New Scallop Trim Border Punch!

This Scallop Trim Border punch is a punch you can sale-a-brate; literally! You will be able to earn this punch for free during sale-a-bration; how cool is that?! Did you notice that it is a new punch style? The new style is designed for better punching leverage and space-saving storage (oh yes, yes, yes!!!)

And...if you loved our 5/8" whisper white satin ribbon...we now have it in more colors!!! The Occassions Mini and Sale-A-Bration have a lot more new and exciting products that I can't wait for you to see! I haven't decided on a date for my open house just yet...but I will be having one so that you can come and see (and touch) all of these fun new products and place your Sale-A-Bration order!

To see the punch and ribbon used on a card, just click on the title to this post!

I hope you have enjoyed the sneak peaks! I will not be making any blog posts from now until January 4th! I am going to spend the next few days preparing for Christmas and enjoying it with my family! After Christmas I will be working on cards for swaps, open house displays, classes, and my blog; all with new products from the Occassions Minis and Sale-A-Bration! Be sure to check back for all the exciting new posts that will start on January 4th!

Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year to you and your families!

Vintage Vogue Stamp Set Clear Mount!

Vintage Vogue is a new stamp set that will be available in the Occassions Mini! A new option in the Occassions Mini is clear-mount stamps! Like our wood-mount stamps, clear-mount stamps are also die-cut and they have an optional label that mkes it easy to locate your stamps and helps you easily position the rubber on your clear blocks. You will enjoy the same high-quality rubber and foam you've grown to love on our wood-mount stamps in our new clear-mount option. The clear-mount stamps sets will come in a handy storage case about the size of a typicald DVD case-which makes storing stamps in your existing shelves a cinch! Case front displays an insert withall stamp images at 100 percent. Spine shows thumnail images of all stamps, making it easy to find the stamp set you are looking for.

I opted to not put my labels on the foam because I think the foam clings better than the labels. I placed my labels inside the case and stuck the rubber images next to them in the case so I can identify them at a glance in the case. I am very excited about our new clear-mount option because after 13 years of stamping...space is an issue for me! lol!
Don't worry...if you are not interested in the clear-mount stamps...you can choose wood-mount; both options will be available to you!

To see a card made with this stamp set, click on the title to this post.

Serene Snowflake Stamp Set Featured

Serene Snowflakes
115438
Price: $20.95
They say no two snowflakes are alike. Why shouldn’t your projects be just as unique? With the Serene Snowflakes stamp set, they can be! These stylish snowflake images can be used for backgrounds or focal points for cards, pages or tags, and coordinate perfectly with the Icicle Rub-ons and Snowfall printed window sheets.

Serene Snowflakes is a beautiful stamp set! I love all the little details on the snowflakes. I remember looking at a coffee table book about snowflakes at a book store. The photos of the snowflakes were incredible! I am intrigued by the delightful little flakes even though I don't care much for driving in them. Believe it or not, if my memory serves me right, these stamps are a pretty good rendition of the detail in real snowflakes! Snowflake cards are very appropriate for the long winter season in Iowa! Plus, if you think outside the box of winter, you can use them year round! Click on the title for this post to see a card made with this set that could be used any time of the year!

Saturday Sketch

Here is a card sketch that I created just for you in My Digital Studio. The color combo is included! The colors are Pretty in Pink, Certainly Celery, So Saffron, and Bashful Blue. (Yes, I am "thinking spring" already! lol!) I hope you have set aside a few hours to have fun stamping this weekend. Have a great one!

Vintage Vogue Sneak Peek

My pre-order for the new Occassions Mini and Sale-A-Bration came early this week. I got to play with it for just a few hours and this was my creation! I was trying to come up with a project for a stamping get together with some friends and we were using a template. Between trying to figure out the new punch and fussing with my bow and button I only created one card! This card is stamped with a new set called Vintage Vogue. I liked it immediately as it reminded me of some old favorites! I also used a new jumbo wheel, Very Vintage, it coordinates well with this set! My color combo is Rich Razzleberry and Chocolate Chip. And yes, that Chocolate Chip 5/8" Satin Ribbon is new! The new punch is called, Scallop Trim Border...and guess what?! It's a FREE Sale-A-Bration product! Isn't that awesome! Early next week I will post a couple of photos of these new items for a sneak peak for you...so check back!

