12th Week of 12 Weeks of Inspired Christmas: Note holding Magnet (great gift year round!)

Merry Christmas!!
I pray that you all have a wonderful time with your family this Christmas as we celebrate the birth of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ!  This is our last week of the 12 weeks of Inspired Christmas Creations and I have had such a wonderful time thinking up ideas to share with you!!  I hope these 12 weeks have given you inspiration to create your own projects!

Today I have another coaster idea (I love coasters, in case you couldn't tell!)  These are round coasters (a few people emailed me that the restaurants they go to only have round coasters, so here's a way to use them).
I taped scrapbook paper scraps I had to the round coasters, added embellishments (the die lacy tag is from Magnolia; inks are Tim Holz; stamps are Inspired Stamps found HERE)

The key to these is the round magnets on the back (make sure they are strong) and hot glue the clips to this so when you go to use them they stay put well (the clips are Ranger products too):
Here are the two I made to share with you on the white board in  my studio (yes, it's a pink brick wall LOL)

 This one I made to clip Scripture verses to:

 And this one is a gift for a friend going through some challenges:

I hope you have enjoyed our 12 weeks.  Leave a comment here by Wednesday midnight (Dec 28) letting me know WHICH project of our 12 weeks of Inspired Christmas Creations was your favorite and I'll choose a couple of comments at random to get a $10 gift certificate to our online store!

Have a very blessed Christmas and THANK YOU for all your support of Inspired Stamps!!
Much love,
~Antoinette
www.inspiredstamps.com (we'll be shipping orders every day but Sundays through the holiday season!  Most orders are shipped the same day as they are placed!)

Week #11 of our 12 Weeks of Inspired Christmas Creations: Tea Light Card w/tutorial + Big Giveaway!

It's Big Giveaway weekend!  All you have to do to be entered is leave us a comment to this post and/or our facebook post about this that will be going up Friday morning!  THEN come back on Tuesday to see if you won!!  There is a LOT that I couldn't fit into this photo that will be coming your way...can't wait to see who wins!!

Today Inspired Stamps is a guest designer for  Lisa over at Honeybearz Designs and her 12 Days of Christmas!  If you came from Lisa's blog be sure to leave a comment and say hello!!  We love to hear from new friends and, you'll be entered in our Big Giveaway at the same time! 

Today I have this card that will truly shine some joy into someone's day....it's a tea light card!  Remember, it's a paper card so you CAN NOT USE A REAL TEA LIGHT WITH FIRE lol...you have to get one of these battery operated ones (I am sure; my brother is a fire fighter :o):

 Here is the finished card with the tea light sitting OUTSIDE, but when you put it INSIDE, it looks like this:

These cards are great to make for ANY occasion, so let me share how to make them:
You'll need:
1 8"x11" piece of card stock (mine is cranberry from CTMH)
a punch or scissors or a cutting system to cut the windows out of the cardstock
4 pieces of 2x4 vellum
assorted stamps (Inspired Stamps used here are His Little Ones: Christmas Girl and Blessed Little Christmas)
assorted papers/ribbons/flowers to decorate ( I also used a piece of sticky back cork board for the 'merry christmas' stamp)
adhesive (use my Scotch tape runner)
a battery operated tea light
a way to score and cut (I used Martha's Scorboard and Fisker's rotary cutter, as always)

Ok, ready?
Let's get started:
First you need tohave your paper 8" across the top and then score your paper at 2", 4", and 6":

Next you need to turn the paper and cut down the center of your paper from TOP score line to Bottom Score line only...I drew in chalk so you could see it better:

Now you should have this:

Now cut the 4 windows, making sure you leave a little room between each score line so you have a bit of a frame for your windows or you'll have nothing to glue your vellum 'windows' to:

Ok, I photographed the top two windows wrong on this...they need to be facing a different direction...you'll see as we keep moving.  But you will now glue your stamped vellum 'windows' in place THEN fold this in half so the cut slit is facing UP:

See how the images are glued in...this photo is correct.  You will use your adhesive runner to tape both 2x 5.5 ends down (so the only pieces not glued back to back are your windows and that's where your tea light will set) Now decorate as desired:

 

And you are finished!  Ta da!

