I Reckon I'll Stamp

Valentine's Box

2012-02-15T00:42:00.001-06:00

I saw a tutorial for this heart box and couldn't resist trying one. It was quick and easy but it took me several days to decide on the decoration for the top. I wish I had seen the tutorial earlier so I could have done a class, I know my stampin' ladies would have loved to learn how to make these! http://gettincrafty.typepad.com/gettin_crafty/2012/02/gettin-crafty-challenge-2-candy-heart-boxes.html

I also made Valentine's sugar cookies today. I used the Holidays Sweet Pressed Cookie Stamp to put the hearts on the cookies. I chose to roll the cookie dough into balls and press the stamp into them rather than roll them out, and stamp them. They would be a bit more uniform in roundness using a cookie cutter but this way you don't have to mess up the counter and rolling pin and cookie cutter, much less fuss. Everyone was impressed! I had bought some glitter gel frosting but they got eaten before I experimented with it! I reckon I need to order the Occasions Sweet Pressed Cookie Stamps before St. Patrick's day so I can be equally impressive then, and Easter is right after that so the bunny cookie stamp will soon be used in my kitchen. I think I love the flower stamp most though. Notice the link on my sidebar, you need some cookie stamps too!

Here is a picture of the pancakes I made for my husband today. They were yummy! I just made mine regular round, I was doing good to get 2 perfect heart ones! I hope everyone had a nice Valentine's Day today and that you did a little something to make it special for someone else.

Valentine's Card Class

2012-02-09T23:29:00.000-06:00

I had a Valentine's Card Class today, the ladies made 4 cards and 2 candy butterflies. Actually, one of the ladies made 3 butterflies so each of her 3 children could get one carefully placed in their backpacks on Valentine's Day to let them know their mom was thinking about them.

These projects were actually CASEd, I found so many great Valentine's project ideas I couldn't resist! Mary Brown had the butterfly on her blog. It is just 2 of the Butterflies cut from the Butterfly die, tied together with Baker's Twine and a heart shaped candy adhered with Stiky Strip. I knew I would need to use an adhesive that would hold the heavy candy on and the Sticky Strip does a great job!

The cards both use a piece of the Sale-a-Bration free paper. I really like the pack of paper, I kind of hate not to use both sides! Notice the pleated pink ribbon on the middle card? It comes pleated so it is quick as well as beautiful. The Crumb Cake ribbon on the other card had to be hand gathered around the back of the heart. It wasn't difficult to do but took more time than adding a piece of the pleated ribbon would have taken.

I'm working on some Valentine's treats to send the grandkids. I reckon I'll get them posted before Valentine's Day so you can use the ideas if you want to, I'll just ask my daughters not to let the kids see the pictures before they open their treats!

Sweet Details Photobook

2012-02-06T21:19:00.003-06:00

I had a little time to play with my free MDS Express program today. Just think, in an hour you could download the FREE program and make a few pages too. I love the paper included in this download, 12 designs and a beautiful daisy stamp set with 3 flowers and different size circles you will see in the layouts. I just opened up the photobook template for these layouts. I changed the template a bit on most of the pages because I wanted to use more pictures but it was so easy that I was able to do 4 pages in under an hour. It is getting towards bedtime now so I'm going to finish the album tomorrow. Just think, a whole album in a few hours! I might have to get this one printed. The grandkids will love it so much that I might have to get 3 printed so they can have one too!

So, what is stopping you? The download is free and easy and creating with it is simple. You could finish an album today too! I reckon that this is a deal that is too good to pass up. I'll be playing with the card templates on the free download soon! I think I'll try to use the templates in the Sweet Details Photobook to make some real pages too. I love to use MDS like Pagemaps!

Amazing!

2012-02-01T17:17:00.001-06:00

Stampin' Up! is an amazing company! They are offering a FREE 30-day My Digital Studio Express trial version beginning February 1, that you can take advantage of. The best part is this is an ongoing offer!

If you have been following my blog long, you know that I love paper scrapbooking but I also have had so much fun creating layouts, cards, newsletters, posters, flyers and so much more from My Digital Studio from Stampin' UP! Now you can try it for free! You will see why I enjoy it so much.

With the FREE trial, you'll get:
    Full access to the software at NO COST.
    Full design functionality.
    Exclusive artwork that comes with My Digital Studio Express.
    Opportunity to purchase additional downloads from designer templates to stamp brush set and                      everything in between.
    Access to our professional print services.

It's simple; add the free My Digital Studio Express trial (item 129600) to your order from my business website.
If you don't already have the My Digital Studio software, make sure to take advantage of the free trial. Once you try it out and see the fun and ease of My Digital Studio, you will realize it isn't something to be intimidated by!

After you download the free trial you have a month to test drive it. Create lots and lots of layouts, cards and photo albums. Get them printed if you want to. Use it every chance you get so you can figure out the program and use it to the fullest. Go to the MDS website to see lots of samples, watch video tutorials and learn lots of fun techniques. Make the most of this opportunity to try digital!
What do you do after you try it and love it?

Once the 30-day free trial period is over, you can purchase the downloadable or disc version of the software to continue using it. You'll simply open up the trial version you already have on your computer, and will be prompted to enter the product registration key you received after purchasing the software. (You'll receive this key via e-mail if you purchase the downloadable version, and you'll find it along with your shipped software if you purchase the disc version.) Simple. I like that :~)

Countdown till Valentine's tin

2012-01-30T17:23:00.000-06:00

I taught a class at a crop up in Kentucky at Land Between the Lakes. It was at a camp called Camp Bear Creek. The ladies who took my class were such a fun group, I really enjoyed teaching them. Each lady made a tin that they decorated as a countdown calendar for Valentine's Day. Here are pictures of them, inside and out so you can also see the numbers that have magnets on the back so they can easily be placed on the tin and switched out each day.

I found this cute butterfly treat on Mary Brown's blog. I added the doily part over the red butterfly to make it more Valentinesey and the happy valentine's day sentiment from the Teeny Tiny Wishes set. The tag is tied on with the red and white Baker's Twine as well as the antennae tied around the middle of the butterfly.

Camp Bear Creek is on the Western shores of Land Between the Lakes. There are 2 large parallel lakes and the land between is great for camping, fishing, boating and vacations. You can get to Camp Bear Creek one of 3 ways, around the South end of the lakes, around the North end of the lakes or over a bridge that goes across the middle of the lakes. We always went through the middle since it is the shortest distance. Friday morning I woke up to the news that a barge had hit one of the bridges and 2 spans had fallen. Luckily nobody went over the edge but we couldn't take that route to the crop this time. I really didn't like driving over those bridges, they were old (1934), narrow and spooky. I guess now I won't have to drive over that one ever again!

When I started checking the distance to see which way would be fastest for an alternative route I was surprised to find out that it takes about 3 minutes longer to stay on the freeway and go around the tops of the lakes! I wish I had known that all these years so I could have avoided the spooky bridges! It was a great crop and it was fun creating and visiting over the weekend.

I finally did a layout!

2012-01-24T15:52:00.001-06:00

I don't think I've made a scrapbook page in 4 or 5 months. I couldn't stand it so I decided that is the first thing I would do today. I used some of the Sale-a-Bration Everyday Enchantment Designer Series Paper. Speaking of enchanting, did you notice that today is Jan 24? That means that

Sale-a-Bration is finally here!

Starting TODAY you can choose free stamp sets, paper or brads and ribbon with every $50 you order! If you want to earn even more free Stampin' Up merchandise, host a workshop! If you would like to get the best deal on Stampin' Up supplies EVER, during Sale-a-Bration you can get the Stampin' Up demonstrator kit for $125 AND you get a free pack of Designer Series Paper every month in 2012! That's another $9.95 monthly value, adding nearly $120 to the value of the kit. The Standard Starter Kit has a value of more than $345. That means you get over $465 worth of things for only $125. What's not to love about saving $340??? And - it all ships free! If you have followed my blog long, you know how much I love being a Stampin' Up demonstrator. Stampin' Up is a wonderful company to work for, this is the perfect time to find out for yourself.

There are lots of free things available during Sale-a-Bration, that is why we love this yearly promotion so much! Please contact me if you would like to order or host a workshop and get free Sale-a-Bration items or if you want more info on joining a GREAT company and becoming part of the Stampin' Up family!

OK, now that we have taken a short commercial break, back to the layout! I used Lucky Limeade and Soft Suede cardstock to coordinate with the Everyday Enchantment DSP.

I love sheer ribbon and printed brads so I was really excited to see both being offered in our Sale-a-Bration catalog this year. This pack has 2 spools of ribbon, 10 yards on each as well as 30 of these cute printed brads! Did I mention that it is free? I want to add some to this layout but haven't decided exactly how or where. What do you think? Click to download the Sale-a-Bration catalog, the ribbon and brads pack is on page 7.

You can call or email me to place an order or place an online order. If you do an online order yourself, the website will automatically pop up a note saying that you qualify for a Sale-a-Bration item for each $50 you order. Fill in the numbers and they are ready to ship with your order! I love easy!

While we seem to be taking another commercial break, one more thing. The backbone of my Stampin' Up business is workshops. Workshops are fun and easy. You just invite some friends over and clear off a table. I'll bring fun projects for yall to make and you will get hostess gifts in return. We are very generous with our hostess program already but - yep, you guessed it - there are even more hostess gifts available during Sale-a-Bration! The minimum sales for a workshop is $150. You get $25 in free merchandise for that workshop but during Sale-a-Bration you also get a very cute tote bag. Guess what, the tote bag matches the Everyday Enchantment paper :~) AND the trim across the top looks like it was cut with a giant Adorning Accent Edgelit Die. Stampin' Up just thinks of everything!

Normally, when you host a $400 workshop (which is even easier during Sale-a-Bration because most of your guests will want to take advantage of the free sets) you earn $65 in hostess gifts and any full priced item at 50% off (yes, that includes the Big Shot or the Simply Scored). During Sale-a-Bration you not only get all that, you also get a bundle of the Everyday Enchantment DSP, the ribbon and brad bundle AND the very classy Fresh Vintage Stamp set! What do you say, would you like to help both of us out and host a workshop between today and March 31? I promise I'll bring great projects that your guests will enjoy making!

Whew, is that commercial over? It sounds too good to be true but it is ALL TRUE! Back to our regularly scheduled layout. I had been thinking about ways to use the Framelit Label Collection on scrapbook pages since I got it last month. It is a great shape and I enjoyed overusing it on this layout :~) I love that it has so many sizes so you can use it for mats, for small stamped images and as journaling boxes. I also love that little girl in the pictures. She is 4 now but she is and always has been a mischievous little angel!

Sorry for all the enthusiasm over Sale-a-Bration. It is a marvelous time of year for a Stampin' Up demonstrator! I reckon I can try to tone it down a bit over the next 9 weeks. - Well, maybe.

January Stamp Club Projects

2012-01-21T21:08:00.000-06:00

The Stamp Club met this week and these are the cards we made, 2 of each of these 3 designs. The stamps are from the Occasions Mini Catalog and I used the new Paper Doily Die, Adorning Accents Edgelit Die with the matching Embossing Folder and the Blossom Punch. The birthday sentiment on the blue card comes with the Apothecary Art stamp set but the other 2 cards have sentiments from a set of 11 called Loving Thoughts. I love that it is kind of fancy but not so swirly that it is hard to read.

The green card uses the Bordering on Romance stamp set. I love the flowers and there are also border stamps that match the Adorning Accents Edgelits and Embossing Folders. I need to experiment more with all those great products!

The trio was finished off with the yellow Thoughts of You card. The Blossom Punch has a stamp set that coordinates with it called Mixed Bunch. This flower is my favorite of the 3 flowers in the set, I'm sure I'll use it most. I was making a card with another flower in the set that has more solid areas. It had some indentations in the rubber like it had been stored against something bumpy so I emailed Stampin' Up to tell them about it. I got an email back very quickly telling me that they were going to send another set to replace it, it should be here Monday. I love how quickly they work to solve any problems with heir products!

This is the picture I sent in my email. I thought they would understand the problem better with a picture to show how it stamped. It was a nice card I was making with the stamp too. I'll have to finish it up and post it later next week.

Remember, Tuesday starts Sale-a-Bration! You can get your free stamps by hostessing a workshop, placing an order at a workshop or online or by joining my Stampin' Up team and becoming a demonstrator. I hope I'll be hearing from you soon!

Paper Doily Sizzlet Die

2012-01-19T23:28:00.000-06:00

Have I mentioned how much I like the Paper Doily Sizzlet Die? I love the look of it and realized that it is quite versatile. You can trim away different parts to change the look depending on your project. I made several and trimmed them to come up with 7 different doilies. Hummmm, which one do I like the best?

You can use the cut away part too. I'm thinking these would be great for stamped images punched with a round punch or as a picture frame on a scrapbook page. What can I say, my mom was raised during the depression and she instilled in me a desire not to waste anything. After all the work cutting, punching out the little pieces and trimming the image down it would be a shame to waste the time spent or paper used to cut these doilies.

Did I mention how much I like this die?

Did I mention that Sale-a-Bration starts Tuesday?

I love my job! Stampin' Up is a great company to work for. I love so many things about how they run the company and how they treat their demonstrators. I hear there are some good changes coming up, I can't wait to see what they are. Stay tuned :~)

Team Meeting Swaps

2012-01-16T22:08:00.000-06:00

This is the swap card I made for the Team Meeting. It uses several of the new goodies, the Adorning Accents Edgelit Die and matching Embossing Folder from the Occasions Mini Catalog and the Outlined Occasions stamp set from the Sale-a-bration catalog. Remember, Sale-a-Bration starts next week! I love the chance to get free stamps every year during Sale-a-Bration!

This was one of my favorite swap cards. It was made by the wonderful and talented Mary Robinson. I've been trying to color the flowers of the Bordering On Romance set as pretty as she did hers but no luck so far. I want to CASE this card for my card club this month so I need to practice coloring! The Bordering on Romance set as well as the Paper Doily Die come from the new Occasions Mini Catalog. Did I tell you how much I ordered from that new catalog? Well, it's a huge secret that I'm not sharing but I had such a hard time deciding what to get that I just decided to ignore the logical business sense that I usually use and had a LOT of fun ordering. Twice.

This card doesn't use any of the new products but I really like it. The large floral image from the Day of Gratitude set that she used here reminds me of the flower from the new Mixed Bunch set though. I've seen so many cards made with this image that I can now recreate with the Mixed Bunch stamp. I can tell it will be one of my favorite stamp sets!

Last, I thought I would share a couple of Valentine cards I got. This one is simple yet beautiful. Wanda Vaughn made this using the Heart Framelit upside down so she just got the imprint not cut out. You would want to stamp the "Love" on the card before "embossing" it. These framelits let you see where you are cutting so it is easy to get the placement where you want it.

I like the technique here of sponging using templates she made with the Heart Framelits dies. She didn't put her name on the back so I don't know who to give credit to for this card. I'm thinking about all the sponging she had to do to make 25 of these cards! Sounds like something I'd get myself into, huh? Do you like the "from my heart to yours" sentiment? It comes from the new P.S. I Love You stamp set. It is a set of 15 stamps so you should be able to design a Valentine for everyone on your list with this set.

My card club meets this week, I'd love to have you join us! Email me if you would like to come and see how much fun we have. wrightplace4@ mindspring.com

I'll also be having a Valentine's Countdown class on Jan 31. Details for both of these classes are on my website.

Team Meeting Projects

2012-01-14T21:11:00.003-06:00

Last Saturday I went to a Team Meeting for Stampin' Up demonstrators. It was a great meeting, I learned a lot, got some great swaps and made 3 cards, a candy wrapper and a shadowbox frame piece of art. I always love the stamping projects and these were great projects. All of the projects we made used new stamps and products from the Occasions Mini Catalog. If you don't have one, you need one! Let me know and I'll get one to you.

The first card uses Crumb Cake, Concord Crush and Old Olive cardstock to create the card base and flower. All are embossed for extra dimension but the flower parts are also wadded up and inked to give them even more dimension. The stamp is from the Apothecary Art stamp set and after we colored the flowers we spritzed the piece with the Color Spritzer Tool. This is a great little tool that you use with one of our markers to spray ink on projects, either finely like I did or more heavy splotches if you want a different look. It is great to distress your project.

I changed this card up a bit from the sample we were working from. It had the other side of the Sweet Shop DSP we used had cupcakes on it but one of the swap cards I got was very similar and used that side so I flipped it over and used the little cherry images for my card. The cupcake stamp set is called Sweet Cake and the so sweet sentiment is also from the set. A bit of ruffled ribbon and some glimmer paper accents finish up this "sweet" card.

I love the rectangles of 5 different prints from the Twitterpated DSP used for the base of this card. The Pleated Satin Ribbon is Blushing Bride and the stamp set is from a great new set called P.S. I Love You. My favorite stamp in this set is a chocolate dipped strawberry, YUM!

