MY 8TH ANNIVERSARY

It's hard to believe, but I became a Stampin' Up! demonstrator eight years ago!  Eight years!!!!  My son was only 12 years old, and I was . . . eight years younger than I am today.  Through the years, I have learned a lot about stamping and paper crafts, and I have accumulated a lot of product.  A lot of product!  I have had the opportunity to be a part of design teams, and I've had some projects published in national publications.  I have had many classes, and I've made many new friends through my love of paper crafting and my association with Stampin' Up!  In honor of this anniversary, I decided to use My Digital Studio to create a Subway art-ish collage for my stamp room.  All of the images used for my collage are, of course, digital designs that are available for Stampin' Up!'s My Digital Studio software, which is so fun and easy to use!  Truth be told, I spent about 20 minutes on this design and, even though I could have given a lot more thought to the project, I'm satisfied with it.  To all of my wonderful friends and customers who have been on this awesome journey with me and to all of my demo friends . . . THANK YOU!!!  Becoming a Stampin' Up! demonstrator has been one of the best things I ever did for myself!  If you'd like to see a larger version of either photograph, just click on it.  ;-)

"FREESTYLE FRIDAYS"

It's Julie's turn to share a creative project today, and I am anxious to see the whole thing.  I can tell that she used that really fun window die, and I love the die-cut bird and embossed designer paper but what's really popping on this sneak peek is the splash of red!  Love it!!!!  I hope you'll join me in visiting Julie's blog today to see her project.  I know she'd love to hear from you, so how about taking a few minutes to leave a comment for her?  Have a great weekend!

"APOTHECARY ART" EASEL CARD

Today's card was inspired by the sketch for Craft Project Central's Card Challenge #9.  There's just something fun, interesting, and intriguing about a card that does something besides simply open and close, and I happen to love easel cards!  Sometimes when I send an easel card to someone, I wonder how long it will take them to figure out what to do with it and I have, on occasion, sent along instructions.  For this card, I used one of Stampin' Up!'s pattern paper stacks, "Kindness Matters" and "Apothecary Art" stamp sets, satin ribbon, Sizzix Beautiful Wings embosslits die, rhinestone jewels, Labels Collection Framelits dies, and Scallop Edge Border punch.  The sentiment is from the "Curvy Verses" stamp set.

"SUNRISE" - HAVE A GOOD DAY

Isn't this a cheery card???  It's my latest shaped card, created with images from the "Country Life" Cricut cartridge.  I don't remember where the stamped sentiment came from, but it seemed perfect for this card. 

TREAT HOLDER GETS SHAPED EDGES FROM FRAMELITS DIE

This project reminds me of a box that I made years ago that had a door hanger on the upper end of it, but I like this one much better, mostly because of the decorative edges at the top and the front of the box.  I used Stampin' Up!'s "Labels Collection" Framelits dies to cut the decorative edges of the card stock and the "Attic Boutique" designer paper.  All products used to create this project are from Stampin' Up! and include the Soft Suede taffeta ribbon, crochet trim, hemp twine, rhinestone jewels, silver glimmer paper, and the following punches:  Eyelet Border, Blossom Bouquet Triple Layer, and Butterfly.

BLOG AWARD!!!

What a surprise to find out today that my stampin' friend, Nancy Dawson, has presented my blog with a Liebster Blog Award!  Thank you, Nancy! 

To accept the award, the following had to be done:

~  Pass the award to five other people whose blogs (with fewer than 200 followers) inspire me;

~  Leave a comment on their blog so they know about their new award;

~  Link back to the person's blog who awarded my blog;

~  Post the award on my blog.

