Swap Gang

Swaps are still not done...so I have ripped off...I mean, composed this little ditty based on Sam Cooke's immortal song:

SWAP GANG

I hear somethin' sayin'

(ink! stamp!) (punch! cut!)
(sponge! tear!) (glue! fold!)


(Well, don't you know)
That's the sound of the stampers working on the swap ga-a-ang
That's the sound of the stampers working on the swap gang

All day long they're singin'
(ink! stamp!) (punch! cut!)
(sponge! tear!) (glue! fold!)

(Well, don't you know)
That's the sound of the stampers working on the swap ga-a-ang
That's the sound of the stampers working on the swap gang

All day long they work so hard
Till the sun is goin' down
Working on the swaps until they drop
And wearing, wearing a frown
You hear them moanin' their lives away
Then you hear somebody sa-ay

That's the sound of the stampers working on the swap ga-a-ang
That's the sound of the stampers working on the swap gang

Can't ya hear them singin'
Mm, I'm mail these one of these days
And I’m goin’ to get some great swaps back
That I’ll love so dear
But meanwhile I got to work right he-ere

(Well, don't you know)
That's the sound of the stampers working on the swap ga-a-ang
That's the sound of the stampers working on the swap gang

All day long they're singin', mm
My, my, my, my, my, my, my, my, my work is so hard
Give me chocolate, I'm dyin’ for chocolate…

FADE
My work is so hard

Hope you enjoyed that. But I have done some other stuff that I can show you, so let the bragging begin!

Ingredients: Stamps - Autumn Apparitions; Cardstock - Only Orange, Orchid Opulence, Basic Black, Whisper White, Basic Grey; Ink - Basic Black & Whisper White Craft, Only Orange, Basic Grey; Other - Green Galore button, black hemp, black gingham ribbon, 1 3/8" circle punch, large tag punch, white gel pen, Close to Cocoa marker, Garden Green marker, Old Olive Marker.

I had the brilliant notion for this card after thinking about how the tag punch, punched side by side, would look a bit like a cloister or a series of windows. No, I am not doing this for the ControlFreaks swap, even though I have signed up to do this set. There is WAY too much work involved to make 38 swaps! I started this at Paula's house and finished it when I got home; I just needed the black hemp for the button. Okay, you're dyin' to say it, I know...this is STINKIN' CUTE!!!! (YILM!)

Ingredients: Stamps - True Friend, Boho Friend wheel, Canvas; Cardstock - Whisper White, River Rock, Groovy Guava, Purely Pomegranate, Soft Sky; Ink - Purely Pomegranate, Groovy Guava, Whisper White; Other - White grosgrain, stampin' sponge wedge, Ice circle rhinestone brad, dimensionals.

I started this at Paula's house and finished it at home as well. I was disappointed to find that this big medallion does NOT fit into the scallop punch; I thought it would for some reason. You could punch it out with the scallop punch, but it only lines up with about 3 or 4 of the points on the medallion and cuts off parts of others. But I can't complain, because I got this set for free with my hostess bennies. So I cut it out by hand and was pleased with the result. I inked it with Groovy Guava and sponged Purely Pomegranate around the edges before I stamped. I think it's GOJUS!!! (YILM!!) And I'm lovin' this wheel...unlike a lot of the standard wheels that have fine details that blur out when you wheel them, this one is nice and solid. Originally I had wheeled it on the Groovy Guava and it was just so contrasty. But stamping on top with Canvas took care of that and gave the card more texture.

Ingredients: Stamps - Supersize Snowflake; Cardstock - Soft Sky Textured cardstock, Blue Bayou, Whisper White; Ink - Whisper White craft, Blue Bayou; Other - Elizabeth fiber, Pewter Jumbo Eyelets, Pretties Kit (clear rhinestone brad)

I used the Stampamajig to get this lined up the way I want it and let me tell you, this is some big honkin' stamp to try to use with the 'Jig! I actually wasted my first try because I didn't stamp the image completely. So plan on practicing with this one a bit first. Otherwise, I really love this set. No I didn't mount the saying on the end, I left it as is. It's easy enough just to ink up the saying by itself. When I stamped it, I just used a larger piece of cardstock, then cut it down to size. Don't you think it's so GOJUS?!?!? (YILM!)

Ingredients: Stamps - Star-Studded Season, Flannel Plaid; Cardstock - Naturals White, Rose Red, More Mustard, Always Artichoke; Ink - Summer Sun, More Mustard, Always Artichoke; Other - 5/8" chocolate grosgrain, Antique Brass Hodgepodge Hardware, Stampin' Sponge wedges, Paper Piercing Tool/Template, Ticket Corner Punch.

