Author Archives: Karen Fontinelle

Easy Halloween Eyeball Card

How about this for an easy Halloween card with eyeballs??! This card is super easy to make and a good way to use up some scraps! The card base is Garden Green, but you could use many other colors, like an orange, purple, black, red, whatever you like. Then gather all the circle punches you have for making eyeballs and go to town punching circles, eyeballs and pupils! Glue some black circles in the very center of the white eyeball and some on the edges. Then you can play around with placement when you adhere them to the card, making some eyes crossed or looking up or down or straight on! Make some of the eyes bloodshot with the thin tip of the Real Red Stampin’ Write Marker. Just do whatever you want! For my greeting, I used the “Boo!” framelit from the Boo To You Framelits Dies.

Here’s a new tip I learned and I think it is working well: Usea piece of parchment paper in between the die and the card stock! It cuts through the card stock fine and releases it easily from the intricate die.

I got this eyeball idea from looking through a food catalog I received in the mail that had a round box decorated with eyeballs. I thought, “I could make a card like that!” So don’t just trash those many catalogs we will all be receiving in the mail for the upcoming holidays. Look through them for ideas for your projects, whether it is copying something directly or using the same color combination or using the design for an idea for a card or bag or other project.

Have fun making some Halloween cards for your friends and family, like this easy Halloween eyeball card! Your kids could help with this one!

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New Stampin’ Up! Weekly Deals for Oct 6 – 12, 2015

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Here are the new Stampin’ Up! Weekly Deals! Purchase these items at a discount while supplies last today through Monday, October 12. These are always a good chance to pick up some accessories at a lower price! Maybe you can use the Gusseted Cellophane Bags for Halloween treats or birthday parties or stock up for the holidays. And there are LOTS of ideas for using the Hamburger Box Die. Of course sequins are big right now as are metallics so you have both in the Metallics Sequin Assortment. And did you know the White Perfect Accents can also be colored with Sharpie Markers if you want accents in different colors than white? I admit, it took me awhile to get used to the Fast Fuse Adhesive, but now I really like to use it. Make sure you have the main Fast Fuse Adhesive before you stock up on the Refills available on the Deals! If you want some tape adhesive that HOLDS, this is it!

Here’s a fall box I made last year with the Hamburger Box Die and the For All Things Stamp Set.

If you need any of these Stampin’ Up! Weekly Deals, please visit my

Stampin’ Up! Online Store!

For All Things Fall Card

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I made this For All Things Fall Card because we are finally having at least a few days that feel a bit like fall in Houston. Maybe it doesn’t exactly feel like fall here, but the morning temperature was cooler yesterday and today. We’ll take anything that we can get along those lines! For All Things is a stamp set that came out last year in the Holiday Catalog, and I just loved it. Obviously lots of people loved it because it is still here!

This is a simple card to make with just stamps, ink and paper. The card base is Cajun Craze with a layer of Garden Green card stock. The stamp set comes with a background image which I stamped in Cajun Craze, Crushed Curry, and Garden Green. In order to make the colors lighter, I stamped “off” once, which means after inking up I stamped on scrap paper to remove some, but not all, of the ink. That makes it lighter so that I could stamp over that background image with the same color leaf and it would show up. The images are stamped on Very Vanilla as I thought Whisper White might be too stark for fall colors. I thought the greeting that came in the stamp set was perfect for what I wanted to express this morning!

There are ways this card could have been made in a “fancier” way, but sometimes just simple is best with stamps, ink and paper and nothing else. If you don’t already own the For All Things Stamp Set, you might want to get it as soon as possible for fall and for Thanksgiving.

Don’t forget to check out the Stampin’ Up! Weekly Deals ending tonight.

