LOVE BIRDS

Aren't these little birds just the cutest thing?  I just got the new Extra Large 2-Step Bird Punch and the first thing I thought of was love birds.  Might have something to do with Valentine's Day being right around the corner.  Or not. :-)  


This card reminds me a little bit of the Pennsylvania Dutch Hex signs you see on barns back in Pennsylvania.  There is some really beautiful folk art back there! 

Stamp: Well Scripted
Jumbo Stampin' Around Wheel: Very Vintage
Cardstock: Very Vanilla, Rose Red
Ink: VersaMark Jumbo Wheel Cartridge, Rose Red Classic, Brocade Blue Classic
Accessories: Certainly Celery 5/8 inch Satin Ribbon, Perfect Details Texturz Plate, Big Shot Die-Cut Machine, Scallop Oval Punch, Matchbox Bigz XL Die (label), Heart to Heart Punch, Gold Stampin' Emboss Powder, Heat Tool, Stampin' Dimensionals

A Little Experiment

I was so thrilled that Stampin' Up! started making embossing folders, because the depth of the impression is so much better than the Texturz Plates. (Note: if you lightly mist your cardstock with rubbing alcohol before using the Texturz Plates, the impression will be deeper, and the paper won't curl as much as with water!)

However, I found that our wonderfully thick cardstock tended to crack a bit, so I wanted to see if there was a remedy for that little problem.

Using the Petals-A-Plenty embossing folder (in the Holiday Mini catalog), I first ran the cardstock through the Big Shot using Tab 1 of the Multi-purpose Platform, as per the instructions on the MPP.  As you can see in the photo above, it makes a nice, deep impression.  But if you look closely at the photo below, you can see there are little cracks in the petals of the flowers.  

It will still look gorgeous on a card, and most people won't even notice, because they'll be so totally blown away by the overall beauty of your creation.

I found you can still get a lovely deep impression, without the cracking, by eliminating the Tab 1 of the Multi-Purpose Platform!  Just use the platform itself, with Tab 1 and Tab 2 opened out of the way.

Interestingly, I also tried spritzing the cardstock with alcohol to see if softening the fibers would help, and in both cases (with and without Tab 1), the paper cracked.  Go figure.

Well, I'm off to make some cards, and a new project I think you will like!  Have a great Wednesday!!!

Holiday Mini Swap

Those of you who know me, know I've had an interesting week.  Someday, when I am at liberty to say, I may explain what's been going on.  I don't want to jeopardize anything by bringing it to a public forum right now.  On a bright note, I've been busy in the craft room for a couple days, and have a few cards to share.  I'll start with the oldest one first:

I can now finally post the card I made for the Stampin' Addicts 2009 Holiday Mini Swap a month ago!  I had to wait until all the swapping was complete.  I loved, loved, loved getting to see the card fronts made by the other demos!!!  Since I'm still new to the whole Stampin' Up! demo thing, it's really nice being able to add different styles of cards to my "inspiration" box, and let me tell ya, there were some AWESOME cards sent back to me!  Thank you, all you crafty women, you!

Stamp: Wandering Words

Inks: VersaMark, Soft Suede, Chocolate Chip

Papers: Real Red, Soft Suede, Whisper White, Christmas Cocoa DSP

Accessories: Texturz plate, Scallop Edge punch, Ticket Corner punch, circle punches, Dazzling Diamonds, White Stampin' Emboss powder, Whisper White ¼ inch grosgrain ribbon