Deflated, BELATED, Birthday!

Did I miss the party?? I've been meaning to make this card for awhile, not only did I have the idea for it, but I also NEED a few right now! oops! But once you're late in sending the card, well, there's no longer a huge urgency to sit down and make it, right? You're already late!!! I thought it would be really fun to make the balloons down low like those sad, helium ones "the day after" the big bash. What do you think?? (Don't forget to add the blush to his cheek, 'cause you know, he's really embarrassed!)

This is Target dollar spot DP, isn't it just so bright and cheerful? (Maybe the recipient will be so cheered by it and forget I forgot!) And, I really like the look of him extending off the edges of his focal point mat, makes it extra-hippy!

TIP: If you're tying a ribbon around a piece of patterned DP that has flowers or spots/dots, place your knot or bow directly over the center of the spot or flower, really brings your attention there and make it look like you have some huge embellishment of button behind it! Bullseye! ;)

CONTEST! FREE STAMPS!!

I've gotten some inquiries about the contest, so I wanted to make a separate post for it. (Also to point out I have a link for it on the side of my blog!) Here are the DEETS!

• Email photos of your "Just So hippy" entries to mmuenchinger@grandecom.net
• Put "Just So Hippy" as the subject of your email
• Enter as many times as you like!
• It is fine to send in projects you made prior to the contest announcement.
  You MAY incorporate other stamp sets into the project, but you MUST use "Just So Hippy", the more hippy, the better! ;)
• All entries must be received by Friday, February 8, 2008 midnight CST
• Entries will be judged by myself.
• Winner will be announced on my blog as soon as the new release sets are revealed at 10PM CST on Gina K Designs site
• Winner receives MY new release set FREE and a handmade card from me using the new images (no set substitutions for the prize, trust me, you'll LOVE it!!)
• EVERYONE WHO OWNS THE SET IS REQUIRED TO ENTER!*
• You can't hate me if I don't pick your project!**
  

I am already prepared (I think!) for the fact that choosing one winner will be VERY TOUGH! There is really no way to say one card is the very BEST because there are so many things that go into making a WOW! project, and I know there are going to be TONS I will love for very different reasons. Now you know I HEART unexpected, out-of-the-box ideas, but please don't think you have to create something so "out there" if that's not your thing, you know? The winning project I choose could very easily be something that's just jaw-droppingly gorgeous(yes, butts are beautiful, have you heard?? ;)) and no out-of-the-box idea in sight, so have fun, be true to yourself and your style, and submit whatever you feel is your best work! I'll be taking all the things into consideration that make a project great: colors, composition, creativity, workwomanship, use of embellishments, etc etc etc!

*Okay, I'm kidding on this one, but why wouldn't you TRY? ("But I might not win..." is not a good answer!!) Time to RALLY! You HAVE the set and there's FREE stamps at stake, so GO STAMP, it's what you love to do!! And LOOK at my fortune I got the other day (I always save the good ones) And now, HERE YOU ARE! I think you can do it, and my fortune does, too!

**NOT kidding on this one! As I said it's going to be really hard to choose a favorite, but there is one prize up for grabs, so there can only be one winner! There'll be MORE contests and chances to win free stuff in the future, though, so enjoy the game!

What a Swinger!!

Would you believe I did NOT plan to make this card when I came up with this monkey pose*?? I know, right?! It just CAME to me after looking at him for awhile(which is just how these "things COME" to me), he kind of looked like he had his leg kicked up in wild swinging abandon! And believe it or not, making this card was VERY easy! You'll need: a pen, a straight edge, scissors, a brad, and a piercing tool.

Stamp your monkey at an angle. Then draw kind of a patch or long john-looking flap on his bottom for the swing's seat(you can do it, it's just a couple lines!) Take a straight edge and line up the top of the "seat" through the middle of his hand, and draw a line through it, skipping over the hand so it looks like he's holding the "rope". Then move your straight edge about a half inch to the left to draw a parallel line for the other rope. The length of your ropes will depend on your card lay out. (I freehanded mine, but I messed up the angle a little bit(but didn't redo it, lazyartist), you'll have much better results with a ruler!) Color. (Watercolor crayons and aquapainter here, as usual)

Cut around the monkey and ropes with your snips. Depending on how much time you have and what kind of background you'll be using, you may want to also cut out inside his arm and leg with a hobby blade/craft knife. LEAVE the space between the ropes as is, as you'll need this to attach your brad.
Poke a hole between the two "ropes" at the top. Punch out a circle (or two in different sizes if you want a mat like I did here) of CS, place on top of the ropes, and poke through the same hole, then lay on your card, and go through this last layer(the card) with another hole. Now add your brad through all three layers and bend back. Now it will swing around 360 degrees, whoop dee dooooooooo!
If you want don't want the brad to show inside your card, you can pop up a very large circle with a greeting or something on it over the brad, just make sure your dimensionals are on either side of the flattened brad, so it can rotate fully. If you don't have circle punches, you can skip this step and just put the brad straight in the card, or put it through some other fun embellishment(example to come later, check back!)
You could also choose to omit the hand that's on the back side, cut it off, or have him holding his sign or flowers or he swoops past! Here, I just did a "Look Ma, one hand!" kind of thing..yeah, I'm his mama, he's my baby...

Speaking of babies, here are MINE(and coincidentally, the inspiration for my original monkey drawing), Jonathan and William, or as my DH likes to call them, "Monkey #1 and Monkey #2" :) (Plan to hear about their adventures(misadventures often) I'd share one that happened TODAY, but I'm still MAD, going to have wait AWHILE 'til I can tell it and laugh about it, grrrr!)

Check back for another "swinger card"**, next time with a different kind of swing!

PS Have you read about my CONTEST??? Scroll down or click on my link to the left about FREE STAMPS!

*You have heard how I came up with the pose by now??(as revealed during the last release party in the Gina K Splitcoast Forum***? oh yeah, juicy stuff is revealed there, you don't want to miss them...!) So I was thinking about my set while driving behind this huge TRUCK ...

**Cool, I invented a NEW card (The Swinger Card-rowwwrr!) Remember, you saw it here first! ;)

***NEXT release party, Sunday, February 10th, be there or be square!

How Sweet Is Right!