Stampin’ Up! Helps Fight Breast Cancer with Paper Pumpkin Kits

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It’s October and you can help Stampin’ Up! fight breast cancer if you subscriber to Paper Pumpkin, a monthly papercrafting kit that comes in the mail. Stampin’ Up! will donate $1 for every Paper Pumpkin subscriber and an extra $1 for each NEW subscriber before October 10th to the Breast Cancer Research Foundation (BCRF). You can help a worthy cause while you have fun stamping! The October Paper Pumpkin Kit will come to you in a pink box rather than red. That is why you need to subscribe by October 10th so you receive this special pink box.

BCRF is a world-class organization dedicated to ending breast cancer, and we are excited to be teaming up with them to make this happen. Their mission is to advance the world’s most promising research to eradicate breast cancer. For more information: bcrfcure.org

Paper Pumpkin is just $19.95 a month and that includes shipping! You will receive everything you need to make the project with the possible exception of adhesive and scissors. With your first kit you receive a clear block on which to mount the stamps that come in each kit. No risk, no obligation to continue for any amount of time. Only those “active” subscriptions will be counted in the donations so make sure your subscription is not “paused” for October.

Mini spoiler alert! The October project inside the pink box is just as awesome as always, but we should probably let you know that it is not a pink project. That’s all we’re saying. 😉

JOIN PAPER PUMPKIN TODAY! It’s a gift for yourself and others!

How to Make Cotton Paper Flowers with the Floral Framelits

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The Floral Frames Collection Framelits Dies are on the Stampin’ Up! Weekly Deal this week, and you will probably want them after you watch this video! This video uses the new Stampin’ Up! Cotton Paper in the new Annual Catalog, but you could also use card stock or colored tissue paper or whatever you like. The Cotton Paper comes in an assortment of pretty colors as you see in this video. It is lightweight but sturdy so good for a project like this where you want it to not be too heavy but hold up while making it!

We Stampin’ Up! Demonstrators who have seen Bonnie (in this video) present on stage just love her and her humor. But there is a catch to this video! Be sure to watch it all the way through! I think you will enjoy the project! It might even take you back to your childhood when you made paper flowers out of tissue paper or kleenex!

The Floral Frames Framelits will make making cotton paper flowers easy!

Shop Stampin’ Up! Online HERE!

Happy Haunting Halloween Gift Bag for a Treat

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Make a fun Happy Haunting Halloween Gift Bag that you can use for a treat or any little gift. Grab a piece of the Happy Haunting Designer Series Paper and the Stampin’ Up! Gift Bag Punch Board and you will quickly have a little gift bag all scored and cut and ready to be assembled. Directions are right on the Gift Bag Punch Board, but you can also watch a Stampin’ Up! video on how to use the board. Once you do it, you will get the hang of it! I made a Medium size bag with just a 4″ strip of the designer paper. I could have made it taller. I used the new Tear & Tape Adhesive to put the bag together.

After I made the bag, the fun began with decorating it! You can punch holes with the punch board in the top for ribbon, but I left mine plain and then decided to add a folded strip of Rich Razzleberry to the top and closed the top with the Stampin’ Up! Handheld Stapler. I like a little purple on Halloween things! I definitely wanted to use the new Spider Web Doilies in the new Holiday Catalog. They are pretty large so I was able to cut one smaller to fit my bag, and now I have another piece left for another project! Next I used the Howl-o-ween Treat Stamp Set to stamp a little spider for the web and a little jack-o-lantern. I cut both of them out after stamping with my Paper Snips, forgetting that there are the Boo To You Framelits Dies that I could have used!! Oh well! The pumpkin is layered on a white circle punch and the Scallop Circle Punch in Rich Razzleberry. The greeting in the set was too large, so I finally thought of using a small one from the And Many More Stamp Set. And why not add a few Rhinestone Jewels just for fun to the spider web?!

Can you believe it is October already? I did see my first Halloween decorations in someone’s yard yesterday! It is time to work on Halloween decorations and candy treats and Halloween cards and maybe something like this Happy Haunting Halloween Gift Bag to hold a treat inside! Just have fun with the season and the theme of Halloween!

Shop for all the Holiday Catalog goodies in my

Stampin’ Up! Online Store!

Just a Few Hours Left Until the 12 Weeks of Christmas Begins!

