Here’s a tale of some of my latest adventures in stamping…
Once a stamper, always a stamper….no matter where you are! I recently went on a “trip of a lifetime” and thought I’d update you on some of my global adventures in stamping!
I went on a 3.5 week trip to Japan – well, technically we also had a few days in Seoul, South Korea. It was more or less planned as a “see as much as we possibly can” kind of trip, keeping in mind the distance we had to travel to get there and the makeup of our group – which was myself, my mother (aka “Grandma”), my son Dylan and his girlfriend Denisse. January was picked as the month to go because it worked best for Denisse’s school schedule.
We made a list of sights and places we wanted to try to see…(well, except for Grandma, the only one of us who had actually been on a trip to Japan before, and was “just along for the journey” in her words). One of the places, though not in Japan – was Seoul – for the food, the sights and the culture – both historical and current. (OK for me – mostly current culture – I love k-pop and k-dramas LOL). Since the main portion of our trip was Japan, we thought we’d start in Seoul and try to ease into the time zone and get used to traveling in a place where English is not the first language.
Gyeongbokgung PalaceChanging of Guard Ceremony at Gyeongbokgung Palace
These shots are from Gyeongbokgung Palace, one of the palaces we visited in Seoul. What you can’t see is how COLD it was that day! Minus 15 C plus a wind….cold weather warnings but we had places to see! Also I found it funny that I travelled around the world to still be taking pictures of instrumentalists in red outfits. (I am a volunteer photographer with our city marching band, the Burlington Teen Tour Band, who wear red tunics).
We also managed to get some modern day cultural sights in…
Gangnam Style statue (are you singing and doing the dance?!)Starfield Coex Mall / Library
The Starfield Coex Library was still set up with holiday decorations! It was beautiful – and because we were there early, it was also not too crowded. One of the advantages to travelling in January is the relative lack of crowds. We wandered around the Mall for a while and were weirded out initially by how empty it was…but it was early on a weekday. It definitely got busier at lunchtime, when the locals were on lunchbreak from work!
(I took this selfie so I could get a free holographic sticker from the library!!)
And of course, I did promise adventures in stamping. I have always loved paper crafting and stationery, so I had to really watch myself while we were away – because I wanted to BUY ALL THE THINGS. I did manage to restrain myself, though I picked up a Korean stamp and some fun stickers that were Korean pop culture themed….
“Fighting” is a word of encouragement, and the stickers are cartoon caricatures from Squid Games. I’ve had a couple of people ask me how I can watch Squid Games because it’s a rather gory and dark show, and I am more of a bright happy type of viewer….and my answer is “multi tasking”. Just like I would do back when my high school friends would get together and watch horror movies, I just don’t look at the screen if something gory is happening!! Typically, since I stream things at my desk, I’ll be tidying my desk/office (a never ending task), or catching up on my journaling. I’ve put a few stickers into my journal already, and figure I can use some others when I get around to scrapbooking the trip!!
Also thinking the Documenting the Day stamp set is perfect for journaling / scrapbooking / commemorating your own adventures in stamping! Only available until February 28th/while supplies last (whichever comes first), it’s a Level 1 Sale-a-Bration freebie – you can select it for free with a $75CAD product order!
Is there anything you look to buy when you’re traveling? I have a few things that I try to pick up….Christmas ornaments (or things that could be used as a Christmas ornament), Pandora exclusive country charms and Starbucks location mugs. The mugs are great but they get heavy……so small rubber stamps and stickers are definitely easier to transport!
Stay tuned for more of my adventures in stamping!!
Yes, you read that correctly – there’s more to sale-a-brate! Stampin’ Up! Canada’s Sale-a-Bration runs January-February and they’ve released some new options from the regular catalogue that you can select as your free option when you order $75CAD product (in a single order, before taxes/shipping, after any discounts). This is in addition to the original Sale-a-Bration options which have been available since January.
