Peonies and Paper Chains

PPA 207: Pull out the red, white and blue!

It's Thursday...time for a new Pals Paper Arts challenge! PPA207 is timed perfectly with preparation for Independence Day here in the USA and I put together a card (and coordinated envelope) that I will soon mail out:

The stars themselves are quite bold and crisp and I'm liking the contrast of those with the various elements from the Gorgeous Grunge stamp set.

To get the panel featuring the stars to stand out, I dipped the edges along the top of my Real Red ink pad and used Stampin' Dimensionals to attach the panel to the card itself. If you wanted to keep things clean and simple, you could create the panel and mount directly to a blank card front.

When I was ready to photograph the card, all my supplies were still out, so I decided to take a quick picture of everything for you as a visual supply list. As you can see, you really do not need to pull out oodles of supplies for this and for those of us who are sometimes crunched for time, that is a great thing!

Some of you love a list of supplies...here you go:

Perfect Pennants and Gorgeous Grunge stamp sets, Classic Stampin' Pads in Real Red and Night of Navy, White Craft Ink, Cut and Ready Card Bases in Crumb Cake, and Stampin' Dimensionals.

With Independence Day just a few weeks away, I'd love to hear of you have any special traditions for celebrating the 4th of July! Please be sure to leave a quick comment with yours.

Is your new catalog wish list lengthy? Would you love to get your Stampin' Up! products at a discount? Select up to $125 in Stampin' Up! products and purchase it all for just $99 plus local tax when you buy a starter kit. OR, until June 30th, select up to $55 in products for $50 plus local tax.Both options are perfect for the hobby crafter! Get the details here!

Wishing you a creative day!

 

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Let's Celebrate!

Happy International Women's Day! #GoogleDoodles https://t.co/94Nr1IuGiy

— Kerry Willard Bray (@kwillardbray) March 8, 2014

Let's celebrate today! Did you catch the "Google Doodles" video to celebrate International Women's Day? You can see it in the re-tweet I shared above! Wishing a wonderful day to all the women across the globe reading this post!

And now for a paper project...

According to my daughter Brooklyn, we should leave the celebrate banner from the Celebration Basics kit up at our house all year, "so we can celebrate everything." Honestly, I'm completely game for this idea! I just love this banner and it is plenty sturdy for this! 

Given that we will be keeping it up, here are the banner themes you'll see the next several months:

• March - St. Patrick's Day
• April - Easter
• May - Birthday (this is Britt's birthday month)
• June - Summer 
• July - Independence Day

Here's the detail of the tassels that I created for our St. Patrick's Day banner:

The tassels consist of approximately 1" x 16" strips of fabric, 16" cuts from ribbon, and a Very Vintage Designer Button. The fabric strips were spritzed to take on the Old Olive hue -- this was a great way to re-purpose an old pillow case! Here's a look at the creation of the tassels:

By the way, I am a huge fan of the Crayola Washable Markers for the girls! For all my crafting projects I exclusively use Stampin' Write Markers.

I think the Very Vintage Designer Button looks so fun on here! It was tied on with a small piece of Summer Starfruit Baker's Twine from the Sweet Sorbet Accessory Pack. I divided the twine as it was a little thick on its own for threading easily through the button.

 

Celebration Basics Kit

$14.95

Very Vintage Designer Buttons

$5.95

Pear Pizzazz 3/8" Taffeta Ribbon

$6.95

 

Table by StampinBuddy. Try it FREE.

 

The little "meatballs" above the banner? Those come from the Heartfelt Banner Kit (a Sale-a-bration exclusive) and are the sweetest little felt balls. The girls prefer to have them in their kitchen than hanging on display!

I'll be sharing the banner over on the Catherine and Cathy Create Challenge -- they are looking for St. Patrick's Day projects and this is likely the last one you'll be seeing on Peonies and Paper Chains...at least for this year! Missed my others? See my Lucky Framable project and beautiful hydrangeas with my Faux Clover frame.

