Hello 2020!

Who’s ready to jump into 2020?  I’m so excited for this year.  I’ve revamped small weekly classes to one big class a month with a fun new option to get the class for free.  Here is the link to this month’s class with details.  Next month’s will be posted soon on Facebook.  Each monthly class should include a quick and easy notecard, a regular size card, a 3D item and a “wow” project.  This month’s “wow” is a spinning heart card that I’m super excited about and I also am loving the fabulous purse/tote die from the Best Dressed Suite.  The stitching on the edges is so cute.  If you’d like to get registered for this class or for future classes in Williamston, MI, please go to my Facebook page HERE to see the current class.  And hooray for 2020!

Color Revamp 2018

We were due for a refresh on our color line to stay up to date and I think they really knocked it out of the park!  These changes don’t take place until June 1st but I wanted you to have all the information as soon as possible as retiring inks, refills and papers will get snatched up quick.

We will have five new In Colors, like every year.  But they also totally shook up all the color lines!  We have to say goodbye to thirteen core colors and the five 2016-2018 In Colors.  But we get sixteen new colors!  Check out the charts:

IN COLORS

in-colors

THE NEW COLORS

new-colors-2

We also have previous In Colors that are returning and joining our core colors:

  • Mossy Meadow
  • Poppy Parade
  • Flirty Flamingo
  • Coastal Cabana
  • Mint Macaron
  • Blackberry Bliss

NEW COLOR COLLECTIONS

color-collections
So pretty, right?!!  I’m super exciting to announce these new colors.  The neutrals has some color splashed in, which is so fun.  The other color family colors really blend so well together so you can feel great about getting an entire color family.  Which color family are you drawn to?  I feel like it depends on my mood and what time of year it is, but I still think I’m mostly drawn to the Subtles.  They also added an additional category, Basics, which is just Basic Black, Whisper White and Very Vanilla.
But wait, there’s more!  The ink pads also have a brand new design and improved ink!  I’ll be getting my new In Color pack of ink pads next week, so I’ll show them to you.  They are easier and more intuitive to open, they stack (!!) and now include an extra label for the interior so it’s easy to see what color you are using.  The ink has an anti-foaming agent added to the pads and the new reinkers so that the surface of the ink pads have no bubbles for optimal ink coverage.  You can still use the old reinkers on the new pads and vice-versa, with the exception of the Basic Gray Archival ink pad…
Which brings me to my sad news.  Basic Black and Basic Gray Archival inks are retiring.  What?!!  My go-to black is going away.  (sad face)  First my favorite adhesive, Fast Fuse, and now my favorite ink.  I’ll be ok.  Our black ink options will be Memento, which is a fast drying black ink that we have been using with the Stampin’ Blends (alcohol based markers).  This will be the main go-to black ink.  They are also bringing back StazOn ink, a fast drying waterfast permanent ink that can be used for watercoloring or stamping on non-porous items such as the window sheets or even wood.  The StazOn does need a special different cleaner to clean off your stamps, as it is so permanent.  So you see, we are not out of options and I’ll recover.  But I did add another Basic Black reinker to my recent retiring order!  See!  Get the items you want before they’re gone!
If you want to get any of the retiring colors, you have to hurry because they are only while supplies last!
Click here and click SHOP NOW to stock up on your favorite colors before they’re gone.
***I have a special this month for ordering!  I am very close to promoting to the next level of Demonstrator in the month of April, (less than $150!).  As a special thank you for helping me reach my business goals, I will send a gift package to you in the mail for any order of $30 or more during April!  I appreciate you!***

Last-Chance Products – Retiring List 2018

Hey crafty friends!  The new annual catalog was just released for demonstrators early for us to view online.  You can start purchasing from it starting June 1st, but one of our perks of being demonstrators is the early peeks and pre-ordering products to play with them before they are released.  I’m super excited about the new news, but first things first:

The list of retiring products  (There are a few things retiring that I was shocked to hear!!)

