Nutz about Stamping

Saving memories is so easy to do

This past year has been filled with amazing adventures through travel and with new friends I have made, one of which was attending the second day of the Tour de France 2015! I had a great place to stand and took these photos as the bicyclist whizzed by:

I know that years from now I will have forgotten the details of these special moments  and even where I was and who I was with, so I happy that Stampin' Up! has partnered with Becky Higgins to create Project Life by Stampin' Up! And I have started a Project Life Virtual Club to help you get started on a Project Life 2015 album.

Have you heard about my Project Life Virtual Club?

 Join this club if you:

• have memories that you want to preserve forever but you don't have time to scrapbook
• have piles of photos gathering dust somewhere in your home
• need a fast, easy and fun memory keeping system
• are new to Project Life by Stampin' Up! and want amazing ideas for your page layouts
• have been playing with Project Life and are ready to take your pages to a new level of creativity

This is a month by month OR six-month club and you can join in anytime! And as a special bonus, when you complete your final month of my Project Life Virtual Club you get an Ah-mazing thank you bonus!

Want to learn more about my Project Life Virtual Club? Click here!

Happy Happenings make happy cards

Beautiful cards don't have to take a lot of supplies or cost a lot of money. Here's a fun idea that is so quick and easy to create:

 

Supplies: 

• Stamp Sets: Happy Happenings Stamp Set, 138734 Wood Mount / 139381 Clear Mount
• Paper: 101650 Very Vanilla, 121045 Basic Black, 105126 Elegant Eggplant, 122922 Wisteria Wonder, 138444 Timeless Elegance Designer Series Paper
• Ink: 126985 Wisteria Wonder Ink Pad, 126969 Elegant Eggplant Ink Pad
• Other: Aqua Painters, Black Ribbon, 132153 Label Bracket Punch, 119859 Extra-Large Oval Punch, 133787 Itty Bitty Accents Punch Pack, 138430 Basic Black Stitched Satin Ribbon, 122941 1/8” Silver Mini Brads, 134363 1/16” hole punch

 Measurements:  

• Very Vanilla cardstock; card base 5 ½” x 8 ½”, scored and folded in half at 4 ¼”
• Timeless Elegance Designer Paper 5 ¼” x 2”
• 18”, Basic Black Stitched Satin Ribbon
• Black Card Stock Scrap, Punched with the label Bracket Punch
• Very Vanilla Scrap Card Stock, Punched with the Extra-Large Oval Punch
• Elegant Eggplant and Wisteria Card Stock Scraps punched with the flower from the Itty Bitty Accents Punch Pack

 Instructions:

1. Stamp the sentiment onto Very Vanilla scrap, then use the Extra-Large oval Punch to punch it out. 
2. Squeeze the Wisteria Wonder and Elegant Eggplant ink pads to put some ink in the cover.  
3. Using your Aquapainter, pick up the Wisteria Wonder color and “wash” the color over just the roses in the paper.  Add some darker accents to the flowers using the Elegant Eggplant Ink the same way.  Add the darker ink to the darker areas of the designer paper, following the artist’s design. 
4. Attach the designer paper layer to the base, then tie the Basic Black Stitched Satin Ribbon around the card and make a bow (or a knot) on the front of the card.  
5. Punch a scrap Label Bracket out of Black Scrap Card Stock and attach it to the bottom of the Extra-Large Oval.
6. Punch Two flowers, one in Elegant Eggplant, and one in Wisteria Wonder.
7. Use the 1/16” handheld punch to put a hole in the middle of your flowers.  Then run a brad through them both.  Use Glue dots to attach this to your stamped layer.  
8. Add the focal point to the card using Dimensionals and enjoy! 

