Paper Sweeties May Inspiration Challenge #30 - 'Celebrate Mom'

Thursday, April 30, 2015

Mother's Day is almost here, and the Paper Sweeties Inspiration Challenge this month is just what you need to get cards made for the special moms, grandmas, wives, daughters, aunts, and friends in your life. So, let's Celebrate Mom!

I used the Fancy Monograms stamp set to emboss "MOM" on the banner, which I cut from the Sweeties Wagon Sweet Cuts die set. The individual letters and the layer behind the bow were cut with dies in the Beautiful Little Wishes Sweet Cuts die set. I heat embossed flowers from the Pretty Posies stamp set onto the music paper and added Pearl Pen pearls to the centers, as well as several places on the card. I used Inka Gold to a die cut strip of kraft cs to create a faux metal strip and distressed it with Distress Embossing Powder and some chunky glitter. The bow is made with Cupcake Seam Binding and Cotton Candy Twine, both of which are available in the Paper Sweeties Boutique!



The graphic for the challenge is so delicate and feminine. I love all the soft colors. Unfortunately, I couldn't seem to get the orange tone out of the photo of my card without losing the magenta, so in real life, it's a much softer card.
The inside of the card is much closer to what the card looks like in person. The sentiments came from the So Sweet of You stamp set. I stamped them more than once to get a shadow effect.

Be sure to visit my Teamies' blogs for more "Mom" inspiration:

Cheryl Lea <– you are here!
May Guest Designer:  Dawn

I hope you'll join us in the Celebrate Mom Challenge this month at Paper Sweeties! 

Thanks for stopping by, and have a wonderful weekend!

I'm entering this card in the following challenges:
Power Poppy Pop of Pastel Challenge
Simon Says Stamp Monday Challenge: Anything Goes
Simon Says Stamp Wednesday Challenge: Anything Goes
613 Avenue Create Challenge #121: Anything Goes
Cupcake Inspirations Challenge 307: Spring

~Hugs,

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Bookbinding Bootcamp at Smokey Road Press

Sunday, April 26, 2015

A couple of weeks ago I mentioned that I had taken a bookbinding class. It was with Margot Ecke at Smokey Road Press in Athens, Georgia. I finally got around to taking photos of the projects we worked on and wanted to share them with you. If you are interested in bookbinding, I'll have information about the class at the end of the post. (Picture heavy post)

This is the set we made. We learned to make five different bindings as well as the box! As is usually the case with my photos, some of the colors are off (the red is a deeper shade), but it's pretty close. We went on a little field trip to buy our papers, so everyone's set looks different. 
The black book on the far right of the set was bound with a Butterfly Stitch and the cover is plain black, so I didn't take a picture of it. The next book (the purple one--it is NOT hot pink!) was bound with a Coptic Stitch, and it has two mica windows in the front cover.
I love how the stitches come out of the edge of the covers rather than wrapping around it. And, look at how neat those chain stitches are! Even though I had made journals with a Coptic Stitch before, I was never completely pleased with how the stitches looked when I was finished. Now, I know the secret! ;)
Here's a look at the spine with the book open. Coptic stitch is one of the easiest stitches, and is my favorite of the bindings we did in class. It's neat, sturdy, and downright purty!!! ;)

Here is a close up pic of the mica windows that are on the cover of the Coptic Stitch book. I stamped the owl, from the Paper Sweeties Tree of Life Add On: Spring stamp set, onto a piece of dictionary text paper, colored it with Copics, cut it with the matching die, then coated it with UTEE and heat embossed it. The other window is the same text paper and it has microbeads and flaky glitter in it. The windows are covered in tiny pieces of mica. This could be done with acetate, but mica is far superior in every way.
The green book is bound with a Historic Longstitch. The button was a plain wooden button and I used Inka Gold to color it.
The brown book is a Historic Longstitch Variation. I have wanted to learn to do decorative stitching on spines for awhile, and it turns out that it's not nearly as difficult as I thought it would be. It just takes concentration.
The red book is one of my favorites. The paper has gold leaves embossed all over it, and I was able to find an area where I could have just one leaf right in the middle of the cover. It is bound with a Longstitch. Again, not as hard as I thought it would be. Don't get me wrong, though--none of these books were what I would call easy, but they are totally doable, even if you've never bound a book in your life!

