Jan 31, 2018 | cards, Occasions, Stampin' Up!
Are you looking for a Valentine’s Day Card Idea? Here’s one – use decorative papers to make your card stand out easily. In this card, the backing paper is Stampin’ Up!’s gorgeous specialty Designer Series Paper, Painted With Love. These papers are so beautiful, feature some of my favourite colours and have a metallic touch that makes everything more impressive. I tied in the linear theme with the striped heart image from the set Heart Happiness, also from the Occasions catalogue. The Designer Series Paper features Rich Razzleberry, so I used that colour for the backing cardstock and ink. The variations in the stamped image are created by the stamp itself – so literally all you do is ink the stamp, stamp it on the paper and admire the results!
We will be doing a version of this card in the upcoming February Card Class – Wednesday, February 7th at 1pm or 7pm. Please contact me to reserve your spot! As always, we will have a variety of cards in the class, so you’ll get a Valentine’s Day card idea (well, I guess you’ll actually get the card too LOL), plus 3 other cards to use for a variety of occasions. A lot of times, I leave sentiments off the class cards, so that you can add a sentiment later or use the blank inside to write an appropriate message. This card is actually blank on the inside, so it could be a Valentine’s Day card, or could be used for any other time you want to send a message of caring and support to someone. (Hey, today is also Bell Let’s Talk Day, so this could be an appropriate card to send “just because” to someone!)
As you can see, this is a fairly straightforward card layout – another way to make your cardmaking easier. A basic layout can look very different when you vary the colours, images and backgrounds – but the essential design is the same – whether you’re needing a Valentine’s Day card idea, a birthday card idea or an Easter card idea! (and you thought being a Stampin’ Up! demonstrator was difficult? haha sorry to blow that illusion…) The other day when I had a bit of a creative block, I decided it was better to be productive than to mess around and not come up with anything at all – so I used the January Paper Pumpkin kit. Without having to use much brain power, I was able to create a whole whack of cards that I can now share with others. I’m planning on sending them to members of demonstrator group to share the love and thank them for being part of my team! I shared a photo on the YamStamps Instagram account – I guess that’s another Valentine’s Day Card idea for you? Hope to see you at a YamStamps event this month to create cards for the special people in your life!!
Jan 24, 2018 | cards, Stampin' Up!
My favourite colour is blue….and so I love that this die cut dragonfly card features shades of blue. The words are from the Stampin’ Up! set Dragonfly Dreams, and the die cut dragonfly is from the coordinating Detailed Dragonfly Thinlits. The Seaside Embossing Folder adds texture to the Night of Navy Cardstock panel which is mounted onto an Island Indigo Cardstock panel – it also backs the detailed dragonfly die cut.
This is an easy and effective card to reproduce, and it’s made easier if you have the Magnetic Platform and the Big Shot Die Brush. The Magnetic Platform holds the metal thinlits in place (no need for tape) in those crucial moments before they’re held secure by the pressure of the Big Shot, and the Big Shot Brush helps to get all the little pieces out of the detailed die cuts – plus helps to pop out the die cut itself. We did this card in a private card class earlier this month, and I’m tempted to pull out this die cut dragonfly card design again soon for future classes…we shall see… When there’s newer seasonal catalogues in effect, I tend to get distracted away from some of the great items in the Annual Catalogue, but I try to make sure I don’t get too drawn in by the bright, shiny new things….though don’t worry, I always make sure there’s plenty of opportunity to play with those bright, shiny new things at class too!! This card doesn’t feature any Sale-a-Bration items…..but if you were to purchase the stamp set and thinlits, you’d qualify to get a Level One Sale-a-Bration item for free! See Sale-a-Bration details in this post.
If you’re interested in creating a die cut dragonfly card like this one, or need to build up your stash of cards, consider attending either a monthly card class (“Pay as you go”) or joining the Stampers Club (“Membership has it’s privileges – in this case, free classes and free product…). You can see details about both these regular offerings on the YamStamps Events Page, or contact me if you have any questions. Attendees tell me that they enjoy getting to try products and techniques out in class, and club members mention that they are able to budget out their crafty spending a bit more effectively by planning ahead for the duration of their 6 month membership! In either case, we always have a lot of fun, so I hope that if you’re local to Burlington ON, you can come and try out a class sometime!
Jan 19, 2018 | cards, Stampin' Up!
This fun coffee card is a great way to say hi to a friend that you haven’t seen in a while! It uses the stamp set Balloon Celebration – and you can change out the beverage type as desired! Other stamps in this set include “tea”, hot chocolate” and “champagne” so imagine the possibilities! I also mixed and matched with the stamp set Timeless Textures (available in wood mount or clear mount) for the coffee ring image, because it suited it so well! The strips in the background are from the Coffee Break Designer Series Paper, mounted on an Early Espresso piece of cardstock on the Crumb Cake cardbase. The sentiment is on Whisper White and Garden Green, die cut with the Layering Circles Framelits, which ties in with the paper, and with the colour scheme of a large coffee chain that makes really good coconut milk chai lattes. (True confession….I’m actually not a coffee drinker….).
