Don't Lose A Finger with Typed Note

Are you ready for another FANTASTIC Friday visit from the FABULOUS Becca Whitham?  I am!  You will be too, when you see the super tips and tricks she has to share today using the April 2015 Stamp of the Month, Typed Note, from Close to My Heart.  :)

Some things are worth the wait...like the April Stamp of the Month from CTMH.  Every since I got my catalog in August, I've been drooling over this stamp set.  Love, LoVe, LOVE it!!

I went really basic with my card.  The image has so much interest in it that it doesn't require much help.  I don't normally do much with the inside of my cards, but I had a little bit of fun with this one.

Here's the supply list (with links for you shopping convenience):

Stamps: Typed Note
Ink: Black (dye), White Daisy (pigment)
Paper: Seaside, Black cardstock, White Daisy cardstock
Accessories: Gold Sequins, Black Arrow Washi tape, Liquid Glass, Chalk Marker, Journaling Pen
ShinHan Markers: Colorless Blender, WG4 Warm Grey
Tools: Micro-tip Scissors
Non-CTMH: X-acto knife

For the paper coming out of the typewriter, I did a few things to add interest.  One of the great things about clear stamps is you aren't always stuck with the image as shown.  CTMH very kindly left a hole in the stamp where the paper is.  This allowed me to bend it into a more interesting shape.  It doesn't hurt the stamp; the image will correct back to it's normal shape as soon as you take it off the acrylic block.  Here's a close up so you can see it a little better.

One of the things you have to watch out for when you bend a stamp is that parts of it can come off the acrylic block and get ink on it.  My original intent wasn't to do two sheets of paper, but I ended up with a blob of black ink on the right-hand side of my bottom paper sheet.  Working on the premise that almost all mistakes are fixable, I stamped the second piece of paper on a scratch piece of white cardstock, cut it out, used and X-acto knife to cut a slit, and shoved the second piece of paper through. It was a tight fit which caused the top sheet to warp.  I put a dot of Liquid Glass over my mess, pressed the corner of the top sheet into it until it held, and Voila!  I really, really like how it ended up adding interest and dimension.

If you look carefully, you can see where I shaded around the typewriter and paper with the ShinHan marker.  I forget where I learned this trick, but adding that "halo" of shading around an image gives it great "pop".  The warm grey marker is too intense on it's own, so I scribbled it onto an acrylic block and then picked it up with the colorless blender for that nice, soft shade.

One word of caution...  Since I used pigment ink on the hand image, I cleaned it by scrubbing it against a pad with little bristles.  It's not the CTMH one, but it is made specifically for stamping.  The tip of the finger broke off.  **Sad Face**  Thank goodness CTMH has such a great return policy!

I can't wait to scrapbook with this set.  I've been holding off doing the pages for signing my book deal waiting to get this set in my inky fingers. Yay!!

Until next time,
Becca --

Thank you so much, Becca!!!  Make sure you guys go leave her some blog love!  :)

She is totally right about Close to My Heart--our return policy is pretty fantastic, and your consultant can help you to always be 100% happy with your purchases if something isn't quite right.  Always inspect your stamps and other products within the first 90 days so you can get any items replaced or exchanged, should they need to be--just like the situation with which I will be assisting Becca!  Our Acrylic stamps are pretty sturdy for the most part, but occasionally the unexpected can happen, and we are no exception. 

Now, if you like that stamp set as much as I do, you want to get it in April because it is only around for one month!  Take a peek at it on my website below...