Ten Card Class - Coming at the end March

I hope you'll join me as I start introducing classes to my schedule!


My first class will be a ten card class featuring all occasions stamp sets using several different stamp sets include Apple Blossoms, the Level 2 Hostess Set seen here:


Join me on Sunday March 27th, 2011 at 1 p.m. and we'll make 10 all occasion cards, using a variety of stamp sets, including the Level 2 Hostess Set. If orders on the day of class total $395 or more, I'll choose a lucky winner to receive the set!

Early Bird Cost: $25 - Register and Pay prior to March 15th

Regular Cost: $30 - Register and Pay prior to March 20th

Place a $60 order on class day and your $25/$30 class fee will be applied to your order as a discount!

SPACE IS LIMITED TO 10 STAMPERS, so reserve early to avoid disappointment.

Pricing

Early Bird Pricing $25.00 Bring a Friend Price (per person) $20.00 Regular Price $30.00

Love What You Do and Share What You Love with Stampin' UP!

There has never been a better time to join Stampin' UP!  SALE-A-BRATION means a 15% discount on the kit and Stampin' UP! has added a bundle of goodies worth $60!

Need MORE incentive?  Join my team and I'll give you $50 worth of embellishments including the Adornments, Rosettes and both sets of buttons in the Occasions Mini which you can see by clicking the link on the right sidebar.

Still looking for a BETTER deal? If you're just joining for the discount and would like the benefits of being a Stampin' UP! demonstrator but don't want to sell, I'll buy the business supplies back from you for $40 in product of YOUR choice.

What are you waiting for?

Click here to join now and get immediate access!

You've got to hurry!!!  This offer is incredibly time sensitive and will expire at 10 p.m. EST on February 28th, 2011.

I can't WAIT for you to join my team!

SALE-A-BRATE with Sweet Summer

If you liked BLISS, you're going to LOVE Sweet Summer!

Check out Stampin' UP!'s own Carrie Cudney as she shows us step by step instructions to create the Sweet Summer note card featured on page 8 of the SALE-A-BRATION brochure.



Don't have your OWN brochure?  Contact me TODAY and I'll get one out to you!  But hurry!!!  There's only a few more weeks left to SALE-A-BRATE!

Explore Your Creativity!

Don't be stressed - DISTRESS!

So, you had a rough day...your boss was annoying you all day long, you got home from work and the kids hadn't completed their homework and hadn't done any chores.

You get them fed, bathed and off to bed and now it's FINALLY your turn! But you're still so STRESSED you don't know WHERE to start. Well...don't get stressed, DISTRESS!!!

Now, of course, you need to be careful. We're dealing with sharp objects here...wouldn't want to cut yourself while you're trying to shred the edges of that paper with scissors.

Let's get started:

• For my card base, I've chosen a piece of Not Quite Navy Cardstock cut to 5 1/2" x 8 1/2" and folded at 4 1/4". As a rule, I don't distress my card base...but that's just me.  If you want to distress your card base, go to town!  After all...it's YOUR card! And really, it's just a little extra therapy - who doesn't need that?
• Next, you're going to want to choose your background Designer Series Paper, if you're using any.  For this card, I'm going to use a piece of Springtime Vintage Designer Series Paper.  True, a lot of this paper tends to lean towards the "girlie" side, but a couple of the designs are neutral enough to use on a card for your man. And that's what I'm making today. Cut it to the size you like (in this case, I used a piece that is 3 7/8" x 5 1/8" and matted it on a piece of Pear Pizzazz cut to 4" x 5 1/4") and then take your scissors or cutter kit to the edges.  Rough it up as much as you like.
• Next, choose your stamp set - I chose "Countryside" because I'm in a watercolouring kind of mood. PLEASE don't be intimidated by watercolouring! Most of the Stampin' UP! stamps that are "designed" for watercolouring have the shadows added to the stamp. So, just add more colour to the shadows and VOILA! MASTERPIECE! As a side note, our watercolour paper is sized to fit as the second layer up from your card base.  Because I've already got two layers that are fairly close in size, I've trimmed it down just a bit. My watercolour paper is 3 1/4" x 4 3/4".
•   I started off by stamping the image using STAZ-ON ink.  This is a GREAT ink for watercolouring images as it won't run if it gets soaked!  I then coloured the truck using Baja Breeze and Not Quite Navy.
• After the truck was coloured, I coloured in the apples.  I used Real Red and a LOT of water because I wanted an "antique" sort of look.
• Once I had the truck and apples coloured, I started in on the grass and sky.  This required a LOT of water and warped my paper.  BUT! Not to worry!  Once it's dry and I mat in on a piece of Not Quite Navy, it'll lie nice and flat.

While it's drying here are some Tips from the Heart:

• There are many options for watercolouring your images.  My favourite is to use an aqua painter and wet the tip of one of the watercolouring crayons and colour in my image.
• You can also use the ink from your ink pads. DON'T put your aqua painter directly onto your ink pad as this dilutes the colour. Here's what to do: Before opening your ink pad, gently squeeze it.  What this will do is transfer some of the ink from the pad onto the lid.  THIS is the ink you will use to colour your image. This is especially helpful if you don't have the watercolour crayon in the colour of your choice - for example, the "In Colours" are not available as a watercolour crayon.
• For a deeper, more intense colour, use a few drops of re-inker.  Put these into the lid of the matching colour ink pad and use the re-inker to colour your image.  The result will be a much deeper colour.
• If you need to cover a big area of your design, you can also colour using the watercolour crayon directly onto your paper. Then, use your aqua painter to spread it around. Caution: this will require a LOT of water to spread around, otherwise, you'll end up with lines from the crayon on your paper.

