En Francais Fun

Happy Thursday!

Surprised to see me?  I'm surprised to BE here!  I really didn't think I'd have another project to post so soon after the chaos of Tuesday and Wednesday but here I am :)  I'm THRILLED to say that after 2 hours of typing my magazine "recipes" are done and e-mailed.  Yippee!  Now I can resume with my previously scheduled program called my life *lol*

I did a lot more paperwork and osrting of orders yesterday along with a few e-mails to customers and my Trail Blazers Team ... my back did NOT appreciate sitting at the computer for so long!  So when Craig went to the girls' Demonstration of Learning at school I headed to the craft room for some R&R.  I'm not gunna lie - I figured I come up with nuthin', thinking all m,y creative juices had been sucked out of me this month but low and behold I came up with a card I love.  The last "major" thing on my plate this week is to come up with three projects for my Stamp of the Month club, using the En Francais stamp.  I had in mind that I wanted to use it on an accent, not as a background, as I usually do.  Here is what I came up with:

Ta Da!  MAN it felt good to step away from Christmas Cards for an hour and come up with a Valentine card (or wedding, or anniversary!)  You need to look closely to see all the subtle details on this card but I love them!  I first made the hearts using Versamark and embossing powders - black and cherry cobbler - and punching them out using the heart punch.  I struggled for about half an hour with what to do from there!  Have no fear!  Mojo Monday to the rescue!  I flipped through 3 years worth of layouts they have posted on their Mojo Monday sight and I decided on this one.  I love how it turned out.  If you look closely at the Cherry Cobbler layer you can see I stamped the En Francais in our new Iluminate Watermark Ink.  It's almost silver but not quite - just a nice, soft, shimmery, subtle image.  The black layer isd "as is" and the Crumb Cake layer has small hearts embossed along the bottom of it by using one of the Adorning Accents folders.  The Forever & Always (from "Loving Thoughts" 0 page 136 of the catty - $28.95 clear; $36.95 wood) is stamped in Cherry Cobbler and again, if you look closely, you can see I've cut a dove tail on the end of it.  The sentiment and hearts are popped up on dimensionals.  So!  One club project down, 2 to go.

Oh my!  It's almost 10:00 am and I have to walk the dog, throw on some slap (aka make-up for my non UK-speaking friends!), change the sheets and dry the laundry all before 11:15 when the kids get out of school and I make some deliveries - so I better crack on!

Have fabulous ... and stampy ... day :)


Tam

Evergreen ... and another Watercolor Winter

Happy Tuesday!

Wow.  Tamara's Paper Trail is right!  I've been doing paperwork ever since 8:30 this morning!  It's AWESOME when SU puts out a great promotion that boosts sales but the paper tornado it leaves behind is incredible!  Yes, I'm one of the people who LOVES paperwork ... but not when I still have about 15 projects to work on and Christmas approaching!!  Nevertheless I'm making my way through it ... only about another 3 hours at the computer and 4 in the craft room and I should be caught up ... (ya, right ... like THAT day ever comes *lol*)

Sooo ... before I start my 2 hours stint of sending my magazine project "recipes" to HO I thought I could procrastinate just a little longer by sharing a few more projects with you (I TOLD you I've made about 25 projects in the last 3 weeks!!!)

First up is one I more or less CASE'd from the fabulous Dawn Olchefske ... www. dostamping.typepad.com.  Here is Dawn's card:

Beautiful!  I just love the card ... AND the layout ... but wanted to simplify it a bit for my Stamp-a-Stack a few weeks back.  Here is what I came up with:

Hmmm ... looks a little squished here ... gotta master that new camera!  I just LOVED how this one turned out.  Yep ... THIS was what we would make.  Oh!  Wait!  No we won't!  Instead of having 2 full rolls of Cherry Cobbler Seam Binding, like I THOUGHT I had I only had enough to make TWO cards!  Arghhhh!!!  I HATE when that happens!  I am a borderline hoarder and HATE the thought of ever running out of something so I ALWAYS have back-up supplies ... not this time!  I obviously USED all my favorite ribon and neglected to replenish it!  Sigh.  Well!  I needed to change it (much to my shegrin ... shegrin ... how do you spell shegrin?  And what dies that MEAN anyway??  Note to self:  Ask Dad what shegrin means and how to spell it ...).  After an hour of mixing an matching colors ... and making sure I had ENOUGH of everything this is what I came up with:

Old Olive 5/8" satin ribbon (retired) to the rescue!  Oh look!  The ribbon slid down when I took it out of the sleeve - *lol*  nice one, Tam!  I used the same layout as Dawn ... but I left the background blank (in very vanilla).  I popped the Always Artichoke layer up on dimensionals so I could slide the Old Olive ribbon underneath it.  The little squares 1 1/4" squares are also popped up.  I used Watercolor Winter AGAIN - stamped in Staz-on and colored with my blender pen with the Old Olive, Always Artichoke and Cherry Cobbler inks.  The Peac on Earth is in Cobbler and hiding under the ribbon is a string of 5 rhinestones.  Wa-low!  A pretty card!

Now ... on to the card I hate ... well, maybe hate is a bit strong ... and there IS too much hate in the world already ... so let's go with strongly dislike ... or maybe just "dislike enough to not want to show it".  It's just dull ... and lacks something ... maybe some rhinestones would perk it up a bit ... but I gave up on it before I even hit that point.  Here it is ...

