A Birthday Card!

Long time no stamp...!
And I was really feeling it this time!
So today's card is really very simple.
But one of the biggest reasons I got this bundle was that my dad used to build this exact style of chair! I didn't get Father's Day cards made this year so I HAD to use it for his birthday card! Which is all the stamping time I manage to steal last week...!
I used the latest sketch from the Clean & Simple blog, and a handful of my dad's favorite things.

Supplies:
Stamps: Teeny Tiny Wishes
Ink: Soft Suede
Paper: Whisper White & Crushed Curry card stocks, Color Theory DP, Wood Textures DP
Accessories: Linen Thread, Big Shot, Woodland Textured embossing folder, Seasonal Layers thinlit dies, Glue Dots

I would love to say that now that school is back in session, I'll have more time to create but so far that is not even close to happening... As we have for the last year and a half, I'll just take it one day at a time and stamp and share when I can...! How's that for reality? haha!

A Project.

My youngest brother got married last November. I had just had my baby, and we moved to our new house I think the week after the wedding. He asked if I could possibly make a digital scrapbook of the wedding for him to give his wife in time for Christmas. Um, no. haha..... He asked if I could pull it off for Valentines and I was sure I could. Except....I completely, totally forgot all about it! I remembered a month after Valentines and I think I had the title page done by that point. WHOOPS!

Well, his wife's birthday is in August so I worked hard to get it done by then. He gave it to her last week when it arrived so I guess it's safe to share now, hahaha!

So, this has been a work in progress for literally months, which is silly because I really kept it very simple. Because it is digital, I used embellishments that I clustered so I could easily drop them onto multiple pages. I kept the entire book one color of "background paper" and I kept the journaling to a minimum. Anyway, since it is technically paper-crafting, I'll share just a few of the 51 pages I created for them.

This was the cover of the book.

July Paper Pumpkin

I needed a card for a sweet friend going thru a rough time. I thought I might look at recent Paper Pumpkin kits and see if any of the cards I haven't made might work...

Well, her favorite flower happens to be tulips and this is one of the designs from the July kit! Yeah, I think this worked.

And I went ahead and made up the rest of the kit!

It's a cute kit! The wood pieces make a nice touch to each card, and there are matching envelopes too.

Any subscribers that may have missed out, or need a refill, that is available HERE. It makes eight quick and sweet cards,
And I was glad it had a design ready to go for my friend!

Blog Hop: Stepped over butterflies

Happy August....?? I sincerely cannot believe how fast this year has flown...I think that's how you know you're getting old...
ANYWAY it's time for a new blog hop! Each month we each share a couple projects and today mine is slightly stepped up.

My card is based on the latest Clean & Simple sketch. I wanted to use some new paper and new colors. My first attempt was collage-y and I think ended up too busy, so I had to try again. I am much happier with this version. I kept it pretty simple, but stuck to the sketch.

Supplies:
Stamps; Butterfly Basics
Ink: Lemon Lime Twist, Fresh Fig
Paper: Whisper White & Peekaboo Peach card stock, Naturally Eclectic DP
Accessories: Butterflies Die, Big Shot, Dimensionals

I stepped my card up with one tiny detail and I honestly think it polishes the card off! What do you think?

Supplies:

Stamps: Butterfly Basics

Ink: Lemon Lime Twist, Fresh Fig

Paper: Whisper White & Peekaboo Peach card stock, Naturally Eclectic DP

Accessories: Fresh Fig 1/8 Sheer Ribbon, Big Shot, Butterfly Dies, Dimensionals

And here the side-by-side comparison. What do you think? 

Be sure to hop on thru to the whole blog hop- it's not very long. And leave us your thoughts, we all love comments! 

My Swap

I spent several days trying to complete ten of these cards to mail out. I finally got them all out and they should be delivered today! That means I can share it with you now! haha...

