Scrapbook Club & Sisters

One of my new scrapbook clubs met last night and it was sure enjoyable! A fun group of people...it's going to be a great year!  Kim was receiving the benefits from last night, and being the hostess she asked for a red/black/ivory theme.  Fortunately, I had some great photos of my sisters and I that I hadn't scrapbooked yet.  It was fun to create these pages and get out of the norm of coming up with kiddo pages. 

We used a variety of items last night:

• 
  
  the NEW Dotted Scallop Ribbon Border Punch
• 
  
  Scallop Trim Border Punch
• 
  
  Curly Label Extra-Large Punch
• 
  
  1-1/4 Circle Punch
• 
  
  NEW Decorative Label Punch (in the upcoming Holiday Mini!!)
• 
  
  Top Note Die-Cut with Big Shot
• 
  
  Timeless Type Junior Alphabet Die-Cut
• 
  
  NEW Patterns Designer Series Paper Stack - Neutrals
• 
  
  Basic Pearls
• 
  
  Antique Brads
• 
  
  Neutrals Brads
• 
  
  3/8" Real Red Taffeta Ribbon
• 
  
  Smooch Spritz - Silver Foil
• 
  
  Elements of Style Stamp Set
• 
  
  Sticky Strip

WHEW...did I get it all?

Here is a close up of the Smooch Spritz...it's adds a dazzle to your pages and it comes in four different colors!!

And here is my ribbon technique I showed last night.  Simple and easy to do with a little bit of Sticky Strip!

As you can see, when you're in a club, you get to play with a variety of items so you can see if it's first something you want to invest in in the future.  It's a GREAT chance to create pages for FREE and spend one evening every two months out having fun! 

I always have openings...contact me if you're interested in joining and click on the link above on Stamp/Scrapbooking Clubs for more information!

As a reminder, today is the LAST day to order from the SUMMER MINI Catalog!  Click HERE to place your order and find SHOP NOW at the upper right hand corner!!

Happy Tuesday to you!

A Sweet Gift

I recently had the opportunty to help a fellow demonstrator from Idaho.  She wasn't able to attend the annual Stampin' Up! Convention in Salt Lake so I offfered to bring back some of the momento items that SU offers only for those convention attendees.  As a "thank you" Ann sent me some of the sweetest cards.  Before they arrived she prepared me for "simple" and I quickly reminded her that "simple" is often great...especially when you need something fast as you're running out the door.  I hope they bring you some inspiration as they did me!

I just LOVE Stampin' Up!'s Crumb Cake Envelopes!  I often forget about them but love the look they bring with the coordinating cards.  (they come in a bundle of 40 for only $6.50!!  Item #107297)

Thank you, Ann!  You sure didn't need to...but I'm sure glad you did!  :-)

Elijah's Birthday!

Elijah turned 3 yesterday!  Three to me is still such a little boy and I'm grateful for that.  I may be doing the whole "WOW" thing when I have to post that he just turned 15.  I definitely can wait! :-)  I still receive kisses on my neck, tight hugs, "ank you"'s for even the smallest deeds and the sweetest smiles...I want to bundle them up and keep them forever.  :-)

Zoe and Emma love their little brother! 

I had fun creating his cupcake toppers.  I didn't own the Extreme Elements stamp set which is perfect for boys, BUT I did have it on My Digital Studio.  So I printed some of the images from the Extreme Elements on our Whisper White Cardstock

I had some retired sports stamps so I took those and stamped the soccer ball and baseball over the Extreme Elements and used my 1-3/4 Circle Punch and Extra Large Scallop Circle Punch to punch out my images. 

Once again, it's a great way to add a background to a project if you don't own a particular stamp. Also, if you don't own My Digital Studio YOU CAN STILL DOWNLOAD THESE IMAGES!!   Isn't that great?  Do you own another scrapbooking or photo editing software?  You can still enjoy many of Stampin' Up!'s images by downloading them to your computer.  Simply click HERE to see the hundreds of different stamp designs, accessories and digital paper you can download whether you own My Digital Studio or not.  You'll be able to download your choices immediately after a small payment and NOT pay for shipping!

