Quick and Easy Bookmark Idea

The new SU Idea Book & Catalogs arrived a couple weeks ago and my girls who pre-ordered catalogs all received this little corner bookmark along with their new catty :) ! It's an idea that SU gave us in the latest demonstrator magazine. Super quick and easy project and an extra special touch you can add anytime you give a book as a gift. I used the new Jumbled Alphhabet set which has 2 varieties of each letter, one small and one larger. As you can see, there is quite a variety of fonts and that's what I like about this set....the variety. The larger letters punch out with the 1 1/4" circle punch and layer up nicely with the 1 3/8" circle punch. Of course, I also used some of the new in-color cardstock and Designer paper (Rich Razzleberry, Melon Mambo & Razzleberry Lemonaide DSP).

The finished size of my bookmarks is 2", but you can make them any size you'd like. Just start with a square and score it down the center, turn and score it down the center again. I started with a 4" square of melon mambo cardstock....scored it at 2", turned it and scored again at 2". Then, cut one of the scored squares out. Here's how it looks (easy schmeezy...): Then you just fold your score lines and adhere the back flap to the middle flap. Those flaps that are adhered together will be the "back" of your bookmark, creating a little "pocket" between the back flaps and the front flap. (fyi- I used Zip Dry Paper Glue for this entire project...great stuff, economical, strong bond and quick dry and it does not wrinkle your paper.) You may need to do a little trimming if you can see any edges of the back flaps from the front. Here's how it looks just before you fold over the back flap and adhere it to the middle flap:After that I just layered up some cardstock and DP. Here's another bookmark I made using the Designer Label punch, one of the smaller letters from the Jumbled Alphabet set, and the 3/4" and 1" circle punches.
I used Melon Mambo Classic Ink for all the monogramed letters.

Here's what the bookmark looks like as it marks one of my favorite pages (pg 162) in the catalog...featuring the new Designer Papers :) ~




We normally post our Divine Design projects on the 9th of each month, but this month it will be the 16th (Thursday) ! Thanks for stopping by, hope you enjoy the bookmark idea. See you Thursday :) !!!

Hooray for Administrative Assistants!

Today is Administrative Assistant's Day ... and if that's you, well I hope your day is extra special and you are recognized for your hard work and contribution to making your office run smoothly! I know a couple of very special girls who are being honored today and they received these SU gift certificates from their grateful office-mates. Have a great day Sheri & Carly ... you guys are the BEST :) !!

Gift certificates make great gifts and I'm always trying to think of fun new ways to present them. These were super easy. I used Parisian Breeze Specialty Paper for the for the sleeve, so it has a little texture and it's pretty inside and out :) ! I cut that at 6 1/2 x 3 1/2 and scored at 3" & 6". Then you just adhere it together (I used sticky strip). I used my 1 3/8" circle punch to create a little notch at the top.

This is what it looks like before you add the sticky strip to the inside of the flap and bottom edge ~
I printed the GCs on the computer (whisper white card stock) then layered 'em up with some chocolate chip card stock. Then I pulled out my Owl Together Now stamp set and stamped a little hoot-hoot hooray and a flower with chocolate chip ink. My large oval punch layered up beautifully with the new Scallop oval punch from the Occasions Mini catalog. A little 5/8" striped baja breeze gg ribbon tied with some 1/4" chocolate chip gg ribbon and the little gift certificates were ready to go!

The finished size of the sleeve is 3 x 3 1/2" and the certificates are about 3 1/8 x 2 3/4".

Several of you have asked how Miss Chloe is doing. Thanks for asking...you guys are so sweet. I know many of you prayed along with us during those first difficult weeks of her life and I just can't thank you enough for those prayers. Other than a few digestion issues (somewhat expected following major abdominal surgery), she's doing amazingly well. She just turned 4 months old last week and weighs about 10 1/2 pounds. You'd never know that this little girl has undergone 2 major surgeries. I'd like to say that she's just a normal little baby, but ummm....she's our miracle baby, so that word normal just doesn't seem to fit :) ! Spring has sprung in Oregon and we've had bright, sunny weather this week. Katie sent me this photo of Chloe trying out her new sunglasses ~ Pretty stylin', don't you think? From the looks of this photo, most of that 10 1/2 pounds is being stored in her chubby little cheeks and chin :) !!!