Ok, so leave us a comment and let us know what you think of the tea light card!  You must come back Tuesday to see if you win.  The winner has until Friday next week to email me or...we'll choose another winner!  

Don't forget our 50% sale is good only thru Sunday!  We are shipping the same day as most orders are placed and YES we ship Saturdays before 2pm! 

Until Tuesday,

Be the Blessing and have a WONDERFUL weekend!

~Antoinette

www.inspiredstamps.com

Week #10 of our 12 Weeks of Inspired Christmas Creations: Puzzled Tags + 50% off !!

Hello friends,
We are getting so close to Christmas!!  We are already on our 10th week of our 12 Weeks of Inspired Christmas Creations and you are going to LOVE what I'm gonna show you today, especially if you are short on time (and money!)!!  We have a coupon code in the online store until Dec 18 only 50% off one stamp set from the online store www.inspiredstamps.com

Ok, for this project you will need to raid your children's toy stash (or run to the dollar store quick) and get a few puzzle pieces!  I used the following products....inking a puzzle piece as shown:

The bottom puzzle piece is the same coloring that the one I inked was before I inked it.  I'm always amazed at the transformation!!
Next I stamp my puzzle pieces using Inspired Stamps and Staz-On permanent ink (most puzzle pieces have a glossy surface that won't take dye based inks well).  Just make sure you have the Staz-On cleaner and us it IMMEDIATELY with your stamps or it can ruin them.  I use it all the time and have yet to ruin one, so just be sure to clean them and you'll be fine!!
After you stamp, use a big Sharpie marker to color the edges (it's not required, but makes a DRAMATIC difference in the finished look of the tag):

Yes, this is the same color of the original puzzle piece, I used caramel and gold inks to get this beautiful coloring!  Isn't it amazing!
Next I punched holes in the ends and added ribbon. The back side is white so you can can your To: From: message there with your Sharpie black marker:

I have also used these to make pins for shirts and jackets and also as card fronts!  I hope you have fun getting some use out of old puzzle pieces!

Of course we are having another GIVEAWAY!!  Next week we will have our BIG GIVEAWAY with all the prizes that went unclaimed and some other goodies!!

This week's winner will have a $10 credit in our online store!!  All you have to do to be entered is leave us a comment to this post and/or on our Facebook page about the Puzzle tags!  Let us know if you are gonna make some!!

Have a blessed weekend and I will announce the winner in Monday's post!
Until then,
Be the blessing!
~Antoinette
www.inspiredstamps.com 

Week #9 of our 12 Weeks of Inspired Christmas Creations Tutorial + giveaway!

Hello friends!
What a day!  We just released the new December stamps into the Inspired Stamps Online store and they are flying off the 'shelf'!!  All orders placed by 5pm are on their way to you!

Today I have one of the MOST fun gifts you will ever make!  It is a mixed media photo frame and starts off like this:

I got a bunch of these at Hobby Lobby and I love the solid particle board frame!  I painted it white with the acrylic paint show.  I also used copic markers, distress inks and distress ink pads, plus assorted embellishments and these items:

Did I mention this is SUPER fun to make?!?
Ok first thing is to tear masking tape and put it around your frame.  You can use clear tape too.  I put the blue painters tape on the glass where the photo will go to protect it from all the stuff:

Then I glue down the pieces of fibers, cheesecloth, sequins, and other goodies to get this:

Ok at this point it looks like something a kindergarten child would toss in the trash and move on to something else, but hang in there!  It's like the ugly duckling that hasn't grown into a swan yet.  Put another thick layer of the glue and seal over it (you can use mod podge, but I prefer the glue and seal product by Tim Holz).

NOW let it dry (you need a few hours but overnight is best).

Next comes the ink:

make sure you are pouncing the ink and turning your ink applicator in different directions.  Once its done it will look somewhat like this:

Honestly, this is the big WOW THATS COOL moment when you are creating, but seeing it in a photo may not be as powerful LOL.
This dries so fast and you are ready to take off the tape, add some embellishments and you are almost done:

and here's the final frame with some close ups:

Can you see how amazing the texture of the cheese cloth looks?  I just LOVE this!  Here's another color combo for you so you can see how dramatically different your ink choices make the finished product:

Do you notice there is more white in this one?  I used craft glue and it resisted the ink more than the glue and seal did.  But still a neat look.

