Growing up I remember playing with Russian stacking dolls all of the time.  It was always so much fun opening them all up and discovering what was inside of them.  Each doll was usually decorated in the same fashion with the tiny details getting smaller and smaller on each doll until you got to the last one which was always too tiny to open up and hold anything inside.  I think my parents still have a set of dolls in their house, although it’s been years since I’ve played with it. 

Stampin’ Up! recently opened up a forum for their demonstrators and there have been a few challenges that started, one of them being a Featured Stamper challenge.  I chose a card by Wendy Weixler to case.  I chose to stick with the layout and kept the ribbon placement, but I changed the colors to work with the color challenge on SCS, changed the stamp sets and added paper piercing.  The colors are Melon Mambo, Pretty in Pink and Blush Blossom.  I don’t think I’d have ever put this combination together myself, but I’m glad I forced myself to use it because I love the results.  The main image panel uses two Occasions Mini sets My Matryoshka and Well Scripted.  It’s hard to tell in the photo but the Blush Blossom layer is stamped with the Vintage Labels Sale-a-Bration stamp set in Blush Blossom ink.  I used my AquaPainter and many inks to watercolor in my image.  I’ve listed them all in the supplies.

Stamps: My Matryoshka, Vintage Labels, Well Scripted
Paper: Melon Mambo, Pretty in Pink, Blush Blossom, Whisper White
Ink: Basic Gray, Blush Blossom, Pretty in Pink, Old Olive, Always Artichoke, Sahara Sand, Soft Suede, Melon Mambo
Accessories: AquaPainter, Mat pack, dimensionals, Pretty in Pink Taffeta Ribbon
Techniques: Watercoloring

Today is weigh in day.  I am happy to report that I lost my first 10 lbs, in fact this week I lost 3.6 for a total of 11.8 lbs and even lost 5% of my body weight.  I’m not aiming to lose 10% and I’m less than 10 lbs away from that goal.  I’ve been eating my daily points but this week I barely touched my extra weekly points.  I was surprised to have done so well since I sort of slacked off this weekend and didn’t really track as consistently as I had been.  I even ate out at Friday’s and had pie with my dinner when we were celebrating birthdays.  I think I’m just making healthier choices when I eat and I’m never starving.  I’m opting to fill up on fresh fruits and veggies before I snack on anything else.  I don’t feel deprived and I don’t feel like I’m on a diet.  When I get hungry in the afternoon I’ve been reaching for a cup of coffee instead of a snack because it’s been so cold here I need something to warm me up and I find myself satisfied after I have it.  If I have a snack I measure it out into a bowl before I eat it.  I’m able to wear two pairs of jeans that I haven’t worn since before Colin was born and I’m throwing out my big baggy ones so that I don’t get too comfortable in them.  I do think the biggest thing that is helping me along is the accountablity, and ever since I posted here on my blog I have a lot of you e-mailing or posting a comment asking how I am doing and I love that support so thank you for it!  I hope the rest of you on similar journeys are doing well too.

I know I’ve said it many times before, but Sympathy cards are the hardest cards for me to make.  I always feel like they have to be just right to convey the right feeling and sentiments.  Unfortunately, I’ve needed a lot of them lately.  Yesterday I stayed in my PJ’s all day long and worked on both Artisan Award entries and then attempted to catch up on Challenges at SCS.  One of the ones I am very far behind on is the Featured Stampers challenge.  When I saw this card in Twinshappy’s gallery I knew what I wanted to do with it.  I changed a lot, but I also kept the overall look of the strips of designer series paper with the brads and of course I kept the butterflies.  The butterflies on this card have such a light and airy feeling and the color scheme to me is so peaceful.  I hope it brings some comfort to the person I’m sending it to. 

To complete this card I started with a Kraft card stock base.  I then layered Baja Breeze and Whisper White card stock that was punched with the eyelet border punch.  I added 1″ strips of Parisian Breeze specialty paper.  On the bottom strip I stamped the sentiment from Close as a Memory in Chocolate Chip craft ink and heat embossed it with crystal clear embossing powder.  I then added the vintage brads, using my mat pack to give me equal spacing on all of them.  I then cut out 3 butterflies that are from Dreams du Jour and had been stamped with classic Chocolate Chip ink on Whisper White paper.  I added them with mini glue dots. 

Some of you have been asking how I have been coming along on my Artisan Award entries.  Out of 10 projects I have 3 done (1 card and two 3D items).  I still have 3 scrapbook pages and 4 cards to go.  I think I work best under pressure, but I’ll have them mailed with time to spare. 

This coming weekend I am headed out of town.  I don’t know at this point in time if I’ll have enough to keep me going everyday through the weekend, but I’m working hard on it.  If not I’ll be back on Monday with projects from the Stampin’ Up! regional in Minneapolis.  Jackie and I are leaving early Friday morning in hopes to make it there in time for an SCS dinner.  I’m looking forward to meeting some of my online friends in real life. 

Have a fantastic Monday!  Our snow is gone and the sun is shining!  Cross your fingers that spring is here to stay.

