Dressed To Impress Once More

Welcome to the start of a new week and the end of another month. Today I wanted to create something for my daughter. She’s an Avon Rep in the UK (@AvonByKaternoster) and I thought she might enjoy a pretty notepad. There’s one stamp set that would be perfect for her and that’s Dressed To Impress. Sadly I think this stamp set and the coordinating All Dressed Up Dies might be on the retiring list being revealed in three weeks. So this may well be my last opportunity to use it…

Create this fabulous 5"x8" notepad using the Dressed To Impress Stamp Set and coordinating All Dressed Up Dies from Stampin' Up! #papercraftwithme

COVER FIRST

I began with a 5″ x 8″ notepad from my stash. This pad had a cardboard back but no front cover so that was where I needed to start. With that in mind I went looking for a nice piece of Designer Series Paper (DSP) to use as a background. I wanted it to look special and settled on a grey and gold foil abstract design from the Symbols Of Fortune 12″ x 12″ Designer Series Paper pack. Using that paper as my inspiration I was ready to start building the cover.

Although the notepad said 5″ x 8″, experience has told me to double check with a ruler. In fact it was a little over 5″ wide so I’m glad I measured it before starting to cut my pieces. For the main cover I chose Basic Gray Card and used my Paper Trimmer to cut a piece the actual width of the pad x 11″ long. Then I scored the card at 8-1/4″ and 8-1/2″. This would mean the front was slightly longer than the pad, making it easier to open. I folded the card along the scored lines and sharpened the creases really well using my Bone Folder.

Attach a ribbon loop to the back of a notepad and hide the ends under a new card cover. #papercraftwithme

Before going any further I wanted to add a pen/pencil loop and for that I cut a 4″ piece of gold 3/8″ Fine Art Ribbon. I folded the ribbon in half around a mechanical pencil and fixed the ends together using Tear & Tape Adhesive. Then with more Tear & Tape I fixed the loop to the back of the notepad so the pencil nested against the side of the pad. With that done I put Multipurpose Liquid Glue (Tombow) liquid glue on the back of the pad around the ribbon and onto the smaller end of the card cover. After folding the cover into place I held it firmly for a minute to make sure everything was secure.

DRESSED TO IMPRESS

Now I was ready to work on the front of the cover and began by cutting a 4-5/8″ x 4-7/8″ piece of Smoky Slate Card. On top of that I mounted a 4-1/2″ x 7-3/4″ piece of my grey and gold DSP. Going back to the Fine Art Ribbon I cut a 6″ piece and wrapped it around the layers, about 1-3/4″ from the bottom edge. After securing the ribbon on the back with Tear & Tape I fixed the layers to the front cover with liquid glue.

Finally I was ready for the Dressed to Impress Stamp Set. and chose the perfume bottle and lipstick images, plus the “hello fabulous” sentiment. Using Tuxedo Black ink I stamped everything onto a piece of Thick Very Vanilla Card. Then I decided to stamp a second lipstick, just in case.

To colour the images I opted for Stampin’ Blends alcohol markers for a bright contract against the grey background layer. I started with the perfume bottle and light So Saffron, then I added some shading with the dark one. To create the illusion of a gold top I started with light So Saffron, then added areas of dark Daffodil Delight from each side. Finally I blended the colours using the light Daffodil Delight and left a ‘highlight’ in the middle. For the bottle label I used light Petal Pink with some dark Petal Pink shading around the edges.

Moving to the lipsticks, the highlight on the barrels were created in a very similar way. The inner section started with light Smoky Slate, then dark Basic Black coming in from each side. Next I added light Basic Black from the sides coming in just a bit further, before blending it all with the light Smoky Slate. For the actual lipstick and coloured casing I opted for two different colour schemes. The one at the back started out with dark Petal Pink, followed by dark and then light Flirty Flamingo. The front one began with light Flirty Flamingo, followed by dark and light Poppy Parade.

ALL DRESSED UP

At last I was ready to cut out the images and that was easy using the All Dressed Up Dies and my Cut & Emboss Machine.

When it came to the sentiment I went back to the All Dressed Up Dies and found a rectangular die with an interesting curved detail at the top. My sentiment fitted this perfectly, and the die also added a nice faux stitched edge around it too.

With all the pieces cut I first used liquid glue to layer the perfume bottle and two lipsticks together. Then I set the sentiment on top with some Stampin’ Dimensionals. Finally using more liquid glue and Stampin’ Dimensionals I fixed the assembled piece onto the cover. Just one last detail was needed and I scattered a few Rhinestone Basic Jewels around the images and sentiment. At last my notepad project was complete.

I love how this project turned out. Not only is it pretty, the notepad is the perfect size for any notes my daughter may want to make for her Avon business. Now all I have to do is mail it to her.

For some other projects using the Dressed To Impress Stamp Set and All Dressed Dies see these earlier blog posts: