The Joy of Stamping

Chiffon Flowers

2012-02-27T05:00:00-05:00

There's a popular trend in papercrafting these days - fabric and paper flowers. Three popular card making magazines have all featured fabric or paper flowers in their most recent editions. At a friend's urging (Hi Kelley!), I finally took the plunge and tried it myself. Kelley was kind enough to send me a "finished product" and some extra material so I could get started. Once I realized how easy it was, I purchased some material in various colors for myself.

These were created with 8 layers of chiffon and cut with the Big Shot using the Scallop Circle #2 die. Using the paper piercer, I made a hole in the center and inserted a brad. With my heat gun and long tongs to hold the flower (very important!) the chiffon shrank and crinkled under the heat of the heat gun. A little "fluffing" along the way helped create these beautiful fabric flowers that can be put on a variety of projects. It reminded me of Shrinky Dinks when I was a kid. It only takes about a minute for the fabric to shrivel but the key is not get too close otherwise it will scorch! Trust me, I'm speaking from experience :)

This is the birthday card I made to use one of the flowers on. The flower matched the paper from the Beau Chateau DSP perfectly! I added some crochet ribbon behind the flower and attached both to the card with dimensionals. The sentiment and the butterfly are from the Elementary Elegance stamp set, which can be yours for FREE with any $50 purchase during Sale-a-bration.

Thanks for stopping by!

Candy Wallet Tutorial

2012-02-26T05:00:00-05:00

In this post earlier in the week I re-created what I called the Candy Wallet. As promised, below is a step-by-step pictorial. Click to enlarge photos, if needed.

If you have any questions please contact me at maryann@thejoyofstamping.com

Enjoy the rest of your weekend!

Super Simple Saturday - Easy Events

2012-02-25T05:00:00-05:00

Welcome to the weekend! Today I'm featuring my Super Simple Saturday card - a card that was quick and easy to create. There are times when we just don't have the time to invest in creating a "masterpiece" or in a project that requires more time than we have to give. This card took 10 minutes and that included cutting the card stock!

The Easy Events stamp set has a total of 8 whimsical images and is perfect for making all-occasion cards. This set is a great investment for stampers wanting to stretch their budget!

Enjoy your weekend! If you have a few minutes to spare and still want to create, try a Super Simple card...you may surprised how fun it is to make an easy card!

Stampin' Up Love and Sympathy

2012-02-24T15:33:24-05:00

I like to have a variety of "general purpose" cards on hand that I can customize for various occasions. My stock pile is running low so today I began replenishing. Masculine cards are the most difficult for me to make, for what reason I'm not sure, but I started with the "flowery" and feminine cards first.

The image in the Love and Sympathy stamp set is so pretty. It has a watercolor look to it that really appeals to me. For my card today I did a first and second generation stamp with the flower to create the impression of a layer of flowers. If you are not familiar with first and second generation stamping, it simply means that the first impression is made with the image fully inked and the second image is created without re-inking. That's why the first image always appears so much darker and at the forefront.

I also used the Hello Doily background stamp and embossed it on Newsprint Designer Series paper. Using a sponge and Crumb Cake ink, I burnished the edges to help the image "pop". Can you get any more feminine than these two images? So pretty...

With just a couple of inches of Rich Razzleberry Satin ribbon and a trio of rhinestones, this card was completed in less than 15 minutes. With a sentiment intentionally left off, this card is ready to be mailed for nearly any occasion.

Interested in creating a card like this at your workshop? Contact me today to add your party to my calendar. I would love to be YOUR demonstrator!

Come back tomorrow for my Super Simple Saturday card!

Fresh Vintage meets Mocha Morning

2012-02-23T16:26:59-05:00

I was flipping through some old craft magazines that I have and came across a card that uses one of my favorite color combinations - pink and brown. Truth is, anything with pink in it I tend to like. My card today was inspired that color combination and my affinity for "shabby chic".

I have an eclectic mix of stamps, ink and paper on this card. This was so much fun to make! The butterfly is stamped with the image from the Fresh Vintage stamp set (which can be yours for FREE during Sale-a-bration) and embossed using Rose Red craft ink and Iridescent Ice embossing powder. Oh, you should see how that butterfly *sparkles* in person! So, pretty!

With all of the new product out in the Occasions Mini Catalog and the Sale-a-bration catalog, some of my "older" product wasn't feelin' the love. The colors in the Mocha Morning Designer Series paper pack were a perfect match for the look I was trying to achieve.

And, what's a card without accessories? I added a touch of my favorite ribbon, Blushing Bride 3/8" pleated ribbon and bit of Very Vanilla satin ribbon. And, then of course, no shabby chic look is complete without the pearls. A little distressing of the edges pulled it all together.

There's still time to place your Sale-a-bration order! Remember, you earn FREE product for every $50 you spend. Shop now to earn your free goodies!

