Wednesday, November 28, 2012

blossom or ornament? You pick!

Mixin' it up: card stock, glimmer paper, stamping, dry embossing. . . whooo hoo! Lots of elements, but super easy! I used the Build a Blossom punch as an alternative to the ornament framelits.

As a matter of fact, this project was featured at our annual group Christmas party, so Susan and Connie did the planning, but I did the hands-on creating.

Want your own? Just drop me a line!

Happy Stamping,
Dee Tollaksen

Monday, November 19, 2012

You better make the package pretty!

No one ever says "no thanks, I don't want chocolate." They take it from you, they think things like, I'll save this yummy treat for sometime when I "need" some chocolate. . . while their hands move independently of their brain, to unwrap the pretty package, rip open the chocolate bar and bring the yummy treat right up to their mouth. Occasionally, the brain will realize what is happening but it is incapable of overpowering the hand which is in motion, nor the mouth which is opening wide to receive the chocolate.  There are other gifts that people can resist eating, but not chocolate. You could try a candle or a calendar or some scented lotion, but chocolate in a bite-size portion is going right into their mouth! So the packaging better be pretty, since that is all that will be left!

Happy Stamping!
Dee Tollaksen

Sunday, November 18, 2012

Spray Paint fun!

Here a spritz, there a spritz! We made these gorgeous fall cards in Stamp Club this week. It is a simple technique, and an impressive result.  When using clear-mount stamps: just stamp your leaf images, clean the stamps and lay them down on your card face. Then spritz the card with ink  spritz ( re-inker and alcohol in a spritzer) and allow to air dry. In just seconds the card panel is dry and ready to mount on the card base. We added a bit of ribbon and a sentiment.

If you have good old fashioned wood mount steps, you can stamp the images onto post-it notes, cut out the leaves and lay them on the face of the card while spritzing.

Easy peasy!

Happy stamping!
Dee Tollaksen

Friday, November 16, 2012

Turkey Time

So stinking cute! I know I shouldn't compliment myself, but it's OK since I just CASEd (copy and steal everything) this bird.

At our stamping club gathering this month we focused on Autumn creations. This is a  3x3" card that I suggested would be a darling Thanksgiving table place card. If you have the gold marker Stampin' Up! introduced in the holiday catalog, just add a name in the corner and you're all set.

We used the googly eyes from the holiday mini, too. They are shown with all the Halloween stamps, but soooo cute here on the turkey!

The body of the bird is made with the owl punch, just trimmed off the owl ears and added scallop circles for tail feathers!

Happy Stamping!
Dee Tollaksen

Thursday, November 15, 2012

Big Shot's little sister


Have you been thinking about a Big Shot, but don’t have the space for it, the budget or maybe you’re just not ready for the commitment? For a short time Stampin’ Up! is offering a machine that is much smaller but offers the ability to dry emboss cardstock as well as the Big Shot. The Texture Boutique machine will use all the Stampin’ Up embossing folders as well as folders available elsewhere. We have a great price on this but limited amounts. You can order online at www.dtollaksen.stampinup.net or email me and I will place your order.

Here is the official announcement:
Due to our partnership with Sizzix, we are pleased to be able to offer a test run of the Texture Boutique Embossing Machine in our North American markets. We have 4,000 available to be sold only while supplies last. If this product test goes well, we may offer the Texture Boutique again in the future.
The Texture Boutique works with Textured Impressions Embossing Folders to transform ordinary cardstock, paper, metallic foil, or vellum into an embossed, textured masterpiece. This machine embosses only; it does not die cut. Because this is a product test, the Texture Boutique is not branded with the Stampin' Up! logo. It comes in Sizzix packaging and is the same color and design that is sold in stores. We recommend you read the included instructions before using the Texture Boutique and that you pass the same recommendation on to customers who purchase it.
Tis the season of giving, and the Texture Boutique makes a wonderful gift for anyone who wants to create their own elegant embossed art. To help you with your gift-giving needs, we're offering a special value bundle that saves you $5.90. If you prefer, you can also purchase the Texture Boutique alone. Looking for stocking stuffers? Pick up some additional embossing folders.
Texture Boutique Bundle
Item 132700
$39.95 (a $45.85 value)
Includes
  • Texture Boutique Embossing Machine, 1 Pair of Standard Embossing Pads, 1 Mylar Shim
  • Flower Garden Textured Impressions Embossing Folder-Stampin' Up! exclusive
  • Stripes Textured Impressions Embossing Folder-Stampin' Up! exclusive
Texture Boutique Embossing Machine
Item 132657
$29.95
Includes
  • Texture Boutique Embossing Machine, 1 pair of Standard Embossing Pads, 1 Mylar Shim

Saturday, November 10, 2012

You're Invited

Demand is high, there have been requests for a Stamping Day! Certainly, I will not stand in the way of women who want to get together to stamp!

