Author Archives: Karen Fontinelle

Valentine Ghirardelli Candy Holder

This is a little Valentine candy holder that I found somewhere. I stamped the Pink Pirouette card stock with Versamark for that watermark look, but my pad was rather dry and it barely showed up. I decided to try embossing and that's how I ended up embossing with Iridescent Ice and it gave my candy holder a very sparkly, glittery look! I used the Love You Much hearts, and stamped them again on Whisper White and punched out with the Heart to Heart punch. The pink taffeta ribbon is very pretty or the pink grosgrain.

Base is 2 3/4" x 9 5/8".

Score at 2 3/4and 3; 6 1/4 and 6 1/2.

Fold up and then open back up. Use your Word Window Punch on the bottom flap, inserting as far as you can, a little to the right and then punch again the same hole but a little to the left. That gives you an opening big enough for the Ghirardelli Chocolate Square. Then flip the flap up and adhere, preferably with Sticky Strip, just at the top. Insert chocolate and tie the ribbon around to close! Very easy, very adaptable, and very cute!

Valentine Candy Card

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Valentine's Day is right around the corner! Here are some very quick and easy treat holders to make. I made six of them easily yesterday for my nieces and nephews. I found the idea on Angie Juda's website. This one I made for the boys using Sahara Sand card stock for the base, "A Happy Heart" stamp set, Riding Hood Red 5/8" striped grosgrain ribbon, the Heart to Heart Punch and "Holidays and Wishes" for the Valentine greeting on the front.

Just start with a strip of card stock 8 1/2" x 4 1/4". Score at 3" and 6 1/4".

Use your Slit Punch to punch a slit on each side of the middle part to hold a bag of candy.

Your layer or decoration on the front can be anything you want it to be, any size. The ribbon keeps the candy holder closed. You could even just stamp the front of it and not put an additional layer on the front. This could also be used as a gift card holder. So there you go, use it for more than one season or occasion.

And here is another version for the girls.

What would I have done with the "Love You Much" stamp set? I loved it from the first moment I saw it at the Stampin' Up! San Antonio Regional.

Hope you will have fun making some easy candy holders for your Valentine!

Valentine Candy Holder

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Here's an idea I have seen many other stampers make. I love using my Big Shot, and this paper cone is made with the Scallop Circle die cut. I used Pink Pirouette card stock and stamped with Red Riding Hood ink with the hearts from the set "Love You Much". I gently rolled the paper into a cone shape, punched two holes and put the ribbon through. You can also add a little glue to hold the bottom edge. Tombow Multi Purpose Glue (in the green bottle!) works great for this. Just hold it for a second until it adheres. These candies are Hershey Nuggets wrapped in Candy Lane Designer Paper. Love doing those! Wouldn't your valentine love getting this little gift?! You can shop for any of these Stampin' Up! products by contacting me or by going to the online store! And don't forget about Sale-A-Bration!

Also, when you go to my Demo Website you can watch a great video about the Big Shot! Jaron Winder, a multi-talented Stampin' Up! employee, will show you several projects using the new Big Shot dies. Jaron isn't "just" an employee, he really is a stamper and makes fabulous projects. He put on a fantastic demonstration at the San Antonio Regional that I was able to attend. And the man can sing!

Here are some other Valentine items.

Who Would Have Thought Target Mailboxes Would Be So Much Fun?!

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When this Target mailbox craze started, I would have thought we would all make our Valentine mailbox that one year and then we'd be on to something else. But it seems like we still haven't gotten our fill of them! They make such great gifts, for any occasion, as well as great projects in stamp camps and classes. I found one more mailbox in my stash and wanted to decorate it for Valentine's Day. Hope you have found your Target mailboxes! Put some little cards or candy inside and you have yourself a great Valentine gift!

Here's what I used:

Bella Rose Designer Paper (love it!)

Love You Much Stamp set

Best Wishes and More Stamp set (heart on the front)

White Gel Pen

Ribbon: 5/8" Riding Hood Red Striped Grosgrain, Pretty in Pink Taffeta, Whisper White 1/4" Grosgrain

Eyelet Border Punch, Trio Flower Punch, Heart to Heart Punch, Circle punches, Scallop Punch

Naturally Serif Alphabet Decorative Strip for the Big Shot ("Be Mine")

Rhinestone Brad

Everything is available online at www.karenfontinelle.stampinup.net. Click on the "Shop Now" button to go to the online catalog. Don't forget to add your Sale-A-Bration products for every $50.

Have fun making a Valentine or gift for someone you care about!

