O Holy Night Chalk Board Card

I still love the chalk board look and it's been a few months since I made a card with this fun technique.  But I think this stamp is perfect for it:

Colors: Coastal Cabana, Island Indigo, Basic Black.  Stamps: O Holy Night.  Big Shot: Stylish Stripes Textured Impressions Embossing Folder.  Accessories: Winter Frost Designer Series Paper Stack, Silver 1/8" Ribbon, Rhinestone Jewels, Whisper White Craft Ink, White Embossing Powder.

I made this card for a swap The layout is nice and simple, but the technique really makes it something special.  If you can't remember how to do the chalk board technique, I explained it in this post: CHALK BOARD TECHNIQUE.

This is just one of the Christmas Cards that will be available at my Holiday Stampin' Buffet next week. I hope to have all the projects posted by the end of the week so stay tuned!

Flat Bow Card

One last follow up to last weekend's Stampin' Addicts Winter Holiday Blog Hop: the flat bow card.

Colors: Island Indigo, Pool Party, and Whisper White.  Stamps: That's the Ticket.   Big Shot: Gift Bow Bigz L. Punch: Ticket Duo. Accessories: Silver Foil Paper, Island Indigo Textured Card Stock, Winter Frost Designer Series Stack. 

 

 

The inspiration for this card came from convention.  In the product showcase, they had a board that showed different ways to make bows with this die:

And just for good measure, here's the other board with samples:

When you purchase this die, it cuts the following shapes:



To make the flat bow on the card, you use four of the "fish tail" pieces and one of the small strips (for the middle). The Silver Foil Paper from the Holiday Catalog adds just the right bit of sparkle and shine to the the bow and card. And the Christmas greeting from That's the Ticket makes the perfect little "tag" for this card. 

I hope you enjoyed this closer look at the Gift Bow Bigz L die this week.  Next week, I'll have even more Christmas ideas as I start to post projects for my Holiday Stampin' Buffets.  Stay tuned!

Fringed Bow Box

More details today on the Fringed Bow Box from last weekend's Stampin' Addicts Winter Holiday Blog Hop.  First, here's a reminder of what it looked like:

And here it is from a different angle.

Colors: Pool Party, Bermuda Bay, Smoky Slate and Whisper White.  Stamps: Greetings of the Season (Holiday Carryover list). Big Shot: Gift Bow Bigz L Die.  Accessories: Bermuda Bay 1/8" Taffeta Ribbon, Winter Frost Designer Series Paper Stack, Iridescent Ice Embossing Powder, & Tag A Box Gift Box.

Just a couple of things to point out about this.  First, to make this bow I cut three of the larger double loops.  Then I folded the loops into the middle and cut each loop several times.  This will crease the loops.  To get them to look less creased, I just pushed the fringed pieces back towards the center.  I used my hot glue gun (we have such a love/hate relationship) and glued all the pieces together, including adding the ribbon.

Second, I feel the need to point out how perfect the Designer Series Paper Stack pieces work with these Tag A Box Gift Boxes. Almost like it was planned that way.  One piece from the stack makes the perfect cover for these boxes.  I just scored it 1-1/16" on each side and it makes the perfect cover for the box.  Scoring at 1-1/16" is a little tricky, but you just move the paper over so the edge is half way between the edge of your Simply Scored and the first 1/8" mark and then score at 1-1/8". 

It's hard to tell from the picture, but I did emboss the tag in Iridescent Ice Embossing Powder to add to the festive feel of this gift box.  This stamp is from the Greetings of the Season stamp set that isn't in either of the current catalogs.  It carried over from last year along with a few other Holiday stamps that aren't in any of the catalogs.  You can see them all here: 2013 Holiday Carryover List.

Join Stampin' Up! Now for Only $25

Have you ever even had the smallest interest or desire to be a Stampin' Up! Demonstrator?  Ever thought, I could do that?  Or, I  love the product and have a huge wish list, I bet I could save money if I signed up and bought from myself?

Now would be a great time to act on that thought.  In fact, I don't recall a better time to act.  In honor of Stampin' Up!'s 25th Anniversary, they are offering a $25 Starter Kit from today through October 21!!  Yep, for just $25 you get:

• Up to $26.95 in product of your choice.  Choose anything from any catalog or even from the things not in the catalog (photopolymer stamps, envelope punch board, Best of 25 stamp sets, etc).  Your total needs to be more than $25 but less than $26.95 before tax.
• Business Supplies including catalogs, order forms, and other items you'll need if you want to make this a business.
• Two free months of Demonstrator Business Web Services.

