Clearly iStamp

Day 4 of August Sneak Peeks!

Last day before the big day....the day you can buy all these wonderful sets!

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Church Chatter.  If you go to Sunday School or church, you always have needs for cards!  This set is just for that purpose.  I asked Diane Noble if she had any ideas for this set, and she came up with a whole list....thanks Diane! 

Church Chatter

Designed by Diane Noble and Lori McCroskey

Go to Church Chatter

Go to Church Chatter Idea Gallery

Links will be active August 1st.

Stamp set used: Old Time Church and Church Chatter

 

 

Our other Designers that are featuring samples on their blogs for Charlie Summer Fun are: Linda A, Nancy, Stacy and Candy (links on left sidebar).

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Aster - September Flower of the Month

Designed by Vicki Conquest

Go to Aster - September Flower of the Month

Go to Aster- September Flower of the Month Idea Gallery

Links will be active August 1st.

Our other Designers that are featuring samples on their blogs for Aster - September Flower of the Month are: Katie, Cassie, and Candy (links on left sidebar).

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Calendula - October Flower of the Month

Designed by Vicki Conquest

Go to Calendula - October Flower of the Month

Go to Calendula - October Flower of the Month Idea Gallery

Links will be active August 1st.

 

Our other Designers that are featuring samples on their blogs for Calendula - October Flower of the Month are: Katie, Sarah and Candy (links on left sidebar).

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Don't forget the stamp of the month is FREE with a $50 order!

Blown Over August 2009 Stamp of the Month

Designed by Lori McCroskey

Go to Blown Over August 2009 SOM

Go to Blown Over August 2009 SOM Idea Gallery

Links will be active August 1st.

 

 

This little birdhouse is hollow to hold lots of goodies!

Our other Designers that are featuring samples on their blogs for Blown Over August 2009 SOM are: Kim, Angela, Sarah, Cassie and Candy (links on left sidebar).

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This little stamp is perfect to welcome that new teacher in to your child's life.  Little cards or gifts to a teacher mean a lot!

Apple and Books

Designed by Laurie Wilson

Go to Apple and Books

Go to Apple and Books Idea Gallery

Links will be active August 1st.

 

Our other Designers that are featuring samples on their blogs for Apple and Books are: Angela, Nancy, Cassie and Candy (links on left sidebar).

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Midnight is the magic hour these become available!

Hope your day is filled with blessings and stamping galore!

Lori

Day 3 of August Sneak Peeks!

Day Three of our fabulous sneak peeks!  Take a look:

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Do you remember our Rosebud Princess?  And last month be brought you a Rosebud Castle?  This month we are bringing you the Rosebud Prince and fairies!  Won't this make the cutest party set?  Or the cutest scrap pages?  You will need to take a look at all the beautiful samples!

Rosebud Prince

Designed by Shawne Arnold

Go to Rosebud Prince

Go to Rosebud Prince Idea Gallery

Links will be active August 1st.

 

 

 

Our other Designers that are featuring samples on their blogs for Rosebud Prince are: Nancy, Sarah, Shawne and Candy (links on left sidebar).  

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Every Princess needs a fairy or pixie, doesn't she?

Playful Pixies

Designed by Shawne Arnold

Go to Playful Pixies

Go to Playful Pixies Idea Gallery 

Links will be active August 1st.

Our other Designers that are featuring samples on their blogs for Playful Pixies are: Kim, Angela, Sarah, Stacy and Candy (links on left sidebar).

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Pansies have always been one of my favorite flowers......they are just so colorful!

Pansy

Designed by Kim Teasdale

Go to Pansy

Go to Pansy Idea Gallery

Links will be active August 1st.

 

Our other Designers that are featuring samples on their blogs for Pansy are: Kim, Katie, Linda A, Sarah and Candy (links on left sidebar).

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This one is for all of our music lovers out there and is also a customer request!  We hope you like it!  We even made some sheet music for your backgrounds!

Sweet Symphony

Designed by Laurie Wilson

Go to Sweet Symphony

Go to Sweet Symphony Idea Gallery

Links will be active August 1st.

 

 

Our other Designers that are featuring samples on their blogs for Sweet Symphony are: Katie, Linda A, Nancy, Cassie and Candy (links on left sidebar).