OK, now that our focal image is dry, here's the final product:

What do you think?

STAMPS: Countryside, Teeny Tiny Wishes

INK: Staz-ON, Not Quite Navy

PAPER: Pear Pizzazz and Not Quite Navy Cardstock; Watercolour Paper; Springtime Vintage DSP

ACCESSORIES: Cutter Kit, Aqua Painters, Watercolour Crayons, Punches

Happy Stampin'!

MDS Monday - SALE-A-BRATION style!

Can you believe it?  FREE!!!!



Yes, it's true, you can receive this whole CD for FREE when you place an order of $60 or more during SALE-A-BRATION. What are you waiting for?  Place your order today by using the ORDER NOW button at the top left of my blog.

Happy Stampin!

Have you placed your February order yet?

If not, maybe this will help...

It's my Thank You Card for this month!  That's right! Everyone placing an order with me in February will receive one of these FABULOUS cards.  Special thanks to Angie Kennedy Judy of Chic 'n' Scratch for the inspiration.

NO NAKED ENVELOPES!

And, thanks to my AWESOME upline Caroline LeBel, here you have NO NAKED ENVELOPES!

My favourite part of the WHOLE card (other than the fact that YOU will receive one if you place an order with me this month), is the butterfly that I added. It's popped up on one of my all time FAVOURITE accessories: Stampin' Dimensionals!

Close up of the dimensional element

Don't miss out on receiving one of these FABULOUS cards!  Click on the shop now button at the top left of my blog and you'll be taken right to my Business Website where you can shop to your heart's content!  The best part?  It's SALE-A-BRATION BABY!!!  That means with every $65 order, you get FREE stuff - yes FREE!!!!




I can't WAIT for you to get one of these FABULOUS cards!

STAMPS: Thanks for Caring, A Word for You
INK: Not Quite Navy
PAPERS: Very Vanilla and Baja Breeze Cardstock; Springtime Vintage DSP
ACCESSORIES: Punches and Stampin' Dimensionals

Happy Stampin'!

Have you SALE-A-BRATED yet?

If not, what your waiting for?

Here's a super cute video with super cute Shannon West demonstrating my FAVOURITE set from this year's SALE-A-BRATION: BLISS!!!



Come back tomorrow and I'll have a Bliss project of my VERY OWN to show you!  If you don't want to miss a single one of my blog posts, be sure to follow me!

Happy Stampin'!

Pals Paper Arts Colour Challenge

I know, I know...last minute again!  With just a couple hours to spare I decided to participate in the Pals Paper Arts Colour Challenge.  It was a doozy, let me tell you.  Riding Hood Red, Rich Razzleberry and Certainly Celery - HUH?

I decided to use Riding Hood Red as the accent colour and that seemed to do the job.  Here's the card front:

I started with a Certainly Celery base and then used some of the new First Edition DSP from the Occasions Mini.  I LOVE this stuff!  You get 24 sheets in a package and it's ALL double-sided!

Now, normally with this colour combination, I would use Whisper White.  However, because of the Very Vanilla in the First Edition DSP, I went with Vanilla for my main image panel. Because I was using Very Vanilla instead of Whisper White, I did a LOT of sponging.  I find that sometimes Very Vanilla goes with certain colours and Whisper White goes with others.

Anyway...enough rambling - LOL!

Here's the inside of the card:

 I sponged around the Very Vanilla Cardstock with Certainly Celery Ink and did the same around the First Edition DSP. I stamped another image from the Thanks for Caring set in  Rich Razzleberry.

I used the sentiment from the same set and OF COURSE stamped it crooked, so had to improvise just a little - LOL!

What do you think?

STAMPS: Thanks for Caring
INK: Certainly Celery, Rich Razzleberry, Riding Hood Red
PAPERS: Very Vanilla, Certainly Celery and Rich Razzleberry Cardstock; First Edition DSP
ACCESSORIES: Punches, Sponge Daubers

Happy Stampin'!

Life is a matter of moments

I may have mentioned before that when I first saw Elements of Style, I pretty much turned my nose up at it.  Vintage?  SO not for me! Or so I thought...

5" X 5" Art Journal

Turns out I like vintage - A LOT! So, when I saw this altered art journal on the Stampin' UP! site, I knew I had to make one for myself!  I haven't ordered the journal yet, but you can be sure that it'll be on my next order! I just LOVE the way this journal has been decorated!

Do you know how to get the paper all the way to the EDGE through the rings?  Easy peasy!  Just order the Spiral Punch along with all the supplies and you'll be good to go!

Want to see what I do with my journal when I get it?  Sign up for my newsletter and I'll share it with you in my next semi-monthly newsletter.  You can also shop for all the products you need to create your OWN altered art journal by clicking on the scalloped circle just above my newsletter sign up box.

Happy Stampin'!

It's time for another SUDSOL BLOG HOP!

