Inkheaven: March 2017

Wednesday, March 22, 2017

Changes Are Coming To Inkheaven!

Inkheaven is going to have a fresh new look but the purpose of creating stamping happiness will stay the same!

You may have noticed that there have not been many new posts here at inkheaven as of late! Are you wondering why? Here is the answer:


I have finally decided to update my blog on a whole new level! I wanted to do this back in 2014 - and I did a slight makeover right here at that time - but it wasn't completely what I wanted to do! Change is so many things: hard, painful, good, exciting, fun...the list of adjectives both negative and positive could go on and on! 

At the time I did my slight makeover we were going through life changes so I held back here as our future seemed so uncertain. Now that we are a little more settled here in Le Mars, Iowa, I feel the need to finish what I started. I hope you will be patient and stick with me!

I have finally made some decisions that allowed me to contact someone about my blog design and go forward. Hopefully, we will see it go live in a few weeks! I chose a template that I love - but it needs a few tweaks to be perfect - which will slow the process down. I may see if they will let me use the template as is until the tweaks are done! It never hurts to ask, right? It would be a little sneak preview of what is to come for inkheaven!

Anyway, I was thinking about change and life, and how life throws us curve balls every once in awhile, and I got to thinking how important it is to just swing away when those curve balls come. I'm not a huge sports fan - but I do like the game of baseball. One of the things that I like about baseball are some of the positive life comparisons that I can glean from it.  Did you know that the best hitters have the most strike outs?  When it comes to life, I want to hit it outta the park even if I have to strike out a few times. Don't you? So here I am, taking another swing!

My purpose here at inkheaven is to create stamping happiness for you. I want it to be easy for you to create, have fun, and repeat! Doing something creative improves our well-being which is important to our happiness and I want that for you and me!

Meanwhile, I will keep everyone updated through my email. If you are not on my mailing list you can sign up for that in the side bar to so you don't miss out! I will also try to keep the information flowing on my facebook page here. Be sure to like my page while you are there!

Wishing you stamping happiness always!

Thursday, March 9, 2017

Party Animals For Your Birthday

Use these cute trouble-free party animals to help celebrate birthdays.

Use these cute trouble-free party animals to help celebrate birthdays!



This cute swap card was created by fellow demo, Selene Kempton. This card is another great example of using the Balloon Adventures stamp set with the Balloon Bouquet Punch.

I love the fun, playful look of the party animals of the animals in the Party Animal Designer Series Background. I think it's perfect for kids cards and I am pretty sure that there are a few adults (like me) who are just fine with receiving a card created with these fun-loving animals! Plus, these party animals are completely trouble-free! 

I love how the silver glimmer balloon jaunts off on its own. Isn't it just like a balloon? Now that's trouble! ha ha

I'm nearing the finish line for available prep time for my first upcoming open house this weekend - so I am going to hop off and get back to prepping! I'll be loading my car up early to make my trek to Cedar Falls so I won't have a blog post for you tomorrow so take some time to catch up on any back posts you might have missed and I will see you again on Monday!

Thank you so much for stopping by to learn and create with me. See you next time as we create, have fun, and share! Remember, you can be a happy shopper with me anytime at www.darlaolson.stampinup.net. 

Wednesday, March 8, 2017

When Is A Pop-Up Not A Pop-Up?

When the balloon pop-up becomes a card front!

When the balloon pop-up becomes a card front!


This swap card by fellow demo, Bobbie Ganley is a great example of using the balloon pop-up die as a card front.

I really love the versatility of the Balloon Adventures Bundle which is part of the Party Animal Suite. 

Bobbie really showed off the great coordination of the Party Animal Designer Series Background Paper on her card as well!

I have another idea for this pop-up die that I can't wait to try! 

In the meantime, I am very busy preparing for my upcoming last chance Open Houses for Sale-A-Bration! Did you know that there are only 25 days left of Sale-A-Bration? If you don't know what Sale-A-Bration is all about, you can read about it by clicking here.

