Woo hoo!

It is the first day of the new Stampin’ Up Holiday Catalog and I’m here with a few of my team members to share with you some really cute ideas from the new catalog.

I mean, gotta kick it off right with some inspiration for you!

Don’t forget! If you earned Bonus Days certificates in August, you are now able to use them!  You have until the end of September to use your certificates.  You can use them on any order and as many as you want in the order! So, if you see something you love from the ideas we share, take advantage of those $5 credits to get a deal on them in September!

Ok, now back to today’s project.  One of the things I love doing with my group is swapping when a new catalog is being released.  Many of us preorder some of the new product and then create cards to swap with each other so we have more ideas and samples to share.  So, my project I’m posting today is the card I created for our swap.  I know this is the “holiday” catalog and so there are lots of great Christmas, Halloween, and Thanksgiving/fall sets.  But I spotted this Mean So Much stamp set and love how it is unique and perfect for any time of year.

Mean So Much Faux Watercolor Lettering

One of the things I love about this stamp set is how neat the sentiment looks with all the different colors of ink.  I’ve seen this type of coloring – Watercolor Lettering – before and it often takes inking a stamp partially, cleaning it off, inking it up in a different area stamping again, rinse and repeat.  Or you can brush the lettering with an aqua painter and then tap in liquid ink.  However,  this stamp set breaks it up for you and makes it much easier!

Here is what the stamp set looks like:

You see those strange faded partial letters?  Well, they actually layer surprisingly easily to create this sentiment!  So you end up with Faux Watercolor Lettering!

Tips for getting the letters to line up

1. Use the Stamparatus!  With the Stamparatus, you can place all 4 images on the 2 clear plates included with it and this allows you to place each stamp and try it out on scrap paper so you can make sure you like your alignment before stamping your final project.  Because once you like it, you know the stamps are always going to stamp in that same spot.
2. Start with stamping the last part of the sentiment first (“uch to me”).  If you stamp the last part first, it will leave a large enough image on your paper, that you can easily see where you need to position the next part of the sentiment (“u mean so uc”).
3. Work your way from right to left on stamping the sentiment. Stamp the first image, and then set the next stamp over your first image.  Since these are photopolymer stamps, you can see through to know exactly where to line up your image.
4. Play with color combinations. I spent a while trying out different color sets until I found the combination I liked best for this card. Start by looking at patterned papers or embellishments to see which colors go together well and then branch out into what calls to you.
   For this card I used the following colors:

   

   Highland Heather

   

   Coastal Cabana

   

   Granny Apple Green

   

   Pineapple Punch

Add Other Fun Accents like WoodGrain Textures paper, sequins, and ribbon!

So, once I had the sentiment how I liked it, I pulled together the rest of the card.  I cut out the heart from the same stamp set and added one of the small stars from the Twinkle Adhesive Backed Sequins.  And because one star or sequin is never enough, I added more to the upper left corner as well!

Finally, for the bottom, I used scrap strips of the Woodgrain Textures designer paper and layered a bit of the Powder Pink Mini Ruffled Ribbon underneath so a hint peeked out.

So I hope you enjoyed the idea I shared with you today.  Remember, just because it is in a holiday catalog doesn’t mean it isn’t useful all year round!  Now, I invite you to check out even more fun ideas from more of the Fun n’ Crafty Stampers:

1. Stacey – A Work of Carte
2. Christine – Artful Musings
3. Merit – MB Squared Designs
4. Nicole – Inky Fingers Stamping
5. Jennifer – NW Stamper<— YOU ARE HERE
6. Tobe – The Craft Sea
7. Pamela – Stinky Tofu

*** Please leave a comment at the end of this post and on the blog hop stops, and let us know what you think!***

Want to make this project at home?  Here is what you’ll need.  Click any picture to find it in the online store –