Season's Greetings

From all of us here at Frog's Whiskers Ink

to all of you,

we wish you a very Merry Christmas

and

a 2011 filled with good things.

Survey Ended

Thank you to everyone who took the time to respond to the poll. The results showed what I expected but the decision to develop the idea further will be made early in 2011.




A slight change of pace from holiday cards, but this could be easily be made into one by changing the sentiment. The Rosewood Bittersweet Wreath is stamped twice and embossed with copper. Red stickles were added to highlight the berries. Rosewood Happy Birthday (this one is #F160) is stamped and embossed with gold. The stamped piece has the bottom edge torn and layered onto olive cardstock that has been torn to loosely replicate the edge on the stamped piece. The base card is stamped with Rosewood Leaf Detailed and embossed in copper.

I struggle with ribbon. Yes I admit it. I love the look but usually get so frustrated because it never looks the way I envision it in my mind. I saw this card on another blog and thought wow, I can do this with what I have. The stamp is Rosewood Winter Cardinal stamped in Memento and coloured with Copics. The mint green cardstock went through a Sizzix folder. I distressed the stamped image with Scattered Straw and Vintage Photo. (side note: I have discovered that I prefer the foam pads to the felt pads for distressing and although the make-up sponges are readily available and inexpensive, they don't work as well as I would like.) I used Nestibility Label 8 to cut the the image and the layering mat. A piece of ribbon and I am done.

I screwed up cutting the stamped image on the next card but it still works. I did discover that I had to shift the stamped image to the edge of the card instead of the embossed layering mat. I'm not thrilled with the bow on this card but still pretty. One slight difference with this card. I used Core'dinations paper for the embossed layer. After running the paper through the Sizzix folder I used an emery board to scrub off some of the top layer of paper. So pretty.

Canadian Scrapbook Magazine

As I told you earlier we have been featured in the Winter 2010/11 issue. The magazines are now in stock, ready for you to enjoy. There are some excellent card ideas in this issue as well as the regular articles on scrapbooking.

A Picture at Last

I am finally getting around to posting pictures of the cards we made using the stamp I purchased from Whipper Snapper Designs. The image is called Prescott, which we stamped and coloured using Copics and Bic Mark-Its. I wrote a bit about how this cards were created a few days ago. As you can see we have enjoyed the possibilities of this stamp. I have been playing with a different design, still using Prescott as the central image. Yes, I am one of those people who will make cards Christmas eve.

Question?

Technology is everywhere it seems. Our website is still a work in progress. We have been promised a complete overhaul for 2011 but life has been getting in the way of our webmistress. We are still hopeful that the new layout will happen, with over 750 Rosewood images in production the current format of the website is becoming a problem for our customers. We procrastinated on this blog for quite awhile but it has been relatively easy to run. I still have much to learn but it has been good.



Now my question, Rose-Marie has been tossing around the idea of a Facebook page for Frog's Whiskers Ink. It seems to be the next "great" thing for a business to do. It would be a great way for people to talk to each other, share their work and chat with one of our staff. What do you think? Would this be something you would use? Would you become a follower of Frog's Whiskers Ink on Facebook? Please take a minute and submit your vote on the poll.

Pre-Christmas Sale

We are having a sale on all in stock Cuttlebug, Sizzix, and Crafts-To-You embossing folders. All Tim Holtz dies and embossing folders and all Nestibilities dies are on sale.

On purchase #1 you will receive 10% off
On purchase #2 you will receive 25% off
On purchase #3 you will receive 35% off
You get the idea. Stock up and save.

This sale is effective immediately and runs until Monday, Dec. 20 at closing and applies to IN STOCK ITEMS ONLY. Most of our dies and embossing folders are shown on our website but there are a few that haven't been uploaded yet. Please ask if there is a particular item you are wishing to add to your stash of supplies. All discounts will be applied prior to shipping. If you require confirmation of your total purchase please add a note in the comments field indicate your request.

