Sympathy - Wonderfall

Here is the second sympathy card that I made for my husband's family:

The backdrop layer for the leaves was actually made using my Big Shot and a retired (from Stampin' Up!) texture plate. I happened to have this already available from another project so I went ahead and used it. It just felt "right" for this card. If you happened to be fortunate enough to get your hands on the distressed texture plate before it retired, this is a good card to use it on. I like that it's a subtle texture which is different from the embossing folders which give you a stronger, more defined pattern. If you would like to purchase this distressed Texturz Texture Plate, you can find it on the Sizzix website - it's in kit #4. Otherwise, I think that the Woodgrain embossing folder would look beautiful here, too.

Stampin' Up! Supplies
Stamps

• Wonderfall wood mount #131949   clear mount #128087

Paper

• Very Vanilla Card Stock #101650

Ink

• Cajun Craze Stampin' Pad #126965
• Midnight Muse Stampin' Pad #126860

Adhesive

• Stampin' Dimensionals #104430
• Snail Adhesive #104332
• Glue Dot #103683

Other

• Autumn Accents Bigz Die #127812
• Sizzix Distressed Textures Plate [retired]; substitution: Woodgrain Embossing Folder #127821
• 1/2" Seam Binding Ribbon in Crumb Cake #122332

   
 With Love,

Sympathy - Blooming With Kindness

Unfortunately, last week my husband's uncle passed away so I had to make a few sympathy cards for the family. Here is the one I sent to his cousin who just lost her father:

I love how soft this card looks. I used the Pink Pirouette Stampin' Pad to ink up the flower then I took a sponge dauber dipped in Blushing Bride ink and dabbed it randomly onto the flower before stamping it onto the paper. In person you can see a subtle color variation that doesn't quite come across in the picture.

Stamps
     Blooming With Kindness wood mount #131961  clear mount #126422
     Loving Thoughts wood mount #128436   clear mount #125845

Ink
     Pink Pirouette Classic Stampin' Pad #126956
     Blushing Bride Classic Stampin' Pad #131172
     Smoky Slate Classic Stampin' Pad #131179
     Pear Pizzazz Stampin' Write Marker #131266

Paper
     Whisper White Card Stock #100730

Other
     Stampin' Dimensionals #104430
     Sponge Daubers #102892

Here's hoping you and your family are happy and healthy.

With Love & Caring,

Thankful For You

My parents are awesome for so many reasons. They recently helped me out through a not-so-fun situation and I wanted to send them a thank you card to remind them that I do appreciate them and that I love them. I came across this pin on Pinterest which was the inspiration for today's card. I think my version turned out rather charming. I got to use the lovely Quatrefancy DSP as well as two of the new In Colors - Strawberry Slush and Coastal Cabana. They look amazing with Daffodil Delight!

Supplies
Paper
Whisper White Card Stock #100730
Night of Navy Card Stock #100867
Coastal Cabana Card Stock #131297
Strawberry Slush Card Stock #131295
Daffodil Delight Card Stock #119683
Quatrefancy Specialty Designer Series Paper #130141

Stamps
Banner Greetings hostess set wood mount #129711  clear mount #129714
Dot Dot Dot stamp (retired); Polka Stampin' Around Builder Wheel #130109 can be used instead

Ink
Night of Navy Classic Stampin' Pad #126970
Versamark #102283

Punches
1-1/2 inch circle punch (retired); Circles Collection Framelits Die #130911 can be used instead
7/8 inch scallop circle punch #129404
1-1/4 inch scallop circle punch #127811
Bitty Butterfly punch #129406

Adhesive
Stampin' Dimensionals #104430
Snail Adhesive#104332
Tombow #110755

Other
Tea Lace Paper doilies #129399
Paper Snips #103579
White Embossing Powder #109132
Heat Tool #129053
3/16" Brights brads (retired); Brights Candy Dots #130931 or Silver Mini Brads #122941 would be good substitutions
Woodgrain Embossing Folder #127821
Stampin' Trimmer #126889
Big Shot #113439

Happy Creating!