Blech (is that how you spell a wretching noise *lol*?)  BO-RING!  I used my labels collection framelits (LOVE THEM!!) for an Artichoke mat - stamped the tree from Evergreen in ... umm ... Celery? ... and then the writing in Artichoke overtop.  The sentiment is from More Merry Messages (on sale for 1 more day!!).  I say again.  Blech.

Now ... FINALLY ... an Evergreen card I actually LIKE!!!  Here ya go!

Ta Da!  Can you tell I"m really into minimalist lately?  I've come to terms with a lot of white space!!  This card is just PERFECT for my Stamp-a-Stack on Sunday where most of the stampers are young ladies ... my rule of thumb for THAT market is ONE INK COLOR!!  This one fits!  I used Night of Navy - inked the tree once but stamped it 3 times so each tree is lighter.  The sentiment is from Greetings of the Season and also in Night of Navy.  It's hard to see but the tree on the left was stamped in our (retired) silver Encore ink - stamped off - and then lightly stamped on the tree.  Since the ink is quite "wet" there is time to apply a little Dazzling Diamonds to it and it sticks :)  A few rhinestones and we're done!

Soooooooooooo - that brings me up to date on my postings!  Woo Hoo!  Thanks for hanging in there and reading all my ramblings :))

I WANT to work on a Christmas Envelope Gift Card Holder for you for tomorrow but we'll have to see how this paperwork ... oh, and magazine project recipe ... gig goes first.  I guess at SOME point I'm going to have to make that a priority .... and maybe THAN I can get a decent night sleep *lol*

Thanks for popping by.  Have a stampy day :)


Tam

Another Case ... or three!

HAPPY MONDAY!!!!

Woo Hoo!  I MADE IT!!!  I survived the weekend and can see the light at the end of the tunnel!!  I am beyond THRILLED to say that my project submissions for the Stampin' Success magazine are "in the mail"!!  Phew.  I'm SO glad that is done ... well ... ALMOST done ... I still have to e-mail the Editor with my "recipe" for each project.  That should take about 2 hours ... THEN I'll be done ... but I'm glad to have them physically in the mail.  Now I just have to wait until March for it to hit the glossy pages of the magazine :)))))

It was a long tough week last week.  I finished my magazine projects Thursday so thought I could play catch up on a few things Friday.  Nope.  Insert children ... and "life".  Alicia woke up in tears because she felt "icky".  Now of course the kids say that EVERY morning but this morning I could tell she really meant it ... so ... she stayed home.  I warned her I still had things to do and whilst I would certainly take care of her and color a bit I couldn't sit and watch TV all day with her.  She was good with that.  I made plans for my dad to come over and watch her for 1 1/2 hours in the afternoon while I helped out with Rebecca's school field trip.  It took some convincing to get Alicia to "agree" to having him stay while I left rather than HIM help with the field trip while I stayed.  I am, however, a very good saleslady and eventually had her looking forward to him coming and me going :)

I jumped in the shower at 11:00 am and just as I was drying my hair the school phoned.  It was Rebecca's teacher.  I assumed she was just confirming what time I was coming to help out.  WRONG!  She told me that Rebecca had fainted!  Long story short she fainted while walking to the bathroom to clean a fresh papercut.  Her teacher said she bumped her cheek and had a mark but was otherwise fine.  I spoke to Rebecca and naturally she wanted to come home.  (I know my daughter .... she wasn't hurt and she felt fine but she was terribly embarrassed!!)  So ... I called dad and said not to bother coming as I didn't need to help with the field trip anymore.  He said he would still come so I could walk the dog.  So he headed off.  I quickly called Craig to tell him what happened and HE immediately ditched work and came home.  Then my MOM called, ready to cancel her lunch so SHE could come.  WHOA people!!!  Everything was just fine!  I tried to call dad to tell him Craig was coming home and not to bother ... but he had already left.  I picked up Rebecca who was very pale (although the staff said she was whiter than snow when she went down!) and we came home.  She needed a cuddle and a good cry.  She headed up to bed to watch TV.  Alicia was now disappointed that it wasn't just "her and Papa" time but I bribed her into a smile with a new sticker book.  Papa showed up but I didn't need him.  Craig showed up and he walked the dog.  (... any of this chaos sound familiar?  ... or is it just me and my life??  *lol*)

ANYway ... all is well with everyone.  Rebecca had a bruised cheek.  HER version is that she DIDN'T faint ... her arm had swung up and hit her in the face and made her fall.  Ummm - ok.  Not sure why her arm would be swinging that hard or high but I wasn't going to argue with her.  She was good enough to go to her skiing lessons on Saturday so all is well again. 

Needless to say I didn't get anything work-wise accomplished Friday so Saturday was a bit of a scramble.  I had Craig take the girls to skiing lessons alone while I cut paper for my two upcoming Stamp-a-Stacks.  SHEESH!  I am now officially down to HALF A PACK of Whisper White card stock and FIVE envelopes - FIVE!!  Guess who put in an emergency order at 11:45 pm yesterday *lol*?   Sunday was great.  I had my Stamp-a-Stack and it was really relaxing.  I had some new ladies stamping with us (hi Patti and Kristin!).  I really enjoyed it.  I spent the rest of the afternoon making up my "extras" and then once the kids were in bed I made my "good" copies of my magazine projects.  Yep - my bed felt VERY good when I crawled into it.  I think I was asleep in about 15 seconds!

