Nancy Wethington

STAMPtember Blog Hop with Simon Says . . .

For the second year in a row,

Simon Says Stamp and Show & The Simon Says Stamp Challenge

are joining forces to bring you a

SUPER hop and treasure hunt to celebrate the approaching fall and winter holidays.

 

To help celebrate we will be giving a

BIG BASKET OF CRAFTING GOODIES to the winner of this hop!

PLUS 3 $25 VOUCHERS to the Simon Says Stamp Store !

The vouchers will be the  hidden treasure on 3 Design Team blogs and you have to find them.

 

The Blog hop starts today, August 31, 2011 on the Simon Says Challenge Blog

and will finish on September 5th, 2011 at on the Simon Says Stamp & Show Blog.

 

The theme for both challenges this week will be ANYTHING GOES. You can make anything you like … a card, an ATC, a Scrapbook layout … the possibilities are endless!

You will need to

1. hop through each blog, find the little parcel of goodies and make a note on which designer’s blog you found them. You do not HAVE to comment on all the Design Team blogs but we would appreciate any comments you would like to leave. If you lose your way at any time a full list of all the participating blogs with links will be available on Simon Says Stamp Challenge and the Stamp and Show Challenge blogs.
2. Hop through each blog to find the hidden treasure chests (they're not on everyone's blog!).
3. The last stop on the hop is the Simon Says Stamp and Show Challenge blog. You will need to leave a comment there with the names of the 3 blogs with hidden treasure. The comments will be moderated so you will not be able to see the answers.
   
   For more details please refer to the Simon Says Stamp Challenge or the Simon Says Stamp and Show Challenge blogs for more details.

If you arrived here from Chris then you are going in the right direction otherwise you need to start at the beginning on the Simon Says Stamp Challenge.

Here's what I created for the hop:

 
This project began with 7 Gypsies Lille papers that I collaged onto a canvas.

 

 

I wanted to take advantage of the ABUNDANCE word, so made sure that was *center stage*. After the collage was complete, I added lots of smaller canvas to pop up the design.  Here are some of the details:

 

On these squares, I added some ephemera I had at home (the discover button and the vintage metal car). The other goodies used were the 7 Gypsies Big Ben knob and one Tim Holtz Idea-ology light bulb. As you can see, two of the squares were covered with Lille paper and the 3rd square was turned backwards so the knob would snuggle into the back of the canvas.  The edges were then covered with 7 Gypsies tape.

 

This canvas was covered with Lille paper, then added Glossy Accents to the letters to make them pop.

 

A Tim Holtz Idea-ology Memo Pin holds a piece of packaging from the 7 Gypsies Ephemera pack.  If you look at this pack, this is also where Miss Liberty came from (see 2nd photo).  The square was first covered with 7 Gypsies Lille paper and then overlayed with 7 Gypsies Birdsong Tissue Paper.  The tissue was first treated with Ice Resin to give it that vintage look.

To create this look, lay the tissue on top of a plastic bag.  Mix the Ice Resin according to directions and then, using a sponge, spread the tissue paper with the Ice Resin.  Let dry and you get a antique-look paper that resembles a sheet of mica.  Very cool thing to do with any resin you may have left over from jewelry making!

 

This wooden star came from my stash and was first painted with Ranger's Sandal Dabber. Once the paint was dry, I edged the star with Old Paper Distress Ink.  Using a heat gun, I made sure the paint and ink were dried thoroughly before stamping with the stars from Wendy Vecchi's Studio 490 Celestial Art.  I used Versamark Embossing Ink to stamp and then sprinkled the stamping with Gold Embossing Glitter.

I hope you enjoyed my project. 

From here you need to go to the super talented Becca for more inspiration :-) I would appreciate a comment if you would like to leave one.

Have fun and good luck!

Something exciting is coming your way . . .

 
Simon Says Stamp & Show and Simon Says Stamp blogs

are joining together to present one HUGE month of stamping fun.

It all starts this Wednesday, August 31.

Don't miss our 2nd Annual Stamptember extravaganza.

If you are in or around St. Louis . . .

you must visit For Keeps Sake and see the book Ken Oliver is teaching

Saturday, September 17.

 
(This picture does not do this book justice. You have to see this in person!)

The sample is in and I am telling you it is

fabulous

amazing

out-of-the-box

extraordinary

revolutionary

Graphic 45 - ionary

NOT TO BE MISSED class.

And it is only $30.

WHAT!

It will be bound using the UNI-BIND system

which means you will go home with a hardbound book.

The gals in my workshop yesterday couldn't believe the detail and the price.

There are a few seats left.

So ya better call today if you're interested.

Reservations required (314) 487-8131.

And did I mention how talented and funny Ken Oliver is?

