Aug 24, 2016 | Blog Hop, Cards, Gallery, Halloween, Holiday, New Products, Open House, Sales, Techniques |

Welcome to InKing Royalty’s August Blog Hop! Stampin’ Up! demonstrators have been actively ordering from the 2016 Holiday Catalog, before it opens to customers on September 1. We are excited to share some of our new goodies with you today! Today’s Blog Hop is filled with inspiring projects that feature each artist’s take on the Fall months – Halloween and Thanksgiving are just around the corner. After you read my post, I hope you’ll hop over to the next person on the list at the base of this post.
I’m always honored and humbled to participate in a blog hop with this amazing group. Today I am especially excited to participate in a blog hop with the fabulous Louise Sharp. I met Louise on the incentive trip in May, and just fell in love with her. She is adorable and sweet, and a very talented paper artist. Thank you, Louise, for joining us today!
Anyone who knows me knows that I love Halloween. It’s always been one of my favorite holidays. So today I’m sharing a Halloween card made with one of my favorite new stamp sets in the 2016 Holiday Catalog, Jar of Haunts. I knew I had to have it as soon as I saw the dripping ooze and the floating eyeballs!

And it coordinates perfectly with the Everyday Jars Framelits Dies.

Here’s what I came up with:

I love old horror movies. Not the gory slasher movies of today, but the old monster movies. With this card I was going for a mad scientist’s laboratory feel, with old wood, cob webs, and jars with icky oozy contents. This is the second day in a row I’ve made a 4″ x 8″ card. It just happens to be the size I needed to create the scenes of these two cards. You can see the other one here.
Here’s how I did it:
I stamped the mummy jar in Early Espresso ink onto Very Vanilla card stock. I used a Blender Pen to smear the ink a bit for shading. I used the Framelits to cut the stamped image, and to cut the jar shape from a Window Sheet. I then covered the image with glue from the Fine-Tip Glue pen and pressed the clear jar onto it. I did this on a Silicone Craft Sheet to catch the glue that oozed out. I held it for a moment, then curved it with my fingers and wrapped a small rubber band around it. I let it sit this way until the glue dried. This is how I got the rounded jars on the card. The glue made the ink run a bit, but I like the effect on this one.
For the jar of blood, I cut the jar shape from a Window Sheet and from Cherry Cobbler card stock. I glued the two pieces together, curved them, and let it sit with a rubber band wrapped around it, as I did the previous one. I stamped the ooze in Cherry Cobbler ink onto Cherry Cobbler card stock, lined it up with the jar die and cut it out, then used Paper Snips to cut away the part of the jar below the ooze. I covered this with the same glue and let it sit on the Silicone Craft Sheet until it was dry. It curled a bit on its own, which helped when I glued it onto the full jar.
For the green jar, I stamped the eyeballs in Smoky Slate ink onto Shimmery White card stock. I used this paper because I knew I wanted to watercolor. I lined up the jar die with the eyeball image and cut it out. I used the same die to cut a Window Sheet. I colored the eyeballs with Stampin’ Write Markers in Pacific Point, Cucumber Crush, Soft Suede, and Cherry Cobbler. I used an Aqua Painter and Old Olive ink to color the liquid in the jar. I used my Paper Snips to cut away the part of the jar above the eyeballs and waterline.
I was afraid to use the glue on this one, because I really didn’t want the colors to run like they did on the mummy. So I covered the image completely with Fast Fuse adhesive, then stuck on the clear jar. Again I curved it with my fingers and let it sit for a while with a rubber band wrapped around it.
While the jars sat curling, I made the jar lids. I stamped the image from the Jar of Love stamp set in Versamark ink onto a Gold Foil sheet, then heat embossed it in copper. I used the corresponding die to cut them out. I used a Sponge Dauber to apple black Staz-On ink to make them look old and rusty. I used Fast Fuse to adhere the lids onto the jar of eyeballs and the mummy jar. I used a Real Red Stampin’ Write Marker to add some “blood” to the rim of the third lid, and set it with the heat tool.
For the card, I cut a piece of Halloween Night Designer Series Paper (silver cobweb on black) to 4″ x 8″ and glued it to the front of a Basic Black card base the same size (8″ x 8″ scored at 4″.) I used the Hardwood stamp with Basic Black ink on Basic Grey card stock to create the dark wood. I cut the image in strips and glued them around the edges of the card front. I made the bottom wider to look like a window sill, and adhered it with Foam Adhesive Strips.
I put a line of Stampin’ Dimensionals down the center of each jar, three layers thick, and adhered them to the card to look like they’re sitting on the sill. I used Foam Adhesive strips to adhere the last jar lid next to the bloody jar.
I hope you can come to my Open House and BOGO Sale this Sunday to see this card in person. Photos really don’t do it justice. See the event details here.
Everything I used on today’s card is listed at the bottom of this post.
I hope you’ll hop along to the next stop on the blog hop, Karen Browning at StampWithMeKZB. There’s a lot of inspiration to be found in this group, and you don’t want to miss it!
Thank you for hopping along with us. If you get stuck during the Blog Hop, please use this line-up as a guide:
- Brian King at Stamp with Brian
- Imogene Thomas at MomoMakes.com
- Lynn Kolcun at Avery’s Owlery
- Louise Sharp at Louise Sharp.com
- Shawn de Oliveira at ShawnStamps
- Robin Myren at Songbird Designs by Robin
- Candy Ford at Stamp Candy <– YOU ARE HERE
- Karen Browning at StampWithMeKZB
- Becky Volpp at InkBlossom with Becky
- Jennifer Spiller at Westside Paper Creations
Here’s what I used today:
The holiday items will be available to purchase September 1, but you can look at them in my online store now. You can purchase everything else now by clicking on the images below!
Thanks for stopping by today, and Sweet Stamping!

