It's NSD - National Scrapbook Day!

Hello there, and welcome back! I have two quick scrapbook pages to share today. I have actually been working this whole weekend, and didn't get to participate as much in NSD as I would have liked to. But, I did start with a great two-page template from the A Split Second download for My Digital Studio. I took some pictures today, and just dragged and dropped them into the templates.

Normally I make traditional scrapbook pages (with paper supplies), but there are some really cute templates and other digital supplies from My Digital Studio that I wanted to play around more with.

Well, that is all for today. I'll have a card or two to share tomorrow. Thanks for stopping by!

 

Product List

132562

128884

Happy Easter

Happy Easter! This is rather belated, but Typepad has been down much of the past couple of days. So, I had my projects and videos ready to go, but I wasn't able to create this post early this morning as I had planned. But, better late than never, right?

Today I have a couple of simple 3D projects to share that celebrate Easter and spring. I made an Easter sign and two shadowboxes with an Easter and spring theme. Here they are all lined up on my mantle.

 

Here is the Easter set, both the sign and the shadowbox.

 

So, here is the Easter sign close up. Most of this is actually from the Blossoms Abound Kit Digital Download. I printed the watercolor background out onto paper sized 5"x7", and mounted that to a piece of So Saffron Core'dinations Cardstock. The cross is made with the Hardwood Background Stamp and Crumb Cake Cardstock and Ink. I cut two strips, and wrapped linen thread around them. The wreath, the banner and the flowers were print and cut out with my Silhouette Cameo e-cutter. I have videos for that whole process linked below, so hopefully those will be helpful. I am thinking of all kinds of ideas for this print and cut feature! The wreath is tucked behind the top part of the cross, and I used two banners with the middle portion cut and popped up for more dimension.

 

The shadow boxes are made using the Kraft Gift Boxes with the flaps cut off. The background is Coastal Cabana Core'dinations, and the base is from folded Crumb Cake Cardstock. I used the Simply Serif Mini Alphabet Stamp Set on all of the projects, and the Life in the Forest Stamp Set. I watercolored the animals and trimmed them out with a craft knife. I guess the only thing that makes this one Easter-like is the bunny!

 

I used the same supplies for the spring box as the Easter box above. Colors I used are Coastal Cabana, Pistachio Pudding, Summer Starfruit, Sahara Sand, Crumb Cake, Baked Brown Sugar, Calypso Coral, Crisp Cantaloupe and Strawberry Slush. The banners were spritzed with Strawberry Slush and Calypso Coral before I stamped the greeting.

 

Here are some in process shots of the shadowboxes, including the dimensions of the folded piece that is used as the base. When I cut out the forest pieces, I left white tabs of cardstock below each piece, so I could adhere them to the backs of the rows of the folded base piece.

 

I had an extra wreath, two banners and one small flower, so I made this card to go along with the other pieces. I added a small bow of Melon Mambo 1/8" Taffeta Ribbon to accessorize this card, and the small flower was cut in half and tucked into the ends of the banner.

 

Here are the video links for creating the above print and cut elements. The first is setting up print and cut for the banner.

 

The second is setting up print and cut for the wreath.

 

The third is showing the actually cutting on the Cameo and the settings in the Silhouette software.

 

Whew...that is all for today. More to share later this week. Thanks for stopping by.

 

Product List

133848	126360	137122	133035	131178
126983	126991	131177	131174	126976
126975	101406	122934	131167	120953
129958	129954	102316	124106	104199
131207	104294	104430	126185

How to cut .PNG files from MDS with a Silhouette E-cutter

Hello, and welcome back! I made a video today to show how I used the My Digital Studio .PNG stamp files to create these heart cut files with my Silhouette Cameo e-cutter. I used the Silhouette Studio Designer software. Here is the original post with these cards.

 

And, here is the video! I hope you enjoy it. Are there other things you would like to learn to do with MDS images and the Silhouette e-cutter? Let me know, and I'll work on some more videos for you.

