Stamp in Sam's Garage

Together

2012-01-10T21:20:00.000-08:00

Here are The Kidz - for once, all together.

I only have two photos of the three of them together. Tough to do, with three of them!

Heck, it's tough to do to get any two of them in the same photo! LOL

I'm working on a digital calendar for my family this year, and one of the pages in the calendar is entitled "together". I was fortunate enough to find enough pix of various members of the family together (brother and sister, brother and brother, sister and sister, husband and wife, a group of friends, grandparent and grandchildren) to fill the page to my satisfaction, so I'm liking this calendar page!

Whaddya think? Pretty cool, huh? LOL

I had no intention of making a digital calendar - for the past 6-7 years I've ALWAYS handmade my family calendars. And I NEVER get them done for January - consequently, the calendar year for OUR family is either February or March to the same time the following year.

So, I hadn't been sweating it too much, knowing I had about another month before the unveiling.

I'm headed to Leadership next week and knew I wouldn't have time to even START them til my return. But I was nagging for pictures to put into them.

And then I realized I didn't HAVE the paper calendars - tried to order them and they've been DISCONTINUED! OMG!!!

I'm sure I either realized it when they were discontinued and bought some - OR, that was last year and I should have remembered the calendar was going to go digital this year!

And if I DID buy some this past June - where in that Stampin' Garage did I PUT them? Lord only knows...

And I just decided I wasn't going to sweat it.

I'd just go digital! Had been wanting to try a calendar anyway, and like any other software I've dealt with in the past 25 years, it's always initiation under fire.

IT'S SO EASY! OMG...

Of course, I still haven't had the nerve to send a prototype calendar out to be printed so I can see where I didn't really "get it" and need to do some editing, but that's going to happen soon, cause I want to play some more! Adding elements and stamps and punches is so easy!

Changing sizes of the photos is easy too! So, if, like me, you want to squeeze a LOT of pix onto a single page, that's possible. Or you can choose to have only one or two on each page. YOUR DECISION!

And the background for that page?

ONE OF MY VERY OWN PHOTOGRAPHS!

YES! I just added it as a custom Designer Paper and turned the opacity down to about 35. SO COOL!!!

Every time I use My Digital Studio (MDS) I get all excited about the potential all over again.

SO MANY things you can do with it - make scrapbooks, calendars, flyers - anything you want. You can WRITE YOUR OWN BOOK if you want!

You can include video and audio files too!

Do you have it? DO YOU WANT IT? Contact me via email and I'll be happy to help you get started using a digital format for your needs!

North! To Alaska!

2011-10-26T18:31:00.000-07:00

I mentioned in a previous post that I'd FINALLY been able to take the cruise to Alaska that's been on my Bucket List for over 20 years! YES!

I tried to talk my mom into it MANY years ago, and she just wasn't interested. She never did say why, and now that she's gone, I wish I'd pursued it further with her. I don't THINK she got seasick, but maybe that was the reason.

Well, she went on the cruise anyway!

I went with my brother and sister-in-law (hey, you two!), and I took Flat Mama with us!

Here she is, resting in the floral bouquet that Jim & Laurel received once they'd boarded the ship.

And here are the four of us, toasting with champagne in their on board upgraded suite!

They never did figure out how or why they were upgraded, but I never heard a bad word about the idea from either of them! LOL

They had a FULL SHOWER and a FULL BATHTUB in that suite - and a great deck from which we viewed the glaciers during our day in Glacier Bay.

No, I STILL haven't attempted to upload all the pix I took on my new camera - so I don't have a lot of photos to share, but here's one I really liked that I was able to get with my old trusty camera.

Yep - that's Mount Rainier!

It decided to "come out" for the afternoon, just as we were setting sail. And it was quite lovely, wasn't it?

We really enjoyed our cruise and ensuing land excursions! In Juneau we took a tour to Mendenhall Glacier and saw a BEAR! And that bear caught a salmon while we were watching - but those pix are on the new camera, so I'll have to show them to you later. Please come back to check it out!

In Skagway, we took the Yukon Railway tour. And while it was drizzly and overcast in Skagway, by the time we got to the top of the mountain, the sun was out, and it was beautiful (but COLD!) Come back for those pix, too!

And Glacier Bay... well, it was a whole day and was very interesting...

Last Alaska stop was Ketchikan, which I LOVED! So quaint - and, truthfully, not very large, since it clings to the mountainside! Come back for pix of that, too...

We spent a couple of days in Seattle after our return from the cruise, so I'll share those pix with you one of these days, too!

Sorry - no stamping stuff today - but come back soon, and I promise, I'll have some Halloween stuff to share with you!

Thanks for stopping by...

Bingo!

2011-10-24T01:26:00.000-07:00

About 3 months ago, Faye, the Curves attendent where I belong, asked me if I could help her think of a way to store the members' bingo cards she wanted to use for a game at the gym.

It typically takes quite a while before someone gets a Bingo, so, a safe storage place for the duration was a must.

Last year, she hung large sheet of paper on the wall, and we just adhered our card to the paper, and checked off squares as we were able.

But this year, that wall space has been taken up with other things.

She suggested she'd like to keep them in a box (recipe card size, maybe?) and that she wanted dividers.

She wanted 26 - one for each letter of the alphabet.

So, I came home and thought about it, measured a bingo card, scrounged around in the Stampin' Garage and found enough cardboard, left over from tablet backs and other things, to make one for each alphabet letter.

I had punched out a number of sets of letters using the Naturally Serif alphabet for the Big Shot a while back. I've been keeping them in a storage container that I use for my Swarovski crystals, so it makes it a little easier to find an "A", without sorting through ALL those I've punched.

So, I glued some Designer Series Paper to each of the cardboard backs and added the appropriate letter and took them to her. She liked them!

Then we found out that the box she'd wanted to use wasn't big enough, so I scrounged around in the Stampin' Garage again, and found a box that used to house envelopes that was PERFECT! And, it had a lid, so once this year's game was over she could store the whole thing until the next time she wanted to bring the game out.

So, I covered the box with Gray CS, stamped a Bingo Card image and spelled out "Bingo Cards" in a larger font, added some side decorations made using the Lace Ribbon Border punch, along with a button for dimension, and took it in to her. She loved it! What do you think?

I thought it came out pretty good!

While I was putzing around making this, I also stamped the Bingo card stamp on Whisper White CS and used the Jolly Bingo Bits stamp set.

