A Beautiful Rose

Hi Stampers!

This week at The Cutting Cafe the Design team was assigned to use the printable stamp set called A Beautiful Rose. This set has a variety of roses, some beautiful sentiments, and even a vase shaped card! Such a pretty set. Here is what I came up with for my project...

I enlarged the largest size single stem rose to 100% and then printed three copies because I wanted to pop different layers to make it dimensional. I colored it with my copic color fusion set number 3. Then I cut it out and popped three different layers on the flower head. Here is a close up:

The embossing folder is from Stampin Up! and even though you can't tell it, the paper I used is Shimmer White so it has a sparkle to it. The sentiment is one that comes with this printable stamp set.

Sorry this is posting late - I had to bring my Grandma to our house to stay and didn't get anything accomplished yesterday. We did get good news about her leg...no cancer...just a stress fracture in her femur - yay for breaking a leg :)

Be sure to check out the the other gorgeous samples that the rest of the Design team did using this set! You can also leave a comment on The Cutting Cafe post for a chance to win some free files of your choice! How awesome!

Have a great day all and I will be back shortly with some inspiration from Ceal!
Laura

I will be entering this in the following challenges:

Ready for Spring!

Hi Stampers!

We are having quite the windy, snowy, blowy, yucky day here in Iowa! I had to work the overnight shift and this is how my drive home looked at 7:30 this morning....

We had white out conditions and you could only see one line ahead of your car. Luckily, once you were out in the open country it was blowing so hard it wasn't really sticking to the roads so the pavement was mostly clear. There were a few nasty spots still. In town and the east/west roads were awful...totally snow, tire ruts, ice and slush covered! Your car would get pulled and slid everywhere when you were trying to drive. That part wasn't fun! And before you ask...I was stopped when I took this picture with my phone :)

The winds are supposed to stay blowing around 40 mph all day whipping this snow around! Yuck! Good thing it is my bedtime so I don't have to be out in it... at least until I tredge to work tonight - LOL!

Anyway...my card today is much prettier to look at and reminds of a beautiful Spring or Summer day which I am totally ready for - LOL!

This week at The Cutting Cafe we could choose from  four different files - Onesie Shaped Card, Overalls Shaped Card, Assorted Crown Shaped Cards or The Butterfly Shaped Card. It was a tough decision this week because these are all such adorable files! I decided to use the Butterfly shaped card and made my Grandma's Birthday card. She was 75 Monday! She is currently battling breast cancer for the second time and will be having to have a masectomy. So I wanted to make her something a little extra special.

Here is my card closed...

I used the Butterfly Shaped Card for my base and then I used the Butterfly - Beautiful Wings Die from Stampin Up! to create a smaller set of wings so I could have a 3D layered butterfly. I did two layers for each size, one in pink pirouette and the other in vellum which I embossed in white with the Take Flight stamp set from Tim Holtz. I will be adding some Tim Holtz stamps to my store this week, including this stamp set :)

The extra special thing about this card is that I created it into an Easel card so Grandma could keep it on display and easily see that beautiful butterfly...

The inside roses hold the butterfly up so it makes it's own stand. I also added a corrugated heart and the banner and sentiment from the Tattered Angels Vintage Seasons Timeless Romance set. My flourish is the My Favorite Things Fancy Flourish Die-Namics. Grandma really loved it :)

I hope you enjoyed it also! Be sure to stop by The Cutting Cafe blog this afternoon and see what my fellow design team members have created! I am sure that as adorable as these files are...there will be a lot of amazing projects!

Thanks for stopping by!
Laura

I will be entering this into the following challenges:

A... BIG... FAT...HAIRY... SPIDER! EEEEKKK!!

Hi Stampers!

It's Wednesday which means it is my day to post a project for The Cutting Cafe! This week Regina gave us the challenge of using one of her spider files to use on a project. We could choose between the Spider Treat Box, the Spiderweb Shaped Card Set, and the Spiders and Their Webs Printable Stamp Set.

I actually used the last two of these on my project!

I have mentioned a few times that one of my FAVORITE projects is to do scrap recipes pages so that is what I did for my project today. This is a 6" x 6" recipe page for a drink called Spider Cider. I was hoping that my cute Stampin Up! Spider Cider stamp would arrive in time to use on my project...and it luckily arrived on Monday :) What I did for my page was create a pocket to place the recipe inside.  I actually cut my paper at 10" x 6" and scored at 4" to fold the flap up to create the pocket.

