Sneak Peek Set Sampler!!

Good morning! It's my privilege to share a new set sampler with you this morning! I chose a fun new stamp set coming in January! (in the Occasions Mini Catalog). It's called Bordering on Romance, and it's so very pretty!! I really tried to do a masculine card, but failed! :-) If you come up with one using this set, please share with me!! I did manage to use all the colors groups--to give you some variety! Supplies for will be listed for each card! Enjoy!!!

Bordering on Romance Stamp Set
Calypso Coral & Whisper White Card stock
Calypso Coral Classic Ink
5/8" Organza Ribbon; Big Shot; Adorning Accents Edgelits

Bordering on Romance Stamp Set
Basic Gray, Whisper White & Baja Breeze Card stock
Basic Gray Classic Ink; Blushing Bride, Baja Breeze & Pear Pizzazz Stampin' Write Markers
Pear Pizzazz Seam Binding, Twitterpated Designer Paper

Bordering on Romance & Curly Cute Stamp Sets
Black Stazon Ink pad; Riding Hood Red Classic Ink Pad
Riding Hood Red, Whisper White and Vellum cardstock
Twitterpated Designer Paper; Aqua Painter; Riding Hood Red 3/8" Pleated Satin Ribbon

Bordering on Romance & Curly Cute Stamp Sets
Black Stazon Ink Pad; Melon Mambo, Tempting Turquoise, Daffodil Delight and Old Olive Stampin' Write Markers
Melon Mambo, Tempting Turquoise, Daffodil Delight, Basic Black and Whisper White Card Stock
Basic Pearls Jewels

I hope you enjoy this feature! If there is a stamp set you'd like to see me use, leave a comment!

Happy Holidays!!!

Clean and Simple Stamping - The Warmth of Crumb Cake

Hello Stampers!
Thanks for being patient with us here at the 411 today - it's the day for our once monthly post on Clean and Simple stamping and we (ok, me) had a few technical glitches. Mainly that I had a card all ready to share, but with no operating camera in the house that presented a bit of a challenge for me! So, Selene to the rescue with a super sweet card to share!
That's one of the benefits of working as a team here - we step in and help each other out! Love these girls!
So, how about we get to the card - shall we?

Now I don't know about you, but I just LOVE Crumb Cake cardstock! It's so warm and inviting. When I use it I just feel like I could curl up in a soft blanket and read a book by the fire. Yeah, I know, then I wouldn't be stamping, but that's the feeling I get! Just go with it, ok? :)

I absolutely adore this card that Selene made - first of all, it is both Clean AND Simple, but with the use of the Pretty in Pink Designer Paper and the softness of the Taffeta Ribbon, it appears to be much more rich and just draws you in.
So let's break this one down for you - the card base is Crumb Cake cut at 4 1/4" x 11" and folded to make a standard A2 card. (4 1/4" x 5 1/2")
Selene added a piece of Whisper White which has both top and bottom punched so delicately with the Scallop Trim Border Punch. She then added a piece of Pretty in Pink Patterns Designer Paper and wrapped it with the Whisper White Taffeta Ribbon. Love her sweet little taffeta bow!

The stamping is so lovely and simple. She used the greeting from the Because I Care stamp set and then stamped the birdcage image from Nature Walk out of the Occasions Mini. After she colored it in a bit with a Pretty in Pink Stampin' Write marker, she added just a tiny bit of bling with the self-adhesive Pearl.

Like I said, soft, lovely and simple! Thanks so much Selene!

Stampers, we at Stamping 411 hope you enjoy all types of stamping, but for the times when you need something lovely and fast, try out a Clean and Simple design. You will soon discover why the "less is more" theory is fabulous!

Have a great day everyone!

Clean and Simple - Christmas!

It's definitely the time of year when we all need a little Clean and Simple EVERYTHING in our lives! I'm sure you're like me and the rest of the Operators today, making that final Christmas List and checking it twice, maybe three times to make sure it's ALL done for this very special holiday!

Hopefully by now, you've had a chance to make at least a few Christmas cards - even if you haven't gotten them all in the mail yet! :) (Guilty!)
But, if not, then not to worry, today's Clean and Simple Card is just the thing to make you and your card recipients smile wide!

Having been awfully sick for over a week, I was a bit behind on my card making and sending, so I decided to combine two tasks into one - creating the card for this post and creating the card for my downline team. Here is the final result:

Yes, Virginia, it doesn't get much simpler than that.

I started with just one stamp set - Christ is Born, one cardstock - Very Vanilla and two ink pads - Versamark and Cherry Cobbler. The only adhesive on this card is Stampin' Dimensionals behind the center panel.

