Graduation Card a la Sock Monkey

Still having problems retrieving photos of my old projects from my camera, but it's apparently letting me take new pictures and access them.

Below you'll find a graduation card I made with the Sock Monkey stamp set, the Sock Monkey Accessories stamp set and the Starring You stamp set. I made the little diploma out of rolled up card stock, and actually wrote the graduate's name on it! (the name is blurred out of the picture for privacy reasons) To make the diploma, I just punched out a 1-1/4" square of Very Vanilla card stock, trimmed away two slightly concave sides, and rolled it up. Then I drew and colored the border, and added words. This card is for a boy, so that's why it's not all frilly.

The colors I used are: StazOn Black ink pad, Basic Black (marker), Basic Black Craft pad, Real Red, Soft Suede, and Sahara Sand. Because of the watercoloring, I stamped the images in waterproof StazOn ink on watercolor paper.  I used the Sahara Sand marker to color the end parts of the monkey, going back over it again with the marker after it was dry, to make shading lines.

I watercolored the rest of the monkey using the Soft Suede reinker, and Real Red reinker, with the Aquapainter.  I used the Soft Suede marker to go in after the monkey was dry, to add shading lines on the body.  I used the Basic Black marker to add color to one corner of the graduation cap, then used the Aquapainter to pull that black across the hat.  To get a nice dark, crisp greeting, I stamped the "way to go" image on the Real Red card stock in Basic Black Craft ink.

~Kimberley Morris
Stampin' Up! Demonstrator since 1994
Colorado Springs, CO
procrastistamper@gmail.com
http://kimberley.stampinup.net (click SHOP NOW near top right to order anytime!)

Sock Monkey for President!!

Sorry I've been a little absent here lately, we've had kind of a "family emergency" going on...long story...suffice it to say, it's been BUSY around here!

But I did get a chance to fiddle around some more with Sock Monkey before the poop hit the fan, and I came up with the Patriotic Monkey look. The hat was made with the Large and Small Oval Punches. The band of the hat is a Small Oval punched piece, with a "bite" taken out of it again with the Small Oval Punch. The white top of the hat is the Small Tag Punch (which I trimmed at the top and sides), then I added strips of red to the hat, and a layer of red behind the white section of the hat. I used the white gel pen for stars, and a Versamarker for some highlights on it.

Stampin' Supplies: Sock Monkey stamp set*, StazOn Jet Black ink, Pacific Point Textured card stock*, Riding Hood Red card stock*, Blush Blossom Textured card stock, Whisper White card stock, Very Vanilla Watercolor Wonder Crayon, Going Grey Watercolor Wonder Crayon (for shadows on the monkey), Large & Small Oval Punches, Small Tag Punch, VersaMarker, white gel pen, Two-Way glue pen.

*Denotes Sneak Peek product not available for customer order until August 11th, 2008.

In other news, the Retiring Accessories List is HERE. All items marked with an asterisk are on SALE for 25% OFF!!

And you will be able to place your personal Stampin' Up!® product orders with me, anytime day or night, 24/7 via ONLINE ORDERING, directly from my company web site this fall! Stay tuned for more details and the unveiling...

Textured Sock Monkey Again...

So, here's the Textured Sock Monkey on a card...finally! If you want to see how to get the textured look, check out this blog post. I don't usually do this much coloring and cutting because it's a lot of work, but Sock Monkey made me do it!

This sample uses a lot of sneak peek items that customers cannot order until August 11th, and I hope that's exciting to you instead of frustrating. To make sure you don't miss out on any Retiring Stamp Sets, skim the details HERE. There will also be a list of Retiring Accessories, which I will post on July 21st. (Some items are already no longer available, such as the Blue Bayou and Purely Pomegranate Double Stitched Grosgrain Ribbon.)

Stampin' Supplies: Sock Monkey stamp set*, Kiwi Kiss card stock*, Riding Hood Red card stock and ink*, Bella Rose Designer Series Paper*, Button Bouquet Buttons (Riding Hood Red)*, Close to Cocoa Textured card stock, Creamy Caramel Textured card stock, Very Vanilla Craft ink and Watercolor Wonder Crayon, Blush Blossom marker, Fundamental Phrases stamp set, StazOn Jet Black ink, Word Window Punch, Whisper White card stock, Linen Thread, Ruby Red brad.

