Papertrey Ink January Release Countdown Day 4

Well friends, it's the 4th and final day of the Papertrey Ink January release countdown! I have quite a bit to share with you today and up first is a card made using the new Psalm Reflections: January stamp/die set! I'm excited about this particular series because I studied Psalms last year and have been reading one chapter every day this year as well. They are such beautiful scriptures so it's fun to have stamps to make pretty cards with! 

There is a coordinating die to cut out the word 'Lord' and an impression die to make some sunrays coming out from each side of the word. I didn't use those because of the oval die I used, but they would be really pretty if you designed your card just right!

I also added a trio of leftover cherry blossoms from yesterday's card; they are so fun to color and put together!

I layered a panel of Enchanted Evening cardstock that was die cut using the On the Border: Floral Bliss Die over an A2 panel of the same cardstock for a tone-on-tone look. I also added some Dark Indigo ink around the corners for contrast.

Next up is a series of cards using some fun new products! This card features the new Welcome to the Neighborhood: On the Move stamp/die set. The sentiment on the moving truck is from the new Welcome to the Neighborhood stamp/die set!

A new family moved in around the corner so I thought it would be fun to personalize this card with their new house number. I stamped the 629 numbers using the Fancy Floral Numbers stamp set using Sweet Blush ink on Sweet Blush cardstock. I die cut them using the Fancy Floral Number dies.

I stenciled some clouds onto a white panel and then added the house numbers at the top. I layered the cute moving truck and moving boxes, furniture, etc. at the bottom.

My next card uses the bigger moving boxes included in the Welcome to the Neighborhood stamp/die set. I also paired it with the new Larger than Life: Home dies and coordinating sentiment set.

I added some Nuvo Crystal Glaze to the heart in the center of the O.

There is 3 different styles of boxes; I only used two for this card, and then there are a bunch of fun things to pack the boxes with.

My final card for today and for the release is one of my favorites; back when the Bring Home the Holidays dies were first released, I told Julie that they would be my new go-to house dies for all of my Welcome to the Neighborhood cards! Don't they look so cute with this cute moving truck?

To begin, I die cut all of the pieces from the Bring Home the Holidays die set; I didn't use most of the pieces, but I always like having options! I colored the hills using Twisted Citron, Mowed Lawn, and Rustic Wilderness Distress Oxide inks and layered them over the top of a stenciled A2 panel using liquid glue.

I chose three houses to place here and there and then added the fences from the Welcome to the Neighborhood: On the Move die set. I also used the two pine trees to frame the yard.

The Welcome to the Neighborhood sentiment is from the new Welcome to the Neighborhood stamp set. I also used the new Larger than Life: Home sentiment stamp set for the truck. 

I layered all of the rest of the pieces using foam squares to finish it off. I love having a lot of welcome cards in my stash! Thanks for fluttering by!

 

Papertrey Ink January Release Countdown Day 3

Welcome to day 3 of the Papertrey Ink January release countdown! I'm sharing a few projects today using some fun new products! My first card features the new Larger than Life: Home dies and the new Into the Blooms: Cherry Blossom dies!

I die cut all of the pieces for the flowers from white cardstock and then colored them using Distress Oxide inks. I used liquid glue to assemble them together.

I also die cut the HOME from white cardstock and then used finger daubers to color the roof portion and the heart in the middle of the O.

The stamped sentiment at the bottom is from the new Larger Than Life: Home sentiments.

The Into the Blooms: Cherry Blossoms have leaves, a branch, and buds included in the die collection!

My next project is a simple birthday invitation that would be really easy to mass produce.

I know I will be using this die collection for many more things, not just invitations!

I also used the new party time stamp set for the wording on the invitation.

Using pattern paper makes easy work of creating these invitations! thanks for fluttering by!

 

Papertrey Ink January Release Countdown Day 2

Welcome to day 2 of the Papertrey Ink January release countdown! As promised, I'm back with more birthday inspiration! I have a couple of projects today using an assortment of birthday products to enhance your birthday creations!

My projects for today include a treat/gift box, a card, and a coordinating envelope.

At christmastime, Julie mentioned that the inspiration for the Iconic Christmas stamp set came because she likes to doodle and draw on the outside of the envelopes she sends with her cards. I thought that was so cute, so I decorated the envelope for the birthday card/ invite!

I used the Scalloped Treat Box die that was released last month to showcase a few of the new birthday products being released this month. All of the paper for my projects is from a paper pad my sister gave me: Recollections {Happy Cake Day} and it's so cute and fun...just perfect for these new dies!

I used the new Birthday Tag Kit for the tag and the new Love to Layer: Decorative Brackets for the strip at the bottom.

The Birthday Tag Kit includes buttons, jute button twine, baker's twine, paperclips, mini clothespins, and TONS of dies to make all kinds of tags!

There is also a coordinating Birthday Tag Kit stamp set...I used it for the Happy Birthday image stamped at the top of the tag.