Wouldn't this make a nice game to be given as a Christmas gift?

Stamp up 6-8 cards and laminate them. Create a master set of the all the Bingo Bits, wrap them nicely, and voila! A great gift!

We also have a set for Halloween called Spooky Bingo Bits. I keep thinking there might be yet another set of stamps that are the same size as these in the catalog, but didn't dig around to see what it might be called.

Hey - you could use them ALL on the Bingo cards, provide a master set of all of them and use these year - round! That would keep everyone on their toes, wouldn't it?

BTW - what did you think of my Shoe Box Swap from the other day? Would YOU swap with me?

Thanks for stopping by - come back soon!

Latest Shoebox Swap

2011-10-22T01:53:00.000-07:00

Just thought I'd share with you my latest shoebox swap. Waddya think?

Remember Me?

2011-10-15T13:52:00.000-07:00

Yeh - I'm back...

It's been a VERY long time since I last posted - life got in the way again.

Let's see, since I posted last I have:

gone to the annual Stampin' Up! convention in Salt Lake City.

I received my 20 year pin- yes! I've been a Stampin' Up! demonstrator for 20 years! It sure doesn't seem that long - and it's been a fun ride!

I'm planning on sticking around for a bunch more, too, so call me when you need something!

Here's a photo (thanks Kelly!) of yours truly (in the red shirt and white pants) along with several other demonstrators who also received their 20 year pins. The gal to my left is Sherrill Graff - I know a lot of you know her, since she's the moderator of Late Night Stampers.

Unfortunately, I don't know who the gal to the far right of me is. You'd think, if we've all been around for so long, we'd know each other, wouldn't you? But I don't! The gal on my right's name is Jill, but I don't remember her last name. If you know, leave me a comment! TIA!

I've also:

had cataract surgery on both eyes (and, miracle of all miracles, I can now see FAR AWAY! YEAH!!!! Up close? Well, I need cheaters to work on the computer, but, hey, seeing far away without my glasses is something I can't even remember being able to do! )

Gone on an Alaska cruise with my brother and sister-in-law - we did the Inside Passage from Seattle and had the pleasure of visiting Glacier Bay National Park, which I understand not every cruise to Alaska is allowed to do. It was awesome!

Gone to my upline's annual Stamp A Thon in St. George, UT.

Played a lot of games on Facebook (yes, it's my guilty pleasure!...)

Shipped almost 500 cards off to From Our Hearts to be sent to our troops overseas.

So, that's what I've been doing - what about you?

Yes, I've been stamping during all that time, too - but not sharing. How could I be so selfish?

I had to invest in a new camera while on the cruise - my old, dearly beloved, point & shoot camera kept giving me error messages while trying to take pix, and I just WASN'T going to go on my once in a lifetime Bucket List cruise and not have photos of it.

So, I still have not had the nerve to try and upload those photos - that's me - scared of technology!

Maybe today... And once I get them up there, you can be sure I'll share some of them with you!

In the meantime, here are a couple of photos of Halloween that I took with the Old Faithful point & shoot camera. ENJOY!

This is a witches boot made from...

Wait for it.....

The STOCKING die!

Isn't it cute?

This one was made by one of my stamp club ladies, Linda - didn't she do an awesome job? Her's was so much more classy than my sample, I just had to show it off!

And this is one of the Halloween treats I'm making for my favorite Starbucks baristas - SHHHH - don't tell them, OK?

I used the Howl-o-ween Creeps set and the 1 x 8" cellophane bags we're currently carrying in the Holiday mini.

I need to make about 20 of these for my baristas, and they ARE ADDICTING!

I've been working on them for about a week now, and beginning to see the light at the end of the tunnel.

The hardest part is sliding the candy into the bags!

Well, hope you didn't forget about me while I was gone. I certainly didn't forget about all of you!

Come back soon, OK? I promise not to be absent for so long!

A Basketful of Posies

2011-07-07T00:01:00.000-07:00

This was my contribution to our Team meeting's Shoebox swap this month.

I used the new "In" color CS Wisteria Wonder as the base for the card.

I stamped the chair image from the new Cherish Friendship set using Staz-On ink on watercolor paper, then used an Aqua Painter and re-inkers to color the image. I then layered the stamped, colored image on to Rich Razzleberry CS, then on to Basic Black CS.

I used Versamark ink and a stamp from the 'Clearly for You' stamp set to create a little "background noise".

I also used the new Lace Ribbon Border punch - isn't it lovely?

Here's a close up, so you can see the detail of the punch better.

I punched one of the papers from the Pocketful of Posies DSP.

I think this punch will be very versatile, both with DSP and card stock. You probably NEED IT! hee hee So be sure to contact me to place your order for it.

Thanks for stopping by - come back soon!

Flowers, Flowers, Flowers

2011-07-06T00:12:00.000-07:00

Some of my favorite things in the whole wide world are flowers!

I have few, if any, plants in my backyard that don't flower. What good are they if they don't produce some flowers in reds and pinks and yellows and purples and blues for all of us? LOL

That's why I liked Sandy's card from our Team Meeting.

She used some Beyond The Garden DSP. This particular pattern might well be my favorite one from that package of DSP. She used the Petal Card Extra Large Double punch (Item 119273) and folded it like an envelope.

Next, she wrapped some white ribbon around it, glued it to the card front, which had been embossed with the Flower Garden Embossing folder.

There's also a little pull out note where she stamped 'thinking of you' where one could write a more personal greeting.

This is a quick little card to throw together and you could change the greeting very easily to Happy Birthday, or whatever sentiment you might need at the time.

Would you like to learn how to make simple little cards like this and then go on and share this with others?

Then why not join my Team?

Stampin' Up! is offering an awesome $99 Starter Kit and Free Project Kit Promotion during July.

This kit contains over $180 in products and business supplies--including new products from the 2011-2012 Idea Book & Catalog! All items below are recommended, but a new demonstrator can substitute a similar item of equal or lesser value.

And when you recruit in July, you (and your recruiter - that's me! LOL) will get a Christmas Keepsake project kit absolutely FREE--a $40 value!

Isn't this beautiful?

Wouldn't YOU like to earn it? I know I would. It looks like something really fun to work on together while we chat about Stampin' Up! and the wonderful opportunities available from them.

