Hi there and welcome to Wednesday's post!
I thought I'd show you five new products today, all on one card!
Are you ready? OK, here we go!
How's this for a springy card? Let me list the new products I used for this one, all from the Occasions catalog and the Sale-a-bration brochure.
First of all, I used the new Petal Potpourri stamp set that's on page 23 of the Occasions catalog. Then I punched out the flowers with the new Flower Medallion Punch that's on the same page. The paper I used is the new Best Year Ever paper that is one of the free Sale-a-bration items you can earn with a $50 purchase. The next new product I used is the new Spring Flowers Embossing Folder on page 19 of the Occasions catalog. And finally, the sentiment is from the Lotus Blossom stamp set that is on page 7 of the Sale-a-bration brochure. I punched it out with the Artisan Label Punch, which is not a new product. Some of the beautiful Striped Grosgrain Ribbon in Blushing Bride adds a nice accent.
I used my bone folder to curl the petals of the flowers back, which gives them a nice three-dimensional look. I popped the flowers up on foam dots, for even more dimension.
If you are wanting a fresh, clean look for a card, nothing works better than a white background. It seems like the majority of card- makers favor colorful backgrounds. If you are in the habit of using
colored card stock for your cards, take a break and try white for a change. I think you'll find it makes a clean, crisp card that is a nice change.
Thanks for coming by today and please come back on Friday when I'll have a sunny card for you. After the rain we've had this week, I think you'll be ready for a little sunshine on Friday, even if it's only on a card!
Hugs,
Susan
Howdy Stampers!
Thanks for checking in with me on this first Monday of February!
Well, how was your weekend? I'm not a big football fan and luckily I have some stampers who aren't big fans either. So while most people were glued to their televisions, I was out at Yoko's house having a stamping good time yesterday!
So, as I promised on Friday, we are leaving Valentine's Day behind and focusing on some everyday occasions like birthday, thinking-of-you, and thank you cards... those cards we send most frequently.
Check out this very crisp and contemporary card, stamped by Stephanie Perry, one of my talented downline members. She used the Stacked with Love paper in the Occasions catalog. One side is Valentine-y and the other side is all black and white prints that can be used for other occasions, which makes this paper stack very versatile.
And speaking of versatile, check out the great stamp set on page 31 of the Occasions catalog, the Crazy About You set. With tons of sayings plus two flowers and leaves, you could use this set over and over and never tire of it. I know someone out there is working on a list of sayings that are possible with this set. The words can be combined in so many fun ways, such as " Hello Miss Sunshine"
or "Just Sayin' You Rock" or how about "You Make All of Us Crazy?" Maybe that last one is a little over the top! But you get the idea. I'm sure you can come up with some better combinations.
The colors Stephanie used are Crisp Cantaloupe, Calypso Coral, Basic Black, and Whisper White. The pearls add just the right finishing touch!
Well, friends, that's it for today. I've got lots of cutting to do to get ready for the Beautiful Butterfly class that's coming up next Sunday. Hope your week is off to a smooth start!
Hugs,
Susan
Happy Friday, stampin' peeps!
We've made it through another week and it's almost time to say good-bye to January. That won't be so hard to do, will it? January in Oregon is not our best month... cold, gray, rainy, frosty, foggy... doesn't make for a great month! Of course February and March can hold the same kind of weather, but I'm happy to have one month of it behind us!
Today, as promised, will be the last of the Valentines I'll be showing. Then we'll get back to birthdays, thank yous, and then move on to other spring occasions.
The idea behind the cards I'm showing you today is that you can make non-Valentine stamp sets into Valentines, just by adding some hearts. Take a look and you'll see what I mean.