This bundle is the perfect item to purchase for Sale-A-Bration:
  • It's $53 so you automatically get to choose a FREE Sale-A-Bration item.
  • It's all about birthdays and celebrations (the older I get the more I like to celebrate birthdays!)
  • It has great coordinating product that you can add to your order so you can choose additional FREE Sale-A-Bration items! (Who doesn't like FREE?

For your convenience, I am sharing a link to the bundle below. Clicking the image will take you to my 24/7 online store where you can have fun shopping! I hope you will add this fabulous bundle to your cart along with coordinating product so you can have even more fun picking out FREE stuff!

Thank you so much for stopping by to create and learn with me at inkheaven. See you next time as we create, have fun, share, and repeat!

Tuesday, March 7, 2017

Use Punches And Dies To Add Dimension To Your Cards

punched or die cut images and shapes layered on your cards add interest and dimension shared by Darla Olson at inkheaven

Punched or die cut images and shapes layered on your cards add interest and dimension.



I wish I could tell you who created this card. It is a nameless swap card. If this happens to be your card and you would like credit, just let me know!

This card is a great example of how punches and dies add dimension to your cards.

The creator of this card used a punch to create a color tag from background paper which grounds the focal point of the card. The sentiments are either punched or die cut with a circle, which is then surrounded by balloons that have been stamped and punched out and layered at various heights around the sentiment. 

The Balloon Adventures stamp set and Balloon Bouquet Punch were used to create this card. Balloon Adventures also has a coordinating die set, Balloon Pop-Up thinlits, which can be purchased with the stamp set using the bundle and save feature. I love how Stampin' Up! provides so many different coordinating punches and dies to add dimension to our card making. 

For your convenience, I have listed the stamp set, bundle and save option for the dies, and the punch used in creating this card below. Clicking any of the images will take you to my 24/7 online store where you can have fun shopping for your own creative supplies! Thank you so much for stopping by to create and learn with me at inkheaven. See you next time as we create, have fun, share, and repeat!

Monday, March 6, 2017

I'm Celebrating 1,000 Blog Posts With A Gift Tag!

Gift Tag shared by Darla Olson at inkheaven to celebrate 1000 blog posts

Gift Tags, parties, and celebrations all go together!


Wow! A thousand blog posts! I can hardly believe it! I am thrilled that you are here to celebrate it with me!

All journeys start with just a step and while we may know exactly what our destination is, we don't always know the path that we will take to get there. Many times we encounter road blocks and detours or, take a wrong turn and need to adjust our course. Sometimes, we even decide we need to change our destination! I would say that I have experienced all of this as a Stampin' Up! demonstrator at inkheaven over the last (almost) twenty years.

My inkheaven blog was a course correction. Prior to my blog, I had a website. My website was even featured in Stampin' Up!'s demonstrator magazine, Stampin' Success. However, time has a way of bringing about change and websites were not as fashionable in the creative world. Blogging was where it was at! So, in April of 2009, I started blogging here at inkheaven. That means that on April 30th, inkheaven will be 8 years old! Can you believe it? I'm pretty close to having 100,000 visits to my blog as well!

To create my celebratory gift tag I used products from the Party Animal Suite (one of my favorite suites!) The nifty little die from the Balloon Pop-Up Thinlits that I highlighted below creates the top of this tag:

click photo to purchase gift tag die at www.darlaolson.stampinup.net
Your gift tag can be any length, but it will have to be two inches wide. My favorite thing about this gift tag die is that it creates a topper for a tag that opens! It does this by creating the score for the fold. Plus, it creates the holes for the ribbon or baker's twine, whichever you choose to use. I didn't take a photo of the inside, but there is a piece of Whisper White card stock adhered to the inside where you can put a to/from and a little note or or greeting!

I did use the coordinating Balloon Bouquet punch for my balloons. The balloons are the smaller of the two which are a great fit for the two inch tag. If you would like to create your own gift tags with the Party Animal Suite, just click the Balloon Pop-Up Thinlits photo to be taken to my 24/7 online store. If you have questions or need assistance, contact me anytime here at inkheaven!