Framelits Labels Collection samples

2012-02-22T19:56:35-05:00

Going through some of my pictures from Leadership Conference and thought I would show a few of my favorites using the Framelits Labels Collection:

Have a great day!

Mary Ann

My team is growing...by two little feet!

2012-02-21T05:00:00-05:00

Congratulations to my friend and team member, Heather, who recently gave birth to a beautiful baby girl, Olivia. I am SO happy for her! Both mom and baby were doing so well they were released from the hospital a day early. Olivia is a gorgeous baby!

To welcome Olivia (future Stampin' Up! demonstrator and Ink Happens member), I pulled out the cute rocking horse in the Ain't Love Grand stamp set, some Melon Mambo card stock and designer paper and Crumb Cake card stock. The baby's room is pink and brown, so I knew I had the right color combination.

The Ain't Love Grand set is a hostess set which can be earned by any hostess who has at least $150 in sales. With Sale-a-bration in full swing, NOW is the best time to be a hostess. Why? In addition to the "normal" hostess benefits of free hostess dollars, you also earn at least three (3) Sale-a-bration products (one product for every $50 in sales), but you also receive a gorgeous tote bag. Seriously, it's a really pretty bag!

Who wouldn't love to shop with this?

Are you ready to host your own workshop? Want to know more about hosting? Click here to view a short video then contact me to book your workshop. But, hurry, Sale-a-bration is only through March 31st!

Candy Wallet

2012-02-20T05:00:00-05:00

When I was at the Stampin' Up! Leadership Conference last month in San Antonio, I had the chance to meet up with my third level upline, Pennie McCallum. I've talked about Pennie several times in the past because she sends me the cutest things in the mail! I've posted many of them over the past few months.

Pennie didn't disappoint with her cute things at the conference either. She passed out what I am calling a "candy wallet" to the ladies on her team. It was adorable...and came filled with chocolate too! Pennie used Everyday Enchantment designer paper (which is FREE during Sale-a-bration!) and the coordinating brads and ribbon (also FREE during Sale-a-bration).

I made my own version last week as I needed a little token of appreciation for a neighbor:

These are great to have on hand as a "thank you" for someone special!

I will get a tutorial posted for these by next weekend. You'll love the simplicity of these!

So as to prove Pennie is "real", here's a quick pic of Pennie and I while at the Leadership Conference:

Thanks for stopping by today!

Stampin' Up! Framelits Storage

2012-02-19T10:31:36-05:00

Happy Sunday! It's been a very productive weekend at the Reiner house. My husband and I have been cleaning, purging, and organizing - something we have a tendency to put off. It felt so good to accomplish so much! We can now start the work week off knowing things are in order at home.

In the spirit of organization, I adapted an idea Patty Bennett originally presented - storage for the Stampin' Up! Framelits and Edgelits. I love when people come up with such clever ideas! Take a look:

Using a Clear-Mount Stamp Case (#119105) as the "storage unit", I cut a piece of Cheerful Treat DSP (#122381) measuring 7"x 10.625". Before inserting the paper into the cover, I embellished the front with a couple of Labels Framelits (#125598) and silver brads. For the side, I printed a label and mounted it on corresponding DSP and added a few more brads. On the inside, I added the sandwich directions for the Big Shot.

For the Framelits to adhere to the inside, I used a 4.875" x 6"piece of Magnet Sheet (#119816). Patty used a 5x6 piece, but I found I had trouble closing my case with the 5" width so I trimmed it just a tad - worked like a charm. To pretty things up a bit, a coordinating piece of DSP, also measuring 4.875" x 6" was adhered to the magnet strip. On the back of the magnet sheet is a piece of paper you peel off to attach the magnet to the case.

This came together faster than I thought and it really makes a nice presentation when showing off Stampin' Up!'s latest and greatest accessory. Give it a try! Click here to shop my online store for your project needs.

Enjoy the rest of your weekend.

Unexpected Valentine...and blog maintenance

2012-02-18T05:00:00-05:00

In my post on Valentine's Day I explained that my husband and I really don't buy into the commercialized holidays - Valentine's Day being one of them. I had a full schedule that day and got home around 10pm. On the kitchen counter was a small card...a card with a Stampin' Up! image on it. And, it was a card that I had not made. We are empty nesters so the only other person who had access to my stamps was the husband - oh, and the dog.

This is Kayla...my 12 year old pup and the other love of my life. Apparently, she's very talented because she made this card:

She was very considerate of my card stock because she went into my scrap bin to make this so as not to use paper that I need for workshops and classes. She has an affinity for pink, with the retired Pixie Pink a personal favorite - hence the Pixie Pink heart. Is this a great dog, or what? I her!

A keeper of a card for sure!

On a different note, you may have noticed my blog looks a little different. I have had the same blog look for almost 4 years and I wanted a change. It's a work in progress and I expect there will be several more changes before it's complete. Bear with me and my temporary construction zone as I work towards a fresh look.

Happy Weekend!