Can you believe that tomorrow is February 1st?  I can’t.  Not only is it Superbowl Sunday it’s also the 1st day of Sale-a-Bration!  That means for every $50 you spend you get to choose FREE products.  This year there are 4 stamp sets, 1 package of Designer series paper and 1 ribbon bundle.  I will post the brochure when it goes live. 

To kick off Sale-a-Bration I’m having a Stamper’s Bowl!  What does that mean?  While I watch the ads during the game I’m also going to be stamping with some friends.  It’s so much fun.  But since not all of you are near enough to stamp I’m going to have a few items you can win.  All you need to do is place a $50 order via my Demonstrator website.  Not only will you get FREE Sale-a-Bration products you will also get 1 ticket to my raffle when I receive your order confirmation.  If you spend $100, you get 2 tickets and so on.  I will pick the winners on Monday, February 2nd.  You have the chance to win a brand new Level I stamp set, or 1 of 3 brand new Sale-a-bration products.  So make sure to get your order in anytime on February 1st and on February 2nd I will pick 4 lucky winners. 

I needed a quick birthday bag so I pulled this one out of my stash.  My mom used to own a craft store and had some bags left over so she passed them on to me.  This uses some of the retired Ginger Blossom paper, but I never got a chance to post all of the bags I made to keep on hand.  It can easily be made with any of the new products. 

Well I have to run.  Colin has a basketball game this morning.  Have a fantastic Saturday!  Remember to place your order tomorrow for a chance to win – http://igotstamps.stampinup.net

Jenn

I know, I’m really late with my posting schedule today. You’ll see why at the end of this post. I took on a rather large project yesterday. This morning I sat down to make one of these Ghirardelli chocolate boxes. Beate has a tutorial up on SCS this week and you can find it here.

I used Chocolate Chip card stock for the base along with Bella Rose designer series paper. I decorated it with the square scallop punch in Kiwi Kiss and the dandelion stamp from A Happy Heart stamped in Riding Hood Red ink on Whisper White card stock. I added a Riding Hood Red scalloped strip to the top and a clear Rhinestone brad to my main image. This was so quick and easy to make. I’m going to have to make few more up to give people for Valentine’s Day this year.

Yesterday afternoon and evening I turned this . . .

into this!

This is bread I grew up eating. My grandmother has always made it for us and now that she is nearing 90, my Mom bakes it for us. She grew up with her grandmother baking it and I figured it’s time I attempt it on my own.

I hope it gets easier the more I bake it because it literally took me from 1 in the afternoon until about 7:30 last night to get the dough made, punched down a few times during the rising process and then finally baked.

But I now have 8 loaves and it freezes perfectly.

Jenn

In celebration of passing 250,000 hits to my blog I am offering up some blog candy! This is only a few of the items I have decided to share. You will get the March/April 2009 issue of Paper Crafts magazine that I was recently published in. There are also several packages of Studio G clear stamps, Stampin’ Up! buttons and ribbon and a bookmark that I made at my Open House last weekend. There are more buttons and ribbon than is shown, but I didn’t want the photo too look too cluttered.

So I bet you want to know how you can win? Share with me what you love from the new catalog! I want to know:
1. What is your favorite new Stamp set?
2. What is your favorite new Designer Series paper?
3. What is your favorite new Accessory?
4. What is your favorite Decor Element?

If you haven’t seen the new catalog check out my Shop Stampin’ Up! page. There are the links to the new catalogs.  The link is also in the sidebar on the right hand side.

Feel free to share this with others by posting on your blog. I will pick a winner on Sunday, February 1st at 8 p.m. CDT.

Jenn

I started on this card yesterday and was not happy with the bottom left corner. I thought that there was too much blank space. I tried adding a sentiment, buttons and other various embellishments. Nothing worked right so I walked away and left it until this morning. A fresh outlook worked. I decided to add a paper pierced flight path and was finally satisfied with it.

While I like this card I am not totally in love with it and debated about posting it. But I remembered that I promised to share all of my successes and failures and while it might not necessarily be my favorite there still might be parts that helps inspire someone else.