Card Making Frenzy

Although we didn't get the snow parts of Ontario did, I spent Sunday making cards with the girls. Although I have tried very hard to use what I have this year (and believe me I have good stuff), I couldn't resist purchasing one stamp. He is called Prescott from a company called Whipper Snapper Designs and boy has he been loved. I do have to admit, the girls did most of the colouring on these images. We used either Copics or Bic Mark-its and added a bit of glitter glue. The blue background was run through a Sizzix folder and the snowy hills were created by ripping paper and adding more glitter glue. The sentiment is Rosewood Merry Christmas (this one is D94 an oldie but a goodie). I will get a photo of the cards we made and add it later. The girls were so much help and we got a lot of cards done. Finally a Christmas season that I shouldn't be making cards at the last minute.

Suddenly it's Winter

I am one of those shunned people who absolutely love the seasons we are blessed with here in Canada. I embrace winter along with all the other seasons we are blessed with in Canada and I have got to tell you I am thrilled that it has started snowing. As I sit here and write up this post, there a snowflakes falling gently from the sky. A perfect day to go get our Christmas tree. My Mom & I have gone to cut a tree for Christmas since I got married 20 years ago. Yes I know not the most economic or environmentally friendly thing to do but the girls look forward to the outing every year. Last year my brother's family came with us and my sister wants to bring her family sometime. These are the memories of tomorrow and I for one am glad that my teenage daughters still want to go with us to carry on this tradition. Sure, there will come a time when I find a suitable artificial tree but for now I am looking forward to our visit to the tree farm.

Holiday Hours

The store will be open Sundays until the end of December.

12:00 p.m. - 4:00 p.m.

You still have time to create one of a kind cards. Drop by and visit for supplies or inspiration.

This is an example of blissfully quick and easy card, using just the wave stamp set, Snowy Wave. Just align on your block; ink with appropriate colours, some colour if desired and a bit of sparkle. Layer the stamped image onto blue card stock and apply to a red base card. Quick and easy your cards are done.

We've Been Published!

Have you read it yet? Canadian Scrapbooker magazine has featured Frog's Whiskers Ink and Rosewood stamps in their Winter 2010/11 magazine. It captures perfectly what we are all about. And even better, the incredibly talented Cathie Allan has an article demonstrating the versatility of Rosewood Poinsettia Swirl, shown not only in the magazine but online as well. Canadian Scrapbooker magazine is primarily a scrapbooking magazine but this issue has a lot of card projects and decorations made easily with gorgeous paper and a bit of adhesive. Pick up your magazine the next time you visit your local paper supply store.

Clear stamping

I like clear stamps. I like that they are a relatively inexpensive way to purchase a lot of images. I don't like that often they don't stamp well. Below are some images from an Inkadinkadoo set I purchased last week. On the left you can see that the image was "spotty", very frustrating!!! Then I remembered a tip I came across somewhere in my travels across the worldwide web. I took an emery board (with 3 teenage daughters there are a few around!) and gently rubbed the image. As you can see from the image on the right the quality of the stamped image was improved greatly. I coloured the image on the right with my lovely copics, a quick hit of colour that I intend to enamel and do something with....

Nikki's Christmas Cards

Nikki did a bit of stamping and colouring at our last play day. She borrowed this adorable Penny Black snowman from Donna and coloured them from my limited (sigh!) stash of Copics. I had time this weekend to help her finish them. I cut the snowman using a Nestibility circle and the a scalloped circle to make the mat. Nikki thought they looked a little plain so we passed the scalloped circle through the Sizzix polka dots folder. I don't like naked backgrounds so we stamped Gel-a-Tins snowflakes on two cards and an old Posh Impressions stamp on the other two.

Wow it is only November and we actually have cards done. I hear some people actually make their cards in July. Nope not me, if I have them done 2 weeks before Christmas, I consider it a personal triumph. Maybe some day I will get my stuff together and have them all done in November but for now at least I have started. Besides I would miss out buying all of the gorgeous new holiday season stamps and that would be a shame.

