Coloring Down The Lines -- Raspberry Ripple

Hello, it's Wednesday.  That means you are here for our Coloring Down The Lines blog hop.   You should have arrived from Liz's blogsite, and what a Wow! creation she did for us today.  That gal has talent!  Sure hope I can follow with a creation half as interesting.   We were challenged this week to use Raspberry Ripple.  To that we were to add either Old Olive and Pretty in Pink or Crumb Cake and Perfect Plum.  I chose the first.  Not sure there is any specific reason for that choice because I thought all the colors this week were super colors.

I wanted to try a little something different again.  I used my acrylic blocks and inked them up to stamp shapes.  The lined stamping was created by using the sides of the blocks.  It was fun to see what happened.  I want to give that a try again with a little different twist.  For this card I was afraid to keep on going and then end up having to trash it and start over again, so I stopped here.  I have another idea for the next one.  There isn't a lot going on here other than the acrylic stamping and the leaves from Summer Silhouettes.  I did a little sponging with Raspberry Ripple and Old Olive.  I hope you like my use of this week's colors.

So now we should head over to Teri's blogsite.  Teri is another super creator and I am sure she has something wonderful for us.  I haven't seen it yet, so let's go together.......................

Come back again soon.

Crafty Hugs,
Sandy

A Whale of a Birthday

I promised you the other day that I would show you the birthday card I made for our grandson -- the one my hubby likes (card, not grandson, he likes ALL the grands!).  It qualifies for "like" by my hubby because it is bright, cute, and no ribbons or bling.  In other words a "guy" card.   I used product from the new Spring Catalog, Oh, Whale stamp set, Parker Patterns DSP, and even used a Googly Eye introduced in the Holiday Mini.  I've been putting those cute little eyes on anything that has an eye, especially for the kids, as they love them.

And here is the inside of the card.  Since the kids love anything cute [Wonder where they get that from??  :>)  ], I made the inside to show the whale has dived back into the water.  I think the little guy will get a kick out of it.

Well it snowed here last night.  Not a lot, but enough to make a mess of the roads and to ice up our mountain road.  Another of our grandsons has his Pinewood Derby today and we are still hoping to get out and down the mountain to attend that.  I'm not sure, we should stay home, but we really don't want to miss it.  Decision time...............

Come back to see me again soon.  Have a happy day.

Crafty Hugs,
Sandy

Coloring Down The Lines -- Primrose Petals

I'm so glad you are back with me for another blog hop Wednesday and Coloring Down the Lines.  You probably arrived from Liz's blogsite.  If not keep right on going and you'll go all the way around to her and back to me.  Or  just back up to her blogsite here and then come back.  If you did see her creation, you had a real treat.  Liz is a great crafter, and not only a great crafter, she is a fun person to sit and craft with.  Lots of good ideas bounce around when we get together.

We were challenged this week to use another of the "in colors."  This time Primrose Petals with either Summer Starfruit and Basic Gray OR with So Saffron and Baja Breeze.  I immediately knew just where I wanted to start.  I had a brand new package of Primrose Petals Core'dinations cardstock.  So I cut a piece of that and sanded it.  That finished, what next.  Well that is where I got stuck for a while, but eventually decided on So Saffron and Baja Breeze.  And, since I have been trying to focus on the Sale-a-bration promotion that started today -- wheeeee, love Sale-a-bration --- I picked Feeling Sentimental from the SAB brochure.  And you can get it FREE with a $50 order from the Spring or Annual catalogs.  Fun!   

After selecting the stamp, I was rolling along.   I love the Designer Builder Brads from the Spring catalog, and have used up almost an entire package already. They are so pretty, and you can design them to match your colors. The tag behind the brad is from the Spring catalog too -- Hearts A Flutter Bundle. My antique bicycle still needed a little something so I used some crochet trim and a little "hello" cut with a Jewelry Tag punch. Oh, and I sponged all the edges with Soft Suede to do a little antiquing -- uh, I just noticed, I forgot to sponge the edges of the hello tag, Durn! I'm rather pleased, however, with the outcome of this card -- even though my hubby said he prefers the one I did today for our grandson. Of course my hubby loves "guy" stuff, bright colors, and cutsy or silly things. I'll have that card for you next time.

I hope you like this card.  I had so much fun working with these products that I want to pull more of that Core'dinations cardstock out (I have red and brown too) and create some more.

So enough of my rambling about my card.  Teri is waiting for you, and she always has a beautiful creation.  Let's go take a look....................

Crafty Hugs,
Sandy

Sale-a-bration Is Here!