Jenn

All supplies are Stampin’ Up! and can be purchased on my Demonstrator website: http://igotstamps.stampinup.net

Yesterday was such a busy day that I didn’t even get time to stamp anything new. Evan had playgroup, it rained all day and I decided to register for the Minneapolis Regional. I’ll be going on Saturday, April 4th. I did spend time finishing up watercoloring some images for swap cards and I’m hoping to finish the rest of the card today.

I stamped this card as part of the Featured Stamper Challenge but never got a chance to post it. I chose to CASE this card.  I kept the layout, but changed the stamps and the color scheme.  I just love Not Quite Navy, Kiwi Kiss and Baja Breeze. 

Colin is getting very excited about Jump Rope for Heart.  He is so thrilled with all of you who have decided to support him.  There is still time if you are interested.  See this post for all of the details.

Have a fabulous Thursday!

Jenn

This weekend flew by and I didn’t find myself sitting down to stamp until after dinner on Sunday night. I’m finishing up 2 orders for cards and am almost done. I decided I’d work on the Featured Stamper challenge on SCS. I picked this cardto CASE and I didn’t make nearly as many changes as I normally do. I just loved the card the way it was. I did change the colors, stamp sets, omitted the button and used Stampin’ Up!’s Texturz plates.

When the Sweet Always paper came out I just had to have it and then I barely dug into my stash. It was because I ordered too much at once. I decided it would work perfectly for this card and I just love this paper.  I started with a Chocolate Chip base.  I then ran my Whisper White layer through the Big Shot with the Texturz plate.  I used the swirls for this card. I then used the ticket corner punch on all 4 corners and attached it to a Regal Rose layer that also had all 4 corner punched.  I then took a 1″ X 12″ strip of Sweet Always paper, folded it up and sewed it on with my sewing machine.  I then took more of the Sweet Always paper and cut it out with the Top Note die in the Big Shot.  I cut the layers in half, adhered them together and punched the edge with the spiral punch.  I stamped the sentiment from Sweet Little Sentiments and tied on a ribbon.  I then added my heart stamped once on Chocolate Chip and once on Regal Rose in matching colors.  I highlighted the white centers and dots with a white gel pen.  Then I attached them to the card with dimensionals. 

Roger has only a 3 day work week this week.  He has Lincoln’s birthday and Presidents day off so he took Friday off as well.  I don’t know how much stamping I will get done.  I never seem to get as much accomplished when everyone is home so we will see. 

Happy Monday!

Jenn

It’s Tuesday already and what a day it is! I am very excited to see history in the making with the inauguration of a brand new President. I am however glad that I don’t live in the DC area. It looks like a logistical traffic nightmare. Yesterday I didn’t stamp much for myself, but I helped Colin and his girlfriend Jae stamp some Valentine cards for their classes. That was fun and they turned out cute. I’ll try to get photos of those and post them later.

I did get to play along with the Featured Stamper Challenge this weekend on SCS. Lori Craig was the featured stamper and I chose this card from her gallery.  I kept the flower in an oval idea from her card, but changed the colors, stamp set, ribbon placement and top of the card.  I used the Just Buzzin’ By set, but didn’t use the top part of the honey pot.  I had seen Cambria make a similar vase and loved the idea.  I then masked my vase to add my flowers.  Isn’t it cute?  I love it!

So have you seen the new catalog?  Tell me what you think!  I’d love to hear opinions on it.  I did get a quick order in yesterday for the Texture plates, eyelet punch and full heart punch.  I’m an accessory and punch junkie, that much is for sure. 

Jenn

All supplies are Stampin’ Up! and are available for purchase on my website: http://igotstamps.stampinup.net

Wouldn’t it be nice if all things in life were sweet and simple?  Especially home improvement projects that weren’t planned?  I mentioned that our dishwasher died about a week ago.  We had been washing dishes by hand all week and thought (key word thought) about holding off on the purchase of a new one.  Sears was having an pretty good appliance sale so Roger went and bought a new dishwasher yesterday after we spent many nights researching them over the course of the week.  Sears delivered it this morning, even before our scheduled time.  Roger said it was going to be a short and easy task to install it, but with a small leak, two trips to the hardware store and attaching it into the cabinets, it took most of the day.  I on the other hand had child duty, and both of my boys love their daddy time on the weekend, so it wasn’t with pleasure that they played with me.  They kept wanting to sneak off into the kitchen to see what kind of trouble they could stir up. 

It wasn’t until late afternoon that I got to sit down and stamp.  I had picked a card earlier in the morning for the Featured Stamper challenge so I just went with that.  Here is the card I CASED.  I changed the colors, stamp set, ribbon placement and added water coloring.  I kept the layout and just adjusted the placement of the paper piercing.  It’s really simple, so I won’t go into a lot of detail.  I started by stamping and water coloring in the floral image from Echoes of Kindness.  I then colored over it with a Versamarker and heat embossed with crystal clear embossing powder.  I thought this would be faster than masking and then sponging.  It certainly was!  I then masked the rectangle and sponged on Baja Breeze ink.  I thought about adding a sentiment, but there are times when I just need a card and I don’t have the right occasion, so I decided against it.  So what do you think?  Personally I really like it. 

Happy Monday!