This exclusive kit contains everything needed to create a beautiful Christmas Keepsake Box to hold your most treasured Christmas memories and is only available if you recruit during July, 2011!

The photo below shows the stamps, DSP and ribbon you get in the $99 kit. You may substitute any items of equal or lesser value, if you'd like, but the items you'll receive in your kit are coordinated to work well together, so why not just go with it!

In addition, you'll receive the items below.

Page	Item	Description
57	123225	Easy Events Clear-Mount Set*
69	122740	Pennant Parade Wood-Mount Set*
177	102277	Old Olive Classic Stampin' Pad
177	105216	Pumpkin Pie Classic Stampin' Pad
177	103133	Real Red Classic Stampin' Pad
177	119706	Brights 8-1/2" x 11" Assorted Card Stock
180	101179	Basic Black Classic Stampin' Pad
182	107311	Whisper White Note Cards (20)
185	124339	Just Add Cake Designer Series Paper*
195	124142	Chocolate Chip 1/2" Scallop Dots Ribbon*
203	122129	Blender Pen (1)
205	118486	Clear-Mount Block C
206	104332	SNAIL Adhesive

*New to the 2011-2012 Idea Book & Catalog!

Business Supplies
The business supplies in these promotional mini kits will be the same business supplies that are in existing starter kits; no alternative selections can be made for business items.

Getting Started DVD
Getting Started Guide
Guest Invitation Postcards (100)
2011-2012 Idea Book & Catalog (8)
2011 Summer Mini Catalog (8)
Stampin' Up! logo vinyl
Décor Elements applicator
To My Hostess Envelopes (10)
My Digital Studio Marketing DVD
Recruit Folders (5)
Recruit Brochures (20)
Customer Order Forms (50)

This is an awesome deal!

If you're interested, please email me and we'll carry on a more in depth conversation at that time, and I'll show you how to sign up TODAY!

I'd love to have you join my 'we StAMp everything' team!

Thanks for stopping by - come back soon!

The World Got a Present...

2011-07-03T00:59:00.000-07:00

... the day you were born.

Another beautifully simple card!

This was Becky's contribution to our Team meeting Shoebox Swap.

I love the ruffled seam binding around the oval punched greeting.

I groaned when I saw we had to do that - sometimes I'm not a very girly-girl, and ruffles seem to be too much.

But this ruffle was easy to do - simply stamp, punch out the image, then apply SNAIL to the back of it and attach the seam binding pinched into little ruffles.

The hardest part of the whole thing is keeping the ruffling that shows a consistent distance from the image, so it doesn't look lop-sided.

But the nice part about the ribbon and the SNAIL is that you can repeated pick it back up if you don't like it, and reapply it.

We stamped with Versamark ink on the Pretty In Pink CS, then tore a piece of DSP that coordinated with the card stock.

We used one of the new Hostess level Stamp sets from the new IBC called Happiest Birthday Wishes. It's a great set - has 11 pieces, all dedicated to helping you make some awesome birthday cards!

Thanks for stopping by - come back soon!

Festive Flowers

2011-07-02T00:41:00.000-07:00

Isn't this a beautifully simple card?

This was Natalie's contribution to a Shoebox Swap we did at my monthly Team Meeting in June.

She used the Flower Fest set (122278-wood $27.95 or 122280-clear $19.95) which was introduced to us via the Summer mini-catalog.

But the good news is - it's in the NEW Idea Book & Catalog, too!

Most of the flowers in the set can be punched out with punches we currently carry.

If you have those punches, that makes this a REALLY QUICK CARD! Gotta love those, for those last minute card needs. And if you don't have the punches, why not? They're great staple tools to keep in your repertoire.

Natalie used Real Red and Tangerine Tango CS, with Whisper White on the inside of the card.

The only ink used on this card is Real Red.

She also used the Fancy Flower Extra Large and the 5-Petal Flower Extra Large punch. And of course, the large Oval Punch.

I love simple cards!

I sometimes get caught up in the race to make a busier and busier card, and then I see something like this one and realize it doesn't have to be that way...

Simple is good!

I'll show you some of the other cards we made at our Shoebox Swap in the coming days.

In the meantime, thanks for stopping by - come back soon!

Love My Customers!

2011-06-27T00:52:00.000-07:00

I had a Retiring Stamps Open House on Saturday (hi guys! thanks for coming!) and had some of my favorite stampers join me.

A sort of a last chance to look at those stamp sets that are retiring and decide what you need/want/desire/can' t live without.

And a reason to get together with others who enjoy the art of stamping!

That's always the BEST reason - sharing what we love...

Anyway, the card above (yes, I'll wait while you scroll back up there and look at it again! LOL) is the Make & Take I designed for my guests to make while they were here.

And below is the card Kathleen & Del designed using the materials provided for them to duplicate it...

What a difference cutting some corners makes, huh?

And adding a bird...

I LOVE the card - I made this one from memory after they'd left - I forgot to take a photo. I hope I got fairly close!

We also had some munchies, and I gave them each new catalogs. Guess where their attention was most of the time they were here! Yep! On the new catalog...

Oh well - now they'll have time to decide what they want to order at my New Catalog Open House on Saturday July 23rd and pick one up!! Party starts @ 1 PM...

Would YOU like to get one of the new catalogs? Come to my Open House!

I'll have Make & Takes and door prizes and munchies - oh, and samples of the new "In" colors for you to take home.

Or, you can join my Stamp Club - monthly meetings, I teach new techniques and have projects for you to make. Meetings are held at my house on the 2nd Saturday each month. Minimum order each month is $25. More than that is greatly appreciated by each month's Hostess !

Or, if you're long distance, I'd be happy to mail one out to you - contact me to make arrangements to cover the postage. Priority mail runs around $5 now - will confirm cost when you contact me. Send me an email here and I'll get back to you.

Thanks for stopping by - come back soon!

6-4-10 - and I'm Sad

2011-06-20T00:34:00.000-07:00

I held a 6-4-10 on Saturday afternoon and I think the ladies had a great time.

What's a 6-4-10, you ask?

Well, each person who attended made 6 cards for $10. (6-4-10)

And why am I sad, you ask?

Because all these stamp sets are being retired, and I won't be able to play with them and show you my ideas with them after June 30th!

That doesn't mean YOU can't play with them, though, so if you see something you'd like to order, contact me immediately, please!

My goal was to get their grubby little paws on some of the stamp sets and accessories that are being retired come June 30th.

