Happy Birthday Gina!!

Today, the Gina K Design team is hopping to celebrate a very special lady!   Here is my birthday card for Gina--

I used Stamp it Big and Sweet Tweets on this:

...and filled it with LOTS of LOVE!   

I have worked with Gina for lots and lots of years now and I am such a fan of hers.  She is such an AMAZING person--in both the way she handles her business and the way she puts her family first.  I am so grateful to have her in my life. 

xo Happy Birthday Dear Friend xo

Here is the list of the rest of the team who are birthday hopping today:
AJ - http://thewillowgarden.blogspot.com/
Becky - http://hemidemisemiquaverdesignblog.com/
Beth - http://silaika.blogspot.com/
Carolina - http://creativepad.typepad.com/
Carolyn - http://myblogbycammie.blogspot.com/
Cat - http://catdidit.blogspot.com/
Debbie - http://doodledesignsonline.com/
Latisha - http://www.crafteebee.blogspot.com/
Laurie - http://www.justgivemestamps.typepad.com/
Lee - http://luvleestamper.blogspot.com/
Melanie - http://melaniemuenchinger.blogspot.com/
Michelle - http://stopandstamptheroses.blogspot.com/
Sean - http://www.cardcraftyclub.blogspot.com/
Sharon - http://paperfections.typepad.com/
Tami - http://tamimayberry.blogspot.com/
Theresa - http://craftingtheweb.blogspot.com/
Valerie - http://valeriestangle.blogspot.com/

Thanks for stopping by!

Stamp It BIG on Stamp TV...and a Giveaway!

Today, my new Gina K Designs stamp set---Stamp it BIG! makes its television debut on StampTV.  You can check out Gina's video HERE!

I am so excited to see what Gina came up with.  I was inspired to grab my set and create a few new cards as well---->

For my first card, I wanted to do a Subway Art inspired card.  Here is what I came up with:

To create the main design, I used a piece of pure luxury white cardstock and then lightly added some lines across to help me keep the design straight. (Even though they are clear stamps, when you are stamping lots of different sentiments and images you can mess up the design if one is even just a little off kilter.) NOTE: the Wish sentiment is part of the "Wishes" stamp in the set, I just inked the front part of the word for this card.

To help keep the sentiments perfectly straight, I lie down the sentiment on scrap paper as I want it to stamp and then...

I place my clear block right on top of the stamp.  This puts it on the block perfectly straight.  If you place larger sentiments on the block by hand, they can move a little and you will notice the image being a little off when you stamp. (Disregard the unclean block and stamp :)

Next, I used the Stamp it Big cut file for the large speech bubble and small hearts.  I embossed the thanks sentiment on the speech bubble and popped it up on the card.  I stamped the little dog from You Say Goodbye and I Say Ello! (by Becky Oehlers) on the bottom :

 And, finally...another thanks card:

For this card, I stamped the black lines along the bottom using the striped block from the Stamp it BIG set.  I added a strip of washi tape (that I received for Christmas from a dear friend--Thanks Michelle!) on top of it.  I stamped the thanks sentiment in  Memento tuxedo black ink and then underneath, I stamped the large flower from the set.  Using another piece of white cardstock, I stamped the polka-dotted block stamp from the set twice and the small flower once.  I used a small circle punch to punch the circles from the stamped designs and covered them with old brad covers I had from Stampin' Up!  They look really shiny  IRL!

Here is a close up of the brads:

That is all for today!  I hope you liked the projects today and the video Gina shared.  I so appreciate all the sweet comments you all have posted the past few weeks.  So, I would love to gift a Stamp it BIG set to one of you today. So...just leave me a comment below by Sunday, February 10 at 8 a.m. EST time.  Random.Cara will pick a winner (and if you already purchased the set---you will be able to pick a different set from Gina K Designs!)  The winner will have three days to contact me after I post before I select a new winner.

Thanks so much for stopping by!

