SUO Thanksgiving Table Setting

I think of myself as having a casual/informal personality and my decorating/entertaining style tends toward the cute and clever.  The Thanksgiving table setting I created for today's SUO Challenge reflects these tendencies.

Let's look at each of the components.  The first piece is the napkin.  Did you know that you can run napkins through the Big Shot for a big WOW factor?  I showed this technique to my customers at my last event and they were "impressed" (pun intended!).  I made the napkin ring by running a piece of Autumn Spice Designer Paper through the Big Shot with the Perfect Setting die, using the straight piece.  I then measured around my napkin (after folding it the desired way) and trimmed to fit.  I cut a piece of Early Espresso card stock the same length and a little wider than the die cut card stock, and mounted the designer paper onto the Early Espresso card stock, then folded it around the napkin.  I attached the two ends using Sticky Strip for a good hold.  The leaf is stamped using Cajun Craze ink and the single leaf stamp from the Day of Gratitude stamp set.  I stamped on Very Vanilla and then cut out the leaf.  I punched a circle from Early Espresso card stock using the 1 1/4" circle punch and mounted the leaf on this circle.  A small bow made of Early Espresso 1/8" taffeta ribbon was added as a finishing touch.

This cute little turkey was an idea I saw on another demonstrator's blog.  How adorable is this little fellow??  Wouldn't he be so cute sitting by a place setting ready to welcome each person to the table?  I won't go into detail about how he is made, you can click on the link above for directions.  I did make two changes however...I used the Heart to Heart punch for the legs, cutting the tallest heart in half (and didn't use toothpicks) and also added the hat (done by free hand cutting).

This corn stalk idea was my own creation.  I have always liked the look of the corn stalks when they were placed in fields this way, and wanted to see if I could make one with paper.  These would be a great idea for holding name/place cards.  I will post a tutorial on how to make these in the very near future.  The pumpkin is punched with the 3/4" x 5/16" oval punch in the Holiday Mini catalog.  The stem and ribbon around the stalks is the 1/8" taffeta Early Espresso ribbon.

Well, that wraps things up for this challenge.  Thanks so much for stopping by.  I hope that you gained some inspiration from your visit today.  Please make sure to stop by and visit the other design members at the SUO Challenge blog and see what they've been up to.  Also, please take some time to play along and upload your Thanksgiving Table Setting creations to the SUO Challenge Blog.

Punch Art for SUO Challenge

It was fun to create this punch art card.  Photos of pumpkins used as flower vases are favorites of mine, and I wanted to create that with this card.  Here are the details of the card.

Card base: Very Vanilla Card Stock (and also the card stock my punch art is mounted on) 
Other card stock: Pumpkin Pie, Daffodil Delight, Early Espresso
Stamp Sets: Autumn Days, Fabulous Phrases
Inks: Early Espresso, Wild Wasbi, Cajun Craze, More Mustard
Punches: Boho Blossoms, 2" x 1 3/8" Oval Punch, 1/2" Circle, Designer Label, Ticket Corner Punch
Other: Early Espresso 1/8" Taffeta Ribbon, White Gel Pen

Here's a couple notes about the card:  The background Very Vanilla card stock the punch art is mounted on has been sponged with Early Espresso ink, keeping the darker shading to the outside.  The edges of the pumpkin ovals have been sponged with Cajun Craze.  The edges of the Daffodil Delight flowers were sponged with More Mustard

Thanks for stopping by for a visit.  Sorry this post is so short, but it's late tonight as I write this post and I'm off to bed.  Blessings to you.

Cherry Cobbler Waffles for SUO Challenge

Okay - this challenge was really a challenge for me! I chose to use waffle paper, and when my order arrived I was certainly stumped.  Fortunately, there are others who also share their wonderful cards and ideas online, and that's where my inspiration came from.  In my blog surfing I've seen waffle paper made into flowers, bows, pleated, ruffled, punched etc. but that really wasn't my style or the effect I wanted to try.  One day I came across someone who had run the waffle paper through the Big Shot with an impressions folder and that sparked my creativity.  Here's the result I came up with.

I LOVE the resulting effect that happens when the already textured paper is run through the Big Shot for added texture.  Here are the card details:

Card base: Whisper white
Card stock: Brushed Silver, Cherry  Cobbler
Stamp set: Big on Christmas
Other Products used: Cherry Cobbler seam binding, Petals A Plenty embossing folder, Basic Rhinestones, Smooch Pearlized Accent Ink-Moonlight (hat band)
Image is colored with Stampin' Write Markers

As you can see below, I loved the effect so much that I also line the inside of my envelope with the textured waffle paper.  

