Stamps, Paper, Scissors

Getting out of that rut

If you are like me, and from what I read in your comments, a lot of you ARE, you sometimes get into a rut as far as the cards you design.

YOU know. I have a distressing tendency to stick to certain colors, favorite layouts, and techniques. It's really hard to break free of this tendency. The standard way of doing this is to look at what other people are making and maybe copy some of them. My readers come HERE to get new inspiration and that's fine for YOU, but where do I go? What about me? Eh? Eh?

I don't surf as many blogs as I used to, because I just don't have the time and I'm not really fond of copying other people's stuff anyway. I like to maintain the thin illusion of originality, after all, (cough, cough...ahem!) I have a certain rep to maintain, of being this glorious stamping goddess that just pulls new ideas out of her...em...HAT, yeah, that's right. So when I go looking for inspiration, I sometimes have to look in places others might not.

This past week I was cruising through a large discount chain store, heading for the food aisles to buy those items that I like to call "kid chow", that is, chips, crackers, cups of yogurt, etc. There's a distressing tendency of these items, after I buy them, to disappear with astonishing rapidity. So as I'm cruising around the store, I find that, of course, this store has put out all the Christmas stuff for sale, including their cards. I stopped to look because occasionally I get an idea from looking at commercial cards, although I wouldn't DREAM of buying them. I mean, I MAKE cards for Pete's sake! If I run out of time or energy at Christmas time, I don't buy commercial cards. I simply don't send any. But I digress...

This display had some pretty fancy cards. The commercial makers of greeting cards are onto us, ladies. They see us making these GOJUS handcrafted creations and they want a piece of the pie too. So today's cards, at least the pricier ones, feature, ribbon, die cuts and sometimes hardware in an effort to get those people who want the look of handcrafted, but they don't want to do it themselves. I took pics of quite a few of these, with the idea that I would rip-off...er I mean "borrow some inspiration" from them. After all, these companies have ripped off...I mean BORROWED the idea of this kind of card from us, haven't they? Turn about is fair play, I say.

And of course, anything *I* make myself is bound to be much more GOJUS than the one in the store. So I decided I would rip off...I mean BORROW this idea first:

 

I liked the color scheme. I liked the die cut snowflake on it. So I set out yesterday to create my GOJUS take off of this idea. Lookie:

Ingredients: Stamps - Holiday Best, Bella Toile; Paper - Sahara Sand, Brushed Gold, Very Vanilla; Ink - Versarmark, Encore Gold, Sahara Sand; Other - Snowflake #2 Sissix Originals Die, Ticket Corner punch, Eyelet Border punch, Scallop Circle punch, 1 3/8" circle punch, Very Vanilla taffeta ribbon, sponge wedge, dimenaionals, gold brads, gold EP, Iridescent Ice EP

OMGojus!!!! (YILM!) I'm thinking this card has got that commercial card licked, but good. Because not only is it a beautiful exercise in tone on tone, it's also blingy. Lookie:

To do the backround, I stamped with Encore gold on Sahara Sand, then embossed using Iridescent Ice embossing powder. It gives this card a SUMPTUOUS quality, doesn't it? Dang, I'm good! (YILM!)

The best part is that it is fairly easy to make, which brings me to the bestest best part: I'm going to be teaching this card at my next class! So if you're in the area, sign up! My next class will be at my house on Monday, November 30th at 7 PM. The theme is All That Glitters! And don't forget about the Christmas Stamp-a-Stack, scheduled for December 5th, with a deadline for paid registrations by the 29th of November!

Well, despite the fact that my card has a big ole snowflake on it, the outside temp here is 64 degrees! I'm going to go rake up the rest of the leaves while they are still dry and it is still warm outside! Ta!

The rest of what you missed!

Y'all are gonna cry, really you are!

 

'Cause you missed an awesome class! A class with ONE STUDENT! That's right! The rest of you mugs decided to give it a miss, dincha? Well! Your loss, eh? Not only did you miss these awesome cards, you missed these as well! Lookie:

 

Ingredients: Stamps - Scenic Season, Itty Bitty Backgrounds, Heard from the Heart; Paper - Old Olive, Real Red, Ballet Blue, Whisper White; Ink - Old Olive, Whisper White craft, Ballet Blue, Real Red; Markers - Real Red; Other- Signo White Gel Pen, Silver brad, Mistletoe Ribbon, Word Window Punch, sponge wedges.

The photograph really doesn't do this justice. In the real card, the trees are a very nice dark olive without being too dark and the bird is red, but I couldn't get that captured in the photograph and none of my efforts to enhance it worked out right. It's GOJUS!!! (YILM!) AND YOU MISSED IT!!!!

And if that wasn't bad enough, LOOKIE!:

Ingredients: Stamps - Delightful Decorations; Paper - Christmas Cocoa DSP, Real Red, Whisper White; Ink - Real Red; Other - Ticket Corner Punch, Eyelet Border Punch, Ornament Punch, Mistletoe Ribbon, gold brads, gold cord, sponge wedge, dimensionals.

Here, you! Get up! I'm not done yelling at you yet! I know, I know, it's GOJUS (YILM!) and you missed it all! But...but...quit crying! I'm still mad! I am!

Stop crying! Please? Oh, geez...now you're gettin' me all teary eyed!

After all, I'm the one that should be crying! I missed you! You didn't come!