You're sure to learn some amazing tricks while enjoying Ken's style.

September's Book of the Month . . .

It's back to school time and that means that September's Book of the Month is focusing on school days.

Report Card Mini-Book

measures 9.5" x 12"

Hope you can join me @ For Keeps Sake

 

Saturday, September 24

10:30 am - 4:30 pm

$35

BYO Lunch

+

Basics to include:

Cutter

Scissors

Adhesive

Distress Inks: Vintage Photo + Tea Dye or Antique Linen

 

The Report Card mini focuses on

October Afternoon papers and embellishments

so you'll get a vintage feel with bright colors.

Limited seating.  Reservations required.

(314) 487-8131

 

Simon Says . . .

Today is challenge day at Simon Says Stamp & Show and this week's theme is TRAVEL.

But first, some exciting news!  For the second year in a row, Simon Says Stamp and Show & The Simon Says Stamp Challenge are joining forces to bring you a SUPER hop and treasure hunt to celebrate the approaching fall and winter holidays.  Be sure to come back on August 31st to start the hop.  It will run through September 5th.  Simon Says Stamp is offering some great prize packages, and there will be other opportunities to win some blog candy, too!

Now for this week's challenge.  As some of you know, I previously spent 30+ years in the travel industry.  So this theme is one of my favorites!

I started this project with an five panel 8x8 fold-out.  Each chipboard panel was wallpapered using papers from Graphic 45. The first panel is covered with papers from A Proper Gentleman. Adding rubber stamps from Wendy Vecchi's Studio 490's Art Parts, Ticket To Ride and Mail Art seemed the perfect addition to accompany the Graphic 45 embellishments.

Here are some details of each panel:

 

Love the Graphic 45 Proper Gentleman papers.  The cars began this theme of Travel where I could showcase various means of transportation.  The only thing I added were Journaling Tickets, a couple of gears, a philosophy tag hanging on a hitch fastener.  I love to use arrows and pointy things when dabbling in travel projects so I stamped Wendy Vecchi/Studio 490 arrows across the page.

The next 4 panels documented some of my favorite places on earth with more means of transportation. This panel was dedicated to France with papers from Graphic 45 Transatlantique and Curtain Call.  The little truck is one of Tim Holtz stamps titled Old Car.  Lots of cut-outs and layering on this panel!

 

The third panel celebrates the train and cruise ships with more countries I love.  The background paper is from Graphic 45's Curtain Call. The train and tags are from Graphic 45's Transatlantique All Aboard! Found the perfect stamp for this page in one of Wendy Vecchi/Studio 490's Ticket To Ride - it's a train ticket!  (PS: You can get the train ticket in the set or by itself here.  But I gotta tell  ya - that background stamp on the Ticket To Ride is one of my faves.)  I hung one of the small train tags on the front of the train and secured it with game spinners.

Wanting some common ground throughout all five panels, I decided to use Graphic 45's Transatlantique All Aboard!  The back or *B* side  of this paper is tiny circles and squares of railroad logos.  I cut the logos and popped them up and layed them end-to-end across each of the five panels. 

 

 
Ahhhhh, a few of my favorite places in the States.  The background is Graphic 45 Transatlantique with cut out and popped up images.  That pointing hand is from Wendy Vecchi/Studio 490 Mail Art.  The NYC Taxi tag and San Francisco/TWA stamp are old stamps I collected years ago. Had to have that SFO/TWA stamp as that's how I started my travel career - at good ol' TWA. 

The last panel . . . well, it just had to celebrate home.  Because no matter how far or how long one travels, it's always good to be home.  Graphic 45 Transatlantique took the prize on this one with help from Tim Holtz Hanging Sign die and Graphic 45's Magic of Oz 2 stamps.

I hope you enjoyed this walk through of my project for Simon Says Stamp & Show Challenge blog.

Stroll over to Simon Says Stamp & Show Challenge Blog and enter something with TRAVEL as the theme. You may be the person who is randomly chosen to win a $50 gift certificate from our generous sponsor  

or you may be chosen as one of the

top 3 designers for the week!

Stop by

&

see what my Team Mates have come up with

as well as inspiring entries

for this week's challenge

on

Simon Says Stamp & Show Challenge Blog.

Magic of Oz . . .

One of the mini-books I put together for CHA-Summer is featured on the Graphic 45 blog today. The booklet was created with Graphic 45 Staple Envelopes - both the Black Policy Envelopes and the Kraft Envelopes. These come assembled on spiral bound rings.  I simply took the rings apart to create this book.

I first saw envelopes used this way when one of my friends/fellow artist/students (thanks Mary June!) brought this into a meet-up I host at For Keeps Sake Scrapbook.  The way the envelopes all twisted turned and folded intrigued me.  I took mental notes and then went home to try it with the G45 envelopes and it worked.

