To Love What We Do and Share What We Love

by Shannon Jaramillo // February 28, 2018 // 2 Comments

“To LOVE what we do and SHARE what we love, as we help others enjoy CREATIVITY and worthwhile accomplishments…in this we make a DIFFERENCE.” This is Stampin’ Up!’s Statement of the Heart and reflects who we are as demonstrators and why we do what we do.

I adore this basket of flowers, which is FREE with any $50 purchase, and I thought it would fit perfectly with the newest Freshly Made Sketches challenge. But then I saw the statement of the heart stamp, which I recently acquired secondhand for $1, and wanted to use it as well. Since I couldn’t decide which one to use, I used them both!

While I was creating this card I received a message from someone who had reached out to me recently. Her message to me this evening was to share with me how much she appreciated my time and patience with her. It didn’t seem like much at the time, but I tonight I realized how fitting this statement of the heart is. I shared my time and love of stamping, perhaps helped her a bit in the process, and it made a difference to her. It really made this statement hit home and resonate with me. I made a difference. I’m so glad I had the opportunity!

I stamped this darling basket from the Blooming Basket stamp set with Tuxedo Black Memento Ink, then colored with Stampin’ Blends in Crumb Cake, Light and Dark Calypso Coral and light and dark Old Olive. I added a bit of Fresh Fig marker to the berries and finished the basket off with a simple bow. Of course I added Wink of Stella to the flowers…it’s a huge ‘wow’ in person!

The statement of the heart was stamped with Staz-On ink and adhered using Ranger Multi Medium matte liquid glue which dried clear underneath the vellum except for where I adhered it over areas colored with alcohol markers. You still really can’t see the glue so I’ll take it since adhering vellum can be quite the challenge!

Here is the sketch from Freshly Made Sketches that inspired today’s project:

Thank you again for sharing a bit of your day with me, I hope you like the card…

Blessings,

Sending a Hanging Garden-ful of Good Wishes!

by Shannon Jaramillo // February 27, 2018 // 2 Comments

Hello Friends! I have a quick post tonight as I am sneaking it in between work and chores! Every catalog has a few stamp sets that I fall instantly in love with, and this was one of them. It has the prettiest collection of hanging baskets…appropriate for just about every occasion!

Measurements:

Card Base 4 1/2″ x 11″, scored at 5 1/2″
1st Layer 4″ x 5 1/4″
DSP Layer 3 1/4″ x 5 1/4″

Details:

The mechanics of today’s card are pretty simple. I stamped the hanging basket image onto white card stock with Tuxedo Black Memento ink and colored it in with a combination of Stampin’ Blends and Stampin’ Markers.
The bars that form the basket are colored with the light Smoky Slate Stampin’ Blends and the basket filler are colored with the light Crumb Cake Stampin’ Blends. I filled the color in with dabs of Old Olive Stampin’ Marker to add a mixture of color.

The different flowers are colored with Daffodil Delight and Crushed Curry; Pool Party and Bermuda Bay; Blushing Bide and Flirty Flamingo while the leaves are colored with a combination of Lemon Lime Twist and Pear Pizzazz.
I used my stamp positioning tool to add this super sweet sentiment and finished the design off with those uber-yummy Glitter Enamel Dots. They just brighten everything up!
What about the ribbon you say? Well, it’s a darling, sparkly bit of Bermuda Bay ribbon, one of a three color ribbon pack that you get for FREE when you place a $50 order with me. Isn’t Sale-A-Bration wonderful??
And the DSP?? Yep, you guessed it! Another item you can get for FREE with a $50 order!

Contact me if you would like more information on how you can earn free goodies!

The Paper Players inspired my card today with their fun sketch challenge this week:

Thank you for stopping by!

Supplies:

Card Stock: Stamper’s Select White by Papertrey Ink

Pattern Paper: Bubbles & Fizz Designer Series Paper Stack by Stampin’ Up! (free with $50 purchase!)

Ink: Memento Tuxedo Black; Stampin’ Blends and Stampin’ Markers by Stampin’ Up!

Stamps: Hanging Garden by Stampin’ Up!

Dies: Stitched Mini Scallop Rectangle STAX by MFT Stamps

Tools: Big Shot and Stampin’ Trimmer by Stampin’ Up!

Embellishments: Shimmer Ribbon Pack (free with $50 purchase1) and Glitter Enamel Dots by Stampin’ Up!

Other: Medium Whisper White Envelope by Stampin’ Up!

It’s A Beautiful Day – Pals February 2018 Blog Hop

by Shannon Jaramillo // February 14, 2018 // 10 Comments

Welcome to the Pals Feburary 2018 Blog Hop! Our theme this month is “Case the Catty”. The Stampin’ Pretty Pals will copy or remake projects from any of the current Stampin’ Up! catalogs and brochures. After all, who doesn’t CASE (Copy and Share Everything) once in a while. You may be just starting or hopped over from another Pal. In either case you’ll find the line-up toward the end of my post to help you move along.