It wasn't easy, but the five blogs that I selected to receive the Liebster Blog Award are:

Laura Lipe - www.smileslaura.blogspot.com

Julie Beaulieu - www.designedwithyouinmind101.blogspot.com

Tammy Howell - www.tarheelstamper.blogspot.com

Patrice Herrera - www.mylittlepatchofdirt.blogspot.com

Sherry Beeson - www.sherrystampinroom.blogspot.com (love the music)

And don't forget to visit Nancy Dawson's blog at www.creativewishes.blogspot.com

"MAKE-IT-SNAPPY-MONDAY"

Instead of a card, I decided to make a gift item for the MISM project today, and this one was easy peasy!  I cut a piece of Twitterpated designer paper in half and then die-cut both pieces with Stampin' Up!'s "Fancy Favor" XL die.  For the striped (box) portion of my project, I just folded all of the scored lines and adhered the box into shape.  For the gray top, I used the paper trimmer to slice off the box flaps so that I could use this piece as a top to close the box.  The top just slips off with the seam binding and floral embellishment staying intact.  Other Stampin' Up! products used on this project include "Mixed Bunch" and "Clearly for You" stamp sets, Blossom punch, small Oval punch, Baker's twine, Blossom Petals Builder punch, 3/4" Circle punch, and Eyelet Border punch.

"FAITH IN NATURE" MASCULINE

Stampin' Up!'s "Faith in Nature" stamp set is just beautiful, and it seemed like the perfect choice for the masculine birthday card that I needed to make.  In a non-boastful way, I'm quite pleased with this card.  I stamped the pear image twice, but I colored and cut out one pear and leaf and placed them on the other stamped image with Stampin' Dimensionals.  The sentiment is from the ever-so-handy "Happiest Birthday Wishes" stamp set.  It just occurred to me that both stamp sets that I used to design this card are hostess sets, but I think they should be added to the catalog and stick around for a while because they're awesome!  Although this card started as a regular A2 size, I decided that a 4.25" square cut would be best so the tag wouldn't just be resting across a mass of Very Vanilla card stock.  I like how the tail of the tag hangs over the right edge of the card.

FREESTYLE FRIDAYS

With her Freestyle Fridays post last week, Julie issued a mission for me to use "Everyday Enchantment" designer paper this week.  One of my favorite techniques is faux quilting, so that's what I decided to do.  This project features the following Stampin' Up! products:

Card Stock:  Chocolate Chip textured, Very Vanilla

Ink:  Chocolate Chip, Lucky Limeade

Stamp Sets:  Kindness Matters, In Stitches (jumbo wheel images converted to stamps)

Sizzix:  Big Shot, Labels Collection Framelits dies, Square Lattice embossing folder

Punches:  Scallop Circle, Blossom Petals Builder

Accessories:  "Everyday Enchantment" designer paper and coordinating ribbon, antique brad, Stamp-a-ma-jig

In this post, you can learn more about how I converted the "In Stitches" jumbo wheel to wood-mounted stamps so that I could use the assorted stitch designs individually.  This is a great way to get added value from any of the stampin' wheels, but it's an especially good idea for the "In Stitches" wheel because it will offer so many more (and better) uses for those pretty stitches!

Remember . . . Stampin' Up!'s Sale-a-Bration promotion ends this month so, if you'd like to earn any of the SAB products FREE, I'd appreciate it if you shop with me!  Just click the "Shop 24 Hours" sign in the right sidebar on my blog.

"ATTIC BOUTIQUE" 12X12 LAYOUT

I'm not a scrapbooker, but the idea for this layout hit me from out of the blue and was one of "those" projects that demanded my attention until it was complete.  A lot of Stampin' Up! products were used to create this layout, such as the "Attic Boutique" designer paper and "Watercolor Trio" stamp set.

CROCS RULE!

Sharing another shaped card designed with my Gypsy using the "Crocs Rule" Cricut cartridge.  Isn't this croc cute sitting in the tub, sporting a shower cap and ready to scrub his back with the brush? 

"MAKE-IT-SNAPPY-MONDAY"

I've got a super simple MISM project to share today!!  I hesitated to add the Pear Pizzazz seam binding, but the little splashes of green work nicely on this 3" x 6" (folded) card.  Stampin' Up! products used to create this card include Whisper White, Concord Grape, and Pear Pizzazz card stock, Wisteria Wonder striped designer paper, "Mixed Bunch" and "Petite Pairs" stamp sets, Blossom Bouquet Triple Layer punch (for the center of the flower), Blossom punch, Tag punches, Dotted Scallop Ribbon Border punch, Blossom Petals Builder punch (for the leaves), and gold glimmer brad.

