Grand Finale, pt 10

This is the last card from the Grand Finale class back in June. It is the same layout as this card that I showed quite a while ago. The Whisper White Organza ribbon was definitely a highlight! It is so pretty and shiny in person. Perfect for wedding invitations. Everyone liked how the Big Shot Movers & Shapers Die worked to get the piece cut out. I've explained it on the previous card, so I won't explain it again, but it is still really cool! :)

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It has been an unbelievably crazy week! Two of the boys have had birthdays, a Primary Quarterly Activity to plan and pull off, Marching Band started, plus three migraines! I'm hoping things calm down a little very soon.

Grand Finale, pt 7

This is the seventh card we made in my last class. We ended up making the pink one in class. I had planned the red one and then realized we were using the red ink pad on another card and had to switch. That always happens at the last minute! I think I have everything planned so precisely...oh well!

We used heavy duty tin foil and ran it through the Big Shot to get this look. We used one of the Texturz Plates. It is a neat and impressive look. Once in a while you get a hole through the tin foil (which is why the "heavy duty" is necessary), but you just use a little creative layering at that point. When you layer the foil to the black card stock, it is important to put your adhesive onto the black card stock, rather than the foil, because you will push out all of the impressions. Just place your adhesive about 1/8" in from the edge of the card stock and you'll be fine.

We watercolored the flowers. They come from the Echoes of Kindness set, which was a hostess set from the last catalog. The Rhinestone Brad added just the right touch to top it off.

Grand Finale, pt 3

My Grand Finale class was held on Friday. I ended up with 22 signed up. One forgot (she wasn't a happy camper!), and one couldn't make it, so I had 20 that attended. Things went quite smoothly for such a large group.

This is one of the cards we made. I'm calling it card #3 because I've shown you two previously, here and here. I'll show the other seven in the upcoming days.

I got this card idea from Mary Fish's blog. I loved it the minute I saw it. My favorite part is the vase, which is made from the wide oval punch. The bottom of the vase is just one side of the oval, cut off! Those cute little flowers are made from the Big Shot and the Daisies die cut. We used the Big Shot a lot! I can't praise that tool enough!!!

A Fascinating Gadget...

I've owned the Movers & Shapers Curly Label Die (for the Big Shot) for months, but haven't opened it. Quite frankly, the thing scared me a little! I knew I wanted to use it for my Grand Finale class so I decided I better start playing with it. FUN! This is my first attempt with it.

Here is the inside. I used the coordinating Cute & Curly stamp set and Punch to go with it.

This is what the die looks like. The purple part is a very strong magnet. You can move it around anywhere and it will stick while you run it through the Big Shot. The instructions say to cut through only one layer on this die, but I did layer the Walk in the Park Designer Paper on the card first and then run it through. It worked fine. Next time, I would put the card face down on the die instead of face up. The stitching around the cut out looks a little nicer on the inside than it does on the outside.

This die will actually cut out your card and score it too. I find the scoring nice, but the cutting kind of annoying. I already had my card cut, and it trimmed it a little more. Not a big deal at all, but I just think it is weird that it does that. If you have the Big Shot, or are thinking of getting it, I would recommend this die. It is a really neat one!

As demonstrators, we were able to pre-order several things that will be available in the new catalog beginning July 1st. One of the items was more shapes for this die. There is a star, heart, a scallop oval and another new type of punch. The name of them is Punch Shapes, so they all coordinate with our current punches. Mine are on their way!

Oval All

I've been saving this card to show for quite a while! We'll be making it at the next class on June 19th (however everyone may not make the exact same color). I made this for a recent swap. It uses the new Oval All stamp set and new Oval Punch, along with the Walk in the Park Designer Series Paper. All of these items are from the new Occasions Mini Catalog.

I also used the Manhattan Flower Textured Impressions Die with the Big Shot.

Big Shot Boxes

At last Friday's class, we made some Valentine Boxes with the Big Shot. Everyone made two of each box and was able to choose whatever Designer Series Paper and ribbon they wanted to use.

These two are made with the Pillow Box Die (or the ear plug box as Richard calls it). They are quite small, as you can see, but sooo cute! Supposedly you can fit a "fun size" candy bar inside, but I couldn't find any. These three little candies you see fit just right, but it is a snug fit.

Stampers chose from the Rock Star stamp in one of the new Level 2 Hostess sets called A Little Somethin', or the Hugs & Kisses stamp from the Love You Much set. There were also a few other stamps to choose from, but these were the most popular.

This box is "Box #2" in the catalog. (FYI: it can work with 8 1/2 x 11 paper.) It is also small, but holds *12* of these Hershey's Nuggets. That is about half a bag. It isn't a treat you'd want to send for the whole class, that's for sure! Normally you can cut out at least two boxes at a time, but we found with this particular die, it was cutting where it should've been scoring. Since the class, another demonstrator told me that if you use the Premium Crease Pad when cutting, you won't have this problem. I have that pad, but had no idea what it was for! ;)

The stamp I used here is the Lovey Dovey stamp from A Little Somethin'.

Polka Dot Punches - Texturz Die

I got my first order from the new catalog on Wednesday! Most of it was card stock, etc. in preparation for next week's class, but I did get a few new fun things, including these cute Corduroy Buttons and one set of the new Texturz Dies that work with the Big Shot. (You get 6 different textures in one set!) They make the card stock have the textured look, like you see with the dots on the Chocolate Chip paper on this card. The "dots" are probably the most blah out of the six that I got, but they really looked the best with this card!

This is the other card that I did for the swap I talked about in a recent post. I decided to hurry and make an extra card for everyone so they would have something new to show their customers in case they hadn't ordered these new items yet.

Do you have the Big Shot yet? Have you tried the Big Shot yet? I just can't say enough about it. When it first came out, I told my friend Cindy "there is NO WAY I'm getting that thing." I was convinced not long after that I needed it, and have been so glad ever since. I know it is a big ticket item, so it is the perfect thing to add to your Hostess Wish List, and set a date for a workshop! Why not earn it for FREE? Stampin' Up! has added some great dies to this catalog and will continue adding more. Sale-A-Bration (Feb. 1 - Mar. 31) is the best time of year to set your sights on the big ticket items, because you'll get additional benefits all the way around. See this post for additional information.

Polka Dot Punches - Top Note Die

Each time we are about to get a new catalog or mini catalog, I host a swap for my downline. The due date was yesterday, so I have those ready to go out today. I ended up doing two different cards, and this is one of them. It doesn't show up very well on the scan because of the color, so I put a piece of Chocolate Chip card stock behind it and that helped a little.

I used the Top Note Die and my Big Shot to make the card. The main part of the card is a folded piece of Sahara Sand (see picture of the back of the card below). I placed it on the die so that it would cut, yet still open up as a card shaped like the Top Note Die. Then I cut a piece of the new Delicate Dots Designer Paper (available FREE through SAB!) on one edge of the die and layered it on the card.

It was a real easy card, but a fun new look instead of the standard size we are all used to. I used the Polka Dot Punches Set to make the card. It is the only one I pre-ordered, so I've been using it to death!