If you've come to my blog from Cynthia Stevenson, you're in the right place!  Thank you for stopping in!

I became a SUDSOL member when I first joined Stampin' Up! last year and have found it an invaluable resource! The patterns library alone is worth EVERY penny! These days, you can find me hosting the Chat and Challenge twice a month, where we chat in our very own chat room and make cards based on sketches or inspiration. Need a class in a hurry?  Just access the Class and Workshop Planners. Demonstrators like to share, so you'll find LOTS of information there. Need a flyer for a special event? I'll bet one of the demonstrators on SUDSOL has created one already - just check out the Advertising and Marketing section! I invite you to check out SUDSOL for a FREE 2 week trial membership! Just click here to give it a try!

My cards for this blog hop feature what else but VALENTINES!  It's that time of year after all!  These are perfect for kids to take to school because they are "love note" size - 3" X 3".

The first card uses no stamps at all, but is nonetheless SUPER cute!

I cut my piece of Real Red Cardstock to 3" X 6" and folded it in half.  I added a piece of Love Impressions Designer Series Paper and a piece of Whisper White Cardstock to which I adhered three little glimmer hearts.

A Basic Rhinestone adds a little bit of dazzle to the DSP and I finished off the card by punching a tag from another piece of Love Impressions DSP and attaching it with a piece of white twine.

My second card uses the "LOVE" stamp from the set "XOXO".  I stamped the image on Whisper White using Real Red Ink and punched it out using my 1 1/4" circle punch. It was matted on a piece of Real Red Cardstock punched with the 1 3/8" circle punch and then matted again on Pink Pirouette Scalloped Circle.

I added some glimmer paper at the bottom of the card for a little bit of bling.  The cards are being made by my DD and her friends and what teenage girl doesn't like a little bling?

My third card uses the hugs and kisses stamp from the "XOXO" set.  This time, I stamped it in Versamark Ink on Real Red Cardstock and embossed it using White Embossing Powder.

My "detail" comes from some Real Red Designer Series Paper with torn edges.

Recently, I was on the SUDSOL design team - what an HONOUR!  You can check out all my cards in my SUDSOL gallery here.

I hope you enjoyed your visit to my blog and hope you come back soon!  If you'd like to keep up to date with what's going on, sign up for my email newsletter (top left of blog) and follow my blog (over to the right).

And now, the summary:

STAMPS: XOXO

INK: Versamark, Real Red

PAPERS: Whisper White, Pink Pirouette and Real Red Cardstock; Love Impressions and Real Red DSP

ACCESSORIES: Glimmer Paper, Punches, White Embossing Powder, Basic Rhinestones

Happy Stampin'!

THIS POST WILL REMAIN AT THE TOP TILL FEBRUARY 1ST. PLEASE SCROLL DOWN TO SEE WHAT ELSE I'VE BEEN UP TO!!!

I had so much fun doing the last blog tour that I'm doing it again!!!

Sweet Summer - Get it for FREE!

Make someone special’s summer sweet when you give them this beautiful water-colored card. Get the Sweet Summer set FREE with a $60 purchase—only during Sale-A-Bration!

Click here to get all the supplies you need!

MOJO Monday on a Thursday with a little Springtime Vintage

When I saw the MOJO Monday sketch, I knew I had to try it out, but I was waiting for just the right idea to pop into my head...and yesterday, that's JUST what happened!

I started off with the Springtime Vintage DSP as my inspiration. From that I chose Crumb Cake, Pear Pizzazz and Baja Breeze as my cardstock colours. There are so many wonderful designs in this DSP pack and they go with eight (yes, EIGHT!) of our cardstock colours. Talk about versatile!

Anyway...here is the card I came up with:

I started with the Crumb Cake base and then used another piece of Crumb Cake in my Big Shot with the Framed Tulips Embossing Folder. I just LOVE that you get a blank canvas with which to work and still get the texture when using this folder.

I chose a piece of DSP with Baja Breeze in it and then matted it on a piece of Baja Breeze Cardstock. I scrunched up the Baja Breeze Seam Binding by tugging on a couple of the middle threads to get it all rouched up. I love this effect and you can do it with MANY of our ribbons. I wrapped it around the panel and affixed it using glue dots on the back.

I stamped the image from Pocket Silhouettes (one of my all time FAVOURITE sets!) on Very Vanilla Cardstock using Pear Pizzazz Classic Ink. I punched out the image using my 1 3/8" circle punch and then matted it using both the small and large scallop circle punches. It was adhered using Stampin' Dimensionals.

The finishing touch is a scrunched up double bow of Baja Breeze Seam Binding. To achieve this look, I dampened the seam binding with just a touch of water and smooshed it up in my hands. I flattened it only slightly to tie the bow.

To add even more dimension, I affixed a Vintage Flower using a glue dot.

If you've read this far, and your name just happens to be Cheryl...this is one of the cards we'll be making at your SAB workshop!

What do you think?

STAMPS: Stem Silhouettes, Teeny Tiny Wishes

INK: Pear Pizzazz

PAPERS: Very Vanilla, Crumb Cake, Baja Breeze and Pear Pizzazz Cardstock; Springtime Vintage DSP

ACCESSORIES: Big Shot, Framed Tulips Embossing Folder, Seam Binding, Vintage Flowers

Happy Stampin'!

