Monday, November 30, 2009

GREAT CARD BY LINDA KINCAID

I received this AWESOME card from Linda Kincaid, totally handmade, wishing me a Happy Thanksgiving. I know that Thanksgiving is over and we are now into the Christmas Season, but this card was too beautiful not to show you. What is really magnificent is that she not only stamped the image (Harvest Home) and water colored it, but she made her own designer paper by stamping the Canvas print stamp and extreme elements onto the circle card stock. The pattern she created which she stamped on crush curry is just amazing!
The background card stock is rich razzleberry and the ribbon matches, with just a small piece of crushed curry and then a rhinestone brad. This card is just absolutely beautiful in person. I was so lucky to get a copy that I displayed it right at the inside of my front door in a very prominent position. If you notice on the card, Linda added another personal touch by adding crystal effects.

Saturday, November 28, 2009

HOLIDAY EXTRAVAGANZA SALE IS HUGE SUCCESS!

BEST EVER SALE RIGHT NOW

SU! HOLIDAY EXTRAVAGANZA SALE!

I can't believe how many of you are taking advantage of this great sale! So many things are bundled with deals too good to be true. Many of the bundles include punches that are just about FREE! You may order off of my website any time this week and take advantage of this huge Holiday Sale. And don't forget the 12 days of Christmas sale coming very soon as well!

Huge SALE going on right now on my website. Go to the SHOP NOW white button on the upper right hand corner of my site and click . Bundled Items are amazingly discounted. Or go to brown bar up top of blog that says "SHOP ONLINE'. Either way you will be taken to the best Black Friday sales running the entire week! There is an amazing Ultimate Stampers Bundle and Bundled corduroy buttons and brads and chipboard packages,stamp/punch packages and so much more! I couldn't believe the sale and bought 2 and 3 of some of the bundles OMG, this is the Best Holiday from SU! ever!
One week only! When they are gone they are gone!

Shop in your PJ's! Great DEALS!

HIGHLIGHTS FROM HOLIDAY STAMP CAMP

GREAT FUN AT HOLIDAY STAMP CAMP

I would love to share some photos today of some of the highlights of our Holiday Stamp Camp last Saturday. I've been sharing some of the projects but I haven't shared all of the fun times we had. There were 15 campers who spent the day in Glenville, Pennsylvania at the lovely home of Diana Hnat. Everyone crafted all day, but we managed to find lots of time to eat good food, share old times and make new memories. It was a fabulous day and everyone had a great time.
Diana is working on her bottle cap card. The card in the post below is absolutely gorgeous card.
If this photo of a happy camper doesn't say it all? This is Sharon who luckily was able to attend camp. Sharon's car broke down but that didn't stop her. She wouldn't miss it for the world. She got a ride with Linda and Cathy and was glad she did. Love your smile Sharon!
Hsiao-hui was a guest demonstrator and demonstrated the window effect and stippling holiday technique card in the post below.Remember I said that one of the highlights was Cathy getting her mouth taped. I still don't know all of the details of why but she probably was making too many people laugh. For now her lips are sealed.
Linda wowed all of us with a fabulous homemade french toast. She was so happy that everyone loved it so much, it was the first thing to go!
Paulette truly enjoyed camp. She is a die hard SU! fan and really did a great job on all of her projects. We are going to ask her to guest design for an event in the New Year!
Kim, Cathy and Amanda are working on Katie's wrap around box from the post below. The wrap around box was the hit of stamp camp. Katie is working on dimensions and directions that we will hopefully have available for you soon, so keep checking back. Note that Diana's kitty is enjoying camp as much as everyone else.

Katie did a fabulous job on all of her projects. Everyone loved not only her box but the bottle cap card as well.
Linda's project hasn't been shared on my blog yet. Look for it soon. Linda had a great project that was made with one sheet of designer paper.
The food was certainly a highlight of camp. We had so many delicious things to eat all day. In a future post I promise to share some of the great food that we had. Katie has a big smile on her face.
Cathy and Lori are in the forefront of this photo and Alannah and Amanda come next with Cathy, Paulette and Sharon in the background. All are listed left to right.

This last photo for this post shows Rita working on her bottle caps. Amanda and Alannah are hard at work also.