 

 

Thanks for stopping by!

October Birthday Banner and Card

Wow...I took a litle, improptum blog break! But now I'm back with some new projects to share. I made this quick banner for a co-worker using the Witches' Brew Designer Series Paper. Orange and Black...perfect for an October birthday and someone who loves Harley Davidson! I cut the banners using the Perfect Pennants Bigz Die, the largest pennant shape. I used a 2" circle punch and Summer Starfruit Cardstock to back the letters with, and Basic Black Cardstock and the Typeset Alphabet Bigz Dies to die cut the letters with.

 

Here is a closer look at the banner.

 

And another one...

 

And, an even closer look of an inidividual banner. I cut a piece of Basic Black 1/8 Inch Taffeta Ribbon, and used the black tape from Witches' Brew Designer Washi Tape attached to the fronts of the banners and folded over the backs over the ribbon. This was a quick way to form the banner, and since it's not ornate it works well for a masculine project.

 

I also made a quick coordinating card using Smoky Slate as the card base.

 

I took these with my cell phone, so my apologies that they are a little blurry.

 

Well,  that's all for today. Join me later this week for more new projects. Thanks for stopping by!

My Scrapbook Philosophy Part 3

Hello, and welcome back! Tonight I'm sharing a little more about my scrapbook philosophy. Some of you might not know about My Digital Studio, which is Stampin' Up!'s digital scrapbooking software. The more I play with the program, the more I like it. I really love making hybrid projects with it, but from time to time I also make digital pages. I have shared a couple of pages made with the program before here and here. I'm really liking it for making complete books though, especially about a specific event or theme. They are great to use as gifts too, especially if you need more than one copy of the book.

I'm not sure I will ever be a 100% digital scrapbooker, because I love making traditional pages with real paper and embellishments. But, here is where I plan to use MDS:

• To make books about specific events or themes (like Convention 2012 or favorite vacation photos)
• To make books for friends and family, calendars too
• To make special titles for scrapbook pages
• To export shapes to cut with my Silhouette ecutter for scrapbook pages

There are all kinds of choices for supplies in My Digital Studio including papers, stamps, punches, embellishments, etc. You can also purchase photobook templates where all of the pages are already designed for you, and all you have to do is drop in your pictures. This is what I chose to do for my Convention 2012 digital book. You can click on the image below to see the whole template in the store at the Stampin' Up! website. I love this template. It has the chalkboard look in more than one color, chevrons, cool fonts and doodly frames. What's not to love!

I also made a short video which features all of my completed pages in the book. Even if you didn't go to Convention, this would make a great book about friendship or a group event. So, here you go. I hope you enjoy it!

 

 

That's all for today. I'll have some traditional scrapbook pages to share soon, and that will round out my scrapbook philosophy posts. Thanks for stopping by!

My Scrapbook Philosophy Part 1 or I Flunked Project Life!

Hello, and welcome back! Today I am going to start a short series of posts about my scrapbook philosophy. I have lots of pictures and words to share, but I'm going to break it up into sections that I will share throughout the week. Even so, I think they will be long posts! So, grab a cold drink and let's get started.

I have been scrapbooking for many years now...I think 15 or even approaching 20! (But, I'm not going to tell you how old I was when I started.) Even after all of this time, I still love the process. I enjoy taking pictures, and have learned how to make some simple edits so that I am happy with the printed photos. About two weeks ago, I helped a friend with 3 small children start her scrapbooking journey. It made me reflect on why I continue to do this hobby. For me, I like the creativity involved in making pages, looking through my photos, deciding what story to tell and completing the pages and albums. It's the creative expression that keeps me coming back for more.

I make traditional 12x12 scrapbook pages, mini albums, Project Life / pocket pages and even digital scrapbook pages and albums. At different times I had decided to try and use only one or two of these approaches, but now that I have been reflecting more I believe I will continue on with a little bit of each of these styles of scrapbooking. At the beginning of 2012, I tried to start a second year of Project Life, where I took a picture a day, and made a pocket page spread for every week. Here is what worked and didn't work for me in that process.

