Tea Bag Dispenser
When I was at Mum’s last week, she was looking for something to put her tea bags in when she has guests over. I said I would make her a box dispenser.
I cut Poppy Parade card stock and scored and folded it into a little square box. I used the dimensions from a tutorial by Sandy Hancock to assemble the box. I cut a window in the front of the box and assembled as per instructions. I decorated each of the panels with the Everyday Enchantment Designer Series Paper (free for qualifying orders in the Sale-A-Bration catalogue). I cut the lid from Early Expresso card stock and decorated the top with a panel of Poppy Parade card stock and a piece of the Everyday Enchantment Designer Series paper. When I put my tea bags in the box, it was a little too square, so I cut some Poppy Parade card stock and attached it inside the box to make it more rectangular and then the tea bags fit perfectly. 
To decorate the lid I wrapped it with the free Sale-A-Bration Lucky Limeade 1/8″ Organdy Ribbon. I also made a few loops of this ribbon and tied it with Linen Thread. I attached the loops over the top of the tied ribbon using Mini Glue Dots. I cut three Lucky Limeade leaves using the smallest leaf on the Blossom Petals Builder Punch. Once punched I folded the leaves in half to add some dimension. I used Mini Glue Dots to attach them over the Lucky Limeade 1/8″ Organdy Ribbon. Using Poppy Parade card stock I cut one 2-3/8″ Scallop Circle, one 1-3/4″ Scallop Circle and one 1-1/4″ Circle. I cut each of these into a spiral and then rolled them up tightly to form a flower. I used Crystal Effects to hold them in shape and attached them over the leaves using Mini Glue Dots.
This paper reminds me of beautiful floral tea cups – the kind that make me think of my grandmother.
I love this dispenser, in fact I believe I will have to make one of these for myself. I would love to know what you think.
Bye for now, Kris.
SALE-A-BRATION HAS ARRIVED
I don’t know about you but I love Sale-A-Bration. Who doesn’t love the chance to get something for FREE!! Well during Sale-A-Bration you can. All you need to do is spend $100.00 on Stampin’ Up! product and you will be able to choose one product from the Sale-A-Bration catalogue FREE. Just to make it even better, if you are the Hostess at a workshop with qualifying sales of $600.00 and you can earn another product from the Sale-A-Bration catalogue FREE.
It’s also a fabulous time to join Stampin’ Up!. During Sale-A-Bration you can purchase your Starter Kit for only $249.00 (usually $289.00) and you can also choose one free stamp set of any value from the current Idea Book and Catalogue. So if you have been thinking of joining Stampin’ Up! then this is the ideal time to do so.
Contact me if you would like a copy of the Sale-A-Bration catalogue.
Bye for now, Kris.
The Third Page
So this is the third page that I have made using my Christmas photos, only three to go. I need to get in and get them done. There will be serious questions to answer if I don’t.
I used Whisper White as the base for my 12 x 12″ page. I attached a narrow strip of Basic Black card stock with one long edge punched using the Eyelet Edge Border Punch to a piece of Regal Rose Designer Series Paper from the Brights Patterns Designer Series Paper Stack and then to the Whisper White card. To make the bow I cut two pieces of Whisper White 5/8″ Organza Ribbon and attached one end of each piece of ribbon to one side of the back of the Designer Paper before attaching it to the Whisper White card stock. 
Once the Designer Paper was firmly attached I tied a bow. I added a mat of Basic Black card stock to my photo. I printed the journalling onto Whisper White card stock and punched it using the Decorative Label Punch. I added a Basic Black Decorative Label to the back and then attached it behind the photo before adding it to the page. I punched Regal Rose card stock twice using the Fancy Flower punch and Whisper White card stock 3 times using the Floral Fusion sizzlit. I separated each of the pieces into two layers (see my free tutorial here if you would like to know how I made the flowers). I sponged the Floral Fusion flowers with Regal Rose ink after they were separated. I did leave one of the smallest Floral Fusion Flowers without any sponging. The three flowers have been stacked onto Clear Basic Rhinestones and attached over the top right hand edge of the photo.
