Wish Big for the Stampin' Queens!

This week's Stampin' Queens sketch was a fun one with stripes!

My version has fewer stripes, but I love how it turned out!

I found the colour combination on Pinterest and loved the idea of all that bright happiness on a Crumb Cake base!

My strips are Pumpkin Pie, Melon Mambo, Pretty in Pink and Tempting Turquoise. They're all just one inch wide, leaving a little 1/4" border of Crumb Cake at the bottom.

I stamped the sentiment from Short and Sweet in Melon Mambo on Whisper White and then matted it on Crumb Cake.

What do you think?

STAMPS: Short and Sweet
INK: Melon Mambo
PAPERS: Crumb Cake and Whisper White Cardstock; Pumpkin Pie, Melon Mambo, Pretty in Pink and Tempting Turquoise DSP
ACCESSORIES: Punches, Baker's Twine, Stampin' Dimensionals

Happy Stampin'!

If ain't broke...

...don't fix it! Sometimes, you find a TRULY awesome card and you just KNOW you're going to have to CASE it...with a WHOLE lot of emphasis on the COPY and considerably LESS on the selectively edit.

But first...my MOJO card from yesterday. Yes, I know I said you could have it, but I loved it SO much that I had to give it to my hubby for Valentine's Day (and a day early no less!).

You DO, however, get to see it (though not the mush on the inside):

I started off with a piece of Real Red Cardstock and added a layer of Designer Series Paper from "Just Add Cake". For the additional cardstock colours, I pulled from the DSP using Wild Wasabi and Baja Breeze.

Yesterday, I received the order that contained "Send Me Soaring" (one of the few sets I didn't think I needed from the Occasions Mini...until we used it at Regionals) and I just had to ink it up right away! I'll admit that the kite string is DEFINITELY tricky, but if you take extra care, you're good to go! This is most decidedly a stamp that falls into the GENTLY tap, tap, tap category. My class attendees will know what this means...and if you haven't been to a class yet, what are you waiting for? My upcoming class can be seen here.

When I gave the card to my hubby, *I* cried! How pathetic is THAT? This is our 25th Valentine's Day together and he STILL sends me soaring, so the sentiment was VERY appropriate!

Enough mushy stuff...on to the card that you DO get to have if you remember to comment!

This is my "If it ain't broke" card, completely CASE'd from the lovely and talented Robin Merriman. The one single thing I changed was stamping the "Wish Big" sentiment from Short and Sweet in Melon Mambo.

My card base is 4 1/4" x 5 1/2" and the single layer is 4" x 5 1/4" Whisper White. I stamped a collage pattern (much like Robin's) using Pumpkin Pie, Melon Mambo and Pacific Point.

I used the new Blossom Punch to punch out the Designer Series Paper and the stamped flower image. I even added GLITTER! Thank goodness for Dazzling Details - no glitter messes - YAY!!!

Now...the BAD news is, I only have ONE of these to give away, so if you'd like it, be sure to leave a comment, TODAY, February 14th, 2012 before midnight EST. The GOOD news is, I think I'll add this card to the March class because it DEFINITELY falls into the "cheery" category. So, if you don't win, you can come make one!

What do you think?

STAMPS: Short and Sweet, Send Me Soaring, Mixed Bunch
INK: Basic Black, Baja Breeze, Pumpkin Pie, Melon Mambo and Pacific Point
PAPERS: Real Red, Baja Breeze, Wild Wasabi, Melon Mambo and Whisper White Cardstock; Just Add Cake DSP
ACCESSORIES: Punches, Stampin' Dimensionals, Dazzling Details

Happy Stampin'!

Doing the Mojo with CCMC in Basic Poppy Limeade

Confusing enough for you? LOL! Well, it's MONDAY and I actually got to DO the MOJO Monday ON the actual Monday...which I can assure you is NO small feat!

I also decided to use the CCMC colour challenge, which is kind of Christmas-y, but sort of not. I mean...it's red and green, but I can't wrap my brain around how bright the colours are. KWIM?

