Easter Blessings To You and Yours!

Baby Side Step Card

It is baby shower time for a family friend and I wanted to make a very cute card and it couldn't resemble the baby shower card I gave her sister a few months ago--lol!  I think this card is very cute and for sure looks nothing like the baby card I gave her sis.  The little hanging outfit was cut on my Cricut using the Baby Steps Cricut cartridge.  I used two retired Stampin' Up stamp sets for the bear and greeting.  And the Oval framelits worked well with the dresser.  It almost looks as though the little bear is looking at himself in a mirror.  On the back of the card there is plenty of room to write a little note to the Mommy.   Have a wonderful day!

SU's Washi Tape

This and That made its way to my house yesterday.  I told Sydney that our SU order was scheduled to be delivered and maybe we could make a video.  We were down in the scrap room when the doorbell rang and Syd looks at me and yells "It's UPS!"  and takes off up the stairs.  John opened the door just as she got to the top of the stairs and she told him that she could take the UPS box.  It was quite amusing and that is what I should have videoed!  We tried a couple takes and then it was time for dinner.  I decided video-making wasn't my thing, so tomorrow I will take photos of some of the pages of the This and That.  The book truly is an example of the Stampin' Up quality that I appreciate.  I did have time to play with two of the three Washi Tapes that are included in the bundle and can also be purchased separately.  I created this simple masculine birthday card, using the Washi tape, Basic Gray and Crumb Cake cardstock, black brads and the Wacky Wishes hostess set in the annual catalog.  The Crumb Cake tape has faded numbers and markings on it--similar to a tape measure.  The sentiment fits on the decorative label punch because it is a decorative label layer that I made using MDS2+ and my Cricut.  (The actual punch cut off tiny parts of the sentiment.)  Have a great day and find yourself a little stampin' time!

A Very "Good" Morning

It is Spring Break week for Sydney and John and I have the pleasure of her company for a couple of days.  We were at Mariano's Market yesterday and I noticed that the Pillsbury Cinnamon Rolls were a special edition. The rolls were special because the icing is Hershey's Chocolate versus the usual white icing.  I bought those along with the most beautiful looking strawberries thinking we would have them today.  Well Sydney woke up before me and made this surprise breakfast. The flowers she brought up from my scraproom after decorating the vase with a butterfly.  Syd was so proud of her set up:  the arrangement of the fresh strawberries in the bowl, a glass of OJ surrounded by Cutie segments and the sliced banana.  When I woke up Sydney baked the rolls and added those to her table design.   I knew she would make the cinnamon rolls, but I had no idea she would create such an inviting breakfast.  I was drinking my glass of orange juice and she had the look of excitement and I wondered what it was about.  Sure enough, she was all happy because she dropped a Cutie segment in the OJ.  She also made streamers using ribbon and butterflies to decorate the cabinets. What a wonderful way to start the day!  Thank you, Sydney Elizabeth. xoxoxo

My Paper Pumpkin Cards

Today I am posting photos of the cards I made using this month's My Paper Pumpkin.  The single card on the left was created using only the items in the kit with the addition of adhesive.  The three cards in the photo to the right use additional little embellishments:  butterflies from the Beautiful Wings embosslit; baker's twine (including white twine dyed gray using my ink pad for one of the buttons);  and the Fitting Occasion stamp set for the circular sentiment and butterfly.   So besides the cards, I have a new clear D block and a Basic Gray ink spot.  The color combination is not one I would think of, but they all go together nicely and the cards are pretty darn cute--even with the ink splatter (one of two stamps in the kit).  I just couldn't bring myself to splatter all of the cards--lol!  Have a great day!

Yesterday was Cricut Sunday, and as usual, we had a fun and accomplished a few things.  And Sheryl, thanks for the entertainment!  I needed a few favors for the ladies, so I created this design and made a variety.  If you are in need of favors, these were fairly quick:

• Cardstock 5" x 3" scored at 2, 2 3/8,4 3/8, 4 3/4
• Using smallest oval Framelit, diecut the oval window
• Burnish score lines and then run through embossing folder, if desired. 
• If you prefer to stamp sentiment directly on little box, stamp before adhering far sides of box.
• Use sticky tape to adhere edge of front panel to the small opposite 1/4" edge of the box.
• Embellish. I diecut sentiments using Itty Bitty Framelits.  (Or don't have a sentiment.)
• Add a few mini glue dots to back of bunny, drop in oval window, center and press to adhere.

