Big News and a Freebie!

Well the big news is that my sister had her first baby and I am an auntie! Woohoo!  Actually was an auntie already since my SIL had kids but they are nearly as old as I am LOL!  Little Mason was born yesterday and I took a bunch of pics and I just had to sit down this morning and scrap a few:

Bingo Card and Title Digital Stamp: Lindsay's Stamp Stuff, Paper: K&Co, Buttons: Autumn Leaves, Other: Cricut and scal software

I used my cricut and scal software to shape my paper. Notice the flourish frame on the photo, that is a digital stamp! I'll have a tutorial on changing the color of your digi-stamps on Thursday

Isn’t her adorable!?! Also I am sponsoring the sketch over at Inspirational Card Sketches. You can win free stamps ($10 worth, that goes pretty far at my shop!) just by making a card and linking it up to their blog. Here are the cards I made with the sketch:

My card based on the sketch at ICS! Stamps: Babies and Bows collection from Lindsay's stamp Stuff.

The Framed Sentiment is the freebie and you can download a jpg version here and a png version here.

In celebration of my sisters new baby I am putting my Babies and Bows digital stamp collection on sale for %50 off! That’s just $3! Here is a peek at the set, I have revamped it by offering the 4 large stamps as png and jpg, the accessories are together in a png or jpg file and I added a sheet of printable baby bingo cards too!  *note, If you ordered this set before let me know and I will send you the updates at no charge, I can check back through my orders and check;)

Thanks for stopping by and til next time happy crafting!

Happy Christ{Mouse!}

I love the new clear House Mouse stamps! Right now there are Halloween and Christmas clear set out and they are fabulous! (and I’m not getting paid to say that LOL!)

Stamps: House Mouse Clear, Anna Griffin (sentiment) Paper: K&Co., Doublemates

I Expected to have a couple less than perfect images when i stamped the mice out so I cut 4 squares of cardstock to stamp and everyone came out perfect! I truthfully like these more than my wood-mounted House Mouse stamps. Please make more of these sets House Mouse Honchos!

The sets have been out for a few months but I have been waiting patiently for my local stamp store to get them in. Why? Because the prices are the same as online store and local shops need all the support we can give them and because Judy is just about the nicest lady you could meet! Also before I shelled out any dough I wanted to be sure they were good quality.

Want to know how to tell if the clear stamps you are buying are good? Take a look, they should be very closely trimmed. Take a whiff, if they are the high quality stamps they will have a slightly sweet oder to them while cheap stamp will have nearly no smell at all. Also the high quality stamps can yellow, that is a good indicator that the stamp is the high quality kind, often you can get great deals on the yellow stamps because no-one wants to buy them but it won’t affect their performance one bit, be a smart shopper and snag those babies on sale, I got a couple of $30 stamp set for $4 bucks each because they turned yellow and the store couldn’t sell them! The higher quality stamps often will stain with ink, especially black ink but that doesn’t effect their performance either, just make sure to clean them each time you use them.

Don’t get me wrong, I buy the cheap clear stamp when they are on sale, they are fun and some designs are brilliant but they don’t stick to the blocks as well or give the crisp impression that the high quality ones do (don’t push too hard when you stamp!) Here is a list of stamp companies who make high quality clear stamps:

The Rubber Cafe, Pink Persimmon, PSX (retired), Close to my Heart, Hero Arts, Limited Edition, My Sentiments Exactly, Crafty Secrets *if you know more leave me a comment!

Some of the cheaper clear stamp are made by the companies listed below. Stick to the line art when buying these stamps, or use thicker pigment based inks for best results. I am not knocking these companies by any means, I think their designs are wonderful and I purchase them on sale ($6 for a stamp set on sale and dollar clear stamps, I’ll deal with it for those prices LOL!)

Studio G, Inkadinkado, Autumn Leaves, The Paper Co., Craft Affair, EK Success, Fiskars and Imaginessence

* To improve performance with these stamps rub the stamp side of the stamps with a pencil eraser before use.

Price is a good indicator as to what you are buying but it is good idea to open up the package and take a whiff to be sure.