Here is the page with the recipe placed inside. The large spider is from the Spiderweb Shaped Card Set. I used some extra thick mulberry paper to create the furry spider and sponged the edges to create definition. I tried to add some extra ink around the mouth area for a two toned look. My spider's eyes are a free printable from The Beary Scrap store. The trim pieces on the front of my page are a couple of the borders from the Spiders and Their Webs Printable Stamp Set.

When you pull on the Spider Cider Label, out comes my spooky Coffee Cup Shaped Card that is also available at The Cutting Cafe! The Sentiment on the front of my cup is from the My Favorite Things Die-Namics Web and Matching Stamp Set.

Here is another look at the cup:

When you open the Coffee Cup ... you will see the recipe for making your own Spider Cider!

Here is a closer look at my BIG... FAT... HAIRY... SPIDER!! EEEEEEEK!!!

All of my awesome Designer Paper is from the Authentique - Enchanted Paper Pack... I am LOVING this paper! Going to need some more to hoard ... LOL!

I hope you enjoyed my project today and you will go get some of Regina's adorable spider files! They are super cute and perfect to add to your projects this time of year! Be sure to visit The Cutting Cafe's Inspirational Blog Post and see how the other Design Team Members used their spiders! While you are there leave a comment on the post and you could win your choice of THREE of Regina's awesome files!

Check out my earlier post today too... I was asked to be the Whimsy Stamps Guest Designer for their challenge this week and you can see the project I created for that!

Have a great day all and thanks for stopping by!
Laura



I will be entering this into the following challenges:

Deep Ocean Challenge Blog - #36 - Anything Goes
Crafty Sentiments Designs - Anything Goes 
Flourishes - Timeless Tuesday #190 - Yummy Treat
Party Time Tuesdays - PTT#89Anything But a Card
Tuesday Alchemy - #35 Anything Goes
Incy Wincy Designs - Anything Goes
Catered Crop - Halloween Screams
Sentimental Sundays - Challenge #123 - Anything Goes
The Paper Players - #116 - Use Cups on Your Project - 2nd Entry
The Poodles Parlour - Halloween - 2nd Entry
QKR Stampede - Halloween Fun Challenge #8 - 2nd Entry
Chalk N Stock - #6 Anything But A Card - Sparkly Chalk used on spiders cheeks and behind the eyes for shading
Crafts and Me - #105 - Anything Goes - 2nd Entry
Divas by Design - #56 - Anything Goes - 2nd Entry
Just Keep On Creating - Anything Goes - 2nd Entry
Penny's Paper Crafty - #97 - Anything But a Card
Stampavie & More - #178 - Halloween

Fall Cutie - Scrapbook Page!

Good Morning!

I am SUPER EXCITED to share my project that I created for The Cutting Cafe with you today! This is my VERY FIRST scrapbook page that is actually for one of my own pictures. I have done a few page lay outs before but they have always been created for someone else. So ONE picture down... bazillion more to go! The funny thing is my daughter who is 3 in this picture is now 19...LOL! Running just a tad behind schedule on my scrapbooking!

Here is a look at the full 12 x 12 page

This week at The Cutting Cafe Regina gave us a choice of three different files we could use for our project. We could choose the Halloween Trio, Happy Halloween Shaped Card or the Fall Word Shaped Card. I had seen a scrapbook lay out that was done by Lynn Pratt a few years ago that was a fall themed page with leaves and had the woven background and I had always wanted to try one. So as soon as I saw the Fall Word Shaped card I knew that I had to try one of these pages!

Instead of using the Fall Word Shaped Card as an actual card I chose to use the individual letters and create my Scrapbook Page Header. That is the AWESOME thing about Regina's files... they are super versatile! The designer papers that I used are all from a Stampin Up! retired style that I believe is called Spice Cake. I LOVED this paper pack and think they should have kept it - LOL :) I first cut the letters out on the designer paper and then glued them to early espresso paper and then free cut a small border around them so they would pop a little more off the page.

Here is a close up of my Fall Letters:

I created my background weave using 3/4" strips of paper and I created some fall leaves for accents using a sizzix Leaves 2 die that is also from Stampin Up! I cut them in the same patterns in the designer paper pack, sponging the edges in early espresso and then running them through the Square Lattice Embossing Folder to add texture before popping them up on my page.

