November Wacky Watercooler Blog Hop - Celebrates Christmas

This is the last blog hop of the season at the Wacky Watercooler, so I hope you will enjoy the delightful projects our Design Team has in store for you. We have 10 members participating in this hop  and each member is contributing three wonderful Christmas themed projects to get you in the mood to stamp and create.  So grab a cup of your favourite beverage and relax for a while and enjoy! 

The Wacky Watercooler Blog Hop works on a circular basis so you can start at the beginning or in the middle or at the end, and still work your way through all the participants just by clicking on the "next symbol" at the end of my post.  If you've arrived here from the wonderful Marsha Reed's blog

Project One:  Simple Gift Card Holders

I like to give gift cards at Christmas since it's sometimes difficult to get together with my friends and family who live far away.  So I need a cute gift card  holder that is both easy and economical to mail and very quick to make. I discovered this pattern which I've CASED on Lynn Ellis' blog earlier this summer, and decided to recreate it for you here.  The beauty of this pattern is it can be used for any season and can be as plain or dressed up as you want it.  And finally, these gift card holders are perfect for selling at craft fairs and usually sell off very quickly.

Simple Gift Card Holder Instructions:
Supplies:
Stamps: Merry Mice

Card Stock:  Cherry Cobbler, Basic Black, Very Vanilla, Watercolour Paper
DSP:  This Christmas DSP
Ink:  Archival Basic Black or Cherry Cobbler 
Markers:  Chocolate Chip, Pink Pirouette, Crushed Curry, Garden Green, Cherry Cobbler, Crumb Cake
Accessories: Big Shot, Trimmer, 1 3/8" 1 3/4" and 2" circle punches, Dimensionals, Tear and Tape, Basic Rhinestones, Snowflake Embellishments (R)


1.  Cut 1 piece of Cherry Cobbler card stock 5 x 8 and score at 5 ½” and 2” and round the top corners
2.  Cut 1 piece of Cherry Cobbler card stock 8 x 1 ¼” for belly band.  Gently wrap the band around the holder and adhere the two ends with tear and tape.  You can decorate the band as much or as little as you like. 
3.  Cut 1 piece of DSP 2 3/8 x 4 7/8 round bottom corners and adhere to the front of the top panel.
4.  Cut 1 piece of DSP 1 7/8 x 4 7/8 round top corners and adhere to the front of the  bottom panel
5.  Use Tear Tape on the inside of the bottom front panel to create the holder for the gift card.  Simply place the tape along the bottom at the crease line and up the two sides of the panel.  Remove strips and press the panel against the inside of the holder.
6.  Stamp a sentiment on the inside of the front panel so that it shows when the gift card holder is opened up. 

One of the reasons I love the "This Christmas Designer Series Paper" DSP selections is this snow flake design.  The black images on the Very Vanilla paper are outstanding. 

I used an old snowflake punch I had to create a negative image and then punched it out with the 1 3/8" circle punch.  It was mounted on a 1 3/4" circle of Very Vanilla card stock, which in turn was mounted on a Basic Black circle.  The center jewel is from last year's stash and is called Winter Wonderland Embellishments.

Isn't this little mouse super cute?  I coloured his outfit with an aqua painter and ink from a variety of ink pads including:  Crumb Cake, Chocolate Chip, Garden Green, Crushed Curry and Pirouette Pink.

The little belly bands only have DSP on the front panel which measures 1" by 
3 3/4". 
Project Two:  Gingerbread Rectangular Pop Up Card

I'm a great fan of Pop Up Box Cards.  These cards are so much fun to make and the recipients are always excited to receive them.  For my second project I chose a Gingerbread Man theme.

This little pop up box card is so adorable, that I couldn't stop smiling the whole time I was making it.  There is very little stamping involved in this card as most of the line images come from the Candy Cane Lane DSP. So, although I'm not a huge fan of fussy cutting I didn't really mind for this project.

 

I love the way the Red Glimmer Paper added so much life to this project!  Got to love it.  I added a little bow on the candy cane.  It was punched out with the Cooking Cutter Builder Punch. 

