Dannie's Designs

Flower Card

2012-01-23T11:06:15-08:00

I don't know what it is about this winter, but I haven't been sick like this in a long time. My kids come home with a small cold that just knocks me off my feet. They get better quickly and I'm miserable for weeks. Oh, the joys of parenthood!

Last week I made some time to sneak into my craft room and stamp. However, I felt so miserable that I didn't have the energy to post it on here until today.

The inspiration for this card came from page 18 of the Occasions Mini Catalog. It's the card on the left side. I don't have the Designer Printed Kit that's shown on that page so I made the flower with the Fun Flowers big shot die. You can't see it in the photo, but I sprayed the flower with Shimmer Spray.

This is the first time I've made a card where I layered cardstock tone on tone. I was so tempted to sponge around the edges of the sentiment so it would stand out from the background. I resisted the urge and instead I simply popped the sentiment up on a dimensional.

I finished the card off with some ribbon, some embossing on the Old Olive layer, and a butterfly. The Big Shot makes this card a breeze to make. Now I just need to make several more so I can send out birthday cards for next month. Thanks for stopping by!

Stamps: Sweet Cake
Paper: Bashful Blue, Old Olive, Not Quite Navy
Ink: Not Quite Navy
Accessories: Clear Rhinestone Brad, Dimensionals, Bashful Blue Ribbon, Shimmer Spray
Big Shot: Petals-a-Plenty Embossing Folder, Fun Flowers Die, Beautiful Wings Embosslit

Valentine's Pencil Topper

2012-01-13T07:29:00-08:00

Today I'm back to show you another one of my Valentine's Day creations. Besides treats, my kids also like giving pencils to their classmates. Rather than make cards and tape the pencils to them, I thought I'd make the pencil into a Valentine.

Here's a look at the front of the pencil topper. The scalloped heart is from the Scalloped Heart of Hearts Embosslit die. I stamped the heart image and then punched it out using the Full Heart Punch.

The other side of the pencil topper (it has a heart on both sides) has a place for them to write who the Valentine goes to.

I know you're going to ask, so I already made a tutorial for these pencil toppers. They are very easy to make.

Step 1: Cut a piece of cardstock 3/4" x 3". Score it at 3/4", 1 1/4", 2", and 2 1/2".

It's difficult to see the score lines in the photo above, so I traced over them in pencil for the photo below.

Step 2: Punch the small flower image (from the Itty Bitty Shapes Punch Pack) out of the second scored section. Add a piece of sticky strip to the last section.

Note: This flower punch was the best fit for the size of a pencil. A 1/4" circle punch is too small and the 3/8" circle punch is too big and the pencil topper falls off. The flower punch holds it snugly.

Step 3: Fold on the score lines and adhere it together using the Sticky Strip.

Step 4: Making sure that the punched out flower is at the bottom, adhere the hearts to the front and back of the pencil topper.

Step 5: Insert the pencil and it's done!

They are that simple to make. If you have any questions or would like to order supplies to make this, please don't hesitate to contact me. Thanks for stopping by!

Stamps: Loving Hearts, All Year Cheer II
Ink: Cherry Cobbler
Paper: Whisper White, Pink Pirouette
Accessories: Sticky Strip, Paper Scorer
Punches: Itty Bitty Shapes Punch Pack, Full Heart
Big Shot: Heart of Hearts Embosslit Die

Valentine's Treat

2012-01-10T13:26:02-08:00

I hope all of you had a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year. The holidays were really relaxing for me and I enjoyed the time my kids had off from school. It was nice not waking up to an alarm clock for a couple of weeks. They are now all back in school and I'm hoping I'll be able to return to my normal schedule. While I'm grateful for the time to myself during the day, that alarm clock sure does ring early!

I missed the opportunity to stamp many Christmas projects, so I thought I'd get an early start on Valentine's Day. I want to come up with something fun to stamp for all of the Valentine's that my kids have to take to school.

