July NC Demos Blog Hop

Welcome to the July NC Demos Blog Hop.  We hold this Blog Hop on the last Sunday of each month so mark your calendars so you don't miss it!!

This month our challenge was to use your favorite consumable product from the Annual Catalog (DSP, embellishments, ribbon, etc.)  I'm afraid I didn't read the directions very well and thought we were to use our favorite new dies - oops!

So my first card does use the White Perfect Accents (which is a consumable) - they aren't new but I like them! For this card, I water colored onto a piece of 3 3/4" x 5" Shimmery White card stock.  I love this card stock and as long as you don't soak your card stock with water, it is great for water coloring.  I used a mixture of Melon Mambo, Pumpkin Pie, Sweet Sugarplum and Crushed Curry, squeezing the ink into the lid of the ink pad and using my Aqua Brush to paint it on.  I die cut the Flourish Thinlit piece from Shimmery White and using the Fine Tip Glue Pin adhered it to the water colored piece.  Believe it or not, but this is the first time I have used the Flourish Thinlits and I have had it for at least a month!  This thinlet is just beautiful!!  The "Hope" thinlit is from one of my favorites from the Annual Catalog, Sunshine Wishes.  I cut one from a piece of water colored Shimmery paper and 2 more from a piece of the cardboard that comes in SU's DSP packets and glued them all together so it would be raised up a bit.

For my next card, I used a favorite consumable - the In Color Paper Stack (pg. 174).  First I embossed the white panel with the Lucky Stars Embossing Folder and adhered the DSP to the top and bottom which I then adhered to the Sweet Sugarplum card.  I punched 2 clouds out of Vellum using the Tree Builder Punch.  I stamped Happy Birthday (Sunshine Sayings) in Sugarplum ink and punched it out with the Duet Banner Punch before adhering it to the raised up arrow tag.  (Sorry but the ribbon I used is retired!)  I die cut "Shine On" from the Sunshine Wishes Thinlits.  I die cut "sunshine" and cut off the "sun" and die cut "congratulations" but only using the "on" part!  It's hard to tell, but the clouds and "shine on" are both painted with the Wink of Stella Clear Glitter Brush and are really sparkly.

I hope you have enjoyed my cards - even if I did not follow the directions closely!  Head on over to the next stop on our hop who is Frances Wagner .  If you get lost along the way, below is a list of all the blogs participating in our Blog Hop.

TAMRA DAVIS
JO ANNE HEWINS 
TRACIE EVANS LANGLEY 
SHARON MARANICH (you are here)

FRANCES WAGNER

 

NC Blog Hop - My Favorite New Stamp (Jars)

It's the last Sunday of the month and that means it's time for another NC Demos Blog Hop!  This month we are each featuring our favorite new stamp set from the new annual catalog.  I am totally in love with Jars of Love - the stamp set and the framelits!  Oh - there are so many ideas running through my head for this set.  I used this set last week at Stamp Club and we made two different cards.  If you missed that post, check them out HERE.

This is the very first card I made with Jars of Love - flowers being poured out of the jar.

First I stamped the jar in the top left of the white card stock in Memento Black Ink.  Next stamp a bunch of flowers in the jar and coming out of it using Sweet Sugarplum, Flirty Flamingo and Mint Macaron inks.  I used my fringe scissors to cut a little grass from Old Olive card stock, wrapped a piece of the Sweet Sugarplum ribbon around it and adhered it to the black panel which is then adhered to the card base (Sweet Sugarplum).  Die cut several flowers and adhere them to the grass.  Finally put a small pearl in the center of the die cut flowers and stamp your sentiment.

This next card is my favorite and it is a shaker.  It would be perfect to welcome a new baby!

