Palette Orange Book

Hello Friends,

Hello friends! I'm so happy to be back, and today I'm sharing a tiny treasure. This 3 x 4 1/2" book was inspired by the vibrant Palette Orange Collection. Using the 8 x 8" paper felt like the perfect scale for a project this size—it's so much fun to see how the different patterns play together to create something unique!

In addition to Palette Orange paper, I'm using a new set of nesting dies I just purchased from Simon Says Stamp called, A2 Arches. I love how the arched shape adds such a sophisticated touch to the pages and the closure! Lets get started and I'll show you how I used both of these products to create a simple book.

First, I cut a signature from a Booklet Folio pack in half, making two 3 x 4 1/2" booklets that will eventually be combined.

I sprayed each of the pages with Antique Linen Distress Spray Stain and dried each page with a heat tool.

Next up, I decided to add a few stamps into the mix.

First the dot stamp was used in random places on the background. 

Then I added flowers from the Exquisite stamp using Rusty Hinge Oxide. No block was used for the stamping.

I made a puddle of the ink and used a thick brush to flick it over the pages.

I'm going to make a pocket when I combine the booklets together, so I need a tag to go into the pocket. I decided to use a ready made tag, but cut it with one of the Arch dies.

I decided on three of the Palette Orange papers.

Let me walk you through the pages and show you how I used the Arches die to bring the book together.

Page 1 - 

I used one of the larger dies to cut the collage paper into the arch shape. Then added the Mini Paper Doll (and his dog), Clipping stickers, and a few pieces of Ephemera Snippets.

Page 2 - 

Mini Ephemera Snippets collage - super easy to do. You just work the pieces around till they fit together.

Page 3 - 

This is one of the stamped sections and I didn't want to cover up too much. 

Mini Paper Dolls, Clippings, and Ephemera Snippets

Page 4 - 

Again, I kept this page simple because I love how it looked. I added the Classic Sticker up at the top just for a little detail.

Page 5 - 

Repeating the arch shape with I cut Palette paper. The Arches die, just under 3" wide worked perfectly for the height of the book. I added some Clippings stickers to go with Page 6.

Page 6 - 

This is the last page of the first book, which means that this is where I combined the two books together with Scor-tape, making a pocket. I cut the two pages shorter so I could add the tag that I previously cut. I used the old school trick of using a 1" punch to make the dip at the top of the pocket. 

I added Classic Label to mimic a halo for the Mini Paper Doll. 

I stamped the tag with the same floral used previously, but this time with the Speckled Egg Oxide. I took it one step further and added Clear Embossing Powder over the top of the Oxide and embossed it. It is so beautiful in person that I know you will be seeing this combination again! It's just the perfect shade of blue.

Page 7 - 

This of course is the back of the pocket (or the first page of the second booklet).

I cut individual stamps from the Palette Stamps paper to make this little collage.

Page 8 -

On page 8, I added another die cut arch, a Mini Paper Doll, Clippings and Ephemera Snippets.

Page 9 -

Turn to page 9 and we are back to one of the stamped pages. The string that you saw on page 8 was tied into a bow on page 9 with an added idea-ology Word Tag.

Page 10 - 

Another simple page with just Clippings and a Classic Sticker.

Page 11 - 

Another tiny collage on page 11 with some of my favorite pieces. Clippings are easy to add to fill in a narrow blank space. A Mini Paper Clip was added at the top corner.

Page 12 - 

The last page repeats the larger arch shape from the first page. I kept this one simple and just added the tiny Classic Sticker circle behind her head. The phrase "The beauty of this life" is part of the Palette paper so no Clipping was needed.

CLOSURE

I covered the front and back of the book with two different papers (this is the front). Then I used the Arches die to cut another piece for the closure.

Before adding the arch piece, I made sure I had enough to wrap around to the front of the book. Once you have the placement, peel the paper off the Scor-tape and add the arch to the back of the book. You might also notice I used my Crop-A-Dile to add a brass eyelet for the ribbon (NOTE: Simon Says Stamp now sells brass eyelets!).

Here is the back of the book with the closure added with Scor-tape.

Super easy to finish off the book using the die cut arch as the closure! And cute too!

When the ribbon is tied at the front, the book will look like this on the back.

Hope you liked this project using Palette Orange. It's a sweet little book that could be done in a day or two depending on what you add inside. Hoping to get in at least one more Palette project using pink, red, or orange before three new colors (yellow, neutral, and green) are released on March 1st!
Now carry on,
Paula

Pinnacle Hearts Valentine Card

Hello friends,

Hopping on the Valentine card making bandwagon this week! This time I have a fun card made with the Pinnacle Hearts Embossing Folder from Simon Says Stamp. I colored all the hearts with shades of pink, but you could use any color combination for a birthday, anniversary, or thank you card.

I embossed Distress Watercolor Cardstock with the Pinnacle Hearts Embossing Folder, then colored each heart with Distress Crayons. The embossed hearts are easy to color because they are raised from the background. I just scribbled the crayon on my glass mat, then picked it up with a wet brush to color the heart. I found it easiest to color all the Saltwater Taffy hearts first since that is the lightest shade, then move on to Worn Lipstick. The more I did, the better I got at knowing how much water was needed to move the color around each heart. 

While the hearts were drying, I stamped the typewriter from the Stampers Anonymous Curiosity Shop stamp, then cut it out using the Curiosity Shop Wafer Dies from Simon Says Stamp. I love that they make matching dies for many of Tim's stamp sets. I chose "love you" for this card but there are many other sayings included in the stamp.

