Eclipse Card - Welcome to Our Block

It seems like folks are either coming or going from our neighborhood.  Last week I showed you a Farewell Eclipse card made for a neighbor and friend who was leaving our community and this week I'd like to share a "welcome" card I made for a new couple who are moving in this weekend.  

I designed this template a couple of years ago when I earned a Hostess stamp set from Stampin' Up! called In To The City.  I fell in love with this set because it has so many bits and pieces that designing a card or creating a story book page is so much fun.  

This retired Hostess Set called In To the City is photopolymer and has so many pieces it's incredible for creating scenes.  The first and second generation stamps make the images easy to colour.  Love it! 

Here's the original card I made:

This card starts with a base measuring 8 1/2" x 5 1/2" and scored at 4 1/4".  I've cut two pieces of Old Olive card stock for the 1st layer on the front and on the inside of the card.  They measure 5 1/4" x 4".  For the next outside and inside layers I cut two pieces of Crumb Cake card stock measuring 5" x 3 3/4".  

I stamped my design on the card and coloured it and then laid out the alphabet dies from my EK Success Alphabet dies set to spell HOME.   Once the letters were cut out they were popped up on Dimensionals and then placed back into the negative cut spaces and attached to the card.  The little banner was cut from a scrap of Old Olive and the "Welcome To Our Block" sentiment was stamped in Versa Mark ink and embossed with White Embossing Powder. 

For the inside of the card I stamped some additional houses and greenery and stamped the sentiment "so glad you're hear" in momento black ink.  

Although I may change up the houses I stamp this has pretty much become my template for designing "welcome to your new home" cards.  Now that the Coming Home stamp set from Stampin' Up! has arrived I'll probably change up my housing styles using that set.   

Here's the card's I made today.  

I always like to make duplicates while I have the inks, stamps and card stock out.

As you can see in these photos, I changed up the alphabet lettering arrangement a little bit for each card.  This was simply exploring different styles and not for any particular design issue.  I really like using these broad and bold alphabet letters because they stand out so well on the card front.  

My pledge for 2020 has been to purge and use up retired card stock and accessories from my stash, so I used the retired More Mustard for the sandwich layer and sentiment, and the card base was cut from Real Rust card stock.  

For this particular card template I generally choose a neutral card stock such as Natural Ivory, Sahara Sand, Crumb Cake or Very Vanilla for my stamped layers.  Sometimes I pre-stamp several image layer scenes and when I have nothing better to do or want to do something relaxing I pull them out and just colour in the images. I usually don't cut out the alphabet letters until I'm ready to finish the card.  It's always nice to have extras on hand for when you don't have time to do something from scratch.    

I coloured all the houses and trees with Stampin' Blends.  When you stamp on craft or Crumb Cake card stock the colours are a little murkier than they would be on Very Vanilla or Whisper White neutrals.  I like that look, as it makes the cards look a little more rustic.  The blends I used for the newer cards are Pool Party, Old Olive, Mango Melody, Gray Granite, Crumb Cake and Cinnamon Cider.  Although you can't see it well in these photos, I did randomly splatter some black Momento ink on the images.  If you look at the original card they show up better.

Well that's my post for today.  Happy November everyone and happy stamping!  With the weather turning colder and more rain in the forecast, I anticipate I'll be stamping more so I'm happy I have a hobby like this to occupy my time.  

How about you?  I'd love to receive your feedback on these cards and whether you have repeat cards you like to make ahead.  

Happy Stamping!

Penny Tokens Stampin' Spot 

Penny Hanuszak Independent Stampin' Up! Demonstrator 

NOVEMBER HOSTESS CODE:   ZZ49FQKS

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LAST DAY! SAVE 15% on Stampin’ Up! Designer Series Paper

 

Happy Halloween everyone!  Just dropping by to let you know that today is the final day to save 15% of the regular retail price of select Stampin' Up! Designer Series Paper packs.   

