Hero Arts Asian Elements Card Samples

I have been having fun stamping with Hero Arts Asian Elements ClearDesign set. I don't normally have time to stamp, but I invited some friends over this past weekend to make cards and managed to make several cards using this set and wanted to share them with you.




Since they're bold-styled images, I colored the stamp with Fluid Chalk Cat's Eye ink pads before stamping. It would work just as well with markers.





All the images are from the Asian Elements set (the words are not part of the set).



If you would like to purchase these stamps, you can find them in my eBay store at http://stores.ebay.com/In-Joy-Rubber-Stamps

Kodomo Snow Garden Card

Here is a sample that I had in one of my e-newsletters. Someone asked me for the instructions to make the card, so here they are. I can't take credit for making the card. It's from the company that makes the stamp design: Kodomo, Inc.

Here are the supplies that you'll need:

White cardstock

Gold Origami paper
Black Cardstock

Red Cardstock

Black Pigment Ink Pad

Gold Ink Pad

Clear Embossing Powder

3938-100 Snow Garden Rubber Stamp

3938-024 Winter flower Rubber Stamp Set (for the word stamped in gold)

To make the Japanese-style window:

1. Draw lines on 2 pieces of 4-3/4" x 1-1/2" Black Cardstock to make 1/4" graph paper

2. Cut 1/2" squares off from these graph papers but leave 1/4" around and between

the squares

3. Stamp the Snow Garden image on 5-1/4" x 4-3/4" white cardstock in the center using a

black pigment ink pad and emboss with clear powder

4. Color the embossed design as desired

5. Put Gold Origami paper on both sides of the stamped & colored card. This part cannot be seen in the picture, so it is optional since it looks nice without it.

6. Put black graph papers on both sides of the stamped & colored card showing the gold paper a little bit.

7. Put a piece of 5-1/4" x 3/8" black cardstock on the lower side of card and put a piece of 5-1/4" x 1/4" black cardstock on the upper side.

8. Stamp word from the Winter Flower Rubber Stamp Set on a 1-1/4" x 1" white cardstock using the gold ink pad and layer it onto the red cardstock . Place it at the upper left of the card.

That's it! If you want to buy the Kodomo rubber stamps, you can find them in my online store at www.injoystamps.com.

Penny Black Painter's Vase Card

Here's a quick and simple card that looks very elegant. Stamps used are from Penny Black Rubber Stamps.

1. Color 3859H Corner Piece with a Tombow Yellow Gold (#26) marker. Huff on it and then stamp on the top left and repeat for the bottom left. Repeat as you stamp in the middle of the right side twice.

2. Color the Painter's Vase stamp with markers. I used Pale Yellow (#62), Persimmon (#835), Port Red (#757), Avocado (#98) and Dark Jade (#177). Before stamping, mist the stamp gently with water. It helps to hold the stamp about 6-8 inches away and mist at an angle, not directly on the stamp (otherwise it will smear your colors).

3. Add stickles glitter glue to accent the flower and any other part of the card that you want to highlight.

4. Mount on cardstock as pictured. The vase was mounted on a piece of gold paper and then on top of a yellow Hanko Tsumugi cardstock and then finally on a red Hanko Tsumugi card.

To find the products to make this card, visit my web site at www.injoystamps.com

Paper Bargello

Here is a fun technique that looks like it took you a long time to do, but didn't! It's called Paper Bargello. I will try to show you step by step how it's done.

1. You need to decide on the size of the pattern that you want to make. You might want it to cover the entire background of your card or just a piece of it. Cut out a piece of paper to the desired size.

2. Cut out a piece of double-sided adhesive to cover the entire piece of paper. Double-sided adhesive sheets are the easiest, but you could also use double-sided tape that you can lay side-by-side on your paper.

3. Cut your choice of papers (they could be plain or patterned, or a mix of both) into 1/4" strips. I have found that using a paper trimmer works well, but you may prefer using a craft knife and ruler.

4. One by one, lay the papers carefully onto the double-sided adhesive, one strip at a time. Continue with the same pattern (in this case, it's red, gold, black, white). See picture below.



















5. Once your entire piece is covered, cut the paper into 1/4" strips so that you cut across all of the strips that you just placed down (see picture below).



















6. Cut out a 2nd sheet of paper that's the same size as the first piece that you cut out and cover it with double-sided adhesive.

7. Lay down your first strip onto the paper, flush with the corner. Next, lay down the next strip, but not at the top. Put it one square below the previous one but right next to the previous strip. See the picture below. My paper is red, so all of the strips are being placed onto the red cardstock. Continue with each strip so that each strip is placed one square below the previous one, as pictured. You'll know you're doing it right if the squares make a diagonal pattern.






