A little MOJO from long ago

So...I get a lot of email...I mean, I get a LOT of email. And a big portion of that is stamping related - you're surprised, I can tell - LOL!

Whenever I get something REALLY awesome, I always file it under "Stamping Goodness". I have a LOT of "Stamping Goodness"...over 3,000 "Stamping Goodness" to be precise.

Today, I was perusing some of the older goodness and came across a blog post from Dannie who used an older Mojo Monday Sketch to create her card. Well, I was struck by her card and decided to try my hand at the sketch. I made a few changes (there was a ribbon on the sketch and I didn't use any) and came up with this:

I can't tell you how absolutely TICKLED I am with this card! I started off with the idea that I wanted to use black and just went from there. I used the Love Letter DSP (Item # 117162) which also contains the colours Riding Hood Red and Very Vanilla.

I stamped some buttons from the set Button, Button (Item # 122040 in Clear or # 122026 in Wood) which I earned during a book-a-thon held by Stampin' UP! last year. I love that Stampin' UP! has special promotions not only for their customers, but for their demonstrators too! This is a GREAT time to join my team since it's SALE-A-BRATION and not only will you get 15% off the starter kit, you'll also get a bonus bundle worth $60 which includes the Colour Coach, a Simply Sent Kit, a Simply Sent Stamp set valued at $14.95 and a punch valued at $23.95! What a great deal!

Thanks to Gretchen Barron and her AWESOME tutorial, I was able to cut my Basic Black Cardstock square to just right size in order to punch it using my Scalloped Trim Border and Scalloped Trim Corner Punches. I added a layer of Love Letter DSP on top of that before adhering my stamped piece.

My card base is Riding Hood Red and the next layer up (cut to 4" x 5 1/4") is Basic Black. I added a piece of Love Letter DSP to it and affixed two antique brads (LOVE!) before adhering the whole thing to the front of the card using a LOT of Stampin' Dimensionals.

I stamped the sentiment from A Word for You (Item # 120528 in Clear or # 117032 in Wood) on Very Vanilla Cardstock using Basic Black Ink and punched it out using my large oval punch (Item # 119855). It was matted on a piece of Basic Black Cardstock, punched using my scalloped oval punch (Item # 119856) and adhered to the front of the card using Stampin' Dimensionals.

I also finished the inside of the card, using the same papers:

And here's a close up of the sentiment detail:

What do you think?

STAMPS: Button, Button and A Word for You

INK: Basic Black, Riding Hood Red

PAPERS: Very Vanilla, Basic Black and Riding Hood Red Cardstock, Love Letter DSP

ACCESSORIES: Punches, Antique Brads, Stampin' Dimensionals

It's time to SALE-A-BRATE! Are you ready???

WOOHOO!!! Sale-a-brate good times, come on!!! We're gonna sale-a-brate and party with you!

It's SALE-A-BRATION and everywhere in Stampin' UP! land, people are already placing orders to earn their free SALE-A-BRATION sets! YOU can get a free set with every $60 you order (in Canada only). Who doesn't LOVE free stuff?

Which set will YOU choose first??? Knowing I would earn most of them, I chose not to pre-order any sale-a-bration sets. I do have the CD that goes with MDS though and it has it ALL on there - WOOT!!!

Here's a card I made using MDS and new goodies on the CD:

I am just LOVING the new Ice Cream Parlour papers and embellishments - SO fun and summery!

Both the stamped images are from sets available in the Sale-a-Bration brochure. If you're one of my customers, you've probably already got it, but if not, you can see it online here. The Birthday Wishes sentiment is from the set "So Happy for You" and the floral image is from the "Sweet Summer" set. Both MUST HAVES!

You can place your orders starting RIGHT NOW and each and every $60 in merchandise orders will get you a FREE set! Order $120, get two sets! Order $240, get 4 sets as well as a free Level 1 hostess set from either the main catalog or the Occasions Mini and $20 in free Hostess Merchandise.

What are waiting for? CLICK HERE and place your order now!!! Sale-a-Bration only lasts a short time!

Every day, do something that makes your heart sing!

Great advice from none other than Jessica Sprague! If you know digi, you know Jessica. She rocks the digi world with Photoshop classes and tutorials. Just last Friday she started doing a livestream chat type thing, which she hopes to continue on the first and third Friday of each month. I can't tell you how much I'm looking forward to this!

Anyway, this is my SECOND post for today, so scroll down to see what's making my heart sing today!

I logged on to my various web sites this morning (google, Facebook, SplitCoast) and came across Mary Jo's lunchtime sketch challenge as well as the CAS challenge on SplitCoast.

Here's the card I came up with:

I used the "Priceless" stamp set along with Peach Parfait and Poppy Parade to create the design. I just LOVE that our In Colours go so well together!

I stamped my images on Whisper White Cardstock and added a piece of Sunny Garden DSP at the bottom of the card. Then I tied a piece of Peach Parfait Ribbon around the card.

I stamped my sentiment using Poppy Parade Classic Ink on Whisper White Cardstock and because it looked a little plain, I addeds some doodling around the edge.

I finished the inside of the card too:

I cut my piece of Whisper White Cardstock to 4 X 5 1/4 and just ran the edges of the paper directly on my Poppy Parade Classic Ink Pad. I added the little strip of Sunny Garden DSP toward the bottom and stamped a swirl in the top left hand corner.