I really wanted to use my cute chair dies, and I thought I might try a beachy scene. And I think I managed to pull it off.
So here's the closeup. I used one darker and one lighter blue Glitter Enamel Dot, and one of the pale yellow ones.

Supplies:
Stamps: Colorful Seasons
Ink: Dapper Denim
Paper: Thick White Card stock, Marina Mist, Crumb Cake card stocks, Wood Textures DP
Accessories: Glitter Enamel Dots, Big Shot, Seasonal Layers thinlit dies, Softly Falling embossing folder, Fine Tip Glue Pen

And here's a glance at all of them. Each "sand" piece turned out differently, (yes, I tried ink on one of them...) and each card got a different set of "bubbles'.

I LOVE the wood DP for the little wooden chair. I love the Glitter dots! And I love this new bundle!

Mixing Old & New!

This past week, my first-born went ahead and had yet another birthday. Funny how my own birthdays don't make me feel older, but his sure do...
He is such a great kid and I have been pleasantly surprised to find myself agreeing with more experienced mom's- teenagers are challenging, just like all phases, but teenagers are a lot of fun too! He's a hard worker when he needs to be, and he's willing to do pretty much anything as soon as he's asked. He is generally happy and pleasant, and he is a huge help to me.

He got some big-ticket items in the weeks leading up to his birthday so the day itself was kinda small. I wanted to make a point to make a card for him to read on his actual birthday. While he went to see the new Spiderman movie with my husband, my older daughter was on babysitting duty so I could get it done!
I used the latest TGIF Challenge, which was a sketch, thank goodness. I use retired DP and retired Washi Tape and retired dies, punch and embossing folder, but I used a brand-spanking new stamp, haha! The words came from my newest Paper Pumpkin kit, which arrived earlier the day I made the card! How's THAT for a mix? haha.... But the colors and patterns are all very "him", so of course I had to.

Supplies:
Stamps: July 2017 Paper Pumpkin
Ink: Calypso Coral
Paper: Soft Sky & Whisper White card stocks,
Accessories: Big Shot, Dimensionals, Banner Dies (retired), Lucky Stars Embossing Folder (retired), Wide Oval Punch (retired), Washi Tape (retired, forgot the name)

Cards In the Mail!

I really haven't had another chance to stamp since the blog hop but I DID find and set aside supplies for projects sooooooo I'm optimistic...? haha!
In the meantime here is the latest from the Cards In the Mail swap I participate in:

Blog Hop: Stepping up a wishing well!

Another month has flown by... and a third of the summer is already over! I haven't had time to stamp the last few weeks, but that's one of the things I like best about participating in our blog hop- I have to stamp! *grin.

This month I decided to play with my newest set. This is from my second new catalog order, haha! I am a sucker for old and beautiful things like this well. I also enjoy coloring so that makes it a perfect stamp for me. Not only that, but it has words for several occasions, making it useful and versatile! I used the latest sketch from Freshly Made Sketches for the card layout. I kept both cards very similar, and literally just stepped up some details.
First, I have a very simple card. I stamped the image and colored only the flowers.

Supplies:

Stamps: Bright Wishes

Ink: Archival Black, Rich Razzleberry

Paper: Old Olive, Rich Razzleberry, Crumb Cake & Very Vanilla card stocks

Accessories: Watercolor Pencils, Dimensionals

My stepped up version has an embossed background using the Brick Wall folder. I thought it went well with the stone well. Then I added a strip of wood DP, It is pretty hard to tell, so I added a bonus picture below, haha. And I water-colored the entire image, and it is on Shimmery White card stock, which I read is a good one to watercolor on! And it worked well with minimal buckling so I'm calling that a success!

Supplies:

Stamps: Bright Wishes

Ink: Archival Black, Rich Razzleberry

Paper: Old Olive & Rich Razzleberry card stocks, Shimmery White, Wood Textures DP

Accessories: Watercolor Pencils, Aquapainter, Big Shot, Brick Wall embossing folder, Dimensionals

And that promised close up of the wood grain paper strip

That's it for me today. Hop along to Cheryl's blog, and all the way thru and see what every one else has created for your stampy inspiration!

