Come on, let's HIP HOP together!!

Before we get started, I need to let you in on something I just signed up for...
Saturday, March 28th
WORLD RECORD UNITY BLOG HOP
Angela's goal is to pull off a 200 person blog hop. I know that together, we can do it!
OH, YES WE CAN!! Join in on the fun!
Just click on the blue words and it will lead you straight to the thread.

Okay! Let's HIP HOP!!
I know y'all love getting free stuff.

Come on now... 'fess up! Free stuff is good!

Hip Hop on over to Unity and check it out for yourself!

Spend $10.00 get ONE stamp FREE
Spend $20.00 get TWO stamps FREE
Spend $30.00 get THREE stamps FREE... and so on!
This includes shipping!!
Uh huh! That's right! Your shipping counts toward FREE STAMPS!


Ready to HiP HoP with me?

First up is The Stamping Scrapbooker, Amber! OMG! You must check out her super adorable BABY BOY PLAID in Bashful Blue baby card!

Sweet Brooke! Her blog always makes me smile. "Whateva"... how cute is that? Most of you know I collect owls so you must know what I think of the owl that's on her banner! Take a look at the two layouts she has to share with us! Both are just FAB!! Love that blue she used!

A girl after my own heart! Go look at her heat embossing and cutting! Hee hee! I love her! Joslyn has posted a darling little card using the "Rain and Flowers" kit.

You will love Maren's three cards! Just when you think you didn't need those stamps! lol!
Her attention to detail is amazing!

Ever go to the dollar section of let's say Michael's and buy a few notebooks "to alter someday"? You are going to love what Patter did! She made a notebook for sketches! The idea is very clever but that cover... this kit is a must have!

From The Willow Garden come three pretty cards by AJ! Can you take a guess as to which is my fave of the three? Let's just say I am ready for Spring! lol!

Jimmi always knocks my socks off with her work! Her two Valentine cards are gorgeous! I think it's the way she combines colors with patterns and paper... just fabulous stuff!

Oh boy! I spy Daisy D's! I {heart} Daisy D's!
The lovely Laura has gone and done it now! LOL!
I was in the mood for distressed and *poof* I got my wish! It's wonderful!

You must run now... that's right. RUN over to Inky Paws (Jeanne) and take in her very chic birthday card and yummy hot air balloon, and then... STOP! That owl is "OWL MINE"! Just go check it out and tell me is it not the most cutest and the most shabby chic owl card you have ever seen?

Ready for some yummy treats? Check out this sweet treat topper by the one and only Heather B at In My Thoughts.

Hip hop over to Lynn's scraptastic blog, Pieces of Me. She has two layouts from the heart that are simply adorable! I just love all the little details that she adds to all of her layouts! My fave is the closeup of the stickpin with the "love" tag and thread. Beautiful stuff!

Jen just makes my day with her layouts. I think that she must have one fantastic sense of humor (or terrific outlook on life)... it really comes across in her work.

Do you like ladybugs or butterflies? Natalie has both to share... one really cute Ladybug Card and a fantastic Pottery Barn Kids inspired Butterfly made of buttons!

The talented Anne-Marie has a beautiful love-inspired layout to share on her newly made-over blog. I just love the heart with the ribbon accent and the "love you" tag.

Another fresh and fun scrapbook page from the ever creative Renee! The checklist on the layout is a must see! That picture of Mason is so adorable!

Next up is Jennifer over at The Buck Stamps Here with an adorable layout of her sweet little boy and two pretty cards. He's just the cutest little toddler!

Have you seen the new hearts background stamp? It's lovely!! Heather has made a beautiful Valentine card with it. Love all those layers!

Love what Linsey has posted for us! Let's just say it has to do with chocolates! :)Yummmy! The card that she has posted is so cute!!

I found a couple of seriously cool cards over on Wendy's blog, She's Gone Crafty. The textures that Wendy uses on her cards are just fabulous... really looks incredible in the photos.

You must visit Chelsea and take a good look at her amazing layout! I'm telling you, I am seriously in the mood for distressing. lol! This layout is just SO pretty! Taylor's story has touched my heart too. I just love that quote that Chelsea used on her layout that she took from one of the posts by Taylor's mom about Taylor's battle with cancer.
"Hug and kiss your kids and play like there's no tomorrow" ~ Gina Jones.

Hang in there! We're almost at the end!

