Northwest Stamper

Tag: heat embossing

  • Scrapbooking Sunday: Butterflies & Tea for Two!

    Ugh, I am terrible at titles for blog posts but I am so excited to share this scrapbook layout with you today!  I just LOVE how it turned out and hope you can use some of the ideas I had to dress up your own scrapbooking layouts and cards.  I used the Tea for Two designer paper and the Bloomin’ Marvelous stamp set as my inspiration for the theme of the page.

     

    So, this is a layout that I had to create because each year I always go to the Stampin’ Up! convention and of course, the big celebrity is Shelli Gardner herself!  And so, I had to get Caitlin (and my) photo with her last year and document it.  Because if there aren’t pictures, it didn’t happen…. right?  Smile

    So, let me show you some of my accents and details that went into this page so you can use them on your own projects later:

    Heat Embossed Title

    Ok, so, if you’ve been in my craft room, you know I’m obsessed with alphabet stickers and alphabet dies so I can create custom titles for my pages.  Well, sometimes I have stamps that fit just right for my title and when that happens, I love to do some heat embossing.

    In this case, I pulled the convention-exclusive stamp set they handed out last year and stamped the flourish frame in Versamark and embossed with Basic Black embossing powder.  Then I stamped the words from the same set in Versamark and embossed again with white embossing powder.

    And did you see those butterflies?  My mom suggested earlier this week that you could layer the small butterfly punch on top of the Elegant butterfly punch.  Well, I decided to give it a try by stamping the butterfly from the Bloomin’ Marvelous Sale-a-Bration stamp set and punching it out with the Elegant Butterfly punch.  Add a little Dazzling Details glitter glue in the center of each butterfly and you get this:

    I wanted to add some texture and so I first added the Stitched Grosgrain Whisper White ribbon along the middle of the strip of chevron designer paper from the Tea for Two designer paper pack.  It was a perfect subtle touch.  And then (of course after I glued down my pictures) I decided I wanted to add a doily too.  So, I hacked up one of the paper doilies and gently pulled up the edges of my photos to tuck it under.

    And then finally, even after sponging the entire edge of the page with Calypso Coral ink, I decided that the upper left corner needed something.  So I grabbed some scraps of the different patterns from the Tea for Two designer paper pack and snipped the ends into banners and glued/stapled them to the top of the page.

    I am really happy with how it turned out and hope you got some fun ideas too!  I’d love to hear what you think.

    P.S. – Don’t Forget! 

    Today is the LAST DAY to sign up for My Paper Pumpkin to get your kit in March!

    Make sure you are signed up and then let me know so I can get you your bonus gift from me!  Sign up here

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  • Fun with Texture Thank You Card

    As I was playing with ideas for thank you cards for February, I decided to get inspired by the Sycamore Street designer paper from the Sale-a-Bration flyer for my colors and then start adding texture as I went along.

    The most obvious bit of texture was my chevron embossing folder that I used on the top half of the card.  Then I added some ribbon to get something different from paper in the lower half of the card.  And then my favorite – heat embossing!

    I inked up my Thanks sentiment from the Vintage Verses stamp set with Versamark, and then before stamping I inked it up again with Rich Razzleberry ink.  Then, stamp, cover in clear embossing powder right away, and apply heat with your heat gun.  Ta da!  Embossed ink in whatever color you want!

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    Vintage Verses Thank You Recipe:
    Stamps:     Vintage Verses
    Ink: Rich Razzleberry, Versamark
    Paper: Whisper White cs, Rich Razzleberry cs, Baja Breeze cs, Sycamore Street designer paper
    Accessories: Sycamore Street Ribbon (Tangerine Tango), Clear embossing powder, Heat gun, sponge daubers, Stampin’ Dimensionals

  • Thank You for an Awesome 2012 and now on to 2013!

    We did it… we made it through 2012 and now can cheerfully welcome in 2013!  Its amazing to me how something so relatively simple (flipping a page on a calendar) can lead to such a re-energizing feeling!

    But before I get to excited and enthusiastic to stride into the new year, I have to look back on 2012 and I realize how blessed I am to be surrounded by such amazing people.  So, I wanted to take a minute to say Thank You to all of you wonderful people who have made my life so much better for joining me on this adventure:

    1.  To the folks on my Stampin’ Up! team – you all are super awesome!  No seriously! Smile  I continue to be inspired, impressed, and amazed by the talent and enthusiasm they share with me regularly.  Even the folks who are totally new to stamping get me excited with their excitement and joy from trying this new adventure.