Here are a couple close up pictures of the bottom half of my page. You can see some of the leaves a little bit closer...

Fall is not complete without some adorable little Scarecrows so I added a couple of super cute ones to each side of my page for a little added sweetness :) I colored them with Spectrum Noir Alcohol Ink Markers and paper pieced their outfits to match the rest of the page. Both of these little Scarecrow images are from Bildmalarna. We will be adding these two images to our store with our next Bildmalarna order so watch for them :)

Here are some close ups of my Scarecrow cuties...

Mimo Scarecrow from Bildmalarna

Mimosa Scarecrow from Bildmalarna

I hope you liked my first scrapbook page! I had a lot of fun creating it! The color scheme for my project also fits this week's Loves Rubberstamps Challenge... use the colors Espresso, Aqua & Pumpkin... which are perfect for Fall projects! My large 12 x 12 base paper is from a Bazzill Bling paper pack. You can see the shimmer in it on some of my pictures.

Thanks for stopping by... be sure to visit The Cutting Cafe's Blog to see what the other design team members created using this week's assigned files... there are some AMAZINGLY AWESOME designs!

Happy Stampin All!
Laura

I will be entering my project in the following challenges:

Lexi's Creations - Autumn Colors
Eureka Stamps - Fall Fun
Crafty Sentiments Designs - Leaves
Papertake Weekly - Things that make you go AWWW!
Lollipop Crafts - Fall Frolic
Love to Create - Show us your Ribbon & Twine
Smudgy Antics - Sugar and Spice
Tammy's Scrappin Corner - Fall Inspiration
Use Your Stuff - Stripes
Anything But a Card - Anything Goes
Pile It On #37 - Patterned Paper
Sketchy Colors - Brown, Turquoise & White
Stamptacular Sunday Challenge - Anything But A Card
The Crafty Pad Designs - #187 Scraptastic
The Squirrel & The Fox - Anything Goes
2 Sisters Challenge Blog - Fall
Allsorts - Week 171 Layers
Challenge Up Your Life - #77 Patchwork
Crafty Calendar Challenge - Browns & Creams
Shelly's Images Blog - Anything Goes

The Doctor Is In!

Hi Stampers!

Today I am going to share a card that I created using a cute Crafty Sentiments Designs stamp called Doctor Tobey.

I colored him with my Spectrum Noir Alcohol Ink Markers on the Crafter's Companion ultra smooth white cardstock. Then I fussy cut him out and popped him onto my designer paper panel. The Designer Paper I used is from the Simple Stories 6x6 paper pack called - Awesome.  I used a Tim Holtz Idea-ology metal clip so my one panel looked like the Doctors Clip Board. We will be adding this line to our store as soon as we can :)

I made my "Band-Aid" tape using a Stampin Up! punch called Key Tag and the square punch then just cut it to size. I used very vanilla cardstock sponged with soft suede and then stamped the "dots" with Stampin Up's! Itty Bitty Backgrounds stamp with early esppresso. The heart on top is from the Stampin Up! punch - Heart to Heart. It is the smallest heart from this punch.

I handwrote the Doctor's Orders on my clip board. Here is a close-up:

When I showed my husband this he just looked at me funny - LOL! I don't think he liked my "buy new stamps" instruction - hee hee!

Here is a close up of Doctor Tobey. I tried something new with the hair. After coloring it with my Spectrum Noir Markers I went in with my Stampin Write Chocolate Chip Marker from Stampin Up! and used the very fine tip to add some hair strands to see what that looked like. I was trying to add better definition in the hair because I am not very good with doing some colors of hair with my markers yet.

I also used Stampin Up! markers to color his shirt, tie and stethoscope cord because they offer a very tip to get in itty bitty places.

At Crafty Sentiments Designs this week they are having a sketch challenge which is what I used for my layout:

Here are the challenges I am entering this card in:

Crafty Sentiments Designs - Sketch Challenge
Paper Pretties Wednesday Challenge - PWC219 Square Cards
Clear It Out Challenge - Manly Card using 2 or more patterned papers
Use Your Stuff - Masculine Theme
Whoopsi Daisy - Anything Goes
Simply Stampin Challenge - Let's Hear It For the Boys

Thanks for stopping by!
Laura

The River Bends

Good Morning Stampers!

