BABY BUNDLE BABY SHOWER GIFT

Hi all!! Well, I was up very late last night since my husband told me at SIX last night that he would need a baby shower gift and card for one of this employees since the shower is TODAY!!! Sheesh - I had to drop everything and figure out what to do! I think he thinks I just do these things in a minute then move on to the next thing, LOL! I have been kicking around this pattern for a frame in my head and on paper, so I decided to try it out - and it worked!!! I used heavy chipboard that I had in my stash for this as I wanted it to be pretty sturdy.  I plan on putting up some directions later on next week if anyone is interested! I have to say, I  think it turned out pretty cute, if I do say so myself *wink* And, I finally got to use our new fabric, whooohooooo!!! I have wanted to use it on something other than a card and this gave me the perfect opportunity! I cut out flowers from the Candy Cane fabric using the Daisy die on the Big Shot - four of each flower so it is nice and fluffy! I hot glued them all together and used my heat gun to fluff it all up and curl the edges!! Then, I added a Chocolate Chip jumbo brad and  voila! a flower!!! LOVE, LOVE, LOVE it!!!! 

Here is a close up - isn't it fun??!! So, now I want to make a ton more, LOL! I have to get out my fabrics after my class tonight and play some more, heeehee!  I wanted it to go with the Nursery Suite specialty DSP (soooo stinkin' cute!) that I used, so I added some Real Red accents on the frame, which allowed me to use the fabric.  I also inked up my Baby Bundle stamp set for the first time - such adorable little stamps! I did a lot of cutting so I could build the little baby carriage full of baby goodies, and then I stamped the little images all over the front AND the back of the frame! Yep, I did stamp on the back, I wanted to make sure the frame would look good no matter where she put it or what angle it sat at so I also added some of the patterened paper in the back where the ribbon goes through. 

Here is a pictue of what it looks like - I think it looks finished, right?  And, I love all the ribbon lined up neatly across the top, just makes me happy, lol! I know, I am weird BUT I do love my ribbon and there is lots of it used here - the Early Espresso, Real Red, and Pear Pizzazz are all twined together and really makes the frame look cute at the top! I also added a row of designer buttons to the fron to cover the ribbon holes and then added some of our pearls and rhinestones to give the frame some bling - I mean, every girl should have bling right??!! And, so this one will start out with it from the beginning, LOL!

Here is a picture of what they look like up close - sooooooo pretty with all their little sparklies!  Now my daughter wants me to make a frame for HER that has bling - so that will be something I work on this weekend in between everything else, HEEHEE! (I love it though - she is taking an interest again in crafting, which makes my heart go pitter pat!)

And, what is a frame with out a card to go with it??! So, I used the sketch challenge at Stampin' Connection this week to design this cute card to go with the frame using the same papers and embellies - and yes, I did the inside!  I wanted it to be a fun card so I again cut out all the little stamps from the Baby Bundle set, then colored them in with my Stampin' Write markers in the same colors as the one on the frame so it would coordinate! I had such fun designing this set.....even though I was not given very much notice to get this one, LOL!

And, one last picture of the full set together - even my husband loved it and said over and over again how pretty it was and how much she will like it! And, if she doesn't, no worries - I have never met her so she can't pick me out of the crowd.....I am hoping she does though, it's her first girl, her other two are boys!  I hope you like my baby gift set - I know I rambled on and on today, LOL! I will leave you with the recipe, and I am hoping to get a tutorial up on how to make the frame - it is an 8x8 frame, so nice sized for a dresser or your desk at work.  Have a fabulous day and thanks for stopping by, I am off to finish up prepping for my Santa in September class tonight - whooohoooo!!!  Stamping and friends, love it!!! Here is the recipe and if you have any questions about anything email me and I will get back to you! If you have to have any of these fabulous products (and you know you want them ALL :-)) you can go to my online store and order them for yourself!! See ya!!