If they already had the set, they were getting a new idea for its use. If they didn't, maybe they'd think about ordering it.

Wanna see the cards they made?

Alrighty, then, here ya go...

This one was made using the retiring Level II Hostess set "Fast and Fabulous", as well as some words from the "Hope Happens" set.

I'm going to miss that set - the words in that one are so positive and can be used for just about any occasion.

This card uses Cardinal Christmas, another one of my favorite sets that's retiring. I used the Holly Jolly DSP (also retiring) for this one.

I love cardinals, and I'm going to miss this set, come Christmas.

I grew up in PA where there ARE cardinals and we used to have a bird feeder right outside the big kitchen windows so we could watch for them.

ANOTHER one of my favorite sets being retired is "A Sense of Time". That clock face is so versatile. And the gear and cog stamp that's in the set is so masculine you can add it to almost anything else masculine and it works!

This card used the branch from the "Eastern Blooms" set. It's another excellent generic set that can be used for just about any occasion.

Here I used some of the Elegant Soiree DSP - I liked the color combination of Baja Breeze, Crumb Cake, Soft Suede, and Ivory cardstocks.

The Spiral Border punch I used on this card is also being discontinued. Sigh... It, too, was a great generic tool.

Loved this card - it's so bright and cheery!

I used the "Pun Fun" stamp set and the Love Letters DSP to create it. I also used another stamp in the inside of the card (Grateful for you), but I didn't remember to take a photo of it.

And finally, an Easel Card.

Here's the outside of the card. I used the "Dreams du Jour" set, and some of the current "In" colors in the Sunny Garden DSP (Poppy Parade, Peach Parfait, Pear Pizazz).

And here's the "easel" part

I stamped, sponged and cut out two of the butterfly stamp from this set. They're what is propping the card open.

Did you see anything that inspires you? Do you have the stamp set? If not, and you'd like it, send me an email along with your address and phone number, and I'd be happy to order it for you! Remember, all the sets used in these cards (and most of the accessories and punches I used) will be GONE, GONE, GONE come June 30th!

Thanks for stopping by - come back soon!

A Few Cards to Share

2011-06-13T00:28:00.000-07:00

Today was our monthly demonstrator get-together here in my Stampin' Garage. These are other Stampin' Up! demonstrators who are not necessarily in my downline - we call them sidelines. And we try to get together once a month to keep each other inspired and motivated.

It's a great group of ladies - always so creative.

This card was Teresa's creation to share with us today.

Teresa usually makes very Clean and Simple cards - which I love.

I'm a simple gal...

She used Crumb Cake, Wild Wasabi and Basic Black, along with the Best Dad Ever stamp set and the Corners punch.

This was Veronica's submittal for our pleasure today. (We missed your smiling face today, Veronica, but thanks for sharing an awesome card with us.)

She used the new Blossom Bouquet Triple Layer punch, along with Cherry Cobbler, Baja Breeze, and Not Quite Navy CS.

Did you notice she punched some DSP with this punch and added it, too?

This is Susan's card for today.

I love how she used various embossing folders, then punched squares out with the Postage Stamp punch (122344), then layered them on to Chocolate Chip, Whisper White and Garden Green, which she THEN layered on to Melon Mambo CS.

Want to see those little squares up close and personal?

Cute idea, isn't it?

And finally, here's my submittal for today's event.

This is totally a sneak peek.

New Hostess set, new "In" color CS, new ribbon... I just ran the front of the card through the Polka dot embossing folder, corner rounded only two of the four corners of the attached pieces, and, viola, my card was done.

LOVE the look of something stamped over newsprint like paper, so this set grabbed my eye right away!

Want to see more of the new catalog? Well, come to either one of my 6-4-10 Card events and I'll share mine with you!

The events are scheduled for Friday, 6/17 @ 7 PM or Saturday 6/18 @ 1 PM.

We'll make 6 cards using stamp sets that are being Discontinued. You'll pay $10. (get it? 6 cards 4 $10)

RSVPs are necessary, so that I know how many people to plan for!

And, if you can't make that event, plan to attend my annual Stamp Retirement Party on Saturday, 6/25 starting at 1 PM. There's no charge for this event, and I'll have a Make & Take that day, as well as munchies.

RSVPs appreciated for this event, as well...

You can sit around and chat with other stampers! It'll be fun!

Thanks for stopping by - come back again!

Father's Day Event Books

2011-06-12T00:33:00.000-07:00

My Stamp Club ladies were here today.

And they made event books like the one I showed you here.

Everyone's was different - that's the fun part!

I'll show you a couple of pages of each one - pages that show their creativity and cleverness!

The one above is the cover of Anne's - she's Dr. Destructo's wife, so she's planning to use hers for Father's Day.

Here's an inside page from hers...

She also had pages in there for Dr. Destructo's creative endeavors (read remodeling), and his puppy dogs. And she would have loved it if I'd had a stamp set with a fishing theme, but I don't know anyone that fishes - besides them, that is!

Here's Irene's book. She didn't say who she was making hers for, but she's an avid scrapbooker, so I'm sure she had someone in mind.

She's a big paper tearing, scrunch up the paper fan, as is evidenced by this page.

Almost every page of her book was similar to this - but she was quick to point out when I was taking photos that she still needs to add hardware and other accessories. So, hers, at least, is a Work In Progress...

Del likes to scrunch and mist and tear for her scrapbooking too.

Del's the one who turned me on to SteamPunk, so she worked hard to lend that look to her book.

The cogs punch (which, by the way, is retiring at the end of the month!) is a great tool for the SteamPunk look...

And here's one of the inside pages for her book.

Kathleen decided she wanted hers to open like a calendar, instead of a book.

The tall ship is a perfect cover for her book!

And I love how she used corner pieces all thru her book! Not something I'd have ever thought to do!

I tell ya, I learn more from my creative stamping guests than I teach them most times! And I love it!

Here's the last photo for tonight. It's another one of Kathleen's pages, and I love her little flags!

A clever little added touch, don't you think?

That's all I have to share with you tonight! Hope you enjoyed seeing other's creativity!

Thanks for stopping by - come back soon!

Playful Polka Dots - Part Trey

2011-06-07T00:46:00.000-07:00

Well, I hope three in French is trey - if not, that's what I mean!

Hi again...

