Rich and I went to the Stamp and Scrapbook Expo in Akron, Ohio, and the Stamplistic booth had a terrific make and take….I had to give it a try. You can do this same technique with a Mandala, as an fyi.
Starting with four identical stamped images on different colors of cardstock, you’ll need to cut the design out. The first image you’ll cut out the full image, then the next, you’ll cut out portions of the image, then next you cut even more of the design, and finally, the center is all you’ll leave behind. If you’ve cut too much off the edges of the image, take a black Sharpie (or any black marker) and go around the outside of the image to make sure the black lines are all visible. Put foam squares under the layers and attach them to each other..they used black foam squares and showed how they appear as a shadow vs white ones, that you can definitely see between the layers…Once all four pieces are attached, you’ll use a glue pen, (I used a Quickie glue pen..link http://tinyurl.com/yaovexyb) You’ll use the glue pen for any section of the design that you’d like to have glitter on..The Quickie glue pen goes on blue and dries clear, so you’ll wait for it to dry before adding glitter. They sell a glitter brush called a Sparkle Sweeper, here’s the link: http://tinyurl.com/y9yyvqbc (I found it to be too big for me.)
They also sell a tool to pick up small embellishments called a Crystal Katana and here’s the link: http://tinyurl.com/ydhejh56   I’m going to be doing a comparison of a bunch of embellishment pickers in the near future, so you might want to wait for that before buying a tool for this.
I used Glossy Accents to adhere the crystals…They use Swarovski crystals and here’s the link to theirs. http://tinyurl.com/ybdqjeqe
The stamp I used for the make n’ take is called the Echo Mini and here’s the link to it: http://tinyurl.com/y7vr8ghh
After I got home, I decided to turn my make n’ take into a card and used a blue mirrored card stock from Crafter’s Companion that I bought on HSN.com.  I used an embossing folder called Batik Floral from Cuttlebug and Anna Griffin and ran it through the Vagabond. I cut some black fun foam to go between my layers and used wet glue to adhere the black foam to the back of the embossed blue layer. I wanted to use ribbon on my card, but didn’t have the right color green to match, so I took a green ribbon, and the right color green Spectrum Noir alcohol marker, and colored the ribbon to match the bottom layer of the make ‘n take…It’s a great way to make your ribbon stash go a lot further…
One of my crystals had fallen off the make n’ take, so I had to improvise…I took a crystal from a set I’d bought from Aliexpress that was clear, and colored that with an alcohol marker. Here’s a link to the crystals.. http://tinyurl.com/y92slanu
I added the green ribbon near the bottom of the embossed image, and glued it to the back of the foam, and added a knot to the front…I used a sentiment from Inky Antics called Simple Sentiments for the inside of the card. I used Gina K’s black amalgam ink for the sentiment. Here’s the link: http://tinyurl.com/ycjf6eaf
My initial take on the amalgam ink is that it’s very juicy and you need to be very gentle while inking, otherwise you over-ink…Otherwise, I liked the ink.
The new tape runner I am using is from Amazon and it’s from Plus corporation, here’s the link: http://tinyurl.com/yby36suc The initial runner is almost $8, but I bought 10 refills for $17.99 and here’s the link to them: http://tinyurl.com/yavksfwj I decided that buying eleven total tape runners for $26 wasn’t a bad deal.
I got some ink on the bottom of the card, so used my Tombow sand eraser to take it off…You can find these in most craft stores, and here’s a link to them. http://tinyurl.com/ybbtw8t3.  I used the stamp I had made at Stampanda for the back of the card.

I got really excited about a felt covered pumpkin that I saw on a recent visit to our Joann’s.  Here’s a link to the one I saw.  http://tinyurl.com/y9r4fhul

Last year after Halloween, I bought a couple of pumpkins..One is foam and the other is made out of a paper mache type material.  So today I decided to put my plans into action for the pumpkins and make them into something that will match my kitchen decor…The paper mache pumpkin was too hard to poke anything through.  I hadn’t anticipated this problem, as I thought I could push thumb tacks into it.  Since I couldn’t do that, I resorted to plan B, using Dollar Tree pearls that come already attached to each other in a long row.  I used two packs of the pearls to completely surround my pumpkin with two rows of pearls per pumpkin segment.  I had no idea what to call the parts of a pumpkin and would love to know how other people describe these segments…I feel pretty foolish when I’m describing it, and need to do some research into proper pumpkin terminology, so here it is.  The anatomy of a pumpkin….I had no idea….but now we know the segments I refer to, is called a rib.   http://www.pumpkinnook.com/facts/anatomy.htm

I’ve learned so much from having a YouTube channel, and now you know everything you’d ever need to know about a pumpkin…

I can’t wait to finish my pumpkins, so you’ll see the creative ways I’ve found to make my pumpkins look inspired..

