It's Monday!

Hello Stampers!

It's Monday and I'm blogging again!  If you didn't read Saturday's post, please scroll down and read it.  I tried to bring you up to date on life here in California, and I also mentioned that I would try to blog at least once a week on Mondays.  So... since it is Monday, here I am at my computer, typing away. 

How did all of you Oregonians do this past weekend with the hot weather?  With air conditioning and a cold drink by your side, you probably did just fine.  I do feel sorry for those who have to work outside in the heat, though.  Some people don't have the option of staying indoors and keeping cool. 

I'm happy to report that it seems like the worst of our heat wave is now over.  It reached 94 degrees on Sunday and today it's only supposed to reach 90.  While that might seem hot to many of you, it is downright cool when compared to multiple days that were 103 and above.  I'm so thankful for the cooler days that are in our forecast for this week... high 80's and low 90's.

I'm excited for my class on Wednesday night.  I've shown you two of the cards that we'll be making and right now I'm going to show you another one. I think I'm going to have 4, perhaps 5 stampers at the class.  It is not easy re-starting a business in a new location, but little by little, I'll get there.  This card is my favorite of the four cards.

The base of the card is Peekaboo Peach, the second layer is Pool Party, topped by the Whisper White layer that is stamped.  The sentiment is from the Colorful Seasons Stamp set on page 147 of the new annual catalog.  That great Adirondack chair is part of the Seasonal Layers Thinlits Dies (on page 216) that coordinate with this four-season stamp set.  The sun, ocean, sand, and beach grass are all images from the High Tide stamp set that's on page 140.  I'm so glad this great set was carried over from the Occasions catalog into the new annual catalog. Click on the card to enlarge it and you'll be able to see the pretty clouds in the sky that were created with a card stock mask I cut freehand and then sponged over.  I used Soft Sky ink for the sponging, as it is the lightest blue we have. The ocean was stamped with Pool Party, the sand is Sahara Sand, the beach grass is Old Olive, and the sun is stamped in Peekaboo Peach.  The sentiment is stamped in Soft Suede.   The chair is cut from Early Espresso card stock.

Doesn't this card make you want to drop everything and head for the beach?  I won't be doing that this week, but in July we're heading for the coast for some cool-down time. 

Thought for the day:  "Don't put the key to your happiness in someone else's pocket."

Love and hugs to you!

Susan

Hello stampers!

Can you believe I'm actually adding a new post to my blog?  I know it's been a long, long, LONG time since I've written a new post.  That doesn't mean I haven't been making cards, though.  I'm actually making cards all the time, so thought I would share a couple of them with you today.  This is going to be a long post, so you might want to grab a cool drink before starting to read.

Update on life in Woodland California:

  First topic  .... the weather The change from cool, green, and rainy Oregon to hot, dry California has been one of our greatest challenges.  It has been HOT here this past week with temperatures up to 110.  Thankfully we are entering a cooling-down period and this weekend (June 24-25) it will get back into the 90's.  Fortunately we know what to do when it is so very hot... we just stay inside as much as possible and keep the a/c set to 77-78 degrees.  It's much the same as what all you Oregonians did during the snow/ice cycle last winter... you stayed inside as much as possible and hopefully some of that time you whiled away with stamping.

Second topic.... Adjusting to life in Woodland/Davis. 

We are meeting people and joining groups, so we are starting to feel a little more at home here.  We joined Davis Community Church (Presbyterian) and are active on the Community Life Committee, which means we are in the kitchen a great deal.

We attend fitness classes at the YMCA, which is in the beautiful new Woodland Senior and Community Center that's near our house.  I joined a women's group called University Farm Circle that's affiliated with UC Davis (UCD was called the University Farm in the "old days," as it was a branch of UC Berkeley).  There are many interest groups within the University Farm Circle, so we've found friends in a monthly wine group, a monthly dinner group, and I'm also in a Crafty Ladies group and a Bunco group.

Next fall  I'll be leading a Card-Making and Paper Crafting group, so that should be fun.

Third topic... The family

Of course we are enjoying living near our daughter and her family.

They are only about 8 minutes away.  We have a family dinner once a week, whenever we can fit it into our schedule and theirs.

This past school year we had Lindsay, the three-year-old one morning a week.  This summer we'll have both Allie (almost 6) and Lindsay one morning a week.  I've become an expert bather and shampooer... two skills I almost forgot!  We are having fun with these sweet girls!  They love to help me stir up treats like brownies and last week they helped me make a cake for their daddy's birthday. 

Fourth topic... My Stampin'Up! business

I'm still working on getting my Stampin'Up! business off the ground.  I've got a Summer Stampin' class coming up next Wednesday, June 28th.  I'm expecting about 4 people to attend. 
I'm hoping to meet more local customers through the groups I've joined. Meanwhile, I'm so very grateful to my Portland area customers for keeping me in business. It was so great to see quite a few of you at my recent garage sale and new catalog kick-off at Kelly's house in Sherwood on the first weekend in June.  I hope to be back with Holiday catalogs in August, but if that trip doesn't happen, I'll still make sure you get your new Holiday catalog.

Now... finally... some cards!

Thank you for wading through all of that to get to the cards.  These are two of the cards we'll be making at my class next Wednesday.  If anyone would like to drive down for it, I've got a comfy guest room with a queen bed and you'd also have your own bathroom! 

This card uses the new "So Many Shells" stamp set, page 38 of the new catalog.  The card stock is Soft Sky, the ink colors are Calypso Coral, So Saffron, Sahara Sand, and Soft Suede for the sentiment.  I cut the shells out with my trusty and very sharp Paper Snips.  What a great set for summer stamping!

This fun fold-back card was made with the Coffee Break Suite of products, shown on pages 30-31 of the new catalog.  The card stock colors are Soft Sky, Early Espresso, Crumb Cake, and of course Whisper White.  The DSP is called Coffee Break Designer Series Paper.  Check out all the fun patterns on page 31.  I used the matching framelit dies to cut out the cup and the cup sleeve.  The cute little corrugated heart is part of the Coffee Break Suite.  You can see these in the lower corner of page 31.

I would be so grateful for any orders you'd like to place!  Just go to my shopping site www.susanrodgers.stampinup.net  and click on the "shop now" button.  The host code for June is

T4N3ZWYW  Please use this code when asked "do you have a host code?" Just type the code into the box and then click on "apply." The use of this code allows me to receive host benefits from your online orders that are less than $150.  If your order is $150 or more, please DO NOT use the code.  Then YOU will get the host benefits, which you deserve if your order is $150 or more before shipping. The benefits I receive from your use of the host code allows me to re-stock consumable items such as card stock, designer paper, ribbon, envelopes, dimensionals, glue dots, and other supplies that I use in my workshops and Party-in-a Box event where there is no charge for the cards.

Thanks for being my customers!  I appreciate each one of you!

Hugs to all,

Susan

 

PS  I'm sorry the catalog shown in the side-bar has not been updated to the new annual catalog that came out in June.  The person who was taking care of that is no longer doing blog updates, so I need to find someone new.  In the meantime, you can see the Stampin'Up! catalog on the Stampin'Up! website at www.stampinup.com