More cards I made using these products:

It's really kind of fun to work with this process. It gives me a change to try ANY tools I can think of, and no matter what I throw together, at least I know the color combo is going to work ! LOL...

Here's the next one

I used the new postal punch (Item 122344, in the Summer mini), as well as the Scallop Square Extra Large punch (Item 119884), and just layered them. The greetings are from Pretty Postage (Item 123095 - wood mount).

Here's a close up of some of the detail:

I ran a piece of Old Olive thru the Elegant Bouquet Embossing folder (Item 115964), and then I took the white Smooch Pearlized Accent ink and ran the brush lightly over the embossed parts.

Doesn't it look cool?

This one is entirely made from die cut adhesives from the Simply Scrappin' kit. Really quite lovely, isn't it?

This is one of those cards that could be used as is, or stepped up, using some additional accessories from the catalog.

I stamped a flower from Fabulous Florets set ( Item 123025 - wood mount) with VersaMark ink on the Pumpkin Pie CS.

Here's another card made largely from the pieces in the SS kit. The red scallop on the left side is one of those pieces, as are the flowers and the stem.

I scalloped the edge of the white CS on the right side to echo the patterned DSP on the left.

I think the only stamping on the card is the little greeting!

This card is bright, isn't it? hee hee

The flowers and the stem are pieces from the SS kit. The background paper is from the kit, as well. Then I attached some of the Ivory seam binding, made into a bow.

And finally, for tonight...

Another 3x3 punched square (they sure do come in handy to have hanging around!), another strip of DSP from the SS kit... The piece of Pumpkin Pie CS was run through an embossing folder to add dimension. The Fabulous Floret stamps were stamped using the Daffodil Delight ink, then cut out.

In all, I think I made about 15 cards using HALF of the Simply Scrappin' kit - and I still have pieces left over for more cards.

If you want to make a bunch of cards that aren't necessarily all the same, but which you want to be color coordinated, a Simply Scrappin' kit is what you want!

Add a stamp set or two (words and images), and you're all set.

Or, if you insist - you could scrap some pages with it! Hee Hee

How's about some pix of the Kidz? Here ya go...

He looks pretty smug up there doesn't he?

Between the two younger ones, they've about torn the sun shade cover apart.

They climb the legs, then jump over to the patio roof...

Then, when it's time to come back, they reverse the process, and the sun shade is taking the hits! Those two probably weigh about 14 pounds each!

Here's Smudge lovin' on the agave... That girl - she has to rub against EVERYTHING, marking it all HERS, HERS, HERS!

And finally, here's Velvet. She seldom *lets* me take a good photo of her, so we'll take it!

She looks a little angry, but she's not. She's got just enough Persian in her to have the underbit.

I like this one better - she was playing with something...

Well, time for me to sign off.

Thanks for stopping by - come back again soon!

PS - DON'T FORGET - the Retiring Lists are out! Go to my website to see them, and then let me know what you can't live without!

Playful Polka Dots Simply Scrappin' - Part Deux

2011-06-05T01:47:00.000-07:00

OK, so I teased you at the end of my last post. I was falling asleep, sitting here at the computer, and just had to sign off! Sorry...

But I'll make it up to you today.

I have LOTS of cards to share with you from my "group" stamping.

(Wish I could think of a catchier title for this process - something with ZING! would be good. Got any suggestions? Leave me a Comment!)

Anyhoo...

I started with the piece parts from the Playful Polka Dots Simply Scrappin' kit.

Remember?

The colors I used were Rose Red, Daffodil Delight, Pumpkin Pie, and Old Olive. They work really well together!

I folded CS and just started looking at the elements on the die adhesive sheets from the kit and created!

Here are some of the cards I made...

For this card, I used one of the 3x3 pieces I mentioned in my post here.

I also ran the card front through the polka dots embossing folder, and cut a strip of the DSP from the kit for the color.

For this one I used another 3x3 piece, and then layered on some of those awesome Floating Re-inker flowers, and added a verse from On Your Birthday (Item 111664).

I had an already cut 4 inch square scallop piece in my UFO tub, and it was the right color! So I started with that and moved on from there. Again, I used a piece of the SS kit's DSP for the color on the card, then added a couple of items punched with the Designer label punches.

This one uses the other piece of DSP from the kit as well as one of the adhesive ribbon strips. The flowers (there are two, layered) also from the kit.

I used the Designer label punch again - once in white, where I stamped my image, and another time in Old Olive, which provides the background color.

I punched the Old Olive twice, then cut each one in half (one vertically, the other horizontally) and layered them behind the white piece.

And, finally, for tonight (I'm falling asleep again!)...

This card also contains mostly die cut adhesives from the elements of the Kit.

Background DSP, another scalloped square (think this one is a 3x3), which I ran through the polka dot embossing folder, the adhered a die cut flower and some pearls on top.

The little pennant is also a piece from the kit - I just stamped the Happy Birthday and used the window punch on it, then glued it on to the pennant piece.

Like what you see? Like the ideas?

Well, then, come back again soon!

Thanks for stopping by...

Playful Polka Dots Simply Scrappin'

2011-06-04T01:03:00.000-07:00

There's a Simply Scrappin' kit in the Summer mini-catalog.

I don't generally purchase these, mainly because I'm not much of a scrapbooker.

But this one was so bright and cheery, I decided to go for it.

And I'm glad I did.

First of all, I have NO plans to use this set for scrapbooking - just so you know...

I've elected to make cards using the elements in the kit.

The one you see up above (go ahead, scroll back up there and check it out!) was the first card I made.

I like it's simplicity. I think the occasion (I'm here for you...) calls for simple. If you truly mean that statement to someone, you don't need elaborate to make your point.

So, here's how I do a "group" of cards.

Select a Simply Scrappin (SS)kit.

Add 3 sheets each of all the colors the kit contains. Cut all three in half (8 -1/2 x 5-1/2), then take two of the pieces you just cut and cut them in half (4-1/4 x 5-1/2).

This gives you four pieces for card bases and 4 pieces you can use for layering, stamping on - whatever you want!

Drag out a bunch of punches and stamp sets that match or coordinate with the SS kit. There's always at least one stamp set.

There are also at least two different Designer Papers (DSP) included in a SS kit, as well as at least two different sheets of adhesive die cuts to adhere to your CS.

I found this time those two sheets of die cuts were set up so it was very easy for me to cut each of them in half. And included in this kit were some strips of designer papers cut in scallops or zig-zags - emulating several of our punches. Drag out the punches that match what's included in your kit.

