For a few years now I have been thinking about the best way to go about creating the ultimate collection of products to enable stampers to create their own customized calendars. I felt like it was most important to make the process quick and easy, because if you are anything like me, you start on a project like this and don't follow through to the end because there are TWELVE pages to complete after all!
Well, the thought process is finally complete with every detail executed perfectly, bringing you the Calendar Basics line of products.
It all starts with a stamp set. The Calendar Basics stamp set includes everything you need to customize our line of pre-printes calendar products (more about those in a moment). All twelve months are covered in not one, but two different fonts.
There are small design elements that can be used to accent the monthly headings, giving you many ways to customize the look of your calendar.
There are holiday icon images to designate which day a particular holiday falls on.
There are even elements that allow you to create a custom title for the cover of your calendar project.
The years 2011-2020 are covered so you will be able to get lots of use from this set for years to come.
There are sentiments that allow you to use the month titles in your everyday card making.
Myself along with the rest of the team will be showing you how all of these images work together to create calendars and more, but first the details.
The details.
- Calendar Basics stamp set will be available for purchase on September 15th.
- It will retail for $24.
- Calendar Basics stamp set includes a total of 62 stamps (12 month titles in a block font, 12 month titles in a script font, 10 yearly titles (2011-2020), 8 complementary design elements, 9 holiday/event icons, 6 cover title elements and 5 sentiments)
Now I am assuming that many of you may be like me and have shied away from calendar projects in the past because of how labor intensive they tend to be. Well, that was the old way of creating calendars. With our pre-printed calendar pages and the help of an amazing die, you can complete an entire calendar in half the time.
First, let me show you the two different types of calendars we will be offering on the 15th.
Our pre-printed 2011 Mini Calendar is the quickest way to put together a project. The pages measure 2.5" square and they are printed on white patterned paper weight paper. They are designed this size to specifically coordinate with our new Calendar Page Die (more about that below). The "days of the week" are printed in a light gray across the top of the page, while the numbers are printed in black.
I designed the pages so there is the perfect amount of space at the top to add your own month title, allowing you to keep everything color coordinated within your project. To help this project be time efficient, I added a code in the lower right corner of each page that let's you know what month the page is for. For example, the January page has the code "PTI JAN2011". These pages make it SO quick and easy to put together your own project in a matter of minutes, but still give you the flexibility of customization.
The details.
- The 2011 Mini Calendar will be available for purchase September 15th.
- They will retail for $2 each.
- Each 2011 Mini Calendar contains all twelve months, each page measuring 2.5" square.
- They are printed on quality white 80lb. paper (the same paper we use for our patterned paper).
- The 2011 Mini Calendar coordinates with the Calendar Page Die, available separately.
Now a bit more about the aforementioned Calendar Page Die. This die measures about 5-1/4" x 6-1/2", creating pages that will fit perfectly in our Calendar Cases. The small tabs will hold the 2011 Mini Calendar pages perfectly in place and add an extra design element that eliminates the need to do any matting or layering. This helps to keep the pages thin so that they can all fit in the Calendar Case.
I love the concept of this die because all you need to do is stamp a pattern or image directly onto the cardstock, slip in the mini calendar page and you're done! Quick, easy and FUN!!!!!
The details.
- The Calendar Page Die will be available for purchase on September 15th.
- It will retail for $16.
- The Calendar Page Die measures about 5.25" x 6.5" and the pages it creates fit perfectly in our Calendar Cases.
- The 2011 Mini Calendar pages can be inserted underneath the tabs for calendar creating efficiency.
- Any 2.5" block can be inserted behind the tabs for use in both card making and scrapbooking. Think of the amazing, quick & easy mini book possibilities!
For those of you who enjoy making larger scaled calendars that allow you space to write notes and reminders each day, our 2011 Large Calendar is just what you need. These loose, unbound calendar pages measure 8.5" x 11" and are printed on heavyweight 120lb white cardstock. This is an even HEAVIER weight than our Stamper's Select White cardstock!
