Izzy, fuzzy slippers with sweatpants . . .

 Expecting winter storm Izzy to stop by tonight and tomorrow so I am happy it is the weekend and that I am off work until next Weds..... So working in the craft room in fuzzy slippers and sweatpants waiting for her to arrive.... Happy to say that a couple of my online orders arrived today -- YAY! Just in time for a long weekend with bad weather....

First -- all of these orders are my first orders with these online stores and happy they arrived quickly after I ordered them....  To begin with when the Cottontail Embossing Powder Tool was released it was sold out all over the place. Luckily I found two of them on the online store of Catherine Pooler. I had never ordered from her before but I was happy to finally find this embossing tool from Rabbit Hole Designs so I ordered one for me and one for my PIC (stamping Partner In Crime):

Also with my first order they gave me a free purple ink pad as a thank you gift. 

Another first order is the Stick and Stamp Mat from Brutus Monroe. I have shopped their booth at different stamp shows but I had never ordered from their online store. Again I ordered two of these mats - one for me and one for my PIC - and I also ordered the cleaner for this mat they sold as a bundle:

This mat fits the regular size MISTI and it can hold card stock in place, holds a stencil in place, and is good for use with a background stamp so you just don't get the edges of the stamped image on your card stock piece. There is a video on YouTube showing how to use this mat with the MISTI and by itself. 

Finally -- my last order that arrived today is from Maker Forte (Hedgehog Hollow).  I ordered the Layering Hearts stencil set. They make all their own stencils on sight so they are made in the USA:

These are not the standard 6x6 stencils either. Their stencils are 8 1/4 wide by 6 7/8 high. Each of their stencils have the stencil name on it:

also the stencils all have pre made holes at the top for storage - either to hang or to put in a binder:

Rather than number their stencils this Hearts stencil set has a small, medium, large, and extra large stencil in the set so you know which order to stencil them in. I also received a free single hearts stencil as a thank you gift -- just in time for Valentine projects!! 

Also ordered a background stamp from them:

Stone Age background stamp that makes an interesting background for a card. Looking forward to using this stamp on upcoming projects..... 

Happy me that I have new products in the craft room -- just in time for bad weather and time off from work!  Stay safe!

Christmas Thank You Card

 Here is the thank you card I made for my PIC - stamping Partner In Crime - for all the wonderful crafting items she gifted me at Christmas and she loves purple:

I used the Nordic Snowflake stencil from Taylored Expressions for the snowflake design on the white card front. Here is a photo when I finished stenciling:

I used the Wendy Vecchi craft mat and magnets for the stencil. For this card I used purple ink and a blending brush:

To keep the ink pad in place I cut a piece of drawer liner that I keep in the same bin with the stencils so when I stencil all my supplies are together. Once the stenciled piece was done I trimmed it to the size I wanted for the card front. Using a rectangle frame die from the stash I die cut a white frame to put over the snowflake piece for the card front.

The card base is purple card stock cut and scored on the side. Put the stenciled piece with the frame on the card base using the ATG. Die cut a small snowflake using a snowflake die and white glittered card stock. Put this on the card front using a mini glue dot and added a holographic gem from Sunny Studios to the center of that:

Using a "thanks" die from the stash and cut it out of silver foil poster board from the Dollar Tree. Then cut it out of purple card stock. Using liquid glue I glued these two 'thanks' together off setting the silver 'thanks'.  Used foam tape to put the "thanks" on the card front. 

Sign me up!

 Taylored Expressions came out with their "Create-In-Quads" stencil system before Christmas and their first set was Mistletoe.  I watched the videos and like the concept but I felt Mistletoe was too limiting and did not buy it... but then....

