Rubber Stamping & Card Making with Yapha

The third grade teachers came to me for some ideas for a project their students could make at their Valentine’s Day party. We tossed some ideas around, and decided on having each child make two 3″x 3″ mini cards – one for each of their parents. I put together a supply order for them, and because of Sale-a-Bration and Stampin’ Up’s generous hostess benefits, they managed to get four free stamps sets with their order! We decided to stick with Real Red, Pretty in Pink, and Basic Black as our ink colors, combined with Real Red or Pretty in Pink as their card base. They will be encouraged to use their own creativity to create their cards, but I put together a few samples to get their juices flowing.

Here they each are individually:

Stamps: I {Heart} Hearts, Whimsical Words
Ink: Real Red, Pretty in Pink, Basic Black
Paper: Pretty in Pink, Whisper White

Stamps: A Happy Heart
Ink: Real Red, Basic Black
Paper: Real Red, Whisper White

Stamps: A Happy Heart, Sprinkles
Ink: Real Red, Pretty in Pink
Paper: Pretty in Pink, Whisper White

Stamps: I {Heart} Hearts, Whimsical Words
Ink: Real Red, Basic Black
Paper: Real Red, Whisper White

Stamps: I {Heart} Hearts, A Happy Heart
Ink: Pretty in Pink, Basic Black
Paper: Pretty in Pink, Whisper White

Stamps: You & Moi
Ink: Real Red, Pretty in Pink
Paper: Real Red, Whisper White

I can’t wait to see what cards the kids come up with!

I don’t know if you happened to notice the Love Bots Valentines in the new mini catalog. They look a little something like this. (Not the paper on top, just look at the bottom half of the picture.)

Well, one of the amazing demonstrators at Leadership, the fabulous Patty Bennett, came up with a variety of ways to use this fabulous kit! I have some pictures of the display boards. (You can click on the pictures for a much larger view.)

How brilliant is she? Amazing!

My in-laws were out of town for about five weeks on an amazing vacation. Eve made them an adorable card for my husband to bring with when he picked them up at the airport. That’s Eve in the middle, with Grandpa and Grandpa on either side. Eve did all of the stamping and coloring herself, except for the arms. I stamped the arms, since they can be very frustrating. Especially when they are the last thing you stamp. She blended the Yo-Yo Yellow and Only Orange Watercolor Wonder Crayons to make the skin on the faces.

Stamps: All in the Family
Inks: StazOn Black
Papers: Pixie Pink, Orchid Opulence, Naturals White
Accessories: Watercolor Wonder Crayons (Bold Brights), Aqua Painter

Grandma & Grandpa were thrilled to get this card, and I was happy to have some stamping time with Eve!

Eve, who is 6 1/2, decided to give the Stamping 411 Saturday Sketch Challenge a try this morning. She wanted to make a card for her cousin Sophia who will be 2 on Monday. She liked this sketch a lot.

What could be better for her two-year-old cousin than a Build-a-Bear card? Eve did all of the designing, stamping, and coloring herself. I just helped by cutting the layers.

Stamps: Beary Best Friends, Beary Nice Wishes
Ink: Basic Black, Orchid Opulence, Pixie Pink
Paper: Pixie Pink, Lovely Lilac, Whisper White, Pawsitively Prints, Designer Series Paper
Accessories: Watercolor Wonder Crayons

I love stamping with Eve! She’s so much fun — and talented and creative besides!

One of the most amazing things about rubber stamping is that anyone, of virtually any age, can do it. I was privileged today to accompany our fourth graders on their service learning field trip to the Jewish Home for the Aging. They were paired up with senior citizens, asked them questions about their lives, played a word game, and stamped some cards.

(thanks to Samantha Alvarez  for the fabulous photo!)

It was truly amazing to watch them stamp cards together. They shared in the joy of creating together, and the finished project was beautiful.

If you are looking for a way to connect people regardless of age, rubber stamping is certainly one answer. Everyone enjoyed today — the 4th graders, the seniors, the teachers, and the parent volunteers.