This could easily be used as a gift card holder by adding a flap on the inside (or making a small envelope with the Envelope Punch Board and adhering it inside the card) – to make this a true coffee card?! Perfect for any occasion or for Valentine’s Day…
Don’t forget that right now you’ll want to make sure that your product order adds to $60, or some multiple of that, because for each $60 order, you’ll get one free Sale-a-Bration item of your choice! New this year – a Level 2 Sale-a-Bration! For a $120 product order, you can select one of two items – one is a set of framelits, and one is a larger stamp set….so definitely more bang for your buck right now! If you have any questions or need help placing your order, feel free to contact me. Otherwise, you can shop the online YamStamps Stampin’ Up! Canada store 24/7!
Jan 14, 2018 | cards, Occasions, Sale-A-Bration, Seasonal Catalogue, Stampin' Up!
OK here’s a crafty share first of all – apologies for the lack of activity! So – sharing a thank you card using new product from the Occasions Catalogue to help with my apology?! This card features the Petal Palette stamp set (available in wood mount or clear mount), the Petal Pair Embossing Folders, the Layering Ovals Framelits and Gold 3/8″ Metallic-Edge Ribbon. I used Stampin’ Blends to colour in the floral images.
So with the lead up to the holidays plus my trip away, my pre-planning did not always go according to…well….plan. I also seem to forget how much time zone changes throw me. While I am able to be up at the “usual” time (or close to it), many of my waking hours seem to be in a zombie-like state (or more so than usual LOL) on my return to my “home zone”. However, that being said, I would not trade my recent time away for anything!
If you live in Burlington ON, or somewhere close by, you probably have heard of the Burlington Teen Tour Band. I was actually a member when I was a teenager, so it’s a joy for me that my son is currently a member of the same organization. After a detailed selection process, they were invited to the Rose Parade in Pasadena California, for January 1, 2018 (the band’s FIFTH time to this historic event!). I was fortunate enough to attend as one of the band photographers and as a chaperone. So from December 26th to January 5th, I got to hang out with some of my favourite teens and adults! This was a busy trip, but it was great to be in the sunshine….we missed the record cold temps of Burlington during our absence (sorry not sorry), and there were some definite once in a lifetime kind of experiences happening.
The band getting ready to perform at Pasadena Bandfest.
The band at the parade. (thanks Andrea, fellow photographer for this capture).
The band performing at Disneyland – last performance of the tour (what a way to finish!)
Sidenote – the band has red jackets that members and chaperones usually have to wear when out and about. Georgia was one of the teams in the Rose Bowl game – and their greeting to fellow Georgia Bulldogs fans is apparently to bark at them….which kind of threw a number of us when this happened while we were touring around California – until we figured out why strangers would bark at us (and until they figured out we were NOT from Georgia! LOL).
Now that we’re home again, the laundry is done and the bags are almost all put away (I’m a little slow on that one…), the house will be ready for Stampers Club tomorrow and it’s back to the regular grind. Well, technicially it was back to the grind last week, but it was definitely a dazed stumble-through week for me. Let’s hope this week gets a bit better.
I’ve sent out a number of Occasions and Sale-a-Bration catalogues to people, but if you still need one, let me know. I am in the midst of following up with those on my mailing list, to be sure that they actuallyarrived…. You can see the online versions here, but there’s nothing like having a hard copy in hand, I know. Until the end of March, select free merchandise with each $60 product purchase, get extra product for hosting a party with qualified sales, and get 2 free additional stamp sets if you purchase the Demonstrator starter kit! Contact me for more details or to book a date!
Jan 3, 2018 | birthday, cards, Sale-A-Bration, Stampin' Up!
Happy Sale-a-Bration! Happy New Year! Nothing like beginning the new year with new products. Stampin’ Up! Canada’s Occasions and Sale-a-Bration cataloogues are now in effect! The sample above uses the NEW Sale-a-Bration Level 2 set, Happy Wishes, which is available in either clear mount or wood mount.
That’s right, new this year – level 2 Sale-a-Bration items! As in previous years, for each $60 in product order (in a single order), you can earn a free Sale-a-Bration itme. This year, though, if you order $120 in product in a single order, there’s two exclusive Level 2 rewards you can select! One is the set above, the other is a set of thinlits called Celebrate You.
The other ways to be rewarded during Sale-a-Bration – you can either host a cardmaking party, or purchase the Demonstrator Starter kit! Hosts with qualifying total party sales will be eligible for extra Stampin’ Rewards, and new demonstrators will receive TWO additional stamp sets of their choice from either the Annual or Occasions catalogues! Please feel free to contact me if you have any questions or want to book a date to either chat about the starter kit or to host your own cardmaking party – or both!
Other items on this Z-fold card – the Petal Pair Embossing Folders, and some Pearl Basic Jewels that I coloured with the Pink Pirouette Dark Stampin’ Blends marker.
As always – you can shop online 24/7 in the YamStamps Online Stampin’ Up! Canada store, or please feel free to contact me if you need assistance placing your order or have any questions! Happy Sale-a-Bration!
