Friday, September 30, 2011

Blog Candy extended

Hello stamp friends!

Since there are no comments as of yet, I will be extending my Blog Candy giveaway until Monday morning. I will pick a winner using Random.org and I will announce the winner then. Please be sure to answer the question... "What was your first Stampin' Up! Stamp set? Please leave your answer on this post here.

Thanks so much for visiting my blog and I hope you have a great weekend!

Wednesday, September 28, 2011

Boy's First Birthday card

Hello and Happy Wednesday!

I came across a card that I forgot to share on my blog. You may have already seen it on Stampin' Connection or in my Splitcoast gallery. I made this card for my precious little nephew, Charlie. I wanted to personalize it with his name. I knew how I wanted the card to look, but that part showed up on the inside:) I wasn't sure how to decorate the front. I remembered seeing several cards where stampers used the Boquet Blossom punch to make a bow for a package, so I decided to use that idea and I added some balloons to the front. You can't go wrong with Primary colors, so I went with my favorite color family, the Brights!

Here is the front of the card:


And the inside:


Stamps: On Your Birthday, Choo Choo, & Right on Track wheel
Ink: Basic Black, Pumpkin Pie, Tempting Turquoise, Old Olive, Real Red & Chocolate Chip
Paper: Pacific Point, Real Red, Pumpkin Pie, Old Olive & Whisper White
Other: Blossom Boquet, 1" Square, 3/4" circle & Small Oval punches, Real Red & Pumpkin Pie 1/8" Taffeta ribbon, Cherry Cobbler Baker's Twine, Big Shot & Billboard Strip Tie


Thanks so much for coming by today and don't forget to leave a comment on yesterday's post here for a chane to win Blog Candy. Spread the word to your friends:)

Have a terrific day!!!







Tuesday, September 27, 2011

My Stampin' Story & Blog Candy!!!

Good morning blog friends!

I thought it would be nice to share my Stampin' Story, since I promised to share my very first cards with you today. It all started when a friend I met on eBay sent me a handmade card. We met through collecting Snoopy Jewelry and she sent me this adorable card!


Isn't it just too cute? The thing that really caught my eye was the main image was embossed. I've always been a crafter and when I saw the card, I knew I wanted to learn how to do it. I wrote to my friend to thank her for the card and asked her some questions. She told me to check out the Stampin' Up! website to see if I liked their images and if I did, to find a demonstrator in my area. I then found Becky and I went to her house. (I think it was the next day:) The first thing she showed me was how to emboss. I was hooked! I wound up ordering my first stamp set, which was "Trick or Treat". Here are the first two cards I made with the set. I also used the set "Bitty Boos", which I had bought on eBay, since it was retired at that point. 



I stamped with Becky for 3 years and finally decided to become a demonstrator on October 1st, 2009, so I'm coming up on my 2nd Anniversary.

In celebration of my 2nd Anniversary, I'm going to do some Blog Candy! I have a brand new Birthday Bakery stamp set.


All you have to do to win is leave a comment telling me what your first Stampin' Up! Stamp set was. I will pick a winner on Saturday morning using Random.org and announce the winner then.

Thanks so much for coming by and I hope you have a great day!!!


Monday, September 26, 2011

Happy Monday!

Good morning stamp friends!

I hope you all had a great weekend. I spent most of the weekend relaxing at home. I got a little organizing done. I'd like to share my new storage unit, which I love. I had my Big Shot on a different organizer, but the Multipurpose Platform kept getting caught on the ledge, when I would use it. In the first of the top 3 unites, I have current DSP in the 3 vertical slots & Originals, Bigz L & Bigz XL dies on the horizontal shelves. In the middle unit, I have Extended Cutting plates & Crease pad on the top left shelf (right under the Big Shot), I have the Standard Cutting plates and crease pad on the right, then I have the large Powder Pal on the shelf under that and on the right side I have all of the Decorative Strip plates & platform. In the 2 drawers I have all of the Embossing Folders, Sizzlits, Embosslits, & Movers & Shapers windows. I have all of the Bigz dies on the first two shelves of the unit on the right along with the Timeless Type Alphabet on the 3rd shelf. Then I have some of my retired DSP in the last 3 vertical slots. I love how all of my Big Shot supplies fit where the Big Shot is.


