Sssssssssnakely Samples....

This week is just zooming by!  I can't believe it's already time to share who our Guest DT is for this release!  Since we have so many images in the Chinese Zodiac to release, I solicited the help of several guests to help me with the entire release... so you will see these ladies back each time we release another set of Zodiac images.

Our Guest Designers are:  Laura, Patti, Eunice and Linda!! Please click on their names to visit their blogs to see what they've come up with using our new images.

Some of you may already know that Laura is my cousin.  When we were young, we went to the same school and did pretty much everything together!  After I found out she was paper crafting, I thought she would be the perfect match to help with this release.

Shortly after discovering blogging, I stumbled upon Eunice's blog.  Her projects have such great detail and really caught my eye!  She turned down my offer to be a Guest DT several times before finally agreeing to help with the Zodiac releases.  Thank you Eunice!  She is my idol!

While studying Eunice's blog, I stumbled onto Patti's blog and got hooked instantly.  Not only does Patti have original projects, she also includes instructions on how to re-create them!  No doubt you will love her projects as much as I do.

Last but not least, my Dim Sum Sistah, Linda has agreed to help me out in a pinch... You may notice that my normal CBFF Debi is absent this time around, but hopefully she will be back soon to join us with future releases.  (Miss you Debi!) In the meantime, Linda came to my rescue and will be creating projects using our Zodiac images.  Thank you Linda!

So I finally was able to share my projects with you.... I've been so busy getting ready for a craft fair, I had to re-focus and spend some time creating stuff using the snake and horse.  Since next year is Year of the Snake, I think it's only natural to think calendars.. right?  As I mentioned earlier, I guess Aunty Jan and I had the same idea to use the image on a calendar!  

These are the calendars I made for retailers that will be selling images from this release.  I stared with a chipboard base and covered it with black cardstock.  Then added a washi strip of paper across the base for interest.  Tried to use prints that were less busy so as not to distract from the focal point... the snake!  Added a 2013 title by Island Scrapbooking and the calendar mounted on more gold.  A simple enough design that allows for mass production!  Punched holes at the top and added some ribbon to finish it off....

And a close up of the snake...

Here's a shot showing the different washi paper used...

Do you make calendars to give away as gifts?  I sure do!  Think I'm gonna make a few more of these to give away as Christmas gifts!  Now go check out our Guest DT's blogs and give them some love!!

Year of the Horse

Hi Everyone!  Welcome to our 2nd day of Introductory Posts for Release #10!  Did you get a chance to look up what your Chinese Zodiac sign is?  Well, if you are Year of the Horse, 2014 is your year!  I don't know many horses, but I do know one.. my sister-in-law is born year of the horse.  When I read the characteristics found on this site... I started laughing!  Many of the characteristics they use to describe the horse are not like my sister-in-law at all, but she is extremely intelligent and honest,which are also characteristics of the horse.  Hmmm... maybe I need to find a new site!

OK on to our project!  Aunty Jan made another calender using the Year of the Horse stamp.  I really like that she printed "Year of the Horse" on the computer then stamped the horse over it.  I always forget that I can do that too.  The small piece of washi was just enough of an accent to make the calendar stand out too.  Above the horse she used corners that were cut from an old Sizzix die set.  They look really asian and match the theme perfectly.  And did you notice?  The horse is dressed up too!  She used some baker's twine to make a harness for the horse.  I think if you click on the picture it will enlarge it for you to get a better look.

Are you ready for more candy?  All you have to do is:

1.  Leave a comment on THIS POST by Friday, 11/30/12, 11:59pm HST.
2.  Tell me if your sign is compatible with the Year of the Horse.

Good luck and thanks for stopping by!  Be sure to check in tomorrow to find out who our Guest Designers are!

Year of the Snake

Woo Hoo!  We made it to Release #10!  Amazing!  This release is special since it kicks off our Chinese Zodiac collection.  As explained yesterday, we are releasing two of the animals in the Chinese Zodiac every couple of months.

