Homemade Envelopes with Labels

 This is just a quick post to show you how I use labels to address the envelopes that I make out of designer paper.  I love making homemade envelopes with my Martha Stewart Scoring Board but the patterned paper makes it so you have to use a label to make the address legible.  

I use large sheets of labels and print the return address and the address as shown above.  You can also print this on regular paper and use xyron or other adhesive to attach it to your envelope.

 Adhere the label so it wraps around the envelope with the address on the front and the return address on the back as shown in the pictures.  

I think this is a nice and different way to use a label on these pretty envelopes.  Let me know if you have other good ideas.  I'm always looking for something different.  

Martha Stewart Scoring Board Envelope Measurements

If you own the Martha Stewart scoring board, you probably have used it to make fabulous envelopes.  If you haven't, you are missing out.  This envelope maker is so simple and great.  I wanted a few more sizes of square envelopes than what is listed on the instructions so I had to figure out the measurements.  I thought I'd share them with you.  I hope you find this helpful.  

If you have measurements of your own, please comment and I will add them to the list.  Thanks!

Env. Size:	Card Size:	Start with:	A Score Lines:	B Score Lines:
#1	2 1/8 x 3 1/2	5.5 x 5.5	2	2 1/2
4 Bar	3 1/2 x 4 7/8	7.5 x 7.5	2 5/8	3 1/4
A2	4 1/4 x 5 1/2	8.5 x 8.5	3	3 5/8
A6	4 1/2 x 6 1/4	9 x 9	3	3 3/4
A7	5 x7	10 x 10	3 1/4	4 1/4
A9	5 1/2 x 8 1/2	12 x 12	3 7/8	5 1/2
6 Square	6 x 6	10 x 10	3 3/4	3 3/4
#10	3 3/4 x 9	10.75 x 10.75	2 7/8	5 1/2
3 Square	3 x3	5.5 x 5.5	2 1/2	2 1/2
4 Square	4 x 4	6.5 x 6.5	2 1/2	2 1/2
5 Square	5 x 5	8.5 x 8.5	3 3/8	3 3/8
5.5 Square	5.25 x 5.25	8.5 x 8.5	3 1/4	3 1/4

Bride & Groom Card for 2 Sketches 4 You #36 & a Trick to Fix a Punch

I found out yesterday that my husband's brother had a surprise wedding this past weekend and we have a new sister-in-law. I wanted to make them a special card and I decided to use the current sketch challenge at 2 Sketches 4 you as my starting point.

The sketch is on the right and here's my card:

I have decided to start listing supplies and product info at the bottom of my posts so that you can quickly and easily figure out what supplies are used. I have been noticing a lot of blogs set up that way and it does seem to be a very clean way to do it. What do you think? I really would like your opinion on this idea. Let's try it tonight and see how we like it, shall we?
I would like to tell you a little story about the border punch I used. I used a coupon at Michael's to buy this Martha Stewart Doily Lace Border Punch at 40% off last week and I was so disappointed when I got home and the punch didn't work at all. All it did was rip apart any paper I put in it.

Since Michael's is so far away, I decided to try to fix the punch myself. I remembered watching a video a long time ago where a woman tried out all the suggested ways she could find to fix or sharpen a punch that has stopped working. After trying several things- including punching through tin foil- she found that the only thing that really seemed to work was punching through an aluminum soda can that was cut apart. So I tried it. What did I have to lose?

I headed out to the garage and rummaged through the recycling until I found a soda can (Miller Lite can actually!). The first thing I noticed was how surprisingly easy it was to cut it with regular scissors. It works best if you just poke the scissors into the side of the can and start cutting around the can to remove the top and the bottom.

Once you have a nice flat piece of aluminum can, take your punch and punch through it several times. I had a very hard time with this border punch but luckily my husband walked by and was so intrigued by what I was doing that he was more than happy to help me out. We (actually, he) punched through the can about 6 times and then I punched through some wax paper to clean the punch and lubricate it. I've heard that's a good thing to do.... I don't know if it's true or not.

To my astonishment, the punch was then good as new when I tried it out on some cardstock and it now seems to be working perfectly. So, now you know how to fix a punch that isn't working well or needs to be sharpened.

Okay, back to the card....
The cake is colored just a tiny bit with a marker and blender pen and it's also slathered with lots of Swarovski crystals which make it look so amazing in real life.

And here's the inside with a little bit of detail to match the card.