That's right, the sale ends at 10pm Mountain Time tonight.  Don't be late and miss the gate!

Now that old man winter is just around the corner now is a great time to stock up and save on some of Stampin' Up!s most popular paper designs! There's no limit to how many packages of Designer Series Paper you can purchase during this sale.

Click here to see if your favourite papers are included in the 15% Off Sale.

Happy Stamping 

Penny Token's Stampin Spot

Penny Hanuszak Independent Stampin' Up Demonstrator

October Hostess Code MM72ZKPM

Add the hostess code to your order if it's under $200 before s&t and you'll receive a free gift from me. If your order is over $200 before s&t you'll automatically receive Stampin' Rewards from Stampin' Up! 

Someone Special .........Monochromatic Thank You

A few weeks ago during a Stampin' Up! Demo meeting I learned how to do the Bubble Technique and made this card and posted it to our Facebook meeting page.  As luck would have it I won a $40 prize for my card which was randomly drawn.  

For my prize, I chose the Special Day dies to go with my Special Someone stamp set I purchased earlier this year and this week I made a card with these awesome sets to send to Dale Hampshire and crew to show my appreciation for the gift. 

Last season when these were available as a bundle at a 10% savings, I debated and debated whether to buy them.  When I saw them again in the Annual Catalogue in June and all the cute samples folks had made, I decided to just purchase the stamp set. Once I started making cards with these images  I regretted not buying the dies as there are some pretty tiny images in the set.  When I won the $40.00 I knew exactly what I wanted to purchase.  Getting the Special Day dies was such a great way to round out my experience with this set and I'm totally grateful to my Canadian Direct Stamping group for giving me the opportunity to win them.

Here's my card:

I was looking for a clean and simple layout so I chose Jen Brum's sketch 459 at Freshly Made Sketches.   

I decided to do a monochromatic card again so for the two diagonal strips I chose the Sahara Sand DSP Classic Christmas 6 x 6 paper pack.  This designer paper is part of the soon to be released Curvy Celebrations promotion and will be available to everyone on November 3rd, 2020.  I know I'm going to be ordering another package because I'm totally in love with the clean look of the design and the teeny tiny images on this paper.

I've been using a One Sheet Wonder template I found on Pinterest that was originally designed by Leanne Gref, but has been making the rounds through other folks.  Part of the cutting template is a 3 x 4 inch diagonal cut, which worked perfectly for this card.  Here's what the template looks like:

Supplies:

Stamp Sets: So Sentimental #151691 for inside sentiment "I Can't Thank You Enough" and Special Someone #151643 for Raccoon and sentiment "Thank You"
Ink: Sahara Sand
Card Stock: Whisper White, Sahara Sand
DSP: Sahara Sand Design from Classic Christmas Pack #155969
Embellishments: Basic Pearls, Dimensionals

Please leave me a comment if you like this card.  I'd love to hear from you.  

Happy Stamping!

Penny Tokens Stampin' Spot

Penny Hanuszak Independent Stampin' Up! Demonstrator 

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Get Your Curve On.......

 

CURVY CELEBRATIONS

Coming soon!  A new way to celebrate..... get your curve on with curvy stamps, dies, and more! These unique stamps and dies were designed for a variety of special occasions and the Quite Curvy Variety Bundle includes everything you need to create one-of-a-kind crafts. 

If you're looking to add curvy snowbanks to your Christmas cards this year don’t stress over it just purchase this exclusive bundle from my on-line store and you'll have a festive and frenzy-free season!

The Quite Curvy Variety Bundle will be available for customers starting on  November 3rd, 2020–4 January 2021.

Want to have some fun?  Here's your opportunity to add curvy stamped accents to your crafts with the Quite Curvy Stamp Set!  And even more fun are the coordinating Curvy Dies.  With these awesome dies you can create dynamic curvy borders and edges and add visual appeal to your paper crafting projects no matter what the season or occasion. 

