I love the Lexicon of Leaves stamp set (currently on the dormant list), and it was sitting on my desk calling out to me to use it. I had a half sheet of Whisper White card stock and decided to play around with our new In Colors and a One Sheet Wonder.

Not familiar with One Sheet Wonder (OSW)? It's where you stamp an entire sheet of card stock (in my case this was a half sheet - 5.5" x 8.5") in a collage type pattern, then you cut it up and use it on cards, scrapbook pages and other paper crafting projects. It always amazes me how many cards you can make from just one sheet of stamped paper.

Here is one of the first cards I made after stamping and cutting my OSW piece apart:

To create my OSW piece, I stamped with Crushed Curry, Old Olive, Dusty Durange and Rich Razzleberry. I also sponged some of those same ink colors on my stamped background to blend the colors.

For this card, I cut a piece of my OSW into a 3x3" piece. I matted that at an angle with a 3.25" x 3.25" piece of Old Olive card stock and placed that on my Crushed Curry card. I tied on a piece of Rich Razzleberry polka dot ribbon, but I tied it so you couldn't see the polka dots (2 ribbons for the price of 1 – yea!). I then stamped a leaf with Crushed Curry on Whisper White card stock and stamped the Thanks image with Rich Razzleberry. I punched this with the small tag punch and punched a coordinating tag from Rich Razzleberry and attached them to the ribbon with gold cord. Fun, quick and easy! What do you think?

Stamps: Lexicon of Leaves

Ink: Rich Razzleberry, Crushed Curry, Dusty Durango, Old Olive

Paper: Whisper White, Rich Razzleberry, Crushed Curry, Old Olive

Accessories: gold cord (ret), small and large tag punches, 1/16" circle punch, Rich Razzleberry polkadot grosgrain ribbon, stamping sponges

The Medallion background stamp is one of the top selling stamps in this year's catalog, and now that I have it, I understand why. There are so many possibilities floating around in my head that I can't wait to try! Embossing, glitter, kissing – the list goes on.

This is a quick card you can create in less than 5 minutes! While it's quick to make, this card is quite elegant and could be used for a number of different occasions – thinking of you, birthday, just a note, etc. Make 4 – 8 of these cards, wrap them with a ribbon or put them in cello bag with a topper and this would make a great hostess gift, birthday gift or even a much appreciated Christmas gift.

Ready to see how easy this card is to make?

1. Create card from Very Vanilla card stock – 4"x8" and fold in half so your card is 4x4".
2. Stamp Medallion onto card front with Dusty Durango ink.
3. Use the Color Spritzer tool (this is so much fun!) with the Soft Suede marker and spritz onto the card front.
4. Attach a piece of Razzleberry Lemonade DSP (1" x 4") to the left side of the card. (Option: tear the right side of the paper to give a more distressed look.)
5. Attach a ¼" x 4" piece of Soft Suede card stock on top of the Razzleberry Lemonade card stock.

Tip: Save the piece of non-stick paper from your label sheet (this is the label sheet when you are assembling your stamps), and use this to add the SNAIL adhesive to the 1/4" piece of Soft Suede card stock. The SNAIL is wider than 1/4" and can get on your work surface, so by using the non-stick sheet, you can keep your surface clean and sticky-free.

Have you ever tried our Simply Sent kits? They rock! They have everything you need inside a beautiful box (you don't even have to wrap it if you want to give it as a gift) – stamp set, card stock, envelopes, ink, accessories, step-by-step instructions to create at least 2 cards – everything!

I purchased the Just K Simply Sent kit a couple of years ago, and for whatever reason I haven't been using it – how silly is that? So, I pulled it out today to create a thank you card for a customer. But I decided that it needed something a bit modern, so I turned to my favorite embossing tool – the Big Shot and the Manhattan Flower textured impressions die folder to create some texture and dimension on my Chocolate Chip card before adding my stamped embellishments. I decided that I preferred the debossed side to the embossed side and here is how my card turned out:

I used all of the pieces from the kit and followed a template that was provided in the kit (though I modified it a bit to suit my new card). This was incredibly quick and easy to make, and I think it looks quite elegant with the Manhattan Flower embossed in the base card stock. I also ran the envelope flap through the Big Shot and the Elegant Bouquet impressions die to give a little something extra to the card.

