Baby Smiles

Of course, I had to make a baby card to go along with the library starter pack I shared on Wednesday. But, since I don't have kids or many baby stamps, I wasn't sure what I would have to work with.  A quick look at my stamp shelves and I knew I was in luck, thanks to one of Stampin' Up!'s many all-purpose stamp sets.  This little ducky is from Embellished Events, and it was fun to ink up with my markers for a bright image.

I also love the sentiment, which isn't a traditional baby sentiment but fits just perfectly: "So many smiles...begin with you."  How true!  Once I found that couplet in Petite Pairs, this card came together really quickly and I got my package out on time.  That's a personal win-win.

This card also fits my "flashback friday" goal, since I used some retired DSP for the front, inside and coordinating envelope.  I just love how quick it is to make a "fancy" envelope with the Envelope Punch Board.  If you don't have one...well, what are you waiting for?

Wishing you a wonderful weekend, full of smiles!
~Melanie

Stamps: Embellished Events, Petite Pairs
Ink: Memento Tuxedo Black, Marvelous Markers in Daffodil Delight, Tangerine Tango, Real Red, and Pacific Point
Paper: Pacific Point, Polka Dot Parade, Tangelo Twist, Gumball Green, Whisper White
Extras: Chalk Talk framelits, Bitty Banners framelits, Envelope Punch Board

Library Starter Kit

All of a sudden, it seems like everyone--but me--is having babies.  And I'm just fine with that, but since I lack firsthand experience, I've been at a bit of a loss when it comes to baby gifts.  I don't know what you really need, and I'm terrible at shopping off a registry (which I realize is silly, since registries make things easier).  The problem is, I want to give something that's personal.

I love to read, and I think it's pretty important for kids.  Books almost never appear on baby registries, but I always pick up board books for gifts.  So when I found this poem by Jane Yolen, one of my favorite authors from growing up, I had an AHA! moment.  From now on, I'm giving all new babies a library starter kit.

This one goes in the mail tomorrow, and hopefully my friend will be too busy with her new baby to check out my blog before she opens the gift.  I used the Storytime Kit for My Digital Studio to illustrate the poem, and have it all packaged up with a stack of books so that parents and their wee one can spend some time bonding and expanding their imaginations.  I hope it's a gift that will grow as they do.

Cheers!
~Melanie

My Digital Studio: Storytime Ensemble

A Minnie Mouse Birthday!

For a niece's 1st birthday, I was happy to take on the Minnie Mouse challenge.  =)  Ayushi's one-year milestone was a black, white, and pink-polka dot fete fit for a beautiful little mousey!  Check out the invites, thank you cards, cupcake toppers I made with punches.  This is just another testament to how much [more than cards] you can make with just your punches!  Get them & get them in various sizes.  The trusty Big Shot can create the name banner & large round circles for the invites.  And, the fuzzy cake topper and table center pieces were fun craft projects in glitter & pom-poms.  Enjoy the photos & I hope this gets you inspired to use your Big Shot & punches for projects other than just cards.  

The perfect invites: 

 The pom-pom & rhinestone cake topper: (it's a keeper!)

Styrofoam w/black glitter table center pieces:

Ayushi's glitter name banner:

Cupcake toppers:

Heat embossed TY Cards: 

Happy [crafting] & stamping!
~Kiran

Welcome Baby with the Big Shot

For a friend's baby shower, I recently made my first pennant banner--and I see why everyone loves them so much!  This project was simple, really fun, and I was beyond pleased with the results.  I used my trusty Big Shot and the Perfect Pennants die to cut out the ten flags with coordinating medallions.  I then used the Timeless Type Sizzlets to cut out the letters for the "Hello Baby" message.  TIP: For easy glueing, adhere Adhesive Sheets to the back of your paper before running it through the big shot--then just peel your letters away from the backing, because they're instant stickers with some serious sticking power!

I wanted the banner to be something that could be useful after the shower too, so I decided to decorate the back side as well.  For this, I used the medallions I'd already cut out and my favorite animal stamps from Fox and Friends.  I stamped on Whisper White, then popped out the circles with my 2" circle punch and they fit perfectly on the medallions.  The parents-to-be really liked the banner, and plan to hang it in their nursery.

