A long time coming....

So it's been 2 weeks since I crafted at all.....I just didn't have the time, or the inspiration. Then I got an order from SU! that had the stamp sets 'Peace Within' and 'Twick or Tweet' (new Mini Catalog) in it, and I've been stamping ever since! I just love the new Cottage Wall DSP too, and it looks so good with the new In Color Rich Razzleberry. This is one of 6 cards that I made in the last few days, and it will be one of the cards in my upcoming Stamp Camp. This was a very easy card (except for the watercoloring, and even that is easy, but it just takes time) and I just love the colors! Here's the recipe info: Stamp Sets: Oval All and Peace Within; Paper: Rich Razzleberry, Orchid Oppulence, Whisper white; Ink: StazOn Black, and refills in Bermuda Bay, Creamy Caramel, Rich Razzleberry, Close to Cocoa, Apricot Appeal, Orchid Oppulence, Certainly Celery; Accessories: Cottage Wall DSP, Rich Razzleberry Double sided Grosgrain, Scallop Oval and Large Scallop punch, Cuttlebug Embossing Folder, Nesties Petite Oval, Blender Pens, Aqua Painter.

Good news, and bad news......

Although this is not the summer that I had invisioned, it's definitely had its high and low points. We just recently had a very low point....My Grandmother, Clara Michels, passed away at the end of July. She was a wonderful woman, and I have so many great memories of her! Some of my favorites are when we visited she would RAKE her shag carpet to keep it looking fluffy; she always had a FULL cookie jar and she made THE BEST oatmeal raisin and gingerbread cookies; she taught me how to fish; and she also taught me how to fold fitted sheets. One of my favorite things about her was that she was always doing something, cooking, crafting, sewing, and while she was doing it she would always TALK to me. I remember her making beautiful Hardanger embroidery and thinking how could she possibly keep up a conversation while carefully snipping individual tiny threads out of the cloth. She was amazing! I think that watching her was where my love of crafting truly began. Thanks Grandma!

As a result of the craziness of this summer, I have barely crafted at all. So much for my vow to post daily!! I'm trying to get back into the swing of things and hopefully I will have something to post for you soon. I miss spending time with my stamps and I definitely could use a break from everything else that is going on, so I will try and get back to my craft room soon. In the meantime, check out my SU! website for some fun project ideas from the wonderful artists at SU!

new products card.......

I had so much fun making this card! The colors are WAY outside of my comfort zone, but I was determined to make something bright and fun using the new Razzleberry Lemonade DSP. The new In-Colors are amazing! They not only look good together, but there are so many combinations that work with Stampin' Up!'s existing colors....which I'll show you some examples of soon! Hope you're all having fun looking through the new catty and making up your Wish Lists!! My list was so long that I had to break it down into 3 smaller ones.....1. things I LOVE and have to have,

2. things that I NEED, and 3. things that are cute, but not absolutely necessary. My first order went in over the weekend and I can't wait to get it!!!

Recipe: Stamp Set: Wings of Friendship (level 2 hostess), Teeny Tiny Wishes; Cardstock: Crushed Curry, Rich Razzleberry, Melon Mambo, Whisper White; Ink: Crushed Curry, Rich Razzleberry; Accessories: 5/16 white jumbo brad, Crushed Curry Polka Dot Grosgrain, Scallop Edge punch, Razzleberry Lemonade DSP

Stampin' Up! Deal of the Week

It's week two of Stampin' Up!'s 'Deal of the Week' promotion, and it's a doozy! Get the Sizzix Big Shot Doctor's Bag for only $49.99 (regular price is $69.95!!). This bag is great for storing and carrying your Big Shot maching and dies, but also great for ANY of your stampin supplies. For more information, check out my website for details and to place your order!

Happy Stampin'!

Judy

Stampin' Up! on YouTube!!

I don't know how I ever came up with a project idea before the internet. We can now access thousands of blogs that give us ideas for cards, scrapbook pages, and so many other projects. One of my favorite things on the internet is YouTube, and Stampin' Up! has a YouTube Channel! Click HERE to access some awesome videos and project ideas....I just love it and I know that you will too! One of my favorites is what they did with the Forget-Me-Not keeper. I just love organization (maybe because I always feel so completely unorganized!), and it's such an easy project to do. Hope you enjoy!

Happy Stampin'!

Judy

Okay, Okay, so I blew it......

I tried so hard to do it.....I really did.....but then life got in the way. I really wanted to post a blog every day, but it's just been too crazy around here lately! For the first time in over a week, I actually got in my stamp room (my oldest son had set up camp in there and was sleeping on the floor...my stamp room has a really great ceiling fan). I spent about 2 hours CLEANING it and then actually pulled out 2 new stamp sets and spent about 20 minutes playing. Then the phone rang and it was back to business. Not only have I not stamped, but my camera DIED....it's no longer doing anything, won't even turn on (sigh). SO, I'm back to borrowing my 9 yr olds camera and the pictures just aren't that great. Hopefully I'll find $600 somewhere and splurge on a new digital SLR.

In the meantime, check out my SU! website and the NEW 09/10 Idea Book/Catalog!!