Valentine Friend

Hi there!   I was just playing around with my new stamp set, Stamp it Big, and had a few of the pieced from the Stamp it Big Silhouette cut file sitting on my desk.  Some were stamped and some weren't and I thought they looked pretty cool just piled up.  So I ran with that and created this:

I used these Silhouette cut pieces from the Stamp It Big cut file (smaller flower, hearts, larger flower, star) and strung the elements along the twine, popping some up for added interest.  I used the same elements in the stamp set and stamped on the pieces using these Gina K Designs inks:  Ocean Mist, Red Hot.   I used a die cut heart and stamped the checkerboard pattern block on the inside of it.  I stamped the large "Friend" sentiment on the bottom. 

I added a strip of Black Sticker stitches (SRM Stickers) along the top of the card to finish it up!

Easy, quick and fun! Thanks for stopping by!

More Stamp It Big Inspiration

Hello! Happy Friday!  I have two more cards to share today using my new stamp set Stamp It Big (Gina K Designs).  

For the first card, I used the coordinating Stamp It Big Silhouette Cut file to cut the outline for the word "Friends" and then I stamped the word inside.  I stamped the stripes along the bottom lining up the striped block.  I cut a scalloped border from the silhouette file to add under the orange paper and stamped "forever" onto it.  I stamped the flowers along the top of the sentiment and added some hand stitching (drawn lines using a marker) between the flowers.  I finished it off with some Mandarin twine from The Twinery.

The next card is a CAS card using Stamp it Big.  I punched the hearts using a heart punch and then stamped the square patterns on to them in Lady Bug and Bahama Blue ink.  I tied some Caribbean baker's twine and added it to the card and then added the hearts and some Ocean Mist buttons (new to the Gina K Store).  The final touch was stamping the sentiment along the bottom and adding a black accent.

That is it!  Hope you are being inspired with different ways to use this set!  I am having lots of fun sharing my ideas!  I would love to see yours---if you bought this set and have a card you would like to share, please email me :)

Thanks for stopping by!

Gina K Inspiration Hop Day 3!

Welcome to the Gina K Designs fabulous Inspiration Blog Hop! We hope to inspire you to create with the new Gina K Releases! And, as you hop through the blogs, make sure to leave a comment on each of them because we will choose  a few random comments and those stampers will each win a grab bag of Gina K. Designs products! To see the full list of winners check the Big News forum at Stamp TV a few days after the hops.
Today we are sharing projects using Sweet Treats (One Free with 3! set) and Darling Divas Mini Sets. All of these sets can now be purchased in the What's New section of the Gina K Designs store!

First, my card using Scooter Diva!  I paired this set with Stamp It Big stamp set to create this:

 I used the Scooter Diva Silhouette Cut file and Stamp It Big Silhouette Cut file on this as well!

Next, I combined the sentiment from Stamp It Big with the image from Sweet Treats to create a simple-to-mass produce thank you note that would be great for kids (big or small!):

That's it for me today!
Head on over to these blogs to see more ideas using these sets:

• Gina K
• Debbie Corbari - Illustrator Darling Diva's Mini Sets
• AJ Otto
• Becky Oehlers
• Beth Silaika
• Carolina Buchting
• Carolyn King
• Cathy Tidwell
• Latisha Yoast
• Laurie Schmidlin
• Lee Murphy
• Melanie Muenchinger
• Michelle Woerner
• Sean Fetterman
• Sharon Harnist
• Tami Mayberry
• Theresa Momber
• Valerie Stangle

Thanks for stopping by!

Gina K Inspiration Hop Day 2!

Welcome to the Gina K Designs fabulous Inspiration Blog Hop! We hope to inspire you to create with the new Gina K Releases! And, as you hop through the blogs, make sure to leave a comment on each of them because we will choose  a few random comments and those stampers will each win a grab bag of Gina K. Designs products! To see the full list of winners check the Big News forum at Stamp TV a few days after the hops.
Today we are sharing projects using Birds and Blossoms, Spoon Me and Simple Hearts!  All of these sets can now be purchased in the What's New section of the Gina K Designs store!

First up---a card with Birds and Blossoms.  This card was easy to make by making and stamping the elegant images in Versamark--I white embossed the scene. I paired it with a large sentiment from Stamp It Big.  This card also uses a button from the new Gina K Color Companions Collection:

Next, a card using Spoon Me and the coordinating Spoon Me Silhouette Cut file.  I also used a sentiment from Stamp It Big on this along with the Stamp It Big Silhouette Cut file:

Next, Simple Hearts.  I used the speech bubble from the Stamp It Big Silhouette file for this. All stamps are from Simple Hearts:

 That is it from me today!

