Bleaching

I was looking through my card samples a few days ago and realized that it has been a while since I have done any bleaching. Here's a card that I created a little over a year ago for an Open House. Some of you will remember making it...

First, I stamped the flower image from Natural Beauty onto Bravo Burgundy card stock using VersaMark ink. Then I embossed it with Black Emboss Powder. This step is important because if you were to just stamp the image with ink, the bleach would discolour the ink. Bleach doesn't change the Emboss Powder though.

After I punched the images out, I painted bleach on the flower petals and let them sit to dry. As the bleach absorbed into the card stock and dried, the card stock turned a nice yellow colour. It reminded me of So Saffron so that's what sparked my colour combination on this card.

A few important tips for bleaching...

1. You don't want to use a paint brush with natural bristles as the bleach will destroy your brush. Stampin' Up!'s Aqua Painters work really well - they have synthetic bristles which are not damaged by the bleach. They are also fantastic for this project because you can put the bleach right in the barrel of the Aqua Painter and then it will flow out of the brush consistently.

2. Bleach loses its power after it's been exposed to light. You'll want to be using your bleach within a few hours of filling the Aqua Painter. If you try using bleach that has been in your Aqua Painter for a while and it's not working, pour it out and refill with fresh bleach.

3. Once you have used an Aqua Painter for bleach, it should not be used for water. Since the Aqua Painters come in a set of two, I've dedicated the one with the blue lid for bleach and the one with the white lid for water.

4. Different colours of card stock will bleach differently. As shown on this example, the Bravo Burgundy turns a beautiful yellow, like So Saffron. Others turn completely white. Play with your card stock and bleach to see what happens! Oh, and you can also bleach your card stock again if necesary - to cover a missed spot or to try to lighten the card sock even more.

5. After bleaching the colour out of your card stock, you can add colour using crayons or inks.

Have fun playing with bleaching... just remember to protect your workspace and yourself in case of any accidental spilling of bleach!

Happy bleaching!

Bev.

From the kitchen...

Get out your Saran Wrap and play with this background technique! It's so simple... Crumple a piece of Saran Wrap and use it to pick up some Classic ink from the ink pad. Now, press it to the card stock and continue until you are happy with the look.

On the sample card, I started with a piece of Whisper White card stock and used Cool Caribbean and Tempting Turquoise ink for the background. I always start with my lightest colour and then add a bit of the darker colour to add some extra dimension.

I'm enjoying the new Silly Sealife stamp set and this technique suits it very well!

Happy stampin'!

Bev.

Scrappin' Fun

I just participated in a brag book page swap with my downline. My theme was "vacation" so I picked some of my favourite photos from an Alaska cruise my husband and I went on a couple of years ago. I discovered a few things about my scrapbooking style when I did these pages...

I started by picking the colours of card stock that I wanted to use with the photos. I decided on Taken with Teal, Tempting Turquoise and Certainly Celery because I liked the way they brought out the colours in the water and the glacier. Then I started to mat my photos like I always have in the past... placing the photo onto a mat that's a quarter inch bigger than my photo. The layout wasn't really working for me so I left them for the night, hoping that a fresh look the next day would provide a solution. Fortunately, it did!

Here's where my scrapbooking style changed a bit. Although I'm sure that quarter inch mats will continue to find their way into my pages often, on this layout I decided to use more of a colour block approach. Look at how I mounted the photos on the corner of the card stock. I found that this simplied the layout and let the photos become the focal point.

I printed my journaling using one of Stampin' Up!'s Jounaling Fonts CDs and then I had some fun with the Expressive Flexible Phrases stamp set, highlighting some of the words in my journaling text.

I've also discovered that I enjoy 6" x 6" brag book layouts. I used to be a dedicated 12" x 12" scrapbooker because I always thought that the larger pages gave me more room for photos and decorating. Of course, I still like the larger pages, but have found that the smaller brag book pages can make for quicker and simpler layouts.

Happy stampin' & scrappin'!

Bev.

Trick or Treat!

Just a really quick post this morning to share a couple of cute Halloween cards made with the Web Wishes stamp set. Notice the web on the card on the left which was stamped on vellum paper. Really cute!

The card on the right is one that I received in a card swap during Stampin' Up!'s Regional Training Seminar last fall. I love so much about this card - the crumpled paper that has been inked to make it look aged, the web that has been embossed in silver and you can't really see it, but there is Pearl Ex mixed with hairspray that has been sprayed on to give it a bit of sparkle!

Happy stampin'!

Bev.

It's beginning to look a lot like Christmas...

Well, it's not looking like Christmas outside (thank goodness!) but it sure is in my craft room! My Christmas stamps are starting to re-appear and I've added a few new ones to the collection. At this time of year, I get lots of requests to add Christmas cards to stamping classes. If you are looking for some inspiration, check my class schedule - there are lots of classes to help you get Christmas card and gift ideas.