My first step was to stamp the background pieces onto Whisper White.  For the mint macaron stripes, I brushed off the dust from the Brushstrokes Background stamp (don't know why I haven't used it much) and just stamped it on an angle.  (Another one that would work for this is the new Diagonal Stripe background stamp.)  I blotted some of the ink off the stamp before putting it to the paper and spritzed it a little bit with water because I didn't want it too dark.  The background piece on the bottom - Pink Pirouette - is made using the same Diagonal Stripe stamp and just stamping once horizontally and next vertically to achieve a checkered look.  Use a black fine marker to make stitch lines around the edges. I punched the large star using the Star Framelits from Soft Sky and stamped on it with one of the Timeless Texture stamps.  The small stars at the top are from the Star Framelits also. There is a piece of white twine wrapped around the top of the card before adhering it to a Mint Macaron card.  The jar is stamped twice on Thick White Cardstock in Mint Macaron ink and die cut.  I stamped a background piece one one of the die cut jars with different sized star stamps that I found in different sets in pink and blue.  I die cut a piece of acetate in the jar shape and adhered it to the back of the second die cut jar.  I used strips of dimensional tape on the edges but BEFORE you remove the backing on the tape, fill your jar with tiny stars and sequins.  Then take the cover off the adhesive and adhere the star stamped background on the back of the jar and acetate.  Stamp the jar lid with Versamark and emboss it with gold embossing powder.  Die cut and adhere to top of jar.  Punch out the tiny hearts in Mint and adhere them to the jar lid.  Wrap a piece of white twine around the jar and adhere it to the card.  Tie a piece of ribbon in a bow and use a Glue Dot to adhere it to the card.  Adhere a button to the ribbon.  I used my computer to type the saying and cut it out.


My next card was really simple to do.  I stamped the jar image onto a piece of vellum using Staz-on black ink and die cut it.  I die cut a piece of gold glitter paper and adhered it on top of the vellum.  Next stamp several of the leaves onto Whisper White card stock (3 3/4" x 5 1/2").  Stamp a couple of them full strength and a couple of them "second generation."  Adhere the vellum jar on the page using dimensional strips to the edges.  Tie a piece of ribbon around the left side before adhering the white piece to the Pool Party card.  I used a piece of retired Pool Party glitter ribbon.

My final card was also a simple one and a fun one to make!  I have flowers coming out of the jar above so this one needed fireflies coming out (or lightning bugs - which term do you use?  I say lightning bugs.)

I stamped the jar onto a piece of scrap white card stock and die cut it. (but you could just as easily stamp direct to the card.)  I used daubers to sponge a bit of Soft Sky around the edges of the jar and then adhered it to the left side of the card.  Next stamp the fireflies in black ink on the jar and flying up and off the right side of the Whisper White.  Use a Daffodil Delight marker and color the wings.  I used the Fine Tip Glue Pen to put a tiny bit of glue on each firefly and sprinkled Gold Glitter on them.  The "Just Sayin" is from Crazy About You and the other sentiment is from the Jars set.   Mount the white card onto a piece of black card stock and then onto the Daffodil Delight card.

OK - that's all for me.  But not for you - continue along with the Blog Hop and see what the other NC demos' favorite sets are!  The full line up below will help you move along so you can see all the projects.

TAMRA DAVIS
JO ANNE HEWINS
TRACIE EVANS LANGLEY
SHARON MARANICH (you are here)
FRANCES WAGNER

May NC Blog Hop - New Catalog Sneak Peeks!!

It's the last Sunday of the month which means it's time for the NC Demos Blog Hop!

Welcome to the NC Demos Blog Hop for May, 2016.  We are grateful that you stopped by to take a look at our creations this month.  Get your Wish Lists out because this month we are featuring projects using items from the NEW 2016-17 Annual Stampin' Up Catalog!!  We hope to provide you with lots of ideas.

As demonstrators, we are able to pre-order a few select items from the new catalog before it is released.  This time (for the first time!) I decided not to purchase any new stamp sets and only bought the new In Color card stock and ink pads.  So that is what I am concentrating on in my blog creations today.

The new 2016-18 In Colors are:  Dapper Denim, Peekaboo Peach, Emerald Envy, Flirty Flamingo and Sweet Sugarplum.  I keep changing my mind about which color is my favorite one!  I don't know if you noticed, but I have also used the new In Colors in my Blog Banner "splats" and in the letters above.

One of my favorite tools in years past was always the Stampin' Up Color Coach.  Unfortunately, SU retired it a year or two ago so I have made up my own using the In Colors.  Click on the chart below to see it better.  Of course, these are not all the combinations .... see what you can come up with!

