Marina Mist Sponged Card

Here's another card we will be doing in my upcoming stamping class.  See details here and then contact me to register.  The class will be full of information.  Don't miss it.



Fresh Vintage and Framelits Card

We will be making this card in my upcoming sponging class where you will learn different ways that sponging can add interest to your projects and also new ways to use your embossing folders.  I will offer the class twice - once on Wednesday, Feb. 8 and once on Saturday, Feb. 11.  See the Classes/Events page for more details.  Pick the day that works best for you and contact me to register.  Hope you can make it!

Sale-A-Bration has started

SALE-A-BRATION HAS BEGUN!!

Sale-A-Bration (S-A-B) is that awesome time of year when Stampin' Up gives you free merchandise!  There is no limit to the number of free items for which you can qualify.  At the bottom of this post is a card made with one of the sets you can get, but first here are the details:

(Note:  all amounts are before tax and shipping)

PARTY GUESTS (or other orders such as stamp club or group orders):  Choose one free product from the S-A-B brochure for every $50 you spend.

ONLINE ORDERS: Choose one free product from the S-A-B brochure for every $50 you spend in my Stampin' Up! Online Store (before tax and shipping).  Plus, when your online order totals $150, you'll receive Stampin' Rewards! and a free Sale-a-Bration shopping tote!

HOSTESSES: When your party total reaches $150.00, you'll receive a free shopping tote. When your party reaches $400, you'll receive a free Hostess Bundle (Fresh Vintage Stamp Set, Everyday Enchantment Designer Series Paper, Everyday Enchantment Ribbon & Brad Pack). This is in addition to all of the other great hostess benefits!  Contact me to schedule your S-A-B Party!

NEW RECRUITS: Join during Sale-a-Bration and get your Starter Kit for only $125.00. That's $50 off!Then starting with the month after you join, you can choose a free Designer Series Paper pack (or Digital Download) every month for the rest of the year.  Contact me today for more information on joining Stampin' Up!  I would love to have you shop as part of my team!!

And now for the card!  The card below was made with Sprinkled Expressions, one of the several items you can choose to get for free with each $50 purchase.  This set is an exclusive S-A-B set, so you can only get it for free with your qualifying purchase (and it will no longer be available when S-A-B ends on March 31, 2012).

I also used the Tasteful Trim die on this card.

Another Valentine

Stamps:  PS I Love You, Take It To Heart

Punches:  Heart,  scallop trim border, scallop trim corner

Big Shot:  Hearts Framelits, Movers and Shapers

Cardstock:  Whisper White, Regal Rose, Basic Gray

Patterns Back Subtles DSP

Classic Ink:  Basic Gray, Regal Rose

Embedded Embossing - Valentine

This card is made with the Embedded Embossing technique.

Supplies Used:

Heart to Heart punch, Scallop Circle # 2 die, Square Lattice embossing folder, Patterns Pack Brights DSP, Real Red and Whisper White cardstock, 1/4" Whisper White grosgrain ribbon, and the Big Shot

Kiss Cards

This is another January club card.  I've done it in Pretty in Pink and also in Real Red.  Club members will have a choice of which color they want to make.  This class  is free to club members, but it is open to others for a fee.  Contact me if you'd like to join us.

Now that you've seen them both, leave me a comment and let me know which you like better.

Supplies:

Cardstock:  Whisper White, Chocolate Chip, Pretty in Pink (top), Real Red (bottom)

Patterns Pack DSP

White Organza Ribbon

Ink: Chocolate Chip

Aluminum Foil

Hearts Framelits, Blossom Petals Punch, Big Shot, Teeny Tiny Wishes

Mixed Bunch Center Step Card

This is one of the January club cards.  It is a center step card.

The card base is Pool Party with layers from Everyday Enchantment DSP.  The big flower was stamped with Mixed Bunch, punched with the Blossom Punch and layered on a Calypso Coral punched blossom.  The brad in the center is from the In Color Designer Brads.  The smaller flowers were stamped with Fresh Vintage, cut out and layered on a Calypso Coral punched blossom from the Blossom Bouquet Triple Layer Punch.  There are small basic rhinestones in the center.  The sentiment is from Apothecary Art and was stamped on Whisper White, then layered on Lucky Limeade.  The ink is Calypso Coral.

Front view:

Side view: 

Thanks again to Laura Lipe for showing how to make this style card on her blog.  It has quickly become a favorite of mine.



You're My Type

Today's cards feature the stamp set You're My Type.  This set has a typewriter and several phrases.  It's a great set for making quick cards that look good.

The top card uses the Stripes Embossing Folder which is one of the items you can get for free with a $50 purchase during Sale-A-Bration.  Sale-A-Bration starts January 24th.