Jul 20, 2016 | Blog Hop, Cards, Christmas, Gallery, Holiday, New Products |

Welcome to InKing Royalty’s July Blog Hop! Can you believe we are half-way to Christmas? It might seem a bit early to start looking at wintry scenes and holiday goodies, but there are so many great products in Stampin’ Up!’s 2016 Annual Catalog that we want to share before the Holiday Catalog is revealed next month. Today’s Blog Hop is filled with inspiring projects that feature each artist’s take on Christmas in July. After you read my post, I hope you’ll hop over to the next person on the list at the base of this post.
When tasked with making a Christmas card for this blog hop, I found it very difficult. Not because I couldn’t get into the Christmas spirit due to the sweltering summer heat, but because there were so many options, I had a hard time deciding what to do. I went to my online store, did a search for “Christmas,” and got 52 results!
After much deliberation, I decided to use the Festive Flower Builder Punch along with the new This Christmas Specialty Designer Series Paper to create a card in Garden Green, Cherry Cobbler, and Very Vanilla.


Here’s what I came up with:
(The background of this photo is Very Vanilla, not Whisper White in bad lighting.)

Here’s how I did it:
The card base is Garden Green card stock. There’s a layer of the DSP glued to the base, and a smaller layer of the DSP glued to that.
For the poinsettia, I stamped the three sizes of leaf/petal veins from the Reason for the Season stamp set in Cherry Cobbler ink onto Cherry Cobbler card stock – 8 of the largest, 8 of the middle size, and 3 of the small doubles. Then I stamped three of the largest ones in Garden Green ink onto Garden Green card stock. I used the Festive Flower Builder Punch to cut out all the stamped pieces, plus 3 flower centers from Crushed Curry card stock.