I will be going through the catalogs live at 2 pm EST today, Wednesday April 11, and that video will be posted for future reference as well.  So get your catalogs and follow along with me with your highlighter to see what is carrying on and what is going away.  These PDFs will list the products that are retiring but I think a catalog walk-through will be easier for you and maybe you’ll notice some things you missed.  The Holiday catalog already had a retiring list and carry over list.  I’ll be going through that catalog on my walk-through as well.

Annual Catalog Retired List

Occasions Retired List

The retiring items are WHILE SUPPLIES LAST!!!  Order now to not miss out on what you’ve been eyeing these past few months!  I’ll let you in on what I ordered from the retired items during my walk-through.  I thought I’d have more time to save up for them, but I don’t want to miss out and have to pay an arm and a leg for them on eBay later!

One more thing: I am very close to promoting to the next Demonstrator level and I greatly benefit from doing so before the end of April so I’m running a special this month!  I will be mailing you a gift package in the mail for everyone that places an order $30 or more as a special thank you for helping me promote.  Now is the perfect time to get those last-chance products and get a bonus too!  Click here and go to SHOP NOW.  I really really appreciate your orders!

 

Watercolor Stocking Christmas

Watercolor-Stockings-Web

I love how this card turned out.  I’m choosing this one to send out to family and friends this year with the exception of one special card I’m making for my grandma.  I love watercolor washes and this is a great way to add a splash of color on shimmery white paper and a textured snowy background.

You can follow along how I made this card on YouTube here.

The items I used in this card are listed at the bottom of this post and also in the video.

Watercolor-Stockings-close.jpg

The variation I did for my grandma is using the Quilted Christmas DSP to look like a quilt on a watercolor background.  She has made dozens of quilts over the years and this piece reminds me of a square quilt she might make to hang on the wall.  I used two different paper patterns from the same DSP stack.  The red star background fit perfectly behind the 3″ x 3″ quilted piece to look like a border!  I was thrilled about that.

Watercolor-quilt.jpg

I’m really thrilled with how these two cards turned out.  I’m excited to see the variations that come from doing multiple cards because watercolor is never the same twice.

The shimmery white cardstock is a dream to watercolor on.  I love how it has that wonderful subtle shimmer!  I used all the colors from the DSP: Garden Green, Real Red, Lemon Lime Twist, Pool Party and Blushing Bride.

Watercolor-quilt-close.jpg

Please share with me the cards you are making for your family this year!  I would love to see them.  You can post on my new Facebook group here.

Merry Christmas!

Product List

Hang Your Stocking Photopolymer Stamp Set

Snowflake Sentiments Clear-Mount Stamp Set

Christmas Stockings Thinlits Dies

Pretty Pines Thinlits Dies

Stitched Shapes Framelits Dies

Whisper White 8-1/2" X 11" Card Stock

Shimmery White 8-1/2" X 11" Card Stock

Garden Green 8-1/2" X 11" Card Stock

Lemon Lime Twist 8-1/2" X 11" Cardstock

Quilted Christmas 6" X 6" (15.2 X 15.2 Cm) Designer Series Paper

Real Red Classic Stampin' Pad

Lemon Lime Twist Classic Stampin' Pad

Garden Green Classic Stampin' Pad

Pool Party Classic Stampin' Pad

Basic Black Archival Stampin’ Pad

Blushing Bride Classic Stampin' Pad

Medium Whisper White Envelopes

Aqua Painters

Paper Snips Scissors

Fast Fuse Adhesive

Big Shot

Links by TheseAreMyStamps.com

Greenery in the Snow

Greenery-close-up.jpg

It’s time to start preparing for Christmas!  Be ready to send out lovely Christmas cards to your family and friends this year by starting early and not being in a rush for once.  (Tell me it’s not just me!)  I recently got these Pretty Pines thinlits and I LOVE them.  They are so versatile and lovely.  They make great accents on cards, tags and gifts.  Love love love!