The 8 smaller drawers in the middle are perfect for storing cards. For now, that's what I have in them. Then I have supplies in the two 2-drawer and two 3-drawer units. I'm still working putting things in them.

In the photo, it actually looks like the unit is blocking the entry door to my room and the closet door, but the unit is the perfect fit. I don't know about you, but it's so much easier to get things done when I'm organized.

Today, I would also like to share the treat holder that we made at my last upline meeting. This is where I got the inspiration for my witch card in my last post. Isn't this adorable? I have such a talented upline:)


Tomorrow I have a very special treat for you...When our little group got together to stamp last week, I pulled out the first group of cards that I ever made. I can't remember the last time I laughed so hard. The cards are very plain. There is no DSP, embellishments or ribbon on them, but the images were stamped perfectly straight, without using the Stamp-A-Ma-Jig. We all had a good laugh and I thought you might get a kick out of them too:)

Have a great day!

Saturday, September 24, 2011

Catching Up...

Happy September blog friends!

There has been a lot going on here in the last month. Most of which were natural disasters. First the earthquake, that I definitely felt! Lets just say that was an experience and it gives me a whole new appreciation for those that experience them more often. Then Irene, which left us without power for 4 days. Yeah, it was an inconvenience, but we were one of the lucky ones that cook with propane, so we were able to heat up water on the stove, so we could take a warm bath. Most people in our neighborhood have electric only, so they had to retreat to bathe. We did lose everything in our refridgerator, but at least we waited to do our grocery shopping, because we knew it was coming. The weather was warm, but could have been so much hotter, so I consider us lucky. Then there was tropical storm, Lee, which turned out to be the worst of the 3. We've had flooding in our area before, but this had major roads under water. My husband couldn't get to work that Thursday & Friday. The local Ford Dealership was under water. Several sink holes opened up. So many people, including my parents, had flooded basements. It was really something. We were lucky though. I really feel for those that live in the north eastern states. They got it so much worse.

That Friday evening, September 9th, I was suppose to leave for Stamp Camp, which was an all weekend event. As I was on my way out, a neighbor told me that their was a bad accident on my route there. I was already taking a different route, due to closed roads from the floods. I called the hostess and she told me of another route to take, so I proceeded to go. Well, I got lost on the way there. I don't have GPS, but thank God for cell phones, or I could have been lost forever! I had never been to this place before and after being on the road for 3 hours, I finally made it safely. I was greeted with everyone clapping for me. How embarrassing! LOL!

For this event, we each had to bring a make-n-take for 21 people to complete and a completed card to swap toward the end of the event. The make-n-take would be voted on and the top 3 cards would win a prize. Here is my make n' take card:


Stamps: Wicked Cool
Paper: Basic Black, Old Olive, Cajun Craze, Whisper White & Frightful Sight DSP
Ink: Basic Black Classic & Whisper White Craft Ink pads & Old Olive & Cajun Craze Markers
Other: Ornament, Jewelry Tag & 1" Circle Punch, Big Shot, Houndstooth Embossing Folder, Simply Scored Scoring Tool, Rhinestones, Sticky Strip & Dimensionals

After seeing all of the wreaths made with rosettes, I decided to try and make something with one. A couple weeks earlier, someone in my upline made something similar, with the witch falling into the cauldron. It then came to me to make a skirt using half of a rosette. The card was a huge hit and I tied with a fellow demonstrator for second place:)

My next card was the swap that I made:


Stamps: Dark & Dreary
Paper: Basic Black, Pumpkin Pie, Whisper White & Pick Your Poison DSP
Ink: Basic Black
Other: Big Shot, Scallop Squares Duo, 1", 3/4", 1/2" Circle punches, Basic Black 5/8" Satin ribbon, Basic Rhinestones & Dimensionals

I'm pretty happy with the way this one turned out. I love the DSP used with this one. Gives it almost a vintage feel. Vintage is so out of my comfort zone, but this paper helps.I think the Rhinestones on the spider add a nice touch.

I'm hoping to get some organizing done in my craft room this weekend. I finally got the last of my storage units and I'm in the process of putting things in their new places and labeling them.. I'm already so happy with the way they look. I will be back soon with some pictures to share:) I hope you have a great weekend!