What's Your Secret Weapon?
 

A few tips and tricks I've picked up on these Forums have really changed my stamping life more than I would have imagined. Without SCS, these tips probably would have escaped me. So I thought it would be fun if we all put our most all-time-favorite tip here .

Here's my Secret Weapon :

When I learned that microwaving my finished (but botched) card for about 45 seconds would loosen all the adhesives so I could remove the elements and start over, I felt as if I had won the Lottery. The dollar value of my rescued cards doesn't matter as much as the satisfaction of being able to quickly fix what I botched. It's always a thrill!

What's your Secret Weapon?

To Understand Blue and Angel North I owe alot for many tips and tricks.

Awesome tip! I did not know about this "secret weapon"
Hmmm...a secret weapon...well I've always used Undu and have very much success as it leaves no marks at all. The smell goes away rather quickly and I can then move on to make an accident "look like it never even happened!"
I have learned that if you get a small mark on a white card base or focal piece you can take your craft knife and lightly scratch it off. That tip has worked wonders too!

My own personal triumph...maybe not a "secret weapon" is if I've messed up the card front, I fold it to the inside and cover it with patterned paper:)

Here is a thread that has been going for years. Favorite Tip Thread

http:////www.splitcoaststampers.com/...ip-t70652.html

One time I made 25 cards that had the word "Hello" on the front. The letters were cut from my Cricut at 1/2". So to speed up the process of gluing all of those letters on straight and even I took the excess piece of cardstock that the letters came out of...drew a straight line on the card and used the excess piece as a stencil of sorts, and just put glue on the back of each letter and then dropped it back in the hole it came out of. Then just removed the extra piece of cardstock. Saved me my sanity and I had them done in no time.
Anna Lee

THIS is my secret weapon as of this instant. I almost can't wait to botch up a card! (And, knowing me, I won't have to wait very long...)

Thanks, Bahb. :-)!

Bwahaha! I was thinking the same thing!!

I've been using dental floss to remove botch ups - but this sounds like it would be even less risky! Thanks!

Same here, cant wait to try the microwave idea. How clever, thanks so much for sharing.love the idea with using the page the word was cut from to help with laying out the letters again, nice and straight and evenly spaced.
I wish I could find a way to lay layers on my card straight. No matter what I do every card I do has a slight tilt to it. I measure, I mark I look, I check then I adhere and there it is crooked, ever so slight but its there, must have a crooked eye. My husband laughs as I do the same when hanging pictures and he will tilt his head to the side and look at the picture and smile. Yes I know 'crooked'!

My head is crooked too! But I do have a secret weapon for that! :)

<iframe width="560" height="315" src="//www.youtube.com/embed/7n1ilO8bDWQ" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe>

If I get a laser level my husband will borrow it and I'll never get it back!

I love the ideal of using the microwave! Wish I had known that trick yesterday, when I screwed up a card!!!LOL

Thanks for the tip on crooked head :) will check it out.

My laser light arrived last Friday.......many times an hour I am blessing you, Understand Blue, for posting that same video a couple of weeks ago that inspired me to buy the thing. I keep it beside my trimmer and have yet to make a card without it....and yet have had to fix a card I botched because my head is askew about 1/32nd of an inch. That 1/32 looks sooooo huge, once the card is "finished". But now I've kissed that problem good-bye and probably won't have to nuke finished cards ever again.

Amazon has the Bosch laser light on sale right now........well worth every penny!

Thanks again and again, Lydia.

That was absolutely brilliant. I have to get one, mmmmm I do believe there is one in the garage being married to a carpenter does have its advantages. Do you think he will notice its gone? I cant thank you enough for that idea

Love the microwave tip - I had no idea. Sorry I have no wisdom of my own to add!

Forgot to share a tip, do you find your glues and glossy accents block up and you spend ages trying to get rid of dried stuff. Two tips: tap the bottle on your table a couple of times to get the glue to drop down out of the tip. 2 when you buy clothing and the shops price tags are attached save the plastic strip that connects the tag. You will need to cut so the little T section stays attached. This plastic strip is thin enough to fit in the nozzle and the T section gives you something to grab to pull it out. I put it in, screw the lid on and next time I use the glue or glossy accents, just pull out the strip do what I need then put in again. Sometimes you need to wipe down the strip if bits of glue attached.
This has saved me so much time not having to unclog the end.

Another great tip - thanks. I do have glue issues!

If I didn't have the Kelly Craft Get it straight laser square and mat I would for sure use a laser light level! That is a great "secret weapon" Lydia...thanks for sharing!

What I love about my laser square and mat is that the mat is magnetic so not only can I lay my project down and line it up, I can hold it down with one of the little flat magnets that come with it. I LOVE this thing so much!! I guess it is my very best "secret weapon"!!

This is a BIG reason that I love the Perfect Layers Tool by Perfect Paper Crafting. You adhere your pieces first and then cut the layers - so you don't even have to think about lining it up. It's already done!

http://www.perfectpapercrafting.com

Love it. I want one! Very cool level.