So, you end up with a mess of "stuff" on your workbench working this way, but it sure challenges your creative juices!

Here's the pile of "stuff" I generated for use in creating the cards I'll show you below.

And I added a couple of sheets of flowers I decorated using the Floating Re-inker technique. Always fun to do, but when you do them, do extras - you'll be amazed at how quickly you start usig them. Heck they're all ready to cut out - might as well! LOL

I was able to EASILY come up with 12 different cards, using the items mentioned above.

But I've rattled on for a LONG TIME tonight, so I'll show these to you in my next post!

I know - big tease, huh?

Well, come back so you can see the cards I created using the supplies spelled out above.

In the meantime, give this techinique a try - and post a link to your ideas in the Comments section!

3 x 3

2011-06-01T00:50:00.000-07:00

How about this?

Clever, isn't it?

I can't take credit for this idea - I saw it on someone's blog about a month ago, and immediately tried it.

With the same punch as had been used on the blog...

And then I showed it at my Stamp Club this past month, and wouldn't you know it, THEY decided to try it with our other edge punches!

Oh -

You want to know the idea?

OF COURSE ! Silly me...

OK - take a piece of cardstock and cut it into a 3" x 3" piece.

Then take an edge punch, center it in the 3 x 3 piece and punch away!

Then turn it 90 degrees and punch again, then turn another 90 degrees and punch again - continue until you've worked all the way around.

The one above was made using the Dotted Scallop Ribbon Border Punch (Item 119275). Go ahead - scroll back up there and study it a bit. It's clever!

And here's what you'll end up with when you use the Pinking Hearts Border punch (Item 117649):

And when you use the Scallop Trim Border (Item 118870).

This one's interesting because your pattern ends up on the outside, instead of creating a "floating island" of CS inside, as the other two did.

Here's the Eyelet Border punch (Item 119853).

Wanna see how I've used some of them?

Ok, here ya go...

I've mounted most of them using dimensionals - they just seem to scream to be adhered that way - it gives you a better glimpse of the CS behind it, too.

Here are a few more...

and a couple more...

As you can see, I've used these on a number of different card groups.

I tend to create in "groups".

These last two were done in my last group - I haven't even mentioned it to you yet, so you're getting a sneak peek!

Turned out to be a very fun group to play with. Stay tuned and I'll share the adventure with you soon!

In the meantime, play around and see what YOU can come up with! And then post a comment with a link, so we can all see!

Thanks for stopping by - come back soon!

A Father's Day Gift

2011-05-25T00:07:00.000-07:00

This is the top of a box I've made to give as a Father's Day gift.

It will be filled with handmade cards.

Most men don't do like the task of getting cards for special occasions, (at least in my experience), so that was the premise behind this gift.

They get the gift of not having to go purchase cards for a while!

Here are some other angles of the box, then I'll post some of the cards and how I created them.

This is the inside of the box that will hold the cards.

I used Sahara Sand CS and some of the Nautical Expedition DSP.

These are pix of the side and front of the box. I braided some of the Cherry Cobbler/white Baker's Twine, and used it as the tie closure for the box. I had a little piece left over, so adhered it to the box's side. I also adhered some linen thread tied in various knots.

And here are the pieces I prepared before going on a card making spree!

I stamped the images from The Open Sea in Cherry Cobbler, Not Quite Navy and Early Espresso on Confetti Vanilla CS and then proceeded to cut a good many of them out, or use them with punches. I liberally added brads and Baker's Twine and Linen thread, and any other thing I could think of! LOL

And here are some of the cards I created!

I love working with this stamp set and DSP. They just so EASILY create a lot of card ideas!

I hope you enjoyed the photos of this project. If you have any questions about dimensions, leave me a comment!

Thanks for stopping by - come back soon!

Copy Cats

2011-05-23T01:04:00.000-07:00

I mentioned my stamp club ladies had been taken with this card.

So, I thought I'd show you some of the cards they all created while here.

This was Bernadette's. Love the little black embellishment behind the greeting. Just enough to set it all up nicely.

Here's another

This was Linda's. She added some pizazz by adding color to the roses on her card. And the polka dot ribbon (retired) adds a little somethin', somethin' to this one.

And here's another take on the idea - Linda used Cherry Cobbler and when she was done with the basics, she added Dazzling Diamonds glitter - looks much better in person than in a photo, have to say!

LOVE their ideas! They keep me going...

Do you have an idea to share? Post a link in the Comments section so we can all see it!

Thanks for stopping by - come back soon!

Outline Cutting

2011-05-22T00:42:00.000-07:00

This is a technique I culled from a book of techniques my stamp club ladies (hi everyone!) did about 5 years ago.

It's called Outline Cutting - not a very unique name, but it's a simple and easy, yet powerful, technique!

Instructions:

Stamp an image about 1 inch up from the bottom of the front of your card.
Fussy cut (as Sandi MacIver calls it! LOL) around the images you've stamped, cutting off the bottom piece. Since you ARE fussy cutting, you'll probably want the image to be one that's easy to cut.
Adhere a 1-1/4" strip of matching cardstock to the inside of the card so that it highlights the stamped images on the front of the card.
Add a greeting and a verse inside of the card, and you've got a beautiful, fast card!

As I mentioned, my stamp club ladies created a book of techniques as our club project over the club year.

We'd do four techniques each meeting. Make a sample of the technique, then I provided typed instructions for each technique.

We stored them all in one of the 6x6 photo albums, one technique to each set of pages. Sample on one side with the instructions on the opposite side.

I can't tell you how many times I've pulled that book out and paged through it, looking for something "new".

Not that any of it's new - it's just being recycled - again!

But that's OK. I had forgotten about this technique until I was looking for something for my club ladies to do at this month's meeting.

And they had a blast with it!

They all remembered it from that long ago, and all admitted they'd forgotten about it as well, but how much they loved having that Technique Book to use as a reference tool!

I actually had a second project planned for them to do, but they all got "into" making these cards, so I never pulled it out of my bag of tricks - we'll save it for another time...

Here are some others I made, while making samples for the club ladies.

I made this one using the Hope & Strength set we're selling to support Breast Cancer Research. Each time someone purchases this set, the matching DSP, or the MDS downloads, Stampin' Up! donates $2.00 to the Breast Cancer Research Foundation. Pretty cool, eh?