Yellow Roses

Donna was asked to make a set of cards for a lady that volunteers at the local community centre. She wanted thank you and birthday cards to give to her sorority sisters. If I understood correctly the sorority was represented by a yellow rose. Donna isn't a big fan of custom orders but created four cards that should fit the bill. The Rosewood Rose Spray was stamped and water coloured with markers. She added a bit of glitter and punched a decorative border on the bottom edge of the stamped image. The green layering mat was passed through the CB swirls folder and it was all layered onto a white base. I'm not sure who the "thank you" stamp is from but I think Donna did a great job.

Barb's Sept Challenge

As I posted here Barb forgot to bring her cards to our last play day. So in an effort to get caught up, here is the card she created for our September challenge. Barb used the Rosewood Framed Sunflower cut it into the 6 sections, layered onto black cardstock and then popped the squares onto another brown mat. She used a gorgeous punch to create the decorative edge and then added some dollar store paper flowers & ribbon to finish this stunnig card. Such a pretty colour combination.

The Daily Puppy

I know a blog is a personal thing but it also for your enjoyment. I like to change the layout of the blog occasionally. I think I have a bit of ADD and get bored with the same old thing but is this something you like or should I just create something and leave it? I have added a gadget called the Daily Puppy. (Who doesn't love puppies?) Please let me know if you like it or not. Enjoy the puppies, I know I will.

Tom & Rose-Marie are dog sitting for their son for a bit. Charlie is a Cavalier King Charles Spaniel and since Charlie is still just a pup he will be in the store while he is staying with Tom & Rose-Marie. Be sure to ask about him, I am told he is a cute little guy. I will get a photo of him to share with you.

Pretty Paper Party

Not sure why this is such a bad photo. These were taken one after the other, I guess I must have jiggled,sorry :}

These are a couple of samples of the bags that you could make from the Pretty Paper Party pack. Although the 1st photo is blurry I think you can still make out the intent. Rose-Marie gave me a quick once over on these two projects and the boring grey paper was the first sheet she grabbed. A couple of stamps and some bling would make this a very pretty bag. Instruction for these bags will be primarly made with 12x12 paper but they could easily be reduced to make some really cute ornaments for your tree. Just to refresh your memory, this is not a class nor is it a cardmaking or scrapbooking demonstration. Pretty Paper Party pacs will contain instructions for a few (I have 5 in mind but since I didn't write that down don't hold me to that number!) different bags or boxes. Each pac may not have identical papers in it and the pac will contain embellishments(stickers, diecuts, bling, etc) to dress up your bags. Rose-Marie will be giving a basic folding demonstration, all for the great low price of $5 per pac.

Remember November 20 for the Pretty Paper party.

Quirky website

My job for yesterday at the store was to post a new project on the Frog's Whiskers Ink website. I wrote it all up (no problem), jumped on the website (no problem), transferred the infomation (still no problem) and uploaded a picture to reference (problem). I don't know exactly why it wouldn't upload (I am not a techie and the syntax error reads in a foreign language!) but I just couldn't get the picture to upload. Thank goodness Blogger is co-operating, I'm not sure I could take much more rejection from my technology. Below is the card sample and if you look here you will find the directions for assembly. This a stunning card but is oh so easy to complete.

Card Class

Nikki & I along with Donna & Lauralee took a class at another local store. The class was advertised as a Tim Holtz inspired scrapbook page. We admittedly are not scrapbookers but took the class to learn more about the Tim Holtz products this class was offering. Not only did we get the chance to play with Tim Holtz products but Tattered Angels stuff as well. These products although produced by different companies co-ordinate so well.

This first card was made by Nikki. She used a Tattered Angel stamp to produce the mariner's compass, then she used a co-ordinating stencil and Glimmer Mist to highlight the stamp. Our instructor provided the Eiffel tower stamp and I can't remember the company it came from. Nikki used the glimmer mist to colour her flowers which she attached with brads. A few gems around the compass complete the card.

This is the card I created using many of the same products and techniques. I added the Tim Holtz birdcage, a Nestibility Large Label and an unknown sentiment. (I really should make better notes.)

Nikki's second card made full use of the embellishments we were given. All layered over an office supply store tag that she had stamped, sprayed and distressed.

My second cards also features the same tag. As you may have notice I really liked the Tattered Angel music background stamp. A simple card but in reality it took a fair bit of time to complete.

