Many different features and uses of Stampin' Up! punches

Stampin' Up! punches are well made and heavy compared to other companies but that is only one of the many features of these fabulous products. There is so much to say about these punches that I have made three short videos to explain everything and I have included them throughout this blog post.

My Stampin' Up! Punches Stacked

All the punches have a locking mechanism which allows them to be locked in the closed position for easy transportation and storage. You simply slide the dark grey lock towards the punch hole to unlock, which allows it to open up for use. To lock the punch, just hold it closed and slide the grey plastic towards the front of the punch. This keeps it flat so you can store the punch stacked on a shelf or in a drawer.

The shapes and sizes of some punches -- the two on the far left are unlocked and the rest are locked and stacked.

The image on the top of each punch shows the actual size of the item that will be created when you use the punch. The front, angled edge of the punch has a small picture of the image as well, so you can easily find the punch when they are stacked.

When I first get a new punch I use it on some cardstock so I can test how it works. I am then left with a template which is very useful when designing my projects.

Punch templates are handy when designing a project as you can use them to choose the correct size for your sentiments.

I can place the template over my cardstock to see how the image will fit my project. I can also use the templates to determine which size label punch will fit the sentiments I want to use.

Some cards and papercraft projects with the punches I used to make them.

The templates are also very useful when using a punch that has more than one image. Place the stamps on top of the cutout sections of the template (the negative space) to arrange them so they will perfectly fit in the punch after you have stamped the cardstock.

I show you how to do this with the Hot Air Balloon punch in this video.

Stampin' Up! punches are strong and durable but sometimes they do get dull with a lot of use. You can sharpen them easily by punching some aluminium as shown in my next video.

You can use the image you have leftover after sharpening to make some interesting projects. Here I have made some flowers with the daisy and leaf punches. I just attached the metal images to some green wire and gently shaped the flowers with a bone folder and my fingers.

Some little metal flowers and leaves made from aluminium cans, wire and buttons.

I hope you've learnt some things about using punches from this post and my videos. Punches are great tools for enhancing your cards and to complement your projects!

#KeepCalmAndCraft #ComputerAndCraftDesigns #StampinUp #creativetherapy #StayHome #Punches

Mailbag Make -- Bird Ballad Cards and Birdhouse

My next Mailbag Make focuses on the lovely Bird Ballad Designer Series Paper. This paper is very beautiful with it's many subtle colours and detailed images of birds, feathers and flowers. I discovered three projects online which are perfect to showcase this paper.

My first card is made from a design by Julie Davison which allows the sentiment to take centre stage, surrounded by the beautiful floral side of the DSP with a colourful bird cut from the paper.

Bird Ballad Card using Stitched Nested Labels Dies

My next card I cased from a Dutch demonstrator named Elly Rijnvis and it is the first time I have tried a double easel card.

Front of Double Easel Card

I've made a lot of easel style cards in the past but this is the first time I've tried a double easel one. I really love the way it shows off both sides of the designer series paper!

Double Easel Card

To add a little more dimension to this Mailbag Make I have included a little birdhouse I learned how to make from a video by Silke Trapani, a demonstrator in Germany. Of course it was a perfect match for the designer series paper with a fussy cut bird and some flowers to decorate the front of the birdhouse.

Mini Birdhouse with chocolate eggs inside

Have a look at my sneak peak video of this Bird Ballad Mailbag Make for more details and to find out how to order yours.

I hope you like this Mailbag Make and I'd love to see your completed creations!

#KeepCalmAndCraft #ComputerAndCraftDesigns #StampinUp #creativetherapy #StayHome #MailbagMake #BirdBallad #DoubleEasel #CurvyKeepsake 

Make a mini booklet from one piece of paper

When I was a Brownie Leader, about 15 years ago, I used to print the Brownie promise, song and Girl Guiding rules onto a piece of paper and then with a bit of folding and one little cut I turned it into a mini booklet for the girls. I decided to revisit this idea and create mini booklets with Stampin' Up! products.

I started with an A4 sheet of Whisper White cardstock and scored it in the middle at 10.5 cm (4-1/8") and turned the page 90° to scored it again at 7.425 cm (2-7/8"), 14.85 cm (5-7/8") and 22.275 cm (8-3/4"). I folded it down the middle both ways and then folded each narrow end in towards the middle. I cut the centre scoreline (10.5 cm line) down to the outer fold lines. I then folded the paper on the 10.5 cm middle fold and holding each end, pushed the sides in to create a little booklet.