Anway, here's the sample:

And here's a baby card using the technique. I love this little teddy bear!

Here's one I made using Cherry Cobbler ink - and then I decided to add a piece of retired DSP (Christmas, 2010) as an accent piece.

And, finally, a very simple, but elegant card - I decided to turn it into a wedding card.

I added a piece of Crumb Cake CS that I'd run through the Square Lattice embossing folder to the bottom inside. I love how this one turned out!

So did my club ladies, evidently - they all made one very similar to this one! Of course, they all put their own spin on it.

I'll show you those tomorrow...

Have questions about this technique? Leave me a Comment, and I'll try to 'splain myself better!

Need to know which stamp sets I used? Leave me a Comment...

Aw, heck - leave me a Comment about anything! Make my day!

Thanks for stopping by - come back soon!

Color Challenge - Perfect Plum & Old Olive!

2011-05-20T01:35:00.000-07:00

The other day I was blog hopping, as is my wont, and I came across a Color Challenge using the colors above.

Gotta tell ya - not my first choices of colors!

BUT, I decided since they WEREN'T my first choice that maybe I needed to try and work with them and see what I could come up with.

Now, a little reminder...

I'm a very simple stamper.

Until about three years ago I didn't even like adding ribbon to a card...

And then, one day, lo and behold, I looked at the samples I'd been playing with, and they all had ribbon!

How did THAT happen?

Don't know... but ever since then, a card looks a little bare without ribbon...

ANYHOO...

Back to the color challenge that wasn't really "turning me on"...

Old Olive
Perfect Plum
Marina Mist
Basic Black

I'll admit, once I got working with this color combo, I was able to come up with a few simple, useable cards.

Wanna see?

And when this one was "done", I kept looking at it and thinking it needed just one more thing - and that's when I added those beautiful pearls. Did you see them?

Go ahead, look again... I'll wait...

Besides limiting my color selections, I also limited the stamp sets I used.

I saw this color challenge as more masculine colors, and wanted the stamps to match the mood.

The stamp sets I used were On The Grow (Item 123075 [W] $15.95) and The Open Sea (Item 123030 [W] $26.95). Both these sets are available in the new Summer Mini-catalog.

Don't have one? Call or email - I'd be delighted to get one in the mail for you!

Or you can go to my website and see it online, if you'd rather.

Here's one using The Open Sea.

I added some of the new Bakers Twine to this one, and used the largest stamp in The Open Sea as a background stamp to add some visual interest.

I used the Baker's Twine on this one, too, and the threw in a little embellishment using So Saffron. I also put Crystal Effects on the flowers in the basket on the scooter - gives it a little pizazz, which I thought it brightened it up a bit.

I think that's why I'm not crazy about the color combo - it's too dull for my taste! But I was able to create using them, so this was a good challenge for me to undertake.

I love those bright colors, ya know... And they're always my first choice.

Just a reminder that May is National Scrapbooking Month and that Stampin' Up! has a scrapbooking special for you!

Several stamp sets on sale for 30% off, and a LOT of My Digital Studio (MDS) downloads available - also at a discount!

30% Off Stamp Sets
Page Description Wood-Mount Item Wood-Mount Sale Price Clear-Mount Item Clear-Mount Sale Price
54 Party Hearty 111532 $18.87
54 Célèbre en grand (French) 111722 $18.87
87 Grunge Rock 117080(W) $14.67 120555(C) $11.17
94 Animal Stories 116716 $11.17
106 Printed Petals 116679(W) $13.97 120444(C) $10.47
108 Simple Friendship 113397 $18.17
147 Word Play 120308(W) $29.37 120651(C) $20.27
162 Sweet Shoppe Alphabet Lower 120272(W) $22.37 120648(C) $16.77
17* Días Felices 115720 $13.27
20* Cumpleaños 112899 $11.17

*From Celebrando Creatividad

Are you interested in any of these sets? Call or email - I'd be pleased to order them for you.

For the MDS downloads, you'll need to order them online from my website, as they're downloaded on to YOUR hard drive - ready to be used immediately! How handy is that?

Thanks for stopping by - come back again soon!

Steampunk

2011-05-10T00:48:00.000-07:00

Ever hear of it?

Until last Thursday, I never had.

And then I saw TWO references to it in one day.

The first was a posting to Facebook by a friend, who had a link to a Steampunk event being held here in San Diego. I followed the link simply because of who had posted it.

She's a very creative lady, and I thought maybe she'd inspire me in some way.

And she did! Thanks Del...

The second was a posting by Sandi MacIver (here) showing a card she'd made in the "style". Which, by the way, she doesn't explain, she just tells you to Google the term.

So, I did.

Sandi always inspires me, and since I've been playing with the stamps she featured on the card she posted, it piqued my interest.

I liked what she'd done with it, and as soon as I started checking out my Google results, I totally saw the style!

I decided to attend the Steampunk event on Sunday. This was the first time they'd ever held an event here, so it was a little discombuberated (sp?), but interesting.

A little background, if I may...

This genre is a mixture of Jules Verne (10,000 Leagues Under The Sea), Victoriana, magicians, and any number of pieces of equipment that are steam powered (hence the term Steampunk).

It includes anything you can think of that's Victorian, including corsets (for men and women!), hats,and feathers; First & Second World War outfits ( gas masks, pilot goggles, hats, airplanes, dirigibles, steam powered trains)...

I chatted with a few people who, like me, were NOT in costume (lots of costumes!) trying to find out what this whole thing was all about. It seems as though just about anything goes...

It also has strong ties to comic books and science fiction (think Jules Verne again) and anything with cogs and gears, and microscopes, and other scientific equipment (old fashioned types)...

Just different! But I must say, I had fun people watching!

Wanna see some pix I took while there?

This guy actually made his "backpack". The doors on the back of it opened.

I overheard him tell someone he'd started with an old army backpack (it looked leather, so maybe from WWI???) and actually used the straps for that as the straps for this contraption.

This couple were registering for the "Steerage" fee (the designation for a one day ticket).

She's wearing clothing from either WWI or WWII - it's clothing I remember seeing as a child. I was born at the beginning of WWII, so clothing 10-15 years older would not have been unheard of at the time.

He's more into the goggles and gloves of, maybe, a pilot??? I think he was wearing airline wings on his label.