I used the smiling octopus from Sea Street for both cards and added some small hearts around him. The sentiment is from the Just Sayin' stamp set on page 109 of the annual catalog. It was cut out with the Word Bubbles Framelits (page 230). The designer paper used on both cards is from the Maritime collection on page 187, which coordinates with the Sea Street stamp set. I used the Hearts Collection Framelits on page 231 to cut the shapes for the card at the top. It has a tiny 3" by 3" card on the back so you can write a sentence or two along with your signature. Both of these would be great for a boy or a man... not a bow or flower, or bit of lace in sight! I hope I've inspired you to go to your stamping space and take a second look at your stamp sets to see what you could turn into a fun Valentine with just the addition of a few hearts.
May the weekend ahead be a great one, full of relaxation and fun and football (if you're a fan). If football isn't your thing, may you have lots of time to stamp!
Hugs to all,
Susan
Hey there, stampers!
It's Wednesday and you know what that means! After today we're over the hump and all that's left is gliding downhill to the weekend. I've got just a couple of Valentines left to show you and once I'm done with those, we will leave Valentine's Day behind for another year... I promise!
Check out this fun card and then I'll briefly tell you what I used to create it.
First of all, the colors here are Blushing Bride, Early Espresso, and Cherry Cobbler. This combination always reminds me of a raspberry truffle. And what says Valentine's Day more than chocolate?
I don't know if you're as lazy as I am, but sometimes when I'm creating I just hate to get up to find a die and cut it on the Big Shot.
So when I got the Party Pennants Die, I cut quite a few of them so when I wanted one, I'd have them pre-cut. I did the same thing with the Hello You Thinlets, so now I have some pre-cut "hellos," "yous," "thanks," and "happys" in my drawer, ready to pop onto cards. I cut them in several of my most-used colors so that I have a bit of variety. Now I don't have to interrupt the creative process and that's a happy thing.
The white panel is one of the pennants cut with the Party Pennants Die. The word love comes from the Crazy about You set on page 31 of the Occasions catalog. And of course the "you" was cut with the Hello You Thinlet dies on the same page. You can bundle these two together and save. The hearts were cut with the Hearts Collection Framelits in the annual catalog and of course the cute little bow was made with the Bow Builder Punch (page 13 of the Occasions catalog). Those tiny sequin hearts are found on page 208 of the annual catalog. Oh, and I embossed the Early Espresso layer with the new Happy Heart embossing folder, which is on page 9 of the Occasions catalog.
If you left off the girly bow, this card would work for a guy, too.
But as it is shown here, it would definitely be a card for a girl or a woman. Guys just aren't into bows. The sequins would probably have to go as well, but you could stamp some small hearts instead.
Hope your week is going well and that you've had time to sneak in a little bit of stamping time!
Hugs to all,
Susan
Hello stampers and a happy Monday to all!
It was a stamping good weekend, with gatherings in Hillsboro and Salem. It is great to be busy during Sale-a-bration! But don't do what I did on Saturday night! I was pitting an avocado and the knife slipped and I ended up pitting the palm of my hand instead.
After a visit to the ER, a tetanus shot and a couple of stitches, I think I'm good to go. I tried to get out of cooking for several days, but the doctor said I only needed to keep it dry for 24 hours... darn! I plan to milk this injury for all it's worth. Oooh, the terrible pain that shoots through my hand! (Just kidding!).
Shall we take a little break from Valentine's Day? I think we could do that, since I've been showing nothing but Valentines for the past several posts. So, like a breath of fresh air, here is a non-Valentine card for your stamping inspiration. We actually made this card at Megan's party in Salem yesterday.
One thing is for sure.... that Butterfly Basics set (page 26 of the Occasions catalog) is fabulous, especially when combined with the coordinating butterfly thinlets.
The base of this card is Crumb Cake, with Very Vanilla layered on top. The colors I used are Crumb Cake, Calypso Coral, and Early Espresso. The beauteous butterfly was cut using the medium-sized butterfly thinlet. I adhered it with a couple of glue dots. There are so many great images in this set... the possibilities are nearly endless!
