For Dan

A high school friend is in the hospital, anticipating back surgery and has now contracted COVID. His wife has been updating us via our high school FB page. She asked for cards to be sent. I can do that!!

Praying for a quick recovery and successful surgical procedure Dan!!

This card was a snap to make with the Evergreen Forest embossing folder and In Good Taste dsp. The layers are Basic Gray and Evening Evergreen. Evening Evergreen ribbon and a sentiment from Happy Thoughts layered onto Evening Evergreen card stock and a few vintage Basic Gray adhesive dots add the final touch. 

Thanks for a Clean Deck

 I had my deck cleaned this week. I should have taken a before photo as the after results are amazing! Sending payment in a plain envelope is boring so I dove into my stash to create a quick card and a note of thanks to accompany my payment.

Be sure to share your love of stamping whenever you can!!

Rock-a-Bye Baby Favors

 Last week I shared the card I made for the Grammie gathering. You have to know that I HAD to make a favor for guests to take home. Oh, how I love time in my happy place, aka, craft room. My space truly is a paper escape!

I have many retired Stampin' Up! products that I maintain in my craft room because I know I will use them. I also have many retired Stampin' Up! products that I truly need to purge 😏. For this project I used a scalloped oval framelit and scalloped oval punch and my trusty envelope punch board. Are these too cute or what!!

I purchased baby paper from a local store, wrapped 4 Hershey nuggets in the "blanket" and tied them with ribbon. The cradles rock- literally!

If you have retired tools in your stash and want information on how to make these, email me at rnrstamping@gmail.com or leave a message below.

No Coordinating DSP? No Problem!

 Yay! Another baby celebration! My neighbor's daughter has struggled for years with infertility and recently gave birth to Finley. Grammie was so excited throughout the pregnancy and kept many of the neighbors updated on the baby (and mommy's) progress.

Finley's birth gave me a reason to plan a gathering of neighbors in the post-COVID world. It's been many months since any of us have gotten together. For a gift, I suggested purchasing a children's book that Grammie can read to Finley. Scrolling through Amazon was agonizing as I viewed titles of the MANY books that are in the library I created when my son was born, so many incredible choices!

When putting thoughts to the card I was going to make, I struggled with not having DSP in pink tones -oh what to do! I put my brain to remembering and came up with the Polished Stone technique. I forgot how beautiful this is!

The background truly looks like polished stone, each piece unique. Haven't tried this technique? Click here for a tutorial and gallery of samples. All you need is glossy paper (the kind you use to print photos), rubbing alcohol, a cotton ball, and ink refills. I used silver metallic, Roccoco Rose, Blushing Bride and Powder Pink Tips: I didn't have a refill for Roccoco Rose, so squeezed some into the lid of my ink pad and picked it up with the cotton ball - it worked!  I found the metallic ink took a bit of time to dry. Either set aside your paper to dry or dry it with your heat tool.

I made another card for a coworker who is having a boy using the same technique. The base card is Balmy Blue; the layer is Misty Moonlight. For the polished stone technique I used Silver, Balmy Blue (3 drops) and one drop of Night of Navy.

I finished the inside to allow enough room for coworker signatures.

You're going to get hooked on this technique. I invision backgrounds for sea images, beaches, masculine, floral and the list goes on. No need to every worry about a lack of coordinating DSP when you have this technique in your arsenol.

Happy Birthday Mila

In the past I've featured cards created by my bestie's grandaughter Mila. Miss Mila turned 6 and I wanted to create a fun card in honor of her big day. And what is more fun that than a fun fold?

I've featured this fold in previous posts. You can view them here and here. Although it looks difficult, it's not. Here is a link to a tutorial and gallery of samples.

Go ahead, twist, pop and have some paper fun!
 

Baby Shower Favor

 We had the fun of celebrating new life at work with a shower and luncheon for Kim. The event provided me the perfect opportunity to spend time in my happy place (aka: craft room) to create some favors for the event. I used a Brenda Quintana tutorial. 

The favors were a huge hit! Did you guess that the baby is a boy? My biggest challenge was fitting in the Kisses. It was a tight fit, but none fell out, thank heavens. You won't be surprised to hear that the women took the favors back to their desks and the guys pulled the Kisses out of them for immediate consumption! It made me laugh 😄

When Life Gives You Lemons - Crystal Light Treat Pouch

 I work for a wellness company and recently made a trip to our health center in Kissimmee, Florida. I am a HR professional and the center has been experiencing some staffing challenges and I wanted to meet with the team personally.

