Sail Away

I made this card for a swap at a group meeting I went to a couple weeks ago. It uses the Sail Away stamp and Baker's Twine from the Summer Mini catalog. I embossed the sailboat in clear on Whisper White and then sponged Not Quite Navy over it- this is called "Emboss Resist". The greeting is from the set Word Play, which is on sale this month as part of the National Scrapbooking Sale. It's hard to see in the picture, but I stamped images from The Open Sea in Versamark on the Cherry Cobbler card base. The twine is tied in a Sailor's Knot- I found directions by doing a search online. It was a little confusing at first, but after doing about 50 of them I've got it down! 

A Tropical Toast

Saturday was my oldest sister and brother-in-law's anniversary (same sister as yesterday's birthday card). They have been going to Mexico pretty much every year and enjoy drinking margaritas and Sol Beer. I was going to use the Cheers To You set that I used on the card yesterday, but decided I wanted the drinks to be bigger. So I opened My Digital Studio and found the Tropical Party set that was in the Summer Mini catalog last year. I thought the coconut drinks would be perfect! I made one the size I wanted and rotated it a little, then made a mirror image next to it. I added the greeting, changed everything to Chocolate Chip and then printed it on Whisper White card stock. After coloring the image, I punched the corners with the Ticket Corner punch, layered it on a piece of Pumpkin Pie, used the Corner Rounder Punch, added the Tempting Turquoise brads, and attached everything to a So Saffron card base. Another clean and simple card, made even easier by using My Digital Studio!

Don't forget the Digital Starter Kit is 30% off during the month of May! Over a $320 value for just $122.50! Sign up today!

Cheers!

My oldest sister (there are 4 of us) recently celebrated her birthday and this is the card I made for her. She enjoys drinking margaritas and beer, especially in Mexico, so I knew I had to use the Cheers To You set to make her a card. I stamped the drinks in Basic Black on Whisper White, colored them with markers, cut them out, and attached them to a piece of So Saffron with Dimensionals. That is layered on a piece of Wild Wasabi and then attached to the Tempting Turquoise card base. Clean and simple!

Elegant Flowers

Card #5 from Saturday's Stamp-A-Stack

Another no stamping card! But isn't it pretty?!? I saw a card like this in Whisper White on the Stampin' Up! Demonstrator website, Stampin' Connection. It's made with the Flower Garden Embossing Folder on page 24 of the Summer Mini Catalog. This one embosses really deep, so I wasn't sure about using it on Whisper White card stock since it's thinner than the colored card stock. So we did it in Baja Breeze, Rich Razzleberry, and Rose Red, with coordinating ribbons. It's hard to see, but there are 3 scored lines, 1/8" apart, in between the ribbon and the flowers.

Join us for the next Stamp-A-Stack on Saturday June 18th!

Sail Away For Father's Day

Card #4 from Saturday's Stamp-A-Stack

I love this card! It's very masculine, and could be used be for many occasions. It's CASE'd from a card I received in a swap, made by Beth R. The sailboat is Sail Away on page 11 of the Summer Mini catalog. The greeting is from Teeny Tiny Wishes. The red panel is embossed with the Square Lattice Embossing Folder. The punches for the greeting are 1 3/4 x 7/8" Oval, Modern Label & Word Window. There is a piece of grosgrain ribbon under the Baker's Twine (also in the Summer Mini catalog, page 10). Colors are Night of Navy, Cherry Cobbler, Crumb Cake and Whisper White.

Open Sea & A Cool Border!

Card #3 from Saturday's Stamp-A-Stack

The frame on this card is made using the Dotted Scallop Ribbon Punch. I started with a 2 3/4" square piece of card stock. Center it in the punch and repeat for all 4 sides. You can do this with other border punches, too, but may need to adjust the size of the square. If I would have used a 3" square with this one, the center piece would still be attached and the squares on the corners would be larger.

