Author Archives: clkondo

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About clkondo

I am a teacher, mother, wife, and LOVER of all things papercrafting. It's been my sanity (and sometimes insanity) for the past 10 years. I am an Independent Stampin' UP Demonstrator...which helps me pay for my passion...
Jan1

Ring in the New Year

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Ring in the New Year

2017 is HERE!!  Happy New Year!  And a new year means a NEW CALENDAR! I am so excited.  These calendars are so much fun to create.  I had a blast for this year…

I love that SU did a celebratory New Year’s stamp set…  called “It’s a Celebration”. (If you love it you have to act FAST, cause it’s only available till Jan 2).  It’s perfect for Hawaiian New Year’s Celebration because they are some of the most festive celebrations that I have EVER witnessed…lots and LOTS of fireworks).

The way the images work, you can layer the ‘sparks’ on each other to ‘build the blast’!  And, I love that it can be either a sparkler or an aerial firework.

You are in for a real treat this year!  Anne (mauistamper.com) and Cheryl (createwithcheryl.me) are joining me again this year and we all will have our own spin on the calendar page for each month.  JOIN US!  Check back on the first of every month to see the next installment for our calendar series! Better yet, follow the  blogs and you will get an email everytime we post

Dec1

Stockings were hung by the chimney with care…

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Classic Christmas images… Stockings on the mantle…  Love it…

 

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Festive fireplace gives the perfect stamps and framelits to make that image come to life on paper!  As we head into the Christmas seasons, I hope you can reflect on happy memories and make new ones this year.imageHead on over to see what Anne and Cheryl have for you!

 

Nov13

I learned how to do zippers!

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So, this summer when I was back visiting the homeland, I had my mother and seamstress extraordinaire show me how to do zippers. I am  not really sure what I was afraid of, cause they really aren’t that bad.  Anyway, I decided to put my newly aquired skill to use and I made these:

Just little zipper pouch bags. I have a confession. I havent met a bag I didn’t like.  So I have no idea how I’m gonna be able to part with these…but… I have NO room to keep them… Anyway… Super cute and perfect to help organize a purse or diaper bag.

I also made these:

I kept seeing these cute little hand sanitizers done up as Santa-tizers but was wanting something more natural to use on my body (especially with all the banning of chemicals in the handsoaps…) So! I made my own!! The ingredients in these are all words I can pronounce. I am comfortable using these with my kiddos…and shoots. They are so cute. Makes a perfect little gift or stocking stuffer.

OK…stay tuned. More sneak peeks to come.  And see you Saturday!

Nov12

Sneek Peek

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Here is the first item to sneek peek for next Saturday’s Maui Stampers’ and Friends craft fair!  It’s a returning favorite: card gift bags!

Yes. That’s the yard. The lighting was just so good outside… Anyway, these little gift bags contain a set of 4 cards, mini notebook, and a pen. Perfect little gift for teachers or coworkers! Be sure to shop early cause I have an extremely limited supply…

See you Saturday!

Nov8

Cute Little Monster

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Cute Little Monster

Being the mom of young children we get to celebrate lots of birthdays… our own, our friends… LOTS.  So, I thought this little birthday monster would be the perfect way to celebrate!

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I LOVE HIM.  He just makes me happy with his one eye an goofy smile.  I made him from the Playful Pals stamp set.  Se his arms and legs?  Elephant trunk.  And it’s a perfect way to use washi.  Here I matched it with some washi I had… but you could totally use any color just to add pop.  The banners at the top are (sad to say) retired…but they’re a favorite of mine too…

Here’s the inside:

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I love this card for the young ones.  It’s been perfect for birthday celebrations.  And, I’ve even used it for those who are young at heart!!  🙂

AND…  DRUMROLL….  I know you’ve been waiting all year with anticipation, but we are less than TWO WEEKS AWAY from the most awaited event of the year!!  THE MAUI STAMPERS’ AND FRIENDS CRAFT FAIR!!  It’s nearly here!! NOV 19!  Mark your calendar and be sure to come!

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Stay tuned!  I will be featuring items that will be available this year!  (FYI:  Thhis monster card will be there!!!)

