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Day Four...Big News!

2007-07-29T01:34:00.001-04:00

We can't believe it's over! We fly home tomorrow. We'll miss Denver, but we're excited to get home and start implementing some of the great ideas we're bringing back with us.

Tonight was the Achievement Awards Night. It was fun to get dressed up and spend the evening with the top demonstrators in the US and Canada. Congratulations to Ronda Wade, who lives just down I-69 from me, for being named Demonstrator of the Year!! Entertainment tonight was provided by Ryan Shupe & the Rubber Band. They were fantastic!

The big news tonight is that Convention will be back in Salt Lake City next year for the 20th Anniversary. The surprise was that there will only be one session. We'll all be there together...July 30th-August 2. We can't wait!!

Day Three

2007-07-27T19:23:00.000-04:00

WOW!! My head is exploding with ideas! Day three was even better than yesterday. To start the morning off Dev and I had our picture taken with Brent Steele, vice president of creative services. He did a great presentation yesterday with the new punches and pretties kit. After a preview of the 2009 incentive trip to Hawaii the male executives came on stage as the Stampin' Up! hula dancers.

The highlight of the morning was Shelli coming on stage to "welcome us into her home" that was on stage. She showed us tons of home decor projects that she uses in her house. She said that she has a buffet table that she changes the vignette design on near monthly basis. The projects were incredible, and some so much easier than they appear. I've included the photos that she shared with us here.

Thanks for checking back in. I hope you're enjoying what we're sharing from Denver!

Day Two

2007-07-26T23:05:00.000-04:00

Day Two is in the books! Another great day here in Denver!! Dev and I were in line for General Session at about 7:15. We had a pretty good spot in line. The first picture is the line in front of us. Lots of swapping continued. We were both swapped out before main stage began. When the curtain opened at 8:00 it was a mad house. You've never seen ladies move so quickly so early in the morning! We ended up with GREAT seats... 8th row in the center of the stage on the aisle!!!

The morning started with dry ice on the stage and the singing of the 2007 theme song..."Dream Big". The energy was incredible. Shelli came on stage at the end of the song looking fabulous as ever. She had a great message about dreams and the importance of 'dreaming big'. The morning flew by with some great demonstrations of the new Style Watch lines and punches.

Pajama Stamp-a-rama

2007-07-26T01:14:00.001-04:00

Imagine hundreds and hundreds of demonstrators dressed in their pjs walking through downtown Denver toward the hub, the mecca, ....the convention center. Some carried pillows, some had rollers in their hair, many donned their new 'Dream Big' pajamas . Let's just say we turned the heads of many driving by! I'm sure they thought we were part of a cult, or at the very least attending a Select Comfort seminar!

Four hours we spent together socializing, swapping, and completing seven make-n-takes...three cards, a brag book page, a 12 x 12 scrapbook page, a gift box, and a decorated tin. We got a chance to try out all sorts of new toys...the cropadile, build a flower die cuts, build a brad, jumbo eyelets, rhinestone brads, ribbon, and nearly all the new punches, not to mention our new stamps! We had a great time!!!

You can see how neat the tables were when we arrived, and what six demos can do to that sense of order when they're down to business!

And, yes I did walk through downtown Denver in my new jammies with my hair in pig tails!!

WE"RE HERE!!!!

2007-07-25T18:15:00.000-04:00

Convention 2007!!! It doesn't seem like it could really be here yet! But, here we are in the Mile High City having a great time already. After a fantastic flight, getting in 45 minutes early, we checked in to our awesome hotel, The Curtis (I'll post pics later). We quickly walked over to the Convention Center, which is a short block away, and checked in. You can see everything that was in our bags! Can you believe I've already taken over 150 pictures???

We've jut finished mounting our new rubber, and will be headed to the Pajama Stamp-a-rama in about an hour. We've already collected a bunch of swaps (some great ideas ladies!). Our first swaps were done on the plane somewhere over Nebraska.

It'll really hit us tonight at the pajama party where we're making our make-n-takes. That's when the excitement will really be amazing. There are thousands of demos here. It's incredible.

I'll try to keep you updated on what's going one here and post some pictures. Come along for the ride with us!

A New Something

2007-07-16T20:47:00.000-04:00

I've been tagged by Gail, and I promise I'll get back to that, but I'm not feeling well tonight (I will not be sick for Convention...I will not be sick for Convention...I will not be sick for Convention). So, for now, I'm just making a quick post from my club workshop last Friday.

This was for the Crinkled Inks technique (where you use Saran Wrap to apply the background inks), and it uses all (ok...almost all) new materials. It's hard to see in the pic, but the crinkled inks are done on the card base as well. A sentiment from Ste Sayings is down there too, but it's hard to see. At club we actually stamped it in chocolate chip instead.

Stamps: Garden Whimsy, Stem Sayings; Card Stock: River Rock, Textured Groovy Guava, Very Vanilla; Ink: Groovy Guava, River Rock; Accessories: Saran Wrap, Groovy Guava Double Stitched Ribbon; Technique: Crinkled Inks

Sneak Peak!

2007-07-06T13:46:00.001-04:00

In an attempt to get you as excited as I am about Convention, here is a sneak peak at the 3D project I made for a flyer swap. I thought this swap was a great idea. We only had to make one project and a flyer to go with it. The swap coordinator is putting all the flyers together on a CD, so I'll have over a hundred project ideas with instructions and a picture of the final product. This is a Coaster Squash Book. It's like a mini scrap book that you can keep with you. The outside covers are covered chipboard coasters so they're pretty durable. I liked how this turned out so much I'm making one in blues for a friend that just had a baby boy.

Stamps: Baroque Motifs; Card Stock: Brocade Background DSP, Always Artichoke, Chocolate Chip, River Rock; Ink: Always Artichoke; Accessories: Chipboard Coasters, Vanilla Grosgrain Ribbon, Fire Circles Rhinestone Brad

The invitations are done!

2007-07-02T13:45:00.000-04:00

Well, it was a lot to cram into one week, but the wedding invitations are done. Now, first things first, this design was cased from Kendra Giles. You can see her awesome blog at http://www.inkinitupwithkendra.blogspot.com/. I just made a few changes to suit my sister. Her invitation was the reason I purchased my cuttlebug!

