Thank you, Sandi!

My friend Sandi has been such a great friend in so many ways, not the least of which is opening up her home and hosting not only a Stampin’ Up workshop, but a class as well. I saw some super cute little packets that some other demonstrators had made up including little packs of ribbon. The ribbon was wound in spools around card stock punched with the round tab punch. What a great idea, and super cute to boot! So I cut a yard each of the striped ribbon from the six in-colors, and punched a matching tab.

I wound the ribbon around the tab

And packaged them up nice and pretty, using the Sale-a-Bration Yummy set!

Stamps: Yummy
Ink: Pacific Point
Paper: Baja Breeze, Kiwi Kiss, Pacific Point, Riding Hood Red, Tangerine Tango, Pink Pirouette
Accessories: In-Color Striped Grosgrain Ribbon, Round Tab Punch, Medium Cello Bags, Top Note Bigz Die, Big Shot

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Sock Monkey!

I love, love, love the colors that Kristina Werner picked for today’s color inspiration! They are so bright and fun and happy! And since there was even a shade of brown in there, I decided to use my sock monkey set! Here are today’s colors:

I wanted to make the card look really fun, so I created a card with the large scallop circle big shot. I made the fold (at the top) by folding a piece of cardstock and placing it on the die so that the fold was INSIDE the cutting area. This gave me a quick, easy, beautifully shaped card! I cut the circle layers with my new Circle Scissors Plus. I love it! It is so quick and easy and makes great circles in all sizes. Enough of an intro! Here is my card:

Stamps: Sock Monkey, Family Phrases
Ink: StazOn Black
Paper: Ruby Red, Brocade Blue, Old Olive, Pumpkin Pie, Whisper White
Accessories: Watercolor Wonder Crayons, Stampin’ Write Markers, Scallop Circle Bigz Die, Big Shot, Circle Scissors Plus, Stampin’ Dimensionals

Thanks for looking!

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Wow Flowers!

I’m trying to do more of the challenges on Splitcoast Stampers, because truthfully, I don’t think I even would have become a Stampin’ Up demonstrator if it wasn’t for the talented women, fabulous ideas, and wonderful resources available at Splitcoast Stampers. And I love this part of my life! So this week’s color challenge over at Splitcoast is “Summer kiwi pies” — Summer Sun, Kiwi Kiss, and Pumpkin Pie. (Have you noticed that just about every color challenge lately has Kiwi Kiss in it? Kinda crazy!) I didn’t have a lot of time, so I took a card that I loved, and had already copied in the original colors, and changed it to fit the color challenge. I used Wow Flowers, a cute little set that makes great cards very easily.

Stamps: Wow Flowers

Paper: Kiwi Kiss, Summer Sun, Pumpkin Pie, Whisper White

Ink: Kiwi Kiss, Summer Sun, Pumpkin Pie

Accessories: Kiwi Kiss Striped Ribbon, Rhinestone Brad, 1 1/4″ Circle Punch, 1 3/8″ Circle Punch, Scallop Circle Punch

I made need to try this in a few other colors as well!

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Just Hoppin’

Every month there is a Demonstrator Only challenge on Splitcoast Stampers called the WICKED challenge. It stands for Wonderfully Inspiring Challenges Keep Educating Demos. It general consists of three parts — a color challenge, a sketch challenge, and a technique challenge. This month I decided to do just the color challenge part. February’s colors are Kiwi Kiss, Baja Breeze and Chocolate Chip. They are absolutely fantastic colors together! Looking at the Kiwi Kiss, I just knew I had to use those wacky frogs in the new Hoppy for You set. Here’s the card I came up with:

Stamps: Hoppy for You

Paper: Whisper White, Baja Breeze, Chocolate Chip, Bella Rose DSP

Ink: Kiwi Kiss, Chocolate Chip

Accessories: Scallop Edge Punch, 1 1/4″ Circle Punch, 1 3/8″ Circle Punch

Have a hoppy day!

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A Little Birdie Told Me…

A little birdie told me to use this set for Mojo Monday! I haven’t inked up this set in a while and I think it was calling my name. I also new that I wanted to use the Sale-a-Bration DSP, Delicate Dots. I love to paper piece the birdie, I think it looks super cute! It worked great to combine this set, this paper, and this sketch challenge. Here is this week’s sketch:

And here is my card:

Stamps: A Little Birdie Told Me
Ink: Stazon Black, Stampin’ Write Markers (Certainly Celery, So Saffron)
Paper: Bashful Blue, Certainly Celery, So Saffron, Whisper White, Delicate Dots DSP
Accessories: Eyelet Border Punch, Soft Subtles Brads, Rich Regals Brads

I’m thinking about using this card for a friend that I just found out was pregnant. Thanks for looking!

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Get Well Soon

I think masculine cards are the hardest to make. Not funny ones, not lovey ones, but real masculine cards. So when my co-librarian asked me to make a get well card for his grandfather, I knew it was going to be rough. There is one set, though, that is always a good one to turn to for manly cards — Lovely as a Tree. You just can’t go wrong with Lovely as a Tree! I based my design off of this card, but I used the new Stampin’ Up Texturz plate harlequin design for the background. The sentiment is from the Chit-Chat rub ons. If you haven’t tried Stampin’ Up’s rub-ons, you really need to. They are head and shoulders above the rest! And the Chit Chat pack is amazing! There are 92 different sentiments, in both Chocolate Chip and Whisper White. That’s 184 sentiments for only $10.95! That’s less than 6 cents a piece! Crazy!

