Build A Birthday

This is one of the cards we made at the stamping team meeting last Wednesday, using the Build a Birthday stamp set that will be available June 2nd. Since it's photopolymer (completely clear) it's easy to see exactly where you're stamping, making lining things up a breeze!

I used the cheerful colors in the Cherry on Top DSP Stack as inspiration for the card. And that's a good tip for anyone who has trouble choosing colors for their card - just start with some Designer Series Paper and pull a color combination from it. Stampin' Up! colors coordinate beautifully, so you can hardly go wrong!

To illustrate how easily this card came together, I designed and made it in less than fifteen minutes. And now that it's designed, I can duplicate it in about five. Woohoo!

Here's the recipe:
5-1/2" x 8-1/2" Whisper White, scored at 4-1/4" for card base
2" x 5-1/4" Cherry on Top DSP, adhered to left side of card front
3-1/4" x 4-1/4" Crushed Curry for mat behind image
3" x 4-1/4" Whisper White, stamped and adhered to Crushed Curry mat
Fasten matted image panel to card front with Stampin' Dimensionals

STAMPS: Build a Birthday
INK: Bermuda Bay, Crushed Curry, Cucumber Crush, Pool Party, Watermelon Wonder
CARDSTOCK: Whisper White, Crushed Curry, Cherry on Top DSP Stack
ACCESSORIES: Stampin' Dimensionals

Have I Mentioned I Love Butterflies?

Yeah? Well then, it should come as no surprise that I'm having way too much fun with the Butterfly Bundle!

I've been seeing the layered and/or inlaid butterflies all over, so I thought I'd give it a try. It was really not hard at all! After I die cut the butterfly, I used the "negative" from the Basic Black piece to trace the butterfly on the Bermuda Bay. It was fussy cut just inside the lines, leaving off the swallow tail bits. That produced the back layer. The body of the butterfly was glued to the background, leaving the wings free.

Then a 2" x 2" piece of Dazzling Diamonds Glimmer Paper was placed under the butterfly die where I wanted pieces for the inlay. Those were just glued with multipurpose glue on the Bermuda Bay background, fitting them into the appropriate holes of the butterfly's wing. It really is a "Wow" effect in real life!

The green growth was stamped on the lovely Soft Sky sheet from the Painted Blooms DSP pack using Pear Pizzazz and Old Olive.

STAMPS: Nature's Perfection (SAB item), A Dozen Thoughts
CARSTOCK: Basic Black, Bermuda Bay, Painted Blooms DSP, Dazzling Diamonds Glimmer
INK: Memento Tuxedo Black, Pear Pizzazz, Old Olive
ACCESSORIES: Big Shot, Butterflies Thinlits Dies, Liquid Multipurpose Glue, Stampin' Dimensionals

Groundhog Predicts Early Spring!

Woo-HOOO! I'm sure that's even more wonderful news for those of you who have to endure sub-freezing weather. Before you know it, you'll be basking in the sunshine, too....hang in there!

Somehow, pink and green always come to mind when I think Spring, so here's a cute (and quick!) little card with that color combination.

I needed some Thank You cards this week, and this was the result. Sooo cute, and sooo easy! The marker-to-stamp technique worked really well on this stamp from the Patterned Occasions set, which is a FREE Sale-A-Bration item! A little ink was sponged around the edges of the die-cut before it was removed from the Framelit die, to give it a narrow border.

So, Friends, happy Groundhog Day to you! Now go stamp something to celebrate the Spring's eminent arrival!

Stamps: Patterned Occasions

Cardstock: Old Olive, Very Vanilla, Festival of Prints (retired)

Ink: Primrose Petals, Old Olive

Accessories: Big Shot, Labels Framelits, Primrose Petals Stitched Satin Ribbon, Sponge Dauber, Pearls Basic Jewels, Stampin' Dimensionals

The Perfect Baby Card

Looking for the perfect baby card for someone who is expecting? Look no further - I have just the card for you! It uses the Baby Tees Jumbo Wheel, and couldn't be any easier to whip up. Customization is easy, too, by changing the colors. In this case, the mom-to-be knows she's having a girl, so Pretty in Pink, along with Wild Wasabi and Daffodil Delight was used.

I didn't even bother to snap the ink cartridge into the Stampin' Around Jumbo Handle. Rolling it a few times on the ink pad was all that was needed to roll out the image.  Of course, if you're planning on rolling multiples, it would be better to snap the ink cartridge into the handle. :-)

This is another "mailable" card, because the knot on this bow isn't very thick. As long as you are using good-quality envelopes like our Medium envelopes, available in Whisper White, Very Vanilla, and Crumb Cake, there should be no problems! So, there you have a perfect baby card - quick and easy to put together!


Stamps: Baby Tees wheel, Teeny Tiny Wishes
Cardstock: Pretty in Pink, Pink Pirouette, Wild Wasabi, Shimmery White
Ink: Basic Black, Pretty in Pink, Regal Rose, Wild Wasabi, Daffodil Delight, Basic Gray, Soft Suede
Accessories: Big Shot, Perfect Polka-Dots folder, Blender Pen, Ticket Duo Punch, Eyelet Border Punch (retired), Pretty in Pink 3/8" Taffeta Ribbon (retired)

SUOC63, Are You Feeling the Love?

