CLICK HERE for the supply list for the awesome samples list inside.

ALSO, our Impress Me! Team Rubber Stamp Festival is Saturday, October 9th, CLICK HERE for more information and to register.

Your Stamp Festival registration includes the ‘Bells & Boughs‘ stamp set in the new Holiday Mini Catalog as well as all instructions and materials for the 4 hands-on projects.  Your day includes your table, live technique demonstrations, our ‘Recycled Rubber’ deals table (cash only), refreshments and, of course, fun with other stampers!

SIGN-ON GIFT! Sign-on between September 1st – October 18th and get this awesome craft tote!    CLICK HERE for more information and to download the flyer.

WOW… lots to announce today, huh?  I have recorded two more videos and I have to edit and upload them… thanks for being patient with me, had a crazy/good summer.

This set reminds me that I totally miss living near the ocean.  As a teenager I would bike 20 miles to Jones’ Beach from Seaford, Long Island.  I can’t imagine doing that now.  I would likely need to be scraped off the pavement after a mile or so, LOL!  And there is no danger, now that I am land-locked her in Pennsylvania.

This new set ‘Uncharted Territory’ from the new Stampin’ Up! Idea Book & Catalog is so awesome that it has disappeared out of my stamp room.  Seriously, its missing and I’d like it back someone, LOL!  Anyway, if you click on the catalog link above, you may not have noticed, but you can type in the search bar ‘Uncharted’ and it will bring you right to the page where it is featured.

It think that the secret to the success of this card is the layering.  I also used a new embossing folder and watercolor crayons and an Aquapainter for a very simple wetbrush technique.

And for the design inspiration, I actually got the idea for the card layout from the gift bag sample in the catalog.  Go check it out!

Set(s): Uncharted Territory
Accessories:
5 ½ x 8 ½ Whisper White cardstock
2 ½ x 4 ¼ Not Quite Navy
(2) ½ x 4 ¼ inch Daffodil Delight cardstock
5 ½ x 3 Crumb Cake cardstock
2 ½ x 4 ¼ Whisper White cardstock
Black StazOn™
Watercolor Crayons: Not Quite Navy, So Saffron, Garden Green, Chocolate Chip
Aquapainter
Natural Hemp
Square Lattice Embossing folder
Sizzix Big Shot, Multi-purpose drawer, clear cutting pads

I did tweak the colors to the ‘Neutrals Collection’– Very Vanilla/Soft Suede & Crumb Cake.

Speaking of which… are you with the new color families yet?  If not, you can purchase ‘kits’ that will feature the new packaging and new colors and you fill them in with the colors you have that are still current.  Fabulous cost savings to you, CLICK HERE to order the ‘renovation sets’ for your ink pads, markers, pastels, etc.

This card took just a few minutes to make… it was actually tougher to tear that left edge without taking too much off, than it was to make the rest of it.

“Just Believe”  is an awesome set of 9 stamps that you will see more of from me for sure.

Sets:
Just Believe

Accessories:
8 ½ x 5 ½ Crumb Cake cardstock
4 x 5 ¼ Soft Suede cardstock
3 ¾ x 5 Very Vanilla cardstock
2 x 3 Very Vanilla cardstock (for greeting)
Large Oval punch
Crumb Cake ink pad (for flora)
Soft Suede ink pad (for greeting)
12 inches Vanilla taffeta & Dimensionals™

The ‘single’ stamps that Stamp’ Up! offer lately are just AWESOME!

The ‘All a Flutter’ single butterfly stamp (shown below at actual size) is available only until the end of the month in the Summer Mini Catalog.  It has amazing detail that is just crazy fun for someone like me who loves to color.  And all that HAPPINESS for only $6.95!!!

And another MUST HAVE new accessory are all of the latest embossing folders but especially the ‘Elegant Lines’ embossing folder for the Sizzix Big Shot.