My card uses the same pattern paper and a few dies...the Love to Layer: Decorative Brackets dies, and the scallop detail at the bottom is from the new Birthday Celebrations die. The Let's Party die is also from that same collection.

I used different colors from the pattern paper to stamp the outside of the envelope using the Iconic Birthday stamp set. Join me again for day 3 of the countdown! Thanks for fluttering by!

 

Papertrey Ink January Release Countdown Day 1

It's January and that means it's time for birthday stamps and dies at Papertrey Ink! Up first is a sweet new set called Birthday Pops...yep, cake pops! Aren't they cute and clever? I tried making cake pops once....these paper versions are so much easier and not nearly as messy! Ha ha! The Birthday Pops stamp/die set comes with everything you can imagine to create the sweetest looking cake pops: sprinkles, toppings, bows, and more!

If the cake pops aren't cute enough, the set also comes with this cute hobnail jar image; this is going to be my new go-to jar for flowers all year long! Isn't it so cute?

The background for this card was created using the new Stargazing Hot Foil Plate and silver foil on Raspberry Fizz cardstock.

The little pennant flag attached to the cake pop with a bite out of it is included in the Birthday Pops stamp set and uses one of the MANY included sentiments. I stamped the 'Warm Birthday Wishes" sentiment, which is from the new Just Sentiments: From All of Us stamp set, in black directly onto the jar.

My second card for today is a CAS masculine design; it uses the new Birthday Your Way stamp set. This set includes a bunch of different Happy Birthday sentiments and a few of them having coordinating dies so you can cut them out. I chose this large, graphic sentiment.

The sentiment below the Happy Birthday sentiment is from the new Inside Greetings: From All of Us. My son's birthday was Friday and I was wishing I already had this made to give to him! ha ha!

I used the positive portion of the balloons that were die cut from the new Elegant Edges: Balloon Party die. I inked them using Orange Zest, Green Parakeet, and Tropic Teal ink.

The background was created by blending some Tropic Teal ink onto a white card base using a blender brush. I also added some Tropic Teal ink splatter over the top. I used post-it notes to cover up the bottom so it didn't get on the sentiment stamped on the base. I added the die cut sentiment afterward.

This concludes day 1; I'll be back tomorrow for more birthday inspiration! Thanks for fluttering by!

 

The Greetery {Have a Heart Collection}

Hello and welcome, friends! It's  great to be here today after quite a long break to help introduce the new 'Have a Heart' Collection from The Greetery! It's full of all things love and valentines; just perfect to get something made for all the people you care about! You can head over to The Greetery Blog for the official 'meet and greet' and don't forget to leave a comment here and on each of the designers' blogs for a chance to win one of TWO $50 gift certificates to The Greetery shop!

Valentine's Day is THE punn-y holiday, wouldn't you say? Betsy has come up with such a fun suite of products called 'Hearts at Home' with some sentiments and dies that work perfectly together to create those 'punn-y' valentines that are so much fun! 

At Christmastime, I bought these adorable lightbulb contains to fill with colorful m&ms for Christmas gifts for the cute kiddos at church. My two youngest boys each got one, so I had two left over and knew they would be absolutely PERFECT to use the 'Hearts at Home: Lightbulb' dies and the new 'Hearts at Home Sentiments' stamp set. You can find the plastic lightbulb containers HERE. I found this to be the best price for the quantity of containers and I needed quite a few for the Christmas gifts; I became a pro at filling lightbulbs with a funnel and a food scale to make sure every kid got the same amount! ha ha! Don't be fooled by their small appearance; each lightbulb holds a share size package of m&ms. 

Each lightbulb valentine also uses the new 'Hot Stuff' sentiment set. I chose the xoxo and the Be Mine sentiments for these two gifts. I die cut the lightbulbs from red and pink paper to switch things up. I chose silver glitter cardstock for the filament and the screw portion of the bulb. 

This photo shows you how cute the lightbulb containers are. The kids were super excited at Christmastime and wondered how I got candy into a lightbulb! ha ha! I layered all of the elements onto the smallest size of the Crimped Circle Tag using foam squares. The 'Hearts at Home sentiment set' has about 4 sentiments per die. There is a sweater and a hanger, a clock, a toaster, a set of his and her mugs, and the lightbulb and the coordinating sentiments are so much fun.

My next project for today uses the new Ribbon Maker: Scalloped Hearts die. I had so much fun making my Christmas Crackers, I thought it would be fun to  make some fun Valentine's Day treats using leftover crepe paper and the new hearts ribbon maker.

I actually made my own 'tubes' for this project since I hadn't been saving any paper towel rolls. The crepe paper collection that I bought for the crackers also included pink so I was excited to use it.

I used the new Tear Strip Tags: Valentine stamp set and the previously released Tear Strip Tags Die. This set is just like the Christmas version, just with Valentine's Day sentiments instead.....so cute!

