Apr 29, 2017 | Announcements, contest, Stampin' Up!
I’m closing my mailing list for the Stampin’ Up! Canada 2017-2018 Annual Catalogue tonight – so if you’d like a copy, don’t already have a Stampin’ Up! Demonstrator, and live in Canada, please complete this form and I will follow up with you!
NEXT – a reminder that my April Celebration will end at the end of April…..ahem. So, one more day, if you place an order with $50 product, purchase an online class or purchase a starter kit, you will be entered in my draw to win a Big Shot! (if you are a theatre geek like me, you sang those words “One More Day” in your best Jean Valjean voice?!).
If you have any questions or need any assistance placing an order, please feel free to contact me. The winner of the Big Shot will first be announced in the May Paper Crafting Projects newsletter to subscribers, being sent out on May 2. Good luck!
Apr 26, 2017 | Big Shot, cards, Stampin' Up!
I love beautiful cards that are easy to make…and believe it or not, this card actually falls into that category!! Promise! This lovely detailed floral die cut card uses the Floral Phrases stamps set (available in wood mount or clear mount) and the coordinating Detailed Floral Thinlit Dies – the stamps and dies are available together in a discounted bundle (wood mount bundle or clear mount bundle) BUT ONLY UNTIL THE END OF MAY. Sorry for shouting, just don’t want you to miss out! The individual items WILL be in the new catalogue, but the bundles WILL NOT.
Anyway. The main image gives a kind of watercolour-y feel with the variations in degrees of intensity of colour. I love that I don’t have to do the work to get that effect! On this card, it’s stamped in Perfect Plum. The detailed floral die cut at the bottom of the cardstock is made by placing the flat edge of the larger thinlit along the border stamp image. Then it’s adhered onto Perfect Plum cardstock and onto the cardfront.
The new catalogue will be bringing back one of my favourite adhesives – adhesive in the form of a sheet – which will make adhering detailed die cuts even easier! If you need to make a detailed floral die cut card in the meantime….use the pointy end of the Multipurpose Liquid Adhesive, or the Fine-Tip Glue pen. We’ll be making this card in May’s Monthly Clard Class. Have you registered yet? Space is limited….so please don’t delay. Class will be Wednesday, May 3rd at 1pm or 7pm. See other upcoming events on the YamStamps Events Page.
Oh – and before I forget – if you’re in the Burlington ON area – mark Saturday, June 3 on your calendar! It will be the annual YamStamps New Catalogue Open House and Retired Rubber Garage Sale! More details to follow – look for info here on the YamStamps blog and in the May Paper Crafting Projects Newsletter – going to subscribers May 2!
Apr 21, 2017 | cards, contest, Retired List, Stampin' Up!
One type of card that is great to have on hand is a birthday card – there’s nothing worse than realizing you need a birthday card RIGHT NOW – which for me, usually happens just before I’m due to leave home to meet that person. It’s great to have a “go to” design that you can use for those quick and easy cards! This fun birthday balloons card was made using the retiring Party Animal Designer Series Paper, and the retiring photopolymer stamp set Endless Birthday Wishes. I love the font in this set! All the words are separate so you can combine them in whichever way works for your project, and can use them on a non-birthday project as well. The balloons are punched from Pacific Point cardstock using the Balloon Bouquet Punch (this is NOT retiring….but it is low inventory right now, so you might want to order it sooner rather than later if you “need” this soon). I think the most difficult thing on this card was tying the knots in the Emerald Envy Solid Baker’s Twine….hahaha! It’s great to use Designer Series Paper as a jumping off point for your colour theme – I simply pulled the colours from the paper I was using – Pacific Point, Emerals Envy and Crushed Curry. Quick and easy!
I did use Stampin’ Dimensionals to pop up the birthday balloons to make them stand out even more, and left the twine hanging loose for fun. This layout is not just perfect for quick and easy birthday cards, it’s great for any handmade card! I used it for one of my cards that I shared at the Stampin’ Up! On Stage Event. Here’s another sneak peek at that Crafting Forever set!
Similar but different to the birthday balloons card! A fun multicoloured take on the same layout. Colours used here are Pumpkin Pie, Real Red and Tempting Turquoise. You can see that the gap is a little smaller on this card, because I didn’t need to put any words in the space – I put them on the top portion of the angle cut piece instead. Quick and easy cards for the win! Use this layout and simply switch the sentiments as you need!
A reminder that the Crafting Forever stamp set used on this card will be available in the new catalogue (coming in June). If you want a copy of the upcoming Stampin’ Up! catalogue, please complete this form and I will follow up with you to get a copy to you. If you complete the form before April 29th, you’ll be part of the first mailing from Stampin’ Up!
ONE LAST REMINDER – don’t forget that you have NINE days left to be eligible to win a Big Shot from me…..see all the details on this blog post….and good luck!
Apr 19, 2017 | cards, Retired List, Stampin' Up!
