Rock N Roll Tutorial, Stampin' Up Special of the week, Blog Candy!

I got lots of comments (thanks!) about all of my cards but more were about the rock n roll technique I used on the last project. This is a great technique that can be used with so many stamps! I'm working on a scrapbook page with another technique that I plan to post tomorrow evening.

This is a different color variation of the card I featured with the Rock n Roll technique. I used Pumpkin Pie and Old Olive inks for the blog tour post. For this one I used Pale Plum and Old Olive. The Pale plum coordinates best with the Orchid Opulence cardstock and Cottage Wall paper.

Basically, you ink up the stamp with a lighter color ink and then roll the edges of the stamp in a darker ink pad. It helps if the stamp is somewhat round but it doesn't have to be.

The butterfly from the Garden Whimsy set inked up just beautifully in Bashful Blue and Lavendar Lace. I'm thinking a few marker lines around him would really make him pop. For the flower from the True Friend set I used 2 very different color combinations but I love the way they both look. One is So Saffron and Taken with Teal while the other is Regal Rose and Bravo Burgundy.

For the Medallion stamp I had to rub the ink pad around the edges since the Medallion stamp is larger than the ink pad.

For this project I wanted a little more color so I also sponged around the middle with more Old Olive ink. I scrunched up the sponge so it was very small so that I wouldn't get more ink around the middle than I wanted.

The Medallion stamp is so large that it is better to lay the stamp, rubber up, on the table and lay the paper on top of it and use your brayer to evenly spread the ink. Especially if you have a plastic table, the surface isn't flat enough to stamp every area completely solid. Another tip for getting a solid image on a stamp with so much solid rubber area is to sand the stamp before inking the first time. You don't want to sand hard, just lightly one direction and then the other direction. This gives the stamp a little "tooth" so the ink covers it better. The Stampin' Up sanding block is perfect for this but sometimes I just use a cardboard emery board if my sanding block is hiding from me.

When using this technique, be sure to clean your stamp between each project so you don't mess up your ink pads.

Blog Candy Drawing!

I know you are all waiting to see if your name is drawn for the blog candy. I didn't try to do the random number generator since I'm not so computer savy but after hand writing all the names (about 100) and cutting them out and folding them all the same way I'm thinking I could have figured out the computer generator thing faster! Look at how full the little bag is. Thanks for all of your comments, I loved reading them!

I shook the bag and then shook it again and reached just past the middle to draw the winning slip of paper out. The winner is . . . . . . . . . . Dawn D! I'll be emailing Dawn to get her address so I can send the package to her. Congratulations Dawn, I hope you have some special people to send the cards to

Special of the Week

I'm a little late posting the special of the week this week. I got distracted (as I so easily do) by the blog tour and a couple of other things I have going on and forgot to post on Monday. It is a great special too, another punch!

You are going to love our Heart to Heart punch, especially this week, July 27-31 when it is just $10.99 - That is more than 30% off the regular price of $15.95!

This great punch features 3 distinct shapes and sizes of hearts. We even have stamp sets that coordinate with this punch so your projects go faster and look great.

I had so many people visit my blog for the blog tour and I'm sure most of you have a Stampin' Up demonstrator you regularly buy from. I would encourage you to call or email her if you NEED this punch or the Medallion stamp that I featured in the blog. Of course, if you don't have a Stampin' Up demonstrator, I'd be happy to help you out (some people would say enable)! You can email me at wrightplace4@mindspring.com with your order or click on the catalog on the right sidebar to place an online order.

Royal Blog Tour: Featuring the Medallion Background Stamp

Happy blog day! I'm Elaine Wright and my castle is near Clarksville, TN. If you live close by I'd love to meet you and stamp together.
Today I'm featuring the Medallion Background Stamp. As soon as I saw it I knew it would be one of the first stamps I would buy from the new catalog. I'm still thinking of new possibilities for it nearly every day!

For my first project I embossed the Medallion stamp on a sheet of the Kaleidoscope Designer Series Paper. I used a sheet that had a swirley design on it. I stamped in White Craft ink and sprinkled white embossing powder on it. This gives a very white image that stands out on the patterned paper so well. It was a quick and easy card, just stamp, sprinkle and emboss. Then stamp the get well sentiment on whisper white cardstock, punch with the Word Window punch then punch a Modern Label punch (don't you love that new punch???) out of Certainly Celery Cardstock and adhere with Stampin' Dimensionals. Quick and easy but really has impact.