I used my Bone Folder to curl all the punched pieces (except the Crushed Curry centers) so the ends curved down. I punched a 1″ circle of Cherry Cobbler card stock and started gluing the inner tips of the pieces onto it, beginning with the largest petals and building up to the smallest on top. I glued the 3 leaves to the bottom of the flower and the 3 centers to the top.
I attached Stampin’ Dimensionals to the underside of the petals to keep them from getting flattened in the envelope. Then I put Fast Fuse on the 1″ circle on the bottom of the flower, and stuck it to a large gold doily from the Metallic Foil Doilies. I used Fast Fuse to attach the whole thing to the card front.
On the card’s interior, I glued a piece of Very Vanilla card stock for a handwritten note. You can also add a stamped greeting, such as one of the three in the Reason for the Season stamp set – I would recommend using Cherry Cobbler ink.
I used another piece of the DSP to create a custom envelope using the Envelope Punch Board.
I hope you’ll hop along to the next stop on the blog hop, Linda Heller at Where the Rubber Hits the Road…. There’s lots of inspiration to be found in this group – and you don’t want to miss it!
If you get stuck during the Blog Hop, please use this line-up as a guide:
- Brian King at Stamp with Brian
- Candy Ford at Stamp Candy
- Linda Heller at Where the Rubber Hits the Road…
- Shawn de Oliveira at ShawnStamps
- Karen Browning at StampWithMeKZB
- Lory Robinson at The Robin’s Nest Designs
- Imogene Thomas at MomoMakes.com
- Lynn Kolcun at Avery’s Owlery
- Jennifer Spiller at Westside Paper Creations
- Becky Volpp at InkBlossom with Becky
- Natalie Bradley at NatalieBradley.com
Here’s what I used today:
Thanks for hopping along with us today, and Sweet Stamping!

Jun 22, 2016 | Blog Hop, Cards, Gallery, New Products, Techniques |

Welcome to InKing Royalty’s June Blog Hop! Stampin’ Up!’s 2016 Annual Catalog introduced us to five new In Colors: Dapper Denim, Emerald Envy, Flirty Flamingo, Peekaboo Peach and Sweet Sugarplum. What a beautiful collection of versatile colors! Today’s Blog Hop is filled with inspiring projects that feature each artist’s favorite new In Color. After you read my post, I hope you’ll hop over to the next person on the list at the base of this post.
How did I choose my favorite In Color for this post? I punched out a piece of card stock in each color, put them in a bowl, swirled them around, and pulled one out. I mean really, how else could I choose just one of these amazing colors?

For the background I used a stamping method that has been around for many years, and was recently demonstrated at a Stampin’ Up! event by fellow demonstrator Brandy Cox.
I used the square piece from the inside of the easel stamp from the Painter’s Palette stamp set. This is more easily done with the clear mount set, since the wood mount stamps have permanent adhesive on the back, and there isn’t a wood block included for this extra square piece.
I stamped the square in Peekaboo Peach onto Whisper White card stock. I stamped the paper several times between re-inking to get the different shades. I also overlapped the squares to create darker areas. It reminds me of fabric from the 1970s.
I inked up the new Pineapple stamp in Emerald Envy and Early Espresso, then stamped directly on top of the stamped background. These two colors are deep enough to (mostly) cover the design under them.
Okay, maybe I cheated a little bit by sneaking in another of the new colors, but doesn’t it look awesome?
I cut the sentiment with the Hello You Thinlits from Whisper White card stock, then I covered it with Clear Wink of Stella and glued it to the card front. The card base is Thick Whisper White card stock.
I’m proud to say, “No Stampin’ Dimensionals were harmed in the making of this card.” Sometimes I force myself not to use them, just to be different. But this card really only needed Multipurpose Liquid Glue – my favorite paper crafting glue ever!
I hope you’ll hop along to the next stop on the blog hop, Robin Myren at Songbird Designs by Robin. There’s a lot of inspiration to be found in this group – and you don’t want to miss it!
Thank you for hopping along with us today, and Sweet Stamping!

