True Scrap SSC236

Being away for the holidays, I still have to drag supplies with me and play with paper!  I have downsized my travel stash quite a bit though, and am down to only 2 small totes.  So I'm limited in my choices.
I made this card following Stamping 411's sketch challenge using almost exclusively scraps.


There are some sneak peeks here!  The DSP, Everyday Enchantment, is my new favorite.
The die cut is the large doily from the Spring Mini.
Matching brad & DSP are Sale-A-Bration scores!  As well as the stamp in the center, Fresh Vintage.  Starts January 24...get 'em free with a $50 purchase!


I rolled a handful of scrap punches from the triple doily punch into cones, secured them with a bit of Sticky Strip, and made a medallion out of them. The doily border is a scrap from when I cut the middle out for another project.  Nothing has to go to waste!  I secured them to the card with Two-Way Glue.  Added a  little bit of Vanilla Seam Binding Ribbon and stamped tags from Fabulous Phrases. 
Here is my scrap stash...


I love going through it and placing different scraps around a card base. It's a great springboard for ideas.

What do you think of my True Scrap medallion? :)



Here's the sketch:


SUPPLIES:
CARDSTOCK: Very Vanilla, Lucky Limeade, Confetti White
DSP:  Everyday Enchantment
STAMPS:  Fresh Vintage (Sale-A-Bration 125117)
ACCESSORIES:  Very Vanilla Seam Binding ribbon, Paper Doily Large Sizzlits Die, Triple Doily Layer Punch, Tag punch, Everyday Enchantment ribbon & brad pack

Have a blessed & creative day! Erika. www.erikaclark.stampinup.net

A Sprinkle of Love

Here's a versative sneek-peek set coming out in January's Sale-A-Bration.  It's bold and graphic, and so easy to love!

Now, do you ever set out to do a particular thing to a card, and mess it up?  But it turns out cute and you surprise yourself at the creative talents you didn't even KNOW you had?!!  Yah, that's what I did with the scalloped border at the bottom.  I thought I had it set so the scallops would line up perfectly, but I had it wrong. But it was exactly a half scallop off, so it looks right :D

I used the striped embossing folder for just the middle black square for added texture.
Carried the scalloping through top to bottom.
The stamp set is new for Sale-A-Bration, called Sprinkled Expressions.  So cute and easy to use, requires no coloring or fussiness.
The brad and organdy ribbon, and the DSP are also Sale-A-Bration, Everyday Elegance. 
The ribbon is easy to layer and super shiny, it really adds a nice punch.





I took on this week's Stampin' Up Only Challenge #35, Feeling Punchy.  Since I'm away from home this week, I only took a handful of punches, literally FIVE!  But I grabbed one and went to town anyway, and who would know?!
 
SUPPLIES:
CARDSTOCK:  Basic Black
DSP: Everyday Elegance, First Edition
STAMPS: Sprinkled Expressions
ACCESSORIES:  Organdy ribbon, Designer Brads, Scallop border punch, striped embossing folder



Have a blessed & creative day! Erika. www.erikaclark.stampinup.net

Nothing Says LOVE Like Sparkly Things

Diamonds are a girl's best friend, but in a pinch, rhinestone bling & fresh new SU supplies will do just fine!

This week's Hand Stamped Sentiments challenge just made my heart flutter! All my favorite colors here-pink, blue, kraft.




I used a new Spring Mini stamp set, P.S. I Love You. The Multi-heart stamp is the centerpiece in VersaMark, surrounded by varying sizes of Basic Rhinestones.
New pleated ribbon in Blushing Bride.
Pretty little hat pin accent.
And that handful of bling!




For the border, I used the mat pack to stitch around the perimeter, then the Simply Scored tool to score one border line, then distressed the edges.





SUPPLIES:
CARDSTOCK: Crumb Cake, Pool Party
STAMPS:  P.S.I Love You (Spring Mini)
INK:  Versamark, Soft Suede
ACCESSORIES:  Mat Pack, Basic Rhinestones, Pleated Ribbon (Blushing Bride - Spring Mini), Hat Pin (Spring Mini), Distressing Kit, Dimensionals


Have a blessed & creative day! Erika. www.erikaclark.stampinup.net

Get Well, My Friend! {sneak peeks}

Now that Christmas is over, I find myself wandering aimlessly through Craftland.  No more gifts to make? Christmas cards in red, green, Pool Party? Punched gift tags? *sigh*

Okay, okay! Four months of Christmas projects are enough, I hear you.
On to the Spring Occasions Mini and Sale-A-Bration peeks, then!