A few of my current favourites are included on this list – including the Beautiful Butterflies stamp set that I used for my butterfly cards, including this one that I most recently shared.
This So Thankful Beautiful Butterflies Card is a great way to show your gratitude!
I am loving the Beautiful Butterflies Bundle – a hybrid embossing folder (embossing folder and dies) and stamp set – so three tools for one great price! This So Thankful Beauitiful Butterflies card is a great way to show your gratitude – or change out the sentiment to suit the occasion!
I love how easy it is when you can emboss and die cut at one time – and by using a patterned paper it’s even easier and prettier! For this So Thankful Beautiful Butterflies Card, I used the Beautiful Bokeh Designer Series Paper for the large die cut butterfly, and place it onto an embossed piece of Lemon Lolly Cardstock, It’s mounted on a Balmy Blue cardstock base, and that’s also the ink I used for the sentiment. One of the easiest tricks in the book to give your project a coordinated look – pick out colours from the Designer Series Paper you’re using! (they are listed on the back of the packaging…or if you’re like me and sometimes end up with things separated…it’s also listed on the website – shortcut to the Online Stampin’ Up! Canada YamStamps shop is YamStamps.com/shop). Technically, I did cheat a little bit – the colour used in the patterned paper is actually Daffodil Delight, but Lemon Lolly is a coordinating, lighter shade, plus there’s only a bit of yellow that ended up showing on the butterfly die cut.
To finish it off and add a bit more bling, I randomly stuck on sequins from the Itty Bitty Bokeh mix. I found it really handy to pick up the sequin with my Take Your Pick tool putty end, and then dip it into some Liquid Glue that I had squeezed out onto my Silicone Craft Sheet before sticking it to the cardfront. If you’re looking for the “easy” button for this So Thankful Beautiful Butterflies Card, the Beautiful Bokeh Suite Collection includes the stamp set, embossing folder, dies and embellishments that I used for this card. It’s another way to take a shortcut to a project that looks totally put together and coordinated.
If you purchase the suite, you will be able to select one Level 1 Sale-a-Bration item of your choice for free! When you place a product order until February 28th, each increment of $75CAD in a single order will earn you free Sale-a-Bration product! Plus- I’ll send you a tutorial for this So Thankful Beautiful Butterflies card! Shortcut to shop is YamStamps.com/shop or message me if you have any questions or would like to pay by etransfer. If you decide to become part of my demonstrator group, the “Eh” Team during Sale-a-Bration, you’ll be able to select TWO Stampin’ Write Marker families in addition to the “regular” $165CAD worth of product for $135CAD. More information about becoming part of my group of demonstrators here, or reach out if you have any questions. I’d love to have you as part of the “Eh” Team!!
It’s Sunday! Time for a Sale-a-Bration 2025 Share!
Every Sunday (well, pretty much every Sunday), I share a swap card that I’ve either made or received from recent swaps with other Demonstrators on the YamStamps Facebook Page (and the YamStamps Sunday Swaps Page). I was first introduced to swaps when I became a Stampin’ Up! Demonstrator over 20 years ago – it’s an event where you create a card or cardfront, and then make multiples of it. When you meet up with other Demonstrators (typically it was at conventions or other in person events), you would trade one of your card fronts/cards for one that another Demonstrator made. It’s a great way to get new ideas and samples with products that you may not personally have in your own stash.
I honestly can’t remember when this particular swap group started, it might have been around the time of COVID, or before, but this is a mail in swap. We create multiples of the same card, and then send them to the other Demonstrators. This year was a bit tricky due to the Canada Post strike….but in the end it all worked out! In any case, this is my Sale-a-Bration 2025 share!
