Simple & Quick Card

From Adriel:

Picture this: You need a card... like NOW! What do you do?

• You cut a piece of Night of Navy CS to 5-1/2"W x 8-1/2"L and score lengthwise @ 4-1/4" and fold in half. You're halfway there... okay, bad pun... sorry! =)
• You round the corners of your card base.
• You run a piece of 5-1/4" x 4" Sahara Sand CS through your Big Shot machine with the lattice embossing folder. You round the corners of this piece.
• You adhere this to the front of your card.
• You find a scrap of texture brown CS... maybe it's Soft Suede? You're not sure what color it is or if it is even Stampin' Up! CS... it doesn't matter... you've got enough to send through the Big Shot machine with the Little Leaves die.
• You find a scrap of Whisper White CS and stamp "a little something" from the Matchbox Messages stamp set in Night of Navy ink, which you then punch out with (I think) a 1-3/8" circle punch.
• You adhere the "mystery brown" Little Leaves die cut to the front of the card.
• You attach your punched circle sentiment using a dimensional to the front of the card.
• Of course, you don't want this looking like you whipped it up in like 5 minutes or something, so you add a couple of brads.

Your card now looks something like this!

And that took, what, 5 minutes? Okay, 6 minutes with the brads.
It is completely possible to make a decent looking card in under 10 minutes!
I've gotta admit that the Big Shot makes this possible, for me anyway.
The texture just adds that "umph" that would be missing if it wasn't there.

(This story is based on actual events. Names have been omitted to protect identity... who am I kidding?)

Hope your week is getting off to a great start! Thanks for visiting! =)

Happy Birthday to My Mom!

From Adriel:

My mom's birthday was yesterday! We celebrated by eating lunch at Paradise Bakery (their Tomato Basil soup and Chopped BBQ Chicken salad are amazing!!), dinner at the Olive Garden, and homemade sundaes for dessert! (I love the benefits of birthdays, ie - eating out).

I appreciate my mom very much. She does not just care for me physically (watching kids, inviting us for dinner, taking care of business stuff, etc), but she also cares for me spiritually. She has a love for God's word and a passion for pursuing godliness that encourages my heart. She always has something to share about the Lord because she fills herself with His word. I am blessed to have a mom like her! =)

Here's the birthday card I made for my mom. This was my second attempt. My first attempt turned out terrible (in my opinion) and I just couldn't bring myself to give it to my mom. Kayla saved it from the garbage, saying she would give it to me sometime. (She's a sweetie!) Anyway, I was much more pleased with my second attempt. =)

Stamp sets: Because I Care, Vintage Labels
Paper: Cherry Cobbler CS, Early Espresso CS, Very Vanilla CS
Ink: Cherry Cobbler, Early Espresso, Crumb Cake
Accessories: 1" square punch, adhesive rhinestones, sponge, Stampin' dimensionals

Thanks for stopping by! Hope your day is going well. =)

September Newsletter and Free Tutorials

Our September Newsletter has been published and is uploaded for you to view. It includes our September classes, upcoming events and a fun craft project for you to try out.

We've also posted a couple of free card tutorials to make. We made these cards at a workshop last week, so for those of you that were there, simply click on the highlighted links and you'll have access to the tutorials. Hope you have fun with them!

Click on Crumb Cake Thanks for link to tutorial

Click on Note of Thanks for link to tutorial

Linked up with:
Creative Share @ Trendy Treehouse
We Did It! Wednesday @ Sew Much Ado
Show Us What You're Working With @ Me and My Bucket

Sweet & Simple Monday: Masculine Card

Today's Sweet & Simple tutorial is for a masculine birthday card. We all have those guys in our lives that need cards too, right? Sometimes just keeping the card simple and low-key without a bunch of fluff can be challenging. I like all that girly stuff! =)

Here's a card that is really simple, really easy and really sweet (even though it is for a guy)! Hope you enjoy! =)

1. Fold a piece of 5-1/2" x 8-1/2" Sahara Sand CS in half at 4-1/4". Use Sahara Sand ink and stamp image from Circle Circus in a random pattern several times on card front. Use Chocolate Chip ink pad and lay the ink pad directly on the card front edges. Do this several times in a random pattern all around edges.

