Tuesday's Tip

I think our blender pens are the best and I use mine a lot so when the blender pen becomes empty, this is what you can do.  Instead of buying a new set of blender pens, you can use this blender pen refill recipe.

Blender Pen Refill Recipe

2 tablespoons and 2 teaspoons of glycerin

5 tablespoons of distilled water

1 teaspoon of rubbing alcohol

Put the ingredients in a small jar and just let the tip of the pen soak up the liquid for about half an hour.  Then soak the other end of the pen.

Three Becomes Thirty-Four

Above is the level one hostess set, "So Many Sayings" but you probably have noticed that it isn't mounted on the 3 blocks that are part of the package.  I recently purchase these blocks from another Stampin' Up!  demonstrator whose husband is a carpenter.  Having the stamps individually mounted allows me the versatility of being to pick and choose the stamps I want to use quickly and it is a little easier than highlighting the sentiment I want with a Stampin' Marker.

I think it is great value too.  For $6.50(the cost of the blocks) I have 34 stamps instead of 3.

If you think you would like to do the same with this set, I am happy to pass on the details of where to get the blocks.

Tuesday's Tip #4

When it comes to looking in the mirror most of us want to avoid looking curvey.  When it comes to circles this can only be an improvement.  There are several ways to add a scallop to a circle. Firstly you can punch out numerous circles and stick them to the back of your circle to give a scallop that can be a different colour to the original circle.  My favourite way is to take the guard off the small corner rounder punch and punch around the edge of the circle until you get back to where you started. It is important that you line up the punch to be touching the last scallop as you go around.  

Another way is to cut out the centre of you circle and punch the outer edge from the hole with the slot punch.  If the scallops don't quite line up when you get to where you began, don't worry because you can always cover this bit with something, like a button, bow or a little saying etc.

I recently saw another alternative.  Punching out love hearts and sticking them to the back of the circle with only the bumpy tops showing from the other side. Romantic and practical. 

See how you go with these techniques. If you decide to make a card with these scalloped circles, don't forget to send me a pic.

Tuesday's Tip # 3

Images copyright 1990-2008 Stampin' Up!

The new Lots of Thoughts stamp set from the Sale-A-Bration brochure is one of the sets you can get free with every $100 you spend. It is very versatile and has phrases to suit most occasions. The great thing about this set is that stamped images can be punched out using the Stampin' Up! 1-3/8 square punch or with the tag punch. By the way, all of these stamp sets come with the rubber pre-cut so you just have to add the rubber image and the sticker to the block and it's ready for stamping.

If you would like to add a Sale-A-Bration stamp set to your collection, please contact me and I will place an order for you.  Sale-A-Bration ends on the 29th February. 

Tuesday's Tip #2

Just thought I would mention a quick Stampin' Up! trick for having a ribbon that perfectly co- ordinates with your card stock.  Simply place a few drops of desired re-inker colour into a zip lock bag. Then spray water into the bag with a squirty bottle.  When these are combined, add some white grosgrain ribbon and mix until all of the colour is evenly absorbed. Take it out of the bag and allow it to dry (careful, this bit can be messy). If you want to use it as soon as possible, try using your heat gun to hurry things along.  Hope you have fun giving this one a try.

Tuesday's Tip

If you would like to have a marker that matches the Stampin' Up!  "In Colour" range, try putting a few drops of re-inker into the lid of a blender pen.  The blender pens come in a pack of 3 and have a tip at both ends of each pen.  You can have all six colours ready to go if you add different re-inker colours to each end of the three pens.  Just be careful with how you place the lids when you are using the blender pens, remembering there is re-inker in them.