Rich and I went to the Stamp and Scrapbook Expo in Akron, Ohio, and we got to watch Georgia from Art Impressions create a watercolor scene with Marvy LaPlume Watercolor Markers. You can use any kind of water based marker for this technique.
I apologize for the shaky image, as we were holding the camera for the entire demonstration (and it wasn’t easy to do…)
She talks you through the process…Unfortunately, I wasn’t able to get the entire process on video, as the last portion is way too blurry.

We went out to lunch and to a movie with friends today…We saw “A Star is Born,” and I thought the music was great, but the movie depressing.  Sometimes when you know a movie from the Barbara Streisand/Kris Kristofferson (I probably spelled his name wrong), genre, you’re hoping they change the ending so it’s not the same, but sadly, it was.

After the movie, Rich turned me loose in A.C. Moore, a craft store for those of you who might not know it, and he went to Barnes and Nobles.  He loves magazines on photography, and you know I love all things crafty.  I bought a few things that I needed for some upcoming projects, and found most of them there.  I had just heard about a Mod Podge that is dishwasher safe, and boy is that hard to find.  I wonder if it’s being discontinued, because I checked all of the craft stores in Erie, and there wasn’t a bottle to be found.  So I came home and found it at Target.com for under $4, so I’m still thinking it’s not going to be around for a long time to come.  I saw a video where a woman used regular Mod Podge and created a cute Christmas plate for cookies, and I thought it would be a nice gift (with cookies on it of course.) but didn’t think it was smart to use regular Mod Podge, as you’d wash it once, and whatever you’d glued to it, would wash off….So I did a little research and found the dishwasher safe Mod Podge, and the project is back on…

Did I mention the card I almost finished last night?  It is shaped like a house (with no roof) and folds flat, but I made it so I could put lights inside so you can look in the window…I thought I was finished, but it has a window box, and I think it needs a little pop of color, so I’m going to add flowers to it tomorrow, in 3-d of course, and I need to look through my stamps for the word “Welcome,” as I thought it would be the perfect touch for the front…I’m not sure what the card can be used for (other than someone whose got a new home,) but I like the idea of putting something on the front.  I also should probably put a spot on the back where I can write, like I would for any other card.  It looks great right now, but it definitely is missing some greeting card essentials…a sentiment and a space to write…other than that, I think people will want to make one for themselves….it wasn’t hard to do, and is so darn cute when it’s lit.

Rich and I went to the Stamp and Scrapbook Expo in Akron, Ohio, last weekend. I wanted to share the fun things I bought there.

Rubbernecker Stamps They’re having a sale right now online, so you can find these stamps at reduced prices..
First Dance: Link http://tinyurl.com/yc8c4mna
Merry Christmas Frame: Link: http://tinyurl.com/y8knbvuw

Gina K Amalgam Black Ink: Link: http://tinyurl.com/y9b8zj6k

Stamplistic Booth
Frankie: Link: http://tinyurl.com/y9zqtr95
Stampendous Jumbo Cling Lilac Link: http://tinyurl.com/y9hmaotc

Sparkle & Sprinkle
Ember Glitter G1034 Link: http://tinyurl.com/y6v6z2tv
Midnight Madness Embossing Powder EP252 Link: http://tinyurl.com/y8ptev5b
Stampendous Bare Trees Stencil #DWLJ849 Link: http://tinyurl.com/yc72y8aj

 

I wanted to say thank you to all of my subscribers for being so wonderful….. To do that, I’m going to give away the Halloween album I just made…In order to win, all you need to do is leave a comment below the video, that includes your email address (so I can contact you if you are the winner.) Your comment needs to be posted by midnight of October 15th, 2018. A random comment will be selected as the winner. Thanks again for making my channel grow and for being such a great audience…..

When we went to the Stamp and Scrapbook Expo, I did a “make and take.”  If you aren’t familiar with that term (I had no idea what it was until I attended a stamp show,) you pay a fee, sit at a particular booth, and make whatever they have pre-determined.  In my case, I went to Stamplistic’s booth, and made a 3-d make and take that was fun and glittery.  When I got home, I decided to turn it into a card, so made it today.  I was also given an image made for me at Sprinkle & Sparkle, and made that into a card as well.  Unfortunately, I needed two sympathy cards and I liked the idea of making a sympathy card that was simple and pretty.

I also worked on the final steps for Rich’s card video.  The make and take I did involved a stamp that reminded me of a Mandala.  I thought it would be an easy card for Rich to make once I showed how to decide what to cut, and how to do it.  Since we’ll be including a link to a free file for you to use, you won’t have to buy your own stamp to do this.  If you have a book of Mandalas, you can pick out one of those and from my directions, figure out how to make your own as well.  If you aren’t familiar with Mandalas and are over the age of forty-five, you probably remember Spiro-Graph from when you were a kid.  A Mandala reminds me of the results we got from a Spiro-Graph…OK, the results remind me of what our results should have looked like….the picture on the box lid..  I never had great results, as my pen never stayed in the spot it was supposed to, and I didn’t have the patience to do it slowly, in order to keep the pen where it was intended.