Stamps: Just K Simply Sent (retired)

Ink: Ruby Red, Chocolate Chip, Mellow Moss

Paper: Very Vanilla, Chocolate Chip, Mellow Moss

Accessories: Manhattan Flower impressions die, Big Shot, Vintage brads, 1/16" hole punch, chocolate grosgrain ribbon, dimensionals

Do you ever need a quick card for someone and you don't have anything quite right on hand? Unfortunately (or fortunately) that happens to me frequently. The other day I needed to send a check to someone and had some old envelopes lying around that I needed to use. The problem with the envelopes (besides the fluorescent orange color!) was the odd size – 3.5" x 6.5". Weird, huh? But since I am a rubber stamper and paper crafter, I rose to the challenge! Hee hee.

So here's what I did, and I have to say I am quite please with the results (and I got to use up a lot of retired product – win/win!):

1. Cut a piece of Blue Bayou card stock – 6.5"x 6.25" and score and fold in half so you have a 3.25" x 6.25" card.

2. Stamp the flower from From the Garden (retired) with Versamark ink on the front of the card.

3. Cut a 3"x 2.5" piece of designer paper (sorry, I cannot remember the name of this one), and tear one 3" edge. Attach to the left side of the card.

4. Use the Curly Label Punch to punch a hole from the front of the card in the lower right corner.

5. Line the inside of the card with a piece of River Rock card stock (3x6") – round the corners.

6. Close the card so you can see the River Rock card stock through the Curly Label hole on the front and stamp your image (Best Yet – retired) with Chocolate Chip ink.

7. With Chocolate Chip ink, stamp the flower image from Pocket Silhouettes on the left side, and a small portion on the right side.

Here's a close up of the inside:

Too bad the card didn't coordinate with the envelope, but hey, no one is perfect!

I love this card because it is fast to make, and oh so cute. And it's fun to move away from the traditional 4 ¼" x 5 ½" card size and try a square card. I like 4x4" cards because they still fit within a regular envelope if you need to put it in the mail.

This card plays with the new In Colors, punches and one of my embellishments that has been languishing in my drawer – metal edged tags. Not sure why I stopped using them, because they are easy to use and add a fun touch to just about any project.

Here's how to make it:

1. Stamp circle images in Versamark ink diagonally across Bermuda Bay textured card.
2. Stamp circle image in Crushed Curry ink on Crushed Curry card stock, punch out using 1" Circle punch, and adhere to card.
3. Stamp large circle image in Melon Mambo ink on Whisper White card stock, punch out using 1-3/4" Circle punch, and adhere to Metal Edge tag. Fold Pumpkin Pie 1/2" striped grosgrain ribbon in half and adhere behind tag. Adhere tag to card using Stampin' Dimensionals.
4. Stamp sentiment in Pumpkin Pie ink on Whisper White card stock (1-7/8" x 5/16"), and snip right end. Punch hole in left side of card stock using 1/16" Circle punch, and attach Clear Rhinestone brad. Adhere to card using Stampin' Dimensionals.

Stamps: Teeny Tiny Wishes, Circle Circus

Ink: Pumpkin Pie, Versamark, Melon Mambo, Crushed Curry

Paper: Whisper White, Crushed Curry, Textured Bermuda Bay

Accessories: Punch Handheld 1/16 Inch Circle, Metal Edge Tags Aluminum White Circle, Stampin Dimensionals, Punch 1 Inch Circle, Ribbon Striped Grosgrain Pumpkin Pie, Punch 1 3/4 Inch Circle, Brads Rhinestone Circles Clear

I really like this stamp in Matchbox Messages and used it to create a quick and easy note card for my friend, Leslie.