Thanks for stopping by! Thought for today ~ smile every chance you get & see how many smiles you get back :) ... I bet you get a ton !!

Easy Gift Card Holders

It's getting to be that time of year when quick easy gift ideas are appreciated...so I'm doing a little re-run of a project I created last year. It's a classic, simple, super easy little Gift Card Holder and it's one of those projects I use all year long. I thought you might enjoy it too!! You can find my tutorial right HERE! I start with the gift card when deciding which colors and stamps to use. I think it's fun to make it all match :) ! This first one is a gingerbread theme. Here's the inside ~ Here's a gift card I made with the Holiday Lineup stamp set~Instead of adding Eyelets, I just wrapped the Silver Stretch Cord around the finished/closed gift card, tied a knot and secured it under the image piece. Here's a peek at the inside ~As I was reading through my tutorial, I thought of one step that might need to be clarified. When you're finishing your gift card (step #8), you'll close the gift card all the way up, then wrap the cord (or ribbon) around the gift card. The eyeletes (or image piece) just anchor it into place. Also, you'll want to pull the stretch cord just a little bit tight, so there's enough tension to hold the gift card closed, but leave enough slack, so it can be opened too. That part is really easy....just a little tricky to explain.

If you prefer to use ribbon, you can do that too! Your gift card holder becomes a little package that gets untied to reveal the gift :) !! Here's a special treat that would be fun to give AND fun to receive!! I used the Sweet Treats set from Our Craft Lounge :) ~ And here's how it looks when partially opened ~ And all the way open, to reveal a special treat...a yummy Starbucks giftcard! Speaking of yummy, OCL is now carrying some specially packaged assortments of Copic Markers. You can check it out right HERE!And my last gift card idea ... create YOUR OWN customized gift card ~I made a Stampin Up gift certificate, but you could make custom gift cards for any occasion. A "Dinner & Movie" certificate for the hubby. "One free carwash", "Dog wash" or "Babysitting" certificate. A "Mommy & Me Afternoon" certificate for the kids. Lots of possibilities. To make your gift card, just cut a piece of cardstock 2 1/4 x 3 1/2 & use your 3/16" corner rounder to punch all 4 corners. I printed mine on the computer. Here's what the outside of that gift card holder looks like (I used the Holiday Lineup set, again!)~

Whew...this is oneLONG post, but I hope it was helpful. Thanks for stopping by, let me know if you have any questions and HAVE an AWESOME weekend!!

Supplies for the Gingerbread gift card ~ Stamps: Deer Friend (hostess level-2) & Best Yet (hostess level-1) Paper: Old Olive, Real Red, Whisper White, Ski Slopes, DP Ink: Chocolate Chip Tools/Accessories: 3/16" corner rounder, Slit Punch, 1 1/4, 1 3/8 & Scallop Circle punches, Silver Stretch Cord, Silver Eyelets, Cropadile, Red rick-rack, Sakura clear glaze pen, Spica red glitter pen

Supplies for the Reindeer card ~ Stamps: Holiday Lineup Paper: Garden Green, Real Red, Neenah White, Ski Slopes DP Ink: Ranger Distressed Soot Tools/Accessories: Scallop Edge Punch, Slit punch, Silver Stretch Cord, Copic Markers, Spica Clear & Red glitter pens, Sakura clear glaze pen, Red rick-rack

Supplies for the Sweet Treat card ~ Stamps: Sweet Treats (Our Craft Lounge) Paper: Pretty in Pink, Chocolate Chip, Neenah White, Sweet Always DP Ink: Ranger Distressed Soot Tools/Accessories: Slit Punch, 3/16" corner rounder punch, 1/4 & 1/2" circle punches, Nesties circle & oval/scallops with CB, Copic Markers, Spica Pink & Clear glitter pen, Crystal Effects, Dazling Diamonds glitter, Sakura clear glaze pen, Pink Taffeta ribbon

