Card Swaps

I belong to several card swap groups. They usually have a different theme everymonth and you make everyone the same card based on the theme. You mail them off and receive a bunch of different ones in the mail based on that theme. It's wonderful to get mail... you know real mail! And a bunch of different cards is a bonus!
Last month's theme was animals. I dug through boxes of stamps trying to find some animals and came to the ultimate conclusion that I don't buy animal stamps! I have flowers, sayings, alphabets, and holiday sets, but no animals. So, it was suggested that I do punch art. There are all kinds of posts out there on Pinterest of people doing wonderful things with punch art. I began to scroll through pages of wonderful designs and then happened upon this one...it was a peacock! I love peacocks. And though technically they are birds..birds are animals and that's what I chose to go with on my swap card. This is how it turned out...

I also used a feather set from SU's last catalog and stamped an envelope to match. I found my inspiration here Peacock Frame Art. Post a comment and let me know what you think! I'll post the cards I received tomorrow so check back! 

Stamp, Stock, & Save Coming Tomorrow!

Stampin'Up! is so excited for this Saturday's National Card Making Day that it has put together a fantastic sale starting tomorrow, October 1, and running only through Monday, October 6th.  You'll be able to purchase select ink, paper, envelopes, and adhesive-all at a 15% discount! Stamps are 20%!

Look at the stamps that are being offered:

Item Number	Stamp Set	Price	After Discount
135540	Grandes nouvelles (Clear) FRA	31.95	25.56
134018	Big News (Clear)	31.95	25.56
134015	Big News (Wood)	43.95	35.16
134288	Playful Pennants (Clear)	16.95	13.56
134285	Playful Pennants (Wood)	21.95	17.56
134198	Choose Happiness (Clear)	17.95	14.36
134195	Choose Happiness (Wood)	24.95	19.96
125682	Quelques Lignes (Clear) FRA	20.95	16.76
122497	Petite Pairs (Clear)	20.95	16.76
128706	Petite Pairs (Wood)	28.95	23.16
135594	Tellement heureuse (Clear) FRA	17.95	14.36
134234	So Very Happy (Clear)	17.95	14.36
134231	So Very Happy (Wood)	24.95	19.96
135653	Y muchos más (Clear) ESP	26.95	21.56

Click on the flyer at the top left of the blog to see the other items discounted. Now is the time to stock up and prepare for your holiday card and craft making.  Order online at my SU store (link on the right) and use hostess code: 6MEUACZB. 

Stay tuned, I'm hosting a card buffet with my new demonstrator Cathy on Saturday and I'll be posting the cards we make!

Happy Stamping!

Shoe Box Swap Night!

Each month when I go to Janice's down line meeting, I love the projects she shares...I especially love the projects when it's a night of shoe box swapping. This is when everyone brings a shoe box with all the materials to make a card and a sample card and everyone gets to make about 8 cards! So many creative ideas get shared and it's a lot of fun. I wanted to share some of the swaps with you today.

This was one of my favorite cards because it spins! Yes, that's right, it spins! When you pull on the little heart string the snowflake spins around. Totally clever!

This adorable box was created with the Gift Box Punch Board (135863). It's wrapped with a belly band of Tangelo Twist (133677) and the Motley Monsters DSP(135819). The ghost is cut out using the Fall Fun Framelit (135856) dies. All tied up with a Tangelo Twist ribbon(133669) for a fabulous treat!

This was part of our swap that Janice made. Isn't it just adorable! I have been seeing so many of these cute boxes dressed up. The box is made using the Curvy Keepsake Box Thinlit die (135853). The feathers are the Feathers Framelit Dies (135852), Tied up with the Burlap ribbon (132140) which was stripped to pull apart the strands. This would make a terrific place setting for thanksgiving.

I hope you enjoy these fun cards. Come back soon to see my latest swaps!

Happy Stamping!

Weekly Deals and More!

It's been awhile since I was able to blog frequently and I am sure I have missed some exciting news about Stampin'Up! They started this Weekly Deals on Tuesdays. You can go to my SU site (link on right side of  this blog) and click on the Shop tab on the top right of the page and when the Shop loads there is a menu on the left side. One of the listings is Weekly Deals. There are 8 items listed each week that are on SALE for that week! Yes, regular catalog items with a discounted price. This is a great place to check weekly because stamps, dies, ribbon, anything can be listed! It's a great way to save on all the goodies you've been wanting so check back every Tuesday to see the new items at discounted prices.