I am so impressed by the team of professionals in this center. They work as a team, supporting each other via work assistance, laughter and encouragement. They are awesome!

When I arrived home I knew I wanted to send a treat from me. This is what they received.

When life gives you lemons, make lemonade; this team is certainly doing that!

This is a perfect little treat to share with friends, coworkers, your postal carrier. 

STEP BY STEP TUTORIAL

Start with a piece of cardstock cut at 2" x 8.5". I used So Saffron.

Score at 3.5" and 3.75", burnish the score lines

Trim with Fancy Tag Topper Punch (#152711)

Add 2" of Tear and Tape (#154031) to the straight edge 

Use a small die or punch to create an opening for the drink pouch

Keeping the bottom squared so it is flat to a surface, fold up the strip and attach

Cut a .5" x 2" strip of Basic White and adhere to cover the So Saffron edge

Place your drink pouch inside the opening and wrap with ribbon. I tied off my ribbon with a bit of baker's twine

Embellish

To make multiples:

Score a full sheet of cardstock on the 8.5 side at 3.5" x 3.75"

With the 11" side of cardstock at the top of your Paper Trimmer (152392), cut 2" strips

Proceed with directions above

Great Layout Using Ribbon

 I don't think I'm the only one who has spools of ribbon just waiting to be used. With the current in-colors soon retiring, I searched for ideas on how to use the ribbon I have on hand. I found a great layout and want to share it with you.

This beautiful ribbon makes the perfect background to the Forever Fern focal point. 

I'm already considering ideas for other spools of ribbon in my drawer!

Fun Pop-Up Card using Art Gallery

 After seeing fellow Pal, Tammy Beard's post on how to make this easy fun fold, I had to give it a go. It was so much fun, we made it in my March class!

The base of this card is a square with a little extra! The Fine Art Floral dsp is featured along with the Art Gallery bundle. I found that Pretty Peacock works perfectly with this dsp. I used Stampin' Blends to color rhinestones for some coordinating bling.

The real fun, comes on the inside!

A 6" x 6" piece of dsp is folded to create a suprising pop-up. A definite WOW for the recipient. The sentiment and flower are part of the Art Gallery stamp set. When coloring the floral stamp, I didn't have a Pretty Peacock marker, so used a blending pen to pick up some ink and add it to the stamp - worked like a charm!

Until next time, happy stamping! 

Flowers for Every Season Treat Holder

A quick post to share the treats I made to take to work this week. 

Springtime means flowers and what better DSP to use than Flowers For Every Season. Each treat holder houses 4 Hershey eggs. I like this pattern because the lid lifts off and the treat holder can be refilled. Hope my peeps at work like them!

 

Thanks to The Paper Pixie, Julie DiMatteo for her tutorial.

Spring Carrots

 I guess you could say this is my veggie post. I spent some time experimenting with treat containers for an upcoming spring gathering. I'll share my results, sources and some comments.

My first tutorial cam from Sam Calcott at Mixed Up Craft. This is a big box! The top is 3" and it narrows down to 1". Due to the size, this is much more than a treat box. It would be a great replacement for a small Easter basket. To answer my sister's question, it would fit a mini bottle of wine! Sam has a great video on how to create this carrot. I like how this project turned out, but it's too big for what I have in mind.

This is another Sam Calcott design. I struggled with getting the cone appropriately shaped. I can be rather particular with my projects and am not at all happy with how this turned out for me. The actual carrot is about 5.5" long and 2" across the top. You could fit about 10 chocolate eggs in this treat holder. I'm sure my carrots would get better with practice. I was thinking that having a form that is used to make waffle cones would be a great help for this project!

This tutorial is from Twila Davis. I found it on Splitcoast Stampers. I feel as though I'm telling the story of the 3 bears here and this is the carrot that is just right! The carrot base is 6" x 6" and once the cutting/scoring was figured out, it was easy to put together. It has my vote!

So, if you're looking to create some spring carrots, give one of these projects a go!

Beautiful Friendship - Two Takes

 I have a penchant for floral stamps. My very first Stampin' Up! set was floral and I've purchased MANY more floral sets over the years. Flowers make me smile and what better to send in the mail than a smile!