It's Tuesday which means we have a brand new Loves Rubberstamps Blog Challenge! This week the challenge is a Color Challenge of - Black, Turquoise & Yellow AND to be inspired by this photograph from the House of Turquoise:

I think that are some pretty textures and patterns in this photo! Those chevrons are so dramatic! Here is my card.

I used two different stamps from Gourmet Rubber Stamps. The first one is a Lizzie Anne Design called Ship, the other is also a Lizzie Anne Design called The River Bends. I sponged my scene using the Tim Holtz Distress Inks that are the Spring 2012 Limited Edition colors of Peacock Feathers and Squeezed Lemonade. I also used some Daffodil Delight and More Mustard from Stampin Up! to define the sunset and sun. My yellow polka dot paper is from the Simple Stories 6x6 paper pack called Summer Fresh.  I sponged the edges of this with More Mustard also. My chevron embossing folder is also from Stampin Up! and I sponged more of the Peacock Feathers Ink on top to help define the chevrons. I think that this saying with this image would make a beautiful sympathy card, which are always the hardest to make, I think anyway. I have used my favorite technique of sponging scenes :)

For my layout I used this week's Sketch from Mojo Monday #254

I am entering this into the following challenges:

Mojo Monday - MOJO254 Week Sketch
Craft Punked - Beside the Seaside
Bunny Zoe's Crafts - Summer
Simon Says Stamp & Show - Use Favorite Technique - Mine is Sponging Sunsets & Sky Scenes
Pile It On - Bingo - My Line is Emboss, Image & Pearls
Incy Wincy Designs - Beach Days
Paper Pretties - Anything Goes
Whoopsi Daisy - Anything Goes
The Squirrel and The Fox - The Sea
One Stop Craft Challenge - A Summer Holiday

Thanks for stopping by!
Laura

Paper Smooches Pop-Up Stage Card

Good Evening All!

Hope you had a wonderful day! I had a chance to sneak down to my Stampin Studio and play around so I thought I would share what I did!

I have been wanting to play along in the Paper Smooches Sparks Challenge for awhile now and when I saw this week's challenge, which is a designer draft, I knew IMMEDIATELY what I wanted to do! Here is my card:

This is a Pop-Up Stage card which I have been wanting to try for awhile now. My little critters and the fire "pop up" when you open the card up. The Designer Draft Sketch from paper Smooches this week is what I used on the background piece. Here is the Draft Sketch:

When I saw this sketch I immediately thought of the piece on the left as a tree, and the bottom area as grass and what better set to use with trees and grass then my super favorite Paper Smooches set called Happy Camper!

Here is a close up of the stage area:

I colored all of my critters using Spectrum Noir Alcohol Ink Markers. My marshmallows have Liquid Applique applied, then heat set so it puffs and then I used my markers to "toast" them.

Here are some close ups of all of my critters!

My bear - don't you love the eyelashes I added? I also tried to texture the fur with my spectrum markers.

My Deer! You can see the Blanket roll and Skeeter Spray that is from a Stampin Up! stamp set called Under The Stars behind my deer.

My Raccoon which is also from the Stampin Up! Stamp set called Under the Stars. The marshmallow stick that he is holding is from the Paper Smooches set Happy Camper.

My Ant which is from the Paper Smooches Alfresco stamp set, and he is carrying a yummy smore that is from the Stampin Up! stamp set - Under the Stars. I added some fun google eyes to my ant too!

The stars in the sky are from my Spellbinders Star Circles Nestibilities. The Grass is made using the C.C. Designs Cutters Die Grass Border Die.

I hope you enjoyed my little scene as much as I had fun making it! This is my very first pop up stage card and they are really fun to do! I used the tutorial for the Pop-Up Stage from Splitcoaststampers.

Here are the challenges that I would like to enter my card into:

Paper Smooches Sparks - July 9th-15th Designer Drafts
Pile It On - PIO #29 - Kick Back & Relax
That Craft Place - Anything Goes
Craft Punked - Summertime
Creative Belli - Stars
Fab 'N Funky Challenges - #129 Summer Holiday
Inky Impressions - The Great Outdoors
Sassy Cheryl's Challenge Blog - Summer Fun
Stamp N Plus - Anything Goes
Truly Madly Crafty Challenges - Animals

Happy Stampin!
Laura

A Little Sass!

Yay! I still have the internet! Miracles never cease :)  Now I get to play catch up on all the things that I couldn't do while it was down! I don't know how I functioned without it, it was like the stone ages at my house - LOL. The saying "Don't know what you got until it is gone" is the truth...even when it comes to things like the internet!

