One of a Kind

If anyone has checked my blog lately, you might have wondered where I disappeared to! It's just been hectic this last 5 or 6 months with my family life and my work life. One daughter got married, then two weeks later my father suffered a life-threatening brain event from which he is still recovering. Praises to God, he is doing great now, just continues to need therapy and still has a few ongoing issues, but overall he is a walking miracle.

Now I feel like I can think about my stamping and my stamping business again, and I'm ready to get to it! I finally sat down and made myself stamp a card with a couple of my new stamp sets from the new Spring & Summer Idea Book & Catalog. I used "One of a Kind" and "Boho Backgrounds," both brand new sets from the new catalog. I used the "dotted" background to stamp across the lower part of the Purely Pomegranate cardstock in Close to Cocoa ink. I used Close to Cocoa Designer Paper across the top portion of the card. Then I stamped the circle stamp from Boho Backgrounds in Purely Pomegranate ink on Whisper White cardstock and punched it out with the scallop punch. Then I stamped the 3-flower stamp from One of a Kind in Purely Pomegranate ink and used the new coordinating punch, Boho Blooms, to punch out the flowers. In the largest flower, I punched a hole and placed an Ice brad, new to the last catalog. Then I just stamped the greeting and used glue dots to adhere the other 2 flowers from the bloom punch. I used the Pomegranate double-stitched ribbon to finish it all off. Hope you enjoy it!

Playing with Palette O' Prints

Did you get the news today? The Stampin' Up! retired list came out this morning, and it's a long list! They retired more sets than ever this time! I know it's to make room for the new sets that will be coming out in the Fall & Winter Idea Book, but wow, it's hard to say goodbye to so many sets! If any of my customers reading this would like the retiring list sent to them, please send me an email and I'll forward it to you.

This past Saturday we (my upline and I, and a few sidelines) held our spring stamp camp, and while everyone was working on their projects, I got out my brand-new Palette O' Prints. If you haven't heard, it's a pad of new background papers that will be in the 2007-08 Fall & Winter Stampin' Up! Idea Book that comes out in July. The pad is a preview and it has 4 colors of papers -- Almost Amethyst, Certainly Celery, Rose Red & So Saffron. The papers are beautiful!

I didn't take a lot of supplies with me, just the coordinating cardstocks plus Whisper White cardstock, a few ribbons, and that's pretty much it! So I guess you could say this was a "limited supply" design! It doesn't have any extras, but I like the way it turned out anyway. Sometimes, it's just very relaxing to make simple cards without a lot of embellishments. You don't have to think too hard about it.

I then decided to make a card with all 4 colors in it. I think the colors look great all together like this. They really work! Hmm, you'd think Stampin' Up! had planned it that way... Anyway, this is what I came up with:

What do you think? Let me hear from you!

Polka Dots and Petals Stamp Camp

These are the projects we are making at stamp camp this Saturday using Polka Dots 'n Petals stamp set, as well as the pretty papers from the Spring Mini catalog!

This first project is a Post-It Note holder using chipboard coasters and Au Chocolat background paper. The calendar is also made from a chipboard coaster and has a magnet on the back so you can put it on the fridge.

The huge clothespin is coveed with stamped paper, labeled with the Designer Label punch, and it's ready to display a cute picture or recipe!

The clipboard is 4 x 4 and we made a little scrapbook "page" to display a picture. You can hang it on the wall, or next to your office door for messages, or you could also put a magnet on it and hang it on the fridge.

This last project is the only card we are making, but it's a pretty fun one! It's a file folder card!
If you have questions about anything, send me an email and I'll be happy to answer you!

Big Blooms Resisted!

