In continuing my Countdown to Christmas series this week was all about mini gift bags. These little gift bags go together so quickly and are a great alternative to the flat, generic gift card holders. When my kids were little it was so easy to shop for them for Christmas – big boxes with little price tags. As the kids got older, the boxes shrunk but the price tags went up! Now that they are grown and flown, I will want to have some gifts under the tree for them but it gets harder and harder to buy for them and often times a gift card is what they want the most.
Well these mini gift bags fit my need perfectly! I can “wrap” up the gift cards in a pretty little bag and still have presents under the tree! Check out my video tutorial
You will need two 6″ x 6″ pieces of Designer Series Paper, paper snips and liquid glue to assemble your bags. Once assemble you can embellish any way you want. Add a tag and you are all set! Here’s a list of all the products I used to create these mini gift bags https://s.tamp.in/b2KzPl
I hope you have as much fun making these mini gift bags as I did! Happy Crafting!
We’re all guilty of it. Every single paper crafter is guilty of paper hoarding! We love our pretty paper and no matter how much we have, we want more! It’s just the nature of the beast. Well I am on a mission to use my stash (to make room for more of course) so this week’s Countdown to Christmas Live@Lunch was all about paper bows.
Paper bows are nothing new but it’s been a while since I’ve made one. When looking for an idea for this weeks video I can across an old instruction sheet and had a light blub moment! Paper bows are easy and fun to make. All you need is some paper, a paper trimmer, and some glue. Best of all, you can make them for any occasion by just switching out the paper.
Paper Bow
To get started you will need some Designer Series Paper (DSP), a paper trimmer, silicon craft sheet, and liquid glue. You can order all the supplies you will need here https://s.tamp.in/_EUNmg
Once you have all your supplies assembled you will need to cut 8 strips of DSP to 5 1/2″ long by 1″ wide and 5 strips of DSP to 4 1/2″ long by 1″ wide. Once you have all your paper strips cut, watch my video tutorial to assemble your paper bow.
Paper Bows Video Tutorial
I hope you have fun making your own paper bows. Let me know how you did! Happy crafting!
The other day I was texting with a good friend I haven’t seen in a while because, you know – COVID-19. Anyway we were catching up and I asked if she needed to replenish her stash of note cards because I literally have hundreds since I haven’t done any craft fairs this year, because you know – COVID-19.
She sent me a picture of what she was working on – creating cards with Stampin’ Up!’s Lots of Happy Kit which has beautiful floral images. In the course of the conversation she mentioned her son said she needed more masculine cards. I don’t know about you but I struggle trying to come up with cards suitable for guys. So I took the comment to heart and challenged myself to try and create some masculine birthday cards.
Turing to my stash of Stampin’ Up! stamps I selected the beautiful and versatile Mountain Air Bundle. As soon as I saw this set in the catalog I knew I had to have it. I’ve always loved mountains and will pick them over a beach vacation every time.
I love that the stamps are reversible, with a detailed side as well as a flat, smooth side giving you so many options for creating beautiful scenes. I featured this set during my weekly Facebook Live and now have the tutorial uploaded to my YouTube Channel. You can watch the video here. Here are the cards I created. I sent the photos to my friend and her son gave them his stamp of approval as birthday cards suitable for guys.
Cards created with the Mountain Air Bundle from Stampin’ Up!
The Rich Razzleberry card on the left was a CASE from the 2020-2021 Annual Catalog. The card base is 8.5″ x 5.5″ scored at 4.35″. The images are stamped on a 4″ x 5.25″ of Rich Razzleberry in Memento Tuxedo Black Ink. I masked the small trees and stamped the moon in Versamark and heat embossed with White Embossing powder. I sponged Night of Navy and Rich Razzleberry to give it more of a twilight/night feel. A Crumb Cake banner .75″ x 2.25″ with the Happy Birthday stamped in Rich Razzleberry and two trees die cut in Basic Black complete the card.
The Pool Party card on the right has a card base of 8.5″ x 5.5″, scored at 4.25″. The images are stamped on a 4″ x 5.25″ of Whisper White. The techniques used include second generation stamping, and stamping off. For the mountains, I inked the stamp with Soft Suede and stamped the image twice without re-inking. For the solid clouds, after inking the stamp on the flat (smooth) side, I first stamped the image on a piece of scrap paper and then stamped it on the Whisper White, creating a softer image. I then reversed the stamp and stamped the lined cloud image with full strength Pool Party Ink. You can watch my YouTube Video for complete details on how to make these cards. And don’t forget to Subscribe to my Channel!
