Introducing Top Ten & Additions

Hello, Friends!  So, have this weeks introductions been enough excitement for you?  Judging by all of your comments, it sure seems like there is a lot of love this month! I'm thrilled that so many of you have shared your overwhelming enthusiasm with us!

Today I am incredibly excited to formally introduce you to two new sets from Dawn McVey… Top Ten and Top Ten Additions.  Top Ten is a set specifically geared towards creating your own Top Ten or Top Five lists.  Think of it as living vicariously through Dave Letterman and the popular Top Ten segment of his late night talk show! (Sorry, I digress! Back to the stamp sets at hand!)  The personalized lists you create are perfect for a variety of applications. Including card focal points for covers and/or interiors, scrapbook layouts, mini book themes, love letters, lunch box notes, coupon books, valentines and much, much more!

The original Top Ten stamp set contains all of the basics you need to create your customized lists including dotted lines, numbers, list titles and adjectives as well as decorative brackets.

The details.

• Top Ten will be available for purchase on January 15th.
• It will retail for $24.
• Top Ten includes a total of 23 stamps (2 large numbers for the top of your lists, 2 coordinating brackets to use with them, 2 sets of smaller numbers to number the items on your lists, 2 list titles, 2 sets of dotted lines and 13 adjectives.)

Top Ten Additions is a small mini set designed to build upon what was already started with the original set, providing even more adjectives that can be incorporated into your lists.

The details.

• Top Ten Additions will be available for purchase on January 15th.
• It will retail for $5.
• Top Ten Additions includes a total of 11 adjective stamps.

Now that I have filled you in on most of the details, let's get right into some projects, shall we? 

I've mentioned in the past how much I enjoy sending little lunchbox notes with my kids when they head off to school for the day.  They serve as a little mid-day-pick-me-up for them, especially when it is nearing the end of a long week.  Top Ten & Additions provide the perfect platform to let your kids know what characteristics they possess that you admire. 

I created my focal point with two of the images from these new sets, the "5" being stamped in Sweet Blush and the "things I love about you" in Berry Sorbet.  I used a 2-way glue pen to apply adhesive to the five and sprinkle on some Prisma glitter.  If I am making something for Hannah, it HAS to have "sparkle" on it!!!  The circular frame was cut out using my Nestabilities and Berry Sorbet cardstock.  I stamped it with Polka Dot Basics 2 with Fresh Snow ink.  It just so happens when you stamp with the Fresh Snow onto the Berry Sorbet, it takes on a Sweet Blush quality, which coordinated with my project even more than expected.

The background paper is another sheet from Heather Nichols' new Pretty Pastels collection.  *sigh* Don't you just love it!!!  To enhance the design a bit and carry on my "sparkle" theme, I added small dots of 2-way glue in the appropriate places and sprinkled on more Prisma Glitter.  It's subtle but very effective.

   

The top five list I elude to on the outside of the card can be found once it is opened.

As I spoke of in the beginning of this post, there are separate line and number images included in this set.  There are two different line lengths, but each one is in a group of five, so they can be stamped once for a top five list and twice for a top ten list.  That Dawn, she's so clever!  I stamped the shorter lines in particular on my project using Sweet Blush ink.  The numbers for the lists are broken into two stamps as well to be adaptable for both list lengths, but yet still maintaining an easy way to add them without having to stamp the numbers individually.  I chose to stamp them in Berry Sorbet. 

There are a variety of adjectives in this set as well, so you can find several attributes to cater to almost anyone's personality.  Just select what you want to use and start adding them to the lines of your list.  I stamped mine with Smokey Shadow ink so there was a bit of contrast from the pinks used in the other elements.  As a fun twist, I also added a bit of my own handwriting to the mix.  I followed up with a little embellishing using a few of the same elements from the cover.  I love how this project turned out and I look forward to sticking it into Hannah's lunchbox today… she'll be so surprised!

 

My next project utilizes something a bit unconventional… one of the wooden spools leftover from some of out button twine.  I have a few of these kicking around since the twine they originally came with has long been used… holding onto them until I found *something* to do with them.  (I know all of us paper crafters think alike and keep EVERYTHING for "future" projects!!!)  I also pulled out one of our large square clear top tins to  go along with what I had in mind.

I started with some of the *FABULOUS* spring moss polka dotted paper from Pretty Pastels.  I cut it into ten 1.5" x 4" strips. (You can get all of this from a single 8×8 sheet!) I then scored each end of the strips 1/2" from the edge. 