Well, not really. I mean, I didn't resist buying the set, at least. I used a resist technique for this card! Versamark Resist, to be exact. I saw a similar card that camsmom (SCS) stamped using these colors and the Big Blooms set, and I knew I had to stamp something similar. I love pink and orange together! I used the Petals jumbo wheel from the Spring Mini catalog, inked it up on a Versamark pad, and wheeled it onto Glossy White cardstock. Then I stamped some flower stamps from the set using Pink Passion and Only Orange Classic ink pads. To finish up the background, I inked up my brayer on the Cotton Candy Spectrum pad and rolled it over the whole thing. It looks really cool, doesn't it? We made this card at our Technique class in March. Be looking for information about the April Technique class! Have a great Sunday!

Petal Pushers

I don't know about you, but when I need a stack of cards, like thank-you notes or birthday cards, I tend to fall back on simple layouts with clean lines and very few frills, like punches, embellishments, all of that stuff. This is one of those cards. I needed some thank-you cards, and I used an "old stand-by" type of layout. I used this cute set, Petal Pushers, from the catalog, and some pretty Soft Subtles colors -- they are almost candy-like colors, or maybe sherbert? Well, except for the Bashful Blue. Anyway, I think the colors are "sweet" -- besides Bashful Blue there's Apricot Appeal and Pretty in Pink -- and the little bit of black layers & words kind of accentuates the soft colors. I used the blue gingham ribbon as my only "frill." I have to say, when it's all said and done, I always like the simple elegant cards the best!

April Customer Special

April has brought not just 1 but 2 great specials from Stampin' Up! (R)

First, a discount on 6 really great "word" sets! Click here for details!

Second, if you sign up to be a demonstrator between April 1 and May 31st you will get 2 hostess sets FREE from the new 2007-2008 Idea Book & Catalog that comes out in July! Click here for full details!

Brag Book, Color Themed

Cover - "All Through the Year"
January - "Little Pieces"
February - "All About U"

March - "Simply Circles"
April - "You Make Me Smile"
May - "In the Wild" & "Spot On" jumbo wheel
June - "Bugs & Kisses"
July - "Sparkling Summer"

August - "Wild About You"
September - "Simple Shapes"
October - "Tag Time"
November - "Fall Whimsy"
December - "Merry"

For about 6 months now I've had a color combination in my head that I wanted to use for my next brag book. I had seen a sample in the Stampin' Up! 2006-07 catalog with a similar combination, and it's been brewing in my head for a while. In the last couple of weeks myself and my good friend, Kimberly, who also happens to be my upline, have worked on these pages, and we're very happy with the results. I am sharing some pictures of it with you here!
The first picture above is a picture of the cover page. After the cover page, we did 12 2-page layouts, one for every month, so there are a total of 25 pages. The colors we chose were Real Red, Brocade Blue, Old Olive and Chocolate Chip, with Marigold Morning used for an accent color on some of the pages. When I was trying to come up with the cover page, I thought I should look at Inspiration Sheets (R) for, well, inspiration! The Inspiration Sheet for All Through the Year stamp set used almost exactly the colors we wanted to use. So I totally CASE'd it! It is just so cute in person, and with each season represented, made the perfect cover page.
After that, we went through our IS's and used layouts we really liked, but with our colors and a lot of times with different stamp sets than what SU! used. We really liked our results. As you can see, the January layout was stamped using Little Pieces, and for the February pages we used All About U.
For March, we used Simply Circles, and for April we used a stamp set from the current Spring Mini, You Make Me Happy.
If you'd like to come to the second session, there is still time to RSVP! Click here for more info!

More Polka Dot & Paisley

These are the other 4 cards we will be making next Monday night using the Polka Dots & Paisley stamp set that comes in the March Bundle special. The pink card is CASEd from another demonstrator, Debbie Olsen, whose work I admire so much, she is so, so talented. The Gable Green & Orchid Opulence card is CASEd from a sample found on SCS, as is the Pink Passion & Black card.

The Brocade Blue and Marigold Morning card was a joint effort between me and my upline, Kimberly. We had fun designing this card, and especially doing our own "doodling" with the Signo Gel pen.