She put out the Create-In-Quads Snowflake set -- sign me up!!! This is a stencil set that uses a larger stencil sheet and each stencil set makes up 4 card fronts. The Snowflake set has 4 stencils. Each stencil is numbered so you know which order to use them. With this being a larger stencil set I had to decide how I would store it and I decided to use the plastic job ticket sleeves that I bought at Staples long ago to store my solid 8 1/2 x 11 card stocks. I used the label maker to label the stencil set:

On the back of their packaging tells you about the stencil set and a sample of what each stencil looks like. I have used this stencil set twice and I am in love -- made 8 cards using this system this morning. Here is my stencil "system" -- I use the stencil mat from Wendy Vecchi that I have used for my stencils for some time -- some crafters use spray adhesive on their stencils to hold them in place while they are applying their inks but the stencil mat with magnets works fine and I do not have to go outside to spray the adhesive on my stencils. Here is a photo of my 'set up':

I have the card stock on the stencil mat with magnets. Next to that I have a piece of drawer liner left over from kitchen drawers and I keep my ink pads on that to keep them from sliding around on the work table. This photo was taken after I started the turquoise card fronts I was working on.  Here is a photo to show the stencils as I was adding the inks:

Once I finished with each stencil I used a baby wipe and gently wiped the inks off and set it aside. Continued on until all four stencils were finished and wiped down. Here is a photo of the turquoise set finished before it was cut apart for card fronts:

sorry for the blurr.... Once this colour combo was done I decided I would change it out and work with totally different colours -- used my 2nd to last sheet of Taylored Expressions Kraft card stock for this next stenciled set of card fronts:

For both stenciled card fronts I used Distress Inks for my card fronts -- except for the white snowflakes on the kraft card fronts. Here is a photo of both sets cut apart and ready for card bases:

Some card bases are scored on the side and some are scored at the top. I embossed and stamped matching greetings for the cards and put the card fronts on the cards:

On the turquoise cards I used these Distressed inks in this order:

Stencil #1   Mermaid Lagoon

Stencil #2   Wilted Violet

Stencil #3   Tumbled Glass

Stencil #4   Peacock Feathers

Here is the second set of card fronts finished:

For these card fronts I used these Distress inks in this order:

Stencil #1   White pigment ink

Stencil #2   Barn Door

Stencil #3   Festive Berries

Stencil #4   Hickory Smoke

The stencils are clearly marked so it is easy to see you are lined up correctly. Taylored Expressions sells packs of pre-trimmed card stocks for this stencil set but I used card stock from my stash and trimmed it to the 8 x 10 1/2 size I would need for stenciled card fronts. Once the blending is all done just trim your larger stencil piece into 4 pieces for your card front that measure 4 x 5 1/4.  So easy and quick to make 4 card fronts that have the same theme but are not the same card over and over again. 

Happy Taylored Expressions has this "Quads" line in stencils and hoping for future patterns as well! Will also say once I finished with the stencils I rinsed them off in the sink with cold water and all inks came off easily -- the white pigment and the reds of the Distressed Inks. Clean up is quick and easy and the stencils are good quality and not too thin with all the detail they have on the snowflakes. 

For my cards I used a banner die set I have in the stash for the greetings and I added holographic gems from Sunny Studio to the centers of some of the snowflakes on the card fronts. I also die cut from scraps small snowflakes using a small snowflake die I got for free with my Sunny Studio order. For some of those little snowflakes I used glittered card stock from the stash... Quick and easy stencil system and am looking forward to other future releases for this line . . .

PIC Presents for Christmas

This post shows photos of the great Christmas gifts my PIC (stamping Partner In Crime) gifted me this year.  Happy to say nothing she gave me did I already have so happy to add everything to the craft stash for use in 2022!

Three Close To My Heart stamp sets, bling and trims for future projects -- hoping to use the rose coloured bells for Valentine's Day....

Bead Smith mat, Poppy Flower die, and three new sets for my Glimmer Hot Foil.. Happy she gifted me an alphabet set for hot foiling -- this is my first alpha set so am sure I will get use from those!!.. Once again she spoiled me with lots of things I did not know I needed and love!!!  ;0)

Also -- here is a photo of two gift card holders I made but inside is a gift of cash rather than a gift card:

Day after Christmas I was running errands and stopped at a Dollar Tree store I usually do not get to shop at and was happy to find these:

Lots of crafters use the Dollar Tree "popcorn tulle" and I could never find the white, red, pink, or blue that I had seen crafters use for their projects.... was happy to find the red and pink at this store in their Valentine's Day section -- bought the red they had left and two of the pink. Glad we made a stop there for sure... Just wish all Dollar Tree stores would carry the same things!  

Hoping everyone had nice holidays and Happy New Year for us all in 2022!