This is another card from my Eastern Palace class. This was a FREE class for everyone who purchased the Eastern Palace Premiere Bundle.

This card was designed by Stampin’ Up! and shared with demonstrators to use in classes. They even had printed tutorials that we could share.

ALL the supplies for this card (except the gold ribbon and thread) were in the Premiere Bundle. It makes it so easy to create beautiful projects when you have products that are coordinated to work together.

Stamps: Eastern Beauty

Cardstock: Fresh Fig, Thick Very Vanilla

Ink: Fresh Fig, Lemon Lime Twist, Tranquil Tide

DSP: Eastern Palace Specialty DSP (Designer Series Paper)

Dies: Eastern Medallions Thinlits

Other: Eastern Gold Vinyl Stickers, 1/8″ Gold Ribbon, Gold Metallic Thread, Mini Tassel Assortment

I still have a couple more samples from this class to share with you, so stay tuned! And, if you’d like to purchase these coordinated supples to create beautiful projects of your own, please visit my website at the link below.

August 16, 2017

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Early Warning System

Those of you who’ve been to my studio know that I don’t have or need a doorbell. These two warn me if anyone is coming. They greet everyone at the door and sound vicious. Once I open the door, they immediately calm down.

Some of my stamping friends bring treats, so they are extra excited when their “aunties” show up. Janet has been known to stop by McDonalds and get them a hamburger with no bun, LaAnna brings them toys, and Pat makes home baked treats for them! How rotten is that?!

Jennie Boo is pictured on the left, and Spanky Doodle is on the right. Don’t those names make you smile? They were actually named at the rescue where we adopted them, so I can’t take credit for their cute names, but they are named well. Jennie is calm and loveable and Spanky is busy, busy, busy.

I found Spanky Doodle online at a rescue in Indiana. We adopted him and about three weeks later, we got a call from the rescue asking if we were interested in adopting a second dog. I asked why, and was told that Spanky had a girlfriend when he was at the rescue. After we adopted Spanky, Jennie wouldn’t play or eat and was listless and depressed. Then, she got attacked by a boxer and they didn’t know if she would make it. I told them if she lived, we would take her.

When we first got her she was so timid she wouldn’t come out of her crate for anything. I had to pull her out to put her outside, and she was so scared that she would “wet” all over me. Gradually (with Spanky’s help) we gained her trust. But, if anyone came over she would hide in the corner behind the furniture.

She’s come a LONG way. She now greets people at the door and sits on everyone’s lap. She even noses Spanky out of the way to get her share of attention.

I can’t imagine life without these two, and as Triva at the rescue told us, they really are “two peas in a pod” even though they have such opposite temperaments.

If you have room in your life for a pet, there are so many that need good homes. I hope you’ll consider a rescue pup of your own.

August 14, 2017

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Eastern Palace Class II

Another card from my Eastern Palace class. This class was so much fun! I offered it FREE to those who had purchased the Early Release Premiere bundle. They brought all their supplies and made these projects from start to finish.

Because these colors, the leaf image, and the embossing folder weren’t included in their bundle, I provided some of the supplies for this card.

Stamps: Eastern Beauty, Vintage Leaves

Cardstock: Thick Very Vanilla, Chocolate Chip, Crushed Curry, Old Olive

Inks: Chocolate Chip, Old Olive, Crushed Curry

Dies/Punches: Eastern Medallion Thinlits, Layering Circles Framelits, Leaflets Framelits

Other: Eastern Gold Vinyl Stickers, Oh My Stars TIEF

I love sunflowers! My dad grows them and dries them to feed the birds during the winter. The cardinals especially like them.

Thanks for visiting, and if you have any questions or comments, please leave me a note below.

August 12, 2017

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Stamping Tip – Reinking Ink Pads

Stamping Tip – Re-Inking Ink Pads

Do your ink pads need re-inking?

If you get a light, faded image when you stamp, it is time to re-ink your pad. When I purchase an ink pad, I like to add the matching refill to my order, so I don’t have to worry about running out of ink in the middle of a project.

Stampin’ Up! offers two types of ink pads.

Firm Foam Classic Ink Pads – These ink pads hold less ink than the linen covered pads and require re-inking more often. Take the refill and apply ink in a zig-zag pattern across the whole pad. Turn the pad 1/4 turn and apply more ink in a crosswise direction.

The ink is not immediately absorbed into the pad; it will appear to sit on top of the ink pad. Use a plastic spoon to gently spread the ink evenly across the entire pad. Test out the ink pad using a solid image stamp and add more ink if necessary. Clean the spoon with a wet wipe or soap & water – it will be stained.

Linen Covered Ink Pads – The Archival Basic Black and Basic Gray Classic ink pads, Memento Tuxedo Black ink pad, as well as all of the older Stampin’ Up! Classic pads are made with a felt substance and have a linen top. To re-ink these pads apply ink as directed above. You will see the ink immediately soak in. Repeat the process until you notice the absorption rate slows down.

If you find you have added too much ink, use a paper towel to blot off the excess ink.

Stampin’ Up! offers a beautiful color palette, and I hope this tip will help you create beautiful projects with nicely inked images.

Thanks for stopping by today!

