No longer "Missing in Action"

I can't believe it is a month since I last posted! Lots of things have kept me away from my blog, most notably the end of the school year and a trip to Michigan to visit my children and grandchildren. Since I've been home, I've had a hard time getting my act together! Anyway, I think I'm back on the right track now, and have had some fun playing with my new stamps and in colors from Stampin' Up! Convention is quickly approaching, and I've got to get moving and get some swaps ready! Here is what I've done with Sock Monkey.

I used the following: Sock Monkey and Spunky spots wheel, Close to Cocoa, Riding Hood Red, and Pirouette Pink papers, Chocolate Chip ink, and an aqua painter with Close to Cocoa and Sahara Sand for the monkey. I think he is just the cutest!

More Fresh Cuts

I can't believe how busy I have been! Over a week with no stamping. This is not good! It felt so good to play with my stamps yesterday. I am so impressed with this stamp set, which is our sneak peak from the new catalog. Did you know that two of our other stamps coordinate with it? One is a background stamp, Riot of Petals (#110972, $17.95), and the other is Kind Thoughts (#111095, $25.95). Be sure to check out the June special on Fresh Cuts. I'll be posting the details for the card later today.

Fresh Cuts Sneak Peak

Hello! Thanks for stopping by. We're almost to the weekend, and that usually means more time for stamping!

Today I'd like to share this stamp set, a sneak peak set from the new SU catalog which will be released in early August. During the month of May, demonstrators can pre-order the set. Customers can start to order the set at the beginning of June. Besides the stamp set, Fresh Cuts (# 111634), there are lovely die cut notes to match.

I've been dying to make a sample since the new stamp set arrived, but I have been so busy I didn't get a chance to play with it until Tuesday. I chose Blue Bayou and Certainly Celery for the color combination. Certainly Celery ink was "smooshed" over the die cut card to add some background color. The main image is stamped in Blue Bayou ink. A corner rounder punch was used to scallop the edge of the card, and I lined the card with a 3"x3" square of paper so a small piece of the Blue Bayou DSP would peek out from the scallops. I stamped the long leaf image inside the card with Certainly Celery, added my double-stitched Blue Bayou ribbon, stamped some matching images on the envelop, and I was done. I have to go to a bridal shower on Saturday, and this will be the gift card. (I hope you like it, Lou!)

Color Inspiration

While shopping at Target, I came across these note cards. I loved the color combination, and immediately the dials started spinning. Hmmm, Tempting Turquoise, Taken with Teal, Chocolate Chip and Green Galore. Of course, since stamping is my business, I would never purchase cards in a store (wink, wink, Dianne!). I went home without them. A week later, I was in Target with my non-stamping daughter, and since she really needed note cards, we bought them. She was nice enough to give me one to use as inspiration. That's what family does...



Anyway, here's the card I came up with. After admiring Just B (111093, $27.95) since the catalog came out in January, I finally got it with hostess dollars. I used Very Vanilla, Green Galore, Tempting Turquoise, Taken With Teal, and Chocolate Chip inks and paper. On the Green Galore paper, I used one of my favorite techniques. I call it "smooshing," for lack of a better term. It is a direct to paper technique. I take my ink pad (matching ink and paper colors) turn it upside down and "smoosh" it across the paper, twisting the pad from side to side over the surface of the paper until I am pleased with the look. It almost looks like suede. I hope you can picture it in your head. Take a piece of paper and matching ink and give it a try. I think you will be pleased with the results.



Thanks for stopping by! Enjoy this long holiday weekend!

Salt Lake City, here I come!!

Along with lots of other Stampin' Up! demonstrators, I am anticipating the annual convention in Salt Lake City. This year will be really special because it is SU's twentieth anniversary. Registration was last week, and there was lots of buzz about it. I even received a post about stamp sets that will be continued in the new catalog so that people could start preparing swaps! Speaking of swapping, that is the reason for today's post. Swapping is a huge part of the excitement of the convention, and of course, you need to plan ahead. You need to come with lost of swaps, and of course, you need a great bag to carry all of your swaps in! Well, I found mine last week, and here it is. I happen to love fabric almost as much as stamps, papers and ink. (I was a quilter for over 25 years and then stamping entered my life!) Anyway, the bag,from K & Company, is by a young designer, Amy Butler, and my daughter and I are crazy about her fabric. Can you keep a secret? Don't tell, but I bought a bag for my daughter and my down line to take to convention. Shhh.....

Masculine Card Swap

I am in two monthly card swaps. One swap has no rules or guidelines and the other has a theme, color combination or sketch that we need to follow. For our June swap, I needed to come up with a masculine card that had metal on it. I don't have too many stamp sets that I would describe as masculine, so I used one of the classics, Lovely As a Tree. Once I had my sample worked up, I decided to use it for both of my monthly swaps. Here is the recipe: STAMPS: Lovely As a Tree, All in a Row PAPER: Western Sky, Blue Bayou, Soft Sky, River Rock, Whisper White INKS: Old Olive, Soft Sky, River Rock, Close to Cocoa ACCESSORIES: Crop-o-dile, Antique Brass Jumbo Eyelets. I hope you like it! I know I will really miss Soft Sky and River Rock when they are retired.

Mother's Day Storm

Today is Mother's Day. I woke up this morning, came downstairs to make a cup of coffee, and saw the most amazing thing on our deck. We have a beautiful flowering tree, some kind of cherry, that has been in full bloom. The blossoms are past their peak and are starting to drop their petals. We had a stiff breeze this morning, and the petals were coming down like rain. I took some photos to try and share just how pretty it was.