My cards today are a case from team member Allen Herther. Allen actually created a layout using his stamperatus and a 8.5" x 5.5" piece of cardstock. He stamped one side, flipped it and stamped the other. When the stamping was completed, he cut the card stock for two card fronts. I loved his card and had to case it. I freestyled mine versus using the stamperatus.

I went bright with my first card. Colors used: Melon Mambo, Granny Apple Green, Gorgeous Grape, Coastal Cabana, Mango Melody.

I reached for the Subtle collection for my second card. Colors used: Blushing Bride, Seafoam Green, So Saffron, Highland Heather, Balmy Blue.

Creating a gift box of notecards would be a perfect gift for many occasions. Which color choice do you prefer?

Twist and Pop Baby Card

 The arrival of a new baby is something to be celebrated. After receiving this fun fold as a birthday card, I thought I'd give it a go in a baby version. I have to say, it is a fun fold to make, to give and to receive!

I used retired stamp sets Moon Baby and Bravo. Coloring was a snap with Stampin' Blends. The DSP is from the Playing With Paper paper stack. The pocket on top holds a gift card.

Happy Birthday to Me!

I recently celebrated a birthday and have to share some of the amazing cards I received! Lots of fun folds!!

    From my sister Anne who is an avid stamper...and wine drinker 😉 Z-fold cards are such fun!

     My co-worker Lori created this twist n pop card. After opening it, I went home and made one. I'll post it soon. I opened and closed this one throughout my work day. Love it!

     This card contained an amazingly sweet note. It is from my son; he took the card from my stash 😂. He has great taste!

     This last card came from my two crafty sweeties Mila, age 5 and Neva, age 3. I can't imagine how much time Mila spent creating this amazing rainbow. She used 1/2" square pieces of paper! The garden she created on the inside of the card is also beautiful. Check out Neva's stamping talents! There is so much heart in the cards these talented young ladies create💕

My birthday celebration lasted three days! I didn't think birthdays would be so much fun at this age. Hope you enjoy my cards as much as I do.

Sweet Treats!

I invited two neighbors in for an afternoon of stamping. We had a wonderful time. Because there were only two people, the cards we made were a bit more involved. Prior to starting the third card, I popped a pan of homemade cinnamon rolls into the oven. We enjoyed them with coffee and tea after all of the hard work!

It was so sweet when Chris commented on the afternoon and how she enjoyed being spoiled. She said that as a mom, she isn't often spoiled and she really enjoyed the afternoon. I like to spoil my stampers! I always create a treat for each stamper as a stamping favor. Spoiler Alert! Hee-hee, pun intended 😄

I followed a tutorial by Julie DiMatteo at The Paper Pixie. The ladies loved them!

Here is one of the cards we made. This chick just cracks me up!

I'm planning my class for next month and will offer it at multiple times so I can keep the class size low and comfortable for everyone. I miss my groups of stampers.

Hope you find some RnR in your craft space today!

Happy Birthday Jaxon!

Today my middle Little, Jaxon, turns 7! He was born in Louisiana. I was able to hold out until August and then had to take a road trip to take in as many baby snuggles and smooches as I could get in a five day stretch. I was so happy when my nephew moved his family to Wisconsin. Although my Littles are 2 hours away from my home, I see them regularly. I love those little squirrels!

Typical of most kids, Jaxon likes to play video games. He received a vintage Pac Man game for Christmas. I thought he'd enjoy this card.

My other 2 littles have birthdays in March. I'll be sure to share the cards I make for them.

Happy Birthday Jaxon! I love you to the moon and back 💖💖💖

Valentine Wishes

This past weekend I shopped for chocolate and came home to play in my craft room. Paper and chocolate - who could ask for more??

Buffalo check is still all the rage so I thought I'd incorporate it into a Valentine card.

I pulled out the retired Sweet and Sassy Framelits and added some embossing for interest. This would be appropriate for a male or female.

Now for the chocolate.

I filled an A2 Acetate box with Dove Dark chocolate and a string of fairy lights. The piece of DSP was embossed with a retired heart folder. I randomly placed a few punched hearts into the embossed impressions. Prior to gifting, I will turn on the lights - too cute!

