Gretchen Barron

It's Freaky Tour Time Again -- This Month with a Focus upon the Summer Mini Catalog

Hello everyone and welcome to the Control Freaks May Blog Tour where we are focusing on Stamp Sets and products from the fabulous Stampin' Up! Summer Mini Catalog!

If you're already taking the tour, you must have arrived here from Wendy Weixler's fabulous blog. Wendy always has something wonderfully (and wickedly) creative to share and today is no exception!

I've got a variety of things for your inspiration today! My first items are created with the new Presto Patterns Specialty Designer Series Papers, the new Smooch Spritz Sprays and the Elements of Style Stamp Set.

The Presto Patterns papers have designs that are already embossed on them so you can easily do resist techniques, adding your own colors and textures. The Log Cabin Smooch Spritz Spray adds a wonderful brassy, golden, and brown spritz to your papers which makes antiquing and distressing oh, so easy!

I've fallen in love with these new products. For my Fancy Favor Box and card, I first sponged Rose Red, More Mustard and Chocolate Chip ink over the DSP in a circular motion and then sprayed on the Smooch Spritz. Distressing was done with the Distressing Tool in the Cutter Kit. I love this vintage look! Click on the smaller images on the left to view them as larger.

The color, shimmer and glow on these projects are amazing when you see them in real life. They almost look metallic! So cool!

Okay, now for an about-face with my next project. Moving from elegant, vintage classic to fun and whimsy!

Banana Split, anyone? It's fun and easy (and calorie-free) with the new Sweet Scoops Stamp set! I used the Big Shot and the Perfect Details Texturz Plate (I've always thought it looked like the texture from a waffle ice cream cone) to put the texture on the Creamy Caramel Layer. I sponged lightly on the edges and over the top with Close to Cocoa ink. The card base is Real Red (cut at 6x6" and folded for a 3 x 6" card), as is the 3/4" Polka Dot Ribbon. I cut the banana free-form from (what else) Barely Banana Cardstock and inked the edges lightly with Close To Cocoa ink. My banana-split has luscious scoops of chocolate, strawberry, raspberry and orange ice cream with Chocolate sprinkles and a cherry on top! And Dazzling Diamonds Glitter makes it look frosty cold -- great for a hot summer day! Such fun! There's even an extra ice-cream cone on the inside for a friend!

Well, that's all for my stop on the tour. But don't stop here! Ilina Crouse has some great inspiration for you, as do the rest of the Control Freaks on down the line. Just click on the logo below to move on in the tour!

 

Thanks so much for stopping by on the tour today! I hope I've inspired you!

Control Freaks Blog Tour TOMORROW!

Hello everyone! Just a heads-up that you'll want to make sure and stop by tomorrow to take the Control Freaks Blog Tour. This group of stampers have been doing a Blog Tour on the 20th of each month for several months now and we'll have some great projects for your inspiration, using new stamp sets and products from the Summer Mini Catalog! Make sure and come back tomorrow and save some time to hop on the bus. You won't be disappointed!

No time tomorrow to enjoy all we have planned for you! No problem -- we keep our links up so that you can revisit the tour whenever you want! In fact, if you want to see some past Control Freak inspiration, you can click HERE to revisit past tours!

And speaking of the Summer Mini Catalog, look what I made for you today!

It's a little gift set with a Bag in a Box and a gift card using the Island Oasis Designer Series Paper and the Tropical Party Stamp Set.

The colors are Rose Red, Pumpkin Pie, Tempting Turquoise, Old Olive and Whisper White.

Click HERE for a printable PDF tutorial on how to make a Bag in a Box!

That's it for now! Don't forget to send me some Birthday cards. See THIS POST for more information. I expect that cards will begin arriving any day and will keep you posted on our progress toward receiving at least 200 cards to send to troops overseas!

Thanks for stopping by and Happy Stamping!

Look What You Can Do with My Digital Studio!

Good morning, everyone! Have you fallen in love with My Digital Studio yet? Well, I have! Stampin' Up! just came out with some new Digital Downloads that can be purchased for MDS and look what I did with them ...

This Digital Download is called Summer Splendor Designer Series Paper and it is just gorgeous! There are six different patterns in the download, each more beautiful than the other. Click to view the image as larger.