This is a fun wrapping idea to make presenting Valentine's treats even more fun. Just a bit of Everyday Enchantment DSP (available FREE during Sale-a-bration) and some ribbon and a cute brad, also a Sale-a-bration freebie create an irresistible goodie. The cupid image also comes from the P. S. I Love You stamp set.

Last of all we made this vintage framed piece. It is sitting on my piano now, it is so pretty! The Very Vanilla cardstock was stamped with the swirly vine stamp from the Creative Elements set. This set is in the regular Stampin' Up catalog instead of from the Occasions Mini Catalog. The flower, butterfly, "Create" and frame strip it is on are all from the same set. We ran the stamped background through the Big Shot with the striped embossing folder after sponging on some So Saffron ink to make it look like old wallpaper.

Paper Doily Sizzlet Die

2012-01-11T15:49:00.002-06:00

Another new product I got in my preorder is the Paper Doily Sizzlet Die. It takes a couple of minutes to get all the little pieces out but I think you will agree that it is so beautiful that it is worth the extra time. I love that die! You can also cut off part of the edge and make it look different or layer part of it to give extra dimension and color to your project.

The banner that the sentiment is stamped on comes from a new stamp set called Take It To Heart. The phrases from the new sentiment set Loving Thoughts (as well as the Happiest Birthday one from the Apothecary Art set I used here) fit in this banner as well as they do in the Apothecary Art set. I like these sentiments, they are a bit fancy but not so fancy that you have to struggle to figure out what it says.

The paper and brad come from the Sale-a-bration catalog. You will be seeing a lot of that over the next couple of months. Don't forget that Sale-a-bration begins Jan 24!

More paper from the free Sale-a-bration Designer paper pack along with another doily. Actually, even though the colors don't look the same in the pictures, the center cut out on the first card is cut from the center of this doily. I was able to hide the hole with the Label Framelit die. I'm not really satisfied with this card, I think I need to put something else in the center instead of the thinking of you sentiment. If I come up with something different I'll post it. What do you think would finish off the card better?

Sale-a-bration starts in just under 2 weeks! It's a great time to host a workshop because you earn hostess points so quickly. And, you will make it to the $400 level quicker so you can get the half price item. Do you have your eye on a die or the Simply Scored or maybe even the Big Shot? Let me help you make it happen! Email me to find a time that works for you to host a workshop.

January Stampin' Sisters Team Meeting

2012-01-09T22:16:00.001-06:00

We had a team meeting Saturday. I did my swaps before I left for the funeral because I knew I would only have Friday to work on them if I waited till I got home and I would have lots of things to do that day after being away for 2 weeks. I was asked (by email while I was in Utah) if I could make some samples from new stamps in the Occasions Mini catalog and the Sale-a-bration catalog. Of course, I couldn't do many on Friday but I did manage several. Here are a couple of them.

First, I used the Apothecary Art set for the focal point of the card. The DSP is from the Sale-a-bration pack called Everyday Enchantment. I love the soft colors in this paper. I also used the ribbon from the ribbon/brad bundle available during Sale-a-bration.

Next, I used a smaller design from the Apothecary Art set as well as the new Adorning Accents Edgelits and embossing folder to cut and emboss the curved design at the bottom of the card. I love it! There is also a scalloped edgelit you may have noticed on the top card. They make these extra touches so easy on a card.

The last 2 are very simple but I wanted to show a couple of different ways to use the Simply Scored tool to make backgrounds. They are so quick and easy I want to make more! Even without the mat, the Apothecary Art set looks great. I love this set!

Diagonal lines in each direction are easy to achieve if you put a triangle of chipboard in the corner of the Simply Scored tool to make sure they lines are straight. You can just do a few lines in opposing corners or do lines every half inch all the way across and then add lines in the other direction.

Stampin' Up Office displays

2012-01-05T10:45:00.001-06:00

I had taken a tour of the Stampin' Up offices a year and a half ago when I was in Utah for Convention but my husband had never been there so I asked if he wanted to go. He was pretty enthusiastic about it so we went on Tuesday. He was driving and I was directing him with my handy-dandy GPS app on my Android. When I pointed and said that is it he said "Wow!" It is a very large building on 55 acres and is very impressive.

When we walked in and he saw the atrium he was more profoundly impressed than he ever imagined he would be. I knew he would love it but didn't tell him all about it so he would be surprised. It is so beautiful and is a great place to work. The receptionist said she would call the one who does the tours while we looked in the display/history area.

Again, my husband was impressed. He read all about the history and couldn't believe how quickly Stampin' Up went from a living room operation to the huge building they have today. I told him that they operated totally in the black and he said "Dave Ramsey would love that!". Yep, I think he will be a little more patient with my business efforts after that visit :~)

Here are some pictures from the display area:

Yum! Chocolates and chocolate covered strawberries. Only problem, they are all paper! They look so beautiful though.

See me taking a picture of this beautiful wreath? It is made from cones cut with the Scalloped Circle die. I might need to make one of these, if I find directions anywhere I'll let you know. Oh, if you look closely you can see my headless husband standing beside me.

After we looked at everything (and there was so much more) in the display area we came out and the sweet receptionist told us that both of the people who lead tours were out of the office but she gave us an abbreviated tour. The most impressive thing is the atrium in the office but I didn't take any pictures! It is amazing, huge rocks forming a waterfall and lots of plants and trees around it. It is more than 2 stories high with a dome roof to accommodate more growth of the trees. There are tables and chairs around it, I'm thinking I would probably eat lunch there everyday if I worked there!

Another impressive sight is the packing and shipping area. It is all computerized so the boxes are already assigned what goes in them as they are scanned and folded. They go down the conveyor belts and when they get beside a product that goes in them they automatically stop and a light to the proper bin lights up. Once the product is picked and placed in the box it continues on it's way.

She said that everything is calculated by weight and the least variance in the total when the box is filled puts the box into an inspection station where everything is checked by humans. No wonder there is seldom an error in my shipments!

Before visiting the offices we ran some errands and saw this sign. I thought you would enjoy it too.

One last thing, today is the last day for the huge Clearance Rack specials. There are still lots of good things left, did I mention there were punches there??? Also lots of ribbon, paper, buttons and even some dies!

More Lights and another Fun MDS layout

2012-01-03T08:40:00.003-06:00

Happy New Year everyone! We are still in Utah for a couple of more days so here are 2 more MDS layouts I have made from our trip. I couldn't resist scrapbooking the rest of my Christmas lights, they are so beautiful so the first layout is more Christmas lights from our visit to Temple Square on Christmas Eve.

The other layout is from a place South of SLC called Planet Play. We went there the day after Christmas and it is such a fun place to take a family. Shoot, my husband and I would have fun there without anyone else going with us! I did keep wishing my grandchildren were here though. They would have loved it!

Have a good day, I'll be home soon and can play with my new Occasions Mini Catalog stamps and the Sale-a-bration things I have waiting for me there. It really seems strange to go this long without stamping!

Oh, and don't forget, today is the last day to order from the fabulous Holiday Mini Catalog! If there was something you wanted (like the beautiful Christmas Lodge stamp set or the soon to be discontinued Stocking Builder punch and stamp set), click on the red Holiday Mini Catalog cover on the right and you can order online.

AND - just in from Stampin' Up! ..
CLEARANCE RACK BLITZ ends Jan. 5, 2012..
shop now for discounts of up to 80% off!!

Thanks for a wonderful year everyone!

Creative Withdrawals Conqured!

2011-12-30T11:09:00.001-06:00

Hi everyone, I hope you are enjoying the day, it is beautiful here, the high is supposed to be 60 so I'm planning to spend some time outside. It has been cold ever since we got here so today will be nice. Can you believe I didn't pack a single stamp, ink pad or piece of cardstock??? I was starting to feel some creative withdrawals. Then I pulled up my handy MDS program on my laptop and had fun getting creative with digital. I'd still rather do paper and ink but the MDS program is so easy and quick that I enjoy it too. I figured, no time like the present to start layouts of my trip so here are the first 2 pages. They show a few pictures from the flight and from going to see the lights on Temple Square that evening.

We are having a nice visit with my husband's brother and sister and nieces and great nieces and nephews. The funeral was very nice, every speaker talked about how my father in law served others throughout his life. He continued right up until he couldn't speak anymore. The nurses in the care center said that they seldom get a resident who expressed their thanks so sincerely and often. My father in law was just like that, when he could barely speak he still let others know how much he appreciated what they did. I'm thankful to have had his example in my life.

Have a good weekend and safely welcome in 2012!

Merry Christmas!

2011-12-24T23:50:00.000-06:00

It's Christmas Eve and I am in Salt Lake City. My father-in-law died last week so we came for the funeral. We went to Temple Square tonight to see the lights. It was 22 degrees so we were very cold but the lights were beautiful and we enjoyed the evening. Here are a couple of pictures.

Merry Christmas!

Say It Isn't So!

2011-12-21T17:01:00.000-06:00

Have you heard the news yet? The Stocking Builder Punch is being discontinued with the end of the Holiday Mini Catalog. I'm so disappointed, I love that punch! I'm glad I bought it, I love the things I created with it.

I'll have it for Christmases to come and for baby booties on Congrats cards and hobby horses and sweaters and all those fun things Stampin' Up demonstrators figured out to make with this versatile punch. If you were putting off ordering one, better head over to my website and order it before they are sold out. While you are there you should check out the Clearance Rack and get some of those bargains too. Unless you pay extra for expedited shipping it won't get there before Christmas though!

I can't believe it is only 4 days till Christmas. It looks like I'll be having a white Christmas this year, it's been a while. Here are a couple of cards made with the Stocking Builder Punch, some were swaps from the Birmingham AL Regional and some from the Louisville Regional.

I'll have to be playing with the new punch and the dies I got from the Occasions Mini Catalog instead of the stockings. You will be able to see all the goodies when the catalog goes live on Jan 4th. I'll try to post more that I make with my new goodies if I get time before I leave for snowy places.

Apothecary Art Card and Clearance Rack Blitz!

2011-12-16T17:56:00.000-06:00

There is a huge sale going on in the Clearance rack on my website but first I want to show you a couple of projects.

First is a card I made using one of the new stamp sets and dies from the upcoming Occasions Mini Catalog. I love this set and I love that we have nesting "Framelits" dies to cut out these shapes. We also have a heart Framelit set in this great new catalog! I also used the Hello Doily stamp for the background of this card.

This is a box of cards I put together for a gift. I used the Spice Cake DSP for the lid. Inside I made dividers for various types of cards using the Round Tab Punch and mostly the Teeny Tiny Verses set. I couldn't find a stamp that said miscellaneous or assorted so I just printed that one. I hope the one who gets this card box will appreciate the time that goes into creating 40 handmade cards!

And last, your chance to save big! Lots and lots (nearly 200) items have been added to the Clearance Rack with discounts of up to 80%! Click to save now! Hurry though, lots of people will be taking advantage of this sale. And don't be shocked to see punches there. I guess they are clearing out the old style punches so they will all be the new flatter style. What a great chance to get the large punches for under $10! Go grab some bargains, I reckon I'll take my advice and head on over there myself!

Also, click the "all" option under the number to show per page at the upper right corner and it will be much easier to shop instead of clicking through all those pages. I like easier.

Christmas Gifts Class and Christmas Treats Class

2011-12-13T16:00:00.000-06:00

I've scheduled 2 classes this week, a couple of last minute Christmas classes to help you get ready for the big day. In the Christmas Gifts class we will make 3 gifts for $15. We will make a desk post-it note/calendar holder that will be a great gift for any busy person, 2 flower pins, made of tapestry, lace or sheer fabrics, your choice as to the fabric, color and size. These pins are beautiful for a lapel or to pin on the latest ribbon and bead style necklaces. And finally, the set of 8 Monogram Cards make a great present for anyone. The cards will include envelopes and be packaged in a great clear box that we will emboss to make it an even greater gift!

This class is scheduled at my house on Wednesday, Dec 14 at 7:00PM and Thursday, Dec 15 at 1:00PM. Email me to sign up and get directions to my home! wrightplace4@mindspring.com

The other class is a Christmas Treats class. We will fill a nugget tin with yummy chocolate wrapped in beautiful Christmas paper and decorate the tin with the very popular medallion pleated flower. Other fun projects will include the "skinny bags" decorated with Santas and stockings; a cute reindeer goodie bag and an adorable "purse" treat bag. For stocking stuffers or treats for co-workers you can't beat these great goodies. Everyone loves a handmade gift so sign up and come create!

The Christmas Treat class will be Saturday, Dec 17 at 10:00 AM or 2:00PM Cost is $15 Email me to sign up. I hope you can make it to one or both of the classes!

More Dec Club Projects

2011-12-10T22:18:00.001-06:00

My daughter came to visit me from GA the past week and while they were here we went to Opryland Hotel in Nashville to see the Christmas lights and decorations. I love the poinsetta trees they have there and we got our picture taken in front of one of them. It's not the best picture of the kids but it's definitely natural!

As promised, here are the other 2 projects we did at our card club this week. The Baja Breeze snowflake card would be a great card for Christmas or during the snowy months of January and February. This picture was taken before I stamped the Merry Christmas sentiment but you could stamp a birthday greeting or a thinking of you sentiment to send over the Winter months. We cut the cardstock 4 1/4 X 11" instead of the usual 5 1/2 X 4 1/4" size. We folded it in half and then folded half of the front back across itself. It is an interesting fold that is fun to design with. The stamp set is the Serene Snowflakes set and we used all 4 of the stamps in the set.

The 4th project we did was a gift card holder. We took a 12X12 sheet of cardstock and cut it at 5 1/2", nearly in half. We scored the strip of cardstock at 4", 6" and 8" and folded it in a "W" before running it through the Big Shot Machine. It was placed with the 2 folds just above the cutting blade at the bottom of the "purse" so it was still in one piece when cut out.

The inside sections were adhered together from the back of the card and then the folded edge was punched several times with the Word Window punch to make a slot long enough to insert a gift card. We added some ribbon, a brad faux closure and a stocking from the Stocking Builders punch and the sentiment is from the Occasions Alphabet set. The DSP is one of the designs in the Letters to Santa pack.

The last picture shows the inside, I thought I had a Christmas gift card but couldn't find it so I reckon we get pink tulips!

December Card Club

2011-12-09T22:29:00.000-06:00

Hi, I hope you are keeping warm. It's cold here tonight so I'm trying to stay inside and close to a heat source! Yesterday was our December Card Club. We did an extra project this time as part of my Christmas present for my ladies.

I'll start with our bonus project, a little snowman treat bag made on the Fancy Favors Box die. I borrowed the snowman idea from Lisa Young's blog, isn't he cute? We used buttons for his earmuffs and the wide striped ribbon for his scarf. I wasn't completely happy with his mouth but it was one of the last things I did on it so I'd have to practically redo the whole thing to redo the mouth. I still love him!

How do you like my outdoors in my bush with red berries pictures? They turned out pretty good but it wasn't easy to get the bush, shadows or gravity to cooperate! Before I even went outside to take the pictures I dropped my camera on the kitchen floor. Yikes! It broke the latch on the battery compartment so I had to tape it closed with electrical tape. Obviously, it still works but I have yet another redneck repair in my repertoire!

Another CASE, this one from Debra Courrier. I loved the simplicity of the 3 strips of Silver Glimmer Paper. I'm thinking I would add some embossing to the background Cherry Cobbler cardstock if I make more of them though. We stamped the image in black and colored the heart on the house with a Cherry Cobbler marker to carry over the red from the background. A snowflake cut with the Northern Flurry die strip secured with a colored Rhinestone brad finishes off the card.

It's late and I reckon I better head to bed. I'll post the other 2 projects tomorrow if I get time to. You know how December is, you remember something you said you would do when there is barely enough time to get it done and end up rushing around all day!

Snow?

2011-12-06T22:46:00.000-06:00

There is a teeny tiny chance that we might possibly see a smidgen of snow tonight if we look out the window at the right time. It's funny how they seem to get all excited about it. I'd just as soon never see another snowflake again unless it was on my crafting table and was paper! Or better yet, glimmer paper!

I went to a shoebox swap last week and we did 2 snowman cards so I thought it would be a good time to share them with the snow in the forcast and all. They are made with the Snow Much Fun set in the Holiday Mini catalog. I love the snowmen and birds in the set. The first one is an accordian fold card, I can't remember who brought this one but it is a fun card.

This is what it looks like when you open it up.

And this is the other snow card.. This one was shared by Becky Brunton but she said she had cased it somewhere. I love the texture that the Snowburst Embossing Folder gives to the strip on the side and the Glimmer Paper snowflake is a great touch.

I reckon I need to go peek out the window to see if that big snowstorm has hit yet! Drive safe :~)

2011-11-28T21:35:00.000-06:00

I've been waiting to post this card because I can't find who I CASEd it from and was hoping I could find it so I could give her credit. If it was you, please let me know!

We made this in our club meeting this month. I used the tree from Lovely As A Tree because I didn't have the set she used. We stamped it in Versamark and embossed it in white embossing powder. After it was embossed we used Garden Green ink to sponge over it, start at the middle and work your way out so it isn't too dark around the edges. That also prevents large circles of ink you get when you first dab the sponge on with fresh ink.