Thanks for sitting through this long post, now you can be an informed shopper and get the best results from your clear stamps. Thanks for stopping by and till next time happy crafting!

Elegant, Simple and Frugal!

*note: In this article I mention using the double piercing bug on the scor-pal. The Scor Pal company says to be sure to hold it at a 90 degree angle or you may damage the grooves in the scor-pal board. You will not damage the scor pal using the single peircing tool form EK Success or the Scor-Bug.

Want to increase your crafting stash without spending a dime and have a great time too? Have a crafty playdate!

Stamp: SU!, Embossing folders and dies: Cuttlebug, Scoring/Peircing tools: Scor-Pal

My friend Tracey came over the other day and brought her awesome collection of cuttlebug embossing folders and dies along with some rubber stamp I didn’t have. over a cup of tea and great conversation I used her embossing folders to emboss tons of my paper scraps while she dipped into my rubber stamp stash. A couple hours later we both had a few new cards under out belt and a lot of new images and embossed paper to play with. Another bonus of getting together and sharing supplies is that you get to see your materials in a whole new way, seeing someone use a stamp you’ve forgotten about in an innovative new way makes you look at your whole craft stash with new eyes!

Notice the “Faux stitching” on the card, I did that with the scor-pal and scor-bug, see the double stitched lines? Well, I did that with my EK success double peircing bug on the two narrow rows on the scor-pal, it worked brilliantly and I never would have figured that out if I wasn’t showing Tracey how fabulous the scor-bug is! The only difference between the scor-bug and the single peircing bug is the color. To make it look like stitching I used a ruler and drew over my holes with a fine tip pen. If you love the look but don’t have the tools simply put your paper on a mouse pad, place a ruler where you want the holes to be and poke the holes with a thumbtack, Easy peasy!

Maybe while the husbands watch football (OK totally sexist, I know!) you can get together with the wives and make some cards, hey works for me, you could even set up a crafty table for the kids with paper punches, pom poms, paper scraps, googlie eyes and glitter glue to keep them happily crafting. Well, I know what I’m doing today when the Patriots are playing!

Have a great Sunday and till next time Happy Crafting!

More Spooky Treats!

love this time of year! It is so easy to come up with fun ideas to craft with the kids. My copy of Scrapbooks Etc. came in the mail yesterday and my 7 year old was peeking at the cover and saw a cute bat Halloween treat box and asked if we could make one. I said “sure” and remembered that I had made a fry box file to cut with my cricut that would work like a charm to make these:

Fry box Favors! Download the templates below

Aren’t they fun? I have an svg file so you can cut the fry box, pumpking mouth and bat wings with your Cricut using scal software. You can do the other shapes with scal too, just look under the shapes menu and if you don’t have a cricut I have a printable template for you. You can also use punches to decorate! I used double stick tape for the sided of the box and handle but the rest can be adhered with a glue stick.

When doing this project with your kids be sure to cut out all of the pieces before hand and have a pair of scissors, glue stick, googlie eyes and markers for each person.

Download the fry box svg file here to cut on your cricut. You can get 2 from a 12×12 sheet of cardstock.

Download the bat wing svg here.

Download the pumpkin mouth SVG here.

Download a printable PDF file of the above here.

Thanks for stopping by, have a great weekend and til next time happy crafting!

Feeling Sketchy!

Each week the folks over at Oriental stamp Art post a sketch and challenge their members to complete it. I don’t always get it done but today I found some time to make these:

Stamps: About Art Accents, Cardstock: SU!, Paper Co, DCWV, Embossing folder: Cuttlebug, Tool: Scor-Pal/scor-bug, other: Homemade dew drops and crocheted flowers

On this card I flipped the sketch:

If a sketch doesn't work just flip it!

On this card I rotated the sketch:

Stamps: About Art Accents

And I made this from the scraps!

Waste not, want not, make a card with the scraps!

I used lovely Asian stamps from About Art Accents, they have one of the most extensive selections of Asian themed stamps and accents on the market, really lovely stuff and since you can buy the stamps unmounted by the sheet you save a ton of money, poke around the shop, they always have hidden goodies on sale too!