Supplies for the Snowman card ~ Stamps: Holiday Line-up, Merry & Bright Paper: Baja Breeze, Real Red, Neenah White, Ski Slopes DP Ink: Ranger Distressed Soot Tools/Accessories: Slit Punch, 1 1/4, 1 3/8 & Scallop Circle Punches, Silver Stretch Cord, Silver Eyelets, Cropadile, Copic Markers, Spica glitter pens, Sakura clear glaze pen

Desk Calendar Tutorial

I'm so excited to share this tutorial with you today! My good friend, Nancy Littrell, introduced me to this project and I'm SO glad she did!! She has a great photo of all 4 sides of her calendar HERE in her SCS gallery. My calendar has Winter & Spring on the outside, Summer and Fall on the inside. When you're ready, you just untie the ribbon, flip the inside to the outside, re-tie the ribbon and you're set for the next 6 months! This is a surprizingly easy project ... one that we made at my workshop this month. All supplies are SU with the exception of a Sakura clear glaze pen & Spica clear glitter pen that I used to accent the image pieces and the calendar, which was printed on the computer. I used the Tree For All Seasons set to represent each season. It's currently on the dormant list, so you won't find it in your catalog, but it IS available and you can see it online right HERE. Before moving on to the tutorial, I want to show you all 4 sides of my calendar and a close-up of the image pieces that represent each season.

Winter (Riding Hood Red with Holiday Treasures DP)~Spring (Pink Pirouette with Pink Pirouette Patterns DSP) ~Summer (Old Olive with HolidayTreasures DP) ~

Fall (Pumpkin Pie with Pumpkin Pie Patterns DSP) ~ Okay, are you ready to make one of your own? Here's how :)

Supplies

Cutting/Scoring tool
Basic Black & Whisper White cardstock

4 Colors of card stock with coordinating DP
Tree for all Seasons Stamp set

Black Stazon Ink

SU Markers & Sakura clear Glaze pen
1 3/8" Circle Punch & Scallop Circle Punch
Cropadile

Black Gingham Ribbon

Roll-on adhesive & Dimensionals

Step 1: Print a Yearly Calendar...go to:
http://www.printfree.com/Calendar_files/Yearly/2009printable.htm
Right click on the calendar & Select All
Right Click on the calendar & select Print Preview
Go to the “Shrink Down” drop down menu, select 80%
Print onto Whisper White Cardstock

Step 2: Cut, Punch & Score the following pieces:
Cut Black Cardstock 5 ½ x 8 ½” and Score at 4 ¼ “ ( just like you would for a cardbase)

Cut Black Cardstock (4) 5 x 1 5/8”

Punch (4) Black Scallops

Cut 4 pieces of *Cardstock & coordinating Designer Paper:
Cardstock: 5 ¼ x 4”
Designer Paper: 5 x 2 ½”

Cut Calendar strips (finished size should be 4 7/8 x 1 ½” each)

For each “season” complete the following steps:

Adhere DP onto the coordinating colored cardstock.
Adhere the black matting to the white calendar strip.
Adhere the matted calendar strip to the colored cardstock (the bottom edge of the black mat should be approx 3/8” from the bottom of the colored cardstock..to allow room for holes that will be punched).
Adhere Black Scallop above calendar strip.
Stamp & color image. Punch out with 1 3/8” circle punch.
Place (2) dimensionals behind the image circle & adhere to the black scallop

Next, you'll want to think about which 2 seasons you want on the outside and on the inside of your calendar then adhere each onto the black calendar base. For instance, you could put Spring & Summer on the outside, Fall & Winter on the inside. Just make sure your seasons go in sequence. If your layers are heavy, you may want to consider using sticky strip or whatever strong adhesive you prefer. For my calendar, my standard monohesive worked just great! I made this one about a month ago and it's still in perfect shape...no signs of lifting.

Use your Cropadile to punch two 1/8” holes (for the ribbon) on the bottom edge of both sides of the calendar (approx 3/8” up from the bottom edge). Thread gingham ribbon through and tie in a loose knot or bow.

