Banana Frog Blog

Project of the day: Jolly Holiday

I recently received delivery of my new Christmas stash purchases for this year, I totally love Christmas and winter products, they are always my most favourite to play with. All that pretty paper and glittery embellishments, oh yes!

So what better excuse to break into that stash than to make some Christmas cards, because really.. this year my progress hasn't been so great! So again I am using that keep it simple-ish approach in hopes of catching up a little.

But, I decided to mix things up a bit and use some stamps that weren't actually Christmas stamps - but which set?

Well that Build a Bloom set must be one of the most versatile designs from Banana Frog - it even does Christmas trees!

 
These whimsical Christmas trees can be left plain or blinged up with a little glitter - I used the little square stamp from Make a Chain to create the "trunk".

And since I had another of those IKEA card blanks to hand, I made one with some snazzy "baubles":

And definitely some more glitter here!

So many possibilities with this set, it's why it's one of my favourites. :o)
 
 
 

Rustic Retro

If you haven't started your Christmas card making operation just yet, don't worry! It is, after all, still October... (just!)

There's still time to get it all done - or so I keep telling myself.

Today's project of the day is a quick and simple way to get you started and is a slightly different take on the Retro Baubles set:

Using a cream ink pad, I stamped some plain paper with the little star stamp in the set to create a very subtle background. I distressed those edges a bit and using a coordinating ink pad stamped and cut out one of the bauble designs.

 
  
For the finishing touches, I added a little velvet ribbon bow, button and cotton twine detail.

Add your greeting - or not - and you're done.

This project takes just minutes to make - so if you're finding yourself pressed for time and needing to get those cards made, this could be the project for you. 
  
  

Stamping School - Have yourself a Retro merry Christmas

Hello Froggy cyber friends, another class at stamp school, with me, is in session! Somebody kindly pointed out to me yesterday that it is less than 11 weeks until Christmas eek!!! Thankfully I can start to get ahead with cards and decorations after getting my inky mitts on the new Retro Christmas Stamps !

 

Christmas ‘baubles’

 

The ingredients

 

As well as using the new Retro Christmas stamp set I’ve also used Retro Baubles and Blizzard. You will also need some chip board shapes, some texture paste (there’s lots of versions out there!) Acrylic paint, glitter, shimmer mist, art metal, permanent ink, embossing tools, an embossing mat (I use a piece of funky foam!) embossing powder, glue stick, ribbon and nail varnish in different colours (all will be revealed!)

So to start, apply a thin layer of the texture paste onto a chip board shape (punch a hole in it before you start!) Note, I did try this with a fibre texture paste but the images don’t show up as well when stamped, the one I used is a hard, smooth paste.

 

Don’t spread it too thickly so the stamped image will show and I like to make it thinner in places for extra texture.

 

Choose stamps for your background, for this one I have used the text and stars from Retro Christmas.  Very carefully stamp into your paste, get right over the top, stamp straight down and don’t press too hard, it will slide! You will need to hold the chipboard down and lift the stamp straight up to remove; of course the beauty is as the paste takes a while to dry you can smooth out mistakes! BIG NOTE! Keep cleaning the stamp off between stamped images, the paste builds up and wash the stamps IMMEDIATELY after doing this technique making sure all the texture paste is removed!!!

 

Continue stamping randomly and once I had stamped the text I then stamped over it all with the 2 small star stamps.

 

 

The paste takes a little while to dry, so if you’re impatient (erm like me!) you can dry it with a heat gun, hold it away from the surface though as it bubbles when it gets too hot, unless of course you like the effect! Once it is completely dry go ahead and paint it. I used a sponge to keep the paint layers thin otherwise you fill in the images and I used 3 colours to build it up. (Don’t forget to paint the edges and back!)

 

While the acrylic was still wet I sprinkled glitter into it and then spritzed it with shimmer mist.

 

Then to add even more texture I used my favourite embossing trick of adding some lumpy glue stick and embossing it with a matching metallic coloured powder.

 

Next stage is to make the metal embellishment. Stamp your chosen image onto some art metal with a permanent ink; I used the retro Christmas tree.

 

 
You can cut the image out if you like, I like to tear it for a little bit of added interest

 

 

Put the metal image on an embossing mat, like I said I use funky foam and emboss the stamped lines, and yes I am using a biro! (Just don’t press too hard!)

 

Flip the metal over and you will see the outline of the stamped image, now you can deboss some of these sections (push the embossed line back on itself) so that these bits stand proud on the right side.

 

Flip the metal again and further emboss the bits that you want to push back even more.

 

 

 

 
 
 Here comes the nail varnish! I haven’t found anything easier or more effective to add an enamelled finish to my metal … yet! I just picked out small bits of the metal to colour. If you use a paint brush have nail varnish remover to hand!

 

Attach your metal embellishment to your chipboard shape with a strong glue (I used silicon)

 

Now you know the technique set about creating some other ‘baubles’ I have made mine different shapes and  used different stamps for the backgrounds. The circular one uses the strip of small decorations in Retro Christmas. The lozenge shape uses stamps from Blizzard building up the snow flakes. And the tear drop uses text and snow flakes from Retro Baubles.

