Mirror Finish

Thanks for joining me today for this weeks Papertrey Ink Design Team Tip!

It was quite by accident that I came across today's tip.  A happy mistake lead to the discovery of the transformation that takes place when stamping luxe gold or silver cardstocks with a bit of Versamark ink. Unlike regular cardstock, when stamping onto the Luxe papers the impression left behind is bold and very visible.  I hope you too will be as amazed as I was with this look.  Check it out!...

The stamping creates a sort of mirror finish.  It is soooooo shiny in person!  But a bit hard to capture by camera.

Seriously, the shine is impressive.  This works great on both luxe silver and gold cardstocks.  Here's a tip... If you decide to give this technique a try, handle this cardstock with care because this cardstock picks up fingerprints super easily.

My first project features the luxe gold cardstock stamped with the dots from the Irresistibly Ikat.

The flowers in the arrangement are from the Quilted: Summer stamp set. 

Here's a look at luxe silver in action.

A small shiny detail like this stamped Southwestern Style strip makes a big impact.

Another option... Versamark ink will take a long time to dry.  So, if your stamping is at a minimum it should be just fine.  If your stamping is bold and covers a good amount of your card another option, to prevent smearing, would be to heat emboss with clear embossing powder.  The look is slightly different, but you get the same effect. 

Check it out up close on these heat embossed butterflies from the Beautiful Butterflies stamp set.

So what do you think?!  You gonna give this one a try?   I sure do hope so!  Well, that's it from me today.  

Thanks for stopping by.

Maile



Happy Birthday Card
Stamps: Irresistibly Ikat, Quilted: Summer, and Swoosh
Ink: Versamark and True Black
Cardstock: White, Luxe Gold and Kraft
Other: Black Rhinestones, Quilted: Summer Dies, and Super Swoosh Dies

Have A Happy Birthday Card
Stamps: Southwestern Style
Ink: Versamark and True Black
Cardstock: Kraft, White, and Luxe Silver
Pattern Paper: Pattern Vellum
Other: Black Rhinestones

Hello Card
Stamps: Beautiful Butterflies
Ink: Versamark
Cardstock: White, True Black, and Luxe Gold 
Other: Gold Dots from the Make It Market Mini: Garden Gild Kit

Calandar Basics Revisited

Hello and welcome! Today is an exciting day for me. I've become part of the Papertrey Ink Senior Design Team and today I'm officially participating in my first Senior DT Challenge! For November's challenge, Nichole has asked us to focus on Calendar Basics stamp set and the calendar products. I've been anxiously waiting to share my projects with you. So, let's get started!...I knew right away what I wanted to create... tiny pocket calendars. Here's a shot of the calendar and a coordinating card.I'll start things off with the card... this design started with a kraft cardstock base, which I stamped with flowers from the Year of Flowers Collection and the coordinating flower months from Calendar Basics. All inked using Smoky Shadow ink. I then created a focal point using a die cut and trimmed Wine Bottle Tag. Stamped with a sentiment from Calendar Basics and violets from Year of Flowers Collection. Wrapped with Sweet Blush ribbon, embellished with a Sweet Blush button and attached to the card base.

Next up, the pocket calendar. These tiny treasures are simple to create, make great gifts and fit perfectly into a Christmas stocking. The kraft card stock base features the same botanical theme which was stamped like the card above. As far as how to assemble these tiny treasures, I'll share a little how-to below.Here's a shot of the backside, which features a bit more of that botanical theme and a stamped handmade detail (stamped using Calendar Basics). Here's How: I started with a Lunchbox Note die cut from Kraft cardstock, a Tag Sale 5 die cut from Rustic White cardstock, a button, 1/8" White Silk ribbon and Rustic Jute Button Twine.Score the tag and stitch into place with a button and ribbon. Tie a length of twine behind the button. This length of twine will be used to wrap around the pocket calendar and button to hold the calendar closed.Inside are the Mini Calendar pages, stamped with the coordinating months (in Smoky Shadow) and flowers (in Sweet Blush). The calendar pages were then carefully stapled into place inside.