 Please visit these blogs for more inspiring ideas:

• Gina K
• Theresa Momber - Illustrator Birds and Blossoms
• Becky Oehlers - Illustrator Spoon Me
• Tami Mayberry - Illustrator Simple Hearts
• AJ Otto
• Beth Silaika
• Carolina Buchting
• Carolyn King
• Cathy Tidwell
• Debbie Corbari
• Latisha Yoast
• Laurie Schmidlin
• Lee Murphy
• Melanie Muenchinger
• Michelle Woerner
• Sean Fetterman
• Sharon Harnist
• Valerie Stangle

Thanks for stopping by!

Gina K Inspiration Blog Hop Day 1

Welcome to the Gina K Designs fabulous Inspiration Blog Hop! We hope to inspire you to create with the new Gina K Releases! And, as you hop through the blogs, make sure to leave a comment on each of them because we will choose  a few random comments and those stampers will each win a grab bag of Gina K. Designs products! To see the full list of winners check the Big News forum at Stamp TV a few days after the hops.
Today we are sharing projects using Stately Flowers 6, Lovely Ladybug, and Stamp It Big! All of these sets can now be purchased in the What's New section of the Gina K Designs store!

Here are my samples with these sets:
First, a card with Stamp It Big and the Coordinating Stamp it Big Silhouette Cut File:

 and one without the Silhouette file. This card also uses some of the new ribbon:

Finally, a simple elegant card using Stamp it Big:

Be sure to check out the posts below for more ways to use this set!

Next, a card using Stately Flowers 6 paired with a sentiment from Stamp it Big:

Finally, a card using Lovely Ladybug! I used the set in a different way for this one--used the pattern as a phone dial (because that is what it resembled to me!)  The sentiment is from Lovely Ladybug and the large one is from Stamp It Big!

 And a bookmark pairing Lovely Ladybug and the large "Smile" sentiment from Stamp it Big:

That is it from me today!
Check out all the amazing designs and inspiration on these blogs:

• Gina K
• Melanie Muenchinger – Illustrator Stately Flowers 6
• Beth Silaika - Illustrator Lovely Ladybug
• Carolyn King - Illustrator Stamp It Big
• AJ Otto
• Becky Oehlers
• Carolina Buchting
• Cathy Tidwell
• Debbie Corbari
• Latisha Yoast
• Laurie Schmidlin
• Lee Murphy
• Michelle Woerner
• Sean Fetterman
• Sharon Harnist
• Theresa Momber
• Tami Mayberry
• Valerie Stangle 

Thanks for stopping by!

Stamp it Big--Available now!

If you made it to the Gina K Designs Release party, you know what an incredible (and fast-paced!) night it was---
Gina introduced her new Color Companion line and all the stamp sets and new products were unveiled and are now available to purchase.  You can check them all out HERE in the store!

 This is my new set using some of the NEW INKS available at Gina K!
 Here is my new set, Stamp It Big:

And the coordinating Stamp It Big Silhouette Cut file that you can purchase if you own a Silhouette machine to enhance the set can be found HERE!

Finally, here are some tips on using the set (I am sure you will think of even more ways to use the combination of large words and fun elements together!)

Stamp It Big Tip Sheet

-This set features lots of larger sentiments and some smaller add-ons that form these sentiments and more:

Thanks

Thanks so much

Thanks friend (this is made by making a cut in the Friends stamp. By slicing off the “s” you can use that stamp to make the word “Friend” or piece it together to spell “Friends”

Birthday Thanks

Smile

You make me Smile

Smile   I love you

Smile Friend

Wishes

Holiday Wishes

Best Wishes

Birthday Wishes

Friends

Friends forever

Best Friends

I love you

love you

love

I love you so much

I love you Friend

I love you forever

I love you Best

You make me {heart}

{heart} forever

Birthday {heart}

-The sentiments will also go nicely with sentiments from other Gina K sets that you can mix and match fonts to get a fun look.

-Replace the ‘i’  in the larger sentiment with the heart , star or flower designs.

-Stamp the larger sentiment in multiple colors by inking each letter with a water-based marker, huffing on the stamp and then stamping on paper.