My week at Margot's Bookbinding Bootcamp was AMAZING! OMGosh, if you have ever wanted to learn to bind books, this is the class for you! Smokey Road Press is a letterpress, binding, and design studio (there are letterpress classes, too!), so everything you need is right there at your fingertips, and you don't need any bookbinding experience at all. Take a minute to read Margot's resume, and you'll see that she is quite accomplished in her field, and teaches all over the country, but what it doesn't tell you, is that she is also a fabulous, patient teacher and one of the nicest people you could ever want to meet. I am lucky that I live so close to Athens that I could commute, but it would totally be worth a week's vacation to stay in Athens for this class. One of my classmates actually flew in from Texas for the class, and this is her second time to take it!

Now, doesn't everyone look happy? This is Heidi, Marc, and Margot. Margot is the professional, but she turned us all into pretty darn good bookbinders before the week was over. I never think about taking pictures until the last minute and Ava, the fourth student, had already left by the time I thought about it. Sorry, Ava! ;(

Well, thanks for hanging out with me to the end! If you can't tell, this was an exciting time for me, and eventually, I'll probably take the class again. Not because I didn't learn anything, but because it was so much fun! Who knows, maybe I'll even see you there!

In the meantime, Margot has another Bookbinding Bootcamp in June, if you are interested.

Thanks for hanging out with me till the end. Feel free to email me if you have any questions about what the bootcamp was like.

Thanks for stopping by, and have an AWESOME week!

~Hugs,
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Coptic Stitch Journal

Just a quick post here of a Coptic Stitch Journal I made since attending a bookbinding class a few weeks ago.
The front and back covers have a Yuzen-Shi Washi paper called Red and Silver Waves on it that I bought at the last stamp convention I was at in Lawrenceville. The part of the design that looks tan in the photo is actually a shiny silvery-gold--just gorgeous!

I stitched the book together using Coptic Stitch binding and hemp. Hemp works well, but I prefer using linen thread because it doesn't get fuzzy, but the linen is on order, so I went with what I had.

I'll have another post soon with photos of the set of books I made at a week-long bookbinding bootcamp. 

~Hugs,
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Paper Sweeties April Release Rewind!

Thursday, April 16, 2015

It's Release Rewind time at Paper Sweeties, when we showcase the new releases paired with previously released stamps. I can't decide if this is a difficult task or an easy one for me, because you could easily pair any of the Paper Sweeties stamp sets and come up with a fab card, so narrowing down which ones to use can be a dilemma!
I used both the new release sets, Tree of Life and Tree of Life Add-On: Spring, along with four other sets to make my card: Sophie, I Pick You, Spring is Here, and Feel Better Soon. Sophie's shirt and shoes came from the Feel Better Soon set. I just trimmed off the bottom of the dress to make a shirt. The shorts and frog are from the I Pick You set (that little frog just cracks me up!), where I lopped off the overalls to make a pair of shorts, and the sentiment came from the Spring is Here set. I created the background by tearing a piece of paper to use as a mask and sponging Mowed Lawn Distress Ink on the bottom of the cardstock and Broken China ink on the top. Sophie is colored with Copics. I added more detail to her eyes and I'm trying to learn to color cheeks with a little more dimension. ;)

This is a good card for someone with an April birthday. I created the inside sentiment on Word, printed it in reverse onto a transparency, then rubbed it onto the cardstock.

My Teamies are all so talented! Be sure to check out their Rewind creations, too!


And, remember, for a chance to win a gift certificate from Paper Sweeties, just enter the April Inspiration Challenge--Hoppy Easter.

papersweeties-inspiration#30

Thanks for stopping by, and have a Sweet week!