A Monday Valentine

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If you haven't done it yet, it is really time to get out that paper, scissors and glue and start making valentines! Valentine's Day is Saturday, Feb. 14th. Who do you know would love a handmade card from you? Think back to your childhood and how much fun it was to make valentines from construction paper and doilies! Stampin' Up! provides much better materials than those, but the idea is the same.

I was looking through some old magazines of cards and saw something that gave me this idea. I also wanted to use the new Stampin' Up! cardstock "Taste of Textiles" on page 156 of the catalog. These papers are quite different and this white one is absolutely beautiful! The picture does not do it justice. It would look beautiful on a wedding card. The other papers are Vellum with Not Quite Navy Polka Dots, Black Linen Texture, Bronze Metallic, Printed Kraft and Close to Cocoa Pin Stripe. Be sure to check them out! They are made in Italy!

To see the paper in the online catalog, just click on the link above, click the Shop Now button and then click on Paper in the left column and Specialty Paper.

I used the Heart to Heart Punch on pages 184-5 of the catalog to punch just the smallest punch. The greeting is from "Holidays and Wishes".

Feb. 7th…..Send a Card to a Friend Day!

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Yes, today is "Send a Card to a Friend Day!" Here's a card I made last night trying out my new Fifth Avenue Floral stamp set. The greeting happens to be a retired hostess set from the last catalog, but it suited the purpose since it had the word "friend" in it.

I love these colors together: Baja Breeze, Chocolate Chip, and Whisper White. I stamped the big flower in the lower right-hand corner, then stamped it again on scrap paper to make a mask. I cut out the flower on the scrap paper and placed it over the stamped flower on my card. Then I was able to ink up my stamp again and stamp the flower off to the left, as well as a different flower above. I used my Aqua Painter to lightly watercolor the flowers with the Baja Breeze inkpad. The greeting is stamped in Chocolate Chip. The ribbon is the 1" Double-Stitched Grosgrain on page 178 of the new catalog.

So now, are you going to send a card to a friend today?

Valentine Stamp Camp

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These are the projects we made at my Valentine Stamp Camp last weekend!

If you missed this one, I hope you can make the next one!

Love, love, love making these nugget tins! They are SO easy and SO cute when you get finished, no matter how you decorate your tin. Just take a strip of Designer Series Paper approximately 1" x 3" and wrap around a Hershey's Nugget. You can use Sticky Strip. I used a dab of SNAIL to hold the paper on the top of the nugget, then used the Tombow Multi Purpose Adhesive (in the green bottle) to hold the ends of the paper (just a small dab). The scallop on the belly band is stamped with the Love You Much stamp set. You could also just tie a pretty ribbon around and attach a tag or even use a rub on on the clear top. So cute!

This is the same card I made for swapping at the SU San Antonio Regional with the stamp set "A Happy Heart". I used the Spiral Punch and the Bella Rose DSP.

This Valentine I copied from one made by Wendy Janson.

Here are some pillow boxes made with the Big Shot and Pillow Box die. The one we made at the stamp camp I punched out with the Heart to Heart Punch, then adhered a piece of transparency inside the pillow box. We stamped more hearts with the Love You Much stamp set, punched out with the Heart to Heart Punch and then decorated the pillow box. These were fun to make. I love my Big Shot!

And if you think I am crazy, or that your eyes are playing tricks with you, yes, that IS a Christmas card you see! This is in keeping with my challenge to myself to start on Christmas EARLY!! We used the Snow Swirled stamp set to make this card and put the tiniest bit of Dazzling Diamond Glitter on the snowflakes on the tree. The Christmas card design was one I found by Caroline LeBel and just loved. So simple yet so elegant. I used Real Red on that card as I was afraid I was running out of the Riding Hood Red Ribbon and wanted to use the Real Red Grosgrain.

This month if you place an online order through my website www.karenfontinelle.stampinup.net you will receive a FREE Spring-Summer 2009 Idea Book & Catalog. Also, keep in mind that Stampin' Up!'s famous "Sale-a-Bration" promotion has begun! With every $50 purchase (before shipping and tax) you may choose one Sale-A-Bration item FREE in the Sale-A-Bration Mini Catalog. There are four stamp sets, one set of ribbon, and one set of Designer Series Paper to choose from! Contact me anytime if you have questions or would like to place an order or schedule a workshop to earn your free Hostess Benefits!

Christmas Stamping

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I haven't really disappeared but just trying to get everything done for the holidays like everyone! I have been stamping even though I haven't posted. Here are some things I have stamped recently, most likely copied from another talented demonstrator. I usually like to give credit but I don't have those names in front of me right now and this is a rush!

