I've been a bad blogger!!

It's been a crazy couple of weeks.  I spent LOTS of time preparing for a craft show.  I've been making LOTS of cards for birthdays, anniversaries, and thank you's.  I've been working on some of my fabulous gift classes, coaster class, and extreme Christmas cards.  Mix that with my regular daily life and you've got one tired stamper...and a very empty blog!  Lucky for me, things slow down this week so I'll be able to share some fun stuff with you!

One of the cool projects I've been working on is a set of magnetic stones.  These are the stones you get in the flower decorating section of the craft store.  They're about 1-1/4" round with a flat back.  To create this great gift, I pulled out my 1" circle punch and my Play Date Designer Series Paper and started punching.  The numbers on the DSP are just the perfect size to create a set of 0-9 stones with two little flower add ons.   Add a magnet button to the back of each one and you've got a super fun and easy set of magnets that you can give as a gift or keep for your own fridge!  This project will be featured in an upcoming class.  Which one??  Stay tuned!!

Korner Challenge - Very Cherry Delight

Welcome to the September 17 edition of Kelli's Korner Challenge!  Last week, I had a lot of great participation in my first color challenge.  A lot of you said you definitely prefer sketch challenges because a color challenge is just too hard.  Well, I think that means you need some more practice playing with color!! May be four colors was a little much for your first color challenge.  Sometimes I just get a little excited about these kinds of things :-)  For this week, I'm hoping the color challenge will inspire you without making you crazy...tee hee hee!

Cherry Cobbler, Daffodil Delight anf Very Vanilla is your challenge for today.  I chose to steer away from a card today in preparation for some of my holiday gift classes.  Everybody can use a little gift bag now and again.  This bag, inspired by a project I made at a shoe box swap from my upline, is made with the Big Shot Box #2 die as the base then covered with Love Notes Designer Series Paper.  The little pocket in front holds another little gift, a special book mark adorned with a paper flower. 

Now go forth and conquer today's color challenge!  I can't wait to see what you've made!!

Project Recipe
Stamp Set - Smarty Pants
Classic Ink - Cherry Cobbler
Card Stock - Cherry Cobbler, Very Vanilla
Designer Series Paper - Love Notes, Brights Patterns Designer Paper Stack
Accessories - Big Shot, Box #2 Bigz XL Die, Two Tags Bigz Die, Scallop Circle Punch, Scallop Oval Punch, Corner Rounder, Regals Designer Buttons, SNAIL adhesive, Sticky Strip, Linen Thread, 3/8" Daffodil Delight Satin Ribbon, Cherry Cobbler Seam Binding

Feel Better Soon - Tea Bag Holder

Happy Monday!  Oh wait, it's Tuesday, isn't it?  Holiday weekends always get my week all goofed up.  I'm sure it will all be back to normal by Friday!!  The weekend was really very creatively productive.  I got a lot of stamping and creating in as well as some unfun house "stuff".  The weather was gorgeous.  We got to have a fabulous barbeque at my parents house yesterday.  I LOVE my dad's ribs.  They're so tasty!  All in all, it was a nice weekend all the way around!

My share for you this morning is this little tea bag holder, template courtesy of the Stampin Addicts 3-D Challenge.  You can check out the challenge and project instructions here. I  know when I'm not feeling well, a cup of hot tea is often just what the doctor ordered.  I think this little card would make anyone smile, especially when they need a nice pick me up.

Now I'll be honest.  The sick dog from Wellness Wishes has never been one of my favorite stamps.  It's kinda creepy.  This is the second project I've stamped with him in as many days, however.  I might actually be falling for him!  I guess if you think about it, when was the last time you looked like a supermodel when you weren't feeling well? This poor little guy is ill and looking pretty pathetic, just like I know I do when I'm feeling less than perfect.  Ok, I know it's a stretch, but I'm going with it because it works great for this project! 

That's all for today, folks.  I'm off to make myself a nice cup of coffee and get going with my Tuesday that feels like Monday!  Happy Stamping!!