Wasn't that easy? This is basically just a standard black card base with layers on all 4 sides and it fits inside a standard SU Medium or Translucent Envelope! You can customize this SO many ways for gifts. Just look through your stamps and papers & I bet you'll find something that would work for each season. Add Scriptures, Quotes, family Photos...the possibilities are endless! If you have any questions about the project, just email me (youcanstamp@hotmail.com).

I'm headed out of town for the Thanksgiving Holiday. Happy & Blessed Thanksgiving to my US friends and a Wonderful week to my friends abroad! HUGS to all :) !!!

Scor-Pal Gift Bag

I have a fun and easy Designer Paper Gift Bag Tutorial to share with you today. I can't take credit for this great bag design...I did modify the size and make a few other minor changes, but the basic design that I started with was designed by Angela Sylvester and featured in SU's On Stage magazine recently. Her bag was a full sized bag, made with two 12x12 sheets of DP, my bag is a smaller version, made with two 6x6" sheets of DP. Here are a couple examples of bags I've made ~ The first bag features the beautiful Bella Rose DP. I dressed the bag up with a few fun little accessories....a pocket made with Vellum cardstock & the SU 5 in 1 mini envelope template and made a tiny coordinating 1 1/2 x 2" card that fits inside the envelope. I cut 2 strips of 3 1/2 x 2" Riding Hood Red cardstock and punched one edge with the Scallop Edge Punch to create the scallop trim at the top of the bag. I used the Horizontal Slot punch to punch the holes for the 1/4" white gg ribbon and adhere those ribbons in place before covering them with the scallop strips.

This bag features the "I Care" DP available at Our Daily Bread Designs this month. Along with the HOPE stamp set, there are several wonderful Breast Cancer awareness papers and accessories available right HERE, including that cute little pink ribbon eyelet : ) !! And HERE is the real star of this gift bag project...the Scor-pal (and the Scor-mat)~There are a lot of products and tools available and sometimes it's hard to know which ones are really worth having. I really like my Scor-pal. I love that the it makes straight score lines without tearing or fraying papers (even delicate Designer papers) plus I can make multiple score lines without moving my paper. I just got the new Scor-mat that fits right inside the Scor-pal and I'm enjoying it too, it's a wonderful companion piece to the Scor-pal!! When I'm done scoring, I just pop the mat it and finish my project. You can read more about both of these products right HERE.

Alrighty then...let's get on with that tutorial! This is one of those projects that's actually really easy to do, but the first time you try it, might be a little confusing. I recommend making your first one with computer paper, just so you don't waste your good DP (like I did with a couple of silly mistakes). I also recommend reading through the all the steps before getting started . That's something I'm not always good about doing, but in this case, I think it will help you quite a bit. The directions are long, but his project is one that can be completed pretty quickly.

Finished size for mini gift bag is 3 1/2" wide, 4 1/2" tall & 2" deep

Supplies ~ Scor-pal, 2 sheets of 6 x 6 Designer Paper, Sticky Strip adhesive, Roll-on adhesive, 24" of 1/4" ribbon, Cropadile, Eyelets

Step 1: Score each 6 x 6 square of DP at 1/2", 1 1/2" & 2 1/2". Score on the side of DP that you want to be the outside of the bag. Turn and score at 1 1/2". (see photo below...I started with regular computer paper and drew in the score lines so you could see them more clearly) ~ Step 2: Place a light mark, 1" in from each end of the rectangle at the lower right side of the square. Repeat this step for the other square of DP. (see photo below...I made the mark with blue marker. I flipped the paper, so the bottom edge is up against the top of the Scor-pal...it's upside down).

Step 3: Cut the small rectangle out (in the photo above, this is on the upper right corner) and Cut into the 2 1/2" vertical score line, from the bottom edge to the 1 1/2" horizontal score line. This was a little hard to explain (should have taken a photo) but easy to see if you scroll down to the 3rd photo below.