So now you understand why I say HAPPY MONDAY!!!  I MADE IT!!!!   (aren't you glad you come in to check out my craziness every week?  Makes your life look calm, doesn't it??  DOESN'T IT??)

So ... how about some cards?  I have 20 minutes before child pick-up so let's roll with some more "CASE"ing ...

Here is a card I wanted to make for my class a few weeks back.  I love the colors and the paper piercing.  Of course I HAVE all the paper piercing but I hadn't USED any of them yet (sound familiar??)  This was a great card to try it out on ... and it also allowed me to use my new Paper TRIMMER on the green layer.  The originator is/was .. oh for Heaven's Sake ... I can't FIND it!!!  I know I'll stumble accross it again - it's a great card - I just can't find it in my Favorites of Stampin Connection nor on Pinterest ... sorry - I'll report the creator when I find it!
This is 99% exactly her original card ...

Love it!  The colors are NOt Quite Navy and Wild Wasabi.  I used Framelits for the shapes around "Frosty Friends" which was stamped in Staz-on and colored with the markers.  I used the paper piercing template to pierce ... and pearls for the snowballs - oh, and the base is run through the polka dot folder.

Next up is one I used for my Stamp-a-Stack yesterday.  Again - CASEd ... this time from Chat Wszelaki at www.memystampsandi.blogspot.com .  Great card - so quick, easy but WOW!

It used the Four Seasons hostess set, a 1 1/4" circle punch of Silver glimmer paper, a 1" punched out snowflake and some dimensionals.  The ink is Baja Breeze and the Sentiment is Curly Cute.  Quick and EASY!!  Thanks Chat for a great case!

The next two are my own creations ... which didn't make "the cut".  This one is "ok" but didn't blow my hair back ...

Sigh.  I really was convinced this set was a great set ... "Christmas Blessings".  It is one of the first ones I bought on the pre-order.  I had great visions of it being embossed in silver .. I've tried a number of cards a number of times but it just hasn't grabbed me.  This one was so-so.  It just didn't quite sit right with me ... so it was "out"!

Last up (I now have 3 minutes before I have to leave!)  is another one I THOUGHT would work for my upcoming SAS ... but in the end I changed it for something else.  Just didn't float my boat:

Jolly Bingo Bits is a must-have set ... and I have scads of the Gumball Green ribbon on hand but .. nope ... I chose my next card instead ... which I love ... but I'm gunna keep it until tomorrow or my kids will be left standing at the school gate looking forlorn ... and we don't want THAT do we???  Heck no!  So off I toddle.  Come back tomorrow for a card I DON'T like ... and one that I LOVE ... both made with the same set.  Until then ... have a stampy day :)


Tam

Simply Case!

Happy Wednesday!!!

Apparently I don't have enough stress to motivate me to get downstairs and crack off those last two magazine projects.  Again .... I'm my own worst enemy!!!  I spent the morning having a lovely, relaxing time at the hairdressers (my BFF had given me some gift certificates for hair cuts!!) ... along with my apple fritter and Starbucks Peppermint Mocha coffee.  Of course after the haircut I spent a bunch of money on jewelerry that I didn't need (but it was on SALE! ... it would have been irresponsible NOT to buy some!) and then off to Michaels to buy a storage cart for the girls' coloring books, crayons and markers (once again I felt the need to SAVE a bunch of money and bought $100 worth of things I didn't realize I needed!)  Now that I'm home I kinda LIKE this relaxed feeling ... and lets face it - I work better under pressure *lol*

Sooooo .... last week when I was a basket case trying to create simple yet stunning cards and had completely run out of all creativity I had to resort to desperate measures ... the CASE!  For those of you not "in the know" - CASE stands for Copy And Share Everything.  Us Stampin' Up! Gals are all about copying ideas ... as long as credit is given where credit is due.  Most of us actually think it is an absolute compliment if someone copies our ideas.  It's validations that we are creative geniuses and we are in fact Super Stars in the crafting world *lol*.  Why re-invent the wheel?  A beautiful cards is a beautiful card ... so I cased 'em!

First up is one I cased form myself *lol*.  A few days ago I posted this quick and easy card:

While I really liked the layout  ... (does it look familiar to this one?):

... or perhaps this one ...:

... I found I wasn't loving the Lucky Limeade green ... nor the little strip of DSP along the bottom.  So I cased myself and came up with this one:

Oooo - my ... what I nice picture my new camera took of THAT one!  Same card but I used Basic Black for the accent instead of the green.  Wa-low!  A quick and easy case!

Next up is a STUNNING card that was right up my alley!  It packs a POW and is in my favorite neutrals - Very Vanilla and Early Espresso.  I cased this from Jill Fanchett - visit her at www.jillsink.typepad.com.  Mine is 90% identical to hers:

OMG I love this card!!!  It used the Bigs die for the snowflakes and the Be of Good Cheer DSP.  I added a strip of Espresso cs, stamped the Noel in Espresso (from Greetings of the Season) and added a Jumbo Pearl in the middle.  It doesn't come any quicker, easier or more "wow"ful (yes, it's a word!) than this one!  Thank you Jill for sharing your BEAUUUUUTIFUL card!