 

 

I reduced the size of the image and printed them out with 4 on sheets of Whisper White Cardstock. This is what it looked like when it came out of the printer. 

 

 

Update: I've had many people e-mail to ask how I reduced and printed these images. So, here is how I did it. I hope this helps those of you who are trying to make these beautiful cards!

 

• Don't add the image as a background paper to your MDS document. Insert a photo box, enlarge that box to one that is roughly 1/4 the size of the 8.5 x 11" page (landscape orientation).
• Save that as a JPG file
• Open up Microsoft Word or any other word processing or graphic design program.

Import the Jpg file to your new document.

Arrange the image on the page so that it goes all the way to the outside of the page.

Adjust the size and crop if necessary so that it is 1/4 of the page in size.

Once you have it the right size, copy and paste it 3 more times and position all 4 jpg images so that they fill the entire page (see above photo).

Then, you can print it!

I then cut them apart, layered them on coordinating cardstock colors, embellished (which is optional because they are so beautiful just as they are), stamped a sentiment and voila ... quick, easy and beautiful cards to share! For this first one, I used Elegant Eggplant and Orchid Opulence Cardstock and stamped the sentiment from Greetings Galore with Elegant Eggplant Ink.

This one uses Brilliant Blue and Bashful Blue Cardstock and I added some 5/8" Whisper White Organza Ribbon.

And this one uses Tangerine Tango cardstock (this is a previous In Color that is coming back as part of the Color Renovation in July)

The images are so bright and beautiful and print out so well on your home printer. Now, there's obviously a lot more you could do to embellish these beautiful papers, but I thought I would let them pretty much stand on their own.

Clean and simple ... perfect for summer!

Want to order some of the new Digital Downloads   or still needing to purchase My Digital Studio? Just contact me at gbarron56@comcast.net and I'll get you set up in no time! And another great thing about purchasing My Digital Studio -- you can contact me at any time if you have questions or need help with your creations!

My Digital Studio from Stampin' Up! ... it's a good thing!

Graduations in the Air!

Good morning, everyone! It's that time of year again -- graduations are in the air! I attended a lovely Open House last night for two wonderful young people that are graduating from high school this year and made these cards for them. Their high school colors just happen to be Brilliant Blue and Silver which set the color theme for my cards. However, you could easily adapt this idea using any school colors.

I'm really thrilled with the way these turned out. Cardstock colors are Basic Black, Brushed Silver, Brilliant Blue and Whisper White. I used the Happy Grad Individual Stamp for the front and the Go, Graduate stamp set on the inside of the card. The Brilliant Blue layer is textured with the Big Shot and the Square Lattice Impressions Folder (really lovin' this new Impressions Folder). The graduation cap was an idea that was inspired from a SWAP card I received from LeeAnn Greff. The bottom of the hat is the Curly Label Punch with the sides trimmed off. Cut a diamond-shaped piece for the top and the little "button" was punched with the Itty Bitty Shape Circle Punch. The tassel was created using embroidery floss and I used a Sponge Daubber to apply Silver Shimmer Paint all around the edges. The finished hat is attached with Stampin' Dimensionals! It's so darling in real life.

That's it for now! Be sure to check out my Birthday Card appeal HERE. Send me a birthday card (my birthday is May 26th) and I will be donating all the cards back to From Our Hearts to be sent to deployed troops who will then use them to send birthday greetings to their loved one! All entries will be entered into a drawing for some fabulous Blog Candy! I hope you'll play along!

Thanks for stopping by today!

It's My Birthday and I'll give away Blog Candy if I want To!

Hello everyone! In just 10 short days, on May 26th, your's truly will be celebrating a birthday and I would love to have my mailbox flooded with handmade birthday cards and greetings! Wouldn't that be fun! So, I've decided to offer some very special blog candy for one lucky, random winner. All the cards will be eventually donated to From Our Hearts, and will be sent overseas to deployed military personnel who will be able to send them back to loved ones for their birthdays. So please do not write a greeting to me on the inside of the card. If you would like to send a personal birthday greeting to me (which would thrill me to pieces), please write it on a post-it note or separate piece of paper and tuck it inside the card. That way, I'll get to enjoy and keep your greeting and still pass the beautiful, handmade cards onto our military personnel. I would love to be able to ship off a box of 200 or more birthday cards to Marti and the rest of the From Our Hearts volunteers and you can help me in reaching that goal!

