S.T.A.R.S.--Sharing The Art of Rubber Stamping

"Let's Eat" Clipboard

 

Although this is quite scrumptious looking (especially with that Chocolate Chip Cookie recipe on it), let's not actually "eat" the clipboard, okay?  My new blogger-friend Jill Scott over at Controlling My Chaos has come up with a fabulously unique way of how she creates, displays, and how she organizes her recipe cards . She has digitally created the recipe cards using her Creative Memories Digi Scrap program...I cannot wait for Stampin' Up! to release their Digi Scrap program this fall, so I can make digi recipe cards, too!!  Anyway, I tried a couple of the recipes (in fact, I just made the above cookies on Saturday...Delish!) and decided I needed ALL of them!  So I downloaded them all, then uploaded them to Wal-mart's photo dept. & now I have all these wonderful & beautiful recipes to try!  She even has directions on how you, too, can get her fabulous recipe cards.  I purchased 5x7 photo/postcard protectors HERE. Please stop on by Jill's wonderful & funny blog on how she creatively "controls her chaos".

Okay, on with the actual clipboard:  I made this using Stampin' Up!'s 9x9 On Board Chipboard Clipboard, which is unfortunately no longer available...grrr!  I used Mod Podge to adhere this super-cute paper from the NEW Simply Scrappin' Kit "Happy B-Day" to the clipboard. Then, I used Stampin' Up's BRAND NEW Sizzix Simple Letters BIGZ Dies to punch out the "let's eat!" letters.  The little hearts are from Stampin' Up!'s Heart to Heart Punch.  Next, I put 2 coats of Mod Podge over the paper & letters "just incase" I slop on it while I'm cooking/baking...I even coated the edges & the back with Mod Podge.  Finally, I tied some Brocade Blue & Certainly Celery Ribbon on it, and Voila...a fun little clipboard to display my YUMMY recipes while I'm cooking/baking. 

I have made another clipboard with the "Happy Bday" Simply Scrappin' Kit AND 4 sets of scrapbook pages for my Simply Scrappin' Club, so stay tuned for more fun projects!!  Erin

More Sunshine Garden Simply Scrappin' Kit Fun

Here are the other projects we made using part of a Sunshine Garden Simply Scrappin' Kit at my Spring Stamp Camp.

The Hodgepodge Hardware Bookmark

   

Here it is in action:

  

I found this style with FABULOUS directions by Shelley Hopps HERE.

The 5x5 Art Journal:

 

Have a wonderful day....Erin

Renee's Mini Album

One of my very good friends, Renee, & her family are getting ready to embark on a grand adventure...moving to Australia!!  Renee is originally from Australia, but has been living in the U.S.A. for the past 8-9 years and now it's time to go HOME!  I hadn't seen Renee in a number of years because both our husbands are in the Air Force, so when I found out she was moving, I hopped on a plane & spent a fun-filled weekend with her & her family! 

I just had to make her a little something to put pictures of her American friends in, so she wouldn't forget about us!  I used Stampin' Up!'s UR Sweet Simply Scrappin' Kit (now retired, but you can get the 2 Sweet Simply Scrappin' Kit...it has the same paper & die-cut adhesive patterns, but in a different color scheme).  I left the ribbons on the side kind of long, so that as she added photos & the album started bulking up, she could loosen the ribbons.

 

   

 

 

 

 

 

 

This is very similar to an album I made for myself & two of my other girlfriends, which you can see HERE and HERE.  I hope you have a stellar day!!  Erin

Simply Scrappin' Club--Summer Home & Winter Retreat

For my November Simply Scrappin' Club (Wow!  Where does the time go?), the club members could pick either the Summer Home or Winter Retreat Simply Scrappin' Kits.  I kind of hesitate to show these since they were on the Retiring Accessories List & I think they are SOLD OUT already!!  EEK!! But, here are the pages we made.  Sorry there aren't any pictures on them yet!!  I've posted the Summer Retreat Pages first; followed immediately by it's Winter Retreat companion.

Pages 1 & 2--inspired by the product insert with the Summer Home/Winter Retreat SSK.

     

Pages 3 & 4--These pages I was fortunate enough to get as a class planner from Heather.  You can get the class planner yourself right HERE.  She makes it sooo easy!

   

Pages 5 & 6--These pages were also from Heather's Class Plannner!

   

The title "my life as mom" came from the adhesive die cuts that came with the kit, but you would see them as "family" and "memories" on the sheet...sometimes you just gotta think outside the box!

Pages 7 & 8--These pages were inspired by Heather, but didn't really end up looking like her pages too much.