Anyway, here's the card:

The CCMC colour challenge this week was Basic Grey, Poppy Parade and Lucky Limeade...which are KIND OF Christmas-y, but not really what I would call traditional Christmas colours. Maybe that's just me. You can let me know what you think in the comments section below.

The only Basic Grey I had was 12 x 12" textured cardstock, so I started off with that, trimming it to 8 1/2 x 11" and then in half to 4 1/4 x 11". I then added a piece of Basic Grey Designer Series Paper from the Neutral paper pack. It's cut to 4 x 5 1/4". I added some more Designer Series Paper from both of the In Colour packs.

I stamped the ornament in Poppy Parade and the little string in Lucky Limeade. I punched out the circle using the 1 3/4" circle punch and then sponged the edges using Poppy Parade. I adhered the punched circle to a piece of Lucky Limeade which was punched with the 2 3/8" Scalloped Circle Punch and stuck it all to the front of the card using Stampin' Dimensionals.

The sentiment was stamped on Whisper White in Poppy Parade and trimmed it to a skinny strip before turning it into a banner.

What do you think?

STAMPS: Tree Trimmings, Short and Sweet
INK: Poppy Parade, Lucky Limeade
PAPERS: Whisper White, Basic Grey, Lucky Limeade and Poppy Parade Cardstock; Basic Grey, Lucky Limeade and Poppy Parade DSP.
ACCESSORIES: Punches, Stampin' Dimensionals

Happy Stampin'!

THANK YOU!!!

If you attended Stamp-a-Rama this past Saturday, you get this:

Well, you don't get JUST this (the picture), you get a REAL card sent to you with a real postage stamp and it will land in your REAL mailbox soon!

I want to thank everyone that attended my very first all day stamping event! If YOU missed it, here's some of what was said:

"Awesome Event!!! Well organized and lots of fun. I learned a lot and definitely would attend again. Way to go Christyne!!"

"I had a really great time! The cards looked wonderful and weren't too difficult to put together. The 3-D projects were cool and it was so helpful to have everything cut and scored before we started! I would love to come to another event!"


Mark your calendars NOW for my next BIG event!  We'll spend a 1/2 day together (choose between two start times - 10 a.m. or 3 p.m) creating an adorable Christmas/Holiday album using the Simply Scrappin' Kit and 6 X 6 Album from the Holiday Mini. You're going to LOVE IT!!!


Happy Stampin'!

Flashback Friday!

Welcome back to another round of Flashback Friday! My apologies for the late posting, but with the kids out of school they are occupying a lot of my time...and giving me more laundry!!

Let's get started with Sketch # 20:

I chose Baja Breeze and Whisper White for this one. I have a few male customers, so this is going to one of them. Are you one of my customers who's placed an order in the last year? Do you want to be? One of the perks of being my customer is that I send out cards ALL. THE. TIME. So, if you're one of MY customers, look for a card in your mailbox!

The set I used is Uncharted Territory and I'm happy to report that it is still in the 2011-2012 Idea Book and Catalogue. Since The Open Sea didn't make it into the new Catalogue (there's always next year!), this will be my new go-to set for boats.

Sketch # 21:

As some of you know, I'm hosting my very first Stamp-a-Rama event in August! We'll be using the Playful Polka Dots Simply Scrappin' Kit. I designed and completed all the projects and still had LOTS of Paper left over from the kit, so I'm STILL using it!

I also used one of my FAVOURITE sentiments from the Smarty Pants Stamp Set.

Sketch # 22:

I created this one as a love not card (3x3) and I'll be giving it to some of my girlfriends over the weekend - shhhhh!

I used a greeting from the Happy Greetings Set which is in the Summer Mini (only available till August 30th) and MORE of the Designer Series Paper and cardstock from the Playful Polka Dots kit.

Sketch # 23:

I've been doing some custom work for a new client. Her save the date cards are quite unique and require a special folder. I designed one like a gift certificate holder with which she was quite pleased. This card is the same basic design and can be used to hold a gift certificate.  It's 3 7/8" x 8 1/2".