Today I created a card that is for this week's Loves Rubberstamps Challenge, to create a card that features a red,white and blue color scheme. This week we will be giving away another $25 gift voucher for use in the store so play along!

My card uses the super cute Sassy Emma from the Sugarplums collection by C.C. Designs. I colored her using my Spectrum Noir Alcohol Ink Markers and then used prismacolor pencils for her skin. I used the Ultra Smooth Premium White Cardstock that is designed for use with Alcohol Ink Markers. This makes a huge difference when you use markers like these. I hand wrote the "USA" on her shirt with a red gel pen. The Celebrate saying and the Firework Images are from a retired stamp set from Cornish Heritage Farms called America the Beautiful created by the talented Kim Hughes who is the designer for Paper Smooches stamps!

I created my own background using the inlaid embossing technique and the Snowburst Embossing folder from Stampin Up!. The red circle with stars around is a Spellbinders Nestibilities - Star Circles that we just got in this weekend and will be available in our store later today!

I hope you like my card! Come play along with us in the Loves Rubberstamps Challenge :)

Happy Stamping!
Laura

My Sunday Shares - June 10th

Good Afternoon Stampers!

Hope you enjoyed your weekend...mine is just starting so I treated myself to sleeping in this morning :) You have to do that every now and then I think! I have a LOOOONG list of things I need to get done around the house today...mow the yard, dishes, laundry, dust...well you get the jist of my day...all of the not so fun house chores...BUT after I am done I am going to go play in my stamp studio...I am looking forward to THAT!

Today's shares will be a little different. I didn't have much time this week to look around the galleries or do my company searches so I decided today to share some cool you tube videos that I have in my "favorites" with you, instead of cards today.

Today's videos are all created by Darlene Devries of DarleneDesign.com. She posts a new video on you tube about every Wednesday. I was searching around about creating with copics on you tube one day and came across this video she did. I loved the look of her card using copic markers on patterened paper. She uses Stampin Up! supplies but you could easily use any light colored scrapbook designer papers or stamps for this technique.

     

The second video I want to share with you is one about creating a card using multiple embossing powders. This card is really pretty! Not only does this video have a beautiful project...it also had a COOL TIP on how to create smaller frames with your layer dies. Doing this doubles the sizes of layers you can get out of your layer dies!!

     

I thought the idea of tracing the outside of your die and then cutting it out with your scissors was genius. You can get 2 sizes of layers for each die! This would work with many die brands too. Perfect for when you want just a very subtle layer.

This last video I will share with you really showcases the way Darlene colors with her copics. I really loved this method and thought that it is a great way for beginners to achieve the professional looking blends with copics. This card that she creates using a Hero Arts cupcakes set showcases this coloring style perfectly. Plus I love cupcakes :)

  

I hope you enjoyed today's shares. If you want to check out Darlene's other videos...and believe me she has a LOT of great ones... you can visit her you tube channel - darlene003

We will be starting to stock the copic markers at Loves Rubberstamps soon! YAY! I am excited for that! Hero Arts is also on our list of suppliers that we will be adding in the future too :)

Happy Stampin Everyone!
Laura

Cracked Glass - Cozy Christmas Lodge

Good afternoon stampers!

Today's card will be another one that I designed for my Christmas card class coming up. It uses the GORGEOUS stamp set Christmas Lodge that is in the Holiday Mini. The layout and basic design was inspired by this card I saw created by flowerbugnd1 on splitcoaststampers. I changed the colors of mine and used the cracked glass technique on my card as well. Here is my version:



I really love the cracked glass technique with this stamp set! I really love how the lodge looks like a vintage old photograph cracked with age using the sahara sand cardstock as a base. To get this look I stamped my lodge with early espresso on sahara sand, filled in the snow with a white gel pen and then sponged the edges with chocolate chip ink before doing the cracked glass technique.

If you want to try the CRACKED GLASS TECHNIQUE here is what you do:

First you will need a versamark pad, Stampin Ups! Glassy Glaze (retired now) or you can use UTEE (ultra thick embossing enamel) or regular clear embossing powder (you will just have to use more layers) and then you will need your heat tool.