Next, I trimmed both ends of each strip with scalloped scissors.

USing my handy dandy sewing machine, I began sewing the strips together.  You want to match up the score lines, right sides together. 

It's easiest to create five pairs to start.  (And don't worry about your thread "tails", it saves time to just wait until the end of the project to trim them all at once!)

 

Next, you want to stitch all of those pairs together, forming one long, continuous strip.

 

Use your finger to crease each seam flat and go back over them with a zigzag stitch.  I made sure to backstitch just a bit wherever I started and stopped the zigzag stitching, because it tends to pull out easily if you don't.

 
Once you have followed through with this step for the entire length, you will have a 30" strip that is pretty on both the front and back.

 

Now for the fun part!  The embellishing!  To change things up with the numbers, I Stamped them onto kraft cardstock using Dark Chocolate ink.  I then used a 1/4" hole punch to punch out each of the numbers individually.  I adhered them in order down the length of the strip. 

 

This is a special valentine I will be giving to David, so I chose ten adjective stamps from Top Ten & Top Ten Additions.  They are stamped in each section using Spring Moss ink.

I was then able to go back in with a brown pen and add a personal note under each adjective.  I just love the way this looks and it is such a unique way to tell David all the reasons why I love him!

I attached some *new* silk ribbon we are carrying to the end of the strip to serve as a way to keep the strip would around the spool.  More details about this new ribbon tomorrow!

After creating a special project like this, it is only right to leave my mark on it, so I signed & dated the end of the spool.

The completed spool tucks nicely into the large square tin.  I scored a strip of kraft cardstock and inserted it around the spool to help hold it in place.  In lieu of a plain strip of paper being wrapped around the tin base to embellish it, I punched a series of circles from the patterned paper, ran them through my xyron sticker maker and adhered them around the tin.  I really like how it turned out.

The tag is stamped with the large "10" from the set using Fresh Snow ink while "things I love about you" is added in Dark Chocolate.  All of this is done on kraft cardstock that is embellished with a few touches of the same spring moss dotted paper.  I tied it around the tin using Fresh Snow grosgrain ribbon.

Weren't today's projects so fun?  I had a blast with these sets, and I know you will too once you get them into your hot little hands!  What kinds of projects do you think you'll create with these sets?  Do you think there is anything here that you'll try to recreate?  We would love to hear from you!  Just for sharing a bit with us,we have a fun prize package up for grabs!

• Top Ten stamp set
• Top Ten Additions stamp set
• Polka Dot Basics 2 stamp set
• 3 empty wooden spools
• 3 large square clear top tins

A prize package that will give you a great start in recreating today's projects!  You have until 7am EST, Thursday, January 14th to leave a comment here to be eligible to win.  One winner will be randomly selected by noon EST the same day and officially announced on our January Release Winners page.   Please play nice, only one comment per person.

Want to to see more of Top Ten & Top Ten Additions?  Stop by Michelle Wooderson's blog today to see what she created using these sets.

Dawn McVey is offering up another sneak peek of both sets.  You can also see her previous posts HERE, HERE and HERE.

Alli Miles is also featuring a project created with her new sets Daily Designs & Sentiments.

Kim Hughes is featuring a project that utilizes her new In Shape collection, Rock-a-bye Baby.

Top Five Lunchbox Notecard

Stamps: Top Ten & Top Ten Additions (available January 15th), Polka Dot Basics 2

Ink: Fresh Snow, Berry Sorbet, Sweet Blush, Smokey Shadow

Paper: Stamper's Select White, Berry Sorbet, Pretty Pastels Patterned Paper Collection

Other: 2-way glue pen, Prisma Glitter, scalloped scissors (Fiskars), Standard Circle Nestabilities, corner rounder punch

Finished Size: 5" x 5"

Top Ten Love Note Wrap

Stamps: Top Ten & Top Ten Additions (available January 15th)

Ink: Fresh Snow, Dark Chocolate, Spring Moss

Paper: Classic Kraft, Pretty Pastels Patterned Paper Collection

Other: 1/4" hole punch (Fiskars), sewing machine, wooden spool, large squar eclear top tin, 1/4" silk ribbon, corner rounder punch, scalloped scissors (Paper Studio), 1.25" circle punch (EK Success)