I used the Petal Cone Big Shot Die and folded it in half to make this treat pouch. I stamped the Blushing Bride cardstock with Blushing Bride ink using one of the flower images from the Mixed Bunch stamp set. The sentiment came from the Outlined Occasions stamp set that you can earn for FREE during Sale-a-bration (starting January 24th). I stamped it in Riding Hood Red ink and colored in the letters with Blushing Bride ink. It's difficult to see in the photo, but I finished off the scallops by poking holes in them with my paper piercing tool.

I designed this project with a sucker in mind. For some reason my kids don't feel like their Valentine's are complete without including a treat of some kind or at least a pencil. They're too funny.

I'm not sure if I will be making these for my kids, but this is prototype number one. I'll be making a few more and then letting them vote on which ones they want to make for their classes. I have a lot to make so it feels good to get a head start on this project. Thanks for stopping by!

Stamps: Mixed Bunch, Outlined Occasions
Paper: Riding Hood Red, Blushing Bride
Ink: Riding Hood Red, Blushing Bride
Accessories: Paper Piercer
Big Shot: Petal Cone

The Sweet Stop Christmas Card

2011-12-21T11:21:45-08:00

I've had a card stamped for a week now and I haven't had time to post it. How crazy is that? I don't want to rush the holidays, but it will be nice to have life slow down again.

I used this darling sketch from The Sweet Stop as my inspiration for my card.

I used the Christmas Lane Simply Scrappin' Kit for my card. The wreath was one of the die cuts from the kit. I ran both of the Cherry Cobbler pieces through the Big Shot using the polka dot embossing folder. Other than that, the card is very simple and easy to make.

I kept the inside very simple as well. I punched the top of the DSP with the Eyelet Border Punch. That's it! Thanks for stopping by!

Paper: Christmas Lane Simply Scrappin' Kit
Accessories: Whisper White Ribbon, Early Espresso Ribbon
Punches: 1 3/8" Circle, Eyelet Border
Big Shot: Polka Dot Embossing Folder

Wine Glass Charms

2011-12-13T12:59:56-08:00

Recently I helped host a Christmas party where we needed wine glass charms. Rather than buy charms, I decided to make them. I pulled out my Shrink Plastic, StazOn pads, and Christmas stamps and got to work.

I made 30 different charms, but I didn't get a chance to take pictures of them before they were used. Here's a basic tutorial on how to make them.

Step 1: Stamp the image in StazOn ink on Shrink Plastic.

As you can see by the image on the left, be careful when stamping because the plastic is very slick and the image may smear. Set it aside to dry completely.

Step 2: Once the image is completely dry, punch the image out. I used a 1 3/8" circle punch for this image.

Step 3: Using a 1/8" circle punch, punch a hole at the top of the charm.

Step 4: Take a pair of scissors and hold it barely above the image (see photo below) while you heat it with the Heat Tool.

The scissors do two things. One, it helps keep the plastic from blowing away when air from the heat tool hits it. Two, it helps keep the plastic from curling up on itself as it shrinks.

Step 5: Once the image is completely shrunk and it's still hot, press it firmly with a stamp block to flatten it. The plastic curls at it shrinks and this helps ensure that it's flat once it's done.

Step 6: Thread an earring hoop through the hole in the charm and put it on the stem of a wine glass.

These are very simple to make and everybody at the party loved them. If you have any questions, please feel free to let me know. Thanks for stopping by!

Stamps: Snow Swirled
Ink: Blazing Red StazOn
Accessories: Heat Tool, Scissors, Earring Hoops
Punches: Circle (1 3/8", 1/8")

Hello

2011-12-01T12:08:23-08:00

I apologize for disappearing for the whole month of November, but I have been very sick. This is the first time I've stepped into my stamp room in a month! My kids were sick and there were colds going around at work and I caught it from both sides. I was on the mend a week and a half ago and I caught something else on top of that. My voice is now back, the coughing is slowly going away, and I'm feeling much better. It's about time!