1. After you stamp and color your image, stamp the whole panel with the versamark ink pad.

2. Completely cover the panel with your embossing enamel or powder. Shake off excess and heat with the heat tool. If you are using glassy glaze or the UTEE the first heating will look lumpy and it will look like spots are missed. Don't worry about it!

3. As soon as the powder is melted, stamp the whole panel again with versamark ink. Cover your panel again with a new layer of embossing enamel or powder, shake off excess and then reheat. This time it will be much smoother and even looking.

4. If you are using the UTEE or glassy glaze you need to do only 2 or 3 layers of embossing powder. IF you are using the regular clear embossing powder you will need to repeat the versamark and then emboss with new layer of powder a total of 4 or 5 times to get it thick enough.

5. After you get your last layer of embossing powder done - stick the panel in the freezer for about 2 minutes. This makes it hard and it cracks easier. It may curl a little bit but that is OK because when you crack it, it will straighten out.

6. Remove it from the freezer and start bending it where you want the cracks to be. Keep going until it is cracked how you like. You can sponge over the top with a dark ink like, early espresso or chocolate chip and it kind of fills in the cracks to give it a more aged look. I didn't do this on mine because of the darker background I stamped on, but it works good when you do this technique on white or very vanilla.

7. After your done cracking your piece, layer and add to your card :)

Hope this makes sense! There is a picture tutorial and a video posted on splitcoaststampers on how to do this technique also which you can see here.

Here is what I used on today's card:

Stampin Up! Stamp Sets: Christmas Lodge

Paper: Stampin Up! Sahara Sand, Cherry Cobbler, Early Espresso, Chocolate Chip

Ink: Stampin Up! Classic ink pads in Early Espresso, Crumb Cake, Cherry Cobbler

Accessories: Stampin Up! Stamp-A-Ma-Jig, Versamark Ink Pad, Glassy Glaze (retired), White Gel Pen, heat tool, Big Shot, Perfect details texturz plate, texturz silicone rubber pads, sponges, dimensionals

BRRRRR.....WINTER!

Good afternoon everyone!

This week is supposed to get COLDER & COLDER each day...BRRRR! I am still not ready for winter or snow! The ONLY place I like to see snow is on my cards - LOL :)

Today's card I made is for three different challenges. I came across this wonderful sketch challenge blog that features a new sketch each week for you to make a card with. I love card sketches because sometimes the layouts are the hardest thing to come up with, at least for me. The website is called FRESHLY MADE SKETCHES

I loved their sketch for this week and when I found it I only had 2 hours to get my entry in - YIKES! But luckily as soon as I saw the sketch I knew what I wanted to do so I hurried up and whipped out my card. Here it is:



I wanted to make my snowflake look cold & crisp and tempting turquoise is a perfect color to make it look frigid. Reminds me of the sky color on those super cold winter days! This card like I said was for three challenges. FIRST the Freshly Made Sketch Challenge FMS11, and then on splitcoaststampers it is for the Technique challenge this week TLC352, to have snow on your card, and the Clean and Simple challenge of a winter card, CAS145.

Here is what the sketch, FMS11, looked like from FRESHLY MADE SKETCHES that I used to create this card:



I loved it - very simple layout but it is very versatile which I love. I will definately be playing along with their challenges in the future! Check out their website!

Here is what I used on today's card:

Stampin Up! Stamp Sets: Serene Snowflakes, Merry Winter

Paper: Stampin Up! Tempting Turquoise, Basic Black, Whisper White, Vellum

Ink: Stampin Up! Classic ink pads in Basic Black, tempting Turquoise

Accessories: Stampin Up! Versamark, Clear Embossing Powder, Heat Tool, Sponge dauber, Snowburst Textured Impressions Embossing Folder, 1 & 1 1/4" circle punches, dimensionals

Thanks for visiting my blog today! Be sure to visit each day because I have been busy in my stamp room and have LOTS of fun & cute Christmas cards coming up to share - you won't want to miss it!

Magazine Holder

Good afternoon everyone!