Funky Circle Circus

I can't believe that I haven't had time to post anything about SU!'s new catalog!!!! I preordered just about EVERYTHING that they would allow us demo's to order in advance. I LOVE the new In Colors, LOVE the new stamp sets, LOVE the new catalog!! It will be available for all to see on July 1st....it's a beauty! I'm happy that SU! decided to go back to only 1 major catalog a year because it was SO HARD for me to memorize everything that was in it and then have it all change so quickly. PLUS, I just love the mini-catalogs and there will be more of those!



This card was made with the new stamp sets 'Circle Circus' and 'Teeny Tiny Wishes' which are both so fun! I love that the Teeny Tiny wishes fits in both the Word Window Punch, and the Modern Label Punch (new) AND the word window layers inside of the Modern Label. How fun is that? All of the colors used are new IN Colors, and the ribbon is the fabulous NEW Polka Dot Grosgrain....Lovin' that too!!!

I added a picture with a few samples of the words that are in the Teeny Tiny Wishes set. There are all different fonts, and the words cover almost any occassion that you can think of. There are 24 stamps in the set!!!



Recipe: Stamp sets: Circle Circus, Teeny Tiny Wishes: Ink: Crushed Curry, Melon Mambo, Bermuda Bay; CS: Whisper White, Bermuda Bay, Crushed Curry; Accessories: Bermuda Bay Polka Dot Grosgrain, Razzleberry Lemonade DSP, Modern Label Punch, Word Window Punch, Texturz Plates, black mini brads, scallop edge punch.

Zoofari Birds

I've been designing cards for my Stamp Camp that features ALL retiring stamp sets, and this card made with the Zoofari stamp set is one that we'll be making! This card is made entirely of retiring products (except for the Family Phrases 'happy birthday' stamp). It's such an easy card and I just love that it can be given to just about anyone.....adult or child, it would be appreciated by anyone!

Recipe: Stamp Sets: Zoofari, Family Phrases; Cardstock: Kiwi Kiss, Pacific Point, Tangerine Tango, Whisper white; Ink: Staz-on Black; Accessories: Kiwi/Vanilla Satin Ribbon, Watercolor pencils, Blender Pen, DSP Good Morning Sunshine.

Oval All.....

One of my Stamp Clubs is putting together what I call a 'Quick Card Box' tonight at our meeting. What we're doing is pre-cutting paper to specific dimensions and filling a Forget-Me-Not Keeper with all of the paper we cut. We'll pre-cut cards, but also Designer Series Paper, netural CS and colored CS that will allow them to put cards together in a snap! This card is one that I made with my Quick Cards Box paper to show them the types of cards they can make, and how quickly they go together. The Oval All Stamp set and Scallop Oval punch really help to complete the box because you can pre-stamp and pre-punch a bunch of ovals and keep them in the box for quick use. Can't wait to meet with all of the girls tonight and make our boxes!! Sorry about the shadows in the picture....with all of the rain we've had lately I am having a hard time getting pictures taken in natural light!

Recipe: Stamp Set: Oval All; Cardstock: Almost Amethyst, Certainly Celery, Basic Gray; Ink: Basic Gray, Almost Amethyst, Certainly Celery; Accessories: Tea Party DSP, Oval Scallop Punch, Satin Ribbon, Taffeta Ribbon, Pretties Crystal, Oval Punch, Large Oval Punch, Blender Pen.

Pick a Petal

I saw this color combination in my demonstrator copy of Stampin' Success magazine (one of the perks of being a Demo!) and I just had to try it! I rarely use the Elegant Eggplant, just because I never know what colors to combine it with. When I saw it used with the Almost Amethyst and Certainly Celery, it really caught my eye! I used the Pick-A-Petal stamp set, but not in the normal way.....I made my own dotted paper by using a new eraser at the end of a pencil and Certainly Celery ink. Once I had my patterened paper, I flipped it over and used the stamp that is just the outline of a petal and stamped it on the back of my paper. I used this outline to trim out the petal shape. Then I used the retired 'A Perfect Day' rub-on's and made the little flower for the center. This was a very easy card to make and I just love the color combo!

Recipe: Stamp Set: Pick-A-Petal, Absolutely Fabulous; Cardstock: Certainly Celery, Lovely Lilac, Elegant Eggplant, Almost Amethyst, Whisper White; Ink: Certainly Celery, Elegant Eggplant; Accessories: A Perfect Day Rub-on's, Heart Trio Punch, Fresh Favorites Buttons, Tea Party DSP

Textured Impressions

This is the first chance that I've had to use the Manhattan Flower Textured Impressions Die and it rocks! I just love how it makes a deep impression on the paper and really stands out. I decided to try and use vellum paper in the die, and it worked pretty well, although it almost tore through on some of the raised areas. I think that the vellum cardstock would have worked better, but I'm out! After I ran the die through the Big Shot, I used Baja Breeze and So Saffron ink and sponged it on the back of the vellum before cutting it out. That was it! A sentiment stamp, and a little ribbon, and you're done! Easy Peasy!

Simple and sweet

Yesterday's card was quite time consuming because of the techniques that I used, so today I decided to keep it super simple for all of you who have little or no time to spare. This card took all of 5 minutes to make, thanks to SU!'s fabulous DSP. I stamped the flourish from Baroque Motif's using Versamark to make it really subtle. It shows up better is real life....it was hard to photograph! That and the 'birthday wishes' were the only stamping I had to do!