For this card I used the Softly Falling embossing folder on the background and the Everyday Label Punch along with the Pretty Pines thinlits.  I put Wink of Stella on the Real Red twig shape things because Wink of Stella is freaking awesome and it dazzles up everything.  Wink of Stella would also make a great stocking stuffer…just saying.  😉

The card also features the stamp set Snowflake Sentiments.  This stamp set has AMAZING greetings.  I really hope this one sticks around for a long time.  (And if it retires I’m still going to use it!)  I did use the pine branch from the now retired set Merry Patterns, which you could have earned for free in October 2017.  You can easily use another stamp as an accent on the envelope such as a single or triple small snowflakes or one of the larger ones from the Snowflake Sentiments.  You can see all the included stamps in the links at the bottom of the blog post.

Greenery-inside.jpg

 

You can check out my YouTube tutorial about how I put this card together.  And if you’d like to purchase any of these amazing materials to make your own fun Christmas cards you can buy them directly by clicking on the picture links below.

We are celebrating my family Christmas on the Saturday after Thanksgiving so I really have to get a scoot on!  We usually get together in a big gym and enjoy snacks.  The boys run around and play ball games and the girls and I get together and do paper crafts.  Then we have a big dinner (including fondue) and finish up with stockings.  We recently started a new tradition of having a paper tearing competition.  It sounds so weird but it’s totally fun!  We have dozens of strips of newspaper about 6″ wide by the height of normal newspaper.  We have double elimination rounds and go two by two against each other tearing from top to bottom without going off the edge.

What are some of your fun family traditions?  Share with us in the comments.

Product List

Snowflake Sentiments Clear-Mount Stamp Set

Merry Patterns Photopolymer Stamp Set

Real Red Classic Stampin' Pad

Old Olive Classic Stampin' Pad

Whisper White 8-1/2" X 11" Card Stock

Real Red 8-1/2" X 11" Card Stock

Always Artichoke 8-1/2" X 11" Card Stock

Old Olive 8-1/2" X 11" Card Stock

Pear Pizzazz 8-1/2" X 11" Card Stock

Medium Whisper White Envelopes

Pretty Pines Thinlits Dies

Everyday Label

Clear Wink Of Stella Glitter Brush

Softly Falling Textured Impressions Embossing Folder

Big Shot

Fast Fuse Adhesive

Stampin' Dimensionals

Links by TheseAreMyStamps.com

Stampin’ Blends Coral Yellow Rose

Blends.jpg

I love roses and especially coral and yellow rose blends so when I saw these new artist quality alcohol blending markers from Stampin’ Up! I knew what I was going to do.  These blend so nicely and are very easy to work with.  You don’t have to be an artist to end up with gorgeous results.  You can layer each color on top of others or themselves, creating layers of color.  (They do bleed, so make sure to use scrap paper underneath.)

I only started with a few colors, namely the three I used here which are the light and dark version of Daffodil Delight, Calypso Coral and Old Olive.  I also picked up the Ivory, Bronze and Color Lifter, which acts like an eraser to add highlights to projects or as a nice way to erase an oops outside the lines.  I love that the price point is the same for a single marker and the entire collection.  I don’t feel bad at all collecting these as I am able.  Essentially they are allowing us the single markers at the bundle price, which was really cool of Stampin’ Up!

For the card above I colored in the yellows first and then gradually going from light to dark coral.  In the YouTube video I did it backwards to see if there was any difference.  I think I blended in the video even more than the card above and it resulted in a more blended version of the picture.  I really like both and they were both simple so it’s really a win win.

They can also be used to color in Perfect White Accents, Pearls, Rhinestones and ribbon!  What a perfect way for us to continue our matching tradition and make even more options of embellishments for us to use on our projects.  Thank you Stampin’ Up!

I hope you consider picking up a few for yourself or for your friends for Christmas or really splurge and get the whole set for yourself.   Please visit my online store here after November 1, 2017 for these to be available for purchase.  You won’t regret it.  There is also a kit and special limited time stamp set available for use with the markers as well, which will also be posted November 1st.

