Birthday Tulips

A quick post today - I've been working on gathering the necessary info to send to our tax guy....yuck. I know we have to pay this year so, needless to say, I'm dreading it.

Anyhoo, this was a Penny Black image I had colored previously, so it was easy to add some DSP and a ribbon at the bottom, a mat behind it, and slap it on a card base. AND I used up a little retired DSP, to boot! Sweet Sugarplum and Rich Razzleberry are a match made in heaven, don't you think?

Did you know you can use our ink pads as a palette for water coloring? It's true! Just squeeze the ink pad (right where it says Stampin' Up!) so that some of the ink from the pad transfers to the lid. Open it up and there you have a little spot of ink to be used with a Blender Pen or Aqua Painter. You can leave it there for the next time you are painting, or wipe it clean with a baby wipe. (I leave it there, unless it has cat hair fuzzies in it.)

Product List

Rose Wonder Photopolymer Stamp Set

[140697]

Watercolor Paper

[122959]

Rich Razzleberry 8-1/2" X 11" Card Stock

[115316]

Sweet Sugarplum 8-1/2" X 11" Cardstock

[141418]

Regals Designer Series Paper Stack

[138436]

6" X 6" (15.2 Cm X 15.2 Cm) Glimmer Paper Assortment Pack

[143831]

Garden Green Classic Stampin' Pad

[126973]

Sweet Sugarplum Classic Stampin' Pad

[141395]

Rich Razzlebberry Classic Stampin' Pad

[126950]

Basic Black Archival Stampin’ Pad

[140931]

Aqua Painters

[103954]

Big Shot

[143263]

Rose Garden Thinlits Dies

[140619]

Sweet Sugarplum 3/8" (1 Cm) Ruched Ribbon

[141428]

2016-2018 In Color Enamel Shapes

[141410]

Stampin' Dimensionals

[104430]

Tulip Thanks

This card was sent to my friend Sherry, who not only treated me to a birthday lunch last week, but also took me for my first-ever trip to Hobby Lobby. Yes, I am embarrassed to admit that I was a Hobby Lobby virgin until last week!

Holy moly, I could get lost in that store! And lose all my finances, too, LOL. We made a bee line for the stamps and cardstock section, and they just happened to be having a 50% off sale on the cardstock. I was a very good girl and only left with one small bag of goodies. Trust me, the damage could have been much worse!

I tell ya, it's a good thing I don't work in a store like that, or my paycheck would never make it out the door!

I don't know the name of the (SOB) tulip stamp that was used here. This was one of Sherry's stamps I played with the last time we got together. The stitched rectangle is from Lawn Fawn, and everything else is Stampin' Up!

Product List

Crazy About You Photopolymer Stamp Set

[137137]

Whisper White 8-1/2" X 11" Card Stock

[100730]

Basic Black 8-1/2" X 11" Card Stock

[121045]

Watercolor Paper

[122959]

Real Red Classic Stampin' Pad

[126949]

Garden Green Classic Stampin' Pad

[126973]

Aqua Painters

[103954]

Versamark Pad

[102283]

Heat Tool

[129053]

White Stampin' Emboss Powder

[109132]

Big Shot

[143263]

Petal Burst Textured Impressions Embossing Folder

[141493]

Real Red 3/8" (1 Cm) Stitched Satin Ribbon

[141693]

Tulip Queue

I love spring flowers, daffodils being my favorite. But coming in a very close second are tulips! This is a Penny Black stamp, and I used two other "contraband" items on this card, as well. One is the gold glitter brush that I used on the Bee Happy card. And the other is the stitched banner from My Favorite Things. Oops, make that three other contraband items....I used Arches Aquarelle 140 lb. cold-press watercolor paper, too.

Those gold-glittered tulips just begged for more glitter, so the mat is Mint Macaron Glimmer Paper, one of the free Sale-A-Bration choices! I'm trying REALLY HARD not to hoard that stuff, but I am making it last as long as I can, so here's my handy dandy thrifty tip for the day.....DON'T use the entire mat of glimmer paper under your image! That's just wasting all of that glittery loveliness!

You can die-cut some shapes out of the center first, making sure you leave enough of a border, or you can cut the center out like I did. First of all, I always switch the good blade out of my Stampin' Trimmer for an old blade when I'm going to cut glimmer paper. That glimmer paper can make your blade dull in a hurry!

Next, I line up the right edge of paper on the 1/2" mark to the right of the cutting track. Note that I have the paper face-down. It's easier for me to see the cut lines that way.

Starting 1/2" from the bottom of the paper, slide the blade up the paper and stop 1/2" from the top. Do that on all four sides, and you end up with a lovely frame to use for your mat, and an equally lovely leftover piece to be used another time!