I had to eat all this chocolate that Karen, my one student, brought plus the Oreo double-stuffs MYSELF! What I do for you!

And since these were pretty easy cards (I know the last one doesn't look like it could be, but it is, really!) and there were only two of us, we got done in record time.

So, let's go over what we learned:

1. If you live in Jan's area, you really need to come to her class. See what you missed!
2. Jan rocks! (YILM!)
3. If you don't live in Jan's area, you have to spend your life wondering why, OH WHY, don't more people take advantage of Jan's classes? Why?!?!?

Okay...I'm done ranting. I forgive you. Really! Just don't do it again!

Ta!

Merry Multiples Class

I have a class to teach on Monday, so as usual, I had to go through the torturous process of deciding what to do. Should we do techniques? Or concentrate on a holiday or theme? Or should we use all products from the Holiday Mini? Decisions, decisions.

Finally I decided we will do Christmas. Then it was a question as to what kind of Christmas we should do?

At this time of year, stampers start thinking about stamping lots of cards, so they are very interested in designs that are cool, yet don't take a lot of effort. Cards you wouldn't mind making multiples of, which leaves out a lot of really cool stuff. So that's what we're doing and that's why it's called Merry Multiples!

If you live in the Detroit area, the class is held at my house on Monday October 26 at 7 PM. It is $12 for 4 projects, $1 off if you prepay, $1 if you bring your own adhesive, and $5 off if you order at least $25 in product before shipping, handling and tax are computed. I have a limited amount of spots available so please email me at jantink at sbcglobal dot net if you are interested.

The rest of you who can't come are now feeling all left out and downhearted. I guess to help you feel better I should at least let you have a peek at a couple of the projects!

Ingredients: Stamps - Holiday Lineup, Happy Everything; Paper - Real Red, Bermuda Bay, More Mustard, Kraft, Naturals White; Ink - Basic Brown, Always Artichoke; Markers - Real Red, More Mustard, Bermuda Bay, Always Artichoke, Blush Blossom, Pretty in Pink, Creamy Caramel, Soft Suede; Other - 1 1/4" circle punch, Scallop Edge punch, Word Window punch, gold brad, Always Artichoke 1/4" grosgrain, Signo white gel pen, dimensionals.

STINKIN' CUTE!!! (YILM!) Normally, I wouldn't choose a set that had to be colored in as a set I would use for multiples, but with this spotlighting technique, you only have to color a very little bit for each card.

 

Ingredients: Stamps - Dasher, Holiday Best; Paper - Holiday Treasures DSP, Old Olive, Real Red, Chocolate Chip, Very Vanilla; Ink - Real Red, Old Olive, Garden Green; Other - Sleigh Bells ribbon, Wide Oval punch, dimensionals, gold brads, sponge wedges

This card is GOJUS!!! (YILM!) Yet, it is also fairly simple, with the paper helping to bring it up to par. And, since this piece of DSP is exactly a 3" square, you can crank out 16 cards from one 12" x 12" piece! I'm SO clever! (YILM!)

Well, after lunch torpor has set in and it's getting more difficult to be as incredibly witty as I usually am. So I'm gonna quit while I'm ahead. Y'all keep your ink pads wet and your pants dry, y'hear? Ta!

Back by Popular Demand - JanTink's Christmas Stamp-A-Stack!

I had several people asking me if I was going to do another Christmas Stamp-A-Stack this year, so I decided, "Oh, why not?" I am SO NICE that way! (YILM!)

I thought about using a different template, but the one I used last year works so well and is so easy that we are just going to repeat it, but with different Designer Series Paper and different stamps. So without further ado, here is JanTink's Christmas Stamp-A-Stack 2009:

 

This is a One Sheet Wonder class using a template that I adapted from one that was on the Stampin' Up! website a couple of years ago. I tweaked the layouts of the cards and made some improvements on the template. Here's some close ups of the cards:

There are a total of 16 cards. The class includes all the cardstock and ribbon to create the cards plus 16 envelopes. Participants will need to bring their own adhesive, a sharp pair of detail scissors, and a paper trimmer (there will be some trimmers available to borrow.)

Cost is $25 and the class will be held Saturday, December 5 from 9:30 am to 11:30 am at Scrap & Yap in Livonia, MI. Your payment is your registration. Registration must be paid in full by November 27th. You can Paypal using the convenient payment button below:

Or you can email me at jantink at sbcglobal dot net for alternate payment information.

"But, but...Jan!" you wail, "These cards are GOJUS!!! I live in (insert your location here) and no way can I come!!!"

Well, for all of you people so unfortunate not to live in the Metro-Detroit area, since I feel so sorry for you not to be living in this wonderful, thriving metropolis (yes, I am being sarcastic, LOL!) I will be putting together kits for those who want to simply order one. Availability will be close to when the class is held. Let me know if you are interested. Cost will be the same and includes priority shipping.

Today is Saturday and it's time for the usual bulletin run and organ practice. Ta!

More info and more class projects

Howdy, howdy, howdy!

How are you today? Good? Me too.

Last night I listened to two SU! webinars, one on the new My Digital Studio software that will be available for purchase on October 1st! Woohoo! Not only is this nifty new software great for digital scrapbooking, you can also make cards, flyers, slide shows, web banners...well, it is just STINKIN' COOL and so easy to use! My copy will be here next week and I can't wait!

