Sending You...

Yep, I am definitely on a Valentine's Day card kick! Since it's "Anything Goes" over at Simon Says Stamp and I was in the mood to make a clean and simple card after seeing the CAS challenge at the Crafter's Cafe blog, I challenged myself to create a single-layer card. I grabbed two Taylored Expressions sets, S.W.A.K. and You're My Type Upper and got stamping.

I started by stamping the darling little mailbox and colored in with Copics. Next, I inked up the "X" and "O" from the alphabet set and stamped some "hugs and kisses" floating from the open box. Finally, I added the perfect sentiment for my very clean, very simple card and I had another V-Day card to add to my growing pile!

BEAN NOTES
Stamps: S.W.A.K. and You're My Type Upper (Taylored Expressions); Cardstock: Choice Snow (TE); Ink: Tuxedo Black (Tsukineko); Coloring Medium: Sketch Markers (Copic)

XOXO...

There are a few "moxie fab" challenges going on over on Moxie Fab World and I was inspired by two of them to create this monochromatic Valentine's Day card for the Paper Creations Ink Love & Romance Challenge. I combined the Die-Cutting and Embossing challenges to see if I could create a highly textured card all in one color!

I first chose a color -- red was my original choice, but then I decided that pink would offer a more subtle and pretty effect and I was glad I did. I used some new nesting dies to cut out a bevy of different sized hearts, both scalloped and laced.

Now, because I was working with only one color, I needed to add some texture and dimension for the card to work. I ran some of the hearts through with some embossing folders and also nested some of the hearts to create cut-outs. I used foam tape to pop up some of the hearts and made sure to layer others. With some simple die-cut letters, I spelled out my "hugs and kisses" for a soft, sweet, and very pink love card!

BEAN NOTES

Cardstock: Blushing Bride, Pink Pirouette (Stampin' Up!); Dies: Nesting Lace Hearts, Nesting Scalloped Hearts, Nesting Hearts, Santa's Workshop Alphabet (Lifestyle Crafts/Quickutz); Templates: Dots, Stripes Embossing Folders (Lifestyle Crafts/Quickutz)

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Thanks a Bunch...

Today is a very fun day for me as I get introduced over on the Imaginisce blog! I'm having an absolute ball working with the amazing and talented ladies of the Imaginisce Design Team. I thought it only fitting to make a 'thank you' card to show how much I appreciate being asked to join such a wonderful and creative team. I decided to play with some Sole Sisters, stamping the sweet bouquet and adding it to the darling patterned paper in this fab collection. If you've stopped by from the Imaginisce blog, welcome to The Stampin' Bean and I hope you come by again...and often!

BEAN NOTES

All materials from the Sole Sisters collection from Imaginisce unless otherwise noted.

Stamps: Thanks a Bunch Snag 'Em Stamp; Patterned Paper: I Pick You; Ink: Memento Tuxedo Black (Tsukineko); Cardstock: Real Red, Baja Breeze, Whisper White (Stampin' Up!); Coloring Medium: Sketch Markers (Copic); Fibers: Maraschino Twine (The Twinery); Dies: Mat Stack 3 and Layerz Mat Stack 3 (Papertrey Ink); Accents: Bisque Liquid Pearls (Ranger)

Love is in the Air (CPS Sketch!)...

It's going to be a fun week for Taylored Expressions -- TE is sponsoring this week's Card Positioning Systems sketch challenge! This fun sketch got me in the mood to make another Valentine's Day card and, and as I've been on a non-traditional colors kick, I thought I'd do another.

I combined a couple of my favorite TE sets, In the Clouds and Kid at Heart. After stamping the cute little by-plane and fussy cutting, I placed it against a Taylored Take Note Die. The patterned paper put my love plane up in the air and helped me create another V-Day card to give to a special someone.

BEAN NOTES
Stamps: In the Clouds, Kid at Heart (Taylored Expressions); Patterned Paper: Lime Twist Fly a Kite (My Mind's Eye); Cardstock: Crumb Cake, Pumpkin Pie (Stampin' Up!), Choice Snow (TE); Memento Rich Coca (Tsukineko), Pumpkin Pie (Stampin' Up!); Dies: Take Note 1, Blimps and Banners (TE); Tools: Corner Chomper (We-R-Memory)

There Once Was a Bear in Winter...

