~ Tips and Craft Samples ~ More CARDS, TIPS, CUSTOMER'S CRAFTS, CONTESTS, NEW STAMP UPDATES, AND MORE FUN STUFF CAN BE FOUND ON OUR BLOG!! CHECK IT OUT!!! If you would like to have one of your cards, (that you have made with our stamps), posted on our BLOG, email it to us in jpeg file - with your name and an explanation of how you made it. Thanks!! |
| Western Valentine The stamps on this card are Paisley Background - N235I, Paisley - J286C, Paisley Heart - M163E, and Cowboy Boots - J365F. What I did was cut a piece of pink card stock to size. I stamped it with the paisley backgd in pink dye ink. Then I stamped the paisley over the top with green dye ink. I then stamped the paisley hearts, and boots on pink card stock with art print brown, and ripped them out. Then I brushed them with a sponge covered in art print brown dye ink. I cut brown and green card stock squares, and double stick taped all that together. Then I taped the boots onto a paper doiley, and then taped that on to the card. TIP: Our paisley background and paisley design together makes a perfect Western card. Similar to a Bandana! |
| Retro Bold Reindeer - Christmas Card The stamps on this card are Snowflake 4 - J368B, Snowflake 5 - J391B, and Retro Bold Reindeer - J380M. What I did was cut a piece of white card stock to size. Then I stamped the Snowflake images directly onto the card stock, with one color of purple dye ink. To get the lighter color of purple, I stamped off the Snowflake 5 first then restamped it on the card. I then stamped the Retro Bold Reindeer image on a piece of lavender card stock, with white pigment ink and then sprinkled it with PSX sparkle bridal embossing powder. I heat set this with a heat gun. Then I cut around the shape of the reindeer and laid it onto the card with double stick tape. TIP: "Stamp off" your image on another piece of paper first, then restamp it on your card, with all different colors of dark ink, and see the results you get! Your colors will always be in the same family and you get more use out of one ink pad! Also: To make a quick retro Christmas card, use our Bold Christmas designs. These, along with a few of your other favorite stamps as a background, will make fast cards for your friends and family this year! |
| Retro Happy Anniversary Card The stamps on this card are Bathing Beauty - J354F, Mod Circle Border - J367H, Retro Star Background - J404F, and Happy Anniversary - J367E. What I did was cut a piece of white card stock to size. Then I stamped the Bathing Beauty, and Happy Anniversary images on a piece of pink card stock, with brown dye ink. I then cut them into a square and from there, sized a piece of green card stock and brown card stock to the size that would frame each image. I brushed the edges on the pink papers with art print brown dye ink and colored the girl with markers, then laid them aside. I then stamped the Star Background on the main card stock, with green dye ink; and the Mod Circle Border with brown dye ink. I laid the pink, green and brown pieces together and double stick taped them. Then I taped that to the card. Voila! TIP: To make a quick retro card, use our backgrounds and borders. These, along with a few of your other favorite stamps as a centerpiece, set the retro theme quite nicely. |
| Retro Happy Birthday Card Most of these stamps can be found on our New Page of Rubber Stamp Designs. They are Mod Flowers - J356G, Retro Flowers - J363E, Happy Birthday Cake - J373F, and Retro Design - J301B. What I did was cut a piece of white card stock to size. Then I stamped the Birthday Cake image on a piece of yellow card stock, with brown dye ink. I then cut it into a square and from there, sized a piece of blue card stock and green card stock to the size I liked. I then stamped the Mod Flowers around the edge of the yellow card stock, with orange dye ink. I brushed the edges with art print brown dye ink and laid it aside. Then I stamped the green card stock with the retro design, in green, and brushed the edges with the same green dye ink. I stamped the blue card stock with the retro flowers, and then brushed the edges of it with the same blue dye ink. I stamped the card with layers of mod flowers, retro flowers and retro design, accordingly. I used the same dye inks that I used previously to stamp the small pieces of card stock. I then brushed the edges of the card with orange dye ink. I laid the smaller pieces together and double stick taped them. Then I taped that to the card. Voila! TIP: Stamping with the same color of ink on the same color of paper makes a nice subtle effect. It decorates your card simply, which goes with the whole retro thing, and also makes the paper look like you bought it that way. (Even if it doesn't show up too well in the scan!) :) |
