Friday, May 31, 2013

Fall In Love With Stampin'

Fall in love with Stampin' with these two great cards - for some great ideas:
Starting off with a Soho Subway paper, Amy Kunkle ripped and aged her paper with sponging.
She even stamped on the ribbon - love it!!  How creative can you get??
And speaking of ribbon, this has to be the best bow I've seen in a long time!
See the image that she used to create a background on the Early Espresso?  Just beautiful.  Click here to check out Amy's website.
I am not positive who made this lovely card, but I do know the stamp sets:  A Round Array and the Best of Flowers.  I really like the texture that was added with the Embossing Folder and the ribbon accent.  

Don't these cards just give you idea after idea?  That's one of the best things about checking out blogs - all the creativity just gets flowing!
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Thursday, May 30, 2013

Two Reasons To Love New Things

It's New, and it's coming out so, so soon!

It's the next Stampin' Up! catalog . . . and I'm excited to share it with you.  Here are two reasons you'll love it as much as I do -

  1. Coordinating Awesomeness . . .
Just see how beautifully these products all coordinate?  
No guessing - no getting home with a purchase and then finding out the size is wrong.  It's all done for you so everything will match and go with everything else.  It's like having a crafting stylist.  Way cool.

Joanne Tarle made this gorgeous card using new goodies mixed with old favorites.  The Mosaic Textured Impressions embossing folder and Mosaic Madness stamp set is new.  The Itty Bitty Shapes punch is one of my all-time faves.  I really like the way she did the colors on the Whisper White piece.  Very tasteful.

     2.  Delectable Papers
This new Designer Series Paper that Denise Diuk used is spot on trendy.  That helps with your confidence level when you're crafting.  It's called Soho Subway, and I just can't get enough.  Did you notice the paper piercing going on along the right side of the card?  What a nice touch!
Here's the tip of the day for you from Denise:
  • To make the flower, she used the Floral Frames Framelit and cut out one from the card stock.  
  • She crumpled the card stock and the peeled the layers of card stock from one another.  That creates a "felted" or "sueded" look.
  • To age the flower and bring it in line with her DSP, Denise then sponged a bit of Early Espresso ink onto her felted layer.  Underneath is a 1-3/4" Circle Punch.
Just outstanding, Denise and Joanne. Thanks so much for sharing - can't wait to make some more!!

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Wednesday, May 29, 2013

Why You Will Love the New Catalog

Do you like new things?  Do you only like the tried and true?

Stampin' Up! has a new catalog coming out - I know lots of reasons why you will love the new catalog!

Here are a few:
This colorful card is using items from the new catalog.  The sentiment is from the Delightful Dozen.  The colors are the Strawberry Slush, Pistachio, and Whisper White - to name a few.
Love this flower . . . and the window frames cut out behind it?  Fantastic!!  Really beautiful with the stem framed inside and the flower outside.  Very artistic and tasteful, don't you think?
This detail is one of my favorites.  The Itty Bitty Shapes punched out and put on glue dots, centered with the Rhinestone jewels and then Crystal Effects to add dimension and shine.  Just fabulous.  Love, love, love it.
This card was created by Chris Slogar.

Here's another reason Why You Will Love the New Catalog:
This card has great pizzazz and color.  I think everything here is from the In-Colors collection, except the Whisper White and Silver Glimmer Paper.

The Smoky Slate base used here is easily one of my favorites of the new colors in the catalog.  It's a really great color and I think it's in the Neutrals instead of the In-Colors, but I could be wrong about that.
This card is just so much fun.  The Chevron Embossing Folder adds that great texture, and the Silver Glimmer Paper add the perfect amount of bling.
This card was created by Rhonda Kartler.

Hope you enjoyed this little preview and can now see a few reasons Why You Will Love the New Catalog!
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Tuesday, May 28, 2013

Best Gently Falling Card

Do you enjoy the colors of the leaves in the fall?  What about other times of the year?

Personally, I just love leaves.  Spring, summer, fall - they are wondrous things.