QUITE CURVY VARIETY BUNDLE

You can create versatile and innovative crafts with the Quite Curvy Variety Bundle! The bundle includes the following products at a 10% discount:

• Quite Curvy Stamp Set
• Curvy Dies
• Curvy Christmas Stamp Set has 13 photopolymer stamps* 
• Classic Christmas 6" x 6" (15.2 x 15.2 cm) Designer Series Paper  The Quite Curvy Variety Bundle can be used for Christmas, New Year’s, and Valentine’s Day crafts. 

The products in this bundle can be bought separately, or you can save 10% by purchasing them all! The Quite Curvy Variety Bundle includes everything you need to create cards for a variety of upcoming special occasions. I encourage you to act quickly and grab these exclusive products at the discounted price.  

* Note:  The Curvy Christmas Photopolymer Stamp Set is an exclusive stamp set only available during the Curvy Celebrations promotion.

Hard When You Have to Say Goodbye - Eclipse Card

Recently I had the pleasure of gathering with other council members in our community to say farewell to a friend and neighbor who's moving to another location. While we are happy that she's moving closer to family and old friends, we're certainly going to miss this wonderful woman, whose intelligence, wit and kindness contributed so much to making our complex a great place to live.  I offered to make a farewell card for the group to sign, and I wanted it to be as special as she is.  

Although most would consider the Coming Home and Home Together Dies from Stampin' Up! to be Christmas or winter themed, I knew they would work for other occasions too such as a House Warming or Farewell.  Because I wanted to personalize this card in a really special way, I decided to incorporate my friend's name into the design by making what's called an "Eclipse" card.    

Here's What I Designed:

I love using my Cutter Bee EK Success Alphabet Dies when adding lettering to a card because they are large and bold.  My general rule of thumb is that four alphabet letters from this set will fit comfortably across an A2 card but if your word is five or more letters you need to have a larger card face.  Because I was using five letters I chose a new, all the rage, card style called a "slim line".  The base measures 8 1/2" x 4".  

In my humble opinion, all really good things start with a plan and a template.  Making a template allows me to work with the layout, spacing, backgrounds and colours as well as the placement of sentiments.  

For this card I began with a scrap piece of white card stock that measured 8 1/8 x 3 5/8", and I drew two lines across the length of the card to make it easier to line up both the images and die cuts.  

Next I stamped and fussy cut three of the house images and two of the large trees from the Coming Home set on post it notes.  These cutouts enable me to get the right layout between the two pencil lines.

Once I was happy with the layout I marked the placement with a pencil, removed the post it notes and stamped the permanent images on the marks.

I coloured all the images with the blends so I could get an idea of how the finished card would look.  This also helped me choose a colour for the layer that went between the card base and the designed layer.  I chose Cinnamon Cider one of SU's In Colour series this year.  This layer measures 8 1/4" x 3 6/8".  

Moving on to the background, I put the post it notes in place over the houses and trees and then using a 2" scallop circle I sponged in the clouds with Pool Party ink.  I took the sponging right down between the houses and trees.  Using a Garden Green blend I coloured in the grass and then I stamped the image of the car and the sentiment "Time For a New Adventure" from the Well Said Stamp Set #148796.   

Next I laid out my Alphabet dies, evenly spacing each of the letters. Once they were lined up I tore off a piece of Glad Press and Seal, covering the letters and carefully pressing the air out and wrapping the excess around the card layer.

I've found this to be the one of the best ways to keep my dies from shifting when running them through the Big Shot.  They stay in place well, keep the bits that need to go in the center of the letters and it doesn't take much effort to remove the Press'n Seal when you're done.  

When I was finished with my template and was satisfied, I did it all over again on the actual card.  It was so easy the second time because all the guess work was out of it.  Now I have a template should I decide to make another card in this style, so it was a win, win all around.

