DATES TO REMEMBER

  • Current Host Code: ZP7ZP4SX
  • December 10: Last Day to sign up for November Paper Pumpkin Kit

Monday, March 28, 2011

Cold Spring Community Showcase

The Cold Spring Community Showcase was last Saturday (the 26th) @ Rocori High School. This is a picture of my booth there. All of the cards on the sample board were made by me, most are from recent classes and Stamp-A-Stacks. I had a display of products including books and cards made with My Digital Studio, a Simply Adorned necklace, a clear mount stamp set and acrylic block. There were mini catalogs and copies of my schedule made with My Digital Studio for people to take and there was a drawing for a gift certificate. I also had cards and discontinued Stampin' Up! products for sale.

Congratulations to Julie H. of Cold Spring who won the drawing!

Thank you to everyone who stopped by! It was so nice saying hi to friends and meeting new people!

Friday, March 25, 2011

In Color Butterflies


Since we have 5 In Colors, it made sense to make 5 of these cards for the Stamp-A-Stack! The Butterfly is from Bliss and the greetings are from So Happy For You. Both are Sale-A-Bration stamp sets that you can get for FREE when you place an order of $50 or more before March 31st. The scalloped square is from the Scallop Squares Duo Bigz Die that was in the Holiday Mini Catalog and is still available to order (#120903, $21.95). The Designer Series Paper is from the In Color Designer Series Paper Pack, which is a Hostess gift (page 11 of the Idea Book & Catalog). Thanks to Tracey H for the inspiration on these cards!

I have two Stamp-A-Stack's scheduled for April:

9th - Stamp-A-Stack For Zack, 10-2
This is a fundraiser for my friend's son Zack who has Cystic Fibrosis, so he can be in the 2011 Great Strides Walk. Make 15 cards for $20, $5 goes to Zack. Sign up by April 2nd.

16th - my regular Stamp-A-Stack, 10-1
Make 15 cards for $20, sign up by April 6th.

Hope to see you at one of my events!
Contact me with any questions, for more info, or to sign up! Thanks!

Thursday, March 24, 2011

Welcome Baby!


I couldn't decide which color combination I liked best, so I had everyone do one of each for the Stamp-A-Stack! Usually we make 3 each of 5 designs, for a total of 15 cards, but this time I changed things up. We did 5 (tomorrow's card), 4 (this baby card), 3 (yesterday's Bliss card), 2 (the punch bunny), and 1 (the Build A Blossom) for a total of 15. For the baby card, we only used one stamp- the Welcome Baby from the Punch Bunch Sale-A-Bration set. This is a great way to make your own Designer Series Paper! The colors are Bashful Blue, Pretty In Pink, Certainly Celery, and So Saffron. Punches are the small and large tags and the Modern Label. The blue and pink striped ribbons are discontinued. The yellow card does have white grosgrain ribbon on it, but it's hard to see. If you like this stamp, you can get it for FREE when you place an order of $50 or more before March 31st! Call or e-mail me or you can order online: http://www.denalenneman.stampinup.net/.

Wednesday, March 23, 2011

Elegant Bliss


I love, love, love the Tulip Frame Embossing Folder! I have to stop myself from using it on almost every card I make lately! But I had to do this one for the Stamp-A-Stack. It's so elegant and could be used for a wedding, anniversary, or really any occasion. I received this in a swap and only changed the color of the Bliss swirly stamp. Mine is is Soft Suede, the cardstock and ribbon are Very Vanilla. There's a tiny pearl in the center of the swirl as well, but you have to look really close to see it in this picture. I'm going to miss this stamp set after Sale-A-Bration is over. If you would like to get one for FREE, place an order of $50 or more before March 31st!

Tuesday, March 22, 2011

Chubby Bunny!

My husband's birthday was last Saturday so we decided to have a party and invite some people over for dinner. After we ate, we were sitting around the table talking. My brother-in-law told us he has the second all time record at his friend's lake place for "Chubby Bunny". Apparently you stuff marhsmallows in your mouth until you can't fit any more, and after each one you have to say "chubby bunny". He got 17! Anyway, that gave me the name for the second card from last Saturday's Stamp-A-Stack:


I've seen several different punch bunnies that other demonstrators have made, so I borrowed a few of their ideas and made my own.It's hard to see in the picture, but this little guy has a fluffy tail that is the frosting from the cupcake punch! Here's a chart I made that shows each of the punches I used:

If you haven't started your Easter projects, you better HOP to it!
(sorry! I couldn't resist!)

Monday, March 21, 2011

ColdWater Creek Inspired Build A Blossom

I'm not a big fan of flowers, but I really like the Build A Blossom stamp set and the matching Blossom Petals punch. Here's the first card from last Saturday's Stamp-A-Stack using them:


It also uses the Scalloped Oval and Large Oval punches, greeting from Teeny Tiny Wishes, and the Square Lattice embossing folder. The colors are Daffodil Delight, Always Artichoke, and Bravo Burgundy.

The colors I used were inspired by this bag I saw in a ColdWater Creek catalog. You never know where you can find stamping inspiration!

