A Hip Rocker

So do you remember that rocking baby card (that really rocked!) and video I made a few months back? (one of my fave baby designs ever?) Well, now I have the stamps for you to mass produce the perfect little baby faces for lots of these cards LOL! Here's my new and improved version using "Hip to Be Square"! (little pink cheeks are made by stamping the smallest circle from "Inspiration Mosaic"on either side.

I embossed the Pure Luxury White here with the Cuttlebug Argyle folder, I love how that looks the side of a woven bassinet. Greeting from the s stamped on a Cuttlebug diecut tag, and circle for base is Mountain Rose Glimmer from Paper Temptress. Be sure to check out this link for the rest of the instructions on how to make these rocker cards and see it in motion!

Sweet treat!

Quickie post, I am stamping up a storm to get ready for a baby shower tonight, but here is a simple cupcake topper I made with "Wee Tees" and a safety pin!
I stamped the polka dot background from Gina's "Bold Flowers" in pink onto my Basic Grey paper (onesie is stamped in Memento Rich Cocoa) and added the little cupcake image from my "A Charmed Life" set (omitting the jump ring part of the image), isn't that fun? (betcha wine isn't the first thing that comes to mind when you think of onesies LOL!) I inked up just part of "sweetest" from the Wee Tees set to make "sweet" underneath. Ribbon is from Hobby Lobby.

I attached the safety pin with a glue dot, and the tied ribbon with a glue dot on top of that. TIP: Use a doublesided DP for these so they look just as pretty from the back as from the front (I figured that out AFTER I made this mock up LOL! it's all good, the 13 new ones I made are!) ;)

This style of cupcake topper coudl be so easily adapted using the "Little Tees" for a girly slumber party or "Just So Sporty" for an after-game celebration! (substitute toothpicks for the pins)

I'll be back from the shower with stamped gifts and decor ideas I used ( think stamped onesies, a centerpiece, framed art, and embellies on the table! I think it's going to be so cute! Can't wait! :)

PS Do you have a shopping list for your Gina K coupon code yet?? Hurry, it expires soon!!

Guest Designer: Laura Jean

Look how sweet "Wee Tees" project is for a baby room! "Name frames" are one of my favorite kids to give children or babies, there's nothing like being validated seeing your name up and everywhere, and I just love this design of hanging it on the doorknob, perfect for a nursery! Thanks, Laura Jean for this lovely idea, the letters on the pieced onesies are too cute. For the dimensions, she used the largest Nestabilities Scalloped Circle (4.25" round), and cut out the same size of tag board to reinforce them (I used the White tagboard that comes in a package of SU DSP) and then backed each with a scalloped piece of Riding Hood Red. The DP is from DCWV (Animal Crackers). The total length of the hanging is approx 20".

Here is a little more abut Laura Jean, in her own words:
Favorite Technique-- Paper piecing.

Colors/color combo-- Anything I can use with brown, My favorite colors are Pacific Point, Certainly Celery, & Riding Hood Red.

Gina K set by Melanie-- Do I have to choose? My top three would be Little Tees, Just So Sporty and Wee Tees. I'm a pretty big sports fans so all those sporty sentiments just fit my personality.

Gina K sets (from any illustrator)- Rupa's Retro Boutique and Just Be-Claws. I just love those little crabs!

Craft supplies I can’t live without— Ribbon & Basic Grey Brads. I usually have a hard time making a card without one or the other.

I've been stamping for (how long)— I started Scrapbooking my baseball vacations 9-10 years ago with just a 8.5X11 binder, some card-stock and a few stickers. I bought my first stamps (an alphabet set which I still have) about 2 years later (from Gina K ironically) to stamp baseball team names, and then my mom showed me SCS. I've been making cards, and other stamp projects since. I still do my baseball albums, but I really love working with a "smaller canvas" (i.e. card).

I get my inspiration from -- Gina K (of course!) and other blogs/web galleries. I also get PaperCrafts magazine which refer to a lot. For Scrapbooking I usually rely on Becky Higgin's Sketch Magazines for layout design.

The most important things I’ve learned about stamping/cardmaking/scrapbooking are - A sketch is just a "starting" point & if you change it up that's fine. I've started so many "challenges" only to come out with something completely different that doesn't even fit the challenge requirements, and that's okay. I've also learned that there is so much out there I have not even learned. Which makes me keep going.

Some of my stamping/crafting goals are- continue to learn more about the craft, there are a lot of techniques I have not tried yet. I also want to improve my coloring technique. Art was one of the worst subjects for me in school. LOL!

Favorite things to make that aren’t cards (if any): Scrap-booking, & coaster-book albums. I also enjoy altering tins.
Some of my stamping/crafting accomplishments are— other than being a Guest Designer for Melanie my list is pretty short. :)

And here is another sample from Laura Jean , check it out!

BIG NEWS: Have you read the "Stamping Lifestyle" Magazine yet? I am so excited to try those recipes I haven't had yet, and as well as check out some of those books! I could go on and on, but like with all things Gina K , the magazine truly surpassed all my (already very high) expectations!

Go enjoy! and have a wonderful Mother's Day weekend! More to come! (don't forget to leave a comment on this post<---click here if you haven't already to be entered for the Paper Temptress Blog Candy!)

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! :)