Here's a sweet little Get Well card I made with a shabby chic theme in mind. I adore the new DSP available in the new mini, this one is from Attic Boutique. Just the right amount of vintage, but with some gorgeous brights mixed in...my fave Pool Party, super bright Poppy Parade, and Daffodil Delight to get you in the mood for that Spring thaw.



I used the new Framelits Labels dies as a backdrop for the teacups (Tea Shoppe). Double stamped the center teacup and popped it out, then filled it with pansies from the same collection. They're watercolored with Stampin' Write Markers onto Watercolor Paper. This allows me to play around with the blending and fussy-cutting, since this paper is thick and pliable. I painted the edges of the flowers with Champagne Mist Shimmer Paint (a must have), as well as detail on the outer teacups. I stamped and cut three sets of the pansy stamp, cut and layered them into a pretty bouquet. Should lift the spirits of the recipient!
Each layer is Distressed, Sponged, Spritzed, and Rolled.
Finished off with a double layer of ribbon, and a Mini Vintage Tag stamped with the word "friend" from Tea Shoppe.



I used these two wonderful challenges as a springboard for my card...




SUPPLY LIST:
CARDSTOCK: Sahara Sand, Soft Suede, Pool Party, Very Vanilla
DSP: Attic Boutique (Spring Mini)
STAMPS: Tea Shoppe (Spring Mini), Perfectly Penned (Holiday Mini)
INK: Pool Party, Soft Suede, Crumb Cake, Calypso Coral, Pretty in Pink
ACCESSORIES: Framelits Labels Collection (Spring Mini), Seam Binding Ribbon (Pool Party), Organdy Ribbon (Calypso Coral - Sale-A-Bration), Mini Vintage Tag, Shimmer Paint, Watercolor paper, Color Spritzing Tool, Distressing Kit, Stampin' Dimensionals
Have a blessed & creative day! Erika. www.erikaclark.stampinup.net

 

A Blessed Christmas to You and Yours!

I wish you a Very Merry and Blessed Christmas!
Thank you for sharing your time with me this holiday season, and all through the year. 
I truly enjoy our mutual love of papercrafting, and believe it makes our lives more meaningful.
I'm so excited for Jesus' birthday, I can hardly wait :)
Please relax and reflect, don't overwork yourself, and record memories to enjoy later!

Much love,
Erika

Cookie Swap Inspiration

I attended a fun and festive cookie swap at my upline, Sherahl's house last night. Thought I'd share all the beautiful cookie packaging, incase you need some ideas (like I did yesterday morning)!

This one is mine.
It's a box made with the Simply Scored tool.
8x8 square of CS, score @ 2.5" all around. Fold. Assemble. Embellish.
Mine features some brand new pleated ribbon around the top, available Jan 3 from SU! Four Frames, glimmer paper, Winter Felt embellishment, jingle bell, Pear Pizzazz seam binding ribbon, Letters To Santa DSP around the middle.
I made the box to reuse, just tuck another little gift in and regive!

I used the Cupcake Inspiration Challenge for the colors & shape of this box.  Here's the inspiration photo:

And here's me!



This one is JoAnn's. She made the most beautiful, sparkling cookies to show off in the mason jar.



This is Wendy's. Gift card holder! Yay! I'll be regifting this little beauty. The cookies are already gone. Peanut Butter Kisses don't have a snowball's chance near me.



Betsy made some beautiful embossed tags. Yummy chocolate chippers too.



Cute SU single stamp puts it together in a snap.



Sherahl's packaging is warm & inviting. Felt. Ribbon. Yummy cake box cookies. My son, CJ, voted these the most delicious. They have Heath bars crushed up in them.



Pretty, pretty tag. A little bling. Cute, colorful bag. :)



Jaime made a very creative ornament punch art tag, mounted on glimmer paper. I snipped that one off to save too!



Hope you enjoyed!

Have a blessed & creative day! Erika. www.erikaclark.stampinup.net

Bring on the Gifts, Day 2

Today's rush of gifts was for the teachers.  I am in total denial, but no, it's true.  Friday was the last day of school, and I'll have my kiddies with me for the REST OF THE YEAR.
Preparing.
Cooking.
Shopping.
Crafting.
Ah, well!  At least I won't have to pack lunches.

Here are some gifts I put together for the teachers.



This is a shadow box with a Christmas tree, and nested among its little boughs are all the students' fingerprints made into little reindeer!  Awwww!