It's been a long week, so I'm going to call it a night! Have a good day tomorrow, and a great weekend!

Bundle Cards

These are 2 of the 6 cards we will be making to for the "Bundle of Cards" party for the Polka Dots & Paisley Bundle special that Stampin' Up! is having in the month of March. Everyone who attends will make these plus 4 other cards using their stamp set. I will provide the background paper and everything else you need to complete your 6 cards -- you will not have to use the background paper that comes in your bundle! The second card was inspired by a card on Splitcoaststampers (sorry, I don't remember who!), I just changed a few things but I kept the color scheme because I loved the color combination!

Stay tuned for more cards for the class to be posted in the next few days! :)

New Card from an Existing Sample

One of the tasks assigned to me last week in my new stamping endeavors was to copy a card from the Stampin' Up! IB&C (Idea Book & Catalog) exactly, and then to duplicate it using a different stamp set and different colors.

I copied this Living Large card from page 86 of the IB&C. It uses Pumpkin Pie, So Saffron, Cameo Coral, Brocade Blue & Confetti White cardstock, along with Celery grosgrain ribbon, silver brads and watercolor crayons with a watercolor brush. Also, Fontastic background stamp was used on the Cameo Coral layer.

Then I used the sample layout but substituted the stamp set "Because of You" on page 139 of the IB&C. I used Gable Green, Almost Amethyst, Apricot Appeal, Lovely Lilac and Confetti White cardstock, along with Rose grosgrain ribbon, silver brads and a blender pen and inks to match the cardstock. I also used Aida Cloth on the Apricot Appeal layer.

So in case you are stumped trying to come up with a card, open up that IB&C, then take an idea and make it your own using the stamps and cardstocks you have available!

Happy Stamping!

March Stampin' Up! Special

We all like a great sale, or a super bargain, and this month's special from Stampin' Up! is both! You simply purchase 3 items from the Spring Mini Catalog in a "bundle:" 'Polka Dots & Paisley' stamp set + Petals & Paisleys designer paper + 'Petals' the jumbo wheel for $34.95; then you can purchase any other single item in the Spring Mini Catalog for HALF PRICE!! Pretty good deal, right? I had some new customers take advantage of this special last week, and they purchased one of the Simply Sent kits that are in the Spring Mini. It was an excellent deal for them! The Simply Sent kits each contain a stamp set that is die-cut -- all you do is pop them out and put them onto the wood block, then put the sticker on, and you're ready to stamp! -- along with cardstock pre-cut for 12 cards, and all the accessories you need to make your cards. Easy breezy! It's a super deal for new stampers, no measuring, no designing, no cutting cardstock, just the fun part of stamping and accessorizing. Of course, there are a ton of other stamps and accessories to choose from in the Spring Mini, so don't miss this opportunity! Please call or email me today to order, or to request a Spring Mini should you not have one. You can also go to the website to look at the mini catalog, but we all like a catalog in our hot little hands, I know, so feel free to request one from me.

Have a great evening!

Birthday Cards

I realized last night that I have a serious lack of masculine birthday cards! So, I will be posting a couple of those tonight, for those of you who are wanting to have some "guy" cards handy. After all, they have birthdays, too!! What was I thinking??!

Have a great day!

p.s. You can post comments to each blog posting if you want to. Comment on the cards, or just comment on stamping in general, or ask a question! Thanks!

Birthday Card Bash!

Ta-Da! I promised to share my new blogspot with you on Tuesday evening, and here it is! Although, it is slightly past the evening... it is actually more like early Wednesday morning. I started this blogspot so that I could share what's going on in the Stampin' Up! world with you, my friends. This will be a fun way to post the latest Stampin' Up! specials, and samples using the newest Stampin' Up! stamp sets and accessories.

