Stampin' Up! 2009-2010 Catalog Arrival!

I was very excited to receive the mail yesterday! Not only did I get my Stampin' Up! pre-order items from the new catalog, I received a copy of the new catalog! Whoo-hoo! I already started my wish list and it's pretty long.

Two items I am very happy to see in the new Stampin' Up! catalog is the set Oval All and Scallop Oval Punch that are currently in the mini catalog! I used both items in the card above. Sorry about the bad picture. I struggled to capture the embossed background. I layered white on white for the background. I embossed a 4x5.5 inch piece of Whisper White cardstock and glued that to the front of the card. It looks a little more elegant in person. Again, my picture taking skills are a work in progress. :)

I did a little shopping at Kohls tonight. The store was packed because they were having a big sale. I had to shop for a birthday present for a 15 year old girl. It made me feel old because I felt a little clueless about what to get. She wears jewelry all the time so I found an adorable necklace with her initial and a little charm on a chain. Teenage girls like to shop so I bought her an Old Navy gift card to go with it. Do you think I did ok? I'll let you know how it goes. The birthday party is Saturday.

Wish me luck! Have a wonderful day!

Recipe (all supplies from Stampin' Up unless noted otherwise):
Stamps: Oval All
Ink: Certainly Celery
Cardstock: Whisper White, So Saffron
Designer Series Paper: Spring Fling (retired)
Ribbon: So Saffron
Accessories: Cuttlebug Swiss Dots Embossing Folder, Scallop Oval Punch, Large Oval Punch

Back in Black

Hello friends! I hope you are enjoying the summer. Can you believe it's mid-June? Wow! The release of the new Stampin' Up! catalog is weeks away. My pre-order items should arrive this week. I've been trying to use up my old stuff and I'm getting ready for a craft garage sale coming up at our local scrapbook store. I reserved a table to hopefully sell a lot of my older stuff I don't use anymore.
Does the patterned paper on the card above look familiar? It's from the last Stampin' Up! Sale-a-bration. I still have a few sheets left from the pack called Delicate Dots. The colors really pop with just a touch of black behind the patterned paper and Kraft cardstock (Back in Black - hee hee). Black can really make your card creations striking especially when paired with brights colors. Keep that in mind!

Have a wonderful day and thank you for visiting!

Recipe (all supplies from Stampin' Up! unless noted otherwise):

Stamps: Hero Arts

Designer Series Paper: Delicate Dots (retired)

Cardstock: Garden Green, Basic Black, Kraft

Ribbon: So Saffron (retired)

2 + 2 = ?

2 birthdays + 2 graduation parties (in one week) = lots of card making!

My mother and good friend at work both share the same birthday. The cards pictured above are what I made for them this past week.

Not only was I busy, but my little guy was busy crafting too! He took almost an entire hour to paint his grandma a birdhouse for her birthday. You can see from the picture how intently he was working. Too cute. He is 3 1/2 years old now.

We hit some garage sales this morning and bought some great new toys! We're off to play at Grandma's today.

Have a wonderful weekend! Thank you for visiting!

Recipe for birthday card (all supplies from Stampin' Up! unless noted otherwise):

Stamp set: Season of Friendship, Great Impressions (sentiment)

Designer Series Paper: Tea Party

Cardstock: Cameo Coral, Lavender Lace, Whisper White

Ink: Cameo Coral, Lavender Lace, Gable Green, Close to Cocoa

Ribbon: American Crafts

Tart & Tangy

Which do you prefer - tart or tangy? I lean more towards the tart. I love Sour Patch Kids. Mmmm!

I love to make summer themed cards using the Stampin' Up! Tart & Tangy set. I was very happy to not see this set on the retired list. On my right sidebar I have a link to the Stampin' Up! Last Chance List. Check it out! If you are thinking about getting any of the sets on the list, you have until June 30th to place your order before they are gone for good.

Speaking of retired products, I used SU! Summer Picnic paper (retired) for the background paper on today's creation. I stamped on Whisper White cardstock the oranges in Only Orange ink and the limes in Green Galore. The 1" circle punch is the perfect size to punch these out. I slightly overlapped these when I attached them to the bottom of the card.

The sentiment was attached to the card by using the Slit Punch to make a little rounded slit to tuck this piece under.

Don't forget to stamp your envelope to match your creation!

My order of the new Stampin' Up! products coming out in the July catalog should hopefully arrive this weekend! I'll be able to share some sneak peaks with you. Get excited!!!!

Have a wonderful day and thank you for stopping by today!


Recipe for card (all products from Stampin' Up! unless noted otherwise):
Stamps: Stampin' Up! Tart & Tangy, Great Impressions
Designer Series Paper: Summer Picnic (retired)
Ink: Only Orange, Green Galore, Real Red
Tools: 1" Circle Punch, Slit Punch
Ribbon - Dashes, Dots, & Checks (from Michaels)

Get Ready to Sparkle!

My son and husband and have something very much in common - the love for their birthday! They both get that sparkle in their eyes when their birthday is approaching. My husband's birthday is July 2nd. I decided to make him a card this year with some sparkle and patriotic colors in honor of the 4th of July holiday.

I cheated a little with this creation. I used the new Printed Window Sheets from the Stampin' Up! Occasions Mini Catalog. These are so cool looking and easy to use that people will think you spent hours instead of minutes on the card.

