Beautiful Candids

Don't you just LOVE it when candid pictures come out great... almost as good as if you'd paid someone to take them?  I got a new camera and had a blast taking pictures outside with Gabbi playing with her new bubble wand. I took one of those pictures and created this digital scrapbook page using MDS.

I took the picture, made it sepia (using "photo effect" option), and expanded the size to 12x12 to make it the background of the page.  Next I layered the color version of the pictures in the bottom left hand corner and added a vanilla border and drop shadow.  Just above the photo I added the #6 punch from the Packed for You designer kit and filled it with Everybody's Business DSP and added the date on top in the font "tangerine."  I then added some #1 designer butterfly punches, in the bottom right and top left.  These were also filled in with Everybody's Business DSP and drop shadows were added.  I also added an antique designer brad in the middle of each.  Lastly I added Pear Pizzazz seam binding ribbon along the bottom of the page, just under Gabbi's chin.  I added a bow in the same color just where the ribbon and color picture come together and added the same antique designer brad that I used on the butterflies along the length of the ribbon.

Hope you enjoy this as much as I enjoyed making it!
Thanks for looking!
Amy

Keri

Sorry I've been a way for a while. 

Today I have a new MDS page featuring one of Gabbi's best pals, her sitter last fall Keri, and her pup Jasmine (or Tas according to Gab.)

The colors on this page- Basic Black and Wisteria Wonder- were inspired by Gabbi's outfit.  The bottom layer is Wisteria cardstock, with a layer of Black on top.  The ribbon of paper on the right side is from the Simple Snapshots DSP.  Once I decided to make the picture a circle with a thick black border, I decided to add the circle punch in a variety of colors (from the DSP) and variety of sizes.  As always I added a drop shadow to all of the circles.  Lastly I added the wording in white using the font Simply Glamorous.

Ladybug, Ladybug...

Another cute little project, similar to the M&M bumblebees (or as Gabbi says- bundlebees!) that we made for Gabbi's classmates.  These are cute little ladybugs that we made in one of my clubs.

This is a really easy little project, fun for kids- made using the Sweet Treat Cups and punches.  I punched out two 2 1/2 inch Real Red circles.  For one of those circles I punched a 1 3/4 inch circle out of the middle and put the treat cup through the hole popping out the front.  The second circle is on the back of the treat cup to hold it together... be sure to add the M&M's or Skittles first.  

The head was made with a 1 3/4 inch Basic Black punch.  The dots on the treat cup are just basic black hand-held punch.  I used an old scroll sizzlet and Bigshot and cut the ends off the scroll and taped them on the head to make antenna.  I taped googlies eyes (my favorite) on the head for eyes.

Hope you like these and enjoy making them.

New Catalog Available... order now!

It's that time of year again.  The time when we Stampin' Up! adicts look forward to the new catalog.  

This year's catalog is available and we can now order product from it.  If you'd like a catalog, please let me know.  Or you can view the PDF here and can order here.

So many cute things to choose from.... enjoy!

Teacher Gifts

This is my first year to do teacher gifts... and I gotta say, it's a field day for a crafty girl.  This year I went simple and made three set of monogrammed notecards.  They were a big hit!

This is a picture of the three sets that I put into plastic cases.  I dressed them up with a ribbon and a thank you card from my daughter.  Cards were made out of Whisper White or Very Vanilla cardstock.  I made the monograms on MDS and used the 1 3/4" punch to determine the size.  So, I laid the circle on the page, added my border and monogram in the middle of the circle and locked them into place and then removed the circle. You can also just turn the circle white so that it essentially disappeared on the white paper.  This is the way I do almost anything circular on MDS... use a punch to frame the layout.

For the main teacher, I used this year's Sale-a-bration DSP Sycamore Street for the bottom half of the card and then added Island Indigo borders. This paper really captured Ms. Brittany's style I think.  I created the monogram to go with the paper in terms of style and color and punched it out with the 1 3/4" circle punch.  I layered each on an Island Indigo medallion from the Pennant Die (love this die!)  I added this with dimensionals after I added a thin layer of ribbon using the Baja Breeze narrow taffeta ribbon.  I know it's not the exact color in the paper (it's Pool Party), but it's pretty close and looked really nice.

For the assistant teacher, who has a colorful personality, I used some more colorful DS papers, some retired and the others from the Floral District DSP.  Again I added a border in a color that went with the DSP and created the monogram in the same color.  On these I used one of the two medallions from the Pennant die and added to the card with dimmensionals after adding either Pear Pizzaz or Baja Breeze Seem Binding where the DPS and border come together.