Here's the release schedule:
12/01/12:  Snake, Horse
02/01/13:  Sheep, Monkey
04/01/13:  Rooster, Dog
06/01/13:  Pig, Rat
08/01/13:  Ox, Tiger
10/01/13:  Rabbit, Dragon

If you are not familiar with the Chinese Zodiac, you can read the history behind the legend here..  It describes the order in which the 12 animals fall in the zodiac. If you snoop around this site, you will also find characteristics about those who are born in the year of each animal.  It is quite interesting and entertaining.  If you are new to this, you will want to take a few minutes to find out what year you were born and see if your personality fits the description of the animal.

Along with each animal are the 5 different elements:  water, fire, earth, wood, and metal.  These elements give one additional traits that then separate those within a group of animal even further.  For example, a metal snake might behave differently from a wood snake.

Our family regularly analyzes the personalities in our family and how it correlates to their sign.  My sister and brother read up on this a lot and are constantly telling me what signs they are compatible with, if its going to be a good year for you, etc.  As for me, I take the whole zodiac thing with a grain of salt, but I do like the animals and the story behind it.

So we start off the release with the Snake since 2013 is the year of the water snake.  It just so happens to be my sister's year as well!  She tried her best to make the snake cute since she says that they are always ugly and evil looking.  I laugh because I feel like my sign is the ugliest, but I guess everyone feels that way about their own.  Luckily, it appears that my sister and I have compatible signs!  She is a snake and I am an ox, which are supposedly compatible.

Today I have a special project to share that I received from Aunty Jan.  She and I both had calendars on the brain when it came to projects for this release!  I'll share my project later this week.

Aunty started with a bamboo mon stencil used for the background.  It might be hard to see because she used a light yellow/brown color so that it created a subtle background.  The 2013 was cut from the Sizzix Endless Love alphabet/numbers set out of gold paper.  She printed "Year of the Snake" along with "Wise, Passionate, and Profound" on the computer and stamped the kanji for snake (Designs in Squares) next to it.  The mini calendar was mounted on lavendar cardstock, and then on gold.  She colored the snake and cut him out and popped him up using pop dots.  She used glitter for some sparkle on the snake.

I just love her design!  I think I'm going to be a little selfish and keep this one for my desk at work! Thank you Aunty!

Wow- this turned out to be a long post!  Now I know the real reason you're here right?  The chance to win some blog candy!?  OK here's how you can enter to win your very own snake stamp:

1.  Leave me a comment on THIS POST (amended to include deadline) by Friday, 11/30/12, 11:59pm HST.
2.  In your comment, tell me what your chinese zodiac sign is.
3.  Tell me if your sign is compatible with the snake!

See you tomorrow with our next introductory post!

Release #10 Coming Soon!

Good Morning!  Wow, it's been awhile since our last release, so I'm extra excited to present our new release images to you today!

Awhile back, I asked my sister to draw me the Chinese Zodiac animals so that I could make a wall calendar featuring all of them and sell them at craft fairs.  I will share this old project with you later this week. 

Check in tomorrow for our introductory posts on these two fellas...

Why just the Snake and Horse you ask?  Well, we are just starting with these two images... 2013 is Year of the Snake and following that is Year of the Horse.  Over the next year, we will be releasing two images every other month beginning in February, so that by the end of next year, you should be able to purchase the whole set!

And for those of you who look forward to our regular images, don't worry... we have lots of new images in store for you in 2013!  Some of the new images will be released with the Zodiac animals and some may be released in between. Check back here or on our facebook page for more updates.  See you tomorrow!

Thanksgiving Blog Candy Winner!

Hi Everyone.. did you spend lots of money yesterday?  I did a LOT of shopping and got some really good deals.. though not sure if they are more for my friends/familly or myself?!  ha ha ha!

Anyway, I didn't forget about our little contest!  Our blog candy winner is....

Miri!!

Congrats girl!  Please email me at sisterstampsllc@gmail.com with your mailing address and the stamp of your choice.  I'll ship it off next week when I return home.

Happy Holidays everyone!