The 2011 Large Calendar pages allow you plenty of room at the top to add photos or stamp images directly to the page. You can add just the month or finish it off with flourishes or other embellishments from the Calendar Basics stamp set. Stamp images can be tucked into different date blocks to note birthdays, anniversaries and holidays. The 2011 Large Calendar pages also feature the same month coding as the mini calendar in the lower right hand corner, making it easy to keep track of what month which page is for.
The details.
- The 2011 Large Calendar will be available for purchase September 15th.
- They will retail for $7 each.
- Each 2011 Large Calendar contains all twelve months, each page measuring 8.5" x 11".
- They are printed on quality white 120lb. cardstock (this is a heavier weight than our Stamper's Select White Cardstock!)
Now, if I haven't tempted you enough already, let me tell you all about a THIRD way you can utilize the Calendar Basics stamp set!
Are you familiar with the concept of a birthday calendar? The premise behind a birthday calendar is that you have a permanent page for each month with a listing of the birthdays you want to remember each year. You use the same calendar every year, so it is an amazing organizational tool and/or gift.
The concept I came up with allows you to easily store a few cards along with each month and house it all together in a sturdy, long-lasting binder. Plus you can put your effort into making a really cute cover for the binder rather than each individual page since the work is practically done for you.
The Birthday Calendar Pages arrive flat and scored just to the right of the list portion of the page as well as three hole punched for the binder. There is space at the top of the list for you to add the month with the Calendar Basics stamp set. The idea is for you to fold the list flap over and adhere just the top and bottom with Scor-tape and create a pocket for cards each month.
The details.
- Birthday Calendar Page sets will be available for purchase September 15th.
- They will retail for $7 each.
- Each Birthday Calendar Page set contains twelve pages (for twelve months), each page measuring 8" x 10.25".
- They are printed on our Stamper's Select White Cardstock.
- Birthday Calendar Page sets coordinate with our Kraft Binder, which will be available for purchase separately (more information below).
We are also selling the three ring binder to store the Birthday Calendar Pages in. It is similar to the binder we currently sell to house the Color Couture line of products, minus the logo printed on the cover.
The details.
- The Kraft Binder will be available for purchase September 15th.
- They will retail for $8 each.
- The Kraft Binder is a three ring binder that measures 7.25" wide and 9" tall.
So, are you as excited as I am about ALL these amazing goodies! Let me show you what myself and the rest of the team has created with this incredible product line!
I thought I would start out today's post with one of the customized Birthday Books that you can create with these products.
I embellished the cover of the Kraft Binder with a strip of Ocean Tides cardstock stamped with Turning a New done in Fresh Snow Ink. The title is die-cut using the Mat Stack 4 die from Stamper's Select White cardstock. All of the elements within the title are images from the Calendar Basics stamp sets, allowing you to customize your project inside & out.
The companion stamp set also has elements to decorate the spine of your birthday book. I discovered that the Tea for Two label die works nicely with this image.
Now, a bit more about those Birthday Calendar pages I was telling you about earlier. They come pre-punched and scored, ready to fold into the pocket pages.
All you need to do is add a few pieces of Scor-tape at teh top and bottom...
and when you fold it over, it becomes a pocket to hold cards for each month.
As I mentioned earlier, there are stamp titles for each month. Here I stamped it in Spring Moss and then added one of the small flourishes from the set in Ocean Tides. I love how I can easily carry over my color scheme from the cover to the interior pages this way.
There is a small "HB" (Happy Birthday) and "AN" (Anniversary) to be used to mark which days have a birthday or anniversary associated with them. You can then fill in the appropriate name next to each date.
Once all of the pages are complete, they tuck beautifully inside the binder together.
Not only would this make a wonderful gift for someone, full of birthday cards, it would be a great way to treat yourself since you ARE after all a card maker!
Now, how about a project using the mini calendar? I started by die-cutting 12 Calender Pages with the Calendar Page Die, using 12 different colors.