Yay, it's that time of year again.  Sale-a-bration begins TODAY!   For those of you who haven't experienced it, the event comes around once a year.  It begins today and runs through March 22nd.  And it is fun.  You get FREE stuff!  Yup, that's right, FREE.  For every $50 in product ordered from the Annual catalog, the Spring catalog, or even the Clearance Rack, you get to pick something from the Sale-a-bration catalog for FREE.

If you don't have a brochure yet, and don't have a demonstrator, I would be happy to help you.  Just contact me  smor@frontiernet.net for your SAB brochure or for more information.  Or, you can go here to see the brochure on line.  Send me an e-mail with your order, or you can order at any time 24/7 through my on line website.  Just look over on the right for the 24/7 shopping button.  It will take you to my Stampin'Up! website to start your shopping.     

What are you waiting for?  Get your cattys out, make a wish list, and start ordering so you can get your free items now, before the time is up!

Until next time.....................

Crafty Hugs,
Sandy

Oh Happy Day

Happy Sunday!  I hope you are having a great weekend -- and it's a 3-day weekend for most.  I've been working on a few things for you, and here is an easy card using a new set from the Sale-a-bration (SAB) brochure called Bloomin Marvelous.  And it really is marvelous.  I can see potential for all sorts of uses.  And best of all it is FREE!  How great is that.  You need only place order(s) between January 22 and March 22nd, and for every $50 in product from the Annual or Spring catalogs you get one item(set) from the SAB booklet for FREE.   Also in this set is a butterfly (and you know I LOVE butterflies), a leaf, and some cute sentiments.  If you don't have a Sale-a-bration booklet, and you don't have a demonstrator, let me know and I can take care of that.

This is a one-layer card and the only thing other than the stamps is the scoring at the right and bottom of the card.  I did it with my Simply Scored, which is another handy, dandy, relatively new product and it is in your annual catalog.  Add a few rhinestones on the flowers and you have something quick, easy, and yet very pretty.  Hope you like it.

That' is for me today.  I went to an all day scrapbooking fund raiser yesterday and I am really tired.  But I got several pages done in my travel scrapbook.  I'll be showing a few of those pages in some upcoming blogs.  So come back to see me again soon.  And don't forget Wednesday is the color blog hop.

Crafty Hugs,
Sandy

Flight of the Butterfly

Here is another card I offered as an extra at my stamp-a-stack event last weekend.  I love butterflies, and the cute little butterflies in Papillon Potpourri are the ones I chose for this card.  I also used the Elegant Bouquet embossing folder.  The sentiment is from a retired stamp set, but I had made and cut the card before I realized it.  I went ahead and used it, but took a spare stamp in case someone wanted a current stamp.  This card is a very simple and quick card and was meant to be simple for the gals who finished early and wanted to do a little something extra. 

What I like most about this stamp set is not only the pretty butterflies, but the Elegant Butterfly punch that goes with it.  I can have them fluttering on my page and didn't have to spend a lot of time fussy cuttting each one.  Don't you love when there are dies and punches to make your job so much easier and more fun? 

Well I am into reading a book that takes me back several centuries during the time of kings, knights and hardships -- no fun living in cold castles with no showers, bathrooms, or craft rooms with Big Shots or stamps.  Oh how did they live back then.  So I am going to go back to my book now.  Thanks for visiting, and I hope you come back to visit me again soon.

Happy Crafting.................

Crafty Hugs,
Sandy

Best Of

As promised, here is another of Stampin'Up!'s new stamping programs for you -- called "Best Of."  These sets incorporate some of the best stamps from the past 25 years, and add some never before seen stamps too.  It is a monthly stamp set program.  Each month that you purchase a set, you will be awarded a "proof of purchase" sticker.  Collect 6 stickers to redeem for a free stamp set.  There will be a new "Best Of" stamp set each month until March, 2014.   Stampin'Up! is giving more and more "freebies."  Wow, I love it, and hope you do too.   See more information below:

This first set is January's "Best Of Birthdays" and may be ordered now.  The catalog number is 132929.  You may order direct through my 24-hour online shopping website (see button on right), or you may contact me to order -- smor@frontiernet.net.  Although there will be only one new Best Of set each month, you may order prior sets at any time until March 31, 2014. 

If, after reading this, you still have more questions, contact me and I will help.  smor@frontiernet.net

Until next time...........................