If you have not been visiting blogs, you may not know how to work them. The main thing is to notice at the top of your browser (if you're using IE 7.0) an orange square with white curving lines -- that is a "feed" button. If you click on it, it will change the blog page and there will be a link to click if you want to subscribe. The web site will be saved in your Favorites under "Feeds", a sub-directory in your Favorites. Thereafter, when you click on Favorites, then Feeds, the title of my blog (and any others you subscribe to) will be bolded if anything new has been added to that blog. I hope you'll subscribe to my blog! You can also look for a link on my page (and a lot of other blogs) that says "Subscribe to this Blog." You can click on that and add your email address, and you will be notified every time my blog is updated. Once on the blog page, to see the latest additions, just make sure you click on the blog name.

This first time, I am sharing the birthday cards that we will be stamping this Saturday at my Birthday Card Bash. I realized that I really needed birthday cards, and I thought what better way to get to make myself some cards than having a major card-making session! So I'm inviting all my friends!

As I mentioned in my email this past weekend, I am posting the cards we will be making, and you can choose which cards you would like to make, and how many of each. You can make 2 or you can make 20, it's up to you! The cards cost $1.25 each to make, but there are ways to get to make some cards for FREE!

• Bring a friend, or two, or three... (you get the idea! ). You and your friend(s) can make 2 free cards each if your friend has never been to one of my classes or a workshop that I demonstrated!



• Purchase from the Stampin' Up! catalog and/or Spring Mini Catalog at least $35, and you can make 5 cards for free!



• Finally, if you book a workshop to be held in the next 6 weeks, you can make 10 cards for free!! That's a pretty good deal, I think.

Card 1: I love this card! For this one, I used the Polka Dots & Paisley stamp set that Shelli Gardner, founder and COO of Stampin' Up!, sent to all demonstrators free as a Christmas gift. She treats us demonstrators so great! I got the idea for this card from another demonstrator, just changed it up a bit to meet my needs, but I kept the color combination -- it's one of my favorite combinations! I used Whisper White, Regal Rose, Mellow Moss and Apricot Appeal.

Card 2: This uses the Doodle That set from the Spring Mini catalog, using Apricot Appeal, Certainly Celery and Vintage Violet colors.

Card 3: This card also uses the Doodle This set. I used Sage Shadow, So Saffron and Pixie Pink cardstock, as well as watercolor paper. I guess it's obvious that I like the square cards -- they're just so nice and big, they give me plenty of canvas to be creative!

Card 4: For this card, I used the Big Blooms and Polka Dots & Petals stamp sets from the Spring Mini. I made the card in the size of a business envelope, 9-1/4" x 4", with Cool Caribbean cardstock (my current favorite color!), So Saffron, Regal Rose and Whisper White cardstock. You'll get to learn how to make a scalloped border out of a slit punch when you make this card!

Card 5: I used the stamp set Doodle This from the Stampin' Up! Spring Mini catalog. I got this set free when I went to the SU! Leadership Conference in Houston back in January. I used Pretty in Pink, Whisper White, Not Quite Navy and Vellum cardstock. Did you notice the greeting seems to be missing? I am waiting for an order with more word stamps, so don't worry, your card will have words!

That's all for tonight, ladies (I mean this morning!). I'm going to get some sleep now! Please email me with your choice of cards, along with how many of each. You can click on "Contact Me" on the right side of my blog, or you have my email address in the invitation.

Thanks for reading all the way to the end! I hope to see many of you this Saturday for our Mystery Hostess workshop!

Be Happy

I still haven't gotten to stamp anything new this week! It's frustrating because I have lots of ideas in my head. But while I'm still working on getting those ideas onto actual cardstock, I thought I would post this card I stamped last fall. It's one of my favorites that I've done this year. I stamped this for a Splitcoaststampers color challenge using Cool Caribbean and Certainly Celery colors, as well as Pixie Pink, Basic Black and Whisper White. I used the stamp sets Be Happy and Well-Worn Words. I hope you like it!