The other webinar had to do with the new Independent Demonstrator Agreement. I'm happy to say that, AS I THOUGHT (I am so STINKIN' psychic!!!) the changes in the Independent Demonstrator Agreement aren't nearly as stifling as was first speculated.

And honestly, folks, it was mostly speculation that was floating around for the past few days, partly due to the fact that, yes, SU! was not perfectly clear as to what they meant and people panicked. I was very sad to see people on Facebook and SCS talking about this speculation as if it were the whole truth and nothing but the truth. People who said they would never buy from SU! again or wouldn't sign up now, though they had been thinking about it. The amount of misinformation that is floating out there, some of it sadly spread by some of our own demonstrators, has already damaged SU!'s reputation. And that is sad.

I'm sure some people will say, 'Oh, JAN has drank the KOOL-AID!" Let me tell you that I'm no fool, my friends. If I thought there was anything unethical about what I was being asked to do or overly intrusive into how I conduct myself online, I would be out of here like a shot.

And I like black cherry Kool-Aid the best...make a note of that. On ice. With a twist of lime.

So what did they say last night, Shelli (may she live forever!), Dale Fillmore (that old guy, LOL!), and Pam Morgan? They said that YES we can link to our friends blogs, YES we can link up to sites like Splitcoaststampers, Stampin' Addicts, and Craft Critique! We can link anywhere that does NOT sell competitive products and have a shopping cart or Buy Now button on the site.

We can even design for other companies, we just can't blog about it. While there are many internet companies that would not accept this for design team members, there are still more traditional companies that are always looking for display stampers. Your creations can go on their boards at stamping convention and even be posted on their websites WITH YOUR NAME ON IT and this is not a violation of policy. You can also submit them for publication just as before.

So what are the don'ts? It's fairly simple:

1) Don't link up to places that actually sell on their site. So SCS? That's fine. Scrapbook.com? Nope...they have a web store. Your friend's blog who sells a competing product? Link away! Your friend's business website where she actually sells that product? No linky. Easy peasy, lemon squeezie!

And this includes only competing product. So your friend's website where she sells handcrafted tomato cages autographed by an NBA superstar who loves tomatoes, each one painstakingly created from gen-you-whine copper imported from Michigan's Upper Peninsula, with tiny beads made by Hungarian peasants with their own crafts cooperative hanging off the wires that chime gently in the breeze and organically scare away insects?!?! YES, you may link to that website.

But if she adds a line of stamps depicting tomatoes, or NBA superstars eating tomatoes, or patterned paper with tomatoes on it...then you have a problem. Not just with SU!, but with tomatoes...you need to eat something else for a balanced diet. Because too many tomatoes will....well...never mind!

2) When you post a project using other companies stamps, or supplies, there are particular rules that apply. SU! encourages it's demos not to be too specific about who the manufacturer is, what the price was, and where you bought it. That's it. If you happen to mention it, you will not suffer a painful death while Pam Morgan turns the rack. Probably, nothing will happen at all. People who ABUSE the policy are the ones that will have their turn on the rack! (I AM KIDDING!) There is a bit of a gray area here and its called "incidental use".

Now, if I use someone OTHER company's embossing folder on the card I post and I say, "Swiss Dots embsossing folder" that is just fine. What I can't say is "Provocraft Cuttlebug Swiss Dots Embossing Folder bought at Michael's with a coupon for 40% off, here is a link to their website, here is a link to the coupon, OMGosh go buy one today!!!' Then I have a problem. But when have I ever said anything like this? NEVER. Doesn't bother me.

And look, I just mentioned a competing company on my blog! And it's okay, because a) it's INCIDENTAL and b) I did not LINK to those companies. And the STAMPIN UP! police have not shown up!!! WOW!

Of course, if one of my lovely readers sees my reference to the "Swiss Dots embossing folder" and says, "OMGosh I NEED TO KNOW WHO MAKES THAT!!! I want to buy one today, this minute, I will sell all my children's Pokemon cards on Ebay so I can buy it!!!!", all that lovely reader needs to do is to email me and ask, "Who, O who, Jan, my idol, my queen, makes that beautiful embossing folder you had on your card of yesterday? I really REALLY NEED TO KNOW!!! PLEASE! PLEASE! I'll send CHOCOLATE!!! I'll DO ANYTHING!!!" and I will, of course, tell you who makes it and I will be perfectly in compliance. Ask me where I got it and I will direct you to Google, where I am sure you will be able to find a vendor without a problem. If you do have a problem, just email me back!

I've also seen some people saying, "But if I don't list a stamp manufacturer when I post a card, I violate their angel policy!!" Angel policies cover commercial use of stamps, not personal. If you are making and posting? No violation not to put a name and/or copyright on your picture. Making and selling? Yes, not putting the copyright info on there somewhere would be a violation.

I know there are people who are complaining that it violates their right to free speech. This is the thing: there are situations everywhere that take way your right to free speech. Anytime you sign a contract, chances are there is a clause in there to prevent you from saying something to someone about something. If you are a demo and you signed the old IDA, you already traded away your ability to say whatever you want in a workshop. You did it to get a discount on the best stamps on the planet (well...that's just MY opinion). You can't walk into a customer's home, say, "I know I'm a SU! demo, but I really want you to buy my friend Sally's stamps from her company instead!" It's in your contract already. If I had a problem with signing contracts that prevent me from saying what I want, I would probably end up staying in my house all day and never leaving. And someday, they would find me, half-eaten by Alsatians.

