Gold Stars, Ink.!

I recently promoted to Sr. Consultant, so my team and I were able to choose a Group Name. We chose Gold Stars, Ink. and I was also able to start a private group on the Stampin' Connection website so we can share information and ideas with each other easily.

When I joined as a demonstrator two years ago, I never guessed how much fun I'd have sharing what I love with others and seeing them create with me. I never guessed that I'd make so many new friendships either. I love stamping and creating with people. I joined for the discount, and to try to get some of the things I wanted for free (not out of the household budget). I never guessed how much I would learn... each month I try out new things to share with my friends and customers. I actually make money doing something I love in my spare time! How great is that? I didn't know about all the opportunites Stampin' Up! has to share with the demonstrators. This year, we have the opportunity to earn the Incentive Trip to Disney World, and I would love to be able to take my family there for free. I'll need to work hard, but it's a goal I've set for myself. I have until next June to earn it through sales and my downline.

August is a great month to join my Gold Stars, Ink team. Both you and I would get a free upgrade to Expedited Shipping for our orders in September (two days to arrive to my house vs. the week it takes normally) and you would qualify for the 1/2 price admission to the Stampin' Up! Regional in Hamilton, ON September 25th. Anyone in Canada can join my team. It's easy on my website with my recruiter password: gold star. Please contact me for more information, or with any questions you have. I have a private blog with instructions and ideas for hundreds of cards sorted by stamp set. I also offer a free class each month to my team members (either my Scrapbook Class or my Technique Class) and I hold team meetings every other month with make & takes, information and an optional swap. Registration for the Hamilton Regionals starts August 4th, and spaces are limited so if you are interested in that promotion, time is of the essence. This is a great day of fun and learning, and I'm hoping most (or all) of my team will be able to join me!

You can also help me reach my goal by hosting a home workshop or party (in my home or yours). For anyone who books a party date before September 30th, I'm offering an extra $10.00 in hostess benefits as my gift to you. I offer card parties, scrapbook parties, project (3-d) parties, and home decor parties for you and your friends. It's a fun night out for you and your friends, and you can earn free product too! All through August, a hostess with a party over $450.00 in product will get an extra $35.00 in hostess product of their choice!

And now, since you made it through all that talking, I'd like to share another card I've made with new products from the catalogue!

This card is 5.25" x 5.25" and fits in our Medium Square envelopes. I used the new stamp set Artistic Etchings and new colours (Crumb Cake, Marina Mist, Early Expresso and Pear Pizazz). This card was based on FTL #56 from the Clean & Simple Blog.

Stamps: Artistic Etchings, Teeny Tiny Wishes
Inks: Marina Mist, Early Expresso
Cardstock: Crumb Cake, Marina Mist, Early Expresso, Pear Pizazz

Butterfly Prints

Another card with more of my must haves from the new catalogue: Butterfly Prints stamp set (I stamped the bodies on the background and on the butterflies so I wouldn't have to cut them out), Elegant Lines Textured Impressions Folder and the Basic Pearls.

I've made myself a little tool to make working with the tiny pearls and rhinestones easier.... I wrapped a glue dot around the end of a toothpick. I can use it to push the pearl off the backing sheet it comes on, and then put it in place and apply a little pressure to get it where I want it on my project. When I'm not using it, I just put a piece of the glue dot backing paper around it so it doesn't stick to everything.

Stamps: Butterfly Prints
Inks: Rose Red, Daffodil Delight, Marina Mist
Cardstock: Naturals White, Rose Red, Pretty in Pink, Daffodil Delight
Punches: Scallop Edge, Butterfly, 2 x 1 3/8" Oval
Other: Elegant Lines Textured Impression Folder, Basic Pearls, Stampin' Dimensionals

Aviary Z-Fold

On my first browse through the catalogue when I first received it, I really liked Aviary, but it wasn't on my 'must-have first' list. Unfortunately for me, it really grew on me very quickly, especially after seeing all the cute things other people are making with it! So, of course I have it now... in the wood mount version so I can use my Stamp-a-ma-jig with it easily.

This is the first card I've made with this set (and Fabulous Phrases - another set from my 'must-have first' list). It's a z-fold card (4 1/4" x 11" - scored @ 2" and 5 1/2") with different cages and birds stamped on each panel--can you tell I wanted to use them all? I also used my favourite (by far) new accessory, the Basic Rhinestones to glam up the cages.

Stamps: Aviary, Fabulous Phrases
Inks: Tempting Turquoise, Rose Red, Pear Pizazz, Soft Suede, Chocolate Chip, Jet Black StazOn, Concord Crush, Rich Razzleberry, Wild Wasabi, Pumpkin Pie
Cardstock: Naturals White, Pink Pirouette, Crumb Cake
Punches: Modern Label, Dotted Scallop Ribbon Border
Other: Stamp-a-ma-jig, Basic Rhinestones, 1/4" Daffodil Delight Taffeta Ribbon

Faux Silk Elements of Style

I wanted to update some of my technique samples, and since I used Embrace Life (retired in June) for my Faux Silk sample, I thought I'd use Elements of Style to create a new sample.