I made a bookmark for my club members to show them the new colors.  Love the ribbon!!

My first card uses a technique called Bouncing Brayer.  When was the last time you used your brayer?  Ha!  Dig it out and try this technique.  Ink up your brayer in your choice of ink and place one edge of the brayer near the cardstock center.  Press the brayer to the cardstock but don't roll it.  Lift off paper.  Continue this process moving the brayer about 1/2" - 3/4" each time.  Makes a unique background.  I did mine in Peekaboo Peach, Emerald Envy and Flirty Flamingo.

My next card uses a stamp set that was in the Spring Mini Catalog and is carrying over.  It is called Grateful Bunch and comes with a coordinating punch.  I used ink from the lid of the pad and watercolored the flower with Sweet Sugarplum ink.  The leaves are stamped with Emerald Envy.

This is the card opened up - a fun fold!!

Next I decided to try another background that I created myself.  I masked the card with a circle and sponged in-color stripes.  (I used a striped mask that was included in the retired Banner Kit but you could easily use a ruler or cardboard.)  I stamped the leaves from Grateful Bunch (Emerald Envy) and stamped the flowers from the same set using the In Colors.

This one is my favorite!  I cut strips of In Color cardstock (1") and angled them onto a Basic Black card base.  After trimming the edges, I adhered the piece to the Dapper Denim card.  The sentiment is from Cottage Greetings and the punched flowers are from Grateful Bunch.

I hope you have gotten some inspiration for using the new In Colors from my projects.

Your next stop on the Hop is Sue Root -

You may just be starting the Blog Hop or may have come from Tracie Langley's blog.  The full line-up listed below will help you move along from blog to blog so you can see all the projects.


 Michelle Irinyi - http://makingmemorieswithmichelle.weebly.com/home/nc-demos-blog-hop-marquee-messages

Melissa Kerman - http://www.stampinup.net/esuite/home/thecraftingtreehouse/blog?directBlogUrl=/blog/60800/entry/thoughtful_banners_with_sweet_sugarplum

Tracie Langley - http://www.stampinup.net/esuite/home/traciesallaboutstamping/blog?directBlogUrl=/blog/86481/entry/nc_demos_may_blog_hop

(YOU ARE HERE) Sharon Maranich - http://inkiefinger.blogspot.com/2016/05/may-nc-blog-hop-new-catalog-sneak-peeks.html

Sue Root - http://stampin-with-sue.blogspot.com/2016/05/nc-su-demos-new-catalog-blog-hop.html

Pam Staples - http://wp.me/p3p2VA-1pB

Frances Wagner - http://wagstamps.blogspot.com/2016/05/nc-su-demo-hop-team-meeting-swaps-gifts.html

Goodbye, Farewell - April Blog Hop with NC Demos

Welcome to the April NC Demos Blog Hop.   If you just arrived from Melissa's blog, isn't her Kleenex box cool?!!

Our theme this month gave us a lot of leeway.  We could choose cards that feature the retiring products, Mother's Day cards or Feminine cards.  My choice was retiring products.  I lost about 18 stamp sets not to mention several thinlits and punches.  Many of them did not surprise me since they had been around a while but I am still going to miss many of them! 

The first few cards I used a new technique that I had never done before - the Whitewash Technique.  There are several You-Tube videos that you can find to show the technique.  Basically, you stamp and emboss the image.  Next paint the image with the white re-inker (I used Aqua Brush.)  After that dries, add a little color to the image with a marker.  Then use your blender pen or Aqua Brush and blend the colors.  After it dries, you can go back and add a little more color as needed.

My first card uses Swallowtail stamp for the butterfly.  I also used the retiring DSP Typeset and the sentiment from And Many More (which is a great set for sentiments.)

The next two cards are made with Vivid Vases, a single stamp.

On this card, I also used the Curvy Corner Trio Punch which I love!

 This beauty uses three retiring stamp sets - Trust God, Everything Eleanor and the single stamp, Blended Blooms as well as the retiring Candy Dots.

Next I did a couple of cards using the blending technique with my sponges using Serene Silhouettes.