Last up (for today) is one I cased from a Super Stamper from Calgary, Alberta (yay Canada!!) Natasha Zandbergen.  Natasha does fabulous work andyou can find her at www.inkingoutofthebox.com.  Again, clean, simple and lovely:

Now ... let's just pause for a moment.  Do you HAVE the Ornament Keepsake Framelits and Keepsake Ornament Stamp set yet?  If you don't WHY THE HECK NOT???  Have you SEEN how many cards I have made with these two items???  The options are simply ENDLESS.  BUY THE DARNED STUFF AND I'LL STOP HARPING ABOUT IT!!!  For those of you who are my customers and DON"T have it ... I KNOW WHO YOU ARE and I'm not scared to start naming names!!! 
So ... Back to the card.  Yes, once again I used the Be of Good Cheer DSP (yes, it's still on sale this week for $10.80!!) with the Holiday Ornament Framelits and my gold Dazzling marker.  The sentiment is from Merry and Type.  Quick - easy - lovely.  Thanks Natasha!

OK ... I now only have an hour before I have to go get the kidlets.  I think I can procrastinate on my projects for another half hour by cleaning the kitchen ... but I better not.  I'm off to create my OWN fabulousness ... and hopefully someone will want to CASE them in the future.

Don't reinvent the wheel ... case a card you see and love! 

Have a stampy day!


Tam

Ornament Keepsake Anyone?

Well HELLOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO and Happy Tuesday!!!!

Wow.  It feels like MONTHS since I've posted!  I have made SOOOO many projects over the last 2 weeks I don't know what I have and what I haven't posted any more.  I also feel really out-of-touch with you all since I really HAVEN'T posted in about 2 weeks.  Although I had projects every day last week I had actually pre-posted them and scheduled them to appear each day.  While I liked the idea in theory (it meant I didn't have to stress about carving out an hour each day to post) I didn't like it in practice.  You know me ... I like to ramble ... and my daily posts were short, sweet and to the point.  Not my style.  I actually watched a webinar the other day on Blogging ... and the number 1 tip they gave was to "be yourself".  Well - short and sweet is ANYTHING but me ... and let's face it ... only a few of you really pop in to see my projects, right?  The rest of you check in to read my all about my craziness, don't you??!!  I figure reading my blog is kind of like a reality show.  You tune in for one of the two same reasons you watch reality shows a) to confirm that there are other people out there who have a life as crazy as yours or b) to validate that you are normal compared to the likes of me :) 

So no more pre-posting for me.  This is my therapy ... and I blog for that reason and to share my passion with others.  I HOPE to post at least once a week (which I think Tuesday will be my designated "must post" day rather than Mondays) and anything over and above that is a bonus.  My life will calm in down in 2 days so I should have LOTS of time for blogging in the coming weeks (ya ... right ... like "lots of time" ever happens!)

So - speaking of being busy ... any guesses WHY I have been so busy for the last 2 weeks?  Hmmm ... anyone??  Well ... some of you already know but for the rest of you ... here's the scoop!  About 3 weeks back Stampin' Up! contacted me and asked me if I would like to be their Featured Guest Artist for our (now) bi-monthly stampin magazine "Stampin' Success"!  After about 30 minutes of re-reading the e-mail, squealing like a new born piglet and jumping up and down in the kitchen (as my dog and cat watched from the livingroom in what appeared to be horror!) I replied with an emphatic YES!!!  So ... in a nutshell, they sent me a brand new stamp set from the upcoming mini catalogue and I have to submit (4) projects to them using it.  My deadline to get it in the mail is Friday.  Yes ... as I expected ... I have had about 4 night where I wake up at 3:00 am trying to design projects.  I have been SO sleep deprived I really don't know how I've been functioning.  Well ... I can now see the light at the end of the tunnel.  I have completed 2 projects, the 3rd one is 90% done and the fourth one is alive and well in my brain ... I just have to get it on paper *lol*.  So that's why I have been so busy lately ... designing those projects on TOP of my regular clubs, classes, parties, Stamp-a-Stacks, gift making and now the FABULOUS On-Line promotion (not to mention those stinkin' ADORABLE embossing machines!!!)  It's been a crazy 2 weeks for sure.

Soooooooooo!  I think it's about time I shared a few projects with you!!  This first one is the one I promised to post on Saturday ... but didn't.  Sorry about that .. Saturday I was quickly approaching melt down / burn out and it just didn't happen.  This was my favorite card for our class last week:

Aaaaaaaaaaaaaaa!  Love it! I'm SO into my neutrals and vintage lately!  This was one of those cards that started off simple ... but then it just kept going and going and going and turned out to have a lot of steps to it.  Nonetheless it's not a "hard" card .. just lots of cutting and piecing.  The colors are Very Vanilla., Crumb Cake and Early Espresso.  I ran the base and the Crumb Cake layer through the new Lacy Brocade embossing folder (ya know ... I wasn't sure I "needed" this folder as I found it quite similar to the Vintage Wallpaper folder ... but I like it ... and I'm glad I bought it!)  I stamped the Ornament Keepsake images in crumb cake and then punched them out with the Framelits (if you don't own this set & framelits you NEED them!  I have used them SO much this year - definately a must have in your collection!)  I then punched out the same ornaments with the framelits in Espresso and layered them just slightly behind the crumb cake images to give a shadow effect.  I did the same with a thin strip along the side of the Crumb Cake layer and again against the punched out sentiment.  For that I used the Season't Greetings from ... mmm More Merry Messages?  I foget  (... Did you know More Merry Messages is on sale this week?  Yep it is.  True story.  You should buy it.  Just sayin. ...).  I punched the sentiment out with the Decorative Label Punch (also happens to be on sale this week ... $16.07 ... ) and popped it up on dimensionals.  I added a little knot of Victoria Crochet Trim ($9.50) and attached it with a glue dot.  Wa-low!  A pretty little card :)