 

Paint and glitter in the same way. Make metal embellishments in the same way, add ribbon and hang

 

 

 

 The metal image on this one is again the tree from retro Christmas, the nail varnish highlights being on the tree baubles this time.

 

 

The embellishment on this one is the sleigh from a Retro Christmas

 

This one uses a large snow flake from Blizzard

 

And finally this is where we started!

 

Of course you don’t have to add the metal embellishment; I think the painted stamped texture looks great by itself!

I hope you’re feeling a little bit ‘Christmassy’ now and inspired to have a play, please share your creations and don’t forget you have a chance to win not only the Retro Christmas stamp set but the other five new designs by leaving a comment here, so hop on over for a chance to get your inky mitts on some banana frog gorgeousness!

Thanks for stopping by and as always visit often to check out all the fab projects from my fellow froglets. Until the 23^rd when I’ll be back happy crafting!

Love

M x

Project of the day: Tell a story...

... on your cards!

Journaling stamps aren't just for layouts and keepsakes, they're also great for imparting news and making announcements!

I used It's all about Documenting to make this new home card:

There are loads of ways you can use this set on your cards, and not just the journaling borders, I may just have to use the "Where? When? Why?" stamp for some house warming invites!

And the border stamps in this set? Well they're great for the inside of your cards too, I used one of them as a place to write my new address:

Project of the Day: Easy Peasy Notelets

Happy Sunday Frog Blog readers, I hope those of you in the UK are enjoying your Bank Holiday Weekend!

Well, here's your quick inspiration fix for the day. If you are a fan of Nestabilities and Banana Frog stamps, here's a fast little project to help stock up your card box ready for any occasion.

Stash needed:

• White cardstock
• 5 coordinating patterned papers
• Coordinating cardstock
• Banana Frog Simple Greetings and Classic Wedding stamp sets
• Classic Rectangle Large Nestabilities and matching Scallop set
• Co-ordinating ink
• 3D foam

 

The simplicity of this project lies in the production line assembly - once everything is cut and set aside separate little piles, it takes no time to put these cards together! Plus it's a great project for using up left-over paper and cardstock.

1. First, from five pieces of white cardstock that measure 3 6/8 in. x 5 3/4 in., create card blanks that measure 3 6/8 in. x 2 7/8 in.
2. Cut five scallop backgrounds from the white cardstock using the largest scallop rectangle die.
3. Cut five plain rectangles from the patterned paper using the largest plain rectangle die.
4. Cut five plain rectangles from the white cardstock using the second smallest plain rectangle die.
5. From the co-ordinating cardstock cut five mats measuring 1.5 in. x 1 7/8 in.
6. Assemble the card blanks, scallop background and patterned paper.
7. Stick the small rectangle onto the cardstock mat and stamp motif and greeting.
8. Attach greeting to card using 3D foam.

And voila! Here's your little stack of notelets ready to send....

 

PotD: Mod Mosaic

 

The other day I was flicking through my Banana Frog stamps, as you do, looking to use some stamps I'd never inked up before... well that Make a Chain set certainly holds many possibilities for creating some varied designs.

I picked out the two square block designs and inked them up with my favourite colours at the moment, Vintage Cream and Aquatic Splash - and of course I couldn't resist using them on kraft!

I ended up stamping a bit of a mod mosaic design with the stamps:

 

Then I went over the stamped image with a dusting of perfect pearls for a little sparkle:

 

It's very subtle believe me! Once that was done, I wanted to add some extra detail, so used my little spokey sewing tool to create two perforated lines:

 

Then I set to work with a beading needle and cream thread to hand stitch the lines and add in some lovely blingy beads:

 

Once that was done I added a little greeting to a teeny tag and attached it to the sewn line with another bead for good measure:

 

I hope this project has inspired you to take another look at those as yet uninked stamps in your collection and see what possibilities they hold - but if you're going the beading route, it's best to put on a good DVD and multitask! ;o)

Stamping School - Stamp it off and crackle

Hi class time for another project from me, hope you’ve all had fun playing with your Banana Frog stamps since I was last here, there’s been some fabby ideas from the froglets hasn’t there! This class I thought we would re visit a technique I shared with you in my 1^st guest spot at the Lily pad back in June, remember the mirror with the crackle effect? Quite a few people have asked about the technique so I thought we’d play with it again ….. With a bit of a twist!

How does your garden grow?

 

This time I have created a 12x12 LO on corrugated card, and instead of one colour used in the distressing I thought it would be fun to try a rainbow, well who says distressing has to be dull?

The ingredients

 

Banana Frog stamp sets; Round in Circles, I heart you, Make a chain, It’s all about Hearts, Greenwich Park. Corrugated card, Gesso, Acrylic paints, PVA glue, a wide paint brush, Ink, your own photo, ephemera and embellishments.

First off I cut a 12x12 piece of card from the side of an old cardboard box. I cut a 3’’ strip away from the left side, ripped down the edge and distressed the other 3 sides of the larger piece.

