Category Archives: 3-D, Gifts & Things
A Turkey Tag — It’s All in the Presentation (Almost!)!
They say "It's all in the presentation" or "Presentation is everything!" but I do have to say "almost" because the pie inside this presentation is beautiful! Notice all the individual leaves on the crust around the edge (and the crust is my favorite part of any pie!).
This year we are doing Thanksgiving a little differently. My friend Dixie and her friend Sherrie have a cooking/catering company so I ordered a Cajun fried turkey from them as well as some chicken and sausage gumbo, a pecan pie and some chocolate Whoopie Pies! No cooking a turkey for me!!! Oh my gosh, when I saw how they had decorated the pecan pie package and whoopie pies with this cute turkey tag and ribbon I just went crazy! See how such a simple thing can make such a great impression?!! Paper, ink, and stamps! Aren't we part of such an impressive craft?!
And a peek inside the foil covering the cajun fried turkey! I don't know how I restrained myself from taking just a little taste from this turkey!
Are you hungry now? If you live in the southwest Houston/Richmond area, email me and I'll give you Dixie's contact information.
If you're taking a pie or some plate of food to someone's house for Thanksgiving, consider taking a few minutes to make some kind of cute little tag or card just for a little something special! I know it will be appreciated! And make the food look even more inviting!
Stampin' Up! Online Extravaganza going on now until November 28th! Select products discounted 20% – 50%! More Doorbusters the last day! Check the list right now!
Decorate Your Thanksgiving Table with My Digital Studio!
Images copyright Stampin' Up! 2012
Special holidays call for special table settings and decorating your Thanksgiving table is probably one of the biggest ones! Sara Brook, of the Stampin' Up! My Digital Studio Team, put together this lovely place setting made with the Unknown Blessings Ensemble. It comes with everything you need to make these table decorations and really sounds easy! Just use the digital feathers, filling in with whatever color paper you want, print, cut out and snip to look like feathers. We all made Indian headbands in school I'm sure…just print out the headband, size correctly and add some feathers. The napkin rings are made the same way, just smaller! There's even a pie box to print and make, frameable art, menu cards, place cards….and whatever else you can think up using this digital set!
Images copyright Stampin' Up! 2012
Read more of Sara's post on the Stampin' Up! website for My Digital Studio HERE. She also has more photos how you can use all the elements of the Unknown Blessings Ensemble.
Even if you don't own My Digital Studio (you don't??!) I'm sure you can get some Thanksgiving table decorating ideas from this photo above!
Interested in My Digital Studio? Well, there is the free 30-Day Trial….AND coming up, starting Monday, Nov. 19th during the Stampin' Up! Online Extravaganza, My Digital Studio is one of the discounted items!!!!!!
Check the Online Extravaganza list HERE….and find the My Digital Studio discounts at the very bottom of the last page!! That's the 50% off list!! You will be able to purchase the full MDS 2+ download, the MDS 2 version (less content), or the MDS 2 upgrade all for 50% off the regular price! I would absolutely recommend the MDS 2+ version even at full price but ESPECIALLY for half-price! You will be amazed at all the downloads that are included in that version. Treat yourself to an early Christmas gift!
Find all the My Digital Studio options HERE in my Online Store.
Heart of Christmas Gift Box
Image copyright Stampin' Up! 2012
I have loved this single stamp, Heart of Christmas, in the Stampin' Up! Holiday Catalog since I first saw it! I love the sentiment! This is a project from Stampin' Up! They made a box with Crumb Cake card stock, decorated with some Snow Festival Designer Series Paper and 1/8" Old Olive Taffeta Ribbon. To display the Heart of Christmas sentiment, they made it very decoratived with the Apothecary Accents Framelits Dies. Notice the cute little heart punched out of the bottom of the label and backed with Glimmer Paper! What a great project! You could also use the Kraft Gift Boxes as well for something similar. Wouldn't this be a cute gift box under the Christmas tree?!
To shop for any stamping supplies for so many projects, just shop online at my Stampin' Up! Store here.