Eve loves the these new Build-a-Bear Stampin’ items, and has been wanting to stamp with them for a while now. We had some stamping time this weekend, and this was the first set she reached for. She wanted to have plenty of space for her masterpiece, so she chose just to use a white card base without any matts. We did end up matting the “Happy Bearthday” because she stamped it upside down the first time. Two lessons learned from that — One, always check which way the letters are facing and Two, there are very few things in card-making that can’t be fixed with a little embellishing! Crisis averted, phew!

Stamps: Beary Best Friends, Beary Nice Wishes
Ink: StazOn Black
Paper: Whisper White, Pink Passion
Other: Watercolor Pencils

Stamping — it’s fun for the whole family!

Eve has been doing a lot of stamping with me this summer. It’s a great way to spend time together, especially with all of the rain we have been having. I am happy to share three of her latest creations with you. (Eve is my 6-year-old daughter, for those of you that may not know, who has been stamping with me since she was two.)

This first card is of Eve and me together, with our dog Biscuit.

Stamps: All in the Family, Neighborhood Jumbo Wheel
Ink: StazOn Black, Bermuda Bay
Paper: Bermuda Bay, Real Red, Whisper White
Accessories: Watercolor Pencils

This second card is Eve’s presentation of all of the new In Colors. She wanted to include them all on one card to make them easier to show people.

Stamps: Flight of the Butterfly
Ink: Melon Mambo, Rich Razzleberry, Crushed Curry, Soft Suede, Bermuda Bay, Dusty Durango
Paper: Bermuda Bay, Crushed Curry, Whisper White

Eve just got her ears pierced, and this final card is a representation of her starter earrings. She picked the Crystal Rainbow Daisy, which you can see at the bottom of this list. (She got it done at Claire’s. They were great!)

Stamps: Pick a Petal
Ink: Pixie Pink, Ballet Blue, Elegant Eggplant, Certainly Celery, Bashful Blue, Basic Black
Paper: Pixie Pink, Whisper White
Accessories: Stampin’ Write Markers

Pretty accurate, huh? I highly recommend stamping with your children! It’s a great way to spend time together!

Here is one last valentine, for this year at least. This is another one that Eve made. We are down at my parents’ house this weekend, so Eve gave this one to her Sabba & Savta. She stamped the largest heart in Pretty in Pink randomly on the base to create the background. She stamped the tic-tac-toe board in Riding Hood Red, then colored in parts with the Pretty in Pink Stampin’ Write Marker.

Stamps: A Happy Heart
Ink: Pretty in Pink, Riding Hood Red
Paper: Pretty in Pink, Basic Black, Whisper White

Thanks for looking! Hope you had a good Valentine’s Day!

When Eve saw that I was stamping, she of course wanted to jump in as well. I was playing along with the Mojo Monday sketch, so she came up with her own version. She made a Valentine for her dad. She made the truck blue, like his, and colored his sweatshirt green, like the Applewild School sweatshirt he loves. I did the cutting for her, she came up with the colors and all the rest herself.

Stamps: Loads of Love
Ink: StazOn Black, Stampin’ Write Markers
Paper: Real Red, Glorious Green, Brilliant Blue, Whisper White
Accessories: Real Red Striped Grosgrain Ribbon, Brilliant Blue Brad

I really think doing these sketch challenges are great for both creativity and math skills!

Eve and I were so excited to see Kristina Werner’s Color Inspiration up! Especially since our new catalog order came in yesterday. Eve was especially excited to use the  Family Accessories Too set. She wanted to make a Rock Star Girl card, but got a little frustrated trying to stamp the guitar and microphone on top of the girl. (She is 5, after all.)  This week’s colors are:

This is the card that Eve came up with:

Stamps: All in the Family, Family Accessories Too
Ink: Basic Black
Paper: So Saffron, Taken with Teal, Whisper White
Accessories: Watercolor Pencils, Eyelet Border Punch

Thanks for looking! Eve really appreciates all of your comments. Her face lights up when I read them to her. I really enjoy this part of my week, doing the challenges with my daughter!