Four Ways Friday #41 - Defining Alphabet

This week's Four Ways Friday shows you four ways to use the Defining Alphabet stamp set!

I love using alphabet sets to make personalized note cards to give as gifts.  The Defining Alphabet is great for this since you have the choice to ink up the upper case letter, the lower case letter or both!  I used my marker to ink up the upper case "N" in Riding Hood Red to make these notecards.  Here is a close up of one of the cards:

I used a More Mustard card base and ran a piece of Riding Hood Red card stock through the Big Shot with the Vintage Wallpaper embossing folder.  I sewed it onto the card with my sewing machine.  I then stamped the Ornate Blossom in More Mustard onto More Mustard card stock and punched it out with the decorative label punch.  I stamped the "N" and the floral image from the Baroque Motifs stamp set and punched that out with a circle punch.  The small button is a faux button, made with the sweet buttons embosslit!  I sewed a piece of striped grosgrain ribbon on the card and then sewed the other elements together to complete the card.

Don't forget about the Simply Adorned jewelry!!!!  The Defining Alphabet provides a great way to personalize a charm!  Here I inked up the upper case "T" with Early Espresso ink and versamark and then heat embossed with clear embossing powder.  I then stamped an image from the Bliss SAB stamp set on top of it and added a touch of gold with my Smooch ink.  Here's the other side of the necklace - just in case you're curious ;)

For this third project I decided to use the entire "H" stamp - both upper and lower case.  I stamped the letters in Crumb Cake ink on Natural Ivory card stock (this was my first time using the Natural Ivory card stock and I'm in love!!!!).  I then took the "happy" from Fabulous Phrases and "anniversary" from Fundamental Phrases and stamped them in Early Espresso using my stamp-a-ma-jig to be sure to line them up.  I then took the floral image from the Bliss SAB stamp set and stamped it in versamark and heat embossed with white embossing powder.  I stamped the butterfly image from the Bliss set in Versamark onto Vellum and then heat embossed it as well using white embossing powder.  When you emboss on vellum you just need to be sure to move the heat tool around a lot - you don't want to burn the vellum!  Finally, I stitched the butterfly to the card front with my sewing machine and decided to stitch around the perimeter of the card as well.  A few pearl jewels add the final touch.

I decided to make a tag for my last project.  The Defining Alphabet letters provide the perfect backdrop for the definitions in the Define Your Life stamp set.  Here I used Confetti card stock and stamped the letters in River Rock ink.  I stamped over them with the "wish" definition in Early Espresso.  I scalloped the bottom of the tag and then backed the entire tag with a piece of Soft Suede card stock.  I stamped the small bird from the Bliss stamp set and the "happy birthday" from Teeny Tiny Wishes - both in Early Espresso.  I then sewed a piece of striped grosgrain ribbon to the tag with my sewing machine.  A button with some linen thread, a jumbo eyelet added with the crop-a-dile, and a piece of 5/8 grosgrain ribbon in Real Red finish the look.

I hope you've enjoyed this week's Four Ways Friday!  I hope you have a creative and safe weekend!!!

Friends Fur-ever Love Card

Today's Lesson From The Craft Room:  Take A Technology Break!
I wonder if they will put warning signs on computers one day?  For the past few days I was suffering with a headache.  I say "suffering" because that's what it felt like.  I couldn't get comfortable and it really felt like the headache was being caused by tightness in my shoulder and neck.  As I thought about what I had been doing for the past few days I realized that I had been spending a TON of time in front of the computer (yes, that addiction was getting the best of me - darn auction sites!).  So yesterday I took a break from the computer - not an all-day break, but a check it every once in awhile and ignore it the rest of the time break.  I'm happy to say that although the ibuprofen has worn off, the headache seems to be gone.  Time creating in the craft room and walking outdoors - all away from the computer - seems to have been the perfect medicine.  How 'bout you?  Can you take a technology break?
You're going to be seeing a few Friends Fur-ever cards over the next week or so.  One of my close friends has a little Westie - just like the one in the stamp set and I was long overdue in giving her a birthday present, so I decided to stamp her a set of cards.  I stamped the painting onto a piece of Whisper White card stock and colored it in with markers.  I stamped the dog with Basic Black ink on a scrap piece of Whisper White card stock and cut him out.  I then colored his color with marker and added some dazzling diamonds with a bit of 2-way glue.  The "love" was stamped using the Tag Alphabet (retired) in Perfect Plum ink and then attaching them to the card with silver brads.  I hope you like it!

Friends Furever Bat Mitzvah Card

 

Today's Lesson From The Craft Room:  Addiction Can Creep Up On You!

Don't worry, it's nothing illegal!  But boy did the addiction creep up on me...sneaky little thing!  It began with an innocent search for a retired stamp set...at least I thought it was innocent!  And all of a sudden, I was addicted!  Scouring pages and pages of pictures and descriptions for the next retired stamp set.  You know you've got it bad when you start setting your timer in the kitchen to go off so that you can run to your computer and place a bid at the last moment to try to win an item!  It was amazing how quickly the act of sitting at the computer and going through listings started to take up my life and disjoint my days.  Ugh!  It was not a good feeling and that disjointed feeling overpowered the good feeling I thought I would have when I did win auctions.  I am happy to say that I've got the addiction under control.  It had me for about a week and I must confess, I did quite a bit of damage.  Looking back it really does amaze me how your life can be moving along just fine - totally oblivious to the fact that there is a ton of on-line shopping going on around you - and then you can get sucked in!  So, wish me luck in keeping the lion of on-line craft shopping tamed!  I am much better off spending my time creating than sitting around watching timers count down to zero...