Long time no stamp! I have been super busy lately and just haven't had time to make it to my craft room...but I made up for it today! I have a confession....I have TONS of craft magazines! Not just one craft either...lots! Crochet, Cross Stitch, Scrapbook, Cardmaking... and I can never make myself toss out the special Consultant only magazine, Stampin Success, that Stampin Up! sends out monthly, too much good stuff in there! It features techniques, scrapbook & card layouts and much more. I have all my magazines piled in boxes and when I want to find one I have to dig and it is a huge pain! So I started looking online last night for some easy ways to make your own magazine holder. I came across an e-how article about altering empty cereal boxes and using those to create them. That sounded like a good idea to me but a little flimsy for what I was looking for. So this morning when I was wandering around my craft room I had an A-HA moment! I do a lot of ebay shopping and I keep most of the boxes and envelopes that are in good, reuseable shape. I noticed that the MEDIUM FLAT RATE boxes from the post office were the PERFECT size to make into a magzine holder! They are super sturdy and a perfect 12" wide which makes altering them a breeze with the 12"x12" designer series paper! So I made one this morning for my Stampin Success Magazines! It turned out AWESOME! Here is the side view:



To get the box ready for altering here is what I did. I sealed one end that will be the bottom. I cut the flaps off the other side. I measured up 4" from the bottom on each side at the front of the box and marked it. I then drew a line between the two sides along the front connecting them. I used my ruler to draw a diagonal line from the 4" mark on the front to the upper back corner. I then just cut the box along my lines. To cover with designer series paper I layed the paper on the side I wanted to cover until it was where I wanted it. Carefully holding it in place I layed the box paper side down and traced the back of my paper. I then cut it and mounted it. I took a nail file and smoothed the cut box edges after my paper was on. Pretty easy really!

For this box I used the SPICE CAKE designer series paper to cover the top half. I then used pumpkin pie and chocolate chip as mats for the bottom half. I stamped a large panel of a pretty fall sunset scene set on a lake, with the trees reflecting in the water. I stamped en francais lightly on one side and then stamped the GRATEFUL sentiment, because I am grateful for my Stampin Up business :)
I finished off the panel using the gorgeous Victoria crochet trim. I did the same scene for both sides of my box. You just have to remember that the two sides will be opposite. So when I stamped my first panel I did my words on the right side, and on the second panel I had to stamp the words on the left, because when I mounted them on the box I wanted the ribbon side to be towards the front.

Here is a close up of my stamped panel.



Here is a close up of the side with the ribbon and words:



Here is a close up of the left side:



For the spine of my box I just cut a strip of the designer series paper and covered it. I did do a mat at the bottom of pumpkin pie, chocolate chip and then the matching designer series paper. I left this area kind of blank in case in the future I want to make a panel that says what's in the holder. Here is what the spine looks like.



For the front, I again did the same mat sequence, pumpkin pie, chocolate chip, the designer series paper. Then I did a pumpkin pie 2 3/8" scallop, a 1 3/4" chocolate chip scallop circle, then I created the STAMPIN SUCCESS on the computer and printed it out on very vanilla cardstock, punched it out with a 1 1/4" circle and sponged with chocolate chip ink. I adorned the scallops with the Basic pearls and added some victoria crochet trim. Here is the front:



And here is what it looks like from the front holding my Stampin Success magazines!



I covered the inside of my box with basic white copy paper just to cover up the priority mail wording on the inside. I think it turned out really neat! I can't wait to do more of these for my craft magazines. I thought it would be fun to seperate my magazines by seasons and do seasonal designs! Lots of possibilities and a great way to RECYCLE!

For my stamped design I was inspired by a beautiful card created by Michelle Zindorf which you can see here. Because her's was created awhile ago, I updated the colors I used and changed the stamp set so I used all current products. I also use sponges instead of a brayer.

For the sky & water the colors I used were: Peach Parfait, Bashful Blue, & Basic Gray - before sponging on your paper with the peach and the gray I rubbed them off on scratch paper so it wasn't as dark.

I used more mustard for the en francais words.

I did my trees using basic black, also for the reflections I used the basic black and the Stamp-A-Ma-Jig.

I sponged the outside of my panel with chocolate chip ink.

Here are the products I used to create this project.

MEDIUM FLAT RATE PRIORITY BOX - the one that is 12" wide.

Stampin Up! Stamp Sets: Lovely As a Tree, Always Thankful, En Francais

Paper: Stampin Up! Spice Cake Designer Series Paper, Pumpkin Pie, Chocolate Chip, Whisper White, Very Vanilla

Ink: Stampin Up! Classic ink pads in Peach Parfait, Bashful Blue, Basic Gray, Basic Black, Old Olive, Chocolate Chip, More Mustard

Accessories: Stampin Up! Stamp-A-Ma-Jig, post it notes, white gel pen, sponges, Victoria Crochet Trim