Sweet Centers

This is another card stamped at Stacy's! The stamp set is called Sweet Centers and it is only available until January 4th as it is in the holiday mini. This set is designed to go with the the Sweet Treat Cups. These can also be found in the holiday mini, but will be available going forward, unlike the stamp set. I have to confess that I am unsure of the color that is paired with the basic black! Yikes! It may be Melon Mambo... But...what an awesome idea for Valentine's Day! This card is pretty fancy...but if you want to do them up with your kids for school...just scale them back and go simpler! They will still look fabulous and impress the classmates!

Christ is Born

Back in October/November when I went to mom and dad's in Missouri and on the way down, stopped to visit Stacy, one of my demo friends, we stamped late into the night. This is one of the cards that she made and gave to me. She used the Christ is Born stamp set. She gold embossed the Christ is Born. She used Real Red to stamp the scripture. The color combo is simply stated with a red/white contrast. The Whisper White background layer is embossed with the Petals a Plenty embossing folder all combined to give this card an elegantly simple look. I think it is beautiful!

Serene Snowflakes Get Tie-Died!

I have to admit, when I first had this idea, I wasn't sure how it would turn out...but, wowza!!! I love it! I knew I had a teenager coming to my Serene Snowflakes class with her mom...so I wanted to do something just a little more "hip" for her and still have the rest of us "old people" like it. lol! I also knew that I wanted a little Crushed Curry in my Christmas collection created with Serene Snowflakes! This technique also looks best framed in black to make the images pop out of the "tie-die," so I decided to go with using the Frame, Oval Scallop die. This technique works best using glossy cardstock. I usually pick three colors that coordinate well together and will blend nice if overlapped. For this card I chose Crushed Curry, Melon Mambo, and Bermuda Bay; three of our In Colors this year. I use a sponge dauber and rub the color into the glossy cardstock in three areas for each color blending it well. Then I stamp my images over the top in black. The Crushed Curry background was textured using a SU! Backgrounds Texturz plate.

Serene Snowflake Shimmers in Silver

Hello bloggin' friends! The weekend got away from me. We had our Christmas program at church; it was fantastic! This is another one of the cards we made at my Serene Snowflakes card making class. We used the Top Note die, which I absolutely love! It is high on my list of favorites! The base of the card is Brushed Silver Metallic card stock. The Top Note layer is the Bride Specialty Paper in Whisper White. And...no...I am not crazy! lol! This paper was Whisper White until I brayered over it with Night of Navy ink! The design of the paper resists the ink; how cool is that?! Not only did it resist the ink...but the design then popped out as a very nice silver which is why I layered it on the brushed silver metallic card stock. I stamped the snowflake on our Shimmery White card stock in Night of Navy and brushed the edges with the same ink using a dauber. A clear, crystal brad finishes it off nicely! This is layered over the top note layer with a dimensional. It is a stunning card (if I do say so myself! lol!)