The Alphabet letters are placed back in the cut holes mounted on dimensionals.  This gives a really good 3-D effect and depth to the card. 

Although it's difficult to see I added Nuvo drops to the windows  in the car and houses.

I was very pleased with the final card layout and the colouring.  I added a few more details like colouring in the road and adding some smaller trees on the ends.  

For the inside of the card, which I didn't take a picture of before it was signed off on, I added two layers of Whisper White card stock on either side of the card base. Normally I would only add one layer but the additional piece of card stock  provided additional space for signatures.  Instead of just stamping a farewell sentiment for the inside layer of the card I composed a farewell verse and printed this layer off on the computer.  I also stamped a house and some trees on it before adhering it to the card base.   

Here's the matching envelope I made for the card.  Because this  card was presented in person and not being mailed,  I wanted it to look extra special and I stamped three different house and images and some street lamps for this scene.

The sentiment "Wishing You all the best" is from a retired Stampin" Up! set called Blended Seasons.  I thought that was a nice lead in to the card.  

Well folks that's all I have for you today.  I hope you enjoyed this glimpse into how I take a card idea and create a design from scratch.  I'd love to hear how you design your cards - do you case other ideas or do you play with your own ideas.  How about techniques?  Have you ever made an Eclipse card?  

Happy Stamping!

Penny Tokens Stampin' Spot 

Penny Hanuszak, Independent Stampin' Up Demonstrator 

OCTOBER HOSTESS CODE: MM72ZKPM

Only a few more days to take advantage of this month's hostess code.  Click here to shop in my 24/7 on-line store.  The hostess code should be applied to orders under $200 before s&h.  Orders over $200 will receive their own Stampin' Up Rewards. 

Five Ornaments in a Row for Freshly Made Sketches #458

Kim designed this week's sketch #458  at Freshly Made Sketches and it had me really thinking this week what I would create.  Keeping in mind the FMS clean and simple themes, I wanted to make a Christmas card with clean lines.  Here's their sketch:

Here's My Card:

I wanted to fill out the five rectangles in my design with either a small Christmas stamp image or use coordinating papers.  As luck would have it I found a 6 x 6 piece of retired Stampin' Up! Designer series paper in my stash that would meet my needs.  I really liked the very delicate holly and bauble patterns on this paper and the red and green colour mix was just what I was looking for.  Perfect!   

I was able to cut out five baubles from  the design that were small enough to work as my focal point for the center panel.  I decided to match up the green and red in t he paper design with Real Red and Garden Green card stocks and threw in a layer of gold foil between the two to add some elegance to the card.    

I really liked the sprigs of mistletoe in the background of the paper, but not having a mistletoe stamp, I pulled out my retired SU Holly Embossing Folder (one of my all time faves) and I think it worked perfectly in adding some interest to the green layer.  

Supplies:

Card Base:  I used 8 1/2" x 5 1/2" Whisper White card stock for the base and scored it at 4 1/4".

Layers:  There are three layers on the card front.  The first is a 4 1/4" x 3 1/4" piece of Real Red card stock, followed by a 4 1/8" x 3 1/8" piece of gold foil and a 4" x 3" piece of embossed Garden Green card stock.

Ornaments:  I used my trusty 1" square punch to cut out the baubles and then added a 1 1/8" x 1 1/8" layers in Real Red or Garden Green.  The layering just brings these little baubles into a clearer focus and makes them stand out on the card.   

Stamps:  The sentiment "Merry Christmas" is from the Christmas Gleaming cling stamp set #150464.  I used my stamperatus to hold my scrap of Whisper White in place while I was stamping the sentiment in Real Red ink.  I find that this type of solid stamp looks best if it's stamped a few times to enhance the colour.  I fussy cut out the sentiment leaving a very narrow strip of white around it and then mounted it just below the baubles adding four mini dimensionals to the back.  I'm so happy that this set, coordinating ornament punches and designer papers made it into the Annual Catalogue this year.  This was one of my all time favourite Christmas bundles last year and I know I'll be hard pressed to part with it.  

