Create a Festive and Fun Fourth of July Banner

by Roni Johnson

Create a Festive and Fun Fourth of July Banner

Summer is the perfect time to be outdoors, throw a BBQ party or to show off your patriotism with the Fourth of July!  Luckily, Joy Clair has a perfect stamp set when it comes to American Flag themes. In this quick and easy crafting project, I used their 4 x 6-inch Grungy Flag background stamp paired with Memento Luxe ink to create this amazing looking banner.

Skill: Intermediate
Time: 1 – 2 hours

Directions


Step 1

Tear cotton or linen material into 4” x 8” pieces. The number of pieces will depend on how long you would like your finished banner.


Step 2

Place a strip of fabric on a stamp positioner at the 1” mark. Put the stamp directly over the area to be stamped. Close the positioner to affix the stamp to the lid.


Step 3

Ink the star area with Memento Luxe in Danube Blue and the stripe area of the stamp with Memento Luxe in Love Letter.


Step 4

Close the positioner and press the inked stamp onto the material. I wanted a vintage feel to my banner so I stamped the image once. For brighter, solid colors, reposition the material, re-ink the image and stamp a second time. Stamp each additional panel in the same fashion.


Step 5

Iron each stamped piece of material to set the inks. Once you heat set Memento Luxe it is permanent on the fabric!


Step 6

Adhere each stamped flag to a length of string or ribbon. Hang it up outdoors and enjoy!

Supplies

Imagine
Other
  • Joy Clair StampsGrunge Flag Background
  • Cotton or Linen fabric
  • Material May Arts – Jute Ribbon
  • Stamp Positioner
  • Hot Glue Gun
  • Iron

June Color of the Month is Sea Breeze

June Color of the Month is Sea Breeze. We feel this is the perfect color to welcome the summer with dreams of ocean waves and beach loving fun! This is also a month we will be doing a trade with Joy Clair stamps. Joy Clair makes acrylic stamp sets that have empowering and spiritual themes that are great images for bible journaling, scrapbooking or cardmaking.

Here is a sneak peak of what is coming up for June

Create a Copper and Teal Father’s Day Steampunk Card

by Iris Rodriguez

Create a Copper and Teal Father's Day Steampunk Card

Mother’s Day is right around the corner, but I thought I’d get a head start on a steampunk/industrial Father’s Day card. Depending on the mom – it could be for either! These projects are always fun because you get to make things look grungy and metallic with inks, embossing powders and embellishments. By altering corrugated cardboard with different craft inks, you can transform scraps into a cool background. See how I made it!

Skill: Intermediate
Time: 1.5 hours

Directions


Step 1

Select a piece of corrugated cardboard.


Step 2

Spray Ink Potion No. 9 onto the corrugated cardboard. This helps the ink spread evenly and reduces harsh spray splotches. Spray Walnut Ink on the corrugated cardboard randomly. The ink will seep into the crevices. This imitates a timeworn metal look. To remove ink from the crevices use a dry brush to lift up the ink, then dry onto a paper towel. Dry paper.


Step 3

Rip the top and bottom edges.


Step 4

Ink the corrugated cardboard with Champagne Delicata and Turquoise Gem VersaMagic inks on the raised surface. The Turquoise Gem ink imitates a patina look while the Champagne ink imitates bits of metal shining through. Dry paper.


Step 5

Ink the edges with the Rich Cocoa Memento Luxe ink. Dry paper


Step 6

Ink gears with VersaMark ink, add Imagine’s Embossing Powder in Gold and heat set. Repeat this step using the Celestial Copper and Silver embossing powders.


Step 7

To vary the look of the gears, create a patina and copper gear. Ink the gear with Turquoise Gem VersaMagic ink.


Step 8

Add Imagine’s Embossing Powder in Copper on random areas.


Step 9

Add Imagine’s Embossing powder in Clear to the rest of gear and heat set


Step 10

Ink the card’s edges with Turquoise Gem VersaMagic Ink. Dry paper. Ink small areas randomly with the Celestial Copper Delicata ink.


Step 11

Adhere corrugated cardboard front to the card.


Step 12

Adhere nailheads, studs, and gears. Stamp a “Happy Father’s Day” sentiment and cut out into a rectangle shape. Add small metal studs on the four corners of the sentiment card and mount to the front of the card. Essentially the card is finished at this point but you can continue to add little details to make it your own! Happy grungy cardmaking!

Supplies

Imagine
Other
  • Cardstock
  • Corrugated cardboard
  • Creative Embellishments – Chipboard Gears (1, 1.25. 1.5 inches); ‘Loose Parts’ set
  • Nailhead and stud metal embellishments
  • Happy Father’s Day sentiment stamp

Create a Collage Style Mother’s Day Card

by Steph Ackerman

Create a Collage Style Mother's Day Card

I love background stamps and find the collage style stamps provide amazing opportunities to create with. I have also found that collage style stamps can be tricky to color. For this Mother’s Day card, I used the VersaMagic DewDrops to color in detailed ways on the stamp. The inkpad’s top wedge makes it a perfect tool for this technique.

Skill: Intermediate
Time:  1.5 hours

Directions


Step 1

Ink the entire stamp with VersaMagic in Thatched Straw. Ink over the roses with VersaMagic in Purple Hydrangea and Aegean Blue. Ink over the leaf sprays with VersaMagic in Spanish Olive.


Step 2

Place the inked stamp on white cardstock and press evenly.


Step 3

Pour Imagine Embossing Powder in Clear over the entire image and heat set.


Step 4

Cut the panel to size and ink the edges with VersaMagic in Niagara Mist.


Step 5

Stamp sentiment on white cardstock using VersaMagic in Midnight Black and emboss with Imagine’s Embossing Powder in Clear.


Step 6

Mat stamped panel with green cardstock. Adhere to a purple card with foam adhesives. Die cut the sentiment using a circle die. Die cut a larger circle from purple cardstock. Place the sentiment on the card, cutting off the right edge.


Step 7

Repeat steps 1 – 5, cutting the panel into a tag shape. Mat with green cardstock cutting it into a tag shape.


Step 8

Die cut sentiment using a circle die. Die cut a larger circle from purple cardstock. Place the sentiment on the tag, cutting off the right edge. Punch a hole in the tag and add ribbon.

Supplies

Imagine
Other
  • Cardstock – white, green, purple
  • JustRIte Stampers – Background Stamp
  • Joy Clair – “Happy Mother’s Day” sentiment stamp
  • Spellbinders – Circle dies
  • May Arts ribbon