 

 

Don't miss out -- only 3 weeks left! Click for Sale-a-bration details!

Hope you have something enjoyable in the works for the weekend! Happy Day!

  Get inspiration in your inbox  and  Shop on-line 24/7 for paper crafting supplies
 

 

Let the Sale-a-Bration Begin!

It's time to get the party started! Sale-a-bration, Stampin' Up!'s biggest sales event of the year starts today! Ever since I started using Stampin' Up! products back in 2005 I have loved Sale-a-bration because it is the time when you can receive exclusive limited time products, hosts can receive more for parties, and the starter kit contains more product making it an even sweeter option for hobbyists and business builders alike!

Before I give you all the details, let me share a little card I created for you using Sale-a-bration exclusive products! 

Truth be told, I used 3 Sale-a-bration products for this card -- the Good as Gold Card Kit, the Banner Punch, and the Decorative Dots Textured Impressions Embossing Folder. The kit contains everything you need to make 8 sweet cards in minutes! Some of my local stamping friends has a chance to make the cards the other week and loved them! 

When it comes to handmade products, the beauty often lies in the details so here's a closer look at the card:

Love bows? Simply tie one for the card front rather than the series of knots that I did -- the pre-cut gold cord and Baker's Twine are generously cut for bows! Fancy up the envelopes by embossing the flap just as I did...the gorgeous gold liners are pre-cut to slip right in! But before you add the liner, punch out a little banner to emboss and add to the card front! Unless you tell them, no one will even notice that a little pit of the gold foil is missing!

So what's the scoop with Sale-a-bration?

 

With each $50 purchase from today until March 31, you get to choose an exclusive Sale-a-bration product! And the choices are incredible this year!

 

As a party host (live or virtual), when you host a party with $300 or more in sales, you receive $30 more is host dollars! Makes it even more fun to party!

 

And, when you purchase a zero-obligation starter kit, you select up to $150 in products for just $99! And did you know kits ship free saving you another $15! Talk about savings! Shhh...let me share a very big secret with you -- nearly every demonstrator I know bought the starter kit for the amazing deal that it is, not to start a business. 

 

These are all reasons that I love Sale-a-bration...how about you?! See all the Sale-a-bration exclusive products here! 

Wishing you a fabulous day! Thanks for stopping and come back again soon for more project inspiration!

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Order genuine Stampin' Up! products here.

Stamp Review Crew: Chalk Talk Edition

Hello friends! It's time for a brand new Stamp Review Crew blog hop! The crew is sharing ideas for the Chalk Talk stamp set and I am confident most of us are using the coordinating Framelits as well! Have to love all the bundles that Stampin' Up! makes available and this one is definitely a favorite of mine.

Two ideas for you today...a card and a DIY gift box! And these projects are all about the pink and gold and the dots. After I completed and photographed these projects, I realized I used the same color scheme for the last edition of the Stamp Review Crew. Promise -- I often feature other colors in my projects!

Created using Strawberry Slush and Pink Pirouette, the card uses the "a little something for a very special someone" sentiment from the Chalk Talk stamp set. I love the coordinating Framelit and how you can simply slide this tag shape right over a piece of ribbon. What do you think of the embossed gold foil sheet? I'm loving it and am truly hooked on this Decorative Dots embossing folder. Who has this on their list for Sale-a-bration?  

As you noticed in the bottom image above, the top edge of the card insert was also embossed and a thin strip of gold foil added. These little touches and something special to this card inside and out!

The Tag a Bag boxes are another favorite of mine. They are great size for gifts and favors and are so easy to assemble! Decorating them is fun and easy. You can add little or lots to achieve the look you want. This uses two additional stamps from the Chalk Talk stamp set along with more gold foil and the striped Washi Tape from the Watercolor Wonder Washi Tape set. This next image captures the Washi Tape so well that I just could not help but share it with you:

The "tag" pieces were popped up using Stampin' Dimensionals and the side image does a great job of highlighting that as well.

