PaperFections

World Card Making Day Sat, Oct 3 & Announcement!

Ellen Hutson, LLC has several fun participation opportunities and giveaways planned in celebration of World Card Making Day this Saturday, October 3. We'll be creating something fun just for you over in the CLASSroom as well as provide some savings when you are shopping for the holiday season ahead!!! In preparation for Saturday, you can do some thrifty shopping prior to World Card Making Day. The offer shown above is only valid on Thursday, October 1 and Friday, October 2. EVERYTHING in Ellen's store (in-stock items only) will be included in this sale! This offer cannot be combined with any other coupon code. Please note that once an item is no longer visible on her website it means that she is currently out of stock on that item - so shop early! You can full details here. We hope to see you on the CLASSroom blog Saturday for all the festivities! And did you see this sweet announcement on Taylor's blog today? I'm beyond thrilled to be back with the Baker's Dozen Designers and can't wait to show you the first of this month's Taylored Expressions sneak peeks that start tomorrow ... trust me, you are going to love this... Read more →

Lockhart Floral Thanks

I needed a quick thank you card and happened to already have this beautiful Lockhart Stamp Company Hydragea image colored. I RARELY make cards this way -- I usually choose all my papers & cardstocks and then color my image to match. But I happened to find this Basic Grey Perhaps paper that picked up the pinks I used in the hydrageas, so that was a good thing (channeling Martha here!). A Sugar Plum Memory Box notecard and Taylored Expressions Sketch Challenge #84 made this card come together quick & easy peasy! I colored the image with Copic markers: R20, R22, YG01, YG03, YG63, B21, B23, E50, E31, E35, W1 and Pink Spica Glitter Pen. I didn't have any green ribbon that matched, so I colored white silk ribbon with Copic YG23! I used the nifty Bow Easy again to tie the perfect bow -- love that thing! Stamps: Lockhart Stamp Company Hydrangea Paper: Memory Box Sugar Plum Notecard, Basic Grey Perhaps Ink: Memento Rich Cocoa, Copic markers (pictured above) & Pink Spica Glitter Pen Accessories: Spellbinders Classic Circle Nestabilities dies, Fiskars Apron Lace border punch, Bow Easy, sewing machine, dimensional foam tape Read more →

Inchie Magnet School Clip

It's easy to tell school is back in session ... just by all the important paperwork we have lying around! If it stays on the kitchen counter, it's either likely to get food on it or be thrown away by mistake, and if it goes to my desk then it's likely to get covered up, colored on or glued together, LOL! So usually the best place for all those reminders is the refrigerator door -- is your house the same way? At least that way it's usually right in front of us at least three times a day! So that's how this magnet clip came about. I got this one at Target, in the office supply section. They came two to a pack and are a little over 1-inch wide. I topped it with an Inchie Arts White Inchie Square that I stamped with Karen Lockhart's Itty Bitty Cape Cod House. I thought this house might resemble an old-fashioned little one or two-room school house. I colored it with these Copic markers: I added red rick-rack to the bottom of the clip, to cover up the rest of the metal and then looped some around the top, too, just to... Read more →

WSC99: KIS a Frog

It's Weekend Sketch Challenge time again and it's number 99! I always love the challenge of using a sketch -- it makes me think outside my box and try something new & different! We hope you'll play along with us today, too! Here's what I have to share. KIS was my motto for this card ... no, not as in kiss a frog, but Keep It Simple! So I grabbed one of my Taylored Expressions' Key Ingredients Kits (The Places You'll Go) and I had everything at my fingertips that was already color coordinated for me! This sweet princely frog cuppie from Taylored Expressions' Trick or Sweet II set does double duty and isn't just for Halloween. I thought this card might be good to serve as an encouragement for a young boy, or without the sentiment, I think it would make a cute baby card! There are some other very sweet images in this set that I'll be using to make little notecards to tuck into my girls' backpacks! I stamped froggy with Memento Tuxedo Black ink onto Taylored Expressions Choice Buttercream cardstock and colored him with these Copic markers: His little bow tie is accented with a Tiny... Read more →

Copic: Recently Reinked & Webster's Sneak

I thought every so often whenever it's time to reink some of my Copic markers, I'd let you all know what those colors are. That means these colors are some of my favorites that I use most often! I'll also add this information in a running list on my Copic Info Page, for easy future reference. So here's today's: Recently Reinked: W1, B41, BG11, BG72, YG03, YG91, YG93, YG95. And just a quick note to let you know I have a card posted over at Ellen Hutson's the CLASSroom today, using some of my highly-anticipated favorite, GORGEOUS, Webster's Pages new 6-inch papers ... I hope you'll join me there! Read more →