Thanks for stopping by today. Sorry I can't stay and chat longer, but I've got to run... today is our SOS meeting (Stamp Out Stress) at Symposium Coffee in Old Town Sherwood. We'd love to have you join us sometime!
May the week ahead be a good one for you! The forecast shows some sun, so that's a happy thing... unless it gets changed before the sun shows his golden face.
Happy stamping!
Susan
Yay! It's Friday!
How nice that the weekend is almost here. I've got a lot of stamping going on this weekend, both in Hillsboro and Salem so I'll be all over the map!
There are only a couple of weeks left until Valentine's Day, so I've got to show Valentines while I can. The birthday, thank you, and thinking of you cards will have to wait. Most of us won't be going into assembly-line mode for Valentine cards, like we do for Christmas cards. Far-flung friends and relatives really do not expect a Valentine the way they do a Christmas card. So you're off the hook for stamping 100 Valentines! But why not make a few simple ones for some of the most treasured people in your life?
Today's card would be perfect for a special friend...
This very clean and simple card was a snap to make. I used Basic Black, Whisper White and Blushing Bride as my colors. The black/white designer paper is from the new Stacked with Love Designer Series Paper Stack on page 5 of the Occasions catalog. The fun thing about this new stack is that one side of the paper features Valentine-y prints while the reverse is all black and white.
So once Valentine's Day is over, just use the great black and white patterns for all sorts of cards.
I made that adorable bow with the new Bow Builder Punch that's on page 13 of the Occasions catalog. You just punch, fold, and glue and you've got a sweet little bow! I've found that the best way to glue these together is with glue dots. I used one of the heart framelits in the Hearts Collection (page 231 of the annual catalog) to cut the black and white heart.
This is one of the cards that we'll be making at my Valentine class on Saturday, January 31st at 1 pm at my house. I'd love to have you join us for stamping, chatting, snacking, and relaxing! Send me a quick email if you'd like me to save a spot for you.
Have a restful and restorative weekend, everyone!
Hugs,
Susan
Hello again and happy Wednesday!
OK... we did a friendly Valentine on Monday, so today let's go for a more romantic one. Now this one isn't full of lace and flowers and pastel colors and pearls. No, this one is a "manly" Valentine!
Take a look and I think you'll see what I mean
I started with a panel of Real Red card stock, then embossed it with the new Happy Heart embossing folder that's on page 9 of the new Occasions catalog. Then I used some of the Stacked with Love Designer Series Paper Stack on page 5 of the Occasions catalog and punched out three large hearts with the Sweetheart Punch on page 222 of the annual catalog and three smaller hearts using the tiny punch that's part of the Itty Bitty Accents Punch Pack on the same page. The sentiment is from the stamp set Pictogram Punches on page 89 of the annual catalog. I stamped it on Whisper White card stock using the Tuxedo Black Memento Stamp pad (page 212), my favorite black. This black ink is dark, dries quickly, and doesn't smear. If you haven't tried it, you really should. I think you'll end up loving it as much as I do. I punched out another small heart and adhered it on top of the heart in the sentiment with a dimensional dot, just to accent the heart. The great black and white chevron ribbon can be found on page 207.
I think this card has a nice "Valentine-y" look, without being girly. Although it would be perfect for a guy, it could be given to almost anyone. If you haven't already started, it's time to get going on your Valentines. As I mentioned in an earlier post, Valentine's Day is the second most popular card-sending holiday, with over 151 million cards being sent. Think of how happy your friends and family will be to find something other than a bill or an advertisement in their mailbox. "Real mail" is a cause for celebration these days!
Here's a fun idea.... invite some friends over for a "crafternoon" of making Valentines. Make some cookies or cupcakes, brew a pot of tea or coffee, get out some stamps and paper and have some "girl time." Your friends will love you for it! Oh, and don't forget chocolate. You've got to have chocolate when stamping!
Thanks for stopping by today and please come back on Friday for more stamping ideas.
Hugs,
Susan
