Wishing You a Doggone Happy New Year!

Hi there and Happy New Year!  Hope you had a good time ringing in the New Year...nothing too crazy, though.  My granddog, Rocky, was freaking out with the fireworks.  Whenever he heard them, he'd stand by the front door and bark.  Such a good dog protecting me!  Speaking of dog, I have a dog card for you today.  (How about that segue?)  A similar card was given to me by a fellow Stampin' Up! Demonstrator and friend, Diane Mikles.  The Top Note die was used as a backdrop, which was layered onto a background stamped with the bone image from Hot Diggity Dog.  His head and ears were made using the Decorative Label punch.  A combination of circle and heart punches were used for his face.  The final touch was a sentiment from the Lovely Amazing You set. 

That's it for today.  Have a great weekend and thank you so much for stopping in for a visit!

Num - Num

Hi there!  Ready for a new week?  Hope you had a good weekend.  Mine was busy with our Card Buffet and having the granddaughter for the weekend.  A big thank you to all the ladies who came to our Card Buffet!  Mary Taylor and I appreciate your support!
My card share today is another swap from the Stampin' Up! Convention that Sally Nusbaum attended.  Sally was kind enough to bring them to the crop we attended after her return.  Sorry for the glare on all of her swaps.  I didn't want to remove from the protective cello envelope on the off chance of getting the card dirty.  Love this version of the Cookie Monster which pairs up perfectly with the Num-Num stamp set.  (You can find this set on page 17 of the 2014-15 Annual Catalog.)  It is a great set to dress up those packaged goodies, especially with the holidays just around the corner!  It appears that the 2-3/8" Scallop Circle Punch was used for Cookie's head and folded down part of the way after adhering a black semi-circle.  Circles were punched out for his eyes.  His "hands" were punched out from the Boho Blossoms Punch.  The sentiment was stamped, then punched out with the Decorative Label Punch.  The Topnote Die was used to cut out the black background, which is adhered to a Pacific Point card base.
Must get busy now to work on my swaps for the Demo Shoebox Swap that Sally has organized for us on Sunday.  Looking forward to the fun!  Thank you so much for stopping in today!

Bokeh

Hi there and happy Friday!  Here's another technique we learned at the retreat last month.  Cheryl Renth showed us how to do bokey (pronounced bo KAY), which is a background technique borrowed from the photography world.  You can watch this video to learn how to make your own works of art.  The polaroid looking frame and camera were cut from a new product called On Film Framelits, which appears in the 2014 Stampin' Up! Occasions Catalog. 

Here is the second sample we did, which is my favorite color combination.

The Silver Glimmer butterfly really adds the finishing touch!  The sentiment from Best of Greetings was stamped and punched out with the Decorative Label punch.

That's all for now.  Have a great weekend and thank you for stopping in to visit!

Apothecary Note

Hi there - I'm back!  Had a great time with my stampin' peeps!  I'll share some of the cards and projects from the weekend after I've had a chance to photograph and upload them.  Must get things put away and catch up on laundry, etc.  Here is a card for today, though, which was inspired by Vicky Hayes.  Click here to see her card.  My rendition is slightly different.  As you can see, the corners of the black strip were not rounded.  Instead of rhinestones for flower centers, I used pearls that were colored with a black Sharpie.  The sentiment came from Simply Sketched.  Other than that, it's pretty much the same.

 Here are the new Weekly Deals.

Please contact me if you'd like to place an order and you don't already have a Demonstrator.  My contact information is listed on the right side bar or you can click here to shop my online store.  Thank you!

Must sign off for now to tackle those chores.  Thank you for stopping in today!

Calm Christmas

Hi there!  Stopping in real quick with another card from our Christmas Card Workshop.  These beautiful images are from Stampin' Up!s Calm Christmas set along with Winter Frost Designer Series Paper. The sentiment was stamped and punched out with the Decorative Label punch.

That's it for now.  (How's that for short and sweet?  lol)  Thank you for visiting today!

Fun Fold Birthday Card

Hi there!  Wow, we had some high winds yesterday!  My heart goes out to the families affected by the tornado that hit Washington, IL.  We certainly have been experiencing some crazy weather! 
How about a card to change the mood?  The above sample was from our October Card Buffet, which is showcasing the Cycle Celebration stamp set and Birthday Basics Designer Series Paper.  The inspiration for this card came from Aly Schilling.  You can see her card and video here (scroll down to Sep 19 post).

Here is a view of the card opened.

A couple of changes were made to my card - one being the Decorative Label embellishment was positioned across the ribbon to act as a closure.  The card base color was changed, too.  The fold is easier to make than it looks.  Give it a try! 