The Incredible Thing About Stamping

I know; I usually post a card. But, tonight, I watched Julie and Julia after a rather stressfull day. You see, my son's car went in the shop last week...so I loaned him my car. Today...my car died on him within a few miles of his workplace. Something that I am sure that has happened to most people. Your vehicle doesn't get you from A to B...and B just happens to be your bread and butter...or the livelihood of someone you love...well...you get the picture! What does that have to do with anything? Well...you see...I started to reflect about passion. Julia was passionate about cooking. I am passionate about stamping. I have always loved to create things. Over the years I have watched my grandmothers and mom create things. My dad's mother was a fantastic seamstress...and she could knit. My mom's mom...she could crochet you a house! Okay...maybe a slight exaggeration...but you get the idea! My mom...she could bake up a storm! Melt in your mouth lemon meringe pie...and divinity to die for! Yum! I, of course, was so impressed...I tried to do them all!!! Sewing, for me, was an exercise of sewing, ripping, sewing and more ripping...to the point of exasperation! Crocheting...well...let's just say...if it wasn't a really small project it kept growing, and growing, and growing; something like the bunny in the commercial that kept going...only not in a good way! My afghan project in home economics class was a warped speciman! My grandmother ripped it out...and crocheted it over...and I kid you not...she (not me) got an A++!!! I'm pretty sure if I had turned in my creation...it would have gotten an F--!! As a girl growing up in Barbie land, I was blessed by wonderful Barbie clothes on my birthday and Christmas's! My Barbie's outfits were sewn, knitted, and crocheted by my grandmother's...way more cool than anything that could be bought! I spent wonderful nights and days with my grandmother's learning how to sew, knit, and crochet...but somehow...a real passion for any of those things eluded me. Following a pattern, counting stitches...oh dear! I had to pay way too much attention to details and instructions; it truly seemed a drudgery! I dreamed of sewing beautiful dresses, crocheting gorgeous afghans, knitting beautiful baby ensembles...only to be frustrated by the process! Then, one day...a friend invited me to a stamp party...and I watched as the demonstrator took some card stock, a stamp, some ink, and some glitter...and made this fabulous card! Then...she let us make the card. I was hooked! I duplicated this card hundreds of times and mailed it out to all my family and friends for Christmas! Not long after, I stumbled into a company called Stampin' Up! After much deliberation, I decided to sign up for the kit and get the discount (never dreaming that I could actually sell the stuff!) However, I guess my passion for stamping was contagious...because 13 years later...here I am! I still love stamping! Card stock, color combos, ribbons, glitter, brads, eyelets, and so much more! All combined to send a message of cheer, hope, love, encouragement, sympathy, thinking of you, or just because! It's personal, it's from the heart, it's created from the inner recesses of one's self. An idea...an expression...it's unique! Even if copied...no two cards are exactly the same! Have I had to abandon an idea for a card? Absolutely! But somehow...abandoning an idea is not as devastating as realizing that you have not followed the directions correctly and that you have to rip out all those stitches! After all...an idea is just an idea! It can be tweaked, modified, subtly changed, and morphed into a creation beyond what you had imagined or hoped it could be! Hours can pass in the blink of an eye! I have to confess that at times, life has become overwhelming...and I have entertained the idea of giving up stamping; purely because I felt overwhelmed. Period. But then, I tried to imagine my life without it. I could not.

Serene Snowflakes Printed Window Sheets

Another card from my Serene Snowflakes card making class. I mostly copied this from a card idea that was in our Stampin' Success magazine that we demonstrators receive from Stampin' Up! I like my version better...! This exciting feature of this card is the printed Snowflake window sheet!

Serene Snowflakes Delivers Season's Greetings

The classic color combo of Real Red, Basic Black, and Whisper White make this a very striking card! We added some texture with a dotted Texturz background plate. We also made this card in my Serene Snowflakes card making class. Some of the gals added glitter to the snowflake...which really gave it sparkle!

Serene Snowflakes Are Peace On Earth

We made this card in my Serene Snowflakes card making class. The background paper is from the Christmas Cocoa Specialty Designer Series. We used Soft Suede ink since is coordinates so well with the background paper. The card base is Shimmery White cardstock. There is a touch of glitter on the snowflakes which almost turns the Soft Suede into a soft gold...it is beautiful!

Heat & Stick Powder Featured

Heat & Stick Powder
100625
Regular Price: $5.00
Preferred Price: $4.50
LEARN ABOUT PREFERRED PRICING
Most people try to use glue to add glitter to a project, but it’s difficult to get a nice, even look. The Heat & Stick Powder fixes that problem perfectly. Heats to a sticky surface to hold glitter evenly.

Saturday Sketch

Here is a card sketch to get you started on your card making this weekend! I created this sketch is My Digital Studio so, while I was at it, I created a sample and I gave you a color combo! The color combo is Kraft, Real Red, So Saffron, and Night of Navy. Have a great one!