Up next is Christi! I just love visiting her blog! This layout of hers is precious! Her two cards are so cute! Funny... I keep seeing that birdie paper everywhere. Hmmm....

OMG! Robyn! Stunning work! She has a gorgeous layout to show you and a card that will make you say "WOW"... guaranteed!

THAT's IT! You did it!

Now don't forget to stop and shop at UNITY and check out all of those ONE HUNDRED New releases are! You still have today to shop, shop, shop! Go, go, go!!

hugs,
Jane

Happy Birthday, Keiji... and a MFD winner!

I can not believe it!
My baby is 4 today!
I am so grateful for the time that I have with him in preschool this year.
I teach the 3's program at MACC (Moreland Area Community Center - Eastus Campus) and I have to say that having him in my class has helped "slow" down time a little. I feel like I have been able to spend good quality time with him that I wasn't able to do with Ken when my oldest was a toddler... something I regret.

So here he is with his first 4-yr old birthday card in the mail from Kevin's Aunt Mariko and Uncle Ray. In the background, you can see the poster that the teachers and children at MACC drew for him. :)



I will have more pictures from Keiji's birthday later tonight!


Hero Arts (last week) had a birthday challenge.
Here is my card...



I didn't realize I had a Sparkle Clear Set called "Sweet Moments" until I was going through my stamps. I thought it was a fun set to work with for the birthday week challenge. :)

I used paper from Imaginisce (Summer Cool "Chocolate Double Dip), stamped on Pink Pirouette (SU) and layered that on Close to Cocoa. The images were stamped in Rich Cocoa (Memento) on the pink cardstock and again on Pure Luxury white cardstock.

Copics were used to color in the images (R27, R29, RV10, RV11, BV04, E51, BG10, blender pen). Images were cut out and I used a glue pen and red glitter on the hearts of the cupcakes. Edges were distressed with a sponge dauber and Chocolate Chip (SU). I pierced the edges of the Close to Cocoa cardstock and wrapped both pink/brown layers with linen thread. Everything was mounted with pop-up dots.


Now for my MONDAY'S FUN DAY WINNER!!

The winner of one beautiful Hero Arts heart stamp and red chalk ink pad....


Random Integer Generator

Here are your random numbers:

11

Timestamp: 2009-02-10 17:33:33 UTC


That would be...
chinamomxtwo said...
I like the CPS challenges.
Love the card--great Heart! and I need that ink!
Thx for the chance to win

CONGRATULATIONS!!

Email me at: jane.matsumoto@sbcglobal.net!

Have a happy day, everyone!

hugs,
Jane

Pop up gift card holder tutorial

This type of gift card holder was the one I had out as a Make & Take at Memories Live On in December. I received an email from a customer who had attended, asking me for a template. There is no template for this gift card holder so I decided to create a tutorial for her... and for you. Please keep in mind that this type of gift card holder has been "out there" for a couple of year now and there are many online tutorials on it. I learned how to make this on SCS and do not know who actually created it first.

Let's get started!

Start with a piece of cardstock trimmed to 4-1/4" x 11"
Score it at 3", 5-1/2" and 8".



Fold your scored cardstock in half at 5-1/2"



Fold one end at 3" up and over the middle



Flip over and fold the other side in the same way



Open up and grab the inside fold.
You should be able to see the gift card holder starting to form.



You will need the Word Window punch to create the slot across the middle center for your gift card. The 1-3/8" circle punch is optional.



Take the Word Window punch and start at one end of the inside of your gift card holder.

Start about a 1/4" in from the end and punch once.
Move the punch over until you are 1/4" in from the other end.
Punch.

My sample shows that I started in a lot more than usual. I went back after taking the pictures and punched off a little more from each end because my gift card could not fit into the slot.





Again... 1-3/8" circle punch is optional.
If you choose to use it, this is what it looks like:



After you are done punching, it should look like this:



I like to stamp first and then I add my sticky strip tape in the very middle of the gift card holder.





Add the gift card and tie it closed with a ribbon or use a scrap of 1" x 12" cardstock to create a wrap around the gift card holder.





Now you try it!
Let me know if you have any questions!

~ Jane

It's time to Hip Hop!!

OMG! 21 blogs to hip hop through!
Come on... you can do it!

Start with Robyn!
You must go see what she did with Unity's Sweetheart Booties!

Then there's sweet Joslyn, guest designer and stamper extraordinnaire!
She used Flourishing Family Tree on her layout and Scrappy Flower on a card!