Friday, November 27, 2009

SCENIC SEASON and WANDERING WORDS TECHNIQUE CARD


AWESOME TECHNIQUE CARD
BY HSIAO-HUI LIN FOR STAMP CAMP
STIPPLING AND WINDOW EFFECT TECHNIQUE

Hsiao-hui Lin did a great job at holiday stamp camp last Saturday. We lucked out because she demonstrated two techniques for us instead of one. The card above is just gorgeous and is an original creation. Hsiao-hui used the SU! stamp sets Scenic Season and Wandering words. The photo just does not do this card justice. It is so beautiful in person. One of the things that makes this card so beautiful is that Hsiao-hui also demonstrated a third technique that involved embossing. She embossed the trees with handsome hunter craft ink and iridescent ice embossing powder. The trees just glistened, they were so beautiful. You can emboss with any color craft ink and it is a wise investment to purchase craft ink spots because then you have all of your favorite colors to emboss with and they come in all of your favorite SU! color groups.
These are the techniques that she wanted to highlight. The stippling was really cool and the window technique was a bonus.
Hsiao-hui also embossed Santa and his sleigh using SU! gold embossing powder. At the holidays you certainly want to add the glitz to your cards. The stippling was done with a stipple brush and brilliant blue and tempting turquoise classic inks. Other blue inks could be used as well. The designer paper is merry moments.
Everyone really loved making this card. Rita looks just lovely.
Sharon is putting the finishing touches on her card.
Kim is really proud of her creation.Alannah shows us her creation as her mum Amanda looks on. These colors are so vibrant and gorgeous together.
Cathy is really proud of her card.
Her smile says it all.

Thanks again Hsiao-hui for another great technique card. Our next Technique card will
be presented at the Holiday Blues class and will be another Hsiao-hui Lin creation!

Thursday, November 26, 2009

A DAY TO TAKE TIME TO CHERISH LOVED ONES with a card made using MY DIGITAL STUDIO

Today is Thanksgiving. It is a day to cherish family, friends, coworkers, neighbors, those that protect and guide us, those that keep us safe, those who do any service, those who care, for everyone, because I know I'm going to leave something out. Have a wonderful day with family and friends. My post today is not only the wish, but a cherish wish for thanksgiving made with my SU! MY DIGITAL STUDIO. If you don't have it yet...this is the BEST Christmas stocking stuffer out there. I made this card in less than 10 minutes, including all of the shadowing, adding the flourish stamps, words, photos, layers, etc. You can get yours on sale now with the Online Extravaganza going on right now. Go to Shop Now in my online store or go above to shop online for the Black Friday sale already in progress (it is a WOWEE kind of sale that you don't want to miss!)

See you all tomorrow more!

Wednesday, November 25, 2009

HAPPY THANKSGIVING - BIG THANKS to YOU!

HAPPY THANKSGIVING TO EACH AND EVERYONE OF YOU!

I CASED this card from a recent Stampin Success. This is a publication by SU! that is mailed to demonstrators each month and is packed with great ideas that we can share with all of you. I loved the card so much that I made this card with my stamping group at our last Shoebox card class. It was a true "wow" card and even more "wow" when you actually see it close up and feel all of the texture. Using the Simple Letters for the Big Shot (I LOVE THESE!) I die cut the word THANKS using a different sheet of Autumn Meadows designer paper (still available) and adhered them to chocolate chip card stock strip using a 2 way glue pen. I added a button latte (love these!) and gold cording (also in the holiday mini and available now!). The other card stock papers are more mustard, tempting turquoise, and very vanilla. I tore the card stock up towards the top and ruffled it a little bit for a more dimensional look. The more mustard card stock background was run with an NEW EMBOSSING FOLDER through the Big Shot. This embossing folder will be available through SU! come January 2010. It is the most frequently used embossing folder out there.
The inside of the card has a sentiment "Happy Thanksgiving" from the Teeny Tiny Wishes set. The leaves are from the Autumn Days stamp set in the main idea book and are stamped in complimentary ink colors to the card stock on the front of the card. Using the berry type stamp I made a wreath with similar ink colors on the envelope. I did mine free hand but Katie Ford my down line shared a tip she learned. She said to punch a circle from card stock and use it as a guide for the stamping to get each of the branches to line up in circular fashion. I thought that was a very cool way to get them to stamp like a wreath.
Here is yet another view where you can see the envelope a little closer up! As I've mentioned in previous posts....This Autumn Days set is so versatile. It has every season covered. This is a great all around stamp set that is great to have.

Well Thanksgiving is here. I'm excited about watching the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade and seeing all the floats, the marching bands, the Rockette's and of course my favorite - Santa. I am so grateful for traditions like these. I am also so grateful for each and everyone of you who enrich my life by just being a part of it. Have a very Happy Thanksgiving and don't eat too much turkey!

Tuesday, November 24, 2009

SPARKLY AND BRIGHT BOTTLE CAPS CARD

SPARKLY AND BRIGHT ORNAMENT CARD WAS A HIT AT STAMP CAMP!