Sample of cutting and folding using a piece of printer paper

I used a piece of printer paper as a sample to create my design placement. If you are going to stamp on each section you need to do it while the cardstock is flat, before you put the booklet together. Other embellishments can be added when the booklet is folded up.

For my first booklet I used the Beautiful You Cling-Mount Stamps, the Under My Umbrella Photopolymer Stamps and the Umbrella Builder Punch.

Pages 1 and 2 of Umbrella booklet

The designer series paper I used was only available during Sale-A-Bration and the designs matched the Umbrella Builder Punch. I fussy cut the stamped flower images after colouring them with Stampin' Blends.

Pages 3 and 4 of Umbrella booklet

I used a bit of Balmy Blue cardstock and coloured in the stamped images with Tuxedo Black Memento Ink before colouring them in with Stampin' Blends using colours from the umbrella designer series paper.

Pages 5 and 6 of Umbrella booklet

On page five I sponged a bit of Daffodil Delight ink in a circle to create a little sun peeking out of the Balmy Blue cardstock which was die cut using the Stitched So Sweetly Dies.

In my video I show you how to make a mini booklet using Painted Poppies Cling Stamps, Peaceful Moments Cling Stamps, Painted Labels Dies, and Poppy Moments Dies.

Pages 1 and 2 of Poppy booklet

I stamped the images using Tuxedo Black Memento Ink and decorated them with Poppy Parade and Old Olive colours.

Pages 3 and 4 of Poppy booklet

For the die cut flower I used Rich Razzleberry ink, stamping several times to get subtle colour changes in order to match the designer series paper peeking out of the floral die cut from the Poppy Moments Dies.

Pages 5 and 6 of Poppy booklet

I used one of the Peaceful Poppies Elements along with some die cut images from the Painted Labels Dies to decorate the final two pages. To get the black ribbon I coloured a length of Whisper White 1/4" (6.4 Mm) Crinkled Seam Binding Ribbon with the brush end of a Basic Black Dark Stampin' Blends pen.

In my video I show you lots of tips for partial image stamping as well as how to colour embellishments with a Dark Basic Black Stampin' Blend pen.

I hope you liked my little project and make your own little booklet to share with someone special!

#KeepCalmAndCraft #ComputerAndCraftDesigns #StampinUp #creativetherapy #StayHome #Scrapbook #DesignerSeriesPaper #MiniBooklet #MemoryBook #OnePieceOfPaper #CraftHappy

Square Mini Album -- Good for any occasion!

I CASEd this idea from Monika Weiss, a Stampin' Up! demonstrator from Austria, and created a video showing how to make this little bridal book.

It doesn't use a lot of materials -- just one piece of 12" x 12" DSP, two A4 pieces of cardstock, a couple 11 x 11 cm squares of cardboard and 50 cm of ribbon to tie it shut -- so you can put one together fairly quickly.

You can click here for Monika Weiss' instruction sheet which is written in German, however the measurements are easy to read and I explain them in my video.

There are plenty of pages to decorate in this little album, 12 in total! This gives you lots of room for photos, signatures or other memorabilia.

You can decorate the inside pages with stamped images, sentiments or die cuts, but make sure you leave enough space for photos or messages from well wishers.

The bridal book is made with one sheet of Flowering Foils Specialty Designer Series Paper and Whisper White cardstock.

For the cover I stamped the bride from Wonderful Moments in Memento Tuxedo Black Ink, coloured it with Stampin' Blends and then cut it out with the second largest rectangle from the Stitched So Sweetly dies.

I stamped the words 'For the Bride' in Versamark ink and heat embossed it with silver embossing powder before I fussy cut it out and popped it up using a dimensional.

I used lots of stamped images from Wonderful Moments, Stitched All Around, Good Morning Magnolia, Love What You Do, and Beauty Abounds to decorate the inside pages with Basic Gray ink.

For the first mini album I made, I used a piece of Animal Expedition DSP (retired) and the Animal Outing stamp set.

I made peek-through areas with some of the Animal Friends dies on a few of the pages and decorated the rest with stamped images coloured with Stampin' Blends.

This album would also be perfect for photos, a gift, an autograph book, a special birthday card or a mini scrapbook. There is no limit to what you could use it for!

#KeepCalmAndCraft #ComputerAndCraftDesigns #StampinUp #creativetherapy #StayHome #CraftHappy #ShareSunshine #trysomethingnewchallenge #Embossing #Scrapbook #DesignerSeriesPaper #MiniAlbum #BridalBook #PhotoAlbum