We embossed the strip of Whisper White paper with the new Snowburst embossing folder which made it really easy to tear across the top and fold down.

It is a good thing I had another card ready to blog with. I have a sinus infection AND vertigo right now so I haven't felt like stamping for a couple of days. I'm hoping to be feeling better tomorrow. I reckon I better go drink another cup of yarrow tea before I go to bed.

Christmas Countdown

2011-11-26T20:27:00.000-06:00

I had a class today where they made these cute tin Christmas Advent countdown calendars. We had originally wanted to make the one shown on page 36 of the Holiday Mini Catalog but I had heard other Demonstrators saying that the class took 7 hours to complete! They are beautiful art pieces but when I saw a version in a tin I knew that was the one I wanted to make. It only took about 2 hours and they are very cute so I'm glad I decided to go with the simpler version.

We put pieces of the plaid paper from the Frostwood Lodge DSP pack on the cover and inside the tin. The number stamps from 25 and Counting were stamped on Whisper White Cardstock and layered onto Cherry Cobbler and Garden Green Cardstock that had been punched with the Postage Stamp punch. Magnets were put on the back of each one so they can be stored inside the tin and changed out each day.Mostly I alternated the numbers with red and green ink but when I got to Baby Jesus it was time to use red and I just couldn't stamp him in red! I thought about it and decided that Soft Suede ink would be better. Then I decided that the reindeer and cup of cocoa should be Soft Suede too. Then the numbers with snow had to be blue. I reckon I'm a little obsessive sometimes, right?

Between Bastings

2011-11-24T16:37:00.000-06:00

Happy Thanksgiving!

I thought I would take a few minutes between bastings to post a quick turkey, the symbol of this day of gratitude. I have so much to be thankful for so I love Thanksgiving and the chance to concentrate on my blessings. I was raised in a great family on a wonderful farm and learned the Gospel of Jesus Christ early in my life. I had the opportunity to go to college, met and married a good man and we were blessed with 4 children. There were, of course, trials that went along with all these blessings but those trials strengthened me and made me the person I am today.

Thanksgiving dinner is nearly ready and we will be enjoying our dinner soon. I hope your Thanksgiving dinner has been wonderful and you have had friends and family around to share it with. Thanks to all of you who follow my blog and are my friends and customers. I am thankful for all of you.

Here is a little turkey, made with the fan fold technique we all learned in elementary school. I did the turkey's body with the owl punch and added him to the front of this multiple layer Spice Cake fan fold tail. Enjoy him and have a Happy Thanksgiving!

Another Christmas Card from the Nov Club meeting

2011-11-23T00:47:00.000-06:00

The ladies wanted to try embossing so I ordered some white embossing powder for this card. Can you believe I ran out of white embossing powder! I saw a card made by Ellen LaFever that I really liked and I copied it fairly close, just changed the colors and embellishments. I used the tree stamp from Lovely As A Tree and stamped it in Versa Mark and embossed it with white embossing powder. Then I took a sponge and sponged some Garden Green ink over it, starting in the middle and going out. That way you don't get the too dark areas around the edges. I used the Snowburst embossing folder for the dry embossing of the snow hill, tore it along the top and folded it down.

The red Glimmer Brad wrapped around it brightens the Merry Christmas sentiment but I kept thinking it would look better embossed in white too so I suggested it in class and once one of them did it that way it looked so much better that everyone else did. I reckon that you will have to imagine it though because I didn't take any pictures!

Watercolor Christmas Card

2011-11-19T21:58:00.000-06:00

Here is one of the cards we made in our club meeting this week. We used watercoloring to color in the image from the Tidings of Joy stamp set. I've noticed that nearly all of my stamps are solid stamps that need no coloring so I wanted to do something a little different this month. I like the Tidings of Joy stamp set so I ordered it to use to teach some watercoloring techniques.

We used a combination of Watercolor Crayons and Watercolor Pencils, both are Stampin' :Up products that make it fun to color a stamped image. You can go bold or more subtle like I did on this card. You can get some good shading if you take just a little time with it. I was tired and in a hurry to get the card finished so I could go to bed so I didn't do as good a job of coloring as I could have.

I love that image of Mary and Joseph and baby Jesus. It is sweet and simple and everyone, including the animals look peaceful. With just over a month left until Christmas I need to decide if I'm going to use this Tidings of Joy set for my Christmas cards or go with O Come Let Us Adore Him with the wisemen on it. I don't have much time to decide and start getting them made!

White Embossed Doily

2011-11-16T22:52:00.000-06:00

When I saw the Hello Doily stamp in the new catalog I knew it would be one of the first stamps I would order. It is so pretty and reminds me of all the doilies my mom used to have under her vases and on the backs of chairs. At the regional meetings I got 2 different swap cards using it with white embossing powder. They are both gorgeous! This first one was made by Any Linkel. It is stamped on Concord Crush cardstock. After embossing it in white all she had to do was tie a ribbon around, stamp and punch out the sentiment and add a Basic Pearl. Very easy but a beautiful card don't you think?

Second, Judy Fetters stamped Hello Doily on Whisper White cardstock and embossed with white embossing powder. She took a sponge dauber and, starting at the center, applied Rich Razzleberry ink in a circular motion. Starting at the center means that by the time you get to the edge of the doily the ink will be lighter and you won't get dark circles around the edges. I reckon that would look as bad as dark circles under your eyes!

Again, tie a bow, add Basic Pearl and a sentiment and another wonderful card finished! That is the great thing about a perfect stamp, you don't have to work as hard to get a beautiful project. I really like quick and easy! As busy as we all are these days we need all the quick and easy we can get.

Scored Card

2011-11-12T23:04:00.001-06:00

Here is another swap card I got at the Stampin' Up Regional meeting. This one was made by Zoe Rhodes. I love the look the scoring gives this card. This look is so easy to achieve with the Simply Scored too. You can add this dimension to many projects that don't need the scoring for folds like the pleated flowers that are so popular right now. This card is nice and flat for mailing but carries that "WOW" factor we like to get out of our projects.

This is a quick and easy card, the soft colors combine with the scoring technique to create a great card.

Fall Cards

2011-11-09T13:11:00.001-06:00

Happy Harvest! I love Fall. The only thing I don't like about it is that Winter follows and I don't like the cold weather or the bare trees. Funny how much I enjoy seeing the leaves change color and watching them fall and I even enjoy raking them but I don't like the bare trees all that leaves behind. I think I enjoy raking leaves is because we had so much fun with it when we were kids. Not only did we rake huge piles to jump into and crawl and hide in, we raked piles into our play houses and raked roads from my sister's house to mine and then on to our other sister's "house". It was great fun and filled many a Fall afternoon. If you remember the picture I posted of my house last week, the home I grew up in is just through the woods and also had a large yard with lots of trees so the leaves were ample.

Anyway, these pretty cards are some of the swap cards I got at either the Birmingham or the Louisville Stampin' Up Regional meetings. These all use the amazing 2-step set, Gently Falling. I've seen so many beautiful Fall cards made with this set. They are all great but I wanted to show a close up of 2 of the cards. This great Fall card from my talented friend, Mary Robinson features a fun and easy technique where you stamp a background for your stamping with one of the clear blocks. Just ink up the block without a stamp on it and stamp on your cardstock. It leaves a nice shadow as a base for your focal image. I love the Fall colors. I reckon I might have told yall how much I like Fall, right?

The other card uses the masking technique. Although it takes a little more time to get ready it is a relatively easy technique. In this sample it requires a bit of cutting but once you have a mask cut out you can use it quite a few times so it is really worth the time. This card was made by Janice Jones. She stamped one of the leaves from the Gently Falling set onto a post-it note and cut it out. Then she placed it on a piece of Very Vanilla cardstock and sponged over it with Soft Suede and Pool Party ink. The En Frances background stamp could be stamped before or after the sponging, just do it without the mask. Layering the artwork on Soft Suede and Pool Party cardstock and tying a bit of torn Spice Cake fabric around it finishes off this card very nicely. Fabric makes a nice, inexpensive bow on your stamping projects and I love that Stampin' Up has fabric to match some of it's Designer Series Paper. It's great when they introduce products that makes our stamping easier and more versatile.

Easy Woven Card Technique

2011-11-07T15:47:00.001-06:00

So, did you get to download the free Digital files and play with them over the weekend? There were some great files! I went to a weekend crop at a camp in Land Between The Lakes in KY. It was very nice and I slept much better than I was expecting to. I taught a Christmas Treats class there that I will be teaching again soon, I'll post when so you can sign up if you can come.

I haven't added the sentiment yet but I finished up this card Saturday and wanted to share. I'm thinking it will be a Happy Thanksgiving card for my Sister in Law. I like to leave the sentiment off sometimes and add it when I need a card. Since Stampin' Up papers and inks all match I can easily stamp a sentiment in Soft Suede ink and it will be complete! I reckon I need to sponge a little ink around the Word Window punch so it fits with the card better.

I have see several of these woven cards lately and since I have been a basket weaver I love the look and needed to try it myself. If you haven't done this technique, it is easy and fairly quick. I stamped the image from Lovely As A Tree 3 times. One I left whole and I cut the other 2 into strips, one horizontally and the other vertically. Then I picked a few of the strips and matched them up to the main piece and attached them. I had enough strips left to do another card too so you might want to stamp 4 images in the first place and leave 2 whole. When I first made the card it looked bare so I pulled off the strips and sponged some Soft Suede ink around all the edges. Perfect touch!

Here is another card I made Saturday. Again, no sentiment and very simple. I still haven't decided if it is finished or not. I'm wanting to add ribbon but I'm thinking I need to move the flower up about a half inch and then put the ribbon between it and the sentiment. Or maybe I will put the ribbon under the sentiment and not need to move the flower. If you look closely you can see that the flower is outlined in the Dazzling Details glitter glue that is new in the Holiday Mini Catalog. I thought about spongine some Not Quite Navy ink around the flower petals but haven't decided if that would help or not. What do you think?

2011-11-04T10:41:00.001-05:00

Celebrate Digital Scrapbooking Day with Stampin' Up! for a four-day online event designed to introduce more of our demonstrators and customers to our digital content. Digital Scrapbooking Day is November 5, but we'll keep the celebration going from November 4-7! The event will include free downloads, blog posts with exciting project ideas all weekend long, and the announcement of the 2011 My Digital Studio Contest winners.

Check it out at http://mydigitalstudio.net/

This event is for everyone, if you have never tried digital projects, there are free downloads you can get to "test drive" this fun way to create. If you already do digital work, the downloads are free for you too! What have you got to lose? This is a great time to try our digital program without spending the money to buy it. Of course, if you love it and want to buy MDS, I'll be glad to help you out with that!

Join us this weekend for:

FREE digital downloads

Project ideas

Announcement of 2011 My Digital Studio Contest winners

I downloaded the free digital products and created this layout.

I love the torn tape look for this layout! I'm thinking I'll use that digital download a lot. It comes in the Crumb Cake color that I used as well as clear, Whisper White and Very Vanilla and Basic Grey. I'm thinking duct tape too! My niece made a duct tape prom dress a few years ago, she needs that download!

What's included in the free downloads? 127 digital images in all! FREE!!! Come on and play along. I'd love to see what you create with your free downloads! After getting your free downloads – take a moment to complete a survey at My Digital Studio. After completing the survey you will have access to FREE DIGITAL DOWNLOADS
Why complete the Survey
– Because it will help us continue to provide top quality digital products to meet your needs.
– Because it could mean even more FREE downloads – If we get 5,000 customers to fill out the survey and get the free downloads, we’ll give everyone another FREE download. Want to make sure you get it? Then encourage your friends, family, coworkers, and other contacts to go to MyDigitalStudio.net between November 4-7 to fill out the short survey and get their FREE downloads. Spread the word by sharing the link from My Digital Studio’s Facebook page and “like” us while you’re there.

Don't own My Digital Studio? That’s ok – you can use our Digital Downloads with any program you already own.

Another Beautiful Fall Day

2011-11-02T21:51:00.000-05:00

I love days like today! The weather was perfect, sunny and warm. After some very cold days the last couple of weeks you really appreciate a perfect day more. It is supposed to rain tomorrow, but the Fall rain helps with the gardens in the Spring so I don't mind a rainy day now and then. I have several Fall cards to share with you now.

Here is a swap card from Sue Erickson. I love everything about this card! She used the French Foliage stamp set with fall colors that speak to me :~)

I don't know who this card is from, she put the instructions for making it on the back of her card but didn't add her name. Sounds like something I would forget to do too. She used the Give Thanks stamp from It's a Wrap Holidays stamp set. I like that she found another way to use the set besides wrapping it around a mini candy bar. The card has lots of texture with the Texturz Plate and punch art.

Last is another card with Fall colors but not a typically Fall stamp set. It is from Bobbi Simpson and uses the floral stamp from the Love and Sympathy set. Then she added texture with the Square Lattice embossing folder and copper brads.

I hope you have a beautiful day wherever you are!

It's November!

2011-11-01T22:34:00.000-05:00

Fall is in full swing, the weather goes from being beautiful one day to freezing the next. We just have to keep checking the weather to be prepared or we end up like I was today, wearing a sweatshirt when it is 70 degrees!

I had a workshop today and it was great, we did a punch art turkey and Santa. The turkey was on a skinny bag and the Santa covered a Hershey Nugget. The ladies enjoyed the punch art, it is one of my favorite things to do. I'm so glad Stampin' Up has such great punches and there are so many creative demonstrators who share their ideas so I can look good at workshops!

Here is a beautiful Fall swap card from Shirley Hotop. It features the glitter window technique. See how the Dazzling Diamonds are in the middle of the circle? It is a great technique that will surely come to a class I teach real soon. It would be great for a Christmas card too, hummm, which stamp set can I use???

There wasn't a name on the back of this swap and I can't seem to get the colors right in the new photo program so it is kind of washed out but it is very pretty in person.

Here it is opened. It is a mini post-it notes easel card. It is so cute and is a great way to let someone know you are thinking of them.

I thought I'd share a picture of my house. It is in there somewhere! This picture was taken a couple of weeks ago when the leaves were just starting to change. They have nearly all fallen off now so if I had remembered to take a picture today you cold actually see the house there among the trees. My husband spent quite a bit of time raking the yard Saturday. I reckon I know what he will be doing again this weekend!

Happy Fall Yall!

Free Big Shot Offer Extended! Happy Halloween!

2011-10-31T18:35:00.002-05:00

Today was scheduled to be the last day for the FREE Big Shot but it has been extended until Nov 11! There is still time if you want to sign up to be a Stampin' Up Demonstrator and get a Big Shot die cut machine or $100 free merchandise. You can go to my website and sign up online quickly and easily with a Credit or Debit card. I'd love to have you on my team so hurry! Let me know if you have any questions. I love being a Stampin' Up Demonstrator, I think you will too.

It is finally Halloween! I love Fall colors so I enjoy the fun of decorating for Halloween and Thanksgiving. I have a few projects from various swaps and a Halloween card I made a while ago but haven't posted to share today to wish you a happy Halloween. First, the card I CASE'd from somewhere:

Please excuse the poor editing of the pictures. I got Windows 8 on my computer while I was gone and I haven't figured out the new photo program very well. It takes 3 times as long to edit each picture so I've GOT to find a better way! I just love technology . . .

Here are a couple of fun Halloween treats I got as swaps from the Stampin' Up Regional meeting I went to Saturday in Louisville. The little bag with the EEK! stamp from the It's A Wrap Holidays set was from MaryJo Marshal of Ohio. There wasn't a name on the back of the pleated flower skinny bag treat, I think there once was but it got lost with all the goodies I had in my big bag of swaps. It is so cool and I really love the witch hat made from an oval and pennant punch.

This 3-D card is one I got at the Birmingham Regional I think. It is from Kelley Bialoskurski. She used the House of Haunts stamp set and the Spider Web embossing folder and lots of Dazzling Diamonds to make it extra fun.

This is a great little treat bag that folds into a purse-like folder. It looks purple here due to my lack of ability with the new photo program but it is really black. It is stamped with the Wicked Cool stamp set.

Ah, the right colors here! There is a mini paper bag inside that holds a fun size candy bar. Somehow I'm thinking that is the wrong name for those little candy bars. I reckon I'd call them the skimpy size and the great big ones would be fun size!

louisville Regional

2011-10-29T11:54:00.002-05:00

Hi, have you missed me? It was such a busy week I didn't get much time online. I had a fun Halloween Tricks and Treats class Tuesday and didn't take any pictures to post. I reckon I should do that before the Spooky day.

Right now I can't do that because I'm in Louisville for a regional Stampin' Up meeting. I made 64 swaps so I am having fun with all the new ideas I got. We are on our lunch break so I thought I would try putting the technology in my pocket to the test to see if I can post from it. So far so good. I can't figure out how to post a picture though so check back later tonight and I'll edit the post to add a picture of some of the swaps.