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Sheet Music

 

Go to Sheet Music

Go to Sheet Music Idea Gallery

Links will be active August 1st.

Our other Designers that are featuring samples on their blogs for Sheet Music are: Katie, Linda A, Nancy, Cassie and Candy (links on left sidebar).

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See you tomorrow for our last day of sneak peeks!

Hope your day is filled with blessings and stamping galore!

Lori

Day 2 of August Sneak Peeks!

Day two!  Thanks for coming back to check out what is new today!

Bee-utiful Ballerina

Designed by Shawne Arnold

Go to Bee-utiful Ballerina

Go to Bee-utiful Ballerina Idea Gallery

Links will be active August 1st.

So cute!  So perfect for cards to all your little girls and nieces and friends!

Our other Designers that are featuring samples on their blogs for Bee-utiful Ballerina are: Katie, Linda A, Nancy and Candy (links on left sidebar).

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Isn't she just devine?  Mix her with these cute little sayings or your favorite scripture stamps!

Angel Ballerina

Designed by Shawne Arnold

Go to Angel Ballerina

Go to Angel Ballerina Idea Gallery

Links will be active August 1st.

 

Our other Designers that are featuring samples on their blogs for Angel Ballerina are: Tori, Sarah, Shawne, Candy and Laurie (links on left sidebar).

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This set is perfect for kids and adults alike!  Cards and scrapbook pages are so cute with this set!

Sails, Subs, and Tugs

Designed by Kim Teasdale

Go to Sails, Subs, and Tugs

Go to Sails, Subs, and Tugs Idea Gallery

Links will be active August 1st.

 

 

Our other Designers that are featuring samples on their blogs for Sails, Subs, and Tugs are: Kim, Angela, Katie, Nancy, Stacy and Candy (links on left sidebar).

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This set is great to welcome neighbors, let friends know you've moved, tag for a gift.....just limitless possibilities!

Nice Neighborhood

Designed by Laurie Wilson

Go to Nice Neighborhood

Go to Nice Neighborhood Idea Gallery

Links will be active August 1st.

 

 

Our other Designers that are featuring samples on their blogs for Nice Neighborhood are: Kim, Katie, Linda B, Cassie, Stacy and Candy (links on left sidebar). 

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  See you tomorrow for day 3!

Hope your day is filled with blessings and stamping galore!
Lori

Let the August sneak peeks begin!

Hello Everyone!

I'll have to say this has been one of the best summers ever!  It has been nice and cool and rainy here and we have been having a wonderful time!  Look what we have been up to:

Under the Sea

Designed by Shawne Arnold

Go to Under the Sea

Go to Under the Sea Idea Gallery

Links will be active August 1st.

Isn't this just the cutest set?  Perfect for those summer scrap pages or summer cards!  Isn't that sea horse the cutest?  Bright colors are just my most favorite, so I love the samples with this set!

 

Our other Designers that are featuring samples on their blogs for Under the Sea are: Kim, Linda B, Cassie, Stacy, Candy and Laurie (links on left sidebar).

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Bitty Bots

Designed by Kim Teasdale

Go to Bitty Bots

Go to Bitty Bots Idea Gallery

Links will be active August 1st.

I don't have any boys, but boy, oh boy, do I just love this set!  I just love "your age does not compute"!  How cute is that one?  What cute scrapbook pages this set could make!

 

 

Our other Designers that are featuring samples on their blogs for Bitty Bots are: Kim, Angela, Linda A, Tori, Cassie, Stacy and Candy (links on left sidebar).

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Hanging Out

Designed by Laurie Wilson

Go to Hanging Out

Go to Hanging Out Idea Gallery

Links will be active August 1st.

This set has so many possibilities!  Aren't these little birds adorable holding a clothes line?  I just love the little lace trimmed undies too!  The samples for this set are so cute....make sure to make the rounds to my Design Team's blogs to see what they have created!

 

 

Our other Designers that are featuring samples on their blogs for Hanging Out are: Kim, Angela, Linda B, Cassie, Candy and Laurie (links on left sidebar).

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Don't you think it is about time for Charlie baby to grow up and make it through the tween years????  Talk about perfect to make locker decorations, scrapbook pages, and journaling books for your tween!  Cute, cute, cute!

Charlie Tweens

Go to Charlie Tweens

Go to Charlie Tweens Idea Gallery

Links will be active August 1st.