The sentiment "Wishing You a Sweet Season" is stamped in Early Espresso ink.  I used a Red.

The Candy Cane House is from the Candy Cane Lane DSP.  I added basic rhinestones to the small candies to give it some bling.  I fussy cut the house and then adhered it to a piece of Crumb Cake and then cut it out again leaving about a 1/16th" border all around the house.  This gave it a bit more stability.

Supplies:
Stamp Set: Candy Cane Christmas

Card Stock:  Real Red and Crumb Cake
DSP:  Candy Cane Lane, Red Glimmer Paper 
Ink:  Crumb Cake and Early Espresso
Accessories:  Circles Framelits, Big Shot, Basic Rhinestones, Trimmer, Fine Tip Scissors, Dimensionals, Tom Bow Glue, Acetate strips, Red Sharpie Marker  

Assembly:
Since I've made the rectangle box card previously I'm not including the instructions here, but you can get by clicking on this link WWC78.  Although I'm not giving you the full instructions here are two additional pieces of information that will help you when you make one of these cards. 

Tip One:
1.  I didn't have 12 x 12 piece of Real Red card stock for this project so I had to get inventive.  I cut a 4" x 11" piece of Real Red card stock and scored it according to the instructions.  Then I cut a 1" x 4" piece of Real Red card stock and scored it at 1/2".  I used this piece to extend the 4 x 11" piece.  

Cut a strip 1" x 4" and score at 1/2"  Clip away the top box as per the picture.Add the additional strip to the end of your box.  I used Tear N' Tape to give it some additional stability when I stuck the pieces together.  

Once the piece is adhered you'll never even see it.  Voila an instant solution when you don't have the right size card stock.  

Tip Two:
The original instructions in WWC78 do not include the scoring measurements for the two support pieces of the box card. You need to score at 5/8" on both ends of the support piece.  
 
Project Three: Reindeer Games
For my third project I decided to make a card using the Reindeer from the Cookie Cutter Christmas stamp set.  You just have to smile when you see that cute little face. It's too bad my photography wasn't better, because this card is a real stunner!  The silver foil and silver embossing are so rich looking.

It's difficult to see in the picture, but the three Reindeer were actually stamped in Versa Mark Ink directly on the card stock and then heat embossed with Silver Embossing Powder.  A fourth reindeer was stamped on a separate piece of paper and I used the Cookie Cutter Builder Punch to punch it out. 

I stamped the sentiment "Sending a little Christmas magic your way" from the Christmas Magic stamp set.   The little stars are from a retired stamp set. 

Supplies:
Stamp Sets:  Cookie Cutter Christmas, Christmas Magic
Ink:  Versa Mark and Momento Tuxedo Black
Card Stock:  Whisper White, Basic Black, Silver Foil
Accessories:  Big Shot, Trimmer, Heat Gun, Silver Embossing Powder, Dimensionals, Tom Bow Glue, Cookie Cutter Builder Punch

I hope you've enjoyed your tour of my projects and that I've provided some stamping inspiration and excitement for you.  I'd love to have some feedback and would enjoy reading any comments you might have.  Out of my three projects which was your favourite and do you think you'll make your own versions of these projects?

Well, time to move on to the talented Heidi Weaver.  Heidi's outdone herself this hop and is giving you some extras so be sure to check out her post.  Just click on her name or the NEXT button below and you'll go directly to her post.

Heidi Weaver

Marsha Reed

Start of Hop - Wacky Watercooler
Happy Stamping!!!
Penny Tokens Stampin' Spot

WWC92 - Jean Fitch's Sketch Challenge

I hope everyone had a safe and fun Halloween. Ours was totally quiet with one burst of fireworks about 8:00 followed by a big void of silence.  There was not one knock on our door, although neighbours at the beginning of our complex boasted having five.  I guess it's safe to say my husband will be munching on those Coffin Coffee Crisp chocolate bars that he bought (hmmmm.....did he plan that?). 

So it's November, the start of a new month of excitement, and it's time to put away all your Halloween stamps, paper and treats and get ready for this week's challenge over at the Watercooler Wednesday blog.  