    2.  To my friends and customers – I know it is totally cheesy, but I love being able to help and support you.  I know that my life can get crazy and busy, but I appreciate that you have all continued to support me and allow me to serve you!

    3.  To everyone who visits my blog and my facebook page – seeing that people actually read my random posts is what keeps me going and motivated to continue to post here.  Not that I don’t like sharing and talking to myself, but it is way more fun to share and talk with someone else!  I hope I’ve been able to share some new and fun ideas and you’ll keep coming back for more in the new year!

    And so with that, I thought I’d share a Thank You card… just for you!

     

    So, I hope you have an amazing beginning to your 2013!

    PS – don’t forget!  The holiday catalog ends TOMORROW!  So, if you have any favorites that aren’t carrying over, grab them now.  Then get ready for the Spring Catalog and Sale-a-Bration starting soon!

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  • Christmas Gift Tags from Scraps and No Peeking

    Ok, so Christmas is only 2 days away!  Eep!  Are you ready and have all your presents wrapped?  I’ll admit, I have most of them wrapped but not all of them!

    But wrapping presents got me thinking about gift tags and I was going crazy with the No Peeking set and had so much fun playing with my ribbon and paper scraps to make a variety of tags for this year.  Check out what I made:

    It all started with me stamping a bunch of images on scrap paper and then picking up extra cardstock scraps from around my craft table and punching or cutting them into roughly tag shapes.

    First I grabbed some Gumball Green and heat embossed the “No peeking” sentiment with white embossing powder.  Then I punched them out and added some ribbon and cut out stamped images

     

    Next were some simple flap style tags.  I scored them so that the heat embossed sentiment (white for the “no peeking” and Early Espresso for the “Jolly Christmas”) would show when it was closed.  Then I decorated the flap with cut out stamped images and ribbon.

    Next I was on to some more simple tags.  I just embossed or stamped the images of the penguin and reindeer and cut them out, then layered them onto the Real Red scallop and Gumball Green circle.  Stamp the “To: From:” sentiment on the back and you are good to go!

    Finally, my last set were my random experiments.  I had an extra reindeer on a scallop circle and thought it would look cute on a piece of Crumb Cake cardstock (really like how this turned out) and I tried to leave enough space so you can actually write who it is to and from.  (I had thought this through in my head before seeing how much space there actually was!)

    And finally, my ultimate in playing.  I had the scrap of Crumb Cake and Real Red and decided to do a twisted tag.  I stamped and then heat embossed the penguin in Basic Black (it looks awesome heat embossed by the way) and then colored in some of the spaces with my Real Red marker.  Then I stamped a little bird next to him also in Basic Black (you can see how much nicer it looks embossed this way).  Then I added some “snowballs” aka pearls along the side.

    So there you have it!  Some quick last minute gift tags to add a touch of handmade to your projects.

     

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    No Peeking Gift Tags Recipe
    Stamps:     No Peeking
    Ink: Basic Black marker, Gumball Green, Real Red marker, Early Espresso, Basic Black, Versamark
    Paper: Gumball Green, Real Red, Whisper White, Crumb Cake
    Accessories: Stampin’ trimmer, 1 3/4” scallop circle, 1 1/4” circle punch, Real Red stitched grosgrain ribbon, Whisper White stitched grosgrain ribbon, Crumb Cake seam binding ribbon, Cherry cobbler bakers twine, Embossing Powder (white, black, early espresso), basic pearls, Real Red 1/8” taffeta ribbon, 1/16” hole punch, heat gun, embossing buddy, Stampin’ Dimentionals

  • Fabulous Fall Card with Emboss Resist

    I don’t know about you, but when I was walking around with the kiddos yesterday, it hit me how the trees have seemed to go from green with some reds and yellows, to almost bare with some reds, oranges, and yellows barely hanging on!  I guess I can’t pretend that Fall isn’t totally here. 🙂

    So, when I was working on cards for my Fabulous Fall class, I had to go for those warm and cozy tones to fill up the card.  And this is what I came up with:

     

    I played with textures and golden colors in this card.  I swear, More Mustard cardstock gets so neglected at my house until fall time!  But here are some of the touches we did to put together this card:

    1.  We stamped the leaf image from Lovely as a Tree with Versamark and then used Clear embossing powder to emboss the image.  Then we sponged with Cherry Cobbler and More Mustard ink to make the glowing color.  You can also see where we took the Natural Composition specialty designer series paper and colored it in with ink and a water brush/pen.  It makes a really pretty subtle color effect.