Nov1

Acorny Thankfulness

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We don’t have large Oak Trees in Hawaii…  (we don’t have small ones either…), but thanks to this stamp set, we have ACORNS!!  And cute ones!!image

 

Using non-traditional fall colors helps brighten up the acorns!  It’s a fun spin on a Thanksgiving classic…image

Go see what Anne and Cheryl have for you today!

Oct29

Celebrate Watercolor

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So, I was approached by one of my club members about trying to recreate an image she saw as a card… I love a challenge so…

Here is what she sent me.  Said it came from an ad she saw.

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Very pretty.  I love the flowers.  I love watercolor.  And, this is something I think I could do.  So, here is the card I came up with:

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I love stamping on watercolor paper.  It’s so thick and takes ink very nicely.  And, it has great texture.

I used a fruit stamp (peach) from the Spring 2016 Occasions catalog (sorry, it’s retired now) but you just need anything circular.  And it doesn’t have to be perfect at all.  Ink that baby up and then SPRITZ it with water till it’s messy.  And stamp. (Watercolor paper is very important here cause it has to soak up the water).  I just found a long skinny stamp to be the stem (I think it is a balloon string… can’t remember now). Easy-peasy.  I used So Saffron and Wisteria for the flower ink colors.  And, I bordered the watercolor paper with Tip Top Taupe and put it on a Sahara Sand card base.  I decided to make this card 3.5 x 5.5″ cause I wanted it skinny to match the flowers.  But, it still fits in a regular ‘card’ envelope (though a matching envie would be fabulous too…).

Anyway, it was SUPER simple, SUPER fast, and SUPER fun…  go try one!

 

Oct21

Christmas Pines

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I love Christmas Greenery.  The smell, the color… (not the pokeys).  So, here is a way to get the fabulous look of the greenery without having raw fingers from all the needles. 🙂

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This uses the Christmas Pines stamp set and the coordinating Pretty Pines Thinlits.  I LOVE it.  I cut the pine branches out of a couple of different greens (artichoke and wasabi) just to give depth and dimension.  I love how the copper thread and the linen thread add both rustic and elegance to this little look.  And, my favorite thing about the stamp set are the sentiments and the fonts.  Easy to read but very nice. The mini-pine cones are a nice touch too.  SU outdid themselves this holiday catalog with the little embellishments.  Subtle, yet perfect.

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I highly recommend the die brush for getting out the little pine branches from the thinlit.  It cuts well, but the brush makes poking them out way easier.  It is definitely a must.

Happy creating for the ‘season of joy’!

Oct18

The Winner is…

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Back on World Card Making Day (Oct 1) I had a little challenge… to comment on my post with the name of someone who you were going to send a card.  Well, it took me longer than I anticipated to get it worked out, but I am happy to announce that the winner is MYRA H!!!  YAY!!!

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She won a pack of 5 cards that she can send to someone else!  Happy Mail!!  Love it!

Go check out her blog.  She has some fun projects and hand crafted items!

 

Oct17

Bringing in Christmas

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I thought I’d share some Christmas Cards.  Cause it’s that time to start thinking about them.  It’s coming soon!

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One of my most favorite sets from the 2016-17 catalog is this Foxy Friends.  And, there are many cute fox cards out there, but I especially LOVE the reindeer.  This set is so versatile.  You can make many different animals.  So it is a MUST.

This is a very simple card.  Some stamps, some twine, and the fabulous jingle bells.  I LOVE JINGLE BELLS.  They were a part of the SU Christmas Collection a couple years back and then were gone and I was so sad.  Now they are back and better than ever cause they come in both silver and red.  And, they are only $4.50 for 60 pieces.  That is a STEAL.  Get some today so you can start making some Christmas cards!  Christmas cards with jingle!

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With the coordinating fox punch, you can cut out the pieces as well.  Here I added some dimension to his face by popping it up just a bit.  Very subtle, but a little touch that makes this card fabulous.  The ivy is another example of how you can ‘shape’ a photo-polymer set to fit how you want.  I curved it a bit more to fit on my card panel and around the reindeer a little tighter.  Very easy.  Just place on the block how you want.

There you go.  Happy Christmas Card making.  More ideas to come.