The creator of every card I receive will be entered in a random drawing for the following FABULOUSO Blog Candy package which will include the following items from the upcoming 2010-2011 Idea Book & Catalog -- Awash With Flowers Clear Mount Stamp Set (this is a two-step stampin' set that has so many pieces it needs to be stored in 2 DVD cases!; Clear Acrylic Blocks B, C, and D; A Scallop Trim Border Punch; an assortment of 5.5 x 8.5" cardstock pieces in some of the new Color Renovation Colors including Daffodil Delight, Cherry Cobbler, Cajun Craze, Marina Mist and Early Espresso; an assortment of 5.5 x 8.5" cardstock pieces in five (5) new 2010-2011 In Colors; a sampling of new ribbons and embellishments from the 2010-2011 Idea Book & Catalog. Now, obviously, some of these items have not even been announced yet. Demonstrators will get a chance to order a selection of Sneak Peek products from the catalog on June 1st and I will be sharing some of my preview items with the lucky winner of this fabulous blog candy package! Blog Candy Update: To be in complaince with Stampin' Up! Policy, the Blog Candy Package, including the cardstock, ribbon and embellishments samples from the new catalog, will be shipped to the lucky winner on July 1, 2010!

Can we do it? Of course we can!!!! Remember, the goal is to receive at least 200 cards which can be sent to our military personnel. I can't wait to see all the great cards that you'll be sending my way, knowing they will be shared with military personnel and their families!

Here's the rules:

1. Create a hand-made birthday card. Supplies do not need to be limited to Stampin' Up (although you know how I love to see those Stampin' Up! supplies used on cards). Be sure and put your name and contact information on the back of the card. A personal greeting to me (if you wish to include one) should be on a separate piece of paper, not written on the card. Also on that separate piece of paper, include your name, address and e-mail address.
2. Mail your card to Gretchen Barron, 837 West Olive Street, Decatur, IL 62526. Cards must be post-marked by May 31st.
3. Leave a comment on my blog (any post) to let me know your card is coming in the mail.
4. I will share pictures of some of my favorite's on my blog throughout May and June. Once I photograph them and enter the creators name in the drawing, the cards will be packed-up to send to the From Our Hearts organization.
5. On Sunday, June 13th, the lucky Blog Candy Winner will be announced and their card featured on my blog. The winner will be chosen from a random drawing (names will be drawn out of a bowl by my daughter). Each card received represents one chance in the drawing. If you send multiple cards, you will have multiple chances in the drawing. Blog Candy Update: To be in complaince with Stampin' Up! Policy, the Blog Candy Package, including the cardstock, ribbon and embellishments samples from the new catalog, will be shipped to the lucky winner on July 1, 2010!
6. Also on June 13th, I will announce the total number of cards that were received and that will be sent to From Our Hearts. I will also report from time to time, the number of cards being received.
7. Entries can be sent from anywhere in the world and are not limited to residents of the US.

This is going to be so much fun! It's a win-win situation! I will get lots of wonderful mail and birthday greetings in my box (maybe I better warn my mail carrier!), you will get a chance to win a fabulous Blog Candy Package and possibly have your card featured on my blog, From Our Hearts will have an entire box of beautiful Birthday cards to ship overseas, and military families will receive hand-made greetings from their loved ones serving our country! Fabulous! I can't wait to see your card!

Oh yeah -- do you want to know what I used on my inspiration card today? The stamp set is Awash With Flowers and the sentiment comes from Watercolor Trio. The colors are Rich Razzleberry, Crushed Curry and Whisper White. The ribbon is 1/2" Polka Dot Grosgrain in Rich Razzleberry and Crushed Curry. I used a square Rhinestone Brad for this cute little bow center and the Scallop Trim Border Punch. And I used the Big Shot and the Square Lattice Impressions Folder for the texture on the background.

Thanks for helping make my birthday a super-special one this year!

Stamping 411 Saturday Sketch Challenge -- SSC151

Good morning, everyone! It's Saturday and that means a new Saturday Sketch Challenge from the Operators at Stamping 411! Do you know that next week, we will celebrate One Year of Stamping 411! WOW -- that is truly difficult to imagine! You will want to make sure and visit us next week. We've got some awesome surprises planned for our first year anniversary. It's going to be so much fun! I can't say anything more, just that you won't want to miss it!