Time for a short Hippy break, I am finally getting chance to play with my other Gina K goodies! The stork and little sundae are my favorite images in the new Gina K Stamps for a Cause Set "How Sweet It Is" , and really different from any other stamps I have! I had another tall leggy stork stamp from an retired SU! set, but I LOVE that this one is in flight, that way you can make him taking off or coming in for a(crash!) landing LOL! After stamping the image and coloring This was SO quick and easy to color , love it!!) then outlining with my Warm Gray 20% marker (that Gina K enabled me to get!), I took my paper snips and "free"cut a random, curvy cloud shape that i thought made a really nice background for him and echoed the curves, and humps and bumps of his body and wings! Then I drew a border around the cloud with my Stardust gel pen(you might want to do this first and THEN cut if you're not comfortable cutting without some sort of pattern or line to follow) and mounted it on a a piece of CS I'd cut and embossed with my Nestabilities. I like all the cards I'm seeing with the little half circle notch on the side, but instead of threading the ribbon through it I wanted to spotlight that cute little baby bottle as well as pick up that color from the beak. My favorite(cheap!!) embellishment for baby cards is a safety pin, so I closed that around the ribbon and madee the end pointing towards the bottle to bring your eye to it. This adorable DP was from a DCVW value pack. TIP: whenever I use a patterned paper with words printed on them, while I'll HAVE to cover SOME of the cute sayings with my focal point, I always try to make sure there is one full greeting showing that I like, and position my focal point so you notice it, here you can see "little bundle" peeking out from under the safety pin and "handsome prince" runs just along the bottom corner. :)

I'll be back later with some more details and answers to some questions I've gotten about "THE CONTEST", thanks for your interest, stay tuned! Have a great day! :)

A Hip Contest! Wanna Play?

BLOG CANDY: First off, I just want to say HOW RELIEVED I was to see in all the comments that I managed to put together a nice candy package, whew! (but who knows? maybe 400 others viewed the post, said"...meh...", and left!! oh well, better odds for all of you! LOL!) Hopefully future blog candies will not disappoint!I have to admit, by nature I am really very cheap!! (and working very hard to change that!!!) I'm so grateful to everyone who is supporting my set and I know I've VERY been lucky also to have gotten all the traffic to my blog in these past few weeks because of others links and referrals, thank you all! :)


The WINNER, as picked by random.org, was comment #115: 2worlds, come on down and claim your prize, I will email you today to get your address and send out your candy! (But please keep reading even if you're not 2worlds, there's ANOTHER chance to win something BELOW!)

She said: "I have to agree with some the hippo box, I subscribe ur blog for inspirations thanks"

Thank you again EVERYONE for playing, I so enjoyed reading all your sweet comments(I'm still kind of in a daze over how many there were!), and learning everyone has different favorites, that's great news! I'll continue to try and share of a wide variety of projects and ideas here, so please keep coming back! Hopefully future blog candies will not disappoint!



SO! I want to host a contest now that I have a stamp set! This is so exciting! Here's the deal: email me a photo of something you create with the "Just So Hippy" set and type "Just So Hippy Contest" as the subject. Please be sure to include your name and how to contact you. I need all submissions by midnight CST on Friday, February 8th. (So if you haven't bought the set yet, you still have almost 2 weeks, which for most of you (but depending on where you live, maybe not, sorry!) is enough of time to order and have it shipped to you and still get to play!) The winner I choose will be featured on my blog* right after the February Gina K release (check back here and the Gina K forum on SCS for more details about the upcoming release party!) and will receive a FREE STAMP SET (my next release!) along with a special card I create for you using the set(but not YOUR specific set, yours will be NEW, I'll ink up my own, don't worry! LOL!)

Now about this next set, I will just say: If you love "Just So Hippy", you WILL want this next set, FOR SURE! I can't wait to see what you make. Please come play!!

I'll leave you with something a little different, one more card made with Carolyn King's Dr. Feelgood! A bit racier than the first card, but done in sweet, warm fuzzy colors to soften it's "impact".... HA ha! Made you look!


Have a great day!!!

* You can BET I will be sharing several other fabulous entries here on my blog, can't wait, can't wait!!!!

A Hippy Baby has the Total Package!

So you ran to the store to buy onesies and now you're waiting to find out how else you can package them up?(although on a stuffed animal still remains my fave, see the post below!!) Am I right? (hope?) All right, that's fine if it's still on your "to do list", just don't forget, okay? ;)



I had one of of those clear plastic boxes that held those Ferrero Roche truffles from about a year ago I'd been planning to alter. ( I'll share a fun tutorial for that later, when I actually make it, I just need to do it! ;) Anyway, they're every where right now for Valentine's Day(this is the 5 pack, for 2.98), so remove and enjoy the chocolate(mmmm)*, and there is already a loose heart shaped piece of paper from the packaging, no need to make a template, awesome! (see below)I traced this onto a piece of DP, and laid it in the bottom of the box. (Tip: Doublesided DP makes it cute from above AND below! Don't adhere, this way the recipient can flip the design or remove it completely.) Now roll up your onesie so the design is showing the way you want on top (easy if it's a "patterned" onesie, a little more effort if you have an animal you want centered) and add the lid! (it DOES fit.) Wrap a bow around it to hold it together and you're done. In the above pic I added a Cuttlebug die cut heart tag. Isn't that precious?
Edited to ADD TIP: there will be a purple coded number on the side of the box, not something you want on your gift package. Guess what takes this** right off? ULTRA-CLEAN! a must have :)
Now I want to say right off the type of "package" in the photo below I CASED, probably almost a year ago off Splitcoast , here is Beate's great tutorial (Thanks Donna, for finding it!) I just thought it was so cute and loved how simple it was to make: Score a 12x12 sheet of CS at 4", then 8", then turning the paper 90", and scoring again at 4" and 8" (so you have 9 equal squares) and make valley folds. Turn the CS and score the four corner squares from the outer corner to the middle at a diagonal, then pinch these scores in together to make mountain folds and you have your little caddy! Punch holes through these pinched corners and thread a ribbon through to hold it together. CUTE!! I'm also a messystamper, though, so I never ended up putting anything in mine! until Friday, that is, when I completed my onesies, yay!! How sweet to throw in a couple onesies with some cotton balls and Q-tips for a gift or baby shower centerpiece the new mom can take home? (I put some cotton under the shirts and Q-tip sides as well so they'd stand up a little bit more and not move around)
I hope you enjoyed these ideas, thanks for looking! And keep scrolling down if you missed yesterday's post!!