Lastly, for the floater teacher, who Gabbi just adores, I used one of my all-time favorite DSP sets from last year's fall catalog- Spice Cake (?).  The colors in this paper fit Ms. Emily.  These cards are Very Vanilla and I pulled out the Baja Breeze from the DPS and used that for the border and the medallion (again from the Pennant die) behind the monogram.  For the middle card I added the Natural Trim (from the Spring catalog) and for the other two added Chocolate Chip Taffeta along the middle.

These sets always make nice gifts and are always something people can use.

Button Buddies

Another of my two favorite retiring sets... Button Buddies and Friendly Phrases.  Button Buddies is such a cute set... it has a snowman, cherries, pumpkin, snail, rattle and flowers.  Each one has a round center that you can add a button in.  For this card I used the single flower stamp and stamped it in Pool Party and Island Indigo on Whisper White cardstock, masking as I moved from left to right across the page.  Then I stamped three additional flowers in Island Indigo and cut them out.  I layered them with dimensionals on top of the second flower in the row and added a Pool Party designer brad in the middle- topped it with a mini rhinestone.  Then I added Indigo designer brads on the other three flowers also topped with a mini rhinestone each.  Lastly I added the greeting from the Friendly Phrases set in Basic Black.  I layered the Whisper White layer on Island Indigo and then on a Pool Party card.

 

 

Remember this is the last week you can get these sets.  The new catalog goes into affect June 3.  If you are interested in these sets or others that are retiring, just visit my online store at http://amysaddiction.stampinup.net or click on the icon on the side bar.

Button Buddies

Friendly Phrases

Buzzzzzz

It's that time of year... graduations.  My daughter is 2 and in pre-school and their graduation is next week.  She is the youngest one in her class so she is not graduating but everyone else is... boohoo!  So, we made these cute little gifts for everyone.

These are made using the Sweet Treat Cups and punches.  I punched out two 2 1/2 inch Daffodil Delight circles.  For one of those circles I punched a 1 3/4 inch circle out of the middle and put the treat cup through the hole popping out the front.  The second circle is on the back of the treat cup to hold it together... be sure to add the M&M's or Skittles first.  

For the head I punched a 1 3/8 inch circle in Basic Black.  The white part of the eye is made with the 1/2 inch circle punch and for the center of the eye I punched out Basic Black with an old school hand held punch.  I taped the head in between the two layers of the Daffodil so it's secure.  For the two wings, I punched vellum cardstock with the large oval punch and again adhered it between the two Daffodil layers.  Lastly,  I punched a 1 3/4 inch Basic Black circle and cut layers for the stripes and adhered them to the top of the treat cup.

I hope the kids enjoy these.  We enjoyed making them.

Best of Everything

I'm going to show a few cards that feature some he sets that are retiring from the current catalog.  This card features the Best of Everything set.

The card is Whisper White with a layer of Basic Black and then a layer of Old Olive DSP on top.  The focal point has three pieces of Basic Black cardstock- the two bottom layers have a layer of Flirtatious DSP (retired last year) and the top layer uses the floral stamp from this set stamped in Pumpkin Pie, Daffodil Delight and Old Olive.  I paper pierced around the edge of the square and added a vellum butterfly from the Beautiful Butterflies Embosslit with a rhinestone in the middle.  I layered the three pieces with dimensionals and put them in the center of the card on top of a black scalloped border and Whisper White taffeta ribbon.  Lastly the greeting is stamped in Basic Black on  a tag from the Lots of Tags Sizzlet and added a rhinestone on either end and added it to the card with dimensionals.

Best of Everything-- only available until June 3

Lil' Punkin

This page is a favorite of mine so far.  It features our trip to the punkin patch last fall.  

The background paper comes from the Notebook II DSP kit.  I generally like to use a very simple neutral color background and add color with embellishments and  paper layers... like the two layers that I laid horizontally about a third of the way up.  These two paper layers come from the Wonderfall DSP kit.

I added the six pictures and changed the shape of them to circles.  I added a very thin Soft Suede border and a drop shadow to each.  In the bottom left corner of the photos, I added a circle punch and stretched it to fit in the area available and filled it with paper form Back to School DSP.  Then I added two circle punches layered beneath and filled one with Peach Parfait cardstock and the second with Lucky Limeade cardstock.  All three of these have a very thin Soft Suede border and drop shadow.  

Lastly I added Early Espresso brads where the circle punches come together and then put a number of them in a right angle in the top right corner.  Then I added a little bit of text in Roscrift Clean font.

I'm going to be bringing back a few favorites from some retiring sets in the next few posts.

Happy Gabbi

A new MDS page featuring my little goose.  Still trying to catch up with last year's pages.  This is one of my favorite pictures from last year.  Gabbi was so happy reading in her Mickey Mouse bean bag chair.  

