Archive for November, 2008
Thankful
![[del.icio.us]](http://images.del.icio.us/static/img/delicious.small.gif){kind=small}
Stampin’ Up Sale Bundles Announced!
Click above picture to open the PDF document or click here to view the large JPEG)
Whoo hoo, the Stampin’ Up sales bundles were announced!
I posted a link to the PDF above (click the picture). The document notes the page numbers of the items in the catalog. You can also view all the items by going to http://www.thesunsethouse.stampinup.net and selecting “SHOP NOW.” Pictures of all the sale bundles will appear. The sale prices are good from 11/26-12/1, or until the limited supplies last. Note: I noticed that one of the bundles has the wrong price (Curly Label Punch Bundle). When added to the shopping cart, the price decreases to $23.77. Also, the shopping site S-L-O-W right now because of heavy traffic, so if its acting up for you, be sure to check back later!
Did you know I stayed up until 12am last night to ensure that I got to the goods in time? Yes, I kept refreshing my browser over and over until the sale went live. I am stamp obsessed and crazy. When I get old, instead of a crazy cat lady, I’m going to be a crazy stamp lady. But, my persistence paid off: I got some nice goodies, including a ribbon storage bundle for the insane amount of ribbon spools on my desk. I also ordered an adorable stick figure stamp bundle at 50% off (All in the Family Bundle, originally $63.40 and now $31.70!). I love me a great deal. 
I was disappointed to find out that a stamp/punch set that I purchased recently was listed on the sale bundles. Dangit. Me and my impulsive shopping habits. If only I had waited! Oh well. I guess I can’t win ‘em all. The set I’m speaking of is the Curly Label Punch Bundle, a super fun punch with coordinating stamps that fit perfectly inside. They are so cute, I could hug them.
In fact, below I’ve posted a project I made a few weeks ago with the Curly Label Punch Bundle. Apparently, it’s on sale now for 30% off. Lucky for you, but bad for me because I bought it already!
The project I made is a gift card holder. The thank you stamp in the middle, plus the punch that cut the image out, are both part of the Curly Label Punch Bundle. I tried sewing the edges of the paper with el cheap-o $9 mini sewing machine from Michaels. If know which sewing machine I’m talking about, don’t buy it. As you can tell above, it sucks. Stitches are falling out everywhere! El cheap-o machine is el suck-o machine. Oh well.
Isn’t the gift card idea so stinkin’ cute? I found the tutorial here, at Stamping with Roxy’s blog. Lots of inspiration there too! The gift card holder is super quick to make. You can create one with a few easy steps:
- Take a regular 8.5×11″ paper and cut it in half lengthwise, so you have have two 4.25×11″ sheets.
- Score one of the sheets at 3″, 5.5″, and 8″ and fold the paper into a “W”.
- Adhere the edges together (the bottom and sides of the “W”) and cut a slit in the middle for the gift card.
- Decorate the holder and add a tiny piece of Velcro inside to keep it shut. I purchased inexpensive sticky Velcro strips at Walmart and snip bits of them off for my projects. Very handy! You can also use ribbon to keep it closed also.
Well, happy Turkey Day, everyone! Eat lots, good luck with the shopping crowds, and don’t charge up your credit cards too much!
On second thought, go spend some money (responsibly) and get us out of this recession.
Project Recipe (all supplies Stampin’ Up unless noted): Curly Label Punch Bundle (item 112966), Priceless stamp set (109260), card stock and ink in chocolate chip and baja breeze, light pink felt flower from Flower Fusions 2 kit (112006), corner rounder, hobby blade to cut slit, bright pink flower by Making Memories, Cuttlebug swiss dots embossing folder, pink rick rack from Walmart, crappy sewing machine by Provo Craft
Puns from the Past
Some server issues over the weekend prevented me from blogging for multiple days. I had blogger withdrawal–my fingers were twitching. I kept checking and rechecking my blog to see if the site was fixed, but to no avail. Technology. I’m so dependent on it, it’s like crack. Gotta love it and hate it at the same time. *Sigh.*
Without a blog to update, I made a card over the weekend with two of my favorite SU sets from the current catalog. One is just a background stamp, but it’s so elegant, I absolutely adore it. The second is a set called Puns from the Past, and it’s one of the items in the catalog that I saw and couldn’t live without. I had so much fun using these stamps because they had a vintage feel that complemented the patterned paper so well. Plus, I added some felt flowers from an SU embellishment set I ordered. Who doesn’t love playing with felt flowers?
Card Recipe (all supplies SU except ribbon and punch): Puns from the Past and Bella Toile stamps, cardstock in kraft, pink pirouette, chocolate chip, and very vanilla, ink in chocolate chip, SU Flower Fusion 2 felt flowers, designer paper in Parisian Summer, pink brad, wine colored ribbon, Fiskars scalloped border punch
Stampin’ Up Holiday Sale!