Then it dawned on me that the clock stamp from A Sense of Time would look good stamped on top of the Medallion stamp. I also wondered if the Scalloped Circle Die would fit the stamp, they seemed close to the same size.

I cut the Scalloped Circle out first and then inked the stamp It is easier to stamp with the stamp laying on the table, rubber up and lay the paper onto the stamp with the background stamps. Using the brayer will make it easier and will protect your fingers from getting ink all over them.

When I laid the Scalloped Circle I had cut on the stamp I was pleased that, although it wasn't a perfect fit, it was very close. After stamping it I thought it would look better if I sponged gold ink around the edges so it wouldn't be so noticeable that the fit wasn't perfect.

I used the Bashful Blue DSP for the background of the card and a sentiment from A Sense of Time set also and punched it out with the Scalloped Oval punch. I thought the length of the White Organza Ribbon finished it off nicely.

I decided on a Red White and Blue (and yellow) color scheme for the next card. I stamped a piece of 5 7/8 X 5 7/8" Whisper White cardstock several times in Real Red ink with the Medallion stamp. I'm thinking it will make a great background for a scrapbook page too. I'm sure you will see one if you check back over the next week.

Again, I cut a Scalloped Circle from Whisper White cardstock and inked up the Medallion stamp with Night of Navy ink. I sponged the edges with Night of Navy too. Then I stamped the Medallion stamp in Real Red and Summer Sun. I cut the Real Red piece on the outside of the circles and punched the Summer Sun piece with the 1 3/4" Circle punch. I mounted the 3 pieces together but the middle screamed at me to add something there so I decided on Filigree Designer Brad.

I stamped a sentiment from the Heard From the Heart set in White Craft ink and embossed it with White Embossing Powder. I placed the strip on the bottom of the white with red stamped background paper. I tied a Real Red ribbon around it and included a bit of Night of Navy ribbon in the know. The Medallion stamped piece is adhered with Stampin' Dimensionals and the whole piece is matted on Night of Navy cardstock on a 6X6" white card. It looked a little bare in the upper right corner where the Medallion stamp wasn't stamped so I sponged a little bit of Real Red ink in that corner so it wasn't so stark.

The last card is using the "rock and roll" technique. I knew this stamp would be perfect for this technique and I certainly wasn't disappointed! I applied Pumpkin Pie ink to the stamp and then hit the edges with Old Olive ink. This stamp is too big to rock and roll like usual so be prepared to get some lines from the ink pad on the wood. I guess you could put a little masking tape on the wood before doing this to protect it but I didn't think of it until it was too late. I'll be putting up pictures for this technique on Wednesday so you can see how I made this card.

I want to try a few other techniques with this stamp. I think it would be great for poppin' pastels and for the emerging color technique. I also stamped it on the lid of an explosion box and embossed it in Irridescent Ice Embossing powder that looked absolutely georgous. I'll show you that project soon too.

Thanks for stopping by! Be sure to leave a comment to have a chance at blog candy. I have 3 rules for my blog candy; 1.) Leave a comment. 2.) Be sure to include your contact email and 3.) Please, no Stampin' Up Demonstrators. Lets save the goodies for our customers.

For my blog candy I will send all 4 cards featured as well as their envelopes. I hope you like to send hand made cards. I also have a little bag of other Stampin' Up! goodies to include with your blog candy. Good luck!

The Blog Tour is Almost Here!

Go to the Royal Blog Tour home page on Sunday, July 26th to start the Royal Blog Tour and enter for a chance to win big! The link is to the right, click on my crown.

The Royal Blog Tour is three days long, and you'll be happy it is! There are four tours - a total of 80 fabulous blogs, each featuring a stamp set from Stampin' Up's new catalog. With 2 to 4 posts on each blog there will be hundreds of ideas for you to explore!
But wait - there's more!
Blog Candy, Blog Candy, and more Blog Candy. Over 50% of the blogs on this tour are offering Blog Candy.