I really enjoyed the time to try these products. I learned a lot, especially about adding colour to my projects. Is this something I would do often? Probably not. The scrapbook page our instructor had made as a reference was beautiful but for my taste very busy when you consider all of the elements we used on our 2 cards were used on one 12x12 scrapbook page.

Oops

I thought I was doing a good thing yesterday by promoting the upcoming Women's Weekend. Unfortunately Tom & Rose-Marie had gone out of the store for a bit and I didn't ask for details before I posted. The "passports" are all sold out. Rose-Marie did tell me that if anyone arrives at the store either Saturday or Sunday, she will do the demo for you. You just won't get the full benefit of the coupons/discounts offered in the passport. Sorry about that :) The organizers are hopeful this will become an annual event and I will promise right now to post a notice when the event is first announced.

Women's Weekend in Campbellford

The men are at hunt camp and have left the women home alone again. Well not all men have gone but sometimes women just need a good excuse to go shopping. Or in this case, visit and be treated to in-store specials all over town. Here is the official blurb from the organizers with the contact information.

100 gift packages full coupons are available for $5 to let you explore what downtown Campbellford has to offer in a special way. Take advantage of the first annual Women's Weekend for coupons that allow you to see a demonstration, enter an in-store draw, redeem a free gift, sample or service, receive special pricing on items and more. Coupons can only be used this weekend.

Where: Campbellford, Ontario

Contact Name: Nancy McCarten or Caroline Glenn

Event Phone: 705-632-0732 or 705-632-0007

Campbellford is a beautiful town. The Women's weekend is a great opportunity to get your Christmas shopping started in our great shops.

Sept Cards - Continued

Cassie used a photograph she took at Algonquin last year, cut it into the nine patch and layered onto cardstock. Very simple but extremely effective. Man it was cold in Algonquin last year but still so very beautiful.

I used an Outline stamp for my background. On a separate sheet of white cardstock I punched a deocrative edge with a MS deco edge punch. Some ribbon, a dollar store silk flower, a black gem and piece of stunning black cardstock for layering finished my card.

Jacqui's card is simply adorable. I will share a secret here, Jacqui is our non-stamper. Can you tell by her card? I didn't think so. Jacqui used a Stampendous clear stamp for the snow man, cut him apart and layered him onto black cardstock. I love how she set him slightly off the card. I'm not sure what stamp she used to create the bottom border. The hat stamp is from the same cleart set she coloured and layered onto black cardstock. I don't think I believe Jacqui is a non-stamper anymore.

Sept Challenge

Finally I am getting around to posting our last challenge cards. I am missing Barb's work however. Apparently she was scurrying around to get ready to go to play day and she forgot to pick up her cards. I will post it next week after play day on Sunday.



First is Darlene's card. She really captured the spirit of this challenge. I love the little dragonfly punch she used on the corners of her silver squares. In the next photo you can see that she dry embossed a beautiful flourish for added interest.




Jess reversed the design somewhat for this card. Somehow she managed to punch the nine patch and under the opening added some designer paper to create the base and then she used more paper from my stash to cut Tattered Florals from the Tim Holtz die. A gem in the centre of her layered flower finished her card.

Donna took a slightly different approach to this challenge and used really cute Nestibilities circles for her design. She used the clear Penny Black Beach Day set for all of her stamped images and an EK border punch to create the ocean bottom. Such a fun card!

Lauralee used Scattered Straw and Tumbled Glass Distress inks to create the background of her squares, alternating lines of colour to create a rainbow design. The stamp set is Set of Four from Stampin'Up that she stamped repeatedly altering the position of the stamps as she went across the inked page. The entire page was then embossed with clear. She punched out 1" squares and popped them across the top of the card. She stamped the dots and then punched from the inked background from above and popped a MS butterfly over the dots. Add a black gem and sentiment from Papertrey Ink. One beautiful card.

Birthday Wishes

My niece is celebrating her 8th birthday next week and I needed a card to send to her. Cassie is on reading week so I asked if she could fit making a card into her busy schedule while I was at work on Tuesday.