I also added some fun ribbon to the ends and a tiny bouquet of flower using the Winter Medley Die. Each tube contains four Strawberries and Cream Lindt balls....yummy!

And last I'm sharing a card using the clock from the 'hearts at home' suite of products. isn't it just the cutest thing ever? I had so much fun putting it together!

This card also features the new Roundabout Hearts die and the new falling hearts background die. I absolutely love the background! The clock is really easy to assemble; the face of the clock has impressions where the die cut numbers go so you can easily place them. The hands have a hole in the end so you can put a brad in the middle, like I did here.

The 'Time to Be Mine' sentiment is from the Hearts at Home sentiment set and coordinates with the clock. I also added the xoxo sentiment from the new Hot Stuff sentiment set.

I hope you've enjoyed today's post! All of the new products will be in the shop tomorrow at 10 am ET. Thanks for fluttering by!

Dana

Angelica

Dawn

Laurie

Kelly (you are here)

Wanda

Melissa

 

The Greetery TGIF {All Wrapped Up Christmas Crackers}

 

Hello and welcome! It’s my turn for this week's TGIF for The Greetery!  I hope you’re all ready for Christmas and anticipating the joy and happiness of the day! I have officially sent out every single Christmas card I’ve made this year as well as a few stragglers from years past! With that being said, my creative spirit can never really be finished with Christmas! My project today is perfect for those of you who many find yourself in the same position and eager to create!

As soon as I saw the All Wrapped Up Collection, I knew it would be perfect to create Christmas crackers to be placed at each dinner setting on Christmas Eve or Christmas day! I created 7 crackers in total and I will explain how I made them and some tips and tricks to make assembling them a cinch! My cute mom and sister did the twelve days of Christmas for me one year and gifted me the beautiful “Night Before Christmas” tableware! They’re my favorite thing to use each holiday season and these crackers will look so cute at each place setting!

Ahead of making my crackers, I had saved any empty rolls of wrapping paper and paper towels. I just couldn’t bring myself to use empty toilet paper rolls! Ha ha! You can also find cardboard rolls online if you’d like that better. I used a finely serrated saw to cut each roll to 4 inches; you can choose what size suits you best. I purchased rolls of crepe paper that measured 10 inches, so I wanted the overhang to be long enough to add the scallop details. You can see in the photos that I made a few without scalloped edges so you can decide what you like best. You’ll also want to decide ahead of time what all you’ll be putting inside your crackers; traditionally they hold a paper crown, a joke, a sweet, and maybe a small trinket for children. 

I used the Ribbon Maker: Large Scallops Die and the Ribbon Maker: Petite Scallops Die to cut all of the details for the ends and the body of the crackers. I used liquid glue to attach the smaller scallop pieces to the ends of the crepe paper and set them aside to dry. To assemble, I simply added a 3 inch or so piece of 1/4-inch ScorTape to each of the long ends directly in the middle where it would adhere to the cardboard tube. I used a piece of grid paper to center everything and get the proper placement. As I mentioned earlier, my crepe paper measures 10 inches and the tubes are 4 inches. I simply laid the crepe paper out straight on the grid paper, placed the tube on top at one end between the 3 inch and 7-inch mark to make certain the tube was centered and rolled it up securing it at the end with the ScorTape. From there, I tied the ends (fill them up at this point) using silver stretchy cord. I used more ScorTape for the larger scallop piece in the center; this can be easily repositioned if needs be. I had a few that I didn’t center that well and it was a breeze to reposition, surprisingly enough!

As much as we all love “handmade”, I often like to use something that gives my project a professional touch; cue the hot foil! I used the Tag Team Duo Holiday Sentiments Hot Foil and then die cut them using the Tag Team Duo Dies. I added them to the middle of the crackers using foam squares in the middle. I tucked some greenery that was colored using assorted Distress Oxide inks using the Big Branches: Eucalyptus, Pine, and Ruscus dies! I tucked pieces here and there around each of the sentiments until I was pleased with the placement. I actually wanted to embellish them even more, but then remembered that they’re “crackers: and will be shredded come celebration time! Ha ha! You can definitely add as little or as much as you’d like depending on your preferences! If you like this idea, but don’t feel like you have time to put them together before Christmas, you could always make some glitzy crackers for New Year’s Eve!; I can see all of the sparkles now!

I had so much fun putting these together and I think my family will love them! My cutie patootie 3^rd grader came home from school the other day with his “tissue paper and curling ribbon” cracker and had so much fun pulling it and eating the treats! Oh, and that reminds me…..you CAN buy the actual “crackers”….the part that goes inside that makes a cracking noise when it is pulled. They came in a pack of 100 so I opted not to get them, but if you’re making a large amount and you’d enjoy that feature, then I say add them! Thanks for joining me today! Have a merry Christmas and a wonderfully happy New Year!