Project Recipe
Stamps - Wellness Wishes, Word Play
Ink - Black Stazon, Marina Mist, Pacific Point, Sahara Sand
Card Stock - Sahara Sand, Pacific Point, Cajun Craze, Marina Mist, Naturals White
Accessories - Scalloped Lace Border Punch, Tag Corner Punch, Marina Mist 1/8" Ribbon, Cajun Craze Stampin Write Marker, Blender Pen, Big Shot, Texturez Plates, Sticky Strip, SNAIL Adhesive, Tea Bag

Simply Lovely

The weather is very fall like in these parts.  Yesterday I was out with my older son all day and I had to wear a sweater to keep from shivering.  Of course, once he got behind the wheel to get some driving practice in, I had to take my sweater off because I was sweating bullets!  No worse for the wear am I but on our ride, I definitely saw signs of things to come.  Leaves starting to change, a couple falling here and there.  Summer is definitely over, folks.  There are only 111 days left until Christmas!!

I have a special event coming up.  I don't want to spoil any surprises so I won't tell you exactly which event but it's one I host every 3 months and sounds like "dingo".  For my make-n-take, I wanted to showcase a fun project tha would make a lovely gift for a special neighbor, coworker or maybe a teacher.  We made a card folder similar to this at the preconvention events that I attended this year.   Really simple to make and, I think, a wonderful gift to receive.

I pulled out Lovely as a Tree.  I haven't stamped with that set in a while.  I honestly forgot how much I love it!  It's been sitting quietly in a drawer while I've been playing with all of my new sets.  I'm ever so glad I found it!  I think this set makes wonderful chalked images, which is exactly what I've done to all of the tree images.  Stamp in Versamark, daub with chalk.  I love the way the colors of a stamped image blend so nicely together.  For the card, I pulled out Define Your Life to show how wonderful "simple" cards can be.  On the others I made, I stamped a variety of sentiments from Teeny Tiny Wishes.

For all of you who are coming to that special event that sounds like "dingo", you'll get full instructions on how to make this cool folder and will make your own to take home.  Anyone who wants to come a little early to start their stamping is more than welcome to do so.

I'm off to create this month's Super Set Sunday class.  I've got about 10 hours before my pulled pork is ready for dinner and I think stamping away my day is a perfect way to pass the time.  Happy Stamping!

When you have some extra roof flashing...

Make tea light holders!  I've been threatening to try this project ever since I saw a shoe box swap of this style at convention.  I've seen tons of pictures of these cool tea light holders all over the internet so it's impossible for me to give credit to any one person for the inspiration.  I'll just say to whoever thought this up first, YEAH YOU!!  This was so much fun!

Ok, Kelli...what are you talking about?  Flashing is a roofing material used to weatherproof your roof.  You'll see it around chimneys or vent pipes. It's generally made of some kind of sheet metal.  The stuff that's pretty easy to find your local home improvement store is made of aluminum.  It comes in rolls with sizes from 6" wide to 14" wide and as long as 50 feet or more on a roll.  Most of it is silver in color but I was able to find a coated flashing that was brown on one side and white on the other. (If you need to know more about flashing, check out this Wikipedia link.)  For my particular project, I purchased a roll of flashing that is 14 inches wide (the same size as the Bigz XL dies) and 10 feet long.

To put this in the simplest of terms, I cut the flashing to 6" x 14" and put it through my handy dandy Big Shot using the Flower Folds die.  I ran each piece back through the Big Shot using an embossing folder.  I bent the small flower up and the large flower down, assembled them with some sticky strip and voila!  We have a tea light holder :-)  I know that sounds overly simplistic but I'm telling you, it was SO easy.

 A couple words of caution.  Flashing is SHARP!  I cut myself and didn't even know I was bleeding.  This is not a project for kids.  Also, you will probably need a card stock shim when you cut the flowers out.  Even through it's thick enough to go through with a cut, you do need a little extra push because the material is so thick.

Go try making yourself a great little tea light holder out of roof flashing!  I bet your hubby will be pretty impressed you 1) know what flashing is ;) and 2) figured out a unique way to use some of those scraps.  I really want to stamp on this stuff.  I'll report back with the results!