*Speaking of "chocolate", I am getting extra hippy from the unusual surplus of candy around here used to make all these gifts and treat boxes for the blog!! Sigh! The things I DO for you! ;)

**AND your manicure, so watch out!!

What Makes a Very HIPPY Baby!

This project turned out SO CUTE I could scream*!!! Creating it goes quickly and actually has very few steps but I wanted to include LOTS of pics, so if this seems long, it's NOT, please hang in there! :)

Okay, you need:
Just So Hippy stamps
ink suitable for fabric stamping (I used Palette, which is permanent but should be heat set)
scratch paper
cardboard(or something thick to put inside the shirt, I used the back cover from a 12x12 paper pack, cut in half)
ONESIES! (I found a five pack of white Gerbers at Walmart**, regularly 9.96, this week rollback 8.96; I'm pleased with the quality, they're soft, tagless, and have the cute Gerber Baby logo inside)
ribbon(optional)

Slide your board into the onesie to prevent your design from bleeding through. (Be careful to move it around as you work so it's always under the area you are stamping. I had no problems with the image actually going through to the board, so there was no smearing when I moved it, FYI)
I strongly recommend practicing your design on a piece of paper first, even if it's as simple as one animal to the front. Once the ink's on, it's not coming off! *** Below are pieces just QUICKLY cut out in the rough shape of a onesie from printer paper, that I stamped before beginning. The animals all look really cute on the onesies but the giraffe is my fave for this project, (I'm saving the hippo for something else, wait and see...!
In addition to my animals onesies, I wanted to make a couple other onesies to coordinate that were different, and I discovered how perfect the little hearts and flowers worked, and it was so easy! I actually left the sleeves white (lazystamper) but I think it looks cute this way, sort of like a reverse ringer tee. (It can be done though, just cut a smaller piece of board to insert into your sleeve before stamping) While I did not measure it out, it's not completely random. Start by stamping your image in the center, stamp above left and right, then below left and right, and then work your way out. I recommend making a pattern leaving a lot of space to begin, you can always go back and fill in if you want that look, but once you start a really tiny, tight pattern, you;re going to have to see it through, and that takes more time and precision in getting it even, know what I mean? The flowers are the easiest because they look almost identical when stamped right side "up" or down, so you don't have to turn the stamp to create your pattern!
For the pierced hearts, I decided these looked better going in all directions, otherwise I'd need to be more precise in my placement, so I followed the same "formation" as described above, just kept turning the stamp as I went. The balloons I did all right side up, but try your own combinations, or mix and match the hearts and flowers , or add the tiny "hey baby" and "love you" to change it up! Toss them in the dryer to heat set and they're done! One last cute addition, tie a little bow or just a put a knot in a narrow ribbon and attach to the tail or neck. (I reinforced the stitch several times to keep it from coming off) Makes a nice little detail! If I'd had pink thread on hand and more time, a REALLY cute thing (if you have basic sewing skills) would be to embroider a string for the balloon, (a very simple stitch, really, if I can do it(lazysewer) you can!!) :)
Now you need an extra-special way to BEST present this special gift: Put your onesie on a STUFFED ANIMAL! Who wouldn't melt when you arrive to visit the baby with that? (This is a 6-9 months size so that's why it looks a little roomy on this good sized bear from Build-a Bear Workshop, one of the $10 bears (this belongs to one of my boys, which is why the nose looks a bit worn, the head bow I added for this pic) Another fun idea, these little onesies are so inexpensive to make, don't wait until someone is having a baby! Make them for ALL other stuffed animals you are giving as gifts, as those custom stuffed animal clothes can be very expensive!And FINALLY for my FAVORITE PART and what makes using THE HIPPY STAMPS for the project SO PERFECT!!(besides that it just looks so cute on a onesie anyway!) After stamping the front of your onesie, turn it over(this is before you put it on a bear!),and stamp the HIPPO on the BOTTOM! (modelled below! BWAHHHH!) Now that baby will look just as cute coming OR going, and Mom and Dad will have that little hippo staring up at them during tummy time! Isn't that sweet??? (I had to hold myself back from throwing several packs of little PANTIES into my cart when I realized I could do this, but I resisted, don't need to make any for anybody right now, and I can always go back!) What a fun, unique gift! What's more cute than a baby hiney??? A hiney on the hiney! BOTTOMS UP!!

I hope you enjoyed this project! I'm hoping a trend of hippy bottoms will be sweeping the nation! ;)

TOMORROW I will share TWO MORE really unique ways to package and present your gift, so be sure to check back, you won't want to miss it! Oh yeah, and the blog candy drawing PLUS a very special announcement!!! Leave a comment on the post below if you haven't already to enter for the candy!!

* It's ALMOST enough to make me want to have another baby!

** I originally bought an assortment of different shades of pink and a couple pink prints, but I returned them. Although it would have been cut doing pink on pink, I decided it made better sense to keep white on hand only to make them for a boy or a girl, and I discovered I could make my own prints! (As you can see from the top pic I also bought Reflection Blue to make "boy" onesies, but this color turned out to be brighter and more turquoise than it appeared to me on the computer. I was expecting it to be more in the "Brocade or Ballet Blue" range, it's still a pretty color I will use. My own fault for not checking one of the reference guides available online for best color matches first! The Boudoir Blush looks terrific with the Su!'s Rose colored grosgrains :)

***WARNING: I DID mess up my first onesie, so read this before you start and make my mistake: when I was inking up my hippo for the back of the onesie, I wanted to be sure I had the image really well inked so I pressed hard several times into the pad and stamped, without looking at the stamp! BIG MISTAKE! Because there is so much white space around the tail, doing this can get a lot of ink in that area, so when I pressed onto the fabric I didn't have it completely flat with my board inserted and the the snaps underneath, so I got some shadowy spots of ink on both sides of his hiney!! Because I'm not just a lazystamper but also a CHEAPstamper, I tried to save it by making it look intentional! I picked up a little more ink with an old blender pen and blotted it on to at least make it uniform, and it DOES look like maybe I meant to do it, but the next time I was more careful!! The 2nd time went fine by placing the open ink pad on the table and tapping my stamp onto it several times, then checking to make sure all was well before I pressed it onto fabric- came out fine!! :)