2. Stamp a couple of the Circle Circus images in Taken w/ Teal and Chocolate Chip inks on Whisper White CS. Punch out these images with corresponding circle punches (varies with images).

3. Use Chocolate Chip and Taken w/ Teal Stampin' Write markers to ink up image from Birthday Bliss stamp set. Punch out with 1-1/2" circle punch.

4. Punch out:

- (1) 1" Taken w/ Teal CS circle (I punched mine out of an embossed piece of cardstock)

- (1) 1-3/8" Chocolate Chip circle

- (1) Taken w/ Teal Scallop Circle

5. Attach stamped and punched birthday sentiment to Taken w/ Teal scallop circle with SNAIL adhesive.

6. Use SNAIL adhesive to attach all the circles (except for the scalloped sentiment circle) to the front of the card in a random pattern, allowing some of the circles to go over the edge of the card. After attaching, trim edges of circles in line with the card front edges.

7. Attach the scallop sentiment circle to card front with Stampin' Dimensionals.

Supplies: Circle Circus stamp set, Birthday Bliss stamp set, Sahara Sand CS, Taken w/ Teal CS, Chocolate Chip CS, Whisper White CS, Chocolate Chip classic ink, Sahara Sand classic ink, Taken w/ Teal Stampin' Write marker, Chocolate Chip Stampin' Write marker, Scallop Circle punch, 1-1/2" circle punch, 1-3/8" circle punch, 1-1/4" circle punch, 1" circle punch, SNAIL adhesive, Stampin' Dimensionals.

Stampin' Up! supplies can be ordered through Heidi by clicking HERE.

Here's another variation of this card... just a couple changes for a little different look. =)

Thanks for stopping by on this Monday! Hope you're getting a great start to your new week and we hope to see you back here again soon! Have a great day! =)

Wowzer! Wednesday

Hi to all of you! How are you doing today?

Our Wowzer! Wednesday focus today is on simple cards

that still give that "Wowzer!" factor!

We're featuring work from 4 wonderful card makers today,

so let's get started with the wowing! =)

Here we go!

First up is this beautiful card by Renee. She used a combination of patterned paper and a stamped background along with a punched border and a simple, yet stunning, stamped flower focal point. She added a build-a-brad and a die-cut element to add a little "extra" to this card. In addition, her color combo is a departure from the ordinary and it a total Wowzer!! You can visit Renee HERE for a complete list of supplies and to give her a wave! =)

Next is this lovely and calming card from Julie Davison. Julie does such a great job keeping things simple and yet turning out lovely work. This card is no exception. She stuck with one stamp set primarily (except for the sentiment) and used it in a variety of ways. The rounded corners on the panels, the multi-colored floral image and the silver brads give the "extra" that make you forget that this card is simple. Love it! You can visit Julie HERE for a complete list of supplies and let her know her card is beautiful! =)

Our next Wowzer! pick is this bright and fun card from Nancy Riley. She kept things simple using designer paper and die-cuts as the main basis of this card, but she added the "extra" by using an eye-catching color combo and a fun button in the middle! It's perfect for the winter blues! =) You can visit Nancy HERE for a complete list of supplies and to say hi!

And last, but not least this week, is this sweet card from Vicki. The simple layout of the card is taken from simple to "wowzer!" with a few "extras" that are very easy to add, but they make such a difference! The ribbon, the embossed cardstock, the butterflies and the addition of the silver pearls on the butterflies all combine to make a lovely card. You can visit Vicki HERE for a complete list of supplies and to say something sweet! =)

We hope you've been inspired today with these cards. Next time your simple card looks a little too simple for your tastes, try adding one or more of the elements we saw in today's cards. A little ribbon, a button, a die cut element, or some embossing can make all the difference!

Have a wonderful day today and stay creatively inspired! =)

Sweet & Simple Monday

Make a set of sweet and simple gift tags perfect for a variety of occasions! These tags feature one of our favorite cardstock colors right now: Kraft. Kraft is so versatile and adds something extra to these gift tags. Of course, these tags would be perfectly fine using white cardstock... they would still look great!