This background paper for this page as well as the strip across the middle uses designer papers from the Back to School designer kit.  The main colors on this page come from the picture and are highlighted in the hexagon punches running from top to bottom.  They are filled with papers from Simple Snapshots, Celebrations and Sweet Pea designer kits.  I lined them up tip to tip, added a very thin Soft Suede border and drop shadow on each.

For the focal point, I took the picture and added a really large ivory border and a drop shadow and then stacked three on top of each other, angled slightly on top of each other.

A last few details:  

• I added the black zig zag stitch from Staples and Stitches the length of the two rows of hexagons. 
• I added paper buttons to a couple of the hexagons and added a baker's twine bow on each.
• I added the Scallop Border Punch filled with DSP from Enjoying Everything designer kit and layered it under the strip of Back to School DSP around the middle.
• I added three paper buttons with a black brad on top along the left side of the pictures.
• Lastly I added my journaling (not my strength) along the right side in font Simply Glamorous.

April Showers

Rain rain go away, come again another day.  This is my wish for the last week and for the week to come.  Stamping pretty spring colors helps.

This card base is Daffodil Delight, the next layer is Lucky Limeaid and the top layer is Whisper White.  I embossed the left third of the white layer with the Polka Dot Embossing Folder.  The flag down the right side is Tangerine Tango from the Summer Smooches DSP set.  There is a layer of Daffodil underneath.  The three images are from the Spring Sampler set.  The sun is stamped in Daffodil Delight; The Frog in Lucky Limeaid; The rain boots in Tangerine Tango.  All are punched out with the 3/4 inch circle and layered on a coordinating 3/4 inch circle of cardstock.  The greeting comes from the set Bootiful Occasions and was stamped in Basic Black.  

I hope this bring you a sunny smile!

Bootiful Occasions

25% off My Digital Studio Products

The Sale
Get 25 percent off select My Digital Studio content and print products through June 15.

Digital content includes: ALL ensemble, calendar, photobook, and swatchbook digital content. See it here.
Print products include: ALL photobooks, swatchbooks, cards, tags, individual pages, and calendars. See it here. 

What a deal!  Enjoy!

Water Fun

Another MDS page featuring Gabbi today.  It reminds me of the fun we had in the little pool in the yard last year.  I'm looking forward to pool-time with Gabbi again in a month or two.

The background paper on this page is from the Keep the Memory Alive Designer Series Paper with a 60% opacity.  Each of the blocks is the Rounded Corner Punch filled in with designer paper including pieces from Polka Dot Parade, Rich Regal Small Polka Dot and Celebrations DSP.  Each one has a white mat and a drop shadow.  I added texture by adding a Melon Mambo button from the Brights pack with a White Grossgrain knot on top.  

Lastly I added the title using the Sandome_G font and font 1942 report for the date.  These are fonts that I've downloaded from the website www.dafont.com.

Hope you like it!

Pinwheels

This is a cute little HAPPY card I made today... just 'cuz!

The card is Daffodil Delight, with a layer of Island Indigo and then a layer of Whisper White on top.  I ran the white layer through the BigShot in the Perfect Polka Dots embossing folder-- about 3/4 of the way-- leaving the top 1/4  un-embossed.  I stamped the "Celebrate" greeting from a retired birthday set in Island Indigo on the un-embossed portion in the top left corner.

The focal point is the banner and the pinwheel.  For the banner I used the Banner Punch and Polka Dot Parade designer paper in Daffodil Delight.  I hung the individual banner pieces with dimensionals and then tied bows with the White Bakers Twine on the ends... to give it that "just hung up" feel.

The pinwheel was very easy now that we have a Pinwheel Sizzlit in the spring catalog.  I ran it though the BigShot with paper from the Summer Smooches DSP set.  It punches it out perfectly with holes just where you need them so you can pull the ends up and put it together with a brad in the middle.  I knew that I wanted a button in the middle, so I just used one of the tiny mini silver brads to hold it together, then put a red flower button on top with a glue dot.  The stick for the pinwheel is a piece of red Polka Dot Parade DSP that I wound really tight around a pin.  Then I adhered it to the back of the pinwheel with a glue dot and then on to the card with dimensionals.

Pinwheel Sizzlet Die

This card reminds me of summer when I was a kid.  Pinwheels were one of those toys we always had and it reminds me of my childhood.

Hope you enjoy it.
Happy Spring!