Some people had on cut-away coats, which I think are from the Victorian era.

Others wore pilots caps (WWI) with goggles attached, like the photographer in this picture.

And this gentleman had a huge handlebar mustache, and wore an eyepiece that had lots of cogs and gears on it - it looked like it was supposed to be helpful at working on clocks and watches, maybe peering at microscope slides.

I overheard someone ask him something about a magic show, so I think he might have been the magician on the program.

As I said, it was interesting! I could see getting dressed up in some of these clothes - kind of a more modern Renaissance Faire type event... And I've always enjoyed Renaissance Faires!

I made this card a couple of months ago - do you think it qualifies as Steampunk?

That's all I have right now, but I'm working on pulling something together, given some of our current stamp sets... It's a genre that's a little foreign to me, so the creative process is evolving!

So, - what's YOUR take on Steampunk? Had you heard of it before? Leave me a comment and let me know!

Thanks for stopping bye - come back soon!

Strength & Hope

2011-05-05T00:00:00.000-07:00

This was Natalie's contribution.

It was made using the stamp set, Strength & Hope . SU! is currently holding a campaign highlighting and benefiting Breast Cancer Research featuring this set and an MDS CD with DSP, stamp brushes and embellishments.

$2 from the sale of either the stamp set or the DIGITAL Designer Series Paper, stamp set and embellishments CD (Item 124475 $9.95) will be donated to the Breast Cancer Research Foundation.

The stamp set is available in English, Spanish and French, and of those are available in either wood or clear mount.

The campaign is on from May 1st thru August 31st this year. When you purchase these, know that you're also contributing to research in hopes of eliminating this disease.

Here's a close up of the image you get using the Flower Garden embossing folder.

Please note! The image from this product is REVERSED in the mini-catalog!

If you want your flower on the left, it will be DE-BOSSED, rather than embossed.

But, that aside, I love the image it creates!

And here, finally, is my contribution...

We stamped with Rich Razzleberry and Daffodil Delight inks, then took daubers and rubbed the same color all over the image, burnishing the ink into the paper.

There are a couple of background pieces that were run through the Square Lattice embossing folder, and then everything was mounted on Rich Razzleberry CS.

If you have any questions about any of the cards, I should able to answer them - I made the cards myself! LOL

Thanks for stopping by - come back soon!

Blossom Bouquet

2011-05-03T23:38:00.000-07:00

Here's another one of the Shoe box swaps from my Team meeting in April. I guess I'd better hurry up and share the rest - we're already into May!

This was Patti's...

We used the Blossom Bouquet punch (Item 122464 $23.95) and punched out blossoms from Pacific Point, Poppy Parade and Peach Parfait card stocks.

Then we played mix and match - and look how cute it turned out!

Oh yeah - those are Glitter brads in the middle of the punched images!

And the ribbon is the Poppy Parade Stitched-Poly. And we just frayed the edges of the ribbon! I didn't even know you could do that! See, you CAN teach an old dog new tricks! Hee hee

This was Becky's card...

We used the scallop punch on Tempting Turquoise CS, then attached that to some Pawsitively Prints DSP. We attached a small orange strip and then we stamped and punched with 3/4" circle punch three flowers from the Bold Blossom set. We also stamped some leaves on the Pear Pizazz card using Versamark ink.

And, finally, we added some BLING! Yep, rhinestones. Adds a nice happy little touch, I think.

The Pawsitively Prints DSP is one of my favorites. It's designed to be used with the Build-A-Bear dies - and is great for that - but I like the fact that all the patterns in the papers are very small.

That helps them become useable with a lot of other dies and punches - die-cuts and punched pieces with small patterns will work almost anywhere.

Hope you enjoyed something you saw tonight!

Thanks for stopping by - come back soon...

FLower Garden Embossing

2011-04-30T23:28:00.000-07:00

Beautiful, isn't it?

It's made using the new embossing folder from the Summer mini - WHICH - by the way, will be LIVE tomorrow, May 1st!

Lots of good stuff in there. I've been sharing some of the papers, but not many of the stamps and other goodies. But I will - keep coming back!

Back to the card above (here's an instant replay)

The flower image was made using the Flower Garden embossing folder (Item 123113 $7.95).

We colored on the folder's inside image and then ran it thru Mr. Big.

Neato technique! NO???

Stampin' Up! has announced that IMAGE IN THE MINI-CATALOG IS REVERSED from the actual image.

If you could look closely at this image, you'd notice that the DE-bossed side is up, instead to the EM-bossed side, in order for the flowers to be facing the right, as shown in the catalog.

We also ran the front of the card through the Polka dot folder before adhering the embossed, layered image on top of it. The we added a piece of Poppy Parade ribbon to do finish it off.

This project was shared by Rosalie at my last team meeting.

=====

We often do Shoe box swaps at my Team Meetings, for a number of reasons.

1) Everyone has a chance to figure out how to put it together when they make it themselves.

When we just swap cards, it sometimes takes a bit to figure out how it was put together - sometimes, we have to tear it apart to figure out how to put it together! hee hee

2) Gives us all a chance to chatter!

What goes better with stamping, than chatter (well, OK, maybe chocolate!)... And we get to catch up with each other's lives, which makes us a closer social group.

3) It's easier on the Hostess (that'd be me!) LOL

I always try to have new technique, card lay-out, or some little project for everyone to do. Most times these days, the techniques are old ones brought back around, but that's OK.

Some of the demonstrators are new and may not know them. Some of us have forgotten about them til reminded.

Gives everyone something new or recycled to play with for a while!

But every once in a while, I want a break -- so we do Shoebox swaps.

I think everyone tries to incorporate at least one new product into each of their cards, so it'a win/win - we get to play with the toys without having to invest the money! hee hee

And I'm always surprised (and very pleased) at the variety of ideas that comes out of this group!

Here's Susan's card

She used the Dotted Scallop ribbon punch (Item 119275 $15.95) and the Beyond the Garden DSP (Item 122342 $10.95), along with the jar of flowers from On the Grow.

(Clever idea to place it off to the left. Most times, people place it off to the right...)

And then she used the new Triple Layer Blossom Bouquet punch (Item 122464 $16.95) to make the flowers, using the same DSP.

She used an Aqua painter and markers (colored on one of our clear blocks - cleans up real slick!) to color images.

Hope you saw something that inspired you here today. Thanks for stopping by - come back again soon!