Thanks for stopping by to check out my SUO Challenge.  Please make sure to visit the other design team member blogs to see what they've come up with this time around.  Also, I hope that you will take time to share your creations at the SUO Challenge Blog.

Leaves and Acorns for SUO Challenge #3

Fall is my FAVORITE season...I love all the earthy colors and hues!  So, it's no surprise that I chose the Autumn Spice designer paper from the Holiday mini catalog for this challenge and used it along with the Day of Gratitude stamp set.  The card is pretty easy to understand.  I ran the Autumn Spice designer paper through my Big Shot using the lattice folder (I wanted the "popped up" side to be down, so I reversed the way I put the paper through).  Then, I sponged the edges with Early Espresso ink.  After stamping the sentiment and acorns on Very Vanilla card stock, I sponged over the images with So Saffron ink.  It created a nice glowing effect.

Here are the specifics:


Stamp Sets: Day of Gratitude, Teeny Tiny Wishes
Card base: So Saffron
Card stock: Early Espresso, So Saffron, Very Vanilla
Autumn Spice Designer Paper
Ink: Early Espresso, So Saffron
Punches: Modern Label, Word Window, Dotted Scallop Ribbon Border, Scallop Circle, 1 1/4" Circle, 1 3/8" Circle
Other: Big Shot with Lattice embossing folder, sponges
Techniques used: Sponging, Masking

That's it in a nutshell (pun intended).  Thanks for stopping by today and be sure to check out the SU Only Challenge blog to see what my fellow design team members came up with for this challenge.

Autumn Spice Baskets and Blooms

Hello, and welcome to our second challenge on SUO Challenges. This time, we were to make a project using the Big Shot...I actually made two.  Today, I will share the one I submitted and save the other for another day. 

I used the Baskets and Blooms die with a sheet of Autumn Spice designer paper from the Holiday Mini.  I'm finding that this paper ALWAYS results in a WOW project.  I constructed the basic unit with directions I found here.  This is the same design I used for the tropical beach basket I made in July. 

The flower was made with the original SU scallop circle punch.  I inked the circle edges with So Saffron ink.  The center is punched from Early Espresso card stock using the 1 inch punch, then sprayed with Gold Glow Smooch Spritz to give it a shimmery look.  The leaves are punched out of Pear Pizzazz using the 5-petal punch.  After I attached the flower center, I took my snips and cut each flower petal and gently bent them upward.

Here's a close up of the tag I created.  I used the Tiny Tags stamp set, Tiny Tags punch and the smallest of the original oval punches.  The ribbon tied around the basket handle is Pear Pizzazz.  The sentiment is stamped in Early Espresso ink and I used Pear Pizzazz ink and paper on the green vine.  I used a self-adhesive pearl as well.

So there you have it - my project for today's challenge.  I invite all of you to stop by the SUO Challenge site and see what the other team members came up with.  We'd LOVE it if you'd play along with us as well!! Remember, projects must use all Stampin' Up product (either current or retired merchandise).

Thanks so much for stopping by to visit.  Leave me a comment to let me know you were here.

Blessings to you!

SU Only Challenge #1

Welcome to the first SU Only Challenge...with a theme of Fall.  So glad you stopped by to visit.   Fall is one of my favorite times of the year.  I work in the local school district, and although I enjoy having my summers off, I like the comfort of resuming the school year routine. 

I created my card for this challenge with the new Day of Gratitude stamp set found in the Holiday Mini.   I saw this stamp set and knew it was a MUST HAVE for my collection.  Here are the card details (all Stampin' Up!):

Card base: Cajun Craze (LOVE this new color!)
DSP:  Autumn Spice Designer Paper (from the Holiday Mini)
Ink/Card stock colors: Old Olive, Cajun Craze
Accessories:  Old Olive Satin Ribbon, Old Olive brad, Ticket corner punch 

Now it's your turn.  We'd LOVE to have you play along with us and share a fall themed project.  Just link it here.

New Blog on the Block

 There's a new blog on the block...a Stampin' Up! Only Challenge blog...and I'm excited to let you know that I have been asked to be a design team member there.  The first challenge will post on September 7th and challenges will be posted bi-weekly for now.  Three winners will be chosen for each challenge.  Here's the site address:  http://suochallenges.com/ 

I'll be joining these FABULOUS team members:  Michelle Laycock, Karen Barber, Jenn Diercks, Amy Fink, and Cindy Coutts.


Please help spread the word and make sure to stop by September 7 and play along with us!