I will be showing the other cards from the Stamp-A-Stack all week- 1 card each day. Check back to see them all!

Friday, March 18, 2011

What's In The Box?

My favorite UPS guy stopped today and gave me a Stampin' Up! box. I wonder what's inside?

1 flap open...
2 flaps open...I love the Stampin' Up! logo!
3 flaps open...oh, black and white!
All the way open...how cute is this?
It's the Stampin' Up! Doctor's Bag!
Look at the cute pink and polka dots inside!
The perfect fit for the Big Shot!
All ready to go to a workshop!

I received a product bonus from Stampin' Up! for promoting, and this is one of the items I bought with it! I've looked at it several times in the catalog, but kept thinking that's a lot of money for a bag that I could use to buy more stamps! But since this was free...I decided  to splurge! I am so glad I did! It's so cute and will be perfect for carrying the Big Shot and accessories to workshops. Schedule one today so you can see the bag in person! Or even better, but one for yourself! :)

Thursday, March 17, 2011

Butterfly Thank You


Do you ever go throught your stamping supplies and see things that are leftover from projects or something you tried that didn't work on a project? That's how this card came about! The butterflies (from Beautiful Wings Embosslit) were extras after making another card and the ribbon was the other half of a piece of 1 1/4" Striped Grosgrain I had leftover after getting  things ready for a Stamp-A-Stack. Did you notice the frayed edge on the bottom? Just pull a few of the long threads off the edge and it leaves the fringe. The colors I used are Tangerine Tango, Marina Mist, Old Olive, and Very Vanilla. The saying is from Short & Sweet.

Wednesday, March 16, 2011

Love Owls

I made this card for one of my sisters and her husband for their anniversary. One of the weekends we got together to stamp I brought my laptop. I was going through e-mail and she happened to see me looking at a card similar to this and said she wanted one for her aniversary. So of course I had to make one! I love the Owl Punch! There are so many different uses for it, and it's fun coming up with different combinations for the owls as well. The colors on this card are Real Red, Crum Cake, Chocolate Chip, Soft Suede, Garden Green, Rose Red, and Not Quite Navy. The background is sponged on Whisper White, I think with Bashful Blue. The branches are from the Bird Punch, the heart is the Scalloped Heart of Hearts Embosslit, and the "tree" is embossed with the Perfect Polka Dots folder.

Tuesday, March 15, 2011

Let Us Out!

This was printed on a recent box of goodies that came from Stampin' Up! I love it! If you'd like to get a box like this at your house, schedule a workshop or place an order TODAY! Time is running out to take advantage of Sale-A-Bration...March 31st is the LAST DAY!

Monday, March 14, 2011

Denette's Workshop - March 12th

My good friend Denette asked me to do a workshop for her last Saturday. She's been stamping for quite awhile, and knows so many techniques that I wasn't sure what I could do at her workshop that would WOW her! Luckily there was an article in the Stampin' Success magazine (from Stampin' Up! for demonstrators) about heat embossing and watercoloring together. Perfect!

This is the card I demo'd, based on a scrapbook page that was shown in the article. I used the set Flower Fancy and the colors are Blushing Bride, Baja Breeze, Perfect Plum and Early Espresso. If you would like to learn this technique, let's do a workshop and I'll demo it for you and your friends!


Can you tell I've needed to use bright colors lately? I am so ready for spring! This was the Make-N-Take for the workshop. I started with the Ice Cream Parlor Designer Series Paper and used the colors that are in it: Peach Parfait, Old Olive, Daffodil Delight, Melon Mambo, and Pacific Point. The image is from the Sale-A-Bration set Punch Bunch. It's hard to tell in the picture, but the image, the Melon Mambo scalloped square, and the Daffodil Delight piece were all embossed with the Square Lattice folder at once. This is called Inlaid Embossing. Another cool technique! Thanks to Gretchen B. for the inspiration on this card.

Thursday, March 10, 2011

Cupcake Punch Purses!


I made this to show at the Cupcakes & Chocolate Stamp-A-Stack last month, but for some reason I forgot to post it on the blog with those samples. Guess I'll show it today! This was a CASE (Copy And Share Examples!) but I can't find the picture to tell you who made it (if you saw how many hundreds of pictures of card ideas I have on my computer, you'd understand!). The purse is actually the liner from the Cupcake Punch upside down. The handles are made using 2 sizes of oval punches. Colors used are Real Red, Basic Black, and Whisper White. Gotta love the bling!


This is Sydne's tooth that was removed. The white parts are what you could see in her mouth, the dark parts were in the gums. It was a very wide tooth, but I didn't think it was going to be that long! She has to feel better with that out of her mouth. She is doing MUCH better- basically back to her usual self. She has to eat soft food for 10-15 days (I just add water to her regular food and let it sit for 10 minutes), no chewing on hard toys, no tug-of-war. The worst part is getting her meds in her! She's got an antibiotic and two pain meds. They're all twice a day except for one pain med, and she is not thrilled with having me poke them down her throat! And there's an eye ointment because she also had a little cyst removed from her eyelid. We will both be happy when they are all done!

Wednesday, March 9, 2011

Chuck Norris!