That's why I took the Gently Falling stamp set and created this card.
The Old Olive and Island Indigo colors of the base scream "spring" to me, so this is kept seasonal (since it's spring in this part of the world), and the leaves have a touch of color you wouldn't find in any season - there's some Coastal Cabana sponged onto the tips).  That's just for whimsy and a bit of fun.
The heat embossing was done with the Baked Brown Sugar ink and clear embossing powder, along with the heat tool, of course.  It's a great touch of texture.
Sure, there's a bit of fussy cutting for the leaves with this card; however, the details of Crumb Cake Taffeta ribbon, silver mini brads, and the woodgrain embossing all add so much texture and richness to this card.  It's simply the best Gently Falling card I've made yet.

What I used:
Card stock - Old Olive, Island Indigo, Whisper White, Pear Pizzazz.
Ink - Coastal Cabana, Baked Brown Sugar, Always Artichoke, Old Olive.
Stamp set - Gently Falling, Chamomile wheel.
Accessories - Paper Snips, Crumb Cake Taffeta ribbon, Silver Mini Brads, Stamping Sponges, Woodgrain Embossing Folder, Big Shot, Paper Piercing Tool, Stampin' Pierce Mat, SNAIL adhesive, Clear Embossing Powder, Heat Tool.

So - as a detail for you - the leaves were stamped onto the Pear Pizzazz card stock in Always Artichoke with the outline of the stamp, and then filled in with the Old Olive ink.  After cutting the leaf, Coastal Cabana was sponged onto the tip of the leaf, while Baked Brown Sugar ink was sponged onto the stem and bottom part of the leaf. CASEd from Michelle Zindorf.
my Mom, Older son, Younger son, Hubby, and Dad
Did you have a nice Memorial Day weekend?  We had a rainy one.  It was wonderful to have an extra day off work and to honor our servicemen and women, both those currently in uniform, those out of it, and those who have given their lives for our freedom.  We live in a very blessed country.  I took this picture right after we had watched the parade - which consisted mostly of fire trucks and veterans.
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Friday, May 24, 2013

Simply the Swallowtail Stamp

Sometimes are you in the mood for something simple?  Something that just "Wows" because of its simplicity?
For instance, take a look at this beautiful Swallowtail stamped card.

Don't you just love that stamp?
And even the inside has a Papillon Potpourri  butterfly that looks just lovely.

The base of the card is More Mustard (retiring) and then there's a layer of Very Vanilla.  The butterflies are stamped in Soft Suede ink.
And here is Deb, the proud maker of this beautiful card.  You can see that she made a whole pile of the cards.
Thanks so much for sharing, Deb.  You sure know how to stamp!  Keep it coming, girl!

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Thursday, May 23, 2013

It's the "Best of" 25 Years of Stamping!


Chances are that you have a "Best of" in your music collection - a selection of all of your favorite songs by a favorite artist all in one place. 
Well, with the celebration of their 25th anniversary, Stampin' Up! decided that it would be fun to do a "Best of" collection the Stampin' Up! way. It all started in January, and they'll be releasing a new "Best of" set each month. Here's what's been released so far:
January - Best of Birthdays - #132929
February - Best of Love - #132987
March - Best of Flowers - #133342
April - Best of Butterflies - #133345
May - Best of Brides & Babies - #133482
For those of you who love to collect, you'll be pleased to know that Stampin' Up! took the time to design a new stamp for each collection. You'll only be able to get those designs with the "Best of" sets, and at $14.95, it's easy to start collecting yours today! And how cool to have all of these great stamps all in one collection?! No more hunting around for birthday stamps!

And in true Stampin' Up! style, that's not all. When you purchase six sets, you get a coupon for a free stamp set of your choice - valued up to $14.95! A great perk just for shopping!

Excited to know more? Want to stay updated with the new release each month? Well, thank goodness you have me - your friendly neighborhood demonstrator! Just stay tuned and I'll keep you up-to-date with the Best of Collections … as well as any other promotions and surprises that come along.
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Wednesday, May 22, 2013

All Dressed Up

Have you found yourself all dressed up with somewhere to go lately?
An adorable birthday card
My wonderful friend and downline (lucky me), Rhonda Kartler, made this fabulous card for me.
This is just too cute!
I am absolutely in love with this card!!
Such detail
Thanks, Rhonda!  You are so talented.
Just to mention a few things, Rhonda used the Stamp set All Dressed Up (129171 wood) or (129174 clear)
the Card Base Pop 'n Cuts (130099)
the Dress Form Pop 'n Cuts (130100)
and the Dress Up Framelits Dies (130101).
Thanks again, Rhonda, for sharing your talent.