Recipe: Stamp Sets: Baroque Motifs, Garden Greetings; Cardstock: Whisper White, Cameo Coral; Accessories: Button Bouquet, Kiwi Kiss Satin ribbon, Raspberry Tart DSP.

Happy Stampin'!

Judy

Rainbow Sherbert

My kids have just recently discovered rainbow sherbert. I used to always eat it as a kid.....and as an adult have discovered that it's not half as bad as you would think....natural ingredients, fruit juices and skim milk. So I've been dishing it up for the kids every other day and have seen the color combo so often that I guess it just stuck in my head. Lo and behold, a card made out of rainbow sherbert colors! This card is totally out of my comfort zone....not my normal 'style' at all. But I've been trying to think out of the box and shake things up a bit. It's kind of fun!

The technique was emboss resist, but I used the baby wipe technique for the wash over the embossed flowers. Then I used White Craft ink on SU! chipboard letters and embossed them too. Then I made the little button do-dad with some inspiration from Michelle Wooderson. Like I said, not my normal style, but sometimes it's fun to do something a little different! Hope you like!

Recipe: Stamp Set: Garden Greetings; Paper: Apricot Appeal, Kiwi Kiss; Ink: Apricot Appeal, Pink Pirouette, Barely Banana, Whisper White Craft; Accessories: Birds and Blooms Die, Organza ribbon, Linen Thread, Clear embossing powder, chipboard letters, Always Artichoke Journaler, Bella Rose and Tea Party DSP, misc. button from flea market.

Happy Stampin'!

Judy

And many mower........

With Father's Day coming up I had to fill up my stash with a few more cards, so I pulled out my "And Many Mower..." set and threw this card together quickly. Since my FIL and DH are both golfers, I figured that this would work for either one of them. I just love the 'golfball' that I made for the inside with the Happy Father's Day sentiment on it. To make it, first I stamped the sentiment on Whisper White CS and then punched it out with the 1 3/4" circle punch. Next, I used the Big Shot and the Texture Plate with the little dots on it to give it the dimples. I popped it up on dimensionals to give it a more 3D look. I'm pretty happy with how it turned out!

Recipe: Stamp Set: And Many Mower; Ink: Brown Staz-On, Kiwi Kiss, Tangerine Tango, Close to Cocoa, Blush Blossom: Paper: Pacific Point, Kiwi Kiss, Chocolate Chip, Whisper White: Accessories: Paper Crimper, Tangerine Tango Striped Grosgrain Ribbon, 5/16 jumbo brads in Chocolate Chip, Patterns Tangerine Tango DSP, Paper Piercing Tool, 1 3/4" Circle Punch, Texture Plates, Big Shot

Happy Stampin'!

Judy

Sympathy

My SIL called last week to let me know about the passing of her Grandma. I knew her Grandmother very well, as most holidays are spent at my SIL's house, and both sides of the family usually attend. Although not unexpected, the loss is still very hard for both my SIL and her mother. I made a card for each of them with the lovely 'Thoughts and Prayers' stamp set. I tried to keep the cards very simple, with the sentiment as the most important part. My thoughts and prayers go out to my SIL and all of her family in this difficult time. I know that Grandma Canda is with our heavenly Father and with time He will ease the family's pain....

Going, going.....not gone yet!

Two posts in one day.....it must be a record of some kind! After posting my scrapbook picture, I contacted my customers with the SU! Last Chance lists, and figured that I would add them to my blog to make life easier for all! Click on the links below for the info that you want to see. Remember, that many of the ACCESSORIES that are retiring are discounted and available WHILE SUPPLIES LAST only!

Click here for the Last Chance Stamp Sets list

Click here for my webpage to see the Last Chance Accessories list

Some of the accessories have SOLD OUT already and the list was just released today! To get in on these deals, order ASAP!

Happy Stampin' and Shoppin'!

Judy

A post a day......

I'm a stay-at-home mom. You'd think I'd have plenty of time to post every day, right? Well, I'm gonna try! I can't believe how busy I am each and every day....I rarely ever sit down until about 9pm (all you mom's out there hear me, right?). So in order to do this 'post a day' thing, I've actually scheduled the time in on my calendar! That's right, you heard me.....I scheduled 30 minutes in every day so that I can get the blog posted....I scheduled an hour a day to actually make a project of some kind to post....I scheduled 4 hours a week to try and come up with the ideas for the projects. Let's keep your fingers crossed that I actually keep to the schedule!! I can't wait because I rarely give myself that much time per week to dedicate to my favorite hobby, so I should get a lot done this summer!

My 'Scrap Happy' stamp camp was this past Friday night and we had a ball! Lots of talking and solving the worlds problems, but most of all, plenty of papercrafting!! I was excited to get a phone call from one of my campers asking for another class like it soon! Here's a peek at one of the pages that we made with the beautiful 'Walk in the Park' DSP. The other colors in the page are WHISPER WHITE, BAJA BREEZE, CAMEO CORAL, AND BASIC GRAY. The stamp set that we used for the embellishments was FLIGHT OF THE BUTTERFLY, and the accessories were BUTTON BOUQUET, WHISPER WHITE TAFETTA RIBBON, SCALLOP CIRCLE PUNCH, 1 1/4 CIRCLE PUNCH, 1 3/8 CIRCLE PUNCH, 1/8 CIRCLE PUNCH, LACE EDGE PUNCH, SCALLOP EDGE PUNCH, BEAUTIFUL BUTTERFLIE DIE, BIG SHOT.