All Stampin' Up! supplies used unless otherwise noted. 

Stamps: Cycle Celebration 

Paper: Crisp Cantaloupe, White, Pool Party, Birthday Basics DSP 

Ink: Crisp Cantaloupe, Raspberry Ripple 

Tools:  Decorative Label punch, Large Oval punch, flower from Itty Bitty punch pack, Simply Scored Scoring Tool, bone folder 

Other:  Raspberry Ripple Satin Stitched ribbon, rhinestones, Dimensionals, glue dots, clear blocks

That's it for today.  Thank you for stopping in to visit! 

Just a Note

Hi there!  Here we are in the middle of the week - again.  Boy the weeks sure seem to go FAST!   Let's not waste another minute and get to today's project. 
Normally, I don't make 3-D projects but this little tote containing 3x3 notes and envelopes was just too cute not to replicate!  Pam D'Urso invited us Demos for a stamping retreat weekend at her home this past summer.  When Diane Mikles and I saw Pam's tote, we CASE'd hers but used different paper for our versions - some retired Not Quite Navy cardstock and DSP.  Pam gave us some written instructions with measurments, but I honestly don't remember the person's name who wrote the tutorial.  The stamps we used came from the Postage Due set and were then punched out with the coordinating punch.  The border strip was made from an image found in Mosaic Madness.  The Decorative Label punch was used to create a "handle".  The only directions I could find that are similar to Pam's version were on Beth Beard's blog.  You can view her video here.  This would make a darling little hostess gift.  The holiday season will soon be upon us and that means parties to attend!  I'm just saying... 

All Stampin' Up! supplies used unless otherwise noted.

Must run some errands.  Thanks for stopping in today!

Word Play Get Well

Hi there and happy Friday!  Brrrr...it's a cold one today with an expected high of only 26 degrees!  Stamp to stay warm.  lol 

Today's get well card is one that's been in my stash for some time.   Unfortunately, I've been needing waaay too many of these cards lately! 
The "clip" part of the clipboard was made from a Decorative Label punch and the 1-3/4" and 1" circle punches.  Unfortunately, I'm not sure of the color of cardstock used - might be retired or possibly non-Stampin' Up!  *gasp*
The "chart" was created by drawing lines on white cardstock.  The only stamping is in the middle, which is an image from Word Play.  The inside was left blank for a hand-written note to the recipient.
(Sorry I can't credit the person for the inspiration since I lost those files when my computer "had issues".  Let me know if it was yours so that this post can be edited with your information.) 

That's it for now.  Stay warm and thank you so much for stopping in today!

Word Play (W-120308, C-120651)

Elements of Style

Hi there!  Today's card is one that was sent to my friend in the hospital to let her know she's in my thoughts.  The Elements of Style flower image was stamped on watercolor paper with black StazOn ink.  Bashful Blue, Night of Navy, and Old Olive ink was applied to the image with a blender pen.  The embellishment was made from the Decorative Label punch, oval punches, plus a sentiment from the Layered Labels set.  A 1/8" hole punch was used on the scallop oval piece along with a scrap of crochet trim tucked behind the Decorative Label to dress it up a bit.

Stampin' Up! supplies used unless otherwise noted
Stamps: Elements of Style, Layered Labels, French Foliage (text on Designer Label)
Paper: Old Olive, Night of Navy, Vanilla, watercolor
Ink: Bashful Blue, Night of Navy, Old Olive, Black StazOn
Other: Decorative Label punch, Large & Scallop oval punches, Victoria crochet trim, pearls, blender pen, hole punch

Must run along for now.  Thank you for coming by today! 

Clean and Simple Birthday

Hi there!  Hope everyone had a good weekend.  Mine was an extended one with my stamping peeps at our quarterly retreat.  It was great even though we had a small group!
Today's post showcases another birthday card that was mailed out this month.  Sure do have a bunch of October birthdays! 

Stampin' Up! supplies unless noted
Stamps:  Watercolor Trio sentiment (retired)
Paper:  White, Old Olive, Brights DSP stack
Ink: Old Olive
Other: Decorative Label punch


Finished unpacking my car this morning.  Now it's time to put everything away, do some laundry, and finish preparing for Stamp Camp.  Hope you have a great day and thank you for stopping in!

Stamp Camp Card #2

Hi there!  Here is another card from this past Saturday's Stamp Camp.  It is a dresser card, originally seen on Jackie Topa's blog.  She does such amazing work!  You can check out her blog here.  This could also be a cute baby card by "hanging" baby related items from the drawers.  One of my customers suggested using it to congratulate someone on their new home/apt.  How would you use this card?