The hope card features the "Wishing You" stamp set from the 2006 Holiday Mini Catalogue along with the Holiday Thyme Designer Series Paper (both available only until November 30th). I love the simplicity of this card - it's easy to make yet so striking! If I wanted to take this card up one step, I could do Diamond Dust using Irridescent Ice Emboss Powder on the main image and it would bring more attention to that piece as the focal point. I love the way the Cranberry Crisp, Old Olive and Always Artichoke card stock coordinate with the pre-printed paper. I was inspired by a sample on Splitcoaststampers for this card.

The star card, also features products from the 2006 Holiday Mini Catalogue - the Holiday Thyme Designer Series paper again along with the stitched grosgrain ribbon (Cranberry Crisp and True Thyme). The star is from the On Board Accents and has been covered with Holiday Thyme Designer Series Paper then the edges were sanded with a Sanding Block to smooth them as well as bring out the white border. It's difficult to see on this photo, but I've stamped a little greeting from the "Little Holiday Wishes" set that says "Have yourself a merry little Christmas!" This card would be great for special someone!

Check back soon for more Christmas card samples!

Happy stampin'!

Bev.

Ribbon, Wonderful Ribbon

When I first saw the new Ribbon Originals, I thought that they were beautiful but I wasn't sure how I would use them on my cards. I was getting ready for my last Stamp-A-Stack and decided that I wanted to "play" with these ribbons and see what I could come up with. Well, I discovered that it wasn't as difficult as I had thought. Whether it's a big bow, a little knot, a tab or just a strip of ribbon that you add to your card with the Ribbon Originals, you'll find that they add a whole new personality and beauty to your artwork!

I found that my projects worked out really well when I decided which stamp set I wanted to use then picked one of the ribbons that I thought would go well. From there, I could find the card stock that coordinated with the ribbon - this was lots of fun with the striped ribbons and I discovered some new colour combinations that I might not have used otherwise. I made the "Thinking of You" card first and was so happy to see how just a small piece of ribbon added so much to this card. It was lots of fun!

The "Happy Birthday" card with the bear from "Favourite Teddy Bear" was made by my friend, Suzanne, for a card swap. I was thrilled to receive this fantastic card. I probably would never have thought of adding such a wonderful big bow to the front of a card, but it looks so nice! It's even better in person...!!

Have a look at the samples below with the "A Light Heart" stamp set which also show some of the new ribbons...

Happy stampin'!

Bev.

A Light Heart

I've really enjoyed using the "A Light Heart" stamp set. This special stamp set is a fundraising effort with Stampin' Up! donating $3 to the Heart and Stroke Foundation of Canada for every one of these special stamp sets purchased. The set can will only be available until September 30th.

As many of you know, I have a very personal attachment to heart disease after having watched my father go through open heart surgery twice - once 20 years ago and once only a year and a half ago. We had many anxious moments through both of his surgeries. It was amazing though to see how many improvements he has enjoyed in his life since his most recent surgery and we have so much to be thankful for.

I was thrilled that Stampin' Up! decided to release this special stamp set. Even though I should probably have known this, I was surprised to learn that heart disease is the number one killer of women.

So far, 1,533 sets have been purchased in Canada, which means that $4,599 is already going to the Heart and Stroke Foundation of Canada. WOW!! Thanks to everyone who has already purchased the set! I'm sure you'll enjoy using it for lots of different occasions, especially anniversary, wedding and Valentine's cards. It also makes great thank you cards - I love the stamp that says "from the bottom of my heart" because it pairs with so many "thank you" stamps so well.

To your health,

Bev.

I love my team!

I had one of the best days of stamping yesterday when I got together with my downline team. Each member of the Canadian INKspirations team has so much creativity and enthusiasm that you can't help but catch the "bug"!!

I came home with so many great ideas and samples that I just can't wait to share with my customers and friends!!

We learned so many new things and I've absolutely fallen IN LOVE with the On Board Accents and Letters. My upline, Alison, came with a bag full of samples of amazing things you can do with these pieces - I had no idea and now I'm anxious to get playing with mine some more!

Oh, and she showed us how to make a Viewmaster card - remember those classic toys with the little wheels that turn to show a different picture. Well, same idea with the card - there's a wheel that turns and displays different words or pictures in a punched out hole on the front of the card. Watch for another Word Window Punch class so you can learn how to make this fun card!

So much stamping to look forward to!

Bev.

A whole new world...

Well, I'm excited to be entering the world of blogs! I hope that my blog will be a place that I can provide some different ideas, samples and tips for my customers and my downline team.

I've been thinking about doing this for a while, after seeing my upline's blog where I find lots of great ideas and inspiration! There never seemed to be enough time in my day to get to setting it up, but today I felt compelled to get started...

I spent my day at our Canadian INKspirations Group Meeting. Canadian INKspirations is my downline team and we get together to share the latest in stamping ideas. Well, today was our big annual all day meeting and one of the things we discussed was how we share our ideas with others and I realized that this was one of the fastest ways to share new cards, techniques and stamping tricks! So, as I spoke about the importance of setting goals, I made a goal for myself to check into starting a blog and I discovered how easy it was!

So, there's a long way to go in getting my blog up and running - check back often to see how I'm doing with this!

Happy stampin'!

Bev.