This week's challenge at SUO Challenges is to make a CAS (Clean And Simple) Valentine. There are so many great new products in the Spring catalog, that Hearts A Flutter bundle for instance, that it couldn't be any easier!

The scalloped heart die and stamp from that bundle were used on this card. The die cut was colored with markers to give the illusion that it was matted. Pretty neat, huh? A little embossed border with the Adorning Accents folder added just the right amount of texture.

Stamps: Hearts A Flutter, Loving Thoughts
Cardstock: Real Red, Whisper White, Basic Black, Red Glimmer Paper
Ink: Real red, Basic Black
Accessories: Big Shot, Adorning Accents folder, Hearts A Flutter Framelits, Stampin' Dimensionals

Best Valentine's Greetings

Some of the best Valentine's messages (to me, anyway), are ones that make me laugh. Don't get me wrong, I like the mushy stuff as much as the next girl. But my husband's ability to make me laugh, and his warped sense of humor, are some of the things that first attracted me to him, so I'm not miffed if his card to me is humorous, rather than sappy. I know that he loves me - he shows it in a million little ways all the time.

In that vein, I thought I'd share a few that I've seen recently that cracked me up. (One of these is rated R......you've been warned!)

Card front:
Did you know it takes ONE HOUR of rigorous sex to burn off the calories from five pieces of Valentine's chocolates?
Inside:
Eat the whole box. I've got plans for you tonight, Valentine!

Card front (with illustration of heart from medical book):
You make my heart have premature ventricular contractions

Here's another great reason for making your own cards...
Card front:
Happy Valentine's Day, Sweetie
Inside:
If this card hadn't cost $6 you would have gotten chocolates, too.

So, you see, it is possible to get the message across without being too mushy. And, just so I don't lose street cred with my female friends, here's a sentimental-type Valentine.

Stamps: Affection Collection
Cardstock: Naturals White, More Amore Specialty DSP
Ink: Crumb Cake, Early Espresso (stamped off once)
Accessories: Big Shot, Adorning Accents Edgelits, Stripes embossing folder, Artisan Embellishments Kit, 5/8" Flower Trim, stapler (non-SU)

You can Google "Best Valentine's Greetings" and come up with a bunch of ideas for your own message to put on your handcrafted, special card to your love. And have enough left over for those chocolates!

Sale-A-Brate Good Times, Come On!

Today begins the biggest, most anticipated sale event of the Stampin' Up! year, Sale-A-Bration! You get to choose a free item from the SAB brochure for every $50 in product you order, and the selections in this year's brochure are absolutely delectable! There's the Sycamore Street Designer Series Paper (see sample on card here), or the coordinating ribbon/button pack, there are six different stamp sets (not counting the special offerings from the annual catalog), there's an embossing folder, a card kit, two different digital content discs, or an adorable punch to choose from.

And there's more! If you get some friends together for a party, and the party totals $150, in addition the the $25 Hostess dollars you can spend on anything in the catalog, you'll get a free pack of the Silver Glimmer Paper, SU's Silver Anniversary gift to you!  Want more?  Have a $400 party, and in addition to the Silver Glimmer (and $65 Hostess dollars to spend), you'll receive a SAB bundle which includes the Sycamore Street DSP and Ribbon/button pack, a stamp set, PLUS get 50% off any item in the catalog!

Want even MORE? Join my stamping team, and get 25% more in your $99 starter kit. So instead of $125 in products, you'll get $156.25 in products of YOUR CHOICE. For only $99. Plus you'll get all the other benefits that Stampin' Up! lavishes on their demonstrators and, last but not least, ME as your upline!

So, what are you waiting for? Contact me if you'd like to receive a SAB brochure, or any catalog for that matter. I'd be happy to show you what the products look like, since I have them all (one of the demo perks is pre-ordering), book your party, or answer any questions you might have about joining my team.

And, just because you scrolled all the way down here, here is a card just for you!

Stamps: Vintage Verses (FREE SAB item!), Sunshine (from Single Stamps Assortment 4)

Cardstock: Basic Black, Whisper White, Daffodil Delight

Ink: VersaMark, Whisper White Craft

Accessories: Heat Tool, White Stampin' Emboss Powder, Embossing Buddy, Sponge dauber, White Stampin' Watercolor Pencil

Getting My Freak On!

It's that time of month, time for the Tour de Freaks blog tour. As a new Control Freak Swapper, this is my first tour so I hope you enjoy my little projects!  We are featuring items in the Sale-A-Bration flyer, and holy moly, there are some fabulous things in there! Remember, you can get those products FREE with a qualifying order from your Stampin' Up! demonstrator, from Jan. 22 to Mar. 22!

If you just arrived here from Lisa Martz's blog, you're in the right place. If you started here, you can just click the link at the bottom of all the tour posts, and follow along in a circle....eventually you'll end up back here.