Next it was time for a little watercoloring.  I spritzed my Shimmery White cardstock with water and then using my Aqua Brush, colored Melon Mambo, Tangelo Twist and Daffodil Delight all over the card.  I cut another piece of cardstock using the Hexagon Hive Thinlit and adhere it on top of the watercolored piece.  The sentiment is from Feels Good.

 This is one of the cards we made in Stamp Club this month using the single stamp, Blooms for You.  The "seize the cake" sentiment is from the retiring set, Something to Say.

This final card also uses Blooms For You, Everything Eleanor (sentiment) and the Decorative Dots embossing folder.  This is one of the cards I made from pieces of the Paper Pumpkin April kit.

Hope you enjoyed my portion of the blog hop.  Continue along heading to Laurie Meir's blog next.

Below is a list of all the participants and their links:

Jo Anne Hewins

Michelle Irinyi

Melissa Kerman

Sharon Maranich

Laurie Meier

Sue Root

Karel Standish

Pam Staples

Frances Wagner

Thanks for stopping by!

Happy Birthday Blog Hop

Welcome to the March NC Demos Blog Hop.  We are a group of Stampin' Up demonstrators who live in North Carolina who love to share what we create with you.  All you have to do to follow along is to click on the links at the bottom of each post.  We love comments on our blogs so please, show us some love!!

Our theme this month is birthdays.  Everyone has one so you should make sure you have a stash of birthday cards on hand.  I think you will find a lot of inspiration on our blog hop this month.  I chose to do a Happy Birthday ensemble.

Let's look at each item by itself.  First is the framed birthday collage.  I love this and need to give a big thanks to Allison Barber (another NC Demo) for this collage.  Allison is so sweet and invites my sister and I to come to her demo meetings.  She always has a great project for us to make after we discuss business.  This was what we made in February.  I made two of them and by switching up the colors and DSP, you get a different look.  This collage uses DSP from It's My Party Paper Stack (pg 5).  This is a great pack of paper - you get 4 each of 12 double-sided designs, 12" x 12".   The paper doesn't have to all be used for birthdays though.  As well as candles and balloons, the pack also has stripes, polka dots, and other non-birthday designs.

The stamp set(s) that I used on this project are Party Wishes (Occasions, pg 5) and Fabulous Four (annual pg. 58).  I also used the Party Punch Pack that comes bundled with the stamp set.

Next, I made a cute little birthday survival kit.  There is a hole punched in the top for the party horn to fit into.  Inside the triangular box is a crayon, rubber band, candle and candy.  See the poem on the Birthday Survival Kit for details.  Any type of small box would work for this.  I don't have instructions for this one as I took a triangular box apart that someone gave me years ago and used it for a pattern for this one.  I used Mint Macaron card stock for the box and stamped all over it with the balloon stamp from Party Wishes.  The candles are punched out with the Party Punch Pack (pg 4, Occasions).

Next, is my tri-fold birthday card.  This was a fun card to make!  If you want instructions, check back on my blog next week and I will be sharing another card like this along with instructions.

I used the balloon stamp from Balloon Celebration (pg 12, Occasions) and the large balloons from Celebrate Today in the annual catalog.  I punched the small balloons with the Balloons Punch and die cut the large balloons (and the bows on them) using the Balloon Framelits.  I made my own DSP using the circle stamp from Work of Art.  The colors on the card are Melon Mambo, Crushed Curry and Mint Macaron.

The sentiment on the inside of the card is from Party Pants, a new Sale-a-bration set

I hope you enjoyed all my birthday projects and will leave me a comment!

Now hop on over to Laurie Meier's blog and see what she has made for you to enjoy.  Any time you get lost hopping along, here is the full list of participants for this month.

Elaine Brown

Tamra Davis

Jo Anne Hewins

Amy Ingram

Michelle Irinyl

Melissa Kerman

Tracie Langley

Sharon Maranich (ME)

Laurie Meier

Sue Root

Pam Staples

Lisa Tedder

NC Demos Blog Hop featuring Occasions Catty AND In Colors

Welcome to the second NC Demos Blog Hop.  You should have just come from Tracie Langley's blog.  I loved her two projects!!   Hope you are enjoying the projects this month from the Occasions Catalog and using Stampin' Up's In Colors and are getting a lot of ideas for your own projects.