     

    2.  We also spritzed the card base with Gold Smooch Spritz.  It is always so hard to capture that in a photo but you can kind of see it here.

     

    3. Finally, I had made a version of this card that didn’t have the extra Chocolate Chip cardstock matting the cardfront (and acting as the cardbase); but just having More Mustard as the cardbase didn’t quite work.  So, I went with the dark cardbase and just added an insert with a fun stamped touch.

    So in the end, we did lots of different little things that came together for a pretty and rich effect!  What do you think?  Is it “Fall” enough for you?  🙂
     

     
    Did you see November’s Ink-redible special?
    Get a FREE set of 10 ink pads with a qualifying order/party; or get them free when you join the Stampin’ Up! family!  See the details here

     

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  • Peek-a-boo Emboss Resist with Raining Flowers

    Oops, I was so focused on getting the first week of my 12 weeks of Christmas newsletter ready that I totally got behind and forgot to get this post up! Well, I’m fixing that now.  (and if you want to get exclusive holiday ideas sent to your inbox, just make sure you are on my mailing list and you will be all set!  And can I just say I LOVE the first project…. soooo elegant. Smile)

    This is another fun idea for how to use your clear embossing powders.  I don’t know what the “official” name for this technique is called – so I’m going to call it Peek-a-boo Emboss Resist.

     

    imageTo get this effect, you want to find some fun pattern of designer paper and stamp your SOLID stamp image (like this flower from the Raining Flowers stamp set) onto the paper with Versamark ink.  Cover with clear embossing powder and heat with your heat gun.

    Now, use your brayer to run a dark color over your designer paper until you can’t see the paper’s pattern any more.  The embossed areas will resist the ink (you can take a tissue and wipe off any extra ink that is trying to stick around).  So, your pattern will show through the inked area and “peek-a-boo” through!

    I will say, the hardest part is picking what pattern to show under your stamped image… at least for me. Smile  I had to hold up paper patterns and stamp images to my mom to decide what to try out for this card and so, thanks to her for this card!

    This was one of the cards we made for my Awesome Embossing class.  I’m thinking of putting this class together as an online class.  So, let me know if you would like to see this as an online class and I’ll make sure to put it together to share!

     

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    Raining Flowers Emboss Resist Card Recipe
    Stamps:     Raining Flowers, Teeny Tiny Wishes
    Ink: Island Indigo, Versamark
    Paper: Whisper White, Island Indigo, Daffodil Delight, River Rock cardstock, Summer Smooches designer series paper
    Accessories: heat gun, clear embossing powder, embossing buddy, modern label punch, word window punch, mini silver brads, paper piercer, brayer

  • Double Embossing with the Stripes Embossing Folder

    Yesterday I highlighted the Emboss Resist card from my Awesome Embossing class that I’m holding today.  And as promised, here is my first Halloween card of the season and the card we will be making to try out Double Embossing!

     

    If you can’t tell, this isn’t striped printed paper – it is heat embossed with Black Embossing powder!

    Now the best part is it is really easy to do thanks to the Stripes Embossing Folder.  The basic idea is that you ink up your embossing folder with Versamark ink before you run it through the Big Shot.  The big question is the best way to ink up your folder.

    Now I experimented with a few different methods for doing this and started with a brayer and my Versamark pad, and tried inking up the side of the embossing folder with the raised plastic (so the part that would press into the paper and become the “insides” of the stripes).  And every time I would run the folder through the Big Shot, I would only get part of ink to stick to the paper.  🙁  So, I started pressing my ink pad directly to the raised part of the embossing folder and didn’t get much better luck.

    Finally, I tried taking my Versamark ink pad directly to the “flat” side of the embossing folder (the side that is mostly flat with some striped “holes” in it).  And that worked great!  So, if you are just trying this technique out, I would recommend taking your Versamark Ink pad directly to the flat side of your embossing folder!

     

    The rest of the card used the Toxic Treats stamp set and the trick I shared the other day for using Versamark and Classic ink at the same time to heat emboss any color of ink.

    So, I hope you enjoyed these ideas and give Double Embossing a try!

     

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    Toxic Treats Halloween Card Recipe
    Stamps:     Toxic Treats
    Ink: Basic Black, Rich Razzleberry, Sahara Sand, Versamark
    Paper: River Rock, Rich Razzleberry, Whisper White
    Accessories: Big Shot, Stripes Embossing folder, Heat Gun, Basic Black embossing powder, Sponge Daubers, Stampin’ Dimensionals

  • Scentsational Gingerbread Man Christmas Card

    Last night was the monthly team meeting for my group of fabulous Fun n’ Crafty folks on my Stampin’ Up! team.  I love having the chance to chat and stamp with some amazing crafters from across the US!  If you have been thinking of joining Stampin’ Up!, I’d love to have you join our fun group!

