My friend, Steve Gaul, is going for another World Record. He previously set a record for continuous drumming – which has since been broken, and now he’s in the hunt to regain the title, and raising funds for a worthy cause – Cardiac Kids. You can find out more about Cardiac Kids and donate here.
If you’re in the Burlington area, you can drop in to cheer him on at the Burlington Music Centre. If you’re not local, or need to do things like work…you can check out the livestream here.
If you make a donation, let me know & I’ll send you a handmade thank you card!
Here are Stampin’ Up! Canada’s Weekly Deals that run from today, August 11 until August 17th. Look! There’s washi tape, and you could organize it using my tip from yesterday! I’d like to say that it was a well planned plot, but no, I don’t have any insights as to what might be on the offering for the Weekly Deals. It’s just a lucky fluke LOL. As a sucker for office supplies, I do think the file tabs edgelits are one of my fave picks this week, but I also love the scalloped tag topper punch. I just learned a fun technique with this punch that I’m saving for the upcoming Christmas Card Classes. SPEAKING OF WHICH – a reminder that the registration deadline for the first class is THIS THURSDAY, August 13th. If you are thinking of registering for the August class, or want to attend all the classes, please don’t hesitate! Christmas Card Classes all come with product this year – so you will use some of that product in class to create your projects, but you’ll also have the left overs (and there will be a LOT) to take home with you to use on cards or other projects. See the YamStamps Events page for more information & to register.
In the meantime, you can shop the Weekly Deals here, or contact me if you have any questions, or need help placing your order or registering for an event.
I love Washi Tape for use on my paper crafting projects and in my organizer…but I also like to know what “set” it’s from – handy when I’m doing the class supply list! I use an open bin to store my washi and ribbons, but when the retired list came out or I was searching for an accent for a card, it was frustrating to figure out what set the tape came from, or if it was still available! (I told you, the quest to be organized is an ongoing one in my life, and often only small areas achieve it at any given time!!). So for Manic Monday, here’s my quick organizing tip for Washi Tape.
My solution (for now) – I used a piece of ribbon (retired) to keep all the washi together from one set, and stuck the label from the end of the tape roll to one end of the ribbon (it still had sticky left on it). This way, I can tell at a glance what tapes came together, and what set they’re from. I can go to the catalogue and easily look up what colours are in the tapes if I need/want. I can still store them in the open bin, too!
Hope this helps you, as well. If you have any organizing tips or problems, please share via the comments or email! I’m always looking for ideas…
This is a fun and easy technique to do with your die cuts! This card uses one of the Stampin’ Up! Greetings Thinlit dies and the Zig Zag Embossing Folder. Die cut the “hello” from Crumb Cake cardstock, and then die cut from Mossy Meadow. Use the Crumb Cake “hello” to fill in the negative space on the Mossy Meadow cardstock – that’s how easy this technique is! Mass production tip – cut strips of Mossy Meadow and Crumb Cake cardstock, die cut with the same placement and switch out your die cut words – so you can create twice as many cards easily, with contrasting backgroound strips. The colours in this card (Crumb Cake, Chocolate Chip and Mossy Meadow) tend to give a more masculine feel, but you can switch out the colours (and the embossing folder) easily to create a different feel for the card.
Don’t forget this tip to make removing your more intricate die cuts easy. (from the YamStamps YouTube channel). With this thinlit, I found that I didn’t actually need to use the waxed paper to get easy removal. I did end up with some of the holes embossing through (the dots on the die cut) – but this occurred even if I used nothing, so I used the dryer sheet to make my life a little easier.
I’m looking forward to trying out some of my new Holiday Catalogue goodies that just arrived, so will try to get to work on posting some projects with those new items!
Here are the latest Weekly Deals from Stampin’ Up! Canada, with special pricing in effect for a limited quantity / while supplies last. I think my favourite this week is the In Colour Blossom Accents. I actually don’t need to buy any since I am already hoarding some in my stash…but I suppose I should actually USE them on a project rather than just admiring them in the packaging, right?!
The other fun thing about today? (The non-fun thing being back to work after a long weekend LOL…) Stampin’ Up! demonstrators get to place their preorders for Holiday Catalogue product. The catalogue itself is due to be mailed out sometime in the next couple of weeks, but we demonstrators get to see the new catalogues and order supplies ahead of time! Hmmm….maybe that’s the reason we welcomed so many new demos to my “Eh” Team group in the last little while?! Hahaha. So you’ll excuse me if this post is short….I’ve got some preordering to do! If you want to see some of the new product in person, be sure to check out the YamStamps Events page and sign up for one of the upcoming Christmas Classes!
One of the most effective techniques for your paper crafting projects is heat embossing. It adds such an elegant touch and makes a simple card a little more impressive. This card uses Stampin’ Up!’s A World of Thanks (available in wood or clear mount). (and no, I don’t know why there’s a “u” at the end of the Japanese thank you – we always spelled it arigato in our house). I used Whisper White craft ink – easier to see – on the new thick Whisper White Cardstock (LOOOOOOVE this). The thick cardstock makes for a perfect no layer card. I did a combination of Silver and Iridescent Ice embossing powders on the image to add a bit of shimmer to the metallic colour. I just used an empty button container and mixed the embossing powders at about a 2:1 ratio (but you can adjust as you wish). We will often do a heat embossed card in stamp class or stamp club, or if you’d rather learn from the convenience of your own home, I did do an online class about embossing a little while ago.
Here in Ontario it’s the Civic Holiday – yay for long weekends! Hope you are able to spend some time with family and friends…and maybe a bit of time crafting too!!