Now.  Last Friday was not a good day.  As discussed I was extremely sleep deprived and was losing the will to live, let alone to design yet another card (I figured I've designed about 25 cards in the last 3 weeks!)  My creative juices had left the building ... but I still needed to create two new Christmas cards for my Christmas Stamp-a-stack that was on Sunday.  Yes, I HAD created Christmas cards that would "do" ... but I wasn't in LOVE with them any more ... that and one customer was coming who had been to my last SAS so I wanted to give her a FEW new cards (yes, sometimes I'm my own worst enemy!).  I think I crafted about 7 hours on Friday.  By 9:00 pm I was just a waste of make-up.  I had no clear judgement left in me ... I couldn't decide what looked good and what didn't ... so naturally I enlisted the help of my husband.  I had stamped the very simple "Merry and Type" ornament image on my paper along with a sentiment ... but it was missing something.  Craig said it needed some tree branches.  Here is what I (or "we") came up with:

Now ... while I liked this card very much in THEORY it bugged me that it was just a single layer card.  I couldn't live with that ... but to make it any smaller would ruin the proportions which I think "make" the card.  I left it to look at again in the morning ... with fresh eyes.  I woke up Saturday morning and within 20 minutes had come up with my new favorite card (funny what a 5 hour "nap" will do for creativity!")

Eeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee!  LOVE it!!!  SO clean - SO simple - SO elegant - I just love everything about it.  (Of course I had to spend another half hour making sure it didn't need little silver strings drawn from each ornament ... or different patterned paper for each ornament ... nope - the first crack was the best crack!)  The DSP is the Be of Good Cheer paper - the sentiment is from the More Merry Messages set (yep - still on sale!).  I punched the ornaments with the framelits and added 1 rhinestone for a little punch.  LOVE IT!!!!!!!!!!  My customers loved it too.  One customer, Vicky W played around with the layout a little and changed the sentiment and came up with this lovely card:

Love it too! ... Then Vicky spotted "Craig's" card ..., loved it and incorporated the two cards to come up with my OTHER favorite card:

Isn't it great?!  All the sentiments are from More Merry Messages (did I mention it's on sale? *lol*)

So I think that's enough rambling for today.  Phew.  Thanks!  I needed that!  I have 6 or 7 more projects to share in the coming days / weeks ... it's just a matter of finding the time to post them ... and the rest of this week I HAVE to get those magazine projects in the mail (no ... I can't share those with you until March!).

Thanks for faithfully checking in on my and my crazy - have a stampy day :)


Tam

Be of Good Cheer

Happy Friday!

We made it to the end of the week!  I have a busy one ahead.  I'm free tonight but tomorrow night Alicia and I are on a Brownie Sleepover in St. Albert.  It should be lots of fun ... then again ... the thought of "sleeping" in a club house ... on the flooor ... with (20+) 7 and 8 year old girls may have me reaching for the Advil ... and back pain pills *lol*.  Sunday I have a private Stamp-a-Stack so I better get cracking and get all my little duckies in a row. 

Today's card is one you've seen before - I just switched the DSP to Christmas.  Brandi Mah shared the layout with our team last year and it really is my go-to layout.  Thanks Brandi!

It really doesn't need describing, does it?  The sentiment is from More Merry Messages (and is VERY similar to the one in Greetings of the Season!).  I used Gumball green.  The DSP is Be of Good Cheer.  I added a rhinestone for a little bling.  Oh!  One tip I can share to get the dovetails looking pretty good.  I snip up the middle of the strip of paper first and then cut from the corner to the top of the snip.  That way both tails are somewhat centred and the same shape ...

That's it for today.  I have one more to share ... tomorrow.  Have a stampy Friday!


Tam

Embellished Events Christmas

Happy Thursday!

Half day for the girls today ... so I'll get right to it so I have time to walk the pup, shower and tidy up ...

Today I have another quick and easy card that I designed for my Kids Stamp-a-Stack.  Again, the goal use to use ONE ink color.  Mission accomplished!

I used Real Red and Lucky Limeade for the colors.  The santa hat is from Embellished Events (page 40 of the catty - $25.95 clear; $35.95 wood).  This is a fun little set that I HAD to have ... but of course this is the first time I've actually USED it *lol*  All the images in this set are sized to work with the SU embellishments - rhinestones, pearls, dahlias and so on.  It's fun to "bling it up" with whatever you've got on hand!  I ran the white layer through the Delicate Details embossing folder.  The hat is punched out with the 1 3/4" circle punch and the scallop in Limeade is the 2 3/8" scallop.  I used a LITTLE piece of DSP from Summer Smooches ... "Tamara!  How on earth did you get that tiny little piece cut so beautifully??" I hear you cry.  "Why using the new Stampin' Trimmer of course!"  (page 180 of the catty - $41.95)  This cutter is AWESOME!  I will never give up my Tabletop Cutter but I have already started using the Trimmer from my smaller layers ... something I've never done before! 
The sentiment is from Greetings of the Season in Real Red.  And of course I added a bunch of rhinestones.  The kids LOVE rhinestones!!!

Right ... two more posts to go this week!  Pop back tomorrow for another quick and easy card!  Have a stampy day!


Tam

Daydream Medallions Christmas

Happy Wednesday!

I told ya I had a lot of cards to share!  Thanks for popping back to check 'em out!