-Emboss the large sentiments in white on darker colors for a bold statement.

-Stamp a large sentiments in a row with bright colors for a fun/easy note card.

-Make mini flags by stamping the pattern blocks on card stock and then adhering them to a toothpick.

-Create fun grid designs using a variety of the patterns blocks and shapes.

-Stamp the scallop stamp repeatedly on the card in different colors, add sentiment along bottom of card.

-The cube patterns work well by themselves and joined together to form rows or entire backgrounds.

-Punch shapes and stamp the pattern on.  (For example, have a small heart punch?  Turn it into a checkerboard heart by stamping the design on the punched shape.)

-Use the patterns to stamp kiss the larger sentiments to add interesting textures to your words.

-Punch a shape (or use one from the Silhouette file) and stamp pattern over it to create a negative pattern on the card.

-Cut squares to stamp patterns on (or use one from the coordinating Silhouette file). Adhere squares to the card and pop up some of the patterned squares using foam tape.

Silhouette file + Stamp it Big Set

-There is a coordinating Silhouette file available through Gina K Designs that contain outlines for the larger words and for all the shapes.   Used together, there are endless possibilities for different combinations for the words and designs.  Don’t have a Silhouette?  Not a problem---the set works well on its own and/or with punches you may already own (See above!).

-The file also contains a large speech bubble and thought bubble that you can pair with the sentiments.

-The smaller shapes have cuts to be used as a mat that you stamp onto OR cut the shape that is the exact size as the stamp and stamp the pattern design on it.

Here are a few more cards that I shared using Stamp It Big during the release party on StampTV last night:
First, I stamped the larger heart in several colors repeatedly on this and then added the smaller heart stamped by the small sentiment:

Next, I used lots of the elements in the set to create this fun graphic card:

Finally, I made an easy thank you by repeating the large "Thanks" sentiment and adding the tiny flower design:

Be sure to check out all the other samples using this set from previous posts this week.  Also, join us for the design team blog hops Monday-Wednesday of next week to see all the new card stock, ribbon, inks, and stamps in action!

Thanks for stopping by!

Gina K Illustrator Hop and Release Party Invite!

Hello and Good Morning! Today the Gina K Designs Illustrating team is inviting you to our Release Party, which will be held tonight from 7-9 p.m. Central time on StampTV! Hope to see you there!

Today, we are hopping and each illustrator is giving you another view of her new set.  So....here are a few more peeks at my new set- Stamp It Big, which will be available tonight after the release party at Gina K Designs!  There will also be a coordinating Stamp It Big Silhouette file available for purchase that I think you are gonna love:)
For my samples today---I created two cards using the coordinating Stamp It Big Silhouette file and two cards without it! This set also works so well with all of your other stamp sets and I will be showing you lots more samples pairing it with the new Gina K stamps next week on the blog hops!

First up: Here is a card I created for the StampTV Mix It Up Monday Challenge using Stamp It Big.  I stamped the sentiment in two colors--black and grey and then added a half flower stamped along the right side of the main panel- Sometimes all you need is a BIG sentiment :)

Here is a whimsical card using Stamp it Big stamp set along with the coordinating Stamp It Big Silhouette file (which includes the heart and the speech bubble plus tons of other fun elements!)  I used Memento tuxedo black ink and Lady Bug ink on this card.  To create the distressed look on the "Smile" sentiment, I inked up the stamp and then pressed the un-inked checkerboard pattern cube over it to remove a few areas of ink-

Next:  I used the Stamp It Big stamp set to create a cute birthday card,  I repeatedly stamped the birthday greeting along the top and bottom of the card and then used the coordinating Stamp It Big Studio file to cut out the large word "Wishes" before stamping the word sentiment inside with  Love Letter ink and adding it to the card.  I cut out the star from the Silhouette file and then stamped the star from the set inside before adding some rhinestones.  I added the little scalloped borders from the Silhouette file along the top and under the sentiment panel-

And, finally, I have another graphic card to show you using Stamp It Big.  I created the main panel by stamping the patterned blocks in the set in Memento black ink and then stamping the heart in Lady Bug in the last corner.  I popped up the panel over the stamped lines (made by lining up the striped block in the set!) in Bahama Blue ink.  The button is from the new button collection (Singing the Blues) from Gina K Designs that will be available tonight!!  Finally, I added the "I love you" sentiment from the set:

To see another graphic sample using Stamp it Big, you can check out my POST from Sunday!