I used Real Red for the card base (5.50 x 4.25). The white layer is 5 x3.75 inches. The blue is 4.50 x 3.25 inches. I stamped on the blue cardstock the "Celebrate"stamp, from the Matchbox Messages stamp set, in Whisper White Craft Ink. I attached the window sheet over the entire front of the card with the star brads and glued on the little rhinestones in the center of each star. They look like sparklers, don't they?

You can still order from the Stampin' Up! Occasions Mini Catalog through the end of this month (June 30th). I will be sharing a couple other cards using the Printed Window Sheets.

Thank you for stopping by today. Have a great one!

Here is the recipe (all supplies from Stampin' Up! unless noted otherwise):
Stamp Set: Matchbox Messages (from the Stampin' Up! Occasions Mini Catalog)
Cardstock: Real Red, Brilliant Blue, Whisper White
Craft Ink: Whisper White
Accessories: Printed Window Sheets (#115122), Silver Star Brads (from JoAnn Fabrics), Red Rhinestones (from any craft store)

The Art of Simplicity

My blogging for the summer months is going to change a bit, but I think you'll appreciate it. Stay with me . . .

Summer goes by so fast and everyone likes to be out and about, spending time with family and friends, traveling, and soaking up the sun. During the next three months I will blogging as I usually do, but the focus for the summer will be The Art of Simplicity.

I will post short and sweet entries with cards & scrapbook pages that you can create in no time. I know we all enjoy the hobby year-round, but during the summer, most of us tend to spend less time crafting. The Art of Simplicity I will share with you this summer will keep you creating and still have time to enjoy your summer activities. Sound good? I sure hope so! You won't be disappointed, I promise.

To kick off my summer theme -The Art of Simplicity, check out the card pictured above!

Here are all the Stampin' Up! materials you will need:

Cardstock: Whisper White and Chocolate Chip

Stamp Set: Trendy Trees

Ink: Green Galore, Chocolate Chip

Accessories: Chocolate Chip Corduroy Buttons

This Whisper White card is 4.25 x 4.25 inches square. It's a really cute size card - not too big, not too small. I used square Nestabilities to punch out the front 2x2 inch centered window.

To the left of the window I stamped on the side "thinking of you" from the Trendy Trees set in Chocolate Chip Ink.

I stamped one of the trees from the Trendy Trees set on Whisper White cardstock & punched that piece out with square Nestabilities (1.75 inch). I took a 2 inch square of Chocolate Chip, layered that behind my tree piece, and attached the entire piece to the inside of the card matching up directly behind the window.

To finish it off, I added a cute little Chocolate Chip Corduroy Button to the bottom right.

Stay tuned . . . sneak peeks from the new Stampin' Up! Catalog (due out in July) will be posted next week. I can hardly wait!!! Have a wonderful weekend!

Soft & Pretty

Did you enjoy the nice long weekend? I sure did! The weather was great and we had a huge party on Monday with all our friends. Back to work today! Boo hoo!

I am so inspired to create soft & pretty looking cards with the Stampin' Up! Thoughts & Prayers set. You've seen my other creations with this set, and pink always seems to sneak in there. Hee hee!

I used Stampin' Up! Green Galore, Regal Rose, and Apricot Appeal for my color combination. I took my picture taking to the outdoors so it may be hard to see the background, but I used the Cuttlebug Swiss Dots embossing folder. Then I simply stamped the saying in Regal Rose ink on Whisper White cardstock and matted it on Apricot Appeal cardstock for my centerpiece.

The leaf/flowers cascade stamp was inked using brush end of Stampin' Write Markers in Green Galore, Regal Rose, and Apricot Appeal. Just brush/color on the rubber stamp where you want each color to be and stamp it onto your cardstock. I cut this piece completely out using Stampin' Up! Paper Snips to get into those tiny areas and then glued the piece along the edge of my sentiment.

These Stampin' Write Markers are a must have! I have owned my set since way before I was a demonstrator and never had to replace one yet. One end is a fine point and the other a flexible brush. If you ever want to purchase a set from me, I will sell them to you at 20% off at any time. Just mention this blog post. They are such a great tool, I want you to have them at my cost.

Lots of exciting Stampin' Up! news coming your way! Here is a sneak peak of what's going on:

* Designer Series Paper Sale - Ends May 31st

Buy 3, Get 1 Free!

*June 1st - Stampin' Up! Last Chance

Retired List Published

Find out which of your favorites will no longer

be available in the new catalog!

* June 15th - Country Living Summer Cookout Kit Available!

Click HERE to view this promotion! It's so cute!!!

*July 1st - 2009-2010 Idea Book & Catalog

products available to order!

Are you excited? I can't wait to receive my sneak peaks from the new catalog. Be sure to subscribe to my blog in the upper left sidebar so you can see them too! I will be sharing!!!

Have a wonderful day and stop back soon!

Recipe (all supplies from Stampin' Up! unless noted otherwise):
Stamps: Thoughts & Prayers (item #113252)
Ink: Green Galore, Regal Rose, Apricot Appeal
Cardstock: Whisper White, Apricot Appeal
Other: Cuttlebug Swiss Dots Embossing Folder