Stamp Dreams

2 new digital downloads

I'm alive again! It was my turn to catch the family illness, and it really wiped me out. I couldn't even stand the thought of going on my laptop--which for me means I'm REALLY ill!

Last night I finally began to feel human again, so I went online. I was glad (for 2 reasons) to see that Stampin' Up! has released 2 new digital downloads for My Digital Studio. I LOVE that program!

Reason 1: I always love new downloads. They are an affordable way to get "new stuff."
Reason 2: I goofed the last time I bought some downloads and I bought one I already have. I learned I'm not the first person to do that, and I only need to call SU! and they will let me "exchange" it for another one at the same price. Whew! (SU! allows you access to your downloads at any time, so you don't lose your purchases if your computer crashes, etc. That means there was no reason I'd need a second download!)

The first download is the corduroy buttons, featured in the Occasions mini catalog. The item # is 120170, and is $3.95.

This is what I am going to get with the exchange.

The second download (it looks TINY to me as I prep this) is the Sending Love Epoxy Brads. The item # is 120169, and the cost is $1.95.

Remember, digital downloads are delivered instantly to you after you place your order. Also, there's no shipping fee if only ordering downloads. See how I save you money!

OK, time for me to get ready for work.

Happy Stamping! 

Certified, not certifiable!

Well, sickness has struck our house, and I'm not getting any crafting done.

 

I'm having a lot of fun with My Digital Studio, the digital papercrafting software from Stampin' Up! When it first came out, SU! offered demonstrators a chance to get certified in the program. I'm one of the demonstrators who is certified.

One of the freebies I got was the certification pin you see here. Look for me to wear it!

I'd love to show you how easy it is to use MDS. AT $79.95, the program is very affordable, and comes with all kinds of digitized stamps, punches, paper, and embellishments. There are also optional (and affordable!) ones for instant download.

MDS accepts non-SU! files, too.

Happy Stamping, and stay healthy!

Giant Retirement Card

Did you ever say something you regretted soon afterward? I started my new job this month, and when it was mentioned that they celebrate birthdays each month and one person gets the cards for everyone to sign, I piped up with, "I make cards!" 

The rational part of me should have said, "Hold back, girl! These people don't know you and you don't know them yet. You don't even know how this new work schedule will affect stamping time." Of course I thought of that later, but it was too late.

One of my co-workers is retiring, and so I had my first card to make. OK, I could handle that. Oh, but then they thought it might be good to add a giant card for a group of people to sign. Yikes! I've never made a giant card before, and a lot of my card elements would be so small in proportion to the card. I tried to suggest that we just get a giant card from a (gulp!) card shop, but someone said, "Oh, can't you use some of that posterboard." Rats!

Well, I did finally come up with an idea over the weekend. It's a simple card, but my coworkers seemed to like it, and I am pleased with it, too.

I used some retired DSP from last year's Sale-a-Bration catalog, plus the 2 tag punches. The sentiment is from Teeny Tiny Wishes (my go-to set for all kinds of occasions). Add a punch from Boho Blossoms, a button from Fresh Favorites, and some linen thread.

Inside I printed a personalized sentiment I did in the digital papercrafting software, My Digital Studio. I'm sorry I can't show you--since it has her name, and I'm a privacy person. I set it to the 8x8" photo album size, but printed just one page out at home.

Another crisis averted!

Happy Stamping!

New Punches

 I love using punches for cardmaking and 3-D paper crafting. I have a lot of them (but I've cut back!), and don't use them nearly enough.

The new punches from Stampin' Up! are "flat." This first picture shows two of them side by side, when in their locked (flat) position.

You can see a picture of what the punch image is, which is great for when you store a lot of them--you can see exactly the punch you need.

I'm showing the new pinking hearts border punch and tiny tag punch, both of which are in the Occasions mini catalog. (The tag punch coordinates with a stamp set also in that catalog.)

The second picture is of the back sides of the punches. You can see the latch that controls whether or not the punch is locked closed.

You just push the button to lock/unlock the punch. This protects the die-cutting surfaces and also keeps the punch flat for smaller storage.