 

After joining the lower part of the strip back to the main body with a piece of masking tape (I like the texture!) I painted the whole thing with gesso to make the application of the acrylic paint easier.

Next lets get messy, my favourite thing! When I’ve used this technique before I have always used one flat colour, this time, I painted a random pattern of rainbow colours with acrylics until the whole piece was covered.

 

Setting it aside to dry, I got the stamps I wanted to use ready on their blocks (the eagle eyed among you will note the unusually clean acrylic block in my picture, that’s because it’s a brand shiny new one …. It won’t last LOL!) I used a selection of stamps, and as the stamping is done in the wet glue and paint you need to be ready to go!

(As I didn’t have enough big blocks to mount all the stamps I wanted straight away I decided to work on the main section first, then the strip, also it meant there was less wet space to get stamped at a time!)

 

And so to the crackle technique, prepare some white acrylic with a touch of water in it and set aside. Dribble some PVA glue over your base and spread with your fingers (don’t use too much to start, a little goes a long way and you can always add more) keep spreading the glue around until it goes tacky.

 

Paint over the layer of glue with a wide brush, generously loaded with your white acrylic paint, and a light hand. If you keep the brush strokes going in the same direction the crackle will happen the same way, to get cracks in different directions change the direction of your brush strokes. Don’t overwork the paint as it will lift off.

Once you’re happy with the coverage start stamping and build up a pattern or as I’ve done an abstract garden.

Tip Be positive when placing your stamp, stamp straight down, but as with stamping on acetate don’t press to hard until it’s in position as the stamp will slide in the paint, also be careful when lifting the block and try and do it as vertical as possible, again to avoid sliding, you will find the stamp kind of gets sucked onto the surface!

When you lift the stamp you should see that the paint and glue has been ‘stamped off’ I continued to create the garden using the concentric circles from Round in Circles for the large flowers, one of the strips from Make a Chain for the stalks, a heart from I Heart You for the leaves, the large heart garland from It’s All About Hearts for the row of small flowers and the solid bird from Greenwich Park to complete the picture.

I then did the pva and acrylic paint thing on the strip and used stamps from Make a Chain to decorate along the edge, I love this stamp set, there are so many things you can do with it!!!

 

I then let the whole thing dry naturally while I went and washed my stamps in warm soapy water, they’re as good as new again! (Please make sure you wash your stamps!!) Then I watched the cracks appear. You can heat it with a heat gun to speed up the process, just remember to keep the gun at a distance so you don’t blister the paint.

 

With my background done I assembled my photo and embellishments distressing and inking edges and then inked round the edge of my cardboard with the same colour to tie the layout together.

 

I laced the gap at the top of the strip with some garden string….

 

 

… And added journaling to the cute little seed packet that I found as a free download on content in a cottage blogspot

 

I love the multi coloured dots, hearts and swirls on my background and the texture you get from stamping into the paint.

 

 

 

So why not have a go, just get a small piece of scrap card and use one stamp to get started, it really is good fun to ‘stamp off’ the paint and see the effects you can achieve with your Banana Frog stamps! Don’t be shy now, share your results with us, I’d love to see what you do with this technique. Thanks for hopping by and hop by soon to check out the all the fab projects the froglets have to share. I’ll see you in class on the 11^th August until then happy crafting!

Love

M x

Project of the day: Going dotty

Recently I have become re-addicted to Liquid Pearls, I can't seem to get enough of adding little pearly dots here and there to all my card projects... and why should this addition not extend to my Banana Frog stamps?

There's something very therapeutic about adding those little dots to your stamped images, and there's no reason for them to just be pastel colours.

I stamped the background in red ink using a design from the Concentric set: 

 

And added red Liquid Pearls:

 

But of course there is always room for pastel colours, and the best tip is to stamp your image using Versamark, I used Flowery Thoughts for this card and added the stem and leaves by hand using a Versamark pen, and then just went over with Liquid Pearls:

 

 

Once my Liquid Pearl addiction has run its course I shall be back to adding Stickles dots!

Inspiration Online

At the end of the month, the design team tend to start chatting about what's inspiring them as they work on new projects!  Here are a few things they think might inspire you to more happy crafting!

Sassafras Paper Whimsies diecuts...Everybody is loving the cute size and designs!

Colour Combo websites like this or this -- challenge yourself to use up the paper scraps you collect after you finish a project by working them together in these colour combinations for a new look.

Creative Type -- fab ideas for using your letter stamps, and you know we love those at Banana Frog!

Find interviews with creative people at Artists Who Blog.  A great place to find new blogs to inspire!

Fabulous textile projects here!

And of course we are still loving the new stamps!

So...what's inspiring YOU right now?  Let us know - we'd love to check it out!

Workshop sneak peek!

If you are going to the Great Northern Paper Extravaganza in Harrogate this weekend you can take a Banana Frog breakfast workshop. We will be making this vibrant and fun mini album. You need to reserve your place on the workshop ahead of time. The classes start at 8.45am and run for an hour. I know it is an early start but then you get time to look round the show before it officially opens -so you can get some great bargains too!

It is going to be a fun workshop!