Did you know SU has a Clearance Rack? Yep! It's true! On that menu at the left hand side of the Shop page there is a Clearance Rack link. When you click  on it it takes you to all the clearance items. Many items are from our past catalogs, Sale-a-Bration, or Holiday offerings and are offered at incredibly low prices. It's a great place to stock up on DSP, old colors of card stock, ribbons, dies, ..you name it. Check it out! You wont be sorry!

The next place I'd like to direct you to is under the STAMPS link. Click on it and it expands to show you different types of stamps you can search by on the site. There's a Photopolymer link. This will show you all of our Photopolymer clear stamps that we offer, and some that are introduced during each month so they are not listed in the catalogs! There are lots of sets we now offer in Photopolymer throughout the catalog as well. Check it out, you can save money and get more stamps going this route!

The New Arrivals link will take you to new offerings that may include some of the Photopolymer sets not in the catalog along with past PaperPumpkin sets and refills available. It also includes Project life items previously unavailable. Make sure to stop here so you don't miss anything!

Oh! And in case you didn't know what PaperPumpkin is go to PaperPumpkin and check out the monthy stamp club that gets sent right to your door! All the stamps, ink, cardstock, and supplies needed to make the project for that month are included in the little box each month. It's a party in a box! It's a great way to get inspiration without having to buy a bunch of stuff that you don't know what to do with. Check it out! You can cancel at any time, or postpone it for a few months. It's very flexible and fun.

Well, I hope this was helpful and informative for you. There's so much on the SU site and it's easy to overlook. Now you know where to look and when to look to find fabulous deals and new stamp stuff!

As always, feel free to contact me if you have any questions or concerns.

Happy Stamping!

Upline Monthly Meeting Fun!

Getting back into the swing of the things is so much fun when you have friends to share your love of stamping with! I went to one of Suzie's meetings last night where we talked, ate, and of course stamped. So many fun techniques to share with you today...

The first card was stamped with the Blooming with Kindness set (126422). The flower was stamped in Coastal Cabana (131175) ink on Pool Party (122924) cardstock. This is a faux linen look was made using a Gorgeous Grunge (130517) line stamp across the top of the stamped Pool Party piece in Staz On White (106960). Doesn't it look like linen? The card base is Very Vanilla (101650) and the accent piece is Wild Wasabi (108641).

This next one was a new one for me. It's gusseted?? Not sure how you say it, but it has a side piece glued in to form a channel for the card to slide in and out. No gluing the sides or wrapping a ribbon around to hold it together. Very clever I think! And it's fun! It's base is Basic Black ((121045) cardstock. The DSP used is called Typeest (133704). The stamps are from the Big News set (134018).See the candle at the end being used as an exclamation point? I forgot to use the Cherry Cobbler glitter gel on the star before I took the picture but I still think it looks fabulous.

I guess lots of people know how to make these sour cream carton things...Not me, until last night. It's basically a tube with the sides pressed together at opposite angles. I just love this Halloween paper! It's called Motely Monsters DSP (135819) and It's so stinking cute! Those little monsters just make me smile. The top, where the ribbon (White & Tangerine Tango trim 135838) is, is not glued so when you untie it you can get the candy or treat hidden inside. The tag is stamped with the Skinny Mini Alphabet (133665) on Daffodil Delight cardstock (119683). What little monster, or uh child wouldn't want a treat like this in his Trick or Treat bag on Halloween night? Or what parent for that matter? 

This next item was a fun thing Suzie made out of some of that wonderful Halloween DSP. It's the cutest little banner! It says, "REMEMBER, As far as anyone knows we're a nice normal family!" Lol! She printed that from her computer but the Remember is stamped with the Skinny Mini Alphabet set. It's simply mounted on some Basic Black cardstock, tied up with some two toned ribbon and a pom pom made from the same ribbon. So simple and fun!

As always I am inspired to get stamping for the upcoming holidays. Hope these projects inspire you as well! 

Happy Stamping!