You can find a full linked supply list on the YamStamps Sunday Swap Share Page. For this card, I used the Heart Shaped Bundle (also available in French) which is a Level 2 Sale-a-Bration item – you can select it as a Sale-a-Bration freebie with a $150CAD product order (single order total, before shipping/taxes, after any applicable discounts). I used a couple of design techniques that always work well for me – monochromatic colour schemes and clean layouts. For this card, the main image (and sentiment) are stamped on watercolour paper. I like using that paper because of its weight and because of the techniques you can use. I spritzed the paper before stamping it to get a soft, watercolour-like image. I used the same paper for the sentiment strip because I wanted it to match. The flowers were die cut from scraps of the watercolour paper (must use every inch possible!!) and then I used a Water Painter to add some ink to the flowers.
What do you think about single colour approaches? Are you one of the “the more colour the better” types or the “keep it simple, stamper” types? (We know which category I fall into haha).
You can shop 24/7 in Canada with delivery to your door (especially now that Canada Post is fully operational again) – shortcut to shopping is YamStamps.com/shop. You’ll be prompted to enter your choice of Sale-a-Bration item once you hit the applicable total product order as well, so you don’t have to worry about doing math!! Thanks for stopping by the page today, and happy shopping!
Happy New Stampin’ Up! Catalogue 2025 to all my crafty friends!
It’s finally official – Happy New Stampin’ Up! Catalogue 2025, my crafty friends! It’s a super bonanza this time around – there’s the January – April 2025 Mini Catalogue, the Scrapbooking Brochure (online only) and last, but definitely not least – Sale-a-Bration!
For each $75CAD product ordered in a single order (before taxes/shipping, after any coupon/discounts), you earn a Level 1 Sale-a-Bration item; at $150CAD you can choose between two Level 1 items OR one Level 2 items…and so on, and so on… no limit to the number of times you can earn Sale-a-Bration rewards!
JOIN Stampin’ Up! as a demonstrator and receive the usual great deal of $165CAD product for $135CAD, plus catalogues, and a Paper Pumpkin kit, pay no shipping and no blended tax (HST/GST); PLUS January 7 – February 28, you’ll get TWO sets of Stampin’ Write Markers and the Handmade Designs Stamp Set! A $294CAD Value – for just $135CAD!! Check out my Frequently Asked Question Page here – we’d love to have you as part of the “Eh” Team – my group of Stampin’ Up! Canada Demonstrators!
The shortcut to shop all these products in Canada is YamStamps.com/shop – delivery straight to your door! Please message me if you have any questions, would like to pay by etransfer, or need assistance placing an order or signing up as a demonstrator with my group!
A downloadable pdf with step by step tutorials for three different inked embossing folder techniques, plus I’m throwing in fifty tips for using your Embossing Folders! On sale December 26-28 ONLY, it’s a limited time special item – for just $9.99CAD, and the download is available as soon as your purchase is completed.
This is one of the step by step tutorials you’ll get:
I love the look of this! If you don’t recognize the products I used, it’s because they’re from the January-April 2025 Mini Catalogue! The Quick Sheet Tutorials include a supply list, plus step by step instructions. You aren’t limited to the supplies in the list – you can use the techniques with whatever embossing folder you might have in your craft room.
Just popping in to wish you a Merry Christmas, and happy first day of Hanukkah. I hope you are able to spend the day in a way that is meaningful for you!
Sharing this beautiful, simple card from Cheryl – thank you Cheryl!! I love this sentiment and thought it would be appropriate to share today.
I love the look of embossing foil cardstock!
We are spending the day quietly today and will be getting together with extended family (part 1) tomorrow! (the other side’s extended family get together isn’t until January – we are spreading out the holiday joy).
PS If you want to learn more about using your embossing folders, come back tomorrow to check out my Boxing Day Special!
Here’s a beautiful Frozen Edges Snowflake Card to celebrate winter!
Winter is in the air, and what better way to celebrate the season than with a handcrafted snowflake card? This Frozen Edges Snowflake Card features embossing and die cutting, and is perfect for sending warm winter wishes or simply adding a touch of frosty magic to someone’s day.