Stampin' Up! Supplies Used:

Chalk Talk stamp set (wood mount 130631 / clear mount 130634), Chalk Talk Framelits (129983), Chalk Talk Bundle (15% savings -- wood mount 132731 / clear mount 132730), Cardstock in Strawberry Slush and Pink Pirouette, Gold Foil Sheets (132622), Watercolor Wonder Designer Washi Tape (133000), Metallic Encore Pad in Fold (132141), Decorative Dots Texture Impressions Embossing Folder (Sale-a-bration exclusive with qualifying purchase 133520), 3/4" Chevron Ribbon in Blushing Bride (130013)

Be sure to hop along and see what the other members of the Stamp Review Crew have created using the Chalk Talk stamp set! You can use the buttons below or the full hop line up beneath my signature to navigate through.

Thanks so much for stopping by...see you again real soon!

Like what you see? Sign-up for blog updates so you won't miss a thing! 

Blog Roll:

1. Heidi Baks  runningwscissorsstamper.blogspot.com
2. Cindy Beach stampspaperandink.typepad.com/
3. Adriana Benitez  escape2stamp.com
4. Tanya Boser   tinkerin-in-ink.blogspot.com
5. Debra Burgin  heartfeltinkspiration.com/ 
6. Jill Coleman  jillstamps.com/
7. Mike Funke    stampin-style.typepad.com
8. Shana Gaff   stressfreestamping.blogspot.com
9. Yapha Mason   yaphamason.com
10.  Mary Rindal   maryrindal.com/ 
11. Ann Schach    stampinchic.com/
12.  Martha Stewart  seasonsofstamping.com/
13. Dawn Tidd   tiddbitsfromdawn.typepad.com
14. Kerry Willard Bray  kerrywillardbray.com
15. Paula Wright  paulastamps.blogspot.com/
16. Nancy Smith iguanastamp.wordpress.com

Sweet, sweet memories!

Kit week continues and today is all about the Mini Memories Simply Created Album Kit. It is a sweet little album and is so easy to put together! The album is going to be sent to one of our nieces so she can record fun memories from 2014.

Before I show you my pictures, I will tell you that the photos don't do this little kit justice! Despite taking photos at a couple different times of day, the exposure just did not ever seem quite right. So thankful that Stampin' Up! has such a great image of the kit contents that I was able to share with you at the top pf the post!

Things to Love About This Kit:

The heavy chipboard covers that have a Kraft tone to them and a glossy embossing

The die cuts -- I especially love that these do not contain any adhesive allowing you to use whatever you prefer (Multi-Purpose Liquid Glue was my choice).

The patterns on the designer paper

The inclusion of vellum paper

The envelope and baggie for storing special goodies

All the buttons, sequin, twine and clips that come with the kit...I actually used most of these for the birthday jar project I shared yesterday.

 

Ways to Use the Kit

Have well-wishers record messages in it at a shower, birthday, or anniversary celebration

To record memories from a single event such as a graduation

Or to record year long memories

As a little place for keeping your own notes, sketches, and dreams

 

Journal Prompts that You Might Include with the Album (these are the ones I inserted throughout the book for our niece):

How I celebrated my birthday

Things I'd like to do this year

Me and my friends...

My favorite places to go

Favorite travel photo

Best books I've read this year...

Things I am proud to have done...

What I love about school

Me and my sister

Think beyond the possibilities of a basic mini scrapbook album! 

 

Do you have ideas on how to use this album? I'd love to hear them!

 

Thanks so much for stopping by today -- enjoy your day!

 

 

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Order the Mini Memories Simply Created Album Kit today!

 

Five on Friday: Simply Scored Note Cards!

Happy Friday, friends! It's time for a brand new Five on Friday idea...scored note cards! I pulled together this set of note cards in a very short time using solely the Simply Scored Scoring Tool, Lots of Thanks stamp set, and some Night of Navy Ink. The real impact of the cards lies in the scoring and I will be honest and say you  may have trouble seeing all the lines...I did my best in photographing, but a bit of a challenge! 