Snowstorm Hits Houston, TX!

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It is almost unbelievable enough that it would get cold enough in Houston to have to wear a jacket…..a winter jacket, that is….and button it up….but then late this afternoon it STARTED SNOWING!!!! When I went out to get the mail I thought could feel some microscopic moisture on my face. A little while later I went out and checked and could hear precipitation falling. The next time I went out, with my black jacket on, I could actually see some little flakes or maybe just sleet hitting my sleeve! You had to stare and squint to see it coming down…..but in Houston, this would be called a blizzard!! It does not snow in Houston, except maybe once every seven years or so! But it did snow here just two or three years ago on Christmas Eve. One weatherman had statistics to show that three dfferent years when there was a hurricane, we had snow in December. So maybe Hurricane Ike brought this as a peace offering a few months later!

The next time I went out the snow was starting to stick in the valleys on the roof!

When I went to pick up my husband, the snow was starting to stick on the cars. When we got home at 6 pm he put the trash out right away for some reason and after we were inside, I forgot about the snow. Wouldn't have thought it was still coming down anyway! But, when I looked out, it was still snowing and had accumulated even more!! This is so amazing!!

There! That should get even with those of you who have posted pictures of snow scenes from your windows, showing gorgeous trees covered in snow or a foot of snow on your deck or in your yard! These are blizzard pictures from Houston, TX!

And here are some Christmas lights and decorations while I am at it….

Those white specks are SNOW!

“Disappearing St. Louis”…My Daughter’s Book about Old North St. Louis

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My daughter Amy, always the writer, has just self-published her first book! Actually, this is a book of photographs she has taken of old neighborhoods in St. Louis, of buildings in disrepair from age and neglect.

This is what she has written about her book:

"My first book, Disappearing St. Louis,is finally complete!

Disappearing St. Louis presents 55 colored images, captured over a three-year period. They depict the poor conditions of homes, churches, and commercial buildings across the city in historic neighborhoods such as Old North St. Louis, Vandeventer, Fountain Park, Academy, JeffVanderLou, and Hyde Park."

Amy has graciously donated the profits from the sale of Disappearing St. Louis to the non-profit organization Old North St. Louis Restoration Group which is successfully rebuilding a historic north side neighborhood one building at a time.

Amy and her book were mentioned in the Old North St. Louis Restoration Group blog on Friday. Scroll down partway on this post to read about her book:

http://newoldnorth.blogspot.com/2008/11/christmas-shopping-season-begins-in-old.html

At the juried craft show that is mentioned, the 5th annual Rock 'n' Roll Craft Show, Amy sold all 11 copies that she had cautiously published and sent to St. Louis to be displayed, not knowing what the response would be.

We're all SO proud of you, Amy!!!

Amy spent almost the first eighteen years of her life going to St. Louis at least twice a year to visit grandparents as her father and I both grew up in St. Louis. Little did we know then that she would ultimately take such an interest in old buildings in St. Louis and combine that with her interest and talent in writing and photography. Even while going to college in St. Louis, this interest took awhile to develop and since then she has enjoyed making trips back to St. Louis to visit friends and take photographs. Who knew this would all evolve into publishing a book?!

If you want to read more about Amy, you can visit her website at www.amyfontinelle.com or visit her blog at www.twopenniesearned.blogspot.com.

Fun Diorama Card for a Boy

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So maybe he's not a "boy" anymore at age 23, but he will always be MY little boy! Here's a card I made for Eric for his birthday. Sometimes it is difficult to think of a card to make for any male. Some stampers even do swaps for male cards just to get a selection of ideas. I forget how it came to mind, but somehow I came up with the idea of making a card with a Yellowstone National Park theme after our memorable trip there this summer. I had even tracked down the retired set "DD Pines" to use for those Yellowstone scrapbook pages I still plan to make! (we'll see!) Long ago I had learned to make a diorama card, which actually folds down flat for mailing, and while they look impressive and are decorative, they are actually easy to make. So here is the Diorama card I made with the retired DD Pines, plus the ever-useful "Lovely As a Tree" stamp set….talk about a great "male" set!

It's difficult to tell from this angle, but that is a moose in the foreground and a bear in the background! You can see some of the "Lovely As a Tree" trees stamps on the inside layers of the card and the "Pines" tree stamped, embossed, and cut out adhered to the front with dimensionals.

Here is a view of the inside:

You can see how I cut out both the moose and the bear and attached them to the middle part and the back part with dimensionals.