To get our November challenges off to a great start, the talented Jean Fitch has presented us with a tricky little sketch featuring lots of layers.  Don't be intimidated by this sketch, it's really quite easy once you decide what your layers will be.  I hope you'll play along, because I'd love to see what you create with it! The challenge ends at 5pm on Monday November 7th.   Here's Jean's sketch:

Here's My Take on the Sketch:

Since Christmas is just around the corner I decided to ink up my brand new Christmas Magic stamp set.  Love it!   The train is my favourite out of the set, but the other 7 stamps rank pretty high up there too. 

For the inside of my card I chose an old sentiment from a retired stamp set called Christmas Bliss. I added a strip of the "This is Christmas" Specialty Designer Series Paper.  It seemed such a shame to cover it up on the front layer and miss out on seeing all those beautiful snowflakes.  In fact this paper was the inspiration for my card.

Supplies:
Stamp Sets:  Christmas Magic, Christmas Bliss(R) 
Card Stock and DSP:  Smokey Slate, Basic Black and Basic Gray, Very Vanilla, "This Is Christmas" Specialty Designer Paper (DSP)
Ink:  Momento Tuxedo Black, Real Red, Garden Green, Delightful Dijon, Crumb Cake, Island Indigo
Accessories:  Softly Falling Embossing Folder, Trimmer, Tom Bow Glue, Dimmensionals, Aqua Painter, Wink of Stella Glimmer Stick.

Assembly:
1.  The Smokey Slate card base measures 8 1/2" x 5 1/2" and is scored at 4 1/2" for a side fold card.
2.  The first layer is cut from Basic Black and measures 2 1/2"x 5 1/4"
3.  The second layer is cut from Basic Gray and measures 2 5/8" x 5"
4.  The third layer is "This is Christmas" DSP and measures 2 3/4" x 4 3/4".
5.  The stamped layer is a piece of Very Vanilla card stock that measures 3 1/8" x 4 1/2".  I stamped the image of the train in Momento Tuxedo Black ink on this piece and then embossed it with the Softly Falling Embossing folder before colouring the greenery and bows on the train with inks and the aqua painter.  The wreath on the front of the train was stamped again, cut out, coloured and mounted on a dimensional over the original wreath.

6.  The inside layer is a piece of Very Vanilla card stock measuring 51/4" x 4" It is adhered only on the top half.  A 1/2" piece of the DSP was glued to the right side of the panel.  It measures.  12" x 5 1/4".  
7.  The two sentiments are from the retired Stamp set - Christmas Bliss.  

Voila!  Apart from stamping and colouring this card front the card came together really quickly.  I'm very happy with my Christmas Magic stamp set and I know I'll be using it for years to come.  I just love the vintage old world feel this set has. 

I hope you'll leave me a comment and let me know what is your favourite Christmas stamp set that Stampin' Up! has issued this year - or even all time. I'd love to know. Don't forget to check out the other Watercooler Wednesday Design Team artists, because i know you'll enjoy the variety of cards they came up with for this sketch. What fun!

Happy Stamping!
Penny Tokens Stampin' Spot

Stampin' Up! is starting off the month of November with some great deals.  The first is the new Stitched Framelits 12 piece die set.  You're definitely going to want these outstanding dies! 

These framelit dies are a new product coming out in the 2017-2018 Annual Catalog, but you can purchase them right now on a special pre-order!  In this fantastic set you get four ovals, four squares and four circles in all the popular sizes that you'll need.  They have a wonderful perforated stitched edge around each die. In addition to that, there's a selection of holiday stamp sets on sale this month for 25% off! 

 

*AC refers to the annual catalogue; HC refers to the holiday catalogue.
Details:

• Stitched Shapes Framelits available November 1, 2016
• November 1-30, 2016: select stamp sets 25% off
• Stamp sets also available in French
• Ordering Deadline (25% off stamp sets): November 30, 2016, by 11:50 PM (MT)

Click here to purchase your Stitched Shapes Framelits and stamp sets today!
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HAPPY STAMPING!
PENNY TOKENS STAMPIN' SPOT 

WWC91 Marsha's Masculine Challenge - Anything Goes!