Whenever the winter seasonal mini catalogue comes out, I have to control myself and not get all the snowflake things. There are certain images or themes that I am always drawn to, and snowflakes are my go-to images for the winter season. I love that you can use them for a holiday card, or an in season card for birthdays or thinking of you! Or if you’re like me, and totally did NOT plan on sending out holiday cards and then got caught short when Canada Post was ordered back to work…..New Years / Winter cards….or perhaps “I know it’s supposed to be spring so why is there still snow” cards…(depending on when I get around to mailing them).
Frozen Edges Snowflake Card
This Frozen Edges Snowflake Card has a few more steps than some of my cards, but really, it’s quite easy to recreate. The Frozen Edges dies are on the Last Chance List right now, so you’ll want to grab them before they’re gone! The Frozen Edges stamp set is already sold out, but you could substitute another snow-themed stamp set for the sentiment and extra images.
Variations on the Frozen Edges Snowflake Card: change out the colour of the cardstock, or try using vellum for the snowflakes. Stampin’ Up! doesn’t carry vellum at this point in time, but I still have some in my crafting stash – check out this version with vellum….
Frozen Edges Snowflake Card – Vellum Version
Use the Frozen Edges dies to make warm greeting cards!
Come back on Boxing Day to check out my Boxing Day Special, especially if you love Embossing!
Sharing this plaid Christmas tree card tutorial to spread some joy!
Well, hello there! I’m still here! Sorry for the bit of radio silence there. Anyway, I’m here with a holiday card to share with you – and you can download the tutorial for this plaid Christmas tree card too!
You may remember that I love projects that are easy to make but that are still impressive. The thing that I love about this card is that the paper makes it easy! I have a free download of this Plaid Christmas tree card tutorial for you! I used the new two toned cardstock from Stampin’ Up! – in festive colours, of course. These are from the Snow Day 12″ x 12″ Two-Tone Cardstock package. Each cardstock has a side that is a lighter tone and the other side is the darker tone of the same colour. Makes crafting easy peasy, and especially when there’s coordinating products. The Snow Day cardstock has colours that coordinate with the Snowy Scenes Designer Series Paper and Sticker Sheet.
Hope you enjoy the plaid Christmas tree card tutorial!
Free Shipping! Dec 9-11
Stampin’ Up! Canada is having a FREE SHIPPING promotion December 9-11 (THREE DAYS!). Pay no shipping fees on product orders of $100CAD! Shortcut to shopping is yamstamps.com/shop. If you have a smaller order, and can do a porch pickup in Burlington ON, message me and I will group together orders so that everyone can benefit from free shipping!
If you need any supplies from the plaid Christmas tree card tutorial, you could shop Dec 9-11 and save some money on shipping!
Please reach out if you have any questions or need assistance placing an order! Happy shopping! Happy free shipping Monday December 9 to Wednesday December 11!
Sharing a fun and easy technique for World Card Making Day!
This ticks all the boxes – quick, easy and impressive! Check out this easy technique for World Card Making Day (which is today, Saturday October 5th!).
To celebrate World Card Making Day, I created a quick video showing the process of how to create the inked embossed background, and some tips to get good ink coverage. You can also download a written tutorial for the entire card here:
This is not a new technique, and I’ve used it before, but it’s so effective and I like to pull it out every once in a while. It’s good to revisit favourite styles, layouts and designs, and often you’re able to tweak things to make them even better!
I’m a few months into a new position at work – learning all the ins and outs of a new job is very time consuming (not to mention the brain workout!). I finally got around to editing the video for this technique (and now am wondering what took me so long because it actually wasn’t too hard LOL). You can find it on YamStamps Social Media (Tik Tok, YouTube, Instagram, Facebook) – but I’ll post it here as well/
Here’s the video of this easy technique for World Card Making Day:
I hope that you can grab a few moments to make a quick card on this World Card Making Day….and make sure to send it to someone special as well!