Now, when I make the scrapbook pages for my camps, I always make them without having any pictures in mind so that they are as generic as possible and can be used in different ways. This way each of my campers can see the page without pictures. Wait until tomorrow's post to see what pictures I found to go on this layout.........

Only a few days left.....

I can't believe that the month of May is almost gone! It has been one of the fastest months on record for me and I wish I could have a re-do because it was a great month! My brother's wedding was fantastic, and the scrapbook was a hit. I'm excited to get all of the pictures back so that I can start putting them in the album. I haven't even seen half of the pictures because my 16 year old niece (who's a great photographer) had my sisters digital SLR the whole night and was taking pictures of everything. Can't wait to see pics of my kids cutting it up on the dance floor....they were fantastic!


On to business! Since May is almost over, I don't want any of you to miss out on the great specials this month! Hop over to my website and check out the promotions. There are two going on right now for National Scrapbooking month. One is a paper special where if you buy 3 of the specified 12x12 DSP or Textured Cardstock, you get 1 FREE! Also, there's 20% off a cuter than cute alphabet stamp set called the 'Jumble Alphabet'. This is a brand new set that will come out in the new 2009-2010 catalog. Here's a picture of the set:

For all of my current customers, contact me by 5/30 to place any orders for these promotions and I will add your order to a group order! All new customers can click on my website and place your orders on-line by clicking the 'shop now' key!

Happy Stampin'!

Am I crazy or what?

What was I thinking? Making a wedding scrapbook takes WAY longer than I thought it would! Well....let me rephrase that......making a wedding scrapbook takes time, but if one is wise and actually organizes their life and budgets time accordingly, one wouldn't be scrambling at the last second to finish. I finished 30 pages, and I wanted to do 40, but I'm going to wait until I actually get the pictures to finish up in case I need to make some special pages. Needless to say, I haven't done any other stamping, and have nothing to post! I'll definitely be posting pictures of the wedding when we return.

I'll be starting my summer, 'a post a day', on June 1st, so make sure you start checking my blog more frequently! I'll also be giving away some 'blog candy', so keep an eye out for that on June 1st too!!

Happy Stampin' and Scrappin'!

Easy Elegance

I had to make a card for my SIL and new BIL who were married recently, and I wanted something that was simple, but elegant. I checked out some of the past templates on the Splitcoast website and found one that I really liked and set to creating! Everything is SU! except I used the Nesties to cut the ovals out. I'm pretty happy with my end result!!!

Recipe: Stamp Sets: Heartfelt Thanks, and All Holidays; Paper: Pink Pirouette, Whisper White; Ink: Pink Pirouette, Pretty in Pink, Certainly Celery, Basic Gray; Accessories: Raspberry Tart DSP, Pretties Kit, White Satin Ribbon.

Wedding Gift

One of my younger brothers is getting married and I just had to make a scrapbook for them as a wedding gift. The hardest part about a gift like this is making scrapbook pages that have no pictures on them! I've almost got all of the pages finished (the wedding is next week!), and I'm going to bring my camera to the wedding and take tons of pictures and fill it for them after the fact. I'm planning on wrapping the album up and giving it to them so they have a gift to open and then take it back in order to put the pictures in it. This way, if the pages don't look finished once I put the pictures on them, I can embellish them a bit more. My SIL-to-be isn't a scrapbooker (yet!) so I'm trying to make this as easy as possible. It's been a lot of fun, and the SU! Simply Scrappin' kits make it SO easy!! The kit I used was Love Stories, and I think the pages turned out really well. Here's the kit:

For some reason I can't enlarge the picture of this kit, but if you want to see it, click here to head over to my website and click on SHOP NOW and then check out the Simply Scrappin' kits!

I picked this kit because the colors in the wedding are blue, white and silver, and I thought that pictures of the wedding party would look really well on the Cardstock that was included in this kit. I almost always use sketches to create my scrapbook pages because it goes so much quicker! Two of my favorite places to find the sketches are in Scrapbooks Etc. magazine, and also on the PAGEMAPS website. I don't know what I would do without those two resources!

I used supplies from the kit, and that was all! A paper trimmer, adhesive, and scissors were the only other tools I needed. The great thing about the kits is that you can finish tons of pages in 1day. My friend Michelle and I went to a local scrapbooking store to do Wednesday crop, and I finished 14 pages in 4 1/2 hours! Gotta love that!

Now that I've got my scrapbooking mojo back, I'm off to do a few more pages for myself!

Happy Stampin'!

Judy

I've been MIA....sorry!

The end of the school year is always crazy around here. With teacher's appreciation gifts to make, Mother's Day, birthday's, soccer, dance, etc., I've barely had time to think, much less post. I'm hoping that once things cool down when school ends, I will get on a schedule of posting every morning....wouldn't that be grand??

This card was a part of my Clearly Amazing Stamp Camp. I just love these new printed window sheets that SU! came up with!! It only takes a few minutes and you have a beautiful card that's ready to give. It's hard to tell from the picture, but the die cuts that are behind the window sheet look like they're going to pop out of the card. My 7 yeard old son told me "I feel like I'm wearing 3-D glasses when I'm looking at it Mom!". I was pretty happy with this one...it's totally my own design!