I liked:

• Focusing more on the little every details of my life. These are easy to miss if you only make pages about holidays, events and vacations.
• Including things like cards from restaurants, concert tickets, etc.
• Including every day pictures of friends, work and other smaller events that I mostly now capture with my phone's camera.

What I didn't like:

• Having to take a photo everyday, and inclulding hand-written journaling everyday.
• Having to make a two page spread for every week.
• Having to go in chronological order.
• Feeling like I was getting behind.
• Trying to fit the pieces of ephemera into one of the pockets.
• Trying to decide whether to journal about my photo, or the ephemera or finding room for both.
• Trying to match days for all of the elements.

In the end, all of the above decisions just bogged me down and I gave up continuing on with the album. Then, I read this post by Jennifer Wilson, and the lightbulb went on. I have read Stacy Julian's book Photo Freedom before and have taken her corresponding classes on the Library of Memories system, and this is the overall approach I have chosen. So, I loved Jennifer's post about removing the chronological part of Project Life, and blending the two. This is what is working for me. I'm just adding pocket pages into my larger albums for All About Us, People, Places and Things.

So, it must be time for some photos! I'm going to share my pocket pages from December 2012 and some of the details of creating them. I used whatever vertical pictures I had for the month to fill out this page. Also, for my titles I chose the same font to add to my pictures whether I edited them on my computer on on one of my cell phone apps.

 

Some of the Stampin' Up products I used are retired now, but you'll get the idea. I cut up part of Snowflake Season Simply Scrappin’ Layout Kit for the title 12x6 slot for the month. And, even though it says December Daily, I don't have a picture for every day.

 

For the cards, tickets and tags I wanted to include for the month, I attached them to another piece of 12x6 cardstock with washi tape "smashbook" or "This and That" style. I had more vertical pictures, so the next page holds 12 4x6 photos or cards.

 

A close-up of my ephemera for the month attached with washi tape.

 

I diecut the Merry frame from My Digital Studio download with my Silhouette e-cutter. I also used some Textured Impressions Embossing Folders and our Core'dinations Cardstock to finish out this card.

 

More vertical photos, pieces from the Simply Scrappin kit and dry embossed pieces on the left page. The right page I switched to horizontal photos and a 6x12 journaling space.

 

 

 

Here I journaled about our family Christmas Dinner and the gifts I received.

 

For my regular or "daily" journaling, I made entries into an iPhone app called Memento. Then, I exported this content and printed it out onto a 6x12 piece of cardstock and added it to the left page. The next page is all horizontal 6x4 photos started on the right side.

 

The reindeer is from a My Digital Studio download, cut with my Silhouette ecutter. The other pieces are from the Simply Scrappin' kit.

 

The sentiment is part of another MDS download cut with the Silhouette, paper from the scrappin kit, a scrap of Silver Glimmer Paper and some rhinestones.

 

More horizontal pictures on the left, and then the start of 4x4 Instagram photos on the right.

 

The snowflakes are from the Simply Scrappin' kit, and I colored the woodgrain pattern from the Natural Composition Specialty Designer Series Paper with Whisper White Craft Ink. On the bottom left, I included an index print of all of the creative projects that I made for the month. I love having a record of my creative endevors for the month to glance at.

 

Another glimmer snowflake and white woodgrain combo.

 

The sentiment is another MDS download cut with my Silhouette, on cardstock from the scrappin kit with Washi tape at the top and bottom. This was before Stampin' Up sold Washi tape, so this set is by Teresa Collins.

 

Some more Instagram 4x4 photos. I also used the Phonto iPhone app to add the text dates. My other apps used are Pic-Tap-Go for general edits and cropping, and Diptic for making photo collages. The font I used was Ostrich Sans Bold which is a free font. I print most of my photos at home. Even though Stampin' Up doesn't carry these page protectors now, you can find the same pages from We R Memory Keepers. Here is the set I used (the second 12x12 ring multi-pack).