Edited to add: I've had a couple people ask about whether to prewash the onesies, thanks for bringing this up! In my experience with stamping on fabric, I've never washed first (except in the cases of deciding to stamp on a garment I'd already owned awhile so it'd been through the wash, although THIS is the FIRST time I've used Palette inks to do so!) So I did a search tonight of several fabric stamping/painting tutorials online to check and while I read again and again that the general consensus is 100% cotton with a tight weave (Gerber onesies are)is the best surface(as blends that are not 100% tend to shrink), and a few who feel that "prewashing yields the best results", I did not find anywhere that it is necessary. But having said that, you might as well! (Just avoid fabric softeners, as this would be adding chemicals and you're trying to take them out!) And, if you are planning on them being worn, I remember our prenatal classes always taught to wash anything the baby would be wearing ahead of time because of his or her sensitive skin. Hope this helps! :)

BLOG CANDY! (Melanie's Munchies*)

Okay, blog candy time! To be entered in the drawing for this "candy", leave a comment on THIS post telling me either: your favorite thing I've posted on my blog, a new hippy sighting(I wanna make sure I see them all!), and/or a GUESS about my next stamp release! I'll do a random drawing on Monday morning, 1/28, and the winner will receive the following**:

SU! Silver Eyelets (approx 200)

2 jumbo paperclips

2 SU! Pretties Kit Hatpins and clear beads

6 assorted SU! Antique Brass hodgepodge buckles

10 mini jeweler's bags (for treat holders or storing embellishments)

3 projects using Just So Hippy(one includes jelly bellies!)

2 cards using Papertrey stamps

20 4"x5 1/4" precut sheets of DP in assorted prints(including more not shown here), perfect for matting A2 cards

40 scallop punches in assorted SU! CS colors

10 Cuttlebug die cut hearts in SU! CS colors

55 self adhesive rhinestones

3 yards of SU! 5/8"grosgrain (1 yd each of celery, rose, and blue)

plus a couple other little surprises not pictured here...!

(If this prize pack doesn't excite you, sorry! Please go easy on me, it's my FIRST blog candy, this is new to me!)

Thanks for playing, and have a great weekend!

QUICK (Hip) TIP: Use the little flower or pierced heart from the Just So hippy set like a little logo motif on the back of your handstamped cards just above your name when you sign them! Super CUTE!

PS My Palette pads came today, so I will be posting the project I've been SO EXCITED about TOMORROW!

*That was Donna's cute idea! :) But please note, most of these things are NOT edible! ;)

Hip Hip Hooray, YOU Make My Day!

Still have to photograph my blog candy, it will be up later today! I wanted to go ahead and get something posted, though, for now...(you will have a couple days after I post to leave a comment to win, so check back when you can)

I made this card for one of my kids at church. About 2 1/2 years ago I volunteered to make the birthday cards for all the children 12 and under. I haven't met them all personally, but I feel like I know them as I address them to the same children each year, and I can pray for them as make them. While I have never been contacted by anyone for custom-made cards or workshops as a result, I definitely believe God has blessed me in MANY other ways for doing this! :) (The reason I share this story is I thought it might be a way a lot of you card makers might enjoy using your talents if you are looking for a way to serve your church. I know mine really appreciates having someone who is willing to do it, and I'm definitely better at making cards than I am leading songs or running the nursery! We all have different gifts! LOL!)
After stamping and coloring my image, I sketched in some stems and leaves with my Old Olive marker. I had to use "my boo boo stamp", SU!'s Itty Bitty background splatter on the focal point, I smudged! (lazy stamper, CAN'T start over) With my white gel pen, I accented the DP flower centers, my versamarked flowers on the Chocolate Chip background, and the little brad holding my prima and 5-petal flower.

AND FINALLY, here it is:

Thank you SO MUCH Rose Ann and Donna for nominating me for this award and encouraging me that my blog is a place you like to be! That made my day! (I still have a lot to learn, but I'm enjoying it!) Now to pass it on...



The rules: Give the award to up to 10 people whose blogs bring you happiness and inspiration and make you feel so happy about blogland! Let them know by posting a comment on their blog so that they can pass it on. here they are*, in particular order:

Gina K-Well, she's made my day SEVERAL times now, but I'll just mention her recent post with a link to my treat box put me on the map, that was fun! Not to mention the great projects she shares, things she does for others, and that can her posts can make me both laugh and cry! Thank you, Gina!

Donna Baker-Donna's sweetness and caring for others just emanates through the screen as she shares cards and gifts she makes for all the people in her life. You can always see she puts so much thought and love into every beautiful card she makes :) And she's definitely on a winning streak lately, wining card contests of both skill AND chance! Go check her out and get some of her good mojo!

Sharon Johnson-one of the first to design with my stamps and share on her blog! thank you I'm so honored! Love, love ALL your work!

Rose Ann-such talent! We did NOT know each other and she bought my set anyway LOL!(and then made the cutest card with it!) Thanks for being one of the first to come check out my blog and taking the time to leave such nice comments!

Carolyn King-one of my new peeps! Thanks for adopting me the past few weeks, and always leaving something wonderful on my blog. I'm glad to have you as my new "partner in crime", so to speak!

Nichole Heady-the first blog I found with step by step tutorials! I love her style, ideas and her ability to keep you coming back! I studied hard and took lots of notes on what a blog could be...

Beate Johns-it's just so FRESH! and FUN! You make blogging and creating beauty from paper and ink "look easy", and that's a GOOD thing! Thank you for posting ANOTHER terrific card with my set!!

Lauren Meader -someone who tackles stamping and motherhood with unbelievable style and grace! What an inspiration to me...

Debbie Olson-just a beautiful blog and lady, can't miss it

Joanne Basile-I'm so glad to have found her blog, her work is just outstanding, and recently, hippy! Since she made Gina K's new design team, she will be designing with my new releases the next three months! Now THAT makes my day!

and Barb Schram, but she doesn't have a blog, so is that against the rules?? Barb, get on the blog train, whatcha waitin' for? I could defintiely name more than 10, so I will work on that for later, can you ever say something nice to too many people?