I'm having a great day, I hope you are too!

This is my swap card. It uses the Well Worn DSP and the Posy Punch and Four Frames stamp sets. I stamped the Four Frames onto Sahara Sand and punched them out with the Decorative Label punch. I also punched out a Basic Grey background for each. No need to use the punches whole, I cut them in half to cosnserve paper. If I was only doing a few I would have inked the edges of the card and DSP but since I was making 64 I decided to skip that step. I had another version that had a piece of the DSP that had some red in it so I used Riding Hood red for the places I used Basic Grey on this one.

This one is probably my favorite swap over all. It is a beautiful vintage card and she did take the time to ink the Top Note and the sentiment. It was shared by Fram Sebad and features the Artistic Ectchings, Netting, Established Elegance and Perfect Wrods stamp sets. The DSP is from the Neutral collection and she used a length of the Early Espresso Quilted Ribbon, Basic Pearls and the flower from the Itty Bitty punch. It all comes together to make a georgous card!

Halloween Treats Class

2011-10-22T01:50:00.000-05:00

Oh my! It has been a whole weeks since I posted! I knew it had been a busy week but didn't realize I had let the whole week get by without posting. Seriously, do you think time is going by much more quickly than it used to???
I wanted to post about my Halloween Treats that will be next Tuesday morning. I can do it again Wednesday night if anyone is interested in a night class.

Here are the details:
In this fun class you will make 5 or 6 Halloween treats that will be a great presentation for your friends and family! We will make some “skinny bag and test tube treats, nugget wrapped treats and some fun treat bags just in time for the spooky day!

Oct 25, 10 AM

Here is a picture of some of the projects. There are a couple of others I haven't quite finished yet. You can choose which ones you want to make.

Email me to sign up, I'd love to have you come for the class!

Regional Projects - plus - Strength and Hope Campaign

2011-10-14T09:02:00.002-05:00

Here is the notice we got today about the effectiveness of the Strength and Hope Campaign. If you have forgotten about it, it is what they called the efforts to raise money for the Brest Cancer Research Foundation by the sale of the Strength and Hope stamp set that was in the Summer Mini Catalog.

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You Did It! Results of the Strength & Hope Campaign

October 13, 2011
The Strength & Hope Campaign, benefiting The Breast Cancer Research Foundation^®(BCRF), came to an end on August 31. We thank you and your customers for your amazing support of this global philanthropic campaign. Each of you did your part to make a difference, and by doing so, we raised nearly $60,000, which will go toward helping BCRF "achieve prevention and a cure for breast cancer in our lifetime" (BCRF Mission Statement).

Again, thank you for living Stampin' Up!'s Statement of the Heart and doing your part to make a positive difference in the lives of others.

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I love that Stampin' Up is always looking for ways to help people out. They also have the cute set called Turtle & Co. on page 16 of the big catalog with the proceeds going to the Ronald McDonald house.

Here are 2 of the projects we made at the half-day regional in Birmingham, Alabama last weekend. It was a wonderful day for me. Even getting up early to make the trip was nice since the morning was beautiful.

I love the stamp set we used for these projects. It will be in the upcoming Occasions Mini catalog so you have to wait until January to order it. I still haven't ordered everything I want from the Holiday Mini catalog though so I can wait. I love how we always decorate the envelopes at Stampin' Up events. I always forget this detail and I really like how you can get a preview of the love and attention that went into the card before you open it.

Since the conference was only 3 hours long we only actually made these 2 projects. There were also several demonstrators who showed us fun ideas, one was my good friend Mary Robinson who is in the same team I'm in. She did a great job and I know she was nervous but you couldn't tell by watching her. I need to find the time to try the technique she did as well as the other ones that were demonstrated. Everyone in attendance also received a card keeper box to decorate, an art journal and kit that they challenged us to create in, along with a sheet of prompts to keep us going and give ideas for the pages. We also got an extra mini scrapbook project plus to make at home. Maybe I'll get time to make that today.

If you have never been to Alabama you might not know that they have huge fields of cotton. We saw quite a few along the freeway so I took a couple of pictures with my phone. You can tell by how blue the sky was that it was a beautiful day. It's not a great picture since it is the phone, through a window, going about 75 MPH but you get the idea of how white the fields are. Cotton is an interesting crop - I reckon I'm glad I don't have to pick all this cotton though!.

October Classes

2011-10-10T17:23:00.002-05:00

I have several classes planned for October. Contact me at wrightplace4@mindspring.com if you want to sign up for one (or more) of the classes!

Christmas Card Class 2:00 PM - 4:00 PM (Central)
Come on over and make Cards for you Christmas card list. In this class we will create 6 cards, 2 of each of 3 designs. Kits will be cut and ready for you to stamp and assemble! Class cost is $15.
Saturday, October 15, 2PM

Big Shot Techniques club/class

10:00 AM - 12:00 noon or 6:30-8:30

Learn techniques for using a die-cut machine while creating 3 projects per class, at least 2 3-D projects along with a card or scrapbook element. This will be a series of 3 classes over 3 months. Each class will be $15 or free if you join the Big Shot Club. For the club it will be like putting the Big Shot on layaway; you will pay $33 a month and at the end of the 3 months you will get a Big Shot Die-cut machine! If you join my Stampin' Up team and become a demonstrator you can take the classes for free.

The first class will be October 18 at 10AM or 6:30 PM. Email me to reserve a spot in the time that fits your schedule best!

Halloween Treats Class October 25, 10AM In this fun class you will make several Halloween treats that will be a great presentation for your friends and family! We will make some “skinny bag and test tube treats, nugget wrapped treats and some fun treat bags just in time for the spooky day!
$15 without candy, $18 with candy included.

Stamp Club Oct 20 ~ 10:00 AM - 12:00 PM Join the club and get the class free OR pay $15 for just the class. For the stamp club we will make either a 12X12 scrapbook layout or 6 cards, 2 each of 3 designs. Club members get the benefit of the class free with their $25 purchase and they get to receive hostess benefits once or twice a year. Join the fun!

Wow! Birmingham Regional

2011-10-08T23:51:00.000-05:00

Today was a fabulous day! The sun was shining, the air clear and the temperatures nearly perfect as we drove past cotton and soybean fields. What a great day to travel to Birmingham, Alabama for a half-day Regional Stampin' Up meeting! It was fun to visit with Jamie and Monica on the trip down there and back and the projects, swaps and demonstrations were amazing! I learned a few new tricks that will magacially appear on my blog over the next couple of weeks too. For tonight, since I'm so tired after that long trip, I'll just post one of my favorite swaps.

This beautiful card was shared by Linda Harris. I love the fall colors and the Faux embossed leather thechnique. I'll be trying it soon and share with you how to get this wonderful look. It has a lot of texture that you really can't see in a photo.

It was a wonderful day but I reckon I better head on to bed, it's nearly midnight! Check back soon because I have lots of great swaps and fun techniques I need to try soon.

Another Reason I LOVE Stampin' Up!!!!

2011-10-03T10:04:00.001-05:00

What a special! I love, love , love Stampin' Up!

Stampin' Up! has really come out with an incredible special this month. If you decide to become a Stampin' Up demonstrator and buy the demo starter kit, you can receive a BIG SHOT or $100 in merchandise of your choice....FREE!!!!

If you are interested in a fabulous deal, this is for you!
If you are interested in purchasing product at a discount, this is for you!
If you are interested in earning some extra income, this is for you!
If you love to create and visit with other creative friends, this is for you!

You can even sign up online at my website, and better yet, there is no shipping on the starter kit! Regardless, you should check out the details! That is $445 worth of Stampin' Up supplies, tools, stamps, ink, cardstock - everything you need to create great projects for $175. That is a HUGE savings of $270!!! This is an unbelievable offer!

If you're interested in becoming a Stampin' Up! demonstrator, follow these easy steps:

Click on the Join Now image on my website to join Stampin' Up!
Read and agree to the Independent Demonstrator Agreement.
Purchase your Starter Kit-there are two great options!
- The $175 Standard Starter Kit contains over $345 worth of stamping and business supplies!
- The $175 Digital + Starter Kit contains over $320 worth of stamping and business supplies, including the all-new My Digital Studio software.

Once you've completed the above steps, Stampin' Up! will send you a password so you can log in to the Demonstrator Web Site where you'll find an abundance of tips, ideas, and training to help you. Approximately one hour after you complete your online IDA, you’ll also receive an email that will explain how to order your FREE Big Shot or up to $100 in Stampin’ Up! products—tax and shipping are free!

Click here for information on the starter kit! (Note, you can customize the starter kit to the stamps, inks, and paper YOU want.....as long as your choices are the same dollar value or less!)

Click here for information on the fabulous special!

I'll be doing a series of Big Shot technique classes and if you join my team now using the link above, you can take these classes free too! That adds another $45 to the incredible value you will get when you join my team this month. The class will be Oct 18 at 6:30PM or Oct 20 at 10AM.

This class will have several options,
1) free when you join my team,
2) $15 for each of the 3 classes if you want to just take the class or
3) join the Big Shot Club and get the classes free when you purchase a Big Shot from me. You can purchase it outright or pay $33 a month for the 3-month series and get your Big Shot at the end of the 3 months, just before Christmas! Email me at wrightplace4@mindspring.com to let me know which option you would like.

Here are a couple of samples of things you will be making in the class, 3 projects per class as well as tips and techniques for using your die cut machine.

I reckon that is as good as it gets! LMK if you have any questions or have trouble signing up, I know you want to!

Happy Birthday Brennan!

2011-09-30T20:37:00.000-05:00

Fall is here. The high for tomorrow is a chilly 62 and the low tomorrow night is supposed to get down to 37! Burrrr! I don't like cold weather so I'm not too excited about the forecast. Today is my youngest grandchild's 2nd birthday. He is an adorable little tow-headed boy who is full of enthusiasm and mischief. Here he is with his favorite thing in the whole world, a stuffed dog named Scout that I gave him for Christmas last year. It was definitely a good choice!

Speaking of cold weather, have you started making your Christmas cards yet? I had requests for Christmas cards at my Sept stamp club so here are the cards I came up with. They got to make 2 of each card. One of the ladies needed thank you cards so I brought some thank you sentiments and the Lovely as a Tree set to substitute for the Christmas images on the cards. It fit in the same space as the Wise Men on the first card and the single tree worked on the second card. I should have taken pictures of the cards she made, I was so glad when I noticed that Lovely as a Tree would work on all of the cards.

For the first card I used the Come To Bethlehem set. I really love that set, it is a great image of the nativity and the star makes a perfect place to put one of the Basic Rhinestones. I used the Oh, come let us adore Him . . . quote under the image. The background was embossed with the new Snow Burst embossing folder.

The second card was first stamped with the full ink pad directly to the center of the card. I used the Crumb Cake ink pad so it would be a muted background that wouldn't overwhelm the stamped image. None of the ladies in the stamp club had ever tried this technique and were pleased with the results they got. I love a technique that is fast and easy and doesn't require a lot of extra supplies! The ornament from Delightful Decorations and was stamped in Cherry Cobbler ink. It is impossible to tell in the picture but I swirled some Dazzling Details on the ornament for a little sparkle and then added 3 of the Basic Rhinestones to add a little dimension to the card.

Last is a fun gingerbread card using 3 stamp sets. The background Soft Suede strip is stamped with the large swirl stamp from the Baroque Motifs set and the gingerbread man comes from the Got Treats set. If you look closely at the ribbon you will see how beautiful the new Quilted Satin Ribbon is. It is in the new Holiday Mini Catalog and comes in 2 colors, Cherry Cobbler and Early Espresso.

If you are ready to start your Christmas cards, let me know! I'll be doing Christmas card classes each month that will help you get ready for all the cards you want to send out to friends and family. I also have gifts and treat ideas that I'll be teaching to help you prepare for the celebrations that are just around the corner.

Fall is Definitely here!

2011-09-27T17:32:00.000-05:00

Fall is in the air! It is chilly this morning and I find myself wearing sweaters and jackets nearly every time I go out. The tulip poplar trees are quickly turning yellow and dogwood and sumac trees are going red. It won't be long until the countryside will be glorious in color. That part I like about Fall. What I don't like is that it is bringing in the ice and cold weather of Winter. I get cold easily so I don't look forward to Winter! I can't believe that it will be October by the end of the week.

Today I'm posting some of the Fall cards I got in a swap last week. The firs one uses a great stamp set from the Holiday Mini Catalog called Always Thankful. I love the pumpkin filled wheelbarrow! This card was made by Cathy Maltby, didn't she do a great job coloring the pumpkins? I like her card design and the polka dot ribbon is a great finishing touch.

This Halloween card has a fun twist to it. Michelle Hall had the great idea to use the new Peekaboo Frames die to cut a little window for the owl from Warmest of Wishes to hide behind. What a great addition to a card. And the window covering will protect the owl's rhinestone eyes from tearing the envelope when the card is sent through the mail!

Of course, the Spider Web embossing folder finishes off any Halloween card with a great touch and stamps from Wicked Cool and the Frightful Sight DSP are the perfect touches. I love this card!
And last is a card made by Debbie Prante. She used squares of the wonderful Spice Cake DSP to create a quilt like Top Note die that she embossed with the Snow Burst Embossing folder to give added texture. Then she stamped leaves from the Gently Falling set to the background as well as 3 leaves in matching colors on top of the "quilt". I can add any sentiment I want to or just send it as a note card to a friend. This is a great card!

Masculine/Feminine Challenge

2011-09-22T14:49:00.002-05:00

I recently took on a challenge to create a masculine and a feminine card using the same stamp set. I used one of my new favorites from the new catalog, So Soft for the floral image and the birthday stamps came from the Happiest Birthday Wishes set. Both are the sets you can earn with the new and improved hostess benefits. Have you looked at the new hostess program? Now if you have a workshop that goes over $400 you get to choose any item (including the Big Shot!) for half price. Add just another 100 for a $500 workshop and you get 2 half price items! There are some of the largest dies I would like and a really large Decor Elements tree I would like to get for half price. If you want to rack up on half price items, give me a holler and we will get a workshop going for you!

Oh yes, back to the card. I used a technique that may have a name but I don't know what it is but I really like it. LMK if you know what it is called so I can update my post with it. You simply stamp and color your image, cut it into several pieces, sponge the edges and reassemble it onto a cardstock mat. I love how the Crumb Cake card looks antique.

I also used the new Lace Ribbon Border punch on the blue card and threaded some Old Olive Satin Ribbon through it. That punch makes a great border. That just wouldn't do for a man's card so I used a little bit of the Hemp Twine around the sentiment for the brown card. Which one do you like best?

This picture is of the hearse that carried the casket for a funeral I attended today. It was very sad really, a group of Bikers Who Care had a rally last weekend for their annual toy run. It was a hugely successful fund raiser this year and they collected 4 truckloads of toys for needy children! They were camping out during the rally and the last night the generator wasn't hooked up right to one camper and 5 people in that camper were killed. One was the son of some good friends that I have known all my life. He was a great guy, eager to help out whenever he was needed and father to 3 children, the youngest is 9.

This is what a motorcycle hearse looks like. I wish I could have gotten a better picture but it was a beautiful sunny day here so there was a bit of a glare.

Let me tell you, the Bikers Who Care are an amazing group of people! They came to support Timmy in huge numbers. I don't know an exact count but there must have been at least 1000 people who came to the viewing last night, more then half of them on motorcycles and in Harley gear. There were probably about 800 people there for the funeral today, much more than half were bikers. And all of the bikers went to Timmy's funeral at 10 and then on to one of the other funerals at 1.

What an emotional day! Driving in the procession, I was touched by the display of respect throughout the community. People were standing in front of their businesses with their hands over their hearts as we drove by. Fire trucks were parked all along the route with the firemen in front paying their respects. People stopped their cars to let us go by, some of them got out of their cars and stood with their hands over their hearts. One man even stopped mowing his lawn and stood by his mower.

Perhaps the saddest funeral will be on Saturday when a young husband and wife who died will be buried in a double ceremony. They have 15 month old twin boys. She was an elementary school teacher. I didn't know them so I won't be there but I know that will be a hard funeral for their family.

Sooooo, hug your kids, parents, brothers and sisters and tell them you love them! Families are forever but we sure miss them when they go before us.

Corner Punch Flower

2011-09-19T18:52:00.000-05:00

I made this card Saturday and I really like how the flower turned out. I make a little tutorial for you if you want to try this technique.

I used the Scallop Trim Corner Punch and punched the corners of two 2" Squares and two 2 1/2" squares.

After punching all 4 corners of all 4 squares I clipped in on the middle of each side of the small squares and made a "v" shaped notch and clipped in from the center of that towards the middle on the larger squares. Don't clip in too far so all 4 petals stay together. If you do clip too far and a petal falls off it would be simple to attach it without it showing since they are layered and a large button or brad center covers the center.

After clipping, fold from the edge of the punched out corner to the center of the clipped square. I turned down part of the scallops on the smaller squares but started just past the "v" shaped notch on the larger ones. I hope that makes sense!