We had a suprise engagement party for my sister and her fiance yesterday. All the invitations, response cards, printed envelopes, and thank-yous were all boxed up as their gift. They loved them! I've now been commissioned to make the place cards and table numbers.

Stamps: Happy Harmony; Card Stock: Very Vanilla, Blush Blossom; Accessories: Blush Blossom and Mellow Moss markers, Cuttlebug Textile Embossing Folder; Ticket Corner Punch

The thank-you notes, you'll notice, and the same design that I did for the engagement party invitations. They were extemely fast to do, especially with my sister-in-law helping me. (Thanks, Teri!).

Stamps: Baroque Motifs, Warmest Regards; Card Stock: Very Vanilla; Ink: River Rock, Chocolate Chip; Accessories: Ivory Organdy Ribbon

All Celery

2007-06-29T14:31:00.000-04:00

This one was for a demo challenge on Splitcoast. The challenge was to use only one color for the entire card. Luckily I had enough Certainly Celery with me to pull it off. It actually was a challenge to use only one color.

I used a couple different patterns from the Pallete O' Prints sampler (Certainly Celery DSP). I sponged celery ink over the part of the celery card stock that showed so that it has a little texture. It looks a little like suede in real life. The zebra is mounted on dimensionals to make him stand out a little bit. I topped it off with some celery grosgrain and the new ice brads in two sizes.

Stamps: Zoofari, Warm Words; Card Stock: Certainly Celery, Certainly Celery DSP; Ink: Certainly Celery; Accessories: Ice Square Brads, Celery Grosgrain Ribbon, Dimensionals, Sponge

Last Hurrah

2007-06-28T19:57:00.000-04:00

This card says goodbye to a lot of my favorites: Pines, Warmest Regards Hostess Set, Copper Encore Ink, and Vintage Brads. I would have thrown in French Script, but I didn't think it would work too good with the moose!

I wanted the background behind the moose to have a birch bark look. It's stamped with Weathered in Chocolate Chip, and then I sponged Chocolate Chip around the edges, cutting in farther on the corners. To soften the look even more I sponged on my grid paper before the card stock. It doesn't show real well in the picture, but the first layer is Weathered stamped in Copper Encore Ink on Chocolate Chip card stock.

I've got 52 wedding invitations and 75 thank-yous done for my sister. Only the response cards are left. I'll share the package with you when they're done!

Stamps: Pines, Weathered, Warmest Regards; Card Stock: Chocolate Chip, Really Rust, Whisper White; Ink: Chocolate Chip, Copper Encore; Accessories: Vintage Brads, Color Spritzer Tool, Really Rust and Chocolate Chip Markers

A picture's worth a thousand words...

2007-06-26T22:46:00.000-04:00

What a great trip we had to Mackinaw City and upper Michigan with our friends. I wanted to post a coupe of pictures of some spectacular sights we saw. My family is still "up north", staying with my husband's family for the next week on Hubbard Lake. I'll be doing some stamping while I'm up here, so I'll post some things starting tomorrow. I'm plugging away on those wedding invitations. Thanks for checking in!

Cramming!

2007-06-22T00:23:00.000-04:00

Whew! Busy day! Kyle had another t-ball game after work today. He did a great job! He hit off a pitch at all three at-bats. After the celebratory dinner at Wendy's (his choice) I worked on the final layout for my sister's wedding invitation. I'll share those with you when I have them complete. So, now it's 12:30am. We're supposed to leave in the morning, or should I say later this morning. The camper is not packed. Needed laundry is in the spin cycle. Groceries are still on the market shelves. Not quite what we had in mind! Oh well, we'll pull it off somehow.

Since I was busy with the wedding things tonight I pulled an older card for my blog. Hope you enjoy it anyway.

Stamps: Close As A Memory, French Script; Card Stock: Elegant Eggplant, Perfect Plum, Confetti Cream; Ink: Elegant Eggplant, Perfect Plum; Accessories: Pale Plum, Perfect Plum, and Mellow Moss Markers, Sponge, Twill Tape, Vintage Brads, Color Spritzer Tool

Baby Wipe Technique

2007-06-20T21:59:00.000-04:00

First of all...sorry for the quality of the scan on this one! My camera battery is charging so I wasn't able to use it. This was a fun technique that we'll be doing with my club in the very near future (sneak peak ladies!!) This card was actually not supposed to be a card at all. I made another "stamp pad" and did a card, and then decided to stamp Autumn Leaf Prints (have I mentioned it's my favorite retiring set?) to use up the rest.

What you can't really see in the scan is that the whole thing is on a bashful blue card. The navy strip at the top is spritzed with water, scrunched up, and then flattened back out. I added some navy grosgrain with a piece from the aged copper hodgepodge hardware. The two focal leaves and cut out and mounted on dimensionals. I'm actually pretty fond of the way this one turned out. Hope you do to.

Stamps: Autumn Leaf Prints, Warmest Regards; Card Stock: Bashful Blue, Night of Navy, Very Vanilla, Whisper White; Ink: Night of Navy; Accessories: Reinkers (Night of Navy, Bashful Blue, Barely Banana, Silver Encore), Color Spritzer Tool, Night of Navy Marker, Navy Grosgrain Ribbon, Aged Copper Hodgepodge Hardware, Dimensionals.

At least one good word tonight!!!

2007-06-19T21:26:00.001-04:00

SHIPPED!!!!

That's right...the new catties are on their way!

Bad stuff & they're taking my Autumn Leaf Prints!

2007-06-19T20:47:00.000-04:00

I had high hopes of happy stamping when I got home from work today, but those happy thoughts came crashing down! I hate bad stuff! I especially hate bad stuff regarding $$!! Sorry if this gets long, but I need to vent!

We've had renters in our old house for the past nine months. They had a signed agreement to buy the house, their retirement home, as soon as they could secure their financing. But, today we got their rent check with a note that says they'll no longer be buying the house since they're decided to get divorced instead! Aaaggghhh!! That means two mortgage payments again, and we just can't afford that. Don't forget that on top of it we just bought a camper last month. Looks like I need to kick my SU! business up a notch!