Well, that's it from me today. Now be sure to visit the other Papertrey Ink Senior Design Team girls for more calendar goodness...

• Dawn McVey
• Betsy Veldman
• Heather Nichols
• Lisa Johnson

Thanks for stopping by today!

Maile

Pocket Calendar and Card:

• Stamps: Calendar Basics & Year of Flowers Collection
• Ink: Smoky Shadow and Sweet Blush
• Cardstock: Kraft, Rustic White & Mini Calendar Pages
• Accessories: Sweet Blush Satin Ribbon, 1/8" White Silk Ribbon, Rustic Jute Button Twine, Sweet Blush Vintage Button, Lunchbox Note Die & Tag Sale 5 Die

Papertrey Ink - September 2011 Release Project

The Papertrey Ink September Countdown has come to an end and I'm here today to share with you the rest of my projects. So, let me get started...

First up Holiday Lights by Dawn McVey. I stamped a few bent Christmas light strand at the top of a white card base.Stamped the bulbs in a color combo of Pure Poppy, Summer Sunrise, Aqua Mist, Spring Moss & Plum Pudding. Touched up a few with glossy accents to finish the card off.Next, Flower Fusion #8 by Melissa Bickford. Stamped the flowers onto a kraft card base in Fresh Snow ink and embellished with Harvest Gold Buttons.Attached, trimmed and impressed Mat Stack #5 die cut and wrapped with 1/4" white silk ribbon. Finished it off with a sentiment from the same set.Now for some Winter Cheer by Tiffany Pastor. Stamped a drift of snowflakes across the front of a kraft card base in Hawaiian Shores.Stamped a jolly sentiment and embellished with a few black rhinestones.Here's another sweet set by Dawn McVey, Candy Cane Christmas. Stamped these candy ornaments in Summer Sunrise, Berry Sorbet & Pure Poppy.Finished it off with a stylish sentiment from Stylish Sentiments: Holiday by Nichole Heady.Next up, Tag-its #8 by Heather Nichols. I paired this set with one of the new Damask Snowflake dies. Thread the snowflake with a strand of Autumn Rose twill ribbon.Stamped the snowflake center with a few snowflakes and a wintry sentiment and then attached to a kraft card base.And last but not lease Christmas Labels by Lisa Johnson. Stamped a retro sentiment label in New Leaf, Sweet Blush & Pure Poppy.

Embellished with a few fun holly leaves and berries, die cut using the new Holly Jolly dies.

That's all from me today. All supplies will be listed below soon. Thanks for stopping by and have a great one!

Maile

Holiday Photo Finishers

Hello all! Today is the last day of the Papertrey Ink Countdown as well as the second Group Post day. This time around each of us, on the design team, are showcasing the set Holiday Photo Finishers, designed by Nichole Heady. Our assignment is to create two projects, one photo card and one non-photo card. Check out what I came up with...To keep things simple I started by using one of the new tri-fold cards. I embossed the front flap with one of the Photo Finish Strip Dies and stamped a coordinating sentiment in True Black.Then stamped a large and small Bells & Boughs poinsettia flower in Spring Moss.Now, onto the inside... I raised the front flap and stamped a few corner flourishes in Ripe Avocado and Spring Moss.Placed a black and white photo into the center of the tri-fold card. To add a pop of color I stamped the flourishes, in Ripe Avocado, onto the photo and the card flaps.To finished the card off I stamped a "Joy" label in True Black and a poinsettia in Spring Moss onto white cardstock, cut out and attached to the photo with dimensional adhesive.Next up, the non-photo card... I started with a Rustic Cream cardstock block, stamped flourishes into the corners using Ripe Avocado and Spring Moss inks, stamped with a sentiment and attached to a Ripe Avocado card base.Finished the card off with a few black rhinestones. It's a super simple, yet elegant design, that can easily be mass produced.

Well, that's it from me today. Be sure to see what the rest of the Papertrey Ink design team has in store for you today...