Card and Frame Recipes:

Card:

Paper - Baha Breeze, Chocolate Chip, Whisper White card stock, Nursery Suite Specialty DSP

Inks - Chocolate Chip, Regal Rose, Real Red classic inks, Pear Pizzazz, Regal Rose, Real Red stampin' write markers
Stamps - Baby Bundle
Tools - Scallop Circle Punch, 1 3/8 inch circle punch, 3/4 inch cirlce punch, Dots embossing folder, Big Shot, Eyelet border punch
Accessories - Pretty in Pink satin ribbon, designer buttons
Frame:
Paper - Regal Rose, Whisper White card stock, Nursery Suite Specialty DSP
Inks - Baha Breeze, Regal Rose, Real Red, Pear Pizzazz stampin' write markers, Regal Rose classic ink pad
Stamps - Baby Bundle
Tools - Big Shot, Daisy number two die, 1 3/4 inch Circle Punch, Eyelet Border Punch, Crop-a-dile
Accessories - Candy Cane Christmas fabric, Designer Buttons, Early Espresso, Old Olive, Real Red thin ribbon, pearls, rhinestones, Big Brad, Candy Cane fabric

WATERCOLOR TRIO WORKSHOP CARD

Well, another long weekend has come and gone and the weather sure has turned a lot colder all of a sudden - went from 100 degrees and HOT to 70 and breezy.....so, a little bit chilly for the pool but we are hopeful we will get at least one more weekend out of it! I hope you all enjoyed your weekend! We sure did, lots of family time, which is always good.  However, now I am behind and so I am scrambling to get caught up - I swear that is the story of my life, LOL! Lots of stamping, paper cutting, and ribbon tying going on around here!  I did want to share something crafty with you all today though so I this is one of the cards I did in a workshop a few weeks back. Now I know it is a little bit more than you see on an average workshop card, but this group was a bunch of seasoned stampers and scrappers and just new to me, not the craft so I wanted them to not be bored.  I think it was a good decision because they all loved it! The embossing was done on everyones except one - I always leave one and that one is randomly put into a kit and whoever gets the kit gets to try out the Big Shot, emboss their card stock and are the winners of a door prize! Makes it fun for everyone, lol!   Lots of layers but simple layers that came together quickly.  The color combination is Peach Parfait, Not Quite Navy, and Pear Pizzazz and not one I would have come to use on my own  BUT, I did consult my Color Coach for this one and I am lovin' the result!! I think everyone should have a Color Coach - even the most seasoned crafters can benefit from the fun and creative combinations that are listed on these cards! It is available in the catalog as well so get on over to my online store and order yourself one, you will be so happy to have it.  And, I paired these fabulous colors with the Watercolor Trio stamp set (sorry, it is gone now as it was in the Summer Mini) stamping the images in like colors, keeping the card bright and summery! I also used the fabulous background stamp called Pretty Patterns: it may be a little hard to see as I stamped it on the Peach Parfait in the same color, but it looks great IRL!  I like this card, it makes me happy! However, I did demo a card showing some techinques on how to "step it up" a bit, taking a very pretty card to a GORGEOUS card :-) 

Here is my sample with all the new techniques added!  As you can see, the basic layout of the card remains the same, but there are a few changes that really stand out! One is the image - instead of stamping in one color, I colored the image using my stampin' write markers that matched all that yummy card stock: doing this allowed the image to take on a more watercolored look AND makes it pop! I also used the Ticket Corner Punch on the card stock layers, adding some definition to each one. The main image is also sponged with Peach Parfait classic ink, while the outside card stock layer has faux stitching done with my mat pack and paper piercer. The Pear Pizzazz card stock is still embossed using the Elegant Lines embossing folder, but it has also been lightly rubbed with my Whisper White craft ink making the embossing really stand out!  Lastly, the sentiment is popped up on dimensionals and was inked around the edges with Not Quite Navy classic ink, adding some dimension and texture, which really catches the eye!  I enjoyed the extras added to this card, and I think it shows many ways to change a card a lot by doing really very little!  And, it is always fun to demostrate a card that you have done lots of fun techniques to - at least it does me, it makes me HAPPY!!! I hope you like my two different takes on my one card - it is probably the last summer card I will be doing for awhile! I have been knee deep in Halloween, fall, and Christmas already - YIKES!!!  Super fun stuff though - I will be sharing some really cute cards tomorrow made from products out of the new Holiday Mini! Thanks so much for stopping by, I am off to get some stamping done, WHOOOHOOO!
Card Recipe (stepped up version)
Paper - Peach Parfait, Not Quite Navy, Pear Pizzazz, Whisper White card stock, Greenhouse Gala designer series paper
Inks - Peach Parfait, Not Quite Navy, Pear Pizzazz stampin' write markers and classic stampin' pads, white craft ink
Stamps - Pretty Patterns background stamp, Watercolor Trio (no longer available)
Tools - Big Shot, Elegant Lines embossing folder, mat pack, paper piercer, Designer Label Punch, Ticket Corner Punch, sponge
Accessories - Peach Parfait ribbon, Stampin' Dimensionals