Recipe: Stamp Set: Oval All; Ink: Basic Gray; Cardstock: Certainly Celery, Pink Pirouette, Pretty in Pink, Whisper White, and Basic Gray; Accessories: Organza Ribbon, Scallop Oval punch, large oval punch, Clearly Thanks Window Sheets, watercolor pencils; DIES: Little Leaves and Big Bold Cupcakes.

Stamp Club Card

All Supplies from Stampin' Up!: Stamp Set: And Many Mower, Cardstock: Whisper White, Old Olive, Tangerine Tango; Ink: Basic Black; Accessories: Top Note Die, Old Olive wide grosgrain, black brads, watercolor pencils, Tangerine Tango Prints DSP.

I've been doing so much of my crafting lately using my Big Shot Dies....I just LOVE the images that are Stampin' Up! Exclusives and one of my all time favs is the Top Note Die. You can do so much with this little sweetie! I set out to show my clubbers how much fun you can have with this shape, and my first item was a Father's Day card using the new And Many Mower stamp set from the new Occasions Mini Catalog. This set cracked me up because of the 3 R's stamp (see bottom of post for a picture of the whole set). It is literally a description of my Dad!! Ever since he retired he has seen more documentaries on the History Channel than any person alive...and I'm not kidding! Don't get me wrong, he's not a total couch potato, it's just that it's his FAVORITE thing to do, watch TV in his recliner, eating a snack. After many years in a pretty high stress job he sure deserves it!

Needless to say, my Dad's Father's Day card will be made with the 3 R's stamp, but I'm not posting it until after I give it to him because besides being a History Channel buff, he spends some time on the computer too checking up on all of us. So for now, here's a card made with some other stamps in the set. Note: Doesn't the Tangerine Tango DSP remind you of some really bad '70's polyester pants?? LOVE IT!

Happy Stampin'!

Judy

Another basket for your Easter table....

This basket would be so cute used at each place setting at Easter. You could even exchange the sentiment on the front for a name or monogram. All products used are SU! The Egg box is made with 2 ovals cut with the Coluzzle, and a small box sandwiched between....I just made up my own pattern, but you could use any size box, whatever suits your needs. The paper is from the SAB DSP Delicate Dots, and the stamp set is Egg-Cellent Easter. The handle is made from Vanilla 5/8 grosgrain, and the brads are from the Soft Subtles mix. I also used the scallop circle punch and the 1 1/4" and 1 3/8" circle punches. The band around the middle was made with the Lace Edge punch. The small flower was punched with the Boho Blossoms punch. Cardstock colors used were Certainly Celery and Bashful Blue. Happy Stampin'! Judy

A tisket, a tasket, a sweet little Easter basket!

Hi Everyone! I am so bogged down with things to do this week that I'm posting this one without any directions or product description...I just don't have the time!!! Everything was SU! except I used Nesties to cut my scalloped circles. I'll post more information at a later date. Happy Stampin'! Judy

A sweet little bunny

This little girl bunny is just so cute (and easy to color!) and is another stamp from the Egg-Cellent Easter set. I used the fabulous Jan Tink's idea for making a ruffled scalloped border to frame my bunny. She shows this technique on an oval, but it works great for the square, just make sure to do a fold at the corner! The wonderful DSP Tea Party is just such a great paper for spring, and it was used for the ruffle and the background papers. Pirouette Pink is the color I used for the card and the large oval and I used Certainly Celery for the grass under the bunny's feet. The mat color is So Saffron. I used a designer ribbon in So Saffron and a little brad from the Hodgepodge Hardware in Styled Silver. I also used Certainly Celery brads from the soft subtles mini-brads. The bunny was colored with Pastels.

Hoppy Easter!

Judy

Here comes Peter Cottontail.....

I had so much fun making this card! I used a design that I've used many times in the past (see my previous post HERE) and it works so well for cards for all occasions! The wonderful Egg-cellent Easter was the stamp set, and the Tea party DSP really made the card pop. I paper-pieced the bunny's little vest and pierced the corners of the paper. The scallop circle punch layered with the 1 1/4" and 1 3/8" punches showcase the greeting, and I topped it off with the lovely White Satin ribbon. I used the Lace Edge punch on the so saffron. Colors are, Almost Amethyst, So Saffron, Certainly Celery and Pretty in Pink. I colored the eggs with our Stampin' Write markers.

Happy Stampin'!

Judy

Hippity-Hoppity Easter's on it's way......

I had such a great day today! I spent most of the day at a friend's house (who's also a Stamp Club member), stamping, and talking and just having a good time. A few of the ladies had bought two of my class kits and were assembling them, while my friend Michelle and I were doing a little scrapbooking. Gotta loves days like this!

My card for today is from my Easter stamp camp using the Eggcellent Easter stamp set from the upcoming Mini Catalog. I just love the set!! I'm posting my favorite card first which is my own design (can't you see me patting myself on the back :) and it uses another favorite of mine, the Texturz plates for the Big Shot - LOVE THEM! The colors I used are Pink Pirouette and Lavender Lace (strange combo, right?), with a little bit of Bashful Blue dotted paper from the SAB DSP Delicate Dots. I used the Scallop edge for the DSP, and then I added the WIDE Pink Pirouette Grosgrain. I stamped the eggs using the Stamp-A-Ma-Jig, and then colored them in using Stampin' Write markers. THE MOST IMPORTANT STEP is using Crystal Effects over the top of the eggs....it makes them look like epoxy stickers. Hope you like it!

