Apr 17, 2018 | cards, Retired List, Stampin' Up!
I love this simple and elegant dragonfly card – but one of the products we used for it is retiring…..do you know which item? It’s the beautiful ombré paper – from the Colo(u)r Theory Designer Series Paper stack. Thankfully we will have the dragonflies for at least another year! The sentiment from the Dragonfly Dreams set is stamped with Tuxedo Black Memento Ink onto the paper. The small linked dragonflies are from the Detailed Dragonfly Thinlits and die cut from the Basic Black cardstock which also backs the Designer Series Paper. This card is trimmed a little narrower than usual, only because I liked having a thinner card and thinner borders on either side of the main image area. Don’t forget that while retiring stamp sets are guaranteed until May 25th, all tools, accessories and papers are available while supplies last.
This was a featured card this month in both the Monthly Card Class and Stampers Club. Stampers Club happens the third Monday of each month, and it still happened yesterday, even with the school snow day! I was hoping that the snow would have melted by Club time, but no such luck, so I spent some time chipping away at the lovely ridge of icy snow that was at the bottom of my driveway after the road was cleared. I keep hearing that the weather is going to improve, and that the weekend is going to be nice….but then I also saw periods of snow flurries today while I was out and about. Let’s hope we get real dragonflies in the neighbourhood in the near future, not just a dragonfly card!
We are always welcoming new members to the Stampers Club here in Burlington ON. Members join for a 6 month period, during which time they attend a special Club Card Class. There is no class fee for this class, but each member placing a minimum $33 product order at each class. Once during their 6 month cycle, each member will receive the host benefits from the orders placed that month – a minimum of $20 free product of their choice! Plus there’s the camaraderie of seeing other crafters on a regular basis. The next Club session will be the FOURTH Monday of May, due to the Victoria Day holiday. Contact me if you’d like to join us! Look forward to seeing you at club soon, or check the YamStamps Events page for upcoming classes and special events, like the Annual New Catalogue Open House and Retired Product Sale!.
Apr 10, 2018 | Announcements, Retired List, Seasonal Catalogue, Stampin' Up!
I spent the past few days in London ON for the Stampin’ Up! “On Stage” event for demonstrators. It was so much fun, a fair bit of work (since I’m on the Events Committee) but so worthwhile! Demonstrators got a peek at the upcoming Annual Catalogue! So exciting…but also a little sad, when we see what products won’t be returning. The retiring list highlights all the Stampin’ Up! Last Chance items – things you will want to order or stock up on before they’re gone!
Here is the downloadable pdf list for Annual Catalogue and Occasions Catalogue products
Here is the sortable spreadsheet for Annual Catalogue and Occasions Catalogue products
Here is the easiest option – the link to the retiring products in the YamStamps Online Stampin’ Up! Store – yamstamps.com/retiring2018 The online store will be the most up to date place to check what items are still available to order.
IMPORTANT THINGS TO KNOW:
1) Retiring Stamp Sets have guaranteed availability until May 25th, after which time they are while supplies last
2) All other Retiring Product is while supplies last
3) You may notice that ALL ink pads and reinkers are on the retiring list. Stampin’ Up! is revamping the ink pad design as well as the colour offerings to keep the Stampin’ Up! palette current and up to date. This is also why the Stampin’ Write markers are on the list. All the reinkers that are listed are for colours that will NOT be in the upcoming catalogue due to the Colour Revamp.
Colours that are leaving:
- Always Artichoke
- Chocolate Chip
- Elegant Eggplant
- Island Indigo
- Marina Mist
- Perfect Plum
- Pink Pirouette
- Rose Red
- Soft Sky
- Tangerine Tango
- Tempting Turquoise
- Wild Wasabi
- Wisteria Wonder
2016-2018 In Colours
- Dapper Denim
- Emerald Envy
- Flirty Flamingo*
- Peekaboo Peach
- Sweet Sugar Plum
See that asterisk beside Flirty Flamingo? That’s because it will be coming back as part of the core Stampin’ Up! Colour Collection!
Colours being reformulated:
Basic Black
Basic Grey
These colours will return to regular dye based ink pads, rather than the Archival Ink Pads (don’t worry, there will be other Archival ink options available)
AVAILABILITY
For individual colour items – classic ink pads in current design and refills are guaranteed until May 7th, and then available as supplies last
For any colour collections (Brights, Neutrals, Regals, Subtles), all cardstocks, all Stampin’ Write markers, embellishments and the Colour Caddy (ink pad storage) – availability is while supplies last.