I've got the punches still locked in that second photo.

In the third picture, I've unlocked the punches. Now they are no longer flat. There's an opening through which you can put your paper to be punched.

Stampin' Up! punches are exclusive to SU! They are make by EK Success. I only buy EK Success punches, because they are so superior to those of other companies. Yes, I've learned that the hard way!

The last photo is of the back side of the tag punch when in the open (unlocked) position.

It is perfectly OK to store these new punches in the open position, but the option to store them flat (and still be able to see which punch is which) is a great option.

It's so easy to collect a lot of stamping supplies and to need a place to keep it all. It's nice when the supplies themselves are full-sized, yet compact at the same time!

Happy Stamping!

A Valentine with Food

Chocolate is the way to a child's heart? Well, I hope not! However, adding candy to your valentine is always a great idea over lots of lovey-dovey stuff!

Yes, I'm continuing my very long, drawn-out sequence of posts on clear-mount stamping a Valentine's Day card. I think this is the final installment at last.

Yes, this is the final card!

Now, I did not add lots of embellishments. This card is for one of my kids, and he will tear into it for the M&M's. That's why I didn't bother to make a sliding door for candy access--he wouldn't take the time, and he won't admire the card for days. Nope, he's a practical sort!

We're a peanut M&M family here. The plain M&Ms would fit a lot more in the cup!

Now, if I DID make a sliding door and think that just PERHAPS the card would be admired later, I would stamp a design on the sliding door (the area that you can see behind the M&Ms). The Sweet Sentiments set comes with  images of candy hearts, gumballs, "goldfish" crackers, & jelly beans. 

Happy Stamping!

Valentine Card with treats

Remember getting Valentines as a child? You got a package with a bunch of paper valentines for your classmates plus a slightly different teacher one. When you celebrated in the classroom, you got several of the same exact card. You also got a few with treats...

It's fun to give treats with Valentines. Here's one way to do so:

In the past few entries, I've shown the new Stampin' Up! clear-mount stamps. I'm going to take the images stamped--a gumball machine--and use them for my card.

The circle stamp in the Sweet Sentiments set matches the large circle punch. 

Here I've positioned the stamped image inside the punch (it's a good idea to always punch with the underside of the punch upward, so you can see what you're punching!). I'm ready to punch out the circle.

In the next picture, I've made the punch, and you can see how the stamped image now looks.

The third picture shows one of the Sweet Treat cups Stampin' Up! sells.

These cups were designed to exactly fit the hole punched out by the large circle punch. (The similar heart-shaped cups exactly fit the punched hole left by the Full Heart punch.)

The back of the Sweet Treat cups has a sticky surface covered with paper. You can remove the paper and the cups with stick to the surface on which you've put them.

Some stampers don't want to do that--because you would basically destroy the card getting at the candy in the cup.

Instead, those stampers make a sliding sheet that fits behind the opening--raising and lowering to get out the candy yet leave the card intact.

One more entry for the final card.

Happy Stamping!

   

Build-a-Bear Offer

Stampin' Up! has a nice offer. Purchase $20 or more of exclusive Build-a-Bear stamping products and you'll automatically receive a coupon for $5 off a $25 purchase at a Build-a-Bear Workshop store, good through all of 2010.

I have a few of the dies--now I have a good excuse to get more, don't I? 

To see the BABW items and order, visit my SU! website.

Happy Stamping!
 

Clear Mount 2-Step Stamping

When my kids were littler and passed out Valentines at school, we NEVER used store-bought Valentines--even before I began stamping. A hand-made Valentine is just so much more fun!

Here's a fun idea for Valentines that even include a treat (which I've noticed has become more and more popular over the years):

In my previous posts, I've talked about using the new clear-mount stamps, and I've illustrated the previous steps. You can also do this with the wood-mount stamps.

Here, I've already stamped my main image from the Sweet Sentiments set--the gumball machine base--HAS to be bright red. (We bought my daughter one of the gumball machines a few years ago--SO glad it takes any coin--"penny for a gumball?")

