Cute mini suitcase which hides travel tissues!

As soon as I looked at the new catalogue I fell in love with the Playful Pets Suite from Stampin' Up! The dogs and cats on the Playful Pets designer series paper are so cute! They remind me of Disney movie characters and I couldn't wait to create something with them.

Playful Pets Designer Series Paper -- Product #152489

I had the perfect opportunity to work with this gorgeous paper when I was asked to make table gifts for an upcoming event, so I designed mini suitcases to fit packets of travel tissues. I decided to decorate them with the cute Pampered Pet images.

There is a set of matching Pet dies which fit the four animal images in the stamp set so you can easily cut them out with a die cutting machine. However, I fussy cut 50 dogs and cats out of a few pieces of the designer series paper and still had plenty of paper left over for other crafts!

There is a fifth die in the set that cuts out three cute little paw prints and I used them to decorate the bottom of my mini suitcases. I discovered there were little hearts in the centre of each paw print which I used as decoration as well. I was pleasantly surprised to find I could use the paw print die to cut out some of the hearts on the DSP. I also cut some of the matching dog and cat images with two of the dies.

I cut two little rectangle pieces of the designer series paper to decorate each suitcase and since the paper is double-sided I just turned it over to use the other image on the back side of the suitcase. 

The sentiment was stamped on a 3/4" piece of Whisper White cardstock and then I used the Lovely Labels Pick a Punch to make the ends look pretty before adding a couple little hearts.

I popped each element up with some dimensionals. I also added a little suitcase handle on the top using the smallest Stitched Rectangles Dies and re-cut it into a small rectangular strip before adding a couple Metallic Pearls to make it look like rivets holding a stitched leather handle on to the suitcase.

I sized my mini suitcases to fit the little travel tissues I bought at Yoyoso, which can easily be slipped out the open side to use.

Here is a video I made to show you how easy it is to make these cute little suitcases.

I hope you enjoyed this project and can see how easy it is to create a decorative holder for everyday objects. If there is a special project you'd like to see me make, please let me know in the comments!

#KeepCalmAndCraft #ComputerAndCraftDesigns #StampinUp #CreativeTherapy #KeepStamping #RubberStamping #PlayfulPets 

Brighten someone's day with a rainbow card!

I decided to make several cards to leave in my neighbours' letterboxes to bring a bit of cheer to them during New Zealand's countrywide lockdown. I copied an embossing technique I saw online from a fellow demonstrator in the USA, Connie Tumm.

It's a quick and easy card to make as long as you have six different embossing folders. If you don't have that many folders, or none at all, you can create the card without embossing the coloured cardstock or maybe just emboss a few pieces.

I used cardstock from the five 2018-2020 In Colors plus Gorgeous Grape to make a my 6-colour rainbow cards. I know there are 7 colours in a rainbow (red, orange, yellow, green, blue, indigo and violet) but I didn't have enough room on my cards and I think it looks just as good without a second blue colour.

For the base of the cards I used Whisper White Note Cards & Envelopes which are 5" x 3-1/2" (12.7 x 8.9 cm) and I cut a Basic Black cardstock mat to 4-1/2" x 3" (11.5 x 7.5 cm). I also used 4" x 2-3/4" (10 x 7 cm) coloured cardstock -- Lovely Lipstick, Grapefruit Grove, Pineapple Punch, Call Me Clover, Blueberry Bushel, and Gorgeous Grape.

After embossing each coloured cardstock with a different 3-D Embossing folder (Brick & Mortar, Tin Tile, Hammered Metal, Country Floral, Scripty, Button Button) I cut each piece into 5/8" (1.5 cm) strips which gave me enough to make 6 cards.

I decorated the front of each card with a different sentiment in Memento Tuxedo Black Ink using the Stitched So Sweetly dies except for two cards which I fussy cut. Some of the cards were embellished with epoxy shapes or jewels to add a bit of sparkle to them. I even stamped the back of each envelope using my Stamparatus for accurate placement.

Back of envelope stamped with 'Stamping Your Way to the Top' stamp set

Instead of signing the cards and sealing the envelopes, I made up a poem to put inside so that the recipient could share the card with someone else.

This little card was made for you 

to brighten up your day.

If it made you smile then its job is done 

and you should send it on its way.

Please give it to someone you know 

to pass along the cheer.

Since all of us need to know 

there is always someone there! 

Have a look at my video for more details on how to make your own rainbow cards and for lots of tips on using embossing folders.

Brightening someone's day by giving them a handmade card is very satisfying, even if you don't see the recipient's face when they open the envelope.

#KeepCalmAndCraft #ComputerAndCraftDesigns #StampinUp #creativetherapy #StayHome #CraftHappy #Rainbow #ShareSunshine #trysomethingnewchallenge #Embossing

Swaps

Today I am off to Auckland to stay in an apartment with fellow Stampin' Up! demonstrators from my upline. We are going to be attending OnStage Live at Sky City Convention Centre. This 3-day event will be lots of fun for everyone attending as we get to play with some new products, see demonstrations, mingle with other demonstrators from all around the world, and get a sneak peak at the upcoming annual catalogue, which goes live on June 1st.

One of the fun things I love to do every time I go to OnStage (the event happens twice a year) is make things to swap with other demonstrators. I usually make 3-D objects such as boxes or little baskets but this time I decided to make some small cards. I can't wait to see all the creative gifts I receive in exchange for my swaps. I will be sure to show pictures of them in a future post, but for now I'd like to share how I made the 100 cards I have to give to other demonstrators.

I chose to use the dog and cat stamp sets with matching punches for my cards -- Happy Tail, Dog Builder Punch, Nine Lives and Cat Punch. I first designed the 3" x 3" silhouette cards in black and white. However I don't like to waste anything so I stamped the animal images on one side of the whisper white square using my Stamparatus.

Then I cut the animals out with the matching punches. I turned the 'negative' card over and again used the Stamparatus to stamp the sentiment on each one. I love using my Stamparatus to make multiple cards as I can line each piece of the card up perfectly to get identical images quickly. 

I stamped small hearts on a piece of whisper white cardstock for the inside of each card along with a matching sentiment -- Meow! or Ruff! Then it was just a matter of adhering each layer to the 3" x 3" card bases and putting a red heart, made from the dog punch, on each silhouette. Of course I had to stamp a cute image on the matching envelopes. 

I made one larger card using the punched out animals from two smaller cards. I used Wood Textures (1" x 4") and Gingham Gala (3" x 4") designer series paper along with matching cardstock to make a 3.875" x 4.125" card (9.9 cm x 10.5 cm). This sizing allowed me to get three cards from one A4 piece of cardstock without any waste, however you will have to adjust these sizes if you are using letter-sized paper. I used my Stamparatus to place the sentiment on the top left corner of the Gingham Gala paper. Besides allowing me perfect placement, using the Stamparatus let me stamp the words again if the Memento ink didn't come out evenly.

I adhered the DSP to the front of the card as shown in the pictures (overlapping the Gingham Gala with the Wood Texture dsp) and popped the animals up on dimensionals along with a stamped heart cut out from the dog punch. For the inside of the card I stamped the sentiment from the Happy Tails stamp set along with a paw print.

I hope you've enjoyed seeing my swaps for OnStage and if you are one of the demonstrators I get to swap with, thank you very much!

#ComputerAndCraftDesigns #StampinUp #creativetherapy #PaperCraftIdeas #HandmadeCard #Swaps #OnStage #AucklandOnStage #MiniCard