| Swank Summer (Open Up) Tiki Card Most of these stamps can be found on the Hawaiian Polynesian Surf and Tikis Page. They are Palm Trees and Boat - J317Q, Wahine Nouveau - J311H, Tiki Torch - J256E, and Oliver Tiki - N321J. The Leopard Print Design - J245F, can be found on the Backgrounds Scenery and Borders Page, and the Hand Stamped By - J242B, can be found on the Words Phrases and Miscellaneous Page. This card was a lot of fun to make! I first cut my beige card stock into a long strip as tall as the tiki. Approximately 3 3/4"tall by 11". I then stamped the palm trees and boat, in art print brown dye ink, directly onto the far right side of the strip of paper. I folded it right along the edge of the palm tree stamp, creating a 3 3/4" square. Then working to the left, I folded it again so that I could have a remaining piece to stamp the tiki on. I stamped him directly onto the paper in art print brown dye ink. Then I stamped my hand stamped by on what would be the back of the card. (See example above.) After coloring the palm tree and the tiki with markers and blender pen, I flipped the card over and stamped the leopard print design, in baby blue dye ink, on the inside of the card. Then, turning the card back over, I cut along the left edge of the tiki, so when I fold the card together, he rests right on top of the palm tree and boat stamp. (See closed card sample above.) Then I stamped the Wahine Nouveau Stamp and the Tiki Torch on another piece of beige card stock. I colored them also with markers and blender pen and then cut them out. I mounted them onto the inside of the card with double stick tape. Tip: Even if you don't like the stamps I used, you can still make this same card with a new style. For instance, try stamping our Wave and Sun - J244P - rubber stamp in place of the Palm Tree and Boat. Then instead of the Tiki, stamp our Surfer Rosa - J249G - rubber stamp along the bottom right and cut along her right side. Reverse the card, stamping the wave on the left side of the card and the surfer girl on the right. Or try this card with our Juke Box - J335L - rubber stamp in place of the Palm Trees, and our Mod Girl with a Purse - J325N - rubber stamp in place of the Tiki. Be creative and have fun!! |
| Happy Birthday Hawaiian Card The stamps on this card are our Tiki Carving - J419M, Retro Flowers - J363E, Happy Birthday Cake - J373F, Stylized Palm Tree - J415L, Ukulele Wahine - J403J, and Polynesian Print Background - J377M. What I did was cut a piece of white card stock to size. I stamped the background all over with grass green dye ink. Then on another sheet of white card stock I stamped the tiki, retro flowers, cake, palm tree, and Wahine in art print brown dye ink. I then colored them with blender pen, various other ink pads and markers. I cut these out and then adhered them to the card with mounting tape to give it a popped up look. TIP: To give your art more color, instead of trying to work out a color scheme to stamp with different ink pads, use your colors in the shading and coloring of your stamped images. Highlights and lighted edges (where the imaginary sun would hit) are warm tones like yellows, oranges, and reds; and shady or unlit areas are cool tones like blues, purples and greens. Have fun and experiment for even more color! |
| Father's Day Barbecue Card The stamps on this card are our Hamburger - J123C, Hot Dog - J122C, Hot Rod Flames, BBQ Spatula - 467D, BBQ Fork - 465D, and Retro BBQ - 468G. What I did first was cut a piece of white card stock to size. I stamped the hot dog, hamburger and flames on the background with art print brown and yellow dye ink. Then on another sheet of yellow card stock I stamped the bbq stuff with black dye ink. I then colored them with blender pen and markers. I cut these out with a scalloped edge pair of scissors, and then punched holes in each scallop. I brushed the edges with art print brown dye ink, and then double stick taped these to more card stock, the bbq on orange and the utensils directly on the red. I cut around these and added the bbq to a piece of red card stock. I then taped them to the card. TIP: Try this scalloped edge look, it's pretty easy and fun! |