January in San Francisco has not been too terrible, especially considering that I've lived through a Minnesota winter or two! But, it's still a bit nippy outside, so I thought I would make a winter-y Valentine's Day card. So, I grabbed my Polar Pete set from Taylored Expressions.

You might remember that I made ol' Pete a brown bear last year, but this time he's as cool as a cucumber in winter white. I wanted to keep things simple and made the stamped image of the cutie bear the main focal point. After coloring with Copics, I simply matted my image with white and popped it up with some foam tape. I finished off with a red maker to add in a wee little red heart after the sweet sentiment.

I hope your winter is treating you to a cozy mug of love this year!

BEAN NOTES

Stamps: Polar Pete (Taylored Expressions)

Cardstock: Choice Snow (Taylored Expressions)

Coloring Medium: Sketch Markers (Copic); Memento Lady Bug Marker (Tsukineko)

Love Cuts...

It's hard to believe that Valentine's Day is just around the corner. I love this holiday because it's the perfect excuse to send cards! I was inspired by the Die-Cutting Challenge over at Moxie Fab World to create this "love" card to add to my stash of valentines for next month.

I started by stamping just the "sending you" portion of a sentiment from It's a Banner Day-2 from Taylored Expressions, which I die-cut with the coordinating die. I grabbed some heart-shaped dies from Lifestyle Crafts to create a nice, big, happy heart, which I popped up with some foam tape.

I die-cut and spelled out "love" with alphabet dies and added some darling little heart-shaped eyelets I found in my supplies. I was pleased with the way the non-traditional colors came together and had a ton of fun playing with dies to create a card for a sweet valentine.

BEAN NOTES

Stamps: It's a Banner Day-2 (Taylored Expressions); Cardstock: Choice Snow (TE); Blushing Bride, Riding Hood Red (Stampin' Up!); seafoam (Bazzill); Patterned Paper; Valentine collection (We R Memory); Ink: Memento Tuxedo Black (Tsukineko); Dies: Banner Day 2 (TE); Nesting Eyelet Hearts, Nesting Hearts, Stardust Grand Alphabet (Lifestyle Crafts/Quickutz); Accents: White Heart Eyelets (Making Memories); Coloring Medium: Sketch Marker (Copic)

Sole Sisters!...

I am so excited today because it is my day to have my projects featured on the Imaginisce blog! This week, we are playing with the brand new release, Sole Sisters and I have three projects to share with you. Join us all this week as the new Design Team that I am so proud to be a part of shows off this chic and fabulously fun collection!

For my first project, I just had to go straight to the "sole" of things! With a wonderful template I discovered HERE at Ellen Hutson, I traced and scored this elegant heel "box." The template can be reduced or enlarged, but I left it alone. Now, I've been pining for over a decade now for my very own pair of Christian Leboutins, so I couldn't resist adding a red sole!

I added a floral embellishment to my well-heeled project, using the very cool i-Rock tool to adhere some glam rocks for that extra little sparkle. Now I had a beautiful little "box" that I could fill with a special treat for another shoe-lover like myself...a gift card to a shoe store perhaps? (Nah, I'd just as well keep it for myself!)

BEAN NOTES
Heel Box - All materials from Imaginisce unless otherwise noted.
Patterned Paper:  Shop 'Til You Drop from Sole Sisters collection; Cardstock: Whisper White, Real Red (Stampin' Up!); Accents: Black Fabric Flower and clear gemstones from i-Rock Flowers Stencil; Downloadable Item: Template, shoe-high heeled (Ellen Hutson); Tools: i-Rock

As mother to a boy that is as boy as you can get, I wanted to show that Sole Sisters can be just a cute for a more masculine project. My little rugrat made a special little friend on our last mini-vacation and I just had to capture their sweet friendship. The frames are all very cool die-cuts from the Sole Sisters collection, as well as the patterned papers. I love the bold colors for this layout and the frames saved me so much time!