There are so many pretty projects in the Stampin’ Up! Catalogs that the hardest part of this challenge was trying to narrow it down to just one! I finally decided on this project because a. it’s gorgeous and b. the colors are ones I would never think to pair up!

Measurements:

Card Base 5 1/2″ x 8 1/2″, scored at 4 1/4″
1st Layer 4 1/2″ x 3 1/2″
2nd Layer 4″ x 3″

Details:

The first step for me was to figure out the measurements of the layers, which I’ve included so you don’t have to!
Then I jumped right in and stamped the butterfly image from Stampin’ Up!’s Beautiful Day stamp set in Pool Party. The coloring with the Stampin’ Blends took a few tries (okay, more than a few) to work out. There are four colors of blue used, Light and Dark Pool Party and Light and Dark Coastal Cabana. I followed the example one the cover of the Occasions Catalog closely and discovered a few tips:
- They didn’t really blend the layers, they just laid them down one on top of the other, lightest to darkest.
- Let each layer of color dry before applying the next layer to keep that definition between the shades.
- I was hesitant to really put the ink down at first as it seemed so dark and contrasted so much…it doesn’t look that way when the ink dries and it looks much better if you are liberal with the ink. So really lay those colors down!

Once the butterfly was colored, I moved on to stamp all the little flowers in Berry Burst. I’ve never thought to stamp around the edges of my card base before but WOW! I love the effect! One teeny tiny stamp sure can pack a punch!
I had a discussion recently with a stamping friend who didn’t own either a Stamparatus or any other type of stamp positioning tool and the merits of both the Stamparatus and the Stamp-A-Ma-Jig. I believe that both tools are valuable to have. The Stamparatus is perfect for making sure you get a great stamped image and perfect placement but it doesn’t work well in applications like stamping this border of flowers around the edges of the card stock. The reason? You can’t turn the stamp to mix up the placement. With the Stamp-A-Ma-Jig, you can. You can turn the plastic sheet that the image is stamped on all different ways to come up with a fun pattern and still get perfect placement.

A tiny hand cut banner topped off with a Whisper White Baker’s Twine bow and a stamped and snipped sentiment banner layered with a pretty piece of Lemon Lime Twist 3/8″ Mini Striped Ribbon finish off this project beautifully.
Today I left the inside blank for a personalized message, just added some color and a few flowers.

Thank you so much for hopping with the Stampin’ Pretty Pals today. Please take a minute to mark your calendar for our next hop on March 14, 2018. Now hop along using the Blog Hop Line-up below. Don’t forget to leave us a comment. We really like that.

Blog Hop Line-up:

Blessings!

Supplies:

Card Stock: Berry Burst, Night of Navy and Whisper White by Stampin’ Up!

Pattern Paper: Tutti Fruitti 6 x 6 Designer Series Paper by Stampin’ Up!

Ink: Pool Party and Berry Burst by Stampin’ Up!

Stamps: Beautiful Day by Stampin’ Up!

Dies: None

Tools: Stamp-A-Ma-Jig and Stampin’ Trimmer by Stampin’ Up!

Embellishments: Lemon Lime Twist 3/8″ Mini Striped Ribbon and Whisper White Baker’s Twine by Stampin’ Up!

Other: Medium Whisper White Envelope by Stampin’ Up!

A Basket of Wishes

by Shannon Jaramillo // February 10, 2018 // 5 Comments

Hello my stampin’ friends! Here’s a sweet basket of wishes that is easy to color and quick to assemble! To kick start the design process, I challenged myself to just reach in the drawer of stamps and work with the first one I touched! Today’s winner was Basket of Wishes!

Measurements:

Card Base 4 1/2″ x 11″, scored at 5 1/2″
1st Layer 4″ x 5 1/4″
2nd Layer 3 1/2″ x 4 3/4″
3rd Layer 2″ x 4 1/4″
4th Layer 2 1/4″ x 3 1/2″

Details:

I was very pleased to have ‘chosen’ this stamp set for two reasons: It had never seen ink before and I got to color! It’s funny to me that I used to be terrified of any coloring whatsoever and now I look forward to it!
I started with the basket image and of course (for me), topping it off with flowers was an easy choice! The set is photopolymer so it’s very easy to line the flowers up perfectly over the basket image to create a finished image that looks like it is all one image.

Next came the coloring. I colored the basket in with the light Crumb Cake Stampin’ Blends and added accented the shaded areas with dark Crumb Cake. The leaves are Lemon Lime Twist and Pear Pizzazz Stampin’ Markers. The daisy image is Soft Sky, Marina Mist and Midnight Muse (retired). The little berries are colored in Perfect Plum. I love filling in the smaller images with my Stampin’ Markers because of the range of color choices available. Hopefully we will more colors of Stampin’ Blends available soon, but in the meantime, these are great!
I looked to my Pinterest Layout Sketches Board for inspiration. I’m not even sure which layout I used as I generally use them just for ideas and then tailor them to fit my project. My color choices here were Midnight Muse and Tip Top Taupe, (both retired). I think the color choices really coordinate with the basket colors and highlight the stamped image while the stark contrast to the white makes everything pop.
The gingham ribbon and bow really add to the rustic, homey feel of the card. And you don’t really notice that the ribbon is Night of Navy…everything just flows…
A few pops of color with the Night of Navy Enamel Shapes are the finishing touch!