This page is also very simple in style but with such a gorgeous photo I couldn’t go wrong.
Bye for now, Kris.
Week 24 at Sunny Challenges
I cannot believe how quickly the weeks seem to be passing. It only seems like yesterday I posted the last Sunny Challenge. Our weekly challenges will now run from Sunday morning until Friday night and our Ray of Sunshine will be posted on Saturday. This way our weekly challenge will always be the first post. We hope that this makes it easier for some of you to find our challenges.
This week’s challenge has been set by me and as well as using the sketch each project needs to the use the stampset Under the Big Top. I received this set when I attended the Brisbane Regionals last year and as you can image it wasn’t one I would have picked to buy – you know how much I love colouring images – so I thought I might get some inspiration from all of you.
Anyway, here is my example. I attached a piece of Early Expresso card stock to scored and folded Cajun Craze card stock. I stamped the lion image using Early Expresso ink onto the top right hand corner of the Early Expresso card stock. I cut two pieces of Designer paper from the Well Worn Designer Series Paper, matted each of them onto Cajun Craze card stock and attached them to the card front. I stamped the lion image from the Under the Big Top stamp set onto Whisper White card stock using Stazon Jet Black ink. I used Soft Suede, Early Expresso and Night of Navy Stampin’ Write Markers to colour the image. 
One of the things I remember most from Regionals was the way they showed us to use our markers to colour. You take one of your Clear Mount Blocks and scribble the marker onto it and then use your Blender Pen to pick up the colour and add it to your image. For some reason this allows me to colour an image and feel satisfied with the result. I cut the image using the 1-3/4″ Circle Punch and attached it to a Cajun Craze 2-3/8″ Scallop Circle. The image is attached to the card front using dimensionals.
I know this is relatively simple but I am looking forward to seeing what you can create. If you need more inspiration then visit Shirley and Vicky and then Sunny Challenges to add your creation to Mr. Linky. We appreciate all your support and love seeing the entries each week.
Bye for now, Kris.
Dinosaur Scrappin’
Here is the second page of the photographs that were hanging on my wall. This one is of my youngest grandson Noah. He is a gorgeous boy and has a beautiful smile. He is very keen on Dinosaurs and I thought I would use them as embellishments so that I could remember he loved them so much.
I used Basic Black cardstock for my base. I cut a strip of Whisper White card using the Tasteful Trim Die, sponged the edges with Pacific Point ink and attached it behind a piece of Pacific Point Designer Paper from the Brights Patterns Designer Series Paper Pack. 
I cut another piece of Whisper White card stock using the Tasteful Trim Die, layered it onto a strip of Pacific Point card stock and then embossed it using the Vintage Wallpaper Embossing Folder. I attached this to the Pacific Point Designer paper (hint – I didn’t have any 12″ x 12″ Pacific Point card stock to I used a strip of A4 and cut it in the middle where it is covered by the photo and nobody knows it doesn’t run all the way.) I did tie a short length of Whisper White 1/4″ grosgrain ribbon around the trim at the top of the page before attaching it to the designer paper. 
I embossed the Rectangle Designer Frame onto Pacific Point card stock and cut it out. I printed my journalling using the computer onto Whisper White card and attached it in the middle of the Rectangle Designer Frame. I matted the photo with Whisper White card stock and attached the journalling piece behind the photo before attaching it to the page. I stamped the four images from the Dinoroar stamp set onto Whisper White card stock using Stazon Jet Black ink and coloured them using my Soft Suede Stampin’ Write Marker and Blender Pen. There is a touch of Bashful Blue on the belly of two of the dinosoars. I attached the images to the page around the photo.
Again another simple page – the photo is too gorgeous not to make it the focus of your attention. I hope that you like this page as much as you did the one of Ava.
Bye for now, Kris.