The kids could tell I was upset when I got home from work. Kyle told me I looked bored and asked what was wrong. I told him I was sad about money, and we had to be very careful how we spend it right now. Jessie, the three year-old, told me that we could sell two of her babies. A little while later she came up to me with a handful of change and handed it to me. She said, "You like it mama? You can have it. Now you have money so we can still go camping!" What do you say to that??

And, so I decided to stamp a card for today's color challenge. Since I was in a somber mood anyway I went for Autumn Leaf Prints, my favorite retiring set. I refuse to part with this one! The color challenge was to use Creamy Caramel, Barely Banana, and Real Red. The leaves in the background are stamped off in caramel and banana. I used the color spritzer tool and real red marker over the maple leaf image. I thought I'd keep the red somewhat subtle so I only used it in the spritzer, an eyelet and some ribbon. I made this one for Scott. He's feeling the pressure too. Send some good thoughts, vibes, karma, or whatever else our way! And, if any one's looking to buy a house in Perry, MI.......

Stamps: Autumn Leaf Prints, Holidays & Wishes, Canvas; Card Stock: Creamy Caramel, Barely Banana; Ink: Creamy Caramel, Barely Banana; Accessories: Color Spritzer Tool, Real Red Marker, Crafters Tool Kit, Red Eyelet, Red Grosgrain Ribbon, Spiral Punch, Ticket Corner Punch

Could I actually like Cool Caribbean???

2007-06-18T15:01:00.001-04:00

This is a super quick one layer bridal shower card. My thought in using Cool Caribbean for them was to get rid of the stuff. (I only had what was in the assorted color packs I bought last July, but have only used one sheet ahead of this!) But, now that they're done I really like Cool Caribbean for this card. I think, in conjunction with the white, that it looks very "Tiffanyish", if I can make that a word.

Stamps: Baroque Motifs, Sincere Salutations; Card Stock: Cool Caribbean; Ink: Whisper White Craft, Cool Caribbean; Accessories: White Organdy Ribbon, Stamp-A-Ma-Jig

You probably thought I flaked out again, huh? Nope!! We were camping this weekend, and had no wireless this time. The kids had a great time once again. This was our second trip out with our dear friends Mark and Devene & family (they're the ones that gave us the final push on the camper idea!). It was a blast!! My only complaint is that the weekend went by way too fast. Our families are already looking ahead to this Friday as we'll head up to Mackinaw City together for four nights. From there my family is heading to Hubbard Lake to spend some time with my husband's family. (Lots of stamping time, and internet access!!)

One thing I've learned about trying to stamp while we're camping is that I have to have the idea of what I want to do before we go. I did that when Scott and I stayed in Midland and got 50 swaps done, only needing to be assembled. This weekend I took way too much...wait a minute, did I say that??? I didn't end up doing any of them. Instead, I worked on those swaps from a couple of weeks ago.

My goal this week is to come up with swap designs and take them with me to work on, and to get going on my sister's wedding invitations. (Luckily, she only needs 45!) Anyone want to come help me??

He actually did it!!

2007-06-14T12:15:00.001-04:00

Check this out! Scott did stamp me an anniversary card! And, I think he did quite well!! I was impressed!

I knew it was looking good when he called me at work and asked if there was such a thing as a "Happy Anniversary" stamp.

From the best I can tell he used bravo burgundy and blue bayou card stock. He found a poem (no, he didn't write it) on the intenet and printed it on vellum card stock. He even dabbled with some markers and WWC. How lucky am I??

Today's My Anniversary!

2007-06-13T10:17:00.000-04:00

Nine years today! Here's my anniversary card for Scott. I got up early this morning to make it before I came to work. Do you think he's home right now sneaking into my craft room to make me one??? I won't hold my breath on that one; although, he did stamp me a birthday card. So, in my mind the precedent is set...he must stamp!

Being that I was on a time crunch I wasn't able to brainstorm much. This is what I came up with. I covered the chipboard heart with Not Quite Navy craft ink and set it aside to dry. Wanting to experiment with some new colors I reached for River Rock (I'm already dreading that one retiring next year!) and Blue Bayou. I really like that combo together.

I stamped River Rock and Blue Bayou on their respective card stocks with the Canvas background stamp. I then stamped French Script in Blue Bayou over the River Rock Canvas after I stamped off on my grid paper since I wanted a faded look. To soften the edges against the base I sponged some Bayou Blue around the outside of the River Rock and then distressed it (I use my craft & rubber scissors). I stamped off River Rock and Blue Bayou with the big swirl from Baroque Motifs for the small River Rock piece, and then stamped the sentiment from Hugs & Wishes. I distressed the heck out of the small pieces and attached Not Quite Navy brads.

I then went back to the chipboard, which had since dried, and sanded the edges and top a bit. I stamped "love" from Wonderful Words across the heart in Very Vanilla craft ink. The ribbon is actually run through the card stock and tied across the heart. I thought it would be to hard to tie it around the slant on the heart, so I cheated and used my 1/8" punch on both sides. The ribbon isn't as bright as it appears in the picture and is a perfect blue to blend.

Stamps: Canvas, French Script, Hugs & Wishes, Baroque Motifs, Wonderfl Words; Card Stock: Blue Bayou, River Rock; Ink: Blue Bayou, River Rock, Not Quite Navy Craft, Very Vanilla Craft; Accessories: On Board Accents Chipboard, Earth Elements Brads, French Blue Grosgrain Ribbon, 1/8" Circle Punch

Chocolate & Celery & T-Ball...Oh My!

2007-06-12T21:41:00.000-04:00

Finally...back to doing some splitcoast challenges!! This had to be a quick one to get it in before Kyle's t-ball game tonight. The challenge was to use chocolate chip, cameo coral, certainly celery, and the fourth color of tempting turquoise.