I chose to put the sentiment on the inside of the card…isn’t the font adorable? I chose a birthday sentiment for this card but really, the front is so general you could use the card for just about any reason!

Thanks for sharing your day with me! I would love to hear your questions or comments about today’s project!

Blessings!

Supplies:

Card Stock: Tip Top Taupe and Midnight Muse by Stampin’ Up!; Stamper’s Select White by Papertrey Ink

Pattern Paper: In Color Designer Series Paper Stack by Stampin’ Up!

Ink: Memento Tuxedo Black; Crumb Cake Stampin’ Blends and Lemon Lime Twist, Pear Pizzazz, Soft Sky, Marina Mist, Midnight Muse and Perfect Plum Stampin’ Markers by Stampin’ Up!

Stamps: Basket of Wishes by Stampin’ Up!

Dies: Stitched Shapes Framelits Dies by Stampin’ Up!

Tools: Big Shot and Stampin’ Trimmer by Stampin’ Up!

Embellishments: Night of Navy 1/2″ Gingham Ribbon and Regals Enamel Shapes by Stampin’ Up!

Other: Medium Whisper White Envelope by Stampin’ Up!

Friendship’s Sweetest Thoughts – Freshly Made Sketches 322

by Shannon Jaramillo // February 3, 2018 // 6 Comments

Oh my gosh, isn’t this flower cart image from Stampin’ Up!’s new set ‘Friendship’s Sweetest Thoughts’ the cutest thing EVER??? This was my absolute number-one-can’t-live-without-it stamp in Stampin’ Up’s Occasions Catalog! Mr. Brown just brought me my order this week (with this darling in it) and as soon as I saw the latest Freshly Made Sketches layout by Cecile, I knew it was meant to be 🙂

Measurements:

Card Base 4 1/2″ x 11″, scored at 5 1/2″
DSP Layer 4″ x 5 1/4″
Basic Grey Layer 3 1/4″ x 4 1/4″
White Layer 3″ x 4″

Details:

With the sketch layout in mind, and knowing that I was going to color the flower cart, I thumbed through my DSP collections and tried a few, but this pattern in the Naturally Eclectic DSP paper pack was the landslide winner…I really love the color combination!
Now how to color the image? Lemon Lime Twist is the green in the DSP so I colored the leaves with my Stampin’ Marker. I added the detail to the leaves after they had dried to give it more depth.

Next were the flowers and I chose another color from the DSP, Soft Sky. I also used a Stampin’ Marker for this one as well, coloring one layer and waiting for it to dry before adding another layer. It actually has three layers of Soft Sky and a small layer in the center of Pool Party.
The flower cart itself and the awning are colored with the Light Smoky Slate Stampin’ Blends alcohol marker. I added a second layer randomly to give it depth as well.
The little birdie up top is Soft Sky and Pool Party, and the sweet heart he’s holding was colored with the Dark Pirouette Pink Stampin’ Blends alcohol marker.

I saw a card made with this ribbon just a few days ago and was reminded that I owned it! It is the most delicate ombre ribbon, soft and pliable and so so sweet in Lemon Lime Twist. I tried the ribbon a few ways and then decided to wrap it like I used to wrap ribbon around Christmas gifts as a little girl. It feels so fresh!
And the darling bow. I love how it lines up with the angle of the ribbon. I must say, creating this bow was a bit of a challenge as the loops are smaller than my fingers…I ended up using small paint brushes to insert in the loops so I could tie the bow tight!

I’m so disappointed that the camera didn’t pick up the sparkle on the flowers and the heart from using Wink of Stella, they are so sparkly and perfectly topped off with itty bitty Pearl Basic Jewels. Oh, and I added a pearl to the center of the wheel too 🙂
I didn’t mention the sentiment before, but it is from the same stamp set. As are the images I stamped and colored on the inside of the card:

Seriously, this is the cutest set ever and you can anticipate more creations from me using it!

The Freshly Made Sketches design team knocks it out of the park every week with their sketches, pop on over and see what they have created and maybe play along!

Thank you for stopping by! I appreciate you!

Blessings!

Supplies:

Card Stock: Stamper’s Select White by Papertrey Ink; Basic Grey and Lemon Lime Twist by Stampin’ Up!

Pattern Paper: Naturally Eclectic Designer Series Paper by Stampin’ Up!

Ink: Memento Tuxedo Black; Dark Pink Pirouette and Light Smoky Slate Stampin’ Blends Alcohol Markers; Soft Sky, Pool Party, Lemon Lime Twist Stampin’ Write Markers

Stamps: Friendship’s Sweetest Thoughts by Stampin’ Up!

Dies: None

Tools: Stampin’ Trimmer by Stampin’ Up!

Embellishments: Lemon Lime Twist 1/4″ Ombre Ribbon and Pearl Basic Jewels by Stampin’ Up!

Other: Medium Whisper White Envelope by Stampin’ Up!