| Happy Birthday Cowgirl Card The stamps on this card are our Happy Birthday Cake - J373F, Cowgirl with Gun - J413J, Retro Leaf - J297B, and Retro Tiki Design - J299C. What I did first was cut a piece of white card stock to size. I stamped the background in grass green and blue dye ink with a couple of stamps I made out of rubber scraps. I then stamped the retro designs over that with art print brown dye ink. Then on another sheet of orange card stock, I stamped the cake and cowgirl with art print brown dye ink. I cut the edges of this rounded and brushed them with brown ink. I then taped these to a piece of brown card stock, which I also cut rounded and brushed with brown ink. I taped the ribbon to the card and then taped the cowgirl and cake on top of that. TIP: Choose your ribbon first. If you are stumped about what colors to make a card, pick out your ribbon and go from there. It will always liven up your color scheme and get you to use colors you might have not thought of! :) |
| Retro Tiki Tiles Card This is our Retro Tiki Tiles card. All of these stamps can be found on our 50's - 70's Retro and Mod Page, and the Flowers, Plants, Animals, and Bugs Page. They are Bamboo Branches - J302C, 50's Tiki Tile - J282D, Retro Star Design - J296C, Retro Design - J301B, Retro Flower Design - J260B, Mod Flower - J266B, Retro Tiki Design - J299C, 50's Squiggle Tile - J295E, Atomic Design - J300C, Retro Sparkle Star - J298C, and Retro Leaf - J297B. What I did was cut a piece of white card stock to card size. I then sponged it heavily with Art Print Brown Memories Ink. I set this aside and then stamped all of the images on white card stock with art print brown. I colored each of them with markers and then cut them into little squares and rectangles. I sponged the outside edges of each one with art print brown. I then painted each one with clear pigment ink. I sprinkled each one with Glaze Embossing Enamel (any clear embossing powder will do), and heated each one. (By doing this, each little square looks and feels like a tile.) Then I double stick taped each tile onto my card. Tip: When embossing a large amount of stuff, do each step separately. Meaning - ink one, sprinkle with powder, set aside, ink the next one, sprinkle with powder, set aside, etc. Then you can heat each one together, but by sprinkling each with powder right away, your ink doesn't dry. Also, if you set your stamp down on a pad of baby wipes, the ink won't dry to your stamp while you are sprinkling. :) |
| Beatnik Kids Cards These are our Beatnik kids cards. They are stamped with the "Retro Wave Design" - J326B, "Retro Polynesian Design" - J343C, "Retro Star Line Design" - J341C, "Mod Circles" - J345B, "50's Squiggle Tile" - J295E, "Retro Star" - N71C, "50's Tiki Tile" - J282D, "Retro Flower Design" - J260B, "Mod Flower" - J266B, "Mod Leaf" - J263B, and "Movie Star Glasses" - J38A- all found on the 50's - 70's Retro and Mod Page. And the "Beatnik Boy" - J334I, and "Beatnik Girl" - J332H, can be found on our Characters and People Page. What I did was cut a piece of beige card stock to size. I then stamped all of the designs on it in blue dye ink. I sponged the edges with art print brown dye ink. I then stamped the beatnik, with art print brown dye ink, on a piece of white card stock. I colored them with markers and then ripped them out. I ripped a few pieces of tissue paper and then double stick taped the beatnik to the tissue and the tissue to the card. Tip: Use more than one shade of ink when coloring with markers. It creates texture, depth, and shadow. And don't just use the same color scheme, use warms and cools together to create highlights. ;) |
| Love Card This is a card I made for our friend's wedding, although it works great for a VALENTINE'S DAY idea too!! The stamps I used were the "Smile Sun" - J199F, the "Paisley Heart" - M163E, "Black Hole Star" - J201C, "Rose" - J236J, "Sun Clouds" - J195L, "Heart with Leaves" - M158B, "Swirl Star" - J190A, "Star" - J186A, and "Big Magnolia" - J231I. These can be found on the Fantasy, Fairies, and Celestial page, the Christmas and other Holidays page, and the Flowers, Plants, Animals, and Bugs page. What I did was cut a piece of glossy card stock to size. I then masked off a square in the upper right corner. I used a make-up sponge to brush a yellow dye ink directly onto the corner. I then used a different sponge to