How To Start a Card {Theme Inspiration} with Lesley Croghan

Welcome to the Sweet Stamp Shop!! 

Lesley here, and I am excited to share my first post as a design team member. 

Nicole has asked me to share some ideas on how to "start" a card design. 

Starting is half the battle and I often don't know where to begin!!

For my card today, I based it on a "theme". I am a Grade 3 teacher and it is the end of the school year here in Canada, and so I went to work, creating a fun card for a teaching colleague using the School's Out set and the Distressed Chevron background.

This is how I started....

Step 1: I looked through my Sweet Stamp Shop stamps and found the adorable School's Out set.  

Step 2: I thought about colour-school buses are yellow...and so I went with yellow as my card base.

Step 3: For my design, I decided to use a classic layout. (measurements below)

Step 4: Find some coordinating papers, twine and inks.

Step 5: Get busy!

How to make this card:

1. Cut your yellow cardstock to make an A2 card (4.25" x 5.5")

2. Stamp the Distressed Chevron background in a darker yellow ink onto the card base.

3. Cut a strip of black cardstock at (2.5" x 5.5")

4. Cut some "School Themed" paper in a strip (2.25" x 5.5")-adhere to black strip and then to card base.

5. Cut black rectangle (2.75 x 3.75").

6. Cut white rectangle (2.5" x 3.5") and dry emboss. Adhere to black rectangle.

7. Stamp school bus from the School's Out set, onto yellow paper and fussy cut out.

7. Pop up rectangles onto dimensionals and pop up school bus too.

8. Stamp sentiment on white paper and die cut out with oval shape or punch.

9. Wrap Baker's Twine around bottom of the card and hold in place with small piece of tape. Cover tape with stamped sentiment on oval shape.

That is how I made my card for today! I hope you have fun, creating your own School Themed card. 

Thanks for stopping by!

Lesley

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SSS/Core'dinations/Petaloo Day 1

Good morning!  Sweet Stamp Shop is teaming up with Petaloo and Core'dinations this week to bring you lots of back to school projects!

Up first is Jamie!

Today I am altering a pencil box that I picked up from Office Max last week for 10 cents...yes, $0.10!  I love the office store back to school specials :)  I used the Sweet Alpha Doodles stamp set along with some goodies from Petaloo and Core'dinations!

Have a look...

Supplies:
Stamps: Sweet Alpha Doodles (Sweet Stamp Shop)

Cardstock: Lime Green and Purple (Core'dinations)

Flower: Cardinal Red Mulberry Paper Flowers (Petaloo)

Adhesive: 1/2" Tape (Scrappy Tape)

Adhesive Runner and 1/4" Zapdots (Helmar)

Ribbon: Green (May Arts)

Ink: Tuxedo Black and Pistachio (Momento)

Other: Pencil Box (from Office Max)

1.  Cut the lime green paper to 9" x 3-1/2" then score at 2-1/4, 3-1/2, 6-1/2, and 7-1/4.

2.  Use the Core'dinations sanding block to sand the score lines and around the edges

3.  Apply adhesive tape to both ends and wrap it around the box.  Remove the paper backing and 

    adhere.

4.  Your box should look like this

5.  Cut a 1-1/2" x 3" piece of the lime green paper and sand all over.  Remove all the dust.

6.  Stamp the large frame from the Sweet Doodle Stamp set in the center of the small green 

     paper.

7.  This is my favorite little trick for letter placement!  Line all your letters up just how you want 

     them in your frame so that you can read them.

8.  Then simply place your acrylic block over the stamps and press down and they are ready to 

     ink!

9.  Ink the letters and then center them in the already stamped frame.

10. Use the lined stamp and Pistachio ink and ink the paper on the box using the stamp horizontally.  Note: Keeping the paper on the box gives a more distressed pattern as it does not stamp fully in some spots.

11. Then go back and stamp vertically to create a checked pattern!

12. This is what your box should look like.  Embellish as desired!

Next up is Misty with a quick and easy gift set.

I'm so happy to share this sweet little teacher gift with you. My kids will start a brand new school right after Labor Day. I want to make a good impression on their new teachers ;).

I began by printing out the template from PI. I used the given measurements to cut and score my Core cardstock. I love the two tone weave look of this particular Core paper. Then I stamped the strip of apples from School's Out on the yellow Core paper and then water colored them in red and green. I traced the pencil holder template, cut and folded it and then attached it to the notepad holder piece. I finished off the gift by adding gorgeous coordinating Petaloo flowers to the front with a great sentiment from Sweet Stamp Shop's School's Out set. Thanks for taking a look and I hope you make some time to create!

Aren't those projects just the coolest!?! 

As school is getting back into full swing we're ready 

to give you some 'back to school' inspiration - so, come 

back tomorrow and check out what we have in store! 

Also, we have a little give-a-way if you hop with 

us this week - 

We're giving away a SSS-Petaloo-Core prize pack 

valued at $50! Wanna see what it'll include??

Come back tomorrow for a full look at what 

your in for!! 

How to enter - Be sure to comment below and 

head over to the Core Blog and Petaloo's Blog!

Also, be sure you're following us on the blog and 

on any social media site that you frequent! (let us know 

in your comment that you do!) 

Winner will be drawn at random next Monday 

and announced here on the blog! 

Thanks for stopping in and checking out the fun inspiration! 

See you tomorrow! 

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