Basketball Birthday

Today's card is inspired by one I saw in the galleries at SCS. Isn't it cute? I don't really have any basketball players in my family, but thought this was a really adorable card and I couldn't resist making one (or two or three). I think the entire card took me 2 minutes to make. The Cuttlebug made this really quick. I love how it gives the texture of a real basketball. The black lines were drawn on the Only Orange cardstock before it was run through the Cuttlebug. The happy birthday sentiment was too. ( I tried it afterward, but it didn't look right)

On another note, both of my boys qualified for the AAU Taekwondo National Championships in Madison, WI this July. DJ brought home 2 silver medals at the State competition and Nathan took a silver in sparring and 5th place in forms. Thanks to all of you who sent well wishes and prayers. Now we are working on some fundraising to help pay for them to get there. :0) If anyone (local) is interested in ordering some Little Ceasar Pizza kits, breadsticks or dipping sauces please email me. The competition team will receive $5 for each item sold.

Happy Stamping!

Stamp set: A Little Birthday Cheer
Ink: Basic Black
Card stock: Only Orange, Basic Black
Other: Cuttlebug, Cuttlebug embossing folder, Basic Black Marker

Blog Candy!!!!

As promised I have some blog candy for everyone. Winner will receive 2 embossing folders (Spots & Dots / Traffic Jam) for the Cuttlebug, a small bag full of generic clear "Dew Drops", Stampin' Up! silver embossing powder, Vellum heart stickers, and 2 rolls of ribbon. All you need to do is leave a comment here telling me your favorite current Stampin' Up! stamp set. Winner will be drawn randomly Friday evening. I will also post another blog candy when the number of blog hits reaches 3500. Have a great day!

Lookie What I got!

Yeah! I just received my shipment with the FREE sets I earned from the Sale-a-bration promotion. I chose 5 sets out of the current catalogs of any value. I had a really hard time deciding which ones I wanted. I chose to get All in the Family, Just Celebrate (Occasions Mini), It's Your Birthday, Ticker Tape Alphabet, and the Jumbo Outline Alphabet. I decided on getting 2 alphabet sets since I don't really have any alphabet stamps and need some if I am going to start on my scrapbooking projects. Now I just have to find the time to mount them all!

Happy Stamping~

Birthday Bee

Isn't this card cute? It is one of the cards I have been busy making over this past week. I was finally able to get a few snapshots taken of cards so I will be able to post. :0) This card turned out just how I pictured it in my head. I love the black scalloped edge. This card features one of my new sets that I got when I promoted to Senior Supervisor last month. It is called Just B. It is a very versatile set. There are several different sayings that can be used with the big "B".

I thought I would show you how the card looks when opened. There is a 2" strip of whisper white CS stamped with the bee image and colored in with my yellow marker. This is the portion you see under the black scalloped edge. Isn't it cute?

Happy Stamping~

Stamps: Just B

Ink: Basic Black, YoYo Yellow

Card stock: YoYo Yellow, Basic Black, Whisper White

Other: White Gel pen, Slit Punch

Checking In

I'm here! I have just been so busy this week creating that I have not had time to take pictures and photoshop them. I promise I will have something for you tomorrow and hmmmmmmmm...perhaps I may even find some yummy goodies to put up as blog candy. *wink* You'll just have to keep checking back for that. On another note please keep us in your thoughts and prayers. My 2 boys will be competing in the AAU Florida State Tae Kwon Do tournament this weekend. We are hoping for each of them to place in the top 8 of their division so they can go on to compete in the National Championships in Wisconsin this July. Wish us luck!!!

Happy Stamping~

On the Road

As promised here is another one of the cards I made using my new Inkadinkado acrylic sets. This one is called Road Trip. When I saw the little VW bus I knew I had to have it. I also used some of the new DCWV Old World Mat Stack paper on the background. I had originally bought this paper to match my Bronc Buster stamps, but one of the papers seemed to scream at me to be used with this set. The final card got the approval of my boys which made me happy.