JULIE'S "FREESTYLE FRIDAYS" PROJECT

It's time for Freestyle Fridays, and it looks like Julie has used "Everyday Enchantment" designer paper for her project today.  Aren't the colors gorgeous???  I'm anxious to see the whole project but will have to visit her blog for that and to read more about it.  I'm sure Julie will have a mission for me posted on her blog, and you might want to challenge yourself to accomplish the mission!  Have a great weekend!

"WATERCOLOR TRIO" SYMPATHY

A sympathy card was needed for one of my husband's co-workers and, knowing that my husband prefers simplicity, I thought this was a perfect design.  Lately, I've been seeing some really pretty cards with backgrounds stamped with markers and acrylic blocks but, to be completely honest, I have had no success achieving a pretty background by making marker swipes on acrylic blocks.  Even so, I tried once more and didn't like the look, and then I remembered that I had saved the negative rubber from the center part of the frame in the "Elementary Elegance" stamp set.  That scrap rubber was the PERFECT tool for achieving the "marker swipe" background that I wanted!  Stampin' Up! products featured on this card include "Watercolor Trio" and "Elementary Elegance" stamp sets, Soft Suede, Pool Party, and Crumb Cake ink, Crumb Cake, Basic Black, and Whisper White card stock, oval punches, Scallop Edge Border punch, and taffeta ribbon.

GUESS WHO LOVES YOU

Some new goodies arrived yesterday and, of course, I had to play!  I wanted to keep things simple, and it was really easy to do with this 4.25" square card.  Stampin' Up! products featured on this card include Naturals Ivory, Lucky Limeade, and Peach Parfait card stock, "Everyday Enchantment" designer paper, Pool Party ruffled ribbon, designer brad, Adorning Hearts embossing folder, Eyelet Border punch, and "Happy Greetings" stamp set. 

LOVE YOU A LATTE

My grandmother will be happy when she checks the mail this week (hopefully, tomorrow) and finds this little "love you a latte" shaped card.  Over the weekend, I got caught up on some card swaps and designed a few shaped cards using my Gypsy.  Lord, help me if anything ever happens to my Gypsy!  The images for this card are from the "Love You a Latte" cartridge, which I was thrilled to purchase because I fell in love with it the first time I saw it and noticed that many of the images could be used for shaped cards.  Of course, I had to use some Stampin' Up! products, such as the gorgeous "Mocha Morning" specialty designer paper, red glimmer paper, Heart to Heart punch, linen thread, and Whisper White card stock.  I'll bet mamaw will want to make a cup of coffee when she gets this card!

"MAKE-IT-SNAPPY-MONDAY"

For today's MISM project, I decided to create a set of four quick cards using Stampin' Up!'s "Everyday Enchantment" designer paper and an "Adorning Accents" die and embossing folder to cut an opening for the sentiment on each card.  Other Stampin' Up! products used to create these cards include:

Card Stock:  Very Vanilla, Lucky Limeade, Peach Parfait, and Poppy Parade

Stamp Sets:  Pennant Parade, Curly Cute, Perfect Words

Punches:  Itty Bitty Shapes (scallop circle and heart), Petite Pennants Builder, Butterfly,  and Heart to Heart

Accessories:  "Everyday Enchantment" ribbon and brad pack, rhinestone jewels

SPARKLY STAINED GLASS FOR "FREESTYLE FRIDAYS"