I have shared several fun cards created with products from the Party Animal Suite. You can click the links below to see them:

Tips on how to use the Balloon Pop-Up Die as a Card Front

Copy That Card in the Catalog, Please!

Hooray in Dapper Denim Reverse Words

How to Celebrate a Year of Birthdays

If you would like to learn more about the Party Animal Suite, sign up for my newsletter using the form in the side bar! After you sign up, you will receive an invitation to subscribe to a week long Occasions Catalog Tour; 7 daily emails, each day featuring a suite! (There are 7 suites in the 2017 Occasions Catalog).

I would love it if you would leave a comment and let me know how long you have been a part of my inkheaven journey! Years? Months? Days? First visit?

Thank you so much for stopping by to learn, create, and have fun with me! Be sure to come back and repeat the process as I will be sharing a few more cards with product from the Party Animal Suite over the next few days!

Friday, March 3, 2017

Muted Dragonfly Dreams With A Pop Of Copper

Vellum mutes soft suede background dragonflies while detailed dragonfly stands out in front with a pop of copper shared by Darla Olson at inkheaven

Vellum mutes Soft Suede background dragonflies while the Detailed Dragonfly stands out in front with a pop of copper.


This lovely Dragonfly Dreams card was created by fellow demo, Donna Bamesberger. Donna created it for our Diva swap but she credits the original idea to Jan Clothier. Since I don't peruse the internet or Pinterest a lot, so I had not seen this card idea. I am very happy that she decided to CASE (acronym for copy and share everything) this card.

I have not pulled out the vellum for awhile so I am thinking it may be time!

For your convenience, I have listed most of the supplies that she used creating this card below. Clicking any of the images will take you to my 24/7 online store where you can purchase what you need to recreate this lovely Dragonfly Dreams card. 

Thank you so much for stopping by to create and learn with me at inkheaven. See you next time as we create, have fun, and repeat!

Thursday, March 2, 2017

Sealed With Love Anytime Card

Sealed With Love doesn't have to be just for Valentine's shared by Darla Olson at inkheaven.

Sealed With Love doesn't have to be just for Valentine's.



I love this soft and pretty card created by fellow demo, Maria Pobre. Her intent was to create a card that could be used for any occasion; birthday, anniversary, just because, Mother's Day, etc. I think she did good!

Did you notice that she stamped the heart from the Sealed With Love stamp set on the Falling in Love Designer Series Paper? It's so subtle that I almost missed it! It really adds a nice touch to the card.

For your convenience, I have listed most of the supplies that she used creating this card below. Clicking any of the images will take you to my 24/7 online store where you can purchase any of the items you need to create this card.

Thank you so much for stopping by to create and learn with me at inkheaven. See you next time as we create, have fun, and repeat!

Wednesday, March 1, 2017

Tips On How To Use the Balloon Pop-Up Thinlit Dies As A Card Front

Tips on how to use your balloon pop up thinlit as a card front

Quick video with tips using the Balloon Pop-Up Thinlit Dies as a card front!



I have been creating and having fun using my Balloon Adventures Bundle so I thought it was time to share!

Last year I made a decision to be better about sending out birthday cards and I have been using this bundle to help me do just that! 

While I was preparing for my card making class featuring the Balloon Adventures Bundle I decided to attempt using just the balloon bouquet and banner from the pop-up die to create a card front without the "frame" created by the die. This meant some snipping and fussy cutting had to take place. Uh, oh! Right? Sometimes, it can be challenging to fussy cut things out and still have them look nice!

This die does create some score marks that outline the banner making the banner portion easy to cut out so the biggest challenge was cutting out the balloons. I shared my tips for cutting out around the ballooons on FB Live but have edited it and am giving you the short and sweet version (less than 10 minutes!) that you can watch here:



For your convenience, I have listed most of the supplies that I used creating this card below. Clicking any of the images will take you to my 24/7 online store where you can have fun shopping for your own creative supplies! Thank you so much for stopping by to create and learn with me at inkheaven. See you next time as we create, have fun, share, and repeat!

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