Subtle Difference....

This first card is one I made for a Christmas in August swap I am participating in. I'm not sure if you can tell it, but the ornament if covered with Dazzling Diamonds glitter. I used the two way glue pen to adher it. The sets used on this card are Tree Trimmings and Christmas Greetings. The colors are Taken with Teal and Sahara Sand. The designer paper used is Holiday Lounge. I hope the swap participants like it. Then I decided to use some of the darker sheets from the Holiday Lounge paper on one and I added another ornament. I think I liked this even better, but of course all my swaps were in the mail already. I guess any time you keep working on a card, you will always find ways to change and sometime improve it. Thanks for looking!! Smiles, Laura

Here comes fall....

OK, I promised to try a fall card in the "mountainscape" technique. I could not wait!! I just had to go to my stamp room and make one--before the mood passed. Didn't it turn out well---and it makes me WANT fall here! (It's been a hot summer for us. ) I used Crushed Curry for the top mountain range, More Mustard for the second range and Dusty Durango for the closest mountain range. I sponged on some Soft Suede in the foreground and wish I had added just a touch to the highest mountain range. And I added Dusty Durango in the valleys to give it that autumn glow. I hope you will try some of these "mountainscapes" yourself. They are so fun and honestly, I couldn't find anywhere to put any words on them because it covers up the wonderful "view". Smiles, Laura

Mountainscapes....

Everyone is making these landscape-vista-type cards right now. I've seen them on several blogs and other demonstrators have shared their samples in some of my groups. I made my first one in 2005 using a Sell-a-bration set. Here is that one. These look just like the mountains we see around our home--we live in the NC mountains. My friend Regina has named these cards "mountainscapes" and I like that name and will use it for mine.

This technique is made by tearing cardstock to resemble mountain shapes. You want to start about 1/3 way down the card and sponge on color BELOW the torn cardstock. Ones tendancy is to put color ABOVE the tear, but that's not right. Some people sponge on the color and some use the rubber brayer to applying it. I could not get my brayer to add color without lines in it and found the sponge worked much better for me (I had more control). Add your highest mountain range, then drop down with a different piece of torn cardstock--so the mountains have different peaks and valleys--and add your second range of mountains. Then drop to the third range, adding your green color, and finish off with a lighter green for the close up "ground" color. I say it's kind of like looking off into the distance and then slowly dropping your eyes to your feet.

For the top card, I started with Bordering Blue, then added Ballet Blue. then Always Artichoke, and finally Celery Green. To add the sun, punch a 3/4" circle in a piece of cardstock. Apply Barely Banana inside that circle until you have it dark enough. Remove the cardstock with the circle and add more yellow around the sun, for that afternoon glow. Finally sponge in some Bashful Blue in the sky and also between the different mountain ranges to look like our "Blue Ridge Mountains" or "Great Smoky Mountains"--like fog in the valleys.

You can stamp whatever grasses/flowers/weeds you'd like in the foreground and you can add some "tree leaves" at the top, as if you are viewing the mountainscape between some trees. I've seen views just like this from the Blue Ridge Parkway!!

I have one more to show--an "evening" mountainscape. I love this one, too. I used the same torn templates, but the colors I used are Almost Amethyst for the sky, Lavender Lace for the highest mountain range, Orchid Opulence for the next range and Rich Razzleberry for the bottom color.

To get the moon, you want to punch a 3/4" circle from a "sticky note" and tack the moon onto the sky, and apply Amethyst around it so the moon stays white.

Well, I hope these have inspired you. They are so fun to make. What's so great is that no two are alike--just as no two mountain ranges are the same. I want to make one with golds, reds and brown--a FALL mountainscape. I'll share it when I get it made. Thanks for patiently waiting for me to return to my blog. I've had a busy month with the grandchildren!! Smiles, Laura

Celebreate July 4th with Uncle Sam...

I've shared this little Uncle Sam I made with several yahoo groups (some other demonstators have even made variations of him) but I haven't shared him on my blog, so I decided to do so for the July 4th weekend. He's made using the Top Note die (several colors of CS) and several punches. I asked around, thinking surely someone else had made one, but none turned up so I had to make one myself! I love how he turned out. I made this fellow, attached him to Blue CS and put him on a little white bag, for a cute July 4th "treat bag". I sent that one to SU! Hope you all have a happy 4th of July! I'm heading to my sisters, so you'll hear from me Thursday! Be safe!! Smiles, Laura

Celebrating Helen...

