Monday, February 2, 2015

The Creative Blog Hop

Today, thanks to Heidi Weaver of the blog Stampin Along With Heidi,I am posting as part of a very unique one-time only blog hop.  

Heidi nominated me to play along with the "Creative Blog Hop" and I have to say I was thrilled to accept her invitation. Why?  Well, there are a couple of reasons.  My main one was that Heidi has long been one of my Canadian "stamping idols". Seriously, she is just so uber creative and is always busy on some project that catches my eye! The second reason is that it was a one-time-only commitment. In and out so to speak and I find that awesome. So thanks Heidi, it's a real pleasure to accept your nomination!  

My Project This Week:
As a Stampin' Up! Demonstrator I earned a free stamp set called Painted Petals, when I attended the recent launch of the Spring Occasions Catalogue and Sale-A-Bration flyer.  After using this fantastic set I can honestly say I would have bought it............... it's just the best!  So today I'm going to share with you some of the projects I've made using this 13 piece set.  I hope you love these as much as I do.  
I'm disappointed this picture doesn't show the additional score lines (see step one) on the night of navy card stock.  They really add an extra  "wow"  and super finished look to this card.  

I made this card for a shoe box swap I participated in last week, and it was very well received.  Everyone commented that although it was a quick and easy card to stamp and assemble they thought it had great appeal.  

I have to admit that I had a bit of trouble positioning some of the leaves and petals with my clear mount set, but with a little practice things came together really well. No brushes are required to achieve an amazing watercolour effect, just the ink pad, and because there are 13 stamps in the set, you get lots of versatility in choosing which stamps to stamp with.

Painted Petals You’re Amazing Thank You Card
Stamp Sets:   Gorgeous Grunge, Painted Petals
Ink:   Lost Lagoon, Mossy Meadow, Night of Navy
Card Stock:   Whisper White, Night of Navy, Lost Lagoon
Accessories: Lost Lagoon 3/8” Satin Ribbon, Basic Pearls, Lovely Lace Embossing Folder, Big Shot,  Simply Scored Scoring Tool

Assembly: 
1. Cut card base from Night of Navy card stock. Score at 4 ¼”, 4 ½”, 4 5/8”, 8 2/8”, and 8 3/8” with Simply Scored Scoring Tool.  Note:  The additional score lines add a really nice effect on the face of your card.2. Cut a piece of Whisper White to 5 ¼ x 3 ½” a. Emboss with the Lovely Lace embossing folder.
b. Use the speckled stamp from Gorgeous Grunge stamp set and Lost Lagoon ink to lightly add random speckles
c. Attach a 5 ¼” piece of ribbon to the left hand side leaving a 1” margin. Attach to the back of the Whisper White card stock with sticky strip or tape. Attach bow to ribbon with glue dots. 
d. Use sticky strip to adhere this piece to the front of the card base. Line it up with the scored lines and center. 3. Cut a 3 x 3” piece of Whisper White card stock. a. Stamp speckles with Gorgeous Grunge stamp set for back ground effect. b. Stamp “You Are Amazing” sentiment from Painted Petals in Mossy Meadow inkc. Stamp leaves in Mossy Meadow ink 
d. Stamp flowers in Lost Lagoon and Night of Navy and add pearls to three flower centers.

4. Cut a piece of 3 1/8” x 3 1/8” Lost Lagoon card stock and adhere to the Whisper White stamped piece
The water colour effect in this stamp set is amazing.  Beautiful images with very little effort. 
5. Cut a piece of 3 ¼” x 3 ¼” Night of Navy and adhere the previous two layers to it. Adhere with dimensionals to the right hand side of the Whisper White layer. 6. To finish the inside cut a 5 x 3 ¾” piece of Whisper White card stock. a. Stamp “Thank You” sentiment in center in Mossy Meadow 


b. Stamp the dotted border stamp from Painted Petals in Lost Lagoon ink across the bottom
c. Adhere this piece with sticky strip (only at the top) to the inside of the card.
Voila! You’re Done


Some Additional Projects with this Set:

The Lovely Lace Embossing Folder is so beautiful and there is just so much detail in it.  It's one of my new favourites!

I love the colour mix in this card. I used Hello Honey, Lost Lagoon and Night of Navy.  I've combined Painted Petals with the Butterfly Basics set and they worked well together. 


I'm still working on this card and will be doing a tutorial later on, but I just thought I'd share it here. This is a very simple pop up card that's a lot of fun to make.  
Just Answer the Questions:
As a participant in the Creative Blog Hop I was asked to answer the following four questions:

1)  What are you working on now?  My stamp space is currently cluttered with about 6 different projects.  I'm working on my customer appreciation "thank you" cards and outlines for my spring schedule of classes and stamp clubs and I have a few pop up cards in the making for up coming birthdays.

2) How does your work differ from others in your genre?  I really love vintage style.  I know a lot of stampers who think vintage is passe but for me it rocks.  I'm at my most creative when I'm working with flowers, lace and bows. Soft subtle colours like crumb cake, blushing bride and very vanilla along with basic pearls and taffeta ribbon, really work for me.  Oh and another thing, I like layers, lots and lots of layers. I'm also a sponge addict and love to sponge and distress everything to achieve the look I want. White space and clean and simple terrify me....actually CAS (clean & simple) isn't even in my vocabulary! 