Happy Stampin'

Judy

More Cheap Talk

Another card made with the 'Cheap Talk' stamp set. It works so well with the 'Birds and Blooms' Die for the Big Shot!! I die cut the bird and flowers, and then stamped the legs from one of the birds onto the Whisper White Card stock. Then I added the tree branch which I colored using my Chocolate Chip marker, and blender pen and Kiwi Kiss ink refill. As far as the cardstock, I haven't had much use for the Pacific Blue In Color, but this stamp set works so well with it. I also used the DSP 'Good Morning Sunshine', Kiwi Kiss CS and a small strip from the 'Candy Lane'. I used the 'Scallop Edge' punch for the trim, and then layered the flowers and put a sticky rhinestone in the center (from the dollar bin at Joann's). Can't forget the new White silk and organza ribbon!

Happy Stampin'!

Judy

On-Line Club Projects

Happy Monday! I don't usually say that, but with the beautiful weather that we're having here, how can I help but be in a good mood? I went on a walk with the dog this morning and couldn't believe the warm temps. Gotta love spring!

Speaking of spring, my post is a 'springy' kind of thing. The colors from SU!'s Good Morning Sunshine paper, and the cute little birds from the 'Cheap Talk' stamp set make for some really cute projects! I can't remember where I got the pattern for this fun little purse, but I changed it up a bit and made it work for this project. I just love the little envelope on the front that holds postage stamps!

The idea for one of the cards, the one with the little heart, was found here and the other was my own brainchild. I just love this DSP and stamp set! The colors used were, Kiwi Kiss. Pacific Blue, Chocolate Chip, and Summer Sun. Just straight stamping on this card with a little paper piecing. The heart was punched with the Heart Trio Punch. The Happy Together is from the Family Phrases stamp set and I thought the cutesy font worked with the sweet birds. On the 'Hello There' card I added a little of the Kiwi Kiss Satin ribbon, and one of the new Large Brads (one of my favs from the new catty!).

3rd Club Card

This card is my favorite of the 3 Stamp Club cards that I made. I love the 'Just Buzzin' By' Stamp set and it looks SO CUTE with the Sale-a-Bration DSP 'Delicate Dots'. It's really simple too, the hardest part was cutting the paper. Because my Club was all about learning watercoloring techniques, we used the Stampin' Write Markers to watercolor this one. I used Crystal Effects on the dripping honey and on the bees wings to add some dimension to the card. The ribbon is also from the Sale-a-Bration brochure. I used SU! watercolor paper, Sahara Sand, So Saffron and Certainly Celery cardstocks....just love how it turned out!

2nd Club Card

I can't take credit for this card.....I think I saw it on someone's blog, but I don't remember who's! If this was your card, please comment so that I can give you credit for it!

I just loved the simplicity, and the fact that it used the Texturz Plates from SU! These plates are so fun and add so much pop to my projects. It's hard to see how textured they really are in this picture, but I used another piece of cardstock to 'shim' my 'sandwich' in the Big Shot and it really deepened the embossing on the card.

Again, this uses the 'Crazy for Cupcakes' stamp set. I used the Certainly Celery ribbon from the Sale-A-Bration brochure, and a ribbon slide from the Styled Silver Hodgepodge Hardware. I watercolored using the Watercolor Wonder Crayons, and added sparkle to the frosting on the cupcakes with Dazzling Diamonds. Cardstock colors are Pretty in Pink and Whisper White. Super easy card!

FINALLY!

I finally figured out a way to take pictures that don't have an 'apricot appeal' glow to them!! I think that my flash isn't working properly, which has caused all of my pictures to take on a peach hue. I solved the problem by taking my pics in direct sunlight in the morning, which fixes my blog pictures issue, but I'm still needing a new camera (hint, hint to the hubby!).

The first card is one that I made for my stamp club. We did a class on different water coloring techniques and I came up with three different cards using the same layout. I'm always looking for masculine cards, so this one uses color and patterns that fit the bill.

The stamp set is the popular CRAZY FOR CUPCAKES, and the color palette is, pacific blue, kiwi kiss, tangerine tango. I used the reinkers in those colors to watercolor the image, and then when it was dry I stamped on the 'happy birthday' from the FAMILY PHRASES set. The patterned paper was from the Tangerine Tango Pattern Pack, and I used the SU! watercolor paper (the best!) to stamp my image on. The stars were punched with the large and small star punches, and I added one of the new Jumbo brads.

I will post the other two cards tomorrow!

Happy Stampin' !

Judy

long lost blogger......

I had such good intentions to post at least twice a week, and then my camera died on me. It's officially gone, my poor little Cannon Powershot. I'm thinking the fact that I may have gotten salt water in it in Florida was the kicker. SO....I'm off to search for my son's little Kodak Easyshare and see what I can do with that. Hopefully I'll have some pictures for you soon because I've been making LOTS of stuff! Hope you have been too!