If your favourite colour is on the Retiring List, you may want to stock up on supplies. Again, you can head straight to the Retiring Product spot in the YamStamps Online Stampin’ Up! Canada Store by typing in http://yamstamps.com/retiring2018 or access the whole store by simply typing http://yamstamps.com/shop
As always, please feel free to contact me if you have any questions or concerns, or need assistance placing your order. I will also post more about On Stage later this week!
Mar 9, 2018 | cards, Frugal Friday, Occasions, Retired List, Stampin' Up!
Every once in a while I like to do a “Frugal Friday” post – so today’s post features a Daisy Punch Out Card. This card is in the frugal category because the negative space is the part featured on this card – so that you can use the flower for another project – or to decorate the envelope or a package.
This card uses Flirty Flamingo cardstock as the backdrop. Flirty Flamingo is one of Stampin’ Up!’s 2016-2018 In Colours which will be retiring at the end of May. If you love one of these colours, you will want to stock up ASAP – including a reinker for that ink pad. That way, you’ll be able to use the colour for quite a while! I would recommend grabbing your supplies sooner rather than later, because retiring product like cardstock, accessories and ink pads are available while supplies last once they’re officially on the retiring list – as opposed to most of the stamp sets which usually have guaranteed availability to closer to the end date of the catalogue. The Daisy Punch is used on a piece of Thick Whisper White cardstock which is accented with a stripe of Tutti Frutti washi tape. The cardbase itself is actually one of Stampin’ Up!’s notecards. You can get a set of 20 Whisper White Notecards and Envelopes which are 5″ x 3.5″ – a little smaller than the half sheet cards that we traditionally make, but still within Canada Post mailing requirements. The centre of the flower is a large Gold Faceted Gem, which doesn’t stick out too much because the punched out cardstock is mounted with Stampin’ Dimensionals. The sentiment, stamped in Lemon Lime Twist is from Teeny Tiny Wishes (available in wood mount or clear mount) – one of the most functional stamp sets because it covers SO many different occasions! We made this card in the Monthly Card Class the other day and other options chosen included “Just For You” and “Happy Birthday”.
If you live in the Halton region, you may have been able to catch me on YourTV’s Halton News TV Program earlier in the week. I’m working on getting a copy of the short segment so I can post it to the YamStamps YouTube channel. It was a very quick card (actually using the Daisy Punch!) since it was a quick spot – mentioning the fact that it’s International Craft Month! Thanks to Jessica and everyone who works on the show for having me. It’s always a fun experience! In the meantime, I hope that you will celebrate Craft Month by spending a bit of time crafting – obviously I’m biased towards paper crafting….but anything creative is good! If you need a little help kick starting your creativity and crafting, consider joining me at one of my Monthly Card Classes, or join the Stampers Club for some regular craft time (and freebies)! See the YamStamps Events page for details. Please contact me if you have any questions or to register for an upcoming event!
Dec 4, 2017 | cards, Christmas, Retired List, Stampin' Up!
This time of year can certainly be hectic, so I thought it was a good time for a Manic Monday – Christmas Card Edition! Some of the items featured on this card are going to be retiring – so you’ll want to grab them while you can. Read more about the Year End Sale Event here – including links to the lists.
You may notice that this is a black card. I liked the way the black made the gold and white “pop” more – but black is a hard colour to write on….so what you can’t see is that there is an additional piece of Whisper White cardstock on the inside of the card so that the personal greeting is readable.
The gold plaid background is one of the sheets from the Year of Cheer Specialty Designer Series Paper. This has been my FAVOURITE paper from the Holiday Catalogue. I love the weight of it, and I love the “wow” of the metallic. It adds glamour to the project without effort! The gold foil snowflake is another way to add “bling” without too much effort. Both the DSP & the foil snowflake will be unavailable after the end of the Holiday Catalogue – and current supplies are available while they last (so if you really like these items, you’ll want to order them ASAP!). The JOY sentiment is from Cheers to the Year, which is available in wood mount or clear mount until the end of the Holiday Catalogue sales period. It’s heat embossed with Gold Stampin’ Emboss Powder, and punched out with the Starburst Punch. Good news…LOL…both of those are from the Annual Catalogue, so will be around for a while still!
This card can be easily created en masse so great for those that are still finishing their holiday cards (guilty party here….LOL). Have you finished your cards yet? Once again, like the cobbler’s children who have no shoes, I am the cardmaker who is scrambling to get Christmas Cards together to send out for herself!! On the YamStamps Facebook page, I shared a great article about the importance of still mailing a Christmas Card. I truly believe that a handmade card increases the value and significance even more! So on that note…I’m off to see what I can do about my Christmas Card list!
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!
