Learn to Stamp and Scrap with Lynn Larson

Sneak Peak of a Wedding Gift

Tomorrow (Saturday, October 24th), my niece, Elle is getting married in Oregon.  My husband, daughter and son all flew out for the wedding.  Stephanie went on Tuesday to help out with things this week.  She is also in the wedding.  Darryl and Cody are in the air as I am typing this post. 

Since I couldn't make the wedding, I made a special gift just for Elle.  Now, I can't show you the entire thing until she receives it, but I would like to give you a sneak peak of what part of it looks like.

This surprise gift uses stencils, craft ink and the new Shimmer Paints from Stampin' Up!  I love these new paints and have been having a BLAST with them.  All my customers that have seen them so far love them and have ordered them too.

Stay tuned in the next day or two I will share the full project with you.  I just don't want to spoil the surprise for Elle by posting here before she gets it.  It is traveling on the plane with Darryl and he will deliver my gift directly to her when he sees her tomorrow.  Can't wait to hear what she thinks of it!

Don't forget to stop by the Gilfeather Turnip Festival tomorrow.  I will be there from 10 am until 4 pm!

Stay tuned for more tomorrow,

Lynn Larson - www.lynnlarsondesigns.com

 

BLOG CANDY

It is finally here!  Sunday, the day I am offering my blog candy!  Anyone feeling lucky?  

In order to be entered into the drawing, please leave a comment on THIS POST and tell me what your favorite Decor Stencil sample has been that I have posted over the course of this month.  You must also list your first name and what state or country you live in to qualify for the blog candy.

........................................................................................................

In case you missed any of my Decor Stencils posts, here is a link to where you can find them:

http://www.learntostampandscrap.com/learn_to_stamp_and_scrap_/decor-stencils/

If you would like some tips or reminders on how to stencil, you can check out this post to see the tip sheet that I have been handing out at my demonstrations:

http://www.learntostampandscrap.com/learn_to_stamp_and_scrap_/2009/05/crazy-for-stencils-tips-for-using-decor-stencils.html

............................................................................................................

So would you like to know what you could win?  Drum roll please...........................................

This card is made using Stampin' Up!'s Decor Stencils and Dazzling Diamonds Glitter.  Pretty sparkly:))

You know the rules, leave a comment with the information I described above and I will randomly choose a winner from those comments.  I will announce the winner on Tuesday and have the card popped in the mail to them the same day.

Thanks so much for stopping by and leaving your comments!

Lynn Larson - www.learntostampandscrap.com

BLOG TOUR - Stampin' Up! Idea Book and Decor Stencils Featured!

Welcome to the May 15th & 16th Blog Tour.  You are at Stop #11 on Tour #5.  You can start anywhere on the tour and follow the links to all 23 blogs featured on this tour.

Each blog will showcase beautiful projects using items from Stampin' Up!'s Spring-Summer 2009 Idea Book & Catalog and Decor Elements Catalog.

Don’t forget to bookmark your favorite blogs as the links that make up this tour will disappear at midnight on May 16^th.

............................................

So are you ready to see my samples using Flowering Flowers Stencils from the Stampin' Up! Decor Stencils line?  Here we go...

First I am going to start you off with this two-page 12x12 scrapbook layout.

 

 

As you can see, I stenciled the flowers on my pages.  I use craft ink for this process because it stays wet longer and you are able to spread it around to stencil with it quite nicely.

 

 

Here is a close-up of one of the flowers.  You can see the modulated look to the stenciling by leaving the center of the flower slightly lighter and the shadowing of the edges using a slightly darker color ink.  In this case, I used Apricot Appeal followed by Pumpkin Pie.

 

  

 

You can see in this close-up of the buttons that I used clear buttons and added some cardstock behind them that was stamped in a polka dotted pattern.  The addition of a linen thread bow to the center button finished off the accents quite nicely.

 

 

This card sample shows stenciling on my neutral colored cardstock with the addition of some layers of color with more cardstock and a row of half-back pearls from the Pretties Kit.

 

 

This is a post-it note holder that I made for my WOW swap for my Stampin' Up! Incentive Trip to Hawaii in March.  The top and bottom are made using coasters.  The cover of the holder was stenciled with craft ink and embossed with clear embossing powder.  Two strips of cardstock were added after punching the edge with the Eyelet Border Punch and then finished off with a ribbon.

 

 

I also sponged the edges of both covers and added the words "For You" to complete my swap.

 

I hope that you enjoyed my samples on today's Blog Tour.  Be sure to stop back over the next couple of days.  I will be offering some Blog Candy tomorrow and a stenciling tutorial.  Be sure to check back for complete details tomorrow on the Blog Candy and again by Monday for the tutorial.