For anyone wary about these compared to their older Blendabilities markers which were recalled, you know Stampin’ Up! stands behind their products and have extensively researched and perfected these markers to be high quality and perform well under scrutiny.  Being a new demonstrator I did not have the pleasure of using the old ones but I understand there was an issue with *some caps having small holes so the markers would dry out too quickly.  I know they offered complete refund for all those old markers for a few months and gave everyone an option to keep them or sell them back for credit.  Stampin’ Up! truly cares about their customers, the quality of their product and providing excellent customer care service.  I know they have worked extra hard to provide an exceptional product here and I have not been disappointed at all.

Cheers to a relaxing time coloring and stamping!

*Note – the link to the Stampin’ Blends markers below will not work until they are available for purchase on November 1, 2017.

Product List

Rose Wonder Photopolymer Stamp Set

Whisper White 8-1/2" X 11" Card Stock

Tuxedo Black Memento Ink Pad

Daffodil Delight Light Stampin' Blends Marker

Daffodil Delight Dark Stampin' Blends Marker

Calypso Coral Light Stampin' Blends Marker

Calypso Coral Dark Stampin' Blends Marker

Old Olive Light Stampin' Blends Marker

Old Olive Dark Stampin' Blends Marker

Links by TheseAreMyStamps.com

Hello Friend Mini Cards

Hello-Friend-Web

These adorable 3″ x 3″ mini cards are bursting with rustic charm.  I am in love with these tiny matching envelopes!  To see how to put this project together check out my YouTube tutorial here.

These cards feature the Wood Words stamp set, the Wood Textures paper stack and some white heat embossing for the letters.  What do you think of the doily ruffle?  So cute, right?!  We are making these 3 cards as the weekly Cocktail and a Card class on October 10, 2017 here in Williamston, MI.  We’d love to see you if you are local, either at this event or any future Thursday night.  Please visit my Facebook page here to check out the current class.

To package all these together I’ve put them all into a 6″ x 8″ bag, folded it on the side and top and clipped some fun decoration on the top.  I chose from the Delightful Daisy DSP paper because it was a subtle flower design and matched the night of navy I used on one of the mini cards.  So the silver clip used here is not SU! because currently they only carry gold clips.  I got a package of these mini silver clips at my local Target.  I do try to stick to SU! products because they are very high quality, they all coordinate very well together and I get a discount because I’m a demonstrator.  Occasionally I need something else, but it is pretty rare.  I’m proud of the items we do offer and they are constantly coming out with new items.  Have I mentioned I love Stampin’ Up!?  Haha!

Hello-Friend-Package.jpg

tams# 16503

Product List

Wood Words Clear-Mount Stamp Set

$22.00

Wood Textures Designer Series Paper Stack

$10.00

Delightful Daisy Designer Series Paper

$11.00

Whisper White 8-1/2

$9.00

Whisper White 3

$9.00

Night Of Navy Classic Stampin' Pad

$6.50

Night Of Navy 8-1/2

$8.00

Real Red Classic Stampin' Pad

$6.50

Real Red 8-1/2

$8.00

Marina Mist Classic Stampin' Pad

$6.50

Marina Mist 8-1/2

$8.00

Delicate White Doilies

$3.00

5/8

$7.00

Stitched Shapes Framelits Dies

$30.00

Starburst Punch

$18.00

6

$5.00

White Stampin' Emboss Powder

$5.00

Embossing Buddy

$6.00

Versamark Pad

$8.50

Heat Tool

$30.00

Big Shot

$110.00

Stampin' Trimmer

$30.00

Paper Snips Scissors

$10.00

Stampin' Dimensionals

$4.00

Liquid Multipurpose Glue

$4.00

Tear & Tape Adhesive

$7.00

Fast Fuse Adhesive

$10.00

SNAIL Permanent Adhesive

$7.00

Links by TheseAreMyStamps.com

Removable Mason Jar Shaker Tag

Shaker-Main

I love the versatility of this project.  You have an encouraging card, but then also a removable gift tag or keepsake.  You could even use it as an ornament!  And glitter is so much fun, even though it does get everywhere.  (It cleaned up easily, no problem!  Haha!)

I made a tutorial video on YouTube so you can follow along how to make this yourself.