Let's me share what I did. The card base itself is simply a half sheet of 8 1/2" x 11" cardstock, cut in half to 5 1/2" x 8 1/2" and folded to make an A2 sized card (4 1/4" x 5 1/2").
The center panel is cut at 2 1/2" x 4".

I inked up the focal image with Versamark and using my Stamp-A-Ma-Jig to line up the image, I stamped it then heat embossed it with my Heat Tool and Gold Embossing Powder. (Note - for the Stamp-A-Ma-Jig, I'd stamped the image on the plastic imaging sheet in Cherry Cobbler so it would show up, then cleaned my stamp before using the Versamark.)

For the card base, I inked up the poinsettia stamp with Cherry Cobbler and stamped in opposite corners to frame the center panel. The poinsettia was also stamped once on the inside of the card in the lower left corner for an accent and I used the inside greeting stamp from the stamp set as well.

Once the card base was done, I simply added four Stampin' Dimensionals to the back of the focal panel and mounted it to the card base. Simple, elegant, done!

Well, not quite.......
Once I created my sample card, I wanted to add just a touch of shimmer, so I removed the center panel and found my Gold Glow Smooch Spray and added a couple of spritzes to the card base only. You can barely see it in this photo here:

Trust me - in real life, that Smooch Spray makes the card!

Here's the best part - I was able to make from start to finish in just three hours, 40 of these cards. Yep, 40. That included cutting, embossing and smooching!

I really like Clean and Simple, don't you?! :)

I hope today's post has inspired you to try the less is more side of stamping. It can be very freeing to create this way, not to mention time saving and economical for you too. If you decide to create a card based on how this post inspired you, be sure to share it with us here! Just leave a comment with a link to your creation - we love to see your handiwork!

Happy Stamping and Merry Christmas!

Clean and Simple Stamping - Wonderful One Layer Cards

Hello stampers! It's the end of the month and time for another installment of Clean and Simple Stamping. This month, I decided to focus on creating fabulous One-Layer cards and well, I was having so much fun, I got a little carried away!

At first you wouldn't think that a One-Layer card could have much personality - after all, it is just ONE layer - but with a little creative use of your stamps, inks and occasionally markers, you really can make gorgeous FLAT cards!

This first card begins simply with a piece of Naturals Ivory cardstock and a matching Medium Envelope. I cut the cardstock at 5 1/2" x 8 1/2" and folded it in half to make a standard A2 size card (4 1/4" x 5 1/2").

Using my French Foliage stamp set and four colors of ink pads - Old Olive, Cajun Craze, Crumb Cake and More Mustard - I inked the stamps and added the impressions collage style to the lower right corner of the folded card. The large leaf was stamped using the Rock-n-Roll technique by first inking it with More Mustard, then rolling the edges in Cajun Craze - I just LOVE that look, especially with these colors. The greeting, from the Because I Care stamp set, was inked with Old Olive and added to the left of the leaf collage.
To add the 'idea' of a layer, without really adding one, I simply took the fine point of my Soft Suede Stampin' Write Marker and drew lines freestyle around the edges of the card front.
After adding some leaf images to the envelope and inside of the card it was done and honestly, in less than 5 minutes! Now who doesn't love that?!

So, since I had SO much time left, I decided to pull out my pre-scored Note Cards with Envelopes and make a seasonal set of cards using this same design idea.
These Note Cards are a bit smaller folded (3 1/2" x 5") but make wonderful Thank You's or Gift Enclosures. And yes, you can mail them!
I did the first one using the same fall stamps and colors:

The next is for Winter and uses the Serene Snowflakes stamp set with Bashful Blue, Marina Mist and Night of Navy. This would be lovely with a bit of Vanilla Smooch Spray too!

Then I moved on to Valentine's Day and pulled out the I {heart} Hearts stamp set along with Pink Pirouette, Pretty in Pink and Rose Red - too cute!

Then I reached for Fifth Avenue Floral and did a Spring/Summer card with Pear Pizazz, Concord Crush and Daffodil Delight. I love how crisp this looks!

Ok, now I've been stamping for about 20 minutes - mainly because I took time to clean and put away my supplies between each card and I thought, well, I have a bit more time here so let's try one more thing - a One-Layer Debossed Panel card.