What do you think?

STAMPS: Priceless

INK: Peach Parfait and Poppy Parade

PAPERS: Whisper White and Peach Parfait Cardstock; Sunny Garden DSP

ACCESSORIES: Peach Parfait Ribbon

Happy Stampin'!

MDS Monday - Banana Bread

It seems I sparked some interest when I posted my banana bread cupcakes last week...I also got a few comments from people who weren't too happy with the fact that I didn't post the recipe...not mentioning any names *coughcoughkarenandpaigecoughcough*

So...here it is, created in MDS (man I love that program!) just for you!

Enjoy!

Also, don't forget that today is the VERY LAST DAY for you to get the "Filled with Love" bundle from Stampin' UP! You can get a head start on your Valentine's cards!

CLICK HERE to start shopping!

I'm sorry for your loss...

I love doing custom work...especially when I have full creative license!

A little while ago, I was tasked with creating some understated cards so that our local children's hospital cardiac unit would have cards to send to bereaved parents. Nathalie knew I made cards and so she asked me if I would make some for the cardiac families. Of course, I said yes. The Hospital for Sick Children is VERY important to us and I like to give back whenever I can.

When I make the cards that I sell at the hospital, I cover my costs (with just a little bit for my time) and the rest of my "fee" gets donated right back to the hospital. It's the least I can do since they continue to take excellent care of my two cardiac kids.

As I was thinking about creating the cards, I remembered that Nathalie said that she didn't want any words on the front of the cards, so I wanted a set that was elegant. I chose the Level 2 hostess set "Fast and Fabulous". This set is SO versatile. There are no words in the set, but it can easily be paired with any of our sentiment sets, such as Teeny Tiny Wishes, Fabulous Phrases and Word Play to name a few.

For this set of cards, I wanted to use Whisper White as my background and add just a touch of colour, which I did using Baja Breeze and Blushing Bride.

I stamped the outline image in Not Quite Navy/Regal Rose and then filled it in using Baja Breeze/Blushing Bride. The 2 1/2 X 3 1/2" piece of Whisper White was adhered to the 2 5/8 X 3 5/8" piece of either Baja Breeze or Blushing Bride Cardstock using snail and then affixed to the front of the card using Stampin' Dimensionals. I tied the Baja Breeze Seam Binding/Blushing Bride Ribbon in a bow and attached it by wrapping it around the polka dot layer using glue dots. The polka dot layer was attached to the card base once again using Stampin' Dimensionals.

What do you think?

STAMP: Level 2 Hostess Set Fast and Fabulous

INK: Baja Breeze, Not Quite Navy/Blushing Bride, Regal Rose

PAPERS: Whisper White, Baja Breeze and Blushing Bride Cardstock

ACCESSORIES: Big Shot, Perfect Polka Dots Embossing Folder, Baja Breeze Seam Binding Ribbon, Blushing Bride Ribbon, Stampin' Dimensionals (yeah...I pretty much use these on EVERYTHING!)

Happy Stampin'!

Old Colours Don't Retire...

...they just go DIGITAL!

Do YOU have My Digital Studio? If not, what are you waiting for? It's your resource for Stampin' UP! retired colours! Love Kiwi Kiss? It's there! Can't live without Handsome Hunter? You got it! It's also just awesome for scrapbooking (no wasted paper - if you do something you don't like, just hit the undo button!) and card planning (make a sketch!)

Today is my littlest man's birthday. I can't believe he's already 8 years old - WOW!!! He tasked me with bringing treats to school so that he could celebrate with his friends. I used my mom's banana bread recipe and baked them into tiny cupcakes - they were a hit!

Of course, I couldn't just take NAKED cupcakes to school! They didn't need icing, because they're JUST. THAT. GOOD. However, since I am THAT mom (I may have mentioned this before - LOL!) I did have to decorate them though, so here they are:

While I was making the little picks in My Digital Studio, I used Perfect Plum and Elegant Eggplant since purple is Jonathan's favourite colour.

When I printed them (on my OLD printer), they came out looking more like Orchid Opulence - OOPS!!! Oh well...it did the job. And did I mention my printer is OLD?? Yeah...

Anyway...I made two sheets of scalloped circles - one with the sentiment and the other with the stars from Extreme Elements - and punched them out with...yes! my scallop circle punch - LOL!

I loaded them up with glue dots and sandwiched a toothpick between them. The kids in Jonathan's class LOVED them!

What do you think?

STAMPS: Digital Extreme Elements (this set is also available as a wood mount set)

INK: Digital Versions of Perfect Plum and Elegant Eggplant

PAPERS: Whisper White on which to print the images

ACCESSORIES: MDS, Scallop Circle Punch

Happy Stampin'!

SALE-A-BRATION is right around the corner! Time to Party Hearty!

I just LOVE the "Party Hearty" set and you will too! It's so versatile as you can see in this card:
Who would have thought to use the party hats as a banner? Brilliant! And banners are SO in right now! Cutting out the little party hats to MAKE the banner is a little time consuming, but I'm sure you'll agree that the result is WELL worth it!

What do you think?