• Nichole Heady
• Betsy Veldman
• Dawn McVey
• Heather Nichols
• Lisa Johnson
• Melissa Phillips
• Michelle Wooderson
• Erin Lincoln
• Jessica Witty
• Danielle Flanders

Thanks for stopping by!

Maile

Happy Holiday Photo Card:

• Stamps: Holiday Photo Finishers and Bells & Boughs
• Ink: True Black, Ripe Avocado & Spring Moss
• Cardstock: White & Tri-Fold Card base
• Accessories: Photo Finish Strip Dies

Peace And Joy Card:

• Stamps: Holiday Photo Finishers
• Ink: Ripe Avocado, Spring Moss & True Black
• Cardstock: Ripe Avocado & Rustic White
• Accessories: Black Rhinestones

Bells & Boughs Day Four

Hello all! It's day four of the Papertrey Ink Countdown and today I'm joining up with Nichole Heady to bring you even more of my new set... Bells & Boughs (which is available beginning September 15th at Papertrey Ink!). Nichole will have all the details regarding this set and its coordinating dies, so make sure you stop by (if you haven't already).

I've got a lot to share with you today, so let me get started!...
First up, a simple single layer card that's sure to give you no problems when sending it through the mail.Up to this point I've shared with you only the solid bell images. Well, also included in this set are outlined bells. Perfect for pulling out those Copic markers or for pairing with it's solid companions, like I did on today's card. I stamped all four bells onto a white card base in a color combo of Pure Poppy, Aqua Mist, Spring Moss & Summer Sunrise.Next up, I pulled out the wreath and berry images (from Wreath for All Seasons) and paired them with the smallest bough branch from Bells & Boughs. I stamped the wreath in Dark Chocolate, the boughs in Spring Moss, the berries in Pure Poppy and a Bells & Boughs sentiment in Dark Chocolate onto a Rustic Cream cardstock block. Then attached the stamped block onto a kraft card base. Adhered a couple strips of Dark Chocolate cardstock and embellished with matching buttons.Finished the card off with a die cut and stamped Hawaiian Shores bow and matching button.Here's a super cute and super simple holiday card trio. I simply stamped the tag (from Fillable Frames Additions 2) directly onto a white card base. Within the frame I stamped a small bow and sentiment, both from Bells & Boughs. To give these tag a realistic and fun look, I pierced a hole inside the tag top and cut a slit just outside of the tag top. Then threaded white silk ribbon through the two holes (using a needle) in pretty much the same way I would have had this been a real tag. One in Spring Moss.One in Aqua Mist. I think I like this arrangement the best out of the three.And one in Pure Poppy.I pulled out the Bells & Boughs poinsettias for this last card. Stamped them in both Pure Poppy and Spring Moss and cut them out. To create leaves, I cut the Spring Moss poinsettia petals apart and attached the sections behind the Pure Poppy ones.To create this Mega Mat Stack #2, I die cut two from white cardstock. Stamped the first one with Background Basics: Houndstooth (in Smoky Shadow), trimmed the top and bottom off of the second one and then attached the two together. Once assembled, I stamped with "Merry Christmas" and "From Our Family to Yours" sentiments (both from Bells & Boughs) and attached to a Soft Stone card base. Embellished with True Black buttons, the assembled poinsettias and black rhinestones.

Well, that's it from me today. I hope you've enjoyed this detailed look into my new goodies for the month of September. Remember Bells & Boughs and its coordinating dies will all be available for purchase starting September 15th, at Papertrey Ink. I honestly can't wait to see this set in your hands and in action! But in the mean time, please let me know what you think so far. I'd love to hear!!!

Now, for even more sneak peek goodness, be sure to visit Nichole Heady, Michelle Wooderson, Dawn McVey, Heather Nichols, Melissa Bickford, Lisa Johnson & Tiffany Pastor.

Thanks so much for stopping by!