Check the Princess list on launch day. Every name with an asterisk next to it is offering blog candy. But that's not all! The Royal Blog Tour Home Page is offering their own Blog Candy. And it is -- a Big Shot Die Cut Machine!!!! You don't want to miss this tour!

This drawing is open to all countries represented by Princesses in this tour, including Canada and Australia!

Another Big Shot Top Note project

I keep finding more great ideas to use with the Top Note die for my Big Shot machine. This one is great, a fun little gift card holder with 2 pockets made with the fun scallop edge from the Top Note die. You can put a gift card in one pocket and a note in the other pocket. You cut a piece of DSP 4" X 8", I used the Bashful Blue Patterns paper. I trimmed one of the 4" edges with the Eyelet Border Punch and scored it at 3" and 6".

I cut a half sheet of cardstock (8 1/2 X 5 1/2") and scored it at 2 3/4" down the short edge and at 4" and 8" along the long edge.

After folding it along the score lines and adhering the half inch flap to the other edge, I folded it in half and inserted each open end into the Big Shot machine, positioning the piece in the middle so the point would be centered. I then adhered the whole piece to the patterned paper piece, lining up the folds.

I stamped the sentiment and punched it with the oval punch, then mounted it onto a Night of Navy Scalloped Oval Punch and adhered it to the front of the gift card holder. Now it is ready to insert a gift card and note and tie together with a piece of Night of Navy ribbon. I think I'll make several of these with matching note cards to fit in the pocket so I'll have a quick gift ready when I need it.

Oh, by the way, I have been forgetting to post about this special. If you would love to join my team, there is a great sale on the new Mini Starter Kit. For just $85 you could join the Stampin' Up family and have fun helping friends and family create fun projects while earning extra products and maybe even a little cash. I love my job, you could too! Check it out on my website under the promotions tab where it says "Have Fun Doing What You Love". This special is available from July 15 to Aug 31, 2009.

It includes the "For All You Do" stamp set and all 6 of the new In Color ink pads as well as a pack of the In Color cardstock, white cardstock and the business materials you would need to get started. The standard starter kit is still available for $199 if you want it but this mini kit will give you a chance to start your business for less so let me know if you are interested!

Wow! Deal of the week and Tri-shutter Card

Wow! You can save over $10 on the deal of the week this week! The special is on the Styled Vanilla Hodgepodge Hardware. It is regularly $29.95 but for this week it is only $18.99. If you have been wanting to try this great kit of labels, brads and other goodies, now is the time. And when you use up all that beautiful hardware, the tin is great to alter for another fun project! Just place an order online (my website is at the right) or call me between now and July 27 at 10:00 AM.

When I signed up for The Royal Blog Tour the end of July seemed so far away. Now it is next week! I've been working on some projects using one of the brand new stamps from the new catalog and I love that stamp! Be sure to check it out next week.

If you go to the link to the right on my queen's crown you can go check out the blog tour blog. It has information about the tour and has been featuring interviews and samples from many of the blog tour princesses. It is fun to read their answers and get ideas from them. On Sunday, July 26th, the blog tour blog will have links for each of the 4 blog tours running from 8:00 AM Sunday till midnight on Wednesday. That's 4 days to take your time exploring the great samples, ideas and techniques on nearly 80 blogs! You will want to check back with the blog tour blog later to see if you have won any of the blog candy. Go check it out!

Here is a card I made at a Stampin' Up meeting, it is called a Tri-fold shutter Card. It looks kind of like a regular card when it is folded up and fits in a regular invitation size envelope.

When you open it though, it is kind

of accordian folded. Very cool, although I think if I make any more I will leave a space with just cardstock so I can write a message. This one only leaves space to sign your name. I guess sometimes you might want to just sign a card so if you make one of these you can decide whether to leave a spot to write or not.

The card base is 5 1/2 X 12". You cut slits on either long side 1 and

1/2" in and from 2" from one end to the 10" point. Score at 2, 4, 8 and 10 inches to form the folds. Cut pieces of patterned paper to fit each folded area with a little margin of background cardstock. The hardest part is figuring out how to fold each section till it looks like the picture I took from above so you could see how it looks. If you want a better description so you can make your own tri-shutter card, check out this blog.