Thanks for stopping by and till next time happy crafting!

Spooky Stamps! {and freebies;)}

Yep, it’s Thursday. You may have noticed that I have been designing more stamp sets lately, I’ve also been revamping some of my single stamps, adding sentiments and offering these new stamps as png as well as jpg files. You can check out the new designs in the Lindsay Stamp Stuff shop. Here are some projects using the Cute Halloween Set:

Stamps: Lindsay's Stamp Stuff, PP: Basic Grey, Cardstock Georgia Pacific, tools: Scor-Pal, Scor-Bog, Cricut, SCAL software (for die cut box)

I had a blast making this card. I had a 5″x6″ folded card base laying on my craft table and I sprayed it with my homemade shimmer spray (pearl) and while that was drying I printed out the haunted house, broom parking a cute witch stamps from the Cute Halloween Set and colored them with my Bic-Markers and a bit of Prismacolor markers for blending. I cut a circle out of silver shimmer cardstock for the moon and adhered it all together with double-sided tape and foam dots for dimension.

Stamps: Lindsay's Stamp Stuff, Cardstock: GP, Markers: Bic Mark-Its, Prismacolor

This weeks freebie is the Halloween Candy Border. You can get the jpg version here and the png version here.

The candy border (bottom of page) is your freebie this week (YUM!) I reduced it in size and pasted it twice to stretch across this 8"x8" page. It is designed to repeat well

I also have a freebie for my SCAL and Cricut friends. You can download this gable box SVG cutting file here.

This little box is the perfect size to stuff with candy for Trick-or-Treaters and it only takes a half a sheet of 12x12 cardstock and 5 minutes to make!

Here is a look at all the stamps in the Cute Halloween Set:

Cute Halloween Set: Lindsay's Stamp Stuff, 9 stamps for only $5!

Now let’s see what the fabulous Design Team has for us today! Also we welcome Cindi Hooks to the DT, you may remember from her Guest Designer spot a few months ago, she is a fun crafty lady sure to bring us lots of cool designs and inspiration.

Cindy Hooks

Diana Stout

Margie

Lisa

Tamara

Janet

Melissa Craig

Kim

Tracey

Row

Ellen Smith AKA “Tink” September Guest DT

Thanks for Stopping by and till next time happy crafting!

2S4Y & CC&M!

Yippee, today I get to play with two of my favorite creative things: the sketch at 2 Sketches 4 You and die-cuts from Creative Cuts & More!

Die cut: CC&M, Paper: Autumn Leaves, Stamp & Ink: SU, Tool for peircing: Scor-Pal & Scor-Bug, Markers: LePlume

This stamp is from a retired Stampin' Up stamp set called Farm Fresh. I wanted this set for years and found it a few weeks ago on ETSY! Yay! Ain't it perty?

You can play along too, this weeks winner at 2 Sketches 4 You will get the Fall All-Occasion Card Kit from Creative Cuts and More! What are you waiting for, go play!

Thanks for stopping by and til next time happy crafting!

Kid’s Craft: a fun Lollipop holder!

It’s always fun to craft with your kids, especially if there are treats involved. Check out these treat holders I’m making with my kids:

Stamps: The Rubber Cafe, Paper: DCWV

I used the Pumpkin Face Mix and Match stamp set from the Rubber Cafe to make the cute pumpkins. On the top one I stamped two of the pumpkins from the set and over stamped the faces, trimmed and adhered to the pocket. Then I thought this would be great to do with the kids If I used circle punches for the pumpkins and let them stamp on the faces! Here is how to do this project with your kids:

Supplies:

flat lollipops, cardstock, pattern paper, glue stick or double sided tape, stamps, ink pad and a bit of time and patience;)

Be prepared, have everything out and ready before the kids sit down to craft. Make sure everyone has their own glue stick, stamps and inkpad and pre cut paper.

I cut my free Petal envelope svg at 6″ on my cricut using SCAL software, you can cut 4 from a 12×12 paper.