25% Off 25 Stamp Sets - Limited Time Offer

To continue the celebration of Stampin' Up!'s 25th anniversary they are offering 25 different stamp sets at 25% off. They even have some en Español und auf Deutsch! This offer is only good until Monday, October 28th so hurry over and get your favorites!

Happy Saving!

By The Tide Generic/Everyday Card

Today's card features Stampin' Up!'s By the Tide stamp set. This is a really beautiful set and can be used for many occasions. For this card I wanted to keep the colors neutral and I think it's spot on. The softness of the Sahara Sand (brown/gray) goes beautifully with the soft Midnight Muse (blue). This would make a great masculine card as well as a Just Because card or it could even be used for a sympathy card. There's even a coordinating envelope to go with this card.

If you would like to make your own card using my card as an inspiration, here are the supplies you'll need from Stampin' Up!:

Paper
     Sahara Sand Card Stock #121043
     Midnight Muse Card Stock #126843
     Very Vanilla Card Stock #101650
Stamps
     By The Tide Stamp Set wood mount #131910   or   clear mount #129120*
Ink
     Versamark #102283
     Sahara Sand Stampin' Pad #126976
     Midnight Muse Stampin' Pad #126860
Other
     Linen Thread #104199
     Stampin' Dimensionals #104430
     Snail Adhesive #104332
     Stampin' Trimmer #126889 
*Clear Blocks For Clear Mount Stamps
(these 3 blocks will work for all the stamps in the By The Tide set)
     Clear Block D #118485
     Clear Block E #118484
     Clear Block H #118490
     Or purchase the entire set of 9 clear mount blocks  #118491

By The Tide Card's Coordinating Envelope

If you need assistance ordering any Stampin' Up! products or just have questions, please let me know. I'm always happy to help. Thanks for stopping by today!

Happy Creating!

Punch Art Girls

I have been dying to post pictures of these adorable cards since I made them but my mom didn't want anyone to know about them until the girls' birthday so I had to wait. Well, the wait is finally over! The girls are now celebrating their 1st birthday and here's what I made for my mom to give to them:

Are these not the cutest?!?!?! And they were SOOO easy to make. Basically here's what I did:

• I used Very Vanilla card stock and the 2 1/2-inch circle punch for the face
• I used Chocolate Chip and So Saffron card stock and the 1 3/4-inch scallop punch for the pigtails
• For the bangs I first cut a 2 1/2-inch circle of the appropriate hair color, then hand drew some bangs with a pencil then cut using my super sharp Paper Snips.
• The eyes were made using Baja Breeze (retired) and Basic Gray card stock using the 3/8-inch circle punch
• I hand drew the mouth using the Basic Black Stampin' Write Marker
• The cheeks were colored by using a cotton swab dipped onto the Blushing Bride Stampin' Pad then applied in a circular motion
• For the girls' clothes, I used the 4th largest oval from the Oval Framelits Die set on some Floral District Designer Series Paper (DSP) then trimmed to fit the card base
• I chose the card base colors, Tangerine Tango and Lucky Limeade (retired), to match the colors in the DSP
• I chose some coordinating ribbon for the hair bows and adhered to the card with glue dots

I love how easy it was to pick the colors for this card - Stampin' Up! does a great job coordinating colors so there's very little thinking involved! (Sometimes that's a very good thing.)

Happy First Birthday my beautiful, beautiful girls!

Thank You Chalk Board Card

Here's a thank you card I made using the fun and easy chalk board technique:

Supplies
Paper
Crumb Cake Card Stock #120953
Calypso Coral Card Stock #122925
Pool Party Card Stock #122924
Basic Black Card Stock #121045
More Amore Specialty DSP #129309
Silver Glimmer Paper #124005
Tea Lace Paper Doilies #129399

Big Shot
Big Shot Die Cut Machine #113439
Honeycomb Embossing Folder #129378
Hearts Collection Framelits Dies #125599

Ink
Whisper White Craft Stampin' Pad #101731
Versamark Pad #102283

Adhesive
Snail #104332
Stampin' Dimensionals # 104430

Other Supplies
From My Heart Stamp Set wood mount #132007   clear mount #126557
White Embossing Powder #109132
Heat Tool #129053
White Baker's Twine #124262
Small Heart Punch #117193
Paper Snips #103579 
Stamping Sponges #101610
White Colored Pencil (any you have on hand)

If you would like to have a personal demonstration showing this chalkboard technique (and earn free products at the same time), please contact me and we'll set up a class!