 

Whew! That is all for today. All of these pages will live in my "All About Us" album since they are about my everyday experiences in December. So, have you tried Project Life or pocket page scrapbooking? What did you think? I'll have a mini album that features a vacation cruise to share with you tomorrow. Thanks for stopping by!

How to cut .SVG files from MDS with a Silhouette E-cutter

Welcome back! So glad you could be here today. So, remember this card? Well, I made my first ever video tutorial to show you how to import .svg files from Stampin' Up! My Digital Studio into the Silhouette Designer Software so you can cut the shapes with your e-cutter. That's how I created the feathers below.

 

So, since this is my very first crafty tutorial video that I have created, I don't think I'll be winning any awards for it yet. But, I hope you find it helpful and useful. Comments are appreciated. Enjoy, and thanks for stopping by today!

 

 

Artisan Wednesday Wow - Mar1

Welcome back to my blog! Wow, where did February go? This week the Stampin’ Up Artisan Design Team is featuring our February Facebook Projects for our blog hop. You might have just arrived from Jeanna’s blog. If not, go back and look at her wonderful project!

I love the Lemonade Stand Digital Disc that is a free option with purchase during Sale-A-Bration! The patterns are clean and modern, and the embellishments are hip and clever. All you need is My Digital Studio and the Lemonade Stand Digital Disc to recreate this page. Or, if you are looking for a quick way to get some projects done, there are a ton of really cute templates ready for your pictures and cards for many occasions that are also included on the disc. Don’t miss out on these great designs! It can be yours for free with a $50 purchase during Sale-a-Bration. Contact me if you would like to get this disc before March 22 when Sale-a-Bration ends.

I made lots of circles, and added the different patterned papers into them. I also added a thin, gray outline to each circle and also added dropped shadows to most of the elements. Love the realistic paper flower that was also included in this kit!

Well, that is all for today. You will find the supplies listed below. I’ll have some more Sale-A-Bration samples to share with you later this week. You’ll want to join us again next Wednesday as we feature another hop with all new projects! And, don’t forget to click to get to Sarah’s Blog for the next stop on the hop. You won’t want to miss her beautiful and creative project. Thanks for stopping by!

SUPPLIES

Digital:

130677  Lemonade Stand Digital Disc

130646  MDS 2+ Download (including 1.25 Circle Punch, Whisper White Cardstock)

MDS Quick Valentine's Card 1

Tonight I have a quick card that I made in MDS. What, Marisa made a digital card? I know, pick yourself up off the floor and keep reading.I have had the idea for this card running around in my head for awhile. The song lyric from the Beatles came to mind, and all I could think about was using an alphabet punch with the pretty papers from the More Amore collection for the words "love". I will share the digital version here for now. I am planning to print this out, and will try to share the printed version here soon as well! It seems that maybe when I create digital projects, my inner "clean and simple" style comes out. Who knew?!

The background is Pool Party at 50% opacity, and  I used the Alphabet Soup Punches with the More Amore Designer Series Paper. I gave some shadows to the Alphabet Soup Punch letters as well.

 

And, here is the inside of the card. I used an oldie but goodie stamp brush set for the inside, Always.

Well, that is all I have for today! I'll have a couple more digital projects tomorrow using the Sale-a-Bration digital discs, and then back to some projects using the Patterned Occasions stamp set. Thanks for stopping by!

