You know I’m a sucker for cute animal images right? So you shouldn’t be surprised at today’s sneak peek project from the new Sale-A-Bration Brochure. When my pre-order qualified for two free products I had to choose the Counting Sheep Stamp Set and coordinating Sheep Dies. Once I had my hands on them I decided my first project should be a gift tag, and these new products didn’t disappoint.

BACKGROUND SCENE

I began my tag with an idea for a simple background scene. First I cut a 2″ x 4″ strip of Thick Very Vanilla Card for the base. Then I added a hole at the top using the Detailed Trio Punch.

For the sky I took a Sponge Dauber that I keep for using with Misty Moonlight ink and I quickly rubbed it over the tag base in a circular motion. Then for the ‘grass’ I used my Mossy Meadow Sponge Dauber in a side-to-side motion..

TIP – Over the years I’ve collected enough Sponge Daubers so I have one for every Stampin’ Up! ink colour. Each one is labelled and I don’t wash them between uses. As a result when I only want a hint of that colour I can just use the ink left on it.

For the gate I turned to the new Sheep Dies and cut it from Thick Very Vanilla Card. To bring out the embossed wood detail added by the die I used my Soft Suede Sponge Dauber.

The die-cut gate is actually 2-3/4″ wide which was bigger than I actually wanted. So I cut the gate in half and then overlapped the two pieces, using Multipurpose Liquid Glue (Tombow) to hold them together. With that done I glued the gate to the tag base.

Now it was time to work on my sheep.

SHEEP OF MANY PARTS

From the free Counting Sheep Stamp Set I chose the dancing sheep and stamped him onto Thick Very Vanilla Card using Smoky Slate ink. Then using the coordinating die from the Sheep Dies I cut him out.

Next I stamped the same sheep onto Thick Basic White Card, and I was ready to begin colouring using Stampin’ Blends alcohol markers.

For the legs, ears and face on both images I used the Ivory marker. Then on the Basic White Sheep I coloured his fleece with light and dark Pool Party.

With that done I used my Paper Snips to cut out the sheep from the Basic White card but cut off the face, the top (smaller) ear, and the two legs on the left. Then I glued the rest of the piece onto the die-cut Very Vanilla sheep.

To finish I stamped the sheep one last time onto some scraps of Thick Very Vanilla Card with Smoky Slate ink. Then I coloured just the two right legs and the bottom (larger) ear with the Ivory Stampin’ Blends marker. Using Paper Snips I cut out these three small areas and glued them onto the blue fleece layer.

At this point I decided that the hooves needed to stand out more. That was easily solved by going over them again with the Ivory Stampin’ Blends.

Now I was ready to attach my completed sheep onto the tag base with Mini Stampin’ Dimensionals. While doing this I was also able to hide the join in the cut-down fence.

Going back to the Counting Sheep Stamp Set I chose the “So glad it’s your birthday” sentiment. Then using Soft Suede ink I stamped it in the space above the sheep.

To finish I took some Very Vanilla twine from the Baker’s Twine Essentials pack, threaded it through the hole and tied it in a simple knot. At last my tag was complete.

I really love how this turned out. Using the combination of Very Vanilla and Basic White Card for the sheep worked really well with the Stampin’ Blends. I’m so glad I decided to use blue for the fleece instead of going with my first impulse which was grey. It almost seems to glow. What do you think?

COUNTING SHEEP

Sadly the Counting Sheep Stamp Set and coordinating Sheep Dies will not be available to buy. However you can get them for free with a qualifying order during the Sale-A-Bration promotion (August 3rd to September 30th). Each item requires an order of $60 before shipping and taxes, so a $120 order gets you both). Just be aware that stocks of the dies are limited and may run out before the end of the promotion. So if you want the dies, make sure to place your order and claim them as soon as you can.

For now though here’s a look at Counting Sheep Stamp Set.

PRODUCT LIST

The Counting Sheep Stamp Set and coordinating Sheep Dies are not available to buy. They can only be obtained for FREE during Sale-A-Bration. To earn each item you just need to place and order for $60CAD (before shipping and taxes). So you could place an order for $120 and get them both. Please be aware that supplies of the Sheep Dies are limited and so they will only be available while stocks last.