It was a fun birthday party and Elijah was thrilled with all his little gifts...it doesn't take much to please a 3 year old!  Wish it was going to be that easy as he gets older.  :-)

Don't forget to visit my website at http://www.embraceink.stampinup.net/ and click on Shop Now to view all your Digital Crafting needs! 

Have a wonderful day!

Just Believe & Emboss Resist

Monday night at Mary's workshop I wanted to try a technique that I hadn't used for some time so I pulled out the 'ole emboss resist.  I took this idea from Stampin' Up!'s Cofounder and CEO on her blog HERE.  She recently finished up some workshops of her own and this was one of her designs.  I fell in love with it and although it's not exactly like hers I still loved the layout. 

Can you believe I printed the background "gratitude" from My Digital Studio?  What is great about the program is if you don't have a stamp that you really want to use on a card and MDS has it, you can merely print it at home and "viola" you have yourself the image you desired!  This "gratitude" definition comes from the Define Your Life stamp set.  Here is how you emboss resist:

1) Stamp your image in Versamark Ink.

2) Sprinkle your favorite embossing powder over the image using your Powder Pal to collect the excess powder.  (in this case I used the white powder)

3) Heat set it using the Heat Tool.

4) Take a Stamping Sponge and dip in ink and then sponge on image and around on cardstock.

5) Take a cloth and rub over your embossed image removing any ink that was left on it.

6)  YOU'RE DONE!  The embossed image will resist any of the ink you sponged on the cardstock!!

I used my new favorite set Just Believe to create this card as well as Antique Brads, Certainly Celery Satin Ribbon, Scallop Oval Punch, Baja Breeze and Whisper White Cardstock, and Woodland Walk and Greenhouse Gala DSP. 

Hope you were inspired today!  :-)

Double Slider Card

Have you ever played around with a slider card?  They are fun and a bit intimidating at first, but once you do it once you'll be hooked!  Last night at Mary's workshop I showed everyone how to make these slider cards.

You can slide the top in and out and by sliding you'll slide the second up as well.  I remember creating these years ago when I first became a demonstrator and I find myself going through cyles of different projects.  Now with updated colors and accessories I wanted to go back again to some basic techniques. 

Here is a girly copy of the card

And you know where I picked up my color combination from?  My COLOR COACH!  I know...I know...you've heard it from me so much, but I love this thing!  Here are the recommended color combinations that I used above:

I love that it is so small so you can throw it in your purse, you can take it to the paint store with you to compare paints and coordinate your colors and you use it for all your crafting needs.  I would have never thought to put Tangerine Tango and Marina Mist together much like the card above but LOVE the outcome of the combinations! 

All club members will be creating a slider card in September for FREE!  So if you were thinking about joining a stampin' club, this is the time to let me know! You'll be able to create many free cards throughout the year, receive a free idea book and shop with Stampin' Up! all while receiving many benefits!   Would you like the directions for this slider card?  I can email you them if you comment below that you would like them.  :-)

Need a Color Coach?  Item # is 121620 and it's $14.95.  Order it directly online HERE or contact ME and I'll add it to one of my orders going in this week! 

Happy Stampin!

Fiddler on the Roof

Oh, Rach...Oh, Rach...what am i going to do with you?  I grew up with three sisters and two brothers and often did not like that I was a child from a large family.  When you're young, the appreciation factor is much lower.  Twenty years later, I adore my larger family.  On Saturday, Rachel (who is 2 years younger than me) suprised my mom, my other sister Emily and I and took us all out to dinner, along with my papa, at the Bigfork Inn.  While enjoying a new york steak, she proceeded to suprise us again with tickets to the Bigfork Summer Playhouse to watch "Fiddler on the Roof."  Emily and I squealed with delight as we grew up watching that classic and had expressed interest in going to the play all summer.  (I'm so excited to create a digital scrapbook page of our evening!)