When I decided to use Zoofari I immediately thought of the mesh cuttlebug folder. It reminded me of rhino skin- not that I've ever seen rhino skin close up, but it's what I perceive rhino skin looks like. Anyway, I digress. The rhino is watercolored and cut out. The sentiment is from the new Hugs & Wishes set. I also used the small ice rhinestone brad to attach the ribbon piece. I still thought it needed a little something so I added a small triangle to the back of the coral panel, folded it over, and attached it with a vintage brad. To finish it off I sponged a little going gray under the rhino for shadowing.

Stamps: Zoofari, Hugs & Wishes, Card Stock: Chocolate Chip, Cameo Coral, Certainly Celery, Tempting Turquoise, Watercolor; Ink: Chocolate Chip, Going Gray, Timber Brown Staz On; Accessories: Cuttlebug Mesh Folder, Ice Square Brad, Celery Grosgrain Ribbon, Tag Punch, Vintage Brad, WWC, Aquapainter, Tag Corner Punch

And, to share a highlight from tonight...here's a picture from Kyle's game. We were so proud of him. In t-ball the kids get a chance to hit three pitches, and then, if needed, they go to the tee. Kyle hit a pitch on his first two at-bats, only needing the tee on his third, and that was after fouling a pitch three times.

In this picture he hit the first pitch into the grass out of the infield. He was so excited. We were happy to be able to share it with both sets of grandparents who made the drive to see the game tonight. WAY TO GO KYLE!!!

Lovin' Baroque Motifs

2007-06-11T22:28:00.000-04:00

Wonderful Mr. Brown delivered my Fall/Winter Collection preview order today. Unfortunately I wasn't able to get it all mounted and stamp until 10:00 tonight. But, here it is! I am loving this set. I think it has SO much potential. I wish I could have gotten a picture in natural light to show the colors better.

I stamped the large image in Chocolate Chip and River Rock (LOVE that new color!!) on River Rock card stock. It's mounted on Brocade Background designer series paper and then on chocolate chip. The corner of the river rock and the chocolate strip are pierced with the paper piercer. The sentiment is from the new Hugs & Wishes set, and I love that it's in Scriptina...just like my watermark! The hodgepodge piece is in aged copper.

Kyle was very excited about Zoofari. He helped mount the set. I'm sure you'll be able to see some of his creations here soon!

Stamps: Baroque Motifs, Hugs & Wishes; Card Stock: Chocolate Chip, River Rock, Baroque Background DSP; Ink: Chocolate Chip, River Rock; Accessories: Aged Copper Hodgepodge Hardware, Stamp-A-Ma-Jig, Crafters Tool Kit; Technique: Paper Piercing

Bright Doodles

2007-06-10T10:55:00.000-04:00

I didn't make this card camping this weekend, but it's one I haven't posted yet. I was trying to step out of the box a bit and use some bright colors. I find that I never use Bold Brights.

For this one I used Double Line Doodles that I got at Regionals last fall. It will be in the new Fall/Winter Collection catalog. I heart in the center is cut out and mounted on a dimensional. I used the round tab punch from the mini to create the funky design around the main image. All the coloring is done with markers. The tempting turquoise scalloped looking border was made by punching a lot of 1/2" circles and mounting them to the back.

Stamps: Double Line Doodles; Card Stock: Basic Black, Tempting Turquoise, Real Red, Whisper White; Ink: Basic Black; Accessories: Markers, Dimensionals, Round Tab Punch, Turquoise Grosgrain Ribbon, 1/2" Circle Punch.

Here's a pic of Scott and I taken when we got back from the wedding reception last night before we put our comfy campin' clothes back on. I thought it turned out pretty well, being that the camera was on the self timer sitting in the crook of the tree at our site! But, we did decide to bypass s'mores and head to Cold Stone Creamery instead!

My Limited Supply Wedding Card

2007-06-09T12:53:00.000-04:00

Yea!! Wireless internet at our campground! We got up here about 8:00 last night. Looks like a neat campground, wish we had more time to spend here. We found an awesome Japanese steakhouse for dinner last night...kind of a pre-anniversary celebration as ours is the 13th. Dinner was incredible! This is the wedding card I made when we got back from dinner with the VERY few supplies I had with me. Luckily I remembered I had a cuttlebug background in my laptop case. Why was it there? I have no idea!

This was super quick. I used markers on the image from Happy Harmony and my stamp-a-ma-jig (of course!) to place the sentiment . The white organdy ribbon was just to set it off a bit. I like the way it turned out.

Stamps: Happy Harmony, All Year Cheer; Card Stock: Whisper White, Blush Blossom; Ink: Chocolate Chip; Accessories: Blush Blossom and Old Olive markers, Stamp-A-Ma-Jig, White Organdy Ribbon, Cuttlebug Divine Swirl Folder

Happy Birthday Chef

2007-06-08T17:36:00.000-04:00

This will be a quick entry, but as promised, here's another card. This was a really quick birthday card that I've made quite a few of. It's hard to see in the image, but i used the whole side of a quartered sponge to create a hazy background around the chef. This made his coat seem even brighter. The image was colored in with markers and I used the silver zig painty on the tray to give it some shine.

We're camping again this weekend for an out of town wedding. I'm making a card tonight for the wedding. If I have internet access I'll post it here. If not, it'll be a day or two.

Stamps: Viola; Card Stock: Real Red, Basic Black, Whisper White; Ink: Basic Black; Accessories: Markers, Sponge, Red Gingham Ribbon, 1/8" Circle Punch, Zig Painty.

Sorry! Sorry! Sorry!

2007-06-07T09:24:00.000-04:00

I am almost embarrassed to update this, since it's been SO long. Things have been exceptionally busy in my world, but I have vowed to get this blog up and running again. I apologize to those of you who have been checking in and finding the same old-same old.

We bought a camper in Mid-May and have been gone every weekend since. It's been great fun, but I do need to get stamping more. This past weekend I worked on swaps for Convention while we were camping. I have 50 nearly done from one sitting! That re-energized my stampin' gene. I cleaned up my space last night (was still a mess after our fundraiser prep work, if you can believe that), and I'm ready to go!