Stamps: Lovely as a Tree
Ink: Chocolate Chip, Creamy Caramel, Always Artichoke (Stampin’ Write Markers)
Paper: Always Artichoke, Chocolate Chip, Close to Cocoa, Whisper White
Accessories: Rich Regal Brads, Chit Chat Rub-Ons, Stampin’ Up Backgrounds 1 Texturz Plates

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Australian Bush Fire Help

I am sure that you have heard about the recent bush fires in Australia. As usual, Stampin’ Up has stepped in to help! They recently released this press release on the demonstrator side of their web site:

Stampin’ Up!’s Support for the Fires in Australia
February 20, 2009

With the fires that have recently ravaged southern Australia, this nation has suffered its largest natural disaster in history. Reports from our Australian office have joyfully confirmed that all our demonstrators are safe and accounted for. However, as the tragedy unfolded, we at the corporate office in the US–along with the offices in Australia and New Zealand–felt a compelling need to help and offer support to the survivors.

To respond to this tragedy, we quickly organized a relief effort in Australia and New Zealand designed to donate 50 percent of the sales of a select group of stamps to the Australian Red Cross. This donation will continue throughout the entire month of March.

Demonstrators in Australia and New Zealand have responded with gratitude and a spirit of service. They are actively encouraging their customers to support the relief by purchasing stamp sets. Many demonstrators are also contributing by happily offering a part or all of the commissions they earn from the sales of these sets.

Although the official Stampin’ Up! relief effort is available only to those living in Australia and New Zealand, you are free to contribute to the Australian Red Cross if you would like to.

If you are in Australian or New Zealand, please contact your local demonstrator to help out! The sets included in this offer are:

Looks Like Spring
Priceless
Seeing Spots
Baroque Motifs
The Snowflake Spot
Bodacious Bouquet
Polka Dots & Paisley
G’day Mate
Be Happy
Live Your Dream

If you are here in the United States, I will also be donating my commission from sales of these sets through the end of March. Only the first four sets, in bold, are currently available in the US, the rest are only in Australia (sorry). Please contact me if you have any questions about this.

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Big Shot to the Rescue

I had another Big Shot moment the other day. My most favorite, most comfortable, most worn pair of jeans got a hole in the knee. And it is just too cold to be walking around with a hole in the knee! So once again it was Iron-on patches and the Big Shot to the rescue! (Remember the first pair of jeans I patched like this?) I didn’t want to use the same bandana fabric again, so this time I just used a darker jean material. I die cut the patch into a large scalloped circle, and ironed it on. I love my Big Shot!

The only thing that would be cuter would be to layer another scalloped circle on top of this one, in a different pattern, of course! I think I might need to go find some more iron-on patches in different fabrics!

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Super Cute Box o’ Cards!

I made the super cute box of 3″ x 3″ cards from the tutorial on SplitCoast Stampers. It was the doorprize at the Valentine’s Day workshop in Ashby at the end of January. Well, the women who were there loved it so much they requested a class to make their own! We’ll be getting together and doing just that next Friday night! If you are in the area and want to come, please let me know, we only have one or two spots left. (You can always check my events page to see what fun things I am doing and where!)

Here is the box we are making. It uses the Delicate Dots Designer Series Paper, which is available for FREE during Sale-a-Bration, the Sale-a-Bration ribbon bundle, and the Dreams Du Jour Stamp set.

We’ll make two each of these three cards to go inside the box.

If you can’t make it next Friday, or live too far away, I am happy to announce that I am selling the kit to make these boxes and cards by mail! Please contact me for details.

Stamps: Dreams Du Jour
Ink: Certainly Celery, Bashful Blue, So Saffron
Paper: Certainly Celery, Bashful Blue, So Saffron, Whisper White, Delicate Dots DSP
Accessories: Scallop Edge Punch, Certainly Celery Poly Twill Ribbon

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Fall Colors?

I was surpised at the colors in Kristina Werner’s Color Inspiration today. They felt very fall-ish. Which was not at all what I needed on this cold and snowy evening. I wanted Bright! But, as they say in kindergarten, “You get what you get and you don’t get upset.” Today’s colors are:

I made flowers anyway. I saw this idea with the Polka Dot Punches and Stem Sayings tied together with a ribbon on an Australian Stampin’ Up Demonstrator’s blog (or maybe New Zealand?). But I can’t find it now. So if this is your idea, will you let me know please? I like how it came out. I’m really liking the Polka Dot punches embossed in white. Remember Polka Dot Punches is only available in February and March, and you can earn it for FREE with any $50 purchase.

Stamps: Polka Dot Punches, Stem Sayings
Ink: Kiwi Kiss, VersaMark
Paper: More Mustard, Really Rust, Kiwi Kiss, Whisper White
Accessories: Kiwi Kiss Satin Ribbon, 5 Petal Flower Punch, Scallop Circle Punch, 1″ Circle Punch, White EP

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