(Now I just need someone to"tag" me so I can reveal lots of terrifically random stuff about myself!) ;)

* and, of course, all these women are hippy! ;)

Love (and Blog Candy) is All you Need

Have you seen Carolyn's set Dr. Feelgood?! I crack up every time I see this stamp! But I also really like all the little images that go with it like the champages glasses,hearts and greetings (if you want to make the card without "the housecall"!) I was so glad I finally had some time alone to play with the doctor yesterday, heh heh! This is the first card I made with it, and I wanted to incorporate the bandaid idea I had for Papertrey's guest stamper contest by using one of their label stamps to make a bandaid (Am I the only one who looks at the label stamps and thinks"bandaid"?!) I just think it's perfect with this set. I stamped the labels from Papertrey's Holiday Treats randomly for my background, going off the edges, and stamped out two more to cut out. The new heart rain dots from Gina K's store (you can find those too at the link above) fit perfectly in the round window. (I'm SO glad ordered these! You can bet you'll be seeing some in the spring colors are my cards and projects VERY soon!) I put one bandaid on the lower corner with dimensionals, and wrapped the second around the top corner. I think this helps with the illusion that they are real bandaids (since you stick them on things), and this way they look like they are securing my focal point to the card. I added the "hey baby" from "Just So hippy" to the clipboard which is also mounted on dimensionals. It may be hard to see in the pic, but I wanted the little clip on the board to be dimensional as well, so I stamped out a second clipboard, cut out the clip, and attached it with a rolled up mini glue dot(dimensionals are too big, but rolling the glue dot worked and gives it the thickness of a dimensional). I bent it forward a little, and it really looks like a clip holding the paper on!



Be sure to check back for more doctor visits soon! ;) Check back TOMORROW to enter to win BLOG CANDY!

PS I have a project to post I am SO excited about, but finishing it depends on the arrival of a few new Palette Ink Pads, crossing my fingers they come tomorrow(post already came today, no such luck, wahhh)!! They ARE in the mail, though, so it should be by the weekend at the latest, can't wait to share! :) (hmmm, what could I be planning with those ink pads ...?)

Triangle Box

You've probably seen these triangle boxes before, but if you haven't tried them, I have to say it is about the easiest thing I've ever had the pleasure of making! No cutting!(once you have your rectangle) No adhesive! It just doesn't get better than this. here's a pattern and quick instructions I found, but I'll also explain here. You can change up your dimensions for this to make it larger, or to make a wider on skinnier triangle depending on what you want to stamp on the face. http://www.craftideas.info/html/triangle_gift_box.html
(Think about an image that will work well on the triangular front. I first planned on using my giraffe, but it was a bit too tall,unless I left off the feet, but then I noticed the monkey would do quite nicely. )

For this project, you need CS, a scoring tool, ribbon, and something to make a hole.

This piece was 4 x8 ". Score your paper (Blush blossom here) )in half width-wise(4"). Now find the middle of your cardstock length-wise and mark(2") and score from this midpoint to the either ends of the middle scoreline, and repeat on the other side to produce two mirror image triangles(see the pattern). Stamp the monkey on one side and the greeting and fill the rest of the background with flowers or hearts. I colored the flowers with my Signo white gel pen and the monkey with watercolor crayons and aquapainter (This project goes so quickly, I didn't even mind stamping the inside with flowers, too, so it looks pretty when opened) Fold your score lines into the box shape, and then with a 1/8 circle or other punch(I used my Cropodile) punch holes through the top on both sides(both layers), so you can string your ribbon through. Fill with candy(it holds quite a bit), and tie up your bow (here I used SU!'s wide chocolate chip satin) and you're done! Isn't that fun?! And it's very sturdy, too, which I like. I still thought the top needed something, so I added a Cuttlebug diecut tag with a brown eyelet to and attached with a glue dot (I've learned you should always have a tag on any gift, no matter what!) I inked up the words on my greeting separately to make it fit the longer tag.

Gotta run to school, I'll be back to add some things to this post later today.
Thanks for looking!

NEWS FLASH: GINA K IS GIVING S AWAY $150 OF COPICS TODAY, leave a comment on her blog for a chance to win! http://blog.ginakdesigns.com/2008/01/23/copic-giveaway-copic-clubs-and-copic-tutorial.aspx (If you're not interested in Copics yourself or already own them all, leave a comment there anyway, and send them to ME if you win! Mom, Dad, are you reading this??)

When is a Square Not a Square?

Just what IS that little square stamp in my set? Basically, it's a little sign for greetings that my animal stamps can hold. But, of course, there are lots of other design opportunities not to be missed! If you are anything like me, I'm always looking for ways to make my stamps and sets more versatile, and in turn get more bang for my buck! Here are a few easy things you can add to the stamped square(and balloon) image, to give your animals a few options when they present their greetings and gifts, (did you know all these stamps were hiding in your set?) All you need is a pen*... :

-First, the simplest: add two lines at the top to make it look like a slightly opened "card".
-Second: Stamp the flower or heart in the middle of the square, and add two diagonal lines at the corners to make a little "envelope". (both pictured below) Take it one step further if you want(not pictured) by adding a triangle to the top, it will look like your envelope is open!
These are really cute ways to have them offer up their well wishes.

-Third(last row, above):- Try going "3D"! A little more complicated if you've never had any lessons in perspective, but YOU CAN DO IT! There's no time like the present!(sorry, groan, I couldn't resist!)Stamp the flower above the square, and add three diagonals from the corners, each parallel to the other lines you drew. Connect your lines with a horizontal for a "top" , and a vertical to make the "side", and you have a cube, or box. Now you have a little wrapped "gift". Adding a line down the front and sides are optional for a "ribbon wrap".

-Last, draw a curved line parallel to the large heart outline, add a line connecting it to the heart at the top and bottom, stamp flower or the pierced heart in the middle and you have a Valentine box of chocolates!

Hope this was helpful, and you have fun playing with these ideas and making up your own I haven't listed here! Please share your creative brainstorms, I would love to see! Which reminds me, I added a new page element on the right for "Hippy Sightings"! Can you help me keep it updated? I would so appreciate your letting me know if you find a card I missed, or you're "hippy", too! and have posted something to your blog I haven't found yet! I am so enjoying seeing all the wonderful ways they are being used, and so thankful to everyone who has a set, I want to make sure I don't miss a one! **

PS I received a couple lovely and completely unexpected "You Made My Day!" Awards, and I am working on a special post for my list to pass them on! Just wanted to say quickly now how much I appreciated it, and WILL be following up! :)

PPS If you're hoping to see something here more than hippys here, you will! I have three news Gina K sets sitting on my desk calling my name, plus a new SU! set that just arrived. It's been about all I can do these past weeks to keep up with my blog, so there has been very little time to stamp (but fortunately, I had lots of projects stockpiled and photgraphed to fill in the gap! So look for other creations very soon! and they monkey treat box I promised will be postedshortly, I just wanted to use a project today illustrating the "altered square" (but on my box he's holding flowers...)