Happy Creating!

Join Stampin' Up! For Only $25

Have you been wanting to join Stampin' Up! but weren't sure if it was a good time? Well, Stampin' Up! has a fantastic limited-time offer for new demonstrators. Check it out:

For two weeks only—October 7-21—join the Stampin’ Up! family for just $25! It’s an amazing opportunity to do what you already love doing anyway—and make a little money doing it (that never hurts!).

When you join Stampin’ Up! during this limited-time offer, you’ll get

• $25 worth of products, plus business supplies!
• A 30 percent discount on your first order!*
• A 20 percent demonstrator discount everyday!
  

Plus, the friendships you’ll make with other demonstrators, customers, and hostesses, will be lifelong. Enjoy the benefits of fun, friends, and creativity!

In our 25^th year, celebrate with us with the $25 starter kit. Visit my Stampin' Up! website to get started today!

*Certain restrictions apply; contact me for more details:

 Come join in the fun!

Jinx and Happy Birthday, Friend

I think I jinxed myself. I finally got back on the creating (and blogging) train but I made the mistake of announcing this publicly and shortly thereafter my computer died. It *had* to. I mean, I said it out loud! What was I thinking?! It lasted almost 10 years to the day so I guess I really shouldn't complain but boy is it a pain shopping for a new computer.  It took a while but I finally settled on one and I hope I'm back for good this time. Well, at least for another 10 years. Oh crud. I said that out loud, didn't I? I hope the evil computer spirits aren't listening...

Let's get on with the show, shall we?

So back in August my very good friend had a birthday. I know she has been pining over this Mosaic Madness stamp set so I just *had* to use it for her card. I think it turned out pretty cute if I do say so myself. I got to use the new Strawberry Slush In Color which I love as well as the new gray - Smoky Slate - which I really love. Who doesn't love pink and gray? I am so happy that Stampin' Up! finally introduced a lighter gray. I like the darker  Basic Gray a lot but sometimes you just need something a little lighter and Smoky Slate fits the bill. And I'm always looking for an excuse to use pink. Yes, I'm one of "those" girls although I didn't use to be. But I digress.

Here are the supplies I used to make this super cute birthday card:

Paper
Whisper White Card Stock #100730
Strawberry Slush Card Stock #131295
Crushed Curry Card Stock #131199
Smoky Slate Card Stock # 131202
Quatrefancy Specialty Designer Series Paper #130141

Ink
Strawberry Slush Stampin' Pad #131178
Crushed Curry Stampin' Pad #131173
Smoky Slate Stampin' Pad #131179

Stamp Set
*Mosaic Madness wood mount: #130246  clear mount: # 130249
*Label Love wood mount: #130619  clear mount: #130622

Punches
*Mosaic Punch #131267
*Artisan Label Punch #130920
Punch Pack  #118309

Other
Modern Mosaic Textured Impressions Embossing Folder #129984
Square Lattice Textured Impressions Embossing Folder #119976
White Baker's Twine #124262
Vintage Faceted Designer Buttons #127555
Rhinestone Basic Jewels #119246
Stampin' Dimensionals #104430
Tombow Multi-Purpose Adhesive #110755
Paper Snips #103579
Stampin' Trimmer #126889

*Save money, buy the bundle! Each bundle includes the stamp set and the coordinating punch.

Mosaic Madness Wood Bundle #132734
Mosaic Madness Clear Bundle #132733

Label Love Wood Bundle #132723
Label Love Clear Bundle #132722

For any questions about this card (including detailed tips on making it), any Stampin' Up! products, or anything really, please don't hesitate to contact me.  My contact info, as always, is at the top of this blog. And if it helps you or your friends, I know American Sign Language. I'm happy to do a video chat if you'd like.

Happy Creating!