You wouldn't know it to look at it, but the die-cut letters that spell "FRIEND" are from a piece of patterned paper from this collection that features purses! The paper is really great for some of its gender-neutral patterns and I was so pleased at how it was all so complimentary.

BEAN NOTES
Forever Friends Layout - All materials from Imaginisce unless otherwise noted.
Patterned Paper: Sole Mates, Purse-onality, and Girl Stuff from Sole Sisters collection; Cardstock: black, red and yellow textured (AC Crafts); Accents: red buttons (Papertrey Ink); tiny staples (Tim Holtz); Dies: Merry Classic Alphabet (Quickutz/Lifestyle Crafts); Scalloped Border Decorative Strip Die (Sizzix); Die-Cuts: Girl Die-Cuts from Sole Sisters collection

For my third project, I tackled something that I've been wanting to do forever! I have to confess that I am a certified shoe hound. I have STACKS of shoeboxes and I don't always know what is in them. So, I was extra excited when I saw Sole Sisters because I could make some shoe identifiers! I took photos of my shoes and created little cards that I could adhere to the front of each shoebox.

I used this absolutely darling stamp to create these little heel accents for each card and added a few of the ready-made die-cuts. The patterned papers are so fun and eye-catching and really liven up my closet. Now I don't have to pull out every box searching for that perfect heel to go with my new outfit!

BEAN NOTES
Shoe Identifiers  - All materials from Imaginisce unless otherwise noted.
Stamps: Stiletto Snag 'Em Stamp; Patterned Paper: Chic Chat from Sole Sisters collection; Cardstock: Real Red, Baja Breeze, Basic Black, Whisper White (Stampin' Up!); Dye Ink: Real Red, Basic Black, Baja Breeze (Stampin' Up!); Tools: Circle and Scalloped Circle Punches (EK Success); Fibers: black stitched grosgrain (Jo-Ann); Liquid Pearls (Ranger)


I hope you enjoyed my projects today. Don't forget to visit the Imaginisce blog for more Sole Sisters eye candy and a chance to win this ENTIRE collection!

Happy Everything!...

Happy Tuesday! I've been busy with several projects, but I just had to take a moment to make a card for someone who has a very special birthday coming up. I wanted to make something bright and pretty -- she's always full of sunshine and I wanted the card to reflect her disposition. So, I grabbed my Love Grows Here set from Taylored Expressions, along with some pretty patterned paper and got stamping.

I chose the "springtime" tree, coloring with Copics and double-stamping so that I could pop up the sweet little bird and purse. For the sentiment, I stamped my very appropriate sentiment and punched it out to create a tag that I could attach with a wee safety pin.

I hope my friend has a very happy birthday -- she brings a lot of joy to everyone around her, and she deserves it for herself, too!

BEAN NOTES
All cardstock, patterned paper, and fibers from Happier Card Kit from Taylored Expressions
Stamps: Love Grows Here (Taylored Expressions)
Patterned Paper: Happier (My Mind's Eye)
Ink: Memento Tuxedo Black (Tsukineko); Sage Shadow (Stampin' Up!)
Punches: Small Tag Punch (Stampin' Up!); Single Diamond Lace Edger (EK Success)
Coloring Medium: Sketch Markers (Copic)
Accents: Mini Safety Pin (Stampin' Up!)

((hugs))...

My little guy is into "monsters" right now -- he's not afraid of them, exactly, but he thinks they are really funny if a bit strange. When I saw this week's Paper Players "Love" Challenge, I was inspired to make him a little card with some of these little critters, and I grabbed the new Love Monsters set from Taylored Expressions.

I wanted to keep things very clean and graphic, so I chose some bright, bold colors in my patterned paper. I trimmed the paper and then die-cut a circle window, stamping the little monsters on the background cardstock as a guide. I stamped each monster again and colored with Copics. After fussy cutting, I adhered each to the window so that they appeared to be peeking out. Simple to do, yet it makes for a fun effect.

I hope your day is filled with love...and ((nice)) monsters!

BEAN NOTES

Stamps: Love Monsters (Taylored Expressions)

Patterned Paper: Monster Mania (Doodlebug)

Cardstock: Classic Solar White (Neenah); Pumpkin Pie (Stampin' Up!)

