Simon Says Stamp Monday Challenge: Bookmark using Gina K Designs' Beautiful Bookmarks Dies

Speaking as a very nerdy English major and a former librarian, this week's Simon Says Stamp Monday Challenge theme has my full support!  Our theme is to make a bookmark or a project inspired by books.  I made a bookmark.  And if you want to see a series of process pictures that look absolutely nothing like the finished project, read on!

I started with Distress Heavy Kraftstock, which I cut into a bookmark shape using Gina K Designs' Beautiful Bookmarks die set.  I stamped some circles onto it and painted them in.

I tore off a piece of gorgeous alphabet paper from Simple Stories' Vintage Essentials Color Palette Designer Tags kit and tore it into a semi-circle shape.  I glued that to my bookmark and scribbled around with some of Dina Wakley's Scribble Sticks.  I cut a scallop die edge from AALL & Create and painted that, then also glued on a scrap of polka-dot paper I'd painted.

I did not like the tag at this point.  I didn't know what I didn't like, but I was just not feeling it!  So I covered up all the Kraft and polka dots with white paint for a fresh start.  YIKES!  Now it was really looking bad.  I added some stamped open dots and scribbled/painted some petal shapes at the bottom.  I cut out the "READ" letters using an AALL & Create die set and I also found a great little "Me Time" ticket from an American Crafts ephemera pack that I thought tied in nicely.  I painted the edges of the ticket and cut it in half.

This was a disaster of a tag at this point, so I made one last bold move to try to salvage it.  I painted the background with dark grey paint.  When that dried, I made some ruler lines on it that I went over with a white Posca pen for a plaid look in the background.  I glued all the elements to the front of the tag and added some fabric scraps and an embroidery floss bow to the top to finish it off.  And so this little bookmark was done and looking not one little bit like what I started out with!  Such is the meandering crafty journey sometimes.

Here are the supplies I used that you can find at Simon Says Stamp:

• Gina K Designs Beautiful Bookmarks Die Set
• Distress Kraft Heavystock
• Sizzix Big Shot
• Dina Wakley Paint: Mustard, Malachite, White
• Wendy Vecchi Open Dots Stamp
• American Crafts Whatevs Ephemera
• AALL & Create Letter Soup Dies
• AALL & Create Majestic Borders Die Set
• Dina Wakley Scribble Sticks 2
• White Posca Paint Marker
• Embroidery Floss

We can't wait to see how you're inspired by books this week!  Feel free to make a bookmark or any other book-related project and upload it to the Simon Says Stamp Monday Challenge Blog for your chance to win a $25 voucher to the Simon Says Stamp store!

Simon Says Stamp Monday Challenge: Spritz and Splatter Journal Pages using Studio Light's Creative Journal and AALL & Create's Ephemera Packs

Welcome to another Simon Says Stamp Monday Challenge!  The theme this week is "spritz and splatter," both of which I love doing!  I created a journal spread with lots of spritzy-splattery products.

I started by spraying some Distress Oxide Sprays onto a craft mat with a little water.  When I had a nice colorful puddle, I dragged Tim Holtz's Dotted Stencil through it so that the color was on the outside of the stencil.  I pressed the stencil against the pages (like a stamp) so that the negative image of the stencil went onto my paper.  I also mixed some paint with water and drizzle/dripped that around the edges.

While that dried, I painted the alphabet onto a piece of graph paper with black paint. 

When both were dry, I ripped off a piece of the alphabet paper and glued it to my pages.  I also added some Dina Wakley ledger paper and more paint.

Next I employed the use of AALL & Create's Faded Memories and Rose Reverie ephemera packs.  I added a patterned-paper tab, a frame and a rectangle and also added some scraps from Art by Marlene's Postage Madness paper pack.  I added paint and scribbling (Distress Watercolor Crayons) and splattered on some Dina Wakley Media Gloss Spray in white. I ended up tearing off some paper that I'd glued down (I did not like how it looked), which is what created that lovely "texture" (sure- that's what we'll call it) on the lower middle part of the right side page. 

I added some of Tim Holtz's Cello Tape to cover up that torn-glue area and then liked the look of it okay.  I found this great sentiment in a Nancy Drew book that I cut out and glued to the page to finish it off.  And no- I never ever cut up the gorgeous vintage yellow matte finish Nancy Drew books with the old-school cover artwork that makes me swoon - I just use the cheapy modern reprints.