A thank you treat

Coming soon to a Holiday Mini Catalog near you is the new Candy Wrapper Large Die for the Big Shot!  I am totally in love with this little treat!  I whipped up this little thank you gift in a matter of minutes using this great new die!  Filled with some tasty sweets, this little treat would make a great thank you gift at a shower, wedding or birthday party! The color combination for this little treat came right out of our fabulous Color Coach!  It's Crumb Cake, Cajun Craze, and Marina Mist.

Project Recipe
Card Stock - Crumb Cake, Whisper White
Classic Ink - Cajun Craze
Stamp Set - Perfect Punches
Accessories - Big Shot, Candy Wrapper Large Die, Marina Mist 1/8" Taffeta Ribbon, Silver Brads, Adhesive Rhinestones, Scalloped Oval Punch, Stampin' Dimensionals, Sticky Strip, Mini Glue Dots

Simply Square

Square is the place to be :)  I love this note card set.  It's totally simple, quick and easy!  The new Newsprint Designer Series paper makes for a great, old time look to the cards.  Of course, they're mounted on my new favorite color, Cherry Cobbler!!  The box is my own design.  It holds all six of these cards with envelopes or will hold 10 cards nicely without the knot.  Enjoy the box design.  The starting page size is 8-1/4" x 11".  I'd love to see how you're able to make it work into your own card set designs!!

Card Box

A quick share

I really love the Box #2 die for the Big Shot.  It's really very versatile!  This basket is made from two die cuts mounted back to back then decorated with some DSP.

So simple and easy, right?  This fun little basket makes a great gift carrier or desk caddy.

Grab your big shot and make something fun!!

Chocolate Monkey Suckers and a Cupcake Tree

I had an amazing weekend!  For those of you who have followed my blog for a while, you'll know I was taking a poll a few months back as to which invitation to use for my sister's baby shower. (We decided on the pocket card.)  Saturday was the shower and it was wonderful fun!  We had a house full of family and friends.  We had family in from out of state that we hadn't seen in quite some time, too, so that helped make it an even more special day!  Lil Sis was showered with wonderful gifts that will be ever so useful when my nephew makes his debut sometime around the beginning of July.  I can't wait to meet him!!

So, you know if I was making the invitations, I had to make the decorations :)  The baby's room has a monkey theme so we kept with that and used Brocade Blue and Chocolate Chip as our colors. I had lots of help getting these decorations and favors ready.  Mickey, Audra, Madison, and Heather - Thank you for helping alleviate my stress.  You guys did a great job!!!  Below is a description of some my favorite party decorations and favors.  You can click on any of the pictures for a larger view.

WELCOME BABY Banner - We made this banner from the Stampin' Up! Pennant Die the morning of the shower.  It went together so quick easy!  Each of the pennants is connected with a 3/8" Chocolate Chip brad and the ends with the ribbon are reinforced with Pewter Jumbo Eyelets.

Cupcake Tree - With lots of help, we made Lemon, Chocolate, and Red Velvet cupcakes for the shower.  I was even able to mix icing that was frighteningly close to Brocade Blue!  Each cupcake was wrapped up so cute thanks to the Perfect Setting Big Shot die. BB - chocolate, CC - red velvet, CC DSP - lemon.  On the top of each one sits a great little cupcake pick made by sandwiching a toothpick between two scalloped circle punches.  Look closely at the photo.  I used a 16x20 mirror as the cupcake tree tray.  In the lower right corner, I applied the "M is for Monkey" Decor Element.  So cute, right??  Now that it's not being used as a cupcake tray, it will be put in a frame and hung in the baby's room.

Chocolate Monkey Suckers - I'll be brutally honest.  I hope I never have to get these chocolate molds out again :-)  I made about 60 of these monkeys in both milk chocolate and peanut butter chocolate.  They were really tasty and so cute!  Each monkey was wrapped in a cello bag and mounted on a flower made with the Stampin' Up! exclusive Flower Folds die.  We tied the little thank you notes to each one and put them into vases for fun and tasty table arrangements.  I'll definitely use this idea again! 

