Northwest Stamper

Tag: high tide

  • Color Blocking Card Using High Tide

    Color Blocking Card Using High Tide

    When is the last time you got a handmade card in the mail?
    Do you remember how it made you feel?  

    The other day, I went to the mailbox and was flipping through my mail when I saw a smaller envelope – a card envelope.  And handwritten on the front was my name with a return address label from my friend Julie Davison.  I literally stood there on the sidewalk thinking… why is Julie sending me a card?  I wonder what her card looks like! It wasn’t my birthday and it wasn’t for a swap.  So I eagerly opened the envelope and found this card with a sweet note from Julie along with something she had promised to send me and I had totally forgotten about.

    I absolutely adore this card and it was a good reminder why sending the cards we make is such a meaningful thing to do.  Especially when you can send a card at times of the year for no other reason than to say “Hi! I’m thinking of you!”.

    I’m getting ready to gear up a card mailing blitz for myself (and I’ll be sharing it with you here and on my Facebook page too!)  So, I invite you to remember the smile it brought to your face to get a card when you didn’t expect it and consider sending that smile to someone you know could use it!

    Tips for making this color blocked High Tide card:

    So, you heard the story behind this card, but how about we take a minute to talk about some of the cuteness of the card itself?!

    • Give this color combination a try!  I remember struggling with the (retiring) Delightful Dijon In Color when it first came out.  But it has turned out to be a great accent color – especially for fall cards and masculine cards.  In this case, it is the great combo of Sahara Sand, Early Espresso, Cherry Cobbler, and Delightful Dijon.
      Great fall or masculine color combination with Stampin' Up colors
    • Color Blocking is a great and simple way to mix colors – with color blocking, you want large, bold areas of a single color.  I love how Julie did that in this card.  The dark base allows you to really show off the other colors with wide bands that go all the way from side to side.  To make the most of this technique, you will want to stamp your main image first, and then base the sizing of your color bands based off of the sizing of your main image.  You want your color bands to be just a bit smaller than your main image (such as 1 1/2″ smaller across than your main image).  Then just layer.
    • Get matching layered colors with two-step stamping – one of the great things about this set is that it is MADE to have the colors be layered.  So you can use the same color inks as you used for the cardstock to create a great seaside scene.  The images are designed so that it is easy to layer and even if you are not a perfect stamper, they almost always look great even if you are off just a little bit!

    High Tide color blocked card nt

    Want to make this card at home? Here are the project supplies:  

    Get more project ideas and newsletter-exclusive tutorials sent directly to you email inbox!

    To help you get inspired to create cards to send to folks any time of the year, I often include free PDF tutorials for cute projects to my newsletter email list.  You can download and save the tutorials to try when you are ready, and these projects are exclusive to my newsletter subscribers!  I’m working on sending out the next one shortly, so be sure you are signed up!

    click to sign up for my mailing list
    NWstamper signature_thumb[9]

    order online button for sig 3_thumb[4]

     

  • Stampin’ Up! Leadership 2014–Day 2!

    Day 1 of Leadership was awesome – amazing product announcements, great presentations by top demonstrators, and lots of being just a little bit silly with friends at Manager’s Reception! So, I was excited and ready to go (even on little sleep) to head in for day 2. 

    Here is a taste of what was in store for us on Friday:

    IMG_0160

    We started off with a talk from a Keynote speaker.  I wasn’t expecting a Keynote at this event, and especially not from someone who was a psychotherapist!  But it turns out Pat Pearson had some pretty good points to share – both for our business lives and personal lives.

    For example, she talked about the cycles of change and how in every aspect of our life we are at one of these points on the cycle. It is a continuous cycle so you typically rotate through them as you go through life.

    IMG_0161

    But it led into a great discussion about handling being told “No”.  I wrote out and then deleted her whole story about the last pumpkin pie slice at thanksgiving and even if you wanted it but were too full, you’d have to say no.  So you weren’t rejecting or saying there was something wrong with the pie, you were just sharing that you were too full to be able to enjoy it.

    Anyway, I swear it really was a great perspective on when someone tells you no, whether it is inviting someone to a card party, to join Stampin’ Up, or just to go out for coffee sometime.  🙂

    If you are interested in the full story, let me now and I’ll share it with you!

    Ok, so that was the kick off for more classes in the morning – this time with corporate team members or Pat.

    2014-01-10 10.32.51And of course there was swapping all over the place before and after each session. Like this card created by Naomi Keeling from MA.

    2014-01-10 14.27.44

    Then we got some yummy lunch and headed to the Gathering Place for more fun!

    There was Craft Wars: Paper Pumpkin:

    2014-01-10 12.42.15

    Basically we had access to 2 colors of card bases, past Paper Pumpkin stamps, half sheets of designer paper from the Occasions catalog, a few markers and inks, and some of the new accessories from the Occasions catty.  Everyone had the opportunity to pick whatever supplies they wanted and create 1 card.  Then SU would judge all of the cards Friday night and pick 20 winners to receive 2 past Paper Pumpkin kits (I think of their choice).

    Honestly, I just loved the idea of the challenge to create something from a limited and slightly random pile of supplies! 

    2014-01-10 12.55.05

    Then it was off to play carnival games for a chance to win tickets to be entered in a drawing for more free stamps.  Games like Plinko, bean bag tosses, etc.

    2014-01-10 15.28.13IMG_0174

    We also got to carve another stamp – I knew exactly what I was going to make… sort of.  I knew I really wanted one that said “You Rock” because I constantly want to make cards that say that to send to the awesome girls who are part of my Fun n’ Crafty demo group.  Turns out as I tried to make it look “cooler”, I ended up making it WAY more challenging.

    IMG_7595

    Thankfully we had hilarious staffers who didn’t mind hanging out and lending support by taking selfies with our camera! ; )

    IMG_7597

    And did I mention that I was so stinkin’ slow that I managed to be the very last demo in the Gathering Place after it shut down and Shannon West and the other staff were super nice and hung out late so I could finish my silly stamp? So sweet, right?

    Ok, moving right along!

    Finally the night ended (after a dinner break) by a set of stamping presentations that were broken up by time to work on make and takes.  It actually worked out really well and was way more relaxing than usual!

    We even got to see sneak peek stamp images….

    IMG_0210

    and get another new product announcement!

    Brian Pilling shared with us that the Textured Boutique machine from Sizzix is coming back!  If you remember, this machine was out for a limited time about a year ago as a test run.  I guess it was a hit because it is not only coming back but it is now all black and says Stampin’ Up! on it!

    It is a small light weight embossing machine.  There are no cutting plates to worry about or a long platform that you have to scooch piles of papers and ink around your craft table to fit (or is that just me?) because this machine is just for embossing folders.  You crank your embossing folder through by itself and you are done!  Now,don’t get me wrong, you will never get me to give up my Big Shot… but having a cute little machine that takes up less space when I need it and it most likely going to be only $30ish is pretty compelling to me!

    The Textured Boutique was supposed to be coming out in June with the new catalog, but they got a shipment early so they’ll be selling some starting January 28th!  So if you were sad you missed it the first time around, mark your calendars and start counting down!

    Next up – I’ve got more stuff to share in my Day 3 recap!

    spaced shop now sig bar