One Big Meaning makes a perfect thank you

I have a super easy but stunning thank you card idea for you to make today and it includes a really cool background idea too:

One Big Meaning Thank You

Supplies: 

• Stamp Sets –One Big Meaning #139420 $19.00 , Gorgeous Grunge #130517 $18.00 
• Card Stock –Very Vanilla #101650 $ 8.5, Elegant Eggplant #105126 $7.00 , Gold Foil Sheets #132622 $4.00 
• Stamp Pads – Versamark #102283 $7.50
• Misc. – Gold Embossing Powder #109129 $ 5.00, Embossing Buddy # 103083 $6.00, Heat Tool #129053 $30.00, Reinkers: Elegant Eggplant 105222 $3.25, Crushed Curry #131158 $3.25, Pumpkin Pie #105229 $3.25, Old Olive #100531 $3.25, Stampin’ Spritzer #126185 $3.25, Banner Triple Punch #138292 $23.00

 Measurements:  

• Very Vanilla 5 ½ x 8 ½ 
• Elegant Eggplant 3 ¾ x 5
• Very Vanilla 3 ½ x 4 3/4

 Instructions:

1. Take drops of Reinker and drop randomly onto a piece of transparency or window sheet.
2. Mist with water until blended but no muddy
3. Lay cardstock over it and add a little pressure to get the ink on the paper
4. Let dry naturally or speed dry with heat gun
5. When dry take the lined image from Gorgeous Grunge and stamp in Versarmark and sprinkle with Gold Embossing Powder…heat set.
6. Attach image Piece to the Eggplant piece and adhere to front of the cardbase.
7. Stamp the Verse onto a scrap of Vanilla with Versamark and add Gold Embossing Powder and heat set. Cut ends with Banner Triple Punch. Attach to card with dimensionals
8. Try an extra strip for the inside of the card and a tiny 1/8” strip above it to tie it in.

 

You are Remarkable!

Do you know somebody remarkable? Then why not honor her/him with special card acknowledging how remarkable that person truly is. Here's a fun and easy card idea:

Here's how you make this card:

 

Supplies: 

• Stamp Sets – Remarkable You (139894)
• Card Stock – Whisper White (100730); Blushing Bride (131287); Old Olive (106576)
• Stamp Pads – Blushing Bride (131172); Old Olive (126593)
• Misc - SNAIL adhesive (104332), Blender Pens (102845), Paper Snips, Neutrals Candy Dots (130934) 

Measurements:  

• Blushing Bride 8 1/2 x 5 1/2”
• Whisper White 3 x 3 3/4”; 3 1/4 x 1/2”
• Old Olive 3 1/8 x 3 7/8”; 1/4 x 4 1/2”
• English Garden 4 x 4 1/4”

Instructions:

1. Fold Blushing Bride card stock in half and crease. This will be your card base.
2. Adhere English Garden paper to card base. Add Old Olive strip.
3. Ink flower image using Memento Tuxedo Black ink and stamp onto Whisper White card stock. Color using Blender pens.
4. Adhere flower image to Old Olive card stock. Adhere to card front on angle.
5. Ink phrase using Blushing Bride ink and stamp onto Whisper White strip. Trim ends.
6. Adhere phrase across front of card.
7. Add three Candy Dots to card front to complete card. 

Want to order the Remarkable You stamp set and other products to make this card? Click here to head on over to my Online Store! 

Beautiful Butterflies make a beautiful card

Today I have a fun and amazingly easy 'just because' card for you to try at home, using a brand new paper stack called Pretty Petals: 

 

Stamp sets: Tin of Cards (138946), Papillon Potpourri (123759)

Ink: Memento Tuxedo Black

Paper:

Old Olive - 8 1/2 x 5 1/2
Mint Macaron - 3 3/8 x 2 6/8"; scrap for butterfly
Basic Black - 2 3/4 x 3 1/2"
Pretty Petals (138442) - 5 1/4 x 4; 1 1/4 x 3 3/8"

Accessories: Big Shot, Magnetic Platform, Circles Collection framelits, SNAIL adhesive, Bitty Butterfly punch (129406)

And now for the video tutorial: thanks for watching

 

To place an order for products used to make this card, click on any of the photos below. And if you want to see other cards created using this same layout idea, click here to head on over to the Paper Craft Crew website - we'd love to see your card using the same layout!

Papillon Potpourri Clear-Mount Stamp Set

Tin Of Cards Photopolymer Stamp Set

Pretty Petals Designer Series Paper Stack

Circles Collection Framelits Dies

 

Organizing your ink refills

Are you an organization-crazy person? Do you have trouble with inspiration because your crafting room is too unorganized and distracting?

Here's a great idea for organizing your ink pad refills, thanks to one of Stampin' Up!s senior concept artists! Angie writes:

For a long time I stored my Classic Stampin’ Ink Refills on the top of my Color Caddy. Makes sense—the bottle colors were supposed to be in the container above the row of corresponding ink pad colors. However, when I needed one I would end up looking through many (if not all the bottles in that section)—twice—to find the one I wanted to use. Sometimes I wouldn’t find it at all because I didn’t return it to the proper location the last time it was used. (It seems like a silly thing to be frustrated over, but there you go!)