Do you know an Everyday Hero? You know, the person who is always helping out, coming to the rescue but not always in a big, flashy way, and often in a quiet, in the background kind of way. This is the card for them! It uses the retiring Stampin’ Up! set, Everyday Hero. I love the cartoon images! This card uses the cityscape on the bottom of the card, and the cape image on the top. Watercoloured the cape by scribbling with the brush end of the Pacific Point Stampin’ Write marker onto a Silicone Craft Sheet or spare Clear Block – pick up the colour with an Aquapainter, and then colour the image. Since the cardstock is Very Vanilla, you can’t overwork the image too much, otherwise the cardstock will pill. I actually like working on regular cardstock every once in a while with watercolouring, so that it forces me to colour the image and then leave it alone….good for quick card making and resisting the urge to rework an image to death. The image is stamped in Basic Gray, which is an Archival ink, and won’t run when it gets wet. A tip, though – if you quickly set the ink with a Heat Tool, you can move on to the colouring stage more quickly.
The star is coloured in with another retiring product, the Gold Wink of Stella Glitter Brush. Don’t panic, the Clear Wink of Stella will still be around, but the gold one is going away. I love how easily these brushes add some shimmer to a product. Talk about an Everyday (crafting) Hero to rescue an otherwise ordinary project?!
I used the Everyday Hero set for a card that I shared on International Women’s Day on the YamStamps blog here. Lots of fun options for this set, but it’s only available until the end of May. The retiring list is here. You can shop online here – or if you need assistance placing your order, please contact me. If you live in Quebec, I can place the order for you and have it shipped to you, but the online ordering system doesn’t work in la belle province, sorry. Retiring stamp sets have guaranteed availability until May 21st, after which date it’s while supplies last. Tools and accessories are while supplies last only, and some are already sold out! So please don’t hesitate. Happy shopping.
What everyday hero could you send this card to? Leave a comment and I will send my project to one commenter to share!
Apr 16, 2017 | cards, Occasions, Retired List, Seasonal Catalogue, Stampin' Up!
Wishing you a Happy Easter! Sharing some samples from Stampin’ Up!’s Easter Message stamp set – available in clear mount or wood mount. If you like these images, grab them while you can! This set is retiring so will be available until the end of May; stamp sets are guaranteed until May 21st, after which they will be as supplies last. You can shop online, or contact me if you have any questions or need assistance placing your order.
Apr 14, 2017 | cards, Stampin' Up!
Housework whenever. That’s one of the sentiments in the upcoming new stamp set, Crafting Forever. It’s also the set that I was asked to help showcase at the recent Stampin’ Up! On Stage event in Toronto (I talked about it in this last blog post). The new catalogue is still a month and a half away, and the retired products are flying off the shelf in the meantime, but I thought I’d share a couple of my samples.
This sample uses Gorgeous Grunge (available in wood mount or clear mount), which is retiring (waaaaaah!). My goal for the presentation was to show ways that you could use the set without colouring everything in each time. In this sample, I used the “splotches” with various coloured inks to add the colour to the card, and then just added a bit of smoky slate to shadow the brushes image. If memory serves, I believe the colours are Wisteria Wonder, Pear Pizzazz, Pool Party, Sweet Sugarplum, Daffodil Delight and Calypso Coral. To add the shadowing, I scribbled with the Smoky Slate Stampin’ Write marker onto a Silicone Craft Sheet, then picked up the colour with a Blender Pen. I find that gives a softer effect than colouring directly onto the cardstock.
This is another sample I showed at On Stage. I love the sentiment – do something creative every day. I have already stamped that a few times in my planner! For this card, I sponged various colours onto Shimmery White cardstock, and randomly stamped the months from the Perpetual Birthday Calendar stamp set (also retiring). I created the little palette by die cutting an oval from the Layering Ovals Framelits, and then cutting the notch using the end of the curved channel die from the Sliding Star Framelits. I thought it coordinated well with the brushes image, which I stamped along the bottom of the card.
haha there’s the sentiment! This is a quick sticky note holder using the Blooms & Bliss Designer Series Paper (which is retiring….there’s a bit of a theme here, eh?!).
I stamped the sticky note as well – because you can always have prettier notes. They’re also great to use in a planner!
I’ll be sure to share more of my samples in the next while, as well. In the meantime, please be sure to grab the retired product that you want ASAP – you can shop online 24/7 in Canada, or email me. (If you’re in Quebec, you’ll need to email me, as the online store option doesn’t work in la belle province unfortunately!). Don’t forget that if you place an order for $50 product or more during April, you’ll be entered into my Celebration draw for a Big Shot!! Enter early, and enter often!
Apr 10, 2017 | Events, Retired List, specials, Stampin' Up!
What a busy weekend it was! Retiring after the weekend seemed like a good idea – but not in the permanent sense – only in the “I shall retire to my bed” thinking! haha. I am not retiring, but some Stampin’ Up! product will be (at the end of May)….read on to find out more.