Tree Trimmings

This photo does not do this beautiful card justice! Fellow demo Nancy McClain did a fantastic job on this card! She used heat and stick powder to apply a sparkling layer of glitter to the ornament from the Delightful Decorations stamp set. She used the stamp set Tree Trimmings stamped in real red, glorious green, and brilliant blue to create a background on the layer behind the ornament (which is popped up with a Stampin' Dimensional). The Tree Trimmings set is really pretty. The only thing that could make this set better is some coordinating punches!!!

Dasher

Dasher is such a handsome fellow, don't you think? Fellow demo Char Leasor gave him the perfect backdrop to strut his stuff! I love how she rounded just one corner of the card and carried that look through to the layers on the focal point of the card. The greeting is from the set, Snow Swirled. The Merry Moments Designer Series background paper is just right on this card making a fabulous color combo of Real Red, Old Olive, and Chocolate Chip

Christmas Punch

Yep - snowmen and snowflakes! lol! This card is another convention swap. It was created by fellow demo Sheryl Kincaid. It is beautiful! It is also a suspension card. The little snowman twirls and is "double-sided." Suspension cards are so easy to do when you use Stampin' Up!'s coordinating punches and dies! She used the hostess set, Christmas Punch; which just happens to be a set that coorinates with several of our punches!

The More The Merrier

I love these snowmen! I have a weakness for snowflakes and snowmen, amongst other images to numerous to list here today when it comes to stamps! In all honesty, I don't need any more snowflakes or snowmen...but...lol!!!

This card was one of my convention swaps. Fellow demo Brenda Murphy stamped this one up using the hostess set, The More The Merrier and Heard From The Heart stamp set. She also used a couple of other new favorites of mine; Top Note Die and Texturz Plate with the Big Shot.

Delightful Decorations Goes Retro

I love how this card turned out! The bright color combo of Crushed Curry and Real Red is so eye-catching and festive! I used the Delightful Decorations stamp set, several punches, and...my Top Notz Die with my Big Shot! There are a couple of different ways to use the Top Notz Die for a different look. I'll try to get them shown to you eventually! Meanwhile...I have a little photo tutorial (below) for you so you can get busy using your Top Note Die for this cool look!

Isn't that super easy!!! It's two steps...but oh so worth it!

Ornament Punch Featured

Ornament Punch
116794
Price: $15.95
Punches are a quick and easy way to add interest, dimension, and color to your cards, tags, and scrapbook pages. You can glue punched shapes directly onto your projects or layer a sheet of card stock that has been punched over a coordinating card stock for a reverse effect. Our Ornament punch coordinates with the Delightful Decorations set and Merry & Bright Rub-Ons. It's slightly smaller than the ornament in the Holiday Windows die, making for flawless layering.■ Adds interest to scrapbook pages and cards ■ Has an easy-to-use thumb lever

This punch and it's coordinating stamp set Delightful Decorations are awesome! Scroll down to see 4 cards made using these items! Both of them are in the Holiday Mini - which means that you only have until January 4th to add them to your paper crafting collection!

Saturday Sketch

I haven't thrown a scrapbooking sketch at you for awhile...so here is a nice one for all those Thanksgiving photos that you took! It will make quick work of getting them scrapped so you can get some Christmas preparations done this weekend! Have a great one! (Actually - this would make a nice layout for a square card if you were so inclined!)

Delightful Decorations Elegantly Done

Okay...this is a complete Darla card! LOL! Simple - with elegant touches that do not overpower! I used Delightful Decorations and Four the Holidays stamp sets. My "tree" is the Elegant Boquet embossing folder highlighted with a little bit of glitter. My ornament is embellished with a crystal brad and hanging from the tree with some silver cord (secured in place with a Stampin' Dimensional). The Eyelet Border punch adds to the elegance without being too busy. The rich color of, what else? Elegant Eggplant! It completes the elegant look of this card like no other color can! Sigh...I am in love!

Happy Thanksgiving!

Happy Thanksgiving from our home to yours. Enjoy your families and the bounty of the harvest of all your labors this past year! As I count my blessings today, I will be counting you. Sincerely,