Kicking off 2013 with my very first tutorial

Happy New Year! What better to start off the new year than with my very first tutorial? However, I'm still not happy with the quality of photos that turned out from my camera so any tips from any of you veterans would be greatly appreciated.

The new catalogue will be revealed Feb 2013, but it has just arrived and there's a lot of cool new things in there! 

Recently I saw this tutorial: http://www.splitcoaststampers.com/resources/tutorials/gift_card_holder/  but there were two things that made me wonder.

a) Where would I find coin envelopes? I have never seen them around here...
b) When I watched the corresponding video it actually wasn't the same as the tutorial posted - the flap she used to "close" the holder turned into a circle and she used "snaps" from Stamping Up to close her holder. But this sparked a new idea... why don't I just use it as a base and fiddle until mine worked out (with Close to My Heart materials?)

Here we go!

1. Cut a strip of 2 3/4" x 11" patterned cardstock. Score at 2 3/4", 3", 6 5/16", and 7 1/16" spots.

in this project, I've used Wonderland Level 2 Paper Packet (retired)

2. Fold at each score to create a "matchbook" style cover

3. Cut a strip of cream, white or contrasting 2 1/2" x 7" solid cardstock and score at 3 1/2". Fold to create a pocket. 
4. Using a 1 1/4" circle punch, punch a half circle at the top of the pocket. Secure using two brads, but be careful not to make the opening too small (I usually put the gift card in and then punch the holes for the brads. Stamp a pretty pattern on the top part of the pouch.

5. Tie a ribbon bowtie around the middle of the pocket so the cards stay in there.  Distress the edges if you'd like (this is optional) and then attach to the inside of your cover.

 Ribbon thrifting - this one was from Sunterra :)

6.  Cut a rectangular piece of 2 3/16" x 3 1/2" of contrasting solid cardstock and 3 5/16" x 2" of cream or white cardstock. Adhere the cream cardstock on top of the solid cardstock.
7. Stamp your sentiment, an image, and add a 1 1/4" semicircle to the edge to make it easy to pull out.

8. Punch a 2" scalloped circle out of the same patterned cardstock but use the other side, and a 1 1/4" cream circle. Adhere the cream circle to the scalloped circle. Stamp your sentiment on the circle (I used Perfect Fit from the CTMH Winter 2012/2013 catalogue).

9. Using foam tape, adhere the bottom half of your scalloped circle to the bottom flap of your gift card holder. The top half will be loose so that the top flap of the gift card holder can tuck under the scalloped circle. (or, you can buy Hook and Loop dots from CTMH to adhere the flap to the rest of the holder).

10. Add a ribbon, and you're done!

Another fancy giftholder for this year. :)

Michaels, etc:
* Ribbon
* Solid colored cardstock
* Star brads

CTMH:
* Wonderland Level 2 Paper Pack (retired)
* Pear and Partridge Level 2 Paper Pack
* Scallop circle punch
* Circle punch
* Blue and Green Sparkles
* Merry and Bright
* Perfect Fit - Holidays
* Outdoor Denim
* Barn Red
* Ponderosa Pine
* Key Lime
* Indian Corn Blue embossing powder

May the new year bring you everything you wish for,

A Birthday Present...

... and two weeks with a glue gun resulted in a present that rocked my BFF's world.

(The link to the card workshop is right here: http://stamped-by-hand.blogspot.ca/2012/04/all-designs-are-complete.html)

I originally found the cupcake tutorial at Fabulously Artsy. She's an amazing crafter and will take her glue gun to just about anything to come out with amazing results. And I'm telling you this thing was not easy to make; I think it took me four tries to get the base right alone and I won't talk about how many tries it took for the rest of this thing to look decent.

I couldn't totally hide the little metal "handles" that clip on to the Lululemon gift card that was hidden inside the cupcake, but if I did I don't think she would have realized there was more to this than just a cupcake. You see, she loves cupcakes, and she's an amazing cook/baker. So I saw this and just had to make it.

The only alterations I would make to the instructions was to cut the strip for the paper "frosting" 1/2" x 1", get it wet, and then first accordion fold, then pinch and manipulate. 1" was too large and looked silly, and 1/4" was too short. But the tip regarding the "glue" strings was fantastic, and I added the blue bowtie for emphasis.

Just in case anyone wanted to see how the whole thing looks, here's a second photo. I'm trying to get the mojo up to make a second one but I think I'll need a long break from my glue gun first.

Michaels, etc:
* Patterned cardstock for cup - Costco
* Foam ball, Reflections blue flowers, blue ribbon and red wooden bead - Michaels

CTMH:
* Cranberry Ink
* Spray Pens
* Pearl Paint
* Silver glitter

Hope you all had a great weekend!

I can never resist a neat tutorial...

I stumbled onto this tutorial while surfing the web for more card related items. Or rather, link hopping through various blogs. I also happen to have a love for origami that dates back to my teenage years. So, by mixing origami and card making you get... something I just absolutely had to try.

The Diamond Fold Card tutorial is brought to you by Splitcoaststampers

I also had the You & Me Stamp Set and a congraulations card to make. You see, the girl I did the card for is throwing the BBQ for two reasons! Her husband, another university friend of mine passed his Ph.D!

Here's the end result from mixing all that stuff together:



and of course, a side view to show off the folding:



The technique I used on the 'follow your' text is called 2nd generation stamping. It creates a neat shadowy-like effect, and it's achieved by simply stamping again without reloading the ink on your stamp.

Cardstock:
Local craft stores

CTMH:
You & Me Stamp (D1495) - May Promotion
Sorbet Ink (Z2164)
Chocolate Ink (Z2111)

A Little Card for a Gift Card

I stumbled onto this lovely little tutorial one day done by Carla Ironside and I just had to try it. It's perfect for a coworker of mine who is about to get married, and I was considering getting her a gift card to either a nice dinner out, or to the store that houses her registry.



It's quite clever how the the little square thing in the middle hides the staples so nicely, and how the bellyband hides the brad legs in the back. And the bonus is, this card took me 20minutes tops to assemble.

Cardstock:
* papers collected over time from local craft and dollar stores

CTMH:
* Now and Forever (retired) stamp set
* Hope for Japan (limited edition, expired) stamp set
* Garnet Ink

- Happy Stamping!