Christmas Card Countdown...

Hello to all crafters out there!

November is the scramble for card makers to finish all the christmas cards they want to send out in December. So far I am at 11. That means I am half way there. However the more cards I have been making the more people I have been thinking of sending them too. I finished two cards in the last two days! I've been so excited to use my new materials I picked up two weeks ago. I have been so busy making cards that I forgot to blog about them. The boy had to remind me :) .

merry & bright

Stamp: The Old Island Stamp Company

Cardstock: Stampin' Up

Patterned Paper: From Scrap Arts (its reversible)

HO^3

Stamp: Recollections from Michael's 

Cardstock: Stampin' Up

Patterned Paper: From Scrap Arts

I love the girl in "merry & bright"! The stamp is made by the Old Island Stamp Company. I saw them at the Circle Craft fair in Vancouver. I highly recommend their stamps. Lots of different styles!

Oh and my sister lent her "Big Shot" to my mom for the week so I will definitely be swinging by to try it out! Can you guess what's on my Christmas list?

Groupon for Scrap Arts

I recently purchased a Groupon for $20 worth of scrapbooking supplies from Scrap Arts in North Vancouver. I have not been happy with the stores around my house so I thought this would be the perfect opportunity to check out some place new. Overall I thought they had great paper but was disappointed by the rest of the selection. I really wanted to find some great stamps and perhaps a few other embellishments. Other than the paper their classes look really interesting. Perhaps I will take a few...

I picked up mostly paper to work on Christmas cards. The top sheet are punch outs/stickers that I will use for cards rather than stamping. The other bonus is that the paper is double sided so that you always have paper that matches the pattern. 

Here are a few cards that I used my new paper on:

Merry Christmas Elves

Rudolph the red nose reindeer...

May you forever shower each other with love

The elf stamp is also new. I stopped by Michael's craft store on my way home and picked up some Christmas stamps. The Christmas stamps are currently 50% off so I bought two sets by Recollections. They are so cute and match my new paper perfectly!

Lastly, the paper from the monkey's card is from Winner's. Lots of great deals on card supplies this week :)

You are my Boo!

Happy Halloween everyone and Happy Birthday to my boy!

That's right October 31st is not just Halloween for us but a very special person's birthday. Therefore this time of year always calls for a very special Halloween and birthday card.

Stamp: Free Digi Stamp from Spyder's Corner

Paper: Cardstock from Stampin' Up

Bat Stickers: Creative Memories

I love this digital stamp! It has a lot of detail which the free digital stamps do not normally have. What is a free digital stamp? A digital stamp is similar to a clip art image that can be printed out on cardstock. It is a great option for newbie scrapbookers and card makers. Most sites will have images for you to purchase and download. However, a few sites will give away free digital stamps usually about once a week. Join the Facebook group Free Digital Stamps for updates regarding free available digi stamps.

Oh and Halloween wouldn't be complete without some jack o'lanterns!

 

I'm crazy a-bot you!

When I first started making cards I had no idea what to do! I didn't know how you coloured stamps: if you used ink or use markers afterwards. I didn't understand how those clear mount stamps could be a stamp. Needless to say I needed a "Card Making 101" course. So I phoned up my big sister who is great at card making and she graciously agreed to teach me a few things. She walked me through making my first card. It was a Valentine's Day card for the boy. He doesn't like Valentine's Day so I guess the card was more for him than for me...

Stamp: Paper Works Co. Tinheart Family Collection
            http://paperworksco.com/index.php?main_page=product_info&cPath=49_253_516&products_id=3457
Paper: Mostly from this package my sister bought from Costco. They were too bright for her to use.
Pens: Copic Markers

I absolutely love this card! It is the epitome of my style. It's loud with a lot of bright colours. For this card we used the stamp from Paper Works Co. and coloured it in using Copic Markers. The shapes were cut out using a Cuttlebug (I think ... remember I am new at this). Unfortunately subsequent cards have not looked this good because I don't have the expert supplies. Needless to say I have started to become a Michael's craft store junkie.

Here are a few things I learned for the other newbie crafters out there:
1) You want to use a hard card stock for the base of your cards. The perfect card stock will fold perfectly creating a nice crisp line. Here are a few suggestions: Stampin' up, Papertrey ink, Gina K.

2) To start out you need a good basic ink pad. The Memento ink pads work well because they dry quickly and are not water soluble. I have been using just the "tuxedo black" but other people think you need the brown and white to start out.

3) For adhesive use the Sookwang score tape. I use two different widths so that you still have one for ribbon and small images.

4) Now I can't say this from my experience yet but I have been told that the Stampin' up ink pads are nice because they will match the colour of your paper.

5) I don't suggest Studio G stamps that you find at Michael's. The ink doesn't stick to image very well. You are not left with the clear and crisp image that you desire.

What else do you think should be taught in "Card Making 101"?

Newbie Blogger

Hello everyone out there in the crafting world!

I am been wanting to start a craft blog for a while. I haven't been able to decide what type of blog I could have or what I would possibly write about. However, after much consideration I decided that having a blog to display the projects I have been playing around with and discuss them with other bloggers would help to motivate me with my crafting journey.

While I have been playing around with scrapbooking for a while, I would still consider myself a newbie. I don't really know any of the techniques nor have I taken any classes. The only things I know are those lessons that my sister has taught me.

I love to play around with both paper and digital scrapbooking. Card making is pretty brand new for me. I have been working on them but I haven't been too thrilled with all of my results so far. My newest interest in paper projects though is any DIY wedding project. The boy and I recently got engaged. Could there be any better excuse to start perfecting my crafting skills?

Therefore all of this brings me to my goal. I am a strong believer in goal setting. Goal setting makes me accountable to follow through with my desires and create my own life.

Goal #1: Publish a post at least once a week until my birthday (in March).

Crafting crew: What is your best advice for a newbie paper princess?