brush a rose dye ink directly on. After allowing it to dry a few seconds, I stamped on the Smile Sun. Then I masked off the next section and did the same with the Paisley Hearts. I repeated this process until I had all the squares finished but the one in the center. I masked this one off and I applied a clear acrylic varnish, mixed with silver rose Pearl EX to the square. I then layered some tissue paper and topped that off with more varnish. Then I cut out a heart from a store bought card, and wrote on it and double stick taped it on top of the tissue. Then I applied another layer of varnish to the top to seal it all. Making sure all my masking was removed, I heated the center square with a heat gun. Then I double stick taped this to a cream piece of folded card stock. Tip: Make sure all your masking is removed before doing any heating, as it will heat up the glue in the mask and ruin your card. Also, a great and easy mask is a plain old Post It!! |
| Nouveau Girl This is our Nouveau Girl Card. It is made with the "Art Nouveau Girl" - J344O, which can be found on the Characters and People page. The "Big Magnolia" - J231I and the "Small Magnolia" - J153B, can be found on the Flowers, Plants, Animals and Bugs Page. What I did was cut a blue piece of card stock to size. I then stamped the big magnolia directly on that with blue dye ink. I brushed the edges with blue dye ink and then set that aside. I then stamped the art nouveau girl and the small magnolia in art print brown dye ink, on cream colored card stock. I then colored these with a blender pen and a pink metallic pen. I cut out the two stamped images, and layered them onto dark maroon paper, blue paper, and the cream paper again. I double stick taped them all together and then double stick taped them onto the card. Tip: Layering adds depth and texture to any card! And helps your subject matter to really stand out. |
| Birds Birds Birds! These are a few different variations of my new EASY way to slap together a card in 10 minutes or less! These are just the blank cards from the 99 cent packs you can find in most craft stores and at the dollar spot in Target. They are so cool because the background is done for you and the envelopes are such beautiful colors. Just stamp our birds on the envelope and on a piece of card stock with black dye ink and then cut them out using the scalloped edge scissors. Then brush the edges with a sponge dipped in green or tan dye ink. Then punch holes along the edges of each little square for a fun effect. Then tape on the ribbon and tape on the little birds and you're done!! Tip: Seriously... 10 minute cards... Plus you usually get about 10 or so in a pack for 99 cents!! :) |
| Mod Coffee Shop Here is another variation on the same 10 min. card theme. Using a blank 99 cent card, I stamped our coffee pot on a piece of card stock and punched out the star shapes with a punch (also from the dollar spot), and with my tiny whole punch, I made the plain holes. Then I colored it with markers, and sponged the edges with green dye ink. I used the punched out pieces to tape along the edge of the card and drew little swirlys inside of each. I taped on the coffee pot and taped on the ribbon. I stamped our mod flowers on the envelope...Done! Tip: Save your scraps! They might come in handy as embellishments later!! |
| Happy Anniversary Here's another dollar spot card. This beautiful flower was already on the card, and all I had to do was stamp the Happy Anniversary, and add some color. I stamped the saying with blue chalk ink, and then cut out a strip of red scrapbook paper with glossy circles on it. I punched out some stars and taped those on for flair. I stamped our mod flowers with black dye ink on the envelope and was finished in 5 minutes! Tip: Don't forget about color. Had I done all blue this card might've been drab. But adding the red helped perk it up. Think about complimentary colors too. Red compliments green, blue compliments orange, and yellow compliments purple. |
| Cupcakes and Cherries This is yet another 99 cent card. With this one I stamped our cupcake in green and our cherries in pink dye ink, on white card stock. Then I colored them with markers, cut them out, taped on a ribbon and taped on the images. EASY! Tip: Try "popping" the cherries out by adding foam tape behind them. OR, use this format for any set of stamps you like. The ribbon splitting the card in 3rds is a great and EASY layout! |