I finally ordered Pocket Fun about two months ago because I had wanted it, and Kyle convinced me that I needed it. Wouldn't you know it's now on the retired list. Oh well, at least I can share this card with you. I really like this one. It looks much better in real life. I masked the flowers into the pocket, and then water colored the whole thing with my WWC. The pocket was a myriad of blues, trying to achieve a worn look. The final pocket image is mounted with dimensionals.

I promise I'll be back tomorrow. I hope you'll be back too!

Stamps: Pocket Fun, Aida Cloth; Card Stock: Chocolate Chip, Barely Banana, Watercolor Paper, Spring Flowers DSP; Ink: Creamy Caramel, Chocolate Chip, Black Staz On; Accessories: WWC, Aquapainter, Earth Elements Brads, Apricot Grosgrain Ribbon, Dimensionals; Techniques: Masking, Watercoloring

Successful Fundraiser

2007-05-04T13:58:00.000-04:00

Devene and I held a fundraiser last weekend to support the Oakland Animal Fund. We were able to donate $175 to the organization. We had a lot of fun and it seemed to be well received. We're planning to do another one in the fall. When I'm able to get some pictures, I'll post the projects we did. These are a few of the pics we took that day. Even Brenda's dog, Kira, thought it was fun!

Sorry I've been a bad blogger! Things have been really hectic trying to get ready for the fundraiser, fitting in some letterboxing with the nice weather, and getting ready for the end of the school year. Kyle starts t-ball this weekend, so it may not get any easier!

No Time to Stamp!

2007-04-25T21:53:00.000-04:00

Well, the best of intentions didn't pan out the last two nights. I had to work last night, and got home just in time to put the kids in bed. Tonight one thing led to another, and I never made it to my stamp room. Maybe I'll have better luck tomorrow.

This is a card I made earlier this year for my sister-in-law's birthday. It's one that I particularly like, so I thought I'd share it with you.

Flannel plaid is stamped on the base card before the paisleys. I used the white gel pen to add the dots to the paisleys (of course). Linen is stamped in apricot appeal under "Happy Birthday". The main image was distressed and then bravo burgundy was sponged on the edges. I used the paper piercing tool from the crafter's tool kit to finish off the corners of the artichoke layer. I decided to finish it off with the ribbon and aged brass hodgepodge hardware. I hope you like it.

Stamps: Flannel Plaid, Linen, Polka Dots & Paisley, Warmest Regards; Card Stock: Bravo Burgundy, Apricot Appeal, Always Artichoke; Ink: Bravo Burgundy, Apricot Appeal; Accessories: Markers, White Gel Pen, Hodgepodge Hardware, Burgundy & Apricot Grosgrain Ribbon, Crafter's Tool Kit, Sponge; Technique: Distressing

A Happy Hello

2007-04-23T21:46:00.000-04:00

Whew...didn't know if I was actually gonna get one on tonight. I've had a busy evening of supervising Jessie painting (note one of her art pieces behind the card) and helping Kyle on his quest for 6,000,000 bolts in Star Wars Legos for PS2. I'm sure you'll be happy to know that the goal was accomplished and he has purchased the "x4" extra from the Mos Eisley Cantina. I know I'll sleep a little sounder tonight.

This is actually a Cami-style trifold card that I made with Teri on Sunday. I was looking to add a little something to it, so today's challenge of Levi Tab cards (TLC113) was perfect.

The card base is from Petals & Paisley DSP. I used the coluzzle to cut the old olive frame, the main image inside the card, and the opening to the front. This of course was a time for the stamp-a-ma-jig (I say that as if there's ever a time not to use the smj! Have I mentioned that it is one of the best accessories I've ever purchased?!). The image is colored in with markers and so saffron is sponged around the girls so it wasn't so stark white. This was a fun one to make.

Stamps: Pocket Fun, All Year Cheer I, Mini Mates; Card Stock: Petals & Paisley DSP, Whisper White, Old Olive; Ink: Basic Black, So Saffron; Accessories: Coluzzle, Markers, Slit Punch, 1/8" Circle Punch, Rose Grosgrain Ribbon, Ticket Corner Punch, Sponge

Fun Weekend!

2007-04-22T16:44:00.000-04:00

This was a fun weekend!! I had a bridal shower to go to on Saturday (the one I had made that tr-fold card for). Jessie (3) was very excited to go to an all girls party. But, she was very disappointed that we were going to cut the cake before we sang, so she started singing "Happy Birthday". A few other joined in, so we sang Jen "Happy Birthday" at her shower!

My sister-in-law came back with me and spent the night at our place. We had a great time crafting together ...between the bouts of playing Dora's house with Jessie and the "Getcha Game" with Kyle. I had to ask when it was my turn to play with Teri!

The kids went to bed fairly early so we made a few cards ourselves. I wish I would have taken a picture of the beautiful wedding card Teri made with my Terrific Tulips set...and she calls herself a novice! I'm posting a couple of cards I made last night. We also did triangle tri-fold cards, Cami's tri-fold card, nugget boxes, and sour cream containers.

Stamps: Print Pattern, Bundle of Joy, Warm Words; Card Stock: Bashful Blue, Brocade Blue, Ballet Blue, Watercolor; Ink: Versamark, Basic Black; Accessories: Watercolor Wonder Crayons, Aquapainter, Blue Gingham Ribbon, Soft Subtles Buttons, White Gel Pen, Crafter's Tool Kit; Technique: Faux Stitching

I haven't had much chance to play with Very Punny, so I did up a quick one for fun. The red base is stamped with Canvas, although it doesn't show so well in the picture. The lady bug heads were stamped on white card stock, then cut out, and mounted.

Stamps: Canvas, Very Punny; Card Stock: Real Red, Basic Black, Confetti White; Ink: Basic Black; Accessories: Red Marker, 1 1/4" and 1 3/8" Square Punches, Word Window Punch, Black Eyelets, Red Gingham Ribbon

Happy Friday!

2007-04-20T15:56:00.000-04:00

Today's Limited Supply challenge was to make a birthday card with a cute bug or animal within 45 minutes. This was a super quick, super simple card. It took about 15 minutes.