3) Why do you create what you do?  I never felt talented enough to be an artist in the traditional sense but I sought out a variety of arts and crafts over the years in search of something that would fulfill my longing to make beautiful things. I taught myself calligraphy, knitting, crocheting, and every form of stitchery imaginable, and when, quite by accident, I found stamping, it was like my creative world exploded.  I'd finally found a niche where I could be creative and indulge my passion for art work but on a small and timely scale.  I can honestly say paper crafting and sharing what I love has brought me endless hours of joy and happiness. 

4) How does your creativity work?  Oh this is a tough question for me. You see, I'm one of the world's biggest procrastinators, and I have a lot of difficulty making time to stamp. Sometimes it's almost like I'm afraid to take out my stamps and ink them up, which is silly because every waking moment I'm thinking about projects and stamping.  So I think to answer this truthfully, for me the mood has to be absolutely just right, and my Mojo definitely has to be working.  But, when all the stars and planets align, look out because there's nothing that can stop me.  I've been known to jump out of bed in the middle of the night, much to my husband's surprise and consternation, so I can get an idea down on paper, or try something different.  And, I usually don't sleep until it's done, so I'm the epitome of the "late night stamper". 

Inspiration is every where for me and I love to experiment and try new techniques and to demonstrate what I've learned to anyone who wants to learn something new.  

My Nominees For Next Week's Creative Blog Hop:  
And now it's my turn to nominate two great stampers who'll post next Monday February 9th on the Creative Blog Hop. My first nominee is Karen Gilbert from Kamloops, BC. Karen is an incredibly talented stamper who posts videos and tutorials galore on her wonderful blog Simply Said With Karen.  Karen also sends out a fantastic monthly newsletter that's full of tips and information. Although we've never met in person, I feel like I know her from all our on-line communications and I'm happy to to call her a friend.  Please drop by Karen's blog and check out all her wonderful projects and leave her some comments. 

My second nominee is Carol Held from Ontario Canada. Carol's blog Stampin Ribbons is chalk full of ideas.  She is the queen of stamping and crafting videos and produces them prolifically   I know you'll enjoy Carol's projects as much as I do, and hope you'll visit her site and leave her a comment or two.  You won't be sorry.  
Happy Stamping!
Penny Tokens 

10 comments:

Heidi Weaver said...

Beautiful, Penny! I knew you wouldn't let me down. Thank you so much for the accolades. We have a mutual admiration thing going because I love your style and frequently get ideas from your wonderful projects. I, too, love vintage and deny that it is passée. Actually I doubt any style is really gone---people just drift away and then rediscover it.
That stamp set is so much fun and I love what you've done with it, Penny. I chose to get the Photopolymer set even though, initially, I took to Photopolymer kicking and screaming that I just wanted rubber. I find it really does have its place, and using this set and seeing the exact placement is such a bonus.

I'm looking forward to seeing what your nominees do with the Creative Challenge next week. Thank you so much for your wonderful post. You rock!

Penny Hanuszak said...

Heidi thanks for your wonderful comment. It's been an extremely busy week so this post was kind of rushed. I have to say I've tried both the Painted Petals in Photopolyer and the Clear Mount and my favourite is probably the Photopolymer. In my opinion, the watercolour images are crisper especially if you stamp on a pad. But having said that I am absolutely thrilled with my clear mount set. I'll be following up with my two nominees later today to see how they are doing, and I've found one reserve nominee if they need help What fun! Can't wait to see what they come up with either, and I'm checking out all the other folks that are hopping!

Carol Held said...

Hi there me dear friend, and EXTREMELY talented stamper! Your cards are beautiful! Love the color combination you chose here. They are my faves! I'm looking forward to the Blog Hop! Im honoured you thought me "Stamping Worthy", amongst these talented crafter's!

Penny Hanuszak said...

Thanks Carol for popping by. You made my day and glad you liked my card. You are more than stamping worthy my friend, so can't wait to see your post next week. It'll be fun and something new for you!

Karen said...

Lovely cards Penny. I sure do need ideas for this stamp set having only used it twice. Your cards are an inspiration. I too like vintage but have moved away from the look lately.I will definitely will be using it for a class. Thanks for the nomination for next week. I am looking forward to the post.

Penny Hanuszak said...

Karen thanks for checking out my entry in the Creative Blog Hop. It was fun doing this on a one-shot basis, and I'm really looking forward to your post next week. I am totally in love with this set and the Basic Butterfly now that I got over the jitters of using both sets. All those stamps!

Deborah Smart said...

I love your combination of Lost Lagoon and Navy, Penny - I'll have to remember it! You're a wonderful artist, and you 'do' vintage very, very well! :)

Penny Hanuszak said...

Thanks Deb for your comment, I'm blushing. Smile. I really liked the Lost Lagoon and Navy together too. It's such a soft and dreamy combination. Thanks for dropping by!

Christine said...

Beautiful card, Penny. The colors are gorgeous together.

Christine said...

Beautiful card(s), Penny. Your color combinations are gorgeous.

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