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Today I will be starting the 12 Weeks of Christmas campaign as a free gift for my mailing list subscribers. Each week, subscribers will receive an e-mail containing a project idea for a holiday card, gift, tag or wrapping, along with the steps necessary to assemble it! This is ONLY for my mailing list subscribers, and you have just a few hours left before the first e-mail goes out (today at 1:00 p.m. Central time). If you are not on my mailing list, you will not receive this holiday idea, this first email. Just fill in the box in the upper right corner of my blog with your name and email. Then be sure to check your email to look for the confirmation email giving your permission to actually send you email. You will also get a free gift always offered to new subscribers! But be sure to click the link to confirm in the confirmation email.

Sign up now for my Stamping With Karen newsletter and watch for the 12 Weeks of Christmas emails over the next 12 weeks! Christmas is coming!

Airplane Punch Art Birthday Card

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Now that my brother’s birthday has come and gone, I can post the Airplane Punch Art Birthday Card I made for him. The background layer of the card is made with the Cloudy Day Embossing Folder (retired), but an alternative thing you can do is just sponge some White Craft Ink onto a blue background to make some wispy clouds in the sky. I even have one “cloud” in the sky made with one of the Scallop Circle Punches, depending on which size you want to use.

The airplane is made with the Word Window Punch for the wings and the tail. The front of the plane is made with one of the circle punches. I forget which size! But you can experiment and see which size works for your airplane! For the windshield, use a smaller circle punch and cut it in quarters. Use two of the quarters for the window. Then, of course, the plane nose and jet engines are made with two small circle punches, I probably used the 1/2″ circle or so. For the body of the plane, I used some retired Silver cardstock but you could use Silver Foil for a shiny plane or one of the gray colors. I “tied” on a banner like an airplane pulls for advertising for the birthday greeting and just cut the banner by freehand.

A fun and easy birthday card to make. You could use a design like this for a birthday party theme. Try the Airplane Punch Art Birthday Card and customize it!

If you want to make a card like this and need some papercrafting supplies, just shop at my Stampin’ Up! Online Store.

New Stampin’ Up! Weekly Deals

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Here are the new Stampin’ Up! Weekly Deals for Tuesday, September 29, 2015 through Monday, October 5. Lots of good accessories on here! Get punchy with the Gift Box Punch Board (handy to have for Christmas wrapping) and the Envelope Punch Board if you want to make pretty envelopes or some custom sized ones. You can actually make other cute things with the Envelope Punch Board, not just envelopes! If you are a gardener or know a gardener, you might like the Handpicked Framelits Dies. Even those I’ve seen used for other things, like the label dies used for labels to tie on a gift bag or candy treat. Use your imagination! The Floral Frames Collections Framelits Dies can make beautiful layered flowers. And if you want to get a head start on Valentine’s Day (of course hearts are good, like stars, for LOTS of things!) get the Happy Heart Embossing Folder. And don’t forget the Hearts Border Punch if you like hearts!

Do you have a Stampin’ Up! Holiday Catalog? I have a few extras if you would like one mailed to you if you do not already work with a Stampin’ Up! Demonstrator. Or just click the link to view it online.

Are you on my mailing list? Please join us so you will start receiving my special holiday gift!

To shop for the Stampin’ Up! Weekly Deals and other amazing Stampin’ Up! products, please visit my Stampin’ Up! Online Store HERE.

The Twelve Weeks of Christmas Is Coming! Get on My Mailing List! Hurry!

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I’ll be starting the 12 Weeks of Christmas campaign as a free gift for my mailing list subscribers. Each week, subscribers will receive an e-mail containing a project idea for a holiday card, gift, tag or wrapping, along with the steps necessary to assemble it! This is ONLY for mailing list subscribers and these projects won’t appear on my blog or anywhere else. You have 48 hours before the first e-mail goes out on Wednesday, so be sure you are on my list!!

You’ll see the sign up box in the upper right corner of my blog!