Stampin’ Up! held Centre Stage and On Stage Events globally – the main event was in Amsterdam, but we had a local event in Toronto as well (there were others – across North America and the South Pacific). I was honoured to be asked to do a presentation on a new stamp set in the upcoming catalogue during the Saturday event….and that meant Friday rehearsal as well. So I trekked into Toronto on Friday afternoon to do a run through with sound and the cameraman while other helpers were busy completing set up for the big event the next day. Here’s a selfie that I shared on Instagram – with my head mic – just like Madonna/Britney/Beyonce…..
Friday Evening was the Centre Stage event for demonstrators at the Silver Elite level and above – basically, demonstrators with a certain number of people in their demonstrator group. We get a lovely meal, some training focusing on business or team building, and, yay, goodies. This year we got a fun apron and a stamp set…..plus a copy of the new catalogue.
Saturday was the main show – On Stage! A busy day full of fun – seeing friends from all around, meeting new friends, getting my presentation done and over with (phew!), making some fun projects….
(me on stage at On Stage) Thanks for this photo, Arlene….and hey, I did actually look up at everyone! (I thought I spent most of the time staring down at what I was doing….which I probably was, just that Arlene caught the one moment I looked up?!).
Members of the “Eh” Team who were able to attend On Stage. Love this photo because we’re obviously having fun!
So many highlights of the weekend, and of course one of (if not THE) biggies = new catalogue sneak peek! It’s a mixed blessing though, because with the upcoming new catalogue (June), there’s LOTS of fun new items….but in order to make room, a bunch of product has to retire. Again, a mixed blessing – some of the retiring product is available at up to 50% off BUT it is while supplies last. What to do?
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Check out what’s retiring, and make a list
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Contact me if you have any questions, or need assistance placing your order.
Apr 4, 2017 | Announcements, contest
Well. That’s pretty self explanatory now, isn’t it? I will be celebrating 15 years as a Stampin’ Up! Canada Demonstrator and I want YOU to win! The big prize will be a Big Shot, awarded to a draw winner based on entries as above. I will have random celebrations throughout the month as well 🙂 because I can!
Earn an entry by making a purchase of $50 or more, being an Online Class student, attending an in person class or club with me, hosting or becoming an “Eh” Team member. Ready….set…..GO!
Apr 3, 2017 | Announcements
The YamStamps Paper Crafting Projects Email will go out tomorrow to subscribers, so be on the list! Subscribers get the first scoop on my special promotion to celebrate my 15 years with Stampin’ Up!
Lots of things coming up – Stampin’ Up!’s Demonstrator Only Event is happening – the main event happens in Amsterdam, and there are numerous local events as well. I’ll be attending the Toronto location with a number of demonstrators from my group – looking forward to it! I’ve been asked to do a stamping presentation as well, so I’m busy with last minute panic preparation for that. Can’t show you any of the projects just yet, since for one thing, I’m using a stamp set from the new catalogue!!! EEEEEE! I’ll be sure to share what I can from the event (we aren’t allowed to share everything…..sorry….some of it is for demonstrator eyes/ears ONLY!) If you’re desperate to hear the scoop….you could always join my “Eh” Team of stampers in the meantime…haha. For sure though, I’ll share some photos on Instagram, Facebook and Twitter as well as here on the YamStamps blog.
Mar 31, 2017 | Announcements, Sale-A-Bration, Stampin' Up!
Alas! It is the last day of Sale-a-Bration 2017! There are only a few more hours to take advantage of the all the freebies! Have you grabbed your free Sale-a-Bration product with each $60 in merchandise ordered? Or the two extra free stamp sets of any value in the already great deal of the Starter Kit? You have until 1150pm Mountain Time tonight. Be warned – the system is going to be VERY busy today, and especially tonight, so you’ll want to grab your starter kit or place your order as soon as possible.
The Paper Pumpkin 3 month subscription special also ends tonight. You can get three months of craft kits, including April’s kit, designed by the CEO of Stampin’ Up! plus a FREE gift, for just $74 (save $5) plus a free Sale-a-Bration item if you purchase TODAY. You have until April 10th to subscribe to get the April kit, but the discount on 3 months and the Sale-a-Bration free item will disappear tonight.
Do NOT worry though – April is not going to be dreary! I will be announcing a promotion from ME for the month of April – to celebrate my 15 years with Stampin’ Up! and my much longer time on the planet. Plus I will start taking names for the mail out of the new annual Stampin’ Up! Catalogue – so there’s no need to despair – April will still be AWESOME. Be sure to be on my mailing list (click the link or use the box at the top right of the page) so that you don’t miss out on any of the upcoming events and announcements!
TONIGHT – I will be part of the Ladies’ Quarter Auction being held at Providence Christian Academy in Waterdown. Look for my table – I’ll have some retired (but still wonderful) Stampin’ Up! product for sale, a make and take, and a free draw, in addition to the FOUR packages I’ll have up for auction!