Stamps: none

Paper: Crumb Cake

Ink: Crumb Cake

Tools:  Decorative Label punch

Other:  Brads (non-SU), sponges, mat pack or 1/8” hole punch, Crochet trim, Pink or Black Satin ribbon (retired)

Thanks for stopping in today!

 

Vintage Quilt

Happy Monday to you!  Can you believe it's now August?  Yikes!  Help - slow this train down! 
Saturday's Stamp Camp was such a fun time.  Thank you to those who attended and welcome to the newcomers!
Well I promised to show you the other card we made on Wed so without further ado....here it is.

The squares are 1-1/4".  It helps to adhere the corners on the 4" x 5-1/3" Very Vanilla panel first then space the remaining squares to your satisfaction.  Place panel in embossing folder and run through the Big Shot to achieve the imbedded look before attaching to the Rose Red card base.  Love this technique.  If you have any questions, please email me.

All SU! supplies used unless otherwise noted.

Stamps: Four Frames (W-123440, C-123442), Oval All (113790)  

Paper: Rose Red, Very Vanilla, Springtime Vintage DSP (retired), Pear Pizzazz

Ink: Pear Pizzazz

Tools: Scallop Oval punch, 1-3/4” x 7/8” Oval (large oval) punch, Decorative Label punch, Big Shot

Other:  Square Lattice embossing Folder, Victoria 5/8” crochet trim, pearls, dimensionals

Inspiration:  Maria Sanchez (www.mayicards.blogspot.com) and Pam D’Urso (www.sweetpeabunny.blogspot.com)

Next week is the quarterly Girls Getaway retreat.  I'll be busy this week getting ready for that.  Hope everyone has a great day and thank you for peeking in today!

PLAYING CATCH UP

Hi!  Today I've been doing laundry, chores around the house, and addressing birthday cards to send out - mostly belated.  Even concocted a dish for dinner with ingredients I had on hand (yellow squash, diced tomatoes, whole grain penne pasta, canned chicken, and a bit of oregano).  It turned out pretty tasty if I say so myself.  Yum :)

Yesterday's Pieces of Heart garage sale was a huge success despite the extreme heat!  There were eight Demos participating - Wow!  Jayne Singleton was a sweetheart to bring breakfast doughnuts and a cooler of bottled water to make sure we kept hydrated during the day.  Thanks Jayne!  A big thanks to Theresa Tesson for providing our brunch after the sale!  What a treat that was to have some nourishment for our bodies after packing up and putting away everything.  And of course a HUGE thanks to Pam D'Urso, our friend and up-line, for always going above and beyond the call of duty for us girls.  She not only provided the location for this event but made these darling garden stakes for each of us!  Aren't they awesome?

A closer view

These ladies are the BEST!  (Now would be a great time to become a Demo so you can have fun with us.  You can join for only $99!  This price is in effect until the end of the month.)  We had so much fun at the sale talking among ourselves and with the customers.  I know the heat kept some people from venturing out.  It was hot even with fans providing some air flow.  Sooo, we're tossing around the idea of having another sale in the fall.  Stay tuned! lol

Would you like to see a card or two instead of me blabbering?  Thought so!  Well here are a couple of the belated cards that will go in the mail tomorrow.

This is what is called a step card.  The focal image is from the Nature Walk set and colored with Old Olive, Daffodil Delight, and Cherry Cobbler markers.  The butterfly was stamped on the White panel in black ink and another stamped on scrap White, colored, then cut out and popped up on dimensionals over the plain one.  (That way you don't have to cut out the antennae.)  A piece of Cherry Cobbler seam binding was tied around the panel for a pop of color.  The black card stock panels are embossed with the Square Lattice embossing folder and adhered to a Daffodil Delight card base.

This card is made from the Vintage Vogue set in Cherry Cobbler and Soft Suede.  The White panel was only partially run through the Big Shot using the Perfect Polka Dot embossing folder. The large flower was stamped with White Craft ink then heat embossed using white embossing powder.  The small flower was stamped in Soft Suede and the vine is Cherry Cobbler.  Soft Suede ink was sponged on for some definition.  The sentiment is from the Just Believe set stamped in Soft Suede then punched out with the Decorative Label punch.  I then made a mat of 2 additional Decorative Labels punched out in Cherry Cobbler, which were cut and adhered to the White label to form a larger label. The focal piece is matted on Cherry Cobbler then to a Soft Suede card base.

That's all for today folks.  Thank you for stopping in and hope you come by again!