Hi Stampers.  Today at Watercooler Wednesday we have one of my favourite challenges hosted by Marsha Reed.  It's a Masculine Challenge and as long as it has a masculine theme "Anything Goes".  

Here's My Card: 

It will come as no surprise to those of you who follow my blog that I love the Bear Hugs stamp set.  It's become my number one "go to stamp" when I want something quirky and fun.  I think this Birthday Card is just that! 

 

Supplies:
Stamps:  Bear Hugs #139546, Swirly Bird #141749, Thoughtful Branches #143539 (R), and Stylized Birthday #141828
Card Stock:  Very Vanilla, Dapper Denim, Soft Suede, Crumb Cake
Inks:  Daffodil Delight, Dapper Denim, Crumb Cake, Honey Dijon, Soft Sky, Pear Pizzazz, Emerald Envy, Soft Suede, Early Espresso, Watermelon Wonder, Momento Tuxedo Black
Accessories: Bear Hugs Framelits, Bunch of Banner Framelit Dies, Big Shot, Trimmer, Dimensionals, Tom Bow Glue, Sticky Strip, Wink of Stella

Assembly:
1.  The card base is cut from Soft Suede Texturized Card Stock and measures 8 1/2" by 5 1/2".  This is a top fold card so it's scored at 4 1/2".

2.  The first layer is a piece of 5 1/4" x 4" Dapper Denim.

3.  The top layer is a piece of 3 3/4" x 5" Very Vanilla.  

4.  The inside layer is a piece of 5 1/4" x 4" Very Vanilla.  

5.  I stamped the large Swirly Sun from the Swirly Bird in the top left hand side of the Very Vanilla panel.  To add more dimension, I stamped the center of the sun with the solid medium circle image in Honey Dijon. I needed to create a mask to protect the sun while I sponged in the background colours so I did that on a post it note.  I began by sponging the sky in Soft Sky ink, leaving some white space so it looked like clouds.

6.  I also made a mask from a scrap of card stock to shape the hillside across the center of the card, and  sponged it with Crumb Cake and Soft Suede inks. My mask looked a little like the wave die in the bundle above.  I moved the mask down and alternated the inks as I sponged the hillside, creating a feeling of texture and depth. I stamped the grass image from Thoughtful Branches randomly across the hillside in Pear Pizzazz and Soft Suede inks.

7.  I stamped the 3-tree image from Thoughtful Branches across the hillside.  The branches were stamped in Pear Pizzazz and the trunks in Soft Suede.  Tip: I inked up the whole tree image in Soft Suede then removed the colour from the top of the trees with a baby wipe. Then I tapped the Pear Pizzazz ink pad over the top of the image to create the tree branches.  This could also have been done with a marker.

8.  I sponged Soft Sky and Dapper Denim inks on the bottom portion of the panel for the lake and then stamped over this with the wave image from Thoughtful Branches in Dapper Denim ink. I also swooshed some Dapper Denim over the water before adding the fish to give it some depth.

9.  The fish were stamped on a scrap of Very Vanilla card stock in Momento Tuxedo Black ink and were cut out with the Bear Hugs Framelit dies.  I coloured them with an aqua painter in shades of Dapper Denim, Emerald Envy, Watermelon Wonder, Honey Dijon. I coated them with Clear Wink of Stella to bring out that Rainbow Trout look.  I also waved the brush over the water to make it look like ripples.  The two end fish were glued directly to the water and the middle fish was popped up on a dimensional.  Note:  Before I give this card away I'm going to coat the fish with Crystal Effects(R) to make them shine.  I think that would be a nice touch.

10.  The bear from Bear Hugs was stamped on a scrap of Very Vanilla card stock with Momento Tuxedo Black ink and cut out with the Bear Hugs Framelits. I sponged the bear with Crumb Cake and Soft Suede inks.  I wanted the bear to look like it had just scooped up his fish so I cut a second bear image and removed the left arm.  I glued the corresponding arm to the back of the one that I wanted bent after sponging it with ink then gently bent it forward so it could hold the fish.  I glued the tail of the fish to the arm and popped the body of the fish up on a dimensional to give it more depth.