The birthday cake is colored with markers, and yo-yo yellow is sponged around the candle flame. Pretty in Pink is sponged lightly around the elephant, but it doesn't show too well in the pic. The Riveting circle image is mounted on dimensionals to make it stand out a bit. I used a WWC and blender pen to create the shadow under the elephant. To get the cameo coral gift of the white card stock, I stamped it on a scrap piece of CS and then used the 1/2" circle punch. I thought the french blue ribbon was a good touch of color.

Stamps: Wild About You, Riveting; Card Stock: Cameo Coral, Pretty in Pink, Confetti White, Slumber Party DSP; Ink: Going Gray, Pretty in Pink, Yo-yo Yellow, Basic Black; Accessories: Markers, WWC, Blender Pen, Sponge, 1 3/8", 1 1/4", and 1/2" Circle Punches, Ticket Corner Punch, Dimensionals, French Blue Grosgrain

When Kyle got home from school he saw my card sitting near the computer, as I was just about to upload it here. He asked what it was for, and I explained the challenge to him. He got all excited and said he wanted to make a cute birthday card for the contest too. He picked out all the stamps himself. He said he wanted it to look like the penguin was holding the cake with his foot.

He colored all the stamps with his SU kids markers, huffed, and stamped. He said that's his favorite technique since he can put all the color where they are supposed to be. (When I offered him the black ink pad he said, "Mom, a penguin's beak is not black", and shook his head.

Thanks for checking out Kyle's Korner again!!

Forest Haze

2007-04-19T06:46:00.000-04:00

Well, here it is! I really wasn't trying to build up suspense overnight, I just couldn't upload. So I thought I'd try again this morning before I went to work...tah dah! When we find a front row parking spot on a shopping trip Scott always says that the shopping gods are smiling down upon us and it will be a successful trip. If I can relate this working this morning to that(okay, I know it's a stretch) then maybe the stamping gods are smiling down upon me and I'll be able to do another challenge after work today! Hey...whatever works!

So, this is the card I made for the SCS Sketch Challenge 120 yesterday. I really like the layout. I think it's one that will be used a lot. I like trying to do masculine cards every now and again, because they seem to be a little more difficult to come up with. You know what I mean...it's easy to stamp a few flowers, add some purdy ribbon, and have a great feminine card.

I liked the idea of doing a scene for the main image, so I decided to go with one of my favorites...Lovey As a Tree. I love true thyme and chocolate chip together on a "guy" card, so those were my color choices. I used two different background stamps and matted the panels to break up the card base a bit. I've been on a distressing kick lately too so I distressed the panels before I mounted them on the chocolate chip. As I started to stamp off the trees (with chocolate chip on true thyme) I had the thought to make them hazy looking...like being up north, or on the farm, at dawn on a chilly morning. (Sorry for the over-dramatization there!) I sponged very vanilla around the trees and then sponged chocolate chip over the trees to darken them a bit. The haze aspect of the card is much better in real life...kinda loses something in the scan. I mounted the image on very vanilla card stock that I had spritzed with chocolate chip ink and then mounted that on chocolate chip. I wanted to finish it off with a little something (not too frilly) so I went with the natural hemp twine.

I like this one, and I hope you do too. Thanks for checking back in!

Stamps: Lovely As a Tree, Canvas, Weathered; Card Stock: True Thyme, Chocolate Chip, Very Vanilla; Ink: Chocolate Chip, Very Vanilla; Accessories: Sponges, Color Spritzer Tool, Chocolate Chip Marker, Hemp Twine

No Photo Tonight

2007-04-18T22:08:00.000-04:00

Well, looks like there won't be a new card up tonight. I either can't get the blogger site or my computer to cooperate. Whatever it is, I can't get my card to upload. I'm bummed, because unlike yesterday, I was really happy about how the one that was supposed to be here turned out. I'll try again tomorrow. I don't even have any good tales to share tonight. Worked late. Late dinner. Kids to bed. Stamped my challenge card. Sat here trying to share the picture with you. That sums it up! I did order something fun today (he..he..he)!!

(not so) Cool Caribben

2007-04-17T19:49:00.000-04:00

Today's color combo challenge on SCS listed two choices. I chose Cool Caribbean, Basic Black, and White. I thought I would give this a try because I rarely use Cool Caribbean (don't hate me!). In fact, I still have card stock from the first assortment pack I bought with the new catalog last July. To me these challenges are about about trying different things...(but I don't know that I'll be trying this one again!).

I stamped Paisley background on whisper white first, and then stamped French Script in black over it. I distressed the edge with my craft and rubber scissors. The flower is from In Full Bloom, stamped on glossy white with black Staz On. I then used the metallic resist technique (colored in with metallic pencils, brayered with cool caribbean, and then wiped off the excess). I crumbled a small piece of cool caribbean and then stamped the sentiment. The flower is cut out (obviously) and mounted with dimensionals.

Stamps: In Full Bloom, Paisley, French Script; Card Stock: Cool Caribbean, Whisper White, Glossy White, Basic Black; Ink: Cool Caribbean, Basic Black, Black Staz On; Accessories: Metallic Pencils, Foam Brayer, Hodgepodge Hardware, Black Grosgrain, White Gel Pen; Technique: Metallic Pencil Resist

Triangle Tri-fold Card

2007-04-16T22:38:00.000-04:00

This post is extremely late in the day, but it still makes it! I actually have been stamping since about 2:30 this afternoon. My dear friend (and awesome downline) Devene came over this afternoon to stamp...she just left! We were getting ready for a fundraiser we have next week. Can I take a moment to say what an awesome day in my stamping world this was? First, the details for the SU Convention in Denver that Devene and I will be attending were released. Then I got the mail when I got home from my half day of work and found 1) my May Stampin' Success Magazine, and 2) an awesome package from my Dabbling Demo Secret Sister. (She's awesome!). And, minutes later Dev arrived to begin our stamp fest!

Today's challenge on SCS was to make a Triangle Tri-fold Card (TLC112). I had never attempted one before, but I certainly will again. I love it! The final product is so neat. This one is for a bridal shower I have this coming weekend.