Today's card is for a very special young girl who is having her Bat Mitzvah celebration in April.  She loves animals - especially dogs - so I thought it would be fun to incorporate a dog into her card.  I stamped the dog with basic black ink and colored him in with my River Rock marker.  His color was colored in with Regal Rose and then I added some dazzling diamonds.  I added a piece of designer paper for the ground and then stamped the small flower from Short & Sweet multiple times and added a touch of dazzling diamonds to the centers of the flowers.  The star is from the L'Chayim (retired) stamp set and was stamped with versamark and heat embossed with silver embossing powder.  I cut out the star and added it to the top of the string with a dimensional.  The "congratulations" from Well Scripted (retired) was heat embossed with silver embossing powder and the bat mitzvah greeting from L'Chayim was stamped in Regal Rose.  The Pear Pizazz background was run through the Big Shot with the Finnial Press embossing folder.  A bit of white organza ribbon finishes the look!  I hope you like it!

Today Is The Big Day!!!!!!

This Morning's Lesson From The Craft Room:  It's OK To Be Scrave!

Ooh!  Ooh!  Ooh!!!!!!  Today is the day that 350 Cards & Gifts by PaperCrafts Magazine goes on sale!!!!!  Guess what is on p. 65??????  My first published piece!!!!!  I am soooooo excited!!!!!!!  I received my copy in the mail yesterday and was bursting with joy!!!!! :)  I remember how scared I was to actually submit something to a magazine.  I now have the perfect word for it "scrave."  I just finished reading the book Room and Jack, a 5-year old character in the book, likes to make word sandwiches.  He takes two words and smooshes them together to make a new word - what he calls a "word sandwich."  One word he made up was "scrave."  It's a combination of "scared" and "brave."  What a great word!  I was so scrave to submit the piece to the magazine...but I did it!!!  It's OK to be scrave!  Don't let that stop you!!!!!  I'm still scrave, but you can bet that I'll be creating more submissions and hoping to see them make it to the glossy print pages!!!!

L'Chayim Bar Mitzvah Card

Today's Lesson From The Craft Room:  Allocate The Space To That Which You Love!

It amazes me how much we can fit into small spaces!  I just look at my craft room!  It is packed to the gills with items waiting to be incorporated into some form of art.  Sometimes, though, I feel like I'm working in a space that reminds me of a closet - I have tried to cram everything into the room.  Why am I only allowing one small space in the house for the process of art making to take place?  What would happen if I took what I love, making art, and made it more of a focus of the entire home?  I'm not sure what that would look like, but the idea sounds amazing!  What if there were different forms of art to create in different places around the house?  What if my art was put up in different rooms, instead of filling the tiny wall spaces in the craft room?  I'm wondering about these things - wondering what it would be like to allocate more of my space to that which I love.  This feels like it would be a step in the right direction for living my art.
Today's card is clean and simple and highlights how elegant gold embossing can be!  The images and words are all from the L'Chayim stamp set (retired).  I stamped the torah scroll image onto Marina Mist card stock using versamark and then heat embossed with gold embossing powder.  I then cut the image out and applied dimensionals.  The card base is Night Of Navy and I stamped it with the Linen background stamp (retired) and Night of Navy ink.  I love the dose of texture that the Linen background stamp provides (it's one of my all-time favorite background stamps!).  I then stamped the two greetings in versamark and heat embossed with gold embossing powder.  Finally, I attached the torah scroll to the front of the card using dimensionals.  I hope you like it! :)

Music Notes Wheeled Background

Today's Lesson From The Craft Room:  Keep Up The Habit

This blog has been a very good creative coach for me :)  It reminds me to try to create something every day.  There are times when the reminder isn't enough to get me creating - sometimes I just need a break to allow the creative muse to rest.  But most of the time I appreciate that this coach pushes me to create even during those times when I'm not in the mood.  It reminds me of when I trained for the marathon.  Because I had the goal of the race, I went out to run during my training even on those days when I just didn't want to.  What I found is that I usually felt better afterwards, or it led me to really appreciate those days when I couldn't wait to get my run in!  I figure if I keep up the creative habit I will truly cherish those times when the creative juices flow freely and I will appreciate the times of struggle.  I just need to keep up the habit and it will help me fulfill my continuing goal of living a creative life.
Today's card was fun to make!  I started with a piece of Whisper White card stock and stamped the Well Worn stamp using Versamark onto it.  I then heat embossed using clear embossing powder (I know, you can't even tell, but believe me, it's there!).  I then sprayed the piece with a mixture of water and baja breeze reinker and, given my lack of patience, I dried it carefully with my heat tool :)  I then rolled over the piece with the Music Notes wheel and Basic Gray ink.  I then crumpled the heck out of the piece of card stock before sewing it to the front of the card.  I love crumpling - helps me get out any aggression I might be feeling :)  The flowers from the Pretties Kit were added and pearls glued to their centers.  Finally I stamped the greeting from Bring On The Cake with Basic Black and punched it out with the scallop oval punch.  Of course I had to sponge the edges and add a half pearl :)  It was then adhered to the card using a dimensional.