Special Guest Blogger: Mandy Douglass
04/02/2010 at 8:10 am | Posted in fonts, General Inspiration, guest blogger, Holidays, How-Tos, product, technique, Uncategorized | 5 CommentsTags: American Crafts, CK, Creating Keepsakes, Creating Keepsakes magazine, Dear Lizzy, Easter eggs, eggs, Fiskars Americas, free font, Free Font Friday, gift bag, guest blogger, holiday, how-to, Mandy Douglass, photo tips, photography tips, ribbon, ribbon technique, technique
Hey all my favorite CK Readers! It is me, Mandy Douglass! I don’t know about you, but I am so excited for this upcoming Easter holiday weekend. Now that I have two little boys, it just keeps getting more and more fun each year. I love easter egg hunts, easter baskets, easter bunnies, and those little peeks from the tulips that will soon turn into beautiful flowers.
Last year was the first year my son, Bryson, could start to understand the whole easter egg hunt idea. So today, I thought I would share a photo tip and a ribbon tip with you from this fun new page I created about his first hunt!
The Race is On by Mandy Douglass. Supplies: American Crafts.
Photo Tip:
Bryson was just learning to walk, and he really didn’t have enough balance to pick up eggs, so crawling was his only way to get those funny looking round things! I thought this photo was perfect to use on my layout, because it captures his perspective on the easter egg hunt. There weren’t a lot of kids around to “race” him for the eggs, but the faster he got them, the more excited he was. I challenge all you CK readers to get down in the grass this weekend and get some true perspective photographs!
Ribbon Tip:
Next is a fun tip a friend taught me a while back. I often find it hard to punch through a page or get a knotted ribbon to stay in place without gargantuan amounts of glue! So here are a few steps to show you how to get that cute ribbon knot to stay in place and avoid getting sticky.
First cut a piece of ribbon about 3″ long. Then staple it to the area of the page you would like the ribbon to be.
Then simply tie the knot (I usually only tie one knot and it stays in place).
Then cut off the remaining ribbon.
Simple, huh!
Bonus Gift-Bag Topper Tip:
I decided to use the same technique on some cute treat bags for Easter. (Not only did I get a cute bag out of it, but it also gave me a great excuse to open those Cadbury Mini Eggs that have been staring at me for a week!)
To make the bag topper, I made a simple flap using Sizzix’s scallop square die cut, then I folded it in half. I added some darling egg paper from the Dear Lizzy line by American Crafts and stapled the decorated flap to close the bag and keep the ribbon in place.
Last, I made a cute little tag using a Quickutz oval die, some scallop scissors by Fiskars, and Dear Lizzy Dimensional Sticker. Then knotted it all in place!
Such an easy way to do lots of Easter treat bags.
“Hop” that you all have a great holiday weekend!
Mandy Douglass, CK contributing writer
P.S. Don’t forget to download today’s font as part of Free Font Friday! This weeks’ font is CK Day Dream. Download it today at Creating Keepsakes.
Guest Blogger: Maren Benedict (and Free Font Friday!)
10/02/2009 at 3:23 am | Posted in Get-to-Know | 11 CommentsTags: Ali Edwards, card making, cards, Creating Keepsakes, Free Font Friday, holiday cards, Maren Benedict, Paper Crafts, ribbon, ribbon technique, stamping, stamping ribbon, techniques, World Card Making Day
Happy early World Card Making Day!! Hi! I’m Maren Benedict, one of Paper Crafts magazine’s Go-to Gals. I am super excited to be guest blogging here today and sharing my love of card making. Tomorrow marks the 4th annual World Card Making Day. Lots of fabulous events are going on all over the world to celebrate. Whether you are taking a class at your local scrapbooking store or getting together with some crafty friends, it’s time to make some cards!
One of the reasons that I LOVE making cards is I get to play with ribbon. Actually, I have a hard time NOT adding ribbon to cards I make. Ribbon makes me happy and brings a little femininity into my testosterone-filled home. Sometimes it’s just a quick little bow:
Birthday Wishes by Maren Benedict. Supplies Cardstock and ribbon: Papertrey Ink; Patterned paper: Sassafras; Number stickers: American Crafts; Rhinestones: me & my BIG ideas; Ink: Ranger Industries; Stamp: Unity Stamp Company.
Other times I find a fabulous ribbon that needs to be seen! Silver wood grain . . .YUM!
Celebrate the Season by Maren Benedict. Supplies Cardstock: Papertrey Ink; Patterned paper: SEI; Chipboard: Maya Road; Glitter glue and ink: Ranger Industries; Stamp: Unity Stamp Company; Ribbon: Martha Stewart Crafts, EK Success.
Often the ribbon just ties all the elements together:
Hi by Maren Benedict. Supplies Cardstock and ribbon: Papertrey Ink; Patterned paper: American Crafts; Die-cutting machine: Cuttlebug, Provo Craft; Dies: Nestabilities, Spellbinders; Letter stickers: American Crafts.
There are times when I want a more subtle look, so I add just a little ruffled ribbon blending into the bottom or a small ribbon tag hanging off the edge of the card.
Thank You by Maren Benedict. Supplies Cardstock: Papertrey Ink; Patterned paper and die-cut: Cosmo Cricket; Button: BasicGrey; Ink: Stampin’ Up!; Stamp: Unity Stamp Company; Embroidery floss: Canvas Corp; Ribbon: May Arts and Papertrey Ink .
Although I’m a ribbon addict and not in short supply, there are times when I can’t find exactly what I’m looking for to complete my card. That’s when I customize my ribbon like I did for this card:
Love by Maren Benedict. Supplies Cardstock: Papertrey Ink; Patterned paper: American Crafts and October Afternoon; Acrylic heart: Heidi Swapp for Advantus; Transparency: Hambly Screen Prints; Word sticker: Anna Griffin; Ink: Ranger Industries; Stamp: Unity Stamp Company; Markers: Copic; Ribbon: May Arts.
1. To customize ribbon, all you need is a dye ink, a stamp, some ribbon and a marker.
2. Ink up your stamp and stamp directly on the ribbon. You will want to be sure to add enough pressure to get into the ridges.
3. Use the tip of a marker to run along the edge of the ribbon. Running an inky finger along the edge works, too!
4. There you go! Super easy. Now attach it to your project, and you’re done.
I hope I’ve inspired you to pull out some ribbon or make some cards. Planning to make a Birthday, Christmas, Hello, Thank You or Love card? Why not send it off to the special WCMD card contest! Enjoy your World Card Making Day, friends! Happy crafting!
P.S. It’s FREE FONT FRIDAY, peeps! By special request, our featured font this week is CK Ali’s Handwriting, featuring Ali Edwards’ penmanship. 
Download it here.
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