*Make sure it's waterproof, like a journaler, which won't bleed when you're ready to color.

**I've only listed one card for her so far, but yes, I know Donna Baker has a bajillion posted (my biggest supporter!) Just go check out her whole blog, there's lot more there (than just hippys)to enjoy!

He's Cheap and Easy, Ladies...!

Wow, so that's what "traffic" is! I got almost 2000 hits on my blog the last 24 hours, thanks to Gina K for sharing a link to my treat box(and I did not pay her to do that!) So WELCOME to lots of new visitors, thank you very much for stopping in, hopefully I can keep you coming back!

I had to follow up yesterday's project with another treat box so my hippy wouldn't be left out, and I got inspired by Carolyn's adorable treat holder with the round window. Well, of course, ROUND made me think of... something else round! This one costs almost nothing and is even easier to assemble than the clear box project I posted.

You'll need: a hybrid ink that allows you to stamp on plastic, small ziplocs(I found these in the jewelry section at Hobby Lobby, you can get a hundred bags for a dollar or two, it doesn't cheaper than that! These measure 2" x 3.5"*), a large circle punch like 1 3/8"(oh yeah, you need a big one for this baby!), a stapler, CS, and candy. You may also want to use ribbon and suplies to color it.

Cut your CS to 2 1/2" x 8". Score the CS at 4"and 4 3/4". Stamp the hippo on the shorter side with this feet parallel to the score.

Slide your CS into punch with the hole facing up so you can center the tail and punch. Stamp your hippo on the ziploc back and heat set to prevent smudging(just a second or two at a time, checking as you go, it doesn't take much and you don't want to melt your plastic.)

Fill the bag with candy (jelly bellies here), seal and center behind your window. Fold the top over and attach, stapling is easiest and won't come undone (this is a good safeguard, too, to keep snacking crafters such as myself from eating the treats before distributing, you're locked out LOL!)

Cover with a ribbon to hide the staple. (After this pic I decided to add a strip of white under the flap that I'd cut with scallop scissors to jazz it up a bit and echo the little toes. You can see it in the finished pic at top. I accented the eye, tooth and toes with my white gel pen and a little pink to the ear and cheek with marker or watercolor brush, and that was it, no other coloring! Stamp the balloon and greeting of your choice on white CS, cut and mount on a dimensional. Adhere above the window, and add a line for a string with your Sharpie, as in yesterday's project.

All done!! You could make these little treats in no time for just pennies apiece, not only because of the cost of supplies but they require a lot less candy to fill. They'd also be adorable for a baby shower, just change your greeting to "hey baby"! You could also substitute bath salts for the treats.

Thanks again for looking! (Next project, I'm thinking "MONKEY"!) Today is my one month blogaversary, so I'm working on a little blog candy to celebrate, but not done yet, will post soon, so please keep checking back!

Window Box of Chocolove!

Isn't this cute?? To make this treat box you'll need clear boxes and a Coluzzle with an oval template. Start with a piece of CS 5 7/8" x12" for your insert. Then stamp the giraffe in the center of the strip.

Lay the oval template on top and choose a track SMALLER than your image(so it won't fall out when after cutting. I read this great tip a few years ago( don't remember where, sorry!) to mark the different tracks with different colored Sharpies, this makes it much easier to see and make sure you put your knife in the correct one. Here I chose the green one)

Insert the blade, cutting just up to the edge of the image, remove the blade, and start again on the other side of the image. Next you will needs paper snips or other small scissors to trim around the image to remove the excess CS from the oval, and you have a window!

Stamp your background paper as desired(don't these stamps make fun backgrounds?!), with a balloon just above the oval to the right to line up with the tail. Color. Score the CS at 2 3/4",3 3/4", 8", and 9". It is not necessary to add the ribbon but it lends some luxury to your gift box. Thread the ribbon behind the giraffe, bend the scores and attach the ribbon at back with glue dots.

Insert your CS into the box and draw a line on the box connecting the tail to the balloon for a "string" with a sharpie pen(see top pic). Stand the box upright and fill with candies* to just above the top of the window, then close the box and admire your work! You did it! (When no one is looking, open it back up and sneak a few out.**)

*Valentine peanut M&Ms , these look really cute with the heart shaped balloons and giraffe print, and are just so tasty

** Repeat this last step a few times, before ultimately deciding to finish eating the candies yourself, they're almost gone...Happy Valentine's Day to YOU!

Hippy Clippies

For today's project, you need:

jumbo paperclips (97 cents for a box at Walmart (of 12? 15? there were a lot!)

1 3/8" punch, scallop punch

pop dots

pail from the Target dollar spot

white and colored CS (Papertrey Stampers Select White, Su! Real Red and Pixie Pink )

CANDY!* look for Valentines message Hershey Kisses, the little flags say I love you, xoxo, etc

Stamp the animals on white CS, color with medium of your choice and punch out the faces with the circle. Punch out a scallop from your colored CS and attach. Squash a pop dot to the middle of th back of the scallop, Then press the top loop of the paper clip over it so the glue dot is in the middle of the loop. Add another scallop punch to the back to hide the pop dot. Put a greeting, a different animal or coordinating DP on the back so both sides look pretty.

Tie a ribbon around the handle, fill the bucket with candy and insert the clippies so they are standing up (and peeking out!) Now you have a little bouquet bucket and these clippies have many uses, bookmark etc

* Look for the Valentines message Hershey Kisses the little flags say I love you, etc, too cute!!

Price of posting today: ruined rug from kids getting into paint while I typed :(

Hip hip Hooray for BARB!

Barb won the first Papertrey Stamper's Choice Award (along with Kacey, also amazing project!) Hats off to Nichole for awarding both deserving projects a prize! Thank you to EVERYONE who went and checked out Nichole's blog and left comments for her!! I'd like to accept this award on behalf of Barb, I think we ran a tight campaign (HA!)