Candy made a gum package with them!  Too cute!

 

 

Our other Designers that are featuring samples on their blogs for Charlie Tweens are: Angela, Tori, Sarah, Stacy and Candy (links on left sidebar).

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Don't forget to stop back by tomorrow for day two of sneak peeks!

Hope your day is filled with blessings and stamping galore!

Lori

August CDS Guest Designer Challenge

AUGUST 2009 GUEST DESIGNER CHALLENGE!!!!

***Challenge is open now until 3 PM CST on Friday July 31, 2009***

Just a little note to everyone.   Every month, there are several close runners up in the challenge.  We DO keep a list of your entries for any Design Team openings that may come available in the future.  So if you don't get chosen this month, please don't lose heart, you never know if you are one of the card designers we are watching!  ;-)

Here are the deets:

WHAT DO I DO TO ENTER??

1. Create any sort of project following the stamping challenge detailed below.

Here is the STAMPING CHALLENGE for July

This is going to be a Sketch Challenge! 
Below is showing 2 possible options for this layout.

• Create anything with the above layout/sketch. 
• You may flip and/or rotate, but you must keep the panels in the general location shown.
• Oval panel may be ANY shape you wish.
• Vertical lines may be rectangles of paper or lines of ribbon/sewing or stamped lines.
• Sentiments may be put anywhere or left off, it's up to you. 
• You may add embellishments anywhere to create the balance your design may need.

2. Then create a comment TO THIS POST with the following info: You MUST have these four (4) things to be considered:

• FOR POSTS: you must mention in your BLOG post that your card is for the Clear Dollar Stamps Guest Designer Challenge, and linking back to this post is required. (However, SCS uploads cannot have the link, as that would infringe on their terms of service, but you must have the keyword below and mention that you created this for the CDS GD Challenge.)
  
• include your email in this comment in the appropriate field, so we can contact you if you are selected (email is not publicly displayed if you enter it in the appropriate field)
  
• include your name in your comment
  
• include a LINK directly to your entry (If you upload to SCS, include this KEYWORD: CDSGDC0809)  If post is on your blog, please make your link directly to your post and not just your general blog.

OTHER INFORMATION

• Challenge will be open for 4-1/2 days and the winner will be announced on the 5th day, which will be the 1st of the Guest Designers Month.
  
• All projects, no matter what stamps are used, will be a qualifying entry AND considered, so long as you have all 4 items above that are required in your post, and you have followed the challenge.  ***However, using Clear Dollar Stamps on your project increases your visibility, as it will show your enthusiasm, support and creativity using CD Stamps.***  

• .Our Senior Design Team will be the judges.  They will vote on projects based on creativity, uniqueness, color, and presentation.  They will also be considering your blog style/history, or if you don't have a blog, they will be glancing at your online gallery checking for consistency and frequency of your other creations.   So, please, DO YOUR BEST WORK!

• We do take a look at your blog history or gallery upload history.
  
• The chosen winner will be our Guest Designer for that release month, and will receive (3) three stamp sets of his/her choice from that month's releases!
• The Guest Designers term will be for the remainder of the release month, of which during this time, he/she will receive benefits (store discount) and responsibilities (creating samples for the purpose of promotion) of a regular designer for Clear Dollar Stamps!
• Your samples for promoting CDS with your free stamps throughout the month you are a Guest Designer, are expected to be similar in detail, composition and neatness than that of your entry and current projects.
  

3. At this time, we can only accept entries from those residing in Canada or the U.S, due to shipping times.

Now, let's see who wants to be a Guest Designer and get to play with some free stamps!
Show us your BEST work!

Thanks so much for visiting and have a blessed stamping day!

Lori

Christmas in July - The Gift of Tags

Hi friends, its Friday and its Katie here to finish off another week with you, but in turn we've got the weekend coming up.  Did you think I could possibly let July pass without sharing a Christmas in July project with you?  Well, I thought a gift of tags would be fun to give somebody during the holidays.  the nice thing about this gift is that you can give it early and it doesn't cost much to share a little something early on.  Plus, it will give your recipient some time to go searching for coordinating Christmas wrap.

I have some things in my picture that I used in my tutorial, but if you don't have them, this is a tutorial that you could easily adapt.