Katie Ford never disappoints when it comes to card making and crafting! She demonstrated this card originally designed by Deb Lehigh of the Remarkable Stampers. Deb demonstrated the use of bottle caps flattened with the Big Shot at a team meeting that Katie went to and Katie was "wowed" into showing this at our camp. Katie's only modification was to use the cupcake from the more the merrier hostess stamp set turned over for the top of the ornament. I think that is so ingenious!
The card stock base is the pretty rose red color. Inside is stamped the sparkly and bright sentiment and let me tell you that what we did with the chunky glitter essentials was certainly sparkly and bright! I think everyone loved this card the best!
We had everyone loving the glitter. Up above are Cathy Stritch and her daughter Kim Mills
facing us and Amanda Hindle and her daughter Alannah the opposite of them.
Lori Butler and Diana Hnat are shown here adding glitter to their bottle caps. They first apply crystal effects and then add lots of sparkly, chunky glitter!
You can see here the almost finished cap by Cathy Weir. Some of the caps are seen flattened over on the left side. Katie ordered these caps from a company that Deb Lehigh recommended and they work like a charm when you flatten them with the Big Shot. These are softer metal variety. You can use regular bottle caps but be careful...as their prongs can get stuck in your clear Lucite plates.
Hsiao-hui is making her caps in all three glitter colors. So yummy!
Since Katie did all of the prep work in flattening the caps, all the campers had to do was glitter them and stamp and draw the ornaments. You can easily recreate this card, but make sure you get the chunky glitter and use crystal effects to adhere. Did you know that crystal effects is one of the best glues on the market? It is not just for giving a clear crystal lacquer finish.
This was such a perfect stamp camp card. The campers were delighted with their results.
Sharon Liberto is working on arranging the different colors of glitter on her caps as Cathy Stritch finishes hers as well. This was truly a "wow" card and we thank Katie for demonstrating this lovely Deb Lehigh creation.

Monday, November 23, 2009

BIG SHOT HOLIDAY MINI BOX AND TAGS

BIG SHOT HOLIDAY BOX AND TAGS
Just when you thought the Holiday Blog Tour was over, we have more great ideas for you. Today I have a project by my good friend Diana Hnat who taught us this box at the Holiday Big Shot class. The mini box is a Big Shot die that was die cut using real red card stock. Diana embossed the top of the box with the textured impressions folder petals-a-plenty which is exclusive to Stampin Up! and then she frosted the box to highlight the poinsettias with shimmer paint which is a real "wow" effect. Shimmer paint by SU! comes in 3 colors champagne mist, frost white and platinum.
Inside the box we have some cool Holiday tags that are just perfect for gifts.
The tags were stamped using the stamp sets Christmas Post (a level 2 hostess set in the main SU! idea book) and Delightful Decorations (a stamp set in the Holiday Mini Catalog) with coordinating ornament punch (also in the mini catalog). You will also notice a snowflake that was punched with the snowflake punch by SU! and embossed with iridescent ice embossing powder.
The tags have either red gingham ribbon attached to them or gold cording.

Sunday, November 22, 2009

LAST MINUTE BLOG TOUR LAST DAY

WRAP AROUND BOX
REMARKABLE LAST MINUTE
BLOG TOUR - LAST DAY

This is our last day of the Remarkables tour, but I want you to know that I will still be posting great holiday ideas this week. Today I wanted to share with you a very special project that my downline Katie Ford demonstrated at our Holiday Stamp camp today. It is the wrap around box and it is is perfect for holiday gift giving. Above is the picture of the outside of the box as well as the inside. You can see that when you open this lovely gift there are 4 inside boxes that alternate and can hide some awesome treats inside.
Katie is seen here showing the ladies how to put the box together in a very sturdy fashion. She used chipboard for the base of the box and next covered the box with Merry Moments dsp for the holidays. This box is not a new concept. About a year or so ago...my good friend Arleen Graham made several of these and brought them to a Remarkables Team meeting. My jaw dropped when I saw them. Arleen was so sweet and gave Katie the information she needed to put together the boxes.
This view allows you to see that they fold around in wrap around style and the card stock matches the dsp perfectly Here Katie used old olive, real red, chocolate chip and garden green card stock.
This is the front of one of Katie's great creations. She used a level 1 hostess set and stamped using stampinwrite markers and then the new ornament punch to punch it out. This stamp set fits inside the punch perfectly.

Sharon Liberto, one of the campers, is adhering her chipboard and dsp.
Rita Gorrick is making a perfect alignment which is very easy to do as Katie prepped well before the class. The dsp pieces fit perfectly.
Hsiao-hui Lin is so proud of her wrap around box. Here she is seen opening the box as if it were her first gift at the Holiday.
This box is really fun to put together. The campers also enjoyed putting together some really neat tags to put inside the inner boxes. Katie also had some special chocolate treats that went right inside the box also.
Lori Butler has done a really nice job with her wrap around box.
This is really a perfect way to give candies and little gifts to friends, family and coworkers. You could put jewelry, ribbons, candy, little mini gifts and so much more inside each box. And did I tell you that Katie mastermind re-engineered this entire box so that we wouldn't have to make each inside box.
What Katie did was to modify the original box. Instead of hand cutting the inside boxes individually to fit inside, Katie decided to make it easier to store items in the box by having each box on the inside close. So...Katie got to work die cutting the Big Shot Bitty Box die (which is EXCLUSIVE to SU!) and then reworked the wrap around part to fit. She spent a lot of time doing this so that the campers could have inside boxes that close and hold the goodies inside.This was truly a fabulous project at stamp camp. You can tell from the picture above that everyone is having a great time. Even Diana Hnat's Siamese kitty - Sammy- is loving the crafting. So what more can I say than "Thanks again Katie for another Fabulous project!" See everyone here tomorrow for a great project by Diana and then I have lots of projects to show you from our Holiday Stamp Camp that took place today!