She coloured the Penny Black stamp with Copics and used a clear set of Hero Arts letters to "write" the sentiment. She tells me that was harder to do that she thought it would be. First she had the letters perfectly aligned but backwards and so she rearranged the letters but overlooked the "b" in birthday that should be a "d". Oh well Shannon is as I said 8, we are hoping she won't notice (sheepish grin). Shannon loves to stamp so in this card I sent a set of clear stamp that are only words for her to create with. Let's hope her birthday cards won't have stamped spelling errors.

ScrapFest Oshawa

I have been off sick since Rose-Marie & Tom got back from ScrapFest. This is the first time I have been able to get to the pictures Tom took while they were there. Shows are curious creatures, you can never be sure what the buying public will want nor can you be certain many people will visit your booth. ScrapFest Oshawa was fabulous, not only did people come they stayed for the day. Congratulations to the team at ScrapFest for taking the leap of faith and taking the initiative to launch a new show east of the GTA.

Kathy & Ray (aka Twink) worked the show with Tom & Rose-Marie. Twink & Kathy are often comedic relief in a what can be a long day.

A quiet moment before it really got busy. People came and went all day. It is always interesting to see what people have in their basket when they get to Kathy on cash.


Rose-Marie is a gracious host. She spends a great deal of time at these events doing demos and sharing different tips and techniques.

Thanks to everyone who came to Oshawa. We have already signed up to attend ScrapFest Kitchener and expect to be in Oshawa next fall as well.

Fun, fun, fun

The Open House has been so much fun. Everyone has enjoyed Rose-Marie's demos for the gorgeous Tim Holtz Distress Inks. Those inks have simply endless applications.

For next month we have a new day planned, the Pretty Paper party. Join us Nov. 20 from 2:00 until 4:00 for an afternoon of playing with paper. This is not a card or scrapbook day, you will be creating gift boxes or bags. The cost of this day is $5 (pre-paid) which includes a kit of paper, a template and instruction. I still need to get a few more details from Rose-Marie and possibly a photo of a sample project to share with you but this should be a fun afternoon.

We ask that you bring a basic class kit with you to the party.

Get Well Wishes

One of our Campbellford group plus one recently had surgery. We want her to know that the rest of the group is thinking of her and wish her a speedy recovery. Hugs girl.

Catching up

I see I am still behind on posting our challenges. I did take the photos of our latest work but must have deleted them some time. I also discovered, quite by accident, that I haven't responsed to some comments that were left here on the blog.

To Sharon who commented way back in May, the challenges are issued by members of our little group. If anyone who reads this blog would like to participate that's great. If you have a blog just post your work there and let us know. If not send me a pic of your work and I will post it on the FWI blog.

To Maria, who posted in July. Great card! Your cards are amazing and I hope you are now fully recovered. I really need to get in touch with you to pick your brain about a couple of different things regarding blogging. :)

I will try to be better about responding. I am still quite new to blogging and forget that someone might actually have a comment about something I have posted to the WWW. Thanks for reading and thank you for commenting.

For anyone who might be interested in this months challenge, it comes from Donna. She has asked us to decorated a gift bag and make a co-ordinated card or tag. It must have one stamped image. Sounds simple enough right?

Annual Open House

Join us for our annual Open House Wed. Nov. 20 until Sat. Nov. 23 during regular store hours. The latest designs from Rosewood stamps will be available. Demos will be set up for you to try. Many items will offered at sale prices. Rose-Marie has brought in some beautiful new inks that are going to be perfect with the new designs.

Free Stamp Giveaway

If you are attending ScrapFest Oshawa this weekend, we want to meet you. So here is what we want to you do. When you get to our booth, stop in and tell Kathy (she will be on checkout duty) that you read our blog and that Liz sent you. That is all you have to do to claim your free stamp. It will be a stamp of our choice but it is one that is versatile and appropriate for the season. This is sure to be a show not to miss. So many goodies and so close to Christmas.

Packing Up

We have been busy, busy, busy packing and getting everything ready to go to ScrapFest this weekend. There is a lot of excitment about this show both from retailers and our customers. It has been a long time since we have had a show of this size on the east side of Toronto. We are really looking forward to this one.