This past weekend I had the privilege of attending the first ever Stampin’ Up! Leaders Summit. Despite the fact the original plan to gather in New Orleans had to be scrapped due to COVID 19 (and so grateful to NOT be in New Orleans during a hurricane), the virtual event proved to be educational, insightful, and just downright FUN (the sub titles were hysterical!). One of my favorite parts of the event was networking with other Stampin’ Up! Demonstrators (or as I like to think of us Brand Ambassadors). I met so many intelligent, passionate, and joyful women from around the globe and feel rejuvenated by their enthusiasm.
One woman in particular provided a new way of looking at our direct sales business, which people so often mock or dismiss without even understanding anything about it. She asked us if we would like a cookie. As she looked upon our puzzled faces, she went on to explain – if you walk into a room with a plate of cookies, wouldn’t you offer a cookie to everyone in the room? Of course we all said yes. She then went further to hypothesize – if you walked into the room with a plate of cookies and DIDN’T offer everyone a cookie they would wonder why you didn’t offer them a cookie.
As she went on to explain her analogy, it all made perfect sense; as a member of a direct sales company we have “cookies” to offer. We can offer everyone the chance to host a party or join our teams. Some people may not want a “cookie” and simply say “no thank you”; other may say “I don’t want a cookie right now” while still others may say “YES – Thank you so much – I would love a cookie”. The point is – you never know who will be interested so give the information to everyone so they can decide if they want a “cookie”.
In the spirit of that I am offering you a “cookie”, a chance to join our Crafty Foxes Stampin’ Up! family. Our team is full of dynamic brand ambassadors with a passion for creating and sharing their joy with others while using quality products (and did you know all of Stampin’ Up!’s stamps, ink, and paper are made right here in the good old U.S.A?!!). There’s never been a better time to join our growing team with the new GET AND GO promotion from Stampin’ Up!.
What is this promotion you speak of? I’m glad you asked! The new GET AND GO is a bonus package for joining the Stampin’ Up! from September 1 to September 30. When you join Stampin’ Up! you always get $125 in product for just $99. If you join during this promotion you’ll receive a bonus package of 2 stamp sets, 16 card kits, and a package of Rhinestone Basic Jewels. That’s an additional $50 product value that you can use to jump start your creative journey! All this for just $99 (a total of $175 in product) and the opportunity to join one of the most amazing teams ever (disclaimer – I might be a bit biased). If you would like more information you can email me at craftyklock@gmail.com or message me on Facebook at Stampin with Crafty Klock. We’d love to have you join the Crafty Foxes team. If your ready to sign up, just click here.
The GET AND GO promotion starts on September 1, 2020
Every time a new Stampin’ Up! catalog comes out I always have to go through it several times to see all the hidden gems inside. With the new August-December Mini Catalog it wasn’t until I went through it multiple times before I saw the beauty and versatility of the new Plaid Tidings Designer Series Paper (DSP). With 16 coordinating colors (yes 16!) this DSP is a must have for any craft room. The creative possibilities of this DSP are endless. You’ll want to get this DSP for your craft stash. Shop for it here.
I was so taken with Plaid Tidings that I made it the featured product of my weekly Facebook Live. As usual, I waited until the last minute to prepare for my Facebook Live but once I pulled out this paper, the card designs came together so quickly. The designs allow the DSP to be the star of the show and embellishments are not really needed. Here’s a sample of what I made in just a few hours one afternoon.
With some many options to choose from I had to pick just two to highlight on my Facebook Live. I chose to highlight the card featuring the Way to Goat stamp set as that is such a fun and whimsical set. I did one birthday card suitable for men and a second suitable for women. Check out my YouTube Video Tutorial (and subscribe to my channel) here.
Way to Goat stamp set highlighting Plaid Tidings DSP
The DSP does all the heavy lifting on these designs. For the card bases I used Basic Black and Melon Mambo. Here are the supplies used and dimensions:
Card bases – 8.5″ x 5.5″ and scored at 4.25″
DSP – 4″ x 5.25″ (I added a piece of Whisper White with the same dimensions to the inside
Daffodil Delight 3″ x 1.25″
Whisper White 2.75″ x 1″
Melon Mambo 2″ x 1.25″
Whisper White 1.75″ X 1 “
Memento Tuxedo Black Ink
Melon Mambo Classic Stampin’ Pad
Daffodil Delight Stampin Write Marker
Melon Mambo Stampin Write Marker
Basic Black Stampin Write Marker
I hope you enjoy the Plaid Tidings DSP as much as I do. If you have a chance to create with it I’d love to see what you make. You can always share your projects on my Stampin with Crafty Klock Facebook page. Have fun and Happy Stampin’