STAMPS: Party Hearty
INK: Chocolate Chip, Pumpkin Pie, Daffodil Delight, Pacific Point, Wild Wasabi, Riding Hood Red
PAPERS: Whisper White, Pacific Point, Riding Hood Red
ACCESSORIES: Pumpkin Pie Ribbon, Punches, Markers

Happy Stampin!

Stampin' UP sells FABRIC?

Oh yeah! You bet they do! And it's FABULOUS too! You're going to love it - check it out:

Sweet Stitches:

Springtime Vintage:

And if you CLICK HERE, you can check out the cool PDF with tutorials to make some fabric goodness! Then, when you're ready to ORDER the fabric to MAKE the fabric goodness, CLICK HERE and you can shop right from home!

Are you ready for Valentine's Day?

Have you looked at the calendar? Valentine's Day is less than a month away! Are you ready?

In order to help you GET ready, Stampin' UP! is offering you a FABULOUS Filled with Love Bundle.

You will receive either the Clear Mount or Wood Mount Set as well as an EXCLUSIVE pack of paper available ONLY with this special bundle. As an added bonus, there's a free pack of bitty buttons in it for you! But wait...there's MORE! Are you one of my newsletter subscribers? If you are - GREAT! You've probably already received it. If not, then you want to click on the top left hand box and sign up right away! There's a special offer available only to my newsletter subscribers. Don't worry that I've already sent it out, if you sign up now, I'll be happy to send it out again, just for you!

Click here to shop now!!!!

It's a special OCCASION!

If you're already one of my customers, you're in luck! You've already got your Occasions Mini and Sale-a-Bration catalog. If you're not, please contact me and I can get one (or both!) out to you RIGHT AWAY (Canadians only please)!

The Occasions Mini starts today, which means you can now officially order all the amazing goodness you can find here. If you're like me and you LOVE to see the catalog in person, just let me know!

Here's one of the cards I made using the new Sew Suite stamp set. It's just one of many fun sets to be had.

I stamped my image in Basic Grey Ink (it's waterproof) on Whisper White Cardstock. I smooshed some ink (Melon Mambo) into the lid of my ink pad and used my Aqua Painter to colour in the spool of thread and the little pin cushion.

I punched out the image using my large scallop circle punch and used my Melon Mambo marker to doodle around the edges of the punch.

The measuring tape was stamped in Melon Mambo Ink on Whisper White Cardstock and trimmed to fit the front of the card. It "measures" to 12 inches, but it's actually only about 6" long.

The Designer Series Paper is one piece cut and flipped to show off both sides. I just LOVE that our DSP is double sided. Twice the possibilities for the same price!

What do you think?

STAMPS: Sew Suite

INK: Melon Mambo, Basic Grey

PAPERS: Whisper White and Melon Mambo Cardstock, Sweet Stitches DSP

ACCESSORIES: Pink Taffeta Ribbon, Scallop Circle Punch

Happy Stampin'!

Wednesday Sketch Challenge at SCS

Since it's Wednesday today, that means it's Sketch Challenge day at SplitCoast Stampers. Today's sketch looked fun and easy, so I thought I'd give it a try!

My Caroline let me borrow her "Sew Suite" set which will be available beginning next week in the Occasions Mini. I swiped her "Sweet Stitches" DSP too with the promise of creating some samples for the Studio. I hope she likes what I've come up with so far!

For today's card, I stamped the bobbin and pin cushion on Whisper White Cardstock using Basic Grey Ink (it's waterproof) and used ink squished into the lid of the ink pad and my Aqua Painters to colour in the images. The little pin cushion is hiding behind the spool of thread thanks to the masking technique.

I punched my image out using my large scallop circle punch and it was adhered to the front of the card using Stampin' Dimensionals.

My card base is a piece of 5 1/2 X 8 1/2" piece of Melon Mambo scored and folded at 4 1/4". The next layer up is a piece of 4 X 5 1/4" piece of Whisper White. The patterned paper is from the same sheet, I just cut and flipped it over. Have I mentioned that I LOVE the fact that our DSP is double sided???

The little ruler from the "Sew Suite" set was stamped in Melon Mambo Ink on Whisper White Cardstock. It actually goes to a 12" measure (but is only about 6" long), but I cut it at 9 1/2" to make it fit the card.

A length of Pretty in Pink 3/8" Taffeta Ribbon hides the seam between the two pieces of DSP.

What do you think?

STAMPS: Sew Suite

PAPERS: Whisper White and Melon Mambo Cardstock; Sweet Stiches DSP

INK: Basic Grey, Melon Mambo

ACCESSORIES: Ribbon, Punch, Stampin' Dimensionals

Happy Stampin'!

ATC Tuesday - Curtain Call Colour Challenge # 62

So, Stacey's Curtain Call popped into my inbox yesterday and I tried my hardest to make a card, but all I came up with was this ATC:

I already had the image stamped on Whisper White with Staz-On, so I went ahead and coloured it using my Watercolour Crayons. I know, I know...but I don't own the stamp set (it was borrowed and returned), so I couldn't re-stamp it on watercolour paper...that's why it looks a little worn in the middle of the dress. Of course, the little worn part just adds to the vintage look of the ATC (at least that's what I keep telling myself - LOL!)

My little lady is coloured using Baja Breeze (dress, bow and socks), Daffodil Delight (hair) and Pretty in Pink (heart). She is matted on Baja Breeze and Early Espresso and then added to a 2 1/2 X 3 1/2" piece of Pear Pizzazz around which I tied the bow and added a button tied with linen thread.