Saturday December 8 in Arlington Heights, we will gather for a few hours of stamping, laughing, lunching and prizes. Everyone gets a nice door prize from the Stampin' Up! product line.

You design a card, bring the supplies for everyone to make your card, and everyone else will do the same. So each stamper goes home with a wide variety of holiday cards for use this season.

Catherine and I will participate this year, bringing the hostesses right down into the fun, since we need those cards as much as anyone else!

Hope you can join us, it a highlight of the season!

Happy Stamping,
Dee Tollaksen

Friday, November 9, 2012

Look away now

If you are in my side-line, don't look here. Or, just don't read the words.

I am working on a project to swap with my stamping buddies. I will take some pictures and share the whole shebang when it has been swapped, but for now, this is the front. I used MDS (My Digital Studio) software to create this image. It mixes a bunch of digital stamp sets and DSP and digital punches, even digital ribbon.

There was a big stamping party last night, my hostess had 12 guests and we had a great time. But my stamps and Big Shot are still in the car, so I can just pull up the software and still create!  Now I should shower and dress and get that Big Shot back into the house!

Happy Stamping (with ink or digitally),
Dee Tollaksen

Sunday, November 4, 2012

Ladies and Gentlemen, we have a winner

 Cheers, collage style autumn leaves and now a water color autumn leaves card: water color is the winner.

 I designed three cards for my customer to view and select from for her invites, this is the winner. I even gave her two versions of this card, a single layer style that is simply one piece of cardstock with the water color swath and leaves or a layered version with More Mustard as the base and a layer of Cajun Craze.  Of course the layers add to the cost, but they are easy and the cost isn't that great, so we are going with the layered version.

It is very traditional as far as style goes, but Thanksgiving is certainly a very traditional event!

Hope you're getting your Holiday wish list organized and that you're making a few (or a bunch) of cards and gifts this season!

Happy Stamping,
Dee Tollaksen

Saturday, November 3, 2012

Moving right along. . .

Now that Halloween is over, we can all move on to Thanksgiving planning. I know that the retail folks have glossed right over this crazy "thankful" holiday and are ready for us to start buying gifts for that big holiday, but I like to take them one at a time.

I love this French Foliage stamp set. I'm not sure why it has a post mark stamp included, but the round image kind of balances out the sharp edges of the leaves, don't you think? And thankfully, the Teeny Tiny Wishes stamp set has every occasion you can imagine, including thanksgiving!

This is one of the designs I prepped for my customer who makes 50+ invites for a Thanksgiving event, so it is easily reproduced, just one panel to go through an embossing folder, using the Coredinations paper so it shows lots of color and texture, each leaf stamp has its own ink color, so we won't have to clean the stamps between colors, and we sponged the edges instead of adding a layer of card stock. Easy Peasy, but not the number one choice.  I'll share the winner soon!

Happy Stamping,
Dee Tollaksen

Friday, November 2, 2012

Cheers!

Cheers! One of those words that just puts a smile on your face.  Whether we are talking about supporting your favorite sports team or clinking glasses and enjoying a drink together, cheers always has a happy connotation.

I am helping a friend design party invites and this was one of the contenders. I usually show her beautiful samples that have a bow on them or fussy cutting or some other detail that kills us when it comes time to make 50 cards. This year I designed three cards with no difficult details.

Here we have a lemon that I cut by punching it out with a circle punch and trimming off the flat side; the strip across the card is not ribbon, it is just a strip of card stock, and the  texture and background features are DSP (designer series paper) so no texturing with the Big Shot or stamping the background. As easy as it can get.

This was a strong contender, but not the winner. I'll share the others for you, and the winning design, too.

Happy Stamping,
Dee Tollaksen