***NEW: I just whipped up a  version using DS and the George cart, download here,  there are two pockets laid out on a 6″x12″ mat, if you want to use the expression to cut it  you can simple copy and paste the shapes or cut it as is, put the mat in with the opposite end first and cut again!

Then I scored 3 of the flaps and taped them down to make a pocket. Older kids can do this but do this step if your kids are under 6. Then I used the accent essentials cartridge and cut the scalloped square (with the shift and real dial size on) set at 2 3/4″ and pressed the auto fill button to cut 16 scalloped squares from a sheet of pattern paper.

1. assemble the pocket and glue/tape the scalloped square on top.
2. Stamp pumpkin faces on circles and glue on.
3. stamp bats on pockets if desired
4. place lollypops in the pockets.

It’s so easy! If you dont have a cricut you can get a printable petal envelope from this site. Use a large punch or cut squares with decorative edge scissors instead of the scalloped square. Make this project your own and enjoy some time crafting with your kids. Thanks for stopping by and till next time happy crafting!

Rockin Retro Reindeer!

Well I have been busy in the old craft room lately on projects that I can’t share yet. I remembered this morning that I have a bunch of Christmas projects that I made last year that never made it to the blog because they were being published in Ready, Set, Create! but I can share them with you now Here is one of my favorites:

Stamp: All Night Media, Inkadinkado, Die: Ellison/SU!, Paper K&Co, Markers: Bic Mark-its

This bucket is tiny, it only used a half sheet of paper.

the card is 6"x6", i stamped the reindeer in a transparency and colored it. I stamped it again on tan card and cut out the body part and glued it on from behind.

I used a fun Reindeer stamp from All Night Media (I got it on sale for a buck, it’s probably discontinued but who cares? It sure is cute!) and a sentiment stamp from Inkadinkado. I love to put a fun edge on my cards, it takes seconds but makes a big impact! The little bucket is just the right size to fill with goodies for your childs teacher too!

That’s all for today, have a great weekend and till next time happy crafting!

Spooktackular Stamps and Freebies!

Man, I love Thursdays! I get to see all of the awesome projects the Lindsay’s Stamp Stuff Design Team has created for the week and I get to do my favorite thing: Share some freebies! (And it really makes my day when someone Leaves a comment or buys something from my digital stamp store too!) I have been playing with my brand new stamp set called “Creepy Crows“, take a look:

Stamps, Envelope Templates: Lindsay's Stamp Stuff, Markers: Bic Mark its, Prismacolor, Chartpak

When DT member Tracey asked me to make a crow stamp for an ATC swap she was in I said “sure, I’ll make one to go in a Halloween I was working on…” one stamp turned into seven and I gave it a kit of its own, its called Creepy Crow and it was done with a dip pen and bottle of ink so it has a bit of an old gothic feel to it. This is my favorite stamp in the set, it is a journaling spot and it is big, it is available as a png and jpg as are all of the stamps in the set for ultimate versatility!

Stamp: Lindsay's Stamp stuff, PP: Karen Foster, DCWV, Ribbon: Wal-Mart

Here is the set:

Creept Crow digital stamp set: Lindsay's Stamp Stuff

And here are the freebies:

Download the ATC envelope templates and cutting files and this digital stamp below.

Download the October 31st Circle digital stamp here for JPG and here for PNG.

Download a printable template (pdf) here (print this on cardstock for a template then you should be able to get two envelopes from an 8 1/2″x11″ sheet of paper.

Download a cut file for use with a cricut, the George cartridge and Design Studio here.

Download an SVG file to use with your cricut if you have SCAL software. Check the keep proportions box and set the width to 7″. With SCAL you can make this envelope any size you like, have fun!

Now lets see what the rest of the Lindsay’s Stamp stuff DT has been up to:

Diana Stout

Katt

Leanne

Margie

Lisa

Tamara

Janet

Melissa Craig

Kim

Tracey

Row

Ellen Smith AKA “Tink” September Guest DT

Thanks for Stopping by and till next time happy crafting!