My first project is a card using the Feeling Sentimental stamp set that also shows off the yummy Sycamore Street DSP and the Vine Street embossing folder. There are four SAB items on there!

STAMPS: Feeling Sentimental  CARDSTOCK: Island Indigo, Whisper White, Pool Party Core-dinations, Sycamore Street DSP  INK: Rich Razzleberry  ACCESSORIES: Big Shot, Vine Street embossing folder, Sycamore Street Ribbon & Button Pack, Stampin' Sanding System

Up next is another card - this time using the Madison Avenue stamp set. The ribbon that comes in the Sycamore Street Ribbon & Button Pack is so gorgeous, it just cried out to be the focal point on this card!

STAMPS: Madison Avenue, Bloomin' Marvelous  CARDSTOCK: Island Indigo, Whisper White, Pool Party Core-dinations  INK: Lucky Limeade, Island Indigo  ACCESSORIES: Big Shot, Vine Street embossing folder, Sycamore Street Ribbon & Button Pack, Stampin' Sanding System, Jumbo Sticky Rounds (cut in 1" circles), Rhinestones Basic Jewels, Pool Party Baker's Twine

And the last project is a quick and easy treat to slip in someone's lunch or mailbox. It's so easy to make! Just start with the scalloped tag from the Two Tags die, score at 1/2", 1-1/2" and 2-1/2" (starting from the rounded end, not the scalloped end). Stack two Hershey Nuggets inside and fold the tag around so the scalloped end is on top. Fasten with Snail or a Glue Dot. Thread ribbon through a button of your choice and tie it on. The little tag is from the Pretty Petites set, punched with the Petite Curly Label Punch - all of these are in the SAB flyer!

STAMP: Pretty Petites  CARDSTOCK: Whisper White, Sycamore Street DSP  INK: Island Indigo  ACCESSORIES: Big Shot, Two Tags die, Petite Curly Label Punch, White Baker's Twine, Sycamore Street Ribbon & Button Pack

Your next stop on the tour is Patty Bennett's blog, Patty's Stamping Spot. Just click the button below to see what her creative genius has in store!

Stampin' Addicts SAB Blog Hop

Hello, and welcome to another wonderful blog hop from the Stampin' Addicts! We are so happy that you stopped by to see some of the ways to use the wonderful FREE items coming next week for Sale-A-Bration* (aka SAB).

You probably just came from Rhonda's blog, The Stampin' Bunny, where she featured the Vine Street Embossing Folder. She always knocks my socks off with her creativity! You can follow the link near the bottom to continue on to Heidi's blog when you're finished here, or click HERE for a complete list of the hop stops.

Today I'm featuring the Bloomin' Marvelous stamp set, and I must say, it certainly is! The first card uses the Sycamore Street Designer Series Paper (SAB item) as a starting point. It's easy to choose coordinating colors from the DSP, so this card has Summer Starfruit and Rich Razzleberry as the main colors, with some accents of Pool Party to give it "pop". The little butterfly was heat embossed with Pool Party embossing powder to give a bit of shine, which matches the Pool Party Satin Ribbon (another SAB item!).

Sycamore Street DSP, Summer Starfruit, Rich Razzleberry, and Whisper White cardstock, VersaMark and Basic Black ink, Pool Party Stampin' Emboss Powder, Heat Tool, Bitty Butterfly Punch,

Sycamore Street Ribbon & Button Pack

For the second card I toned it down a bit and chose colors to play up the Tangerine Tango Satin Ribbon (more from the Sycamore Street pack). I thought Basic Gray was the perfect background to show off the flowers. This is a very mailable card - no bulky bows or brads to jam in the PO machinery!

Basic Gray, Tangerine Tango, and Whisper White cardstock, Tangerine Tango, Lucky Limeade, and VersaMark ink,

White Stampin' Emboss Powder, Heat Tool, Big Shot, Square Lattice Embossing Folder,

Sycamore Street Ribbon & Button Pack

And lastly, here's a pretty, feminine card with a soft pink bow holding the little bouquet, kind of reminiscent of a nosegay (and I'll bet half of you don't know what that is, heehee!). The doily really helps the flowers stand out, don't you think? Now this card would need to be hand-delivered!

Old Olive, Pink Pirouette, and Whisper White cardstock, Tea Lace Paper Doilies, Pink Pirouette/Rose Red Two-Tone Ribbon, Pink Pirouette, Rose Red, and Old Olive ink, Big Shot, Vine Street Embossing Folder, Labels Framelits, Petite Curly Label Punch, Pearl Basic Jewels, Stampin' Sponges

Thanks so much for stopping by today. Next in line is Heidi's blog, Running w Scissors Stamper, where she's going to wow you with the Feeling Sentimental set. I love the fun facts she has about the bicycle image! When you have a chance, stop by the Stampin' Addicts and say Hi! Membership is free and anyone who loves Stampin' Up! is welcome to join, whether SU demonstrator or hobby stamper.

*What is Sale-A-Bration, you ask? Only the biggest sale of the year from Stampin' Up! You can earn free goodies (with a qualified purchase), and this year has the best selection of products I've ever seen!