Please leave me a comment and let me know what you think of the new supplies format at the bottom. I've tried to (and will continue to) link any products that I can to a place where you can see them. In most cases, I will link either the manufacturer's website page for the product, or a reputable place to purchase the items, BUT, sometimes, if I can't find those things, I will link to a site that I don't know the reputation of because that's all I can find. If you want me to recommend a place to purchase any item, please email me or comment and I will do my best to provide that info for you. I guess what I'm trying to say is that just because I link a site here, it is not necessarily a recommendation of that company from me... it's more so you can see the product. I will tell you though, that I will NOT ever link a company that I've had a bad experience with. (I hope this makes sense... I'm waiting for a sleeping pill to kick in and maybe I'm rambling....)

Have a great day and I will see you again next time!

Stamps/Images: Wedding Cake- Our Wedding Clear Stamps by The Paper Studio, Bride & Groom- American Crafts Mini Marks Rub-ons- Fred Sidekicks

Paper: White & Black Cardstock, DCWV All Dressed Up Stack (pink & black paper)

Ink/Coloring: Black Pigment Ink with Clear Embossing Powder, Pink Marker & Blender Pen

Accessories: Black and pink grosgrain ribbon, Martha Stewart Doily Lace Border Punch, Swarovski Flat Back Crystals (rose & light rose)

Stay Put Bow

I finally found an online tutorial for the "Stay Put Bow"! Click here to go on over to Michelle Single's blog and see the fabulous video tutorial that explains it perfectly. I do this all the time and it works so well.

In the tutorial, Michelle shows how to do it when you want just a knot but I do the same thing with longer "tails" of ribbon on each side and tie a nice bow. See my other post from today to see one I did with a bow (click here). Actually there are lots of examples of this on my blog if you look around!

The bow works best for me if I tie a knot first then make a "bunny ears" bow by making a loop with each tail and tying them in a simple knot (I tie my shoes that way too, but don't tell anyone!). As you are tightening the bunny ears bow, you can adjust the tails to the bottom (before the center knot is tight) and if you keep tightening the knot and then pulling the tails to make the loops smaller and fiddle with it that way, you end up with a pretty nice bow. Does this even make sense? I hope so!

What are your best bow tying tips? Share them in the comments and I'll compile a list here for all the world! Thanks!

Make Your Own "Clip it Up"

I've been seeing the Clip it Up all over the place lately on blogs. It's cool. Very cool. And expensive. I can see that it can be useful in so many ways and I was kind of wanting one. Then I realized that I had all the makings here to make something similar!

Check this out:

Okay, so it's not the same... I know. But when I tell you what it costs to put this together, you won't believe it! It's not the neat little spinner rack that the original comes with but this set up nicely uses the space under my cabinets.

And there's these cool little buckets too:
Okay, here's the deal.... it's all from IKEA.... and it's cheap!

Start with the rails- they are kitchen rails and you can find them here. There are two sizes and they are $1.99 and $2.99 each, depending on the size. I have 3 of the large hung under my cabinets. These rails work great for holding punches too.

Next, you need clips. Look here. They *appear* to me to be the same clips that the actual Clip it Up uses. They work great on the rails and they are $4.99 for 24 clips. They come with some little hooks too that can just be discarded. I'll let you know if I find a use for them.

Now just put the little clips on the rail after you hang it and you are good to go! The loop on the clips just fits on the rail- you kind of have to force it on there- so they aren't going to fall off. They work perfectly.

If you like the little pails that I have hanging on the rail too, you can find them here (Edit 11/25/13- It looks like they redesigned them since I bought mine). They are only $3.99 each. Can you believe it? You have to bend the top hook open a little to fit these rails but that works just fine.

So, let's figure this out.... with this idea, you can make your own Clip it Up for about $8.00 per 39 inches of rail. That's counting 24 clips... if you want to load it up with 48 clips that brings the price to $13.00. Now that's a deal!

Congratulations with Handmade Ribbon Roses

This is a birthday card that uses the SU set called Congrats.  This is a really cool set that is very versatile.  I was lucky enough to win the set from Michele's box top contest on the Gingerwood board.  (Thanks again Michele!)

I used layers of designer paper on this card.  I don't remember which slab of paper it's from at the moment, but the very bottom layer is actually vellum that has the same pattern as the next largest layer.  The different papers give the card an interesting look.
I used my SU slit punch to make the scallop and believe it or not, I made those roses!  I'm so thrilled with how they came out.  They are so super easy too!  You wouldn't believe how easy they are to make.  You can click here for a video tutorial.  
Here's the inside and as you can see, the sentiment on the inside is what makes this congratulations card into a birthday card.  

I hope you enjoyed this one and I hope you'll try making a ribbon rose.

Clever Storage for Glitter

I had an idea that I just had to share.  I have a collection of glass salt and pepper shakers in all shapes and sizes that has been sitting boxed up since our last move.  I had an idea to repurpose them for my glitter and microbeads in my art studio.  I dug them out and they work perfectly!  Here's some of them:

I love all the different shapes and sizes and now I really love them with all the different colors of glitter in them!