Onto amazing Amber!
She's taken the Flower with Stem stamp from a kit called Spring Has Sprung and made a card that is so pretty and happy!

Patter has two hip hoppin' recipes to share on her beautiful blog, Triple the Scraps.
She has used Floral Fantastical and Remember Happiness on one recipe, and Distressed Dots and Sweet Yummy Cupcakes on the other recipe. Both are delightful and the recipes sound delicious!

Check out Natalie's sophisticated black heart card!
It is a very creative Valentine's card... SO classy! Love the glitter!

Anne-Marie has a pretty layout to share!
It's so fresh and fun... beautiful!!

The ever talented Wendy has two super cute cards on her blog, She's Gone Crafty.
You must check out the turtles! :)

Feeling a little cold from the chilly weather out there?
Then you need to blog hop over to Jeanne!
There's Beach Days and Sun Rays to see!

I got to meet this lovely gal at CHA and she is just darling!
Maren has a fantastic mini album that she made to capture her CHA Unity memories.
It's just one really awesome album.

Linsey has two cute cards on her lovely blog, Outside the Lines.
The turtles are everywhere! lol! Her red and black card is SO pretty!

3" x 3" notecards with a little box are featured on Jimmi's blog, The Stamping Shopper.
She used the "Love is Toxic" set to create a simply sweet set of cards just perfect for Valentines!

Lynn's got two amazing layouts on her fabulous blog.
The colors just pop right out at you! They are really awesome layouts!

AH! Another CHA buddy! The talented Jennifer Buck!
She has two adorable cards and one delightful layout to share with you!

The Paper Princess, Heather M, has a peek to her Valentine's card for her David, and a pretty little vintage inspired ornament for you to see. She used January's Kit of the Month, and her favorite Worn Music Background stamp.

The ever crafty Christi Snow is hip hop happy over her handmade medallion made out of little cupcake paper liners! Christi also has the cutest altered notebook to show you!

Jen E. has a couple of really fun layouts. shut up! it's true!
I just adore the natural flair she adds to her layouts!

Next up is sweet Chelsea Cook and her super cute layout, appropriately titled "Sweet, Sassy and Serious at 2". Her pieced flower is just FAB!

Oh my goodness... Brooke! I got to meet this lovely gal at CHA too! Brooke has some GORGEOUS layouts that got me bouncin'! Sweet stuff!

Renee's layout is fabulous and her mini album is such a treasure!
The photos alone are incredible!

Laura is sending some Valentine love with these two terrific cards using January's Kit of the Month.

This wonderful gal just shines! I got to meet AJ as well at CHA... been looking forward to meeting her in person for a long time. AJ's cards are super cute! There's also a little something being offered so be sure to stop by The Willow Garden.

Did you leave some love for the Unity girls?

Now I need to get myself over to the craft table and get stamping!
I have so much inspiration floating around in my head.
Wasn't this a fun blog hop?
Come back again next week for another round!

hugs,
Jane

Using Copics on your rubber stamp

I wanted to see what the different outcomes would be between spritzing blender solution directly onto the stamp versus spritzing onto the paper first and if there was any difference if I were to take the Blender Pen and using that on the paper first before stamping.

Similar to spritzing water on your stamp after coloring it with watercolor crayon, you need to "reactivate" your Copics if you color with them directly onto your rubber stamps. You will need to use either the Blending Solution or rubbing alcohol to "reactivate" the dried ink... much like "huffing" on your stamp when using Stampin' Up! markers.


Bottle of blending solution and the mister that I used to fill with the blending solution for spritzing.



The quality of the paper that you use is so important! It is best to use smooth, thin, cardstock (Neenah Classic Crest, GinaK Pure Luxury 80lb, and SU Whisper White works great for me).
Today, I'm using Pure Luxury 80lb cardstock:



Before I spritz or blend, I have to color my stamp first. I wanted my birds to have 2 tones to them so I first colored my birds in B00 to give them a base color. Then I inked up my acrylic block with B18 and picked up some of the darker blue with my B00 (brush end). I colored the tails first and then worked out in small circles.







Be sure to swipe the brush gently on a piece of scrap paper to remove the dark color off of your lighter colored brush. Not to worry! This technique of swiping a darker color with your lighter colored marker will not stain or ruin your brush!




