A Tip for You

Hi Everybody.

It has been so long since I posted last.  I am so tired of renovating and packing and moving.  But the end is in sight.  Only have the kitchen floor to finish and that will be done this week.  The big stuff will go on the weekend and then I will be in my little house.

Most of my crafting stuff is already moved, but I wanted to do something creative so I thought I would print out some pics of my beautiful new granddaughter to pop inside a clear Christmas ball and make a "Baby's first Christmas" ornament.  Well, guess what.  The picture I printed turned out horrible.  There was no yellow ink left in the cartridge.  I was not sure if it had dried up or was empty.  So I checked the cartridge by setting it on a moist paper towel for a few minutes.  Yep, it was empty.  No yellow at all.

So here is my tip for you...

If you have a tricolor ink cartridge and one of the colors is used up, you can still get use out of the cartridge.

I have a lot of background images saved on my computer.  I went to the background file and found images that were pink or blue and printed them out on light weight, white cs.

Here is a pic of some of the papers that I printed. 

This cost me next to nothing because I have an endless supply of cardstock that I bought a few years ago when the store that I worked for went out of the printing business.  Worked out to less than 1 cent  per sheet.  And I used up the ink that was otherwise useless.  

Even if you had to buy cs at reg prices, you can get a ream of lightweight cs at Walmart or Staples very reasonably.  Or you could use 24lb or 28lb text paper and still get the same results.

I got about 40 sheets of background paper out of the ink that was left in the cartridge.

The pic just shows some of the papers.  I did duplicates of the ones I really liked.  My favorite is the denim and that was hidden in the pic.  I have the retired Stampin Up pocket and use the denim paper for that all the time.

 I just kept printing paper until the image came out grey.  So, now my cartridge is completely empty and I did not waste any of the ink.

BTW

Here is one of the pics that I wanted to print.  Isn't she adorable?

That is about it for today.  Once I have moved I hope to have time to post regularly.  I have so many cards that I have made and super tips for all of you.

Happy Day to you all. 

Theresa in Kitimat

CST challenge, tip tuesday

This is a card I made for a challenge at Canadian Stamp Talk.  This week's challenge is to make a sympathy card.  Unfortunately, we all need them from time to time and it is always best to have some on hand.

This card is a standard 4 1/4 X 5 1/2.  The base is a light blue by Stampin up.  Not sure which one.  The next layer is cream cs that I sponged the edges with black. I stamped the sentiment (Stampin Up, Brighter tomorrow) on this layer in black.  Now for the TIP.  Always, always, stamp your sentiment before you assemble your card.  Nothing is worse than getting your card together and then stamping the sentiment, only to find out it is crooked.  Ask me, I know.

 To make the image focal point, I stamped the image (retired Stampin Up- Measure of a Life) on vellum with versamark and embossed with black opal embossing powder.  I colored the wings with pearl-ex on the front and the body with purple marker on the back.  I cut this out, leaving a 1 inch border.  I cut a piece of heavy cs just larger than the image.  I layered the cs with a thin piece of foam rubber, and then yellow tissue paper, wrapping the edges around the back and securing with tape.  I then layered the vellum over this, clipped the corners and taped the overlap to the back.  I do not think it shows up in the picture, but this focal point has a raised, puffy feel to it.  I then added the ribbon, assembled everything, and I was done.

I hope you like the card I made today.  I know, I do.

Hope you are all having a great Tuesday.

Theresa in Kitimat

Baby announcements and a little tip

Hi Everybody,

Here is the first baby announcement I have made.  It is very simple, just coloring and layering.  I will try a few different layouts.  Probably do some sponging and try different color base and background paper.  For this card, I used 28 lb bond paper and made an old fashioned 4-fold card.  All the info is on the inside.  I used the digi that Nikki at MelonHeadz made for me.  Don't you love it?  I printed the words with my computer.

I thought I would add a little tip on how I aligne my brads and gems.  I use magic mesh (or in my case, drywall tape).  The square grid makes it so easy to place your bling exactly where you want it.  I have made this little pic so you can see how I line up the edge of the paper with the grid and then use the spaces to place the bling.  I just used paper punces here to show you what I mean.  The mesh has a slight tack so stays in place until all your gems are placed and secure.  Then you can easily remove the mesh.  Love this stuff.  I hope this tip will be helpful to someone.  Any questions, just email me.

That is about it for today.  Hope your Sunday is going well.

Bye for now and take care.

Theresa in Kitimat