These really are a cool collection of cards and in person, you really can see how wonderful the scoring is. As I write this post, I am thinking that perhaps I need to mark up these cards so you can best see the lines. What do you think...sacrifice all five cards to give a solid look at the scoring?  If you want to see it, I will...be sure to leave a quick comment if you say yes!

Thanks so much for stopping by! Enjoy your day.

Good wishes,

Kerry

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PPA 179: Regarding Dahlias...ready to give!

Nothing like  color challenge to get the creative juices going! The palette for this week's Pals Paper Arts Challenge is not one that I would have chosen on my own, but wow...it works! This week design team 2 is busy inspiring us to use:

 

 

Today I pulled together a little gift box to share with you -- so easy to make from a single sheet of paper:

We made a project very similar to this at the very first Stampin' Up! workshop I attended back in 2005! What is the first project you ever made using Stampin' Up! products?

Want the scoop on how to make this? It is easy -- I promise! Hopefully between my quick little sketch and the written directions you can replicate this on your own! Here goes...

• Take a sheet of 8-1/2" x 11" card stock and hold it horizontaly on your Simply Scored Scoring tool
• Score it 2", 4", 6", 8" and then cut at 9" (remove the area shaded dark gray)
• Turn cardstock 90 degrees and score it at 2"
• Take Paper Snips and cut it along your original 2, 4, 6, 8 lines stoping at the 2" score
• Cut out the one small rectangle (shown in red)
• Fold box along score lines, including folding all your 2" squares to form the bottom
• Use Sticky Strip to hold the box together.

Good to Know - Stampgoodness Tip:

• Consider stamping the card stock before you do any scoring at all!
• Optional, score lightly at 1" and 5" to make it easy to fold the "box" sides inwards...I did this and it worked great!

Thanks so much for stopping by! Visit again soon for more paper crafting inspiration.

Good wishes,

Kerry

 

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PPA 178: Soho Subway from Stampin' Up!

PPA 174 - All Tied Up in Fall Colors!

Thank You Thursday and a Wedding Card!

Make It in Minutes: Stampin' Up! Regarding Dahlias

The title says it all -- make it in minutes! This sweet thank you card is one that you can make in about 10 minutes...quicker than running to the store to buy a card! By providing all the measurements I used, it will be a breeze to put together.

The card design is based on the current challenge from Freshly Made Sketches (FMS93):

And the color combination comes from the Dynamic Duos (DD#60):

Let me show you the card again and tell you just what you need to do:

• Create a base for a 4-1/4" x 5-1/2"card (Whisper White)
• Cut a Whisper White layer measuring 4" x 5-1/4"
• Cut a Gumball Green layer measuring 2-7/8" x 2-7/8"
• Use Summer Starfruit to stamp the flower from the Regarding Dahlias stamp set onto Whisper White
• Trim the cardstock with the flower down to 2-5/8" x 2-5/8"
• Use Gumball Green to stamp an image from the Banner Greetings hostess exclusive stamp set
• Use Paper Snips to cut out the banner
• Cut two pieces of Gumball Green 3/8" Stitched Satin Ribbon -- pieces should measure approximately 6" and 4" long.
• Mount the longer piece of ribbon using Glue Dots -- be sure to wrap it around both edges of your Whisper White background layer.
• Mount your stamped images and Gumball Green cardstock as shown. Once assembled, adhere the square to your Whisper White background layer using Stampin' Dimensionals.
• Knot on the smaller piece of ribbon.
• Mount your card front to the base.
• Write out the card and drop it in the mail!

Have fun putting together this quick and easy card!

 

Create in minutes with Paper Pumpkin!  July 10 is the last day to sign-up for Paper Pumpkin and receive your welcome kit later this month! Learn more about Paper Pumpkin here.

 Enjoy your day!

Good wishes,

Kerry

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