And speaking of all things awesome, look at our sketch for this week -- SSC151. The possibilities are endless as you get creative with this big, open shape in the middle of the card. Humm ... of course, you could use an oval or a circle but do you see the tip ... "try a NEW shape, any shape here".

So, what shapes will you use when you create your card using this sketch!

Here's what I decided to do ... to use the little Scallop Envelope Die and the Big Shot to create my shape. I love using this little envelope on the front of a card. It allows you to tuck a little extra note on the outside and perhaps a little extra something else on the inside!

I'm using the fabulous new Island Oasis Designer Series paper from the Summer Mini Catalog, along with Rose Red, Pumpkin Pie (for the flower) and Whisper White Cardstock. The Polka Dot pattern comes from the Rose Red Patterns Designer Series Paper (available in 14 different Stampin' Up! Colors).

To create the little gift card inside the envelope, I die cut another envelope shape in Whisper White and then trimmed it down to make card that would fit inside the envelope. By doing this, you get that lovely scalloped and rounded top on your note card. The flowers are attached with Stampin' Dimensionals! And do you see what I did with the ribbon? I frayed two pieces of 1/4" Old Olive Grosgrain to make the little ribbon fringe. I think it fits well with the lovely stamped fern frond and adds a lot of interest and texture to the card. For a closer look at how to fray ribbon, check out this PREVIOUS POST for pictures and directions.

The stamp set is Tropical Party, also from the Summer Mini Catalog. The sentiment comes from the Great Friend Stamp Set. And I've used 1/4" Grosgrain ribbon (for the fringe) and 1 1/4" Striped Grosgrain Ribbon. Love, love, love this wide striped ribbon. It is so easy to tie and work with and you can fluff it up to make the most beautiful bows you've ever seen!

And of course, you don't want to ignore the inside of your card. Here I stamped another Old Olive fern frond and a small flower in Pumpkin Pie and then added a popped-up flower in Rose Red to mirror what I put on the gift card.

Dimensions for this card are:

1. Layer One -- Rose Red cut at 5.5 x 8.5", scored and folded in half to form the card base
2. Layer Two -- Whisper White cut at 4 x 5.25"
3. Layer Three -- Designer Series Paper (polka dots) cut at 2 x 5.25"
4. Layer Four -- This is the envelope die cut which measures approximately 3.25" square once it is folded and assembled. I love cutting this envelop out of double-sided Designer Series Paper because you get to see both patterns!
5. Layer Five -- The note card cut using the Scallop Envelop Die and the Big Shot. Trimmed size of note card is approximately 2.75 x 3". I stamped on it, added the frayed ribbon and attached the flowers with Stampin' Dimensionals.
6. Layer Six -- Inside of Card -- Whisper White cut at  4 x 5.25".

So there you go! That's my inspiration card for SSC151. Make sure and check out the Stamping 411 site to see what the other Operators have created this week and to leave your name and the location of your card, once you've finished it! We're waiting to see your creations this week!

Thanks so much for stopping by today! I hope you have a wonderful weekend and that you can find some time to be creative! Happy Stamping!

Utah Diva's Inspiration Challenge

Good morning, everyone!When I saw this beautiful photograph, this week's Inspiration Challenge from Utah Divas International, I knew just what I wanted to do with it!

 

You can see the inspriration photo on your left ...

And here's my interpretation on the right!

 

What fun! I used Pumpkin Pie, Melon Mambo, Real Red, Pink Pirouette and Whisper White Cardstocks.

The stamp set is Greenhouse GardenThe Inks are Melon Mambo, Summer Sun, Lavender Lace and Black Stazon.

The punches are Modern Label, Ornament and Wide Oval. Chop off tops and/or bottoms to make vases. I sponged Melon Mambo Ink on the edges of each of them and then mounted them over the stamped stems with Stampin' Dimensionals.

I also used the Scallop Trim Border Punch on the bottom along with 5/8" Real Red Satin Ribbon and 1/4" Pumpkin Pie Grosgrain Ribbon.

I said it before, but what fun!

Where will you find inspiration this week?

Holiday Mini and Occasions Mini Catalogs -- Some Items are Still Available!

