Tuesday, November 5, 2024

Playing Along with Freshly Made Sketches & Sheetload of Cards

 


Hi Everyone,

Thanks for stopping in today for my double purpose of my project. I was creating this super cute card for the October Sheetload of Cards and it happens to fit perfectly for the current Freshly Made Sketches challenge for this week. It's so great like a buy one get one free promotion. 

At first when I saw the FMS #660 by Judy, I thought I needed to create a stunning center oval card. Guess what? I read the blog and it said elegant or cute, so I opted for the cute! 


The card layout for my project was also part of the #sheetloadofcards for October. I love downloading the sheetload of cards each month and creating with the sketch layout they have for the month. It's amazing how many variety of projects you can get with one sheetload template. The super cute fox is from Tracy Hey designs created with alpaca pals an organization that rescues alpacas. 


Don't forget to "dress up" the inside of your cards with a bit of DSP. I used the wonderful 6" x 6" Iconic Celebrations DSP pack. There are 48 sheets of many occasional double-sided papers to choose.


I guess you could say that my project today is like a buy one and get two free because my participants at my Stamp & Chat Saturday will be creating this card too. Be sure to check out all the wonderful projects crafters have uploaded for the FMS #660 sketch challenge. I hope you enjoyed my card today. It was so much fun creating with the super cute fox. Be sure to check out all the wonderful sheetload of cards too

Be sure to check out all the new releases that came out with Stampin' Up! today as well. There are 2 new Kits and many Online Exclusive releases to gobble up. You can shop and check out my stamping events too. 

Until Next Time...

Happy Stampin',

Mary Blocher
Mary's Stampin' Café

Sunday, October 13, 2024

Happy Birthday for Freshly Made Sketches

 


Hi Everyone,

I'm just in time to share a card for this past week's Freshly Made Sketches 657. The card I'm sharing is for a make-n-take at a crafting weekend I'm attending. I decided to have a few cards for anyone to create over that weekend coming up. I wanted to design it with the FMS 657 Challenge in mind.

If you follow my blog, you know that I love sketch layouts. It makes it so easy to create a card when the hard work of the design or layout is already done for you.



I love the way my card turned out! The Iconic Celebrations 6" x 6" DSP pack has great papers for so many occasions and seasons. 

Se sure to check out other creative projects over at the Freshly Made Sketch Blog. I love seeing what others have created. 


Until Next time...
Mary Blocher
Mary's Stampin' Café

Tuesday, October 8, 2024

12 Cards + a Bonus Project Double Wonder/One Sheet Wonder Recap


Hi Everyone,

I'm not sure how I managed to take this selfie and hold those 12 fabulous holiday cards from my Double Wonder/One Sheet Wonder Holiday Style class. Creating card classes is one of my favorite things in my stampin' Café. Yes, it can be a lot of work once you design the projects to prep, sort, and have class packets ready, but once everyone is together, all that hard work is all worth it. 




This Double Wonder class was the second one I designed. The first one was with the Frames & Flowers Specialty Mix and Math papers. It was a really nice class both in person and to go. This time, the A Little Bit Festive Specialty Mix & Math paper just blew me away and I knew right away that I wanted to create another Double Wonder class with it. What does Double Wonder mean? You choose 2 of the sheets of DSP. Then you cut them to 6" x 12". When you create your projects, you will put the two designs of the 6" x 12" together. This gives you lots of variety in patterns for your projects. 
The first two cards are the "book binded" cards. They open like a book. the "spine" is glued after the ribbon is run through to mimic a book.
The next set of 4 cards included these wonderful cards. Two pieces of -4" x 3" DSP were cut on the diagonal to get four triangles. From there is was just time to get creative. It was so easy with all the wonderful Mix & Match ephemera pieces. 
These cute cards were created using two pieces cut at 4" x 3" from the DSP. In a Double One Sheet Wonder class, you create multiple of the same design. I really wanted to show the versatility when creating cards. I also couldn't resist making a "stand up" card with the super cute bear.