I'll be back with some fun stamping ideas to share. I just need to clean off my stamp desk first so there's room to work on the projects I have in mind. Thanks for stopping by!

Matchbox Messages

2011-11-02T14:14:41-07:00

I can't believe it's November already. Halloween is already over and it doesn't quite feel like the holidays yet to me. Maybe it's because of the really warm weather we've been having here lately. Whatever the reason, I hope it begins to feel more like fall and the holidays before Thanksgiving gets here!

As usual, I am in need of thank you cards so I sat down to make some today.

It's a very simple card yet it turned out really nice. It's difficult to see in the photo, but I added paper piercing in all of the scallops on the scalloped circle. The strip across the middle is a piece of wide Chocolate Chip grosgrain with a piece of thinner Whisper White grosgrain on top of that. The texture of the ribbon and the texture on the DSP go really nicely together.

I used a similar design for the inside of my card. I kept it simple so that the card would close and still lay flat. That's pretty much it. Thanks for stopping by!

Stamps: Matchbox Messages
Paper: Whisper White, Crumb Cake, Chocolate Chip, Baja Breeze, Parisian Breeze DSP
Ink: Baja Breeze
Accessories: Chocolate Chip Grosgrain, Whisper White Grosgrain, Dimensionals, Paper Piercer
Punches: Circle (1 1/4", 1 3/8"), Scallop Circle

Button Buddies 3x3

2011-10-26T11:11:02-07:00

Whenever I'm stuck in a stamping rut and can't figure out what to make, I usually will start with a little 3x3 card. They're easy to make and I can quickly make a card in a matter of a few minutes.

The flower comes from the Button Buddies stamp set. I love how all of the images in the stamp set was made to coordinate with buttons. This helps encourage me to actually use my buttons rather than hoard them. Such a novel concept, isn't it?

Now that I've had a few minutes to stamp, it's back to reality--cleaning house, running errands, and picking up kids. I hope you have a wonderful day today. Thanks for stopping by!

Stamps: Button Buddies
Paper: Early Espresso, Calypso Coral, Berry Blossoms DSP
Ink: Wisteria Wonder
Accessories: Linen Thread, Early Espresso Button
Punches: Eyelet Border

Quilled Flower

2011-10-19T08:51:00-07:00

After I posted my card yesterday, I sat back down at my stamp table and decided to try another card with a different punch. Here's what I came up with.

The paper that I used for the quilling measures 1/8" x 8 1/2". I wrapped each of them tightly around the end of my paper stylus and then let them uncurl before I glued them in place. It's a quick and easy project and the quilling adds so much interest to the card. Give it a try. Thanks for stopping by!

Stamps: Three Little Words
Paper: Whisper White, Bashful Blue, So Saffron
Ink: Bashful Blue
Accessories: Paper Stylus, Tombow Mono Multipurpose Adhesive
Punches: Fancy Flower

Quilled 3x3

2011-10-18T11:49:11-07:00

I was looking through my September 2011 Stampin' Success magazine (for Stampin' Up! demonstrators) and there was an article on paper quilling. One of the projects caught my eye and I had to give it a try.

The original card was standard size, but I decided to make mine into a little 3x3 card. I love how the swirls fit perfectly on the heart punch.

If you're looking for some directions and tips on how paper quill, click here to see a tutorial I wrote a few weeks ago. The paper that I used on the heart was 1/8" x 11". I folded the paper in half and then curled each end separately using the rounded end of my paper stylus.

I used Tombow Mono Multipurpose adhesive to hold the quilled piece in place. I made a small puddle of glue on a paper plate and then dipped the cardstock into it. I glued the "v" part of the heart in place first and then worked my way up towards the swirls at the top. I held the pieces in place with my fingers until the glue dried. It only took a few seconds.

If you have any questions on how I made this, please don't hesitate to ask. Thanks for stopping by!

Stamps: Three Little Words
Paper: Pretty in Pink, Real Red
Ink: Real Red
Accessories: Tombow Mono Multipurpose Adhesive, Paper Stylus
Punches: Full Heart