punch art

Tags til Christmas – Pretty Packaging CCMC-HM8

November 20, 2010 By Connie | 1 Comment

Our last challenge over on Create with Connie and Mary is for the Design Team only. We are wrapping up the week that featured Tags til Christmas, Designer Fabrics, Candy Countdown Calendar Kit and Peaceful Season in the Holiday Mini. This week's challenge is Pretty Packaging! Each of the designers has come up with their version, so make sure to check them out!

Hard to believe that another session of Create with Connie and Mary is over. Yes, you can still sign up, but there will not be any new posts…you still have access to all the past ideas we've shared over the 8 weeks. But…don't worry…the Occasions Edition will be starting soon!

For my pretty packaging, I made a #2 Box from the Sizzix XL die. I cut it from Cherry Cobbler Textured Cardstock. Along the side, I used the Candy Cane Christmas Designer Paper and the Tasteful Trim XL Die. I used the SIlver Tinsel to tie it closed. With the Tinsel, I tied the punched Decorative Label that was stamped with my favorite greeting in the Tags til Christmas set, "Even the Naughty Deserve Something Nice!" I added a fun "Santa Owl" punch art, using the Owl Punch and the Santa suit stamp in Tags til Christmas for the vest…isn't it cute? The Santa hat is from Jolly Jingle Bits. Here's a close up of the owl! Isn't he cute??? I love using Black Mini Brads for the eyes…it just makes them POP!

Make sure to check out what the rest of the Create with Connie and Mary Design Team did this week! They DEFINITELY have some great packaging ideas for you!

Mary Brown – StamperCamper's Corner

Cristena Bagne – Gettin' Crafty

Rochelle Gould – I stamp, I create, I have fun!

Jenn Picard – A New Ink on Life

Have a great weekend!

Owl Easel Calendar with Box

November 10, 2010 By Connie | 25 Comments

OK…I know…that's a lengthy title, but I couldn't think of what else to call it! This is a project my Stamp Clubs did last month! I always like to do a calendar this time of year. This is also my Thrifty 3D Wednesday project over on Stamping 411 today! I wanted to share a project that would be a great gift for someone at Christmas! Something they can enjoy throughout the coming year! This Calendar Box could sit on a co-workers desk…or in someone's home office!

Isn't that Punch Owl just TOO cute? I love it! The pull out drawer could hold post-it notes or sheets of scratch paper, or fill it with candy for a special treat!

I've seen this project from several different sources, and combined their ideas with some of my own. It really is quite easy…decorating takes the longest, of course!

The base is So Saffron cardstock and I used Real Red cardstock for layers behind the calendar and the Scallop Trim Borders. I used the floral pattern from Play Date Designer Paper on the top easel portion and the green leaf print in that same DSP for the front of the drawer and the top of the box. The owl is punched from Early Espresso and his vest from a scrap piece of Play Date DSP, too. The pupils in the eyes are Black Mini Brads and I added a little red heart. Hello from Tiny Teacup a la cart stamp is stamped with Early Espresso on Whisper White and punched with the Small Oval, then layered on Real Red Large Oval punch. I punched the branch from Two Step Bird Punch from Old Olive and placed the Owl on it. Then put the entire owl piece on a 2 3/8 Scallop Circle of So Saffron. Last I added the calendar, layered onto Real Red that holds the easel top standing open.

Here is a downloadable step by step tutorial on how to make the Easel Calendar with Box! Enjoy!

DESKTOP CALENDAR BOX TUTORIAL

Create with Connie and Mary Saturday Challenge

October 23, 2010 By Connie | 1 Comment

It's time for the Create with Connie and Mary Saturday Challenge (CCMC-HM4)! This challenge is for our subscribers to participate and earn a chance to win one of two $75 gift certificates or one of two free subscriptions to the next Edition of Create with Connie and Mary. This week is a DOUBLE challenge…one using a color combination in Deck the Halls…Early Espresso, Always Artichoke, Cherry Cobbler, Soft Suede and Crumb Cake AND making it a One of a Kind Card…one that you'd probably only make one of for a special person. I know I had fun with it…I think our Guest Designers did, too!

This week on Create with Connie and Mary, we've been focusing on Bells & Boughs, Christmas Collage, Christmas Postcard, Bell Wheel and Vintage Frames from the Holiday Mini Catalog. A big selection to choose from! It's not too late to join this 8 week subscription! We are just getting started. You'll have access to all the previous posts and tutorials long after the session is over!