Jenn

 What a day yesterday was. We woke up to -3 degrees and decided it wasn’t worth going out for any reason at all. I made pancakes for breakfast and we all settled down to work on addressing Christmas cards and I started on the Featured Stamper’s Challenge. I was 3/4 of the way done with my card when the power went out. Everything is covered in ice and the winds picked up over night. Icy power lines and high winds are not a good combination. At first the sun was shining in and it was still fairly warm in the house. A few hours later the temperature kept dropping and we sat on the couch huddled together to keep warm. We were beginning to decide what our options were when it all finally came back on. You don’t realize how much you depend on electricity until you are without it. The coldest day of the year so far is not a good day to be without heat.

When the power came back on and we all warmed back up I finished the card I had started on earlier in the day. I had chosen this card to CASE from Paula’s gallery.  I kept the layout and changed the colors, stamp sets and a few other elements.  I must say I love this card. 

I used quite a few preview items on this one.  The designer series paper is the new Raspberry Tart paper that will be available on January 19th.  The Dream a Little stamp set is going to be a new Level III hostess stamp set.  Aren’t they just gorgeous? 

I started with a Kiwi Kiss cardstock base and then layered it with Riding Hood Red, Whisper White and then the Raspberry Tart dsp.  I added a scalloped strip of Whisper White and paper pierced the scallops to add dimension.  I then added the ribbon and the main image layer on which I stamped the leaf pattern.  The flower is stamped several times, cut out and layered to add dimension.  I added the dimensional humming bird and then the sentiment tag.  This card took quite a lot of time to make, but I think the results are well worth it.  It probably would have been completed faster had we not had the long outage of power. 

Only a few days left until Christmas! 

Jenn

It’s been a while since I’ve been able to participate in the Featured Stamper’s challenge so when Friday lent itself to being a good stay in the house and stamp day I did just that. America was the featured stamper this past Sunday and I chose this card to CASE.  I kept the layout and the flower theme, but I changed the colors, stamp sets and omitted a few items like the extra sentiment layer and brads. 

The base of my card is Kiwi Kiss and is layered with Pink Pirouette that I stamped with the background stamp from Rustic Rooster (a new Level II hostess set that will be available in the Spring-Summer 2009 Idea Book and Catalog).  I then sponged the edges with Pink Pirouette ink.  I added the sentiment from Upsy Daisy in Rose Red and then the paper piercing before adhering the layer to the card. 

The most time intensive part of this card was the flowers.  The flowers are from a brand new set called Petal Pizzazz and I am totally in love with this set.  On this card I have layered 3 of the flowers.  The largest is stamped in Rose Red, the middle in Pink Pirouette and the smallest in Regal Rose.  Each layer has been cut out, shaped and set up on a dimensional.  I then added a half pearl from the Pretties Kit in the center of each flower with a mini glue dot.  To add more dimension I added leaves that were stamped in Kiwi Kiss ink.  I have to say that I am in love with this card.  It is not one that will go through the mail, but will rather be hand delivered. 

Time is quickly winding down until Christmas.  I hope you all have a fantastic Sunday!

Jenn

I have friends who just announced that they are expecting a new baby.  I figured that this would be the perfect chance to sit down and make them a card.  It’s my first time back to stamping in a few days so I decided to start with the Featured Stamper Challenge.  I chose to CASE, this card.  I changed the stamp sets, colors and omitted a few of the ticket corner punches.  I kept the layout.  I really like how it turned out. 

Thank you for being so patient with me as I took a few days off to focus on Evan.  He has done really well with the potty training and has only had a few accidents.  That’s to be expected.  When he learns he has to help clean them up he’s more focused.  I’m happy to not have the expense of diapers, that is if the increase in laundry loads doesn’t get too expensive.  While he is doing well with the bathroom front he is running a low grade fever and has been for the last 4 days.  I hope it just stays as a low grade fever and goes away on it’s own.  We are celebrating his 3rd birthday in just a week!

This morning I was catching up on blogs and found out that I had been chosen as one of the Fab 5 over on 2Sketches4You!  What an honor!  I just love the sketches, so make sure you check them out and give them a try.  A new one is going up tomorrow. 

I hope you have a fantastic Sunday!  We are planning on relaxing and staying warm.  The mid 70’s have disappeared and we’ve entered the low 40’s.  It’s not nice to drop so quickly. 

Jenn

This is a card I had a chance to make this weekend while it was pouring rain.  It was nice to have something to distract me while Roger constantly checked the sump pump to make sure it wasn’t going to burn out.  The grass has dried out and I got it cut last night.  There was so much there and we were growing our own little mushroom patch as well.  I looked outside on Sunday and thought the kids whiffle balls were outside the fence, but after looking a little closer they were mushrooms at least 10″ in diameter. 

This card was for the Featured Stamper challenge and this was the card I chose to CASE.  I kept the layout, but changed the stamp set, colors and omitted the dry embossing.  I just love this image and it was so much fun to watercolor, but it did take me quite a lot of time.  I don’t know if you can tell but I used Dazzling Diamonds to make my snow nice and shiny.  Glitter is so much better viewed in person. 

Happy Wednesday!

Jenn