 So, a while back I decided that it was time to reorganize my refills! My thought process . . . will I organize them by spectrum? Where will I put them? How can they be easily accessed?

Here was my solution!

Each color family is in its own placon box—and to my surprise, they all fit together . . . nice and snug! They don’t slide around, turn upside down, or end up out of order (heaven forbid)! And— because the cute factor IS important—I added labels to the boxes with the Labels Collection Framelits Dies and my favorite cardstock color from each color family. (Tip: To protect the label from getting dirty, die cut a label Window Sheet piece to attach over the top.) 

Of course, with the new storage boxes coming out, and new colors, I knew it was already time for an update. And, wouldn’t you know—MDS is here to help me, too! There is a new download called “Label This Craft Room.” It is a great tool for organizing your craft room/space supplies. This time, I made the font my favorite color and printed on Whisper White Cardstock:

I hope this little tidbit has helped—and that when you can buy the new storage boxes on May 31, you’ll be just as excited to organize. I have certainly wanted to use my refills more often now that I can find the one I need in a jiff!

What additional organization tips and tricks would you like to read about? I'd love to hear your answers!

Make a beautiful homemade gift

I have always felt that a home-made gift shows how much you care about the person receiving the gift - that you took the time to create something just for him or her. 

A home-made gift doesn't have to look that way! Here's a beautiful gift idea using the Market Fresh stamp set and designer paper: 

Stamps: Market Fresh

Paper: Whisper White, Farmers Market, Metallic Foil Doilies

Ink: Jet Black StazOn, 2015-17 In Color markers, Neutrals markers, Subtles markers

Accessoires: 4x6" Cellophane bags, Gold Metallic Baker's Twine, Gold Sequin Trim, 2 1/2" Circle punch

Instructions

1. Stamp the strawberries in Jet Black StazOn ink on Whisper White Cardstock.
2. Punch out the strawberries image using the 2-1/2" Circle Punch.
3. Color the strawberries and leaves using the Crumb Cake, Pear Pizzazz, and Watermelon Wonder Stampin' Write Markers.
4. Adhere Gold Sequin Trim to the back of the stamped strawberry tag. Adhere the tag to a Gold Metallic Foil Doily.
5. Tie a bow using the Gold Metallic Baker's Twine and adhere it to the stamped tag.
6. Cut the Farmers Market Designer Series Paper in a banner shape and adhere it to the cellophane bag.
7. Adhere the stamped tag to the cellophane bag.

What Stampin' Up! home-made gifts have you made and given away?

Add one big meaning to your cards

The One Big Meaning stamp set was on my first order from the Annual Catalog, yet sad to say, not many of my friends ask to purchase thank you cards from me. Why have we stopped saying thank you to each other?

I know if you thought about all the kind deeds out there there is somebody you could say thank you to so today's card provides you with an eye-catching idea to try:

 

To create this card I used the Bohemian designer series paper, some Bermuda Bay ribbon, three banner embellishments and one Basic Metal button. Quick easy and oh, so stunning!

Why not try making a thank you card and giving it to someone deserving? It's all about kindness! 

If you want to learn amazing thank you card ideas, hop on board my Creative Express Catalog Tour for  August - it's all about thank you projects!

 

Banner Punch
$13.00

Bohemian Designer Series Paper
$11.00

One Big Meaning Clear-Mount Stamp Set
$19.00

Generated by SUDSOL, Free Trial at www.sudsol.org

Three Time-Saving Tips For Your Summer Stamping!

Summer has arrived and I know you want to be outdoors enjoying the sunshine and holiday fun with friends and family, who wouldn't! But we also know there are thundery days and days where it is just too hot to be outside so today I have time-saving tips for your summer stamping.

Tip #1

Paper Pumpkin. A unique monthly kit comes to your door ready for an afternoon of crafting fun. If you have children who love crafts these kits can provide a couple of hours of fun for everyone (think Grandma and me time or Mommy and me time!). Learn more about Paper Pumpkin here. 