This technique is very easy, and looks great too.

1. Stamp an image on light coloured tissue paper (I used Jet Black StazOn). The tissue paper should be larger than you want your finished piece to be.
2. Colour the image if desired (I used Blender Pens and my ink pads).
3. Crinkle up the tissue paper into a little ball, then open up, but don't flatten too much.
4. Cut a light piece of card stock the size you want your finished piece to be.
5. Apply glue (a glue stick works best) to the whole piece of light card stock.
6. Push the wrinkled tissue paper down onto the glue-covered card stock. I start in the middle, and push straight down with my palms. You want to avoid smoothing out the wrinkles, just push them into the glue.
7. Wait a few minutes for the glue to dry, and then trim off the excess tissue paper

Stamps: Elements of Style
Cardstock: Crumb Cake, Old Olive, Whisper White
Inks: Old Olive, Early Expresso, Not Quite Navy, Melon Mambo, Jet Black StazOn
Other: Tissue Paper, Lots of Tags Sizzlet, Corner Rounder Punch, Iridescent Ice Stampin' Emboss Powder, Blender Pen, Daffodil Delight Stampin' Write Marker

Watercolor Trio is my favourite set from the Summer Mini and this card is fairly quick & easy... I inked the stamps with Stampin' Write Markers (Old Olive, Rich Razzleberry, Daffodil Delight, Melon Mambo) and then stamped on Crumb Cake cardstock. The leaf stamped was just inked with Crumb Cake so it would stay in the 'background'. I paper pierced both sides of the Crumb Cake cardstock and then added the scallop border in Rich Razzleberry c/s. The sentiments from this set fit perfectly in the 1 3/4"x7/8" Oval punch and I layered that with the scallop oval punch. I attached the whole piece to the Melon Mambo card base with dimensionals.

Watercolor Trio is available in the Summer Mini, so you can order it until August 31st.

Fast & Fabulous CASE

My team member Yvonne made a card very similar to this at her Open House a month or so ago, and I liked it so much I had to make my own! I did change up the colours a little and the sentiment is different, but everything else is pretty much the same. The stamp set is Fast & Fabulous, a Level 2 Hostess set. If you'd like to get this set for free, I'd love to book a private class or party with you! I love the texture added by the Vintage Wallpaper Textured Impressions Folder.

Stamps: Fast & Fabulous, Perfect Punches
Inks: Pear Pizazz, Perfect Plum, Concord Crush
Cardstock: Pear Pizazz, Concord Crush, Very Vanilla
Punches: Scallop Trim Border, Curly Label
Other: Vintage Wallpaper T.I.F., Stamp-a-ma-Jig

July Technique - Black Magic Card 2

Well technically, I guess this would be Expresso Magic, since I used Early Expresso instead of Basic Black for the focal image... I had thought about doing Black Magic for the June Technique Class, but then I saw this new set (Just Believe) in the new catalogue, and new I had to wait for July so I could use it! I think this might be my favourite new set. I love silhouette images, I love sets with images and sentiments, and I love flowers! This set has all of the above. I also used my new favourite accessory from the catalogue... the Basic Pearls. I love that they are smaller than most of the half-back pearls that used to come in the Pretties Kit, I love that they are self adhesive, and I love that they are only $6.50 for a whole sheet of them in various sizes!

If you'd like to make this card (and the one in my previous post) I have a few spots available in my Sunday classes (1:00pm or 7:00pm). My Friday Class is full! Please contact me for more details.

Stamps: Just Believe
Inks: Whisper White (Craft), Concord Crush
Cardstock: Certainly Celery, Concord Crush, Early Expresso, Very Vanilla
Other: Modern Label Punch, Very Vanilla Satin Ribbon, Basic Pearl, Watercolour Pencils, White Signo Gel Pen

July Technique Class - Black Magic

This is one of the cards we'll be making at my Technique Class this weekend. I'm showing the Black Magic technique and this card uses the Watercolor Trio set from the Summer Mini Catalogue. I still have spots available... please contact me if you'd like to come!

Stamps: Watercolour Trio
Inks: Concord Crush, Whisper White Craft
Cardstock: Rose Red, Pretty in Pink, Concord Crush, Whisper White, Basic Black
Punches: Scallop Trim Border, 1 3/4"x 7/8" Oval, Scallop Oval
Other: Watercolour Pencils, Top Note Big Shot die, Signo White Gel Pen

Sketch #91

I have a card sketch again this week... if you create a card based on this sketch, I'd love to see it! Link me up in the comments.

