Best of...Flowers (Hydrangea)

Edit 3/12/13 - I have found out that the images in Best of Flowers are smaller than the original images.  This is good for stampers who already own the originals, because now you can have two sizes of some great flowers.  It also explains how SU can offer the set for only $14.95.  This post uses the original flower from Because I Care.  The hydrangea in Best of Flowers is smaller, but you can still see how beautiful it is.  Guess I should have waited for my set to arrive, but I was just so excited to use it :)

The other day I shared that this month's Stampin' Up anniversary set is Best of...Flowers.  This hydrangea has always been one of my favorites and I'm glad to see it return.

I colored the hydrangea with Stampin' Write markers.  The background was embossed with my Big Shot and the Vintage Wallpaper embossing folder.  The corners around the flower were punched with the Scallop Trim corner punch.  And I punched out the phrase from On Your Birthday with the Modern Label punch.

Here are all three of the Best of Sets so far:

Best of Love  132987

Best of Birthdays  132929

Best of Flowers  133342

    

You can get these sets from my Online Store.  Plus, save your Proofs of Purchase because with 6 of them you can get a free stamp set.  Contact me if you want details.

Yesterday I posted my design team sample for the Late Night Stampers Challenge.  Since this week's theme is: Spring is in the air - use some of your flower stamps,  I linked this to the challenge, too.

Late Night Stampers and Monday Lunchtime Sketch Challenges

Good Morning Stampers!  This week I doubled up on my design team challenges again.  This sketch went together so easily.  I can see me going back to it when I need a card in a hurry.  Longest part?  I couldn't find the stamp set I wanted to use for the inside.

The Late Night Stampers Challenge this  week is:

Spring is in the air - use some of your flower stamps!
(I used Designer Series Paper with flowers, instead of stamps, on the front but I think it still qualifies.  Just in case, I did use a flower stamp on the inside.  Besides, while I tend to take challenges somewhat literally, they really are meant to challenge you in an effort to expand your creativity.  And once the creativity starts flowing, who knows where you'll end up?) 

Here's the sketch for the Techno Stamper (aka Monday Lunchtime) Sketch Challenge:

And here's my card.   I couldn't get rid of the shadows.  I tried.  I probably took 10 pictures and the only one without shadows was all washed out.  This is a compromise - not quite as bright as in real life, but the shadows aren't too bad.

The card is 4" square.  I used the Bitty Banners Framelits so that my banners would match.  It helped that they were just the size I wanted.

 Here's the inside of the card:

Stamps:  Vintage Vogue, Teeny Tiny Wishes

Designer Series Paper:  Floral District

Card Stock:  Rich Razzleberry, Tangerine Tango, Baja Breeze, Whisper White

Ink:  Tangerine Tango

Big Shot:   Bitty Banners Framelits, Butterfly Embosslits

Now that you've seen my sample, why not create your own challenge entries?  You can see the rest of the design team samples and link your project by following these links:

Techno Stamper/Monday Lunchtime Challenge
LNS Challenge

Best of...Flowers (and more)

The March Best of set has been announced.  It's Best of...Flowers.  I love this set, because it contains some of my favorite flower images.  Remember to save your Proofs of Purchase, because if you buy 6 of these Best of sets, you can get a free stamp set (or buy all 12 and get 2 sets free).

The following blurb is provided by Stampin' Up:

For our 25-year anniversary, we’re bringing back some of our favorite stamp images from the last quarter century and combining them into 12 sets, which will release—one set per month—during 2013. Even better, along with some great classic images, each “Best of” set will also include a never-before-seen image.

133342    Best of Flowers   (English; clear-mount)   $14.95

This set and the following promotion can be ordered through my Online Store.  And remember, during Sale-a-Bration if you place a $50 order (before shipping and tax), you get to choose an item for free!  I love the exclusive SAB items this year!

 

Don't forget about the Sent With Love promotion, which ends April 30th.  You can purchase the stamp set or the Designer Series Paper (DSP) separately.  Or, you can order the bundle, which includes the stamp set, DSP, and Calypso Coral Baker's Twine, and save 20%

131847	Sent with Love Stamp Set (clear-mount; English only)	$17.95
132182	Sent with Love Designer Series Paper	$10.95
132851	Pretty Bundle Includes the Sent with Love Stamp Set, Sent with Love Designer Series Paper, and Calypso Coral Baker's Twine	$25.50 20% off retail value!

This Designer Series Paper is so cute in person!

And one more thing...

