Meet the Clear and Simple Stamps Little Critters

Clear and Simple Stamps is starting the new year off with lots of new goodies! Today I’m sharing samples using some of the new additions to the line up—Little Critters and Little Critters Too, along with the matching Little Critters dies. These sets are part of a fabulous collection of critter images, sentiments, and dies in a variety of shapes and sizes that make them super versatile--and cute, too.

I paired the Little Critters stamps and dies to make a set of stick puppets. And, you can’t have puppets without a having a puppet theater, so I put together one of those, too!

The puppet theater is constructed from a piece of foam core with a rectangular opening cut out at the top. I covered the white foam core with kraft cardstock for a wood like look, reminiscent of the puppet theater I had in my classroom when I taught kindergarten.

Instead of curtains inside the window opening, I used a red scalloped strip, scored and folded, for a valance-like accent at the top of the opening. The “Little Critter Puppet Co.” sign on the front of the puppet theater is stamped in red with the Alpha Modern set, again in a nod to the handwritten signs my students used to make to label things in my kindergarten class. A simple piece of scored and folded cardboard is attached to the back to prop the theater up.

To make the stick puppets, I cut out each animal twice—once from a piece of colored cardstock and once from a lightweight chipboard coaster. Layering the two pieces makes the puppets much sturdier and more likely to hold up to love from your favorite puppeteer! I stamped the matching animal image on each die cut shape, then added details to each one—paper piecing on some, flocking and glitter on others—to make them come to life. A wooden stick is attached to the back of each one and they’re good to go.

I’ll have more samples featuring this set and CSS's other new releases throughout the month. There's so much new stuff and I have lots of ideas to share! In the meantime, be sure to visit the rest of the CSS design team to see what they’ve created using the latest releases. I've seen some sneak peeks and I know you don't want to miss these posts! Here’s where to find them:

Lori Tecler-you're here!
Dana Grothaus
Laura O'Donnell
Tracy Schultz
Kim Duran
Stephany Zerbe
Amber Daigre
Laurie Willison
Laura Bassen
CSS Blog

For more CSS inspiration, be sure to check out the CSS iPhone/iTouch app. A new project is shared daily, complete with step by step instructions. Here’s a sneak peek of my project that's on the app today. You can get all the info on downloading the app here.

Materials Used:
Little Critters, Little Critters Too and Alpha Modern stamp sets, Perfect Little Black Dress and Haute Red Couture inks, Dare to Be a Diva Red, Creamsicle Cardigan, Say Yellow to All Your Fans, Brown Leather Satchel, Kraft Like a Rockstar, You’re Such a Gray-cious Host, VIP Purple, Purplicious, Perfect Little Black Dress, and A Blanc Check cardstock, Little Critters dies, Simple Adhesive (Clear and Simple Stamps); vellum (The Paper Co.); Dazzling Diamonds (Stampin’ Up!); white flock (Stampendous); medium scallop border die (Papertrey Ink)