BTW, did you know that sales on craft items are WAY UP?? That includes stampin' and scrappin' supplies. It turns out, in a bad economy, those of us who love craftin' actually spend more time doing what we love! It has a lot to do with people staying home more, and making homemade cards and gifts to save money. I'm not happy that the economy is in the crapper (excuse the expression), but I am excited because there are so many talented ladies that are blogging A LOT and sharing all of their wonderful ideas.

Pull out your supplies and create something today....it will take your mind off of the state of the union.

Happy Stampin'!

Judy

National Send A Card to a Friend Day

I didn't even know that there was such a day! It's tomorrow (Feb 7th)!! In these days of e-mail and Facebook, we don't send snail mail cards very often anymore. I don't know about you but I still go to my mailbox and hope that there's something besides bills, so personal piece of mail that will brighten my day. And a handwritten note in a handmade card? It doesn't get much better than that! So.....I'm digging through my card stash and going to write a quick note to as many people as I can manage to in 1 day. Hope this inspires you to do the same!!

OH MY!!!!!!

Lookie was just arrived at my house!!! Whoo Hooooo!!! I can't wait to start using my new things!! I'm most excited about the Texturz Plates and the new dies I got for the Big Shot. I also can't wait to stamp the Trendy Trees and Cheap Talk sets...two of my favorites! I just loved so many things in this new catalog that I almost couldn't even choose, and as I see all of the wonderfully creative things that other stampers are doing with some of the new products, I'm sure that my wish list will grow! Do you want to order some wonderful Stampin' Up! products for yourself? Click here and do some shopping on my website! You can also see a copy of the catalog for youself if you click on the Spring/Summer Catalog icon on the side of my blog. It's so beautiful!

Happy Stampin'!

Judy

Petal Pizzaz

My shipment of new Stampin' Up! things arrived and I'm busy putting stamp sets together! I can't wait to play with some of the great new accessories that I ordered too! One of the sets that I pre-ordered was the Petal Pizzaz, and I was busy putting together this card while waiting for the UPS man to drop off my package. I just love this set! It reminds me of a retired level 3 set from a few years ago that I loved but sold because I never keep any of my retired sets. I was happy SU! came up with a similar set because it is such an easy set to stamp with and use with some really great techniques.

For this card I used Kiwi Kiss, Chocolate Chip, Taken with Teal and Tangerine Tango for my color combo. I stamped off 1 time on the background paper to make a lighter backdrop for my bold flowers. I also stamped the background of the Taken with Teal card using a smaller flower from the set using Taken with Teal ink. The words are from the Absolutely Fabulous set (one of my favs....can't you tell? I'm always using it!). Accessories used were the Kiwi Kiss Satin ribbon, scallop edge punch, Fire and Ice Circle Rhinestone brads and dimensionals. Hope you like it!!

Happy Stampin'!

Judy

Sick kids and crummy weather......

I had lots of things on my 'to do' list for today, and none of them got done! All three of the kids are sick, one just getting it, one in the middle of it, and one just getting over it. I have been cooped up for a full week and am about ready to start pulling my hair out. The only thing that has kept me sane are the brief moments that I have had to stamp. I was supposed to be working on projects for my Spring Cards Stamp Camp, but I got sidetracked when I happened across a great desktop stationery box on Debbie Olsen's blog. I guessed at the dimensions and made one of my own. I already had the Sweet Stems set out to make my spring cards with, so I just used it because it was handy. The Raspberry Tart paper is just too delicious!! I'm thinking that I'll try and turn this one into a class. The stationary box holds 6 cards and looks so cute sitting on your desk, counter or workspace!

Recipe: Stamp set: Sweet Stems, Absolutely Fabulous; CS: Kiwi Kiss, Whisper White, Cameo Coral, Real Red; Ink: Basic Black, Cameo Coral, Kiwi Kiss; Accessories: Kiwi Kiss Satin Ribbon, Kiwi Striped Ribbon, Raspberry Tart DSP, scallop circle punch, 1 1/4 and 1 3/8 circle punches, scallop edge punch, 1 3/4 circle punch, blender pens.

Valentines Class

As promised, here's a little sneak peek of a card from my Valentines Class. I can't take credit for the design....another SU! demo named Mary Beth Brown was the papercrafter who came up with the idea. I just LOVE her work. I changed the card a bit to make it my own, but the basic idea was hers. And don't you just LOVE the matching envelope?

This card uses the Love You Much Stamp Set, Heart Trio Punch, and Candy Lane DSP, ALL in the NEW SU! Spring/Summer 2009 catalog. Other SU! products: Pink Pirouette, Riding Hood Red, Close to Cocoa and Whisper White CS; Basic Brown Ink, 1/2, 1 1/4" circle punches, scallop circle punch, white gel pen.

DEEP FREEZE!

It is so cold outside that I can't stand it! I had to clean off the driveway and sidewalks and by the time that I came inside my face was frozen. I love winter and the snow, but these below 0 temperatures are crazy. The only good thing about the situation is that I'm cooped up inside and all of my housework is done, laundry included, so that leaves me with time to.....you guessed it.....STAMP! I'm working on cards and some small projects for my first Stamp Camp of the New Year, and I'll be ready to show you some sneak peeks soon. I'm trying to ONLY use items that are NEW in Spring/Summer catalog and I'm still waiting for the catalog so I can order the rest of my supplies. I'm so jealous of some of the other SU! demos in the area because they've already received their new catalog shipments and the Man In Brown DROVE RIGHT PAST MY HOUSE WITHOUT STOPPING! I was not happy. Hopefully they'll be here tomorrow so that I can start my list of what I need (of course they're needs not wants) and I'll be one of the first people to enter my order when SU! opens for business on the 19th. In the meantime, here are two cards from my fabulous downline ROBIN, who truly amazes me. There are a few SU! colors that are hard for me to use....they just don't appeal to me, but when I see a card that Robin uses them on it just inspires me to grab that color and try using it myself. I love it! Thanks Robin!