After you submit your name and email address, BE SURE to click the link in the Confirmation email you will receive shortly. This tells us yes, you really want to receive the emails from me. At that point you will receive my free gift for signing up plus be ready to receive the 12 Weeks of Christmas emails.

If you are already on my mailing list there is no need to do anything! You will be receiving the 12 Weeks of Christmas emails from me!

Layered Letters Alphabet Thanks Halloween Card

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This is a thank you card I made for some of my customers who placed orders recently, made with the fun Layered Letters Alphabet Stamp Set with a little witch’s hat from the Howl-O-Ween Treat Stamp Set. I love the colors and wanted to add a little Halloween touch for fun! I love the Black Glimmer Paper and added a small strip to the witch’s hat for some sparkle. I trimmed out the hat with Paper Snips rather than the matching framelits just because I had to make it fit on my card and needed to do a little more snipping! Then I colored in the stars on the hat with a Stampin’ Write Marker. For a little more sparkle I punched out a star from Gold Glimmer Paper with the star punch in the Itty Bitty Accents Punch Pack.

I love the Layered Letters Alphabet Stamp Set! It is so versatile and modern. Use the rectangles for a background for each letter or by themselves, or use the letters by themselves! Spell out a word you want or a name on a card or tag. So many possibilities.

Be sure to try the Whisper White THICK Cardstock on your next order. If you want to do very simple and no layers, the Whisper White Thick Cardstock can stand up itself in a card better than the regular Whisper White, which is a little thinner.

Don’t forget to double-check the Stampin’ Up! Weekly Deals which end tonight! If there is anything you want, add them to your order. We all love bargains!

As you make your thank you and other cards, maybe you might want to add a little Halloween touch to your cards with color or stamp images! Might as well have a little fun in the fall! Use the Layered Letters Alphabet to make a Thank You Card with a Halloween touch!

Shop Stampin’ Up! HERE any time!

Join my Stamping With Karen Mailing List and Get a Gift for the Holidays

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It’s almost time! The holidays are getting closer, and my valued mailing list subscribers will be getting a special gift soon!

If you are receiving my newsletters already, you don’t have to do anything. You are ON my list already! And to show my appreciation, I will be sending you something fun very soon!

If you are NOT on my Stamping With Karen mailing list, you probably better sign up! If you are reading this on my blog, then perhaps you have found something interesting on my blog. Why not join my list of subscribers and get a monthly newsletter filled with projects and Stampin’ Up! news and latest offers? As a bonus, you get a FREE GIFT for signing up. And as an extra bonus for the holidays, you will be getting something else, too!

Stay tuned and find out! But first you MUST sign up in the red box in the upper right of my blog or the fun pop-up box on your screen! All I need is your first name and your email address. You can always unsubscribe if you are not pleased. I send out a newsletter at the beginning of the month and a short one mid-month with any updates and usually an extra project idea for fun. And something my customers and mailing list subscribers tell me they enjoy once a year is coming soon and you will receive it too IF you are on my list! Don’t miss out!

When you do sign up, you will receive a “Confirmation Email‘ almost immediately to be clear that you do want to receive the newsletter. This is a customary thing with email to protect you. PLEASE be sure to check your email and spam folder to find this Confirmation Email and CLICK the link inside to confirm. Only then will you be added and receive your free gift from me!

I hope I see your name magically appear on my list so that you will be set to receive my special gift! Be sure to tell your friends, too!

Join Paper Pumpkin and Help Fight Breast Cancer

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Here’s the current September 2015 Paper Pumpkin Kit from Stampin’ Up! Don’t you wish it would have showed up in YOUR mailbox?! Every Paper Pumpkin Kit that comes to you in your mailbox has all the supplies you need for the project (except basic adhesive and scissors, possibly). You get a cute little photopolymer stamp set, a little ink spot, and then the supplies you need, instructions, and a link to a video, like this one above that you can watch for a little extra direction in making your project. You can follow along or make up your own design! Sometimes there are extra supplies leftover that you can use on other projects you make.

