Etsy Inspired Thank You Card

When I browse Etsy I just sit in awe of the talented people that share their work on that site. If you have never visited it you really should. Etsy is a smorgasbord of handmade objects, vintage objects, and supplies to make them. Truly beautiful things can be found there.
I was searching artwork on Etsy last night and came across THIS beautiful mixed media piece. These prints are very popular right now. They are gorgeous and I thought hhhmmm....I can make a card similar to that with the First Edition DSP and the Sweet Floral Stamp I used for Friday's post. I really love how it turned out. The colors aren't as vibrant as the Etsy print because theirs is printed with a high quality printer, but I think the stamped version is beautiful! (Option: Heat embossing your image onto the First Edition DSP would really make the colors pop!)
There are so many stamps that would be perfect for this technique! If you want to try it yourself, keep in mind that you are stamping onto patterned paper and the bolder ink colors will work best. For my card I used Always Artichoke and Night of Navy. Experiment with a scrap piece to see what colors you like!
To get both colors onto that extra large stamp, I used my Stampin Spots. They are smaller versions of the larger ink pads Stampin Up makes. They are perfect for smaller jobs or when you want two colors on a stamp but don't want to have to use your markers!
This is a very simple and beautiful card! My card base is 5x7 and I ripped the edges of the First Edition DSP.
If you have any questions about this card simply email me at aprilmassad@yahoo.com or comment here!
Enjoy your Monday!

Thinking of You - Faux Denim

Happy Wednesday! The week is half over!
Today's card is another glossy cardstock card! I have used glossy cardstock on the last few cards I have shared and today is a faux denim technique!
This technique works with any blue ink that matches your project. I wanted a darker denim look to match the Paisley Petals Designer Series Paper(DSP). I used a combination of Not Quite Navy and Night of Navy. If you want a lighter denim you could use Baja Breeze and Marina Mist.
Like the Versamark Resist technique, the Faux Denim technique has been around for a while! It's a fun technique that isn't just limited to blues! This technique is beautiful with any color! It especially looks good with Melon Mambo or Rich Razzleberry for teen/girly cards!

To distress your denim even more you can go back over it with your sandpaper once you apply the ink! This photo is of the same card but I went back over the "denim" with the sandpaper a second time.

Below I have shared the supplies and instructions for making this card!

Supplies:
- 4.5x6 inch Kraft card base
- 4.25x5.75 inch piece of glossy cardstock
- Sandpaper or a sanding block
- Ink in Not Quite Navy and Night of Navy
- Sponges or ink applicators
- 5.5x2.75 piece of Kraft carstock
- 4.25x2.5 inch piece of Paisley Petals DSP
- .25x2.5 inch piece of purple Paisley Petals DSP
- 1x2.5 inch piece of pink Paisley Petals DSP
- Seam Binding Ribbon in Very Vanilla
- Corner Rounder
- Eyelet Border Punch
- Sentiment Stamp (Mine is from the Teeny Tiny Wishes stamp set)

Instructions:
1. Round the bottom corners of the front of your card. Round the corners of the tops of the large piece of DSP, the piece of Kraft, and the piece of glossy cardstock.
2. Take your glossy cardstock and sand in straight lines horizontally and then vertically from top to bottom. (This will give your glossy cardstock a linen texture)
3. Take your sponge and apply the inks along the edge and into the middle of the glossy cardstock. I use circular motions. You can keep applying ink until you get the desired affect.
(Optional) Once the ink has dried go over the glossy cardstock again with the sandpaper. This will give you the look in the second photo.
4. Use your border punch to punch along the bottom of your piece of Kraft and the piece of pink DSP.
5. Adhere the pieces of DSP to your piece of Kraft as shown in the photos.
6. Stamp your sentiment with Night Of Navy ink onto the top of the DSP and tie your Seam Binding Ribbon around the bottom. Adhere to the front of your card using foam adhesive squares.

Fun and easy! Practice this technique on a scrap piece of glossy cardstock using various ink color combinations! The affects are beautiful! The new color Island Indigo is also a beautiful blue to use!
I hope you like today's card! If you have any questions please email me at aprilmassad@yahoo.com or comment here!
To purchase the Stampin Up products used in today's post simply contact your Stampin Up demonstrator or go HERE!