What do you think?

STAMPS: Greeting Card Kids

INK: Staz-On

PAPERS: Whisper White, Baja Breeze, Early Espresso, Pear Pizzazz

ACCESSORIES: Ribbon, Button, Linen Thread

Happy Stampin'!

20 - Minute Monday on a Friday - Belated Teacher Gifts

This fabulous idea popped into my inbox a few weeks ago courtesy of a fellow Stampin' UP! demonstrator.

Since we were away at Disney before the Christmas break, DS's teacher will be receiving these when the kids return to school in the New Year:

Fabulous, no?

The card bases are Very Vanilla Cardstock and I cut layers of the same to 4 X 5 1/4 inches before running them through the Big Shot using the Elegant Lines Textured Impressions Embossing Folder. I wrapped a piece of Always Artichoke Seam Binding (which is carrying over to the Occasions Mini - YAY!) around the embossed layer before attaching it to the front of the card.

The letters were stamped using the Lovely Letters Alphabet and Always Artichoke Ink. I punched them out using my Scallop Circle Punch and adhered them to the front of the using Stampin' Dimensionals.

Easy Peasy! Eight cards in under 1/2 hour! What do you think?

STAMPS: Lovely Letters Alphabet

INK: Always Artichoke

PAPERS: Very Vanilla

ACCESSORIES: Big Shot, Embossing Folder, Seam Binding, Stampin' Dimensionals, Punch

Happy Stampin'!

I'm BACK!!!

Did you miss me??? I've been enjoying some Disney Goodness with my family and my BFF (and her family too), but we're all back now...so it's back to business as usual!

Today, I'm sharing an MDS Disney layout that I completed in just about 10 minutes. I just LOVE the pre-designed templates!

I used the Jolly Holiday DSP and selected a pre-designed template for a 6 X 6 card and turned it into a scrapbook page.

For the first time since we've been going to Disney (and we go nearly every year), we took advantage of the Disney Dining Plan - how could we not? It was FREE!!!

You wouldn't think that one sit down meal, one quick service meal and one snack per day is enough food, but let me tell you! It sure is!!! By the time we left yesterday morning, we just barely eked out using the last of our snack credits - we bought Mickey Mouse shaped Rice Krispie treats.

The top two pictures are from our first night at Disney where we enjoyed the most AMAZING dinner at Boatright's Dining Hall in our resort (Port Orleans Riverside). The main course was to die for, but the cake was even more so!!! And did you see that tiny little Mickey Mouse head? Yep! There were Mickey sprinkles on the plate - too stinkin' cute!

The bottom left picture is a mini Mickey waffle from our amazing breakfast at the Crystal Palace inside the Magic Kingdom. This was my Caroline's first time inside the Magic Kingdom and Crystal Palace...to say she was overwhelmed would be an understatement.

The bottom right picture is from our dinner at Chef Mickey's inside the Contemporary Resort. Yep! That's Mickey shaped ravioli you see there...and it was DELICIOUS!!!

Well, this is sure to be the first of many posts about our FABULOUS trip! I do hope you'll come along on the journey.

Have a Scrappin' Good Day!

3-D Thursday...on a TUESDAY???

I was planning on putting up an ATC today, but time crunches being what they are... well... that didn't happen!!!

Today we are headed down to the Hospital for Sick Children for some appointments and since it's nearly Christmas, I decided to take some treats down for the special people in our lives at the hospital.

This is the Ghirardelli Chocolate Box repurposed to hold Rocky Road Bars - YUMMY!!!

I stamped the image from Tags til' Christmas (which is available in the Holiday Mini, but only till December 31st) in Real Red on Whisper White Cardstock. I punched it out using the 1" punch my secret sister gave me (if you're reading, thanks Deb!!!) and then matted it on Pink Pirouette, which I hand cut. The final layer is a punched piece of Whisper White which was punched using the Scallop Square Punch.

What do you think?

STAMPS: Tags til' Christmas

INK: Real Red

PAPERS: Whisper White and Pink Pirouette Cardstock; Candy Cane Christmas DSP

ACCESSORIES: Scallop Square Punch

Happy Stampin'!

Watercolor Wonder Crayons Now Available!

I love using my Watercolour Wonder Crayons and now you can too!!! The new colour kit as well as the full colour selection are now available for purchase!

Contact me today and I'll be happy to order them for you! Or...you can shop online anytime! Just visit my store!

Have you signed up for my newsletter? If not, be sure to do it ASAP! I'll be offering a special ONLY available to my newsletter subscribers. You don't want to miss out!!

Sunny Sunday Sketch - Week 22

Time for another Sunny Sunday Sketch! How was your week? Busy? Are you ready for Christmas yet???

Today's sketch and card ought to help you at least get your Christmas cards out the door!

I was working with My Caroline on Friday and she was prepping for her Stamper's Club. She had this card out and I just fell in love with it:

I liked it so much, I made it in three different colours! Caroline's was done in Not Quite Navy, like the one on the far right, but I like it in Riding Hood Red and Old Olive too.

I stamped Dasher to match the Cardstock on Very Vanilla and then matted him on the same colour cardstock as I used for the base. The Very Vanilla Card Layer was run through the Big Shot using the Vintage Wallpaper Textured Impressions Embossing Folder and my BIG SHOT.