I'll get right to it as I need to get some "serious" designing done today.  I can't share what I'm working on for a few MONTHS ... top secret information ... but I need to get at it so ...

Today's card is SO quick and easy ... and there is just something about it that I love!  Check it out:

It's just so darned Christmassy!  I dunno ... I just keep staring at it!

I used two colors - Real Red and Garden Green.  The wreath is made using the Daydream Medallions set ...and a Stamp-a-ma-jig.  That's a must for this card to get the smaller medallion just right!  The sentiment is from the mini - Heart of Christmas.  I punched out the small heart in Red Glimmer paper (and popped it up on a cut dimensional) and 3 little circles using my Owl Builder punch ... my other circle punches were too big ... these ones were just right!  I added one little rhinestone at the bottom (just above the "a" in Tamara).  It just seemed to comlete it.

Quick, easy, classic Christmas.

Come back tomorrow .... and have a stampy day!


Tam

Merry Mini Ornaments

Happy Tuesday!

Today is a little busier than yesterday was but it's all good.  I'm all prepped and ready for tonight's class ... and the only place I really NEED to go today is to take the kids to swimming.  Once I take the pup for his walk I can spend a few hours cutting for my upcoming Stamp-a-Stacks.  Slowly but surely I'm getting things under control!

Here is a CUTE little card that is SO quick and easy.  I designed it for my Stamp-a-Stack that will have a number of young stampers.  I learned a few years ago (the hard way) that when stamping with children limit the ink to ONE COLOR!  Any more than one color of ink on the table and you're just askin' for trouble *lol*.  Here's the card:

I got the inspiration from Mary Fish (www.stampinpretty.com).  She made little notecards using the Merry Mini Punch Pack that were SO cute ... I just HAD to turn them into a full size card.  Does it get any easier than this one?  Not much!  I punched out the ornaments with the Merry Mini Punch Pack onament shape in Real Red, Gumball Green and Daffodil Delight.  I was going to use mini glue dots to attach them but then realized I had a SWACK of little dots of glue in my package of rhinestones ... withOUT the rhinestones.  Remember the birthday party I did a few weeks back?  Well the girls had a LITTLE trouble getting the glue off WITH the rhinestone so I now have a lot of rhinestones without glue and a lot of glue without rhinestones.  Being ever frugal instead of wasting ... I just used the glue from the rhinestones to attach the ornaments.  Clever yes? 
The sentiment is from Merry & Type in Real Red.  A few rhinestones finish it off nicely!  Oh ... the mats are Real Red and Gumball Green.
Quick - easy - one ink color - minimal effort.  This one's a keeper!

Tune in tomorrow for another super quick and easy card ... I'm on a roll Baby!

Have a stampy day!


Tam

Triple Time Stamping

Happy Monday!!!!

Welcome to my favorite day of the week :)  Today is even better than usual as a) the kids are off school (that means that other than walking the pup I don't have to leave the house today) and b) there is no Brownies tonights (that means that other than walking the pup I don't have to leave the house today) *lol*  I'm not gunna lie ... I'm sick to DEATH of leaving the house!  I'm a stereotypical "Cancer" ... I'm a home body.  Given the choice to a) go out or b) stay home I'd pick b) 99% of the time.  It's also a great day because I'm starting to crawl out from under all the project pressure I have been under lately.  Yesterday I almost had a meltdown ... you know the kind I'm talking about ... the "I don't know why I'm crying but I'm a girl and sometime you just need to cry" kind of meltdown.  I managed to keep the tears at bay ... and then I started pulling up my big girl panties and started getting some stuff done.  Today is a whole different ball game.  I am focused and fairly stress free.  Phew!  I hate when I get overwhelmed like I was last week!  So .... today I spent the morning in my craft room (while completely ignoring my children and allowing them to stare at the laptop for ... oh ... 3 hours ... bad Mommy ...) and I now have my projects designed for my Technique Class tomorrow.  I'm glad I found a third project that I loved. 

First up is our Technique card.  We'll be learning the "Triple Time" stamping technique.  I've avoided this technique for a few months now because ... well, to be honest ... I was sick to death of it!  The very talented Dawn Olchefske (www.dostamping.typepad.com) brought back the popularity of this technique with a beautiful card.  Here it is:

Isn't it pretty?  I'm not the only one who thought so ... and all of the sudden everywhere you looked there was a Triple Time card.  Nevertheless, it's a popular technique because it is easy and pretty ... so who am I to fight popularity?  Gotta give the stampers what they want, right?  Sooooo .... after wasting a LOT of paper using Dawn's layout I decided to scrap that ... and came up with a different layout.  Here is what I came up with:

Oooo ... this picture was taken with my brand new camera!  It's so purdy!!!  You can't see it in this picture because I shrunk it ... but in the original picture I can see individual carpet fibres clear as day!  ... now I just need 19 hours to learn how to use the darned thing properly *lol*  ... but I digress .... (haven't done THAT in a while *lol*)
I used the Snowflake Soiree set with Midnight Muse (LOVE that color) and Bashful Blue.  Hmmm ... liked the layout but wasn't diggin' the color scheme.  Try again ...

This time I used ... Not Quite Navy ... no ... wait ... it's Midnight Muse again ... it just looks different here due to the lighting and carpet contrast.  Yep - gotta learn how to use the new camera to get more acurate coloring of my cards!  This time I used the new Illuminate ink pad (from the mini).  It looks silver and is quite striking on colored card stack.  The mats are in whisper white.  Naaaa.  Don't love this one either.  Try again.  Third time's the charm ...