Another Stampin' Up! Demonstrator had made a Valentine's Day card for her husband with Chuck Norris made out of our punches. Our son Chase is a big Chuck Norris fan (especially the jokes!) so I showed it to him. He said he would like a birthday card like that. Well, yesterday was his 15th birthday, so this is the card I made for him! I wish I could remember who made the card we saw so I could give her credit. The colors I used for Chuck are Whisper White, Basic Black, Blushing Bride, and Cajun Craze. He's on a Wild Wasabi card base. I tried to find a Chuck Norris joke about birthdays, but wasn't able to, so I put this on the inside instead: "When you think you have felt your phone vibrate but it hasn't, that's because somewhere in the world Chuck Norris has sent a text." Chase loves to text! My Dad tells him he's going to get carpalTHUMBal!

Monday, March 7, 2011

Where Did The First Week Of March Go?

Whoa...where did the first week of March go? I can't believe it's been a week since my last post! So sorry about that! I took our Lab, Sydne, to the vet last Wednesday to get her annual check up and Rabies vaccination. Turns out she broke one of her teeth! We have no idea when or how, but it was the last one in the back on top, so it took something pretty hard to crack that big baby! The vet said it needs to be removed, which was a surgical prodecure. We scheduled it for today since that was the soonest they could get her in. They also were going to clean her teeth and remove a tiny little cyst from her eyelid at the same time. Then it was panic of how am I going to tell John we need to spend this much money? We spent A LOT on Vonnie, our 14 year old Jack Russell, and then had to put her to sleep in early December. So I decided I was going to try to raise the money by selling my retired stamps! I sent an e-mail to my customers telling them what was happening and asking for their help. I am so thrilled with the response! I haven't sold enough to cover the whole procedure, but it's a great start! THANK YOU to everyone who has helped out so far! If you haven't looked at my list of retired stamps and accessories that are for sale, please do and let me know if there is anything you might be interested in! Sydne and I thank you!


UPDATE: Sydne's surgery went well and we can pick her up after 4pm today!

Tuesday, March 1, 2011

Organizing Your Card Stock & Designer Series Papers

Whether you make cards or scrapbook, you need card stock, and lots of it! No matter how you store it, you need to make sure it stays straight so it doesn’t warp or get bent corners. Did you know you should also keep it out of direct light so it doesn’t fade?


If you have the space, horizontal storage is best, as it keeps your cardstock flat no matter how much you have. Wouldn’t it be nice to have the angled paper trays hanging on the wall like they have in stores? A mail sorter would also work well. I use something similar, but much less expensive. Plastic-coated wire cubes, but instead of making them all into cubes, I made three and then used the remaining pieces to make shelves that are attached with zip ties.



This way I have multiple shelves so I can separate the colors of cardstock. Then when I want a piece of a certain color, I only have a few stacked up on a shelf, rather than having to dig through a big stack. My cardstock is arranged by color families, just like in the Stampin’ Up! Idea Book & Catalog. I do keep Whisper White and Very Vanilla on the top shelf because I use them the most. The big stack on the bottom is extra full packs that I don’t have room for on their shelf.


When I first started with Stampin’ Up!, card stock came in cello bags, so that’s what I’ve always kept mine in. They keep the card stock together and dust free. They aren’t in the catalog, but I can order them as a supply item if you are interested. They come in two sizes: 9 x 14 (pack of 50) and 14 x 14 (pack of 25) and are $8.95 each.


I store my 12 x 12 cardstock and Designer Series Papers in snap top carrying cases that fit in a cart. I didn’t put the wheels on the bottom of my cart though, as I have no reason to move it. This particular cart holds 6 of the cases, so I have one for card stock, one for current DSP, one for retired DSP, one for miscellaneous scrapbooking embellishments that I hope to find a use for someday, one has the wheels for the cart and extra plates for my Big Shot, and the last one is empty, just in case! And my Big Shot sits on top so it’s easy to get to!
 


Another option for storing your paper is vertically, in paper holders that look like magazine files. The ones Stampin’ Up! carries are on page 193 of the Idea Book & Catalog. They are made of sturdy plastic and are a “frosted” white color. They come flat and you just tuck some flaps in on the bottom to create the holders. Set them on a shelf and you’re ready to organize your card stock! These also come in two sizes: 8 ½ x 11 and 12 x 12 and hold up to 200 sheets. There are also dividers to separate colors or patterns.

Or you can store your card stock in hanging files. Use a piece of the card stock as the label so you know what color is in which file. They can be kept in a desk drawer or a separate cart designed just for hanging files. Smaller pieces can be kept in a plastic bag in each file.

I keep my larger pieces of cardstock in the cello bags with the full size sheets. Smaller pieces are kept in a small plastic box that Chase wanted when he was little to store his Hot Wheels in, but he quickly outgrew it. There are four sections in the front where I keep my scraps from the four color collections, and two sections in back where I keep white and vanilla scraps and miscellaneous scraps.


I always go to the scrap box first when I need a small piece of cardstock, rather than cutting up a new sheet. I waste a lot less card stock this way!
 
Next month: Punches!