Rock and Roll

After getting totally sidetracked in my aim to make a series of cards and tags from the Nature's Walk stampset I have again become distracted by the lovely technique known as Rock and Roll in the stamping world.
But before we explore how to do it and what it looks like let me just stand up for the beautiful Natures Walk images! I have been using them and will - promise - show you some more of the cards and altered art projects that showcase them. They stamp very well with the fine and delicate lines of the images reproducing exactly to give a very satisfactory end result. This is where Stampin' Up! products really shout quality: once you have stamped with SU rubber stamps you will not want to use any inferior products ever again.
OK - now to Rock and Roll! This is a way of getting a great effect where two colours of ink are used simultaneously on the same stamp. In my opinion it works most effectively with a solid image on your stamp and I have been using it with the little heart from the Spring Sampler set from the new Stampin' Up! seasonal catalogue on the tag here.

Isnt it cute? And shows just what can be done quite quickly with a very simple stamp.
 Here is how you go about it: I used two shades of blue ink - Baja Breeze being the paler one and Midnight Muse the darker. You can use any two colours that tone or compliment each other but do ensure that one is clearly paler than the other. Start with your paler colour and ink up the stamp in the usual way - tap tap tap - then open your darker ink pad and carefully roll the edge of the rubber image so it catches the ink. Be fairly cautious to start off with. then stamp your image. If you were too delicate in you rolling there will only be a slight edge of the darker shade, too bold and there will be hardly any of the pale ink showing. I advise cleaning the stamp ( handy dandy Stampin' Scrub at the ready!) between each inking or you may transfer some of the dark ink on to the pale pad which would be a shame. Pale ink on the dark pad (when you roll) doesnt show so you will not ruin your lovely ink pads. I really like the slighly shabby mottled look so do give it a try.
To make tag in the picture I stamped three hearts using the Rock and Roll technique on Very Vanilla cardstock then cut out the tag shape using one of the apothecary accents framelets dies on my bigshot. I trimmed off the semi circle from one end and then rounded the corners off before inking the edge with Midnight Muse. The greeting was stamped in Midnight Muse using a stamp from the Sale-A-Bration set.  I added ribbon and a securing brad and topped it off with a bit of bling in the form of three rhinestones!

Card Organiser

If there is one thing that a card crafter should make its a card organiser! I routinely make two of every card I create - one to use and one to keep for future reference. Not that I like mass production - quite the opposite - churning out a production line gives me no pleasure at all - in fact I dont do it! ( Even at Christmas two or three of the same design is my limit. I ring the changes with different papers, colours, punches and stamps)




 The card organiser is a way to stay ahead of the game - its a birthday/anniversary book and filing system combined.
I'm not going to write out all the instructions here - its a 4 hour project- but I will explain the pictures. Drop me an email if you need more detail or would like a pack so you can make your own.

It uses 6 sheets of Designer Series paper - in the example here I mix and matched with colours that toned well with the Pool Party covers and the Rich Razzleberry accents.

The cover is decorated with the owners initials - in this case my darling daughter-in-law Ruth - double or shadow mounted in Pool Part and Summer Starfruit. These are then set on two labels framelets.

Each month has its own page with a perpetual calendar to write the birthday names on. We overstamped them in our all time favourite Crumb Cake - each month getting an appropriate image. October got Feathers as you can see here.








I love to teach a new technique at each of my classes and we played with Rock n Roll inking on the tag. The flowers from the Sale-A-Bration stampset are perfect for this - we used Raspberry Ripple and Midnight muse. 

And you can keep on adding bits to the spine to your hearts content. We added ribbon, beads and tags.


 I bound it all together using a Zutter Bind It All machine but book rings would work equally well.

If you make one please send me pictures! I love to be inspired by your creations!

Getting a bit sidetracked

 

Well I should have known that to boldly say (= blog) that I was going to post a picture every day with the stampset of the week was setting myself up for trouble! So many things have cropped up to divert me, sway me off course or just plain use up my time that I have hardly had a moment in my haven of creativity beyond the greenhouse.

Let me tell you about mud. Actually I am thinking that a great PhD thesis title would be "Mud and its influence on the life of country folk". You can do the math - two dogs, 4 hens, me, two walks a day (actually the hens dont come on the walk but they do run around their area) - so thats 36 foot falls a day in and out of the house/garden. The dogs get hosed off and my wellies stay in the utility room but even so this sticky claggy mud just migrates ..... I think I might be in danger of actually wearing my kitchen floor away with so much washing and steam mopping!

So basically I am blaming mud for not making cards and so having no pictures to post.

Until today!

Ta dah!!!

 

I'm not totally pleased with this Happy New Year card - I was searching around for something to balance out the space between the ribbon (which I did like) and the stamped bird. What do you think?

 

 If I'd have thought of it I would have put a row of 3 brads or a button and 2 brads - some rounded elements anyway - to reflect the eggs along the bottom. I used Lucky Limeade, Very Vanilla, Sahara Sand ink and Crumb Cake. I added a touch of colour with blendable pencils and random stamped the green base card with the Lily of the Valley stamp from the Natures Walk set. Edges throughout are sponged with Crumb Cake and I added a bit of texture to the Very Vanilla by sponging it here and there. If I had thought of it (doh! again!) before I had stamped and added the ribbon I could have spritzed it with sahara Sand for a more dramatic effect. Thats actually one of the great things about papercrafting that you can keep evolving a design. Perhaps I will regret saying this but I will have another go tomorrow and post a picture of that so we can compare.

 

I need to head back out to my cosy studio now and get cracking with swaps for Monicas training on Saturday. I want to show the lovely stamps and papers that are part of the saleabration promotion from Stampin Up! this month. You can choose one free - yes FREE- product when you spend £45 on regular Stampin Up products. Spend £90 and get two choices etc. And dont forget if you are feeling like" New Year, New Me!" why not become a hobby demonstrator - that is spend £90 on a whole kit of lovely Stampin Up products worth over £130 - and either just use your demonstratorship (is that actually a word or did I just make it up?) to buy goodies for yourself at a great 20% discount or start a nice little business demonstrating, running classes and selling in a way that suits you.

The Butterfly Belles would love to have you join us so give me a ring or drop me an email and we can have a chat about whats involved.

Jollying Up January

Wasn't Janus the Roman god of doorways? Two faces - one looking back and the other forward - to keep eyes on the past and the future.

 So January is a great month for sorting out and making plans in life generally but more specifically here in Beyond the Greenhouse land for getting to grips with your crafting stash.
Now dont tell me that you dont have a stash! A collection of papers, cardstock, ribbon or what ever that is waiting patiently for you to get creative. Well January is a great time to look through your beautiful things and bin anything that is crumpled, dirty or just plain not to your liking. Then we can get down to making lovely things and having a good time.

I dont really do New Years Resolutions as such but I think that I can get creative in January - and therefore get Jolly - by using a different Stampin' Up! stampset each week and really explore what the set will do. I will post a picture every day (gosh thats a big ask ... forgive me if I slip a bit) and you can see how creative I can be. I need to make Thank You cards and New Years cards (for the people who I missed with Christmas Cards - sorry ) so that will be my theme for this week. I am planning to really push the creativity by using a new stampset called Nature Walk.

 
It doesnt scream Thank You or Happy New Year and is a very versatile stampset that coordinates well with Fine Feathers (which I might just sneak in as well!) Isnt it beautiful? I hope it will make the recipients think of Spring and new birth and the longer days ahead.

 Janus looking forward you see!

So off to the studio (nodding to Janus on the way out of the door) and see what I can create and I'll show you tomorrow!