I used the same technique as the True Friend card above; inked the star in Summer Sun, sponged More Mustard around the edges. I tried rock 'n roll first and it didn't look right.

Okay, enough of showing off...at least in that way! Let me show you some new toys!

I'm excited, because I got these absolutely FREE! I went to a picnic that Chris, the owner of Scrappy Chic, held for her employees/design team. She had gone to CHA in Chicago and had won one of the survey drawings from MakingMemories and as a result got enough of these to give one each to all of her employees! I had been debating about the grommet kit for a while, but hadn't bought it. So now I guess I have to buy even more grommets for it! Right?

The Tag Curler looks interesting. I saw them when they first came out and resolved not to buy one, as I already have so many of these sorts of toys that I don't use. But who can argue with free?

The picnic was lots of fun; Chris and Mike have a nice pool, which my kids enjoyed greatly. The food was great and getting to see some of the new stuff from CHA was even better!

I also stopped by the store the other day and got my August design team pack:

Melissa Francis - I'm thinkin' heritage page here!

Reminisce along with some Bazill Bling - girly pages here I come!

Well, as you can see, lots to do, not to mention getting back to the swap gang...

My, my, my, my, my, my, my, my, my work is so hard
Give me chocolate, I'm dyin’ for chocolate…

Comments

[heather b]

Jan... I just LOVE the 'near and far' card... I got that set, and really needed some inspiration for it... THANKS!!
Oh, and the Halloween one is toooooooo cute... I wasn't going to get that set, but now I may have to... UGH... ENABLER!!!!!
(that's a good thing, in my books!!!)
Thanks for the inspiration!

[Rose Ann]

Well...brag away! Your cards are really awesome, as usual! ;) Nice new goodies too.

[Linda Nicholson]

Jan these are all just gorgeous! I absolutely LOVE the Autumn Apparitions card (I'm a sucker for Halloween anything) and purchased this set with my pre-order. This is the best card I've seen with this set.

I also love what you're doing with the True Friend set. If you have time, can you tell me a little more about your technique for sponging on additional color? Is it really as easy as it sounds? I've signed up for a swap and I was thinking about how tedious it would be to marker up that set to have different colors, but sponging sounds like it would be pretty easy. Do you pounce the ink on?

Thanks for the inspiration as always!

Linda

[Kathi S.]

I love the halloween card.

i didn't know that you were a designer for Scrappy Chic. I love that store. I'll have to go there, san Jacob, to look at the samples to see if I can pick out a Janine original before picking at the designer's name.

Did anyone say Chocolate? I went to Godiva's uesterday and got 8 truffles, 4 coconut (DH favorite) and 4 raspberry, my favorite. I don't think my DH will be getting any though, Jacob discovered that he loved the coconut truffles, so did my sister. Yummy!!!

[Kathi S.]

I remember the 'Curly" layout (I cheated and looked on their website).

[diane M]

That song is going to be stuck in my head all day!! Great verse. Enjoyed the cards, too!

[connie]

Hey Jan...I'm slaving right along side of you...see me? lol! And, silly me...I signed up for BOTH the Control Freak swaps...new catty AND holiday mini! I have to finish up 80 swaps by Friday so they get in the mail. Yikes! I've been punching and punching and cutting and piercing right along with you!

[Kathie Tice]

Great cards, Jan! TFS!

[Julia]

Love the idea for the windows with the tag punch.

Lucky you getting those freebies!

[paula]

Janine,
Girl, you been busy!! The halloween card came out awesome.I like that three window idea and have to run with that. Not sure where I will run with it...maybe right into your mailbox, with a little RAK & an awesome pasta recipe included! haha

[diane M]

I KNEW it!! I woke up at 3 am with that song going through my head. Good thing the card samples and your comments are so enjoyable! You make me laugh, and always teach us great new things.

[Michelle Wallace]

GOR-JUS as usual! I knew that song was a long one, but to be singing it for 2 days now.... man. ;) Could you PLEASE post something else to get that song OUTTA my head already!?! Cuz you know I just can't stay away from your site, I check it everyday, & everday that song is still posted is another day that it's stuck in my head!! :) (probably because the super talented gal who wrote it is unforgettable I'm sure. ;))

[Corie]

Oh all of these are so stinkin cute. Love everything!!!