 

                      ...........................................

 

THE TOUR HAS OFFICIALLY ENDED AND THE LINKS HAVE BEEN REMOVED.

 

Be sure to stop back here tomorrow for the details of the blog candy that I will be offering!

Thanks for stopping by!

Lynn Larson - www.learntostampandscrap.com

 

Scrapbook Page and the Highest Form of Flattery

Do you remember this scrapbook page layout that I shared with you back on May 3rd?  It is a layout that I created using Cheap Talk Decor Stencils.  Kelly Wiebe saw it on my blog and wanted to create her own scrapbook page using my second page layout.  How flattering is that?!

 

I would love to share with you today the scrapbook page that Kelly created.  Kelly sent me photo of her recently created page in an email to thank me for the inspiration my layout gave her in creating her own page.    

 

Kelly loved the look of the layout for her photos of Log Farm taken back in March.  Instead of using stencils like I did on my pages, Kelly used rubber stamps to create her center block on the page while keeping the layout basically the same.  Pretty cool, huh?  Thanks so much Kelly for letting me share your creation here on my blog! 

If you would like to learn more about using Decor Stencils, you can check out my stenciling tips HERE.  You can also check out more projects that I created using the Decor Stencil line HERE.

Thanks for stopping by today.  Don't forget to stop back tomorrow for the Blog Tour where we are all using the Stampin' Up! Idea Book and Catalog and the Decor Elements line for our projects.  It is bound to be a FABULOUS tour so be sure to grab a cup of coffee or tea and stop back tomorrow for a ride on the tour!

Happy crafting!

Lynn Larson - www.learntostampandscrap.com

Parisian Damask Stenciled Cards

I know that I said I wasn't going to share any more stencil samples until next week but I couldn't help myself.  I thought that I would also share these card samples using Parisian Damask that coordinate with my Stenciled Canvas piece I shared yesterday.

 

This is a sample of a plain and simple card using only one layer of cardstock to create my card base.  I think that a cad like this would make a great set of notecards or thank you's for all types of different occasions.

Here is a sample of a swap card that I made for a new catalog / Big Shot swap back in late January.  The background of this card is done with the Damask Textured Impressions Embossing Plate.  The Top Note Die portion was cut out and then I stenciled my pattern on top of that.  I used Regal Rose, Rose Red, Bordering Blue, Night of Navy and Mellow Moss Craft Inks to stencil on the top.  I then took a Bordering Blue Stampin' Write Marker to add the faux stitching to the outside edge of the Top Note layer.  A half-back pearl from the Pretties finished off the card just perfectly. 

This is one of my favorite cards that I have made with my stencils.  I will have more stenciled cards to share with you during the Blog Tour on May 15th and 16th so be sure to mark your calendar!

Tomorrow I will be sharing some samples from my afternoon demonstration at Spring Fling on Saturday.

See you all back here tomorrow!

Lynn Larson - www.learntostampandscrap.com

Mother's Day Gift using Parisian Damask Decor Stencil

 

Are you ready to see my Mother's Day gift for my mother-in-law?  Well, here it is!  This is the very first project I made using my Parisian Damask Decor Stencils.  If you read yesterday's post, this is the first Decor Stencil that I purchased so this was the very first time I used Stampin' Up!'s stencils to create a project.

I did my stenciling on a piece of canvas that I painted first using acrylic paint.  I knew that I wanted to use wide grosgrain ribbon as an accent piece and I had plenty of Regal Rose ribbon to use up so I chose to use Regal Rose with Rose Red as my main flower colors.  I absolutely love how this project turned out.  I did this project also with a group of my downline at a Demo Class that I did back in February.  I have also been displaying it at a couple of events where I demonstrated using stencils and showcased a bunch of projects that I had created.  This is the first Mother's Day gift I have ever had ready three months early!  I usually create gifts better under pressure - you know, like the night before I need it:))

I hope that you have been enjoying my Decor Stencils projects.  I have plenty more to show you but I will wait until next week to share some of those samples.  I have a bunch of other items that I have been holding that I can't wait to share with you!

Happy creating,

Lynn Larson - www.learntostampandscrap.com

CRAZY FOR STENCILS - Tips for Using Decor Stencils

On Saturday, I demonstrated Decor Stencils at Spring Fling in Marlborough, NH.  This event was a blast and many people were amazed at the versatility of our Decor Stencils from our Decor Elements line.  I gave out a handout to people who came by my demonstration table that included some tips for using Decor Stencils and I thought I would share it with you as well while I am showcasing Decor Stencil projects on my blog over the next couple of weeks.