   

I hope you enjoyed these pages & that they will inspire you to pull out your Simply Scrappin' Kits to make some pages.  These pages would definitely be easy to duplicate with any of Stampin' Up!'s Simply Scrappin' Kits or by using your favorite Designer Series Paper & stamps!

By the way, I made sure to ask Heather's permission to post these!  Be sure to check out her class planners HERE .  For just a few dollars, you save LOTS OF TIME in trying to come up with some GREAT IDEAS for scrapbooking!!

Happy Scrapbooking!!  How many pages are you going to make this year??  Erin

Emma's Passport

Just in-case you didn't know, I'm a homeschooling mama. The homeschooling curriculum we use is from My Father's World which can be found at www.mfwbooks.com  This year my eldest daughter, Emma, is in third grade and we are "Exploring Countries & Cultures". So basically, we are learning about different countries, people, plants & animals...fun! Since we will be globe trotting, one of the projects was to make a passport from a couple of sheets of folded paper....BORING!!  So, I decided to make Emma this cool passport. At the beginning of the school year, Emma had to fill out a "passport form" and address an envelope to the "passport agency" (me).  So now that the "passport agency" has had a chance to process her "paperwork", Emma finally received her "passport" in the mail a couple of weeks ago.  I thought I'd share with you what she received in the mail...actually, I did put it in a big brown envelope & ran it up to the mailbox without her knowing and then had her go "check" the mail.  (By the way, do you like my use of quotation marks??  No? Okay, I'll stop!)  She was really excited to get the big envelope & even more delighted with her passport.  I'll be sure to show you a few of her completed pages at the end of the year.

FYI:  Just about EVERYTHING I used to make this passport is retired!!  This is why I have a hard time letting go of retired stuff, because I might NEED it for something, & look, I was able to use the retired DSP, stamps, In Colors Ink & CS, & ribbons!  YEAH!!

         

I'll be sure to let you know how our adventure around the world turns out!  Although My Father's World does a great job at providing ample resources, if you have any suggestions for crafts, recipes, books, or videos that might enhance our journey, I'd love to hear from you!

Have a super, sweet Sunday!!  Erin

Create-A-Calendar Kit

Have you ever worked on a project that you felt like you were fighting the whole way??  That's how I felt yesterday when I was making this Clipboard Calendar Project.  I think it turned out great in the end, but getting there was no easy task!  I'll explain more in just a bit.

                         

Now, I know you are probably wondering, what could the problem be?  What was she struggling over?  I had 2 major problems...

1.  Getting the paper to fit nicely around the clipboard clips!! GRR!  It would be nice if the clips came separtely so we could just adhere the paper to a nice flat surface & then attach the clips...I'm going to submit that idea to Stampin' Up! (They are very good at listening to suggestions.) I struggled with making a template, but I finally figured it out & I'm going to guard my template with my life!!  If you have a simple way of getting the paper to fit nicely, please let me know!! 

2.  After stamping all of my Create-A-Calendar pieces, I wanted to clip them under the clip to see how much room I had at the bottom for my clipboard to show....Well, wouldn't you know it, the calendar pages are LONGER than the 3 clip clipboard!! GRR!  Since there was a picture of the 3 Clip Clipboard on the Create-A-Calendar package, I figured it would work, but no, you have to trim them a little bit.  Since I had already stamped them, most of them would not look right if you trimmed them.  Thankfully, I had purchased a second set & was going to make a calendar clipboard using the skinny single clip clipboard...which is just the perfect size for holding the Create-A-Calendar Kit!  I also ended up trimming them on the sides as well so that more of the clipboard would show.  The final measurement for the calendars ended up being 3.5 x 6.5...and I might even trim just a little more...we'll see.  So a word to the wise, be sure to measure EVERYTHING before beginning a project!

I hope I didn't scare anyone away from making this project.  Once I figured out MY issues, I think it came together very nicely.  I kept the colors the same as the Create-A-Calendar Kit--Chocolate Chip, Pumpkin Pie, Riding Hood Red, Old Olive, & Bashful Blue--to keep a uniform look.  As you have probably figured out, some of the stamps I used are retired. 

The design of the clipboard came from an online class I took called Got Sketch 101.

Now that I have worked out the kinks for you, I hope you will have a great time making your own Create-A-Calendar Clipboards!   Erin

So Cool Card Club: July Parts 2 & 3 of 3

Here are the other 2 card styles that my club members made on Monday.