So here is my card using these colors…a little of the Deck the Halls Designer Paper in the background and one-of-a-kind elements.

I started with a base of Always Artichoke cardstock and layered on Cherry Cobbler cardstock. I ran a piece of Very Vanilla thru the Big Shot with the Finial Press Impressions Folder, then sponged on Crumb Cake Classic Ink on the highlights with a sponge dauber. I added the holly pattern from Deck the Halls DSP in the upper left corner and tore the edge…sponging it with Soft Suede Classic Ink. I used the Distressing Tool on the edges and wrapped the Always Artichoke Seam Binding Ribbon around and tied a bow. It was adhered to the base card. Then I added the largest Pearls to the ribbon.

I took my 5 petal punch and punched out two Cherry Cobbler and one Real Red flower for EACH flower, sponged up the edges with Soft Suede and made "veins" with my Stylus. I adhered together and put in a Gold Glimmer Brad in the center of each flower. They were placed on the front with Stampin' Dimensionals. I punched out another flower with Always Artichoke, made the veins again and sponged with Soft Suede, then cut them up to use as the leaves under the flowers.

I stamped Merry Christmas in Early Espresso on Very Vanilla and punched with the new Decorative Label punch, then sponged the edges with Soft Suede. I punched the Decorative Label again with Early Espresso cardstock. Then cut it in half and put one half under the top half and the other behind the bottom half for a layered look. I placed it on the front with Stampin' Dimensionals. I thought it made a very elegant looking card and I love the punched poinsettias!

Check out what the rest of our Design Team Members have done this week with the sketch challenge:

Mary Brown – StamperCamper's Corner

Cristena Bagne – Gettin' Crafty

Rochelle Gould – I stamp, I create, I have fun!

Jenn Picard – A New Ink on Life

If you haven't checked out the Create with Connie and Mary site yet, now is the time to do it! We feature new Holiday Mini products every week. There is a new project posted every day and there will be an average of two fabulous tutorials each and every week. NEW is a project sheet for every project not having a tutorial! We like to have lots of fun so we have challenges and prizes for our subscribers. Our sites stay up long after the session is done, so you will always have access to the site and the tutorials. For more information and to see our Preview Week projects please visit at Create with Connie and Mary!

Halloween Name tag lanyards and bag tags

October 8, 2010 By Connie | 1 Comment

I was inspired by Becky Roberts who made name tag lanyards for her guests. My upline, Candy, and I held a large Fall Festival Stamp Camp last weekend and I made these punch art name tag lanyards and matching bag tags for each of the guests. Of course…did I PHOTOGRAPH all of them together? No, I just never seem to remember to do that! They did look pretty cool hanging from the bags along with the bag tag identifier!

So…while watching the Ohio State football game last weekend, I was busy punching and adhering these together! The moon is the 2 1/2 circle from So Saffron. I sponged Tangerine Tango around the edges. I punched two Bats from Basic Black and added a Rhinestone Jewel to their heads. I typed out all the names on the computer, printed on Basic Gray, then punched with the Scallop Oval punch (I was going for a "dark cloud"…did I succeed?) This was my prototype, so I stamped the word Boo from the Charming stamp set in Basic Black, but decided not to use it. I cut lengths of 1/4 Pumpkin Pie Grosgrain Ribbon to hang around the neck and secured it to the tag with an Antique Mini Brad.

I thought they were a lot of fun…and people who attended really liked them!

Ribbon Shares going on now! Find more information HERE!

With the new catalog, Stampin' Up! has introduced a lot of new ribbon colors! So, I thought it was time for more Ribbon Shares. Each Group of Ribbon will be wrapped around 1-2 pieces of cardstock so your ribbon arrives wrinkle-free and organized.

Wicked Cool Owl hand sanitizer holder

October 4, 2010 By Connie | 2 Comments

Well, Erica Cerwin certainly started a rage when she created her little container to hold the Halloween Hand Sanitizers from Bath & Body Works! When I saw her project, I immediately ran out and bought up a bunch of the little bottles. They were almost sold out in all the stores around me, but I've heard they do have them back in stock.

Here is the front of the one I created with some punch art. I've done this project with a Shoebox for our demonstrator meeting and my Stamp Clubs did it this month! It was a hit at all! I think everyone LOVES this Two Step Owl Punch!