Homemade Dew Drops

I tried making homemade dew drops a few months ago using clear hot glue.  It turned out okay but not spectacular.  Then it finally occurred to me that I had a stash of colored and glittered glue sticks.  I can't believe I didn't think of this sooner!  

It's easy to make nice round dew drops with the glue gun on a non-stick craft sheet.  Just puddle the glue to size you want- it helps to keep the tip very close to the craft sheet to do this.  When you pull the gun away, just move the nozzle around in a circle on top of the drop to help get rid of the point that forms.  As the glue cools off it levels off to nice round mound.
I used many colors and I ran a clear glue stick through after each color.  I kept making drops with the clear glue and it made several shades of each color in lighter shades.  
I put the drops into a watchmakers tin as they cooled and I separated the different shades so they'll be easier to use.  I'm really pleased with this project and wanted to share it.  I hope it inspires you to make some of your own!

Another quick tip: I read recently that glue dots are perfect for adhering these.  That's a great idea!

Stamp & Ink Spot Storage

Today I'd like to share a couple of organizational tips.  First, I'd like to show you how I keep track of and store my rubberstamps.  All of my stamps are indexed by catagory in a binder (as shown below).  Once a new set is in this binder, I give it a number.  As you can see in the photo, the set on right is number 214.

Now, the next step is to number that set on the case and file it according to number (as shown in the photo below).   This system makes it easy to find and use what you have.  When I start a project, I pull out the binder and choose the stamps I'd like to use and I always know exactly where to find them.
A couple of quick tips: 

**I number SU sets by the size of the case.  The smallest cases are 100, 101, etc. and the next size up is 200, 201, etc. and so on, up to the largest case size.  This way, I can store them by size and things look and stay neater.

**I also use this same book and system for non-su stamps.  Unmounted and clear stamps are stored in CD cases.  I index and number them in the binder and then number the outside of the CD case accordingly.  For single unmounted wood stamps, I index them and number them by tray (I use box frames like in the pictures below).

Now on to ink spots....

As you can see in the photo above, ink spots fit perfectly into an 8 1/2 by 11 acrylic box frame that you can take the box out of and use as a tray.  This size tray is perfect for the 4 color groups of SU ink spots.
Once the tray is organized, I store it in a paper sorter- using the sorter as shelving as pictured above.  Since it is a paper sorter and the trays (box frames) are 8 1/2 by 11, it fits and works perfectly.  I store all kinds of things this way (wood mounted stamps, inks, paints, etc.).  

The paper sorters are from Sams Club and if I remember correctly, were about $15 each and each has 12 slots/shelves.  The trays can be found at Micheals or AC Moore and are on sale with the rest of the picture frames quite often.  At 40% off, which happens often enough, they are only a couple of bucks each.

I hope you find some of this info helpful.  If you have any great storage tips, I'd love to know about them- please leave a comment.   Have a great day!

SU Marker Storage Idea

Modifying a Stampin' Up marker case into a display holder for your work desk (scroll down for more pictures):

I am always looking for new and different ideas for storing art supplies in my studio.  One of the goals in storing and organizing is to make sure supplies are easily accessible.  I've come up with a great storage solution for my SU Markers by modifying the original case they came in.  

Now let me start by telling you that I bought my set of markers from SU a very long time ago, so they are the old style.  And they came in the case way back then.  I don't know if the case has changed with the new style markers but I thought this tip was worth sharing anyway.

Inside the box of markers, there are clear acrylic pieces that make it so each marker has it's own little "hole" in which to live.   I took those out of the box- it's several pieces that once they are confined in the box, stay together nicely.  When you remove them from the box, the come apart into several pieces.  This is very easily remedied by just wrapping some clear packing tape around the outside to hold them together.  

At this point, you can just set the nice acrylic holder on your desk and it looks very nice.  I wanted mine to tip forward so I could have easy access to all the colors.  What I did was use two triangle pieces of foam.  This foam is the kind that you can heat with your heat gun and press into a texture and use that as a stamp.  Remember that stuff?  I actually found a big bucket of it in the toy department years ago that was being sold as bathtub blocks.  I bought it and both my son and I had new toys!  (My son is in the military now... it was a long time ago!)

Once I found my two pieces of triangle foam, I attached them to the front of the acrylic holder with ATG tape.  This allows the holder to tip forward as pictured.

To finish it up, I created a chart on white cardstock that fits nicely on the front of the foam.  This hides the foam pieces and gives me a visual of the marker colors and guides me to where they are located in the holder.

I know that the common wisdom is to store markers flat so they don't dry out, but I've had my markers this way for years and years and they are holding up great.  I don't use them a lot, but when I do, they still work perfectly.

I wonder if the new SU marker packaging allows you to do this?  Or maybe you can find an empty case on ebay?