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Tuesday, May 21, 2013

Patterned Party and Word Play

Here are two favorite stamp sets all in one card!  Patterned Party and Word Play create a colorful card that's just right for birthdays and other celebrations!
Using markers is the way to go when you want to have lots of color on a stamp!  Couldn't be easier to "make your mark!!"  Sorry ~~ I couldn't resist that bad play on words -- or should I say "Word Play"?  After all, that's the sentiment stamp set!
I know, I know . . . this much of a close up and you can see all my mistakes.  But that's okay.  I love this card anyway!
The markers were almost all retiring, too.  There was Baja Breeze, More Mustard, Regal Rose, Lucky Limeade, and Certainly Celery.  The Basic Black was used for the string, and it's not retiring.  All the others are, though!
Of course, the card stock on this card is made of lots of retiring colors, too.  Let's see . . . there's the Baja Breeze, Lucky Limeade and then the Not Quite Navy (gonna miss that one, especially!).

Hope you were able to enjoy the weather today -- and a special prayer and peaceful thought for those caught in the spring storms in the west of the US (Oklahoma and areas with tornados).

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Monday, May 20, 2013

Fun Retirement Party

Today I had a Retirement Party!
Sheila, Robin and Gayle enjoyed making the cards
We made lots of fun cards . . .
Rhonda and Jen are fabulous card makers - don't know what I would have done without Rhonda today!!  Thanks, Rhonda!  You're the best!!
Ate . . .
Pam always adds fun to the mix!
Laughed .  . .
Everyone checking out all the goodies on the retirement table - Deb and Sue join Rhonda and Jen
And had a great time.
Logan and Marissa are taking after their moms and know how to work that card-making Mojo!
Thanks for coming!!
Happy Stampin' and Scrappin'!

Friday, May 17, 2013

Beautiful Collage Stamping How-To

What is a collage?

col·lage  

/kəˈläZH/
Noun
  1. A form of art in which various materials such as photographs and pieces of paper or fabric are arranged and stuck to a backing.
  2. A composition made in this way.

That's what we have here.  I used a masking technique and also created a collage with stamping.  Cool, huh?
I used the Nature Walk Stamp set as well as Pursuit of Happiness for the sentiment (that has to be one of my all-time favorite stamp sets!)  Both of these are retiring in just a couple of weeks, so I'm enjoying them as much as possible right now.  

I'm also giving both of these stamp sets away this weekend at a class I'm having.  Can't wait!
Directions:
  1. Score the card base of Whisper White to be 4-1/4 x 5-1/2
  2. Use the 2-1/2" Circle punch to punch a circle in a post-it note, near the sticky part of the back.
  3. Lay the Post-It note over a 4 x 5-1/4 piece of Whisper White card stock
  4. Using a sponge and Elegant Eggplant ink, add ink onto the card stock in the masked area on the left side around the edges of the post-it note mask.  You can always add more, so keep a light hand.
  5. With the Post-it note mask still covering the card stock, ink the left side of the circle with Baja Breeze ink.
  6. Keeping the mask in place, ink the leaf/flower stamp in Lucky Limeade and stamp in the center of the mask.
  7. Remove the mask, clean the stamps and re-ink the stamp in elegant Eggplant; stamp off once and then stamp on the left side of the card stock, right over the purple side of the sponged circle.  Ink up again, stamp off again, and angle the stamp to stamp it once more.
  8. Ink the Music Notes Wheel with Basic Black, roll it off a bit so it's not too dark, and roll it over the bottom of the circled part of the card stock as shown.
  9. Stamp the sentiment in Basic Black.
  10. Stamp the "No. 147" in the top part of the circle.
  11. Adhere the 4x5-1/4 piece onto the card base with SNAIL adhesive.
  12. Clean up.
Yay!  That's it!  Now go out and do your own collage and have some fun with it!
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Thursday, May 16, 2013

It's Retiring - Punchin' Circle Circus

Are you thinking about retiring?  Are you a loooooong way off from that yet?  Or maybe it's right around the corner.  Circle Circus is retiring in just a few weeks!  Oh, it's too young for that!  Ha, ha!