I started by creating the box with Pumpkin Pie cardstock. Then I stamped the bats from Wicked Cool diagonally across the front of Basic Gray layer…I also stamped them diagonally across the back of the Pumpkin Pie holder (not shown). I punched the moon with the 2 1/2 Circle Punch from So Saffron and used a sponge dauber along the edges with Tangerine Tango Ink. The Owl silhouette was punched from Basic Black, along with the branch from the Two Step Bird Punch. I stamped Spooky on Pumpkin Pie cardstock with Basic Black ink and punched with the Large Oval Punch. I have a Mini Library Clip "holding" it (I really adhered it so it wasn't lost.)

Inside I stamped the Spider Web several times and the greeting "have a WICKED halloween" in Basic Black. I stamped the Witch hat and legs in Basic Black on scrap Whisper White, cut them out and used Pumpkin Pie and Daffodil Delight markers to color in the hat band and leggings. I thought the witch's legs turned upside down into the box was funny! lol! The hat is adhered next to the greeting. Inside is the hand sanitizer bottle…Bat Bite was my flavor…love that green color!

I had so much fun creating this…I plan to make several more for a craft fair I'm doing!

We are just starting Week 2 of Create with Connie and Mary! This week we are featuring Day of Gratitude and French Foliage from the Holiday Mini. For $39.95 you get over 48 FANTASTIC projects…that's about 83 cents per idea! It's not too late to join! There is a new project posted every day and there will be an average of two fabulous tutorials each and every week. NEW is a project sheet for every project not having a tutorial! Our sites stay up long after the session is done, so you will always have access to the site and the tutorials. For more information and to see our Preview Week projects please visit at Create with Connie and Mary!

Pumpkin Punch Art – Create with Connie and Mary Thursday Challenge

September 30, 2010 By Connie | 11 Comments

Today's Create with Connie and Mary Thursday Challenge is Anything but a Card! Now…don't get confused! Mary and I are still doing the Create with Connie and Mary Thursday Challenges on the public blog where ANYONE can join in and link to their creation!

Paper Pal Arts (PPA62) also has a challenge using buttons…although mine isn't a card, I hope it will still qualify as using buttons in an unusual way!

We also will start Saturday Challenges this week…these are just for our Create with Connie and Mary subscribers…who are eligible to win prizes if they play along! It's not too late to join! We are just getting started and you can access all the fun projects we've done so far!

Well, anyone that knows me, also knows that 3D items are what got me started stamping! I love making boxes and favors and home decor items! Today's Anything but a Card Challenge just fit me perfectly!

Like most everyone, I get my inspiration from things around me. I was browsing thru a craft store and saw pumpkins made from felt flowers and cloth balls…the flowers were the shape of Stampin' Up!'s 5 petal punch, so I knew I could recreate them with my punch. I also plan on making one out of the felt some day…I just didn't have any orange felt on hand. I'm happy for this challenge so I could finally sit down and make one!

I grabbed a Styrofoam ball out of my storage closet and used the Craft Knife to cut off the bottom so it would sit flat and a little off the top so it looked somewhat like a pumpkin shape. I punched a BUNCH of 5 petal flowers out of Pumpkin Pie cardstock. I sponged the edges with Tangerine Tango Classic Ink. Then I used my Bone Folder to "soften" up the cardstock, by running the edge of the bone folder along the punched flower cardstock, curling it slightly. That helped it shape to the Styrofoam ball better.

I started at the bottom and added the 5 petal punched flowers to the ball with straight pins. I overlapped the petals, row by row, so that the Styrofoam didn't show thru and the petals from one flower would hold the next row of flowers in place. At the top, I placed a large punched Old Olive Fancy Flower, cutting thru the petals slightly so they would also curl up.

On top of the punched Fancy Flower, I built a stack of Old Olive and Garden Green buttons to resemble a stem. I used the 1/8 Taffeta Ribbon and made a bow for the "vine". Around the centers of the 5 petal flowers, I added Pumpkin Pie buttons and Rhinestone Jewels to cover the tops of the straight pins.

I think it makes a fun and whimsical little pumpkin decoration! It really didn't take that much time to make one either…the longest part was finding enough Pumpkin Pie buttons!

We hope you play along with the Create with Connie and Mary Thursday Challenge and check out what the rest of the Challenge Team did this week! Make sure to use CCMC118 in your post!

