The Basics by Stampin' Up!

It's time to go back to basics with a new online class by Stampin' Up!.  This is a super fun class that you download and save to your computer so you can work on it at your own pace.  It's designed to show you innovative ideas to get the most out of your stamping supplies.  "The Basics" is divided into 6 sections...

• Stamping Basics
• Stamp-A-Ma-Jig
• Masking
• Embossing
• Markers & Watercoloring
• Big Shot & Punches

There are over 30 projects total and even videos!  The projects have instructions and supply lists and are printable so you can file them into some page protectors and a binder if you want.  Each section teaches you techniques that every stamper should know.  They are designed to start with the very basic and gradually work up to more advanced techniques with great tips and tricks along the way.

Because you have so many options (print, read, video) you can work through the basics at your own pace and the way you feel most comfortable with.

Here's the best part...You can order all the supplies you need from my online store, or substitute for supplies you already have on hand.  That's the beauty of stamping...it's fairly easy to change up to fit the stamp sets or papers you have in your stash!

All this for only $17.95!  It's a great value for any stamper or crafter!  So, what are you waiting for?  Head on over to my online store and download your class today (the class is item #133385)!  Be sure to choose me as your demonstrator and let me know when you download your class so I can help you along the way if you need!

Have an inspired day!

Raining Flowers!

Actually, it's not raining anything here as I type this...it's snowing (and who knows what the weather will be like when this actually posts!!!!).

The summer before last, I got the Raining Flowers set at Convention.  I will admit, it's not my favorite set and it rarely has seen ink since I got it (gasp...I know!).  As I was prepping some cards for an event I was speaking at I thought I should dust it off and use it for a super simple card.

Two-step stamping always packs a big old WOW and I knew the brand new stampers I was going to meet that night would find this card easy to create and pretty!  We started with my favorite Note cards with envelopes (my go-to product for quick and easy cards).  I trimmed them all down ahead of time so my stampers could mount their whole card on a piece of Perfect Plum cardstock.  I love this option to add a small splash of color to these simple cards.  Them we got to stamping...starting with the outline stamp in Basic Gray and then the "fill-in" image which I had them color with markers.  Finish it off with a sentiment and you've got yourself a perfect little thank you card that took no time to complete! 

For this card, I chose a thank you sentiment (from the Delightful Dozen set) because I chatted with them a little bit about the power of a thank you and how a super simple card like this can make someone's day!  But, you could easily put a different sentiment on this card and use it for almost any other occasion.

Have an inspired day!

The Curly Label Punch had a Baby!

This Sale-A-Bration, our Curly Label punch had a baby and named it the Petite Curly Label punch.....and, it's ADORABLE!!!!

Recently, I paired the adorable Petite Curly Label punch (SAB) with the new Print Poetry DSP (Spring Catalog) to create two versions of a super cute and simple card!  It kind of reminds me of a patchwork quilt!

My stamp clubs did a birthday version of the card with blues and greens this month.  Here's a closer look.

And, I did a thank you version with pinks and greens at a supper meeting with an EWI group this month.

Here's the exciting news!  You can get everything you need to make these cards and qualify for an SAB item (the punch!) and be able to make loads of these cards for all kinds of occasions!

Supply List:

Assorted Cardstock (2012-2014 In Colors) $8.50

Stitched Satin Ribbon (choose one of the In Colors) $12.25

Very Vanilla Cardstock $9.25

Print Poetry DSP Stack $8.50

Classic Ink Pad (choose one of the In Colors) $7.25

Petite Pairs Stamp Set $25.95

Petite Curly Label Punch FREE

So, which version is your favorite?  Do you prefer the blues and greens or more girly pink and green?

Have an inspired day!

A Little Parker's Patterns

Hello!  How is your Thursday going?  I am looking forward to a fun class tonight...don't worry, I will post pictures next week!  Today, I want to share a little Parker's Patterns with you! 

Monday I mentioned that I had a special downline event where we did lots of fun stamping.  When I was planning make & takes for the event, I wanted them each to feature a product suite from the Spring Catalog.  Today I'm going to show you the make & take that featured the Parker's Patterns product suite.  I love this suite.  There are some great textures and patterns in this suite that lend themselves wonderfully to more masculine projects.