I wrapped my 1 1/4" Striped Grosgrain Ribbon around the Very Vanilla Cardstock layer before attaching it to the front of the card. I added a little bling by wrapping a length of Silver Tinsel Trim around the ribbon to cinch it. I love it because it's WIRED!!! That means, no knots and it stays put EXACTLY where you want it. The Silver Tinsel Trim is only available in the Holiday Mini until December 31st, so if you want it, don't forget to place your order before then.

Did you know that Dasher is available as a SINGLE stamp? For $10.95 CAD (+tax & shipping), it's one of the best deals in the catalog! Contact me today and I'll tell you how you can get him for FREE!!!

What do you think?

STAMPS: Dasher

INK: Old Olive, Night of Navy, Riding Hood Red

PAPERS: Very Vanilla, Night of Navy, Old Olive and Riding Hood Red Cardstock

ACCESSORIES: Vintage Wallpaper Textured Impressions Embossing Folder, 1 1/4" Striped Grosgrain Ribbon, Silver Tinsel Trim

Happy Stampin'!

CAS - Cute Christmas

You'll have to forgive the quality of the shot, but it was taken at *stupid o'clock* in the dark with a flash. I have a busy day today, but I didn't want to leave you without a little inspiration!!!

I stamped the three ornaments from "A Cute Christmas" in Old Olive Ink, trying to aim for the top half/centre of the card. Then I used Real Red Ink to stamp the Merry Christmas sentiment from the Christmas Greeting stamp set.

A quick little Real Red Grosgrain knot and we're good to go!

See? Simple CAN be stunning!

What do you think?

STAMPS: A Cute Christmas, Christmas Greeting

INK: Old Olive, Real Red

PAPERS: Whisper White Cardstock

ACCESSORIES: Real Red Grosgrain Ribbon

Happy Stampin'!

Just a Quick Little Note

These are some of the teachers gifts for this year. I've seen this idea on Becky's blog a few times but just never got around to doing it...then I saw it again on another blog I follow (my apologies! I can't remember which one!) and decided that Christmas was the PERFECT time to try my hand at it!

These are what's known as "card fronts". When Stampin' UP! demonstrators swap ideas at various events, the format is usually "card fronts". This means that an entire card isn't designed, just what the front of the card would look like if it WAS a whole card. Make sense?

I love these for quick little notes, when you don't need a whole card. So, I thought some of the teachers would like them too!

What do you think?

STAMPS: NONE!

INK: NONE!

PAPERS: Very Vanilla, Old Olive and Cherry Cobbler Cardstock; Jolly Holiday DSP

ACCESSORIES: Holly and Jolly Rub-Ons

Happy Stampin'!

Season's Greetings with the Holiday Lineup!

I almost fell off my chair when my Caroline said she was ordering this set. She says the elves kinda creep her out, so she never uses it...I think she ordered it just so I could borrow it - LOL!

When I saw a similar card by Renee Van Stralen, I just KNEW I had to CASE it! I even copied her colour scheme...sad, I know! Not her colour scheme! The fact that I copied it! I couldn't help it...I fell in love with her whole card.

I did have to use a different DSP because I was out of the one she used on her card. Now, I'm hoarding my Candy Cane Christmas DSP because it's SOLD OUT! In fact, I owe my Caroline a pack (it's on its way), but I just might buy it off her so I can keep using it! We'll see...

So, I stamped my image in Basic Black Ink on Whisper White Cardstock and coloured it in using my Stampin' UP! markers.

The image panel was matted on Old Olive Cardstock that I first punched using the Pinking Hearts Border Punch. I used Stampin' Dimensionals to mount the image panel on the front of the card.

My sentiment was stamped in Marina Mist using the Season's Greetings image from Curly Cute.

What do you think?

STAMPS: Holiday Lineup, Curly Cute

INK: Basic Black

PAPERS: Whisper White, Marina Mist and Old Olive Cardstock; Candy Cane Christmas DSP

ACCESSORIES: Border Punch, Ribbon, Stampin' Dimensionals

Happy Stampin'!

It's December 1st...do you know WHERE your Christmas cards are?

Mine are sitting next to me ready to be dropped into the mailbox. This is a first I tell you...a FIRST!!! As long as I've been sending out Christmas cards (19 years I figure, since that's how long I've been married), they have never, EVER, NOT ONCE been ready to go on the first of December. As a matter of fact, on more occasions than I'd care to count, they have been New Year's cards. Sad but true!

However, since my cards are ready to go, I thought I'd help YOU out with some ideas. What do you think?

Here's my first card for you:

It's based on the Sketch at SplitCoast Stampers this week.

I stamped my image from Holiday Lineup using Basic Black Ink and coloured it in using my Stampin' UP! Markers. Another challenge this week called for non-traditional Christmas colours, so I used these colours for that.

What do you think?

STAMPS: Holiday Lineup, Punch Pals

INK: Basic Black

PAPERS: Whisper White, Pacific Point and Early Espresso Cardstock; Celebrations DSP

ACCESSORIES: Stampin' UP! Markers, Punch, Big Shot, Movers and Shapers Die, Stampin' Dimensionals

Happy Stampin'!