Pumpkin and Ghost Punch Art

September 28, 2010 By Connie | 8 Comments

Paper Pals Arts has a FUN sketch this week and I finally got a chance to play along…nothing like the last minute!

My Punch Class did a card SIMILAR to this last month…a different layout. But, I'm sure they will appreciate another way to use the same punch art elements for a totally different looking card! I've seen several different versions of the pumpkins and ghosts going around…so here is mine!

I started with a base card of Old Olive. I used Night of Navy and ran it thru the Big Shot with the Spider Web Impressions Folder. The pumpkins are made with 3 wide ovals from Pumpkin Pie cardstock and sponged with Tangerine Tango Classic Ink. The stem is free-hand cut from Early Espresso and the vine is punched from the Two-Step Bird Punch! The Ghost is the Owl Punch turned upside down with the legs cut off. The mouth is free-hand cut, too. The moon is stamped with the greeting from Grateful Greetings with Basic Black on Daffodil Delight and punched with the 1 3/8 Circle Punch. I sponged the edges with Tangerine Tango.

I love using the Satin Ribbon this way…I laid down a strip of Sticky Strip and then ruffled the ribbon across the bottom. I added a large Pumpkin Pie Designer Button with an Old Olive Glimmer Brad inside it! FUN!

The Holiday Edition of Create with Connie and Mary has started, but it is not too late to join! It is an 8 week subscription featuring stamps and products from the new Stampin' Up! Holiday Mini. There is a new project posted every day and an average of two fabulous tutorials a week. NEW this year is a Project Sheet for every post! Our site stays up long after the session is done, so you will have access to the site and the tutorials to refer back to the projects. For more information, please visit at Create with Connie and Mary!

Day of Gratitude Acorn

September 9, 2010 By Connie | 6 Comments

I've had in my head a while to make an Acorn card and finally got around to making it for the C reate with Connie and Mary Thursday Color Challenge this week. The colors for the challenge are Early Espresso, Crumb Cake, Tangerine Tango and Very Vanilla. Perfect colors for fall and an acorn, don't you think? Make sure to check out what the rest of the Create with Connie and Mary Challenge Team did this week! Then create your own card using the challenge colors and upload it to InLinkz over on our site! We love to see your creations!

I started by "drawing" a large oval on my computer…it is almost 8" long. Yes, the Acorn opens up as a card and does fit in a large envelope. I scored and folded it in half, then ran the front thru the Big Shot with my Perfect Polka Dots Impressions Folder (isn't that the BEST folder???) I added some color around the edges with the Crumb Cake Classic Ink, and then went around again with Early Espresso to darker just the edges.

For the top of the acorn, I used Early Espresso and my Circle Scissors Tool I added about 1" to the diameter of the oval, so I could figure out the size of the circle. I cut the circle, then cut it again in a wide arc so that I could get the oval shape on the bottom of the acorn top. (Whew….does that make sense?) I ran the top thru the Big Shot with the Texturz Perfect Details plate, then sponged on Early Espresso Classic Ink. The top of the stem, I cut free hand and adhered to the back. The leaf was cut from the Leaves #2 Bigz die from Tangerine Tango cardstock. I used the Lattice Square Impressions folder and then inked around the edges with Tangerine Tango Classic Ink.

Finally, I used some 1/8 Very Vanilla Taffeta ribbon and tied a bow. I added the Decoratative Label tag of Very Vanilla that I stamped with the words from Day of Gratitude in Tangerine Tango Ink, and sponged around the edges. I also stamped a leaf from Day of Gratitude in the background on the tag with stamped-off Crumb Cake ink. I used the Crop-a-Dile to punch a hole and attach the tag to the ribbon. Finally, I added a Neutrals Designer Button that I filled with Linen Thread to the right side of the acorn top and added some White Gel Pen "stitching" along the edge. You know…it came out like I pictured it in my head! Woohoo!!!

It's time for an EARLY BIRD SPECIAL for the Create with Connie and Mary Holiday Edition! It's an 8 week subscription featuring stamps and products from the new Stampin' Up! Holiday Mini. Right now you save $5 of the regular $39.95 price. There is a new project posted every day and an average of two fabulous tutorials a week. NEW this year is a Project Sheet for every post! Our site stays up long after the session is done, so you will always have access to the site and the tutorials. Preview week starts September 12th! For more information, please visit at Create with Connie and Mary!