Have a great week and if the children are home from school~~Happy Spring Break!

Introducing This and That!

Item	Description	Price
131268	Epic Day This and That Journal	$10.95
130814	Epic Day This and That Designer Series Paper	$10.95
130133	Remember This and That Rotary Stamp	$5.95
131271	Epic Day This and That Designer Stickers	$4.95
131269	Epic Day This and That Designer Washi Tape	$4.95
133350	Epic Day This and That Bundle Includes the five This and That products listed above. Only available in a bundle until April 30.	$32.08 15% Off Retail Value!

Read On . . .

• We're introducing the line with these five products, but we'll be adding more This and That stuff as time goes on.
• Bundle Dates: March 23-April 30 (remember the items that come in the bundle will be available in May and in the new catalog, but we're only offering the discounted bundled until April 30).
• You can place orders on any order type (customer, demonstrator, workshop, or online).
• You and your customers can get as many This and That products or bundles as you want.
• You can buy the This and That products separately. But why would you do that when you can get all five together and save 15 percent? 
• Did your spidey eyes see that two of our In Colors (Calypso Coral and Pool Party) are included in the products? Your eyes were right. You'll just have to check out the catalog transition information in April to see what that's all about.

I have little notes, card sketches,  website links and more scattered all over my desk~~I need one of these to capture all of my "This and That"!  Have not seen the product in person, but I have read that the journal measures approximately 6-3/8" x 8" and contains a total of 60 printed sheets.  The DSP pack is our usual 12 sheets, 2 each of 6 double-sided designs, 12x12.  I will be placing an order tomorrow evening.  If you are interested in adding to that order, give me a call or send an email.  Or you can place your order by going to my website: www.stampintimesomewhere.stampinup.net and clicking on "Shop Now" and then "This and That".  Now here is hoping the video works!

Cute and Simple

This card is easy to create and cute to send.  The image is from the Everybunny stamp set and the Oval Framelits were used to cut the image and the Pink Pirouette layer.  I stamped the image using black Stazon and colored it in with my SU markers.  The sentiment is one of a variety of greetings included in the Delightful Dozen set in the annual catalog.  As a matter of fact, this set includes a nice Mother's Day greeting which we will be using at our next card class. I use the decorative corner punch very often and I am hoping for a new design from SU one of these days.  Speaking of new, SU is releasing a new product tomorrow, a sneak peek of something that will be available in the new catalog. I don't normally post on the weekends, but I will be posting tomorrow.  Be sure to check back in the morning!   

Sanded Flower Garden

As I was looking thru my embossing folders, I came across the seldom-used Flower Garden folder. After embossing and sanding Pool Party Co'ordinations cardstock I wondered why I haven't used it much.  For me it is the placement of the embossed image when using the folder.  This is a very obvious directional image.  Therefore, when using it, you need to pay attention to the flowers and be sure they are "growing up" and not down.  Pool Party was paired with white and Wisteria Wonder, a pretty Spring color combination.  I finished it off using an image from the Made For You set and one of SU's rhinestones.  I used a pink Sharpie marker to color it pink. So, besides the fact that I think SU's rhinestones are pretty, the fact that you can change the color with a permanent marker (not water-based)  marker, is a real plus.  Have a great day!

Happy Spring!

It is the first day of Spring but the weather doesn't know that!  We will have a high temperature of about 25 degrees and the wind continues.  Our daffodils sure are hardy as they are peeking up out of the ground--yeah!  Things continue to change at Stampin' Up.  There was such a demand for the My Paper Pumpkin, that some people will be receiving a kraft box rather than the red box advertised.  The good news is that the contents are the same.  You know that I use My Digital Studio on occasion.  Well, a big price reduction has just been announced:  Stampin' Up! has reduced the price of My Digital Studio to an affordable price of only $19.95!!  And now today's card: The hydrangeas were stamped using a stamp from this month's Best of 25, Best of Flowers. I inked directly on the stamp using my Perfect Plum and Lucky Limeade SU markers.  After stamping, I then colored in the image using Bashful Blue and Certainly Celery.  The next card I make will have pink hydrangeas.  I find it fascinating that our hydrangeas, all planted in the same garden, are mostly blue, while a few others are pink.  I know it is has something to do with  the aluminum in the soil, but it is the same soil area.  I wonder what color they will be this year?  I will let you know.  Have a great day and again, Happy Spring!