    Well, I wanted to share some stamping tips and ideas and so I put together this card to share.  Its one of my first playings with the new Scentsational Season stamp set.

    Now this Gingerbread man begs to be used with the oh so yummy Sugar and Spice scented embossing powder.  Oh man, I love opening that jar of embossing powder. 🙂

    Anyway, the point of this card was to show how you can do embossing with a colored image without needing to stamp first in the color and then use the stamp-a-ma-jig to line up your image in versamark.  Yes, that way totally works, but I’m lazy sometimes.  So, I showed how you can do the following steps to some great embossing:

    1. Ink your stamp using Versamark ink
    2. Ink your stamp using your color of choice (notice that I didn’t say “stamp” in between step 1 and 2!)
    3. Stamp your image
    4. Sprinkle on your embossing powder
    5. Heat emboss and enjoy!

    Because the versamark is layered on first when you are inking up your stamp, that means it is exposed last when you stamp on your paper – so the versamark is the top layer of ink on your paper.  That makes the sticky Versamark available to grab and hold the embossing powder.

    I also thought I would show off some of the cool Core’dinations cardstock in Cherry Cobbler.  Its just a cute way to easily add some flair to your paper edges.

     

    Well, I hope you enjoyed this card and stamping idea!  If you have any questions about it or the benefits of becoming a Stampin’ Up! demonstrator, just drop me a line and I’d love to chat!

     

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    Scentsational Christmas Card Recipe
    Stamps:     Scentsational Season, Teeny Tiny Wishes
    Ink: Soft Suede, Versamark, Cherry Cobbler
    Paper: Soft Suede, Whisper White, Cherry Cobbler Core’dinations cardstock, Festival of Prints designer series paper stack
    Accessories: Heat Tool, Sugar and Spice embossing powder, sponge dauber, stampin’ dimensionals

  • Vintage Vogue Mother’s Day Card

    Alright, the count down to Mother’s Day is on!  Here is another card we made during our Mother’s Day card class but the nice thing is, you could use it any time of the year!

     

    embossed vintage vogue mother's day card

     

    Can I just say, I can’t believe how long it took me to realize what a great combo Blushing Bride and Rich Razzleberry are!  Sigh, of course I discover this right as Blushing Bride is retiring.  Oh well.

    This card was also an excuse for me to use the library clips I’ve been holding onto for a while and are retiring as well.  In fact, this card’s whole concept came from me wanting to use the clip to hold a couple pieces of cardstock as the focal point of the card… I just worked out from there.

    We did some stamping with Versamark (the flourish to the right of the torn edges), heat embossing (the white sentiment words), and fussy cutting to make this card.

    Embossed Fancy Phrases for Mother's Day

     

    And in the end, I finally got around to remembering to decorate my envelope.  I stamped on the outside and lined the inside with matching Rich Razzleberry designer paper.  Don’t you just LOVE how a lined envelope looks?

    fabulous sweet mothers day card and envelope

     

    And of course, this is also one of my goodbyes to Vintage Vogue as well.  Definitely one of my favorite “vintage” sets.  So, I will probably use this card for a Grandma but can see making this design again later in the year for birthdays or thinking of you cards.  What would you use this card for?

     

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    Vintage Vogue Mother’s Day Card Recipe:

    Stamps: Vintage Vogue, Fabulous Phrases
    Ink: Versamark, Blushing Bride, Basic Black
    Paper: River Rock cardstock, Rich Razzleberry CS, Blushing Bride CS, Whisper White CS, Brights Designer Series Paper Pack
    Accessories: Clips assortmant pack, white embossing powder, heat gun, basic rhinestones, stampin’ dimensionals

  • Scrapbooking Sunday: Using the Simply Scored Board

    For the first time in I don’t know how long, I actually created a scrapbook page without copying a sketch or a sample of someone else’s.  All because I got my hands on the new diagonal score plate for my Simply Scored and wanted to play with it!  I had a ton of scrapbooking ideas with the diagonal score lines but after realizing how little time I had this week, I opted for the simple approach… diagonal scoring as an accent piece of cardstock.