How to make it:

1. Cut a piece of 3"x6" Pink Pirouette textured card stock and fold in half for a 3x3" note card.
2. Add a piece of 2 5/8" x 2 5/8" Chocolate Chip card stock, punching the corners first with the Ticket Corner Punch.
3. Free hand cut a stem and 2 leaves from Certainly Celery card stock and attach to front of card.
4. Using Pretty in Pink marker, ink the outside circle and the flowers of the stamp; then ink the stems using a Certainly Celery marker; last, ink the words using a Chocolate Chip marker. Huff (blow moist breath) onto the stamp and stamp onto Whisper White card stock.
5. Punch out using 1 1/4" circle.
6. Punch out a 1 3/8" circle from Chocolate Chip.
7. Punch a Whisper White Scallop Circle.
8. Attach the stamp image circle to the Chocolate Chip circle and then onto the while scallop circle.
9. Attach flower to front of card.

What do you think? Isn't it cute. I also made the envelope from the Raspberry Tart designer series paper. I am so disappointed that Stampin' Up! discontinued their envelope templates, but at least I still have mine and can make the cutest "lined" envelopes in a flash!

Thanks again, Leslie – you rock!

Talk about Clean and Simple! This is a single layer card using only Whisper White card stock. I've been wanting to try one for awhile and this week's Color Challenge (CC222) just happened to be a single layer card. Serendipity. J

I wanted to do some dry embossing on my card (which, unfortunately, you cannot see in the picture), and decided to try an experiment with my Big Shot. I die-cut a Top Note shape from the center of some thin chipboard, cut to 5 ½" x 4 ¼". Then I took this reverse shape (not the actual Top Note die-cut, but the leftover chipboard) and treated it like an embossing plate. I used the Multi-purpose platform without any tabs (both tab 1 & 2 were flipped out of the way), then layered the following from bottom to top:

• Top Note reverse image chipboard
• Whisper White cardstock (I actually taped the template to the card stock so I knew it would be in the right place)
• Silicone rubber
• Impressions Pad
• Cutting pad (I used this because my homemade texture plate wasn't as thick as the "real" ones, so I needed some extra height)

I ran this sandwich through the Big Shot and it dry embossed a perfect image of the Top Note die right onto my card stock. Woo hoo – I love it when an idea works!

To stamp the flowers – from Inspired by Nature – I left my "homemade" embossing template on the top of the cardstock, inked up the stamp with Tangerine Tango, Kiwi Kiss and Chocolate Chip, then stamped on the front of the card. The template acted like a mask so I only stamped within my Top Note shape. Cool, huh?! I sponged the edges around the template with Chocolate Chip and the edges of the card with Tangerine Tango.

To tie the Kiwi Kiss Satin Ribbon on the front, I used my horizontal slot punch to punch a partial hole in the edge of my folded card stock, just big enough to slide my ribbon through, around the back and tied in the front.

As many of you know, I love to stamp my envelopes to coordinate with the card inside and this was no exception. I love how the single flower makes such a lovely statement on this envelope. Wouldn't you love to receive something like this in the mail? Wouldn't it just pique your curiosity to know what was inside?

Stamps: Inspired by Nature

Ink: Chocolate Chip, Kiwi Kiss, Tangerine Tango ink pad & reinker

Paper: Whisper White

Accessories: Kiwi Kiss Satin Ribbon, Horizontal Slot Punch, Top Note die, Big Shot, sponge daubers

I've been intrigued with the Clean and Simple (CAS) challenges being held on Mondays at Splitcoast Stampers and decided it was time to play along. This week's challenge was to use pinks/corals along with Kraft card stock. I also haven't played the Mojo Monday sketch challenge in awhile, so I combined both challenges this week. Here is the layout for Mojo Monday 90:

And here is my card:

I had fun playing with my Big Shot and the Texturz plates. Not sure how well it shows up in the picture, so here's a close up (remember that you can click on the picture to bring up a larger view):

I used the Heartfelt Thanks stamp set (sadly, this is retiring – waaaahhhhhh!), and Pink Pirouette textured card stock (one of the retiring In Color colors – that's a weird phrase).

So just what is CAS? CAS stands for Clean and Simple. Per SCS:

There are different ways people view CAS. It is very subjective. There is no list of rules that will fit everyone's personal definition. The following are possible guidelines, only.