11.  Originally I stamped the sentiment from the Bear Hugs stamp set, "Wishing You a Day Full of Sunshine and a Lake Full of Fish" above the bear in Soft Suede. However, it didn't stand out well enough so I re-stamped it on a 3" x 1" piece of Crumb Cake card stock, cut it out with the pointed single banner from the Bunch of Banners Framelit set and mounted it with Dimmensionals. Better.

12.  To finish the inside of the card I stamped the "Happy Birthday " sentiment from Stylized Birthday in Early Espresso Ink in the center of the Very Vanilla panel.  I randomly stamped four fish across the bottom and coloured them with an aqua painter.

Well that's it for today's card.  I hope you like it as much as I do.  I'd love to hear from you, whether you think a guy would like this card.  I think they would get a chuckle out of it, especially if they love to fish.

If you've come directly to my blog I hope you'll go back to the Wacky Watercooler site and check out the rest of the design team's creations for the WWC91 Masculine Challenge.  You won't want to miss them!   

Happy Stamping!
Penny Token's Stampin' Spot

October Wacky Watercooler Blog Hop - Celebrates Fall

Hi everyone!  Welcome to the Wacky Watercooler October Blog Hop that runs from October 20th to 22nd.   We're celebrating Fall colours and occasions and I think you're really going to enjoy the projects by our eight design team artists. 

Because this blog hop is circular it doesn't matter where you start, you'll eventually wind up where you started from. If you've come here from Marie Green's  wonderful blog, I bet you were super impressed with her great projects.  Marie is always so creative.  When you've finished with my post you'll find some icons at the bottom of the page to move along either to the next or previous blogs, or you can go right to the beginning.  
 
So let's get started. Since Thanksgiving has already been and gone in Canada, I decided to focus my projects on Halloween.  It's one of my favourite festive times of the year and I really enjoyed making these cards to share with you. 

Project Number One:  Jar of Haunts
I've created a fun Halloween Easel card using the Jar of Haunts stamp set. I fell in love with the "Mummy" jar the moment I saw it. 

Here's My Halloween Easel Card:

 This is a side view.  You can see the easel part with it's Mountain fold. 

 Here's the back of the card.  Do you recognize this Designer Series Paper?  It's from the Go Wild Designer Series Paper Pack.  I didn't have any current Halloween paper, so when I looked at the design I thought it worked perfectly with the Pumpkin Pie Glimmer Paper.
 

The inside really says it all! The Trick or Treat image is from last year's Howl-o-ween Treat stamp set.  I love how big and bold this image is so couldn't resist using it.

When the card is folded flat it measures 4 1/2 x 4 1/2". 

The sentiment is from a retired stamp set called Seasonal Sayings.  I fussy cut it out and then mounted it on Glimmer Paper and then mounted it with dimmensionals across the Mummy Jar.   I coloured the tops of the bandage strips with a Sahara Sand marker.

Project Number Two:  Bite Me
 Once again I took advantage of the Clearance Rack and purchased the "Bite Me" photopolymer stamp set which was on for 50 % off.  Honestly, I wanted to get it last year, but you know how it is, I kept putting it off.    So when I visited the Clearance Rack a couple of weeks ago and saw that awesome web and black cat, there was no hesitation. It's an awesome little set. 

Here's  My Card:
WARNING!!!  SPIDER ALERT...........SPIDER ALERT..........  If you don't like spiders I'd suggest you move on to the next card, but if you do like them then ignore this warning and check out this cool web and it's long legged occupants! 