• Cricut Expression and George Cartridge ( for the tags)
• Scor-Pal
• Scor-Tape
• Heat Gun
• Embossing Powder
• EK Success border punch
• Patchpal Messages Stamp Set
• Fanciful Flakes Stamp Set
• Inks
• Papers (I used My Minds Eye)
• Embellishments

Lets get going on the main box portion.  You will need a piece of cardstock measuring 81/2" x 9"

Score all sides at 3" and cut where the scissors are (do you like the icons?... just playing)
*** its important to note that you will need to snip on the 9" side.  The folds won't work if you do it on      the opposite side (along the 81/2" side)

Fold up flaps and your box is created.

Attach Scor-tape to the narrow sides of the box. (I tore the tape... no scissors MOM)

Set box aside and cut out your tags.  These tags are going to decorate the outside of the box.  I cut 4 tags, 2 from each design, one for the inside and one for the outside.  If you have a George Cartridge, I cut the large tags at size 4 1/4" on Shadow Blackout.

Attach the two different designs together.  I then lopped off about a 1/4" on the bottom to square it up to my box bottom.  Then just attach to the sides of the box that have the scor-tape on them.

NOTE:  If you don't have this particular die cut machine all you need is a tag that measures 2 1/2" wide and 4 1/4" tall.

Next, I cut all the tags that would be attached to the gifts.  I decided to cut 12 total tags, but many more would fit in your box if you wanted.  Again, if you have the George Cartridge, I cut these tags at size 3 3/4" (designer paper) and the shadow with the solid cardstock.

Then I decided I wanted a little bit of pizazz and created a border for the bottom of my tags.  For this, I used the set called Fanciful Flakes.  I used some of my larger scraps for this and just made sure that each piece was 2" wide.  I used the the longer stamp image for this. 

I used a white pigment ink and then used some embossing powder that I had. I went with a pink for the pink and a silvery glitter one for the blue.  Here is a picture of the blue that is ready to heat.

Then, I cut the strips that measured 2" by approximately 3/4".  I also chose to create a scallop border for these strips by using my EK Success border punch, then attached to the bottoms of my tags.

Then of course each tag will need a to and from so your recipient can label their tags.  I happened to choose a new set that is actually an accompaniment to the Patchpal Line, but works perfectly for this purpose too. 

What I did was lay my 2 sentiments on one of the tags and got them just right and then placed my block on top of them to pick them up.  Stamp once on some scratch paper just to make sure they are aligned perfectly and you'll be set to stamp the whole lot.

Now its time to embellish with some ribbon.  I cut each piece of ribbon and string about 8" long.  This gives you plenty of fingering room and clipping room at the end.  Fold your ribbon in half and thread it through the FRONT of your tag.   I like the look of having my loop show on the front so its important to go from the FRONT and NOT THE BACK.

Pull through so you have a nice big loop at the back.

Then gather your ends and thread through the loop - front to back and adjust.

I thought about just leaving the box the way it is, but its so hard not to add a handle.  So handle it is.  I cut a strip of cardstock  that measures 8" x 3/4". 

I then just attached some Scor-tape to both sides.  The box isn't heavy so I opted for the tape versus brads.

I then got some buttons and attached them on the outside and a metal label.  I used a word processor to print my sentiment.

 

Here are the rest of the views

 

 

 

So Merry Christmas, just a tad bit early.  I won't be back until after sneak peeks... which are coming up super quick.  Come on back for lots of eye candy... you will love what you see.

Just a reminder that Cassie is hosting the Papercraft Planet Clear Dollar Stamps Color Challenge this weekend.  Make sure to stop by and play if you have time.

Thanks for spending time with us and have a great Friday and weekend.

This is Katie signing off for Clearly iStamp.

Stickles - Product Highlight

Hi everyone!  Its Katie here and I would like to welcome you to Clearly istamp on this fabulous Tuesday.  Today I'm going to feature a great little product that I love and that Lori has a plenty in the store.  I don't have nearly all the colors, but the ones I do have I love.

I thought I would share some of the ways that I like to use my Stickles.  Its really limitless, but there are certain "go to's" that I enjoy.

Well, first of all Stickles is a glitter glue, which means that it sticks (lol).  You've seen me do it before, but I love to use my stickles to glue clear embellishments to my projects.  I am a huge fan of clear buttons so you will often see them on many things that I make.