Happy Stamping~

Stamps: Road Trip
Ink: Night of Navy, Basic Black
Card stock: Bravo Burgundy, Night of Navy, Whisper White, DCWV Old World Mat Stack
Other: Various Stampin' Up! Markers

Happy Hippo

One of my favorite sets in the catalog is the Pun Fun set. The images are so cute and if you are careful when mounting your sets you can actually cut the phrases away from the image and mount them separately. I get double the stamps when I do it that way. It's nice to be able to do that. Sometimes you don't want the sentiment that goes with the stamp and it just makes it easier to stamp without it. It's a great way to mix-n-match stamp sets and sentiments. :0)

This is another one of the birthday cards we will be making tonight at my Stamp-a-Stack class. Don't you just LOVE the hippo? The Bashful Blue card stock was embossed using my Cuttlebug. Once I had that done I spotted out of the corner of my eye some of the Summer Picnic DSP which matched perfectly. I added a small piece to the only orange strip of the card to tone it down somewhat. I used the mat pack spacer guide when coloring in the white circles around the hippo and also to line up my brads evenly. This tool has been a life saver of mine. If you don't have one yet you really need to invest in one. I guarantee you won't be sorry. :0)

Happy Stamping~

Stamps: Pun Fun
Ink: Basic Black
Card stock: Only Orange, Wild Wasabi, Whisper White, Bashful Blue, Summer Picnic DSP
Other: Cuttlebug & embossing folder, White gel pen, Silver Brads, Mat Pack, Various Stampin' Up! Markers

Happy Cupcake Friday!!!!!

Happy Cupcake Friday everyone! One of my favorite blogs to visit frequently is Taylor's. She has so many neat and creative projects and ideas posted on her blog. She has designated Friday's as "Cupcake Day". I LOVE it. After all, it's been a rough week- why not reward yourself with something yummy? So in honor of Cupcake Friday I created this card. It it gorgeous in person. I don't think the picture shows all the sparkle and glitter. This past week I took a visit to my local Joanne's store. I found some awesome buys on some of the acrylic stamps and paper. I couldn't pass these items up. The stamps in this card are clear acrylic stamps from Inkadinkado. The set is called Birthday Cupcake. There are 17 adorable images in this set. I have several sets of acrylic stamps that I have picked up over the years, but have never really been a big fan of them. I could never seem to get a crisp image when using them. Then I read on a forum somewhere (I think it might have been over at SCS) that if you cushion the area where you will be stamping the image will come out clearer. Well I tried it and guess what? It worked like a charm. (Joni- we'll have to get together and I can show you this trick- you're going to LOVE it!) Now I will be using more of the great sets I have in acrylic. Don't worry - I still prefer the Stampin' Up! stamps and images. I think I will always be "wood" girl at heart, but these are a nice change of scenery once in awhile. :0)

In addition to the few sets of Inkadinkado I bought ( yes I was weak and bought more that one- but I'll show you the great cards I made later next week and you will see why I had to get them! *wink*)I was also able to pick up some of the 4.5" x 6.5" matstacks by DCWV. The paper used on the bottom portion of this card is from the Spring Glitter Stack. I just couldn't resist all the sparkle and bling. It went perfectly with my dazzling diamond frosting on my cupcake don't you think?

Happy Stamping~

Stamps: Birthday Cupcake (Inkadinkado)
Ink: Certain Celery, Cameo Coral, Basic Black
Card stock: Certain Celery, Cameo Coral, Whisper White, Spring Glitter Matstack from DCWV
Other: Marvy Punch, Paper Piercer & mat pack, White gel pen, Ribbon from Michaels, 2-way glue, Dazzling Diamonds

Masculine Birthday Cards

Hi Stampers! Happy Thursday! The cards I am featuring today are 2 of the masculine birthday cards we will be making at my upcoming Stamp-a-Stack this Saturday. The theme of this month's class is birthday cards. We will be making cards for everyone- kids cards, masculine cards and of course feminine cards too. I always find masculine cards to be a bit of a problem for me. It's hard for me not to reach for my ribbon . I also don't think that I really have enough manly sets in my stamping stash. (Of course my hubby would soooooooo not agree with me on that one!)

