Sometimes You Just Need a Simple Card...

This one is super simple and still cute. And I didn't think it was that crooked in real life. Would you believe it has personality?

I love the new In Colors! This card uses Soft Suede Cardstock, Ribbon and Ink, with a touch of Bordering Blue added in for contrast. The stamp set is Totally Tool, a great stamp for masculine cards and scrapping, or for anyone who likes to build things. The words and images share a stamp, but it is easy to separate them and mount them separately. I sponged the edges of the Whisper White cardstock because it "just needed something". Those sponges do come in handy!

Congratulations to Stefanie and Terry who shared the hostess benefits from this months Mostly Month Mystery Hostess Workshop. Mark your calendar for next months, it will be August 20th at 7:00 pm and will feature ideas for the young and the young at heart - pretty much everyone. I hope to see you there!

Perfect for a Little Braggin'

This is a small gift for my niece who's getting married this weekend. I wanted to make them something, and it had to be small since they don't have much living space. So, I made them a little brag book for some of their pictures from the wedding. The page protectors are clear envelopes and it works great for either just photos or for small scrapbook pages.

These are incredibly easy to make, and make a gift. Splitcoaststampers has an excellent tutorial here. The example is made with 5 envelopes, I put 10 in this and I've seen them with more than that. Stock on some clear envelopes and make a few yourself, you can get a head start on the holidays!

Cardstock: Chocolate Chip, Regal Rose and Very Vanilla. Timeless Type On Board Chipboard daubed with Regal Rose Craft Ink, sprinkled with Iridescent Ice Embossing Powderdered and embossed. The Regal Rose cover is stamped with a stamp for Bojo Backgrounds with Versamark Ink. Accessories: Regal Rose 5/8" Grosgrain Ribbon, Large Eyelets, Cropadile, SU! exclusive Top Note Bigz Die. The back is embossed with the small dots Texturz Plate in the Big Shot, but the embossing doesn't scan well on dark cardstock so I didn't scan it. The corners of the envelopes are stamped with the heart stamp from To Have and To Hold (just retired). Here's a small picture of the inside to give you an idea of what it looks like.

A Simple Wedding Card

My niece is getting married next weekend, a perfect excuse to play with cardstock and ink.

I was looking at my Big Shot dies and realized I'd never actually made a card with the Scalloped Envelope Bigz die, I'm sure the poor thing was feeling neglected. The invitation to the wedding is brown and vanilla with a little pink ribbon, so I'm guessing those are their wedding colors and chose my designer paper from those colors. This is Candy Lane, which just retired as it uses last years In Colors.

The card base is Pink Pirouette (retired), with VeryVanilla mounted on Close to Cocoa. It doesn't show in the picture, but I ran the vanilla through the Big Shot with the Stampin' Up Backgrounds 1 Texturz Plates dotted backround. The little card in the envelope is stamped in Chocolate Chip with a stamp from the Only Ovals Stamp Set, I rounded the card to match the shape of the stamp so the scallops and Designer Paper would show behind it. I tied a piece of Very Vanilla Taffeta ribbon around the envelope to make it a little fancier. It's a pretty simple card, but sometimes those are the best.

The inside of the card has a pop-up wedding cake in it made from the same DSP, but I didn't want you to get bored with pop-up cakes, so I didn't take a picture of it.

Check back for more ways to use the Big Shot later this week, and mark your calendar for Mostly Monthly Mystery Hostess Workshop on the 16th. You could walk away with free stamps!

Poppin' Granddaughter Birthday

May and June are busy in our family. My four daughters, three of my grandchildren, several nieces and nephews and my mother-in-law have birthdays between April 30th and June 28th. I kept getting pulled away from my stamps so not everyone got handmade cards, but I did manage to make special cards for all the grandbabies. This was for the last birthday of the season, Leah turned 4 last weekend. She's a little monkey, so it only seemed fitting to use Sock Monkey for her card.

This was a super simple card to make on the outside. I stamped the monkey on Whisper White Cardstock with Jet Black Stazon, then colored him with Watercolor Wonder Crayons. I stamped the balloons and party hat on some of the Designer Paper in the Petal Party Simply Stampin' Kit, cut them out and adhered them to the card. I drew the balloon strings with a black Stampin' Write Marker. By the way, if you need a short straight edge in a pinch, bone folders work quite well. I mounted the white cardstock and image on Pumpkin Pie Cardstock, and used a piece of textured Pixie Pink Cardstock as the card base. The little strip of hearts at the bottom of the page is also from the Petal Party Simply Stampin' Kit.

The inside of the card is what makes this one special. It's a popup birthday cake. It's made with the Big Shot Pop-up Three Tier Cake Bigz XL die for the Big Shot. And, it's a lot easier to make than it looks like it would be. Run the die through the Big Shot with some cardstock (Pixie Pink here, with a few small pieces of Pumpkin Pie for the candles) to make the pop-up pieces; cut some strips of designer paper; put together with sticky strip and you have a cake. Super cute, and everyone loves them.

I'll be featuring the Big Shot at our July Mostly Monthly Mystery Hostess Workshop. I hope you can come! You'll get a chance to make some simple projects with the Big Shot, and see the brand new (and very awesome!) Idea Book and Catalog. Not to mention, you could walk away with some great hostess gifts.