A gift from Barbie

Look at this beautiful card that was given to me
from my friend and sideline Barb!

Isn't it just gorgeous?

A group of my friends, the Michigan Minglers as we call ourselves,
were swapping over the end of the summer. Because I couldn't
swap, Barb gave me this as a gift!

Thanks for letting me share, Barb :)

I love my Minglers!

30 Second Window Cards. . .

Halooooo!

I am here to show you how to make a window in the front of your card.
I use this to show off fun little images, or punch art
(as you have seen in the last two posts).

Now, a disclaimer: Any stress induced by the sight of my messy desk
is in no way to be blamed on me! I can't help it! It just happens!

If you have been to my Facebook page,
you have seen firsthand the crazy fallout. . .

This is me apologizing in advance!
If I waited for it to be clean to take photos??
Nothing would get done!

Here goes. . . .

To start, I determine where I want the opening to be on the front of my card.

In this case, I just set a punched circle with the Ghost adhered to it on the
front of my card and moved it around until I had an idea of where I wanted it.

Right about here. . . .


It is okay to punch your cardstock with a layer
of Designer Series Paper on it.

Two layers of cardstock?

No No!
Don't do it, girlfriend. Bad for your tools!

So what now?? Here is what I do:

Using the same punch as the original opening on the card front,
punch a hole from a post-it note.

Be sure to punch part of the sticky strip on the back!

Place your cardfront onto the card base.
Please don't adhere it with permanent adhesive!

I used dotto, so I could hold it up/check it out/take it back off when I want.

Once you have it just where you want it. . . .

Take your sticky note, and put it in the opening.
Give it a little rub for luck.

At this point, because you have NOT used permanent adhesive,
you should be able to pull off your front layer with ease.

I keep my thumb on that post-it so it doesn't move while I pull the layer off.

There it is, just telling you what to do!

You should be able to carefully move your punch over it
so you can make a perfectly lined up opening.

Try not to knock it off while getting the punch in place. . .

Peek-a-boo!

You are all set to use permanent adhesive now! LOL

For my card, I then punched a black circle and
glued it down right thru the opening so it would be in just the right spot.

I had that little ghost set down on my desk, sticky side up. . . .

Took me a while to find him!
He was stuck to my Stazon lid. . .

The little stinker!

Hopefully that was helpful for those of you who may not
have made a card like this before. Easy and fun!

You can also use a punched post-it to find the perfect placement for your
front layer. Just stick it where you like it best and punch!

Another example of a window card-same layout/different image,
can be found here. The difference being, I used a smaller opening.
Not revealing the entire image can be fun! Keeps 'em guessing :)

Are these tutorials okay? Too many pictures? Too few? Too wordy?
I am new at this and would like to make sure that everything is clear
and would appreciate any feedback or suggestions you may have!

Thanks :)

Owl Cuteness. . .

Since I have been having so much fun with the Owl Punch lately,
how about an actual owl?

All the ladies in my family LOVE owls.
The owl punch in the Stampin' Up! catalog is tons of fun for us!

I made this birthday card while brainstorming
for my daughter's birthday party invitations.

It is the same layout as the Scary Sweet Ghost card,
but instead of the larger opening the 1 3/8 circle punch is used.

The sentiment is from the set Bring on the Cake,
punched with the Scallop Oval Punch.

I dotted the eyes like I have been lately-
with a Stampin' Write marker (Basic Black).

Not only would it be a time saver if I ended up making a lot of these. . .
I really like how it looks a little more animated.

He makes me smile :)

The birthday hat was made with the Petite Pennant builder punch,
in addition to the retired Trio Flower punch.
The branch is the Little Leaves sizzlit in Wild Wasabi.

Do you have the Owl Punch??
You should! Order 24/7 from my website.

Next, I will share with you how I make my window cards,
and how I line up the front layer with the card base.

Enjoy your Sunday :)

Supplies:
Stamps: Bring on the Cake, Woodgrain background
Ink: Soft Suede
Paper: Soft Suede, Crumb Cake, Whisper White
Wild Wasabi, Just Add Cake Designer Series
Other Stuff: 1 3/8 circle punch, Owl Punch, Little Leaves sizzlit, Big Shot, dimensionals

Everybody needs a buddy. . .

Hello, Lovelies!

As promised, I am here to show you my second little ghost
made from Stampin' Up's extra cute Owl Punch!

See? Isn't he a sweetie?

He wants to give you his heart <3

Or maybe he is just screaming in fear. . . .you be the judge!

I love to make these window cards. Have you ever made one?

In case you haven't, I plan to show you how I do it. . .but today

I am going to show you how I made this little guy's fun little self.


The one in the middle is from this project, and I explained how I made him
in this post. You really need to have seen that one to pick up at this point, so
if you haven't? Go do that now! Then hop back over here. . . .

Here we go for ghost #2:

At this point, you have already punched the owl body, and trimmed off his
poor little legs. . .but this time you will finish the bottom with the Curly Label Punch.

Try and center the little point if you can.

Now you need a second little owl from the Owl Punch. . .
because feet will become hands!

Trim up into the body to make some little arms. . .

Go ahead and punch yourself a little black heart-also from the Owl Punch.

At this point, I just put some tombo on the scrap, and dabbed a bit
on the back of his little hands. If you have little tweezers they are handy.

A piercing tool to put a bit of pressure on it for a second while the glue sets.
Again for the other side, please!