The anchor is from The Open Sea in the Summer Mini catalog (page 5), the greeting is from Thank You Kindly. I used the Square Lattice Embossing Folder on the Whisper White card stock, which is 4 x 8" and folded in half. The strip on the bottom is 1 x 4". The blue is Not Quite Navy. This is CASE'd from a card I received in a swap, made by Susan C.

Bold Blossoms

Card #2 from Saturday's Stamp-A-Stack

Bold Blossom stamp set, Blossom Bouquet Triple Layer Punch, Scallop Edge Border Punch, Sunny Garden DSP, Circle Fire Rhinestone Brad, Stitched Poly Ribbon and Dimensionals.

Colors are Peach Parfait, Poppy Parade, Pear Pizzazz and Whisper White. CASE'd from a card I received in a swap made by Patsy W.

TIPS for the new Triple Layer Punches (page 6 of the Summer Mini catalog)- you need to line up your cardstock, set the punch down on a sturdy table (not the white ones like we have at our Building- they give too much) and then punch. You need to hear more than 1 click of the punch for some of the designs. Practice on scrap paper first until you get the hang of it! They are a little more work, but are worth it!

Strength & Hope

This is the first card I'll be sharing from Saturday's Stamp-A-Stack. There is no stamping on it whatsoever! It was all created from a digital download and printed on Stampin' Up! card stock. The strips of Designer Series Paper are all one piece printed on Whisper White. The butterfly circle is also printed on Whisper White and punched with the 2 1/2" Circle Punch. And if you look closely, there are words printed on the Melon Mambo card base.

This was a design by Stampin' Up! that is on the Demonstrator website. I used the Strength & Hope digital kit (page 27 of the Summer Mini catalog) which includes the Strength & Hope stamp images, 12 Designer Series Papers and 10 embellishments. You can also buy the actual stamp set, in wood or clear mount. Stampin' Up! is donating $2 from sale of each stamp set and digital kit to The Breast Cancer Research Foundation. Contact me today to place your order!

Always Elegant

Apparently Blogger had some issues this week. All of my posts dissapeared! I think these were all of them because I know I didn't get a chance to post for a couple days. I'll be posting all of the cards from yesterday's Stamp-A-Stack this week.

This card is similar to one we did at a Stamp-A-Stack during Sale-A-Bration using the Bliss stamp set. This one uses Always Elegant. Tulip Frame Embossing Folder, colors are Very Vanilla & Soft Suede. There are pearls at the top and bottom of the swirl design.

May Snow & Showers Finally Bring May Flowers?

It has been a weird spring so far! Last week it was barely in the 30's and it snowed twice. This week it's almost 80 and there was hail and tornadoes last night. At least the grass is finally green!

Another older card I'm finally getting around to sharing...Cottage Garden stamp set, Sunny Garden DSP, colors are Pear Pizzazz, Peach Parfait, & Poppy Parade. Gotta love the bling!

More Spring Garden

Another card made with Spring Garden DSP, Cottage Garden & Perfect Punches stamp sets, 1 3/4" Scallop Circle, 1 3/8" Circle, 1 1/4" Circle, Curly Label & Dotted Scallop Ribbon Border Punches. Colors are Daffodil Delight & Poppy Parade.

Baroque Get Well

This is an older card that I haven't shared yet. The medallion is embossed. I used Chocolate Chip craft ink and clear embossing powder, then cut around it with a scissors and added a gold brad in the center. The stamp set is Baroque Motifs and the greeting is from Sincere Salutations. The pink card stock is Pretty In Pink.

Partial Embossing

The backgrounds on these cards were made with embossing folders, but the middle isn't embossed. How did I do that? Well I'm glad you asked! Wherever there is pressure on the folder and the cardstock inside it, the design will show up. So you need to make it so there is no pressure in the middle. To do that, I took several pieces of thin cardboard (like from the back of a legal pad) and cut out the middle with an oval die. I stacked them together and placed them under the embossing folder when I ran the sandwich thru the Big Shot. You'll have to do some trial and error to find out how many layers your machine needs. It's that easy!

