – so cut first.

I also decorated a standard-sized envelope to match the card by stamping Crisp Cantaloupe three times without reinking which created this shaded design.

This cute, clean card is easy to make with the matching stamps and punch. I simply stamp the mosaics in the colors I wanted and quickly punch them out and adhered them to the embossed background. Easy peasy!

By stamping the Label Love ‘just for you’ twice in Smoky Slate and Crisp Cantaloupe and then punching and trimming, I made this two-tone tag. The natural trim is an unexpected element, which is what I was going for. I love the texture and contrast.

Here’s the card recipe:

(All supplies are Stampin’ Up! Click on the product link to visit the online store for pictures, details & ordering.)

Bundle: Mosaic Madness wood-mount stamps with punch #132734 or clear-mount stamps with punch #132733

Label Love wood-mount stamps with punch #132723 or clear-mount stamps with punch #132722

Ink: Smoky Slate #131179, Crisp Cantaloupe #131176, Pistachio Pudding #131177, Coastal Cabana #131175

Paper: Whisper White #100730

Extras: Big Shot #113439, Modern Mosaic embossing folder #129984, Mosaic Punch #131267, Artisan Label Punch #130920, Natural Trim #129287, Dimensionals #104430

Enjoy! Julie

May 25, 2013

Stampin’ Up! Aviary Stamp Set Retiring :(

Stampin' Up! Aviary CAS Greeting Card angle A Clean and Simple Greeting Card

I absolutely love the Aviary Stamp Set! Here are a couple of samples from this past year. One is super simple and the other is more involved, but both include bright little birds.

And here’s the other which is a little more involved with more bright color birds inspired by the Summer Smooches designer series paper and includes rhinestone accents.

aviary top note card

Aviary Top Note Card

bird rhinestone detail

The Aviary Stamp Set will no longer be available after May, but you can still get yours now.

Enjoy your holiday weekend! Julie

May 22, 2013

Glittery Watercolor Friend Card

just believe watercolor glitter card stampingjulie.com

I really like watercolor cards with unexpected color splashes so I thought I would experiment with the technique and I ended up with the inky fingers to prove it! I used Shimmery White cardstock and the Just Believe stamp set for this experiment.

just believe watercolor glitter card stampingjulie.com

I stamped the label with Midnight Muse and embossed it with clear embossing powder. Then I stamped ‘friends’ with Primrose Petals. After trimming out the label I layered it on a Silver Glimmer paper label. I used Primrose Petals and Silver Glimmer cardstock to create and layer the butterflies from the Beautiful Wings Embosslits die.

just believe watercolor glitter card stampingjulie.com I squirted the background cardstock with water before splattering Primrose Petals, Midnight Muse and Always Artichoke reinkers which allowed the ink to spread. I put a few dabs of Silver Sparkle Dazzling Details glitter adhesive and spread it with my finger on the background. I also added a couple of dots of the glitter to the butterflies and the flowers on the label. Finally, I added a few rhinestones.

Here’s the card recipe:

(All supplies are Stampin’ Up! Click on the product link to visit the online store for pictures, details & ordering.)

Stamps: Just Believe wood-mount #116948 or clear-mount #120453*

Ink: Primrose Petals #126858, Midnight Muse #126860, Always Artichoke #126972

Paper: Shimmery White cardstock #101910, Midnight Muse #126843, Primrose Petals #126841, Silver Glimmer Paper #124005

Extras: Big Shot #113439, Beautiful Wings Embosslits #118138, Silver Sparkle Dazzling Details #127845, Decorative Label Punch #120907, Clear Embossing Powder #109130, Heat Tool #129053, Rhinestones #119246, Dimensionals #104430

* retiring, available until June 3rd.

Click here for the retiring Stampin’ Up! stamps list. Click here for the retiring accessories list (with updates on sold out product). Order your favorites now!

Save even more by adding Clearance Rack items to your order!

Have you tried the watercolor splattered look? What do you think?

Enjoy! Julie