Here are the supplies I used that you can find at Simon Says Stamp:

• Studio Light Creative Journal
• Tim Holtz Dotted Stencil
• Distress Oxide Spray: Scorched Timber, Lost Shadow
• Distress Paint: Salvaged Patina
• Dina Wakley Paint: White, Black, Ruby, Lemon
• Dina Wakley Ledger Paper, Set 1
• AALL & Create Ephemera Packs: Faded Memories, Rose Reverie
• Distress Watercolors, Set 3
• Art by Marlene Postage Madness Paper Pack
• Dina Wakley Gloss Media Spray, White
• Tim Holtz Cello Tape
• Distress Crayon: Kitsch Flamingo

We're excited to see what drippy materials you spritz or splatter onto your projects this week!  Upload your creations to the Simon Says Stamp Monday Challenge Blog for your chance to win a $25 voucher to the Simon Says Stamp store.

Simon Says Stamp Tag using Simon's Adornments Tag, Simple Flowers and Circle Sentiments Dies

 We are going for "bright and cheery" this week as our challenge theme over at the Simon Says Stamp Monday Challenge Blog.  We are also featuring products from Simon Says Stamp.  I made a tag using three of Simon's die sets: Adornments Tag, Simple Flowers and Circle Sentiments.

I started by cutting the tag out of Distress Kraft Heavystock paper using Simon's Adornments die set.  I stamped some text from Tim Holtz's Theories stamp set onto some newsprint, tore it into scraps, and glued those scraps to the tag.  I also smeared just a bit of white paint on some of the tag's edges.

Next I cut some shapes out of Strathmore Mixed Media paper.  I cut a ring from AALL and Create's Heartnook die set, then cut the "Hi" from Simon's Circle Sentiments die set.  I used the negative cut out (circle frame) from this same set.  I cut a flower from Simon's Simple Flowers die set.  I painted all of the pieces and outlined the "Hi" letters with a black Sharpie.

All that was left to do was assemble!  I put all the pieces together and added some final scribbles and marks to finish off this tag.

Here are the supplies I used that you can find at Simon Says Stamp:

• Simon Says Stamp Adornments Tag Die Set
• Simon Says Stamp Circle Sentiments Die Set
• Simon Says Stamp Simple Flowers Die Set
• Distress Kraft Heavystock
• Strathmore Mixed Media Paper
• Tim Holtz Theories Stamp Set
• Ranger Jet Black Archival Ink
• Dina Wakley Paint: White, Lemon, Stoked, Gnarly
• AALL & Create's Heartnook Die Set
• Black Sharpie

We're excited to see bright and cheeriness from your projects this week!  Upload your creations to the Simon Says Stamp Monday Challenge Blog for your chance to win a $25 voucher to the Simon Says Stamp store.

Simon Says Stamp Monday Challenge: Love Tag using AALL & Create's Faded Memories Tags

This week's Simon Says Stamp Monday Challenge theme is "have a heart."  I made a love-themed tag:

I started with a pre-printed tag from AALL & Create's Faded Memories ephemera pack.  I added pink and white paint around the edges.

Next I tore off a piece of kraft cardstock and glued it to my tag.  I did some scribbling and painting with Distress Crayons and Distress Watercolor Pencils.  I also added more paint and stamped small polka dots onto my tag using Trinity Stamps' Polka Dot Background stamp.

I grabbed these pre-cut fishtail banner pieces from AALL & Create's Rose Reverie ephemera pack and painted them in tones of green.  I also cut and painted a ring from AALL & Create's Heartnook die set.  I thumbed through Dina Wakley's Collage Sparks 1 and found the word "Love," which I cut out.  I also stamped some text paper and cut it into a scallop shape.

I glued all the elements onto my tag and added some outlining and scribbling with a black pen to finish it off. 

Here are the supplies I used that you can find at Simon Says Stamp:

• AALL & Create's Faded Memories Ephemera Die Cuts
• Dina Wakley Paint: White, Raspberry, Mustard
• AALL & Create's Rose Reverie Ephemera Die Cuts
• Trinity Stamps Polka Dot Background Stamp
• Distress Crayons: Set 1
• Distress Crayon: Salvaged Patina
• Dina Wakley Collage Sparks: Collection 1
• Distress Watercolor Pencils: Set 1
• Kraft Cardstock
• AALL & Create's Heartnook Die Set
• Sizzix Big Shot
• Distress Paint: Salvaged Patina

We're excited to see what you create that is heart-related!  Upload your creations to the Simon Says Stamp Monday Challenge Blog for your chance to win a $25 voucher to the Simon Says Stamp store!

