Novembers SU get togethers

A Christmas themed month again - unusual for me, especially as I dont personally make any Christmas cards ! Wierd for a devout card maker.

The first card was a glitter demo.
I cased this magical little snowman from talented SU demonstrator Annette John - thanks Annette for the inspiration.
The glitter on the embossed snowflakes is SU dazzling diamonds, adhered with a little two-way glue. The strip across the bottom is double sided tape. It is very easy to apply this tape in a straight line and get such a straight glittered ground.
I printed a 'let it snow' sentiment and some people punched them out and added them to the card front.

SU recipe :
Cardstock : Baja breeze, whisper white, pumpkin pie
Tools : 1.75 and 1.25 circle punch, Northern Flurry embossing folder
Embellisments : Dazzling diamonds, midnight muse stitched ribbon, marker to draw in arms and mouth

The second card was all about using the negative image.
Last month we die cut little gingerbread men, but this month we are working the negative image that a die cut leaves, using the candy cane die.
The how to : I die cut the candy cane in the crumb cake (kraft) cardstock, put it in place on the white and drew a faint pencil outline of the candy cane. I then knew where to put my big glue dot, to cover the pencil outline. Short pieces of ribbon were then cut and adhered to the big glue dot. The Christmas sentiment and faux stitching were done before the crumb cake (kraft) cardstock was pop dotted into place, and the bow added with a small glue dot.
It seems complicated, but really isn't.
Here is a video by SU demonstrator Dawn Olchefske :  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Kkznt9WB-Eg&list=UUE2h52pY7ELbAENtDm7MbxA&index=20&feature=plcp

We also made a co-ordinating gift tag :

Su recipe :
Stamps : single Christmas stamp from Seasonal Saying stamp set using raspberry ripple ink
Cardstock : Raspberry ripple and crumb cake (kraft)
Embellisments : Raspberry ripple and white ribbon, piercing mat and essentials paper piercing pack, white gel pen, jumbo sticky rounds (aka big glue dot)

November 2012 ATCs - Friends Matter

This months topic was 'Friends Matter'. I loved how different everybodies were this month.

 Mine was underwear related ! lol I bought this Skipping Stones Designs stamp set ages ago and have used it quite a few times. It was the perfect set for this ATC topic.
I used a piece of Stampington and Co paper, sponged with a variety of distress inks. I stamped the sentiments in SU concord crush ink, then stamped and heat embossed the bra and hanger, paperpiecing the bra with some random patterned paper I found in my paper drawer. Do you like the glittery detail on the bra, edging and on the hanger ? It is done with a Sakura clear gelly roll pen. A few jewels add the bling.

 On the back of my ATC, I did a variety of the bra's in the stamp set, in a few colors. Like I say, if I spend so much time on the front - may as well make the back nice too :-) Its these little details that count.

This months topic was 'Friends Matter'. I loved how different everybodies were this month.

Frog fetish continues ....

I love frogs, and what an adorable stamp from Animal Spirit Stamps by Sue Coccia, if you can see the detail inside the frog, of a bear, butterfly, fish, turtle, snake, dragon fly and ladybug. Did I miss anything ?

Art Impressions Stamps

A little while ago I had a little spending spree on Art Impressions stamps - they are so great - funky and quirky. I am slowly working my way through stamping and coloring them.
I love this lady dancing, and coupled with the paper pieced dress and ribbon background, its perfect.
I didn't have a suitable sentiment so I typed one out on my pc and printed it, accompanied by a nice glimmer brad.

Soccer Star

My best friends super-soccer-crazed-star daughter just turned 7. What better than a soccer inspired card, to accompany the official Arsenal scalf  we sent :-) She loved it.

Recipe :
SU retured background stamp and ball
Spellbinders stars
MFT grass die cut

Christmas Birdhouses

I saw this image stamped and colored and just knew I HAD to have this stamp !
It is made by Northwoods Rubber Stamps, and is a deeply etched rubber stamp on a wood block. So easy to ink, so easy and beautiful to stamp with.

I spent a lovely few hours coloring one night, and it is finally official ! I can not longer just sit and watch tv, coloring with my fantastic copic markers makes it so much more fun :-)

Yee Haw

Lovely new Waltzing Mouse Stamps - ooohhh, aggghhh, sigh ..... lol
They look so beautiful in the packaging, its so hard to open them and 'dirty' them, but 'dirty' them I must !
The stamps first outings was for a couple of friends Birthdays. HAPPY BIRTHDAY MARK and POLLY

 I searched high and low for a sheriffs badge die cut - Quick Kutz had one - thanks ebay :-)
Do you like the metallic, aged embossed look of the badge ? Stampendous aged copper embossing enamel - how gorgeous is that ! I also embossed around the edge of the central image.
The multi horse thing thats going on there is an idea I saw on the WMS website - I loved it so had to case it. It is so easy to do. I used the same colour ink each time. For the first horse on the left I inked up the horse stamp and stamped it on scrap paper twice, then onto my card front. The middle horse was inked up and stamped off once onto scrap. The final and darker horse was inked and stamped straight onto the card. Cool or what eh.

My favourite things about this card is how well the background native blanket image stamped - LOVE that. The other thing I really like is the boots, stamped in Stampin' Up!s raspberry ripple and then UTEE'd. The little pearls just add a bit of interest and dimension.

September ATC's

The Septembers title was to produce something for a given decade, 1940's, 50's, 60's and 70's. 

 I was allocated the 70's, such a great musical decade  - thank heavens for Saturday Night Fever and John Travolta :-) The front is a collage of 70's images, with a central rotating disco ball.

I always decorate the back of an ATC, I figure if I spend so much time on the front, I should at least spend a little time on the back. In this instance, on the back of my disco ball is a record - remember those ? lol A cd or digital file really would not have given the same effect.