Stringing the pennants was also really easy--I used my Crop-o-dile to punch small holes in the top corners of each flag.  The Crop-o-dile was great for this, because I could set my depth and have even placement.  Then I strung the flags on a piece of retired ribbon from Masterpiece Originals and tied two knots to space out the middle.  Done, and super cute.

SPECIAL OFFER:  If you sign up to be a demonstrator before the end of October, you'll get a Big Shot for free!!!  I am a huge fan of my big shot, and of being a Stampin' Up! demonstrator--and I'd love to tell you more.  Feel free to email me, or follow the "shop now" link to my business website, where you can sign up directly.  Don't miss out on this great deal!! 

Cheers!
~Melanie

Stamps: Fox and Friends
Ink: Basic Gray, Not Quite Navy, Chocolate Chip, More Mustard, Cajun Craze
Paper: So Saffron, Pool Party, Blushing Bride, Green Galore (retired), Lovely Lilac (retired), Basic Gray
Extras: Big Shot, Perfect Pennants die, 2" Circle punch, Adhesive Sheets, Crop-o-Dile, Masterpiece Originals ribbon (retired)

Better Late Than Never...

Sigh.  The problem with challenges is that they only last a week...and usually by the time I get around to them, that week has flown by.  This card is the perfect example.  All last week I was really excited to FINALLY participate in the Mojo Monday sketch challenge, especially since the sketch was designed by one of my favorite bloggers, Mary Fish (go check out her blog!).  But when I finally had time to sit down and make a card on Sunday night, I realized it was already "too late" because a new sketch would post first thing the next morning.  Maybe I'll get it right this week...

I still really like the sketch (153) and I love how this card turned out!  And since I don't know of any babies on the way at the moment, this is sure to be early when it is needed.  Of course, it features one of my favorite stamp sets, Fox and Friends, as well as the ever useful Short and Sweet.  I also tried to use some ribbon on this card, even though I haven't always had the greatest of success with it.  I am a fan of the 1/8" Taffeta Ribbon, and it was fairly easy to tie that knot (though I'm not sure how it would measure up to others).  Maybe I'll go crazy and start tying bows soon.

For the finishing touch, the brads (from the 5/16" neutrals assortment, which is now retired) were easy to line up with my Mat Pack and Paper Piercer tool.  Then I popped the entire card front layer with dimmensionals, so there would be space for the brad backs and the ribbon that slides around.

TUNE IN TOMORROW!  A new month means it's time to change our blog look, so you'll want to hop on over from your reader after I post tomorrow morning.  You'll also want to hightail it to my sidebar, where you'll be able to download the Holiday Mini and fall in love with everything.  


Cheers!
~Melanie


Stamps: Fox and Friends, Short and Sweet
Ink: Early Espresso, Cajun Craze, Pacific Point, Certainly Celery
Paper: Chocolate Chip, Crumb Cake, Cajun Craze, Pacific Point, Certainly Celery
Extras: Word Window punch, Modern Label punch, Corner Rounder punch, Early Espresso 1/8" Taffeta Ribbon, 5/16" Chocolate Chip Brads (ret), Mat Pack, Paper Piercer

Monkey & Friends Shower Invites

Somehow I did this backwards, and showed you the thank you notes before these baby shower invites.  Oops!  I guess I got carried away with my love of Fox and Friends--but it's just perfect for little kids or babies on the way.

Two of Kiran's best friends are expecting any day now, and these are the invitations we made for their baby shower.  Both mother and father-to-be liked the animals in Fox and Friends, but it was too hard to chose just one, so they decided they wanted a 'variety pack' of invites to include their favorites--the monkey, the turtle, and the giraffe.  They also chose the colors: Bashful Blue, Certainly Celery, More Mustard, and Chocolate Chip.

The invitations are fairly simple: 4.25" by 5.5", with white mounted onto the base color, which coordinates to the animal on the invite.  The animals were punched out with the 1-1/4" square punch, layered onto a scallop square of Chocolate Chip.