I matched up a color with each month and then stamped the month titles in the coordinating color. For February I used Melon Berry.
I decided to stamp all of my pages with Friends 'Til the End using Fresh Snow ink. After doing so, I was able to go through and insert the mini calendar pages with each appropriate color. All twelve pages tuck nicely into the calendar case.
To finish the project, I created a wrap around cover for the calendar. There is a special stamp in the set that is specifically designed to be used on calendar case spines. Here it is, customized with the year "2011". As I mentioned earlier, the years 2011-2020 are included so you will get nearly a decade of use from the set.
I punched out 3/4" squares from the scraps leftover from die-cutting the calendar pages and stamped each one with Friends 'Til the End, then arranges them in an eye appealing color-block pattern on the cover. I lovethe way this turned out!
The finished case looks professional & polished! It's little details like the cover of this calendar, that really take a project to the next level!
Now how about some MORE Calendar Basics projects & inspiration from the team!
CLICK HERE to read more from Betsy Veldman.
CLICK HERE to read more from Dawn McVey.
CLICK HERE to read more from Debbie Olson.
CLICK HERE to read more from Erin Lincoln.
CLICK HERE to read more from Heather Nichols.
CLICK HERE to read more from Kim Hughes.
CLICK HERE to read more from Lisa Johnson.
CLICK HERE to read more from Maile Belles.
CLICK HERE to read more from Melissa Phillips.
CLICK HERE to read more from Michelle Wooderson.
CLICK HERE to read more from Niki Estes.
I hope you have thoroughly enjoyed everything that myself and the entire team have put together for you today. The Calendar Basics collection is an absolute JOY to work with. I always thought the idea of making a calendar was daunting until now and I hope you will join me in discovering just how fun these types of projects can be! Not to mention what amazing gifts they can create!
We would love to hear your initial thoughts about the Calendar Basics line-up. Have you made calendars before? Does it seem like this system will streamline the process for you? Have you avoided calendars in the past and this product line has inspired you to jump in with both feet? Which type of calendar are you most excited about creating? We have an AMAZING prize package up for grabs, which you could have a chance at winning just for leaving a comment!
- Calendar Basics stamp set
- Calendar Page die
- 2011 Mini Calendar page set
- 2011 Large Calendar page set
- Birthday Calendar page set
- Kraft Binder
This prize package is valued at over $60, so you won't want to miss out on having a chance to play along! This contest ends at 7am EST, Tuesday, September 14th. Only one comment per person please. One randomly selected winner will be announced by noon EST on our September Release Winners Page. Thanks for stopping by today! And good luck!
Alli Miles has more inspiration to offer using Holiday Spirit Sentiments.
Beth Silaika is showcasing another sample using Trees With Trimmings.
Becky Oehlers has a project featuring Framed that you won't want to miss.
BIRTHDAY BOOK
- STAMPS: Calendar Basics (available September 15th), Turning a New Leaf, Text Style II
- INK: Fresh Snow, Spring Moss, Ocean Tides
- PAPER: Ocean Tides, Spring Moss, Stamper's Select White
- OTHER: Birthday Calendar page set, Kraft Binder, Medium Scalloped Border Die, Spring Moss Swiss Dot Ribbon, Mat stack 4 die
CALENDAR CASE
- STAMPS: Calendar Basics (available September 15th),Friends 'Til the End
- INK: Fresh Snow, Melon Berry, Lavender Moon, Spring Rain, Spring Moss, Simply Chartreuse, Ripe Avocado, Terracotta Tile, Dark Chocolate, Ocean Tides, Aqua Mist, Sweet Blush, True Black
- PAPER: Kraft, Melon Berry, Lavender Moon, Spring Rain, Spring Moss, Simply Chartreuse, Ripe Avocado, Terracotta Tile, Dark Chocolate, Ocean Tides, Aqua Mist, Sweet Blush, Stamper's Select White
- OTHER: Calendar Page Die, 2011 Mini Calendar page set, Calendar Case