Here we all are enjoying the evening together.  Rachel had contacted my husband earlier in the week and had asked if he could watch Emily's children and if he could make up something to convince me to leave the night open.  It worked and the suprise was a hit!  That doesn't happen very often that one can get away with a suprise...especially when my sister Emily is involved.  :-) My sister Rachel is in the black, Emily is in the red and I'm wearing the navy blue.  Mom and Papa celebrated their 43rd anniversary last week and Rach wanted to take them to dinner...I'm thankful that Emily and I were invited as well.  :-) 

Thank you, Rachel, for a splendid evening.  Your thoughfulness was overwhelming! 

Well, I'm off to create.  I have a workshop with Mary tonight so tomorrow I'll show you what everyone enjoyed tonight! 

Happy Monday!

Note Holder

Have you ever attempted to print a box from an online template and then cut it all out, score it correctly and then by the time you're done, you're exhausted?  That's what I use to do...and in all honesty, I still do when I need a template that the BIG SHOT doesn't have! 

This is the Fancy Favor Bigz Die Cut and I just cut off the top to take off the curly edge. Using the Big Shot makes life so much simpler and quicker.  This is a small notepad holder with two pencils tied together with twine.  I used my new favorite SU ribbon - 1/2" Stitched-Poly Ribbon in Poppy Parade - to wrap around the box and attached a "thank you" from the Teeny Tiny Wishes set.  I'm giving one of these to all the ladies who host a workshop during the month of August along with the SU Reusable Shopping Bag.   

The Fancy Favor Die Cut is terrific for holding candy or small trinkets for a wedding goodie bag, pencils and erasers for a favorite teacher, or a special little gift for any occasion. Here is a picture of it before I cut of the top.  You can see where it naturally scores for you so there is no ruler or scissors that is required. I used this same diecut for the bigger box in my post previously this week!

Matty took the kiddos to the fair while I stamped with a wonderful group of ladies last night.  I'm so thankful for my stamping friends.  What wonderful people God has surrounded me with!  I'm off to take the kiddos to the pool today...probably one of their last before school starts. 

Happy Friday to you!

Supplies Used:
Stamps:  Teeny Tiny Wishes (115370)
Accessories:  Fancy Favor Die Cut (115965), Big Shot (113439), Poppy Parade 1/2" Stitched-Poly Ribbon (119263), 1-1/4" Circle Punch (119861), Sahara Sand Cardstock (119946), Whisper White Cardstock (100730), Linen Thread (104199)

Stamped for Success Team Night

Last night was my monthly Stamped for Success Team Night.  I thoroughly enjoyed recognizing achievers from this past Stampin' Up! year and stamping with everyone.  As everyone arrived I had a special gift for them waiting on the table. 

I used Stampin' Up!'s new hostess set Cute by the Inch with our new In-Color Stitched-Poly Ribbon.  And, yes...it's chocolate nuggets wrapped with stamped labels.  Here is a close-up using the Peach Parfait In-Color:

I found these tins on another demonstrator's website (her name is Sarah...sorry, don't know her last name) and thought they were adorable.  Can you imagine them during the Christmas season to hand out?  So cute...

These are so easy and fun to make and you can make them in minutes – they make great teacher and friend gifts and you can theme them for any occasion – they would make fabulous wedding favors…

You will need some Hershey Nuggets and a sheet of Avery Shipping Labels (#5160) which are sized 1″ x 2 5/8″ which you can find at all large retailers. Take your stamp – Cute by the Inch is a fab size for this project – ink it up and stamp down into the center of each label. Then take each label and apply it to your nugget – it’s that simple! Then take your tin and arrange your nuggets inside of it to create the pattern you would like. The nuggets move around a little in the tin but not enough to notice once the lid is closed – you could attach a mini glue dot to hold them in place if desired.

Finally tie around a piece of ribbon or a belly band of cardstock/patterned papers and add a tag if wished.  I love these rectangular window tins and they are the perfect size to hold 12 Hershey Nuggets in a single layer – I love the fact that you can see the nuggets inside which is a very cute feature. I found the tins online at www.specialtybottle.com in their tin containers section and they cost around $1.70 each (after shipping) making them a fabulous price.

