I gotta say that when it came time for me to choose which of the Papertrey set(s) I wanted to feature for my countdown post I had the HARDEST time choosing!! All the sets are fabulous (as usual!) and I can't wait until y'all get to see them in full!
I ended up choosing the Just Hatched set (Nichole created it to go with the Egg Boxes you can see here) because it's also great for cards too! So here we go!
I started off by cutting out an oval using my CuttleBug and Oval Nestabilities die (from the Classic Oval Large set)
I prefer to cut the image first THEN stamp on it (one of the great benefits of clear stamps - since you can see through them and line them up perfectly!).
I then chose one of the stamps from the Just Hatched set.
The stamp is clean - but I had already used it a few times before taking these pictures. You can see how stained it is in this picture.
I actually LOVE that it's stained - I find it MUCH easier to find which stamps I want when I'm going through my clear sets since the staining makes them easier to see (and read when I'm looking for particular sentiments!).
I wanted to stamp the image using two different colors.
To make that possible I pulled out my tape and covered the areas of the stamp I DIDN'T want to get ink on.
I then used my Burnt Umber Palette cube and inked up the "Little One".
**FYI I used my label maker to label all the cubes when I first got them since they don't have the names on them like the full-size pads do.**
Once the wording was inked I pulled off the tape and inked up just the border with the WaterLily Green ink.
I purposely left the rest of the wording on the stamp un-inked - I only wanted the "Little One" sentiment for my card.
<-------and this is one of the reasons why I LOVE clear stamps!
I was easily able to line up and stamp the image onto the oval I cut at the beginning.
When planning this card I decided to use Prism Frosted Teal card stock (which is a PERFECT match to the Palette WaterLily Green ink).
The CS has a bit of texture to it but I wanted to liven up the card a bit - so I pulled out one of the stamps from the soon-to-be-released Polka Dot Basics set.

It only took a minute or two to stamp the entire piece. Nichole designed the stamps to line up PERFECTLY - you don't need to move them from side to side to line up the dots when stamping them - making it SO quick and easy to stamp an entire card base!
I will be reaching for this set over and over again - it's a definite MUST have stamp set!
After stamping the CS I wanted to add just a *little* something more - so I pulled out one of my rectangle Nestabilities dies and embossed it onto the CS.
Do you know I've NEVER done this before? And yet it's so easy!
I placed the die where I wanted it to be embossed, and to hold it in place I used two little pieces of tape before putting it in the sandwich stack and running it through my CuttleBug.
After embossing the Teal card stock I used a corner rounder punch on each corner and sponged the edges of it and the white oval with Burnt Umber ink.
I cut a scalloped oval frame for the main image with another Nestability die and Chocolate Chip (Stampin' Up!) card stock.
To finish the card I added some wide Polka Dot ribbon (Michaels) and brown brads then adhered the Teal Card stock to a base made of Papertrey White card stock.
This card measures 4.25 x 5.5".
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SUPPLIES:
STAMPS: Just Hatched and Polka Dot Basics stamp sets by Papertrey Ink.
CS: Papertrey Stamper's Select White, Prism Frosted Teal, Stampin' Up! Chocolate Chip.
INK: Palette Inks in Burnt Umber and WaterLily Green.
ACCESSORIES: Nestabilities Dies, Sponge Daubers, Ribbon, Brads, Dimensionals, Tape.
EDITED TO ADD:
There were several questions asked in the comments on this post - here they are:
I am trying to decide if I need a cuttlebug or a cricut or both - which do you recommend??
Honestly - I don't own a cricut. The only die-cut machine I own (and have ever tried!) is the CuttleBug. I someday hope to be able to purchase a cricut b/c I think it would be a really fun machine to own (especially as I get into scrapbooking more and as my girls get older and start school I think it will be a useful tool to have for projects and whatnot).
Can you tell me what the difference is between the Cuttlebug and the Sizzix Side kick? Is it a size thing? Also will the Nestibilities work in the Sidekick, since I already own that?
I can't say anything about the differences as I've never used a SideKick - however I do know the Nestabilities will work in the SK - but you can't emboss with them. You can find out more about the compatabilities of the Nestabilities dies and the different die-cut machines HERE.
Where did you get the small block with the grid lines? I'd like to get one so that it is easier to line up the polka dots.
The block is from this set by ProvoCraft. And it's actually quite a large block - 2 x 6.5".
Where did you get Palette ink cubes?
Papertrey sells them individually and All That Scraps sells them in sets.
how were you able to emboss without cutting up the paper?
I use the compatability chart here - when you follow the instructions for embossing you won't cut the paper :o)
Are you using your new photography lights yet?
Yes I am - all the pictures taken for this post (and almost all of my recent posts) were taken with my new set-up!
On your Papertrey February Release Countdown - 2 you had a picture of the Cuttlebug with plates A, C, and B. Are those the only ones you used to cut out the oval nestabilities die?? If that's true, I'm going to order them, I thought that it took a lot of messing around to get them cut out.
Yes those were the only plates I used - you can see the chart for the CuttleBug here (you have to scroll down a bit) for what you need. For just cutting with the Nestability dies you just use the plates you will have with your CuttleBug, and then to emboss you just need the tan polymer mat that both Papertrey and All That Scraps sells (and again the chart with the sandwich for embossing is here).