Make A Wish

Did you ever pick a dead dandelion and blow on it while making a wish?  We  did and we would blow those seeds all over the place while making our wish.  Of course now I know those are weeds so while my parents were keeping up with weed control, all of us kids were spreading more--lol!  For you young followers, weed control back then was digging up the little dandelions using a tool--no lawn care company spraying chemicals to get rid of them!   And sometimes, we would even get a penny for each dandelion we dug up!   Today's card is reminiscent of those days. While the colors of the "weeds" are much prettier on the card than when in the yard, it is a clever connection between the sentiment and the image (if I say so myself--lol) for a birthday card.  I used the Summer Silhouettes and Sweet Essentials stamp sets together with Baja Breeze & Certainly Celery inks.  I stamped off when stamping the sentiment using the Certainly Celery ink and it is too light.  Next time I will not stamp off first. A cute card to post on a very windy morning!  Have a great day!

Changes in Latitude

Snow again this morning!  So I am posting a warm weather card today.  A fishing buddy of my husband is moving to Florida next month.  Last week was this man's going away dinner and John needed a card.  I wanted to use one of my "beachy" stamps and a particular sentiment.  Since I do not have a stamp that reads "Changes in latitude, changes in attitude" I opened my Word program, created a text box that was 5 1/4" x 4" and typed the sentiment in the box.  After cutting down the cadstock, I stamped the image, colored it in using my Copic markers, added a few seagulls and adhered it to retired Taken with Teal cardstock.  Have a great day!

Happy St. Patrick's Day!

Wanted to share the cute card we received from my friend and paper crafting enabler, Kathy Z.(We enable each other!)  She never lets a holiday pass without a handmade card.  Since I don't usually make St. Patrick's Day cards, thanks to Kathy, I have one to post!  Have a fun-filled day  and stay safe.

A Round Array SU Special

Wanted to let you know of another Stampin' Up special!  SU  is offering a sneak peek of one of the new stamp sets that will be in the annual catalog come June 1st.  It coordinates with the cute little 7/8" scallop circle punch that was originally shown in the Holiday Mini.  Buy the bundle (stamp set and punch) for 15% off.  This SU Spring Surprise is available until May 30, 2013. 

Price Description Item # $23.95 Spring Surprise Bundle* (English; clear) 133899 Spring Surprise Bundle (Spanish; clear) 133897 Spring Surprise Bundle (French; clear) 133898 Already have the punch? Don't fret! Just buy the set! Price Description Item # $14.95 A Round Array Stamp Set* (English; clear) 129090 Variedades Stamp Set (Spanish; clear) 131682 Médallions séduction Stamp Set (French; clear) 131616 *Only offered in clear-mount. Wood-mount option will be available in the 2013-2014 annual catalog. Thu, 14 Mar 2013 17:11:42
If you have any questions, call or email!  Again, have a great weekend!

Bunny Birthday

Inspired by a card that Melissa, a Stampin' Up demonstrator in Saskatchewan, posted on our demo website, today's card is cute and fun.   Her use of the Everybunny set together with the presents from the I Dig You stamp set to create a birthday card was so clever that I had to share. The background was sponged to create a field and the sky.  I then took a green marker and added little blades of grass.  Melissa stamped the bunnies and then cut them out removing the basket from the little girl bunny and the egg from the little boy bunny. I inked up the bunnies using my black marker avoiding the basket and the egg and stamped the images directly on the card. (You will want to be sure there is no ink residue on the parts of the image that you don't want to show.)  This birthday card is cute for a baby and really perfect if you know someone who is celebrating his/her birthday on Easter. Have a great weekend and find yourself a little stampin' time!

A Nice Day

Yesterday was a special day for millions of Catholics and faithful Christians around the world.  I  spent the afternoon watching TV, catching bits and pieces of the events going on in the Vatican.  Once the white smoke appeared, the television got my full attention:  Who is the new Pope of the Catholic Church?   To see the faith and devotion of the people who stood in the Vatican for hours in the rain to catch a glimpse of their new Pope and receive his blessing was very touching.  I very much look forward to seeing and hearing more about Pope Francis.  (By the way, I like his name choice!) And now on to today's cards.  A Memory Box die was used to cut the flowering vine from white cardstock for use on both cards.  I  diecut the vine a second time using Crumb Cake clipped the flowers from that vine and adhered them over the white flowers.  The sentiment is from the Love & Sympathy set.  The white vine on the Hello card was sponged using Certainly Celery and Regal Rose inks.  Little pearls add a touch of elegance to this card.  The sentiment is from the My Friend stamp set.  Same card, but the use of different colors and sentiments creates two very different feelings.  Have a great day and find yourself a little stampin' time!