Tip #2

Project Kits. We have several in the Annual Catalog: Hello Life, Perpetual Birthday, Sweet Stack and Tin of Cards to mention a few of the great ones. I love our kits because they come with almost everything you need and you can work on them as you have time and then tuck them away until your next crafting day. 

Tip #3

 Project Life by Stampin' Up!. I just know you are taking tons of photos this summer to remember all your great adventures so don't leave them in your camera or on your computer. Create some fun pocket pages, add your journaling and then develop your photos and slip them into the page pockets when the time if right for you. Our Project Life card collections and accessory packs make memory making a breeze! And if you need help getting started with ideas, join my Project Life Virtual Club. 

You don't have to use stamps on a card

No, that's right. You don't have to use stamps to create an amazing card. I have a great idea that uses one pack of thinlits and some cool paper, along with a fun and easy technique. 

Here's the card I created:

To make this card I used my Circle Card thinlits, a strip of Go Wild designer series paper, and a piece of Color Me Irresistible Specialty paper. 

And here's the technique:

1. Cut your Color Me Irresistible Specialty paper to size.

2. Choose your ink pad (I used Tip Top Taupe).

3. Sponge the ink color across the specialty paper in a circular motion:

4. Let the specialty paper dry for a bit then attach to your card where needed. 

And your card is done and with not a stamp in sight!

Want to try this technique at home? Purchase the Color Me Irresistible Specialty paper (138439) here at my Online Store - and don't miss out on the Clearance Rack items and Weekly Deals!

 

 

Remember this Celebration

There are so many people in our lives that we want to celebrate so why not have a stack of cards ready and waiting for those moments? Here's a fun card that's easy to create using your Big Shot and Stars framelits:

Celebration Card

Stamp Set: Remember This (135786)

Ink: Tip Top Taupe

Paper (and cutting dimensions)

    Watermelon Wonder: 8 1/2 x 5 1/2"; 1 1/2 x 3"

    Tip Top Taupe: 2 1/2 x 6 1/2"

    Whisper White: 4 x 5 1/4"

    Delightful Dijon: 4 1/8 x 5 3/8"

Accessories: Big Shot, Platform, Lucky Stars embossing folder (135817), Magnetic Platform, Stars framelits (133723), Rhinestone Jewels, SNAIL adhesive, Stampin' Dimensionals, Basic Rhinestone Jewels

And now for the video tutorial: enjoy!

 

To place an order for the products used to make this fun card, click on any of the photos below to take you over to my Online Store. And don't miss my Clearance Rack and Weekly Deals to save $$!

Stars Framelits Dies
$12.79

Lucky Stars Textured Impressions Embossing Folders
$7.50

Project Life Remember This Photopolymer Stamp Set
$16.00

 

Watercolor Wings for the butterfly crafting rave

Butterflies are all the rage in the crafting world especially for card making. And today I have a beautiful Watercolor Wings card idea for you to try at home:

And here's a list of the products you will use along with the instructions to make it too!

Watercolor Wings

Supplies: 

* Stamp Sets: Watercolor Wings (P-139424), Endless Birthday Wishes (P-140273), You’ve Got This (c-139575, w-139572) 

* Inks: Blackberry Bliss (133642), Perfect Plum (126963), Pink Pirouette (126956), VersaMark (102283) 

* Paper: Blackberry Bliss (133675), Whisper White (100730), Perfect Plum (101889), Gold Foil Sheets (132622) 

* Misc: SNAIL Adhesive (104332), Stampin’ Dimensionals (104430), Mini Glue Dots (103683), Big Shot Die-Cutting Machine (113439), Bold Butterfly Framelits (138135), Pearl Basic Jewels (119247), Stampin’ Emboss Powder Gold (109129), Embossing Buddy (103083)Glimmer Paper Gold (133719), Bone Folder (102300) 

Measurements: 

* Perfect Plum 8-1/2 x 5-1/2 

* Blackberry Bliss 4-1/8 x 5-1/4 

* Whisper White 3 x 3 (for stamping butterfly), 2-1/4 x 1-1/4 (for stamping sentiment) 

* Gold Glimmer 1-1/2 x 1- ¼ 

* Gold Foil 2-1/2 x 1-1/2 

 

Instructions: 

1. Fold Perfect Plum cardstock in half and crease. This will be your card base. 

2. Take Embossing Buddy and run over the piece of Blackberry Bliss cardstock. Using VersaMark Ink, stamp the “grid” image onto the piece of Blackberry Bliss cardstock and emboss with Gold Emboss Powder. 