And from now until October 10th, you can help fight breast cancer while you have fun with your Paper Pumpkin Kit! Stampin’ Up! will donate $1 for every new subscriber to Paper Pumpkin plus $1 for every active subscriber to the Breast Cancer Research Foundation. Be sure not to pause your subscription for October so your subscription will be counted!

Remember, those who get the October kit will not only be donating to a good cause, but they will also get a one-time only, pretty pink Paper Pumpkin box! No one will want to miss it. Promise.

New subscribers are those who signed up between September 11 and October 10, 2015 and have not been a Paper Pumpkin subscriber at any time in the past.
All funds will be donated in US dollars.
Mini spoiler alert! The October project inside the pink box is just as awesome as always, but we should probably let you know that it is not a pink project. That’s all we’re saying. 😉
Funds will be donated based on number of subscribers instead of boxes shipped. But, if you want more than one pink box, you can always increase your subscription quantity by logging into your account at PaperPumpkin.com before October 10.

To join Paper Pumpkin beginning in October, please click HERE to go to my Paper Pumpkin site!

Just click on the “Join” when you get to the page in the upper right!

Paper Pumpkin costs $19.95 per month and that includes shipping! No risk – pause or cancel any time you want to. But please don’t pause your subscription during October so that you can help donate to the BCRF. Join Paper Pumpkin and help fight breast cancer!

Embellished Ornaments Picture Frame Ornament

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We go from the first day of autumn to an Embellished Ornaments picture frame ornament! Believe me, pretty quickly time will seem to go that fast when we get rolling here! I saw something resembling this idea on some non-stamping website and it reminded me of this stamp set.

I stamped two ornaments in Versamark Ink and embossed with Gold Embossing Powder using the Stampin’ Up! Heat Tool. I also stamped the ornament hangers and embossed with Silver Embossing Powder. Then I glued the hanger on to the ornament with either a bit of Fast Fuse Adhesive or Multipurpose Liquid Glue.

To make this pretty ornament into a picture frame, I used the 1″ Circle Punch to punch a hole in the center of one ornament to fit a photo. You might punch the hole and then make sure the photo you choose will fit in the area nicely, Cut the photo a little larger than the hole so it can be adhered on the backside of the ornament. Then glue together the two ornaments so you have a front with the photo and the plain back of the ornament. Tie a bow around the hanger, perhaps with the Real Red 1/8″ Striped Ribbon.

There you have it! I nice little photo ornament that you could hang on the tree, tie on a package for a tag, or even attach to a Christmas card. Very easy to make! You could make it even simpler by just stamping with ink and not embossing.

You can do a lot with this Embellished Ornaments Stamp Set. Make some ornaments fancy or plainer. No matter which you do, they will still look elegant on your projects and cards!

Sheltering Tree First Day of Fall Card

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Here is a card made with the Sheltering Tree Stamp Set for the first day of fall. Can you believe today is the first day of autumn? It’s still plenty hot where I live with no signs of fall at all unless you look at the calendar. I would love it if I thought we were getting colored leaves soon and jacket weather! But I doubt that is in the cards until about November here in Houston!

I thought I would pull out a stamp set NOT in the Holiday Catalog for a change. This stamp set can be changed for any season of the year by just coloring the leaves different colors. To color the leaves stamp, I just took several Stampin’ Write Markers and colored randomly on the stamp. I think I chose Pumpkin Pie, Real Red, Crushed Curry, and Old Olive. If you start with the lightest color and get darker, you won’t get a dark color on your light markers. The grass is made up of two different stamps. One makes the hilly area and the smaller grass blade stamp can be stamped over for more detail.

I decided to change things up a bit and make a 4 1/4″ square card for a change! It’s okay to make different sizes of cards away from the standard size!

Don’t forget to look back at the Stampin’ Up! Annual Catalog because there are still great new things in there!

I hope this Sheltering Tree First Day of Fall Card will get you in the mood for fall, if autumn is coming soon to your part of the country!