Clearly Rocks

I received the first set of Stampin' Up photopolymer stamps on Monday and I wondered what I would do with it now that I had it--lol!   One of the advantages to photopolymer stamps is that they are flexible.  As I placed the banner stamp on the clear block, I arched it a bit.  Each letter in the banner was stamped separately and since each letter is little,  I kept track of where I put each one when I was done.  Placing each letter in a pennant was so darn easy and no need for my Stamp-a-ma-jig.  My Digital Studio 2+ and my Cricut worked together to create the word "rocks". Then out came Totally Tess, a retired stamp set.  The three little stampin' related images are perfect and then it dawned on me!  Since this card is about the new clear stamps that SU is releasing on a trial basis, something related to that would be the icing on the cake.  And then "clearly" came to mind. Lined all the letters up on an acrylic block, leaving a space for the second "L", stamped the sentiment, removed all the letters except the "L" and stamped it separately.  I used old stamps, new stamps, rubber stamps, clear stamps and My Digital Software, too.  And the best of all~~the creations SU quality lends itself to!  Have a great day!

Crumb Cake Embossed

Last week I posted a card which I dry embossed after inking up the folder using a brayer.  This is another card using the same technique but with a totally different feel to it.  The "cowboy" card was on the rustic side while this card is soft and  pretty.  I brayered the Vintage Wallpaper embossing folder with Crumb Cake ink, layered it on Chocolate Chip cardstock and finished it off with a Very Vanilla seam binding bow.  What is not apparent in the photo is that after the white cardstock was brayer-embossed, I ran Versamark across the card and embossed the entire card using Iridescent Ice embossing powder.  And having nothing to do with this card, as I looked out my window, I just saw my first Robin of the season!  Yes, Spring is on the way--yeah!!  Have a wonderful day!

White Craft Ink & Aqua Painter

I saw a card made by Karen Berber on one of the websites I frequent and the technique she used.   Today's cards were created using that technique which includes embossing, painting with craft ink and using blender pens.  The flowers are images from the Secret Garden stamp set in the Spring Mini as are the leaves on the Crumb Cake card.  The leaves on the Daffodil card are from Fabulous Florets in the annual cattie.The Crumb Cake card was my first attempt at using craft ink with an aqua painter.  The card turned out pretty good, so I wanted to test the technique on black cardstock. That did not go so well due to the black dye getting on my blender pens.  So I decided to try Daffodil Delight and ended up with a very tropical-feeling card.  The "Bloomin' Marvelous" sentiment  on the Crumb Cake card is from the stamp set of the same name in the Sale-a-bration brochure and is just perfect for a flower-filled card.  I have opted to hold off on adding a sentiment to the Daffodil card until such time as I know for what occasion it will be used. Have a great day!

Last weekend I received a pretty plant with deep red/yellow tulips.  The plant has been brightening up the kitchen since then and was the inspiration for today's card. The flowers are from the Secret Garden stamp set in the Spring mini while the sentiment is from a retired set.  I inked the flower stamp with Daffodil Delight and then sponged Real Red ink directly on the stamp.  My attempt to sponge in such a way that the red was deeper and more vibrant was unsuccessful.  That's okay though because the card is very pretty anyway!  There was a little too much "white space" but the butterflies took care of that!  Hope you have a great weekend and can find yourself a little stampin' time!

Inked Embossing

While playing with ideas for kids' cards, I decided to use an embossing folder that was inked up via a brayer.  I brayered Early Espresso ink on the Woodgrain embossing folder and then embossed the Crumb Cake cardstock.  The color and texture combination resulted in a somewhat rustic feel and the minute I saw the embossed cardstock I thought "cowboy".  So out came the Pennant Parade stamp set with the coordinating punch, linen thread and the Wacky Wishes hostess stamp set.  What really captured the cowboy theme was the fact that I have a CTMH stamp set which includes the word "cowboy".  A fun little card and quite different than my "pretty" posts--lol!  Have a great day!

