Open End Envelope

For my birthday recently, I got a wonderful gift from my friend Karen, the Martha Stewart Scoreboard.  I never thought I wanted one until I saw hers.  I always thought it would be too bulky and wouldn't fit close to my work area.  It is actually very thin and fits perfectly beside my work table.  I've made some of the envelopes based on instructions included with the board but I wanted a different size.

For a long narrow card, I created an envelope similar to Stampin' Up!'s small open end envelopes.  Banks also use this type for deposits.

To create a envelope that opens on the ends, here are the dimensions for cutting the paper and the folds:

Cut width of paper = Finished Width of Envelope x 2 + 1"
Cut length of paper = Finished Width + 2 1/2"

Example:  For an envelope 3 1/2" x 7 1/4", my paper would be cut 8" x 9 3/4"

Score the width at the finished width mark (3 1/2" in my example) and then again at two times that measurement (so 7" in my example).

Score the length at 1 1/2" from one end and 1" from the other.

Follow the video for more information on punching the edges to get a clean finish.  I used the Martha Stewart scoreboard but any type of scoring device would work.

Watch at YouTube



Paper is kraft from Papertrey ink. I used Tombow Mono glue to adhere the edges.

I'm loving this new tool.  Thanks for watching!

Embellishment Storage

Scrapbooker's Anonymous is wrapping up their monthly challenges this month!  I know, I should have talked about this sooner.  It is only hours until the challenges end!  I'm going to miss their inspiring design team and challenges!  I hope there will be something new over there.

Anyway, one last little challenge is to share scrapbook storage.  I cleaned out my embellishment drawers this weekend so I thought I'd share.  Now this isn't all of the embellishments of course.  I have my ribbons in jars and my small embellishments in a little tool storage drawer.  This is all the other stuff that I have bits and pieces of.

I keep these divided sort of by 'soft' embellishments and 'hard' ones.

My top drawer is all the soft stuff - twines, flowers, trims that don't really fit in a jar, and now my Washi tape.

And this drawer is filled with decorative brads still in packaging, my 'pretties' kit and hardware kit from Stampin' Up!  I also have some stick pins and lots of rhinestones here.  Some of those cute molded flowers are peeking through.  Now that I can actually see them, maybe I'll remember to use them again.

This bottom drawer had really gotten to be a mess so I sorted through even - gasp - threw a few things away!  I didn't get rid of anything too big - just some stickers that had sort of stuck to each other and things I knew I'd never use.

Thanks for visiting!

Pit Stop

On a road trip, he has his way of refueling... and I have mine.

What better place to stretch your legs and your budget than a scrapbooking store?!!! The only Archiver's in the state is one mile off our route to my best friends house.  If only the whole drive wasn't over 4 hours, I could see her more often - and probably be a bit broke, too.  :-) 

When I looked for lunch spots, I found my husband's favorite - Boston Market - only two miles down the road from Archiver's.  We don't have a Boston Market closer than 1 1/2 hours from our home so Lenny was delighted.

For the layout, I used the Cricut to help me cut ovals for the arrows to go through and did my own embellishments with stamp sets.

Thanks for stopping by today!  Tomorrow I have a video on making long narrow envelopes with the Martha Stewart Scoreboard - or any scoring tool.

Happy Monday!

Ingredients:  Letter Stickers from On Holiday by the Girl's Paperie; other sticker is from MME Funday

DSP:  Oliver by Basic Grey and some Stampin' Up!

Cardstock:  Sahara Sand and Riding Hood Red from Stampin' Up!

A familiar card

This one might look familiar. I used the same stamp last week with the same technique - black magic. I liked it so much, I'm using it again for a stamp class card.  This time, I've truly used black paper for the background to pick up the colors from the Basic Grey Sweet Threads collection - one of my favorites.

I can't remember where this green eyelet ribbon came from - Webster's Pages? - anyway, I threaded the pink ribbon through the little eyelet holes.

Thanks for stopping by!  Hope you have a lovely weekend.

Last weekend page and Smoothie

Yeah!  I made it and just in time to get in one more challenge for Shimelle's scrapbooking weekend last Sunday night.  (I posted this originally at Two Peas as I didn't have time to get a blog entry completed.)  This challenge was to use a 'rubbish' photo.  I also did Glitter Girl's challenge for working with a pretty, but busy, pattern paper.  My photo is out of focus.  Only I could use a self-timer on a point and shoot camera and still get a blurry photo.

Check out last week's Glitter Girl.  She shares great ideas for using bold patterns and even gives us a pdf with several sketch ideas.  I'd used this one before and liked it so much I repeated with this pretty paper from K and Company.