When I first started on this card I knew I wanted to use Just Buzzin’ By because it hasn’t seen much ink.  I also knew I wanted to use my neglected Sweet Always designer series paper.  I’m using up the older stuff before I get new paper.  I did order one new package of paper but it won’t be here until next week.  I’m sticking with my pledge to use what I have before I stock up and try to buy the whole entire catalog at once. 

I hope you have a fantastic Thursday, although I don’t know where the week went.  Maybe it’s my lack of sleep.  I think Evan is going through a growth spurt and he has been very restless and night and comes and climbs into our bed.  This is not something he does on a normal basis, so I know something is up.  He’s been tossing and turning and keeping me up.  He has suddenly grown too tall for his 3T pants so hopefully this is a short phase and will be over soon. 

Jenn

My Sweet and Simple Class for February was designed around a few things. The first being that with this last Open House I had several people who attended who are brand new to stamping. We’ve all been there and personally when I first started I felt a little overwhelmed. I needed a starting place. A perfect place to start is the Spring-Summer 2009 Idea Book and catalog. It is filled with hundreds of samples that are perfect for a stamper of any level. With that in mind I started to plan this beginning stamping class. I wanted to show others that you don’t need the exact supplies to make the sample work for you. Each of these cards is based on a sample in the new catalog. I decided to focus on the fabulous new Sale-a-Bration stamp sets that will be available in just a few short days.  I also included one of my favorite techniques that can easily be accomplished by anyone – heat embossing.

This first card is based off of the sample on page 18 of the catalog.  The original sample is smaller and uses the Hostess Level I Prints pack.  I thought the patterns in the Candy Lane designer series papers would work perfectly for what I wanted to accomplish.  It’s clean and simple but has a lot of impact.  The sentiment is heat embossed. 

This card is based off of the sample on page 53.  I thought it was so neat how the ribbon slider with ribbon divided the space in half.  I heat embossed the heart and cut this one out by hand.  At my class we will punch it out with the Full Heart Punch, but my punch is arriving on Friday and my class is Sunday, so I had to hand cut it on the sample.  This card also features the Stamp-a-ma-jig.  It’s a tool I use on a daily basis and has a permanent place on my stamping table.

This card is based off of a sample on page 58.  Thoughts & Prayers is high up on my Wish List.  I just don’t have it yet.  Instead I used Botanical Blooms to work with the layout.  I kept the color scheme as well.  I love Kraft with Pink and green.  This was my first attempt at making the pleated ribbon, but it adds so much detail to the card. 

This card is based off of a sample on page 83.  I decided to stick with the colors and size on this card.  I simply switched out the stamp sets.  I used Yummy and heat embossed the sentiment on the front of the card.  I used Botanical Blooms for the main image. 

So how do you take my class if you don’t live nearby?  That’s easy!  I’m offering this as a virtual class.  If you are interested in obtaining the 4 page PDF you can purchase it below.  Each page features one of these projects.  There is a full color photograph of the project, a supply list, measurements for cutting each of the card stock layers and step by step instructions for each project.  The cost of the class is $7.95, but you can earn it for FREE!  To get this class for free simply place an order for $50 or more via my Demonstrator website and I will send you the PDF as soon as I get confirmation of your order.  But make sure you wait until February 1st because you will also earn Sale-a-Bration products for FREE as well! 

If you are a Stampin’ Up! Demonstrator and are interested in purchasing this class to use with your customers you may do that as well.  Feel free to change the contact information at the top of the page to reflect your own.  I do ask that you keep the watermarks in tact on the photographs as well as my copyright disclaimer in place at the bottom of each page.  You can print the instructions and use them as class handouts. 

Please note that this is a Virtual Class.  That means that you are only purchasing the 4 page PDF with full color photographs, supply list, card stock measurements and step by step instructions.  There is no product included.  If you are interested in getting the exact supplies you can order those online via my Demonstrator website. 

Jenn

A more advanced class for February will be available at a later date.

To purchase the Sweet and Simple Class please pay below using the PayPal button.  The 4 page PDF will be e-mailed to you within 24 hours of receiving your payment.  The cost is $7.95.

I have to say that my post title is misleading, because this set has not seen that much love. I got it with my Starter Kit when I signed up to be a Stampin’ Up! Demonstrator a little over 2 years ago and used it only a handful of times. While I’m waiting patiently for my new goodies to get here I decided to use my neglected stamp sets. I pulled up Mercy’s sketch yesterday and it was a piece of cake. I may even have to use this set a bit more. I really had fun coloring in the image and playing around with it.