1. Trim Kraft cardstock to 2-1/4"W x 4"H. Use tag corner punch on top corners to create the "tag" look.

2. Use medium floral image from Fifth Avenue Floral in Old Olive, Ruby Red or Rich Razzleberry to stamp on the bottom of the tag. (I stamped once and then also stamped again without inking up again to create a more subdued, faded look in the left-hand corner of the tag. This is optional.)

3. Stamp sentiment from Fresh Cuts in Chocolate Chip ink on upper right-side of tag.

4. Find the top center of tag and punch a hole.

You can use a variety of fibers to tie this tag onto your gift or bag. Some of our favorites are hemp twine and fine white crochet thread. Ribbon in various colors are also great!

Super simple and you can make a great looking set of tags in very little time! Hope you enjoyed today's project. Join us again next week for another sweet and simple Monday. =)

Supplies: Kraft cardstock, Fresh Cuts stamp set, Fifth Avenue stamp set, Old Olive classic ink, Ruby Red classic ink, Rich Razzleberry classic ink, Chocolate Chip classic ink, Tag Corner punch, hole punch.

Stampin' Up! supplies can be ordered through Heidi by clicking HERE. If you have any questions, feel free to contact us at: twohappystampers@gmail.com

Something Fun to Try

From Adriel:

Here's a different kind of bookmark that is simple to make, but looks awesome! I used the tutorial on Mary's blog which you can find HERE.

I used the Charming stamp set from Stampin' Up! and embossed in black and white. It's really an elegant bookmark and would make a great gift for anyone! Make a card to match, slide the bookmark over the corner and you've got an instant and lovely gift. Seriously, this bookmark takes less than 20 minutes to make... great for when you need a last minute something for a thank you or other occasion and you need a little something more than a card.

Here's another tutorial for a similar, but simpler bookmark made using the Petal Card die. I don't own that die, but this one looks like fun, too!

Have fun and enjoy yourself! We would love to see what you end up with... leave us a link to what you make! =)

Oh, and don't forget about our color challenge... there's still a few more days left. It ends Feb. 26th! Get all the details HERE!

Something Different...

From Adriel:

I know we've been showing a lot of Valentine-ish cards and things... that's just what we've been making recently! =) But I have something a little different to show you today and so let's get to it!

We have a wonderful park nearby us called the Veteran's Oasis Park that has a small lake where you can fish and nature trails and such. They have an education center facility also, with a little gift shop inside. We have a nature journal class planned there in February and May (I think!), but they were interested in selling some of our cards with a nature theme in their gift shop. So we made up some samples and let them have a look over them... blah, blah, blah...

My mom made some beautiful cards, but I don't have any pictures of those (YET)! Here's just a couple that I made in the cute 3"x3" note card that I love for something quick!

I'll try to get some pictures taken of my mom's cards, because she made most of the samples and her cards are really nice! Have a great Monday and enjoy your day! =)

Another Gift Tag

From Adriel:

Today I'm busy catching up on life that got ahead of me while I have been doing other life! =) Laundry, statbook for our restaurant, checkbook, dinner menu for the next week or two... not sure if I'll get it all done today, but I'm going to try!

With that being said, I don't have much time for a lengthy post today, so I'll just share another gift tag I created last week while I was experimenting. Still have some gift tag ideas that I'm going to play with soon. =) Blogger is still being a pill, so I'm only sharing one pic today! Thanks for stopping by and come back soon! =)

Neglected!

From Adriel:

Has this blog been neglected or what the past few days?!?! Sometimes there are just things that come up in life that are a bit more important than blogging, know what I mean? =) I honestly haven't been creating all that much, either, so I don't have very many tricks to pull out of my hat... BUT, I do remember showing you all a boxed set of cards awhile back that I said I would show another version of sometime. This seems like the perfect time! =)

For all the details about where to get the template and what I did with the cards, click HERE to go to a previous post.

This beautiful project just so happens to be our monthly Stamp Club/Project Class for next month (June)! More details in our upcoming newsletter...