Happy Stampin'!

Judy

scrap happy!

My husband and I are fortunate that both of our parents have lake houses because WE LOVE all types of lake sports and recreation, including ice fishing. This past week (over New Year's), my FIL lent us his house for 4 days for a little family mini-vacation. We loaded up the van with suitcases, ice fishing equipment, kids, dog, and last but not least SCRAPBOOKING SUPPLIES! While my DH had 2 of the kids out on the lake fishing (the kids took turns because we only have a 2 man ice fishing tent, so one of them was always with me), I would scrapbook to my little hearts content while my other child played or watched TV close by. I FINISHED 8 pages and started 2 more! I was in scrap-heaven. My MIL has a wonderful crafting table that bigger than the one I have at home, and nearby she has another cutting table, and a large long bar, so I could REALLY spread out. I did feel a bit guilty that I was enjoying their space so much, but they're really cool people and I know that they would love it that we were having such a great time.

Here are some of the fruits of my labor. MOST of the supplies are Stampin' Up! I only use supplies from other companies if Stampin' Up! doesn't offer a similar item. So the papers, inks, punches, and chipboard are from Stampin' Up! Some current, and some retired. One of my Favorite things is the punched hearts on the TOO SWEET page. They were made with the new Stampin' Up! Punch that's a part of the Love You Much Bundle that Stampin' Up! has a great promotion on right now.

I'm having a really hard time with my camera right now, so my pictures aren't are good as I would like them to be. I hate to say this, but I think it's time to upgrade! I have a Canon A540, and it used to take great pictures, but I've really been having a problem with the autofocus feature. As a result it seems like some of my pictures aren't as clear as they should be. One more thing to add to my list of wants :) It's a bummer that I figured it out AFTER Christmas because my hubby was looking for things to buy me and having a hard time finding something that I really wanted. Oh well.....there's always Mother's Day!

Take some time and make some cards or scrapbook today, it's good for the soul!

Happy Stampin' and Scrappin'!

Judy

SU! Spring/Summer Catalog Peek

Stampin' Up! really knew what they were doing when they decided to publish 2 catalogs each year instead of one. We stamp-a-holics get our fix both with the anticipation and unveiling of the wonderful stamps and accessories that Stampin' Up! always brings us. January 19th is the release date for the new catty and I've already been working on my camps and crops using the new products. I pre-ordered a few stamp sets and papers, and I have to say that I love everything that I bought! These products will be made available to Stampin' Up! customers on January 19th, so get ready to have some fun!

Here are 3 cards that I made for a swap with my downline. The first two cards use NEW SETS that will be available on 1/19, and the other card was made with a set that is from the Holiday MINI-Catalog (WHICH EXPIRES ON 1/18!!!)

The first card was made with the about to become available stamp set "Just Buzzin' By", and if you love to watercolor (and y'all know that I do!), this is a set for you! It has the most adorable images and is so easy to color. I also used the Dazzling Diamonds on the bees wings to give the card a little pop (it's so hard to see it in the pictures!) The other products that I used were: Inks: Basic Black and Versamark, Cardstock: Perfect Plum and Pale Plum, So Saffron, and Basic Black, Accessories: White Taffeta ribbon, Dazzling Diamonds glitter, and the two way glue pen.

The next card is a Gatefold (I use Beate's tutorial for the card pattern) that uses the soon to be available set "Sweet Stems". What I love about this set is that it has a Sizzix Embosslit that matches it (see the die cut flower at the bottom right on the card). For all of you owners of the Big Shot (or any other Sizzix product), you are gonna love this little baby! It not only DIE CUTS the shape, it also DRY EMBOSSES a design onto it at the same time that you cut it! I doesn't get much better than that! Here are a few other products that I used: Cardstock: Kiwi Kiss
, Bravo Burgundy, Pink Pirouhette, Ink: Basic Black, Pink Pirouhette, Bravo Burgundy, Accessories: Sizzix Embosslit Sweetest Stems, NEW DSP Raspberry Tart.

The last card is my favorite! It uses the "Love Owl-Ways" set from the Mini, and it it so easy to make! The toughest thing was gluing the 1/2" circle around the larger circle to make the scallop. The heart shapes that are stamped on the pink cardstock were colored in using the Watercolor Wonder crayon Cameo Coral, and the little heart that the owl is holding is glittered using the Dazzling Diamonds. Recipe: Paper: Cameo Coral, Pink Pirouhette, Bravo Burgundy, Whisper White; Ink: Basic black; Accessories: 1/2" circle punch, 1 3/4" circle punch, scallop edge punch, Pink Pirouette 1 1/4" grosgrain, Raspberry Tart DSP, Watercolor Wonder Crayons.

Stay tuned in the next week to see the scrapbook pages that I worked on over New Year's.....I finished 10 pages!

Happy Stampin',

Judy