Simon Says Stamp Monday Challenge: Foil-Edged ATC using Foil and Glue

Happy Monday and welcome to another Simon Says Stamp Monday Challenge!  Our theme this week is "fun with foil."  I'm not a huge foil-user (maybe it intimidates me?), but I learned how easy it is to use foil with glue, which is what I did on this ATC:

I started by cutting out an ATC card using Tim Holtz's Collector die set and my Sizzix Big Shot.  I used Strathmore Mixed Media paper, then added some paint.

I added text to my card by ripping up some pieces of AALL & Create's Mix and Match washi tape and sticking it down.  Then it was time for the foil to enter the scene!  I had a roll of gold deco foil, so I put some Aleene's Turbo Tacky glue on my finger and smeared it around the edges of my card.  I also dotted some glue circles here and there.  I waited until the glue felt tacky - not wet and not completely dry, then I stuck the gold foil onto my card (gold foil side up).  I used an acrylic stamp block to put pressure onto my foil and moved the stamp block around to try and stick the foil down to the glue.  Once I did that, I peeled the foil off of my card and it left foil stuck to where the glue had been.  Foil is hard to see in photos, so I angled my card so the light was hitting the foil parts.  See all that goldy goodness?  And it wasn't very hard to do, which was a pleasant surprise.  I think the trickiest part is to hit the glue at the right point between too wet and too dry for the foil to stick to it properly.

I needed a little pop of color, so I tore up a scrap of red and white polka-dot paper that I'd painted in a previous project and stuck that to my card.  I also added a little bit of blue around the arch section using a Distress Watercolor Pencil.  For the focal point, I had some Tim Holtz paperdoll images and I liked the idea of just showing the feet of one of them, so I cut one of the people in half.  Yipes!  Hopefully that person in the photo won't come back to haunt me for that move.

All that was left was to assemble this and add on the word "Rise," which I typed out with a typewriter.  I also added a little piece of cello tape to the top of the card.  With that, this ATC was foiled and ready to go.

Here are the supplies I used that you can find at Simon Says Stamp:

• Tim Holtz Collector Die Set
• Sizzix Big Shot
• Strathmore Mixed Media Paper
• Distress Paint: Salvaged Patina
• Dina Wakley Paint: White
• AALL & Create Washi Tape: Mix and Match
• Aleene's Turbo Tacky Glue
• Acrylic Stamp Block
• Gold Deco Foil
• Tim Holtz Paperdolls: Solos
• Distress Watercolor Pencils, Set 3
• Tim Holtz Cello Sticker Tape

Let's see how you use foil this week!  Upload your creations to the Simon Says Stamp Monday Challenge Blog for your chance to win a $25 voucher to the Simon Says Stamp store.

Simon Says Stamp Monday Challenge: Textured Tag using Cardboard

Our theme this week over at the Simon Says Stamp Monday Challenge Blog is to add some texture.  I didn't look any further than my recycling bin where I found some lovely cardboard scraps!

I started with a tag, which I cut out of Strathmore Mixed Media paper and a tag die.  I added some painting to the background, along with some Infusions and Distress Oxide Spray through a dotted stencil.

Next I scribbled some white text onto black paper with an embossing pen.  Then I heat-embossed the text with white embossing powder.

I glued down some text scraps, then I stamped some ruler images onto paper (thanks to Elizabeth Crafts' Measurements stamp set) and glued that onto my tag base as well.

Time for the cardboard!  I tore up some cardboard scraps and painted them all sorts of different colors using acrylic paint, then let them dry.

I tore those scraps even smaller and glued them onto my tag.  I got out my Dina Wakley Scribble Sticks and circled around the carboard with some orange scribbles.  I glued a scrap of polka-dot fabric to the top of the cardboard section then found some random words that I cut out of a book and glued to the front of the tag to finish it off.

Here are the supplies I used which you can find at Simon Says Stamp:

• Strathmore Mixed Media Paper
• Elizabeth Crafts Measurements Stamp Set
• Infusions: Just Walnut
• Distress Oxide Spray: Peacock Feathers, Cracked Pistachio
• Dina Wakley Scribble Sticks, Set 2
• American Crafts Embossing Pens
• White Embossing Powder
• Heat Tool
• Sizzix Big Shot
• Dina Wakley Paint: White
• Ranger Jet Black Archival Ink

Let's see your tricks for adding texture this week!  Upload your creations to the Simon Says Stamp Monday Challenge Blog for your chance to win a $25 voucher to the Simon Says Stamp store.