JustRite Christmas Frame

When it comes to my kids and Christmas, I'm very sentimental and want the season to be as magical for them as possible. And I want to remember their awe and wonderment for years to come. So at Christmas time, I have a special framed photo from each year of their Christmases to pull out and display all season. This will be our framed photo from last year. It would also make a great grandparent gift! I love these wooden frames from Michael's -- I've used them several times. They are 8" x 7" with a 4.5" x 3.5" photo opening, unpainted and have a recessed area around the photo where I've adhered patterned paper. To start, I painted the frame red. Here's another view of the frame, so you can see the dimension it has, with the shadow box type of recess for the photo. And the best part -- it can't be more than $1.99 (I've forgotten exactly what the price is)! I started this project thinking I'd be making a card and wanted to use the CPS sketch #134 layout for it. Then the project changed to a framed photo, so I hope the CPS (CARD Positioning... Read more →

Taylored Expressions Key Ingredient Challenge

Did you know Taylored Expressions now has a Key Ingredients Kit subscription service? They also now offer a monthly charge program -- so instead of paying for all 3 months or 6 months of your subscription up front, they will charge your credit card on the 15th of each month of your subscription. The 6-month subscription breaks down to just $14.95 a month plus shipping! You can't beat that value for one of Taylor's customized, top-quality, color-coordinated kits! You can read all about how the subscription service works (including a sweet store discount!) by visiting THIS page. And Taylor made a video, showing what all you'll typically receive in your monthly kit -- you can see that HERE. These kits differ from the Key Ingredient Kits offered with each new stamp release on the 5th of the month, and will be shipped to you on the 15th of each month. Half of the Taylored Expressions Baker's Dozen design team are sharing some creations with this month's September Kit and we're gettin' spicy! Taylor issued a challenge for us to get inspired by the Bo Bunny paper collection name (Kitchen Spice) included in this month's kit, and to do some distressing... Read more →

WSC98: Treat Bingo Inchie

For Beate's Weekend Sketch Challenge #98 today, I wanted to show another use for my Bingo card downloads I shared yesterday. I also made mini Bingo versions that are the perfect size for a cardfront! They measure 3" x 3.5" and fit the JustRite 50-point sized fonts perfectly for a title. I printed the black card onto vanilla cardstock and then used JustRite's Brayton Uppercase font to spell out TREAT. I distressed the edges of the Bingo card, crumpled it up, and then aged it with ink. The Inchie Arts white inchie square embellishment was colored with Black Copic marker = instant any-color-you-want Inchie square! That cute jack-o-lantern pumpkin is a brand new Lockhart Stamp Company image -- isn't it darling?!! I stamped it, punched it out with a scalloped punch, colored it with Copic YR12, YR23, Y02, BV11, V17 and then adhered it to the Inchie square. Then I used embroidery floss for the handle! Don't forget today is Day 2 of JustRite's Font Mega Blog Hop. Today's hoppers are: Debbie Olson, Jerri Kay Jimenez, Taylor Van Bruggen, Holly Simoni, Barb Schram, Terre Frye, Michelle Kovack, Kim Moreno, Catherine Doucette, Kellie Fortin, Kimberly Crawford, Kathy Jones, Michelle Giraud, Angela... Read more →

JustRite Font Mega Blog Hop - Day 1!

Welcome to Day 1 of JustRite Stampers' Font Mega Blog Hop! We have TWO days of blog hopping lined up for you, with 54 designers showcasing all kinds of fun, creative projects YOU can make with JustRite's fonts! To celebrate this event, JustRite is having a Super 7-Day Font Sale. Take 30% off ALL JustRite font sets and the Horizontal and Veritical Font Stampers. Sale begins Sept 17 and ends Sept 24. AND there is Mystery Blog Candy being given away during the 2-Day JustRite Font Blog Hop! There will be THREE blog candy giveaways on each day and you can only win by leaving a comment on the right blog! The mystery is that you won't know which blog has the candy ... even the designer doesn't know! So as you visit each of the 54 designers over the 2-day event, take time to leave a comment. Then the three designers will randomly draw a name from the comments on their projects -- who knows, the lucky winner may be you! You will have until Sunday at noon EST to leave comments for your chance to win. Then check back at the JustRite Blog on Sunday evening to find... Read more →

Halloween Decor

Halloween is getting closer and today in the CLASSroom, I'll show you how to make a piece of home decor for this holiday! Read more →