Here what I used to color my stamp:



1) I spritzed directly onto the stamp once and then sprayed off into the air and "caught" the mist several times. I may have soaked the rubber a bit too much but if you don't get a fair amount of blending solution / rubbing alcohol on there, you will end up with your stamp sticking to your paper and a very light or barely visible image.




spritzing blender solution directly onto stamp

2) After coloring my stamp again, I took the spritzer and sprayed directly onto my cardstock.
This time, I did use too much blending solution... you can see my image already starting to smear a little. So when you spray onto your cardstock, don't create a puddle!



Immediate result...


Spritzing blending solution directly onto paper and stamping onto soaked paper

After about a half hour:




3) After coloring my rubber stamp again to refresh the ink, I took my blender pen and soaked the paper with it. Again, I went over the area a few too many times.




Using blender pen to soak paper (oversoaked) and then stamping on it


So then I decided to go back over a new area on the cardstock with my Blender Pen but using less strokes (just a few layers).





Using blender pen to paper - less swipes


Let me know if you have any questions about any of this!

~ Jane

A Hero Arts Monday's Fun Day!!

Well I did it! I completed my first Hero Arts Challenge! :)
The challenge was to use a heart stamp for a non-Valentine card.
What do you think?



I stamped the heart from Hero Arts "Valentine Flourish" acrylic stamp set in VersaMark.
Then I heat embossed it in gold embossing powder.
I sponged the center with So Saffron and the outer edge in Old Olive.
Then I stamped the edge with the flourish stamps in VersaMark and heat embossed them with clear embossing powder.
I used my Old Olive marker to ink up the word "Together" from the Hero Arts wood mounted "Together" stamp set.
To finish things off, I added a few self adhesive pearls to the heart from Kaiser Scrapbook.
The cardstocks that I used are Whisper White, So Saffron, and Old Olive.


Well, it's been awhile since I had a Monday's Fun Day.
Sponsored by Memories Live On...




If you would like a chance to win this beautiful stamp and ink pad (and I always add a little more to the package), just leave a comment here with what challenges you like to participate in online. For example, I have recently done a few over at SCS like the Limited Supplies challenge or the Sketch Challenge. I am always looking for more to participate in... let me know which ones are your faves! If you can, send me a link too!

Have a happy heart day!

hugs,
Jane

Acetate Treat Holder Tutorial for my MLO class

I held a class at Memories Live On last year where I showed how to make an Acetate Treat Holder. The instructions for the treat holder was never sent out, so I am posting it here again, with step-by-step directions and pictures. If you have any questions, please feel free to email me at whoopsie.daisy@sbcglobal.net

This box is the one that was created by Susie McCormick called "2,4,6,8 Acetate Box".

I didn't want to just take all the hard work she put, into creating her Adobe file, that she had shared with demonstrators at SCS, and post it publicly here. So I have put together a little step by step pictorial for all of you. Thanks, Susie, for sharing the file with us fellow demonstrators!

You will need 2 sheets of your favorite DSP (designer sheet paper) - 2-1/2" x 8-1/2"

With each sheet of DSP, you will score at: 2", 4", 6", 8" along the strip


Turn the DSP on its side and score it at a 1/2"


Trim 1/2" off the end but leave the short tab attached up on top




Cut each 2" scored line up to the 1/2" mark


Shuffle the cut slabs until it is a snug fit. I like to lift each one in order and glue each layer down.




Glue down the tiny tab inside the box.


Repeat this with second DSP. You need one for the top of the treat holder and another for the bottom.

Trim your acetate (transparencies) to 3-1/2" x 8-1/4"
Score at 1-15/16" four times across the sheet.
You will have a 1/2" tab left at the end.





Crease all folds. Add adhesive along the outside of the 1/2" tab.




Add adhesive to the "bottom lid" and slip in one side of the acetate box.Press all sides firmly against the sides.
This is what it looks like now with the top lid on and a bit of yummy inside:

Now for the holes on the side for the ribbons. Find the seam of the acetate. This is the "back" of your box. The 2 holes you will make will go to the sides of this seam. Use your hole punch to get in under the "top" lid. Punch a hole on each side.

Put the "top" lid back on. Using a small tipped marker, make a mark where your holes are on the acetate. Take the lid off and use the same hole punch to go over the marks you made on each side.

Thread ribbon in through the holes of the acetate first, then out through the holes of the "top" lid. Place the lid back on the box and tie a knot at the end of the ribbon.

I hope you have enjoyed this tutorial and find it easy to use. Please give proper credit to Susie McCormick for the original design of this most adorable treat holder when you pass it on.

Jane