 

Supplies:

Background
     Color = POOL PARTY 169,221,199

Punches
    Alphabet & Numbers\Alphabet Soup - punches\Alphabet Soup - uppercase l,  Filled with: Designer Series Paper\_Designer Kits\More Amore - designer series paper\More Amore - 12
    Alphabet & Numbers\Alphabet Soup - punches\Alphabet Soup - uppercase o,  Filled with: Designer Series Paper\_Designer Kits\More Amore - designer series paper\More Amore - 12
    Alphabet & Numbers\Alphabet Soup - punches\Alphabet Soup - uppercase v,  Filled with: Designer Series Paper\_Designer Kits\More Amore - designer series paper\More Amore - 12
    Alphabet & Numbers\Alphabet Soup - punches\Alphabet Soup - uppercase e,  Filled with: Designer Series Paper\_Designer Kits\More Amore - designer series paper\More Amore - 12
    Alphabet & Numbers\Alphabet Soup - punches\Alphabet Soup - uppercase l,  Filled with: Designer Series Paper\_Designer Kits\More Amore - designer series paper\More Amore - 14
    Alphabet & Numbers\Alphabet Soup - punches\Alphabet Soup - uppercase o,  Filled with: Designer Series Paper\_Designer Kits\More Amore - designer series paper\More Amore - 14
    Alphabet & Numbers\Alphabet Soup - punches\Alphabet Soup - uppercase v,  Filled with: Designer Series Paper\_Designer Kits\More Amore - designer series paper\More Amore - 14
    Alphabet & Numbers\Alphabet Soup - punches\Alphabet Soup - uppercase e,  Filled with: Designer Series Paper\_Designer Kits\More Amore - designer series paper\More Amore - 14
    Alphabet & Numbers\Alphabet Soup - punches\Alphabet Soup - uppercase l,  Filled with: Designer Series Paper\_Designer Kits\More Amore - designer series paper\More Amore - 17
    Alphabet & Numbers\Alphabet Soup - punches\Alphabet Soup - uppercase o,  Filled with: Designer Series Paper\_Designer Kits\More Amore - designer series paper\More Amore - 17
    Alphabet & Numbers\Alphabet Soup - punches\Alphabet Soup - uppercase v,  Filled with: Designer Series Paper\_Designer Kits\More Amore - designer series paper\More Amore - 17
    Alphabet & Numbers\Alphabet Soup - punches\Alphabet Soup - uppercase e,  Filled with: Designer Series Paper\_Designer Kits\More Amore - designer series paper\More Amore - 17

Stamps
    Always\Always - always, Color = PRIMROSE PETALS 204,81,101

Punches
    Hearts\Small Heart Punch,  Filled with: Designer Series Paper\_Designer Kits\More Amore - designer series paper\More Amore - 17

 

 

Artisan Design Team Facebook Friday November 2012

 

Welcome back! So glad you could join me for the Artisan Design Team Facebook Friday Blog Hop for November 2012. Please check out our individual blogs for our projects from November that were posted on Facebook by Stampin' Up. You might have just arrived from Jeanna's blog. She featured an amazing gift box complete with ribbon and sparkly ornaments. Make sure you check it out!

This month's box was loaded with Holiday goodies to create with. I love the Ornament Keepsakes Stamp Set and the Holiday Framelits Dies that coordinate, and started there for my inspiration.

And, I keep seeing these grid style samplers on art canvases like this one that I pinned for inspiration.

Source: blog.basicgrey.com via Marisa on Pinterest

 

I started thinking about how to make something similar with Stampin' Up! supplies. I'm really enjoying have access to great designs in both digital and stamp form. I think the possibillities are endless for hybrid projects like this one. So, I started with the Ornament Keepsakes Digital Kit. I actually used the punch that matches the ornament, chose to outline the shape with a thick black line, made the shape a little larger, and then copied the shape so there were 3 rows of 3 ornaments each. Then, I filled in the rest of the page (this is an 8.5x11 project in My Digital Studio) with the circular stamp from the same set and the flourish around the four edges from the Frames With A Flourish Stamp Brush Set. I first printed this off on 8.5x11 plain paper, and made sure that my shapes I wanted to attach fit inside the shapes.

Then, I printed the design on 8.5x11 fabric paper from the office supply store. It has an iron-on backing, so next I taped it to an 8x10 artist canvas that is about 1/2" thick with painters tape.