The flowers at the top are stamped from the Petal Pizzazz stamp set. It definitely has been well used but mostly for card.  I stamped and then coated with Crystal Effects to add some weight and shine.  The cool trim is from Webster's Pages.  I thought the colors for this layout went with the winter time frame of the photo. We were on our way out for dinner at my husband's favorite restaurant.  Unfortunately, it was our last trip there as they have closed.  Lenny told absolutely everyone about this place.  I guess word of mouth just wasn't enough. Tough times for many of our small businesses.

And speaking of food...yesterday when I posted I was off to try making a smoothie without bananas.  I'm amazed to say it turned out pretty good.  It was tasty enough to make another this morning.

My recipe is:

3/4 cut fresh strawberries, halved
1/2 cup plain yogurt
Approx 1/3 cup chopped mango (I didn't measure this, either time :-(  The mango is mainly to add body, not so much taste.
2 Tablespoons oats
1 Tablespoon honey or to taste

Place strawberries in freezer for about an hour.  Then combine first three ingredients in blender and blend til fairly smooth.  Add oats and honey and finish blending to desire consistency.

If the mango I'd managed to find was riper, I might not have needed the honey.  My husband has always loved mangos and I find them a bit too sweet.  This year, I'm looking forward to getting some from Florida in season and making up other combos.

Thanks for stopping by!

Triple task card

This simple little card fits two challenges and is one of my stamp class cards for May.  The other three projects I have for class have a lot going on so I needed something quick to wrap up the night.

I love this week's color challenge at Splitcoast stampers to use More Mustard, Pool Party and Espresso.  I subbed Papertrey Ink's Hawaiian Shores for Pool Party. It is close and matched my ribbon better.  Also, I used the sketch challenge for the week for the layout.

I'm having more TMJ troubles again after so many great months (arrgh!) so I'm off to try my hand at making a smoothie without bananas.  I love bananas but they don't love me.  Mangos have been suggested as a substitute for bananas.  I've looked at a lot of recipes and it seems people just throw whatever they have on hand into the blender.  We'll see...

Anyway, thanks for stopping by.

Ingredients:  DSP:  Memoir collection by Studio Calico; October Afternoon
Stamps: All Holidays and Polka Dot Punches from Stampin' Up!

Versamarker shading

To create the shading for this rose, I went over the entire image with the large tip of the Versamarker.  After drying, I went over some areas with the fine point and brushed other areas with just a touch of clear ink from the large tip of the Versamarker.  This double coating gave me a nice subtle tone-on-tone from one marker.  (It is more obvious in person.)

This is the Fifth Avenue Floral stamp set.  Yesterday I saw the discontinued list from Stampin' Up! and this one is on it :-(   It has been around 3 or 4 years now but I still love it.  If you love it and don't have it, time is running out.  You can see the list of retiring sets at Stampin' Pretty's blog.  I believe the new catalog is coming out June 1 this year - a month year.  So I would assume that we only have until May 31 to get anything we want out of the old one.  Accessories are usually available while supplies last.

Thanks for stopping by!  I'm working on some new videos and hope to have some up next week.

Ingredients:  Stamps: Fifth Avenue Floral by SU!
Cardstock:  Rose Red, Sahara Sand

Hangin' Out - Challenge

With only a few hours to go, this will probably be the last challenge I get to complete before the submission cut-off from Shimelle's scrapbooking weekend (actually, last weekend but she held the prize options open until today.)

The challenge was to use a stamp you rarely exercised.  For me that is an alpha stamp.  I knew better when I bought alphas, but sometimes I just couldn't resist the cute font.  I'll stamp my titles, I'd say to myself and rarely do.  So I selected Fun Alphabet from Inkadinkado.  It is a cute set, the letters are a bit large.  They are perfect for coloring.

As usual, I used the photos for my color scheme and chose 4 papers to do a blocked border.  Along the way I stumbled across this new paper from Basic Grey Plumera collection with the little hexagons. I'd originally bought it for the lavender 'b' side. It had just the right colors I'd already selected.  What are the chances?  I used many different Stampin' Up! markers to color in the stamped letters.

My page celebrates the relaxation of just hanging around the house with friends.  Their dog was caught napping on my yoga mat which I'd brought along to do my physical therapy exercises.  She looks so Zen.

Even though the time is almost up, I do plan to do one more challenge from Shimelle - the one where you scrap a lousy photo.  I have one of Lenny and I that I did with the self-timer that is really out of focus.  Only I could take a self-timed photo and get it out of focus on a point and shoot camera.  :-)

Anyway, hope you have a nice Sunday.  Thanks for stopping by!