You can see some of the Designer Paper, the fantastic Natural Trim Ribbon (which looks like it's rough and thick, but in real life, it's soft and ties beautifully!) as well as the super awesome Silver Buttons.  Seriously, check out the centers of the buttons.  They are textured!  And, these buttons have some serious shine to them...love them!!!!  You will also see some embossing (both heat and with the big shot) and some stamping.  That sentiment is one of my favorites...you can find it in the Pursuit of Happiness set.

So, do you want to know what it is?  It's a notepad cover!  Here are some more views for you...

Front

Inside...I love the little flap pocket!  And, you'll see an extra score line by the far left edge...that was an oops when I was making my sample, so ignore that, yours won't have one!

Back

We used a Jr. Legal Pad as our notepad (these can be found at your local office supply store...often singly or in packs of 10 or 12).  One of the reasons why I love using these notepads is that I can cover the top of them where all the papers are bound together (look for the strip of DSP in the middle picture).

Now, I know I'm going to get comments and emails asking for the pattern or measurements.  So, I'm happy to supply you with a little something to help you create these for yourself.......

Happy creating and have an inspired day!

Doilies, Hearts & Candy...oh my!

A couple weeks ago, I had a super fun stamp day with my downline girls.  We had a blast chatting, laughing, learning about some of the super fun stuff Stampin' Up! has coming and, of course, stamping!  With Valentine's Day coming up, one of our make & takes was a valentine theme.

This make and take was supplied and designed by the very talented Cheryl (go check out her blog...you'll love it!) and it was inspired by a swap made by another talented and creative member of my downline, Sherri.

The pouch was cut with the Petite Pocket die and the Big Shot.  This is a super fun die with so many possibilities!  We used some of the paper doilies from the Spring catalog.  Have you checked out those doilies yet?  You get a boat load of them in the pack for cheap.  Seriously, go check them out...they're fantastic!

We also used some of the images and the framelits from the Hearts A Flutter product suite.  Love those stamps and coordinating framelits!  Did you notice we used one of the little banner shapes as a tag?

Our pouches were filled with a bag of cinnamon bath salts and a bag of cinnamon hearts.  We used the 1x8 cello bags for these and just trimmed them down to the size we needed for the pouch.

There you have it!  A quick and cute little valentine gift that you could make for someone special.

Have an inspired day!

Sweet Pressed

Confession time!  It's been a while since I used my Sweet Pressed Cookies stamps.  In fact, I have a set that has never seen dough...gasp!  Well, that all changed last night!  Two of my boys (the oldest and youngest) have birthdays this month and both want to bring a sweet treat for their classmates in celebration of their birthdays.  Cue, the cookie stamps and a new recipe I came across on Pinterest!

Birthday one is tomorrow, so cookies went to school this morning.

Taylor was so excited to take his orange birthday cookies to school!  And, Sawyer is equally excited for when I make more for him to take in a couple weeks.  He has already requested I make lemon and lime ones for his class!

In the past, I've only used my cookie stamps with certain recipes (sugar cookies, shortbread, gingerbread) because they work best with a cookie that is smooth (no chocolate chips!) and doesn't puff up too much while baking.  This time around I tried a Jell-O cookie recipe with them and it worked awesome!  I came across the recipe on Pinterest and you can find it here.  She has two recipes for these cookies on her site...I kind of did a combination of the two for mine!

A couple tips for Jell-O cookies.....

• use a scoop to make the balls uniform size (I usually use the smallest Pampered Chef scoop for cookies)
• the dough is soft, but shouldn't be sticky
• after rolling the balls in sugar, place on cookie sheet and squish with the cookie stamp
• dust your cookie stamp in flour BEFORE squishing each ball (trust me on this one!); just make sure you tap the excess flour off before squishing
• let them cool on the pan for a while before transferring them to a cooling rack
• these cookies shouldn't be brown on the bottom

I used the present stamp out of the newest set of cookie stamps, the Special Events set.  You can find them, along with the other cookie stamp sets in my online store!

Let me know how yours turn out if you try them.  Happy baking and have an inspired day!