If you cut a tiny edge piece from your sheet of dimensionals,
it will be the perfect size for the back of his little heart.

I used my piercing tool so I could see what I was doing here. . .

The heart will be adhered, but his little arms need to be attached at the shoulder,
so a little glue on your piercing tool will place it in the right spot without much trouble.

Give it a pinch so it sticks well!

Awwwwww!

If his arms extend past his body, use your Paper Snips or
a hobby blade to remove the excess.

The sentiment (Grateful Greetings) is so perfect as
this little ghost is supposed to be scary but instead he is sweet :)

Okay, I'm done! LOL

I hope you like him, and that you make something fun.
Send me a link if you do!

As always, everything used is Stampin' Up.
Order anytime on my website, and let me know if you have any questions :)

Love. And a tutorial.

Thank you so much for visiting yesterday, and taking a spin around the
Controlfreak's blog tour! So much fun!

And for those of you who have taken the time
to say hello and leave me a comment?
I love you.
No really. It makes my day!

And I listen!
So, for the lovely lady who asked me. . ."Where is the follow me button???"
I added it. And now there are six people following me LOL!

For those six people?
I love you.

Honestly, I didn't even know there was such a thing available on my blog!
I have had my feedburner email subscription for ages now,
but I am unfamiliar with "followers".

Sounds very strange, but I will give it a try :)

And for those of you who follow me on feedburner?
I love you. Lots.

All that being said. . . Time for my first photo tutorial!

No, don't be afraid!

All you need are these punches and a bit of paper and glue!

Here we go.

Whisper white in the adorable Owl Punch, making sure you get the main body
and the two largest eye circles. . .

Here they are. Easy enough!

I know it seems cruel, but cut his legs off.

Okay, now with a random post-it note, hang on to the little guy,
and we will just trim off a bit of the extra bits . . . .He doesn't need them!

Okay, so hold him in the punch just so.
I tried to have the points of the scallops close to the
outer edge of the paper.

To give him a more finished look, as you can see here:

Plug his little eyes on with dimensionals, and give him a bit of a confused look :)

I used the fine tip of my Stampin' Write marker to do this.
If you keep them close together like that he looks a bit startled, right??

Love him.

His mouth is the smaller eye circle from the Owl Punch,
with Basic Black cardstock.

If you don't have any of these products, and you would like to?

Please contact me!

Also, You can order in the comfort of your flannel pjs (yay fall!)
on my website: www.robinlea.stampinup.net

Next up. . .I made this ghost a little buddy and I will introduce you!

Happy Freakin' Halloween!

Yay!

I hope you enjoyed Lisa's extra fun projects,
and are inspired to make some treats to share with those you love!

This month's theme? Fall Into Step -- Autumn, Halloween and Thanksgiving Ideas

I have used some of Stampin' Up's amazing Frightful Sight Product Suite
to hopefully get you "in the mood" for a great Holiday! (IBC p.22)

Two fun things to share today. . . .

First, a card with a little gift attached!

This set, Scaredy Cat, makes a dramatic embossed image. Here I used Basic Black embossing powder with versamark ink on both Basic Grey and Whisper White cardstock.

In the picture below, the spider comes standard on this sheet of Frightful Sight Designer Series Paper. . . However, the upper right corner of the card needed one too! I added him (in the picture above) with Versamark and Black Embossing Powder.

Above you can see the 1 1/4 in. circle punch in Dusty Durango,
clipped with a darling little clip from our Clips Assortment. Fun times!
Of course the Basic Black 5/8in. Satin is so gorgeous. . .

I love this little ghost! On a dimensional he steals the show :)

But wait!

What if you could take off the front panel and keep it forever and ever???

Here you can see the detachable bookmark:

Because people are impatient, and I was worried the project might be ripped in the frenzy of trying to open such a cute card. I attached the bookmark inside the front panel to avoid issues :)

Below you can see where I added some dotted lines to show where to cut it off:

Last but not least. . .A spooky fancy favor.

Frightful Sight Designer Series Paper run thru our Big Shot. . .

then add a little punched Ghost to match the gorgeous paper!

(I took pictures of the process, so I will post those in a day or two if you are
interested in recreating this little cutie patootie.)

In the set Tiny Tags is where you will find this adorable Boo stamp. Perfect!

Punch it with our Jewelry Tag punch, tie a pretty bow in the
Black Satin Ribbon that I ADORE. . .
attach with some Vintage Trinkets and you are good to go!

Hope you had fun checking these projects out! Time to head on over to
Deb Currier's blog and see what she has made for your viewing pleasure!

Shabby Chic Spice Cake

This is my current favorite paper and stamp set!

Spice Cake and Friendly Phrases. . .just the names sound like a fun time :)

I don't usually sponge the edges of things, but I wanted to show the ladies at my
last class that you could make it shabby if that is your thing.

It also brings out a bit of the detail in the embossing.


Also, it looks fun with this paper and the Victoria lace ribbon

Everyone needs to be told they are wonderful now and then.

Feel free to tell me how wonderful I am in the comments. . . .LOL

For those of you who like a bit of a cleaner look. . .

Supplies:
Stamps: Friendly Phrases
Ink: More Mustard, Soft Suede
Paper: Pool Party, Soft Suede, Spice Cake Designer series paper
Other stuff: Lg. Oval punch, Scallop Oval punch, Victoria ribbon, Big Shot,
Stripes embossing folder, Vintage brads, stampin sponge, dimensionals