Maile


Happy Holidays:

• Stamps: Bells & Boughs and Think Big Favorites #8
• Ink: Aqua Mist, Plum Pudding, Pure Poppy, Spring Moss, Summer Sunrise & True Black
• Cardstock: White
• Accessories: Corner Rounder

Deck The Halls:

• Stamps: Wreath For All Seasons and Bells & Boughs
• Ink: Dark Chocolate, Spring Moss, Pure Poppy & Hawaiian Shores
• Cardstock: Kraft, Rustic White & Dark Chocolate
• Accessories: Dark Chocolate & Hawaiian Shores Buttons, Dark Chocolate Baker's Twine and Bells & Boughs Die Collection

Greetings Of The Season Card Trio:

• Stamps: Fillable Frames Additions 2 and Bells & Boughs
• Ink: Spring Moss, Aqua Mist, Pure Poppy & True Black
• Cardstock: White
• Accessories: 1/4" White Silk Ribbon & Rhinestones

From Our Family To Yours:

• Stamps: Background Basics: Houndstooth and Bells & Boughs
• Ink: Pure Poppy, Spring Moss, Smoky Shadow & True Black
• Cardstock: Soft Stone & White
• Accessories: True Black Buttons, White Embroidery Floss, Black Rhinestones & Mega Mat Stack #2 Die

Bells & Boughs Day One

Welcome friends to the first day of the September Papertrey Ink Countdown! Today I'm super excited to be sharing with you a couple samples using my new set for this month, Bells & Boughs...

Bells & Boughs:

• features 17 images and 11 sentiments
• will retail for $24
• can be purchased through Papertrey Ink, beginning September 15th
• has a coordinating set of dies

How about a couple samples?...This card features a number of the images included in the set. I began this card by stamping a few rows of music notes, from Background Basics: Sheet Music, in Chia Vintage Touch ink. Stamped the three bough branches, in Spring Moss and Simply Chartreuse, and then layered a few Pure Poppy berries.

Die cut and stamped the large bell, small bell and a bow in Summer Sunrise and Plum Pudding. Arranged and attached to the card base at different hights. Embellished the bow with a Dark Chocolate button.Finished the card of with a couple Bells & Boughs setiments, "Merry Christmas" "& Happy New Year", in Dark Chocolate. This next card features additional images, two poinsettia flowers and one of the other bows. I started this card by die cutting a frame, using the Mega Mat Stack #1 and Layerz Mat Stack #1 dies, from Spring Moss cardstock. Stamped with the three bough branches in Spring Moss & Simply Chartreuse and berries in Pure Poppy. Attached to the card base with dimensional adhesive and stamped the sentiment (from the new Think Big Favorites #8 also available Sept. 15th) with in the frame.Stamped, hand cut the large and small poinsettia flowers and attached together. Die cut, stamped and attached the bow behind the poinsettias. Embellished with rhinestones and then adhered to the card base.

Well, that concludes my first look at Bells & Bough and the coordinating dies. I truly hope that you've enjoyed! I'd love to know what you think, so please share!

Now, be sure to visit Nichole Heady and Besty Veldman for a peek at Holiday Lights & Stylish Sentiments, Danielle Flanders will bring you Candy Cane Christmas. Also, Dawn McVey, Lisa Johnson, Heather Nichols, Tiffany Pastor & Melissa Bickford have peeks to share with you of their newest sets for the month.

Thanks so much for stopping by!

Maile


Merry Christmas & Happy New Year:

• Stamps: Bells & Boughs & Background Basic: Sheet Music
• Ink: Chia Vintage Touch, Spring Moss, Simply Chartreuse, Pure Poppy, Summer Sunrise, Plum Pudding & Dark Chocolate
• Cardstock: Kraft & Rustic White
• Accessories: Dark Chocolate Button, Rustic Jute Button Twine & Bells & Boughs Die Collection

'Tis The Season:

• Stamp: Bells & Boughs & Think Big Favorites #8
• Ink: Spring Moss, Simply Chartreuse, Dark Chocolate, Pure Poppy & Summer Sunrise
• Cardstock: Kraft, Rustic White & Spring Moss
• Accessories: Green Rhinestones, Mega Mat Stack #1 Die, Layerz Mat Stack #1 Die & Bells & Boughs Die Collection