Eggs in a basket...

Here's a project I came up with for my Spring Fling classes this week.

It's an Easter spin on the flower pot pocket card. If you've never seen that type of card, instead of the eggs, there are flowers. Since I don't have a large flower punch or die, I decided to use the wide oval punch to make a basket of eggs instead. Here's what the tag looks like pulled out:

Stamps: Teeny Tiny Wishes
Accessories: Wide Oval Punch, Jewelry Tag Punch, Scallop Trim Border Punch (SAB), Perfect Details Texturz Plate, Organza Ribbon, Razzleberry Lemonade DSP & Paper Trimmer with scoring blade


Basic directions for making the basket:

• Score a 8 1/2" x 3 1/2" piece of card stock at 1 1/2" and 5".
• Fold the shorter flap forward to create the brim of the basket and the other flap back.
• Punch edge of brim with border punch.
• To create the side angles of the basket: Mark at 1/4" from each side at the bottom fold. Unfold brim (keeping the rest folded) and then use a paper trimmer to cut straight from the fold of the brim to the marked edge.
• Fold the brim back down and run entire thing through Big Shot with texturz plate.
• Punch a bunch of wide ovals out of designer series paper--I used 7 on this card.
• The outside layer of the tag measures 2 3/4" x 4 3/4", inside layer is 2 1/2" x 4 1/2".
• Place tag inside basket and arrange eggs as desired--keeping in mind the size of a standard 4 1/4" x 5 1/2" card so you will be able to use a standard envelope. Using a piece of grid paper or template under your card will help with that.
• Carefully remove tag holding all the eggs in place and then attach eggs to tag starting with the eggs in the back, being careful to only put adhesive where they will attach to the tag. Be sure to remove any excess adhesive so the tag doesn't get stuck in the basket forever.
• Tie a 15" piece of ribbon around the brim of the basket, this holds the whole thing together. Embellish as desired.
• Tuck your tag in the basket and enjoy!

Don't forget, Sale-A-Bration ends on March 31! If you like the border punch I used on this card, be sure to take advantage of this promotion to get it for FREE before it's too late! If you don't know what Sale-A-Bration is, check out the link to the brochure----> Basically, you get to choose something for free out of the brochure for every $50 you spend!

Sale-A-Bration is also an awesome time to take the plunge into becoming a Stampin' Up! demonstrator! The starter kit is discounted 15% and you also get to choose an extra stamp set (up to $47.95 value)! Contact me if you would like more information about becoming a demo.

Happy Stampin!

Brenda Bromen

Peeking through the window on a Country Morning

A couple weeks ago I had a card class where we made 6 card--2 each of 3 different designs. One of the cards spotlighted a "new" technique for many of my customers. Watercoloring with Stampin' Up!'s Watercolor Wonder Crayons! I've had my watercolor crayons for awhile now, but for whatever reason hadn't showcased them at a class yet. Perhaps it was because I am not a watercoloring expert and the idea of teaching the technique sort of intimidated me. Somehow I got beyond that and started playing around with them. I have to say that using the watercolor crayons, Aqua Painters and our Watercolor Paper makes watercoloring a breeze! Here's my sample:

There are many ways to use the watercolor crayons, but the way I showed was by using them directly on the stamped image (using Staz-On ink). Draw fairly light lines of color along the edges of the objects you're coloring. Then take an Aqua Painter filled with water and simply blend the color towards the middle. The more you go over the crayon lines, the lighter the lines will become. If you feel it needs more color, you can always dip the aqua painter directly on the crayon and add more color that way.

Another technique that's featured on this card is the ruffled eyelet edging. Here's a close-up look at that:

Here are the steps to get that look: Punch the edge of a strip of card stock that is about twice as long as the layer you're planning to attach it to with the eyelet border punch. Take a bone folder and run it along both sides of the strip of paper, like you would to curl curly ribbon with scissors. This breaks the fibers of the card stock and makes the strip bendy. Then the fun begins! Simply bend the strip back and forth to make your ruffles. At my class, this is where I commented on the "art of being random". Hold your ruffled strip behind the layer you plan on attaching it to, to make sure you have it just like you want it. Then run a strip of Snail adhesive along the back of that layer and attach your eyelet ruffles, trimming excess. You'll then want to use Dimensional adhesive so that the ruffles don't get squished. I put a couple pieces right on the edge of the ruffle and then several more around the rest of the edges.

My friend, Genean, commented that this card looks like an old country farmhouse window and I think she's right. In case you were wondering, the stamped image I used was from the Country Morning hostess stamp set. If you're interested in trying some other "new" techniques, I have a Spring themed technique class coming up later this month--March 25 @ 7pm or March 26 @ noon. Check out the details on the Events Page of my website.

Happy Stampin!
Brenda Bromen