Crafty Hugs,
Sandy

Coloring Down The Lines -- Midnight Muse

Welcome to blog hop Wednesday.   This week we were challenged to use Midnight Muse.  With it we could add More Mustard and Rich Razzleberry or Bashful Blue and Cherry Cobbler.  I chose Bashful Blue and Cherry Cobbler.   You probably came here by way of Liz's blogsite.  She is an amazing crafter, and today she shows how she works MDS into her cards.  I need to take some tips.  I just haven't been able to create what I want with MDS.  I think I need lots more practice.

The other day I was perusing some blogs and came across the chalk technique.  Also referred to as blackboard technique.  I think I was on Becky Roberts' blogsite, but I'm not positive.  I decided I wanted to do that technique.  And I wanted to do it for our challenge this week.  Some of my friends know that when I get something in my head, I am a determined person.  Well, I figure Midnight Muse is close to black, right?  So I have a MidnightMuseboard on my card.  On my MidnightMuseboard I printed a birthday wish from Delightful Dozen and some butterflies from the SAB set called Bloomin' Marvelous.  How do you like my chalk board?

Stampin'Up! doesn't have Bashful Blue embossing powder so I had a brainstorm and figured I could use Bashful Blue ink, emboss it with clear and it would look like a blueish chalk --- WRONG!  You can't use embossed light ink on dark cardstock.  So I had to use white embossing powder.  But Bashful Blue looks pretty good as the board around the slate, so I worked the Bashful Blue in there.  The chalky eraser marks were done by using the only craft ink I have -- Very Vanilla.  Looks pretty chalky to me.  I am going to have to leave this card a simple card because no matter what I thought to add, it would not be a chalk board any longer.  Brads?  No.  Rhinestones?  No.  Ribbon?  Definitely not.  The Cherry Cobbler base is dry embossed with the stripes embossing folder.  You can't see it very well, here, but it is there and looks a little like a wall behind the chalk board.  So here is my card and I hope you like it.

Now you should hop over to Teri's blogsite.  I'm sure she has something great waiting for us.  Come along let's go.....................

Come back to visit soon.

Crafty Hugs,
Sandy

Paper Pumpkin

With this post, and over the next couple days, I want to tell you about some exciting things Stampin'Up! has coming our way for 2013.  It is Stampin'Up!'s 25 year anniversary and the celebration will be all year long.  There will be more and more great things happening, so watch for, and be part of, all the excitement.  First I would like to tell you about a new monthly kit that you may order, and it will be mailed direct to you, no waiting, and the cost of the kit includes shipping.  All you need to do is sign up, choose me as your demonstrator, and each month after the 15th you will receive your kit in a beautiful box in your mailbox.  What a nice little surprise to watch for each month.  See the information below:

It's a Magical Paper Escape Every Month!

Sweep away the mundane-your creativity carriage awaits!

I'm Paper Pumpkin . . .
I come to your door each month (a fully decked-out creativity carriage). I'll help you to escape your life with some paper fun.
I come in a sweet box, but you'll really love what you find on the inside:
All the stamps, ink, paper, and accessories to create pinable projects. Create stuff like cards, journals, décor, and more!
Paper Pumpkin by Stampin' Up! is a new monthly kit program that anyone (even you) can enjoy!

Get Started

It's so easy to get started. Simply sign up for the program starting Monday, January 14 by visiting www.mypaperpumpkin.com and click Get it. Every month a new, surprise project kit arrives at your doorstep. Just think of the anticipation of creating a fun project to pin, showoff, and share with your friends and family-every month!
Of course, you'll want to know more. So here's the nitty gritty:

• Each month we send you a unique, surprise kit with project-cards, journals, décor, and more! (We've even color-coordinated, measured, and cut everything for you!)
• Each kit includes stamps, ink, paper, and accessories-everything but adhesive.
• Each kit gives you a 30-minute creativity escape.
• We will ship your Paper Pumpkin on or around the 15th of the month.
• You need to sign up for a kit by the 10th of the month to get that month's kit. If you sign up on the 11th of the month, your first kit will come the next month. (Let's say you sign up on May 10th, we'll send your kit around May 15th. If you sign up on May 11th, we'll send your first kit around June 15th.)
• A Paper Pumpkin membership is $19.95 per month (and shipping is included!)   
• There's no commitment, you can cancel your monthly Paper Pumpkin at anytime. You can also skip a month if you want.
• Starting in early March, we'll offer a Try-It kit if you'd like to try Paper Pumpkin for one month.

Here's How You Order

Sign up for your monthly Paper Pumpkin starting Monday, January 14 by visiting www.mypaperpumpkin.com and click Get it.   Starting in early March, you can try Paper Pumpkin for one month by visiting our online store.

