Spunky Cards

New background stamping video!!!

Check out how easy it is to rubber stamp your own backgrounds.  All you need is three or four favorite colors and three or four favorite stamps and you can create beautiful backgrounds yourself!

Here is a gorgeous card and below you will find a quick video that shows you how to stamp the background: 

Do you see how the background ties in with the other things in teh card?

• The ribbon and brad match the color of the crown!
• The card base (So Saffron) is in the background with the "diagonal thingies"!
• The center image matches the background (Cherry Cobbler)!

Like the stamps?  Here are the sets that I used

Grunge Rock (wood) or (clear)

Delicate Doilies (wood) or (clear)

Raining Flowers (wood) or (clear)

Now it's your turn.  Grab some stamps and ink pads and stamp away!!!  Don't be scared.  Rubber stamping is a trial and error process and my best creations have happened when I tried to hide a mistake with a pretty ribbon or another embellishment.  By the way, isn't the brad in the center amazing????  Here is the link to that gorgeous In-color Designer Printed Brad.

Are you in love with these fun and gorgous stamp sets, stop by my 24/7 online ruber stamping SU! store to add them to your collection.  If you have questions on this or other techniques, do post them in the comment section below.

Free rubber stamping ideas, cards, scrapbook pages ...

Looking for free rubber stamping ideas for cards, scrapbook pages and other projects?  Then be sure to sign up for my Spunky Stamping Newsletter.  My Spunky Stamping Newsletters are packed with projects for card makers, scrapbookers and every kind of paper crafter.

My rubber stamping projects include

supply lists AND

step by step directions!!!!

Best of all, Spunky Stamping Newsletters are FREE!

So sign up right now!

 

Glimmer Brads for a Spunky Look!

Do you want your flowers to pop out on your card?  Then use some fancy brads.  I've got In-Color Glimmer Brads on this card and I have to say I really, really like them.  These flowers are my favorite!!!

The Glimmer Brads are larger than yesterday's small brads and that means they also have longer "prongs" on the back.  This makes them the perfect choice when you want to make large flowers with LOTS OF LAYERS!!!

Of course, Stampin' Up! has Glimmer Brads in several color families so click here to see your entire selection!  Be sure to stop back by tomorrow, when I will ask you to vote on your favorite card out of this set!

Little Brads for a Whimsical Touch

I find this card with the small brad in the matching color truly special because it leaves the focus on the background and  overall composition of the card.

When you look at the other two cards, you see what I mean because their brads really put the focus on themselves and the flowers they are in.

Stampin' Up! has amazing brads for all of your needs.  Here is a great link to view them all.

What I love about them most, is that they are organized by color family just like the paper is.  So if you prefer rich, earthy colors, you want to choose the Regals Collection.  If you are more into subtle, soothing colors, you get your paper, inks and embellishments in the Subtles or Neutrals collection.  But you can also mix and match very easily between them all.

If you have any questions, leave me a comment below.  Ready to shop embellishments?  Click here!

 

FAQ: What is masking and how do I do it video!

Masking is a rubber stamping technique that let's you use one stamp to create a group.  For example, you might have one flower to create a bouquet or you might have one penguin stamp but want to have several penguins stand right next to each other.

This Christmas cards made with the Punch Pals stamp set (116588) is a good example where one stamp of three presents is used with the masking technique and it looks like there are seven or eight presents stacked next to each other and behind each other.

Here is a video to show you how I made this card!

 

Do you have a rubber stamping question?  Leave me a comment or send me an email at tanja@spunkycards.com and I'd be happy to answer it.

Click here to shop stamps, paper, tools and accessories 24/7!

P.S.:  This stamp is also awesome to make tags for your Christmas presents.

Instructions for Punch Art Turkey with Chocolate

It's time to let you know how I made this adorable punch art turkey using left-over chocolate candy from Halloween:

The face is pretty self explanatory:

1. Punch a 1 1/4" circle in Chocolate Chip.
2. Hand cut a triangle from left over Pumpkin Pie scraps.
3. Adhere the beak & wiggly eyes using 2-Way Glue Pen.
4. Attach to the front of the body (see next step) using a Glue Dot.

The body is super easy:

1. Stamp a printer address label with the "thanks so much" stamp from the It's a Wrap Occasions stamp set (wood mount: 123590, clear mount: 123592) using Chocolate Chip.
2. Wrap the label around two pieces of candy.  This is GREAT.  It makes this turkey so fast using self adhesive labels (and it cuts down on your candy supply)!