Same Layout, Two Different Looks
Earlier this week I held a class with some very lovely ladies, who have been coming to classes since I first joined Stampin’ Up! back in May 2007. The really nice thing about doing a class with these ladies is that I get to visit with my Mum and Dad.
Anyway, we made 3 cards last night and I shared the tutorial instructions with the ladies which gives all the cutting dimensions etc. and I wanted to show them that they could take this information and make a completely different card.
They made this very masculine card to the left (although I forgot the stampset and had to improvise, sorry again ladies) and I made this very feminine card to the right using the same sizes for the cut pieces.
I started with a base card of Basic Black and attached a piece of Whisper White card stock. I matted two different pieces of Flirtatious Specialty Designer Series Paper onto Basic Black and attached them to the card front. I cut one of the Melon Mambo doily shapes from the paper which also comes in the Flirtatious Specialty Designer Series Paper and attached it to the card front. I stamped the flower from the Creative Elements stamp set onto Whisper White card stock three times using Wisteria Wonder ink, cut out one full flower and two smaller sections of flower, attached them using dimensionals and then added it to the centre of the doily. I stamped the butterfly from the same stamp set onto Whisper White card, cut it out and attached it to the card front using a Mini Glue dot behind the body and half a dimensional behind each wing.
I believe I showed them how simple it is to take one layout and change it to look completely different while still using the same sized components.
The instructions for the male card will be available for purchase on my tutorials page next month after I have held my Stamp-A-Stack which also includes this card. I will let you know when it is available, or you could keep watching my classes and workshops page and attend in person, then you get the instructions free.
I’d love to hear what you think of my two different cards using the same layout.
Bye for now, Kris.
A Scrapbook Page
I have been inspired by my friend Vicky to get some scrapbooking done. Last year for Christmas my girls gave me 10 x 8″ framed photos of my 6 grandchildren (Photos by my very talented daughter Sarah.). My son-in-law hung them in the loungeroom for me and I loved looking at them each day. Well this year they gave me new photos of the grandchildren and I wanted to do something with the photos from last year. Unfortunately there are some marks on them from where they got stuck to the glass and so they are not perfect but they are too gorgeous to simply put away.
This is the first one that I completed of my youngest granddaughter Ava. I decided to keep the layout simple and just concentrate on the photos. I cut a piece of Rich Razzleberry designer paper from the Brights Patterns Designer Series Paper Stack and attached a strip of Basic Black cardstock behind it which has one long edge punched using the Scallop Trim Border Punch. I wrapped the designer paper with Whisper White 5/8″ Organza Ribbon, tied a knot 
and then attached it to 12″ x 12″ Whisper White card stock. I matted the photo onto Basic Black card stock and attached it to the page. I embossed the Oval Designer Frame onto Rich Razzleberry card stock and cut it out. I used my computer to format the journalling and printed it in Rich Razzleberry to match the card stock and designer paper. I punched the journalling using the Extra Large Oval Punch, attached it inside the Oval Designer Frame and then to the page. I cut 3 sets of flowers from Whisper White card stock using the Big Shot and the Floral Fusion sizzlit. I separated each of the flowers into two pieces and sponged the edges using Rich Razzleberry ink. (If you would like to know how I make my flowers, you can download a free tutorial here.) I assembled the flowers onto a Rich Razzleberry brad from the Brights Brads and attached them around the Oval Designer Frame. I used the Beautiful Wings embosslit to cut the butterflies from Rich Razzleberry card stock and attached them to the page.
Ava looks so serious in this photo, however, she is a really happy little girl. She has changed so much since this photo was taken. I have completed another 2 pages and will share them with you soon.
Bye for now, Kris.
Technostamper Challenges
I am so happy that MaryJo’s Technostamper blog has its weekly challenge up and running again. I love her challenges and this week is no exception.