Each year when the new annual catalog comes out (June 1), there will be 5 NEW In Colors introduced.  The sad news is that means 5 colors will RETIRE.  The retiring colors this year are shown below:

The ink pads, cardstock packs, ink refills and accessories will only be available while supplies last. They usually sell out quickly!!  So I would suggest if you love these colors, you order them now before they are gone AND also so that you can take advantage of the FREE gifts offered during Sale-a-Bration!

OK - on to my project.  This was a fun card to make!  It measures 5.5" x 5.5" so a special envelope was made for it using the Envelope Punch Board  The card folds flat for mailing but when the recipient receives it, he/or she can open each section like an easel card.  Wouldn't this look nice sitting on a desk for all to see?!

The In Colors I used are Hello Honey and Mossy Meadow.  I also used Cajun Craze and Mint Macaron which are the matching colors for the Botanical Gardens DSP.

This is the card flat - well sorta flat!  It kept popping up as I was trying to photograph it.  I needed a couple of extra hands to hold it shut but when you put it in an envelope, it will be flat.

This sentiment is from Flower Patch.  I used the Decorative Label Punch to punch it out and sponged the edges with Hello Honey ink.

Each top square (Hello Honey) measures 2.5" x 2.5".  They are attached to the bottom rectangles (measuring 2.5" x 5" and scored at 1.25" x 2.5".

The stamp set, Botanical Blooms, framelits AND DSP can be purchased as a bundle saving you 15%. It is a great set!!  If you would like to place an order online, please use my Hostess Code found at the top of my blog posts.  By purchasing this Bundle, you would qualify for a FREE item from Sale-a-Bration!  Who doesn't like free???!!

Hope you are enjoying the Blog Hop! Check out what my other NC pals have to show you!! Laura Meier is next on the Hop so make sure you click on her name.

Shavron Borders
Regina Campbell
Tamra Davis
Kitty Helton
Jo Anne Hewins
Amy Ingram
Michelle Irinyi
Melissa Kernan
Tracie Langley
Sharon Maranich (ME)
Laura Meier
Mary Robinette
Susan Root
Pam Staples
Lisa Tedder
Frances Wagner

NC Demos SAB Blog Hop

Welcome to the first NC Demos Blog Hop!  A group of NC Stampin' Up demonstrators have decided to start a monthly blog hop.  We will be publishing our blog hop on the last day of the month.  So make sure you mark your calendars and check out our blogs and our great projects each month!

For January, we have decided to focus on items from the Sale-a-Bration Catalog.  Remember - for every $50 you spend, you can choose an item from Sale-a-Bration for FREE!!  There are some great stamps and papers in the catalog.  Also, there are a few items that are only offered for a limited time (pg. 16 - 18) so if you want one of those items, you'd better grab them now!

I love making Framed Collages so that is what I have done this month showcasing the Flowering Fields stamp set (pg 12) and Perfectly Artistic Designer Series Paper.  Instead of making my collage in a 12"x12" frame like I normally do, I found this frame on my shelf and decided to use it.  The opening is 9 1/2" x 7 1/2".  I matted each DSP square with Basic Gray card stock and matted the whole thing on Smoky Slate card stock.  You can see all the other items I used by scrolling to the very bottom of this blog post.

Next I made a card using the same stamp set and a few other goodies to go along with the framed piece.

I love the Pool Party Glitter Ribbon!  (pg 9 Occassions)  I also used other Sale-a-Bration items - Perfect Pairings (Hooray!) and Botanical Gardens Designer Vellum Stack (pg 4).  I hope you enjoyed my portion of the Blog Hop and will hop on over and see what Mary has made to share with you.

Shavron Borders

Regina Campbell

Tamra Davis

Kitty Helton

Jo Anne Hewins

Amy Ingram

Michelle Irinyi
Melissa Kerman

Tracie Langley

Sharon Maranich (you are here)

Mary Robinette

Sue Root

Pam Staples
Lisa Tedder
Frances Wagner

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