Well, that is it for me today!

Time to head over to the rest of the illustrator's blogs for inspiration using their AWESOME new sets:

Gina K

Becky

Beth

Debbie

Melanie

Tami

Theresa

I cannot wait for the full reveal of all the new sets and products, including then new Color Companions line of Buttons, Ribbons, Card Stock and Ink Pads! (Small peek of the Cherry Red Collection below!) , which will happen at the release party tonight (January 10)  at 7 p.m. Central time in the Stamp TV Release Party Forum.   Join us for Challenges, Contest Questions, Design Team Samples, Full Stamp Set Reveals and, of course, party chit chat!!! 

All new products will be loaded to the store in the What's New section at that time.  Tomorrow morning, I will have a post up that will include a tip sheet on lots of ways you can use my new set.  And, next week---look for the design team's inspiration hops Monday-Wednesday, which will show you lots of fabulous ways to use all of the new release stamps.  I will be showing you how well Stamp It Big works with each one!

Thanks so much for stopping by!  SEE you at the release party tonight!

GKD Sneak Peek - Stamp it Big

Hi there! I am super totally extremely excited today because Gina is sharing two more sneak peeks of the new January release stamp sets on HER BLOG.  Today's peeks are of my new set, Stamp It Big, and Melanie Muenchinger's new set, Stately Flowers 6.  I love that I am peeking with my friend Melanie because she helped me so much with this set. It has been awhile since I released a set (before clear was available and before Gina has been cutting her own rubber).  Melanie held my hand while I was learning to navigate the software and offered tons of wonderful advice for the set.  Thanks sweet friend. xo

My card today features Stamp It Big.  To see a sample of Stately Flowers 6, check out Melanie's blog.  These sets also work very well together and I will be showing a sample of them together soon!

I am so excited to add this stamp set to my collection of Gina K stamps.  I have been wanting larger sentiments because I thought that was one thing that we don't have enough of... but I also wanted to create a stamp set that had MORE to offer.  Stamp It Big is a set that will work well with every other stamp set you own AND on it's own.  There are several large focal words and smaller accent words/phrases that combine to form tons of card sentiments. The patterns and icons make perfect backgrounds, focal images, and can be used to "Stamp Kiss" the larger words.  There is even a scalloped border stamp :)
And, there is a coordinating Silhouette file that will be available through Gina K Designs that contains outlines for the larger words and all of the smaller shapes as well as a large speech bubble and a thought bubble to add tons more options for using this set.  Don't have a Silhouette?  Not a problem--the set words well on its own and with punches you may already own.

For my peek--I used the set without using the Silhouette file:

I stamped the large "Friend" on the Pure luxury white cardstock using Memento Bahama Blue ink.   (Note: The sentiment that comes in the set actually says "Friends"...and this is to make the set more versatile.  With one or two small cuts, the "s" is easily removed to stamp the word "Friend" and then replaced to make "Friends".  You can also simply not ink the "s" but I prefer the previous method to ensure that no residual ink remains on the stamp and could end up on the card.)  I punched some small hearts with an old SU! punch I had lying around and then stamped checkerboard pattern on them using Memento tuxedo black ink before adding them to the card.  I popped up one to give it some dimension.

I used the stripe pattern block and stamped it repeatedly (totally simple to line up with clear stamps!) along the bottom of the card to create that border and then added some of the new Cherry gingham ribbon (available at Gina K Designs on Thursday night!) and a button from Tickled Pink Assortment of Buttons (also part of the new release!)


This graphic card was simple to make and the possibilities are endless for the combinations of patterns and sentiments.  You will see lots more ideas in the coming weeks.  LOTS!

All of the new stamps being peeked this week will become available in the What's New section of Gina K Designs on Thursday evening and there will be more sets peeked tomorrow on Gina's blog.  Please join us for an illustrators hop on Thursday morning at 8 am CST (9 am EST) to see all the new sets in action and then for the Release Party on Stamp TV on Thursday night from 7-9 pm CST (8-10 pm EST).

Hope you like my new set!  Thanks for stopping by!