Stampin’ Up!’s monthly craft project subscription kit is on sale for 50% off for the first two months to new subscribers! “Paper Pumpkin” comes to your door each month, and contains everything to create a fun project – including stamps and ink! If you loved Stampin’ Up!’s ink spots and miss being able to get those cute, travel-ready cube ink pads, you will be thrilled to learn that you get at least one of those in your Paper Pumpkin kit! (July’s kit had two of them). Oh – if you like Whisper White craft ink…that’s the ink spot available in the August kit. Just saying. Demonstrators at Stampin’ Up!’s convention got a sneak peak at the upcoming kits – August features a pink & gold motif (loved this one), and September is a cute gift packaging idea that can be adapted for other uses as well.
This kit has made it easy for me to sit down and whip up a few projects in moments. All the supplies and instructions are there. It’s great to take on the road during vacations and make the projects with your kids or friends! I’ve been using it for some of my Thank You cards – I can produce a bunch of them (usually around 8 cards in a kit) in a short period of time I carve out for myself. Plus I have some left over goodies to use on other projects! When I started doing these kits, I understood why my customers love coming to class or club – everything is prepped, I just follow the instructions!!
Go to this link , click on SUBSCRIBE and enter the code when prompted HALFOFF . The code is valid until September 10th, for new subscribers only. (Please note due to Stampin’ Up! rules I am only able to sell to Canadian residents). Happy Crafting!
Yes, we have started Christmas Card preparation at YamStamps! I threw in a Christmas card at our last Class & Club just to get people ready for the biggest card sending occasion! If this card throws you into a bit of a tizzy, I did just post details of the Christmas Card Class series I’ll be doing starting in August. Each class will include a bundle of product that you will use to create your cards that evening, and you’ll have plenty remaining to take home as well to continue your crafting (holiday projects and non-holiday projects alike).
This card uses Stampin’ Up!’s new set Lots of Joy (available in wood or clear mount, also in French); and the new In ColourCucumber Crush – a bright green colour that combines with Real Red to scream CHRISTMAS! The Lucky Stars (am I the only one who starts singing Madonna when I see that embossing folder’s name?!) Embossing Folder adds texture to the background, contrasting with the faux velvet technique on the Real Red banner.
Please check the YamStamps Event page for all the information on the upcoming Christmas Classes, or consider doing the online Holiday Punch Art Class if you’re looking to get a jump on your holiday cards!
Here are Stampin’ Up! Canada’s Weekly Deals starting today. Lots of embellishments to make your paper crafting projects even more eye catching! As for me, I’ve got my eye on the washi tape, and I always love the stitched ribbon. As always, there are a limited quantity of items available at the Weekly Deals pricing, so once those are gone, the items will revert to their regular price – don’t miss out! Place your order online or contact me if you need assistance placing your order. I will be placing an order near the end of the week. Happy Shopping!
Happy news as well – I’m reunited with my delayed suitcase! It arrived in the wee hours of the morning, so I have yet to unpack it….but I’m trusting that all my convention goodies are intact. Serves me right for not bringing my swaps in my carryon luggage, right? Ah well. They’re here now and that’s all that matters. Enjoy your day!
One of the reasons I love going to Stampin’ Up!’s Convention is to see my friends from across Canada and the USA! We get creative, get inspired and get tired….LOL. I flew in a day early and spent it learning a bunch of new techniques with my friend Lydia (Understand Blue). You can be sure I’ll be using these in upcoming classes! Here’s a sneak peek you may have seen on my Twitter account:
While at convention, we get creative ideas and inspiration plus business tips. We were able to see and play with a lot of the product from Stampin’ Up!’s upcoming Holiday Catalogue. Unfortunately, right now it’s for Demonstrator eyes only, so I can’t share it here – YET. (HINT: become a demonstrator now and get to see the product AND order it before the catalogue goes live in September….just saying….here’s the page for more information) teehee…
This year, I ended up running a 10km race on Friday morning (after finding out about it and signing up on Wednesday…LOL). In Utah, it’s Pioneer Day (a state holiday) and they have a big parade into the centre of Salt Lake. The 10km race finishes along the parade route, so that was kind of fun! My new friend Michelle (Suitably Stamped) and I ran the 10km. Here’s a before shot from my Instagram account:
As a footnote, I did actually get a PB (“personal best”) although not officially through the race timing system. If you want to get technical, the gun time (when they say “start”) and chip time (when YOU actually cross the start/finish lines) are typically not the same, the gun time being longer than the chip time since there’s a number of people to get across the start line. In this race, it says the gun time and my chip time were the same….which they weren’t, so I’m going to go by the time that was on my Garmin.
Turns out that run was a good warmup for my return home. The flight from Salt Lake City was early arriving at LAX but we had no gate to go to, so sat on the tarmac for 45 minutes, which ate up half of my time between flights. I sprinted through LAX to catch a shuttle bus to the proper terminal, cut in line at security (THANK YOU to all the people who let me do that as they saw my panicked face) while they were paging me overhead, and sprinted again to the gate, to JUST make it on the plane. (sorry to those who didn’t make the connection, I told them there were people still coming through but I guess they couldn’t hold the flight). So I made it, but my bag arrived later. Crossing my fingers that everything arrives safely on my doorstep in the next little while. Of course all my goodies are in the suitcase, so you will have to come back to see some of the swaps I received. I can however, a photo of my friend Bev (Texas Rubber and Ink)’s swap card that I took on my phone:
Anyway….I wait in suspense to get my bag delivered (it’s due to arrive in the next few hours so I’m told) and start the laundry cycle. Don’t worry, I don’t think I’ll be posting pictures of that.