Calling all stampers! (Especially the ones who like a good bargain )
Stampin’ Up is having a holiday sale that is such a big secret, demonstrators don’t even know what’s going to be on sale. On Wednesday, 11/26, Stampin’ Up will announce special product bundles marked down from 20%-50% that will only be available for a very short time and only until the limited quantities run out. These bundles will be available for purchase online through demonstrator websites. Just go to http://www.thesunsethouse.stampinup.net and click “SHOP NOW” in the upper right hand corner. Then, shop your heart away (that is, if I don’t snatch the goods all up for myself! )
I’ve been waiting for SU to announce the bundles for months, but alas, no inside scoop. You can bet I’ll be tapping my fingers impatiently until the 26th.
Once I find out more details, I’ll post them on my blog. See you on Wednesday!
Another Paper Clutch
I’m finally feeling just the slightest bit better from my cold. I never used to get sick, until I got married. Now, Hubs contaminates me with a boatload of germs. I’ve been sick three times this year already! I guess that’s why the wedding vows say, “in sickness and in health”
Today, I’m just sharing a quick project. I made a paper clutch a while ago, and I made another one in a different color palette. I used my handy dandy Scor-Pal once again. I love that tool. I use it for every single card I make, even if only to score the center. I’ve also made numerous boxes and bags with it. I highly recommend it to any avid paper crafter!
Have a lovely, craft-filled weekend, everyone!
Recipe: PTI patterned paper, ribbon from PTI and Michaels dollar bin, card stock flower made from PTI paper and K&Co pearl brad, Scor-Pal use to score fold lines, glue dots to adhere ribbon onto front
Sick Day *Cough*
*Yawn* I just woke up at 1pm! NyQuil really knocks a person out. Hubs gave me a cold (a really bad one), so rather than spread the germies around at my office, I took a sick day. It’s nice to be home, but not so fun breathing out of one nostril.
I made a holiday card over the weekend with the most adorable holiday stamp set. I thought I’d be done with my holiday cards by now, but I have a ways to go! Now that we’re married, Hubs says we get to mail out holiday cards with cheesy newsletters, updating everyone on our annual happenings. Hubs is a cheesy guy and he really likes that stuff. We’re such stereotypical boring married people now!
Card Recipe (all supplies SU unless noted): Deer Friends stamp set (hostess set), SU card stock in riding hood red and whisper white, Bazzil textured cardstock in blue, ribbon in riding hood red, ink colors in baja breeze, old olive, riding hood red, chocolate chip, 1 3/8 circle punch
What the Heck is a Gocco?
So, some readers have been leaving comments wondering, what the heck is a Gocco? I’m sure the people who hopped over to my blog from Weddingbee already know what a Gocco is. However, in the stamping world, Gocco isn’t in our vocabulary. Gocco is used for mass producing and has nothing to do with rubber, while stamps are… well, not so great with the mass producing thing. I’ll explain a little bit about the Gocco and share some links where you can find more info.
The Gocco is basically an at-home screen printing machine for paper. It can be used to print on fabrics also, but most people use it for paper goods, like stationery and wedding invitations. Using screens that are carbon sensitive, a design printed with a laser printer or photocopier (or any machine that uses carbon to print), plus two Gocco flash bulbs (like the kind that were once used with old school cameras), a Gocco owner can burn a pattern into a screen. Then, ink is applied to the screen, the screen is installed back into the print machine, and the design is ready to be stamped onto paper. Sounds confusing? It’s really not. Gocco can be intimidating at first, but I found it was incredibly easy to use. I’m planning to make more prints soon, so I’ll post a video in the future.
I’m thinking about creating some designs to sell on Etsy. I’ve been so busy, the poor shop has been empty. 
Gocco will probably be easier than rubber stamping for mass producing inventory to sell.
For my first Gocco project, I made a stash of flat 4 bar thank you notes. I created a design with the motif that my brother and future sister in law will be using in their 2009 wedding. They generously bought me the Gocco machine because I’ll be helping them with their invitations, so I wanted to do a practice design using their wedding element. I only wasted one screen during the burning process. Not bad for my first time!
For the cherry blossom print, I used two screens: One for the pink ink and one for the brown. If the colored areas had not been so close together, I would’ve been able to do everything on one screen and separate the colors using ink blocking material.
Here, you can see the ink smooshed around.
And here’s my first lovely print. I ran these cards through the printer twice (one time for each color). The ink dries pretty quickly and I was able to finish the project in only a few hours.
The prints above are waiting to dry before I proceed with round two. With Gocco, you can make hundreds of prints using the same screen. It’s a handy little tool for mass producing.
When I printed with the second screen, I learned that the foam blocking material saves a lot of wasted ink. It prevents the ink from spreading around and forces the screen to print evenly. I’m glad I’m learning all this before I print my brother’s invitations.
The finished card! Jesse + Stina (<–brother + FSIL), if you’re reading this, I saved a stack of these little cards for you guys! You can send them to your early wedding gift givers.
For those new to Gocco, you can learn more than you ever wanted to know about the printer right here: http://www.weddingbee.com/tag/gocco/ and here: http://www.diylife.com/2007/12/14/diy-definitions-print-gocco/
Unfortunately, as I mentioned yesterday, Riso stopped making supplies for the little machine. I’ve been buying boxes of bulbs here and there and I’ve built up a nice little stash for myself, but I could definitely use more. It’s too bad, because this machine is really awesome!
Check back soon for current promotions!