A Free Gift in Your Very First Kit

The Welcome Kit is the very first Paper Pumpkin you will receive in your first month of membership. The Welcome Kit includes a free gift-a clear acrylic block!  You will be able to use it with the clear-mount stamps that come in each monthly kit.

This is something very new to Stampin'Up!  If you have more questions, just contact me smor@frontiernet.net and I'll help out.

Until next time........................

Crafty Hugs,
Sandy

More Valentine SAS

I have another one of my stamp-a-stack cards for you today.    This morning several of my customers came to work on a stack of cards.  I showed you one of the cards the other day.  Here is another, and over the next few days I'll continue to show you the rest of them.  I think we all had fun -- at least they all seemed to enjoy it.  I learned quite a lot from these talented gals.  A few built off the samples I had and went "rogue" by tweaking the samples to change it up.  I should have taken a picture or two to show you, but alas, I was having fun and forgot all about my camera. 

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For this Valentine I used more of the new product in the Spring Catalog.  The designer paper is More Amore.  I used the paper doily and the beautiful two-toned pink ribbon.  I also have the gray ribbon but did not use it today.  I can't wait to give that color a try.  The heart is cut with the sizzlits from the Hearts A Flutter Bundle.   

 

 

 

Well, it was a busy day and I am really tired, so I am off to clean up and put away all my supplies.  Then I can kick back, read a little and off to bed.  I hope you are enjoying your weekend.  The weather in my area is really beautiful today and is to be even better tomorrow.  We have 60 degrees and that is so unusual for January.  October maybe, but rarely January.  So I plan some outside time for tomorrow.

 

Until next time...........................................

 

Crafty Hugs,

Sandy

 

 

My Heart

I've been working on several cards for my stamp-a-stack this weekend.  I don't want to show them here until after the event, but here is a peek at something I was working on the other day.  This is not one of the stack, but I have cut some extra alternates -- and this is one of them -- just in case someone has extra time or wants to take one home.  This started out as just playing around, then I tried pink, then pink and gray, then I went to the chief commenter at my house (hubby) and asked his opinion.  He liked this one.

I like the heart framelits because there are 6 different graduated sizes.  That makes it easy to nest different colors like I did above.   And the largest one is scalloped -- so pretty.  The stamp set I have used here is You Are Loved in the annual catalog.  All of the stamps in this set are perfect for Valentines Day.

For the inside I just stamped one of the other stamps in the same set.   I hope you like my card.  And we'll see how my SAS gals like it.

 

I was having a little discussion with my friend Maria yesterday at my craft meet (hi Maria, fun crafting yesterday)  about blogs, blog comments, and how many people read blogs.  I told her I know lots and lots of people read blogs, but each of us never knows if our particular blog is read, or liked, unless we get comments -- we can check the counter, but that's not terribly reliable -- so I begged her to comment when she comes in to read my blog.  I'm begging you, too, to make  a comment now and then and let me know what you think -- be honest, but kind, please????

 

Until next time...............................

 

Crafty Hugs,

Sandy

 

Coloring Down The Lines -- Gumball Green

It is time for the Wednesday Coloring Down the Lines blog hop.  I believe you just arrived from Liz's blogsite.  Wow, she makes some fabulous cards!  Before you scroll down to take a look at mine, know that I was feeling the wintery blahs.  This time of the year is chilly, dreary, everything is brown and gray and I miss the flowers and green leaves.  So with the colors for today I just knew I could make a happy card. 

 

Our challenge was to use Gumball Green with So Saffron and Melon Mambo, or Gumball Green with Midnight Muse and Marina Mist.  I chose the first and headed off to make the brightest card I could come up with.  As I said, I wanted "happy!"   Well, I think I got it, and I hope you like my card today.  I know who I can send it to.  I have a friend going through some tough trials and I think this card might bring a smile to her face.   So, here it is..........

 

 

 

 

 

I used some of the new Spring Catalog product.  There are so many beautiful items in that catty that I didn't know which to get first.  Things I used that are in the new Spring catty:  Print Poetry DSP Stack, Honeycomb embossing folder, Designer Builder Brads, Ciao Baby stamps, and the little teeny Petite Curly Label punch is from the Sale-a-bration folder which will go live January 22nd.   I am having so much fun rummaging through my box of new toys, ah product. 

 

Tomorrow is my monthly craft meet.  I plan to take another bunch of new product and spend the day having fun.  I wonder what everyone else will be working on.   And after tomorrow I have just a little more to do for my stamp-a-stack on Thursday and Saturday.  Whew!  There was a lot more paper cutting than I thought there would be.  However, my new trimmer made all my cutting and scoring (for the fold) so easy.  I am soooooo glad I bought that new trimmer. 