Now how is SU! going to police this? Are they going to go around reading my personal emails, Facebook page, newsletters, posts on web forums, letters to my cousin Patti (hi Patti!) and this blog?

The answer is a resounding NO. This is all based on the honor system. It will work much as the old way of monitoring Ebay used to be. They will deal with referrals for abuse and only come down hard on the rampant violators of the policy. . And I'm talking about people who regularly link to competing websites. Not people who list the occasional other company's product in their ingredient list.

And that's it. The world is not ending.

Now for the fun stuff. MY cards, the ones that I make from the BEST STAMPS ON THE PLANET!!! Lookie:

 

Ingredients: Stamps - Nursery Necessities; Paper - Certainly Celery, Almost Amethyst, Pale Plum, Whisper White; Ink - Bermuda Bay, Almost Amethyst, Pale Plum; Other - 5/16" Neutrals Assortment brad, Scallop Circle punch, Small Star punch, Large Star punch, Double Rectangle punch, Scallop Edge punch, Stampin' Up! Texturz Plates Backgrounds I, Bermuda Bay dotted grosgrain ribbon, paper piercing tool, dimensionals, sponge wedge.

GOJUS!!! (YILM!) I know, I know, I kind of went OVERBOARD with the punches, but isn't the result worth it?!?!?

And finally, the piece-de-resistance,

 

Ingredients: Stamps - Lots of Bots, On Your Birthday; Paper - Brushed Silver, Whisper White, Bermuda Bay, Dusty Durango, Crushed Curry; Ink - Basic Black, Crushed Curry, Dusty Durango, Bermuda Bay marker, Crushed Curry Marker, Dusty Durango Marker, Going Gray marker; Other - white gel pen, Crushed Curry dotted grosgrain, Word Window punch, 1/2" circle punch, 1 1/4" circle punch, silver brads, Basic Black gingham ribbon, Stampin' Up! Texturz Plates Backgrounds I, sponge wedge, dimensionals

STINKIN' CUTE! I haven't done one of these cards in a long, long time and so I thought it would be cute to do it with the Brushed Silver paper as the base and texture it to look like metal flooring.

Well, I have spent enough time on this blog, my fantasy world online, and must return to reality, leaving you all here gaping in wonder at my creations. (YILM!) I'll be seeing you around. Ta!

All of me, why not take all of me.....

Can't you see, I'm no good without you....

It's a beautiful morning in the neighborhood, folks! Birds are singing; some are not, they are squawking at each other a bit, but the sun is shining, my previous blog post's spelling error is now corrected and I'm feeling pretty darned good.

You may note some new changes, apart from the ones designed by Michelle, which have happened since yesterday. Yesterday, when SU! made a rather startling, though not entirely unexpected, announcement: SU! demos were no longer able to blog, twitter, email, or facebook in a promotional way for another company that sells competing products. In other words, no more design team work for competing companies.

You may have also noticed a while back that I stopped doing design team work, so this doesn't really affect me a lot. I made the decision to stick with doing SU! last year. Frankly, my friends, I lost money doing DT work because I was spending money on products using money I made doing SU! And since I wasn't concentrating on SU!, my business lost money too. All in all, it was a lose/lose situation for me. Yes, I got free stamps. Yes, I had fun. But in the long run, it was not a good thing for me and I stopped. Other people can do both and handle it beautifully, or they have another source of income for their habit. I don't.

And I really love Stampin' Up!, both the company and the product.  If I felt like I had to leave over this decision, it would be like a scene from one of my favorite movies, The Jerk: Bernadette Peters, when asked by Steve Martin if she minded not having money, says, "I'm not gonna miss the money! I'm gonna miss the STUFF!" Yeah...I gotta have my STUFF!

At one time, design team activity was allowed by Stampin' Up! But I can understand why they have changed it and I am fine with it. As my posting my video yesterday really illustrated for me, the ability to post video instruction as well as direct people to an online purchasing experience has really made a demonstrator's blog into a virtual workshop environment, in a way. These sorts of rules and restrictions are already in place regarding what may be demonstrated and said in a workshop. So it's not a big surprise that these rules are now being applied to internet communications as well.

I am saddened that many of my friends who do both SU! and design team work now have to make what is a very hard decision. But I'm happy that SU! is allowing us a month to decide and is also allowing design team members up to a year to finish any contracts they may have signed with other companies. I wish these ladies all the best. They did nothing wrong in what they were doing because this activity was allowed by the company. Now it will not be allowed by the company, and that is a business decision, not a personal one.

There are a lot of rumors floating around right now and a lot of heightened emotions. The policy was written in a very broad way, so right now SU! is trying to start defining all the permutations and how it will affect how we all communicate on the internet. Please don't take this as some sort of vendetta by SU! against design team demos or some sort of Big Brother policy meant to silence any and all use of products without a SU! logo on them. Once the dust settles and policies are made clearer, I think we'll all find that the worst of the rumors are just that...rumors, and that the policy is not as restrictive as it might seem on the surface.

In the meantime, I'm staying with the cult of SU! The only changes you will see is that some links disappeared to my former design teams, as well as a few to "other" websites. I will no longer to bother saying "all SU!" in my ingredient list, because it will be all SU!, except for things that we don't make or the occasional card I made for a family member or friend with other products, almost all the time. Which is the way it has been for a while now, really. Things here will continue much as they did before. All I  have to avoid is giving you exact information on how to locate products other than SU! and I never did that much anyway.