 

Next, I ironed it onto the canvas. I started along all of the edges first. Then, I put a piece of paper over the canvas, set a towel under the middle of the frame and ironed over the whole canvas.

 

Prior to this point, I had designed all of the goodies that were going to go inside of the ornament shapes. I got out a lot of my Real Red and Cherry Cobbler supplies, and went to town. I knew I wanted to use the flocked transparency from the Candlelight Christmas Specialty Designer Series Paper, the Cherry Cobbler Seam Binding Ribbon and the Silver Glimmer Paper. Check out the supply list at the bottom for all of the details. So, now it was time to attach the shapes to the canvas. I used Tombow Multi-Purpose Adhesive to attach most of the ornaments.

 

I used the Big Shot Multipurpose Adhesive Sheets for the fabric. I cut a strip of fabric, attached it to the adhesive sheet and then diecut the shape. I sewed a felt diecut flower and a button to the fabric, and then removed the backing. Then, I just had to stick the fabric shape directly to the canvas.

Around the edges I used small pieces of Sticky Strip to attach the Cherry Cobbler 3-1/2" Scalloped Tulle Ribbon. I sort of bunched it together to fit over the tape.

 

I tied a knot at the top, then made a pretty bow with some drapey ends.

Here are some closeup shots of the individual ornaments. This is the top row:

 

Here is the middle row. I think this is my favorite row.

 

And, this is the bottom row. Love the flocked transparency and ribbon rose.

Whew! That was a long post. Please be sure to click the button below to check out Sarah's lovely project. It is an adorable Christmas card with a non-traditional color scheme. Enjoy!

 

Digital:

119104: Frames With A Flourish Stamp Brush Set - Digital Download        

131360: Ornament Keepsakes Kit - Digital Download       

Stamps:

128048 (Wood-Mount) or 128051 (Clear-Mount) : Ornament Keepsakes Clear-Mount Stamp Set

128030 (Wood-Mount) or 128033 (Clear-Mount): Greetings Of The Season Wood-Mount Stamp Set

Ink:

126966: Cherry Cobbler Classic Stampin' Pad

126949: Real Red Classic Stampin' Pad

101406: Jet Black StāzOn Pad

Paper:

100730: Whisper White Cardstock

102482: Real Red Cardstock

127846: Cherry Cobbler Core'dinations Colorcore Card Stock

Accessories & Tools:

126905: Candlelight Christmas Designer Fabric

119246: Basic Rhinestones Jewel Accents

127816: Holiday Ornaments Framelits Dies

127822: Cannery Set Framelits Dies

124262: White Baker's Twine

127555: Vintage Faceted Designer Buttons

119855: Large Oval Punch

119744: Designer Buttons - Regals Collection

127819: Lacy Brocade Textured Impressions Embossing Folder

113439: Big Shot Die-Cut Machine

116824: Petals-A-Plenty Textured Impressions Embossing Folder Die

127811: 1-1/4" Scallop Circle Punch

119747: Designer Buttons - Brights Collection

127003: Apothecary Accents Framelits Dies

119860: 1-3/8 Inch Circle Punch

126901: Candlelight Christmas Specialty Designer Series Paper

124005: Silver Glimmer Paper

127010: Finishing Touches Edgelits Dies

120992: Cherry Cobbler 1/2 Inch Seam Binding Ribbon

127841: Cherry Cobbler 3-1/2" Scalloped Tulle Ribbon

127852: Jumbo Sticky Rounds

104430: Stampin' Dimensionals

103683: Mini Glue Dots

120805: Big Shot Multipurpose Adhesive Sheets

110755: Tombow Multi-Purpose Adhesive

123125: Cherry Cobbler Baker's Twine

119868: 1 Inch Circle Punch

104294: Sticky Strip

129367: Stampin' Sanding Block

white felt

printable fabric sheet

8x10 artist canvas