Jenny

Blink Blink, Rub Rub

Did you miss me?  Yes, sorry I've been so MIA recently, but there's a lot going on behind the scenes that I'm working on.  A little bit of Sister Stamps, a little bit of personal, and a little bit of travel!!  I've been so busy that I just noticed now that we've had over 100,000 hits!!!! I seriously can't believe my eyes.. I had to do a double take, blink my eyes and rub them to make sure my eyes were reading the number correctly.  I know my vision is ok since I just got my new glasses... It must be true right?

OK about half of that is probably me, my mom and my sister.  Ha ha ha!  But even if that is correct, that still means there are enough of you checking our blog an awful lot over the last year.  So wanted to THANK all of you for your continued support even though I haven't been actively posting.

Since Thanksgiving is literally right around the corner, I thought I'd express my thanks to all of YOU who have made Sister Stamps possible!  Because of your loyalty to our little company, I'm gonna do a small blog candy here... just leave a comment on this post by Wednesday, November 21st 11:59pm HST to be eligible to win.  I know a lot of you don't know how to follow our blog, so I won't even require that in order to be eligible.  Just leave a comment on this post and tell me which Sister Stamps image is your favorite and why.

And, check back the week after Thanksgiving for our next release previews!

Happy Halloween!

Woah... where have I been yah?  I know, I've been MIA for awhile now, but I've been crazy busy!!  Took a break from cleaning up for Halloween to make this treat bag tutorial for you...

Back in July, I did some make 'n takes around Oahu and Hilo.  One of the make 'n takes we did was an easy peasy treat bag that I learned how to make from my CBFF Debi.  She showed me LOOOOOOONG time ago how to alter a paper bag to be a cute treat bag.  Thanks Debi!  Since I wanted to keep the make 'n takes relatively simple, I thought this would be a good project.

I had these paper bags leftover from the make 'n takes and my attempt at making the paper bag mini album (see my personal blog for that project).  To get the shape I wanted, I simply cut the top of the bag down to 5" high.  This made my bag square looking, but you can choose to cut it down to any length.

After cutting the bag, I cut two pieces of cardstock for each side (Doodlebug).  I cut them about a 1/4" longer than each side- in this case it was 5 1/4" x 5 1/4".  Then I adhered the cardstock to the bag. I think its important to use cardstock since its thicker than regular paper and will make your bag more sturdy.

Now pay attention... this part is important!  I made a few mistakes while coming up with my sample during the make 'n takes, so I thought I'd better let you in on this secret...  See how I pulled the sides of the bag out?  Do this before you punch any holes for the straps, otherwise you will have holes on the side of your bag!!! ha ha ha!  Yes, my first samples did have holes on the side.  So learn from my mistakes and don't do the same.

After pulling out the sides, I marked the bag where I wanted to punch my holes for the straps.  Decided on 1" in on both sides and about 1/2" down from the top.  The Tim Holtz clear ruler is awesome for this since you can see through the ruler.  After you mark where you want your straps, punch holes on the marks.

After punching the holes, I added the ribbon straps.  Be sure to make the ribbon longer than you need so you have enough room to tie knots on the inside of the bag.  After that, you're done!

Then comes the fun part... decorating!  Since its Halloween, I thought I'd alter the BFF image and turn them into witches!  First, I cut out a haunted house from an old Sizzix die.  Added the sentiment (Island Scrapbooking) over the black part so it would show.  Colored up the BFF's with my copics and then added the hats.  I punched the pointed part of the hat using my Stampin Up banner punch.  I ended up trimming off some of it since I didn't want it as wide.  I actually punched it on white and colored in that part of the hat so I could add some shading.  Then I used the Stampin Up oval punch for the base of the hat.  Again, I felt it was too big, so I punched it again using the same punch to make a narrower oval.  Then I just adhered the pointed part to the base and then onto the girl's heads.  Now I wish I didn't spend so much time on their hair!

Well, hope you enjoyed this mini tutorial.  And hope you have a fun and safe Halloween!

Be sure to check back later to find out more on our next release!