They pressed their fingers into a little acrylic brown paint, pressed them onto a punched scallop circle, hand drew antlers and eyes, and glued on a tiny pom pom nose.  Each one shows their personalities, the big splotchers and the tiny gentle prints.  They're 2nd graders.

The teacher loved it!  I wish I had one for myself!


The star on top of the tree is one of my late grandmother's vintage rhinestone pins, hot glued to the top.


They actually made two at the same time, and I made the second ones into ornaments for them to take home and share with their parents.  Red glimmer paper and white satin ribbon.  (Cased from the very talented Dawn Rapsas.)
The dear deer below belongs to my very own Ryan <3  Love!!!

I also made a couple blocks of layered peppermint soap.They made easy and fun gifts, and I think they make a nice presentation!

 These bath gifts were made one evening with my crafty sister JoAnn. 
We made these totally cute and sparkly bath fizzies too! 
They're easy and smell DIVINE.
Here's the quick recipe:  1 C. Epsom Salts, 1T Water, couple drops of lavender essential oil.  Mix, color with food coloring, and press into candy forms, or silicone forms.

 I placed them in a cello bag, punched a couple of layers of glimmer paper and stamped a gingerbread man from Bingo Bits, tied on with skinny ribbons, and these little guys were ready for giving!

Have a blessed & creative day! Erika. www.erikaclark.stampinup.net

Coming Soon!!! SCORED! With Ustamp With Dawn and Friends!

I'm excited to announce a wonderful upcoming event chock full of world-class tutorials.  They are all Stampin' Up! and they all feature the fabulous Simply Scored Tool!  Simply Scored is HOT and NEW, and you will be an absolute pro when you see what Dawn and Friends has in store for you!

I'm back for my third round as a designer, and I am working hard on a project that I hope will delight.  I know all of the designers are putting together breathtaking crafts, cards, and gifts.



If you're interested in joining this event, with blog posts at least twice daily, chat rooms, gallery, swaps, and much more, click here to visit the main site and learn all about it.

3D Spinner Ornaments

At my last workshop we made these clever ornaments. They go together so easily that even my boys made them!



This one uses Deck the Halls DSP.



This one is a softer combo, using BoBunny paper with SU trim.



The centerpiece is glimmer paper, 2 punches of it from the decorative label punch, glued back to back. A piece of satin ribbon. And a sentiment from Bells & Boughs, inked with Stampin' Write Markers and sponged around the edges.



I've turned out a bunch of them! I think they'd look great in different sizes hanging from a window pane or your ceiling.

I learned how to make them by a random search, but there's a good downloadable tutorial on Ustamp With Dawn & Friends Up On the Rooftop Blog Hop. She put a bunch together to make a really large ornament. Pretty!!!

Have a blessed & creative day! Erika. www.erikaclark.stampinup.net

Bring on the Gifts!

The next few posts will highlight all the crafty gifts that my neighbor JoAnn & I are whipping up for the ones we love! We've been buying, planning & pinning for weeks, and we're proud to say we are putting together some cute projects.




This is a pair of handmade earrings made of Stampin' Up! jingle bells strung together with jump rings onto silver fish hook style earrings. Each earring has 4 bells, and one one each is glittered with red & silver Galaxy Glitter.




I hooked them onto a handmade burlap sachet. To make the sachet, simply cut out a long rectangle of burlap, about 3-1/2" wide by 7" long. I used pinking shears. Then fold in 1/2 and cut to make 2 even squares. Stitch them around 3 sides with a zig zag stitch. While still under the foot of the sewing machine, stuff a little filler scented with lavender oil into the pocket. Stitch the 4th side, and voila! You have a cute little rustic pillow!




I ripped a long length of Deck the Halls Designer Fabric and then stitched that across two sides, then formed a bow on the front. Stamped "merry" from pennant parade onto a tiny tag & wrapped that onto the bow.




I tucked it into a SU Kraft Box. Keeping it simple!
I layered Real Red Grosgrain Ribbon with a torn strip of burlap to hint at the contents, and put a sparkly tag of glimmer paper, organza ribbon, and a sentiment from Bells & Boughs on top.




I plan to make a bunch of these for friends. I hope they know I care for them extra because i made something myself for them ;)

I'm playing along with Hand Stamped Sentiments HSS97, An Old Fashioned Christmas.  Should be a great challenge, since I know so many people are getting back to homespun goodness.  Give it a try!

Have a blessed & creative day! Erika. www.erikaclark.stampinup.net