The photo above is the original drawing (not a stamp!) of the hippy I watercolored and submitted to Gina K(yup, this was the first illustration of mine she ever saw). Let's just say I'm REALLY glad she liked it! I've been meaning to post it at some pointand share other bits and pieces of how the set was inspired(check back for more if you're curious!), and how appropriate to share on the day of my friend's victory! Waving at you, Barb, we're all shaking our hips over here doing the happy(hippy!) dance! :)

The Stamps are Coming, the Stamps are Coming!

I am soooo excited to hear that shipments from Gina K's last release are arriving! (My order came yesterday, I can't wait to play with the Doctor and the rest!) This means I will be seeing little fannies popping up everywhere, what a fun thing to be on the look out for each day! ;) There are some absolutely adorable cards in SCS's Just So Hippy Gallery already, check them out! (It's really fun to see people clearly spending SO much time to craft these lovely, VERY detailed cards, I have to admit, unless I have a real brainstorm or a big chunk of time to work, I'm usually a pretty lazy stamper!)

Here is a card I made with the hippo. I used a birthday greeting but these colors and layout could easily work for a Valentine, they don't always have to be red! Although, I like him colored "solid", I really enjoy giving him a "speckled" back by just dotting on a bit of color with my trusty Aquapainter and watercolor crayons. I picked blue, brown, turquoise and even a little pink to do this which I think really sets off the background paper nicely!* You may have noticed but I always like to give the animals a little blush to their cheeks (and by "cheeks", I mean faces, just to be clear! LOL) I inked up just the hippy on the greeting stamp, and cleaned it before doing the birthday so I could have it fit in my oval tag.** I chose the "You" Cuttlebug folder with lots of words on it, if you enlarge the image, you'll see "wild" on the side, this was intentional! It's subtle, but I think even if you don't realize it, I'm sending you a subliminal message hee hee! This layout (or something similar) is very popular, with part of a circle on the side. looks great With polka dots and definitely works with the pleasingly plump shape! Had I followed my own rule about "unity" from a few posts back, I should have used circle punches instead of ovals, but sometimes I gotta break the rules, even my own!

Have great day! Check back tomorrow for a 3-D valentine project with candy and "clippies"...!

Did you VOTE? Poll's close at 10AM EST!

* I think the hippo and giraffe look really cute in a number of colors, other than colors nature has given them! I'm really enjoying giving them a shade to match a variety of color schemes. That monkey, though, I don't know, I haven't managed to break out of the neutrals with him! Maybe because of his hair, which in my world ranges from blond to black! Can anyone sell me on another color for this little guy? Purple, blue? Anyone???

**If you haven't tried it, I really like using the small and large oval punch together better when the greeting is on the back layer showing through the window, rather than mounting a small oval on top of a large one, it makes it look more like a hodge podge frame. To do this, stamp your greeting on CS and punch with the LARGE Oval. This will make the window easy to adhere. Then take the CS you want for the frame, and punch the SMALL oval first, and then center your LARGE oval around it and punch. A perfect frame! You will frustrate yourself to no end if you try this in reverse, and it will not come out right! For a more whimsical or retro look, offset the large oval so you have an uneven border, rather than a classic symmetrical frame. See my "Pumpkin Bloom" card in my "Random Post" for an example of this...

VOTE FOR BARB!!! (and a Love Post)

Special Post: Barb Schram got TWO honorable mentions for her projects in Nichole Heady's Guest Star Stamper contest this month! And, for the first time, Nichole is giving her readers/fans the chance to vote on their favorite Honorable mention project and the winner receives a free stamp set! Barb is so terrifically talented, I really think she deserves to win! She's done such amazing things with Papertrey's products, receiving an honorable mention the very first month, she entered, WINNING the contest the very next, and this month the only stamper to have two projects in the running! So check out the projects on the link above and leave a comment there (not here, that won't count towards the contest) about your favorite! (those airplanes, I LOVE 'em!!! 2nd favorite is her key ;) (I'd post a pic here, but don't know if that's allowed?... Just go look!)

Here's a Valentine project for today, using those little Target dollar spot mailboxes you've probably seen a lot of by now(and unbelievably they still have a bunch left weeks after I bought this one, (at least at the one near me))! I wanted to keep the mailbox simple since I am the lone woman in a house full of men, and I restrained my self from "froufing" it up too much on the outside with floral DP! After Valentine's day is over, we'll be left with a white mailbox with red stripes, and I think the boys here can handle having that by the front door year round for leaving each other little messages (or maybe at the foot of their bed in the morning with something special to find inside when they wake up...) Wouldn't' that be fun?

It was so easy to just wrap the grosgrain using glue dots(for this I just opened up the glue dot roll, smashed the whole length of ribbon on it and peeled off and stuck, no need to figure out how far apart to space them stick, individually, it went really fast!) The little Valentine monkey and hippo cards are made with the largest dies from the Nestabilites Classic and Scallop Rectangle sets(both large) Perfect size for this little box! ( The giraffe is just a hair too tall for these, but I stamped part of him on the inside of the lid, in the next day or two I will post a card of how he fits using these dies in case you're wondering) The "Love you stamp on the flag uses the smallest dies from these two sets. I stamped my little "pierced" heart onto some tissue paper to give the project a little more pizazz. The images are colored with watercolor crayons and an aquapainter.

How to Make a Card POP!

Here is a card I made for Gina K's gallery, I just love how it turned out! My stamp set had just arrived and I was out looking for some fun embellishments (those heart brads I mentioned before, etc) and found these really cool lollipops at Michael's. They were 39 cents each and came with a long, I mean LONG! plastic stick, I'm talking 18 inches or so! (they are meant for candy bouquets) I grabbed a few , knowing they'd be perfect for my tails if I trimmed then down(which was very simple with my craft scissors, the "stick" was a hollow tube) The cheaper suckers you find would work, too, but they have those square shaped wrappers with the crimped sides to seal them, and I really liked this smooth cello wrap that could be tied with a ribbon, much more appealing visually when attached to a card(It came with the silver twist tie, I added the polka dot bow) I removed the wrapper first and trimmed off just the bottom of it that had a bit of writing on it, leaving just the thin red edge to echo my read mat. I stamped right on the wrapper with the "hey baby"* greeting from this set using Palette Noir ink. I knew this ink was for all surfaces, but I did not realize until I did this that it does have to be heat set on plastic, so this is important. I used my heat gun on for only a second maybe to keep from melting the cello or pop. I thought it turned out so cute!

