Wednesday, March 23, 2011

The Cutting Club

Introducing The Inspiration Station Cutting Club!

All papercrafters can benefit from joining our new Cutting Club.

  • Members receive a FREE 2x2 QuicKutz die every month that is only available to Club members.
  • Choose a FREE QuicKutz die from our selected list when you register.
  • Enjoy a FREE workshop every month just for Cutting Club members.
  • Club Members receive a 20% discount on ALL QuicKutz & Sizzix products for as long as they are a member.

Membership is just $30 for six months.

QuicKutz dies are compatible with Sizzix Big Shot, Vagabond, & Cuttlebug.

Wednesday, March 09, 2011

A chance to play

I love Wednesdays. It's my day off and sometimes I get the chance to play. After spending a good portion of the other day watching videos of Tim Holtz demonstrating the new Distress Stains; I had to get one of every color to play with!

My first attempt was not impressive. I tried to improvise by using a file folder to cut a tag and found that didn't work so well. The Ranger Tags have a much smoother surface. The file folders sucked up the stain so quick I got a very streaky look. When I tried to wet it to blend the paper just soaked up the water- no blending. So I grabbed my Ranger Tags and tried again. The results were much better.
So for those of you who want to know how I made this tag, here's the scoop:
I stamped the Hero Arts Butterfly (F5158) on to the blank tag using Matte Multi Medium - Another tip I learned from Tim; it acts as a resist. Then I used the Distress Stains in Antique Linen, Wild Honey, Fired Brick, and Broken China and sprayed it with water. I used a heat tool to dry it then I ran it through the Brick Wall Texture Fade. I stamped Hero Arts Friendship Definition stamp with Walnut Stain Distress ink. I used the blending tool to add Wild Honey and Walnut Stain Distress ink to the edges. The sentiment is from JustRite Stamps and is cut with a Spellbinders Die that is made for JustRite.

Now for my favorite part - The flower. It started as three layers of Color Me Crazy flowers from Petaloo. The bottom layer I colored with Spun Sugar Stain, touched the edges with Fired Brick Stain and sprayed with water. The top Layer I colored with Wild Honey Distress ink then sprayed it with water to blend it. While it was wet I lightly touched the center with the Wild Honey Stain. The leaves are actually two petals cut from a large Petaloo flower that I colored with Peeled Paint and Forest Moss stain.

Please note: The Petaloo flowers are paper and they lose their shape and texture when you wet them. I found best results by drying them using and iron and putting them between to paper towels. Make sure you use the paper towels because the stain did transfer when I ironed them. Once they were dry I just scrunched them up to shape them. I put a small pearl and some Scattered Straw Distress Stickles in the center. The ribbon is just a piece of seam binding I colored with Spun Sugar and Fired Brick Stains.

Friday, March 04, 2011

Spring is on it's way

Wow! Can it really be March already? I can't say I'm going to miss the winter when it's gone-I have definitely had enough. Now that spring is almost here, the new batch of scrapbook products that were introduced at CHA Winter show are starting to pour in. I am so excited to see all of the fun, bright colors and great new embellishments. I am looking forward to having some time to play with all of it.

Our next crop is Friday, March 11 from 5pm-10pm, be sure to join us for the fun.

In case you missed it on Facebook here is a partial list of some of the things we've received over the past few weeks:
  • Tim Holtz Ideology & Stampers Anonymous
  • Twinkling H20's & Radiant Rain
  • Justrite stamps & dies
  • Magnolia stamps
  • Glitter papers from Best Creations
  • Easter "Peeps"
  • Leblanche Stamps from Germany
  • 12 New Copic Colors and the new swatch book
  • Family & Pet themed papers
  • and lots more!
Just an update on our April 3rd Bus Tour - Our Bus is now completely SOLD OUT! We are looking forward to a fabulous day!

Don't forget we have Suzanne Dean coming in April to teach some amazing Copic Marker classes. Sign up today at her website CMCRoad.com

Don't forget about the awesome classes we offer here at The Inspiration Station. You can find our calendar here and a description of classes here.

Store Calendar

Class sample slideshow