Inside of Card:  For the inside of the card I cut a 4" x 5 1/4" panel of Real Red card stock and layered it with a 3 3/4" x 5" piece of Whisper White card stock.  The sentiment "May your days be merry and bright" is from a soon to be released stamp set called "Curvy Christmas".  Oh my is this a fun set and I can't wait to share some more samples using the dies and stamps from this bundle.  To finish the inside layer I stamped a small bauble in Real Red from the Christmas Gleaming set in the bottom right corner.  

So what do you think?  This was a super simple card to create and I hope you like it as much as I do.  What are your favourite stamp sets this holiday season?  Please leave me your comments, I'd love to hear from you.

Happy Stamping!

Penny Tokens Stampin' Spot

Penny Hanuszak, Independent Stampin' Up! Demonstrator 

October Hostess Code:  MM72ZPM

This hostess code will end at noon on October 30th, so don't miss out.  If you have an order under $200 CDN apply the Hostess Code and I will send you a free gift.  If your order is over $200 before shipping and tax, don't apply the code you will receive your own stamping  rewards.  

NOTE:  My post was not included in the FMS #458 post today because I keep forgetting it closed at 3pm EDT.  I was thinking it closed on MT.  Hopefully the next time I do one of their sketches I can do it earlier in the week.  

Nature's Beauty Masculine Thank You Card

After several days of rain and being forced to stay in doors, I enjoyed a round of golf last Wednesday at the Surrey Golf Course. It wasn't overly warm but the sun was out periodically and the winds were mild. As the day progressed it got a little cloudy, but nothing could take away from being outdoors with great friends and having fun.   

After spending a day in the great outdoors, I managed to fit in some stamping time, and it was a no-brainer when it came to selecting a stamp for today's card. I chose Nature's Beauty a nine image cling rubber stamp by Stampin' Up! and I'm following along with Linda Callahan's great sketch at Freshly Made Sketches #457. *

Note:  As sometimes happens, life gets in the way and sadly my card was not linked to the FMS #457 challenge this week.  Regardless I hope you'll use the link and visit their site to look at all the great cards by the Design Team as well as the participants.  Awesome - some real inspiration.   

Here's My Card:

The card I made is a masculine thank you card for a neighbor who gave me a hand with some work the other day.   I chose the deer as the main focal image and scattered some trees and grasses in the background.  It was stamped in Momento Black ink on a 3" x 5" piece of Whisper White card stock.  Very plain and simple.  I layered this on a 3 1/8" x 5 1/8" piece of gold foil.

The card base is a 5 1/2" x 8 1/2" piece of Whisper White card stock, scored at 4 1/4".  I added a 5 1/4" x 4" layer of Basic Black. For the next layer I decided to stamp the  large tree image from Rooted in Nature in Momento Black Ink to create a background. This is not a large layer it measures 3 3/4' x 3 3/4", and so you don't really see a lot, but it seemed to tie everything together.

The sentiment "To Thank You For All You Do" is also from Rooted in Nature and I embossed it with gold Embossing Powder on a 1/2" strip of Basic Black card stock.  I fancied up the edges with the new Lovely Labels Pick a Punch.  

Lovely Labels Pick a Punch #152883

The inside of the card is finished with a layer of Basic Black card stock that measures 5 1/4 x 3 3/4" and I added a strip of gold and black on the right hand side.  I wanted to write a thank you note on the inside panel so left it plain and didn't add a sentiment.

I hope you enjoyed today's card and take the time to leave me a comment.  I love to hearing from my viewers and getting your impressions of the cards and projects I make.   

Happy Stamping!

Penny Tokens Stampin' Spot!

Penny Hanuszak, Independent Stampin' Up! Demonstrator 

Hostess Code for October  MM72ZKPM