Have you checked out Bigz XL Die Cut Fancy Favor?  One of my customers (whom I haven't met yet but am eager to...thanks, Liz!) pointed out to me that on page 10 of the Idea Book there was a box shown that didn't look like one of the die-cuts we have.  I did a litle research and realized that it's actually our Fancy Favor box cut twice but layed on top of each other.  Run your 12x12 cardstock through the die and then cut a slimmer piece and run it through again. 

Then use some sticky strip to attach them together and fold as you normally would.  Here is the finished product:

I love how it makes our Fancy Favor box even that much taller leaving much more room for extra chocolates!  :-)  I imaged this in the Fall with pumpkin candies bursting through the top.  How fun to give these as gifts as well.  I used our new Glimmer Brads from the Holiday Mini (which most of you should have received yesterday in your mailbox...if not, it's on it's way...you can start purchasing from it September 1st) and Brights Patterns Designer Series Paper Stack.  This DSP is located on page 175 of the Idea Book and the colors are vibrant and happy!  When calculated, you're actually spending about $.50/sheet versus $.83 for our regular Designer Paper.  Great deal AND it coordinates beautifully with all of our exclusive colors!!!

Our last card everyone made was simple, but I wanted to show a different way of using the Two-Step Bird Extra Large Punch. 

The tulip is actually created using the wing of the punch.  I just punched the wing out three times and then layed them on top of each other to create the tulip.  The branches are from the Little Leaves Sizzlit's Die and I added the polka-dots by slipping the Crumb Cake cardstock in the Perfect Polka Dots Embossing Folder and Big Shot.  Isn't the new In-Color Poppy Parade just delicious?  :-)

So I had good intentions of actually baking something delicious as well.  This lemon-blueberry cake was farely easy to make and doesn't it look great? 

Well, this is what my version looked like upon it's completion:

This is why I stick to stamping and not baking.  Grrrr.  All my friends were very gracious with me and grit their teeth through every bite....oh, how I love them! 

All in all, it was a wonderful evening.  I recognized the three highest in sales in my team for the year, who best utilized my help and who made it to all the team nights for the year.  Everyone also walked away with a Stampin' Up! reusable shopping bag featured the Play Date DSP that I picked up from Convention for them. 

I love my group of girls and appreciate each of you! 

Under the Stars

Are these bears just adorable?  They come from the Under the Stars stamp set.  I received this idea two years ago while swapping cards at Convention and knew I was going to use it one of these days.  Well, my parents 42nd anniversary is on the 17th and they absolutely LOVE the beach...what a perfect card for them!  For the palm trees I used the Large Oval Punch, scored down the middle of each and cut in to create the palm tree look.  The coconuts were created with the 1/2" Circle Punch. 

Here is another fun idea using the Under the Stars stamp set.

I sent this to my friend Margene.  I call her my virtual friend because I've never met her...but that's the joy of stamping and sharing...it can connect us in so many ways.  She actually lives in Shelby, MT...just a hop, skip and jump away.  ;-)  I hope someday we will be able to meet as she appears to be a kindred spirit.  This bookmark was created by stamping the bear on three different pieces of cardstock to create the 3 color look. 

This stamp set is is a set of 10 and sells for $29.95.  Currently it is only available in the wood-mount and you can purchase it in my online store at any time by clicking HERE.  It is Item # 111556.  This is a GREAT set if you do a lot of camping and/or hiking during the summer months...can you imagine it on a scrapbook page?  :-)

I have a crazy week with a couple workshops and a club meeting...but be checking in as I show some of my workshop cards this week.  So excited to share with others! 

Happy TUESDAY to you!

It's Baby time...