The next two cards are part of section C from the template. These are Gatefold Cards. Gatefold is usually like a 2-sided gate that opens. these are "off set" Gatefold cards. Can you tell why?


The last two projects were created using the bits and pieces of DSP that were left.

It's really hard to pick favorites, but I really like this last card. It may be my favorite next to the "stand up" card. Which cards are your favorite? I wanted to include my layout for this Double One Sheet Wonder class that I designed. Feel free to try it out and create your own set of fabulous cards. 



Here we are after we created all 12 projects. Oh, I almost forgot the bonus project. I always include a bonus project in my specialy classes. This goodie bag uses one of the Mix and Match card layer pieces. We diecut out just part of it for this pretty tag. What's inside the bag? Peppermint Pattys of course.


One of the best things about this class is the creativity and fun that my friends had. Here are a few of their projects.


Brenda and Bry created two really great cards having fun putting their own creative spin on cards.



I was so glad when Pam used that cute stocking ephemera on her gatefold card. When designing this class, I just couldn't make it work.


Julie really enjoyed going through all the parts and pieces of the Mix and Match pieces. Everyone who participated received a stamp case to store all those pieces. Both of the cards are ones that she created. I like that her gatefold card is horizontal.





Wow, that was quite a full blog of fun and creativity! I hope you enjoy all the projects I am sharing. Try out the Double Wonder One Sheet wonder template. Share your creations or let me know how it all worked out for you. Interested in my classes and events? Check out my website for opportunities. 

If you are hoping to use the A Little Bit Festive 12" x 12" Specialty Mix & Match papers, well it's unavailable right now. The paper is estimated to be back October 14th. I'm going to be giving away a package of the paper, so be sure to comment on my blog and let me know which card (s) you like best. One lucky winner will be chosen on October 12th. 

Until Next Time..
Happy Stampin',
Mary Blocher
Mary's Stampin' Café




















 

Monday, September 16, 2024

It's Time to Play with Freshly Made Sketches

 


Hi Everyone,

Thanks for stopping in today. It's another sketch challenge with Freshly Made Sketches. This week the theme is all ab out the sentiments. I just love how my card turned out!


I was inspired to create with the A Little Bit Festive 12" x 12" Mix & Match Specialty paper. I'm planning a Double One Sheet Wonder class that uses this fabulous collection of DSP and ephemera. the FMS653 works perfectly for this. I absolutely love the Christmas Labels Bundle!


I decided to create a book binded card for this sketch challenge. It resembles one of the projects for my specialty class. You can still register and take part in my class. You can check out the details, but hurry! Registration ends on September 20th. The pointsettia is such a beauty! It is one of the many ephemera pieces you get in the A Little Bit Festive specialty paper pack. 


Did you notice the fine cut details of the Christmas Labels die? These cuts give so much depth to the label.


I always finish the inside of my cards to continue what's on the front of the card. "Season's Greetings" is from the Christmas Sentiments Stamp set. 

If you haven't created using the Freshly Made Sketches, you should really try them out. I really enjoy creating with them. You can see many samples from other crafters too. 


Thanks again for stopping in. Let me know what you think of my sketch. I'd love to connect. 

Until Next Time...

Happy Stampin'
Mary Blocher













Saturday, September 14, 2024

A FREE Mystery Bag Full of Stampin' Up! Retired Products Waiting for You!

 


Hi Everyone,

You stopped in at the right time! Beginning today and through the rest of September, when you purchase $50 from me or my online store, I will send you a FREE mystery bag of Stampin' Up! products valued at $50 or more! Before you hop on over to my online store, be sure to read the details to be sure you will get a FREE mystery bag valued at $50 or double and triple of that value.