Here is the supply list Stampin' Up! provided:
Stamps
• Heart of Christmas*
Paper
• Crumb Cake Cardstock
• Very Vanilla Cardstock
• Snow Festival Designer Series Paper
• Champagne Glimmer Paper*
Ink
• Cherry Cobbler Stampin’ Write® Marker
• Old Olive Stampin’ Write Marker
Stampin’ Up! Accessories
• Old Olive 1/8" Taffeta Ribbon
• Stampin’ Dimensionals®
• Owl Punch
• 1/16" Circle Punch
• Big Shot™
• Fancy Favor Bigz™ XL Die
• Apothecary Accents Framelits™ Dies
Day of Gratitude Thanksgiving Turkey Favor
The Day of Gratitude stamp set by Stampin' Up! can also make a great turkey favor for Thanksgiving! If you need a little something for your Thanksgiving table, class favors for the kids, or just some fun little decorations for Thanksgiving these will fill the bill. Of course there are many variations you could do after you get started. I often think I am going to copy something exactly and end up with my own version.
Instead of the "Happy Thanksgiving" from the must-have stamp set Teeny Tiny Wishes (and I do recommend for these small stamps that you spend the extra money and get the wood-mount) you could write a person's name for a place card at the table. The body is punched with the 1 3/4" circle and the head with the 1/4" circle punch. You could stamp a little texture on the circles or run one or both through the Big Shot with an embossing folder like I did on the body. I used the Lacy Brocade folder in the Stampin' Up! Holiday Catalog. The gobble-thing is half of the Modern Label Punch. The beak is just cut by hand. The thing on top of the head is from the Boho Blossom Punch. The tail feathers are the medallion in the Day of Gratitude stamp set. I tried to get them each multi-colored but I don't think the colors contrasted enough. You could also color each section with a different color of Stampin' Write Markers. The feathers are adhered with Stampin' Dimensionals on the back of the turkey.
I would probably use some candy like Hershey Nuggets for the back, but I don't have any (amazingly!) so I used some Hershey Kisses. It worked just as well. If I used a Nugget, I would cover it with a strip of designer paper first.
For the eyes, you can just punch out black and white circles, or since I had some Googly Eyes left over from Halloween, I used those. You probably have some in your craft stash, too!
Just a fun little Thanksgiving treat! Hope you enjoy!
Trick-or-Treat! Have Fun with Halloween Candy Bars!
Halloween Candy Bars….Before!
Trick-or-Treat! It’s almost time to hand out Halloween treats, so why not make your Halloween candy bars something special? There are SO many fun Halloween ideas out there, but this is something easy to do for the kids’ Halloween treats.
Trick-or-Treat Halloween Candy Bars…After!!
Just take your candy bars and wrap some paper around them! Designer series paper makes it easy, but you could also use card stock. Then stamp a Halloween image and punch out with a circle punch or scallop punch and glue on. If you are looking for an easy Halloween craft to do with your kids, this might be an idea. This is especially good for those special trick-or-treaters, maybe class treats at Halloween parties at school, or your own Halloween parties.
I used my Googly Ghouls stamp set for the images and the Houndstooth & Scaringbone Designer Series Paper, both in the Stampin’ Up! Holiday Catalog. I colored in a bit with Stampin’ Write Markers. It’s just something fun to do, and why not have some fun at Halloween?!
Have questions? Just email me at Karen@KarenStamps.com
You can place your order online here or email me.
Candlelight Christmas Flocked Clear Strip Christmas Ornament
I had to play again with the design of the ornaments on the cover of our Stampin' Up! Demonstrator magazine called Stampin' Success. You can make these Christmas ornaments with just strips of paper! This time I decided I wanted a fancier one…I only intended to add some ribbon and maybe some rhinestones. But once I pulled out the Candlelight Christmas Specialty Designer Series Paper, I noticed the beautiful flocked clear window sheet "paper"! I thought that would make something pretty! So here it is!
Once I made the ornament, I attached a bow at the top with some mini glue dots and added just a few Rhinestone Jewels here and there.