 Of course there is much, much more you get by becoming a demonstrator:

• 30% instant income on your first order of $150 placed within the first  45 days of joining Stampin' Up!  Combine this with the current hostess special (extra $25 in hostess benefits for a $250 order) and you'll get an even greater value.  This can be a workshop order or a demonstrator order (for yourself)
• Special Perk for those that sign up during this promotion: host your first $150 workshop in 30 days and you can pick any stamp set from the 2013-2014 Annual Catalog (redeemable with your first order in December). Combine this with the above offers for even more benefits!
• 20% instant income off every order you place while you remain an active demonstrator
• Most demonstrator orders also qualify for current Stampin' Up! promotions and always qualify for hostess benefits
• Sneak peeks and special pre-order opportunities on up coming products and catalog releases
• Access to Stampin' Connections, an online community just for Stampin' Up! Demonstrators to exchange project ideas and business tips
• Stampin' Success, a magazine that comes every other month full of project and business information

I run my Stampin' Up! business the way that works best for me and you can too.  Demonstrators come in all shapes and sizes and all different levels of interest.  Many join just to buy for themselves at a fabulous discount.  Some like me, run a limited business to cover the cost of having lots of fabulous craft supplies.  Others help or fully support their family on the income they earn from Stampin' Up!

Worried about what kind of commitment you'll be making? Don't!  Stampin' Up! does not require anything from you once you sign up.  If you never place an order, you will not be penalized.  You can just keep your starter kit and enjoy the product.  If you decide you'd like to remain a demonstrator to take advantage for the ongoing benefits, you just need to sell or purchase enough to cover your quarterly minimums ($300) before the end of your first full quarter (in this case that would be March 2014). 

If you want more information or are ready to sign up, visit my Demonstrator Website and click on "Join Now."  You'll see details on all the benefits and more information on the career plan there and see a copy of the Independent Demonstrator Agreement.  You can also call me and I can answer any questions you might have.  But don't let this offer pass you by!

Curly Paper Wreath

I hope you enjoyed the Stampin' Addicts Holiday Blog Hop this past weekend.  I love hopping with these talented demonstrators. So many wonderful ideas!

I promised to share some more details this week on the projects so today I'm sharing more on the wreath I featured on the hop.

Colors: Cherry Cobbler, Old Olive, Crumb Cake, Chocolate Chip, and Whisper White. Big Shot: Gift Bow Bigz L Die, Expressions Thinlits.  Accessories: Season of Style Designer Series Paper, Champagne Glitter Paper, Glitter Brad, Cherry Cobbler 1" Stitched Edge Grosgrain Ribbon. Other: straight pins, Styrofoam wreath form.

Just a reminder that I did not make this wreath.  The very talented Angie Pegram swapped it with me at convention this summer.  She used 1/2 a package of Designer Series Paper and a Styrofoam wreath form to make this wreath.  She cut six sheets into 1 inch strips.  Then use a bone folder to curl the paper (like you would run curling ribbon over a scissor blade).  Finally, take each piece and pin to the the wreath form.

I added the bow and the glittery "Merry" to her creation for the blog hop.

 

The die cuts two different-sized loops and two tails.  For this bow, I cut two of the larger double loops and four of the smaller loops.  I then stacked them together and used a glitter brad to put it all together. 

This will be one of the projects at my Holiday Stampin' Buffet next month.  Watch for more projects and details to be posted in the coming weeks.

Stampin' Addicts Winter Holiday Blog Hop: Gift Bow Die

Welcome to stop #14 on the Stampin' Addicts Winter Holiday Blog Hop!  I've been on a bit of a hiatus the past couple of weeks, but I'm back and just in time for another great hop. If you're hoping in order than you've arrived from Jennifer Timko's Stampin' On the Fly and her fabulous take on the Expressions Thinlits. (I feel a few CASEs coming on Jen!).  If this is your first stop, we are all linked in a circle so you won't miss a thing.  If you get lost or want to chat it up, head on over to Stampin' Addicts!

I'm featuring the Gift Bow Bigz Die from the Holiday Catalog on this hop.  I picked this because I needed to stretch myself and actually use this die that I bought.  I have three projects to share and I will be sharing more details on them next week here so check back!

My first project I'm sharing isn't really my project at all (or at least the main part of it isn't).  I received this fabulous wreath as a swap from fellow Stampin' Addict Angie Pegram at convention this past summer.  My part of the project was to add the paper bow to the bottom of it.  Here is a close up of the bow:

You can see that I have used multiple "loops" from the die to make this bow a little fuller.  I also used a glimmer brad to hold it all together.

My second project was inspired by a project Shelli Gardner shared on the mainstage at convention this year.  Again, I used multiple loops, but this time I added some interest to the bow by fringing it and adding the ribbon. 

And last, but not least is a card.  Here I used the "tail" pieces to create a flat bow that could easily be mailed.  Love this silver foil paper and the textured card stock that are also in the Holiday Catalog and how much interest they add to a simple card like this.

Thanks for hopping a long with us today.  Now you're off to Heidi Bak's Running with Scissors and her amazing projects made with the Tags 4 You stamp set.