Ink: Memento Tuxedo Black (Tsukineko)

Coloring Medium: Sketch Markers (Copic)

Dies: Nesting Circles (Lifestyle Crafts/Quickutz)

'Hi Cat' New Year...

2012 is in full swing! I'm already up to my nose in design work, which is getting me off to a fun start for the year. One of my new gigs is for the wonderful company, PSA Essentials, and today I have a card for you that is one of three being featured on their blog. 

Every little girl knows who Hello Kitty is, but for me, she's been a lifelong love. So, I have to admit that I figured my little boy would not be interested one bit! Then, when he first started to talk, he pointed at one of my many Hello Kitty items and said with a big smile: "Hi Cat!" PSA Essentials officially licenses Hello Kitty images for their cool stamps and so my love affair continues...

For this card, I stamped HK in a plane and had her ringing in the new year up in the clouds. I also stamped all the numbers from 2012 in the background with clear embossing ink and heat embossed to really make them pop. This was an easy way to make a card to usher in what is sure to be a fabulous year. Hope yours is as happy as mine!

BEAN NOTES

Stamps: HK in airplane from Hello Kitty On the Go set and 2,0,1 from Vanilla Numbers set (PSA Essentials); banner from In the Clouds set (Taylored Expressions); sentiment from Teeny Tiny Wishes (Stampin' Up!)

Cardstock: Classic Solar White (Neenah); Real Red (Stampin' Up!)

Ink: Tuxedo Black Memento (Tsukineko)

Specialty Ink: VersaMark Clear (Tsukineko)

Coloring Medium: Sketch Markers (Copic); Silver Metallic Pen (EK Success)

Tools: Circle Punch (EK Success)

Accents: Clear Embossing Powder (Ranger)

Dies: Cloud Border (Taylored Expressions)

Besties and a Bear...Taylored Expressions Release Day!

It's Release Day at Taylored Expressions! I have two fun projects to share with you today, and I'll begin with this card featuring the newly released Love Monsters. I am so happy to see a set that I can use for my little boy and I thought I would create a card that he would love. These little aliens are so cute!

I started off by paper-piecing the two friend aliens (don't forget the tooth!) and added the darling "Besties" sentiment. I used some perfectly matched space paper and finished off with a bit of ribbon and some die-cut stars. A few little twinkly stars with some glitter and I had a sweet card for my favorite little man.

My second card today features the adorable new set, Buddy Bear. I stamped him out and colored him with Copics -- I used wide strokes to simulate "fur" on this furry friend and then fussy cut him out so that I could mount him on a frame I created with one of the very cool Layering Doilies. Isn't the detail on the doily fabulous?

I used patterned paper from this month's Project Pantry, along with all the cardstock and ribbon. This month's Project Pantry is perfect for Valentine's and includes paper from the darling With Love collection from American Crafts, plus cardstock and ribbon. Plus, you can "spice it up" with extras that perfectly coordinate. The sweet sentiment is just perfect for my thank you card that will go to whomever sends me the best box of chocolate for Valentine's Day!

BEAN NOTES

Besties Card
Stamps: Love Monsters (Illustrated by Emily Burger for Taylored Expressions)
Ink: Memento Tuxedo Black (Tsukineko)
Cardstock: Blue Bayou, Daffodil Delight (Stampin' Up!); Choice Snow (TE)
Patterned Paper: Rocket Age (October Afternoon)
Accents: Stickles (Ranger)
Fibers: Blue Bayou Grosgrain Ribbon (SU!)
Dies: Classic Circles Nestabilities (Spellbinders); Seeing Stars Die Set (Taylored Expressions)

Heartfelt Thanks Card
All cardstock, ribbon, and patterned paper from Valentine's Project Pantry Kit.
Stamps: Buddy Bear (Illustrated by Doug Applegate for Taylored Expressions)
Ink: Memento Tuxedo Black (Tsukineko)
Dies: Layering Doily (Taylored Expressions); Classic Circle Nestabilities (Spellbinders)
Coloring Medium: Sketch Markers (Copic)

TE Release Day!