JustRite Font Mega Blog Hop Announcement

Beginning tomorrow, September 17, JustRite Stampers has TWO days of blog hopping lined up for you, with 54designers showcasing all kinds of fun, creative projects YOU can make with JustRite's fonts! To celebrate this event, JustRite is having a Super 7-Day Font Sale that begins tomorrow, Sept 17 and ends Sept 24. You will take 30% off ALL JustRite font sets and the Horizontal and Vertical Wood Stampers! AND there is Mystery Blog Candy being given away during the 2-Day JustRite Font Blog Hop! There will be THREE blog candy giveaways on each day and you can only win by leaving a comment on the right blog! The mystery is that you won't know which blog has the candy ... even the designer doesn't know! So as you visit each of the 54 designers over the 2-day event take time to leave a comment. Then the three designers will randomly draw a name from the comments on their projects. Who knows, the lucky winner may be you! You will have until Sunday at noon EST to leave a comment for your chance to win. Then check back at the JustRite Blog on Sunday evening to find out who won. We'll... Read more →

Autumn Abundance

I needed a few "general" cards for my stash ... I never seem to have any on hand when I need them for a quick note, how about you? I was in the mood to color these beautiful Papertrey Ink Autumn Abundance Fall images, since it's STILL raining out ... I think my area has accumulated about 5 inches over the past 2-3 days and it doesn't appear to be letting up until later in the week! The images were colored with Copic markers that Papertrey Ink says matches their cardstock & ink colors ... very helpful when trying to color coordinate your project! You can find their Copic color selections HERE, if you are not already familiar with them. I used Gold Copic Spica glitter pen on the leaves and acorn image -- hopefully you can see that pretty sparkle in the closeup photo above (click on it for a larger view). The focal images are popped up on foam tape ... other than that, I think everything is pretty self explanatory, with all supplies listed below. I hope you have a lovely Fall week ahead! Leaves card supplies: Stamps: Autumn Abundance Paper: PTI Vintage Cream, Dark Chocolate &... Read more →

September Calendar

In all the hub-ub of the first of the month, the holiday, and still getting acclimated to school day routines, I totally forgot to share my September calendar! Actually, I thought I had already made it but when I flipped my calendar stand over to the next month, I discovered I had made TWO October calendars and had nothing for September! YOU never do anything like that, do you?!! :D So here's what I came up with: I thought Papertrey's new Autumn Abundance set would work great for this month, and since the sunflowers have been in full bloom around here lately, I thought this beautiful image would be perfect! This image was SO much fun to color! I stamped the vase of sunflowers with Memento Rich Cocoa ink onto Papertrey's Vintage Cream cardstock and colored with these Copic markers & Spica glitter pens (gold, olive & chocolate): I really hope you can see all the sparkle in the photo -- it really brings these beautiful flowers to life! I printed my calendar (download available from my Download Page) in green and brown, to match the papers and colored stamp image. I used Sally Lynn's Copic Digital Color Chart to... Read more →

WSC97: Harvest Angel

Today for Beate's Weekend Sketch Challenge #97, I wanted to do something with a Fall feel to it, since it's raining out and actually starting to feel like Fall here in North Texas (yay)! Karen Lockhart's Harvest Angel was just what I was looking for. I stamped the angel with Memento Rich Cocoa onto Neenah Natural White cardstock and colored her with these Copic markers & Spica glitter pens (orange & gold): She was die cut with Spellbinders Classic Circle Nestabilities and layered onto a Classic Scalloped Circle Nestability die cut from olive cardstock. Hopefully you can see the gorgeous sparkle those Spica glitter pens add: She's SO much fun to color! I finally got hold of the Bow Easy gadget I've seen a lot of people using -- this thing ROCKS! Look at that beautiful perfect bow, with both tails behind the loops and lying nice and flat! This will be a permanent tool on my desktop! Sweet Sharon Johnson hooked me up with one, and she can for you, too! Check it out HERE, complete with links to tutorials on how to tie an easy bow. These talented ladies also have sketch samples for you today -- I... Read more →

Trick or Sweet

Just a quick note to let you know I have a Taylored Expressions scrapbook page posted over at the SASI (Stamp A Sweet Impression) blog this evening. This sweet ballerina/princess is one in a set of seven new Cuppies in the Trick or Sweet II stamp set (15 total images). I think they are super-versatile and can be used for a variety of occasions besides Halloween! I'll be back in the morning with Beate's Weekend Sketch Challenge! Read more →