 

Well, enough of my blathering today.  Next in line on our hop is Teri.  Let's go see what she has for us today.  It usually is something very pretty. 

 

Come back for another visit soon.

 

Crafty Hugs,

Sandy

 

Valentines On the Way

Whew!  I've been trying for 4 days to post in my blog but could not get pictures to upload.  I tried everything, including tearing my hair out, but nothing.  I asked friends, and one good friend, Robbie, said try using Firefox internet browser.  Well easier said than done.   I don't have Firefox and would have to figure out how to download it.  So I continued to try other things.  Finally my good friend, Donna -- yup, the same one over at Butternut Sage with the morning chat, you know, the chat I keep asking you to join?  Well, Donna has gone through this before and figured out how to do a work around.  So she shared her knowledge with me.  Just change to HTML, download all those gobbledy gook symbols, letters, numbers, etc. and then convert back.  Voila, I am in business again.  Thank you Donna, mwah, mwah.  And thank you Robbie too, I'll be downloading Firefox soon -- mwah to you too!

 

So here is one example of what I have been working on.  This week I have 2 stamp-a-stack dates set up and need several samples.  Then all I have to do is cut, cut, cut, and cut some more.  This is one of the Valentines we'll be doing.  For those reading my blog and planning to come, I use this as an  enticement, not a determent.  Hope you like it.

 



This card uses some of the new things from the Spring catalog.  Wow, I love that catty!  And you can order from it right now.  If you don't have one, let me know so I can get one to you.  The smaller heart is one of the framelit dies from the Hearts a Flutter Bundle.  I used the smaller heart stamps from that bundle too, but not on this card.  The designer paper heart is cut with one of the sizes from the Hearts Framelits set in the annual catty.  And the largest heart with the doily style holes is from More Amore DSP.  Yes, that is designer paper.  2 pages within that pack of paper are laser cut hearts.  You need only clip a little piece here and there that is holding the sheet together and you have approximately (let me count........) 32 hearts.  Wow, 32 pre-cut and beautiful hearts for your Valentines.   The other designer papers used on this card are also from the More Amore DSP pack.   The embossing folder is in the Annual catty, and the sentiment comes from Delightful Dozen, also in the Annual catty.  Love that set, it is so versatile. 

The insides for my stamp-a-stack cards are not completed in order to keep the time short enough to finish all the cards.  However, there will be insert papers available, and I'll have several sentiment stamps available, if they wish to do the inside at the meet rather than at home. 

I hope you like my card today.  Hard to believe we are working on Valentines, Spring things, and spring cattys.  Where did 2012 go?  Hope you all had wonderful holidays, are getting all your decorations put away for another year, and I hope you have a very prosperous 2013.

Crafty Hugs,
Sandy

Coloring Down the Lines -- Wisteria Wonder

Happy New Year everyone!  I hope your holidays were great and that you got to spend a lot of quality time with family and friends.  The time went pretty fast for me, but we did get time with my son, my grands, Skype time with the other grands, partying with friends and neighbors, and lots of good food.  I can't think what could have made it much better.

It's time again for the Wednesday color challenge and blog hop.  We missed last week because of the holidays, but we are back.  You should have arrived here from Teri's blogsite.  Teri usually has something really nice for us.  I love spending time at her blog.  This week our color is Wisteria Wonder.  With that we could choose to add either Elegant Eggplant and Lucky Limeade or Pink Pirouette and Cherry Cobbler.    I love green and purple together so I immediately went for Lucky Limeade and Elegant Eggplant.  Here is my card for this week's challenge.

I was so sure I had Lucky Limeade Ruffled Ribbon that I nearly finished the card before I went to get the ribbon, and alas, that is not one of the colors I bought.  So I used my trusty "go to" idea when I don't have ribbon.  I cut 2 strips of Lucky Limeade with my Dotted Scallop Ribbon Border Punch.  I hope Stampin'Up! does not retire that punch, because I have used it many, many, times in lieu of ribbon.

Here is the inside of my card, as well as the envelope. 

 

I have a special person to whom I plan to send this card.  I hope she likes it, and I hope you like my card too.    I am the last on the hop this week, so if you did not start at the beginning, then come along with me back to Robbie's blog.  Robbie is at the start and you can continue from her site on through the entire hop.  So let's go, I can't wait to see what Robbie has done.  I visit her every day and am never disappointed by what she has to show us.........

 

Until next time......................

 

Crafty Hugs,

Sandy