I knew I wanted the truck to be Riding Hood Red, so I pulled out my Candy Lane designer series paper since it is one of the main colors in that package.  I then got to work stamping the truck, hearts and sentiment on scraps of Whisper White cardstock.  I colored and cut out my truck and hearts.  When that was accomplished I laid them out on my grid paper and used them to determine the size of the layer I wanted to put them on.  I didn’t write down my measurements this time, but I think it was 3 1/4″ X 2 3/4″ for the Whisper White layer.  I then matted it with Close to Cocoa and Riding Hood REd and then added my paper piercing to ground this layer since there is no actual stamping on it.  I then put on the truck and hearts with dimensionals.  The smaller square layer is layered the same way, but Whisper White is replaced by Candy Lane designer series paper.  The sentiment layer is made up of a 1″ circle punch, the designer label punch and the 1 3/8″ circle punches.  From there my layers went together fairly easily.  I noticed I had a lot of empty space at the bottom of my main image so I added a row of silver brads.  I work under the theory that you can’t have too many brads.  *wink*  I think it fills the space nicely. 

I have to say I am very sore today.  The last two days have been great for sticking to a routine.  I take Colin to the bus, come home, make a cup of coffee, stamp and then play with the Wii Fit.  I’ve been playing with the Yoga and Strength training and didn’t think it would make me that sore.  Evan likes playing along right beside me and his favorite is the 2 person run.  I have no idea how he gets his tiny legs to move so quickly, but he always beats me to the finish line. 

I’m wrapping up a few things this week.  I have one of my beginning stamping classes all planned out.  I just need to get the PDF made.  I also have some blog candy that I’ll get posted soon.  I just noticed that my hit counter has surpassed 250,000 hits! 

Last week Tina tagged me. 

Here are the rules:
1. Link to the person who tagged you (as I did above).
2. Mention the rules.
3. Tell 6 things about yourself.
4. Tag 6 other bloggers by linking to them.
5. Go to each person’s blog and leave them a comment to let them know they’ve been tagged.

1.  I have naturally curly hair and when I was younger I did all I could to straighten it.  Now I love it!

2.  I am not a morning person

3.  I almost bought a Durian in the Asian Food market on Sunday to see how badly it would stink.

4.  I once ate freeze dried mealy worms that were packaged for human consumption.

5.  I’m going to attempt to make homemade bread with my grandma’s recipe (hopefully this week).

6.  I’m quite a homebody and enjoy being at home close to my stamps.

Have a fantastic day! 

Jenn

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

Sympathy cards are not cards that I particularly enjoy making, although I do hope that they bring some comfort to the people I send them too. Unfortunately I needed one this week and decided to use Julee’s Mojo Monday sketch for my card. I decided to use the soft muted background papers from Bella Rose designer series paper and I picked up the Close as a Memory stamp set since the image is so calming and the sentiments were fitting.

I was having problems photographing the Pink Pirouette card base against the white background so I used some Kraft instead. I can’t wait until the sun decides to make an appearance again so it will light up my photographs.

My Pink Pirouette base is 4 1/4 X 5 1/2 and the smaller Chocolate Chip layer is 3 7/8″ X 5 1/8.  I then cut two strips of the Bella Rose paper.  One is 2 1/4″ X 5″ and the other is 2 1/2″ X 5″.  I tied on a Kraft taffeta ribbon to hide the seam.  My main image is stamped on a 2 3/4″ X 3 1/4″ piece of Whisper White cardstock.  The Kiwi Kiss layer is 2 7/8″ X 3 3/8″ and the Chocolate Chip layer is 3 X 3 1/2″.  The sentiment tag was stamped on a scrap of Whisper White that measures 1 1/8″ X 2 1/8″ and is matted on a Chocolate Chip layer that is 1 1/4″ X 2 1/4″. 

To stamp the flowers in 3 colors I inked the entire image in Pink Pirouette and then inked the stems with my Old Olive Stampin’ Write marker.  I then took a sponge dauber that was inked in Riding Hood Red ink and lightly touched it to each of the flowers. 