Happy Friday to you!!!  It's my turn to share a Freestyle Fridays project and, since Julie issued a mission for me to create something with glitter, I tried the Sparkly Stained Glass technique.  How fun!!!!  I anticipated making a mess since that's something that just seems to happen when I open a container of glitter, and I knew that I would be using several colors for this technique.  I spread out my craft mat, gathered some scrap paper to facilitate the funneling of excess glitter back into the containers, and grabbed a couple of tissues.  I wasn't sure if I'd use them to clean up a mess or wipe my tears, but it just seemed necessary to have them on standby.  Everything went surprisingly well!  I used the instructions on SCS for this technique but, basically, you stamp your image onto acetate (I used a transparency sheet), let the ink dry, dust the acetate with an Embossing Buddy (or powder), and turn it over so you're working with the backside.  Place Crystal Effects on all areas that will have the same color of glitter, and then sprinkle the glitter on.  Tap off the excess, return the excess glitter to the container, and repeat the process for each color of glitter that you plan to use.  When you're finished, go to bed and let the Crystal Effects dry while you snooze.  Don't be surprised if you wake the next day and find fairy dust in your bed--it's just the glitter that creeped into bed with you.  When you see your glittered project the next day, you'll be soooooooo excited because it will look stunning!  The next step for me was to die-cut the glittered acetate into the shape that I wanted to use on my card, and I realized that this would have been a very handy thing to have done FIRST.  I didn't have that forethought at 2:00 a.m. but, as you can see, my glittered acetate didn't suffer when I ran it through the Big Shot.  At this point, all that was left to do was to figure out the design for my card.  Stampin' Up! products used to create this card include:  Pear Pizzazz, Pacific Point, and Whisper White card stock, Square Lattice and Elegant Bouquet embossing folders, "Kindness Matters" and "Bordering on Romance" stamp sets, assorted glitter (Fine Supernova & Fine Cosmo that Stampin' Up! used to carry), Crystal Effects, Lace Ribbon Border punch, Labels Collection Framelits dies, Modern Label and Word Window punches, Stampin' Dimensionals, Organza ribbon, ribbon from the Sale-a-Bration Ribbon & Brad Pack (laced through the punched border), and pearl jewels.  The Elegant Bouquet embossing folder, I think, looked awesome on the corners of my Whisper White layer because the design looks a lot like my stamped image.  If you haven't tried the Sparkly Stained Glass technique, you really should because it is beautiful!  Julie, I know you and Frankii wore glitter last week after working on your project, and I suppose I'll be wearing it for a while, too.  Thanks for this great mission--it prompted me to try something new, and I liked it!

A PRETTY LITTLE BIRD ON A SHAPED CARD

Tonight I used my Gypsy and the Art Philosophy cartridge to design this very simple shaped card.  Since the designer paper has such pretty details, particularly the bird cage, I chose to add very little to the front.  Stampin' Up! products used on this card include Stampin' Dimensionals, ribbon, Baker's twine, rhinestone jewel, and the "Perfect Words" stamp set.

DIGITAL DESIGN: TRANSLUCENT PHOTO BACKGROUND & VIVID PHOTO STRIPS

This afternoon, I decided to play around with My Digital Studio and see if I could design a layout that looked as good at completion as it did in my head, and I'm pleased that it looks very much like I imagined.  To begin, I chose one photo to work with and used it as a translucent background for the layout.  I created four rectangular photo boxes and filled them with "strip cuts" from the actual full-color photo.  I kept this layout extremely simple by adding an eyelet border (color filled with Wild Wasabi striped "paper"), 1/4" white grosgrain ribbon and bows, and a tab that identifies that the photo was taken at Biltmore House in 2011.  One of the awesome things about My Digital Studio is being able to use photos in a variety of ways that are just not possible outside the realm of digital design.  Although my project was designed as a 12x12 scrapbook page, this same technique could be applied to a smaller project, such as a card.  It's pretty cool, huh?

SPRING/EASTER BLOG BANNER

Since Easter is a month away, I thought I'd go ahead and upload my Spring blog banner so that I can enjoy it for a month or so.  I am sooooooooooooo ready for Spring!!!  I used My Digital Studio and several Stampin' Up! digital images to design the new banner.  How do you like it?

WISH BIG - FOR MALENA

My great-niece is celebrating her 10th birthday today, and it's hard to believe that she's already in the double digits!  I sure would like to share a cupcake with her today but, unfortunately, that won't be happening.  As I made this card for Craft Project Central's Creating Pretty Cards - Challenge #9, my thoughts drifted to the fun times that Malena had using her own stamps and ink pads that I kept here just for her.  She would surely love to make one of these easel cards!  Stampin' Up! products used to create this card include Whisper White, Pool Party, Pink Pirouette, Real Red, and Soft Suede card stock, "Teeny Tiny Wishes" and "Word Play" stamp sets, "Sweet Shop" designer paper, 1/4" White Grosgrain ribbon, Stampin' Dimensionals, Rhinestone jewel, In Color Patterns designer paper stack, Jelly Bean brads, and the following punches:  Scallop Edge, Dotted Scallop Ribbon Border, Cupcake Builder, 2-1/2" Circle, Decorative Label, and 2-3/8" Scallop Circle.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY, MALENA!!!!  Aunt Nini loves you!!!!