Yep.  That's the one.  Everything is the same - I just changed the colors to Crumb Cake and Early Espresso and changed the rhinestones to pearls.  I won't go into details on the technique ... Dawn has a video on it ... you can also come to class tomorrow night and find out how it's done in person :)

OK ... so I think I'll stop there.  I have 5 more cards to share but heck ... I have to spread it out a little, don't I?  Hee hee ... yes, I'm evil :)

Until tomorrow - have a stampy day!


Tam

Flowering Flourishes Spotlight

Happy Monday!!

Just a quickie tonight.  We just got home from Alicia's Brownie Ceremony.  It was really cute ... I remember very well when it was ME who was having the ceremony ... a mere 38 YEARS ago!!!

I'm posting a few cards I made a few weeks ago.  I have been DYING to get to the craft room but Craig and I spent a fabulous weekend at the Banff Springs Hotel (his company was celebrating their 50th Anniversary ... so 1,400+ employees and spouses had a knees-up in Banff ... the ENTIRE hotel was booked just for us ... plus 100+ rooms at the Rimrock hotel!  What an amazing place!!)  Needless to say I haven't had a chance to craft for a few days ... I'm in withdrawal *lol*

Here is one of the cards we made at my Birthday Stamp-a-Stack a few weeks ago:

I used the "No Peeking" set for the little penguin - Early Espresso and Bashful Blue cs and Real Read ink and markers.  The sentiments is from Blloming with Kindness from the main catty.  I used the Delicate Designs embossing folder and the little snowflakes are from Jolly Bingo Bits.  The penguin was punched out with the 2 1/2" circle punch and the scallop with the 2 3/8" Scallop Circle Punch.  A few rhinestones finished it off.

Next up is another card I created with the Flowering Flourishes stamp set:

Did I post this one already?  ... I don't think so ...
I used Old Olive and Raspberry Ripple cs and markers.  I colored the images directly on the stamp with the markers and then stamped them.  I stamped more images on scrap and then punched them out with the 1 1/4" circle punch.  I matted the circles with Raspberry Ripple circles punched out with the 1 3/8" circle punch.  The Thank You is from Lacy & Lovely, again in the Raspberry Ripple.

That's it for now.  I have some GREAT cards planned for Friday's Technique class so pop back in a few days to check those out.  In the meantime ... have a stampy night :)


Tam

Tween Cards

Happy Saturday!

As you read this I am in Banff enjoying my weekend away with my husband.  I hope Auntie is coping!  (Auntie doesn't have kids ... this is a WHOLE new experience for her!!!)

Right - today, as promised, I'm sharing the cards I made for the birthday party I did last weekend.  The birthday girl turned 11 and she and 9 of her friends made 8 card ... 2 of each of the following.

I love the "Dress Up" set for the girls.  It makes for a VERY quick, VERY easy card!  The sentiment is from Curly Cute and the pink is Melon Mambo

You've seen this card before in different variations.  This time I matted it with Real Red (that was for you, Wanda!)

This one is SO fun for the girls to make.  You use the scalloped circle die and then trim it to form a dress shape.  Tape a little organza ribbon around the "waist" - punch a flower (I used a retired flower punch but the Boho Blossom punch has options) and attach it with a glue dot -a rhinestone in the middle and a sentiment.  I used the Made For You set in Rich Razzleberry but the card can be used with lots of different sentiments.

This card was voted the favorite by the girls.  Typical.  I almost left this one out!  I thought it was too simple ... and too similar to the present card ... but this one won!  The girls really changed things around and made it their own - which is why I love stamping with the younger stampers - they are less rigid than us old gals.  They think outside the box and let their creativity really shine.  Again - lots of sentiment options here.  I used the "Friend" and "Always" from Affection Collection (mini) the "BFF" from a retired set - in Real Red.  The mat is Daffodil Delight.  Of course rhinestones are a MUST at any tween party ... they went through their fair share of them *lol*

I'm off ... hope you're having a stampy weekend :)


Tam

Halloween Treats ... and more rejects ...

OK - here we go ... some actual projects ..

First up are the little Halloween Treats I made for the girls' class mates.  Ready?

These were fun to make.  I have to confess - I had to use non SU card stock for these.  I found our cs was too high quality!  The paper tended to crack when I cut them and then ran them through the spider web folder.  The cheaper paper is thinner and was easier to work with. I used the Petite Pockets die to hold the Pixie Stix.  After I cut them I folded on all the score lines and then ran then through the spider web folder.  THEN I attached the tags BEFORE TAPING THE ENVELOPES CLOSED.  It's much easier to pierce the hole for the small brads (retired from last years' holiday mini) before they are assembled.  For the tags I first punched out the scallop circles with the 2 3/8" punch and THEN stamped them.  I used the spider web from Wicked Cool in Sahara Sand.  I stamped the BOO and the spider from Spooky Bingo Bits in black classic ink (it doesn' smudge on the cheap paper).  For the white holder I also punched out a black circle with the 2 1/2" circle punch.  They are just attached with the brad so the tag can swing to the side .. on the back it says "From Rebecca" or "From Alicia".  To write on the black circle I used the new Silver Dazzle marker (from the mini) - it looked great!  I bought the Pixie Stix at Dollarama - you get 42 for $1 ... my kind of treat!  Just to keep them a little more secure I added a strip of snail on the package for the Stix to adhere to.  That way they didn't end up all over the bottom of the backpacks before the girls got to hand them out.  Oh!  To assemble the pouch I used two small strips of sticky strip at the top of the flap ... and two ticks of snail near the bottom.  The sticky strip just ensured that they wouldn't pop open due to the pressure of the treats inside.  Worked a treat (hee hee ... no pun intended!)