I adhered the 2 large and 2 small ones together, alternating petals with glue dots. Regular adhesive probably won't be strong enough to hold the flowers together.

Put a brad or a button in the center and the flower is finished! I used one of the beautiful Vintage Brads in the Cajun Craze flower above.

You can add extra dimension to the flower with a little sponging around the petals.

Although these flowers have plenty of dimension! They are a great addition to any project.

I just couldn't stop until I tried one that is multi-colored. I reckon I need to go make some with DSP, those will be great! I'm thinking a Cherry Cobbler flower with a little Dazzling Details will be a nice glittery Christmas accent. I need to go play a little more with this technique! Let me know if you try it too, I'd love to see your creations.

2 Challenges in one

2011-09-17T14:15:00.002-05:00

I belong to a yahoo group for Stampin' Up demonstrators and they have a weekly challenge. This week it was to take a sketch and use it for a card using the 2011/12 In Colors. I found a sketch on a site called Sketch Frenzy Friday and decided to use that. It is a relatively simple sketch but that left room for a lot of creative interpretation :~)

I used 2 of the In Colors, Island Indigo and Lucky Limeade. The DSP is from the Paisley Petals pack and the stamp is one of the new hostess sets, Faith in Nature.

I changed the sketch up a little but not much. I stretched out the middle rectangle and centered my sentiment. As I'm looking at the card now I realize that I didn't use any ribbon, I nearly always use a bit of ribbon to finish off my cards! I guess this one didn't need any.

I kept feeling like there was something wrong with the card, besides no ribbon. I finally decided it was too blue so I trimmed it down so you could see the white card back around the edges. Now I'm happier with the card. What do you think, does that make a difference?

There has definitely been a change in weather here in middle TN. I did a lot of yard work yesterday afternoon and went out to do more today. It is so nice not to have to get up at 6:30AM to do yard work before it gets too hot to be outside. I'm not a cold weather lover though so I'm wishing these cooler days weren't going to lead to what I've heard is going to be a very cold, very long Winter. I reckon I'll survive though, my brothers have cut me lots of firewood all Spring to keep me warm! They love me :~0

From Halloween to Thanksgiving to Christmas

2011-09-16T08:16:00.002-05:00

I've shown you the Halloween and Thanksgiving projects we made at the Fall Retreat, now for the 2 Christmas ones. I've been wanting to make one of the bookmark cards but just never got around to actually doing it. I love the idea that after they open the card they have a bookmark they can use and remember you while they are reading their favorite book! It's like the card that keeps on giving :~)

This one uses the great Frostwood Lodge Designer Series Paper, isn't it beautiful? This paper features lots of plaids and tree bark images. It is so much fun to work with! I enjoy it but I know it will make some great masculine cards that the men in your life will appreciate as well.

The second picture shows how the card looks with the bookmark removed. I'm thinking I might have to move the trim and ribbon piece up a little next time so it doesn't look so bare when you remove the bookmark. I'm obsessive that way. . .

The other Christmas project we did was this beautiful framed display of Christmas images. We used a variety of punches and images to complete it as well as paper from the Letters To Santa Designer Series Paper pack. It was a bit difficult to get a good picture of it since it is in a shadow box frame to allow room for the Basic Pearls we used on several of the images.

First, the sentiment comes from the Bells and Boughs stamp set, the snowman from the Jolly Bingo Bits and the child placing the star on top of the tree from the Welcome Christmas set. The second row features the reindeer from the Winter Post stamp set, a snowflake embossed with the Northern Flurry Embossing Folder and the cute tree from the Punch Pals set. All put together it makes a beautiful Christmas display. I feel a class coming on!

Thanksgiving is coming, right???

2011-09-14T15:59:00.001-05:00

We did a couple of great Thanksgiving projects at the Fall Retreat last Saturday. First up, a fun turkey card made using a Heart Treat Cup and the Build A Blossom punch. Who'd a thunk it??? The background is stamped with the Circle Circus stamp set in Fall colors and the treat cup is filled with candy corn. What a fun card to send to someone you are thankful for! If you are wondering about the polka-dot paper, it is in the catalog too. You might not notice it at first but it is the Patterns Designer Series Paper Stack on page 186 of the Idea Book and Catalog. You get 40 sheets of patterned paper, 2 of each color in the color collection you choose. In Colors come with 4 of each color since there are only 5 colors.

The second card is beautiful, I love the sentiment from the Hand Penned Holidays set in the Holiday Mini Catalog. This set has 4 beautifully scripted sentiments.

The card uses the Square Lattice Embossing Folder, I think it is perfect for Fall paper crafting, it just has that harvest feel to it. A square of Spice Cake DSP adds a great touch, I love that paper! We used one of the leaves from the new Gently Falling set. I need that stamp set! It is so pretty and very versatile. We stamped the leaf, sponged on several colors with some sponge daubers and then cut it out before adding some Stampin' Dimensionals to add more depth to the card. Then a length of Early Espresso Quilted Satin Ribbon finishes off the card perfectly. Isn't that ribbon beautiful? It comes in 2 colors, Early Espresso and Cherry Cobbler. I'll be using more of both of these yummy ribbons on my upcoming holiday projects.

Someone asked about the "toe party" mentioned in a previous post. Sometimes my friends and I need a little girl time so we go to my friend Christie's house. We go about 8PM when her kids go to bed and we visit, paint our toenails and then she has the equipment to paint fun designs on our freshly painted toenails. I chose the paisley last time but she has flowers, butterflies and many other designs. The designs are etched into a mirror like circle and she smooths on permanent white paint and then uses a stamp thing that looks like a very large sponger dauber to pick up the painted image and roll it across the toenails. Very cool. And it is great to get together and visit. I try to leave by midnight but it is usually after 1AM before we wind down! It's almost as fun as a Stampin' Up workshop :~)

Fall Retreat projects

2011-09-12T23:21:00.000-05:00

Saturday I went to a Fall Retreat that my upline and her upline sponsored. It was wonderful! It was in Huntsville Alabama, about a 2 1/2 hour drive from my house. In the morning we did a 20-page 6X6 mini album using the Christmas Lane Simply Scrapping Kit. After a nice catered lunch we did 6 more projects, 2 each for Halloween, Thanksgiving and Christmas. I loved every one of the projects! It was so much fun to craft and visit with other Stampin' Up demonstrators all day.

These are all of the projects we did in the afternoon. First though, I'll just show the Halloween projects so you can see the close-up photos of the individual projects. This card uses a fold called the Center Step Card. If you can't figure it out, head over to Split Coast Stampers for their tutorial. It is a great fold and actually pretty easy to do. What a way to send a card with impact!

This card uses the Jack of All Trades stamp set and the Frightful Sight DSP. I really like the pumpkin's hair although I got it kind of crooked on my card. The ribbons used on the side are the Pear Pizzaz Stitched Poly Ribbon and the Basic Black 1/8" Taffeta Ribbon. Just a few inches of each ribbon makes a big difference in this card, doesn't it?

The side view shows how it can stand on the receiver's desk or table for display. I've only made a couple of cards with this fold but I reckon I'll be making more very soon!

Another fun Halloween project we made was this owl treat box. You can't tell from the picture but it is made on a matchbox cut with the Matchbox die and the Big Shot. You can put a fun Halloween treat in the drawer before giving this to a lucky recipient. Can you recognize all the "parts" of our hooty friend? We used the Top Note die as the base, the Bird Builder Punch for the "ears", the Scalloped Circle Punch for the belly and wings and one of the hearts from the Heart to Heart Punch for the beak and feet. 3 sizes of circle punches make the eyes, the Chocolate Chip one cut in half for the eyelids. I inked the eyelids, beak, feet, belly and wings with Chocolate Chip ink before assembling. I used snail for most of the project but used Sticky Strip to attach the Top Note die to the matchbox and also to attach the feet. I didn't want the little feet to fall off! Oh, and don't forget to use the Signo White Gel pen to add a twinkle to his eyes.

Chilly Days

2011-09-07T09:55:00.000-05:00

The past few days have been a bit chilly. It is a welcome change from the upper 90's we had last week. It is also a reminder that Winter is coming. I don't like to be cold so, as much as I love Fall, I have this dread of the long cold days of January and February. I know lots of people love the cold weather but my fingers, nose and toes are always cold and make me so uncomfortable that I dread it. Many a Winter day I am so thankful for my wood stove and my 3 brothers who cut wood for me all year. I think I need to take some pictures of my woodpiles (all 3 of them) and scrapbook about my brothers!
Today, since I'm thinking about Winter and wood stoves, I'm going to post some cards I got some swap cards featuring the new set called Christmas Lodge. It is on page 29 of the Holiday Mini Catalog. If you don't already have this mini catalog, let me know and I'll get one sent out to you. It is full of wonderful stamps, paper and other goodies to create great projects for Fall and Winter holidays.
The lodge stamp from this set is so beautiful! It has so many possibilities for snow techniques on the roof. All 4 of the cards I'm posting today use either Dazzling Diamonds or the new Dazzling Details which is basically Dazzling Diamonds added to clear glue like Crystal Effects in a small squeeze bottle that is easy to squeeze onto a project. Much less messy than the glitter and glue! It is a great new project that I'm sure I'll be using a lot. What's not to love, bling and easy in the same bottle!

Although the Christmas Lodge set comes with 2 great sentiments, this first card made by Karen Monger goes with a more bold approach using a sentiment from the Merry and Type set. This set makes it look a bit more manly. Did you notice the wood grain DSP? It comes from a paper pack called Frostwood Lodge, also in the Holiday Mini Catalog. There are several wood grain papers in this set, including white birch and lots of plaid papers too. It goes perfectly with the Christmas Lodge stamp set! The stamp set also has a large fir tree, a small branch and a cute branch with 2 birds on it, a set of 6 stamps in all.

The next 3 card use the sentiment from the Christmas Lodge set that says "Sending Wishes of Happy Holidays to You and Yours". I love the swirls and branches on this sentiment. First is an easel card, isn't it beautiful! I wish I could remember who made it, she did a great job but her name isn't on it. I love the addition of embossing, Basic Pearls, Chantilly Lace and our new Lace Ribbon Border Punch. The other sentiment on this card comes from the Boughs and Branches stamp set.

She also stamped the "back" so either way you fold the card, it looks nice. I hadn't seen one that could fold either way so I though this was a great idea. I love the easel fold cards! Here are 2 views of the card folded each of the 2 ways to show the difference.

This is a simple yet beautiful card made by Patti Keitzman who is in the same Stampin' Up team that I am on. I love the simplicity of this card, the 2 colors used and the beautiful Velvet Stitched Ribbon, another new offering from the Holiday Mini Catalog.

Next is another card from our Stampin' Sisters team swap. Kathy Brown made this beauty using Early Espresso, Cherry Cobbler and Very Vanilla cardstock and a bit of knotted Cherry Cobbler Seam Binding. Of course, there is glitter on the rooftop! I'm sad that it doesn't show well in the pictures.

The last card is a simple yet beautiful card made by Patti Keitzman who is in the same Stampin' Up team that I am on. I love the simplicity of this card, the 2 colors used and the beautiful Velvet Stitched Ribbon, another new offering from the Holiday Mini Catalog.

I had to throw a blanket on my bed in the wee hours, it got down in the mid 50's last night. With a high not quite reaching 70 I will have to start out my day with a light jacket or sweater but it promises to be a great day. I'm still snuggled under the blanket, I guess I should get some breakfast and get going on the day. I went to a "toe party" last night at a friend's house and stayed past 1AM so I was glad I could sleep in this morning. Then I woke up at 6:00 and couldn't go back to sleep! I'll definitely need a nap today. At least I have pretty toes. It's too cold to wear sandals but I know how cute they are!

Holiday Mini goes live!

2011-09-03T08:12:00.000-05:00

Stampin' Up's new Holdiay Mini Catalog is live now! Have you seen it? It is full of such great goodies, beautiful designs and new punches and dies! We even carry a new scoring tool that I've heard is better than any of the other ones out there. I'll let you know when mine gets here what I think of it. I know that Stampin' Up always seems to think through all the crafty needs and come up with the most practical and versatile tools when they release something new.

We are starting on the most holiday-filled time of the year with Halloween coming next month followed quickly by Thanksgiving, Christmas and Valentine's Day. The Holiday Mini Catalog is full of things you can use to craft through all of these holidays. The big Idea Book and Catalog has other products for all these holidays but the Mini Catalog focuses just on them and has some great new products that aren't in the big catalog. There are adorable miniature jingle bells and mica flakes that will make any Winter scene sparkle! I've already gotten the Stocking Die and punch in my pre-order and have been having fun creating with them.

I love that there is a stamp set that coordinates with the Stocking Punch! Here are a couple of samples with it. The Silver Shimmer paper is new in this catalog too. Now we can choose from red or silver when we want a little extra sparkle on our holiday projects. I love the look that embossing gives to everything also. Aren't the little embossed stockings adorable! These 2 cards are ones I got in a swap at the team meeting and are made by Sue Erickson and Monica.

There is a link on my sidebar to the Holiday Mini Catalog. Simply click on it and you will be able to see all the new goodies that are ready for holiday crafting. I can't decide whether to work on Christmas or Halloween first! I do have a Christmas card class coming up soon so I reckon I'll work on Christmas for a while.

I'm So Square

2011-08-30T23:19:00.000-05:00

I don't remember who I CASEd this card from. They used different colors though. And a different stamp set. And different Designer Series Paper. And a different ribbon. Theirs was 3 by 5 squares so it would fit a standard card and mine is 5 by 5 squares so it will fit a larger, 6X6 card. I just cut a sheet of 12X12 cardstock in half and folded it for the base.

The DSP is cut into 1" squares. Be careful to keep it straight or you will be figuring out a puzzle with all the pieces shaped the same! I started in the lower left corner and left just an eighth of an inch between each. After I had all squares aligned and placed on a sheet of Chocolate Chip cardstock I trimmed it to where there was a border about 1/4" and then mounted it onto an Always Artichoke square and them a Baja Breeze square.

Add a piece of Scalloped Dot Ribbon in Chocolate Chip before adhering all these layers onto the card base. I finished it off with a sentiment from the Happiest Birthday Wishes stamp set. This is a 2-case set of stamps. I reckon there must be a sentiment for anyone's birthday in there. There is even a late card sentiment that I'm sure I'll be using a lot!

Don't forget, Wednesday is the last day for:

The Summer Mini Catalog

The Strength and Hope campaign

Buy 3 get one free DSP

I'd be glad to help you with your stampin' and scrapbooking needs.

I Got A New Diamond!

2011-08-26T10:56:00.001-05:00

OK, it's just a chip but it's still a diamond! Every 5 years Stampin' Up gives it's demonstrators a pin to recognize their time with the company. I joined 5 years ago so I got my pin this week. It is very hard to photograph a gold pin so this is the best picture I could manage. I reckon I'll hang around for the 10 year pin with 2 diamonds!

I had some time to play with a new stamp set I got about 2 weeks ago called Faith in Nature. This is a hostess set in the new Idea Book and Catalog that I wanted from the second I saw it. Isn't it a nice set? I used some of the Spice Cake DSP that will be available next week in the new Holiday Mini Catalog. This is great paper!

The first card uses the pear image and the Thank You sentiment included in the set. Using natural colors like Very Vanilla, Always Artichoke and Soft Suede compliments the stripe pattern paper. Just a little Hemp Twine gives it the perfect finishing touch.

The next 2 cards continue the natural colors with the Spice Cake DSP. I stamped the images and "framed" them with the new Designer Frames embossing folders. Both these frames come in a package for just a dollar more than the larger single embossing folders. I'm loving these frames! I cut the rectangular one with my trimmer, stamped the flower and ran it through the Big Shot. Smaller images you could stamp after you emboss but it is easy to make sure you have it centered since the folders are clear.

I used just a strip of the Spice Cake behind the image which is raised up on Stampin' Dimensionals.

On the last card I used the other Designer Frame folder, the oval one. Instead of using the trimmer, I tore the paper outside of the dotted design and inked it up. This one is also raised on Stampin Dimensionals. I also love the new Lace Ribbon Border punch. It is great for cards as well as scrapbook pages.

Sadly, this Designer Series Paper isn't available until Sept 1st so it isn't included in the buy 3 get one free paper sale that goes until Aug 31. But there are lots of beautiful paper that are included in the sale from the regular catalog as well as the Nautical Expedition and Beyond the Garden paper packs from the current Summer Mini Catalog! Stock up now for future projects! I know I'm ordering some extra while it is on special, only 5 more days! Check it out here.

It's a Wrap - or is it?

2011-08-22T22:20:00.000-05:00

There are 2 very cool new stamp sets that are designed to wrap around mini candy bars that I really like. One is called It's A Wrap and is in the big Stampin' Up Catalog. The other is called It's A Wrap Holidays. I bet you already figured out that the Holiday one has wrappers that say things like Eek! and Give Thanks. They go all the way to Happy Easter. Since I don't have any mini candy bars I haven't done much with this set yet but I'm sure it will get lots of ink between now and Easter!