3. Using Watercolor Wings and 3 x 3 piece of Whisper White cardstock, stamp solid image in Pink Pirouette and using large butterfly framelit, cut out using Big Shot. Tip: It is easier to line up the “body” of the butterfly on the second stamp if the first image is already cut out. 

4. Stamp second butterfly image in Perfect Plum; stamp third (“detail”) image in Blackberry Bliss (stamp off on scrap paper and then stamp on Butterfly stamped image. 

5. Adhere to card front using 4 Stampin’ Dimensionals. 

6. Using small piece of Gold Glimmer Paper, cut out smaller butterfly and adhere to middle of stamped butterfly using Mini Glue Dots. Attach 3 small pearls onto butterfly body. 

7. Stamp sentiment onto 2-1/4 x 1-1/4 piece of Whisper White Cardstock. Adhere onto small Gold Foil piece. Attach this piece to card base using SNAIL or Stampin’ Dimensionals.

Join my team and join the fun!

This is the perfect month to join my team! A brand new catalog and the Holiday Catalog pre-order coming soon means this is the time to learn the benefits of becoming a Stampin' Up! demonstrator:

• 20-percent discount on all products. 
• the flexibility of setting your own hours and working from home; it provides income and you are your own boss. 
• see and purchase new Stampin' Up! products first. 
• amazing support:
• A bimonthly magazine filled with project ideas and business training,A demonstrator website dedicated to providing you with training and information for your business,
• A Demonstrator Business Web Services site where your customers can see the products and classes you have to offer and even place orders with you,
• And beautiful, exclusive artwork and high-quality products to offer your customers

You can start your own Stampin' Up! business for only $99! You even get to completely customize your Starter Kit with the items you want. It also comes with the business supplies you need to get your business off to a great start.

$99 Starter Kit - but you get $125 in Stampin' Up! products (that's $26 FREE)! 

Your Starter Kit ships for FREE (another savings!) and you'll get a 20% discount on all products you purchase as a Stampin' Up! demonstrator. 

You will receive FREE catalogs and be among the first to pre-order products from upcoming catalogs!

Why not give it a try? Join Stampin' Up! and my team and get all demonstrator discounts and benefits for your first full Stampin' Up! quarter (a minimum of three full months). If you reach $300 in sales and purchases by the end of your first full quarter you will automatically renew for another quarter!

Join my team and join the FUN! (Hobby stampers welcome!) I offer training, tips, inspiration, and best of all, friendship! Go here and then click: Join Now!

What to do when your ink pads run dry

It becomes very clear to me what my favorite Stampin' Up! ink pad colors are, espeically when I ink up an image, stamp it down on card stock and notice that the image is quite faded. Ink it again, pressing a bit harder this time, stamp it down a bit harder this time and....nope, it's still faded. 

Solution? It's time to reink your  stamp pads! Every color of ink pad comes with a coordinating bottle of ink refill and I recommend you purchase the lighter colors soon after you purchase the ink pads. 

Stampin' Up! has created a training video for Stampin' UP! demonstrators showing us not only how to use the new foam ink pads but also how to reink them. Want to watch too?

I love that Stampin' Up! makes videos for demonstrators too - their support and training is next to none!

 

Preserving memories can be as fun as making them!

This past year has been filled with amazing adventures through travel and with new friends I have made:

I know that years from now I will have forgotten the details of these special moments so I was thrilled to hear that Stampin' Up! had partnered with Becky Higgins to create Project Life by Stampin' Up! And I have started a Project Life Virtual Club to help you get started on a Project Life 2015 album.

Have you heard about my Project Life Virtual Club?

 Join this club if you:

• have memories that you want to preserve forever but you don't have time to scrapbook
• have piles of photos gathering dust somewhere in your home
• need a fast, easy and fun memory keeping system
• are new to Project Life by Stampin' Up! and want amazing ideas for your page layouts
• have been playing with Project Life and are ready to take your pages to a new level of creativity

This is a six-month club and you can join in anytime! And as a special bonus, when you complete your final month of my Project Life Virtual Club you get an Ah-mazing thank you bonus!

Want to learn more about my Project Life Virtual Club? Click here!