We’ll be putting up the giveaway for the Halloween album, and I hope someone wants it…I wouldn’t be surprised if only a few people are interested in winning it, as fewer and fewer people celebrate Halloween, or dressing their kids for it.  When we were kids, our costumes were pretty pathetic, and we went as hobos fairly consistently.  I love how people buy their costumes now….in our day, if a costume was purchased, it was a plastic mask that was really hot, you couldn’t see out of the tiny holes, and it never stayed where it was intended…The good old days. haha..

 

I am finally getting the videos I made at the Stamp and Scrapbook Expo organized and ready for Rich to upload.  I think we have four or five, plus the haul, and now the giveaway for the Halloween album.  I’m excited about that, and hope we have some viewers who would love to have it, as I want to make sure it goes to a good home.

As for the rest of my day, I worked in the yard and burned some branches (OK, twigs) that had fallen in the last storm we had last week.  I’m not sure what happens when I do things like that, but my face turns almost purple and stays that way for hours…And I must grit my teeth while doing it, as my jaw hurts so much I have to put Salon Pas pads on both sides.  I think I’m completely out of shape when I do just a small amount of yard work, and should show a video so you can see the color of my face for yourself.  This is the first time Rich has actually been concerned with the color, as I think he’s worried I might have a stroke…I really hope that’s not the case, but until you see how red my face is, you really can’t imagine the color…

I had a terrific time at the stamp show.  We weren’t there ten minutes before a woman pulled me aside and asked if I have a YouTube channel, and to tell me how much she enjoys it.  It fills my heart with so much happiness whenever I talk to someone who truly enjoys the channel…and Rich is happy too.  We never expected to grow the channel to the point that someone would recognize me, but we’re so happy that it’s grown to where it is today.

I video taped several demonstrations and one woman, in particular, was really impressive.  She used a lot of different Tonic products, and I learned a lot from her.   Don’t worry, we’ve got at least two, maybe three videos where she demonstrates them and one I’d never seen before.  They are making a watercolor shimmer powder similar to Ken Oliver’s Color Bursts.  I’m seriously considering buying them and using them like a watercolor in a palette.  I don’t like using them like most crafters do, where they squirt the powder onto paper and then wet it to see what they get.  I know I’ll make a mess if I attempt that…My thought is to put some in a palette, wet it, and then brush it onto a surface.  I’m trying to talk myself out of buying them, but I wanted the Ken Oliver ones, and they don’t have sparkle, but these do….decisions, decisions…..

We watched a woman who represents Art Impressions who does watercolors with their stamps and markers.  Honestly, she’s a true artist, even signs and dates her images…But unfortunately, Rich held the camera for the first three-quarters of her watercoloring, and when I took over, I couldn’t get the camera to focus, so the last part, the most important part, is too blurry.  I hate it when my camera won’t focus, as it completely ruins the video….darn it.

And lastly, we found an idea at the stamp show for Rich’s Christmas card…The vendor did a “make and take” where you pay them $3 and they show you how to do a technique.  They sell stamps that look very similar to a Mandala.  They give you four of the same image on different colors of card stock.  Then they have you cut out different parts of the image on each color card stock and then put glitter and crystals on the finished image.  I liked the idea, but didn’t want viewers to have to buy their stamp to make it.  I knew I had a coloring book with simple Mandalas, and found one that I think will work for this…So I cut it out and made copies, and tomorrow, I think Rich is going to make his first video.  It should be a lot of fun…

I finally mailed my thinking of you week cards.  It only took me an additional week to mail them.  I wonder if that happens to anyone else?  I will make several cards, and address them, but getting them in the mail…I put it off as long as possible.  I think it’s because I have to take them to the post office to see if they are too thick to be sent with a regular stamp.  If I didn’t have to do that, I would be much quicker with my mailing time.

Tomorrow is a big day..(OK, not for Rich.)  We’re going to a rubber stamp show in Akron, Ohio, and I’m hoping it’s going to be a lot of fun.  I’d like to say that I don’t plan on buying anything, but you know I’ll find so many great things, and will definitely need to buy something.  (Probably more than one something.)

It will give us a chance to make another road trip video.  And you’ll get to see the beard Rich is growing.  I’m not exactly sure what he’s thinking, but he’s definitely into the idea of growing one.  Today he said he’s not going to be on camera tomorrow, and I’m wondering if he’s afraid he’ll get comments about the beard.  I’ll get a big kick out of it if we do.