I try not to keep candy around because I know I'll end up eating it. I guess I need to buy a bag, make some fun projects with them and give them all away before temptation strikes.

This led me to be looking at the It's A Wrap set and try to think of something I could do with it that didn't involve chocolate. The Get Well Soon one looks like a band-aid so I decided to use it as a band-aid instead. I used a Pacific Point/Soft Suede color combination I got from the Paisley Petals Designer Series Paper. The "band-aids" looked best stamped in Crumb Cake ink.

I love the new Stripes Embossing folder. It makes a great background for cards and I'm sure I'll find lots of other things that it will be great for. I just used a strip of Soft Suede cardstock across the bottom of the card and tied the 1/8" Taffeta ribbon around it.

That was my colors for the Stampin' Sisters meeting swap. Earlier in August, I did a swap where we were supposed to use some of the new In Color colors. I chose Calypso Coral and Pool Party for this one along with a little Chocolate Chip cardstock and Scallop Dots Ribbon which I pleated across the bottom. I added 3 of our Basic Pearls to finish off the In Color get well card. So, which color scheme do you like the best? Blue is very popular but the coral one is bright and cheery.

Be on the lookout for more It's A Wrap projects. There is a baby one, as well as birthday, thanks and wedding to name most of them. They will be great to give as gifts or to use to decorate for these occasions. Fun stuff!

Team Meeting Swaps, The Christmas Ones

2011-08-20T22:01:00.000-05:00

I wish you could see the glitter in these cards. It looks so pretty to see the glitter on the snow-covered lodge. The lodge and the sentiment are from a great new set in the Holiday Mini catalog called Christmas Lodge. It is also impossible to see on this first card created by Kathy Brown that the paper is the Shimmer White so there is shimmer on the paper as well as glitter on the snow. Paired with the rich colors of Early Espresso and Cherry Cobbler make this a wonderful card.

The second Holiday Lodge card was made by Patti Keitzman. She used a different color scheme but it is so pretty too. The simplicity of 2 colors, Always Artichoke and Very Vanilla make this a great card. You can't tell that there is glitter on the snow but you can see the distressing along the edge of the Always Artichoke cardstock. What a nice touch, I love that vintage look.

Remember Jolly Bingo Bits from last year's Holiday Mini? It is in the new catalog along with the Bingo Card stamp. Linda Cathy made this nice card with just a simple embossed jingle bell from the Jolly Bingo Bits stamp set. Teamed up with Brushed Gold cardstock that is embossed with the Square Lattice Embossing folder and Mocha Morning Designer Series Paper this is an elegant yet simple card.

A simple technique she used on the card is to punch the Modern Label punch from the DSP as well as the stamped bell punched from Very Vanilla. That way you can tie a smaller length of the Victoria Lace Trim through the hole before adding the stamped piece.

The last of the Christmas cards I got in the swap was made by Monica. She used a very similar layout to the stocking card I posted Wednesday. It is a great design and that Silver Glimmer paper is absolutely perfect for the stocking tops, toes and heels. You can get an idea of how pretty the glimmer is in the picture but you can't tell that the Season's Greetings stamp is embossed in Silver Embossing powder. I reckon I'll be making more projects with that fun Stocking Stitches stamp set and the Stocking Punch!
Don't forget 2 specials that end the last day of August. The Strength and Hope stamp set that donates $2 per stamp set to Breast Cancer research is in the Summer mini catalog that expires Aug 31st. Actually, there are tons of great products in the Summer Mini catalog, check it out before it's gone! Click on the link to the right to see all the goodies in there.

The other special that ends on August 31st is the paper sale. We have lots of beautiful patterned paper packs that are buy 3, get one free. That is a 25% savings on beautiful, double-sided designer paper. Let me know if you need to order some great paper!

Stampin' Sisters Team Meeting

2011-08-17T15:31:00.000-05:00

If you have been following my blog long you know that I have a big garden and I spend a LOT of time every Summer pulling weeds. This is actually a chore I enjoy doing. I know it will be worth it when the harvest comes. Well, it's here! I had been taking the little bucket out with me every morning the last couple of weeks and it was big enough. Well, not anymore! I'm getting lots of good produce now and we are enjoying fresh veggies for supper every night.

You might not like my second picture as much. I went to pick raspberries the other morning and found this long friend in the garden. I think he was cold, he sure is kinked up! By the time I finished picking he was gone. He was just a chicken snake, I used to play with them all the time when I was a kid.

On to Stampin' Up stuff: Saturday I went to my Stampin' Sisters team meeting in Nashville. Stampin' Sisters is the name that my upline, Julie Salva chose for her Stampin up crew. If you know Julie, you know that her meetings are wonderful and fun. If you don't know her, look on the back of the new catalog. Or on page 8 or 9! She had no idea until she got the catalog that hers would be the picture chosen or that they were going to put 3 different pictures of her in it! What a fun surprise for her.

Anyway, after a short business meeting we were able to do 5 projects as well as a swap. Now I have lots more to share with you! We made 3 cards a little box and a stocking. We used products from the upcoming Holiday Mini catalog so you can have a little sneak peek at some of the new goodies you will be able to order soon for the upcoming holidays.
Some of the products in the new Holiday Mini Catalog are Halloween goodies. This stamp set is called Out On A Limb. There is a limb in the set too, as well as a cat, owl, bats and jack-o-lanterns complete with mustaches.

You won't be able to tell from the picture, but we used a new product called Dazzling Details on the cloud, moon and broom straw. It is like Dazzling Diamonds mixed in Crystal Effects. Quick and easy with no mess! I hope we get other colors soon but I plan to experiment with reinkers and make my own colors in the mean time.

Next is a nice Fall card using a great new leaf 2-step stamp. I love this set, it has 4 different leaves, all with outlines and fill stamps as well as an acorn and maple seed stamps. 12 great Fall stamps in all. Actually, you could use green for the fill stamp and do Spring and Summer themes with them.

And how do you like that paper? It is called Spice Cake and I am so thrilled with it. It has great designs and colors, you will see a lot more of it in the coming months.

Another great Fall project we did is the little Thanksgiving Matchbox filled with Hershey nuggets. The turkey stamp is from a set called Gift Givers, a stamp set that coordinates with punches to make it so easy to create with them. This set has the cutest reindeer stamp in the history of the world! Well, you might disagree but you would have to agree that he is adorable.

The last 2 projects are Christmas ones. We have a new Holiday Stocking Die that we used for the stocking box. The front piece uses the Petals A Plenty Embossing folder to give the stocking extra texture and the top, toe and heel are cut from DSP called Holly Berry Bouquet.

And last, a product I'm really excited about, the Stocking Builder punch and Stitched Stockings stamp set. Aren't they wonderful! As we get more and more busy with the approach of the holidays it is great to have products that will make creating fun holiday projects so quick and easy. Did you notice the red and white baker's twine across the top of the stocking card? It is still going to be available after the Summer Mini Catalog goes away at the end of August. I'm so glad because it is great for creating Christmas projects! did you notice the extra shimmery Glimmer Paper on these little stockings? Now we have red and silver Glimmer Paper. Isn't it perfect for jazzing up holiday projects? And it takes so little of it for these little stockings! You NEED a Holiday Mini catalog, let me know if you don't have one and I'll get one to you!

I reckon I should offer a Seasons Greetings to everyone!

Bookmark Card

2011-08-15T16:39:00.001-05:00

Have you made a bookmark card yet? I've been hearing about them for a couple of months but never took the time to figure it out and make one yet. I was so pleased when I got a TAG from fellow Stampin' Up demonstrator, Lisa Bryan last week. Not only is it a bookmark card but it is just beautiful!

She used the great new stamp set, Cherish Friendship for both the front of the card and the bookmark. I love how she stamped the bowl of cherries in front of the goose (who looks like he has big plans for those cherries!) and especially how she used Crystal Effects on each berrie to make it more 3-Dimensional and realistic. Very pretty. The mat punched with the Scallop Trim Border and Corner punches looks great on this square card.

When you open the card up you immediately notice the bookmark, it is perforated on the fold so you can easily pull it from the card and use to mark you spot in your latest book. Then you can think of the person who sent you the card often as you read. The chair with the basket of flowers is another great stamp in the Cherish Friendship set. Another feature I love about this card is the Chocolate Chip Scalloop Dots Ribbon Lisa used. This new ribbon comes in 10 colors. I need to order a few more rolls of it, I just can't decide which colors I need the most!

Hey, don't forget, August is half over. The buy 3 get one free special on Designer Series Paper is a great deal. Get it while this great offer lasts! What a great time to load up on the Christmas paper you know you will need! Click on the icon on my sidebar to find out more and order while you can.

VC Bloghop

2011-08-13T00:58:00.000-05:00

Back to Elizabeth's Stamp Room

Today is the day for the last VC bloghop of the year. If you missed the last one, VC stands for Virtual Convention. I joined the group since I didn't get to go to the Stampin' Up convention this year and it has been fun. You should be coming to my blog from Elizabeth's Stamp Room. She had several great cards using the new birthday hostess set. I have that set so I need to borrow some of her ideas.

My project is my August scrapbook layout. It features the Paisley Petals Designer Series Paper with a neutral Crumb Cake background. I used the large Hello Doily stamp on the background and the Delicate Doily stamps as accents on the lower left corner.

After stamping the Hello Doily in Crumb Cake ink I added a Fleurette croched flower with an Antique Brad to the center of the main one. I cut a piece of DSP into 2 X 11" strips and rounded the corners. I placed these strips on the Crumb Cake paper before adding scalloped strips cut with the Tasteful Trims Die. I really like these large scallops and feel they added a nice touch to the layout. I sponged Always Artichoke ink on them to give them additional dimension.

The layout went together fairly quickly and has space for up to 5 pictures. The 5 mats were sponged with Marina Mist ink and the outside of the layout was sponged with Always Artichoke.

Thanks for stopping by to see my layout. Your next stop on the blog hop is Carolyn Sharkas' blog, http://inkingthenightaway.blogspot.com/. She has a very cute idea for a mini album in a tin. I love how she made the labels for the pictures so the bride can decide which one to put where as she creates her album of treasured wedding photos.

Next Blog, Carolyn Sharkas

I Won!!!!

2011-08-09T08:46:00.000-05:00

I entered a contest on Seaside Crafts and won 2nd place, a $30 gift certificate for Stampin' Up products! Yay, I need more things from the upcoming Holiday Mini Catalog! I've placed my pre-order but wanted a lot more things than I bought. I've got until Jan 4 so I can spread it out a little. This little mini catalog is loaded with great and wonderful stuff, ask and I'll send you a copy too.

OK, so you want to see my winning project? It is a bookmark with a bottle cap center that I ordered from Seaside Crafts. Actually, I got the big paperclip from them too. These will be in an upcoming class so keep your eyes open :~)

I used Perfect Plum, Pumpkin Pie and Pacific Point cardstock to cut flowers from the Fun Flowers die and them embossed them with embossing folders. I also ran the bottle cap through the Big Shot to flatten it down some and that helps with sharp edges. I used a scrap of So Saffron and stamped one of the Circle Circus stamps on it and punched it out for the middle of the flower. You can't tell in the picture but there is an epoxy covering on it so it is nice and shiny in real life. These make a fun gift for book marks or to hold papers together.

I also entered this card in the contest but it didn't win anything. I used the new Stripes embossing folder, I really like that one! I had bought the metal (that matches our Melon Mambo) from Seaside Crafts also. I like using metal, it makes a handmade card even more special. The hearts were punched first and then embossed. I used Stampin' Dimensionals to attach them to the card front.

In case you want to see the first place winner, check out Linda Keel's great project here:
http://olivestamps.blogspot.com/2011/08/collaged-butterfly-gift-card-holder.html
This is a great project and got my vote! (it wouldn't be right to vote for myself would it?)

Gail Etchie came in 3rd with a cute and colorful Halloween Card that also used a bottle cap.

Tax Free Weekend!

2011-08-04T22:10:00.000-05:00

It's Tennessee tax free weekend, and some of your favorite Stampin' Up! items are eligible for savings!! It's a great time to stock up on adhesives, markers, pencils, and more! Here's the complete list!! As always, you can order any of these items online from my demonstrator website http://www.stampinup.net/esuite/home/elainestamps Simply click "shop now"! (Free sales tax items can be combined with clearance items and regular priced items on an online order!) Don't forget that the Designer Series Paper is currently on sale too!

Item Number	Description	Price
100425	2-Way Glue Pen	$ 3.50
100902	Dotto Refill	$ 6.50
101879	Watercolor Pencils (24)	$ 19.95
102845	Blender Pens (3)	$ 9.95
103179	Craft & Rubber Scissors	$ 19.95
103305	Dotto	$ 12.95
103579	Paper Snips	$ 9.95
103683	Mini Glue Dots	$ 4.95
104045	Anywhere Glue Sticks (2)	$ 3.95
104294	Sticky Strip	$ 6.95
104331	SNAIL Refill	$ 4.50
104332	SNAIL Adhesive	$ 6.95
104430	Stampin' Dimensionals	$ 3.95
105021	Uni-ball Signo Gel Pen	$ 3.95
105394	Basic Black Stampin' Write Journaler	$ 3.50
108360	Craft Scissors	$ 29.95
110755	Multipurpose Liquid Glue	$ 3.95
Varies	Stampin' Write Marker	$ 3.50
119700	Subtles Collection Stampin' Write Markers (10)	$ 28.95
119701	Regals Collection Stampin' Write Markers (10)	$ 28.95
119702	Brights Collection Stampin' Write Markers (10)	$ 28.95
119703	Neutrals Collection Stampin' Write Markers (8)	$ 22.95
119801	2010-2012 In Color Stampin' Write Markers (5)	$ 14.95
119802	Subtles Collection Watercolor Wonder Crayons (10)	$ 16.95
119803	Regals Collection Watercolor Wonder Crayons (10)	$ 16.95
119804	Brights Collection Watercolor Wonder Crayons (10)	$ 16.95
119805	Neutrals Collection Watercolor Wonder Crayons (10)	$ 16.95
120962	Stampin' Pastels	$ 24.95
123002	2011-2013 In Color Stampin' Write Markers (5)	$ 14.95

Card Portfolio

2011-08-03T23:13:00.000-05:00

I learned how to make this fun card portfolio a few months ago and enjoyed making a few more for a craft fair last weekend. It is simple to make, just an 8 1/2 X 11 piece of cardstock, folded at 2 1/4" on the long edge and then fold in half. Stamp a design, decorate the cover, punch some holes for the ribbon tie and it is that simple! I filled mine with 4 cards but you could easily get 6 in it. I used Old Olive, Tempting Turquoise and So Saffron cardstock as well as some retired DSP. I reckon this would make a pretty nice gift for nearly anyone!

Click here for easy ordering!

Speaking of DSP, did you notice the new link on my right side bar? Yes, this month you can get free paper from Stampin' Up! What a great time to stock up. Order as many packs as you need

$99 Demonstrator Kit ends Sunday!

2011-07-30T23:27:00.000-05:00

Have you been thinking about becoming a Stampin' Up demonstrator? Tomorrow is the last day to sign up for only $99! Just click on the image above and it will take you to my demonstrator website where you can sign up quickly and easily. Then you will be on my team and we can get together and stamp and work on our business. It is great fun, I promise!

I've been so busy lately, camping last week, chaperone the Youth Conference to Nauvoo this week and going to GA for my grandson's 6th birthday party next week. I'll be glad when Summer is over and I can stay home for a while! It's been fun though. I'll be back in a few days with more projects to share. I made a cute card portfolio filled with cards that I need to take pictures of. It is simple to make but looks great!

Punch Art Swap

2011-07-25T22:41:00.000-05:00

I joined a punch art swap and got the pages in the mail a couple of weeks ago. I wanted to share some of them with you. I feel a class series coming on! First are 2 great Winnie the Pooh punch art creations from Dawn Hoffman. Aren't they adorable! I love how she used the punches to create such cute and accurate portrayals of some of our favorite children's book characters.

Who would have thought about the owl punch being so versatile or the bird's wing making so many appendages and flowers? If you live in the Clarksville, TN area and you love punch art, keep checking for a series of punch art classes. We will create 5 6X6 pages each month so you will have lots of ideas for cards and scrapbook pages. Punch art is just so much fun!

July Club Cards

2011-07-22T09:43:00.000-05:00

Wow, where did the week go! I was going to post these on Monday and here it is Friday. Guess what I did during the hottest week of the year - I went camping! Remind me not to camp out in July again. I'm especially thankful for Air Conditioning today . . .

I used the same paper and stamp set as I did for the scrapbook pages, Nautical Expedition DSP and The Open Sea stamp set. Everyone seemed to enjoy the nautical theme, these are only available until Aug 31 so let me know if you need some nautical in your life too!

Can you guess how I did the background of the card on the right?