If you get stuck during the Blog Hop, please use this line-up as a guide:
- Brian King at Stamp with Brian
- Lory Robinson at The Robin’s Nest Designs
- Lynn Kolcun at Avery’s Owlery
- Jennifer Spiller at Westside Paper Creations
- Imogene Thomas at MomoMakes.com
- Becky Volpp at Ink Blossom with Becky
- Candy Ford at Stamp Candy
- Robin Myren at Songbird Designs by Robin
- Natalie Bradley at NatalieBradley.com
- Shawn de Oliveira at ShawnStamps
- Lisa Pretto at InkBig Academy Stamps
- Karen Browning at StampWithMeKZB
Here’s what I used today:
Apr 19, 2016 | Blog Hop |

Welcome to InKing Royalty’s April Blog Hop! Stampin’ Up! announced it’s retired list yesterday – while we are sad to see some of our favorite products leave the catalog, we are certain that some amazing new products are on their way. As we introduce the 2016-2018 In Colors to you, we know we have to say goodbye to the 2014-2016 In Colors. Today’s Blog Hop is filled with inspiring projects that share some great ideas – featuring Hello Honey, Lost Lagoon, Tangelo Twist, Blackberry Bliss and Mossy Meadow. After you read my post, I hope you’ll hop over to the next person on the list at the base of this post.
My card for today uses some retiring Designer Series Paper, as well as the retiring In-Colors. The Farmer’s Market DSP contains three of the retiring colors: Blackberry Bliss, Mossy Meadow, and Hello Honey. I took the liberty of using Tangelo Twist on this card as well, even though the DSP contains Tangerine Tango. (I didn’t figure out a way to work in Lost Lagoon.) I used 5 different patterns from the DSP – actually six, if you count the background.

The layers, from bottom to top, are: Hello Honey card base, Mossy Meadow card stock, DSP, Tangelo Twist CS, DSP, Blackberry Bliss CS, and DSP. The vegetables are fussy cut from the DSP and attached with Stampin’ Dimensionals. The sentiment from the Wild About Flowers stamp set, is stamped in Blackberry Bliss ink directly onto the DSP. I thought it was appropriate, since these In-Colors will definitely be missed.

However, I’m pleased to share with you the brand new 2016-2018 In-Colors, which will be available June 1 when the 2016-2017 Annual Catalog goes live! I’m very excited about the new colors. Aren’t you?

Thank you for hopping with us today. I hope you’ll hop along to the next stop on the blog hop, Julie DiMatteo at The Paper Pixie. There’s a lot of inspiration to be found in this group – and you don’t want to miss it!
If you get stuck during the Blog Hop, please use this line-up as a guide:
- Brian King at Stamp with Brian
- Robin Myren at Songbird Designs by Robin
- Candy Ford at StampCandy <– YOU ARE HERE
- Julie DiMatteo at The Paper Pixie
- Lynn Kolcun at Avery’s Owlery
- Kelly DeTommaso at Kelly’s Creative Corner
- Karen Browning at StampWithMeKZB
- Pam Morris at Tap Tap Stamp
- Shawn de Oliveira at ShawnStamps
- Jennifer Spiller at Westside Paper Creations
- Natalie Bradley at NatalieBradley.com
Here’s what I used for today’s card:
Thanks for stopping by today, and Sweet Stamping!

Mar 15, 2016 | Blog Hop, Cards, Occasions |

Welcome to InKing Royalty’s March Blog Hop! Stampin’ Up!’s Occasions Catalog and Annual Catalog are filled with amazing products that help you celebrate Spring with style. With floral stamp sets, dies and printed papers, you can’t go wrong as you have fun with flowers. Today’s Fun with Flowers Blog Hop is filled with inspiring projects that share some great ideas – we are excited to share what we’ve made and hope you’ll find great inspiration from our talented team members in this hop. After you read my post, I hope you’ll hop over to the next person on the list at the base of this post.

One of our activities at our monthly Candy Hearts team meetings is a swap. Today I’m sharing my swap card for the March meeting.