These cards feature one of my new sets "On the Fly". Nathan thought these cards were great. He's big into fishing right now so these cards really hit the spot for him. On both cards I opted not to color in the main image. I didn't want to take away too much from it and thought it looked much more masculine when it wasn't colored in. The first card uses some of the Western Sky DSP from Stampin' Up! on the lower panel. The edges were sponged in Soft Sky to make the layered panels blend better. I really like this color scheme (Blue Bayou, Soft Sky, River Rock, & Whisper White). I think I will be using it on more cards in the future. I thought the phrase "Make a Wish" was perfect fit to use with this set since every man wishes to catch the big one! *lol* The inside of both cards have been stamped with "Happy Birhday".

The second card I made is a pretty simple card to do. It only uses one color of ink (Always Artichoke) and 3 colors of CS (Always Artichoke, Kraft, & Whisper White). Using the square punches from Stampin' Up! really helped in the quick assembly of this card. As a final touch I added the 2 copper brads on the main image panel. I was going to add some twine, but couldn't figure out just how to add it with this layout. The brads seemed to be a great solution. I used my mat pack to help line them up evenly. (I LOVE this tool!)

Hope you're all having a great day! Happy Stamping~

Stamp set: On the Fly, Cheesecloth (retired), A little Birthday Cheer
Ink: Always Artichoke, Basic Black, Close to Cocoa
Card stock: Blue Bayou, Soft Sky, River Rock, Whisper White, Always Artichoke, Kraft, Western Sky DSP
Other: Sponge Daubers, Copper brads, 1-3/8" Square Punch, 1-1/4" Square Punch

In Love With Sticky Letters

I am in love with the sticky cut letters from Stampin' Up! These are so versatile to use and can be used on such a wide variety of things. I have ideas swimming around in my head and can't wait to play some more. I think they would make great kid's name frames! Hmmmmm...I just may have to try that. The boy's bedroom walls are pretty bare and could use some bling. *wink* The first card I made used one of the hearts from the sticky cut letters. I covered it in the pink chunky glitter found in the Occasions Mini Catalog. I love the colors that it comes in. They are so springy! If you haven't taken a peek at the Mini catalog you don't know what you're missing! The background paper on the Love Note card is from the pallet of prints. The scallop edges around the main image were actually small circles punched with the 1/2" circle punch and then each glued onto the back piece of the pink CS. I used the pink taffeta ribbon to top off the card.



This card may remind you of a card I did previously. It is basically the same card, except I added some additional items to the basic card. I love the striped ribbon with the contrasting circular patterned paper. The paper is called Summer Picnic from the Occasions Mini catalog. It is soooooooo yummy! I think I will need to order a few more packs of this since it is only available until the end of May.

Happy Stamping~

Stamp set: A Little Birthday Cheer

Ink: Basic Black

Card stock: Certain Celery, Bashful Blue, Whisper White, Pretty in Pink, Summer Picnic DSP, Pallet of Prints DSP

Other: 1/2" circle punch, Sticky Cut Letters, Chunky Glitter, Markers, Pink Taffeta Ribbon, Bashful Blue Striped Grosgrain Ribbon, Dimensionals, Rhinestone Brads

Mother's Day Gift Cards

Happy Tuesday everyone! For today's project I thought I would show you the adorable set of cards I made for my Grandma to send out for Mother's Day. For Christmas I made her a lunchbox tin filled with cards for her to use and promised that I would also send additional cards for various holidays throughout the year for her. It is so hard for her to get out to the store to buy them and they are so expensive. She loved this idea and so - I make and send her new cards when I can.