The plates finally arrived to begin production of the new stamps. Circumstances beyond our control caused the delay and we do apologize. Tom was sent to the workshop yesterday to get some of the images ready to take with them to ScrapFest. Due to time constraints he will only be able to get a few images ready to take. The poor guy will be spending a lot of time in the workshop when he gets back too.

Creative Challenges

Making cards isn't always easy. Often I find that the great idea I have in my head just doesn't work out on paper. Donna was creating cards recently and made these 3 cards, that are the same but different.

Donna has embraced the Nestibilities and uses Label 8 to full advantage for these cards. I'm not sure if she cut then embossed with a CB folder or the other way around. She then dragged an ink pad across to the surface to define the embossing. I'm not positive but I think Label 4 was used to create the sentiment tag. I don't know where the sentiment is from but a bit of ribbon layered on a black base makes for a very striking card.

Here she used only Label 8 to create a series of mats. A dollar store flower and more ribbon. The same but different.

This one is almost identical to the first card shown. I am not usually enamoured of paisleys but I like this CB folder. Ribbon and bling are the finishing touches. The same but different.

I should have asked which was the first card she made. All based on the same basic design but the end results look rather different.

Testing Products

Donna loves new stuff. Rose-Marie recently brought in Tattered Angels stencils that caught Donna's eye.



She simply laid the stencils over the paper and applied ink with a sponge or a dauber.

The Fleur de Lis and the red frame above are set on a 5 1/2 x 8 piece of paper creating a very large image. We decided that maybe if they were cut into pieces they could be used to accent another stamped piece.

This crown didn't photograph well but this just says little girl card.

For the card below she got really creative. The gate looks particularly spooky on the black background, so she decided to "open" the gate to reveal a ghostly scene. Wouldn't this make a great invitation for a Halloween Party?

New Designs from Rosewood

The new designs from Rosewood stamp are being added to the Frog's Whiskers Ink website. We are currently taking pre-orders and hope to begin production next week. Victorian charm is very evident in this collection, including a charming group of carolers, a lamp post and a street that will remind you an old fashion village Charles Dickens may have written about. If Victorian isn't your style the stamp Birch & Stream (L746)

or Candles and Holly (L740) may catch your attention. I am looking forward to see what Rose-Marie has in mind for this collection.

Change of Store Hours

The children have gone back to school and the weather has been what I remember as more traditional fall weather. If the Farmer's Almanac is correct (and we all know just how accurate the Almanac can be!) the weather for the remainder of the year will be like "back in the day". Where was I going.....oh right, store hours. The change of weather has been bringing fewer stampers to the store on Sundays. Sundays are the only day that Tom and Rose-Marie take off faithfully and it just isn't making economic sense to pay staff to keep the store open. So beginning immediately the store will be closed Sundays. We will re-open Sundays briefly for the Christmas season, beginning Sunday, Dec 5 12:00 to 4:00. We apologize for any inconvenience this may cause.

We hope you will visit our website or drop by the store during the rest of the week. We would be glad to help you with your card making projects. The newest issue of Rosewood stamps are now up on the website for pre-order and we expect them to go into production within 2 weeks. I for one can't wait to see what Rose-Marie has planned for these beautiful new designs.

Pot Luck Play Day

We decided to have our play day at Darlene's home this month. She has been inviting us to her home for a few years, telling us about her stamping room since they built the house. Darlene has had some personal challenges the last few years and it was so nice of her to host our little get together. It was also an opportunity to get a photo of us diligently working away on our cards for the day. And the stamping room was everything she told us it would be. We are all so jealous of her beautiful work space overlooking the lake.

As I have said in an earlier post, I like to have a face to go with a name. So here we are, starting on the left, Barb, Jacqui, Darlene, Donna and Liz. And to be honest we didn't get much card making that day. We did have a great potluck lunch and the kind of laughs that bring tears to everyone's eyes. We really do have so much fun on our play days and we owe it all to Donna. So thank you Donna for making the suggestion of a play day and arranging for us all to meet once a month. Now to get Lauralee here for one our play days....