Die Cut Purse and Deal of the Week

The deal of the week for this week, July 13-20 is the Square Fire Rhinestone brads - item number 109112. They are 30% off this week, regularly $9.95, they are now $6.99. They are on page 179 in our new catalog. Check it out here. It is a great deal on the perfect way to add a special touch to your cards and scrapbook pages.

Isn't this an adorable little purse? It is made with 2 of our Top Note dies cut in So Saffron cardstock and the scalloped circle die cut out in Melon Mambo. The Razzleberry Lemonade cardstock was cut into a circle using the Circle Scissor. This wonderful tool makes quick business of cutting circles.

The handle is secured with the Jumbo Grommets and the latch is velcro so it is easy to open and close. I'm going to fill it with mini notecards. I'm always trying to put a notecard together quickly for gifts so if I put some in here I won't have to frantically look for all the supplies (and space) to put them together at the last second. Wouldn't this make a great gift for busy friends?

I have gotten several of the brand new stamp sets the past week. Now I just need to find time to play with them! There are also a lot of great Designer Series Patterned paper that I want to get. The Razzleberry Lemonade paper is very bright and extremely versatile. It has the new "In Colors" in it. Every year Stampin' Up researches the latest color trends and releases 6 new colors that are reflected in fashion and home decorating. This year they are very bright colors (well, except for the brown) and they are such great colors! You can get Stampin' Up quality cardstock, ink pads, reinkers in the new colors and for the first time there are also markers in the In Colors. Another great item in these colors is spools of polka dot grosgrain ribbon, just georgous!

Heritage Layout

This is a layout we did several months ago at our scrapbook club meeting. It uses one of my favorite stamp sets , Wildlife Reserve. Unfortunately, it is retired now. We have several sets that have a realistic animal or two but none that have this many. I thought they would go great on this layout of my family tree since both sets of my grandparents were farmers, one in Massachusetts and one in Tennessee. I even used the oval punch and made a hole in the tree for the owl to live in.

Speaking of owls, have you noticed how birds and owls are very popular now? We have several sets of both in our new catalog and I've noticed them in other catalogs too. I wonder who sets these styles. I remember owls being very popular in the 70's (I'm dating myself here) but mushrooms were very popular then too. I have noticed a few mushrooms around lately but not as many of them as owls.

I have the new catalogs in now. They are beautiful and have so many great samples in them! I love all the ideas for cards, scrapbook pages and the great 3-D items on each page. So many ideas, so little time . . .

Busy week

I meant to post again last week but it was a busy week and my camera and computer weren't talking so I couldn't get to the pictures I had taken to post. My sister has been visiting from CA and it has been so much fun to see her again. I'm taking her to the airport today and it will probably be a year before I see her again so that will be sad. But at least I get an extra hour to visit her on the way to drop her off.

I forgot yesterday to post the Stampin' Up special of the week. If you bought the Big Shot then you will have a real interest in this. From July 6-12th you can get the Big Shot Doctor's bag to carry your Big Shot and dies for only $49.99. That is nearly 30% off the regular retail price of $69.95! Place your order on my website (link is on the left tool bar) or email me if you would like to get the cute little Doctor bag to carry your Big Shot in.

Did you know that I have videos on my website? I'm not the one doing the projects, I haven't been able to get my video camera to do what I want it to do but there are some great projects there. Check it out!

I'll see if I can get some pictures to transfer from my camera to my computer when I get back from the airport. . .

Deal of the week!

Stampin' Up specials every week this month!

From July 1-31, I will be bringing you a new deal of the week every Monday. Today's special will only be available for the sale price from July 1-5. Then another special will be available each week of July. Todays special is the wonderful scalloped edge border punch. This is a great punch and adds the perfect touch to so many projects. If you look through my blog you will notice that I have used it many times on the cards and scrapbook pages I have posted. It is also the absolutely perfect touch to some of the cute mini purses and a great border for an envelope. If you don't already have one, now would be a great time to order one. Email me or place an order on my website for your Scalloped Edge Border Punch. Seriously, you NEED one!

This great punch is regularly $15.95 but for the rest of this week it is only $10.99! That is over 30% off the regular price. See, I told you that you needed one!


Don't forget to check back next Monday to see what the special for next week will be.