Not, how does the tail wrap around the stick?? Originally I was going to make a hole above and below to thread it through, but this giraffe was stamped in two stages, with the back half (which is facing you) cut out and POPped it up on dimensionals. It may be difficult to see in this pic, but separating the hales really makes a cool effect since he's turned around (I like separating the face and the hippo's body in this way, too) I used a tiny bit of glue on the tail and a glue dot and under the pop. This was a much better solution than punching the holes because it actually looks like he's holding the stick AND his body is 3-D! Glad I spent a little extra time, it was worth it!

Now for the final bit of "Pop", I added the punched greeting and heart brads to pick up his heart pattern and to fill the white space around the greeting. I inked up the hippy separately to use with the (happy) Valentine's day stamp. (The reason we went ahead and did Happy Valentine's Day was to make this greeting more versatile if you are using it with other stamps that aren't quite as "hippy", but it's easily omitted to combine with a hippy from the birthday stamp. Just in case you wondering..! ;) The polka dotted ribbon brings out the pattern in the background DP.


I plan on making these using all the animal from the set for my son's classmates (a simpler version, though! probably just one or two layers) Hope you enjoy this idea! Please share any pics of cards you try like this in the SCS gallery, I'd love to see!


HIP TIP! Here's a super easy way to color the giraffe stamp: if you choose a body color LIGHTER than the hearts spots(or similar colors ex yellow and red, pink and purple etc), you can go over the entire image with this one color, then go back and fill in the hearts with your darker color. (Saves the time and trouble of having to go AROUND each and every little heart.)

Materials used: Just So Hippy, Michael's lollipop, Real red and Shimmery White CS, Saffron designer prints DP, scallop and circle punches, heart brads

* I love this greeting! It can be SO sweet and innocent, but SO NOT! ;)

Loving Your Labels!

If you stamp, I'm sure you know Papertrey and Nichole's incredible "Avery label" stamps for wrapping Hershey's Nuggets. (If you don't know them yet, go check 'em out, I'll be here when you get back!) I don't have her new Limitless Label set(yet!) but I have her Spooky Sweets and Holiday Treats, which both contain some bold label stamps in different patterns. If you know me at all, you know I love to mix my sets when stamping, so I was so thrilled when my Just So Hippy stamps arrived to find how nicely both the small images and small greetings from my set fit in the label's circular"window"!(which means they also fit in the 1/2" and 3/4" punch-woo hoo!) For this project I used the polka dotted stamp from Holiday Treats, works well for any occasion, not just the winter holidays. All four greetings in my set are different from hers, so this gives you even more variety when you have both! And I think the line art images here are a fun way to change up the bold images when you are going for a different look, or are wanting to decorate nuggets to match a card or packaging you've made using "the hippys".

You can find these patterns for nuggets boxes and sleeves here in any size you need, they are very quick and easy to make. Enjoy! Valentine's Day is only one month away, check back here for a different project and inspiration every day until then! :)

Materials used: Gina K. Designs Just So Hippy, Papertrey Holiday Treats, SU! Polka Dots and Petals DP, Pretty in Pink and Real Red Pads and markers, 5/8 Red grosgrain, Palette Noir pad, avery label sheet, 1/2" circle punch, terrifically tacky tape, Herhsey's nuggets.

LOVE-AIDS!

Here's a project I made for Gina K's gallery, it's an Altoid tin filled with stamped band-aids! (When I was on the Dirty Dozen eons ago, I made some altered Altoid tins for the gallery, but don't go look, I made them before the days of watercolor crayons, aquapainters, etc! My first efforts don't look so cute to me now, but I found it interesting that I was the first to post one!)


Little kids love band aids, as you parents know, they don't even have to be injured to want one. Now those printed store-bought band-aids are very pricey(3 bucks for 20, OUCH!) so I've been stamping on my kids band-aids for awhile now(by just telling them to go pick a stamp!), but I got really inspired by a sneak peek of Carolyn's Dr. Feelgood before the release and had the idea to create some Love-aids with my new set! The little sayings "love you", "get well" and the hearts from Just So Hippy Set are just perfect, fit any size band aid. They are stamped with Palette Noir ink, not Staz On so you don't have stinky fumes and it doesn't require any heat set, dried instantly(someone asked on SCS if this would be safe for kids, the answer is : Um, I think?? I did open one up and the ink does not seep through to the padding or adhesive side so it won't be touching their skin. So, my kids will be using them!* ;) I colored the hearts with a red Sharpie and added the little white highlight dot with my trusty white Signo gel pen. The decoration process went very quickly.
My prescription on the back reads*:

RX: Apply to any cut, scrape, boo boo, owie or bruised ego with gentle pressure, as loving thoughts and well wishes are absorbed through the skin.


I thought these would be really sweet not only for kids, but as gifts for your grown-up girlfriends to keep in their purses! Who wouldn't want a cute bandaid instead of a plain one to cover their hangnail? Or as a sugar-free Valentine's Day or Get Well present?And the "bruised ego": I actually had a friend in mind when I made these that is really going through a lot, I thought these were loving reminders to take care of herself and love heals. I was also thinking of a beautiful children's book called "The Kissing Hand", in which a mother raccoon plants a kiss on her son's hand as he heads for school for the first time so he'll remember she's thinking of him. Wouldn't a child love these Love-aids for anytime? It's like a little bit of magic... :)


Gina K. Designs announced today she will be selling tins like these on her site for $1.50 each! They are smooth and silver, so they are quite pretty without having to cover all the sides. I used Mono multi for the top and bottom, and smoothed with my fingers. I wound a piece of Terrifically tacky tape around the lid's edge for my ribbon. The bottom strip for the side is a 12 inch strip of paper, 1/2 inch wide. GREAT TIP(IMHO): an 11 inch sheet of printer paper was not long enough, so I looked through my 12x12, and used a strip from a very ugly one sided-sheet of designer paper!! So there's a good use for any patterns you're just not really "feeling" in those paper slabs, don't hang on to them taking up space in your crate, flip it over for white 12x12!!

I will add a few more pics and specifics of covering the tin and making the border with Papertrey's Faux Ribbon in tomorrow's post...

* I've actually stamped directly on both my and my boys' skin with the Palette inks like tattoos, and we've had no rashes or third limbs grow so far! (but if we do, I will come back and edit this post!) ;)

**Feel free to cut and paste for your own personal use :)