I can’t believe it is almost the end of January!  I don’t even know where time has gone.  I know I’m going to be super busy the next few days.  I’ve done pretty well with my New Year’s Resolutions, except for getting my classes planned sooner and getting my scrapbooking back on track.  I better get started if I want to meet those two.  I did get a number of cards ready to submit and I entered one of the Stampin’ Up! contests, so at least I was moving on a few of them.  Have a wonderful Tuesday!

I also wanted to let you know that on some of my posts you may have noticed that the comments are turned off.  It’s not because I don’t want you to comment, it’s just that for some reason they got picked up by a bot and I get tired of deleting spam.  They never get past me to the site, but my inbox was getting flooded and I was  complaining to Roger about it.  He asked if it would just make sense to turn the comments off on those posts and the spam comments have stopped.  Usually these posts are a few weeks old anyway, so it won’t affect current posts.

Jenn

All Supplies are Stampin’ Up! and can be purchased on my website 24/7: http://igotstamps.stampinup.net

I hope you all had a fantastic weekend. I’m busy catching up, stamping and planning my classes for February.  I also have to get back on track with my favorite challenges so I started this morning with a sketch from 2 Sketches 4 You. 

I haven’t played with Sock Monkey in a while so I pulled him out and he is perfect for a birthday card and I needed one to send out this week.  I stamped him on Whisper White card stock and colored him in with Chocolate Chip and Riding Hood Red.  I then cut him out and started on my balloons.  I think he’s sort of festive looking, don’t you? 

The base of my card is a 5 1/2 X 4 1/4 piece of Baja Breeze card stock, followed by a 5 1/4 X 4″ piece of Basic Gray and 5 X 3 3/4″ Hand Drawn designer series paper.  I used the reverse side of the paper for the 5 X 2 1/8″ strip and then added my Riding Hood Red ribbon and silver brads.  I let the monkey determine the size of my circle and that was cut out with the coluzzle.  The sentiment strip was a piece of scrap card stock that I cut to size after I stamped the sentiment on it.  I sponged the edges a little to make the tag stand out a bit more. 

Well I have a lot to do and not a lot of time before Colin’s bus will returning from school.  Have a great day!

Jenn

Many of you have noticed that I have a card published in the March/April 2009 issue of Paper Crafts Magazine.   This is the 2nd magazine I have been published in and I get excited each and every time.  This was a very simple card in which I made the background pattern with the Frames with a Flourish stamp set from Stampin’ Up!.  I love playing with the images in this set and creating fun background papers.   I started with a Whisper White card stock base and then created the background strip with Basic Black ink on Whisper White.  I added the scalloped border to each side of the strip and attached it to the card.  The scallop square was made using the Scallop edge punch before Stampin’ Up! had a scalloped square punch.  I then stamped the frame and the sentiment from All Holidays.  I added the layer on dimensionals and then added the half pearls from the Pretties Kit with mini glue dots. 

I hope you all have a fantastic Sunday!  I don’t have any project 365 photos this week.  I got caught up in prepping for my Open Houses and February classes and got behind on that.  I’ll be better this week, I promise. 

Jenn

I have a lot to get done today so I’m going to share a quick card I made a week or so ago, I just never had time to share it here. Colin has a basketball game at 10 am but has pictures beforehand so we have to head out pretty soon.

This card was made for SC211 on SCS. I was working on using up soon to be retired paper and I’m sad to say I still have a ton left. This year I’m going to focus on buying less paper so that I can actually open and use my packages before the retiring list comes out. I’m working on cutting up what is left into 6X6 sheets and using it for door prizes and thank you packages for online orders.

This card is fairly simple so I’ll just leave you with the recipe. If you have any questions feel free to ask. I hope you all have a wonderful weekend. This afternoon is going to be spent doing more prep work for tomorrow’s Open House.

Jenn

Stamps: All Holidays, A Happy Heart, Love You Much
Paper: Old Olive, Riding Hood Red, Country Living dsp, Baja Breeze, Whisper White, Pink pirouette, Close to Cocoa
Ink: Riding Hood Red, Old olive stampin’ write marker
Accessories: riding hood red striped ribbon, silver brads, dimensionals, Heart to Heart punch