I'm stamping the round globe here. Because I've used the clear-mount system, I can see for my placement. Now, I did just eyeball this. You may still want to use the Stamp-a-ma-jig for accurate alignment!

The circle stamp is sized like our largest circle punch--for a reason!

You can see in the 2nd picture how it looks. 2-step stamping is when you stamp one image in place over or next to another image. Alignment is important!

I think the next time I do this, I'll use Going Gray for the globe rather than red, so it looks more like the edge of a glass globe. It really doesn't matter here, however--you'll see why!

In the 3rd picture, I've just added the "cap" to the gumball machine. 

The set also includes written sentiments in a curved shape that correspond well with the circle stamp.

In my next post on this, I'll add the treats!

Happy Stamping!
 

Clear Stamping--part 3

I've been sleeping a lot lately--less time for blogging!

So here's how to stamp with the new Stampin' Up! clear-mount stamps.

I'm sorry I didn't show you the process of prepping the stamps. As with the wood-mount stamps, they come in a die-cut sheet. The difference is that you can, if you choose, put the clear label on the back of the stamp. I chose to do so, because I want to see what I'm stamping.

This first picture shows you how the unmounted stamp looks--the rubber side is down.

In the next picture, I've mounted the stamp. How? I just pressed the clear mount down on top of the stamp's back! You can see the stamp through the clear mount.

I have chosen to do this on my Grid Paper. This way things are lined up just the way I want them to be.

The stamp simply clings to the mount. Push down--don't be wimpy!--to keep the cling. (Over time, the oils in your hands and residue from ink, etc. may cause the "clingability" to decrease. Some stampers use water to clean the mounts and stamps, some use Stampin' Mist, and some clean the mounts (not the rubber, please!) with glass cleaner. See what works for you!

The last picture shows a side view of the clear-mounted stamp. You can see the rubber and foam layers. What I really like best is that Stampin' Up! found a way to include the layer of foam in the stamps. Clear stamps have not had the foam layer (can't see through it!), but that has meant they don't stamp as well. One company I know includes a foam sheet with their stamps to help get a good impression from the stamp--you have to keep the foam under your cardstock and stamp.

You can also see that I've written the block's measurements on one side. By using the Grid Paper, I'm able to check measurements quickly and choose the right clear mount.

Also in the last picture, you can see the stamped image I made using the clear-mount stamp. I should have conditioned the stamp first, but it still came out nicely!

Well, I've got a snoring dog beside me, and I need to do some laundry before work. Stay well!

Happy Stamping!

Clear Mount Stamping

So here's my next entry about Stampin' Up!'s new clear-mount stamps and how to use them.

These are the 3 stamps I am going to use from the Something Sweet set of clear-mount stamps.

They come die-cut on a sheet of rubber, just like the wood-mount stamps. The difference is the mount. This is the back side of the stamps AFTER I adhered the clear image sticker. This helps the user to see what stamp image is being stamped.

You do not have to put the clear image on the backs of the stamps--it is only to help the user. You can just mount the stamps without the clear backing. Some users prefer this, because they feel the stamps adhere better to the mount. I've also heard some stampers use a hybrid approach--they cut the clear image portion narrowly close to the edges of the image, then place it on the back of the stamp. That way some of the stickier stamp back sticks out around the edges and grips the clear mount better.

The second picture is of the actual rubber on a clear-mount stamp. THIS is why SU! chose to not make their stamp images clear. Rubber stamps make a deeper, clearer, crisper image with far more detail than actual clear stamps. The rubber is also stronger and lasts longer. I have seen clear stamps yellow with age (sometimes only a few years!) and they may get brittle. I've also known some to get "gooey" with age. Clear stamps are made of petroleum products, while rubber comes from trees, so rubber is also more ecologically smart!

You can see that the rubber looks like rubber used on regular wood-mount stamps. This sacrifices the see-through quality of actual clear stamps (although those tend to get permanently stained, especially when you use dark colors like black--I've experienced that myself even though I cleaned the stamps immediately!--so they aren't quite so see-through then).

I'll continue this article in my next post, which will be tomorrow's post. (I love writing these ahead of time!).

Happy Stamping!