Game Night!

Yesterday was the first Stampin Bingo game I've hosted in Kelli's Korner.  We had a GREAT time!!  The final game was a cover all that ended up being worth $71 in Stampin' Up! merchandise!!  The wonderful lady who won that game added a couple bucks and is anxiously awaiting her BIG SHOT!!!  How awesome is that??

Our Make and Take for Bingo was this handy score pad.  I had some legal pads cut in half and we created a quick and easy cover with a magnetic closure.

The stamp set we used is called Game Night.  I love it.  I think it's a fun set that gets overlooked way too often.  The word "score" was stamped with what I think is one of the greatest alphabet sets ever...Just Perfect Alphabet.  They are all lower case letters.  Not too big. Not too small.  Just Perfect :-)

I added a piece of Designer Series Paper over the top of the pad so you couldn't see the office supply store logo.  I think these turned out super cute and everyone at Bingo loved them also!  I can't wait to use mine for a little Uno challenge with my son!!

Shabby or chic?

Ok...feel free to click on the picture to get a bigger view.  I'm torn.  I've now made several fabric flowers but I don't know which version I like better.  On one hand, I like the ease and simplicity of the "chic" version on the left. On the other hand, I really love the "shabby" frayed and currled edges of the version on the right.  The kids aren't any help to me today.  They're being just as indecisive as I am!

Bonus on the "chic" version...once it's done, it's done.  No waiting on the wash/dry factor.

Bonus on the "shabby" version...I'm getting a lot of laundry done!  It would be a crime to just wash a couple fabric flowers.

What do you think?  I'm really looking for some opinions here.  I have a pile of flowers that I either need to wash or walk away from.  Actually, I'm not even sure what I'm going to do with all of the pins I've made so far!   Oh what to do, what to do.  Opinions, please!!  :)



**Note to yesterday's blog readers...I tried the folded vs. stacked version in the washer and have decided I like them both, unfortunately!  I will probably continue to use the stacked version when I have 3 fabrics to use as opposed to 2 or 4.  Easy way to distinguish at least that part of my flower pin dilema :)

You're right. I don't sell fabric, but...

I do have this fantastic flower die for the Big Shot that makes the coolest fabric flowers you've ever seen!

While I was at the SU leadership conference last week, I saw tons and tons of fun flower pins and embellishments made with the Stampin' Up! exclusive Bigz XL Die Flower Folds.  Who knew you could cut multiple layers of fabric with the Big Shot?  I've had a very good time cutting fabric.  So much fun that I really want to place an order for just about every die in the catalog :)

These flower embellishments are actually quite simple to make.  The purpleish pin on the left is made using all four flowers from the Flower Folds die.  I cut three coordinating fabrics in each size and layered them all together.  I hand stitched the middle and added some Stampin' Up! clear buttons to the center.  I threw it into the washing machine then dryer to get the frayed and currled edges.

The pink pin was made without fraying the edges and using a pretty simple folding technique to get the flowers placed just right.  The buttons in the center are from the Playground Designer Buttons and Button Latte.  They work really well with this project, don't they?  I can't wait to make pin in this particular style and throw it into the washer just to see what happens!  I really like the shabby chic style of the frayed edge but i also love the clean edge of the folded look.  At least I know I have options!

The Flower Folds Bigz XL Die is exclusive to Stampin' Up!  If you'd like to learn to make these shabby chic flowers on your own, shoot me an email!  I'll happily give you a free Flower Folds pin class with the purchase of the Flower Folds die!

Don't forget, Sale-A-Bration is going on now!  Purchase the Flower Folds die plus an additional $7.05 in merchandise and you will qualify to receive an item from our exclusive Sale-A-Bration catalog!  Can it get any better???  A great die, a free class, and free "stuff"!!  Email me today to reserve your die, schedule your class and pick out your free stamps!

Happy Stamping!