July Scrapbook Club Layout

2011-07-16T23:47:00.001-05:00

Did you miss my scrapbook club? We had fun making this nautical layout this week. If you want to make a 12X12 layout each month for free, join us! You just need to place a $25 order each month to be in the club. Not into scrapbooking? You can make 6 cards instead of the layout if you would rather. I'll show the cards from this month on Monday.

The layout uses the stamp set The Open Sea and the Nautical Expedition DSP. I love these stamps and paper! I also made the title using the new Pennant Punch hanging on Baker's Twine. I love that idea, I plan to put that punch to lots of use. I got the idea for the ship's wheel from LeAnn Skinner but also saw a similar one shared by Lori Heiling. I thought it would make a great accent for a nautical page.

My Friend Stamp Set

2011-07-13T19:47:00.001-05:00

Before I show you some cards, check out me! I was the featured blogger on the VC Rocks blog yesterday. I just found out because I was too busy yesterday to be online much. Check it out here and see if you learn anything about me you didn't already know.

Here are some cards from another new set of stamps. This set is called My Friend and comes in a set of 5 stamps. These little raindrop-like things are so versatile, you can use them in lots of different ways. On the first card, they are stamped 4 times, every other one upside down. They are colored in with markers and some of them are covered in with Crystal Effects. It adds a great touch to the card.

Did you notice the colors? This card features Calypso Coral and Wisteria Wonder, two of the new In Colors for 2011-2013.

Second is a beautiful card with 3 of the stamps from My Friend. The large "hello" sentiment is stamped across the floral image. Looking for the 3rd stamp? It is the little circle that is clipped to the side! There is also a wheel that matches that pattern, I love it when things coordinate!

This card has a nice neutral background, it makes a great card to send a happy hello to anyone.

Last is another "hello" card. This one is a fun scalloped oval card in another new In Color, Island Indigo. I love this shade of blue! The cardstock was folded and placed so the top isn't cut so it opens up to write your greetings in. These are the last of the projects from Julie's Stamp Camp. I'm doing my scrapbook class tomorrow so I'll have pictures of the layout soon. Have a great day everyone and stay cool if you are in the areas where the heat is so bad. It has cooled down here a bit today but when I went to pick corn Monday afternoon the heat index was 114. I only picked about 30 ears though so I wasn't out there long enough to fry my poor brain. That corn was soooooo good too! Yum!

VC Bloghop - Black and White with a Pop of Melon Mambo

2011-07-08T22:36:00.008-05:00

Welcome to another blog hop for Virtual Convention Rocks! The blog hop doesn't offically start until 9 CST Saturday morning so if you are here before that the other blogs might not have their posts up. I'm early for once! This blog hop is Anything But a Card so if you a re looking for card ideas, check back next week. If you want lots of other great ideas, hang around and see what everyone came up to inspire you with your crafting and scrapbooking!

I've been sick with some kind of virus or maybe food poisoning, whatever it was it totally wiped me out for a few days! I actually considered dropping out of the blog hop but decided to go with Stampin' Up's digital program so I could still participate without having to dig through my supplies looking for everything I need. The remaining headache just couldn't deal with that today! Why do I feel like I'm cheating when I do a digital layout?

My favorite aunt died Friday, July 1. She was the last sibling left of my mom's 9 brothers and sisters. She was my favorite aunt and I think everyone who ever met her had to love her instantly. She was such a wonderful person, sweet in every way, always serving and helping others. She and mom were so close that I wanted to do a scrapbook page of them. The VC Rocks yahoo group posted a challenge for black and white projects with a small pop of color about that time so I decided that would be the perfect color scheme for my page. I tried a couple of things in the MDS program that I hadn't tried before and I'm pleased with the results.

I hadn't tried to put the Scalloped Border punch all around a layout in MDS before. It took a few minutes to get the corners matched up but the results were worth every second! I didn't want so much white on the page so I printed the journaling in white on a black journal box. It seemed too stark so I lowered the opacity of the black to 85% and that softened it up just enough.

I really like that pop of bright pink. Aunt Chet and Mom were the classic Southern Belles, they were known to be feisty upon occasion but were proper and genteel the rest of the time. Aunt Chet had more of a flare for fashion so the bright pink accent on classic black and white is totally her. Mom was more careful with money but Aunt Chet loved to get a little something for mom now and then to spark up her wardrobe too. They were the perfect example of how sisters should act and how they should expect their husbands to treat them. The world is short two wonderful women now but I"m sure the reunion has been amazing!

Now on to Brenda's Stamping Corner!

Delicate Doilies

2011-07-07T16:35:00.000-05:00

I really love the new stamp set called Delicate Doilies. As soon as I saw it I had to order it right away. It is so pretty with 4 different doilies in 4 sizes. And, since I love this set so much, it is a no-brainer that I also ordered the large Hello Doily background stamp to go with them! It should be here next week. These are, again, projects made at Julie's stamp camp. The first one is a Fancy Favor box

with a stamped band around the middle and punches layered on front with a cut-out from the Flirtatious DSP. This paper has 2 laser-cut double sided designs, one is Pumpkin Pie and the other is Melon Mambo. The backs of both are white so you can change them around or even color the white side a different color to go with your projects. They are so pretty and a quick way to spark up a project!

This card uses doilies in blues and greens to create a special thank you. It is a clean and simple card that looks great.

Last is a birthday card in Baja Breeze and Pretty in Pink. The ribbon is the new Scallop Dots ribbon, it comes in 10 colors, I'm so excited to get some ordered and start creating with it! Did you notice the Lace Ribbon Border under the ribbon? It makes a great little border peeking out. I know I'm going to be using that punch a lot!

Let me know if you need doily paper, stamps or that new punch! Click on the catalog on the left to place a quick and easy order.

Sweets for the Sweet

2011-07-05T23:03:00.001-05:00

I'm featuring projects from the stamp camp again. Today the set is called Sweets for the Sweet. This set has 12 stamps in it, 2 candy as well as a "bag" to put them in, an umbrella, 3 different pinwheels and stems for all. There is also a bow and 2 sentiment stamps in the set. Have you noticed that pinwheels are everywhere this year? It's so funny how things come around every 20 years or so. I do like this stamp set though.

First is a fun hello card. It uses a diecut letter, a stamped letter and the umbrellas for the L's and a candy swirl for the o. With the bright colors and the embossed dots for a background this card is sure to bring a smile on the face of anyone who receives it.

Next is another bright card with a pinwheel in the middle, pop dotted out for dimension and a brad to hold it on. The candy makes a nice background for the pinwheel.

The last card using the set is a soft, pink and blue one. The peppermint is wrapped in plastic wrap, tied and placed on it's stick. This would be a great card to attach to some goodies you had baked for a friend. Hey, I reckon we all should go bake some cookies and take to someone we know who is having a rough time. It would cheer up their day and make us happy too! How about it?

Pennant Parade!

2011-06-30T23:38:00.000-05:00

They did it again! Stampin' Up has stamp sets that match with a punch so we don't have to cut! I just love it when they do that. The stamp set is Pennant Parade and the punch is called Petite Pennants Builder. It has 2 punches on it, one just straight and the other a scalloped banner. These 3 cards were cards from a stamp camp that my upline, Julie Salva did. I had an important meeting that day and couldn't go but a wonderful stamper and friend, Mary Robinson put my cards together for me.

The first one uses the punch upside down for an ice cream cone. It also uses the Cupcake punch for the ice cream part. With some strips of the new Just Add Cake DSP, it makes a great birthday card!

Next, a card that uses the pennants to actually make pennants! This card features a fun little banner across the top. The "wish big" stamp is also in the Pennant Parade stamp set. It has 13 stamps in all, 4 different pennant designs, 6 sayings and 3 other stamps to embellish your projects. Notice the Lace Ribbon Border punch in white behind the ribbon? I love that punch!

The last card made with the Pennant stamps and punch was this Christmas card. The little pot to hold the tree is one of the ones from the stamp set. Very cute to turn the pennant upside down and turn it into a Christmas tree.

I reckon I need to get both the stamp set and the punch. I really like them both.

It's So Hard to Say Goodbye to Punches!

2011-06-25T23:14:00.000-05:00

There are 5 punches that are retiring the end of June. These are so hard to say goodbye to! I love the 1 3/8" Oval Punch. I use it all the time, I can't believe it is retiring! I don't use the other retiring punches as often but they are all good punches to have handy. I was most surprised to see the Bat Punch retire. It only came out a year ago and it makes great clouds and spiky hair.

Another punch that is retiring is the Spiral Punch. It was great to make accents along the edges of artwork like Marisol did with this beautiful card that she sent me. I love the color scheme! I wouldn't have thought to put Rose Red, Early Espresso and Very Vanilla together but they are beautiful.

The Artistic Etchings stamp set isn't retiring but the DSP that she used is. It is called Newsprint and it is great paper, you have until Thursday, June 30 to order some for your projects!

I took some pictures of some projects using several of the new stamp sets but have been planning to post retiring products the last 2 weeks of June. Hey, I reckon I could decide to mix it up a bit and show some new things before the month is over!

Good bye Pennant Die and Chunky Glitter

2011-06-21T23:43:00.002-05:00

This is one of the projects I made at the Spring Retreat. The pictures definitely don't do it justice but there are so many trees around my stamp room that I can't get good lighting in there to take a picture of it. We used the Pennant die to make the sections of the banner in Early Espresso and added some of the beautiful Paisly Petals DSP to accent each one.

The pleated medallion in the center was a bit challenging but they went together fairly quickly and then we added the letters to the center of each one. I had a hard time deciding what to spell but I knew I wanted to put it in my stamp room so I finally decided on "Happy" since stamping makes me happy. We sprinkled Chunky Glitter on the letters after we die cut them with the Serif Essentials Alphabet set to add a bit of bling to the project. It makes me happy to look up and see my banner.

If you have been thinking about ordering this die, you only have until June 30 as it is one of the retiring dies.

Fond Farewell

2011-06-18T22:36:00.000-05:00

When Stampin' Up introduces the new hostess stamp sets every year we know we only have them to demonstrate for a year. There are always lots of great hostess sets in each catalog and this year one of my favorites has been the hydrangea in the Because I Care set. This has been a versatile flower even though at first look it seems like it is "just a flower" stamp.

It makes a great focal point for a card, I love the smaller single flower stamp that you can stamp and cut out to add dimension to the larger flower. Of course, a butterfly and ribbon are always great touches.

As great as it is as a focal point, it is also great as a background stamp It is stamped and embossed with the Square Lattice Embossing Folder for the So Saffron card.

It is a great size stamp for scrapbook pages too. I used it as a focal point as well as background for the stamped mats across the bottom of the pages on the layout.

Since it is a hostess set, you can get it free! I do have a few days with space for you to have your party to earn this wonderful stamp set for yourself. It ends the last day of June though so hurry and let me know when you want to book your workshop.

3 More Flower Cards

2011-06-16T17:43:00.001-05:00

I need to post more of the swaps I got at the Spring Retreat. Despite the fact that the weather has been acting like Spring here in middle TN the past few days, it is Summer! I still have several great swaps from the retreat that I want to share with you. These cards are all 3-D flowers, some with diecuts, some with punches.

First, a Baja Breeze flower cut with the great new Fun Flowers die. I love the shapes of these flowers so this die was a gotta have for me. The card was made by Kathy Brown who said she CASEd it from SandyStamper. I love the way she used the Lattice Embossing Folder on the center of the flower and the Pear Pizzaz Bias Tape leaves. I just realized I forgot to flip the picture. We'll pretend the Happy Birthday was meant to go up the side.

The next card is a vintage type card made by Kelley Bialoski---- Sorry Kelley, I can't make out the end of your signature. She rolled the Crumb Cake paper with the Very Vintage wheel and sponged the edges for a vintage feel, then added a DSP flower created with the Die Blossom Party die in combination with the 2-3/8" Scalloped Circle punch, all were crimped before being put together. What a great flower!

The last card I will share today is one made by Kim May from AL. She used the great new Blossom XL punch but only put half the flower on her card so she had room for the Happy Birthday sentiment, double mounted on the Decorative Label Punch. A quick run through the Big Shot with the Tulip Frame Embossing Folder finishes the card off nicely as does the sweet little butterfly.

There are so many great flowers we can make now with all the dies and punches available. I love to wrinkle them up, crimp them, and run them through the embossing folders to give them extra character and dimension.

Flower cards

2011-06-13T17:09:00.001-05:00

I love pretty flowers, doesn't everyone? One of our Heavenly Father's best creations (other than grandchildren)! I wanted to post some of the swap cards I got at the Spring Retreat I went to for Stampin' Up demonstrators a couple of months ago. I still have a lot of swaps I haven't posted.

First, it is kind of a flower but also I thought it would follow the "Tooth Larry" book from the weekend that I posted. It is a cute clip that the goodies the Tooth Fairly leaves can be clipped onto the child's pillow case. It is a cute idea, but then, Tooth Larry is a manly guy and wouldn't want to leave a flower!

Second is a fun idea, do you recognize the flower petals? Oh, you are smart, yes they are the bird wings from the 2-step XL Bird Punch! I love the "forget-me-not" feel of this card. It is the perfect card to send to someone to let them know that you are thinking about them. Who wouldn't enjoy that??? This card was a creation of Amber Apple.

The last 2 cards are very different although they feature the same stamp set, Awash With Flowers. It is a 2-step stamp set so you stamp the outline and then choose the color to stamp the middle. I love this set although I haven't used it much. First, a fun tri-fold card secured with velcro that was made by Kim McDonald. She stamped 3 of the half-flowers from the set and colored them with pink and orange markers. She cut them out and adhered them with a brad so they look like a full flower. the front of the card is embossed with the Petals A Plenty embossing folder. I like how she made some of the petals look striped with 2 colors.

The beautiful B&W with yellow flowers doesn't have a name on the back so I don't know who made it but it is very pretty. I love the simplicity of it. The funny thing is, when I use this set I want to get the placement of the "watercolor" petals just perfectly in the lines but it doesn't bother me that she didn't. I guess that means everyone else doesn't have to be perfect but I demand it of myself. I reckon I should go seek professional help.

VC Rocks! Blog Hop

2011-06-11T07:59:00.003-05:00

VC stands for Virtual Convention. I guess it started a few years back when some Stampin' Up demonstrators who couldn't make it to convention got together and formed a group to keep their spirits up during a sad, sad time for them. For 4 or 5 reasons, I've decided not to go to convention this year. I keep thinking that maybe I should change my mind but I haven't yet so it's looking like I won't be going. I love the Stampin' Up conventions! They are so much fun and the excitement of the staff is catching. I love the projects, both the ones we make and the ones on the multitude of project boards. And, I love the convention bag and the stamps it is filled with!
Anyway, the VC blog hop is today and tomorrow. If you have arrived here from Jayne's blog, you were treated to several fun embossed projects. The blog hop is featuring Big Shot projects. I have been busy but managed to put together a couple of quick projects for you.

First, a fun little bag you can give small treats in. wouldn't this be a great presentation for your goodies??? I cut the Fancy Favor bag a little short and added a strip of Paisley Petals Designer Series Paper to the top for a ruffle effect. I thought about cutting 2 of them and gathering them but didn't, I might try that later, I think it would look great! As I'm looking at it, I wish I had inked the top edge like I did the flower, maybe I'll do that after I do a little work in the garden before it gets too hot.

The flower is made with the Fun Flowers die and finished off with an Antique Brad. Did you notice the handle of the basket? I used the new, not yet released border punch. It is in the new catalog and will be available on July 1st. It is definitely a gotta' have punch!

My second project is a small scrapbook that is quick and easy to put together. Because of it's small size you don't need very many embellishments, I didn't use any on this one. Just pictures and journaling. This is a great little size for a single event like the loss of a first tooth. This one is of my grandson and his visit from "Tooth Larry". I used the Paisley Petals DSP again on this project, I love that paper! I cut the chipboard from the DSP packaging into 4" strips and was able to get 6 pages per piece. Then I cut the DSP the same way and adhered it to the chipboard shapes. I printed the pictures off in the wallet size so I got 9 per sheet.

If you are making one of these fun little albums for a child, be sure to use plenty of adhesive! They are sure to be loved and the pages turned many times. I can't wait to share this little album with Easton, I think he will be excited. Hummmm, come to think of it, I better make another one. I'm not sure I want to give it up!

The next stop on the VC Blog Tour is Krisit's blog. She has some great ideas for the inlaid embossing technique I posted a couple of months ago. Enjoy it and all the other blogs! I reckon I'm out to the garden and then I'll be checking the blog hop out too.

Quick and Easy Embossed Cards

2011-06-08T23:50:00.002-05:00

I love how the embossing folders make it quick and easy to make a great card without a lot of trouble. This card uses the new Flower Garden embossing folder. After embossing the card front I just put on a crochet flower with a fabric brad center and a sentiment and the card was done. No need to cut lots of layers or do a complicated technique. Of course, I still try lots of techniques but it is great when I need a quick card that I can make a great "impression" in so little time.

Second is another card using an embossing folder. This time it is the Vintage Wallpaper embossing folder. I brayered some Rich Razzleberry ink on the folder before placing the Rich Razzleberry cardstock in it for a nice 2 tone effect on the embossed piece.