For the tail feathers:

1. Cut a 2.5" by 3/4" piece of chocolate chip.  Score at 1 3/4" (or thereabout).  Part of this piece will be under the chocolate and it will wrap up towards the tail (I hope this makes sense when you look at the picture).
2. Punch 3 pieces of DSP using the 2 3/8" Scallop Circle Punch.
3. Fold all three pieces in half.
4. Fold one of the three pieces in half again (so now it's 1/4).  Cut the tip of this piece off.
5. Overlap the pieces for the tail and staple them to the Chocolate Chip piece.
6. Attach to the body using glue dots.

Enjoy!

If you need any of the above mentioned items, hop over to my online store or email me at tanja@spunkycards.com.

Halloween Candy makes for really cute turkeys!!!

Do you have lots of Halloween candy and are you looking for some cute Thanksgiving ideas to use it up?  How about these turkeys?

I've got lots of candy from Halloween and I can't wait to show you how to make this cute little turkey.  So stop back by as details are coming soon :).

Want do 'gobble, gobble, gobble'?  Leave a comment to this post!

WOW Backgrounds using Classic Ink Refills and Rubbing Alcohol

This is a great rubber stamping technique "how to" video on making Wow! backgrounds using your Classic Ink Refills and rubbing alcohol.  Every piece you make is going to turn out different and they are all gorgeous!

  

These are the colors that I am using in this video:  So Saffron, Real Red, Pear Pizzaz, Chocolate Chip!

I have lots of ink refills since I love working with "juicy" ink pads.  Having refills for all my favorite colors is great.  Not only are my ink pads never dry, I can do really cool rubber stamping techniques like this one.

Have you thought about getting the refills for your favorite colors? 

Hop over to my SU! online store to get them!

Ship them straight to your house!

Enjoy making these awesome backgrounds. 

It's that easy.  And when you shop with me, you can be sure that I'll check in with you to find out if you are enjoying them, too!

Don't have too much fun stamping without me!

(Just kidding, I love for you to have fun!)

Shop SU! with Tanja 24/7

Punch Art Santa Claus for Gift Tags and/or Christmas cards

This punch art Santa Claus is not only super cute but he really rocks on cards,tags and gift bags.  I've filmed a video for you that shows you exactly which punches you need and how to put Santa together.

Don't forget, you can order all your supplies right here in my 24/7 SU! store.

Here are the punches you need.  Click here for all SU! punches.

Scrapping Saturday: A masculine card made with scraps

Many people have trouble making cards for guys (aka masculine cards) and so this is a How do I...? post today to show you how easy it can be to make a guy card with things I found in my scrap drawer.

As you read this post,

image yourself digging through your scraps picking pieces of cardstock or Designer Series Paper

that work well together (you need two to make this card).

Then let the paper tell you what to do with it.

Here are the two pieces I picked.  I wanted to make a guy cards (got too many girly ones on my shelf :)) and so I told myself to stay away from pinks and purples. 

These two pieces jumped out at me (can you hear them?  Pick me!  Pick me!  Almost like Donkey in the movie Shrek!)

 

Now we need a base for the card to present these beautifully patterned pieces from the DSP sets Paisley Pattern (top piece) and Well Worn (bottom piece).  Chocolate Chip sounds like a great color:

 

 

Next, I cut a piece of Crumb Cake cardstock as a matting to layer behind my DSP.  I also decided I wanted some ribbon to cover my paper "seam" and so I chose the Chocolate Chip 1/2" Scallop Dots Ribbon.  A guy can handle a little bit of scalloped ribbon, don't you think?

 

 

I would be completely ok with leaving the card as is.  The marbled paper is gorgeous so you can stop right here if you want.  Or you can step it up on the "SPUNKY SCALE."

I looked through my embellishments and picked out a safety pin from Vintage Trinkets and if I had been supermotivated, I would have also used an eyelet in the same antique finish on my tag before running the white Baker's Twine.  You are most welcome to do that.

The greeting is from the set Short & Sweet and I stamped it in Chocolate Chip.  The tag is punched with the Decorative Label Punch.

 

 

Can you tell that this is a card made from scraps only?  Nope?  Good.  That's the way it's supposed to be.  You, too, can make beautiful cards using up things in your scrapdrawer.  It's a fun little challenge and great on the budget.

If you enjoy making cards for men in your life, I recommend the Designer Series Paper Well Worn.  I use it on my guy cards all the time!!!  Click here to view it and buy it.

Don't have too much fun stamping without me :)!