Each of the 5 cards uses basically the same supplies. The colors of card stock used were certain celery, purely pomegranate and barely banana. I also used the Cutie Pie DSP from Stampin' Up! as accents on all the cards.

The centers of each flower have Stickles or dazzling diamonds in them. It really made the main images "pop"

I used the slit punch to add scallops and doodle dots with a white gel pen to give added character to the cards.

Happy Stamping~

Stamp set: Merci, Happy Everything

Ink: Basic Black, Certain Celery, Barely Banana

Card stock: Certain Celery, Barely Banana, Whisper White, Purely Pomegranate, Cutie Pie DSP

Other: White gel pen, Slit punch, Purely pomegranate Double-Stitched Ribbon, Wild Wasabi Double Stitched Ribbon, Certain Celery Grosgrain Ribbon, Dazzling Diamonds, 2-way Glue, Stickles, Dimensionals

In Loving Memory

Do you ever have one of those weeks in which you have so many things planned and are so excited for the week to come and then have it be a complete mess? Well that is what happened to me last week. It was spring break here and I was really looking forward to it. My parents, sister and Aunt were going to be down visiting from WI. The boys were so excited they could hardly contain themselves during the last hours of school on Friday. We all thought it was going to be a week filled with fun, Fun, FUN! We were mistaken!

My family arrived on Friday afternoon just like planned. Everything was going great. It was so good to see them. They drove 24 hours straight through and couldn't wait to see the boys. They were amazed at how much the boys both had grown over the past year since they had seen them. I guess I really didn't think much of their size since I see them every day. DJ is now taller than my mom and almost the same height as my dad. Nathan is almost as tall as my mom and thought that was soooooooo funny.

The week was off to a good start, until we hit a hiccup on Saturday morning. We all piled into their van to go to the Flea Market. The van started to have some problems with some of the sensors and the electrical components. After driving it a bit it started making a terrible noise and stalling while driving down the road. We pulled into a car dealership to have them look at it. Of course it was about 11:30am on a Saturday and the repair department closes at 1:00pm. They were going tot try to get it in to be looked at but there were no guarantees. Turns out they started to look at the problem but it was going to take them longer to narrow it down and actually fix it. We had to leave the van there for repairs and rent another vehicle since my parents were going to Disney on Sunday for a few days. What a pain in the neck!

Okay, so hiccup diverted and everyone is happy again- for awhile. While on their way to Disney on Sunday they get a phone call that my grandfather (my mom's dad) was being rushed to the ER by ambulance. We knew he had been ill- he had been diagnosed with cancer. Of course my mom & aunt were frustrated since they were 1500 miles away and really didn't know what was going on. Later on word came that he had pneumonia and an infection in his blood, they had him stabilized.

A few days pass and they return back to our house (Tuesday afternoon). Everyone is planning out how we will spend the rest of the week. We were planning on taking the boys to Downtown Disney since they LOVE to pin trade, taking them to Busch Gardens, going fishing and a few other fun things the boys wanted to do with Grandma & Grandpa. Well I guess it was too much of a good thing. The next morning as we were headed out the door they got another call telling them that the doctor had only given my grandpa about 48 hours to live. Now came the dilema- do they stay and hope he gets better or head on home? It was a tough decision for them. We ended up taking the boys to Downtown Disney for a few hours and spending the day pin trading and being with family. Later on that evening they packed up the van and headed on home. Unfortunately they did not make it in time to see my grandpa before he passed. He died Thursday afternoon.

Now you can all see why I have not done any posting for over a week. Things have been so crazy here. One minute things are going great and the next the carpet has been pulled out from under you. Since I was not able to make it back to WI for the funeral I needed to make sure I made some sympathy cards to mail out to family members so they knew we were there in spirit. These are the designs I came up with.