 Stamps:  Be Happy, Canvas Background

Ink: Cool Carribean Classic, Apricot Appeal Classic, Regal Rose Craft Ink

Card Stock:  Cool Carribean, Very Vanilla, Old Olive

Extra:  On Board Flower, Twill Tape, Stitched Pink Ribbon (retired), Brad, 1 1/4 and 1 3/8 Circle Punches

Does this card look a little familiar?  It might if you attended convention 2 years ago or purchased the Card Kit Stampin' Up! offered to Demonstrators like I did.  I still have quite a few of these left, so I went ahead and used them at my card club.  I let my clubbers know that the Cool Carribbean Card Stock & Ink are both from the retired 2006-2007 In Color Collection.

 The Club Card is on the Left and the original from the Kit is on the Right.  It used Rose Red Craft on the flower and Marigold Morning (also from the Retired In Color Collection) for the flower Center & tag on the right of the card.

Stamp Sets:  Bud Basics, God's Blessings

Ink Pads:  Sahara Sand, Old Olive, Groovy Guava, Soft Sky

Card Stock: Whisper White, Old Olive, Groovy Guava, Soft Sky

Paper:  Fall Flower Designer Series Paper

Extras:  Soft Sky & Groovy Guava Double Stitched Ribbon, White 1/4 inch Grosgrain

Have a Sweet Stampin' Day!!!  Erin

On Board Small Board Book--Friends Mini Album Part 2

Here's the rest of the mini album I made for my best friends & me. Just a reminder "warning" about the New Kids On The Block inspired title pages.  Okay, stop gagging!  You liked some goofy group/singer when you were in high-school, too! :)  Go down to yesterday's post to see a supply list.  Only 2 more days to get your On Board Items at a 25% discount.  Contact me today to place your order!!  Erin

PS...Don't forget that you can click on the pictures so you can view a much larger image.

On Board Small Book Basics--Friend Mini Album

As you may remember (or not) this past weekend I was fortunate enough to have gone on a mini-vacation with 2 of my very best friends.  We met in our freshmen year of high-school way back in 1987!! WOW!! How could that have been 21 years ago?? EEEK!  Here's a pic of me & my girls!  I'm on the far left, then Melissa's in the middle, and Julianne is on the right.  I'm so thankful that God has blessed me with such wonderful friends.  So what better way to let them know how much I care about them than to make a lovingly hand-crafted mini-album for our weekend girlfriend getaway!  Here's a warning though when looking at the page titles:  Way back in high school, we were REALLY into the New Kids On The Block, so I thought it would be funny to make the page titles a spin on the NKOTB song titles. So roll your eyes now & get it over with! :)

Here's the cool mini album I made for them & for me.  I'll show you some today & some tomorrow.

Supplies:  On Board Small Book Basics

Flowers & Friends Simply Scrappin' Kit (retired)

Stamps: Taffy Alphabet & Numbers, Spunky Alphabet (retired), Totally Tabs, Stamp of Authenticity

Ink:  Chocolate Chip, Rose Red, Certainly Celery, Cool Carribbean (retired In Color), So Saffron

Cardstock:  Chocolate Chip, Rose Red, Certainly Celery, So Saffron, Whisper White

Other: Certainly Celery 5/8 Grosgrain Ribbon, Pewter Jumbo Eyelets, Crop-A-Dile, Pewter Hodgepodge Hardware, Tab Punch, Rhinestone Brads, Corner Rounder Punch

Each page measures 5 x 6 7/8.  To make each page sturdier, I adhered 2 pages together using

a TON of SNAIL adhesive.  I wanted to keep the layout simple since we didn't have the pictures to put in the album before I made it.  I didn't copy any one persons design, but I was most inspired by Brenda Keenan on her SWEET blog:  http://keenankreations.blogspot.com/2008/01/on-board-book-basics-album.html

I made a little pocket page at the end of each section to record our favorite things.

I'll be posting the rest of the album tomorrow! 

Enjoy...Erin

On Board 3 Clip-Clipboard--Tart & Tangy Kids

Okay, so Mother's Day was officially TWO WEEKS AGO, and I just FINALLY sent my mom her gift!  Bad Daughter...I know!  But hopefully, all will be forgiven when the Post Man rings her bell and hands her this delightful gift!!  Do you think she'll forgive me??

These pictures were taken of my children on Easter this year.  I just love how it turned out and almost want to keep it myself! 

Since I'm writing this just before I'm going on my trip, I don't have time to post details, so I'll do that when I get back...I promise!

Here are a couple more pictures of the clipboard without the pictures...

Don't you think you should stock up on these cool clipboards while they are on sale & then make these for Christmas presents??  YES YOU SHOULD!!

I should be sitting by the pool today...I hope I don't forget to put on sunscreen!  My hubby will be mad if I get burnt!! EEK!

Having fun in the sun...Erin