The background paper is handmade (not by me!). It works wonderfully for this card. I used Terrific Tulips, which is retired, but still a favorite. Heat & stick powder was used to adhere dazzling diamonds to the darker portion of the petals. You can never have enough sparkle, right? I'm really pleased with how this one turned out. Thanks for looking!

Stamps: Terrific Tulips; Card Stock: Always Artichoke, Confetti White, Handmade Paper; Ink: Ruby Red, Always Artichoke; Accessories: Color Spritzer Tool, Ruby Red Marker, Heat & Stick Powder, Dazzling Diamonds, Olive Narrow Organdy Ribbon

More Butterflies

2007-04-15T19:01:00.000-04:00

Well, my good intent to stamp something new today didn't come to fruition. But, nonetheless, we got a lot done around the house today. We bought a new computer desk and some storage cubes from Target for Kyle's room. Of course they're the kind that come in many many pieces with directions that don't seem to actually go with the product. So, there was the afternoon.

I can't wait for Kyle to see his new room. (He comes back from the farm tonight.) All his Star Wars toys...and boy, does he have Star Wars toys, are now all in his room. My family room no longer looks like a Jedi training center. My husband Scott doesn't want to leave Kyle's room now since he thinks it's the "coolest" room in the house. He said he wished our room was as cool. Keep dreaming young Skywalker!

Here is another card I stamped for the Inspiration Challenge 71 on SCS last night. I like how this one turned out. By the time I finished it I had to scan it since it was too dark in the house to get a decent picture. The scan kinda did some funky stuff to the colors. The ribbon is actually chocolate brown and does coordinate (unlike the eggplant look that it appears to be.

I used four different patterns of non-SU paper (shhh....don't tell Shelli!) for the background and each of the butterflies. The really rust tabs on the side have a suede look that I love. I followed the directions from Julie Buhler's awesome blog. The paper was spritzed with water, then crumbled, flattened back out, and sponged with really rust and chocolate chip. I felt like it needed a bit more texture in the end, so I frayed some grosgrain ribbon to put behind the hodgepodge hardware.

Stamps: Flitting By Jumbo Wheel, Warm Words, French Script; Card Stock: Always Artichoke, Chocolate Chip, Really Rust; Ink: Chocolate Chip, Really Rust; Accessories: Hodgepodge Hardware, Word Window Punch, Grosgrain Ribbon; Techniques: Faux Suede, Frayed Ribbon

Saturday Inspiration Challenge

2007-04-14T15:31:00.000-04:00

I made this card for the Saturday Inspiration Challenge (IC71) on SCS. The inspiration piece given was from a Fruit of the Loom ad. Looking through the posts, you can find all kinds of butterflies. Luckily I hadn't parted with my retired Sketch An Event set.

First I stamped the butterflies in versamark and then embossed with white embossing powder on vellum card stock. From the back I used the paper piercing tool to outline the wings where they were embossed. On the back of the vellum I colored the wings with watercolor wonder crayons first and then with metallic pencils. The bodies of the butterflies and the spots on the wings are colored on the back side also using a silver sharpie marker. The sentiment is stamped on the front using staz on.

The background for the vellum is a piece of whisper white card stock stamped with the fern from In Full Bloom using true thyme ink. I colored them in with metallic pencils. Eyelets were set, and then the piece was mounted on a true thyme layer. Finally I stamped the small butterflies from Beyond the Basics with bashful blue on the same color card stock. The last touch is a small blue gingham ribbon.

It's been fun being able to participate in these challenges the last couple of days! I usually don't get the time.

Stamps: Sketch An Event, In Full Bloom, All Year Cheer I, Beyond the Basics; Card Stock: Bashful Blue, True Thyme, Whisper White, Vellum; Ink: Versamark, Black Staz On, True Thyme, Bashful Blue; Accessories: White Embossing Powder, Watercolor Wonder Crayons, Metallic Pencils, Silver Sharpie Marker, Eyelets, Blue Gingham Ribbon; Techniques: Masking, Heat Embossing

TGIF!

2007-04-13T13:56:00.000-04:00

Sorry I didn't make it on last night. I was working on our taxes (yes, we procrastina-ted this year...) and it took a lot longer than I anticipated.

It's Friday!! I took the day off work today ...LOVE my new job!! Jessie comes home this afternoon from Grandma and Papa's house. Kyle doesn't know it yet, but Grandma's going to surprise him, and pick him up from school to head out to the farm. All the talk of the kids going out there made me want to do this card.

Papa has a popcorn maker. The real kind. Like the ones at the movies (only smaller). And, he makes the best popcorn. The kids (including us big kids) love it. So, I guess this card is for him. It's hard to see in the photo, but I used the Canvas background stamp on the real red card. Five of the pieces of popcorn were stamped separately, cut out, and mounted on dimensionals. And, of course I had to fit it the white gel pen with the faux stitching. Heading off to my stamp room...one hour left of distraction free stamping!

Stamps: Canvas Background, Treat Yourself; Card Stock: Basic Black, Real Red, Whisper White; Ink: So Saffron, Real Red, Basic Black; Accessories: Dimensionals, Paper Piercing Tool, White Gel Pen, Black Vintage Brads, Ticket Corner Punch; Technique: Faux Stitching

Wild About Paisley

2007-04-11T13:54:00.000-04:00

I told you I had a slight addiction to Polka Dots & Paisley's paisley stamp and the white gel pen!

I didn't have a chance to stamp at all last night. Jessie went to spend a few days with Grandma and Papa, so I thought I may get some things done. But, instead I ended up spending my evening as Will Turner trying to maneuver my way through Port Royal with Kyle as Jack Sparrow on his new PS2 game. Oh well, maybe tonight....or tomorrow if we're snowed in!