Recipe:

Cardstock: Concord Crush and Whisper White

Classic Ink:  Concord Crush and Basic Black 

Recipe:

Designer Series Paper from the Brights Patterns pack

1/4" Whisper White grosgrain ribbon

Cardstock: Tempting Turquoise, Basic Black and Whisper White

Classic Ink:  Tempting Turquoise and Basic Black



Blossom Punch and Butterfly Embosslits

I LOVE, LOVE, LOVE the Sale-A-Bration DSP, Everyday Enchantment!  The ladies at our team meeting last weekend know it b/c every time I worked with a new sheet I think I said it again.  I also love that I got it for FREE!  And you can, too, just by placing a $50 order between Jan. 24 and Mar. 31, 2012.  The order can consist of anything Stampin' Up sells.

As you might have guessed, today's card has Everyday Enchantment DSP on the background. All I did was use Stampin' Dimensionals to add a few Butterfly Embosslits and a flower punched with the new Blossom Punch.  I love both of these products, too.  I kept the flower plain so I didn't take away from the background paper, but the Blossom Punch has a coordinating stamp set which makes this punch a must have (the flower center is from that set (Mixed Bunch)). And in the very center of the flower is a Sale-A-Bration brad that I got for free.  Cardstock used is Bashful Blue, Calypso Coral and Peach Parfait.

Monogram Card

This monogram card was made with the Lovely Letters Alphabet stamp set, the new Paper Doily Die, Lucky Limeade Organdy Ribbon (S-A-B product), and Everyday Enchantment DSP (S-A-B product).  It also has Whisper White and Lucky Limeade cardstock and Calypso Coral ink.

Another Occasions Mini Valentine Card

A simple Valentine card today using the hearts from the Designer Frames Embossing Folders, the Hearts Framelits, Take It To Heart, Teeny Tiny Wishes, half a sheet of Whisper White cardstock and a 1/2" strip of Designer Series Paper.

The card really is straight.  I just couldn't get it to lay flat and so it looks bowed out in the middle.

Thanks for stopping by my blog.  Tomorrow I'll take a break from Valentine cards.  Be sure to check back.



Center Step Card - Take It To Heart

Today's card is a Center Step card, using Take It To Heart, the Hearts Collection Framelits Dies, the Paper Doily Sizzlits Die, Patterns DSP Paper Stack - Brights, cardstock: Real Red, Whisper White, Basic Black, and Black StazOn ink.

From the front:

From the side:

Thanks to Laura Lipe for showing how to make this card on her blog.  You can see the directions and her card here.

Laura is part of a great Yahoo! group that I belong to called NC Demos.  We share ideas and business tips with each other.  There are quarterly meetings filled with stamping, swaps, lots of fun, and more.  If you live in NC and would like to be able to go to these meetings and be part of this group, contact me for more information.  (By the way, you don't have to go to the meetings to be part of the group.  They are just lots of fun so you'll probably want to.)

Fun Filled Team Meeting

When you sign up to become a Stampin' Up demonstrator you become part of a team.  The team I belong to met this past weekend for a team meeting.  We spent time stamping and sharing our creativity.  Below are some of the cards my fellow demos made.  I'm not going to show the ones I made because they will be appearing on my blog later.

This card was made by my very talented downline Debra.  Isn't it great?  Downline means that Debra signed up to be a demonstrator with me.  I am delighted to have her as my downline.  I'd be delighted to have you as my downline, too.

These were made by other demos, who in Stampin' Up lingo are called my sidelines:

 These are the team members who were able to come this weekend.  Thanks to my upline Frances Wagner (on the left) who let me use her pictures for this blog entry.  Then clockwise from Frances:  Karel Standish, Debbie Green, Debra Rhyne, and Deb Dobb.  If you're looking for me, I'm behind the camera.  Want to join this group and come to our next meeting?  Contact me or see here for details (and click Join the Fun).



Paper Doily Love Card

I have another Valentine card today.  It uses the new Paper Doily large Sizzlet die, which is so pretty.  I used my Big Shot to cut the doily, the Designer Series Paper (Scallop Circle # 2 die), the Real Red circle (Circles #2 die) and the letters (Naturally Serif Decorative Strip die).  The hearts along the bottom are from the Heart to Heart punch.



Sprinkled Expressions Valentines with Embossing

I  have two Valentines to share today.  They are similar but a little different.  Both use the same stamp from Sprinkled Expressions, which is one of the exclusive Sale-A-Bration stamps this year.  They both use 1/4" Whisper White Grosgrain Ribbon, both have a Whisper White base beneath a Real Red layer, and both have a row of hearts along the bottom made by one of the Adorning Accents Textured Impressions Embossing Folders.  These are in the new Occasions Mini Catalog and contain three small embossing folders which are ideal for creating a border along the edge of your project.

The first card has stripes along the side which I made using the Simply Scored tool. I love this tool! It has simplified so many tasks and added new possibilities. I would never have tried decorative scoring without the Simply Scored tool.  My hand just isn't steady enough.  The sentiment was punched out with the extra large oval punch and layered in one of the two frames included with the Designer Frames Textured Impressions Embossing Folders.

