Tumbled Tile Coasters

As a customer appreciation gift, I made a few sets of these coasters. There are lots of instructions for these floating around the web. Some suggest baking in the oven, some only using Staz-on ink, some using sealers and some don't. If you search on Tumbled Tile Coasters you'll find loads of instructions and ideas.

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My process is to clean, stamp, bake, and seal. I seal any area not stamped with Staz-on ink. Actually I've found the colored Staz-on used in high concentration also needs sealing. Just have a couple of extra tiles for experimenting and breakage. These are fun to do and get rave reviews.

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For these, I stamped the flourishes with a Rhonna Farrer set from Autumn Leaves in brown Staz-on ink. I stamped off first to get a lighter, more aged look.

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For the monogram, I used Stampin' Up!'s Lovely Letters stamped in Staz-on Brown. I cut a mask using SCAL software and my Cricut. After adhering the mask with some removable adhesive, I sponged on craft ink.

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After baking, I sealed the monogrammed area by applying another slightly larger mask before spraying with 3 coats sealer. These were finished with a layer of adhesive backed cork for the bottom.

Cutey Pie

Hmm... Haven't decided about this layout. It's a little cutesy and the photos aren't really the focus as they should be. Yet, it does convey the story and most importantly, it made my husband laugh - in a good way.

Ingredients: DSP: Autumn Vine by Stampin' Up!

Ink: Really Rust, More Mustard, Dusty Durango (for distressing pumpkin)

Cardstock: Really Rust, Chocolate Chip

Fonts: Baby Kruffy, Serifa BT

All Hearts on Deck

I've had my eye on a set of heart shaped stamps for quite a while. They never made it to my shopping cart because I really don't use hearts all that much - not enough to justify the price. The stamps are heart shapes with pretty all over designs like polka dots and swirls. Well, I have those kind of designs already.
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So again I turned the the Cricut. (Don't tune out on me if you don't have a Cricut, you can do the same thing with a punch :-) Using SCAL software I cut 6 hearts in two rows of 3 each that would fit on a regular card front. The hearts are a little smaller than my Stampin' Up! Full Heart punch.

I placed this cutout mask onto a card front with some repositionable adhesive. Then I sponged on several ink colors in pinks and rose reds. For some of the hearts, I did a tone-on-tone effect using swirls and polka dot stamps similar to the stamps I'd been eyeing.

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Playing with colors and patterns is such fun. I've been reading and seeing through on-line videos the benetifs of background and basic shape stamps for awhile now and I'm a believer. These types of stamps are so versatile.
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Note: If you don't have a Cricut or other paper shape cutter, you can do something very similar with a punch. To get your hearts all in a row, punch out grid paper. It is much easier to line up your punchs and spacing. The only catch I found was the Full Heart punch is too large to get 3 hearts on a standard size card width (5 1/2"), so you would need a different arrangement or a larger card front.
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Ingredients: Stamps: Itty Bitty Backgrounds from SU!, Circles and Dots from Inkadinkado, Block Elements from Impression Obsession, Designer Flourishes from Scrappy Cat, All Holidays from SU! (Hugs & Kisses)
Ink - all Craft ink from Stampin' Up!: Rose Red, Regal Rose, Cameo Coral, Ruby Red, Bravo Burgandy
DSP: Raspberry Tart from SU!
Ribbon from AC Moore

TIPsy Tuesday - Shifting Gears

While you are in the midst of one holiday, it can be hard to start thinking about the next one. I've got Christmas holiday decorations in all stages of display yet I have to start thinking about Valentines because I have a card class in January.

Actually Christmas is the perfect time to begin gathering supplies for Valentine's day because of a shared color scheme. You probably have some red papers lying around and maybe some fancy gold, silver or textured whites, too. These are perfect for Valentines. So when you wrap up the Christmas cards, tags and decorations, toss those scraps into a bin for Valentine's Day.

I went through my papers - the good stuff that hasn't been cut - and my scrap bins. Also I pulled out stamps and punches so I could see what I had and needed. In my ribbon canisters, there were also some pretty choices.

We may do a card or two in class in non-traditional colors for Valentines. For now, I have a good start when I want a break from Santas, trees, and presents.

One Character Note

One of the major benefits of the Sure Cuts A Lot (SCAL) software from Craftedge is the ability to cut out any character from a true type font on your computer. Most fonts are True Type. And there are many available to download for free. I downloaded the Floralia font from dafont.com because of the beautiful intricate images of each charcter.

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This card front is cut using only one charcter of that font enlarged to 3 3/4" x 5". I used a thick designer paper from My Mind's Eye that was in my scrap bin. I had enough to cut out the design and use the other side of the paper for the backing to peak through. A couple of embellishments and a little ink distressing on the edges and it was all done. Plus I have the cut out designs left I can use on a layout or card.
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These character fonts are called ding bats but whoever creates them is pretty smart and generous.

Ingredients: Paper: 29th Market Street collection from My Mind's Eye

Ink: Baja Breeze from Stampn' Up!

Font: Floralia from dafont.com

Bargain Shopping

Next November I'm going to have to remember to save more of my scrapbooking budget for the Thanksgiving weekend. Electronics, clothes and toys aren't the only things on sale this holiday weekend. There are deals for us paper addicts, too. And best of all, you don't have to get up at 3:00 in the morning to snag them.

Check out AddictedtoScrapbooking.com. They are having a sale through Monday, Nov 30. I picked up a great deal on a paper pack and some embellishments. I'm most excited about an adorable Valentine set I have coming from Hampton Art. It is just so cute; can't wait to use it.

Inspired by What???

This card was actually inspired by a dog sweater. Yep, a doggie. I was taking a walk in the park the other day and passed a woman walking her small dog dressed in a cute little multi-colored sweater. I only got a glance but I saw some red and lighter shades of blue in the narrow stripes of the sweater. I thought those colors would make a great background for a card. (I really wanted to see the sweater closer but resisted the urge to turn around a follow a dog.)

I raided my scrap cardstock bin which is getting so full the lid won't close. Also, getting a workout were several pairs of decorative scissors I hardly ever use. The chipboard snowflake is from Stampin' Up! and is sponged in white craft ink.

Look around. Apparently, you can find inspiration anywhere.

Ingredients: Stamps: Define Your Life by Stampin' Up!

Ink: Versamark, Whisper White

Embossing powder in white and chipboard also by SU!

The Supervisor

I took quite a few photos on our non-traditional holiday. After our meal (beef, not turkey), we took a hike in a local park. It was a pretty day for November in NC - about 60 degrees was the forecast. We followed hilly trails so felt very justified in dining on pumpkin pie for Lenny and ice cream for me when we returned.

The photo above is probably my favorite. The subject is traditional for Thanksgiving - making sure you get a big enough slice of the pie. My parents came over late in the afternoon full from their own meal out (they really do love to eat out). So they wanted to take their pie with them. Lenny is cutting their pieces with lots of supervision from his mother-in-law. He's used to it. Glad the camera was handy.

This morning I finished my "Home for Christmas" cards with a couple more arrangements. In this one, I needed something to balance the design so I used a pine needle design stamp from Inkadinkado stamping in Old Olive on Old Olive cardstock. Just enough.

The tags were cut with the Cricut and I can't get enough of that baking twine from Martha Stewart. It comes in a package of 2 spools each of brown/white, green/white and red/white.

Other ingredients: Stampin' Up! DSP in Real Red, Cardstock in Kraft and Chocolate Chip

Old Olive ribbon from SU!'s Holiday Mini catalog.