Looking at the photo below you can see . . .

 
the Kraft Envelope is turned to the side and the Black Envelope sits upright.  That's pretty much the pattern I followed all through this book.

Here's where the fun starts . . .

 
Looking at the left page -

• the bottom of the Black Envelope is folded up to create a pocket.
• The top of the Black Envelope is left open to create another pocket.
• When adhering the Kraft Envelope to the Black Envelope, the Kraft Envelope is adhered only on the very end (left side) and the very edges (top & bottom) so that another pocket is created.  Not sure how clear that explanation is so if you look at the left page again . . . notice the OZ ATC card sticking out of the pocket I'm trying to describe.  (hoping that makes it a bit clearer)

 

This next picture may be a bit clearer:

 
So the purple Wicked Witch is in a side pocket.  You can see on this photo that the book is bound on the flap of the Kraft Envelope.  The envelope itself is open so that creates yet another pocket.

 
Can you believe how much you can fit into one page!

Now you know why I was so intrigued by this concept.

 
 

 
 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Hope you enjoyed this mini-book.

Thanks to Mary June for showing me this concept.

Now you may want to run over to Graphic 45's blog

to see the fabulous board game Tara designed!

Jewelry . . .

This was one easy project given that I got to use my favorite papers - Graphic 45!  Once I got started, I couldn't stop! These little guys are addictive.

 
 

 

You can find the tutorial (it's so easy and fun!) on the

Graphic 45 blog today

along with Tara's adorable Curtain Call projects.

Simon Says . . .

Stamp & Show Some Bling!

If you follow my blog and/or take my classes, you know I love to create mini-books.  I should say *decorate*.  

I think there's a difference between create and decorate - just like there's a difference between an interior decorator and interior designer.  I have an Associates in Interior Design.  But I'm not a designer.  To me, a designer goes in and looks at a shell of a house and knows exactly where walls should be put up or torn down or altered.  They see something that's not there. An interior decorator can put a room together that's already in existence.  

That's me . . . I decorate.

Designers I admire are people like Laura Denison and Kathy Files.  These gals rock the mini-book world with their designs.  Every time I look at one of their designs this goes through my head *how did she think of that!*

So my contribution to the world of bling over at Simon Says is a project I decorated.  The mini-book was already in existence as an oversized tag book.  I used the gorgeous Pink Paislee Butterfly Garden to decorate the pages.  Here's the result:

The cover showcases Prima's bling swirls which were cut to look as if it is the bird's flying pattern. 

Many of the stamps I used in this book are

Pink Paislee's Daily Junque.

LOVE THESE!

The above page shows a pen resist technique I did here.

The above panel began life as a part of the Pink Paislee packaging.

It was just too pretty to throw away!

 

Hope you enjoyed my decorated book. There are so many beautiful designs that my Team Mates have created this week for the *bling* challenge.  Please head over to Simon Says Stamp & Show Challenge Blog to see what they've come up with for this week's challenge.

I have to add how inspired I am by all those who enter the contest each week.  There are such gorgeous designs from each of you who play along with us.

Welcome to our new Team Mates Ellen and Tracy!

Now it's your turn.  Stroll on over to Simon Says Stamp & Show Challenge Blog and enter something with bling that you've created this week.

You may be the person who is randomly chosen to win a $50 gift certificate

from our generous sponsor  

or you may be chosen as one of the

top 3 designers for the week!

Stop by

&

see what my Team Mates have come up with

as well as inspiring entries

for this week's challenge

on

Simon Says Stamp & Show Challenge Blog.

It's beginning to look a lot like Christmas . . .

 

Mary has just announced her next Home Companion Workshops

November 12 & 13

in Mary's studio!

 

 Registration begins Monday, August 15.

 

Information can be found here:

http://maryengelbreit.com/meet-me/mary-engelbreits-home-companion-workshops/instructors

 

Hope you can join

Mary Engelbreit

Barbara Martin

Charlotte Lyons

Kathy Curotto

and

me

for a most extraordinary way to begin the holidays!

Pen Resist . . .

Currently working on a little something for the next Simon Says Stamp & Show challenge blog.  It will be posted on Monday but in the meantime . . .

I tried a little pen resist.

Starting with this gorgeous paper from Pink Paislee

 

I first went over the white leaves with a white gel pen.  Once that was dry, I used a clear gel pen and went over those white lines again.

Of course, you wouldn't have to use the white gel pen to create this resist, but I did want to pop the white a bit more.  You could achieve this by using just the clear gel pen.

 

Once the pen work is complete, all has to be thoroughly dry 

 

and then I added Distress Ink to the edges and over the pen work. As you can see, the gel pen resist the Distress Ink.  Now those leaves really pop!