1. Clean: the design is uncluttered with lots of white or open space. Simple: having a clear focal point without a lot going on to detract from it. –OR-
2. simple in design regardless of the number of embellishments or how long it takes to color, stitch or to use a special technique –OR-
3. can be copied and mass produced fairly quickly… usually without a lot of coloring, layers, embellishments, tools and/or techniques –OR-
4. any combination of the above

Stamps: Heartfelt Thanks

Ink: Pink Pirouette, Chocolate Chip

Paper: Pink Pirouette textured card stock, Chocolate Chip, Whisper White, Kraft

Accessories: Big Shot, Texturz plate – Backgrounds 1, sponge daubers, 1 ¼", 1 3/8" and Scallop Circle Punches, white gel pen, dimensionals

I needed some thank you cards for a party I had recently and I didn't have much time to get them ready (20 minutes total!) I guess I really need to learn that procrastination is an art, not a way of life! J

Anyway, I decided to keep things clean & simple, especially given the time constraint, so I chose to create 1/4 sized note cards. That is, a quarter sheet of card stock (4 ¼" x 5 ½"), and then I folded that in half so my note card size ended up being 2 ¾" x 4 ¼". I still have quite a bit of retired card stock and papers, and they were sitting on my desk (isn't it interesting how what sits on your desk is what gets used first?). I also noticed the SCS sketch challenge for last week – SC217 – and thought I would co-opt that sketch for my little thank you cards. I'm not sure this is exactly what the moderator had in mind, but I like the way they turned out, and that's what matters – right?!

Stamps: Best Yet, Say it with Scallops

Ink: Ruby Red

Paper: River Rock, Groovy Guava, Whisper White, Ginger Blossoms DSP

Accessories: 1 ¼" square punch, sponge, dimensionals

Here's another card I made using the same supplies, but it looks different because of the designer series paper:

I also had some retired Berry Bliss DSP (I love this paper – which is probably why I have so much left!), so I created another quick layout (I actually made a couple of these, but this is the only one where the picture wasn't blurry):

I really like how the scallop circle punch and the wide oval punch nestle so well. It makes for a cute, quick accent.

Stamps: Many Thanks (retired)

Ink: Chocolate Chip, Regal Rose

Paper: Whisper White, Chocolate Chip, Berry Bliss DSP

Accessories: Wide Oval punch, scallop circle punch, sponge, dimensionals

And since I still had some more Ginger Blossom scraps hanging around, I created this note card using the same layout as the Berry Bliss, but using similar colors from the first 2 cards:

Stamps: Many Thanks

Ink: Ruby Red

Paper: Whisper White, River Rock, Cameo Coral, Ginger Blossoms DSP

Accessories: Wide Oval punch, scallop circle punch, dimensionals  

Believe it or not, I created 5 of these thank you notes in 20 minutes. Though I did have to finish writing my messages on the inside while my husband was driving! LOL!

Give yourself permission to play with simple, clean designs and I think you'll be pleasantly surprised how quickly you can create cards, scrapbook pages, etc.

Enjoy!

- Kari

PS – Don't forget to take advantage of Sale-a-Bration. If you order online, you will also receive a free Spring-Summer 2009 Idea Book and Catalog as well as a free sale-a-bration stamp set (or other accessory in the SAB catalog) FREE with every $50 you spend! Click here to order(then click on Shop Now in the upper right hand corner).

A dear friend of mine gave me a book of 6x6" patterned papers from Archivers (some day I am actually going to go there). It was such a sweet thing to do that I wanted to send her a little thank you card using the papers from the book. This is the card that I created that was very fast to put together. And I was quite proud of myself, because I went non-traditional (especially for me!) and made a square card! This card is 4 ¼" x 4 ¼" so it still fits in a regular envelope and doesn't require extra postage (why does the post office charge extra for square cards anyway – just because they aren't sure which side is "up"?).

I cut the background paper 4" square and mounted it on a simple Whisper White card. Then I cut 1 ½" squares of different patterned papers to layer on top. I used my white gel pen to create dashed lines in the middle and dots on the corners.

I stamped the thanks greeting (retired now) in Ruby Red ink on Whisper White, which I thought coordinated quite nicely with the patterned papers. I rounded the corners and sponged with the same ink.

I even added some of the paper to the front of my envelope for more interest (see below).

Thanks again, Cristal! I hope you like the card I made for you.

- Kari