You do have to be patient with Stickles when you use them though.  It does take time for it to dry.  For buttons, I like to smear it around on the backside, but make sure you don't go all the way to the edges because when you place those buttons down, the glue does smash outwards.

The other nice thing about Stickles is that because it doesn't set right away, there is definitely plenty of time to fiddle with it.  In looking at this picture, I would definitely take the larger button and put more on the backside... not my best spread job.  Plus, since Stickles comes in so many colors, you get to see whatever shade you are using under the clear.

Another clear item I like to use my Stickles on are the acetate cut outs.  This flower below was cut with my George Cricut Cartridge using the clear Acetate sheets that you can find HERE.  You can also read about the acetate sheets that are available at the store HERE.  I placed my glue on the backside of my flower then flipped it over into place.

The stickles glue has a very nice tip that is very maneuverable and very easy to control.  In this case, I gently touched the tip of the Stickles tube to the clear flower and pushed the glitter glue where I wanted it.  Remember don't go all the way out to the edge.

After I flipped my flower over, I then got a darker color and added additional glue in the center of my flower.

Here is my finished card.

Another thing I like to do with stickles is to embellishment directly onto paper.  The only thing you have to be careful of is the thickness of your designer paper or cardstock.  Its so easy to jazz up any designer paper.  This particular piece is from the Basic Grey Collection (Porcelain)

Here's another example.  I used the Stardust to jazz up the circles.  Again, so super easy and very easy to control.  I like to squirt a little bit and then move with a circular motion outward as far as I want to go.  Again, using the tip as my tool.  Down towards the bottom, I used the Gold Stickles to add some bling to the star. 

Here's a close up where I used the Orange Peel.  Another cool component is that even though the stickles are colored you can still see traces of the color underneath.

And of course, Stickles are the perfect accompaniment to the numerous stamps available at Clear Dollar Stamps.  Here, I used a previous stamp of the month and added that perfect amount of sparkle.

So, if you are already a fan of stickles, make sure to head on over to the store and stock up!  But, if Stickles are new to you, stock up anyway (lol).  Seriously, these are wonderful embellishments that will add a lot of pizazz to your papercrafts.

Thanks for stopping by and have a great day today.

This is Katie signing off for Clearly iStamp.

A Favorite Box Tutorial

I'm sitting here trying to think of some new witty beginning to these tutorials and posts and unfortunately for me and/or fortunately for you, I just can't.  So, I'm here to welcome you back and hoping you are sitting and enjoying a nice respite.

Today, I'm sharing a little favor box tutorial with you that uses one of my all time favorite stamp sets from Clear Dollar Stamps.  I have featured the sets Too Sweet and You're So Sweet before, but I just had to use these sets again for today's project.  They were PERFECT for it.

This is a easy little favor box that you could use for just about any occasion you would like.  I can see it being used for a baby shower, birthday parties, or weddings.  The reason I used these 2 stamp sets is because they offered up a lot of different looks and they fit perfectly onto the wrap section of my box.  I love multi uses for stamps.  If you aren't familiar with this set, it is made to work as "nugget" covers.  Nuggets being the Hershey candy ones.

As you can see I've got both sets housed in a clear CD holder.  The only things I forgot in the picture are a couple of border punches that I used. 

For this favor box, you will need 2 pieces of cardstock. 

• Box: 6 1/4" x 5 3/4"
• Wrap: 7 1/4" x 2 1/4"

For the box, you want to score all 4 sides at 1" and 2".  Then fold on all the scored marks.

You'll want to cut all 4 corners like the one in the picture below.

I like to clip all my edges just a tad.  It makes for easier folding for me.

Now its time to apply adhesive and fold up.  It doesn't matter which sides you cut your slits, but it does matter which sides you fold up first.  Always fold up the sides that have the small flaps attached.

Then fold over the other flaps.

Now time for the wrap.  I wrote 2 different measurements on the photo below.  Its nice to know both measurements and then you can use both while you are scoring.

Remember that when you are using a Scor-Pal, you can adjust your piece of paper to get the required measurements without "measuring".

Time to stamp... the fun part :)  See how perfectly these stamps work.  They are all quite easy to line up and most importantly look fabulous.

Just fold on score marks.