The tree is from Thoughts & Prayers, one of my favorite sets. I like to color it with markers to get the brown trunk and green leaves. Both greetings are from Teeny Tiny Wishes, another favorite! As are the Modern Label and Word Window Punches.

My Dear Friend

Another card from a recent group meeting that I haven't shared yet. Let's hope we don't have anymore real snowflakes, tho! There was some sleet here yesterday and it was in the 30's most of the day. Finally cleared out and actually got to 40 by evening. Today it's almost 60! Anyway, back to the card...

That's a piece of our Window Sheets that has been embossed on the bottom of the card, then sanded with a sanding block to make the design show up more. Doesn't that look cool? The Window Sheets are on page 205 of the Idea Book & Catalog, in the lower right corner.

The greeting is from All Holidays, the snowflake is from the Northern Frost Decorative Strip die that was in the Holiday Mini catalog (& is still available as a write in item, #120901 $21.95). The DSP is Jolly Holiday. Colors are Cherry Cobbler & Very Vanilla.

Organizing Your Embossing Folders

If you’ve been to any of the Stamp-A-Stacks or Stamping Weekends, you know how much I LOVE my embossing folders! Before Stampin’ Up! carried the Big Shot and all its related supplies, I was buying Cuttlebug embossing folders and have quite a few. I’ve also bought a few other brands and have all of them that Stampin’ Up! carries. I used to keep them in a little box, but quickly outgrew it and the next few boxes I tried. Now I keep them “filed” in a Iris brand “Pack It In” box that has a cover and handles on it. I also have my embossing plates and extra pads in it. There’s still some room, so hopefully it will last awhile!

I have taken a black permanent marker and written the names on my folders, but I’m noticing on the ones I use a lot that the ink is wearing off.

I haven’t noticed the ink going on the cardstock, but I’ve heard other people have had that problem. One solution would be to use a labeler to put the names on them. I might have to add that to my to-do list. If I can find it…

If you only have a few embossing folders (gasp!) or want to keep them by your clear stamps, two of them fit perfectly in the clear stamp cases!

And you can slide the paper that comes with the embossing folders and shows the design into the front and back pockets of the case. Talk about organized!

The cases are on page 192 of the Idea Book & Catalog and are 4 for $4.95.

Cuttlebug used to make a binder that had pages to store the folders as well as dies. I haven’t been in a craft store for quite awhile (last summer maybe?) so I don’t know if they are still around.

You could also use something for DVD storage, a basket, small crate, or basically anything that the folders fit into that fits in with your stamping supplies. Just keep them where you can use them!

Happy Stamping!

May Is National Scrapbooking Month!

May is National Scrapbooking Month! If you aren’t scrapbooking yet, give it a try with our National Scrapbooking Month promotion! You will get 30 percent off a wide selection of scrapbooking products including

* Select stamp sets

* Select professional print products for My Digital Studio

* Special digital download bundles for My Digital Studio

This is the perfect opportunity for you to join the Stampin' Up! family. During National Scrapbooking Month, new recruits will get 30 percent off the Digital+ Starter Kit. In addition, new recruits can purchase the Stampin' Memories Add-On for 30 percent off, as well!

Description Regular Price /Sale Price

Digital+ Starter Kit* (valued at more than $320!)

$175 / $122.50

Stampin' Memories Add-On (valued at more than $75!)

$50 / $35

1 stamp set

1 card stock pack

1 Designer Series Paper pack

1 Quick Accents pack

1 Designer Printed Album (12" x 12")

 

The Summer Mini Catalog Starts Today!

Lots of cute stuff for Father’s Day and summer! On the last page of the mini is the Strength & Hope stamp set and information about the Strength & Hope Digital Kit. Stampin’ Up! is donating $2 from each purchase to

The Breast Cancer Research Foundation.