Leafy goodness

When Jon and I were doing our wedding registry and picking out gifts we'd like to receive, we quickly noticed a pattern - Jon loved anything that was blue or chrome or both; I loved many things green or vine-patterned or both. Well I'm not suprised that Jon loved the blue sparkly snowflake card from Christmas in August stamp camp, while I'm very drawn to all the leafy images and earth tones of autumn. Here are two earthy leafy cards I've made this week. Above, I used the Sidekick Sayings set on Chocolate Chip cardstock with Wild Wasabi accents - I love that green! Sidekick Sayings is a hostess set I received with a recent order. It's lots of fun, so I'm sure I'll be posting more samples soon.

Note: This card is a new trendy size 3"x6". This size is perfect for 12"x12" cardstock. You can make 4 cards out of 1 sheet!
Above is another leafy card using the Stem Silhouettes stamp set from the Holiday Mini catalog. This set was part of the Fall Frenzy promotion. I stamped the leafy images using Versamark ink on glossy cardstock. Then I brayered over the images with So Saffron ink. I love the Sun Print look it creates. I layered it on Really Rust cardstock, tied some hemp twine around it, and put it on a Bravo Burgundy cardfront. Super-simple!

Thankful Thoughts

I just received the Thoroughly Thankful stamp set in the mail. This set is part of Stampin' Up's Fall Frenzy promotion. Here's a draft of a card I plan to send to our family members who will be joining us for Thanksgiving this year. It uses Really Rust, Old Olive, and Summer Sun cardstock. I watercolored the images using the AquaPainter on confetti cardstock. I tied it all off using some Hemp Twine. I think it might look even better with some background stamping on the Really Rust cardfront. on What do you think?

Christmas card ideas from my stack of samples

Here are a bunch of Christmas card samples, to get you thinking about how you can take advantage of the Shiloh Stamps Early Christmas Special. I want to help you make homemade Christmas cards early this year, so I've thought about what could be most helpful. If you order a stamp set, cardstock, adhesive, envelopes, and embellishments (everything you need to make your Christmas cards), then I will mount your stamps, cut your cardstock into cards, and make you a page of custom return address labels. The last day to place an order is August 29th. E-mail me at alison@shilohstamps.com for more information.

If you would like to try out some new stamp sets (including some from the new Holiday Mini) and work together to design your Christmas cards, sign up to attend my Christmas in August Stamp Camp. I have one spot open for Friday evening and a few spots open for Saturday afternoon. Let me know ASAP if you would like to participate.

This was our Christmas card last year. It opens in the middle and uses the tree from the Loads of Love stamp set. It also uses the stipple brush for some shading. I made this card at an in-home workshop the previous year, and loved it. My generous stamping friends loaned some of the supplies I needed for this card. I liked Loads of Love so much, I wound up ordering it for myself!

This was Claire's Christmas card last year. It uses the City of David stamp set. I love how she put the Luke 2:11 scripture on the back of the card. She used markers to color in the star and palm trees on the front.

I made this card at an in-home workshop I attended last year. I love this color combination - mellow moss, always artichoke, and whisper white. It uses The Snowflake Spot stamp set. Hemp twine is one of lowest-priced embellishments, so this is a more cost-effective card.

I made this card at a Stamp Camp I attended at Claire's house years ago. This may have been one of the first stamping events I tried. This card uses a cool technique with glossy cardstock and reinkers. I would be glad to show you this technique.

My husband loves the blue and chrome color combination, so this may be his favorite card I've ever made. These silver snowflakes are raised up using a technique called embossing. It's lots of fun, and it looks fabulous!

This card uses a beautiful stamp set that is now retired. It also uses the crimper, my new favorite tool. I love how artistic this card looks with the splotchy paint look in the background. It's a stamp set called Itty Bitty Backgrounds.

This card was made by another stamper - Yolanda Croucher. When I signed up to be a demonstrator, Claire let me pick some cards out of her stash of samples. This is one of the cards I chose. I'm guessing she got this card through a swap.

This may be the first Stampin' Up card I ever made. I attended a Stamp Camp at Claire's house, and she had a drawing to give away her hostess benefits that night. I won! I got to order all sorts of goodies for free, and I was hooked!

Open House invitations - 3 versions

So I'm having an Open House at our new house on June 30. We'll be celebrating the launch of my new stamping business by making cards, winning door prizes, and checking out the new catalog. If you'd more details, e-mail me using the Contact Me button at the right.

Which card do you like best? I always make a few versions to have my options open. It's interesting how a card design evolves after you work with it a while.

Supplies:

• Right at Home stamp set - (retiring June 30!)
• Itty Bitty Backgrounds stamp set
• buckaroo blue cardstock
• so saffron cardstock
• barely banana cardstock
• chocolate chip cardstock
• whisper white cardstock
• basic black classic stamp pad
• real red classic stamp pad
• buckaroo blue classic stamp pad
• chocolate chip classic stamp pad
• so saffron classic stamp pad
• blender pens
• AquaPainter
• mellow moss marker
• hemp twine
  

Joy is not in things, it's in us.

This is a sweet card I made at a Stamp-a-Stack last summer. It reminds me of fun times on the beach as a kid.

Supplies:
Seaside Sketches stamp set (retiring June 30!)
Beyond the Basics background set
stampin' pastels
paper crimper
Versamark ink
hemp twine

The paper crimper is my new favorite tool. My friend Andrea gave me one last week. It's so fun!