I really AM hoping to stamp more in the coming weeks. I really wanted to have a class scheduled by now... we'll just have to see how things go. But in the meantime, I hope YOU get some time to stamp and create!

Swirly Summer!

Last summer when the new catalog was released, I ordered the Swirly Bird stamp set and coordinating dies. I saw tons of ideas everywhere online and this is one I really wanted to make. Annnnd then, ya know, life. ha... So this past week I made it!!!
I don't have a greeting assigned to this card, but I like the bold colors and the fun design!

Supplies:
Stamps: Swirly Bird
Ink: Daffodil Delight, Crushed Curry, Real Red, Pacific Point
Paper: Pacific Point, Whisper White card stocks
Accessories: Big Shot, Swirly Scribbles Dies

What do you think? My favorite part is that I got to stamp! haha!

In Color Birthday

I think I got to stamp three days in a row last week! That is super exciting for me!

Today I am going to share this card that I think turned out really pretty. I got to use a current Freshly Made sketch (what?!) and brand new In Colors. This one is going on my display board, and it might end up in a very soon upcoming class!

Supplies:
Stamps: Number of Years
Ink: Lemon Lime Twist, Fresh Fig
Paper: Fresh Fig, Whisper White, Lemon Lime Twist card stock
Accessories: Pearls, staple

News!

Not only was a brand new catalog released yesterday, there are a few exciting promotions you'll want to know about!

First of all, this is a GREAT time to host a workshop! This month only, you can earn an additional $35 in hostess dollars, if your workshop totals $350 or more! Let me know if you're ready to schedule a workshop! You can do a live workshop at your house (or mine), you can do a catalog workshop, or you can place an order of $350 yourself if your wish list is long enough! (I know mine is...!!!)

Second, you've seen lots of Paper Pumpkin posts shared on my blog. You can also check my Pinterest board HERE. There are still several kits and refills available to order, but only subscribers can get them! Well, until June 10, first time subscribers can get 25% off the first three months of their subscription! Just click on the pumpkin on my sidebar to join!

Let me know if you need any help getting the most out of these promotions!

Blog Hop: Stepping Up with New Products!!

June has arrived and summer vacation is definitely underway at my house! It has also warmed up significantly, so I guess that means summer is here!

Today is a big day for Stampin' Up! A new catalog is released at noon today! Unless you have a demonstrator who has already delivered a paper copy to you... *wink.

Being a demonstrator means we get a chance to pre-order some items. Usually I do order a few things to have a little head start, and today's post definitely shows that! I have new In Colors (one of them anyway), new stamps, new dies, new paper and even a new ribbon! This is a super cute bundle- the stamps and the dies, and the paper that was designed to work with the set too! There is SO much potential with this set and I can't wait to show you even more of it!

So for today, I have a simple card first. I like it. It was pretty quick to make, the longest part was stamping off to get the paler pink flowers!

Supplies:
Stamps: Colorful Seasons
Ink: Berry Burst, Crumb Cake
Paper: Berry Burst & Whisper White card stock, Color Theory DP

And my stepped up version! I changed up the background color. I didn't stamp anything beyond the greeting. I die cut the branches and the flowers! And I added the cute ribbon too.

Supplies:
Stamps: Colorful Seasons
Ink: Berry Burst, Crumb Cake
Paper: Old Olive, Crumb Cake, Berry Burst & Powder Pink card stock, Color Theory DP
Accessories: Old Olive Mini Chevron Ribbon, Dimensionals

What do you think?

...I promise the cards are the same size, the angle of the picture is just weird, haha.
My card sketch is based on THIS sketch from TGIF Challenges, a week or two ago.

Anyway, we have a lot of stampy inspiration lined up for you today, so be sure and hop all the way thru! And leave us your thoughts- we all appreciate comments on our work!