I dove into my stash and found a retired vessel to fill with Reese's Butter Peanut Butter Cups as my son called them when he was little. The box includes a gift card and is a Valentine treat for my now 22 year old.

I hope you're making use of the great Stampin' Up! products you have on hand.

Sweet wishes to you!

Start the Month With a Pop

Sometimes it's fun to have a good play in the craft room; you never know what may pop up!

My neighbor asked me to create Christmas, anniversary and birthday cards for her family for 2021. She had quite the list! She asked for pop-up cards for the anniversaries. I had the tutorial and then perused my stash to find paper I thought would work. Neither card was completed in one sitting. I took my time creating and had fun doing so. 

I added a pocket to the back of the box and created a coordinating card so a note and gift card, check or cash could be included. I did make bespoke envelopes for each of the cards.

I hope the cards are enjoyed!

Let the Sparkle Continue!

 If you're looking for a way to add some sparkle to the next treat or host gift you give, look no further.

I cased (copied and shared) this idea from Rhonda Wade, such fun!

A dear friend invited me for dinner and I wanted to take a special treat. I mixed together some homemade caramels, an acetate card box, some silver and gold wrappers, ribbon and embellishments. The real spakle in the box? Fairy lights! As I tucked my caramels in the box I threaded a strand of fairy lights into the box. I used a 4" wide piece of dsp to wrap the box and finished it with white ribbon, silver sequinned ribbon, silver and gold braid. Before leaving my car to enter my friend's home, I turned on the fairy lights.

Other sweets to add to the box would be Dove or Merci chocolates, mini Hershey bars or other sweets that don't exceed 5/8" in height. Think Valentine's Day!

You can find the fairy lights here. If you'd like to make the caramels, they're really quite easy.

Homemade Caramels

1/2 lb butter with salt (2 sticks)

2 1/2 C light brown sugar

1 C light corn syrup

1 C sweetened condensed milk

Combine ingredients in an 8 cup bowl, cover with parchment paper.

Microwave on 100% for 5 minutes, stir well with a wire whisk. (watch closely for boil over, just open microwave to stop cooking, let it settle down and continue cooking again.)

Microwave another 5 minutes, stir well.

Microwave another 5 minutes, stir well.

(Place a plate under the bowl to catch any boil over, and return it to bowl.)

After microwaving is done, stir in 1 teaspoon of vanilla.

Line a 10 x 15 cookie sheet/jelly roll tin with parchment paper, having paper up all 4 sides of the pan.

Pour the hot caramel mixture into pan and let cool completely.

When cool, lift parchment with caramel out of the pan, cut into bite size pieces. To cut caramels, use a pizza knife or a sharp chef's knife. Spray with Pam to make it even easier.

I made this in a 1000 watt microwave; you may have to lengthen cooking time 1-2 minutes in other microwaves.

If you like a sweet/salty taste, after caramel is cool, sprinkle sea salt on top of it.

I cut into 1/2" x 1" logs and wrapped it in papers from the candy making area at Hobby Lobby. I bought 2 packages of 48 wrappers each; I could have used 3. You can also cut your own waxed paper.

Enjoy!

Winter Sparkle

I've stepped out of my home to some beautiful January Wisconsin mornings. These sites were the inspiration for my holiday thank you notes this year. 

It's a bit difficult to see the embossed layer of "snow".

Wink of Stella to the rescue! 

The layered bit of red in the tag comes from an envelope/card I received many years ago. It has a velvety texture; I just couldn't throw it away!

When looking out my craft room window, this image is a common site - including the cardinal!

Happy stamping!
 

Celebrate Sunflowers and Live Stamping!

I am so excited about welcoming stampers back to my table! We're keeping the the groups to three plus me to allow space between us. I've missed catching up with everyone!

We're creating with the Celebrate Sunflowers bundle.

I started making samples to share and have gone a bit crazy with this bundle. From traditional fall colors to Whisper White to Mango Melody, you can dress up this bundle in all kinds of color!

Here is a sample card I cased from fellow Pal, Peggy Noe. Unfortunately, I have a need for sympathy cards. The good news is this bundle is perfect for the job.

We'll be making three different cards. I had difficulty choosing which designs we'll be creating - I love them all!

If you're in the West Bend area and would like to learn to stamp or to enjoy an evening of stamping with new friends, be sure to contact me.

October 1-31st, 2020

www.RnRStamping.com