 

12 Weeks of Christmas Projects are coming!

Christmas is only three months away and I am so excited to be presenting my 2nd annual

12 Weeks Of Christmas Emails!

Starting on Wednesday, October 5, all my newsletter subscribers will receive a 12 Weeks Of Christmas email every Wednesday until Christmas.

Each email will contain:

1. A fabulous Christmas card, gift, or wrapping idea!

2. Pictures!

3. Step by step directions!

4. Supply lists!

What do you need to do?  You need to be part of my mailing list!  So if you are already receiving my monthly Spunky Newsletters, then you will also receive the 12 Weeks Of Christmas series. 

Not on my list?  Then sign up right here! 

Not sure if you are on my list?  Enter your email address in the sign up box and it will tell you if you are already on my mailing list.

I can't wait til Wednesday myself to find out what you think of the projects that I have selected for you.

 

Punch Art Pumpkin and Brayered Background - How To Video

Add a punch art pumpkin to  your birthday and Thanksgiving cards this fall.  Many of you have a brayer in your paper crafting tool selection so get it out to make this two colored background! Don't know how?  I've got a video for you that shows you how easy it can be with a bit of practice.

 

Here is the video:

 

Don't have a brayer yet?  Click here to order now!

Video: Create a Sunset Background for your Polar Bear Card

Yesterday, was Card Club Day and we had a blast making two and three color backgrounds using the brayer.  Here is the polar bear sunset card and the video so you can see how exactly we made the background.  The brayer is an often overlooked paper crafting tool that can help you make amazing backgrounds.  With a little practice, you can make these stunning backgrounds too.  If you look closely, you can see that I added Dazzling Details along the polar bears feet which makes the white cardstock sparkly and look like snow.  Dazzling Details in brand new in the holiday mini catalog and it is definitely on my must have list.

 

 

  The polar bear is from the stamp set Zoo Review (Zoo review clear mounted stamps, Zoo Review wood mount) and if you have been following me,  you know that this is one of my favorite sets.  Last month, we made a great masculine card using the lion from the same set.  Click here to see the card and video to show you how to color the lion using Stampin' Pastels.

Shop 24/7

How to imprint leaves in your paper using your Big Shot (aka dry embossing leaves)

Here is a very cool dry embossing technique for you that uses leaves from my tree by running them through my Big Shot:

This card is super simple and perfect for fall.  The leaf is beautifully imprinted in my Whisper White cardstock.  Here is how I built my Big Shot sandwich:

1. Standard Texturz Impressions Pad
2. Standard Texturz Silicone Rubber
3. Whisper White Cardstock (already cut into its shape using the Top Note Die)
4. Leaf (from your tree)
5. Standard Cutting Pad (just one)
6. Multipurpose Platform on TAB 1

The stem of the leaf and the individual lines come out really neat and to see the edges of the leaf, you have to turn the paper slightly.  So I decided to highlight the leaf by sponging it in Old Olive and then I decided to sponge the edges of the Top Note piece with Pumpkin Pie and Cherry Cobbler.

I used the Simply Scored tool to add score lines around the edges of my card base.

I got the idea to run leaves through my Big Shot on Friday night when my family and I spent the night at the Sedgwick County Zoo for a campout adventure.  We did several craft activities and one of them was to collect leaves that we squeezed between two layers of a hankerchief and then we hammered it.  The chlorophyl from the leaves was squeezed into the fabric and made very cute green patterns.  My hankerchief has wonderful color transfer but it also has about 50 little holes where the hammer smashed right through.  So I didn't make my Big Shot sandwich so tight that I would actually cut my paper while getting good color transfer.  I am very content with the beautiful dry embossed image of my leaf.

If you try this technique, feel free to email me pictures of your creations!  I'd love to see them.  If you need any paper crafting or rubber stamping supplies, click here to shop 24/7.

FAQ: How to care for your Stampin' Scrub?

Last month, I answered the question how to clean your rubberstamps and today, I want to share with you how you best care for your Stampin' Scrub.

Your Stampin' Scrub is a bit larger than a DVD case and folds open to reveal two scrub pads.  I use one side for cleaning and one side for drying my stamps.  I have labels on my sides, "dirty" and "clean" so that it is easy to see which side is which.

Cleaning your pad is as easy as 1-2-3:

1. Soak in warm soapy water for a few minutes.
2. Give it a good rinse.  
3. Set it in a warm place to dry.

Do NOT set it in the sun to dry.  I've done it once (trying to hurry up the drying) and it completely warped my pad and it didn't want to go back in my tray.

If you don't want to clean your own pads, you can buy refill pads for your tray.

Click to Shop in my 24/7 SU! Store.