The Introductory Kit for Paper Pumpkin is set to mail on March 15th.  You must sign up by March 10th if you want one of those kits to go to you.  Remember, this kit is complete with everything you need to complete the projects.  All you need is adhesive.  When you sign up, please be sure to select me (Sue Root, Raleigh, NC) as your demonstrator.  And if you would, please send me an e-mail to let me know so I can thank you.

Note:  the Introductory Kit is the only monthly kit that comes with a clear block.  After that, if a kit has a stamps in it, they will fit on that block.

There is also a Trial Kit that will be available in early March (in case you aren't ready to sign up for the monthy kits).  I'll let you know when they are available.

See more information on my previous post:  http://stampin-with-sue.blogspot.com/2013/01/paper-pumpkin-fantastic-new-stampin-up.html

Aren't all these new products and promotions great?  It's exciting to see what Stampin' Up comes up with.

Thanks for stopping by my blog.  Remember, if you don't have a demonstrator yet, I'd love to be yours.  And to those of you who have already chosen me -- THANK YOU!

New Product - Photopolymer Stamps

Introducing Photopolymer Stamps - in other words, Completely Clear Stamping.

You can see more information and some cute samples on the Stampin' Up Blog. 

Stampin' Up has provided the following information:

We've searched long and hard for just the right material to be able to introduce completely clear stamping. And we've found it. We're excited to announce that we now have wood-mount, clear-mount AND photopolymer stamps! The new photopolymer will be an addition to our stamp line and will appeal to all types of stampers. Our top-quality photopolymer has just enough give to create a perfectly stamped image every time and with the introduction of our firm-foam pads, let's just say they're meant for each other! Photopolymer stamps will also be unique, fun designs that will inspire you and provide more versatile options you may not see in our traditional wood- and clear-mount stamp options.

What makes them so great?

• They're entirely transparent for perfect placement every time! 
• They are durable. The photopolymer material is designed to last. 
• Can you say sticky? (Don't worry; in a good way.) These stamps stick amazingly well to our clear blocks.
• They're age tested. They won't yellow or cloud up over time. 
• They use FDA, food-safe material. How far can you stretch your stamping creativity? 
• We could go on, but we'll let you try them for yourself. 

 They are clearly a great choice.

132956

Designer Typeset Photopolymer Stamp Set Recommend clear blocks A, B, G, F, and I. Purchase separately. Includes 57 pieces. (Don't faint! This is a good overwhelming feeling.)

$13.95

This item and other quality Stampin' Up products are available through my Online Store.

 The Fine Print

• Photopolymer stamps will be offered on a trial basis*. Based on popularity, we hope to release more photopolymer stamp sets over the coming months. At this time we don't plan on offering a line of photopolymer sets as expansive as our wood-mount and clear-mount lines.
• Available on all order types beginning March 1, 2013. 
• Not available in wood-mount or clear-mount.  
• All photopolymer will be packaged in cello bag w/insert, but don't forget you can store them in our clear cases.

 *Since this product line is being offered on a trial basis and is not currently included in our catalog, we won't have a standard amount of time that each set is offered.  You might want to buy it now since there are no guarantees that it will be available tomorrow.

There's Only One You...

We made this card in my February club meeting.  I think it's a fun little card.  Easy, but cute.

The bird stamp is from Spring Sampler.

The phrase is from Vintage Verses.

Designer Series Paper - Floral District.

Card stock colors - Marina Mist, Daffodil Delight, and Whisper White.

Ink colors - Marina Mist and Daffodil Delight.

Late Night Stampers Challenge 212 (Spring Sampler)

The Late Night Stampers Challenge this week is:  Celebrate St. Patrick's Day - make a card with green on it.

Here is my sample:

The shamrock is made using the heart stamp from Spring Sampler.  I just stamped three of them.  Then I used my Stampin' Write marker to draw a stem, color over the flowers on the hearts, and outline the hearts.  The greeting is from Teeny Tiny Wishes and the little burst on the Whisper White strip is from Pennant Parade.  The Designer Series Paper is from the Patterns Stack - Lucky Limeade.

Be sure to check out the samples from the rest of the design team and add your entry here.

 

Monday Lunchtime Sketch Challenge 252 (From My Heart)

 Here is the sketch for this week's Monday Lunchtime Sketch Challenge (aka Techno Stamper Sketch Challenge).

 

And here is my sample.  It features the Stampin' Up set From My Heart.  The greeting is from Teeny Tiny Wishes. The Designer Series Paper is from a Patterns Stack.  The main image was stamped on a circle cut with my Big Shot and the Circles #2 die.  The label is part of the Lots of Tags Sizzlits pack.  And the punches are Word Window and Modern Label.