Step 4: Score from each of the 1" marks to the corner. You can do this by lining up the 1" mark and the corner with any of the score lines on the Scor-pal (as seen in the photo below..you can see the first score line drawn in pink). This will create the flap on the bottom of the bag. (please excuse the wrinkled paper...remember that puppy we got last week, well she is adorable, but in the middle of everything, including this!).

This is how each of the 6 x 6 sheets should look at this point. You are looking at the "inside" of the bag.
Step 5: Fold all score lines as seen in the photo below. Use a little roll-on adhesive to adhere the corners of the flap down. Remember, in the photo below, you're looking at the inside of the bag.
Step 6: You are ready to begin assembling the bag. Place Sticky Strip adhesive along the 1/2" flaps (on the side of the DP that will be the outside of your bag).You can see the Sticky Strip (red) in the photo below. You are now looking at the outside of the bag~


Step 7: in the photo above, as you look at the center of the screen, where the two pieces come together, you are going to remove the backing from the sticky strip from the piece on the right and place the piece on the left on top of that strip. The photo below shows what it should look like when that step is completed ~ Step 8: Remove the backing from the other Sticky Strip and adhere that 1/2" flap under the other side of the bag...same way you did the first side.

Step 9: Fold the bottom flaps inside and use one strip of Sticky Strip to adhere the bottom of the bag together (see photo below)~

Step 10: Cut a 3 1/2 x 2" piece of cardboard for a stabalizer piece to be placed inside the bottom of the bag (just like those bags you purchase at the store!). The cardboard that comes in the SU Designer paper pack works great for this! You can place a small amount of roll-on adhesive under the cardboard and secure in place.

Step 11: Cut 2 pieces of ribbon, 12" each.

Step 12: Place marks on the top 4 corners of your gift bag. An easy way to do this is to use that Scor-pal (as seen below) to find those marks. Punch a 1/8" hole on each of those marks with your Cropadile. Place & Set Eyelets in each of the holes.

Step 13: Thread the ribbon through the Eyelets & Tie a knot behind to secure.


Here's what it looks like when it's done:

If you want to make a full-sized bag (finished size 9 1/2" tall, 8" wide and 3 1/2" deep)...here are the measurements you'll need: (2) 12 x 12 pieces of DP, Score at 1/2", 2 1/4" & 4". Turn and Score at 2 1/4". To create the bottom flap, make your mark 2" from each edge. Cardboard stabalizer piece is 3 1/2 x 7 7/8. The Scor-pal doesn't have Score marks at these intervals, so it is easier to complete a full sized bag using a different method of scoring, such as the Fiskar Cutter/Scorer. Just remember to score VERY gently on DP...otherwise it will create a cut rather than a score.

I hope you enjoy the tutorial. I kept the bag in my tutorial super simple, but you can dress it up as much or as little as you'd like...that's up to you & your imagination : ) !! Thanks for stopping by & if you have any questions about the directions, just email me :)

Happy Stamping

Nancy :)

Tic Tac Toe from Mexico

Hola, from Cabo San Lucas, where the Pacific meets the Sea of Cortes! It's be-a-utiful and sunny...great place to relax and unwind with family & friends. What a blessing it is to be here!

I only have internet for a short time, so I'm going to share this tutorial with you while I can. I'm sure tic tac toe boards have been done before, probably in a variety of ways by all you great stampers out there, but this is my first. The simplicity of this project makes is a perfect little favor for just about any holiday or event... and wouldn't this be great to tuck into the kids' duffle bags when they head off to camp? I love doing events or gifts with themes and this type of project is so easy to customize to fit just about any theme! Lots and lots possibilities. So, are you ready to make one? Here are a few basic simple instructions:

Supplies
1 ¼” & 1 3/8” Circle punches
1 ¼” & 1 3/8” Square punches
Pumpkin, Bashful, Olive & Whisper White cs
Summer Picnic dp
Olive & Pumpkin classic inkpads
Tart ‘n Tangy Stamp set
Roll on Adhesive