Simple Thank You Card (using my Big Shot)

From Adriel:


Even though I'm out of town until Friday, I thought I would schedule a couple of posts this week so that the responsibility of the blog doesn't fall on my mom. She is taking care of my kids this week, along with getting ready to go on a trip of her own next week, so she doesn't need anything extra to worry about!


I thought I would share a simple thank you card I made recently using my Big Shot. Actually, almost everything on this card is made using the Big Shot (except for the small flower in the middle of the larger and the stamped sentiment).



I needed some thank you cards for my recent birthday, so I made a couple of these up. Very simple, and although it took me longer than it should have (because I was debating and planning and creating as I went along), this would be a pretty fast card to make. =)


I used:


Fundamental Phrases set (this really is fundamental and comes in handy so often!)

Sahara Sand CS
Baja Breeze CS
Ruby Red CS
So Saffron CS (or Barely Banana... can't remember which)
Whisper White CS

Ruby Red Stampin' Write marker (my ink pad was dry)

Sizzix Big Shot
Matchbox die
Daisies Flower #2 die
Scallop Circle #2 die
Backgrounds 1 Texturz plates


What is funny is a day or two after I made this, Kristina Werner posted her color inspiration challenge. All the colors I used here were used except for the Ruby Red! =)

Have a wonderful day!!

KWerner's Color Inspiration #52

From Adriel:

So I had some thank you cards to make for my recent birthday and I saw Kristina Werner's Color Inspiration Challenge #52 was up, so I decided to use those colors for a couple of thank you cards. In addition, I had to get some stamping in before I head out of town on Tuesday with my husband for the Tropical Smoothie Cafe roadshow. We own the location in Tempe (@ Priest & Warner)... if you're ever in the neighborhood, stop by for a delicious smoothie! Okay, enough of the commercial, onto my card! =)

These colors are so "vacation". (I think I have vacation on my brain or something!) Really, they look like the Caribbean or the islands or something. Really refreshing colors! =) My card was inspired by THIS CARD, although it didn't turn out looking anything like it at all. I just loved how she used the flower from the Wow Flower set in different colors as the main focal point. I decided to do the same. =)

If you are interested in the supplies I used...

Wow Flowers set

Fundamentel Phrases set

Sahara Sand CS

More Mustard CS

So Saffron CS

Whisper White CS

So Saffron ink

More Mustard ink

Baja Breeze ink

More Mustard Stampin' Write marker

Corner Rounder punch

Paper Piercer

Pretty simple card... I tried a technique I saw HERE on Studio Calico's blog about pleating card stock. I think it's a fun addition. =)

Thank you so much for looking! I may have a couple of posts on here this week (thanks to post scheduling), but I'll be out of town until Friday, but my mom will be here (taking care of my kiddos!) You all have a great week! =)

Simple Cards

From Adriel:

The other day I whipped up some quick and easy cards to give to friends that were needing some birthday cards. I thought they would be great to share with you, so here they are!

Very easy, very simple... no frills. Just thought I'd share some simple layouts and card ideas! Have a great day! =)

Fun Tangerine Note Cards

From Adriel:


Winter is almost over and here in Arizona it's not really hard to imagine spring... it already feels like spring. Besides, winter this year was only like a week long (at least it felt that way)! So, as we are nearing the end of February, these cards seemed happy and "spring-y".


Again, I used some white textured CS, which I'm really liking! It's adds some, ahem!, texture to a project! I just stuck with simple for these cards and I liked how they turned out. They are 3x3 cards (I really like that size!) and I actually didn't use any dimensionals on this card! GASP!! I can't remember the last time that happened! But it just goes to show that you don't always need dimension, but some interest definitely. I chose to cut up the sentiment into strips to add more interest. I also added a couple of small rhinestones and a bit of stitching. The Tangerine Tango CS is a bit on the dark side, so I added Whisper White CS inside for writing on.

Recipe:

Friendship Blooms (Retired Sale-a-Bration set from last year)

Tangerine Tango CS

White Textured CS

Bashful Blue CS

Whisper White CS

Tangerine Tango ink

Night of Navy ink

Tombow Glue (for the rhinestones and sentiment strips)

Sewing machine