 This is the inside of my card.  The sentiment is from Stacks of Wishes.  The tea cups are from Morning Cup.  I don't usually share the inside of my cards because, truthfully, I often don't do them at the same time.  I know I should, but I don't.  This time I remembered other stamp sets that coordinate with the images on the front, so I went ahead and finished the inside.  It's a little hard to read in the photo (even though it isn't on the card itself), but it says:

fun times
through thick and thin
good pal
shoulder to lean on
secret keeper
friends forever

You can see the rest of the design team's samples and enter your own creation here.  Hope you'll play along this week.

Beyond the Garden Designer Series Paper

Have you checked out the Stampin' Up Clearance Rack recently?  This beautiful Designer Series Paper, called Beyond the Garden, is only $2.19!

Edit:  2/25/13:  Oops!  I had to make another card for a friend who's been in the hospital and when I went to make it, I realized that the paper on the top card is from Pocketful of Posies.  Like Beyond the Garden, this DSP also contains some very pretty designs and is on the Clearance Rack for only $2.19.  Unfortunately, the picture on the Stampin' Up website doesn't do it justice.

In addition to the pretty DSP, this card also uses the stamp set Blessings From Heaven.  It fits in a business size envelope.

Edit 2/25/13:  Here's the new card I made.  It's similar to the first, but a different size -  the standard 4.25" x 5.5"

 The stamp on this card is from the retired set, Friends Never Fade (and the DSP is Beyond the Garden):

See all the bargains on the Clearance Rack.  While you're there, check out the Large Lace Ribbon Border Punch for only $11.99.  Besides being pretty on it's own right, you can weave ribbon through it for another great look.   Also, one of my favorite DSP's, Paisley Petals, is there.

Late Night Stampers and Monday Lunchtime Sketch Challenges (Patterned Party)

I doubled up my challenges again this week.  I am on the design team for the Monday Lunchtime Sketch Challenge (aka Techno Stamper Sketch Challenge) and I am a guest designer for the Late Night Stampers Challenge.  Since both challenges start on Monday, it's kind of fun to try to incorporate both challenges in one card.

Here's the Monday Lunchtime Sketch for this week.

Here's the Late Night Stampers Challenge:

Happy Birthday! --lets make some Birthday projects

And here's my card for this week:

Stamps:  Patterned Party, Pennant Parade, Teeny Tiny Wishes

Colors:  Island Indigo, Pool Party, Daffodil Delight, Tangerine Tango, and Whisper White

Big Shot:  Top Note

Punches:  Modern Label, Curly Label, 1" Circle

Ribbon:  1/4" Stitched Grosgrain (Daffodil Delight)

Happy Valentine's Day

Wishing you a Valentine's Day filled with love!

You Are Loved Thank You Card

The top of this card was stamped with the flower stamp from You Are Loved.  The Thanks stamp is from Vintage Verses (which you can get for free during Sale-a-Bration).

This card goes together quickly for those times when you need a card in a hurry.  You could easily change up the colors to change the look of the card.

Colors: Night of Navy, Melon Mambo, Whisper White

All Dressed Up

Here's another card I made at the team meeting on Saturday morning.  It was designed by Frances Wagner.  This is the first time I used the Dress Up Framelits Dies.  Isn't that dress made with the More Amore Designer Series Paper just the cutest?  The flower at the waist with the pearl adds a nice touch.  The sentiment is from the All Dressed Up stamp set.  The front says, "happy birthday" and inside it says, "fashionable late...but worth the wait."

Do you ever have something that when you first see it in the catalog you think you aren't going to want?  In my case, it's more like, "Thank goodness!  Finally, something I won't have to buy." (lol)  The dress items were like that for me.  But, as usually happens, now that I've seen samples and made this cute card I know I'll be making more projects with these little dresses and the dress form.

If you love Stampin' Up products (and who doesn't?), why not consider becoming a demonstrator?  It's a great way to get your products at a discount and earn some extra cash.  If you join during Sale-a-Bration you'll get an extra 25% of merchandise for free in your Starter Kit.  See here to join or contact me for more information.  I'd love to have you on my team!  Not only will I be honored if you choose me to be your upline, I'll be here as a resource as you build your business.

Double Challenge (Madison Avenue)

This week I doubled up on my design team challenges - a challenge in itself.  I incorporated both challenges in one card.

The Late Night Stampers Challenge is:

Still Sale-A-Brating!  By now you should have at least one SAB freebie, lets see what you can do with it!  My card has three Sale-a-Bration items on it.