I added the heart card front to a white card base using 3D Foam tape. Then I just added Thin Foam Squares to the back of the typewriter to raise it from the card front. Just that simple!

Now carry on,

Paula

Woven Heart Cards

Hello friends,

Since February is the month of love, I decided to create a few simple cards to celebrate the season! Usually, idea-ology Paper Strips are just lined up and glued down in rows. While that’s a classic look, I wanted to take things to the next level by weaving them! 

I have a step-out tutorial for my woven heart cards over on the Simon Says Stamp blog. I think you will be surprised how EASY it is to make 4 cards at once! 

Link to the tutorial HERE

Now carry on,

Paula

Gatherings

Hello friends,

The new Palette Paper series has been a catalyst to my last few projects, and today is no different! What started as a simple exercise in using the 12 x 12" Palette Red evolved into a project that I truly love-a perfect trifecta of paper, fabric, and vintage. If you’ve been looking for a way to bridge the gap between your paper stash and your fabric bin, the Palette series might just be the common thread you've been waiting for.

Starting with an idea-ology Display Panel, I used Collage Medium to add Palette Red paper to the inside of the panel. I also added a layer over the top so I can add Walnut Stain Distress Crayon once it is dry. The red stamp paper is so fun here and looks great as the back panel.

That is just what I am doing here. I scribbled the crayon on the sealed paper and with a damp brush I just keep moving it around till I get the effect I want.

The last step is to pounce over the crayon with a wet wipe to get rid of any brush marks or areas that are too dark.

I moved on to the sides of the panel, again cutting the strips from the red Palette paper.

Design Tape Trim was added to the lip edge of the panel. I like to add Collage Medium on the lip edge before added the tape for longevity. And I love the contrast of the black tape!

So lets move on to the inside of the Display Panel.

Cut a 9 1/4 x 9 1/4" piece of fabric (I'm using a favorite fabric-Palette Indigo Ledger) + a matching piece of cotton batting.

Stitch the fabric to the batting, then trim the edges. If you don't have a sewing machine, you could use use Collage Medium to adhere the fabric to the cotton batting.

I also cut a 9 x 9" piece of heavy chipboard. Once the center piece is complete, it will be added to the heavy chipboard with Collage Medium.  I want the center to stand up and away from the red stamped background, so I plan to add bingo chips (or some other kind of riser) to the back of the chipboard before placing into the Display Panel. But for now, I need the fabric panel to be flexible so I can add the sewn elements.

Here is the finished center panel. Well, almost. I added pearls to the large key after I took the photo (there is a photo below of that addition). Everything here was either added with Collage Medium or hand stitched to the panel, except for the vintage French Marking Tape, I used my machine.

Lets talk about the individual pieces.

I colored the little bird from the Adornments Sweetheart pack with Foundry Wax. I squeezed out a dime size portion, then used a small brush to paint the bird (work fast). I heated the Foundry Wax with an embossing gun, then let it cool. The Distress Crayon was added to bring out the details.

I added a Curator Snippets Label to a skinny Corked Vial, along with some faux pearls that I colored with Mushroom Alcohol Ink. This is where the little bird will end up - fastened to the neck of the vial with string.

I also shortened a piece of ephemera from the Memoir ephemera pack. I liked the roses, but the piece was too long for what I needed. I cut the piece in half on the left side of the three roses. Then used that piece to make a new left end.

As for the photo image - this is from the Photomatic pack. You could easily substitute a family photo if you wanted. I tinted my Photomatic with Distress Crayons, using Aged Mahogany for her cheeks, Stormy Sky and a touch of Rustic Wilderness for the background.

I also colored the small flowers from the Field Notes Ephemera pack with crayons (because why not?). Crayons like a slick surface so I painted Collage Medium over the image before adding the crayon. This time I used Detailer Water Brushes to add the tiny brush marks.

Putting it together just meant gathering things from idea-ology and a few vintage items from my collection to make something unique. As you can see I added more ephemera from the Memoir ephemera pack (blue card) and a tiny label (Field Notes Snippets) to the top. I used a needle and thread to stitch the card down. The Photomatic image was added, along with the roses and the word Sweetheart from the same Adornments pack as the bird.

There is a small idea-ology Deco Frame with the flowers I painted and a few vintage buttons and pink tatting lace.

I added the tiny gold bird to the neck of the bottle with some string, then secured the Corked Vial with light blue thread.

On the left, I added the French Marking Tape by stitching on my machine (but it could also be added by hand).

Then a small painted Salvaged Heart was added with Collage Medium. Once dry, I stitched on the three vintage buttons, leaving messy threads for texture.

The large key was colored with the same Foundry Wax as the bird, then rubbed with Distress Crayon to age the gold once it was cool to the touch. I also stitched it to the fabric panel.

I threaded a needle and made a stitch next to the the top of the key. Then I added faux pearls (about 4 or 5) and made another stitch into the fabric. I drew the needle up and added about 4-5 smaller pearls, then made another stitch in the fabric to secure.

I am so happy with the way this project turned out. The Palette Indigo Ledger fabric is the perfect foil to the bold red background. I could have continued to add paper and trinkets to the fabric panel but I decide to let the fabric shine, rather than covering it up. I'm glad I did!

What will you make with the new Palette Papers?

Now carry on,

paula