I created this sketch before I received my Sale-a-Bration freebie order last Friday, so I had to rotate the sketch so I could use my new favourite stamp set, Just Believe:

I used Stampin' Write Markers (Wild Wasabi, Pear Pizazz and Perfect Plum) to colour on the rubber of the stamp, then I spritzed it with water before stamping to create this faux watercolour effect. The glitter doesn't show very well in this photo, but I stuck a glue dot in the middle of the flower, and then sprinkled it with Supernova Glitter (the brown one). I love the texture added with the Square Lattice Textured Impressions folder...

I hope you have time to create with me this week! If you're a Stampin' Up! Demonstrator, this is the Card Sketch Challenge (tag SCCSC25) for this week.

Stamps: Just Believe

Inks: Perfect Plum

Cardstock: Pear Pizazz, Early Expresso, Very Vanilla, Perfect Plum

Stampin' Write Markers: Wild Wasabi, Pear Pizazz, Perfect Plum

Punches: Scallop Trim Border, Word Window, Modern Label

Other: Square Lattice TIF, Glue Dot, Supernova Fine Glitter, Stampin' Dimensionals

Because I Care Thanks

This was the second card we made at my Hello, Goodby Party last weekend... all basic stamping (other than the punch for the sentiment) but I wanted to show that you can make a pretty card without having all the extras. I was also showing two of the new In Colours (my favourites - Pear Pizazz and Concord Crush). The sentiment is from Perfect Punches... all the sentiments co-ordinate with different punches so they are quick and easy! Thanks to everyone who attended. The winners of the grand prizes were: Nancy (Because I Care hostess set), Mary (Level 1 hostess set of her choice) and Sandra ($20.00 in product of her choice). Congratulations to the winners!

stamps: Because I Care, Perfect Punches
inks: Concord Crush, Pear Pizazz
cardstock: Pear Pizazz, Concord Crush, Crumb Cake, Whisper White
other: Scallop Oval punch, Stampin' Dimensionals

London Children's Museum - Free Card Making!

As promised, here is the card that can be made tomorrow at the London Children's Museum between 12:30pm and 2:30pm. It's free, but only available to the first 50 people. I'll also have a draw for a stamp set and a free class! These cards all start with the same supplies:

1 - Whisper White Note Card (I love these because they're pre-cut and scored, and they come with an envelope)
1 - 1 1/2"x5" patterned paper
1 - 3"x3 1/2" Sahara Sand card stock

I used three different stamp sets so the card would work for different ages and genders.

I chose colours to co-ordinate with the papers I used (retired - Rich Razzleberry Patterns DSP, Sweet Pea Designer Paper Pack). A punch for the sentiment is the perfect finishing touch! Which one is your favourite?

Free Make, Take & Donate @ Crouch!

Come and join me at the Crouch Branch library tomorrow (Wednesday, July 7th) at 2:30 for this free card-making session. We make three cards, and you keep two of your choice and donate the third to the Ronald McDonald House. This is open to all ages (under 6 please bring a helper) and we are usually done within an hour. The cards are very quick and easy, and this month's theme is 'get well soon'. I've taken a picture of them all together, so it's not the best, but hopefully you can still see each of the cards.

I'll also be at the London Children's Museum on Thursday from 12:30pm-2:30pm with a free card for the first fifty people to make. I'll post my pictures for that later today... I used the same supplies with three different stamp sets to make variations of the same card for different ages. The card-making at the museum is also open to all ages, and I hope to see you there!

Puppy Love - Scrapbook Club/Class

I've decided to go back to where I started in this paper crafting journey, and offer a scrapbook class/club. This is the layout for July's class (Sunday, July 11th @ 7:00pm). You can make this layout for just $5.00 or make a $25.00 order. If you'd like to get hostess benefits (a level 1 stamp set & $20.00 in product) without having a party, you can join my Scrapbook Club. You get six scrapbook classes (one a month for six months) and place a $35.00 order at or before each class. This layout is pretty gender neutral (I think, anyway... green, blue & yellow) and I'll send out possible photo measurements to everyone who signs up for this class/club. I used the new Greenhouse Gala DSP which inspired the colours (Daffodil Delight, Baja Breeze, Pumpkin Pie, Pear Pizazz).

Stamps: Schoolbook Serif, I {heart} Hearts, Just Perfect Alphabet, Favorite Things
Cardstock: Crumb Cake, Daffodil Delight, Pear Pizazz (textured), Baja Breeze
Inks: Pumpkin Pie, Baja Breeze, Soft Suede
Punches: 1 3/4" Circle, 2 3/8" Scallop Circle, Heart to Heart
Other: Bitty Button, Chocolate Chip Stampin' Write marker