Well, you can still enjoy making cards with the stamp set if you have it.
What a great card!
This card has More Mustard, Cajun Craze and Very Vanilla as the base.  Inks used were Basic Gray, More Mustard and Cajun Craze.  And the stamp sets are both retiring:  Circle Circus and the Friendly Phrases.

I'm giving away this ink, the retiring paper, and both stamp sets this weekend!  I know, I know, I'm crazy . . . but someone else needs to love these stamp sets as much as I do.
Here's a close-up of one side of the card
Lots of punches make this a simple to-do card.  Love that, don't you?
Here's a close-up of the other side of the card
Punches were the Large Scallop punch, the 1-1/4" and 3/4" Circle punches and the 7/8" Scallop punch.
A Friendly Phrase
And then the phrase was stamped in Basic Gray.  This card took about 10 minutes from start to finish.  That's my kind of card.  What is your kind?

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Wednesday, May 15, 2013

How-To Spotlight Technique Video Tutorial

Oh, yeah!  It's Wednesday . . . and that means I've got a video tutorial for you!  or I would if I could get my YouTube channel and Blogspot to coordinate!  Too bad they're not being more like Stampin' Up! and coordinating . . . Ha, ha!  Just click this link below and it will get ya there.  

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bncMuLHpEik

It's all about the Spotlight Technique that I shared with you right here.


Isn't that quick?
Spotlighting is so easy and fun to do.  Give it a try today!

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Tuesday, May 14, 2013

Easy Spotlight Technique


In the mood for an easy technique that will make folks say, "Ooooooooo"?
The Spotlight Technique is a way to show your "artsy" side without stress.  It's quick and easy, too.
What I used:  
Card Stock - Very Vanilla, Early Espresso; 
Inks - Daffodil Delight, Primrose Petals, Marina Mist, Pool Party, Old Olive, Pink Pirouette, Soft Suede;
Delicate Designs Embossing Folder, Stampin' Sponge, Blender Pen; Smooch Spritz - Log Cabin (retired); Victoria Crochet Trim; SNAIL adhesive; Big Shot and Dimensionals
Stamp Set - Elements of Style

  1. After Scoring the card base, use a msall amount of SNAIL to attach the art piece to the card front, and stamp tne image with Early Espresso ink; remove the art piece, and then emboss the side of the card with the Delicate Designs Embossing Folder.  Use a spong to add a little sponging to highlight the embossing.
  2. Stamp the sentiment on the card front and then set the card front aside.
  3. Using the ink pads/lids and the blender pen, color the art piece image.
  4. Layer the Early Espresso frame around the art piece and then lay the art piece back on top of the card front; spritz with the Smooch Spritz.
  5. When the card is dry, tie the Crochet Trim around the art piece and then adhere to the card front with dimensionals.
I have a video how-to of this spotlighting technique for you tomorrow!

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Monday, May 13, 2013

Happy Mother's Day

Happy Mother's Day!  What a wonderful occasion to celebrate

According to Wikipedia - Mother's Day is a celebration honoring mothers and motherhood, maternal bonds, and the influence of mothers in society. It's celebrated on various days in many parts of the world, most commonly in March or May.
The celebration of Mother's Day began in the U.S. in the early 20th century. In fact, The modern holiday of Mother's Day was first celebrated in 1908, when Anna Jarvis held a memorial for her mother in Grafton, West Virginia. She then began a campaign to make "Mother's Day" a recognized holiday in the United States. Although she was successful in 1914, she was already disappointed with its commercialization by the 1920s and actually went to court over the commercialization of the holiday.  Jarvis' holiday was adopted by other countries, and it is now celebrated all over the world. In this tradition, each person offers a gift, card, or remembrance toward their mothers, grandmothers, and/ or maternal figure on mother's day.

So there you go - probably more than you wanted to know about Mother's Day. LOL
Hope you had a wonderful one.
Happy Stampin' and Scrappin'!