Cheers!
~Melanie

Stamps: Fox and Friends
Ink: Certainly Celery, More Mustard, Chocolate Chip, Creamy Caramel
Paper: Whisper White, Certainly Celery, More Mustard, Bashful Blue, Chocolate Chip
Extras: 1-1/4" square punch, scallop square punch

Baby Thank You

'Tis the season of babies!  This is a simple thank you card that I designed for a customer who ordered baby shower invitations from us.  (I'll share the invites--and party favors!--soon)  These cards are sweet, simple and really cute.  I hope the mom-to-be will get lots of use out of them!

Cheers!
~Melanie

Stamps: Fox and Friends, Thank You Kindly
Ink: Brilliant Blue, Certainly Celery, More Mustard, Chocolate Chip
Paper: Whisper White
Extras: Stamp-a-majig

Rubber Baby Buggy Bumpers

Say that three times fast!  In keeping with the two recent posts, here is a card I made for new parents who are friends of mine.  This is a fairly simple card that uses two colors and two stamp sets.  Sweet and simple.

I stamped En Francais in Chocolate Chip on Kraft, then sponged the edges with more Chocolate Chip and some Riding Hood Red over the middle.  (Does this make it look vintage?  I have no clue, but everyone seems to be raving about vintage now.  I just thought it looked too stark before I added the red sponging)

The little piece is stamped with the buggy from Puns from the Past, inked with both Chocolate Chip and Real Red.  I don't have the Riding Hood Red marker...but you wouldn't know the difference if I hadn't told you, now would you?  I also sponged around this piece, then put it all together...and had to wait a few weeks for the baby to come so I could put it in the mail.  She's here now, and everyone is very happy.

Cheers!
~Melanie

Stamps: En Francais, Puns from the Past
Ink: Chocolate Chip, Riding Hood Red, Real Red
Paper: Riding Hood Red, Kraft
Extras: sponges, Corner Rounder punch

Welcome Baby

This is perfect timing, because I just learned today about the arrival of the first of my friends' expected spring babies.  This means that Bambi and Thumper are going in the mail very soon (I don't think they're supposed to be Disney characters, but doesn't it look like them?)

The only "fancy" thing on this card is the tree--I inked it in Gable Green, then used my Chocolate Chip marker to color in the trunk and branches before stamping.  The deer is Close to Cocoa and the bunny is in Basic Grey, stamped off once.

I mounted the stamped piece of Whisper White onto Close to Coca, then used the corner rounder punch on its corners.  I chose Gable Green for the card base, so it would bring out those spring green leaves, and edged a piece of Brilliant Blue with the Scallop Trim Edge Punch.  The final touch is the sentiment, which was an easy addition from Chit Chat rub-ons.  As luck would have it, there are a number of "welcome baby" sentiments in that pack, and I'll be using those soon.

Happy Friday!
~Melanie

Stamps: Forest Friends
Ink: Gable Green, Chocolate Chip, Basic Grey, Close to Cocoa
Paper: Gable Green, Brilliant Blue, Close to Cocoa, Whisper White
Extras: Scallop Trim Edge Punch, Corner Rounder Punch, Chit Chat Rub-Ons

Yes, We Do Invitations...

When I first started sharing my cards, the one question that I got most often--and that most surprised me--was if I made invitations.  Of course I could, but I certainly hadn't tried my hand at it.

No more, I'm proud to share.  Kiran and I have been making a number of invitations for a variety of events, and since we're *not* stamping this week, it seems like a great time to share these invitations with you.

First up is a baby shower we did recently--invitations for a friend of a friend.  It was the perfect chance to use Fox and Friends, and these sweet and simple cards were pretty easy to put together.  And check it out, we used RIBBON!  I rarely use ribbon on cards because I'm not great at tying bows--but thanks to my aunt and upline, I learned this great, no-tying ribbon trick.  Just use the double rectangle punch to make holes wide enough for your ribbon, then thread the ribbon from front to back to front to back to front again.  Obviously this isn't so simple to explain, but what it means is that you loop the ribbon around the middle cardstock, then trim the ends so it looks like a bow...and that takes care of any ribbon tying worries.  Whew!

Cheers!
~Melanie

Stamps: Fox and Friends
Paper: Bashful Blue, Chocolate Chip, Very Vanilla
Ink: Chocolate Chip, Creamy Caramel Marker
Extras: Double Rectangle Punch, Bashful Blue 1/2" Striped Grosgrain Ribbon, Scallop Square Punch, 1-1/4" Square Punch