Oh, and it's my Birthday

I forgot to mention in my very first blog that this is my birthday! Which seemed a significant point, so I'm very unhappy with myself that I forgot to mention it. I only think it's significant in that I decided it was a good day to do something new! like start a blog. So there you go.

My "Maiden" Blog

You'll see further down why I named this My Maiden Blog. I was just recently on a cruise ship... well anyway, you'll understand. But yippee, I've finally started a blog! My own mother started her blog before me, and I thought, my goodness, it's time I got on board with this new-fangled method of communication. (Did you get that, on board! lol. I'm feeling funny today).

I didn't have any really new stamping projects to share right now, although I am working on some things. So I'm posting the projects we made at my chipboard class a few weeks ago! We made a candy box (out of cardstock and Stampin' Up! Designer Paper "Loves Me"), a chipboard Bitty Book by Stampin' Up! with a cover, and a 4x4 scrapbook accordian folder (to display proudly on your desk or table!). We used for all of it Stampin' Up! Designer Paper "Loves Me", coordinating cardstock Regal Rose, Taken with Teal, Cool Caribbean and Chocolate Chip, and a coordinating stamp set "Sweet On You." The Designer Paper and the the "Sweet On You" stamp set are both from Stampin' Up!'s Winter Mini Catalog, along with the Ribbon Originals "Flirty." We had a lot of fun making these projects.

See the sweet baby in the pictures? That is my beautiful granddaughter! She was 3 months old at the time. Now she's 4 months old... I already feel like she is growing up too fast! I'm new at this, but I love, love, love being a grandmother! I loved being a mother, too. I mean, I still am one, but they're not little and cute anymore. They're grown-up and beautiful, don't get me wrong, but I'm not the center of their world anymore, and I can't make them laugh by making silly faces anymore.

Last week, my husband and I went on a wonderful cruise to the Texarribean for our 25th wedding anniversary. It lasted 7 gorgeous days. We boarded the ship on Saturday, Jan. 27th, in Houston, TX, and we went to Progreso/Merida, Cozumel, and Belize. If you've been on a cruise before, you know what I'm talking about when I saw I have never been treated so much like a princess in my life! All the meals cooked for me, all the decisions made about what to have for meals, waiters who even open your napkin for you so that you don't even have to raise your lily white hands to do that little task, white linens and "candlelight" (real candles not allowed on the ship!) at dinner every night, my room cleaned every day, and the bed turned down with chocolates on our pillows and little towel animals waiting for you every night... oh, sorry, I got carried away with the fond memories. Back on track... If you haven't been on a cruise, I urge you to GO NOW! Anyway, again I say, we had a wonderful time, and may I just say there are lots of opportunities to shop in Cozumel, lots of jewelry stores, and we took full advantage of that (I love jewelry!).

But on Thursday before we got home, I developed a sudden cold and cough, and I do mean a nasty cough. I've never had a cold move into my chest so quickly before, that I can remember. Anyway, by the time we were driving home from Houston on Saturday (Feb. 3rd) I was shaking with cold, I mean teeth-chattering shakes. So my hubby drove straight to the Med Clinic here by our house, before we even came home, and 2 hours later found out that I have pneumonia!? I don't have a clue how I could've gotten it! So, now I am at home in bed this week, I can't go to work, I am taking a million pills, and drinking lots of water, and -- the final cruelty -- I haven't gotten to see my granddaughter since we got home! We were supposed to babysit her during the Super Bowl so her parents could go to a Super Bowl party, but I was robbed of that privilege, fearing I might be contagious. Also, of course, because I didn't have the strength to lift my fingers, much less the baby, and had not the breath to move from my bed.

Enough of that. I really was just saying all that to say that I'm stuck in bed, so I am trying to catch up on blog-reading, and see what stamping projects everyone else is making, so I can get busy making things as soon as I can sit up long enough to stamp something! I love being inspired by everyone!