WHEN: September 14th - 30th

WHAT: Place a minimum $50 order through my online store. Use the Hostess Code: Use the Hostess Code to qualify, HDRGCTCU or use this link to shop: https://www.stampinup.com/?hostcode=HDRGCTCU

When you shop with me and the Hostess Code, I will package a FREE mystery bag full of Stampin' Up! products. These are retired products which are new and used mix of products. You could receive: ($50 FREE product)
  • Stamp Sets
  • Die-cuts
  • Cardstock
  • Designer Series and Specialty Papers
  • Memory and More
  • Paper Pumpkin kits
  • Coloring tools
  • Embossing folders
  • preprinted cards and envelopes
  • packaging products
  • ribbon and embellishments
  • Ink pads and refills
  • .........

When putting these FREE mystery bags together, you can see that I try to coordinate products that can work together easily for instant crafting.

HOW: Simply Place an order using this link: https://www.stampinup.com/?hostcode=HDRGCTCU The Hostess Code is attached to this link. If you shop without this code, be sure to put the Hostess Code HDRGCTCU at check out. This alerts me that you want a FREE mystery bag. BUT WAIT!

  • Place a $50 order before shipping and tax = $50+ FREE mystery bag
  • Place a $100 order before shipping and tax = $100 FREE mystery bag
  • Place a $150 order before shipping and tax = $150 FREE mystery box (don't use the hostess code because you will earn hostess dollars, but I will still send you FREE mystery bags. 
  • Be sure to order by September 30th to qualify. 
  • U.S. Customers only

What to shop for: There are some things that I would like to suggest you order to add to your crafting stash.

Paper Pumpkin 3-Month Pre-Paid Subscription

Kits by Stampin' UP!

Scrapbooking Products

September-December Mini Catalog (Give Back to Reading)

Thanks again for stopping in. I hope you are as excited for this promotion I have for you this month. I love all my Stampin' Up! products. It's time for some cleaning up and you are going to benefit. 

Until next time...
Happy Stampin'

Mary Blocher
Mary's Stampin' Café







Sunday, September 1, 2024

Sharing my August Sheetload of Cards from Call Me Crafty Al

 


Hi Everyone,

Thanks for stopping in. Yes, I'm here for another sketch. You know I just love sketches to help me create. don't get me wrong, I love to create, but sketches really help take away a bit of the time it takes to come out with a layout. I just love the monthly SheetLoad of Cards by Crafty Al. Every month, these sketch tutorials are shared on YouTube. You can download the SheetLoad template for FREE too. That's a plus for sure. Crafty Al also shares more videos during the month sharing tips and other creators projects. You can search #sheetloadofcards too for more ideas. 


This is my sheetload of cards. The tutorial was for 8 cards. I ended up with 12 cards, because I wanted to keep the large floral patten patten in the background, so I altered the supplies a little bit. That's what's great about the Sheetload of cards each month. You can use them as a jumping off point to your creating. 


I loved using the Creative Memories/Stampin' Up! July-August release called Secret Garden. I purchased the Paper Pack and the Secret Garden Cardmaking workshop kit. This gave me lots of that gorgeous pattern paper. Can you see the difference between these two cards? I think to look at them quickly, you might not notice. Comment and let me know what you notice.


 



Something was interesting when I was creating these cards. the color pallete was so soft. I pulled out some retired Stampin' Up! colors for these cards. I used Evening Evergreen and So Saffron. These colors worked perfectly with the Secret Garden papers. 


I hope you liked my projects today. I wanted to let you know that there are many more scrapbooking kits and paper packs you will be able to purchase beginning September 4th. With the closing of CTMH and many Makers joining Stampin' Up! an expanded scrabooking option is evolving. Be sure to check out all the wonderful new scrapbooking products. September 4th also brings two new kits to the Online Exclusives, and the release of the September-December 2024 Mini catalog goes live as well. 

Wow, what a perfect time to get your holiday crafting needs startred. 

Thanks again for stopping in. Be sure to check out more Sheetload of Cards. The September one has just released. It's a slimline card. I've already downloaded my template. You can too by going to the September SheetLoad of Cards You Tube video release

Until Next Time...

Happy Stampin',
Mary Blocher
Mary's Stampin' Café