And here is just another view of the front, maybe with better lighting.

If you want directions on making this easy diorama card, which you can adapt to any theme, just email me!

A Happy Birthday Pyramid Card

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Halloween has always been extra special at our house because our youngest son was born the night before Halloween, just missing being a pumpkin or goblin by about 45 minutes. I remember when I was pregnant with him seeing the cutest little Halloween t-shirt in one of the store windows at the Galleria and thinking if he had actually been born on Halloween I should really have that shirt for my Halloween baby. Didn't happen, which probably was a good thing for him, because he doesn't have to exactly share his birthday with a holiday. But of course his birthday parties were always Halloween-themed, which made them extra fun. I just wish I was into Stampin' Up! back when my kids were little because of SO many opportunities for gifts, party favors, invitations, note cards, etc. If you have little ones, you really should get into stamping because you will have many opportunities to be creative!

I love this Pun Fun stamp set, but especially loved this rocket for my son. When I started looking for ideas for this card, I came across this Pyramid card made by Trina on Splitcoast. You can find different pyramid template lots of places on the internet, but I loved the colors Trina used on her card. I added a Jumbo Eyelet for the window on the rocket and some stars, punched with the large and small star punches…..all found in the Stampin' Up! catalog, of course…. and also added a velcro dot just under that front flap to hold it closed. The pattern I used showed a slit but I couldn't figure that out. The card had to be mailed so it had to be flat. I hope he can figure out how to assemble when he receives it!

Trick-or-Treat! Happy Halloween!! Last Minute Halloween Cards!

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Wow! This morning a black cat ran right across the street in front of my car as I was driving back into my neighborhood! Is that real Halloween or what?! I know it is bad luck to have a black cat cross your path, so that freaked me out a little bit! Hopefully today will be nothing but good luck because I love Halloween (it would help if we had some fall leaves here in Houston!) and I get to see my boys. One was nearly born a Halloween goblin because he arrived just 45 minutes before Halloween! But that was twenty years ago! More about his birthday card later.

I usually have a lot of trick-or-treaters at my house, but it is often about 80 degrees, at least when the kids start out after dinner, sweating in their costumes. When I was growing up in St. Louis it was often a problem on Halloween with the weather being very cold, and we had to wear a winter coat…..either over our costume, which meant no one could see the costume, or under the costume, which of course looked ridiculous! "Back in the olden days" we always had to have a joke ready to tell people before they would give us candy. I don't think they do that anymore.

Here are some Halloween cards I've made (okay, mostly copied from somebody else!) to help celebrate the day!

My San Antonio Regional Swap Cards

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Here are my swaps I took to the Stampin' Up! San Antonio Regional held yesterday and today.

This one I stamped with a set in the Holiday Mini called "A Happy Heart". I also used the Spiral Punch on the side of the tic-tac-toe. The little heart in the middle square is popped up with a dimensional and so is the big heart. The designer paper is the fabulous Bella Rose.

And this one is the famous "Mr. Twigster" in the Holiday Mini. I guess you either love him or hate him since lots of people say snowmen don't have legs. But he was quite popular as a swap yesterday and I enjoyed making the card! I used the snowflakes from "Merry and Bright" and stamped with white Craft ink. The greeting comes from "Season of Joy". I added a little Dazzling Diamonds Glitter for the snow at the feet of Mr. Twigster after coloring just a little bit of blue ink with my Aqua Painter.

You can click on the photos to make them larger.

Halloween Witch Hat Card

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Here is a picture of the card I made for our demo group swap. I saw it in a magazine and changed it a little bit. It didn't give directions, but I just cut two triangles and then the band on the bottom has a fold which holds the triangles together. The stars are punched, of course, and the big one is sprinkled with our chunky glitter, adhered with some Tombow Multi glue. Fun card to make!

Stamping With Karen

Having Fun With Paper, Ink, and Stamps

Author Archives: Karen Fontinelle

Valentine Ghirardelli Candy Holder

Valentine Candy Card

Valentine Candy Holder

Who Would Have Thought Target Mailboxes Would Be So Much Fun?!

A Monday Valentine

Feb. 7th…..Send a Card to a Friend Day!

Valentine Stamp Camp

Christmas Stamping

Snowstorm Hits Houston, TX!

“Disappearing St. Louis”…My Daughter’s Book about Old North St. Louis

Fun Diorama Card for a Boy

A Happy Birthday Pyramid Card

Trick-or-Treat! Happy Halloween!! Last Minute Halloween Cards!

My San Antonio Regional Swap Cards

Halloween Witch Hat Card