A spider's world always seems kind of gloomy to me, so I chose to do this card with darker colours rather than the traditional oranges, greens and purples you so often see.  Here's what I used:

1.  The card base is cut from Smokey Slate card stock and measures 8 1/2" x 5 1/2".  It's a side fold card so the score line is at 4 1/2". 
2.  1st Layer - 5 1/4 x 4" Whisper White 
3.  2nd Layer - 5 1/8 x 3 7/8" Basic Black
4.  3rd Layer - 5 x 3 3/4" Smokey Slate stamped with the Spider Web from Bite Me stamp set and embossed with the retired Spider Web EF.
5.  Bite Me image was stamped on Smokey Slate and punched out with a 1" punch and mounted on a 1 1/4" circle punched from Basic Black with dimensionals.  The completed circle was mounted on a piece of Smokey Slate that was cut with a framelit and sponged with Basic Gray ink. 
6.  The card face was splattered with Basic Black and Basic Gray marker inks and random splotches were stamped in Tuxedo Black ink.   Random Basic Rhinestones were adhered to the splotches.  They were coloured black with Sharpie Markers. 
7.  The inside panel is 5 1/4" x 4" Whisper White.  It was stamped with the Trick or Treat Sentiment and the large spider image.  

 

I love the Bite Me stamp!  I've added a couple of basic rhinestones coloured with a black sharpie to the backs of this little spiders on this image.  I stamped the web in Tuxedo Black ink and then embossed this panel with SU's retired Spider Web Embossing Folder.  It looks like a web within a web.

The large spider image was fussy cut out - no easy task but it really looked better than using a circle punch to cut it out.  I added glossy accents (R) to the spider's back so its really shiny and makes him stand out. 

I also really like the "splotch" image.  It's a bit like one from Gorgeous Grunge, however it's smaller and really adds a gritty look to the card.  I also splattered black and basic gray marker ink over the back ground. 

Finally for the inside of the card I just added the "Trick or Treat" sentiment and re-stamped the spider in the lower corner.  A few more splatters and the card was finished.  I'm quite pleased with it.  This card could also double as a birthday card for those friends who happen to be Halloween babies......I have a few of those.

Project Number Three:  Cookie Cutter Halloween 

Although all of the images in the Cookie Cutter Halloween stamp set are cute, the two characters who really stood out for me were the skeleton and the mummy.  Both are adorable and I simply couldn't resist featuring both of them on this next Halloween card.  Because these images are the same size and are along the same theme I decided to make a Peek-a-Boo card. If you've been following my posts you remember this Peek-a-Boo card I made for the April blog hop this year.   I found a very good tutorial by Norma Lee on Split Coast Stampers which shows in great detail how to assemble this card.  

Here's My Peek-A-Boo Halloween Card:
 

When you're looking at the front of the card you see the Mummy who's surrounded by little floating ghosts.  I was able to use the Pumpkin Pie Glimmer paper on this card front to give it a real pop of colour and glam.  Love the "Happy Halloween" font.  This image is from the Jar of Haunts set.

This is the inside panel of the card.  The background DSP which is from the Botanical Designer Series Paper has been stamped with the spider webs and BOO sentiment from Bite Me.  The spider webs were stamped in Classic White ink so they'd show up against the dark paper.  

This is the last panel or back of the card.  The image is stamped with the retired Happy Scenes stamp set. 

This little skeleton just cracks me up.  I used the Stampin' Up Googlie Eyes (R) on him so he'd look like he was frightened.  He's surrounded by tiny little bats courtesy of the Holiday Homes Stamp set (R). 

I used the Sahara Sand marker to colour the tops of the bandages on this little Mummy.  He's so cute.  The ghosts are stamped in Classic White ink and are from the Holiday Homes stamp set.

This is how it looks when you open it up from the front panel. 

 

 One last look.

 
Well that's it for my projects for the October Hop.  I hope you've enjoyed them.  Let me know what your favourite Halloween projects are, I'd love to hear about them.

Thanks for dropping by and if you're going forward in the hop just click on the "Next" Watercooler icon below to go see Christine Guida's great projects..... have fun!   

If you're going backwards on the hop you'll want to go to Marie Green's blog by clicking on the "Previous" Watercooler.

Marie Green

And if you want to start at the beginning of the hop just click on the "Home" icon below and you can start at the beginning.  
 

http://wackywatercoolerstamping.blogspot.com

Happy Stamping!
Penny Tokens Stampin' Spot!