This card has a second row of hearts along the top. The sentiment was also punched out with the extra large oval punch, but this time I sponged the edges with matching Real Red ink and then used Stampin' Dimensionals to adhere it.

Where to start...

Hi Stampers --

I have lots of news to share.  The question is, where to start?  How about with a link to the new Occasions Mini Catalog, which goes live TODAY!  I just LOVE this mini!!  As a demonstrator I got to pre-order and let me tell you, I took full advantage of the opportunity.  You can order online at my Online Store.

Win a prize!  Place an order through me, Sue Root, in January and get entered in a drawing for the previous Sale-A-Bration set Congrats.  Every $25 increment will get you another entry -- so the bigger the order, the more chances to win!  This includes any type of order -- online orders, workshop orders, orders placed at events, even stamp club orders.



Winners of the December drawings.  The winner of the December drawing for the hostess stamp set Tagtastic is Karen Waller.  I added a bonus drawing (just 'cause it was Christmas or maybe just as a thank you for ordering from me even while I was not able to offer my normal events).  Corothy Sims also won a prize.  Congratulations ladies!

January Events:  I have set my January schedule.  See full details on the Classes/Events page.  Here's the summary:  Valentine's Class, Jan. 14 (Saturday).  Bring someone who has never been to one of my events before and the class is free for you and your guest!  Stamp Club Class, 1/25 and 1/29.  Non-members can attend stamp club for a fee (free for members).  I may be adding events as the month goes on, so be sure to check back.

Kids' Class:  Is there interest in a Valentine's class for kids (or one where moms -- or dads -- and kids come together)? Please let me know if you'd be interested and what days/times work best for you. Thanks.

Stamp Club:  There is still room in the Wednesday morning and Saturday morning stamp clubs.  We'd love to have you join us.  It's lots of fun and a great value.  See details here.  I will also offer a Sunday afternoon stamp club if there is interest.  If you and 2 other friends would like to form your own club, contact me and we can work on a date (or you can join in one of the existing clubs).  SIGN UP BY January 10th.

Sale-A-Bration starts January 24th!  S-A-B is the perfect time to have a party.  In addition to Stampin' Up's regular hostess benefits, you can earn extra hostess goodies.  Plus, your order of $50 or more earns free S-A-B merchandise and your guests' orders are usually larger as they try to earn free merchandise.  Contact me to get your party scheduled.

Free Digital Download!  Stampin' Up is once again giving away a free digital download that can be used in My Digital Studio or in other graphics programs. To get it, like the SU facebook page.  If you scroll down a few posts you should see the correct post.  Click on the link, answer a short survey and then choose which version you need (MDS for Windows, MDS for Mac, or Other/non-MDS).  If you have any problems finding it let me know and I'll try to help. EXPIRES January 10th.

I think that's everything for now.  Stop back tomorrow to see Valentine's cards made with Occasions and Sale-A-Bration products.

Contact me if you have any questions, to register for events, to sign up for Stamp Club and to schedule your party.  You can e-mail me or get my phone number here (upper right hand corner).  Hope to hear from you!

Thanks, Sue

My Digital Studio Cards using S-A-B Products

I have a whole bunch of pre-order stuff in my workroom and unfortunately I've been under the weather and unable to play with it.  Fortunately two of my pre-order items were CDs with digital content for My Digital Studio (MDS).  MDS is so easy to use that despite having a fuzzy head, I've been able to sit at the computer and sporadically play with it.

One thing that's nice about MDS is that I can try out different color combinations before deciding on a final version.  It sure can save cardstock and DSP by experimenting digitally.

The cards I'm sharing today all use content from the One Big Sale-A-Bration CD.  It includes all the new, exclusive S-A-B products in digital format.  In all three cards, the Designer Series Paper is Everyday Enchantment and the ribbon and brads come from the Everyday Enchantment Ribbon and Brad Pack.  In real life, the brads are 3/8" and the organdy ribbon is 1/8", but in MDS everything can be resized.

All three cards are on a Very Vanilla base.  It's hard to see in this post, but if you look closely you can tell.  It also explains why the ribbon appears to be running off the card :)

The stamp in this card is from Fresh Vintage.

The stamps in this card are from Elementary Elegance.

The top stamp is from Fresh Vintage and the bottom stamp is from Elementary Elegance.

I hope you have enjoyed seeing some of the things you can do with MDS.    For me, digital card making will never replace physical card making, but it is fun for something different.  I also like that:

* It's kind of fun to be able to size the stamps (and pretty much everything else) to fit the area I want.

* MDS includes several stamp sets that I don't own so it gives me a little variety.

* I have been known to design a card in MDS and e-mail it to someone when I've not gotten a card made in time to go by snail mail (admittedly, this is not ideal, but it's better than missing a big day entirely).

There are lots of other reasons to love MDS, including digital scrapbooking, but I've written enough for tonight. Thanks for stopping by my blog!

Happy New Year!

Wishing you a wonderful and blessed 2012!

This card was made using My Digital Studio.