Getting Ready for Stamp Camp. . .

I'm having new tile installed in my kitchen and laundry room this week (FINALLY!) and so I've sort of had to stick close to home for much of each day. One of the advantages of this is that, without operating laundry or kitchen appliances to compete for my time (shucky darn!), I'm actually getting to the things I need to do for this coming weekend's "Fall Splendor" stamp camp before the very last second!

Don't want to ruin all the surprises, but I thought I'd share one of the projects that we'll be doing.

This cute little "nugget" box is an idea that crossed my desk in the past couple weeks. I think this is such a clever use of the "Pumpkin Patch" stamp set that is in the Holiday Mini Catalog. With the exception of the black circle behind the pumpkin, (Oh, and the Word Window punch out--because I oops'd the stamping that I did directly on the DSP!), the box is made entirely from the "Cast-A-Spell" Designer Series Paper. I love that 16 of these boxes can be made from just one-third package of paper. (Wish I could tell you who originally created this neat project, but all I have is a blog address that doesn't work. Please let me know if you know anything so I can give due credit.)

The cover of the box is actually a "sleeve" that slides over the box bottom. For the cover, cut a piece of the striped paper to 3” X 5” and score it on the long edge at ¾”, 2¼”, 3”, and 4½”. For the bottom, cut a piece of the black print to 2-15/16” X 4-7/16”, and score at ¾” on all four sides. Strips of the orange and green prints get cut to 1-1/8” X 3” for covering nuggets. (This size box holds 3 nuggets, but if you increase the first measurement for both the sleeve and the bottom one inch for each nugget you'd like to add to the box, you can easily increase the length/capacity of the box. I've seen nugget boxes that hold 10, although I think I'd make sure to use cardstock for the box bottom to better support the weight. Great way to make favors for parties!)

I'd love to have you come join us for stamp camp! There are still spots available on Saturday afternoon--just let me know! Come "review" the new tile!

Happy Wednesday!

Happy Valentine's Day!

Have some 3-D items to share with you today. Of course, it may have been nicer if I had gotten my act together and put at least one of these up last Saturday so you could have used this idea this week, but, oh well, it's me we're talking about here! LOL "Works great under pressure," that's me! The good news is that these concepts would also be great for other little occasions, or as favors for wedding or showers, so I'm letting myself off the hook!

This first item is actually the project that my stamp clubs tackled this month. While Valentine's Day isn't a huge gift-giving occasion for friends or office mates, it's fun to have a little something to slip in the mail or put on a desk. I incorporated our "technique of the month: faux suede" into each of these little treat folders, giving the hearts and the elephant some texture.

They're sort of a variation of a "matchbook" folder. When you open the flap, you find a little wrapped treat waiting inside.

Even though each of the folders is decorated a little bit differently, they all started out as a strip of cardstock 3" X 10" that is scored at 3", 3-1/2", 6-1/2" and 7". Fold on the score lines and use the scallop circle punch to make a hole in one of the ends to accommodate the treat. Two little Mini Glue Dots, placed where you see the little black x's on the sample below, are the only adhesive necessary to keep the folder insides together, and a 12" piece of ribbon tied below the punch out will work to keep the flap closed when your project is ready to give. The treat is adhered with 2-3 more Mini Glue Dots.

This next project is one that I wanted to keep under wraps until today because it is the little valentine that I included in each of my stamp club member's bags when I delivered their orders this week. It uses the new toy I got for myself for Valentine's Day--like I really ever need an excuse!--the "Bag with Scallops" die for the Big Shot.

When finished, this little bag measures 2-3/8" X 3-3/4" X 1-5/8", a pretty nice size to hold a little gift or treat. Can you guess what I put in the bags I made for the club gals?

This die is one of the "Bigz XL" dies and requires the Extended Cutting Pads, but other than that little thing, this die is a dream! Love it!! I love how the front and back of the bag are both part of that one long strip. Makes stamping/rolling so easy, and it would also be so easy to modify the bag, adding a "window" on the front with a punch of some sort. The scallop flap could also be trimmed away, making the flap shorter or a different shape if you wanted it that way. The die marks all the score/fold lines and cuts all the edges and that scalloped flap all in a couple twists of the Big Shot handle! I folded the score lines on those smaller side pieces in the above picture so you could see them better. (It's a really cool die, but it hasn't figured out the folding thing yet!) A little adhesive on the flaps on those two smaller pieces and the project's finished. My die arrived on the same day as all the club orders and I was able to get all the bags I needed done and ready for delivery in just two hours! Love it! Hey! I guess that fits the "Valentine" theme perfectly!

Hope you have a good day!