I'm entering this card in the following challenges:
Simon Says Stamp Wednesday Challenge: Make Your Own Background
Sugar Pea Designs SPD14: Celebrate Spring
Corrosive Challenge #222: Floral Fantasy
Fresh Brewed Challenge April 15-21: Birthdays
Tiddly Inks #155: Springs In!
Kit & Clowder April Challenge: Flowers

~Hugs,

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Paper Sweeties April Release Party!

Wednesday, April 15, 2015

Here's another look at the Paper Sweeties new releases, and today is our Release Party, so the new sets are now available for purchase!
To make the tag on this card, I stamped the little bird from the Tree of Life Add-on: Spring stamp set and die cut it with the coordinating Tree of Life Add-on: Spring Sweet Cuts die. The birdcage, from the Tree Of Life stamp set, was stamped onto a small piece of acetate with Versamark ink, then heat embossed with black superfine embossing powder. After cutting two white tags from the Stitched Tags #1 Sweet Cuts die set, I die cut the bird cage shape (from the Tree of Life Sweet Cuts die set) in one of the tags, then layered everything up. I had to snip the tail off the bird to make it fit behind the cage, and I originally wanted the bird to be loose behind the birdcage so it could "fly" around, but it just wasn't happening. :(

To finish off the card, I added a Cupcake Seam Binding bow with gold Memory Thread and three Cookie Dough sequins with black Stickles in their centers.
The sentiment on the inside of the card is from the You Are Fab stamp set, and I used the flying bird from the Tree of Life Add-on: Spring stamp set to tie-in with the front of the card.

I like to have stamps and dies that will serve a purpose in multiple scenarios. The April New Release stamps and coordinating Sweet Cuts die sets fit the bill perfectly, and they are in the Paper Sweeties Shop right now! 

Be sure to visit the rest of the amazing Paper Sweeties Design Team for more Tree of Life inspiration, and don't forget...you still have time to enter the Paper Sweeties Hoppy Easter Inspiration Challenge, too! 


I'm entering this card in the following challenges:
Simon Says Stamp Monday: In the Middle
Lia Stampz Challenge 87: Use Ribbon

~Hugs,

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Paper Sweeties April Release Countdown!

Tuesday, April 14, 2015

I'm back with another card for the Paper Sweeties April Release Countdown! I never used to make shaker cards, but Paper Sweeties' sequins are so fun, I can't seem to help myself. 

I used the new Tree of Life Sweet Cuts die to cut a tree-shaped window for my shaker and filled it with tiny beads and lots of Tuti-Fruiti sequins. The sentiment and banner, from the Hello Friend stamp set, were heat embossed onto vellum and cut out using the banner die from the Be Happy Sweet Cuts set.

Make sure you check out the rest of the Paper Sweeties Team for more sneak peeks of the new Paper Sweeties releases!

And, for a chance to win a fab Paper Sweeties prize, play along with us in this month's Inspiration Challenge!

I'm entering this card in the following challenges:
My Favorite Things Wednesday Sketch Challenge #223
613 Avenue Create #119: Anything Goes w/Optional Twist: (Shaker, Birthday, Sequins)
Sugar Pea Challenge SPD14: Celebrate Spring
Paper Issues Challenge: Prints Charming's Beautiful Papers with Scrapbook Circle
Simon Says Stamp Monday: In the Middle
Simon Says Stamp Wednesday: April Showers and/or Spring Flowers
The Shabby Tea Room Week #249: Rainbow of Colors
Corrosive Challenge #222: Floral Fantasy

Thanks for visiting! Hope to see you again tomorrow, when all the April new release sets are available for purchase!

~Hugs,

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Paper Sweeties April Release Sneak Peeks!