And here is this week's sketch from the Monday Lunchtime Sketch Challenge (aka Technostamper Sketch Challenge - TSSC250):

Here's my card for this week:

The Sale-a-Bration items are:  Vine Street embossing folder, Sycamore Street buttons and the Madison Avenue stamp set.

Colors are:  Lucky Limeade, Tangerine Tango, Daffodil Delight, and Whisper White

I tied Lucky Limeade Baker's Twine in the the button.

And just for kicks, I took my card and changed it up a bit.   This one has a little different color scheme and the Pool Party strip is embossed with the Perfect Polka Dots embossing folder.

 I really changed the colors around on this card.  I left the polka dots and added some Pool Party Sycamore Street ribbon.  Instead of using Baker's Twine on the Sycamore Street button, I used the circle punch from the Itty Bitty Shapes Punch Pack for the center.

This card doesn't follow the sketch, but it was inspired by it and by the cards I'd already made.  As I've said before, that's one of the things I enjoy about sketch challenges.  They spark my creativity and I never know what I'll end up making.  I was going for a single layer card.

 So now that you've seen my card for this week's challenges, why not go check out the samples from the other design team members and create your own card(s) to enter?

Floral District Card for Try Stampin' On Tuesday

I decided to try a challenge I haven't done for awhile - the Try Stampin' On Tuesday Challenge.  I had kind of forgotten about it until I saw Mary Jo's sample earlier this week.  You can see the design team's samples and other entries here.  Maybe you want to go ahead and challenge yourself, too.

I love the Floral District Designer Series Paper (126919).  When I saw this design it reminded me of the retired Flower Burst embosslit (good news - it's on the Clearance Rack for only $2.39 if you go through my Online Store Item No. 114515).  It also reminds me of the big flower in Betsy's Blossoms (clear 126006, wood 126004, digital 127210), but that was too big for this card.  In the challenge sketch, the strip behind the flower was striped, but using striped DSP made the card too busy.  So instead I used my Simply Scored tool to emboss stripes.  It's hard to see in the picture, but it adds a nice touch.

Thanks for stopping by my blog.  Be sure to check back tomorrow to see what I made for the challenges that I'm on the design teams for.

Vintage Verses Shoe Box Swap Card

This morning at our team meeting, we had a shoe box swap.   Here's my card.  It has three different items that you can get for free during Sale-a-Bration (one free item per $50 purchase).

These team meetings are lots of fun because it gives us a chance to get together as demonstrators and talk business, do some stamping, and get to know each other better.  I'd love to have you join my team and you, too, could be a part of this wonderful group of stampers.  During Sale-a-Bration you can get an extra 25% of merchandise with your starter kit.  That's $156.50 worth of great Stampin' Up products for only $99!  Stampin' Up offers lots of resources to help you get your business started and I'll be available for that personal touch.  See more details and join here or contact me for more information.

Stamp:  Vintage Verses (SAB)

Card stock:  Tangerine Tango, Daffodil Delight, Old Olive, Whisper White

Ink:  Tangerine Tango

Accessories:  Vine Street Embossing Folder (SAB), Blossom Punch, Blossom Petals Punch, Sycamore Street buttons (SAB), Lucky Limeade Baker's Twine, Big Shot

Edit 2/10/13 - I was scanning through my blog and noticed that this card is pretty much a CASE of a previous card.  I really liked this card and thought about using it for the swap, but I wanted to use some Sale-a-Bration items.  Apparently I like the layout so much that I came up with twice, lol.

Pop-Up Posies Card

Have you seen the Pop-Up Posies Designer kit?  I like it a whole lot!  The beautiful flower, including the brad, on this card came from that kit.  It comes with tags, flower parts, brads, and a stamp that says, Just for You.

The Lucky Limeade leaves below the flower were made with the Blossoms Petals Punch.  The Pool Party background was embossed with the Cloudy Day Embossing Folder and punched with the Corner Rounder Punch.   The sentiment is from Feel Goods and was stamped on a piece of card stock that was then cut with the Big Shot and Labels Framelits.

You can get all of the items used on this card in my Online Store.   All orders are greatly appreciated.

Late Night Stampers Challenge 209 - Amazing Family

I am very excited and honored to announce that I have been asked to be a guest designer for the Late Night Stampers (LNS) weekly challenge.  Thanks so much for asking me!  I've played along with this challenge several times in the past so you may have seen posts referring to the LNS challenge.  I invite all of you to check out the creative samples made by the design team and also to play along yourself.

