Tassel Time Graduation

It's graduation season and my absolutely favorite go-to set for graduation cards is Tassel Time. It's been retired for years, but it's still one of those classic sets I use over and over.

Details:

1. I stamped the cap image and the sentiment with versamark ink on basic black card stock and heat embossed it with silver embossing powder.
2. I die cut the main image using a banner framelit and added the brushed silver layer.
3. I dry embossed the white layer with the striped textured impressions embossing folder.
4. I added the arrow clip from the hung up cute clips assortment for that extra dimension that really makes the card pop.

I really love the way this card turned out. It's clean and simple and even a bit sophisticated. I stamped it for a high school graduation but it would work equally well for a college or graduate school graduation.

Recipe (all products Stampin' Up!):

Stamps: Tassel Time
Paper: Basic Black, Whisper White, Brushed Silver
Ink: Versamark
Accessories: Silver embossing powder, Banners framelits, Striped textured Impressions embossing folder, Hung up cute clips.

Throwback Thursday - Extreme Rock Star

For Throwback Thursday, I thought I'd post a card I stamped a few years back for my brother-in--law's birthday. He really is a rock star - or at least he plays one in his spare time on various stages across northern IL, IN and southwestern MI - so the card was pretty appropriate.













Recipe (All products Stampin' Up!)

Stamps: Extreme Guitar, Grunge Rock, A Little Somethin'
Paper: Early Espresso and Very Vanilla card stock, Spring Flowers and Well Worn DSP
Ink: Early Espresso, Dusty Durango
Accessories: dimensionals, large star punch, stampin' sponge

Another new beginning

Welcome back, dear readers!

It's hard to believe how much time has passed since my last post. When I made a decision to stop posting, I wasn't sure if I would ever resume. Most recently, though, I finished re-organizing my stamp room, which allowed me to experience the true joy of stamping all over again. Now that I might actually have things to share on a more regular basis, I decided to return to blogging.

My efforts won't be as frequent as they were when I was blogging regularly before and, since I'm no longer a Stampin' Up! demo, my projects will likely feature many retired Stampin' Up! products as well as some products from other companies (current and retired). Also, I make very little effort to keep up with latest trends, so the look and feel of my projects may be more "retro" than "fresh". Still, I hope some of you are as nostalgic as I am and will enjoy these blasts from the past.

If you like a particular project or are inspired by a post, please leave a comment. Your feedback is most welcome and appreciated.

The card I chose to share for this blog re-launch is one I stamped most recently - a birthday card for my hubby. Making cards for guys is always a challenge and this one took a bit of time to put together, but I'm quite happy with the results. Hubby liked it - Yay! - and I hope you will as well.

I'll post the recipe below the photo, but here are some specifics that may not be obvious from the recipe alone:

1. the size of this card is A7 (5'x7"), slightly larger than the more typical A2 (4.25'x5.5") format. 
2. the tools on the sentiment layer were stamped in basic gray ink on smoky slate card stock. I then used my snips for the extremely fussy cut (boy, I sure wish there were die cuts for this set) and attached them to the card with tiny pieces of dimensionals (think the leftover edges of your dimensional sheets cut into even smaller pieces). 
3. I inked up the "world's greatest" image using the kraft and chocolate chip markers
4. The cupcake image on the twill tab, added for a bit traditional birthday touch, was stamped with chocolate chip ink. 
5. Although the soft suede textured paper I used for the ruler didn't have a white core, I still used my sanding block on the raised part of the ruler to give it a "rougher" look. 
6. I used the distressing tool on the edges of the very vanilla sentiment layer. 

All products below are Stampin' Up! (current or retired) unless otherwise specified 

Card base: Neutrals (5x7 pack) by ms. sparkle & co (tm) 

Embossed Ivory layer: manila file folder by Casemate

Other card stock: Chocolate Chip, Kraft, Textured Soft Suade, Very Vanilla, Smoky Slate

Ink: Chocolate Chip, Basic Gray, Kraft

Tools and accessories: Dimensionals, Distressing Tool, Perfect Details Texture Plate, Twill ribbon (unknown manufacturer,) Lori Whitlock Ornate Labels Thinlits by Sizzix, Measuring Tape Embossing Folder by Sizzix, Silver mini square brads by Making Memories

Stamps: Guy Greetings, Rough Edges Mini Alphabet, Cross My Heart, Tool Shed (background)