At this point, you can pick whichever end to be your flap.  Then you'll just cut off a desired amount and either attach another piece of cardstock to it or finish the edge off by itself.

I cut off approximately 1/2"

In this case I used a Martha Stewart border punch and attached it to my top flap.

Apply adhesive to the sections labeled on the photo below.

Place the box onto the middle section of the wrap.

Then I just placed self adhesive velcro to create the closure.  I always place the velcro together (this one has been cut in half) then detach one cover and then attach.  I then detach the other cover and fold down and press.

Perfect placement every time.

I used another stamp from the stamp sets above and created a great label for the top of my box.  The ribbon is some thin Offray stuff that ties up so easily and is perfect for this little type of project.

I also have a tip for you.  I use tweezers a lot to center things.  You get a much better view this way versus trying to keep things even and straight around your hands.

Here is a picture of the box above and two others that I made.

I hope you enjoyed today's tutorial and I want to say thanks as always for spending your time with us at Clearly iStamp.

This is Katie signing off for Clearly iStamp

PS.  Don't forget that you've got until the 20th of July to use this code: SBJULY15 to get 15% off all Spellbinders Nestabilities.  Lori has new dies in the store now... so don't miss out!

Lets Dress up those Envelopes

Hi everyone!  Its Tuesday and its Katie here hoping you are having a great week and a great Tuesday so far.  Today, I wanted to show you how you can dress up some envelopes that are easy to get a hold of, but will fit some different sized cards.  I saw this idea a while ago from a fellow stamper friend (Kim) and she was kind enough to share it with me.

Generally, many of us tend to keep stock of the standard A2 (4 1/4" x 5 1/2') envelope and its pretty easy to find 5"x7" envelopes and its super easy to find small business envelopes, but what if you wanted to make a few 3"x3", 4"x4", or even 5"x5" envelopes?  Today I'll show you how.

Essentially all you need is any envelope you can find, some scrap designer paper which will probably come from leftovers from the card you were making and really that's about it.  You will not only get an envelope that fits your card, but you'll also get one that matches your card perfectly without a lot of fuss or muss!

I also wanted to mention that the first couple of cards and envelopes that I created are from a brand new Scrapbooking Line called Nikki Sivils Scrapbooker.  I mean BRAND NEW as in this is Nikki's very first line of scrapbooking paper.  If you like what you see, you can purchase it right from the store.

I won't go into a lot of detail about my cards, since its really the envelopes that I am focusing on.  Again... super easy.  This first card and envelope were made with the  My Sweet Cherry Pie line and I paired it with one of my favorite stamps (the cherry of course) from the newly released set called Tangy Trio.

I decided to make a 4x4 card and in order to make an envelope to fit it, I took the A2 standard envelope and licked it closed.  Then I took and cut off one edge of it.  Actually measure you envelope so you can make it square for the most part.  This particular envelope that I used measured approximately 4 3/8".

This is what your envelope will look like.

Then you'll want to get a circle punch of your choice.  The only criteria is that it will have to fit into the envelope slot in order to punch.

Now, you'll want to cut a piece of designer paper 4 3/8" x 3"

Score along the 3" side at 1", just one one side.

Now, its just a matter of folding and adhering the 1" side to the front of your cut envelope.  As you can see from my photo, I added another piece of cardstock to the end.  Your options are really limitless as to how you want to customize your own envelopes.

Here is a photo of the new envelope and card that I made.  I made a 4" square card, but you could easily make a 4 1/4" square card instead.

And a view of the back of the envelope and card.

Let's say you wanted to make a 5"x5" card and matching envelope.  Again, exact same steps as previously, except that you start with an envelope that fits a 5" x 7" card.  Remember, your envelope will be slightly bigger so make sure to measure the shorter side to get an accurate cut.

And your designer paper would measure something like 5 1/4" x 3".  Here is my example of card and envelope front.  For this card, I used another Nikki Sivils line called  Henry's Brilliance.  These papers come in 12x12 or the 6" pads.  For today's purposes, I used the 6x6 pads.

I'm so excited, because I have my oldest son's back to school card all ready.  I haven't figured out what I'm going to give along with it, but I love how it turned out.  I paired it with a stamp from this month's (JULY) stamp of the month that would normally get FREE with a $50 purchase, but you can get FREE with only a $35 purchase.  Its called Tag It and I love this little set and you will get lots of use out of it.  This is the only way you can get it and once July is over... say bye, bye.