August 10, 2017

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Using Retired Product Anew

I’m never one to let a chance go to “MAKE and DO”

I have pulled from my stash the retired Hello Life project Kit,

Remember this… ’the cake rack’ display board…

I used the leftovers to make up Note cards, to have on hand to send out! To update it I used the new In Colour, Berry Burst

And to make the Polaroid shape,

Cut your cardstock at 3” x 4” and then cut out the

Centre. I used a 2 3/8” Square die cut for the inner square.

I hope you enjoyed this project, and will look at your “leftovers” in new, creative ways!

Thanks for stopping by today!

August 8, 2017

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Lemon Zest Thailand Swap

Thanks to my loyal customers and team members, I was blessed to earn Stampin’ Up!’s 2017 Incentive Trip to Thailand. The trip was amazing, and I’ll be sharing a few photos with you in later posts. But, first, I wanted to show you my swap card for the trip.

It’s made with products from the Lemon Zest Bundle and the Wood Words Bundle.

Stamps: Lemon Zest

Cardstock: Daffodil Delight, Smoky Slate, Whisper White

Inks: Daffodil Delight, Old Olive, Smoky Slate

Paper: Wood Textures DSP Stack, Delightful Daisy DSP

Dies/Punches: Wood Crate Framelits Dies, Stitched Shapes Framelits, Lemon Builder Punch

Other: Linen Thread, Wink of Stella, Stampin’ Sponge, Pinewood Planks Dynamic TIEF

If you’re interested in earning a trip of your own, I’d love for you to join my team! Just click on Join Now to become a demonstrator.

Thanks for visiting!

August 6, 2017

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Coffee Break Suite

One of our most popular sets of products is the Coffee Break Suite, pictured on page 30 of Stampin’ Up!’s 2017-2018 Annual Catalog.

Customers have been asking for a coffee set since the last one retired a couple of years ago, and Stampin’ Up! responded with a great set.

I know coffee has been around for hundreds of years, but it seems to be extremely popular right now, with people paying $6 or $7 for a cuppa! This is not your momma’s coffee!

This product is a “Suite”, which means it has more than just stamps and dies (which are pretty awesome by themselves). It also has coordinating DSP (Designer Series Paper), selected Cardstock, Ribbon, and Corrugated Elements. Coordinating products make it easier than ever to create beautiful projects!

The stamp set and dies are available in a bundle, which means you save 10% by purchasing them together.

This set also coordinates nicely with the Timeless Textures stamp set on page 154.

This set includes stamps that look like coffee rings and speckles you might find under your cup if you dribbled a bit.

Both stamp sets are used on this quick and easy card.

Stamps: Coffee Café, Timeless Textures

Cardstock: Crumb Cake, Early Espresso, Very Vanilla

Inks: Early Espresso, Crumb Cake, Pear Pizzazz

Dies: Coffee Cups Framelits Dies

Other: Stamping Sponges, Pinewood Planks 3D Dynamic Textured Impressions Embossing Folder

If you like coffee as much as I do, or have friends that enjoy coffee, you’ll want to get this bundle! You can find it at my online store which is open 24/7. Just click on the link below.

Thanks for spending a few minutes with me today!

July 20, 2017

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Eastern Palace Class

Back in May, Stampin’ Up! released a mega bundle of products from the Eastern Palace Suite. It was an early release from our current Annual Catalog that didn’t go live until June 1st. Anyone who purchased the Premiere Bundle from me was invited to bring their bundle to a FREE class where they would use their supplies to make five different cards and receive tutorials for each of them. I did one session in June, and have another scheduled for July.

In addition to three cards designed by Stampin’ Up!, I included two cards of my own. I got the idea for this card from Jennifer Cerizo, and switched it up a bit. You can see her card here .

Stamps: Eastern Beauty

Cardstock: Regular and Thick Very Vanilla, Tranquil Tide

Ink: Tranquil Tide

Punches/Dies: Eastern Medallion Thinlits Dies, Layering Circles Framelits Dies

Other: Mini Tassel, Gold 1/8″ Ribbon, Delicate White Doily, Petal Burst TIEF

Stay tuned for other other cards we made in this class!

July 18, 2017

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Blossom Builder Strawberry Box

Our bonus project for June’s CAM class was this cute little strawberry box.

It’s the Clear Tiny Treat Box, wrapped with a strip of the Delightful Daisy DSP. The strawberries are made with the Blossom Builder Punch! It’s supposed to be a flower petal, but works perfectly for a strawberry, especially when you add the “seeds” with the small dot stamp from the coordinating stamp set.

Stamps: Bunch of Blossoms

Cardstock: Real Red, Old Olive, Whisper White

Ink: Smoky Slate

Paper: Delightful Daisy DSP

Punches/Dies: Blossom Builder Punch, Stitched Shapes Framelits, Layering Circles Framelits

Other: Clear Tiny Treat Box, strawberry candy from Dollar Tree

Thanks for visiting my blog today!

July 16, 2017

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Baby Bear Easel Fold

In my last post, I showed you a couple of pictures of my friend’s granddaughter, Tia, who joined us for CAM class last month. Another friend’s daughter, Peyton, also joined us last month, but I forgot to take pictures in that class.

I knew both of them were coming, and I thought they would enjoy making this cute Baby Bear card. It looks like a “normal” card when it’s closed, but when it’s open, it becomes an easel card. It’s so simple to create by adding a fold in the middle of the card front, and adhering the panel only on the bottom half.

The bear looks so much like a real teddy bear that you expect him to be fuzzy when you touch him! His realistic look is achieved by stamping three coordinating bear stamps in three different colors.