And SO...

Thought you might like to see a card or two, ya know, from my class on Monday! Would you?

You would?

Really?

Okay!

 

Ingredients: Stamps - Just Jawing; paper - Razzleberry Lemonade DSP, Melon Mambo, Rich Razzleberry, Crushed Curry, Whisper White; Ink - Rich Razzleberry; Other - Fine Cosmo Glitter, Finial Press Embossing Folder, Pretties Kit, Rich Razzleberry Dotted Grosgrain, Whisper White taffeta ribbon, sponge wedge, dimensionals, sanding block.

GOJUS!!! This class was all kids' cards or kid-related cards. In this card, I embossed a piece of designer paper, then sanded the top of the embossing to help the pattern pop through. 

Then, lookie here:

Ingredients: Stamps - All in the Family, Family Accessories, Family Phrases; Paper - Kaleidoscope DSP, Green Galore, Whisper White, Only Orange, Tempting Turquoise, Yoyo Yellow; Ink - Basic Black Classic Ink , Basic Black,  Green Galore, Whisper White, Only Orange, Tempting Turquoise, Yoyo Yellow, Blush Blossom, Pretty in Pink, Close to Cocoa markers; Other - My Way punch, Vintage brads, dimensionals.

STINKIN' CUTE!!! I love this set because you can make your card look like a family member you are giving it to or the people who are giving the card. My ladies all made their choice of child for the card and were able to vary teh hairstyle and clothing to suit what they needed.

We made a total of four cards on Monday, but I'll save to for another day this week. I know, you guys want to see them all RIGHT NOW DARNIT! But you know what? Freedom time for this mom is about to be over for the day and she has to go start picking up children from school. Children who will come home and expect things like a snack, or help with homework or going shopping for shoes! What the heck is wrong with them?!??! Don't they know I need to STAMP!!!

Ta!

Big Shot - the most fun you can have legally

Hey y'all!

I know that I  have not posted in...well, a WHILE, but I've just been so dang busy! Some of this:

Some of this:

Some of this:

Some of this:

But mostly, it was this:

Specifically, swaps for convention. Back the last time I went to convention, there weren't that many organized swaps. You just pretty much made some, showed up and swapped them. But that's not the case anymore, oh no. Now you sign up for organized swaps and kill yourself to meet the deadline. Before, you made swaps until you were satiisfed or until you ran out of time. With organized swaps, you have to MAKE time. Sigh...

And I thought I had done so well by only signing up for, well 5 swaps. But here it is just a little over a week from convention, I signed up for one MORE  swap to make it 6 and I have 3 of the ones I need to get done done. Yikes! I keep telling myself

But it ain't working! If I end up going to convention again next year, I don't think I'm going to do this to myself again. No way.

And in the meantime, if that weren't bad enough, I have a class this Monday and have to have some projects for that! Ack! Ack! I'm still creating, but I thought I'd let you see what we are doing so far. This is a class for using the Big Shot dies and other goodies. Lookie:

Ingredients: (all SU!) Stamps - Happy Everything; Paper - Razzleberry Lemonade DSP, Always Artichoke, Brocade Blue, Crushed Curry, Melon Mambo, Whisper White; Ink - Soft Suede; Other - Flower, Daisies #2 Bigz die, Modern Label punch, Buttons #5 Sizzlet die, Ticket Corner Punch, Melon Mambo dotted grosgrain, Always Artichoke 1/4" grosgrain, sponge wedge, linen thread, gold eyelet

Yes, it's GOJUS!!! (YILM!) I was originally going to make this Soft Suede, Crushed Curry and Brocade Blue and this dang Melon Mambo color just muscled it's way onto the card! Cheeky!

And then I had this fantabulous idea for the Movers & Shakers die. Lookie:

Ingredients: (All SU!) Stamps - Batty for You, Sanded, Haunting Jumbo Wheel; Paper - Pumpkin Pie, Rich Razzleberry, Basic Black, Old Olive, Whisper White; Ink - Basic Black, Rich Razzleberry; Other - Movers & Shapers Curly Label, Scallop Edge punch, Basic Black 1/4" grosgrain ribbon, 1 1/4" & 1 3/8" circle punches, double rectangle punch, small cello bag, sponge wedge.

Yes, it's STINKIN' CUTE! (YILM!) Luckily they sell candy corn all year round...even though craft stores already have the Halloween stuff, the local drug store does NOT.

How'd I do it? Well, it's simple:

1. Center the Curly Label die in the very center of the open space on the M&S die. A clear grid ruler helps this a lot!
2. Cut your cardstock 3 1/2" x 8 1/2".
3. Line up your piece of cardstock so that it is exactly centered between the two long edges of the M&S die. There will be 3/8" on each side. The short ends will line up exactly with the short ends of the die.
4. Run the whole shebang through the Big Shot, using the two extended cutting plates.
5. Now you score 4" from the top of the front (where the hole is) so that you have a score line at 4" and one at 5 1/2" which the M&S die made. The space between the two lines is the bottom of the treat holder.
6. Score once more 1 1/2" from the bottom. This is your flap.

I stapled the small cello bag to the back of the treat holder, but it would probably show up nicer if it were stapled to the front.

Thank you, thank you. Yes, I know I am so dang clever! (YILM!)

