I love sketches and find them inspiring, especially when your mojo has left the building.  I fell in love with the SUDSOL Design Challenge #40 sketch as soon as I saw it and created two fun cards from it.

For my first card, I used Mardi Gras as the inspiration for my color scheme - purple, gold and green.  Every year when Mardi Gras comes around, it reminds me of my trip to New Orleans many years ago.  I fell in love with the sites, sounds and smells of that city and I am determined to get back there some day.

The main image panel I created by inking my stamps, misting with water, then stamping them on watercolor paper that I had misted with water.  Once that was dry, I stamped the outline images in Black Staz-On ink to define the flowers.  With a little more stamping and embossing, I quickly had a striking card a la Mardi Gras!

Stamps:  Flower Fancy, Many Happy Returns

Paper:  Lovely Lilac, Glorious Green, Whisper White, Brushed Gold, Watercolor Paper

Ink:  Lovely Lilac, Glorious Gold, Versamark, Black Staz-On

Accessories:  Clear Embossing Powder, Stamp-a-Ma-Jig, Small Oval Punch, Large Oval Punch, Ticket Corner Punch, Gold Brads, Stampin' Dimensionals

I always love to see what a different look you can come up with by using the same basic sketch along with different stamps.   

I've started creating my own designer background paper, like I did when I first started stamping.  With all the wonderful designer series papers that are on the market now, I'd gotten away from taking the time to create my own, but I love the way you can create a paper that exactly matches the look and feel of whatever project you are working on.  Try it the next time you are stamping.  You won't be sorry you did.

Stamps:  Pinch Proof, So Swirly Jumbo Wheel

Paper:  Certainly Celery, Handsome Hunter, Brushed Gold

Ink:  Handsome Hunter, Certainly Celery Craft, Encore Gold

Accessories:  Iridescent Ice Embossing Powder, Gold Embossing Powder (non SU), Stamp-a-Ma-Jig, Key Tag Punch, Stampin' Dimensionals

Happy Stamping!

I hope you remembered to wear your green today so you were pinch proof!  This cute little guy definitely did.   

Stamp:  Pinch Proof, Paisley (retired)

Paper:  Certainly Celery, Garden Green, Whisper White

Ink:  Certainly Celery, Garden Green

Accessories:  Certainly Celery 1/4" Grosgrain Ribbon, 1-1/4" Circle Punch, 1" Circle Punch, 1/2" Circle Punch, Scallop Edge Punch, Gold Spica Pen, Rhinestones (non SU)

And let's not forget that on St Patty's Day it doesn't matter whether you're truly Irish or not - because today we can ALL qualify for special Irish treatment...

     

I didn't have the sentiment I wanted for the front of this card so I created it on my computer and printed it on Designer Series Paper.  I love how easy it is to solve paper-crafting problems with a little technology!  I also created my glittery brads by dipping the Jumbo Brad in Versamark ink, covering it with Heat & Stick powder and heating just until the powder melted, then dipping the brad in the Celery glitter.  Voila, beautiful glittering brads!

Stamps:  Pinch Proof

Paper:  Certainly Celery, Garden Green, Celery Designer Series Paper (retired pattern)

Ink:  Certainly Celery, Garden Green Classic and Craft, Versamark

Accessories:  non SU chipboard letters, Celery Fine Cosmo Glitter, Heat & Stick Powder, Clear Embossing Powder, Corner Rounder Punch, Jumbo Brads

May your pockets be heavy and your heart be light,
May good luck pursue you each morning and night, 

Happy St Patrick's Day!

 

 

On my first time through the Spring-Summer 2009 Idea Book & Catalog (which was, of course, accompanied by "oohing", "aahing" and mandatory drooling) this set (Hit the Road) immediately made me smile.  I knew it was one of those sets that I NEEDED to have.  (All of you stamping addicts know that feeling and there is only one way to satisfy it - immediately place the item on a Stampin' Up! order!  So what else could I do?!?  After all, if you've ever experienced this stamping phenomenom, you know you MUST give in.)

For the second round of Jami's swap, the requirement was to choose your favorite spring/summer color combo which could NOT include any In Colors.  I chose to use Pumpkin Pie and Pacific Point (as I was typing this, I just realized I used an In Color - OOPS - sorry ladies!! - I promise to read better next time).  The images were all stamped with Black Staz-On ink and colored with Watercolor Wonder Crayons and a Blender Pen. 

On the inside of the card, I embossed a piece of Creamy Caramel card stock with the Distressed Texturz Plate and sponged it with some Close to Cocoa ink. 

Since the sentiment I chose for the inside of the card was too long to fit inside the freehand "exhaust" I'd cut, I used the  Stamp-A-Ma-Jig and Black Stampin' Write Marker to put the individual words right where I wanted them. 

Leave me a comment to let me know what stamp set in the Spring-Summer 2009 catalog makes YOU smile and you'll be entered into a drawing to receive one of these fun cards!

Happy Stamping!

If you've been looking through your Spring-Summer 1009 Idea Book & Catalog, you may have noticed something missing - the Stampin' Supplies list.  But don't worry, it's not totally gone!  You can view it here (includes pictures of projects) or here (text only).

Stampin' Up! has several reasons for this change.

• With a separate, printed copy of the Stampin' Supplies, you won't have to constantly flip back and forth between catalog pages.  You'll have your list of Stampin' Supplies right next to you as you look at projects in the catalog.
• In addition to listing the catalog page each project is found on, the online Stampin' Supplies list includes small pictures of each project right next to their supply lists - allowing you to find the list you want more quickly.  (There wasn't space for this improvement in the catalog.)
• Perhaps the best benefit is that by removing the Stampin' Supplies from the catalog, Stampin' Up! was able to include more pages of wonderful, new products and projects!

I really like this change, especially because it allowed for more stamping goodies and project ideas to be placed in the catalog.  For reference, I've printed out a copy of the Stampin' Supplies list and laminated it to protect it from those late night idea sessions. 

Let me know what YOU think about this change.

Happy Stamping!