Lydia what is the model of the laser thingy, I can't quite see it. The only one I can see in the Uk is a PLL 5 which is �32 ($52).
Ruth

I use my Perfect Layers Tools on EVERY card - BEST tools I ever bought!
No more crooked layers.

1. UnDu is my best scrapping friend.
2. I use a white crayon, or one of those clear resist ones that you get in Easter egg dyeing kits, to pick up small embellishments like sequins. It has just the right amount of "stick." I think any color crayon would work, but my kids never really used the white ones. And the clear ones are good for resist techniques too!

You're very welcome!

My secret weapon is not really a single tip or trick - it's my curiosity. Having a "what does this do and how does it work?" attitude makes creating fun, means I don't get bored and leads me to using supplies in different ways.

Any heat will do for a lot of tape adhesives, by the way - it doesn't have to be a microwave (good job as I don't own one!). Turn your heat gun on the area for a few seconds or even huff onto it (the moisture as well as the warmth from your breath with loosen tape adhesives, even ATG ones).

Dang it! I can't stream youtube while at work and this site still isn't perfect reading it from my phone. GRRRRRRRR!

*goes back to work*

this is the one I use :)

http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-uMG5t2Bu43...0/applause.gif

This isn't anywhere nearly as exciting as Lydia's fabulous trick, but I find it useful, anyway. I don't have the space (or money or inclination) to acquire every color of cardstock out there, so my trick is this: If you need a different color to mat an image or a layer or whatever, just swipe your inkpad around the edge of a piece of white, far enough in from the edge that it won't show when your image or layer is on top of it. Don't have the right color of inkpad, either? Markers are pretty amazing here, too... :)

Yes! totally this is what I do too!!! :)

I decided early on to not get certain things like a Cricut, stickers, Washi tape, huge paper stacks, prima type flowers, chipboard accessories, bulky embellishments, all the latest duplicate gadgets, cheap stamps, etc. Saves money and storage issues!
My mantra is just because something is pretty or cute doesn't mean I have to buy it or will ever use it.

Now I know what to get my husband for his birthday! (kidding)

My secret weapon is trying to remember that handmade cards are just that: "Handmade". They are not machine made or mass produced. They do not need to be perfect!

I remind myself every time I make a card that no one will look at it as critically as I do, then I sign it, put it in the envelope, and hope someone smiles when they open it! :)

Here are a few that I use all the time 1)score before you cut your card base so you get two ready to use bases at one cut 2)spend the couple of $$ for an adhesive eraser-takes care of all the little extra blobs or smears 3)keep a pin on your desk (I stuck a foam circle to a plastic desk organizer and stick the pin into the foam to store)-you can use it to unclog glues, pick up and adhere tiny pieces, etc 4)another inexpensive tool I use frequently is my stylus-not just for scoring but to add definition on die cut leaves, etc and to push ribbons through things

Heat n Bond or Wonder Under works great for adhering cut outs. Stamp or print your images and apply HnB or WU to the page with your iron (NO STEAM!!). Then cut out the images. Peel off the backing and iron to your cards/scrapbook pages. For you sewers out there, it's the same technique as applying an applique to fabric.

Also, I taped down my silicone sheet to my work table with painters tape. No more searching for it!

Repositionable Sticky Strip
 

I just came across a clever tip from a UK stamper, Michelle Last, to make sticky strip repositionable for a short space of time. Position the sticky strip on your project and remove the tape�s protective strip. Cover the sticky strip with a glue stick and then adhere your two layers together. If the layer isn�t quite straight, the layers can be easily repositioned. Once the glue from the glue stick dries, the sticky strip will hold the layers permanently. Michelle demonstrates this in her video at this link:

Sticky Strip | Stampin' Up! Demonstrator Michelle Last

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Just sent DH out to the shed to look for the laser he never uses! He's back already...found it!!!

Somewhere on this site someone had this suggestion. Use a length of dental floss to release a layer after you have taped it down. Just start at one corner and gently pull from top to bottom using a sawing motion. I use this trick all the time because sometimes I have unsolicited help from Rocky Meowboa..The Big Orange Freak!! and he really doesn't care where he sits! LOL

My Secret Weapon is Zip Dry Glue made by Beacon. I can slide the layers into place then it's permanent. Also sticks buttons, metal, felt. It dries fast, and any errors that seep out can be rolled off with a finger. I use Scotch double-sided tape for ribbon since the glue would show up 'wet.'

I bought a bottle of Zip Dry and loved it until...the tip clogged no matter what I tried. How do you keep it from doing that? It really is pretty amazing stuff...

You have to cap it IMMEDIATELY because it dries so fast. I have to keep a straight pin close to poke through any that has dried. If I have forgotten and the whole pointed tip is full of dried glue, I take off the lid with applicator pointed tip and remove the plastic-y plug from the bottom (the part that would be closer to the bottle). It all sticks together there so it's easy to pull out with tweezers. I have found that the tips will vary from bottle to bottle, so I keep reusing a favorite tip when I change bottles. I can't recommend it highly enough.