June Stamp Club

Craft Haven Retreats Stamp Club held its very first meeting this past week!  We made lots of fun summer cards featuring Stampin' Up!'s  Tropical Pary Stamp Set and the Island Oasis DSP.  Our theme for the evening was totally tropical, right down to the delicious Key Lime cookie bars provided by our June Hostess - Melannie! 

We started out with a quick and easy card inspired by Laura Barto at her May Stamp-a-Stack Buffet.  Be sure to check out all of Laura's great projects at http://www.papercraftingtrends.com/.

Our next card was CASE'd from Gretchen Barron.  Gretchen's  Flirty Little Sundress and Matching Purse was the perfect project for our tropical theme, and everyone LOVED it!  Thanks Gretchen for the dress pattern and directions, available here http://gretchenbarron.typepad.com/my_weblog/2010/05/a-flirty-little-sundress-and-a-matching-purse.html . 

Our version of the Monkey Hut card came straight from the June 2010 Stampin' Success magazine.  How fun is this!!  Our Joy Fold tropical flower card was inspired by Oregon Stamper on Splitcoast Stampers SU Gallery and can be viewed here http://www.splitcoaststampers.com/gallery/photo/1710919?&cat=19175 .

All supplies are Stampin' Up!, unless otherwise noted

Stamp Sets:  Tropical Party, One of a Kind, Warm Words

Paper: Island Oasis DPS, Tempting Turquise CS, Pumpkin Pie CS, So Saffron CS,

Rose Red CS, Old Olive CS

Ink:  Tempting Turquise, Pumpkin Pie, So Saffron, Rose Red, Old Olive 

Tools: Scallop Circle punch, Scallop Circle Bigz XL die, Round Tab punch, various size

Circle punches, Small Oval punch, Baskets and Blooms Bigz XL die, Big Shot,

Cuttlebug Herringbone Enbossing Folder

Accessories: Misc. buttons, twine, ribbons, brads, Stampin' Dimensionals

We The People

I read a request on Late Night Stamper's digest a few weeks ago.  The father of a family, stationed in Germany, was deployed to Afghanastan.  Their 6 year old did not believe that the people in America knew that his father was serving to make America and the world a safer place.  His mother requested that cards be sent to her son to let him know that the people in America know about his father's service and appreciate it.  The request really touched me because my cousin's husband, Jerry, was away from his family for a year.  Their son was very young and missed his father very much.  I am sending this card to Jay and his sister, Katie, to let them know that their father is a hero and we all appreciate his service to our country.

I saw the idea for this decorative border on StampTV.com.  Gina Krupsky of Gina K's Designs was demonstrating the technique using the Scor-Buddy.  I knew right away it was the perfect border to highlight this stamp from Image Tree.  I used my Martha Stewart Scoring Board to do the border and create a custom envelope to fit the card.  The paper is from Daisy D's Paper Co. - Modern Romance with White and Solid Indigo Accents from DieCutsWith a View.  The ink is Red Dye Marcella by K and Company.  The ribbon came with the Modern Romance paper in a kit I purchased last year. The finished card is 6" X 6".  I'm sending this card to Jay and Katie in Germany.  I hope it will help them understand that the people in America do appreciate their father's service and their family's sacrifice.

Tri-Fold Card Technique

I first saw this technique on Paper Pleasing Ideas.  I really liked the card design.  Nanci had just purchased a Scor-Pal, so it seemed like the perfect time to try it out.  I used DSP Cottage Wall, Old Olive, Rich Razzleberry. and White cardstock.  The edges were inked in Rich Razzlebury and Old Olive.  Punches used were the Scallop, Word Window, Ticket, Modern Lable, Scallop Trim Border and Scallop Trim Corner, and circle punch .

 

I'm not sure what set the cover sentiment is from, but it it a Stampin' Up! set.  The inside sentiment is from Teeny Tiny Wishes.  I used the Scallop Trim Border and Corner punch to edge a piece of white cardstock to write a personalized message on.  I believe the ribbon came from Michael's or Jo-Ann's.

I used a few pop dots to add dimension to the sentiment on the cover.  Two eyelets secure the middle sentiment and I used a left-over Cricut-cut vine as an embellishment.  Here is a video tutorial on the technique from SplitcoastStampers web-site.

Create a Critter Cards Created with the Cricut

These cards were created with the Create a Critter cartridge using the Cricut Expression.  I keep a shoe box with leftover paper scraps.  All the papers used came out of that shoe box.  Each card unfolds to display the "Happy Birthday" sentiment also cut from the Create a Critter cartridge on the Cricut.  The cards fit nicely in an A2 envelope.  I know my niece and nephew, Elizabeth and Elijah, will love these cards when they receive them!

Fall 2010 Reservation Special!

We have our first ad in Michigan Scrapbooker Summer 2010 and our first reservation special!  Place your reservation for a craft weekend in September or October 2010 for $199.00 per person!

Our Last Retreat Spring 2010 Season

We hosted our last retreat of the Spring 2010 Season for the lovely Ludwig Ladies and friends--all novices to paper crafting!  Our weekend opened with

 a dinner featuring Creamy Pasta with Spring Vegetables and Chicken, Tomato Bread, Ceasar salad, and fresh strawberries.  The meal ended with a light dessert of lemon chiffon ice cream with a lime twist.  Save some room for our decadent late night desserts and snacks!

After dinner we jumped right into our beginner's mini-album class. We covered the basics of cutting paper and choosing adhesives. We mastered the technique of clear embossing with Versamark to create a tone on tone or watermark effect with butterfly stamps across our book cover.  Then we bound our mini-albums with the Zutter.   A short intermission occurred, so we could recharge our collective batteries with warm, oozing, chocolate lava cake a la mode!

Once our albums were bound, we designed layouts for our blank pages.  The fun continued as photos were cropped and pages were embellished with gems, ribbons, punches, and buttons.  We crafted until the birds began to chrip in the trees!

The weekend concluded with a leisurely breakfast of Creme Brulee French Toast Casserole and Baked Sausage Breakfast Casserole, yogurt parfait, and fresh fruit.  Our guests left relaxed taking their completed mini-albums home to share with friends and relatives.  We hope your craft group will spend a weekend with us this fall!

Final Selections for Crochet and Knitting Contest Chosen!

In January we posted information about a contest sponsered by Jo-Ann Fabric and Craft Stores and Red Heart Yarns Eco-Ways to use a recycled or renewable source yarn.  Experts from Red Heart Yarns have chosen the final selections from the projects submitted.  Please show your support and visit their site to vote for the winners!  A few days ago, AC commented on our blog that her project had been selected as one of the finalist.  We invited AC to share a picture and a description of her project and we would post it on the blog.  Congratulations AC and good luck with the contest! :) 

Thanks so much for offering to post a pic and description of my entry on your blog! :) I've been designing crochet animals for six years, and I designed this peacock using eight colors of Red Heart's Eco-Ways blend yarn. The colors just jumped out at me and screamed "peacock"! It was the first time I had worked with the recycled blend yarn, and it really is fabulous--the weight is perfect and it's SO soft. I used a 3.25 mm hook, floral wire for the comb, and dowel rods to support the feet. To create the fringe border on the tail, I separated the hunter geen yarn into individual plys and handknotted little snippets all the way around the edge of the feathers. I used the same technique for the eyelashes, too. Voting is open on Red Heart's site thru June 1st: http://redheart.com/saveplanet.html.