This week's theme is Feeling Blue--make a sample with blue as your main color.  Here's what I created:

My sister is also my friend, so it seemed appropriate to put the two together.  The ampersand came from Lovely Letters.  I saw something recently (I think in our demo magazine from Stampin' Up) about using the ampersand from alphabet sets.  That may have helped spark the idea for this card.  I added the butterflies from the Butterfly Embosslits to go with the butterflies on the designer series paper from Patio Party.  I added a rhinestone on bottom image for a little sparkle.  Ink colors are Pool Party and Midnight Muse.

I'm so pleased to be a part of this talented group of stampers.  I hope you enjoy seeing my samples each week.

Monday Lunchtime Sketch Challenge 249 - Spring Sampler

I'm back for my second week as a designer for the Monday Lunchtime Sketch Challenge.  Here's this week's sketch:

Edit 2/4/13 12:41pm Okay, so it was totally bothering me that I forgot the bow on my card (see original entry and post below), so I went back and fixed it.  I like it so much better!  It doesn't look nearly as plain.  Rather than make a whole new card, I tied two pieces of ribbon around the piece that was already on the card.

 I'm going to date myself here, but it made me laugh, so here goes:  as I was trying to describe what I did to add the bow feature, I tried several names - a knot with tails, a fake bow, a mock bow and then...a faux bow.  Funny because it rhymes, yes, but did any of you ever watch One Life to Live back in the 80's?  Bo Buchanan was one of the main characters and as happens on soap operas, one time someone came back to town pretending to be him and everyone else believed the ruse.  Well, in the weekly write-ups, the newspaper kept referring to the imposter as Faux Bo.  It's where my teenage self learned the meaning (and the spelling) of the word.  Just thought I'd share, lol. 

And here's my interpretation of the sketch.  It uses the set Spring Sampler from the Spring Catalog.  I see I forgot my bow.  Guess I should have had the sketch in front of me instead of trying to do it from memory, lol.  Just leaving this one in here for comparison, but really, I think the addition of the "bow" element really improves this card.

Check out all of the other great samples here.  Better yet, play along by creating your own card using this sketch and linking to it so we all can see.

Stamps: Spring Sampler
Colors:  Midnight Muse, Basic Gray, Gumball Green, Whisper White
Accessories:  Scallop Edge Border Punch
Embellishments:  Gumball Green 3/8" Stitched Satin Ribbon

Announcement:  I was asked to be a guest designer for another weekly challenge.  See the details in tomorrow's post.

Simply Adorned - Kanji

Happy Super Bowl Sunday!  I'm looking forward to the game later even though I don't have a favorite team in it this year.  But before the football starts, I have a project to share with you.

Ever since the Simply Adorned line was introduced I've  wanted to try it.  Sadly, it retired before I got the chance.  Can you say -- too many craft ideas, not enough time!?!  When Simply Adorned items turned up on the Clearance list I decided I wasn't going to miss this chance.

Here's my first attempt at a necklace:

It uses the 1 1/2" x 2" Rectangle Charm (116799, $8.79 if you go through my Online Store).  Because it's so big, I like it on the 34" Chain (116853, only $5.19 which I think is cheap for a nice chain that's this long).  The stamp sets I used - Kanji and Asian Artistry- are both retired.  I heat embossed the flowers with gold embossing powder and water colored them with my aqua painter and Water Color Crayons.  The image from Kanji says "love" and was embossed with black embossing powder.

The charm is beveled, which gives it a very finished look.  I took a picture at an angle so you could see the beveling.  Not sure it's the best representation, but you can kind of see it.  It also explains some of the funny looking areas in the top picture.

I had so much fun with the first insert that I made another one using the stamp set Snow Much Fun - no pun intended there :)  I thought it would make a fun winter necklace.  I added some shimmer paint to the snowman's body to give it some zing, but I don't think it's sparkly enough.  Maybe I'll try some Dazzling Diamonds.  I also like how bold the embossing is on my first insert.  It would probably look good on this insert, too.  But, you get the idea.

I can see I'm going to have lots of fun with this particular line of products.  Glad I got mine before they're gone.

This is also my entry for the Late Night Stampers challenge this week, which was to use heat embossing on a project.

Open House Card

What a great group at my Open House on Friday and Saturday!  Both days were very different - Friday was pretty laid back and Saturday had a crowd.  Both days we had a good time stamping and talking about stamping.  I think everyone went away with some new ideas - including me.

Here's the card that everyone got to make for free.

Stamps:  Feel Goods

Card stock:  Island Indigo, Pool Party, Tangerine Tango, Whisper White

Ink:  Pool Party

Accessories:  Elegant Butterfly Punch, Cloudy Day Embossing Folder, Sycamore Street Buttons, Big Shot