Here are a couple of close ups for you.  I used the Quickie Glue pen to add a bit of fuzz to the owls' bellies.  Love this pen too!

And a close up of the tag stamp.  This one works perfectly with the cuttlebug die set called Sliders.

And finally, one last envelope to show you.  For this card, I cut a 3"x3" card and created an envelope for it by altering a small standard business envelope.  Lots of room to spare, so you can really layer it or make a slightly larger card for it.  The photo has the altered envelope as well as the original envelope.  I used scraps from my Basic Grey Urban Prairie.

And a sneak peek.  Look at that little crocheted flower.  It will soon be available in the store and is the perfect little layering piece.

These envelopes are super easy to customize and really add to the whole ensemble.  I did examples of square cards, but you really don't have too.  Your card could be any odd dimension as long as it will fit into your "new" envelope.  Imagine creating an envelope that would fit a 4x7 card by altering a legal sized envelope.  Again, limitless options.  

Well, again and as always... I know I sound like a broken record here, but thanks so much for stopping by and sharing your time at Clearly iStamp and enjoy the rest of your day!

This is Katie signing off for Clearly iStamp.

Let's Watercolor, but without the Brushes

Hi everyone.  Its Katie here and I'd like to welcome you to another fabulous Friday!  Where is the time going? And where is my summer?? The Pacific Northwest has been chilly and wet of late.  And talking about water....I've got a technique to share with you that I love.  If you'd like the look of watercolor without all the painting here you go :)

This is a simple technique and this is all you need:

• A mini mister
• Tombow Markers
• Ink Pad
• Stamps
• Designer Paper
• Cardstock

One of the best things I like about this technique is that you don't have to be so picky and precise.  I started out with a little Tulip Stamp that can be yours on your next shopping visit for only $1.00.  I also used 2 Tombow Markers... Lori has these available in both color sets and individually.

Just color up your sections of your stamp.  Remember that with your lighter inks and markers, it will barely show on your stamp, but its there.

Now you take a mini spritzer... which by the way are awesome to have on hand.  They spray very nicely and don't take up much space at all.  You get 3 in a package too.  Its good to play around and test your image with different amounts of water sprayed onto your stamp.

Then its just a matter of stamping you your cardstock.  Even though you are using water, you don't need watercolor paper.  All you need is regular carstock and you'll be fine.  Your image will also puff up your paper just a tad (not wrinkle) and actually leave a neat texture to the touch.

You've got a couple of choices here.

• Color, Spritz, Stamp --- repeat this cycle
• Color, Spritz, Stamp, Spritz again, and then Stamp ---repeat the cycle

All depends on the look you like.

Here's my card where I used my strip of "watercolor" stamped tulips.  I paired it with the paper from the Basic Grey (6x6) Porcelain Collection.  This paper has lots of designs that totally play off the watercolor look.  And another note here... Lori just added 12x12 packs of Basic Grey paper at the store... I find that the 12x12 is just as usable for cards as it is for scrapbooking.

The ribbon you can find HERE and the sentiment is from a set called Formal Sentiments.

Here is a sample of of some background paper that I created using Soil of Prayer.  Even though this stamp is much larger its still super easy and fast to color.  I colored the entire image with the pink marker and then just dabbed the areas with the green marker. 

 

Close up:

I have one more simple technique that you can use with your ink pad.  The only difference is that you ink up your stamp like normal on the ink pad *** the only limitation with this is that you are really limited to one color *** which is why the markers are nice to have.  Then just spritz with water.  The more water you have on the stamp the more "watered" and less defined your image will be. 

 

 

Here's a side by side example of a plain stamped image and a "watercolor" stamped image.

 

And here is a card that I made using this image.  Do you recognize the background?  Its one of the examples I made for Tuesday's tutorial... yeah love the fact that I could use it so quickly.  I did use a waterbrush and my ink from my pad and splattered onto my image.

I used a circle nestability and the small inverted circle nestability, Old Wagon Stamp Set, a small hole punch, jute string, double ended tags, and some eyelets.

Thanks as always for stopping by and spending your time here at Clearly iStamp.  I wish you a great Friday and weekend.

This is Katie signing off for Clearly iStamp.