Jar-liftedInside

Here are the dimensions I used:

Whisper White Cardstock:

card base 5.5″ x 8.5″, scored and folded in half

backing panel at 3.25″ x 4.5″

quarter sheet cut at 3/8″ and 2.25″ from the other side

Daffodil Delight cardstock – 4″ x 5.25″

Merry Little Christmas DSP – 3″ x 4.25″

window sheet and vellum scraps

8″-9″ of Basic Black and white striped baker’s twine

PS.  Did you know I put funny true stories at the bottom of the notes from each regular tutorial video on YouTube?  Scroll down to view and make a comment because I super duper love comments.

The loose glitter I used was from Walmart:

Horizon Group Metallic Gold Glitter Shakers here

Horizon Group Iridescent Glitter here

Sulyn Extra Fine Glitter in Crystal Diamond here

If you want to purchase any of these super totally awesome products from me just click on the picture below and it will take you straight to my online store.  Easy peasy!

Product List

Links by TheseAreMyStamps.com

Paper Pumpkin August 2017 Alternative Project

PP-MainI love my Paper Pumpkin subscription.  My brain can relax while I get crafty with the directions already done for me.  This month I finished the entire box to completion because it was soo cute!  I love that it had a gift box included!  Here is all the stuff that fits in the box:

PP-Regular

And there were SO many left over embellishments!!  I had OVER a sheet of the Garden Green leaves left.  I also have most of the Old Olive sheet of leaves left as well as an enormous amount of Calypso Coral flowers and a good 4.5″ of the thick ribbon.  I decided to play with the Garden Green leaves on some Lemon Lime Twist cardstock and make a Christmas wreath on one of the new mini pizza boxes from the Holiday Catalog.  I added the gold mini sequin trim as the bow and removed a few sequins off the roll to glue individually on the wreath with the fine tip glue pen.  I also used the adorable Cable Knit Embossing Folder on the Garden Green cardstock around the edges of the box to jazz it up a bit.  It was really easy and I think it turned out pretty cute, don’t you?

PP-Pizza-box

Product List

Links by TheseAreMyStamps.com

Peek a Boo Baby Card

Recently I had the pleasure of making a baby boy card and picking out a baby gift.  Everyone loves new babies!  So when I found this baby blanket I knew I had to make a card to match using the Foxy Friends stamp set.  Isn’t this blanket adorable?!  I found this one at Meijer.

Blanket

Since the new baby boy already had a big sister I decided to incorporate both the fox and the bear from the blanket into the card.  The bear looked like it was watching over the sleeping fox on the blanket so I made the fox the baby boy and the bear the big sister.

I used the colors from the blanket: Night of Navy, Soft Sky, Calypso Coral and Whisper White.  I started with little peeks of the baby on the front with the words Peek A Boo using the Labeler Alphabet stamp set.  I love this set because you can easily add any sentiment you want if you don’t already have the perfect stamp.  I just added white Baker’s Twine behind the words using dimensionals.  The Stitched Shapes Framelits were used to cut out the squares and I popped those up on dimensionals too.

Front.jpg

On the inside I used the crate die to create a crib!  I have seen others do this on Pinterest, but I didn’t follow any directions.  It wasn’t too hard to figure out.  All you have to do is cut the bottom pieces off the crate and glue the sides together.  I just added some rectangles for the legs glued to the inside of the crate/crib.  Then you adhere one short side to the left and one long side to the right with the corner on the fold of the card.  I did realize that your card must be oriented longways rather than the typical upright rectangle card in order to have the crib fold down and still be inside the card.

Crib.jpg

Sentiment.jpg

I finished my Peek A Boo statement with Nice to Meet You on the inside.  Then I used the Better Together stamp set for my greeting on the left inside of the card.  I added the bear and fox to the crib.  The fox is in the middle of the crib on a strip of cardstock folded into a Z shape and glued to the sides.  I made the strip the color of the plush blanket so it looked like the fox was all snuggled up in the blanket.

Crib-Inside.jpg

I think this turned out really cute!  What do you think?

Product List

Links by TheseAreMyStamps.com