Aren't these pages just beautiful???  Makes me want to keep having babies just to use this paper...okay, maybe not so much, but at least it prompts me to dig out all those baby photos I haven't finished scrapbooking yet and get 'er done!  :-) 

These pages use the Nursery Suite Speciality Designer Paper. (117165-$11.95)  Our Designer Series papers are absolutely beautiful and use our palette of colors and original images.  Here is a little bit of tid-bit on the Designer Paper:

■ Four 12" x 12" die-cut sheets

■ Eight 12" x 12" sheets per package (2 each of 4 double-sided designs)
■ Exclusive designs and colors, with patterns based on Stampin’ Up! art
■ Coordinates with Stampin’ Up!’s exclusive colors: Regal Rose, Baja Breeze, So Saffron, Early Espresso, Pear Pizzazz
■ Coordinates with So Cute stamp set (118746 - $12.95) and Nursery Suite Quick Accents (118709-$8.95)
■ Acid free and lignin free

Nursery Suite Accents







 Nursery Suite DSP




As always, you can order online 24/7.  Simply click on the link to the left and it will take you to my Stampin' Up! website.  You'll have your stamping and scrapbooking supplies sent directly to your home within 4-5 business days.  And when you order online you'll always receive a hand-stamped card in the mail from me and when your order totals over $150 you'll receive STAMPIN' REWARDS from Stampin' Up!  Can anyone say "I LOVE FREE STUFF?"  :-)  Have a wonderful weekend!

Summer STAMP-ede Event

What a great evening we all had last night!  I hosted my annual Summer STAMP-ede where I celebrate the new Idea Book and all the amazing product that Stampin' Up! is offering this year.  Many, if not all, of my retired stamps sets, ink pads, cardstock, and designer paper were 50-60% off and they flew like hot-cakes!  Throughout the evening I demonstrated 3 different projects, gave prizes out (Patty came out a winner for sure!!), and there was inspiration galore spread throughout my home!  THANK YOU TO EVERYONE WHO ATTENDED...YOU ARE THE BEST!!  I had over 20 of my close friends and customers show and everyone created two projects while indulging in strawberry shortcake and chocolate chip cookies.  :-)

This is one of the cards I demonstrated.  It's called my "circle" card because on the inside I included a Mini Square Envelope with the top cut off and placed 4-5 pieces of stamped cardstock inside the mini envelope.  On the outside of the mini envelope I stamped "hand stamped by me - recycled by you" out of the So Green stamp set.  This way you can send a card to someone and they can continue to send it on - making someone's day! (sorry...forgot to take a photo of the inside) On the outside of the card I also used the Circles #2 Die-Cut with Two Way Glue and Red Stampin' Glitter.  This was one of the cards on display when I recently attended Convention and it just popped!  It's a beautiful but quick and easy card for sure!

Next, compliments of Lynn Pratt, I learned how to create this Mirror Image and shared it with everyone.  You can click on her name above and she has a great tutorial online for those of you who weren't able to make last night.  I switched the colors around and used brads instead of creating buttons.  The stamp set that I used is Just Believe (120453 - clear ) Just LOVE that set.  I received it for free by attending Convention this year and it's become one of my most favorite!

During my last demo I featured these satin ribbon flowers.  We used them on a scrapbook page at my last Scrapbook Club, but you can create headbands and hair-clips with them as well.  

Enjoy the next few photos of the evening! 

All my cardstock/coordinating stamp pads and stamps for sale!

Retired Simply Scrappin' Kits and Designer Paper for sale!

My display boards using many of the new items from the Idea Book!

More ideas on display!

Buddies Melody and Dianna! 

(Dianna came all the way from Arizona for the evening!)  :-)

I know, Nicole and Anna, there is so many goodies you don't know where to start, right?  :-)

Faye and Suzanne enjoying the display boards. 

Fellow demonstrators and wonderful friends Beverly and Amy came to see all the new ideas!

Kathy took home lots of retired items!  Thanks for being a fan, Kathy!

Patty...the big winner of the evening!

Robin and Sharon!

Thank you to everyone who came and supported me last night! 

I appreciate you and look forward to an exciting stamping year with you!