Well, must get back to the design mines. I will have more for you on Monday or Tuesday! Ta!

More Fancy Schmancy Folds and some FAQs

For class tomorrow, I have developed three more cards. This first one is a blast from the past! These were VERY popular 5 years ago, so I thought I would revisit this fold. This is called a basket card:

Ingredients: (all SU!) Stamps - Really Retro; Paper - Sweet Always DSP, Regal Rose, Pink Pirouette, Pumpkin Pie, Chocoalte Chip; Ink - Chocolate Chip; Other - Stampin' Up! Birds & Blooms Sizzlet dies, Pumpkin Pie striped grosgrain, Trio Flower Punch, Small Oval punch, Little Leaves Sizzlet die, eyelets, Chocolate Chip marker, dimensionals, sponge wedge

This is what it looks like open:

GOJUS!!! (YILM!) You were waiting for that, weren't ya? To make this card, mark your cardfront at the bottom center (2 3/4") and 2 3/4" up from the bottom on the left and right sides. Score a line between the center mark and the right and left side marks, then fold the points to the center.

Then proceed to fill with whatever you like. Would you like to see the one I did 5 years ago? Okay!

And considering it was 5 years ago, when I had not yet achieved the full range of my mojoness, this is still pretty STINKIN' CUTE! (YILM!)

This next card is called a Spring Card and was featured on Splitcoaststampers: Tutorial by Sandy Hulsart:

Ingredients: (All SU!) Stamps: Very Versatile; Paper - A Walk in the Park DSP, Baja Breeze, Cameo Coral, So Saffron; Ink - Baja Breeze, Cameo Coral, Kiwi Kiss, Whisper White Craft, Basic Black; Other - Whisper White Satin ribbon, Word Window punch, Large Oval punch, gold brads, white gel pen.

GOJUS!!! (YILM!)

It's called a Spring card, because it does this:

BOING!

It fits into the 5 1/2" square envelopes we carry.

And last but not least, here's a card that also can be found on Splitcoaststamper's in the resource section, the Diagonal Double Pocket Card:

Ingredients: (all SU!) Stamps - Wonderful You, On Your Birthday, Short & Sweet, Curvy Verses; Paper - Delicate Dots DSP, Sahara Sand, So Saffron, Bashful Blue, Whisper White; Ink - Basic Grey, So Saffron, Certainly Celery, Bashful Blue; Other - Large Oval punch, Pretties Kit, Bashful Blue 1 1/4" double stitched grosgrain, Certainly Celery 1/4" grosgrain, Bashful Blue 1/4" grosgrain, sponge wedges, Sahara Sand marker, 1/4" hole punch, Tag Corner punch

Here's what the tags look like:

 

GOJUS!! (YILM!) I was pretty much forced to use this paper from SAB, because this card uses almost an entire piece of 12 x 12 paper and it's the only DSP where I will have enough pieces of the same pattern for everyone to do the same. You have to cut it down to 8 1/2" x 11", but ACTUALLY...I cut mine down a little further than that so that I could mat it up on a piece of cardstock and still have it fit in an envelope. I cut mine to 8" x 10 1/2" and then did the center scores at 4" for the vertical and 5 1/4" for the horizontal. Just one of those little innovations that make you love me SO MUCH!  (YILM!)

Now I'm going to answer some questions, because I've been getting a lot of the same ones, and it just saves time to get them all out of the way at once:

1) Do you prefer to be called Janine or Jan?

Either one. I grew up being called Janine, except one aunt who liked calling me Jan, I guess because it was more Dutch sounding and she was definitely one of my most Dutch aunts.

However, when I first established my presence online, way back in 1996, the screen name JanineT was already taken, as was any other combination that used "Janine", so I became JanTink and the rest, as they say, was history. I've been JanTink in just about every place on the web I have ever hung out, so when people started to meet me IRL, they naturally started calling me Jan. And I'm okay with that. You can call me Jan or you can call me Janine...just don't call me late for dinner.

2) Where do you get those cute smileys?

I am a proud subscriber to Millan.net. They have some free smileys, but the really cutest ones are only available by subscription. The cost is only $8.95 per six months and I think it's totally worth it.I have to thank Julie Ebersole for introducing me to these super cute smileys!

3) What is your favorite chocolate and can I send you some?

Why, you are so nice to ask!!! Thank you!

In general...cough...I do take chocolate bribes tributes because I know it makes YOU feel so good to pay back for all the cool stuff I show (YILM!) and all the chuckles I pass your way and I really like you to feel good, so...er...yeah...that's my story and I am STICKIN' TO IT!!!

I wouldn't send any chocolate right now, though, because it most likely would melt. Ask me again once it cools down. My email is jantink atsign sbcglobal dotmark net. Once the weather cools off, just drop me a line and I'll give you my address, if you really want to send some, that is. But don't feel like you hafta.

But if you really want to know, or are just morbidly curious, as far as what I like, I am pretty much an equal opportunity chocolate consumer, however...there are some things I really don't like:

• NO cream centers (too sweet).
• NO alcohol flavors. If I am gonna drink, I will do it separately.
• NO peanuts. I don't mind them. Just don't want them in my chocolate, thanks.
• NO weird flavor combinations. I like chocolate to taste like chocolate.