Cut/Stamp/Punch the following~
Cut (1) Pumpkin 4 ¾” Square
Cut (1) Bashful 4 ½” Square
Punch (9) 1 3/8” Olive Squares
Punch (9) 1 ¼” **Designer paper squares
Punch (5) 1 3/8” Olive Circles
Punch (5) 1 3/8” Pumpkin Circles
Stamp & Punch (5) Olive Apples with 1 ¼” Circle Punch
Stamp & Punch (5) Pumpkin Oranges with 1 ¼” Circle Punch

Adhere the punched 1 1/4" Squares & Circles to their 1 3/8" layers. Adhere the Bashful square onto Pumpkin square. Lay the 9 Olive/DP squares on the Bashful layer to determine proper spacing, before adhering. As pictured below, I start adhering in the upper left corner and work over and down…that seems to help with getting the spacing/placement even (helps me anyway!).

**tip ~ You can get exactly 9 squares of the same pattern if you punch all the way across your 12 x 12 sheet of paper with your 1 1/4" square punch… that will allow you to match up your pattern if you wish to (like with the stripes).

If you want to keep it really simple, your completed Tic Tac Toe board and pieces will fit nicely into a sandwich-sized zip lock baggie. Or, if you prefer, you can design a box or pouch around the board like I did in the next two examples.

You could easily use this idea to create BINGO cards or if you're feeling a bit more ambitious...how about a Checker Board?? So many possibilities, the only limit is your imagination : ) !!!

This tic-tac-toe in a box, features the Tart 'n Tangy and Short Order Alphabet sets along with more of that great Summer Picnic Designer paper. The top view ~ Here's the inside ~

And a closer look at some of the detailing on the side of the box. I used the 3/16" corner rounder for the scallops and the cropadile to create the embossed dots ~
And here's a Patriotic USA version, perfect for the upcoming 4th of July holiday! Using more of the Summer Picnic DP!It closes with velcro and has a red gingham ribbon handle. The game pieces are stored inside the red pouch.

I used the star stamp from the Wanted set and the (small) star punch~

I added brads to these game pieces, so I punched extra 1 3/8" circles and adhered them onto the back of the game piece (as pictured below) to cover the prongs and give them a nice finished look.

And that's about everything I have to say about tic tac toe boards : ) !!! It's a fun little idea and I hope you enjoy it. I used all Stampin' Up products for these projects. Don't forget...the Tart 'n Tangy set as well as the Summer Picnic DP are only available for about 10 more days...until June 30th. You can view the Occasions mini catalog online by click HERE. You can also view the entire SU Spring Summer Collectin catalog by clicking right HERE.

Because of my limited access to the internet for the next 10 days, I'll probably just sign on once more next week. That's just as well, I think I can find plenty to do here without my computer : ) ! In the meanwhile, I hope you enjoy the tic tac toe tutorial and be sure & leave a comment it you do! Several of you have left comments for the first time this past week...really great to hear from you!!! Thanks for stopping by and Have an awesome weekend!!! I hope you find a little warm happy place of your own : ) !!

Supplies for tic tac toe in a box ~ Stamp sets: Tart 'n Tangy, Short Order Alphabet Paper: Real Red, Bashful Blue, Brocade Blue, Old Olive, Whisper White, Summer Picnic DP Ink: Real Red, Old Olive & Bashful Accessories: 3/4, 1, 1 1/4, 1 3/8" circle punches, 1 1/4 & 1 3/8" square punches, Silver embossed brads from the Hodgepodge Hardware kit (Occasions mini), Ticket corner punch, 3/16" corner rounder, Cropadile, Dimensionals, silver strech cord

Supplies for Star tic tac toe pouch ~ Stamp sets: Wanted Paper: Textured Night of Navy, Real Red, Bashful Blue, Whisper White, Summer Picnic DP Ink: Real Red & Night of Navy Accessories: 1" & 1 3/8" Circle punches, 1 1/4" & 1 3/8 " Square punches, /4" circle punch, 1/16th" hole punch, 1 Silver brads & Eyelets, Star punch (small), Cropadile, red gingham ribbon, 1/4" navy gg ribbon, Scallop Circle Punch, Medium Cello bag, sticky strip