1 Card...3 Cardstocks

Hello everyone!! Long time no see!
Today I thought I would do a little cardstock comparison. It's something I talk about at every card class and something that every stamper should explore!
Now for this comparison I am only going to compare 3 basic types of SMOOTH cardstock. I'm not trying to leave out poor textured cardstock because he has his place in papercrafting too, but he isn't the best choice when stamping! We want a good smooth surface when stamping so that our image comes out nice and clean!
Below you will see photos of 1 card with the 3 types of smooth cardstock I'll talk about today!

Discount Cardstock:
When I say discount I mean the cardstock that is thinner and cheaper than Stampin Up's Whisper White cardstock. It's the cardstock you pay less for at Wal-Mart or Hobby Lobby.
While it has it's purpose, it does not give you a beautiful stamped image. When you stamp on the discount cardstock it isn't your fault that the image doesn't come out perfect or that the ink isn't as rich and colorful. It's just the paper!
Like I said it does have it's purpose! It's great for scrap paper or projects you don't stamp on! Practice makes perfect so practice on the discount paper!

Whisper White:
Whisper White is my most favorite cardstock to stamp on hands down. The weight is perfect. It isn't too heavy to use a punch with, but it's heavy enough to give you a beautiful, rich stamped image! The stamped image is cleaner and you really see how beautiful and rich your ink colors are!

Glossy White:
Some people consider Glossy White cardstock a specialty cardstock like watercolor paper. I put it in the category of cardstock because it is perfect to stamp on! It gives your stamped images a brighter almost cartoon or 3d look. The glossy finish gives a a fancy or store bought sheen!
Besides stamping on it there are SO many different ways to use glossy cardstock. In future posts I'm going to show you several different ways to use this product!

Tip: Always make sure that you use the same type of cardstock to stamp on that you use to make your sentiment. Different cardstocks look different when next to each other! Your project will look better when your sentiment cardstock matches your stamped cardstock!

To purchase the products mentioned above contact your Stampin Up Demonstrator or go HERE.

Supplies used above:
- Flower Stamps: Array of Sunshine
- Ink: Riding Hood Red and Night of Navy
- Cardstock: Whisper White, Glossy White, Riding Hood Red, Night of Navy
- Sentiment Stamp: Something to Celebrate
- Modern Label Punch

It's always interesting to me to see different products compared! It gives you a better idea what you like and might spark some creativity!
If you have any questions please send me an email at aprilmassad@yahoo.com!
Enjoy your Thursday!

Sale-a-Brate Good Times....COME ON!!!

I'm sorry if you can't get that song out of your head now! ;)
I have some exciting news! Sale-a-Bration starts TODAY!!
If you are new to Stampin Up, Sale-a-Bration(SAB) is a super sale that lasts from January 25 to March 31 2011.

During this time:
-Earn one FREE Sale-a-Bration product of your choice for every $50 you spend!
-Host a $300 workshop and earn one FREE Sale-a-Bration product of your choice!(Not to mention some really great hostess benefits)
-Join Stampin Up during SAB and receive 15% off your kit PLUS $50 in bonus products!

If you have ever considered hosting a Stampin Up workshop OR joining SU this is the time! A Stampin Up workshop is a fun night where you get your friends together to make a couple of cute projects(like the one above)! It's free to attend and the hostess benefits from the sales that night! It's also a perfect excuse to get out of the house! ;)
I have several of the stamp sets that are listed in the SAB mini catalog! HERE is a card using the So Many Thanks stamp! There are also several brand new and super cute stamps sets as well as embellishments, ribbons, papers, and decor elements. To view a PDF of the SAB catalog click HERE!
Well I just wanted to let you know about Sale-a-Bration! Wahoo! If you would like to receive a SAB mini catalog in the mail send me your mailing adress. I can also email you a PDF of all of the additional Sale-a-Bration stamp sets that are listed in the back of the SAB mini catalog. If you have any questions please send me an email at aprilmassad@yahoo.com!