Monday, April 13, 2015

Hi Friends! I've been MIA for a couple of weeks, having the best time learning new ways to bind books! I'll tell you more about it later this week, and I'll have pics! In the meantime, we've got new releases at Paper Sweeties, and you are going to love them! Here's a sneak peek...
I used the new Tree of Life stamp set for the sentiment, and to heat emboss the white tree, and added lots of green leaves with the new Tree of Life Add-On: Spring stamp set. Because the tree and leaf stamp are separate these stamp sets are very versatile. I'm already envisioning the tree on a Halloween card in the fall! But, wait, there's more! See the three hearts hanging from the branch and that sweet little blue bird? They are part of the Tree of Life Add-On: Spring set, too, and I used the coordinating Tree of Life Add-On: Spring Sweet Cuts die set to cut them out! The Add-On stamp set has more than a dozen stamps to embellish the tree, and there is actually a matching die for every single one of them! The Tree of Life stamp set has a matching die set, too!!! See...I told you that you were going to love these!
I did a little decorating on the inside, but left it blank until I know who I will give it to.

I'll be back with another card tomorrow featuring the new releases, but for now, you'll want to check out what the rest of my talented Teamies have created for this month's release:


Have you played in the Paper Sweeties Hoppy Easter Challenge yet? You have until the end of the month--plenty of time to create something! Easter has already come and gone, but the colors in this month's challenge are perfect for any springtime or new baby creation. I hope you'll play along. You might even win a gift certificate for a shopping spree and a Guest Designer spot!


papersweeties-inspiration#30


Thanks for stopping by, and have a Sweet day!

I'm entering this card in the following challenges:
Viva la Verve April 2015 Week 1 Sketch Challenge
613 Avenue Create #119: Anything Goes w/Optional Twist: (A2 card, Thinking of You, Sequins)
Sugar Pea Challenge SPD14: Celebrate Spring
The Cat's Pajamas TCPTues287 Challenge: Anything Goes
Paper Issues Challenge: Eggs-cellent Add-ventures with 17turtles

~Hugs,

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Paper Sweeties April Inspiration Challenge #30 - 'Hoppy Easter'

Wednesday, April 1, 2015

I don't know about you, but lately I had been feeling like winter would never end. Now, here it is, Spring--almost Easter! How does that happen? I hope it's not an April Fool's joke! ;)

Well, it's no joke that it's time for the Paper Sweeties April Inspiration Challenge: Hoppy Easter! And, I had a blast making this card.
If you are familiar with Paper Sweeties images, you already noticed that Abigail's eyes look different. As with a card I posted yesterday, I was inspired to try my hand at adding eye detail by Jane at Jane's Box of Colours. My detail is nothing like hers, but it's a start. ;) I also added folds to Abigail's paper pieced dress, from the Jelly Bean Time stamp set, using Copics, and gave her a satin sash with a gold Spica pen.

I used the Viva la Verve March 2015 Week 3 sketch for the card design, but instead of using a skinny fishtail banner under the bow, I cut a fishtail window to make a shaker. I have only made one other shaker card, but I just love Paper Sweeties sequins (Jellybeans is my favorite!), and the best way to be able to use lots of them is in a shaker. My Teamies often make beautiful shaker cards, like here, here, here, here, and here.
On the inside, I sponged Distress Ink around the edges of a piece of green cardstock, then masked off the center and stamped a spatter design in white pigment ink, stitched three banners to the top, then stamped a sentiment and cute little flower from the Bloom & Grow set.



I hope you'll join us in this month's Paper Sweeties Inspiration Challenge! Just check out the amazing creations my Teamies have to share with you. They are sure to spark your creative mojo!


Thanks for stopping by, and have a Sweet Week!

I'm entering this card in the following challenges:
Viva la Verve March 2015 Week 3 Sketch Challenge
Simon Says Stamp Monday Challenge: Pastels
Simon Says Stamp Wednesday: Anything Goes
613 Avenue Create #117: True Anything Goes...No Twist!
Sugar Pea Designs Challenge SPD14: Celebrate Spring
Corrosive Challenge #221: Hop Into Spring
ColourQ Challenge: CQC285
Cupcake Inspirations Challenge 303
Paper Issues: Eggs-Cellent Add-Ventures with 17Turtles
Robyn's Fetish Challenge #257: Easter Cards
TCP Tuesday #287: Anything Goes
The Paper Players Challenge #238: Claire's TicTacToe Challenge: Die Cut/Sequins/Blue

~Hugs,

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