I have developed, over the years, a very particular taste in chocolate, starting as an innocent child who got the chocolate gene from her father, moving through the year I spent in college working at Fanny Farmer's Candy Store (yes, I lost 25 pounds when I stopped working there! They let us eat as much as we wanted, thinking we would get tired of it and stop...guess what? I didn't ever get tired of it!), and on through the years when I actually had more money to spend on chocolate and a willingness to experiment with all kinds of high end chocolate, up until today, when I buy myself one candy bar a week because of shrinking funds and a growing rear.

I really don't like my chocolate overly sweet, but I don't like it too bitter either. I will eat either dark or milk, but no white chocolate (too sweet). Well...except for those Hershey Cookies & Cream Bars. I wouldn't kick them out of my chocolate queue. I love caramel, but I really prefer the chewy (or crunchy) kind over the runny kind.

My very favorite things, not in any particular order:

• Rolos.
• Milky Way.
• Mounds. Love dee coconut, even widdout dee lime. Not Almond Joy (too sweet), though I will choke down the ones my children pass me from their Halloween stashes, just to save their dear sweet little teeth from the sugar...yeah...that's my story and I'm STICKIN' TO IT!
• Lazzaroni Dark Chocolate Bar with Amaretti Crumbles, which is almost impossible to find these days...its' soooo stinkin' good...dang, now I want one!
• Riesens, though they are not kind to my TMJ. I have resolved, though, to suffer through eating them. I wouldn't want them to feel neglected.
• Scor.
• Heath Bars.
• English Toffee bark or Toffee-ettes (See's).
• See's (or any other quality chocolatier's) Dark Chocolate Covered Caramels.
• Lindt truffles, just about any kind, though I like both the dark and milk.
• Dove chocolate, either milk or dark.

In general, I don't care for mint in my chocolate, though I occasionally do have an Andes mint or a York Peppermint Patty. I am not much for nuts, though I don't mind almonds. Just no peanuts. I give that kind of stuff to Dan, who likes it. Who knows why.

But really, I am not THAT fussy. I do eat Hershey bars, kisses and M&M's, because that's what I buy to stick in my candy buckets for my classes and if there is some left, I may eat a few here and there.

Other than that, you will always find me ready for brownies, the ultimate expression of chocolate. And chocolate chip cookies warm out of the oven...'Scuse me, I need to go get a towel...BRB!

ANYWAY, I really don't eat as much chocolate as I used to, even though it sounds like I'm constantly stuffing myself with it. I've been trying to cut back, since I had my thyroid out, because my metabolism is really....reaaaaalllllyyyyyyy....slloooooowwwwww. Sigh. I have been gaining weight ever since. Though I managed to remove (my chiropractor yells at me if I say lose, because that implies I will probably FIND it again) 9 pounds since November, it is a small fraction of what really needs to be...er...encouraged to find the nearest exit.

Well, that about covers it. I'll be back, probably tomorrow with some more FAB projects! Ta!

Fancy Folds

Yes, dear readers, I live yet. I've just been very, very busy.

a) because I had a kid with half days this week due to final exams, Mom the Taxi had even more trips to make than usual.
b) softball continues 4 nights per week.
c) I was working on my first exam for transcription.
d) I had to squeeze some cleaning and cooking in there somewhere (yeah, I'm just as puzzled and confused by that myself...why doesn't someone else just do it already and leave me to my stamps?!?!?)
e) I had an offer to take my entire collection of older retired stamps off my hands for one price, so I've been packing stuff in boxes for the past couple of days.

and

f) I got my new stuff and my new catalog and many hours have been spent stroking and drooling over all of it and rearranging my stamp room to accommodate the new colors. SO much so that very little stamping has gotten done, even with the new goodies.

But I did get the mojo back! I had started this card last week and the pieces were still on my stamp desk waiting for me. It's for my next class, Fancy Folds, which will be on June 29. Lookie:

Ingredients: (All SU!) Stamps - Upsy Daisy, On Your Birthday; Paper - Urban Garden, Baja Breeze, Kiwi Kiss, Not Quite Navy, Whisper White; Ink - Baja Breeze, Kiwi Kiss, Not Quite Navy; Other - Organza ribbon, silver brads, Boho Blossoms punch, sponge wedges.

This is what it looks like open:

Isn't it GOJUS!?!?!?!?! You've probably seen this card on quite a few blogs, including the one I first saw it on, Tonya Allen's blog where she has a tutorial for it.

I will say that I changed it up. I wanted my card to fit in a regular A2 envelope AND I wanted to use regular cardstock instead of having to have a 12 x 12 piece to cut down to the right size. So my measurements are a bit different:

Cut cardstock 5 1/2" x 10 1/2".

Score from the short end at 1 3/4", 3 1/2", 5 1/4", 7" and 8 3/4".

Cut the slits as she shows 1 1/2" from each side.

It folds up to 3 1/2" x 5 1/2", so it will fit in an A2 envelope with a little room to spare.

I'm always happy to find a new fancy fold!

Well, I must get on with life here...still have to inventory all the stamps I'm shipping out and pack them nicely in their boxes. Then I have to get them weighed and send an invoice to the buyer. Once he's paid, out the door they will go! And I'll have some new money for rubber and other necessities!

So my for sale sheet is missing right now on my side bar, but it will be making a return after we put this catalog out to pasture! I'm losing something 30 some odd sets plus whatever mini catalog stuff does not make it in. AND I am going to go through my clear stamps and do a good winnowing out of those too, so look for a new stamp sale list some time in July.