We received about 9 inches of snow yesterday.  Looks beautiful~~especially when you do not have to go out in it.  I happened to spend the better part of the day in my scrap room. Since we will be making a "Happy Dirtday" card at Jen's workshop on Sunday, I made a sample of a card using the bulldozer image from the I Dig You set.    After stamping the bulldozer, I added mini silver brads.  What is the background layer on this card?  Well, thanks to an email from a friend in Ohio, I was reminded that embossed foil is a great background. (Thank you, Martha!)  The hearts falling out of the bucket of the bulldozer would have made a great Valentine.  Valentine's Day is behind us, but the male in your life--son, grandson, husband--likes to know you care any day of the year!  Or how about a Father's Day card?  You could stamp "I dig you" and add Dad, or grandpa or the stamp from the Family Reunion set which would work for you.  Or a card for grandma from her favorite grandson?  And while I am thinking of other ways to use this stamp set, maybe I should recreate this card and have snow falling out of the bucket!!! Have a great day and be safe!

Photopolymer & Washi Tape

It is snowing and we could be getting an inch an hour!  I need Spring!!  But since it is only March and we are in the Chicago area, we find ways to brighten up our surroundings in spite of the snowy, dreary skies.  Today's cards are nice and bright, especially the pink and green card~~two of my favorite retired colors, Green Galore and Pink Passion.  Both of today's cards use a variety of products~~both Stampin' Up and otherwise.  The Washi tape on both cards is a new favorite product for me.  Unfortuantely, if you look closely at the pink/green card, you will see that I did not line it up evenly.  The sentiments are important because they were stamped using a photopolymer stamp set.  If you know me, you know I am attached to my stamp-a-ma-jig.  Since the photopolymer stamps are clear, I did not use the SAMJ.  Not a big deal on the black/mambo card as I used a framelit to diecut the sentiment after it was stamped, but that was important on the pink/green card.  I spaced it almost perfectly without the help of my SAMJ.  I am looking forward to trying SU's photopolymer set as the stamped sentiments here are pretty crisp and I could 'clearly' see where I stamped.  What I do notice is that the Melon Mambo sentiment is a little crisper than the Green Galore sentiment.  I am wondering if that is because the Melon Mambo is one of SU's new foam ink pads, while the Green Galore is an old style ink pad and could probably use a little reinker?  Well I better get going here.  Time to watch my husband snow blow/shovel!!   Have a great day and be careful out there!

Oh Happy Day

Since Stampin' Up has released a photopolymer set  I went to my local Archivers to check out the competition--lol! The majority of stamps at Archivers are either "photopolymer" or  "clear" or "acrylic".  (Not sure how to tell the difference other than reading the packaging labels!) I have read that photopolymer stamps are what you should look for when purchasing "clear" stamps.  As I learn more, I will share that information.  And the good news is that many of the photopolymer stamps are manufactured here in the United States--yeah! I did leave with a set of photopolymer stamps and my first rolls of Washi tape.  What is Washi tape?  A pretty tape that feels a bit like masking tape but is made from paper.  Today's card was created after I placed a strip of this black/white polka dot tape across the center of a white card.   The Bloomin' Marvelous stamp set in the Sale-a-bration brochure includes the flower, leaves and sentiment images stamped on this card while decorative corner punch added a touch of pretty. And the little butterfly isn't even hiding an "oops"!  Have a great day and find yourself a little stampin' time.

Something New For SU

Stampin' Up has added so many new things lately that it is difficult to keep up!  Being the first day of the month I went on line to check out the Best of 25 stamp set for March (which is flowers) and low and behold found this announcement!  Not too sure  how easily readable the flyer is due to the light colors, but hopefully it can be read.  In a nutshell, SU is trying a new product:  photopolymer stamps.  According to SU the new stamps will not yellow or crack and will work nicely with the new ink pads.  The advantage is that not only are they clear mount, but they are clear!  So when you stamp, you can see where you are stamping.  I have used photopolymer stamps in the past, so I am anxious to see if SU's photopolymer stamps are as good or better than those!  I will keep you posted.  This is an item that I will be purchasing in the near future and I will let you know what I truly think about this new item. 

March Best of 25

If you are looking at the snow and wishing it were Spring, this month's stamp set will help you create pretty Springtime cards.   The images included in this set are very pretty and my favorite stamp in this set is the solid image (bottom left image) from the retired Upsy Daisy.  You can be sure that I will be posting a card or two using that image!  There are a few new things that SU has introduced in the past few days, so I will be adding other posts later today or tomorrow.  (I need to first learn a little more about the additions before I advertise them here!)  In the meantime, have a great Friday!