"MAKE-IT-SNAPPY-MONDAY"



Another Monday has rolled around, and that means it's time for another MISM project.  Today's card features three colors of layered flowers and rhinestone jewels--a very simple card to put together, especially if you already have some punched flowers laying around.  All products used to create this card are from Stampin' Up! and include the Blossom Bouquet Triple Layer punch, Boho Blossoms punch, and scallop circle from the Itty Bitty Shapes punches.  Card stock colors are Very Vanilla, Rose Red, Pink Pirouette, and Early Espresso, and the ribbon is 1/4" Pretty in Pink grosgrain.  While typing this post, I am listening to Miranda Lambert's "Mama's Broken Heart".  If you haven't heard this song, you MUST head over to youtube.com and listen to it.  And remember . . .

Go and fix your make-up, girl, it's just a break-up;

Run and hide your crazy and start actin' like a lady

'cause I raised you better, gotta keep it together

even when you fall apart.

Powder your nose, paint your toes

line your lips and keep 'em closed.

Cross your legs and dot your I's

and never let 'em see you cry.

Have a great week!!

"APOTHECARY ART"

For quite some time, I've had two of these colored images laying on my desk, already die-cut and layered on the embossed Always Artichoke die-cut shape.  I wasn't sure what I wanted to do with them, but I decided tonight to go ahead and use one of them on a card.  I used the marker layering technique to color the stamped image, which is from the "Apothecary Art" stamp set.  Other Stampin' Up! products used to create this card include "Short & Sweet" stamp set, Labels Collection Framelits dies, designer button, Pink Pirouette and Whisper White card stock, Adorning Accents embossing folder, Square Lattice embossing folder, and Baker's twine.

SOMETIMES A "THANK YOU" IS JUST TOO BIG FOR A CARD

I don't believe I've shared this chunky album before, so there's no time like the present, right?  This project actually started as a thank you card for my grandmother.  Of course, I could tell very early on that it was going to be a mini album, and it just sort of evolved into a chunky one.  Mamaw is such a special lady, and she does the nicest things--she always has!  For my birthday in November, she surprised me with an AWESOME over-the-top to-the-max can't-be-beat gift, and that's why I wanted to make a multi-page, multi-pocket thank you album for her.  I thought she'd really enjoy discovering all of the little notes tucked into pockets and mini envelopes, and she did!  She still has this mini album "on display" almost four months later!  How long did it take to create this special album?  One whole day.  The entire day.  I mean . . . seriously . . . I was so far into the creating zone that I'm not sure I even took a potty break, and the room looked like a tornado had touched down (and took the time to look around to make sure it had destroyed every crevice).  Of course, I see things that I wish I had added, particularly embellishments, but this project was slated to be mailed the next day--and it got mailed that day!  Yes . . . sometimes a "thank you" is just too big for a card, and a chunky mini album isn't chunky enough for a special, special lady!

JULIE'S SPARKLY "FREESTYLE FRIDAYS" PROJECT

Would you look at the sparkle on the sneak peek photo that Julie sent for this week's Freestyle Fridays project?  Wowza!  I can hardly wait to see the whole project, but we'll have to hop over to her blog for that!  I wonder if my mission for next week is going to involve sparkly stuff.  I'm reminded of when I first started stamping and yearning for so many cool products with which to create, and glitter was something that always demanded attention, even though I didn't know how to use it.  I'll bet there was a time when I would have argued with anyone who said that I'd one day have a room full of stampin' goodies, and look at me now . . . there's hardly a place to store a brad in here.  Yes, that's "brad" . . . singular . . . hardly a place in my stamp room to store one tiny brad, although they occasionally embed safely out of sight in the berber carpet.  I hope you'll join me in visiting Julie's blog to see her beautiful project, and let's be sure to leave a little comment love for her.