(OK, I'm sharing several samples today, to make it up to you for being absent all last week. ha!)Recently a bunch of us friends got together for lunch to celebreate Helen's birthday. There are 7 of us who do this when one of us has a birthday. It is so fun and we all look forward to these times together! I had seen these "women" made from punches and shared by Chitchi Tabora and I decided I wanted to make a card for Helen using them. I KNEW the girls would love it. I used 6 since 6 of us were joining Helen for her birthday! Here is the inside:Oops! Sorry, Helen, for sharing your age, but this was too good to leave out! Ha! I think the girls all enjoyed this one! No SU sets were used (I did the words on my computer) but the "bodies" and "clothes" are made using the large SU heart punch and the head, hair, ears, and glasses are made using various other punches. I just free-hand cut the mouths. Hope you like this one!! Smiles, Laura

More Side Steps

Thought I'd share more of my side steps samples today. I hope you are enjoying these!! This one is a fun one for the upcoming July 4 holiday weekend and was inspired by a sample by card-maker extraordinare Connie Babbert. I hope it looks like fireworks in the night sky to you because that's what it is supposed to look like. I used the Sizzix Daisies #2 die to punch out these "fireworks bursts" using white, Real Red and Brilliant Blue CS. I decided I wanted mine in the night sky, so I used black for my background. It's hard to see the black and the side steps here with the dark background. (I'm going to have to find a better place/way to photograph my samples!) I think this sample has a 2" left (un-folded) side. Remember, you can make the steps on either side of these cards and can leave the un-scored portion as wide as you'd like.

Here is another one. This sample uses Almost Amethyst, Bashful Blue and Orchid Opulence cardstock. It uses the flower from the Embrace Life set. I love the delicate colors on this one. It also uses the Floating Re-inker technique.

And one last one I just have to share. I LOVE the butterfly from the Flores suaves set (from the SU Spanish language catalog). If you don't have that catalog, you are missing out on this beautiful set because it isn't in the regular SU catalog. For this one, I used Tangerine Tango and Summer Sun cardstock. I embossed the butterflies with gold on the Shimmery white CS and then used the Floating Re-Inker technique to color them. Aren't they GREAT!!! The quote on this one is from the Full of Life stamp set. It was in the Occasions 2008 mini catalog and will be in the new 2009-2010 catalog.

Well, thanks for looking today! I hope you are inspired to create!! Smiles, Laura

Note: I have seen these side-step cards (which are a variation of the Stair Step card layout) on many blogs and other sources, so I hestiate to give credit for the layout--for fear of leaving someone out. But I know I have instructions for it from Yvonne Metz and Cathy Seals. (I did draw my own instructions shared yesterday.) I understand that Yvonne was inspired by Kim Wilson and Jackie Topa, but I've seen lots of great samples by other wonderful stampers. This is one concern I have with a blog--once a layout or technique has been shared, you see it in alot of places and it is very hard to give proper credit to the real originator! Thanks to everyone who shares!!

Step Aside for Side Steps!!

I know lots of stampers have shown "side steps" cards on their blogs. Well, I have been making some, too, but waiting until after today's class to share my samples with you. I wanted my ladies coming to class to be surprised! They were and they LOVED these samples. Here is the one we are making in class, using the Flower Fancy Stamp set. I don't know if you can see the Dazzling Diamonds glitter in the center of the flowers (including the small flower) or not, but it's there. I think this makes it "pop". Here's the layout of how to score and cut your card: I hope you can read my numbers. If not, email me! My card for class has a 3" side that isn't scored, but you can make this any width you wish. Some of my samples have 2" on the left side. This sample has a 2" side that isn't scored (isn't the "steps"). Here is another sample:

I hope these samples have inspired you and you are off to make some side-steps off your own. I have a couple more samples, but will share those tomorrow. Check back then! Thanks for looking today!
Smiles, Laura