With all the new mini catalogs in addition to our big catalog, it can get a little confusing to which fun stamping products are current and which ones are retired.   Here is a rundown of all the products from our past mini catalogs that can still be ordered if you were sad you missed them the first time!  To download and print your own 2-page supplement that you can tuck in your catalog, click HERE.

I hope that helps clear up the mini catalog questions!

Another bit of news, retiring colors are going fast!  If you haven’t taken inventory of paper, ink refills or ink pads you need, better go check and email me your orders!   Click HERE for a printable PDFof all the retiring colors.

On June 1st, the retiring stamp set will be coming out and I’ll post it here for you! If I can assist you in ordering any of these items you may e-mail me at gbarron56@comcast.net or place the order yourself at my ONLINE ORDERING site (just click on "shop now" at the top of the page). If you have questions, e-mail me and I'll do my best to find answers for you!

 

Happy Mother's Day, Mom!

Hello everyone! I told you the other day I would have one more very special Pansy project for you today, on Mother's Day! This is the card I made for my mom this year! My mother loves to display her cards. She leaves them sitting out for weeks and then once she puts them away, she brings them back out the next year on that holiday. If I were to go home right now, she would have favorite mother's day cards displayed on every flat surface in the house, some dating back to when we were kids.

So, this year, I thought I would give her one that was easy to display. I created this large (it measures 5.5 x 7" when closed) easel card which stands on it's own. It's loaded down with the butterfly punch pansies (ok, I know, I really piled them on). I was going for the look of one of those antique victorian cards.

I used sentiments from Well Scripted and All Holidays. The ribbon is 5/8" Pretty in Pink Satin. I used the Scallop Trim Corner and Border Punches along with the Big Shot and the Scallop Oval Die and Tiny Leaves Sizzlet. Cardstock colors are Old Olive, Elegant Eggplant, Perfect Plumb Whisper White and Pink Pirouette. I even created a Scallop Trim Border around the oval, using the Crimper Tool. The pansies are attached with Stampin' Dimensionals. What fun! I wish I could have been there to see my mom's face when she opened her special card! But one thing is for sure. When I go to visit my folks in a few weeks, I know this card will still be on display!

Thanks for stopping by today everyone and wishing a Happy Mother's Day to all you mothers out there!

Stamping 411 Saturday Sketch Challenge #150

Hello everyone! Can you believe that Stamping 411 will celebrate it's 1 Year Anniversary in just two weeks! Unbelievable! How can an entire year have passed already! You'll want to make sure and follow along with us because for our 1 year anniversary, we've got some amazing things planned for you!

Okay, enough teasing, now let's focus on this week's Saturday Sketch challenge! Selene has come up with another fun sketch this week and we hope you'll want to play along!

Here's my inspiration card! I used just a bit of the fabulous new Island Oasis Designer Series Paper. It's amazing how much mileage and pop you can get from a package of Designer Paper by using just a bit.

Cardstock colors are Real Red, Whisper white and Pumpkin Pie with tiny bits of Old Olive, So Saffron and Tempting turquoise for the little circles.

Speaking of circles, aren't they fabulous! What fun we're going to have with the Itty Bitty Bits set and the coordinating Bitty punches and Bitty buttons. They look like fancy designer buttons, don't they? I'm just thrilled with the possibilities for these little gems. The Stamp Set is Heard from the Heart and the ribbon is 5/8" Real Red Satin. This is a pretty simple little card but so bright and cheery. I really like how this turned out! And you can see a little peek inside as well where I took just 1" of DSP and a little ribbon and really dressed up the inside as well!

Okay! Here are the measurements this week:

1. Layer One -- Real Red cut at 5.5 x 8.5", scored and folded in half to form the card base
2. Layer Two -- Whisper White cut at 4 x 5.25"
3. Layer Three -- Pumpkin Pie cut at 2 x 4"
4. Layer Four -- DSP cut at 1 x 4". Add a strip of ribbon and attach to the back.
5. Layer Five -- the tiny little faux brads that I described above
6. Layer Six -- the inside of the card -- Whisper White cut at 4 x 5.25"

That's it! You will definitely want to stop by Stamping 411 to see what the other Operators have created this week and to leave us the link for your finished creation! We're waiting to see what you are inspired to create!