The card itself is Vanilla, and the panel on top is just shy of a quarter sheet embossed in Elegant Lines and adhered back onto the cardfront.  The butterflies were stamped in Vanilla and colored in with my Aquapainter and watercolor crayons, cut out and adhered with Dimensionals for a 3D effect.

Another ‘must have’ set is this year’s level 3 set ‘Occasional Quotes.’

Yeah, yeah, you likely have to have a workshop to earn it, but luckily you can book your workshop online with me 24/7 with my online booking calendar here.

Be sure to ask about my workshop options including a ‘Total Hands-On’ ladies night out… get down and dirty with my stamps and ink!

Sets: All A Flutter #118284 (Summer Mini)
Occasional Quotes (Level 3 Hostess Set)
Accessories & Measurements:
5 ½ x 8 ½ Very Vanilla cardstock
5 ¼ x 4 Very Vanilla cardstock (for front)
2 x 5 ½ Very Vanilla (for stamping and cutting butterflies
Black StazOn™ ink
Rich Regal watercolor crayons & Aquapainters
Dimensionals™
Elegant Lines Embossing Folder
Sizzix Big Shot, Multi-purpose platform, clear cutting pads

I simply LOVE hydrangea… and I have one beautiful bush outside my stamp room window that I was inspired by.

The ‘Because I Love You’ set is a new Level 1 Hostess Set that you MUST have (book your workshop online with me for an extra gift).

All the coloring was done with an Aquapainter and four watercolor crayons – Night of Navy, Elegant Eggplant, Always Artichoke and a touch of So Saffron.   The front of the card has the main panel folded back in the center for a cool ‘stand up’ look.  The set comes with the elegant ‘Thank You’ stamp, but I think this would make a beautiful ‘Mother’s Day’ card.

Set(s): Because I Care, Stampin’ Up! Level 1 Hostess Set

Accessories:
8 ½ x 5 ½ Basic Black cardstock
4 ¼ x 3 ½ inch Basic Black cardstock
4 x 3 ¼ inch Artichoke cardstock
3 ¾ inch Very Vanilla cardstock
2 x 5 ¼ Very Vanilla
6 inches Vanilla satin ribbon
Black StazOn™, Sticky Strip
Night of Navy, Elegant Eggplant, Always Artichoke & So
Saffron watercolor crayons
Aquapainter, Bone folder
Vintage Wallpaper embossing folder, Sizzix Big Shot, Multipurpose platform and clear cutting plates.

ON ANOTHER NOTE… I am sad I was unable to attend Stampin’ Up!’s convention this year but completely astounded that I earned the ‘Demonstrator of the Year’ (#52) award.

Well, somewhat astounded at first by a call at around midnight from a friend who was freaking out that my name was called and WHERE WAS I?!!   Clearly I don’t completely understand the criteria because if I thought I would rank so well, I would have totally been there.

I DO KNOW THIS… it is an algorithm that adds up to being SO fortunate to be able to work with WONDERFUL people.  And ‘work’ quite isn’t the right word… ‘If you love what you do, you’ll never work a day in your life’ is so true.  So, I’m not ‘top sales’ or ‘top recruiter’ nor are my sales in the stratosphere that some gals are… Stampin’ Up! is looking for a balance of these numbers and come up with the Top 100 demonstrators who achieve the balance they determine (READ: Okay, so I have no idea how).

So, I want to thank with all my heart fabulous gals who chose me as their upline and the amazing ladies who promoted this year as well as my awesome customers who chose me as their Stampin’ Up! demonstrator.  I’ve just been sitting here doing what I love to do… and I got an award for it.

On the other hand:  laundry happens sporatically, dinner is on the fly and there is glitter on everything in my kitchen… my family tried to be happy for me, but the most I got out of my husband is ‘um, that’s great… but does this come with any money…?’

I am excited to share that you can now book your in-home workshop with me online!  No more ‘phone tag’ about my availability… get the availability of your friends and go ahead and book a day and time.