     

    I loved how easy it was to make embossed diagonal score lines at the spacing I wanted… I didn’t have to be constrained by the size of an embossing folder or the predefined spacing of a folder or texture plate.  Sure, I’ll use my diagonal score plate to make envelopes too… but hey, I needed to get a scrapbook page done! 🙂

    I grabbed my photo and a scrap piece of Crumb Cake cardstock and started scoring away.  Because the diagonal plate sits into my Simply Scored board, it was pretty painless to get through.  Then I just started layering other textured pieces to my layout to add some color and fun throughout the page.

    I thought the piece of Well Worn designer paper went great with the colors in the photo and then I trimmed the designer paper with strips of the 1/8” Early Espresso taffeta ribbon.  I added some retired corduroy brads to the top of my scored strip, and for the last bit of fun, I stamped my title using the Letter It stamp set.  I did some heat embossing with clear embossing powder for some height and shine.

    So, if you just ignore my distracted, and thus wonky, journalling; I think it is a quick page that lets the photo to the talking!  Switch out the designer paper and cardstock colors and you could have a totally different feel to your page!

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    Family Scrapbook Page Recipe:

    Stamps:  Letter It, Vintage Vogue
    Ink:  Not Quite Navy classic, Whisper White craft
    Paper: Well Worn designer paper, Not Quite Navy cardstock, Chocolate Chip cardstock, Crumb Cake CS, Ridinghood Red CS
    Accessories:  Simply Scored, Diagonal Plate for Simply Scored, Early Espresso 1/8” ribbon, Corduroy brads, Stamp-a-ma-jig, Dotted Scallop Ribbon punch, Paper Piercer, Heat Gun, Clear embossing powder, Stampin’ Dimensionals

    IMG_0120

  • Fancy Florets Embossed Card

    Today I thought I’d share a card I got to make at an event this summer hosted by my way-upline, Julie Gunhus.  She is one of those demonstrators who have been around for over 10 years and now has a huge downline.  She is so sweet to put on big group get togethers a couple times a year and if you have the chance to go, you are in for lots of great project and business ideas.  This was one of the make & takes we did: 

     

    I had a hard time photographing this card so you could see all the cool details.  Specifically the Polka Dot embossed black cardstock for the front of the card.  I also had to take a second picture so I could show you the embossed flower head. 

    We stamped with Versamark ink and then embossed using the new Melon Mambo embossing powder.  I had forgotten how much fun it was to emboss with bright colors!  It makes the flower have a little bit of shine and really stand out.  Then we cut it out and popped it up on dimensionals.

    The sentiment comes from the Word Play stamp set.  It seems like the perfect fit for this card, don’t you think?

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    Fabulous Florets card recipe:
    Stamps:     Fabulous Florets, Word Play
    Ink: Basic Black, Wild Wasabi, Versamark
    Paper: Basic Black cardstock, Melon Manbo cs, Whisper White cs
    Accessories: Melon Manbo embossing powder, Embossing buddy, Paper Snips, Adhesive Rhinestones, BigShot, Perfect Polka Dot embossing folder, Stampin Dimensionals

  • Simple Is Beautiful Too

    When looking at card samples online and at events like the Stampin’ Up! convention, its easy to be drawn in to the “WOW!” cards.  You know, the ones that surely took someone multiple hours to make and look like they should be hung on a wall as art and you could never bear to throw away.  You know which cards I’m talking about. Smile

    I love the inspiration and ideas from these cards, but often I don’t get the time to play with these ideas and replicate many of my favorites.  So, I get extra excited when I see some cards that are clean and simple, and ideas I can try in minutes at home.  Here are a few examples of some of my favorites from Convention this year:

    card by Julie Gunhus

    card designer unknown

    card by Nancy Knowles

    card by Rhonda Wells

    Each of these cards has a cool touch, from the Fancy Fan letterpress plate (which I’m now convinced that I have to have!), to heat embossing, to glitter and shimmer.  But none of the layers is elaborate or particularly fussy.  So, you could make these at home in no time at all!  Got to love that.

    I’m still trying to figure out how to get the best lighting with my new photo tent, so sorry if some of the details are hard to see; but let me say these are all striking in person.  Hope you got some fun ideas to try!  If you have any questions about how any of these cards were made, just let me know!

    On a side note, I’ve had some folks ask me in the past about what was the standard card size and how to cut their paper for a typical card base.  So, I’ve thrown together a photo-walkthrough to answer just that question.  So, if you are interested, you can check it out here  – http://www.nwstamper.com/how-to-cut-a-standard-card-base/ and I’d love to hear if you have any feedback on how it could be better or more useful!

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