I used Shimmery White Cardstock for the whole card: card base, layers, and die cut pieces.
I used the Botanical Builder Framelits Dies to cut all the leaves and flower pieces. There are actually Framelits and Thinlits in the set:

I used the Magnetic Platform and two clear cutting plates with the Framelits. I used the Mulitpurpose Platform, Precision Base Plate, and one clear cutting plate with the Thinlits. Then I used the Big Shot Die Brush to remove the die cuts pieces from the Thinlits.
I punched the ovals with the Extra Large Oval Punch. Then I set up my assembly line area.

I began each card with an oval.

I glued the leaves onto the oval.

I gave dimension to the flowers by curling the petals with a bone folder.

I pulled the inner petals toward the center of the flowers.

I used my Big Shot Die Brush sponge mat and the round end of a marker to give dimension to the smallest flowers and to the flower centers.

Once all the the pieces were glued to the oval, I put Stampin’ Dimensionals on the back of the whole thing.

Then I adhered it to the card front.

I will probably hand deliver this card, but if I do mail it, I will put it in a small box loosely packed with tissue.
Thanks for stopping by today, and Sweet Stamping!

Feb 16, 2016 | Blog Hop, Cards |

Welcome to InKing Royalty’s February Blog Hop! Stampin’ Up!’s Occasions Catalog is filled with amazing products to help you celebrate birthdays in style – from festive balloons to birthday buds, there’s something for everyone. Today’s It’s Your Birthday Blog Hop is filled with inspiring projects that share great birthday ideas – we are excited to share what we’ve made and hope you’ll find great inspiration from our talented team members in this hop. After you read my post, I hope you’ll hop over to the next person on the list at the base of this post.
There are several fantastic birthday stamp sets in the Occasions catalog, but today I wanted to show how you can use products from both the Occasions and Annual catalogs together. The Age Awareness stamp set from the annual catalog has been one of my favorites for a while now. I love the festive font and the funny sentiments.

Today I’m pairing it with the It’s My Party Designer Series Paper from the 2016 Occasions catalog to make two quick and easy birthday cards.

For the first card, I planned to use the side of this piece of DSP with multi-color dots on a white background, and that’s how I decided which colors of card stock to use. Then I realized I preferred the black and white side for this particular card design. I love how versatile the patterns are and how easy Stampin’ Up! makes it to use them interchangeably.

I stamped the sentiment and HB balloon on Mint Macaron card stock in Memento black ink, then I randomly placed 3 Whisper White Candy Dots. I adhered this over three strips of paper: one DSP, one Crushed Curry CS, and one Melon Mambo CS. The card base is Sahara Sand CS.

For the second card, I used a different sheet of the It’s My Party DSP.

The card base is Crushed Curry CS, and the two solid mats are Mint Macaron and Melon Mambo. I stamped the sentiment in Crushed Curry on Whisper White CS. Some silver sequins add just a touch of sparkle.

I hope you’ll hop along to the next stop on the blog hop, Deb Cozzone at Grand Central Stamping. There’s a lot of inspiration to be found in this group – and you don’t want to miss it!
Thank you for hopping along with us. If you get stuck during the Blog Hop, please use this line-up as a guide:
- Brian King at Stamp with Brian
- Denise Hoepfner at The Mountain Magpie
- Shawn de Oliveira at ShawnStamps
- Jennifer Spiller at Westside Paper Creations
- Candy Ford at StampCandy
- Deb Cozzone at Grand Central Stamping
- Natalie Bradley at NatalieBradley.com
- Lynn Kolcun at Avery’s Owlery
- Becky Volpp at Ink Blossom with Becky
- Lisa Pretto at InkBig Academy Stamps
- Julie DiMatteo at The Paper Pixie
- Karen Browning at StampWithMeKZB
Here’s what I used today:
Today is the first day you can get these brand new Sale-a-bration items! You earn one FREE for each $50 in a product order! Sale-a-bration only lasts through March 31, so order soon!

Thank you for stopping by today, and Sweet Stamping!
