Mini Banner tutorial (plus giveaway)

So I've finally decided to jump in with the whole banner "trend."

While I did like the banner stickers that Jenni Bowlin put out at CHA, and there have been some really cute patterned papers with banners on them, I really liked the idea of being able to make my own banners out of paper of my choosing.

But how should I go about doing this?

Sure, I could cut those cute little triangles with scissors, but the combination of my imperfect cutting skills combined with the need for speed (and my current obsession with punches) made me want to search for a punch solution.

Although I do have a triangular border punch, the triangles were a little too fat for the banners that I envisioned. I wanted some more skinny (narrow) triangles.

And I have seen some diamond shaped punches out there, but never in the small size that I wanted. Also, a diamond punch not as versatile as say, a circle punch. I mean, argyle patterns are cool, but not my usual style, and also how many diamond shaped journaling blocks have you seen? Exactly.

(No offense to anyone who really likes the idea of a diamond shaped journaling block. I just mean that I don't think my pages are cool enough to pull that kind of thing off.) ;)

But then it hit me that I already had some punches that were perfect for the job: my EK Success pointy heart punches!

I love me some pointy bottom hearts. So to make a triangle punched piece out of a heart, you just gotta take some paper, and punch out your hearts...

Then snip. Off goes the top of the heart!

You get some pretty cute triangles and some little bumpy scallops.

So now you just take your perfectly punched triangles and voila! Perfectly punched banner ready to go. (I also have a pointy-heart stamp which might do to make a stamped or embossed version)

I adhered my triangles to my page in a vaguely semi-circular fashion, and drew the "string" using a black pen. I've seen fancier versions that use real stitching or baker's twine though. I guess it depends on the look you want to go for.

So that's the latest tutorial showcasing my current obsession with punches. Hope you like it.

Oh, and as an extra-special treat, I'm doing a surprise giveaway.

A brand new limited edition Studio Calico Cherry stamp set:

It's just perfect for all those girly spring projects you're working on right now. So, if you'd like a chance to win this little cutie, just leave me a comment on this post and tell me what's inspiring you right now. Comments will be closed at 5:00 pm PST on Friday 04/16/2010.

I've got quite a few things to blog about later this week, including some big personal news and the full layout you see a snippet of above.

That's it for me for tonight. Hope your weekend was fantastic. Happy Sunday!