I used even MORE paper from the Playful Polka Dots Kit and a stamp from the Short and Sweet Set. The card is further embellished with the Scallop Trim Border Punch and some Daffodil Delight 3/8" Taffeta Ribbon.

Sketch # 24:

I just started taking John Sanpietro's Stamping Business Basics course and one of the first things we were to do was determine our OBJECTIVE for doing what we do. It couldn't be about the MONEY specifically, but we had to choose something to work toward to keep us motivated to keep working the business.

My daughter suggested world travel - pretty awesome since I've never left the North American continent. So, my FIRST objective is a trip to Paris. I've always wanted to have breakfast on the Champs Elysées, so this is my motivation!

I used images from the Artistic Etchings Set and a sentiment from On the Grow since it seemed PERFECT for this card.

Sketch # 25:

This one uses Fabulous Florets and paper from the Pocketful of Posies Pack. The colours I used remind of a paper called (I think) Tea Garden.  Everything old is NEW again!

I stamped the flowers for my background using Pear Pizzazz and Calypso Coral. Then I stamped my focal flowers using Pear Pizzazz, So Saffron and Calypso Coral.  LOVE this combination! The Calypso Coral flower was stamped three times and cut out to add dimension.

The sentiment I used is from the set You're a Gem, which was first in the Occasions Mini earlier this year and is now in the Idea Book and Catalogue.

Well, that's it for today! I have a BUSY weekend with my girlfriends and my downline planned, so I likely won't be back till it's time for MDS Monday.

Next Wednesday, I am heading to Boston to hang out with Brenda and Mary Anne as we have our own CONBRENTION!!! We couldn't go to Stampin' UP! convention this year, so the three of us are going to have our very own version.  Can't wait!!  Brenda says she even has pillow gifts for us - WOOT!

While there I will DEFINITELY be posting about all the fun and crazy things we're doing as well as posting about any news we hear from Convention.

Have a GREAT weekend and Happy Stampin'!

STAMPS: Short and Sweet, Uncharted Territory, Happy Greetings, Smarty Pants, Artistic Etchings, On the Grow, Fabulous Florets,  You're a Gem
INK: Baja Breeze, Old Olive, Melon Mambo, So Saffron, Soft Suede, Pear Pizzazz, Calypso Coral, Versamark
PAPERS: Baja Breeze, Old Olive, Melon Mambo, So Saffron, Soft Suede, Pear Pizzazz, Daffodil Delight, Pumpkin Pie, Whisper White
ACCESSORIES: Punches, Stampin Dimensionals, Big Shot, Dies, Ribbon

ATC Tuesday - Very Merry

I had this card idea in my head yesterday and it turned out that an ATC was just the way to start it off!

I came up with this:

You'll have to forgive the smudging around the image. It was late and I took it at my workspace with my iPhone before attaching it to the card. I can't SHOW you the completed card, because it's a SUDSOL exclusive. If you're a demonstrator...you'll have to join SUDSOL to see it. It's REALLY easy to do! Just click on the link to the left of my blog posts.

I started off with a piece of Whisper White Cardstock. I stamped my little snowman in Staz-ON ink and watercoloured him. Now, I don't normally watercolour on Whisper White, but because I wasn't doing a LOT of colouring, it didn't turn out too bad. If I'd been doing a lot of blending, like in this card, I would have stamped on Watercolour Paper because otherwise, I would have ended up with a whole bunch of little white "pills" from the paper peeling due to the excess water.

I coloured his hat and mitts using the Real Red Watercolour Wonder Crayon, despite the fact that DH pointed out that snowman hats are usually black. Too bad for him! Red matched the theme for the rest of my card!

What do you think?

STAMPS: Jolly Old St. Nick, Short and Sweet

INK: Staz-ON

PAPERS: Whisper White, Pacific Point

ACCESSORIES: Watercolour Wonder Crayons, Aqua Painter

Happy Stampin'!