This was sooo easy I almost feel silly telling you how to do it! First I cut a piece of cardboard backing from a package of Designer paper at 3" x 4 1/2". Then, using a bit of Dotto (removable adhesive) I attached it to the middle of a folded Note Card and flipped it over. I then took my stylus and rubbed all around the cardboard edge on the opposite side of the cardstock, causing a raised frame to appear on the side of the cardstock that the cardboard was adhered to.
Once I finished, I removed the cardboard and removed the Dotto residue with my Adhesive Eraser. Then, I stamped my images - super easy!
Here, take a look:

I couldn't resist adding a little bling to this one so it has some Dazzling Diamonds on the flower and a couple of Rhinestone Jewels accenting the greeting.

So there you have it, more Clean and Simple that's quick and easy but still has impact.
I hope you'll take some time this week to try out a Clean and Simple card - it's very freeing for your creativity and your time limits too! Please share your creations with us by leaving a link in your comments - we love seeing your artwork!

Clean and Simple Stamping - A New Feature!

Good morning stampers!
You may have noticed a few new features here of late and we hope you are enjoying all the extra opportunities to put your creativity to work. Another new, monthly feature will showcase Clean and Simple Stamping - a style that many have embraced not only for it's elegance, but for it's ease! One thing is true, Clean and Simple does not mean boring and sometimes it's actually a challenge to KEEP it Clean and Simple. Most of us are natural 'embellishers' so it's great to apply the principle of less is more once in a while in our art.

Today's card is not only Clean and Simple, but it shows non-traditional Christmas colors, something that I personally struggle with and I'm sure some of you do as well. It's hard to get the idea of what Christmas should look like to you personally out of your head when designing a project, but it's great for us to break out of our box sometimes.

Let me start with some measurements for you:
Whisper White card base: 5 1/2" x 8 1/2", folded in half to create an A2 sized card - 4 1/4" x 5 1/2"
Concord Crush layer: 4" x 5 1/4"
Whisper White layer: 3 3/4" x 5"

You'll notice that for each layer, I simply cut the cardstock 1/4" smaller so that when it's layered, it provides a mat of 1/8" all around. These are great guidelines for any stamper to follow, especially if you are a novice. This 1/4" variance will become your standard over time and is easy to apply to any size of stacked layers.
Also, if you need to create multiple cards, a two color mixture and this layout are perfect for making the most of your cardstock. With just 3 pieces of 8 1/2" x 11" Whisper White and 1 piece of 8 1/2" x 11 Concord Crush, you can create 4 cards.

Now, let's get stampin'!
Using Pear Pizazz ink and the branch stamp from A Cardinal Christmas stamp set, I inked the stamp and stamped it multiple times on the top layer of White cardstock in the upper left corner. I re-inked the stamp between each impression for this project.

Next, I inked the greeting from Many Merry Messages in Concord Crush ink and added it across the bottom of the White cardstock.
At this point, I adhered my layers together with SNAIL Adhesive.

To create the ornament focal point, I first cut a strip of Whisper White cardstock at 2" x 11". Next, I chose my image from the Delightful Decorations stamp set and inked it up with Concord Crush ink. After stamping on the strip of White cardstock, I used my Ornament Punch to punch it out cleanly. Quick tip: I always stamp my image first, then punch it out. When you hold the punch with the punch window showing up, it is super easy to line up the image creating an almost perfectly punched image every time!

This ornament was dressed up a bit by punching a small hole in the center (I used my Paper Piercer) and adding a Rhinestone Circle Ice Brad to it. It was then easily attached to the card front with two Stampin' Dimensionals. You could also add Dazzling Diamonds Glitter with a 2 Way Glue Pen or the new Rhinestone Jewels if you don't have the Rhinestone Brads.

Once the ornament was adhered to the card front, I took a 5" piece of Whisper White 5/8" Satin Ribbon and tied it in a simple, single knot. The ends were trimmed with my Paper and Craft Scissors (which NEVER see paper in my studio - only ribbon and cloth so they don't dull).
After adding two Mini-Glue Dots to the center knot, I adhered it to the card front, just above the ornament, creating the look of it hanging from the tree.

This last photo shows just a peek at the inside of the card - I simply added a touch of the branch image to the lower right corner to give it a little color there. This is also a great way to dress up the envelope front as well!

So, there you go - a Clean and Simple project that's neither boring nor traditional!
If you wanted to, this card would be easy to step up by adding embossing - either heat or dry, glitter, more cardstock layers, a punched border - really, the sky is the limit! But really, isn't it nice to see that you can have something lovely without having to use all the tools in your toolbox? This project took less than 10 minutes to create from cutting to finish - and that's something we ALL can appreciate!
We at Stamping 411 hope you will enjoy this new monthly feature and will share your Clean and Simple projects with us as well! Be sure to leave a link in your comments here and show us your stuff!