I used some of my pre-ordered Sale-A-Bration items and just love them. My base cardstock is Soft Suede and I added a piece of the Everyday Enchantment Designer Series Paper (isn’t if beautiful – Sale-A-Bration available 24.1.12). I matted another piece of the Designer Series Paper onto Soft Suede card stock and attached it to the left hand side of the card front. I inked the large floral image from the Fresh Vintage stamp set (Sale-A-Bration catalogue available 24.1.12) using Poppy Parade and Lucky Limeade Stampin’ Write Stampin’ Write Markers and stamped onto Very Vanilla card stock. 
I wanted to fill the Very Vanilla card stock so that it looked like designer paper. I attached the stamped panel to Soft Suede card stock and attached it to the right hand side of the card front. I stamped “happy birthday” from the Happiest Birthday Wishes stampset (Hostess set) using Soft Suede ink onto Very Vanilla card stock. I inked the small flower from the Fresh Vintage stamp set using Poppy Parade and Lucky Limeade Stampin’ Write Markers and stamped on either side of the greeting. The greeting panel is again attached to Soft Suede card stock and then attached to the card front over the two central panels. Lastly I added a small Basic Pearl to each of the small flowers.
I love this card, it has a real vintage/olde worlde feel. What do you think?
Bye for now, Kris.
A Birthday Tag
I made this tag to go on the present that I wrapped for my daughter Sarah. I took my inspiration from the colours and design in the wrapping paper.
I cut my tag shape from Whisper White card stock and embossed it using the Manhattan Flower Embossing Folder. I trimmed the corners at the top of the tag and then cut matting layers from So Saffron and Garden Green cardstock. I punched two 1-3/4″ Scallop Circles from Whisper White card stock and two 2 3/8″ Scallop Circles from So Saffron card stock. 
I used my Bone Folder to distress the Scallop Circles until I could separate each one into two layers. I sponged So Saffron ink onto the Whisper White Scallop Circles. I scrunched each one into a small tight ball and then opened each one out again. I stacked them onto a Vintage Brad and scrunched each layer up around the brad and then opened them out again. I punched 3 Large Ovals from Garden Green cardstock. I folded them in half and then ran them through the Crimper. I used my paper snips to trim one end into a shaper point. I used Mini Glue Dots to attach the leaves and flower to the tag. I punched a 1-3/4″ Circle from Garden Green card stock and folded it in half. I attached the Garden Green circle to the top of the tag. I ran Linen Thread through a Daffodil Button from the Brights Designer Buttons, tied a knot and attached it to the top of the tag using a Mini Glue Dot.
I enjoyed making this tag. It can be fun turning them into real works of art.
Bye for now, Kris.
Sarah’s Birthday Card
I made this card for my daughter who celebrated her birthday yesterday. Happy Birthday Sarah. We actually went out to dinner on Saturday night to celebrate.
I embossed a piece of Whisper White card stock using the Perfect Polka Dots Embossing Folder. I attached a strip of Night of Navy card stock which has been punched using the very beautiful Lace Ribbon Border punch behind the embossed Whisper White card and then attached it to another piece of Whisper White card stock. I stamped “happy birthday wishes” from the Petite Pairs stampset in the top right hand corner using Night of Navy ink. I added mats of Night of Navy and Ridinghood Red card stock and then attached the whole piece to scored and folded Whisper White card. I stamped the large flower image from the Flower Fest stamp set using Ridinghood Red ink onto Ridinghood Red cardstock 4 times. I punched one image using the 2-3/8″ Scallop Circle and cut smaller sections from each of the other three images. I stamped the other flower image from the same stamp set using Bravo Burgundy ink onto Bravo Burgundy card twice. 
I punched one image using the Fancy Flower punch and cut out the centre of the flower from the other image. I also stamped the leaf image three times onto Always Artichoke card stock using Always Artichoke ink. I layered the sections of flowers on top of each other using dimensionals. I arranged the leaves and flowers and attached them to the card front. The bravo Burgundy flower is attached using dimensionals. Lastly I added two large Basic Pearls to the centres of the flowers.
I think this has turned out really pretty and I am pleased to say that Sarah loved the card as well.
I’d really love to hear what you think.
Bye for now, Kris.
Stamping with Kris 