*Denotes items which are not available for customer order until August 11th. If you spend at least $50 on catalog merchandise with me during July, get the new catalog absolutely FREE. If you spend at least $100 on catalog merchandise with me during July, you will get the new catalog FREE, plus your choice of one of the new In Color ink pads for FREE!

Textured Sock Monkey

I know, I know, this isn't even a whole card yet...I'm just so excited at how this turned out that I can't wait to show you...plus...my camera battery just ran out so it has to charge up before I can share anything else :-)

I used Close to Cocoa Textured card stock for the monkey, and to get the "heathered" look, I used the brayer and gently rolled the brayer over the Very Vanilla Craft pad, then rolled that lightly over the card stock. I let it dry just a bit, then took a paper towel and dabbed and wiped most of it away.

Now, I had already stamped my monkey in StazOn black ink before I thought about the Very Vanilla, so I had to go over the black lines with a marker after the Very Vanilla was dry. You may want to save yourself the trouble and prepare your card stock first, and then stamp the monkey. Although, when I tried that, the dried ink seemed to have changed the surface of the card stock, and I didn't like how the image turned out. If you wait til the Craft ink is totally dry, you could use black Craft ink to stamp the monkey on the surface, and heat black embossing powder to get a really dark and shiny outline.

I stamped the monkey once on the Close to Cocoa Textured card stock, then on Creamy Caramel card stock, and then stamped the head on the new Riding Hood Red card stock. The Close to Cocoa monkey is on the bottom, then the lighter parts were cut out of Creamy Caramel, and the mouth was cut out of Riding Hood Red. I found it easiest to glue the pieces with Two-Way Glue, because it applies such a thin amount of glue to the surfaces. I applied the glue to both surfaces, then adhered them while they were wet. Afterwards, I added some highlights on the Creamy Caramel, using the Blush Blossom brush end of the marker.

UPDATE: you can get a similar look by using the Very Vanilla Watercolor Wonder Crayon, holding it on its side, and lightly coloring. Try coloring in a circular motion to get the best coverage. Wiping with a paper towel is optional, and this is something you can do AFTER you stamp the monkey...plus there's no wet ink to worry about.

I added the Watercolor Wonder Crayon to the light parts of the same Sock Monkey I showed you at the start of this post, and you can see how it turned out below. It's very subtle, but I think it keeps the texture consistent to have it on all the pieces. (Remember to click on any picture to see it full size--open each of these pictures in their own window, and compare them side by side!]:

Sock Monkey Pattern...the real thing!

Okay, I have discovered that a large portion of the population is currently puzzled at my adoration for my new Sock Monkey preorder stamp set. My 15 year old son summed it up quite indelicately by asking, what the {bleep} is that thing!? At first, I made this cute card, in an effort to convince the skeptics that they NEED to have their very own Sock Monkey stamp set...once the new catalog comes out on August 11th! Then, I realized that perhaps some background on Sock Monkey origins might be helpful and appropriate.

Sock Monkey is a stuffed animal, patterned from one pair of Rockford Red Heel® Socks, which you can view and/or purchase HERE. Currently, the socks come in traditional Brown Heather, or you can get them in blue (great for Patriotic Sock Monkeys, according this AD). The pattern for the Sock Monkey stuffed animal apparently originated sometime in or before 1953, when pairs of Rockford Red Heel® Socks ALL began shipping with the sewing instructions!

To see a vintage set of instructions, click HERE. Contemporary instructions may be found HERE. If you check out the instructions, you'll see that Sock Monkey has a coordinating friend, Sock Elephant. And a book to make over 50 sock animals, sock animal clothing, and other toys can be found HERE. If you love Sock Monkey, but aren't into sewing, check out the Sock Monkey Lady® for custom merchandise and gifts!

Will we perhaps see a Sock Elephant stamp set coming out in the future?? I'm not holding my breath...but I would be excited to see a Sock Monkey accessory stamp set to expand his repertoire!