I saw this new technique using the Cuttlebug embossing folders over at SCS. I though it would be a perfect solution for me trying to come up with sympathy cards. They turned out just how I envisioned them. I was able to whip these out in no time. It's a great way to make some simple, elegant cards.

So today's post is in memory of Richard Krutza. May the angels watch over him and give him peace.

Happy Stamping~

Stamp set: Close as a Memory

Ink: Basic Gray

Card stock: Whisper White, Basic Gray

Other: Cuttlebug, Embossing folders, Gray taffeta ribbon

Massive Swap Finally Completed!!!

Remember I told you that I was participating in a huge demo swap? Well I have finally- yes finally- finished all my card fronts for it. I had to make 50+ card fronts from this swap. When I started out I had an idea in my head about what I wanted to do. At the time I was in love with the new Faux Leather technique which I explained Here. I decided that I was going to use this technique on my swaps. When I was also designing my sample to use I also decided that I wanted everything on the card to have a rustic feel to it so I sponged all the sides of the base card stock and all the focal images as well. OMG! What in heavens name was I thinking? You can not image how many hours it took me to distress all the edges on all the pieces - keep in mind I had to make over 50 of the same design. Okay here's the math- 50 cards x 12 sides to distress = 2 ruined daubers never to be used again and one extremely sore wrist! I tried to entertain myself as I sponged away on these, but even TV didn't help. After about 2 hours I was seeing the light at the end of the tunnel. I thought my troubles were over and it would be smooth sailing for the rest of the journey. Man was I wrong. Remember I told you I had decided to use the faux leather technique on this swap? Ugh! I had to tape, distress, emboss and cut over 50 pieces of card stock for the cards!!!!! Now looking at the card sample it doesn't appear that all this time and energy went into these cards, but it sure did! I have learned my lesson and will pass along my knowledge to you: When designing a swap card- always (and I mean always) keep in mind how much detail and time will need to go into creating more than one of your creation. Don't ever let your eyes be bigger that your design! So without any further complaining and whining here is what my finished swap card looked like. (enjoy beacuse I didn't make any extras to share!!!!)


Happy Stamping~


Stamp set: Bronc Buster, Weathered


Ink: Chocolate Chip, Close to Cocoa, Basic Brown


Card stock: Regal Rose, Chocolate Chip, Very Vanilla, Sahara Sand


Other: Ticket Corner Punch, Chocolate Chip Taffeta Ribbon, Masking Tape, Clear Embossing Powder, Powder Pal, Heat tool, sponge daubers

Projects and Classes

Good morning everyone! I have been so busy with a wide variety of projects that I haven't really had much time to stamp for fun. I hope to rectify that today though. :0) One of the projects I have been working on is special gifts for my downline members. I want to be one of those demo's who actively supports their downlines in any way possible. One things I hope to do is help out my demos with tips & tools for their business. One idea I have seen over and over again is a key ring of all the color samples. I made myself one of these last year and LOVE it. I try to throw it in my purse when I am going to the scrapbook store or Michales so I can compare colors. I also use this in my workshops when customers are not sure exactly how a color will look based on the picture in the catalog. It also allows everyone to feel the weight of the card stock and to see how smooth it is for stamping. I decided that this was such a great tool to have that I made one for each of my downline members. It contains all 48 Stampin' Up! colors, the 2007-2008 In Colors and samples of all the neutrals. Each piece of card stock will be labeled with the correct color name for easy reference.

I will also be selling these to anyone who would like to purchase one. The cost of them will be $8.00 + shipping. Please contact me for more information.

I will also be hosting another Stamp-a-Stack class at my home on Saturday April 19th from 6:00pm-8:00pm. This class will feature birthday cards. You will make 6 assorted birthday cards. The cost of the class is $15 for non-club members and $12 for club members. Pre-payment and reservations need to be made by Saturday April 12th (no exceptions). Space is limited so contact me today to reserve your spot. Each attendee will need to provide their own adhesive of choice, scissors and paper cutter with scoring blade.

Happy Stamping~