Out with the old

It's that time of year again... time to say goodbye to some old Stampin' Up! favorites to make room for new favorites in the upcoming catalog. Be sure to order today... accessories are only available while supplies last.  Visit my online store to order-- http://amysaddiction.stampinup.net

The Goose makes me smile

Another MDS day. Really trying to focus on doing a page or two a week, as I'm currently almost a year behind- and feeling extremely guilty about it. This page reminds me of a sweet evening of snuggles with my girl about a year a go.   

This was a relatively easy page to create.  The background paper is from Sweet Details with decreased opacity to 60%.  The banners down the left side are the flag punch filled them with designer paper-- including Sycamore Street and Summer Smooches-- all are outlined in white with a drop shadow.  The Daffodil Delight shape at the bottom comes from the Happy Hello kit and the greeting is from Simple Snapshot designer kit.  The splatters in faded Island Indigo on the top right and bottom left are a new feature of this version of MDS.

The pictures is "attached" to the page using designer digital tape in Baja Breeze.  For a few extra details- that add "texture" to the page- I added three buttons, one Island Indigo, Daffodil Delight and Early Espresso.  Lastly I added some Island Indigo taffeta ribbon and bow around the flags on the left and then put a small rhinestone in the middle of the bow.

Color Refresh 2013

Three Generations

This MDS page was very simple to design.  It is actually a template from the Downtown Grunge photobook.  Downtown Grunge is my favorite MDS download and I tend to use this more than almost any other of my MDS downloads.  

On top of this template (which included the background and four circles)  I added the stamp Well Worn and reduced the opacity to about 30%.  Then I added the tree from the Bold Branches stamp set over top and again reduced the opacity- this time to about 40%.  I added the picture and put a white frame around it and added a drop shadow.  This is something I always do with pictures and many of the elements as well-- add a border and drop shadow.  I added a few extra elements-- some black brads down the left side of the photo and a white zig-zag stitch along the bottom of the photo.  Lastly I added the title and date to finish off the page.

This was a very special picture to me of my dad, Gabbi and I last May.  I made this page last year, printed it and framed it and sent it to my dad for Christmas last year.  He loved it.

The Goose-- MDS style

Another MDS sample today.  Hard to believe this was the goose only 1 year ago.  She's grown up so much in a year.

This was a template from the Grad Party ensemble... makes creating very simple.  I just added this ADORABLE photo and put my own words, that describe Gabbi, in the flags on the side.  I added the date and her name, and put the letters "GOOSE" in the banner.  And, viola... done.

I tend to create most of my pages from scratch, and I'm a year behind.  However, it could be so easy to create and create and create and get your scrapbooks done using the templates that are available.  Just plop in your own photos, add your own journaling and finished. 

Emboss resist

Here is another emboss resist card using the Natural Composition DSP and white craft ink.  This DSP is very natural in look and texture, so it absorbs the white craft ink really well when it is sponged on it.  The white ink makes the clear embossed design POP.  It's layered on Summer Starfruit cardstock and then on a Rich Razzleberry card.

The banners down the left side are made from Sycamore Street DSP... which was a free Sale-a-bration item.  I stamped three of the stamps from That's the Ticket stamp set on whisper white in Pool Party, Summer Starfruit and Rich Razzleberry and tied them on the card with white bakers twine, wrapped around the card 3 times and tied into a bow.  For some final details, I punched an Elegant Butterfly in Rich Razzleberry and then ran it through the BigShot with the Fancy Fan embossing folder.  I adhered it to the card with a dimensional and added tiny little pearls down the middle of the butterfly.  Lastly, I added one of the flowers from the Vanilla Flower Trim, sponged it in Pool Party and added large pearl that I colored with a color similar to Summer Starfruit and put it in the middle of the flower.

This card can be used for any occasion... just another of my not-quite shabby designs.

Elegant Butterflies

I am sending a demonstrator friend some samples, using the spring catalog, so the next couple posts will feature those samples.  Some of the products in the spring catalog are fabulous and I'm really enjoying using them.

This card features very few products including the Honecycomb Embossing Folder from the spring catalog.  I embossed the Honeycomb on Marina Mist Polka Dot Parade DSP and then sanded it with a sanding block, bringing out the white in the paper. Then I sponged over it with Crumb Cake Ink. The banner down the right side is Lucky Limeade and is stamped with the Postage Due set and sponged with Crumb Cake. I punched three Elegant Butterflies from the Sunshine and Sprinkles DSP.  I stamped over each one in Crumb Cake with the same stamp set, sponged the edges also and adhered them with dimensionals.  After I wrapped Linen Thread around the card three times and added a multi-loop bow I stamped the greeting in Basic Black from the Trust God set.  

I really like how this turned out.  Perfect card for almost any occasion.
Sure hope you've had a good day!