My strips this time were 4 3/4" for the center one, two strips 6" each and 2 strips 7 1/4". I think you just need to play with the lengths of the strips to get the size of ornament that you want. These strips are only 1/2" wide. You can read my directions for how I put the ornament together on my post the other day here. I think you can see in this photo above that I put rhinestones near the top, middle and bottom of the outside strips and one on each side of the center strip. I used Baker's Twine for the hanging thread. Just feed it in through the center of the ornament and pull tightly for it to come up to the top in between the strips.
I might not be done yet! I think the next one I will try will have another set or two of strips!
If you want a pack of the Candlelight Christmas Specialty Designer Series Paper, you know where to go! While you are there, check out the Merry Christmas special which includes the Candlelight Christmas paper, and also the Clearance Rack! New items were just added on Friday! Although some products sold out the first day, there still are great bargains to be had, so don't miss out!
Candlelight Christmas Paper Strip Christmas Ornament
Make Your Own Halloween Ornament with Paper Strips
As Stampin' Up! Demonstrators, we receive a magazine that we all love filled with creative ideas, business tips, and the latest Stampin' Up! news. On the cover of the latest issue are pictures of ornaments like these, except for winter or Christmas. I decided to try making a paper ornament for Halloween with the Howlstooth & Scaringbone Designer Series Paper. These would be so fun to make for Halloween decorations for a party!
Stampin' Up! didn't provide any specific instructions that I found, but I found some examples online! This particular one is made with five strips of paper. Basically you need two "long" strips, two "shorter" strips, and one "even shorter"!
This is what I used:
Strips are cut 1" wide.
2 strips 10" long, 2 strips 8" long, and 1 strip 6 3/4" long.
Arrange the strips in a "sandwich", paying attention to how you want the sides of your paper to show: shortest strip in the middle, next longest on each side of the shortest strip, and the longest strips on the outside. So for my ornament, I have the strips stacked 10" – 8" – 6 3/4" – 8" – 10" and make them all flush at one end (they'll be uneven at the opposite end of the pile). Using my paper-piercing tool I poked a hole and inserted a brad. Then I lined up the bottom of the strips, which shapes the ornament and inserted a brad to hold it. That's it! Tie a string or ribbon through the top and you've got it! Experiment with sizes and you can have ornaments of all sizes! I think I would make the next one a little narrower and shorter strips.
Try one with your paper scraps! Bet you can't make just one!!
When you want to order MORE paper, just go to my Stampin' Up! Online Store….but be sure to check the Clearance Rack because Stampin' Up! added over 70 new products today…some might be gone, so check as soon as you can! Clearance Rack orders must be made online only because of the availability of the items.
Ornament Keepsakes Paper Christmas Ornament
I know you have seen this ornament before…it's on the cover of the Stampin' Up! Holiday Catalog and a lot of people have been making them! I finally stopped the world and made the hanging ornament myself! It really is beautiful in person and the Dazzling Diamonds Glitter around the edges of each little ornament really makes it look fantastic. This is made with the Ornament Keepsakes stamp set and the Holiday Ornaments Framelits Dies. The only difficult part is cutting out your stamped images of the ornaments with the Framelits as it just takes awhile to do twenty of each! But once you have that part done (you can also just cut out designer paper, not stamped images) the rest is fairly easy to assemble and glue. Mine has Linen Thread loops in each of the large ornaments, but I think something more sparkly would be better. The Scalloped Tulle Ribbon was fun to work with and insert and twist between some of the ornaments. The rosette in the center is made with the Candlelight Christmas Specialty Designer Series Paper. Then a Vintage Faceted Designer Button is hot-glued into the center of the rosette with a Large Pearl Basic Jewel adhered to the center of the button.
I hope you will take some time to make something special for Christmas, just because! Just to relax and enjoy the creative side of yourself! Sometimes we all have to do that!
If you need any stamping or scrapbooking supplies, please visit my Stampin' Up! Online Store or email with your order. Don't forget to check the Merry Christmas October Promotion by Stampin' Up! which is only good until the end of October….which is sure sneaking up on all of us!
Have fun making your ornament! You'll be glad you did!
Christmas Porcelain Ornaments….A Blast from the Past!