Now don't forget to put the good blade back in your trimmer!

Product List

Dragonfly Dreams Photopolymer Stamp Set

[142924]

Very Vanilla 8-1/2" X 11" Card Stock

[101650]

6" X 6" (15.2 Cm X 15.2 Cm) Glimmer Paper Assortment Pack

[143831]

Basic Black Archival Stampin’ Pad

[140931]

Crushed Curry Classic Stampin' Pad

[131173]

Garden Green Classic Stampin' Pad

[126973]

Aqua Painters

[103954]

Stampin' Trimmer

[126889]

Stampin' Dimensionals

[104430]

LOVE

Love is Kindness, that is. This is one of the a la cart stamps in the the Occasions catalog that I just adore. It is so quick and easy to color with the Blendabilities markers, and depending on the colors used and other card elements, it can take on many different looks.

This stamp has the greeting attached, so I just masked it off with a bit of Washi tape, inked it up with Memento ink, and then stamped, after removing the Washi. Of course, the first time I did it, I forgot to remove the Washi before stamping, and had an ugly inky blob where there wasn't supposed to be! (Note to self......remove Washi before stamping!)

STAMPS: Love is Kindness, Hello Life

CARDSTOCK: Real Red, Whisper White, Stacked With Love DSP Stack
INK: Memento Tuxedo Black, Cherry Cobbler Blendabilities, Old Olive Blendabilities, White Gel Pen
ACCESSORIES: Real Red 1/4" Cotton Ribbon, Glue Dots, retired Washi tape

Valentine's Day Eve

Today is Valentine's Day Eve, and also my baby girl's birthday (happy birthday, Shawn!). Do you have any special plans for your sweetheart tomorrow?

Here's a competely different take on a Valentine for somebody special.... no hearts of any color, no red, and only a little pink. This would work for a BFF, family member, or favorite co-worker.

This was my swap card for my stamping team meeting last night. My downlines and I started doing a monthly swap this year, and we're having a blast! I love seeing their creativity, and getting inspiration from them for MY customers. It's a win-win for us all!

So, in addition to talking about the latest news from Stampin' Up, we do a couple of make & takes, eat sweets, and have a good old time. If you'd like to see what all the fun of being a demo is about, we'd love to have you join us for a team meeting! The next one is March 12th at 7:00 PM. If you're interested, contact me for more info!

STAMPS: Blessed Easter and Oh, Goodie!
CARDSTOCK: Whisper White, Basic Black, Coastal Cabana, Shimmery White, Sweet Sorbet DSP
INK: StazOn Jet Black, Primrose Petals, Crushed Curry, Coastal Cabana, Pear Pizzazz
ACCESSORIES: Big Shot, Ovals Collection Framelits, Decorative Dots embossing folder, Basic Black 1/8" Taffeta Ribbon, Blender Pens, Stampin' Dimensionals

Happy Birthday to....

....ME!  Yep, today I am another year older, and it's one of those darn milestone birthdays, too.  You know, the ones that mean the passing of yet another decade, which makes you feel really old decrepit ancient fortunate to have survived this long! Which milestone is it? Well, let's just say it's one score and seven less than Lincoln's Gettysburg address and leave it at that, okay?

Am I depressed? Oh, HECK no! I'm amazed I've made it as long as I have, and besides, 60 is the new 40, right? (Oops.) And, honestly, I still feel like I'm in my thirties, so it's all good!

Now, if I was upset about it, which I'm not, I'd love to get a card like this one:

 

Isn't it just the sweetest, cheeriest thing you ever saw? The Watercolor Wonder Designer Notecards are adorable, and all you have to do is stamp something quick and send it! The background color is already on the note cards, and it's sturdy watercolor paper, too, so you can watercolor to your heart's content without worrying about the paper getting all wonky. Plus, you get 20 assorted cards (4 ea. of 5 designs) and envelopes for just $12.95! Such a deal!!!

The tulips from Blessed Easter was used here (without the greeting), because they were the closest thing I could find to buttercups. Stamped it once, used the Happy Watercolor "wash" stamp and then colored the leaves with a marker. Then stamped again on scrap watercolor paper and colored the flowers and leaves with markers, cut them out and adhered them with dimensionals.

The greeting is from Geometrical, another fun set in the Occasions catalog. (Remember, if you need one, let me know!)

Stamps: Blessed Easter, Geometrical, Happy Watercolor

Cardstock: Watercolor Wonder Designer Notecards, Watercolor Paper, Gold Foil Sheets

Ink: StazOn Jet Black, Crushed Curry, Daffodil Delight, Old Olive

Accessories: Stampin' Dimensionals (no Mr. Big, this time, can you believe it?!)