 

____________________________________________________________________

 

 

CRAZY FOR STENCILS

Tips and Ideas for Using Decor Stencils

 

Shared by:  Lynn Larson – www.learntostampandscrap.com

 

 

Tips for using stencils:

• Use either stencil tape or a spray adhesive to hold your stencils in place when working with them (I prefer spray adhesive)
• You can use stencil brushes, a foam stencil roller, sponges or sponge daubers with your stencils
• Inks and paints to use:  I like using Craft ink on my craft projects.  You cannot use Classic ink to stencil as it soaks up into the cardstock too quickly.  Craft ink is a pigment ink which means it stays on the top of your cardstock and stays wet longer.  It is a nice ink to use for blending and spreading.  You do need to use acrylic paint or stencil creams on walls when stenciling those.  I use the Craft Inks on things like fabric, canvas and cardstock.
• Stencils are not only used on walls.  They can be used on things like:  Cards, Scrapbook Pages, Wooden Items, Notebooks, Pillows, Lamp Shades, Table Runners, Placemats, Baby Onsies, etc.  Let your imagination run wild!

 

When using stencils on craft projects:

• Use spray adhesive to hold your stencils in place.  I find it to work best when using intricate stencils
• It is best to have a separate stencil brush for each color you are using on your project.
• Pounce or move your brush in a circular motion on the craft ink pad to pick up your ink.  If your pad is juicy you might want to wipe a little ink off on a paper towel so you don’t end up with too much ink on your project.  Having too much ink or paint on your brush could cause the ink or paint to drip behind your stencil.  You especially need to be careful of this when using acrylic paint.
• Using circular motions apply your ink to the stencil starting from the outside edges of the stencil and working your way in.  Be careful on the small intricate portions of the stencil that you don’t move them or bend them up when applying ink.
• When stenciling mottled images look best.  Be sure not to apply ink or paint to heavily.  The goal is to have a light coating of ink with darker outsides and lighter middles.  You can shade using one color ink this way by applying color to the outside of the images and then moving to the center of the image when the ink is almost off the brush.

____________________________________________________________________________

 

 

 If you have any questions about stenciling your own projects, please feel free to email me.  I have done a lot of stenciling with a variety of our stencils over the past four months and can help you out with your projects.

 

Thanks so much for stopping by and happy stenciling!

 

Lynn Larson - www.learntostampandscrap.com

 

"Parisian Damask" Decor Stencils

 

I am sharing another stencil sample with you today, this one uses the Parisian Damask "two-step" stencil from Stampin' Up!'s Decor Stencils line.  This was the first stencil that I purchased and had such a blast using it on all kinds of projects that I had to increase my Decor Stencils collection! 

This is a pillow that I purchased for something like $4.00 on clearance at Walmart.  I was looking for something cheap to practice stenciling on and this fit the bill just fine.  You can see in the photo that the flowers, blueberries and leaves all have a second color over them which is done by using the second stencil included in this set.

Tomorrow I will show you another fun home decor item that I created for a Mother's Day gift for my mother-in-law.  She loves Victorian looking items and when I completed this project it had her name written all over it.  I can share it with all of you here tomorrow because she doesn't own a computer and doesn't access the internet at all so she will never know that I shared it with all of you first!

See you all tomorrow!

Lynn Larson - www.learntostampandscrap.com

Decor Stencils "Cheap Talk Branch" Scrapbook Pages!

I have been going crazy the last couple of months playing around with the Decor Stencils in Stampin' Up!'s Decor Elements line.  I have had such a blast creating all sorts of items and haven't been able to share a lot of them with you yet until all my presentations and classes were over.  I didn't want to spoil any surprises at my events by posting my samples here first!

Since it is National Scrapbooking Month, I thought I would share a two-page layout featuring "Cheap Talk Branch" stencils with you today.  The bird, branch and flower are all stenciled and the blue squares on the second page have embossed polka dots on them using the Small Dots Textured Plate and my Big Shot.  I plan on adding my photos and journaling to the white squares.

I have TONS more samples to share with you using Decor Stencils so stay tuned!  I will be sharing some samples with you over the next week but I will be highlighting the "Flowering Flowers Flower with Stems" stencil on the May 15th Blog Tour.  Mark your calendars for that tour, you certainly don't want to miss it.  In the meantime, keep checking back for samples I will be sharing using my other stencils.

Happy crafting!

Lynn Larson - www.learntostampandscrap.com