• All of the new products are now available for purchase! Check out the Fresh Out of the Oven Department to see everything in one place!
• More projects from the Baker's Dozen to inspire you.  Just follow the link list below.
• Did you win one of the Mystery Baker's Dozen Blog Giveaways? Find the list of winners on Taylor's Blog.
• Buy one Animals in Love A la Carte and get one free/Select calendar products 50% off/Layered Doily Dies Special - get all the details on our January Release Specials by clicking here.

Don't forget to check out the rest of the Baker's Dozen for some wonderful peeks at what's new and fun for Taylored Expressions!

• Charmaine Ikach

  Danielle Lounds

  Jennifer Shults

  Jodi Collins

  Karen Giron

  Melissa Sauls

  Melody Rupple

  Regina Mangum

  Sankari Wegman

  Taylor VanBruggen

  Tori Wild

  Wanda Guess
  and friend Jami Sibley

Totally Pandas...Taylored Expressions Day 3!

It's LOVE WEEK here on day three of sneak peeks for Taylored Expressions! I have two projects to share today, beginning with this first one, a clean and simple Valentine's Day card using the new A la Carte set, Pandas in Love. (Keep reading for information on some really fun GIVEAWAYS!)

For this card, I stamped and colored in the darling pandas on cream cardstock. Then, very carefully with a sharp hobby blade, I cut around the bamboo and mounted the panel on some pink cardstock. 

Enabler Alert! TE is running a special on these darling Animals in Love sets! Buy any of the three new sets and receive one released in 2011 for free! Check out Taylor's blog below for details.

Next, I created a set of mini Valentine's cards using the oh-so-fab new set, Totally Tags Valentine. Yes, you can make some really cute tags with this terrific set (and coordinating dies,) but I used some of the images to create some easily reproduced V-Day cards.

 

The new Valentine Project Pantry includes these absolutely adorable heart-shaped adhesives and coordinating ribbon. I added some glitter to each mini-card for some sparkle, too.

I just love all the sweet images in this set. I finished each quick and easy card with some Liquid Pearls.


BEAN NOTES
All cardstock, patterned paper, and embellishments from Valentine's Project Pantry kit
Pandas in Love Card
Stamps: Pandas in Love (Illustrated by Nancy McKinney for Taylored Expressions)
Ink: Memento Tuxedo Black (Tsukineko)
Coloring Medium: Sketch Markers (Copic)


Totally Tags Valentine's Cards
Stamps: Totally Tags Valentine (Illustrated by Emily Burger for Taylored Expressions)
Ink: Memento Tuxedo Black (Tsukineko)
Coloring Medium: Sketch Markers (Copic)
Accents: Stickles (Ranger); Rouge Liquid Pearls (Ranger)
Dies: Totally Tags (Taylored Expressions)

January Release At a Glance

• We have sneak peeks to share Monday through Wednesday.  All of the new products will be available for purchase on Thursday, January 5th at   8 am PST. You'll find it all in the Fresh out of the Oven Department at the Taylored Expressions Store.
• Join us as a fan on Facebook for an early peek at the stamp sets, as well as a SPECIAL Facebook GIVEAWAY, on Wednesday night beginning at approximately 6 pm PST.
• Mystery Baker's Dozen Blog Giveaway: Each day, one lucky blog commenter will be chosen by random draw to win a $10 TE Gift Certificate.  Winners will be chosen from a different Baker's Dozen blog each day and will be announced on Taylor's blog on Release Day!  Be sure to hop around to see all the sneak peeks and leave comments on each and every blog for more chances to win. Limit one comment per blog per day, please.  Comments close Wednesday 1/4 at 7pm PST for the drawings.

Don't forget to check out the rest of the Baker's Dozen for some wonderful peeks at what's new and fun for Taylored Expressions!

• Charmaine Ikach

  Danielle Lounds

  Jennifer Shults

  Jodi Collins

  Karen Giron

  Melissa Sauls

  Melody Rupple

  Regina Mangum

  Sankari Wegman

  Taylor VanBruggen

  Tori Wild

  Wanda Guess