This was the card I made for Robbie's Birthday. (Those of you that know me already know that the card was really made for Devene.) I really liked the way it turned out. The paisleys are stamped with pumpkin pie ink in order to contrast a bit from the more mustard card stock. The faux linen is comprised of creamy caramel, more mustard, and pumpkin pie ink. As it was, I found my spool of mustard grosgrain to be missing. I substituted the hemp twine instead, and I'm glad I did. On a side note, my black grosgrain came missing about a week later. So, I asked Jessie (my 3 year-old) if she knew where mommy's ribbon went. She told me that she took it because she needed it. Of course she couldn't remember where she put it, and later told me, "Way way sorry mommy, looked everywhere, can't find it anywhere!". And, I still haven't found it!

Stamps: Wild About You, Polka Dots & Paisley, Viola; Card Stock: More Mustard, Really Rust, Chocolate Chip, Glossy White; Ink: Pumpkin Pie, Creamy Caramel, More Mustard, Really Rust, Chocolate Chip; Accessories: White Gel Pen, Paper Piercing Tool, Hodgepodge Hardware, Tag Punch, Grosgrain Ribbon, Hemp Twine, Sandpaper, Sponges; Techniques: Faux Stitching, Faux Linen

Kyle's Korner too...

2007-04-10T11:40:00.000-04:00

Last week was my mother-in-law's birthday. Kyle, who is five years-old, asked if he could stamp a card to take to her. He loves making cards with me and is very careful with all the supplies. In fact, he told me, "Mom, I need to get my own bone folder. I need to make a new technique I saw that's really easy." (He likes to watch the Getting Started DVD from SU!) He also wants his own paper cutter. Sorry...I digress. Anyway, he picked out everything he wanted to use, including my metallic pencils and watercolor wonder crayons. The only help I gave him on this project was to tell him which way was up on the phrases. He was so proud of the card, and so was I.

I posted these pics on the demo forums of SCS last week, and he was really excited to see them on-line. He was especially excited when I read him all the kind comments left about his work. He had the biggest smile on his face! So, I decided to post them here as well. I can't wait to show him how good they look here too. I'll be sure to read him any comments that are left as well, so if you have a moment leave Kyle a word or two! Thanks!

Where is the sun?

2007-04-09T15:19:00.000-04:00

Okay, I'm driving to work this morning, listening to the radio, and Bambi's mom decides to jump out of a ditch in front of me while I'm driving 70mph on a major freeway. A very narrow miss! But, it's Michigan, right? And then I hear, over my pounding heart, the "S" word during the weather report. And they're talking about potential accumulation of the "S" word on Wednesday with two storms that appear to be merging. It's Michigan, right? But, come on already!

So, I'm hoping that by posting this sunflower card, that I can forget for the moment that it's April and we're barely above freezing temperatures. This is an all occasion card that I made to be part of a card tin for Mother's Day (shhh, it's a surprise!). I hope everyone had a safe and pleasant holiday!

Stamps: Serene Sunflower, Autumn Leaf Prints; Card Stock: Very Vanilla, Always Artichoke, Summer Sun, Recollections Designer Series Paper; Ink: So Saffron, Morning Marigold, Always Artichoke, Chocolate Chip, Basic Black; Accessories: Chocolate Chip Marker, Color Spritzer Tool, Grosgrain Ribbon

Happy Almost Easter

2007-04-07T11:57:00.000-04:00

I have to admit that this is actually fun to do! Thanks for the great comments , I'm so glad you're liking the site!! And, I found that I made time last night to play around a bit in my stamp room to have some new ideas to post here.

This card ended up to be quite a hodgepodge of ideas. Probably hard to see it the picture, a couple of things that I like on this card are Dazzling Diamonds over the eggs themselves and the shadowing of "Happy Easter" with Whisper White Craft ink over Ballet Blue Classic. What in the world did I do before I found the Stamp-A-Ma-Jig?? I was able to do the shadow effect so quick, and exactly where I wanted it. It may be one of the greatest tools ever!

In case I can't get back on here tomorrow...Have a Great Easter Holiday!

Stamps: Paisley Background, Aida Cloth Background, Tag Time, All Year Cheer I; Card Stock: Bashful Blue, Whisper White, Pretty in Pink, Certainly Celery, Apricot Appeal; Ink: Bashful Blue, Ballet Blue, Whisper White, Apricot Appeal, Certainly Celery, Pretty in Pink; Accessories: Dazzling Diamonds, 1 3/8" Square Punch, 1 1/4" Square Punch, Buttons, Grosgrain Ribbon; Technique: Masking

Paisley Birthday

2007-04-06T20:38:00.000-04:00

This is not the best photo, but I wanted to get something posted today that my technique club ladies haven't seen yet. I've taken quite a liking to the paisley stamp from Polka Dots & Paisley as a background. (And, the white gel pen, although I did refrain from breaking it out on this one.) This is just a quick layout/card I did the other day. It doesn't show in the photo, but the flowers all have a dot from the silver zig painty on them. Hopefully my computer will start cooperating with my memory card so I can upload some better pics.

Stamps: Polka Dots & Paisley, Sincere Salutations; Card Stock: Naturals White, Basic Black, Real Red; Ink: Whisper White Craft, Basic Black; Accessories: Zig Painty, eyelets, grosgrain ribbon

Here We Go...

2007-04-05T23:44:00.000-04:00

Well, I've done it. I have a blog. Not sure how to get everything going on it yet; but, nonetheless, I have a blog.

First and foremost I have to thank my dear friend Denise for showing me how to use Corel PaintShopPo XI so I could design my own banner (without having to read the instructions on my own). Although only cosmetic, I really wanted to have the banner done first. And, you know what? I did it! Denise, I won't tell you how long it took me, but if you look at the time this was posted you'll have a good idea. You'll also notice that the title of this blog has been changed. I got a strange look and a, "mom, that's really a non-good name" from Kyle. And then after I finished designing the banner I had to figure out how to change the template to allow it to be posted. Let me tell you...that was an ordeal. Luckily one of the wonderful people from Splitcoast Stampers posted on a thread last week, and I was able to figure it out from there. (Thanks, Suzanne!) I'm really happy with how it turned out...look at me being all digital!

I'm really looking forward to keeping this blog updated. I hope that my customers and friends find it a fun place to visit, laugh, and get some ideas. But, for now it's late. I have a blog with a banner!!!