Next up I thought I'd post a swack of my Birthday Stamp-a-Stack rejects ... just for fun ... and to show you that, just like  every one else, my cards aren't always "keepers".  These ones hit the reject pile pretty quickly *lol*

You can see I was really struggling with my "guy" card *lol*.  Some of them have promise ... and I may revisit them some other time but for now they are in the recycle bin!

That's it for now.  My next post will be the cards I made for the birthday party I did last weekend.  Until then - have a stampy day!


Tam

SU Current Promotions

Happy Friday - Woo Hoo!  We made it to another weekend!!!

I have a busy day ahead - Craig and I are heading to Banff for a great weekend compliments of his company.  It is their 50th Anniversary "Summit".  It's going to be awesome!!!  Every 5 years they hold their summit at the Banff Springs Hotel and all employees and their spouses attend - on them!  This year is going to be over-the-top!!  The band they booked is top secret but if they are 1/10th as great as the one 5 years ago I won't be sitting down all night - it ROCKED!!!  I can't wait to get all dolled up in my pretty black dress and bright red shoes.  The best part ... NO KIDS!!!  Ahhh - the thought of it just makes me smile all over :)))

Soooo - I thought I throw out a looooooooooong post (do I ever keep them short??) with lots of little bits and pieces.

First up I just HAVE to mention the Blow-My-Hair-Back promotion that SU is running for the month of November!!

If you host a party between Nov 1 and Dec 16 and there are party sales of $575 or more you get 10 FREE INK PADS in the color family of your choice!!  ... and that's on TOP of the $90 in free product you earn PLUS 1 item at 50% off!  CRAZY AWESOME!!  My calendar is almost 100% filled for the month of November and a few dates are booked for December.  Oh ya!  My ladies know a good deal when they see one!!

I'm REALLY REALLY REALLY excited about the new Starter Kit Promotion - buy the Starter Kit for $125 flat - you get $155 in product, business supplies AND the 10 FREE INK PADS - again, in the color family of your choice!!  Let's do the math, shall we?  If you were to order $155 worth of product and 10 ink pads through me (rather than buying the Starter Kit) you would pay a total of $254.04.  If you buy the Starter Kit you only pay $125 ... so it's just a little less than HALF PRICE!!!  AHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!!!!!!!  Why wouldn't you buy it??!!  What's that you say?  You don't HAVE $125 sitting around burning a hole in your pocket at this time of year??  Don't worry!  If you gather orders (or host your own party) of $425 the commission you earn on that order/party will pay 100% of your kit!  You really have nothing to lose and everything to gain!  Of course, as always - there is NO obligation to EVER place an order beyond buying the kit ..., but again, why wouldn't you?  You earn at LEAST 20% commission on every order .. and if your first order is over $200 you get 30% commission!  You really should consider it - no catch - just great products at a great deal!

Another thing I'm really excited about is that the new Stampin' Trimmer is now available for purchase.  At Convention in July Shelli was showing it to us and said "If you don't buy one of these there is something wrong with you"!  *lol*  She's right - this tool is awesome.  Mine should arrive next week and I can't wait to start using it.  It is $41.95.

Here are all the great features of this tool - designed by, and exlusive to, SU:


An extra-wide 6-1/4" cutting base and an extended 14-1/2" ruler

• The extra-wide cutting base provides a large work area and is marked in 1/4" (4 mm) increments, allowing for small measurements.
• The right-side grid helps you measure and cut very thin strips.
• The extended cutting arm has a stabilizing leg to provide a sturdy and steady cutting surface for longer cuts.
• When fully extended, the extended cutting arm sits flush with the trimmer base, providing more accurate and consistent measurements across the entire surface.
• The cutting base and track include a full ruler, incorporating measurements down to 1/16" and grid lines that mark each quarter inch.
• All rulers and measurements on the base are printed under a plastic cover so your measurements won't wear off.
• The base has nonskid feet, which keeps the Stampin' Trimmer securely in place on your work area.

A full 12" cutting and scoring track

• The extra-long cutting track has space at the top and bottom so you don't have to take the cutting and scoring blades out when you're not using them.
• The track gives you enough space to cut or score a full 12" (30.5 cm) without having to remove or switch out handles.
• The cutting track locks in place for secure storage or transport.
• The track includes an insertion point for cutting and scoring blade handles so you can easily insert handles into the cutting track.

Specially designed handles and cutting track to ensure straight cuts

• The hook on the scoring and cutting blade handles keeps the handles stable so the cuts are as straight as possible.
• Handles come in two colors: dark for cutting, light for scoring.
• The precision tip on the cutting blade allows you to pinpoint precisely where you're cutting.
• The point on the side of each handle shows you where the blade will cut, making it easy to see exactly where your cuts and scores will begin.

Storage compartment under base

• The storage compartment holds scoring and cutting tools such as a Bone Folder, Simply Scored Stylus, extra scoring and cutting blades, and even business cards.
• Separate compartments within the storage compartment keep your tools organized, and the clear cover makes it easy to see what you've stored.

Hmmm - ok - this post is already long enough.  I'll stop there and start another one with some projects to show off.


Tam