Anybody remember these Christmas porcelain ornaments Stampin' Up! used to sell? I'm thinking it was back in the beginning days of my association with Stampin' Up! And that's now been over ten years ago if you count from the time I first heard about Stampin' Up! from my friend I was visiting. If you've been around Stampin' Up! that long, I'm sure you will recognize the stamp set, too!
As I was cleaning out my craft closet recently, I knew I was going to find a bag of plain porcelain ornaments….but I didn't remember that I had already stamped them! What a nice surprise to find something stashed that was actually used, so now I am happy to bring them out of the darkness and hang them on the tree this year! They would also make a cute Christmas tag on a package! Just remember that a handmade Christmas ornament can be very special.
I believe these were stamped with Stazon and then colored in with markers. For the sparkly finish they probably were stamped with VersaMark ink and embossed with Iridescent Ice Embossing Powder #101930.
Find something in your stash that you've been putting off or forgot you even had and make something with it today! You might find some Christmas gift ideas that you didn't know you had!
A Tic Tac Pumpkin for Halloween
I've seen a lot of different characters online made by various stampers using Tic Tac boxes. When you wrap some paper around the Tic Tacs and punch a hold in order to see through to the Tic Tacs, you can make a cute Santa, snowman, jack-o-lantern, elf, etc. Some have used the Two Tags Die and tied it with ribbon on the side, some have used the Top Note Die, and some have just wrapped a piece of card stock around the Tic Tac box.
In this project, I used a piece of Pumpkin Pie card stock cut at 5 1/4 x 2 3/4" (I assume all Tic Tac boxes are the same size, but I'm not sure). Either you can just wrap the strip around the Tic Tac box tightly, sort of scoring the edges with your fingers as you fold, or you can score at 5/8", 2 3/8", 3" and 4 3/4". The fun part is punching out a shape on the front so you can see through to the Tic Tacs inside. You will need to tear off the label or it might show in your punched hole. For this pumpkin, I used the Extra-Large Oval Punch #119859 but you could use a small circle punch. Figure out which panel is going to be the front, and center the punch as best you can. You could also punch a Post-it Note, stick it where you want your shape to be punched on your project, and then punch.
Then to make my box look like a pumpkin, I punched some leaves and branches with the Bird Builder Punch #117191 and cut a little scrap of brown for the pumpkin stem. You could also add scraps of black to make a jack-o-lantern face if you wanted to. You could also add a piece of window sheet inside the card stock and glue a face on that…or just stick on the Tic Tac box. Then for some embellishment, I added a "Boo" from the Tiny Tags stamp set and punched out with the Jewelry Tag punch #117190. Finally, I tied on a little piece of Lucky Limeade Baker's Twine to the little tag.
This is an easy project and fun to do! Use your imagination and come up with something to coordinate with the color of Tic Tacs you have!
For any card stock and punches, just shop at my Online Store! Don't forget the Merry Christmas promotion if you are interested in the Ornament Keepsakes Bundle.
Halloween Medallion Decorations
Keep a Journal of Your Child’s Senior Year of High School
A Spooky Halloween Tag
You might need a Spooky Halloween Tag and here is a Wicked Cool one! Yes, it is stamped with the Wicked Cool stamp set (don't you just love those witch's boots?!) And don't forget, with every $40 purchase, you can choose a FREE roll of 3/8" Stitched Satin Ribbon during the month of September! I used the Gumball Green Stitched Satin Ribbon on this tag, tied with the 1/8" Basic Black Taffeta Ribbon.
Other supplies on this tag:
- Basic Black, Tangerine Tango, Gumball Green, Perfect Plum Card Stock
- Howlstooth & Scaringbone Designer Series Paper #126906
- Toxic Treats Stamp Set (Trick or Treat)
- Four Frames Stamp Set
- Dotted Scallop Ribbon Border Punch #119275
- Decorative Label Punch #120907
Just a fun handstamped spooky Halloween tag, just in case you need one!
If you need any Halloween stamping supplies, I would love to be your Demonstrator!
You can find my Online Store here….or just email me with your order.