Ok, so tell me what you think about this project?  Anyone gonna give it a try?  Leave your comment here and I will choose someone who will win one of the new particle board frames just like the one I used for these projects PLUS the 2 new His Little Ones: Winter Boy and Winter Girl stamp sets.  You have until midnight Sunday!!  Let your friends know...if they come comment and mention your name, then I choose them as a winner...you'll win the same prize they do, too, as a THANK YOU for sharing about us!!

Have a blessed weekend and I'll see you Monday!!
Be the Blessing,
~Antoinette
www.inspiredstamps.com  (We ship every day but Sunday!  We ship most orders the same day they are placed!)

Week #8 of Inspired Christmas Creations: RANDOM STAMPED PATTERNED PAPER TUTORIAL & giveaway!!

Hello friends!
I am posting this Saturday so I'm giving you an EXTRA day to get your comments in here and/or on facebook to be entered in our $15 gift certificate to our online store www.inspiredstamps.com.  Just post a comment to this post by Tuesday noon ET and you'll be automatically entered!!  Remember:  If you refer someone here to share our giveaway with them and they win and mentioned that you sent them in their post, you'll BOTH win!!   We APPRECIATE your referrals!!

Thanks so much to all the wonderful Guest Designers last week!!  Our birthday month was made so much more Inspired by your beautiful creations!!   Occasionally we look to our customers to Guest Design for us so make sure you share what YOU create with Inspired Stamps on our Facebook page or here on our contests so we can see what you've done!!

TODAY I am sharing a Random Stamped Tutorial on creating your own beautiful wrapping papers and patterned papers for card-making and scrapbooking.   You will need inks; a large, medium, and small stamp; and plain paper (we used the brown packaging paper that comes on the large rolls which is intended to use to ship packages...I love Kraft paper and it's a thicker version!!).  I also used Spica markers from Copic and a stipple brush.

Step one:  I chose a large, medium, and small stamp from the ME AND MY HOUSE Inspired Stamps set:

Remember to work in a TRIANGLE fashion when 'random' stamping:  You will also want to get some images that stamp 'off' the paper:

I always start with the LARGE image.  Below I cut out 2 different size triangles so you could see better what I mean when I say to remember triangles.  You want to be stamping to make a triangle each time you place the stamp down:

After you have all the LARGE stamps down, stamp with your MEDIUM sized stamp, again thinking TRIANGLE:

You will have MORE of the smaller stamps than you do of the larger one.

I like to use white pigment ink on Kraft and these solid small churches fit perfectly as the SMALL stamp.   continue stamping until it looks good to you:

Don't worry about smudges (see the one I did for you by the church; you can use a white pen at the end to make a 'snowflake' to cover it---someone once said 'A mistake is an opportunity to embellish'...I live by it!!)

Here it is with the Spica blue colored in the church and snow was added with the Signo pen.

Here's a close up so you get a better idea bout the Spica colors...love them!  Wait to add the Signo White until your blue has a chance to dry or you'll get the blue snow like I did above.

If you have too much 'blank space' you can either add another image or my favorite is to stipple brush some color on:

Here's the finished piece and here it is wrapped on a present with a bow I got from Hobby Lobby:

Here's another one I did for you with FRUITFUL FLOURISHES and HIS LITTLE ONES: PRAYING GIRL:

I LOVE the Fruitful Flourishes set...swirls and phrases really add a lot to random stamping!!

Here this is wrapped up:

Leave your comment below to be entered into the giveaway!  I'll have my next post Tuesday to announce the winner, as we start SNEAK PEEK WEEK of our next NEW RELEASES TUESDAY....our release date is on Friday, December 2nd at noon!!

Thanks so much for visiting us today!
Be the Blessing,
~Antoinette
www.inspiredstamps.com  (40% off coupon good through Thursday;  shipping the same day as most orders are placed!!)