The first 5 online bookings will receive an extra $20 in free hostess product of your choosing when your workshop reaches $400 (you can book out 20 weeks).

And from now until August 31st, you get an extra $25 in free product for a $350 or more workshop.  So your $400 workshop with me in August (booked online) earns you $90 in free product.

You’d be surprised how far I’ll drive… contact me by phone if you think you live too far away, I  can drive further on weekends.

I have fallen in love with the phenomenal artwork of the ‘Countryside‘ stamp set (see below).

The vintage effect of this Soft Suede and Black card is simply done by stamping the truck in Soft Suede on ‘Naturals Ivory’ (#108849) cardstock and gently blurring some of the edges with an Aquapainter–that’s it.  The dye ink will run easily with the water, so don’t get carried away!

The edges of each ivory cardstock layer is sponged with the Soft Suede ink  and I sparingly used the ‘speckle’ stamp in to finish the job.

I had originally envisioned an entirely monochromatic card until I added the faux newsprint (Newsprint Designer Series paper #117116).  I loved that, so I needed to work more black into the piece to justify the accent color (thank you Sr. Nishio, 9th grade art class) so I added the black medallion stamp (from the new ‘Artistic Etchings‘ set) and the scrap of torn black cardstock and of course the black speckles.

I found that it takes a surprising amount of time to make a card that looks like it was just thrown together, doesn’t it?

SETS:
Countryside
Artistic Etchings
Itty Bitty Backgrounds

ACCESSORIES:
5 ½ x 8 ½ Naturals Ivory cardstock
2 ½ x 4 inch Naturals Ivory cardstock
2 x 4 Basic Black cardstock
4 x 3 Soft Suede cardstock
2 x 3 Newsprint DSP
Soft Suede ink, Aquapainter, Sponge Dauber™
Black StazOn™, Mini library clips (black), hemp twine
Square Lattice Embossing folder (#119976)
Sizzix Big Shot, Multi-purpose platform and pair of clear cutting pads

With all the excitement of Stampin’ Up!’s color renovation, you might be wondering what the best way is to update your existing Stampin’ Up! products.

Wonder no more! With the new colour kits, you can get all of Stampin’ Up!’s new colors (and just the colors you need) without the expense of replacing products you already have.

A few of the kits are not available right away, however they will be available shortly.  Shop online and qualify for my online ordering gift!

2010-2011 Idea Book & Catalog

2010 Definitely Decorative Catalog

I just STINKIN’ LOVE this new stamp set from the Summer Mini Catalog!

And by the way, I copied this from a sample from Leadership that Shelli had shown us that she made with it.  I got a lucky photo from the overhead screen.

This set is one of my favorite gifts from Stampin’ Up! for attending an event… one reason that I will never miss Leadership!

The large floral spray in this set is awesome.  I stamped it in Basic Brown on the Creamy Caramel layer as well as on a piece of Very Vanilla that I cut out with the Beautiful Butterflies Sizzix Die.  The flourish that is seen is also included in the set.

I used the watercolor crayons and Aquapainters to add a bit of color… and I used some brown on the edges as well as the ‘Cutter Kit’ distressing tools on the edges of the layers (see the materials list below).

SET:  Elements of Style
#120045 Clear Mount
#118611 Wood

8 ½ x 4 ¼ Ruby Red cardstock
4 x 5 ¼ Brocade Blue cardstock
3 ¾ x 5 Creamy Caramel cardstock
4 ¼ x 5 ½ Very Vanilla cardstock
Basic Brown ink
Watercolor Crayons ‘Earth Elements’ & Aquapainters
Modern Label punch (#119849)
Sizzix Big Shot and standard cutting pads
Multipurpose tray, pair of cutting pads
Sizzix Bigz Die ‘Beautiful Butterflies’ (#114507)
Dimentionals™
Dazzling Diamonds Glitter & Two-Way Glue pen
Crafting wire, Cutter Kit (#106958), sponge daubers