For those of you wondering what I had in my preorder, here ya go:

116714	Razzle Dazzle Stamp Set	1	1
116630	PUNCH MODERN LABEL	1	1
115675	DESIGNER SERIES PAPER RAZZLEBERRY LEMONADE 12X12	1	1
118479	2009 In Color Bundle	1	1
115317	CARD STOCK BERMUDA BAY 8 1/2 X 11	1	1
115319	CARD STOCK CRUSHED CURRY 8 1/2 X 11	1	1
115321	CARD STOCK DUSTY DURANGO 8 1/2 X 11	1	1
115320	CARD STOCK MELON MAMBO 8 1/2 X 11	1	1
115316	CARD STOCK RICH RAZZLEBERRY 8 1/2 X 11	1	1
115318	CARD STOCK SOFT SUEDE 8 1/2 X 11	1	1
115655	CLASSIC STAMPIN PAD BERMUDA BAY	1	1
115659	CLASSIC STAMPIN PAD CRUSHED CURRY	1	1
115654	CLASSIC STAMPIN PAD DUSTY DURANGO	1	1
115656	CLASSIC STAMPIN PAD MELON MAMBO	1	1
115658	CLASSIC STAMPIN PAD RICH RAZZLEBERRY	1	1
115657	CLASSIC STAMPIN PAD SOFT SUEDE	1	1
115661	CLASSIC STAMPIN INK REFILL BERMUDA BAY	1	1
115665	CLASSIC STAMPIN INK REFILL CRUSHED CURRY	1	1
115660	CLASSIC STAMPIN INK REFILL DUSTY DURANGO	1	1
115662	CLASSIC STAMPIN INK REFILL MELON MAMBO	1	1
115664	CLASSIC STAMPIN INK REFIL RICH RAZZLEBERRY	1	1
115663	CLASSIC STAMPIN INK REFILL SOFT SUEDE	1	1
116329	Stampin Write Markers In Color Assortment	1	1
115613	Ribbon Grosgrain Polka Dot Rich Razzleberry 1/2"	1	1
115612	Ribbon Grosgrain Polka Dot Soft Suede 1/2"	1	1
115610	Ribbon Grosgrain Polka Dot Bermuda Bay 1/2 Inch	1	1
115614	Ribbon Grosgrain Polka Dot Crushed Curry 1/2"	1	1
115611	Ribbon Grosgrain Polka Dot Melon Mambo 1/2 Inch	1	1
115609	Ribbon Grosgrain Polka Dot Dusty Durango 1/2 Inch	1	1
115953	MAGNETIC MOVERS & SHAPERS PUNCH WINDOWS	1	1
115366	CHRISTMAS PUNCH HOSTESS STAMP SET	1	1
117733	2009-2010 IDEA BOOK & CATALOG US-ENGLISH (SINGLE)	1	1

Plus I ordered a couple more sets for my Sale-a-Bration rewards:

115370	Teeny Tiny Wishes STAMP SET	1	1
115322	The More the Merrier HOSTESS STAMP SET	1	1

Those will be here on Thursday! Woohooo!!

And I have to say the new In Colors are YUMMAY! Lookie:

Now I gotta get off of here. Because William actually has his room clean and wants to get on the computer, LOL! I'm going to go play with my new stuff! Ta!

On a Mission for Masculinity

Is the name of my class coming up next Monday. So I figured, ya know, might as well get a jump on making cards for it, instead of doing my usual scraping under the wire at the last minute with the final card. I don't really like leaving things until the last minute and I do already have one card ready, so there are only three more to do.

So I went over to the stamp shelves and started scanning for masculine-type sets, sets that might not have gotten much love lately. And I grabbed "Wanted" because I had a lot of fun with it when it first came out and haven't touched it in...quite a while, anyway!

But first I had to get over the creative malaise that has gripped me for the past few days. Yesterday, I tinkered with the stuff I pulled out to make this card, but didn't get much of anything done. But today went better...maybe all the laundry I did yesterday because I wasn't feeling creative started to get to me. Laundry can do that to a person.

So I decided to do a birthday card...and with this set, I started thinking about the Pioneer Woman, Ree Drummond, whose blog I read daily and the beautiful pictures of mustangs (no, I don't read it just to look at the pictures of her husband's rear end in jeans...though it doesn't hurt that they are there, now does it?)  that she features on her blog. And I came up with this:

Ingredients: (all SU!) Stamps - Wanted, On Your Birthday; Paper - Parisian Breeze DSP, Kraft, Chocolate Chip, Baja Breeze, Confetti White; Ink - Chocolate Chip, Baja Breeze, Versamark, Chocolate Chip marker; Other - gold EP, Large Oval punch, small star punch, 1/2" circle punch, Antique Brass Build-a-Brad, Baja Breeze striped grosgrain

MOJUS!!! (YILM!) I love how easy it is to get the illusion of a whole herd of horses by stamping more than once! And I love all the little elements that come with this stamp set, which makes it so easy to embellish a card or scrapbook page.

So this is dedicated to Ree...and if any of you know her, tell her I've got the perfect birthday card for the Marlborough Man! Just have her drop me a line and I'll send it on! It's the least I could do for all the laughs, the eye candy and the recipes.

Well, I have to run to pick up children from school. Y'all come back now, hyeah? Ta!