I'm getting ready to start a Big Shot club and a free embossing folder will be included with your club membership. Be looking for more details soon!

Strength and Hope June Class

2011-06-06T22:30:00.001-05:00

The Strength and Hope Campaign that Stampin' Up is running throughout the Summer Mini Catalog period. That is 4 months of support to Breast Cancer Research! I am going to do a class each of those 4 months using the Strength and Hope stamp set and all proceeds from these classes will also be donated to the Breast Cancer Research Foundation. $2 from each stamp set ordered will also be donated by Stampin' Up. Each class will feature 3 cards, you will make 2 of each for a total of 6 cards. The classes will be $10 each. Whatever is left after I buy the supplies for the class will be donated.

Nearly everyone you meet has been touched by a family member with Breast Cancer. I have a couple of cousins battling it and my sweet Mother-in-law had it. Surely donations will be used to make progress in stopping this disease from killing so many women. I just heard today that one of my cousins is not expected to live past the end of the week. This is such a hard time for her family. I wish I could do more than pray for them, visit and take a meal over.

The 3 cards in the picture are the ones we will make in our June class. I will offer the class twice during June, Tuesday, June 14 at 10AM or Saturday, June 25 at 2PM. I hope I'll see you at one of these classes. Email me for directions to my house if you can come.

6 cards for $10, that works out to $1.66 per card. You can't buy them in the store for that price AND, you will be donating to a very deserving cause!

Parting is Such Sweet Sorrow

2011-06-02T01:19:00.001-05:00

Yes, it's that time of year again. The 2010/11 Catalog is drawing to a close. With the approach of July 1st, many of the stamp sets and accessories in this wonderful catalog are being retired. There are some I love that are leaving and (although I love almost everything Stampin' Up carries) there are a couple that I won't miss at all. I'm hoping they have a set with a cute giraffe, that one in the Animal Stories set just creeps me out! Maybe other people like it but I don't!
Do you want to see what is retiring so you can get some of the sets and accessories? June 30th is the deadline for you to order these stamps, accessories and Decor Elements.
CLICK HERE to view the Retiring Stamps, Accessories or Decor Elements List.

Don't forget that the Accessories & Decor Elements are available while supplies last and the list will be updated daily at my website.

Here is the layout I designed for my June scrapbook club. I didn't know when I was making it that the stamp set would be one of the ones on the retirement list. I used it just in time!

Humm, that isn't the best picture but it's late. Maybe I'll try to get a better picture with better lighting in the morning. The stamp set I used is Friends 24/7. The title is using Lovely Letters which, thankfully, isn't retiring.

2 Very Different But Both Beautiful Cards

2011-05-30T23:43:00.001-05:00

I got 2 cards last week from fellow Stampin' Up Demonstrators. They are both beautiful cards but also very different from each other. First, this gorgeous green card was made by Sheryl Walker. She used some of the new DSP that will be in the NEW Stampin' Up catalog which will be released July 1st! I'm excited about the new catalog, can't wait to see what new goodies Stampin' Up has for us! I get to see the new catalog online June 1st and a copy will be sent to me with my first order (which I will place ON June 1st!!!). I love sneak peeks, I always hated waiting for Christmas day . . .

Anyway, I love how Sheryl gathered the ribbon and placed pearls on each side of the card. It's a great touch and when you look at it, the card is so simple yet simply beautiful.

The other card I got last week was from Deb Currier. She used soft colors and the Strength and Hope stamp set to create a beautiful card. Again, I love the ribbon treatment. She pleated a length of Pretty in Pink striped ribbon and then tied the narrow Baja Blue piece of ribbon on top of it. Great touch! I love unusual ribbon treatments.

Thanks Sheryl and Deb for making the walk to the mail box more fun!

Scrapbook or Card Club

2011-05-26T22:54:00.000-05:00

I've been trying to get a new post up for several days. Hopefully it will work tonight. Blogger is experiencing some trouble and THAT causes me trouble!

For nearly 5 years I have been doing a scrapbook club. The ladies comit to buy $25 a month and in exchange I do a 2-page 12X12 layout for them. My newest club member doesn't scrapbook but wanted to join the club so I told her I would design cards for her to make using basically the same supplies as the scrapbook pages. These are the cards from her first club meeting. She was able to make 2 of each for a total of 6 cards. The first card uses the grass stamp from the Inspired By Nature set and the butterfly from the Strength and Hope set. The sunny burthday card uses the Presto Patterns paper colored with sponge daubers. This beautiful paper makes a great accent on a scrapbook page or a card!

Finally, I couldn't resist doing a card with that super cute duck! What a great punch art for a baby card. If you haven't joined my scrapbook club because you don't scrapbook, you can join and make 6 new cards every month. You'll love the feeling you get when people compliment you on your handmade cards!

What Was I Thinking! Challenge

2011-05-20T20:20:00.001-05:00

Wow, that was a quick week! It has been nearly a week since I posted anything. Thanks for coming back to visit me :~)

I'm in a group with about 1700 Stampin' Up demonstrators and they post a challenge every week. Sometimes I get to play but usually I have other things going on and don't get time to enter the challenge. The challenge for this week was a "What Was I Thinking" challenge where we were to go back and CASE the first card on our blogs if we have a blog.

I thought the first card I posted on my blog would have to be fabulous! I started my blog in Jan 2009, I had been stamping for over 20 years and had been a Stampin' Up Demonstrator for several years so I was sure I would have posted a card that reflected my "abilities" as a stamper.

Then I went back and looked at the first card I posted - WHAT WAS I THINKING???????
Seriously, I REALLY don't like that card! I can't believe I posted it first. To say nothing of my photography. I had a terrible camera back then and I hadn't discovered a close up setting if that old camera even had one.

Here is where you can see that first disaster card.

At first I was going to use the same stamp set I used in my original card since it is a current set and use a different background set and different colors. Then I decided that since I hadn't played with the new 3-step punch yet, I would use it on the card instead of the stamps. I did the Tempting Turquoise card first and decided to go softer and did the pink one.

Turquoise card: Tempting Turquoise, Pumpkin Pie, Kiwi Kiss and Daffodil Delight cardstock, Medallion background stamp and Teeny Tiny Verses sentiment stamp. Punches were Blossom Bouquet Triple Layer punch, Modern Label Punch and Word Window. Leaves were punched with the Blossom Petals Punch.

Pink Card: Pretty in Pink, Bashful Blue and Kiwi Kiss cardstock. Stamps used, Baroque Motifs for the background and Teeny Tiny Verses for the sentiment. Punches were the same as the turquoise card. Both cards use the Flower Brads, they are a great little embellishment and are available in all 4 color families.

Here is the link to that first disaster card: http://stampinreckon.blogspot.com/2009/01/card-to-start-filling-tin.html

It was fun to case myself and I like the new cards much better than the original. They aren't my favorites but they are better! I had fun playing with the new punch too. I've got several other ideas in mind for this one and I reckon I need to order the doily one too.

My Own Swap Cards

2011-05-14T17:00:00.000-05:00

I've shown some of the cards I got in the swaps from the Spring Retreat but I haven't shown the card I made. This one is a Z-fold card that has also been embossed with the Tulip Frame Embossing folder and also a half a heart cut out with the heart from the Movers and Shapers Punch Windows die that stands out.

You can see how the card opens up. I wouldn't call it a quick and easy card but it didn't take that long to make one. Of course, I needed 60 for the swap. When I got to the meeting, still needing to attach the hearts and sentiment, Nerissa, Debbie and Linn all pitched in and helped me get them finished. Thanks yall!

This is the card I made for the swap at Thursday night's meeting. It was much faster than the other one and I only needed less than 10. The story of my life . . .

This card uses the new Flower Garden Embossing folder on the DSP which I then sanded to make the embossed image white. I used a sponge dauber to add some color to the centers of the flowers before adding a Rhinestone to each. The Thanks sentiment is from the Hostess set, Afterthoughts and the Baja Breeze label is cut with the Big Shot from the Lots of Tags die set.

Oh, and did I mention, I won a door prize. Or 3! I was very lucky Thursday night :~)

I was extra excited because it was products from the Summer Mini catalog that I've been meaning to order. I love the nautical Expedition DSP and The Open Sea stamp set that goes so great together. And the Postage Stamp punch was going to HAVE to be added to my punch collection very soon. I also got a pack of the fun Baker's Twine and a bottle of Wild Wasabi Stampin' Emboss Powder. I'll show the projects we did and more swaps soon!

2 Beautiful Swap Cards

2011-05-13T16:11:00.000-05:00

At the Spring Retreat there were about 40 swappers. I'm sure I'll never get them all posted but I'm starting with 2 beautiful cards today.

First, a fun little card that uses the bird punch along with some ovals to accent the Top Note die that was stamped with En Francais. Just a small length of striped ribbon and some beads finish this card off so beautifully!

This card made by Marsha Hosner features the Spotlight technique. If you look closely at the butterfly from the Strength and Hope set you can see that a butterfly was stamped on Very Vanilla cardstock, embossed with silver and punched with a circle punch. This is a nice way to highlight a part of your project.

There is a team meeting tonight so I reckon I better get going on my swaps for that. Have I ever mentioned how much I love swaps????

Sweet

2011-05-09T17:28:00.000-05:00

Here are a couple of ideas using metal. I love how it embosses with the embossing folders and the Beautiful Butterflies Sizzlet! Both projects pair embossed metal with the Paisley Petals DSP. This great paper will be available in the new catalog when it comes out in July. I'm getting antsy for the new catalog, less than 2 months away!!!

How do you like the hexagon box? I used a clear window sheet for the box but you could use DSP or cardstock too. The top and bottom are made from Stampin' Up's Fancy Flower punch with a strip punched with the scalloped border punch wrapped around to hold them together. How fun is that? The idea for these fun hexagon boxes came from Kim Score, check out her video tutorial. You could put lots of different kinds of candy in the tube or maybe some lotion, nail polish or, hummmm, cut it smaller and put a set of keys to a new car in there! I reckon I'm thinking big today :~)

Mother's Day

2011-05-06T15:27:00.001-05:00

Happy Mother's Day to all you moms out there! I have neglected to post any Mother's Day ideas, I guess partly because my sweet mother-in-law died about 7 years ago and my own mother died 2 years ago. Mostly though, I think it is just because I've been so busy I just didn't realize it is May already!

I did think the other day that I should have had my Strength and Hope class before Mother's day and given the students the option to stamp a Mother's Day sentiment instead. They are all perfect for a Mother's Day card. If your mom isn't into pink, you could change the color to her favorite and have a nice card for her.

Here is a preview of one of the cards for next month's Strength and Hope class. I used a Rhinestone Brad for the butterfly's head and put some Stampin' Dimensionals under it's wings to give it more depth. This is another quick and easy card.

This card features just the "Hope" part of the "H" stamp in the Strength and Hope set. I stamped it on Pretty in Pink cardstock and punched it out with a 1" circle punch. The center of the flower is a bottle cap. Did you know you can place a bottle cap inbetween the cutting pads and run it through the Big Shot machine and it squashes them down like this? Pretty cool! I had 1" acrylic centers to place over the cardstock to make the center look nice. You could also use Crystal Effects over the cardstock if you didn't have the acrylic centers.

The die cut flower is called Fun Flowers, don't you just love the shapes of th flowers? I really like this new die. It was in the Occasions Mini catalog so it isn't in the big catalog yet. You can still order it though! The egg stamp from the Nature's Walk stamp set has been discontinued with the end of the Occasions Mini catalog though. I'm so sad to see it go, it is a great stamp set. I'm glad I ordered it though!

Another card made with the Strength and Hope stamp set. Don't forget, $2 from the sale of each of these sets goes to the Breast Cancer Research Foundation. My mother-in-law beat breast cancer only to die from another cancer. This is such a worthy cause and the stamp set is great for so many cards or scrapbook pages.

So, whether you are using the set for a cancer paitent, cancer survivor or a Mother's Day card, I hope you will buy it and enjoy creating with it for many years.

Did I forget to Mention . . .

2011-05-04T22:11:00.001-05:00

The new Summer Mini Catalog is here! There are some great new products in it and some fun stamp sets for your Summer crafting and scrapbook pages. I got the set called Strength and Hope and have made lots of cards with it. It is very versatile and it really "speaks" to me. And the best thing about it is that $2 from every set sold from May 1 - Aug 31 goes to The Breast Cancer Research Foundation. Here are a few cards I have made with it.

Another goodie in the catalog is the Triple Layer Punch. There are 2 of them in the new Mini catalog. The card below was made with the Blossom Bouquet Triple Layer Punch, I posted it a week or so ago but wanted to show it again since I haven't had time to make anything else with it. You can get 4 different punch pieces from this punch, how cool is that??? I used a circle punch to add centers on some of the flowers.

The other Triple Layer Punch is called Doily Triple Layer Punch. It looks like - guess what - a doily! Actually, it looks like 3 different doilies! I haven't bought this punch yet so I don't have any projects to show using it. It is beautiful though and I can think of many things to add some to.

If you click the Summer Mini Catalog on the right side bar you can see the great products and stamp sets in the catalog. The Triple Layer punches are on page 6. Be sure to check out The Nautical Expedition DSP and The Open Sea stamp set on pages 8 and 9 as well as the Baker's Twine (in 3 colors!) on page 10 and Sunny Fun stamp set on page 16. There is a new embossing folder that is gorgeous on page 24 and don't forget the Strength and Hope set to benefit The Breast Cancer Research Foundation on page 27.

Baby Shower Invitations

2011-05-02T22:49:00.000-05:00

Sorry I haven't posted in nearly a week, I've been sooooo very busy the past week! I had 110 baby shower invitations to make, a prom dress for my niece and all of my kids were here as well as all 5 of my grandchildren so I'm not sure how I'm thinking a sane thought about now!

I made several sample cards for the baby shower and they picked the one they wanted. The colors were pink and brown. Of course, they didn't pick the most simple card! I did have some friends help me put the invitations together so that helped a lot. Here are the samples.

This is the option they chose. We did some with the treat cups as shown on the right (I didn't put any candy in my sample) and some without a treat cup like the card on the left.

These would have been much quicker and easier, simple but nice.

I couldn't resist making another duck. Doesn't she look adorable in pink?

This one was made with the onsies wheel. Another quick and easy card.

Does this one look familiar? I posted one in blue a couple of months ago.

Well it's late, I reckon I better head to bed. I've got another busy day tomorrow. They are all busy - sigh-

Strength and Hope Class

2011-04-27T08:00:00.001-05:00

Strength and Hope class

May 12 or 14

I've mentioned the Strength and Hope Campaign that Stampin' Up is running throughout the Summer Mini Catalog period. That is 4 months of support to Breast Cancer awareness! I am going to do a class each of those 4 months using the Strength and Hope stamp set and all proceeds from these classes will also be donated to the Breast Cancer Research Foundation. $2 from each stamp set ordered will also be donated by Stampin' Up. Each class will feature 3 cards, you will make 2 of each for a total of 6 cards. The classes will be $10 each. Whatever is left after I buy the supplies for the class will be donated.

The 3 cards in the picture are the ones we will make in our May class. I will offer the class twice during May, Thursday, May 12 at 10AM or Saturday, May 14 at 10AM. I hope I'll see you at one of these classes. Email me for directions to my house if you can come.

6 cards for $10, that works out to $1.66 per card. You can't buy them in the store for that price AND, you will be donating to a very deserving cause.

wrightplace4@mindspring.com

Gifts for Grandchildren and Blog Candy Winner!

2011-04-25T15:04:00.003-05:00

Yesterday was a rainy, beautiful day. I got a bit wet on the way to church, it just poured! I felt like I was wet up to my knees by the time I got into my car, drove there and got out and walked in. It was an amazing meeting though and I loved every minute of it. I gave my 2 grandchildren who live here their Easter gifts after church, the other 3 will get theirs when they come next week. I mailed a package to them last week and completely forgot to put their Easter stuff in it. I drive myself nuts with my forgetfulness!

Anyway, Easter is over but I wanted to share what I made for them. First of all, skinny bags stuffed with M&M's! I loved the little duck from the layout I posted last week so much, I put some on the bags. He just makes me smile :~)

Next, remember this little box I made last month? It's hard to believe, but I used the same die to cut out paper to make the carrot treats. The bunny is the same one from the layout also. I left the jelly beans out of one of the carrot treats so you could see the bunny's face. Fun, fun!

I've been working on baby shower invitations the past few days. I made several to give them an idea of what could be done. I'll show the samples in a day or 2. Until then, I reckon I better clean up my stamp room, it's a disaster!

I am thankful for all who entered for my blog candy as well as everyone who contributed to my 50,000 blog hits! I wish I could give you all something but I guess you will have to be satisfied with my projects I share - until the next blog candy is awarded! Except for Trina! I drew Trina's name. Trina, send your mailing address (privately to wrightplace4@mindspring.com ) and I'll get it sent your way. Congratulations!