8. In order to fill the extra spaces, you need to cut off the extra piece at the bottom and put it at the top. In the picture below, if you look in the 2nd column from the left, there is one extra square. You need to cut it out and put it at the top of the 2nd column, on top of the white square. In the 3rd column from the left, you have an extra gold and black square. Cut off the strip where you see the green line and then put the piece at the top of the column, to fill in the space, and to fill in the pattern.




















9. When it's done, it should look like this. You can use this as a background piece for a card.





















Here is a beautiful card that was made by J. Schlueter using origami paper and accented with a tea bag fold and mizuhiki cords!






















Here is a sample that I made using Hanko Tsumugi cardstock (this is some of my my most favorite cardstock!). If you want to buy this cardstock, you can find it in my online store at www.injoystamps.com. I sell them in sampler packs (called Hanko Cardstock Sampler).

Using Technique Tiles from Technique Tuesday

Technique Tuesday has some fun tiles that you can ink, paint, and decorate. They come in a cream-color so that you can decorate them. To make the project on the right,

1. Use the direct-to-paper technique to add color to the puzzle pieces. Just put your ink pad directly onto the piece and rub color until you get the desired look. I used Colorbox Fluid Chalk cat's eye ink pads (I think I used Lime Pastel and Azurite). I decided to alternate colors.

2. Instead of using all of the puzzle pieces, I decided to leave out the 4 pieces in the middle, and instead, I put a verse in the middle, printed from my printer. I can use the other 4 pieces on another project.

3. Next, I selected rub-ons and randomly placed them on various puzzle pieces.

This technique tile fits on a 12" x 12" scrapbook page, however, you can choose to use 1 or 2 pieces to make a card. The tiles also come in sizes for cards. To find more styles of Technique Tiles, visit my web site at http://www.injoystamps.com/

A Gem of a Card!

Here's a simple card that anyone can make. You can easily jazz up a card using some gemstones (Hero Arts has a good selection, but other companies have similar products).

Here's how to make this card:

1. Stamp the Sprinkle Cupcake from Hero Arts on white cardstock with brown ink. Stamp message underneath, also in brown ink.

2. Stamp the cupcake again on a piece of purple cardstock and cut out only the top of the cupcake. Place over the top of the cupcake that was stamped on the white cardstock using foam tape (which gives is a little dimension).

3. Add gems to the top of the cupcake.

4. Layer the white cardstock onto a piece of chocolate (dark brown) cardstock.

5. Stamp the flower border from the Hero Arts ClearDesign Flower Borders set with a rose-colored ink (something just darker than the piece of pink cardstock would work) on a piece of pink cardstock.

6. Assemble the pieces as shown in the sample on a kraft-colored notecard.

7. Tie a knot in a ribbon and then add to the card using a glue dot.

8. Add additional gems on your card as desired!

This is a really fun card to make!

To find these products, visit my online store at www.injoystamps.com.

Folding an Origami Paper Bead Butterfly

These origami butterflies are really fun to make and look great with patterned papers.

Here are the instructions for making the origami butterfly. You can look at the samples to see what they look like.

Kodomo Kimono Pattern I paper, (2 @ 2" x 2", 1 1/2" x 12")
Silver wire, 22 gauge (10")
Gluestick
Tape
Skewer (or toothpick)



1. Cut a strip of paper in half diagonally. Any size strip will work (it will just change the size of your butterfly's body). For the sample on the right, we used a 12" x 1-1/2" strip of paper.

2. Roll the tip of the triangle around a skewer (or toothpick) once. Apply gluestick to the back of the triangle and continue to roll the entire triangle around the skewer (Note: keep the point of the triangle in center as you roll.).

3. Remove completed bead from skewer.

4. Fold a 10" wire in half (Note: do not fold completely. Keep loop at end.). Insert ends through hole in bead. Wrap wire around skewer to create coiled antennae.

5. Place 2" x 2" paper face down. Fold paper in half diagonally. Fold the longest side upward approximately 1/2". Turn piece over. Find midpoint along the bottom and fold sides upwards diagonally. Repeat step for the other sheet of 2" x 2" paper. These are the wings.

5. Position the wings so that the points touch. Adhere pieces together using tape. Adhere body in between wings using glue. Set butterfly aside to allow glue to dry completely.

To find the papers used for this project, visit my online store at http://www.injoystamps.com/ and do a search for Kimono Pattern.