Basket Full of Valentines

My youngest son is a Boy Scout.  At summer camp this year, he was introduced to leather working for the first time.  He absolutely loved it.  Now, this is my son who thinks "crafts" are totally "uncool".  He humors me on occasion when I'm kinda lonely in my stamp room.  He'll add his finger so I can tie a bow or tell me how great one of my projects is.  He's just NOT interested in stamping.  So be it.  He is a boy's boy after all!

The other day, we were looking through all the different merit badges he can earn.  One of them happens to be basket making.  He was intrigued. (Seeing a trend here??)  "How might one create a basket", he asks.  I felt it was my duty as his mother to show him how a simple basket weave, one piece atop another, was how to start a simple basket.  The child, genius I tell you, says, "Why don't you do that around that stupid paper box thing and make a paper basket?" (Yes, the craft unappreciation is back.)  He was totally kidding but I thought it was a great idea and the Basket Full of Valentines was born!!

Join me in Kelli's Korner on Sunday, January 31 to make your very own Basket Full of Valentines.  I will teach you the fine art of turning Stampin' Up! exclusive designs into a fun basket that can hold your 12 mini Valentines or a treat for someone special.  Can't make it on the 31st?  A Kit-To-Go could be the answer!  Get full instructions and all the pieces you need to make this fun basket.  Email me today to reserve your spot in the class or order your Kit-To-Go!

Bucket Full of Valentine Treats

A couple years ago, my mom, Mickey and I attended an event where we altered a paint can for someone special at Valentine's Day.  My kids really enjoyed the crafty candy filled tin.  One more thing for them to fight over...the chocolate, not the crafty can :)  My dad, on the other hand, carried his treats all around the house in the special bucket from his sweetie!  I promise you, if I were to ask for him to produce it today, it wouldn't be far away and I'm sure it's been restocked with something sweet.

Give your sweetie a sweet treat this Valentine's Day with a custom bucket full of love!  (Yes, I know how cheesy that sounds...humor me!)  On Wednesday, February 3 from 6:00 - 10:00 in Kelli's Korner, we will be embellishing buckets all night long.  Come when you can.  Stay as long as you like.  You will have creative control over your very own bucket.  Choose from bunches of different Designer Series Paper patterns, punches, stamps, and ribbon to make your bucket perfect!

Because I need to ensure we have enough supplies for everyone, all RSVP's must be in to me no later than January 17.

BUNCO!!!!

I love playing Bunco!  I am a part of a Bunco club that meets every month and it is definitely one of my favorite "non-stamping" activities.  There are 12 of us plus a couple of subs that have really found an affection for not only the game but also the bonding only crazy women fighting over that last fuzzy die can really understand.  If you're a player, surely you'll understand what I mean :)  dIf you're not a player, you can learn more about playing Bunco here.

I thought it would be kinda fun to share my love of Bunco with the new friends I'm sure to meet at the Stampin' UP! Leadership conference this week.  I created this super awesome hand held Bunco game as one of my swaps!  I'll admit, I went through multiple iterations of this design before I got to this one but I'm super pleased with how it turned out!

You can shake this baby to your heart's content and the little dice will toss and turn and (hopefully) give you the Bunco you need to take that fuzzy dice.  Slap a magnet on the back and try your luck everytime you walk past the fridge :)  Just like my monthly Bunco club, my bunco's have been pretty few and far between but I'm gonna keep shaking cuz I'm sure one will roll out here on the next roll...or the next one...or the next one...

It's actually a lunch bag

Isn't this just adorable?  This super cool gift bag has been made from a brown paper lunch sack!  Stampin' UP! papers and stamps can dress up anything!!

I really like the black, white and red color combination.  The black and white paper is from the Holiday Mini Catalog.  It's called Night & Day Specialty.  I've been waiting for a black and white set for a long time.  The Real Red polka dot ribbon is a fan favorite and compliments this layout very well.  The stamps from Circle Circus embossed in Basic Black Craft Ink and embossing powder make a great accent on this bag.

I'll be holding a couple Gift Packaging Buffets in November and December.  You can bet your bottom dollar this great gift bag will be a part of the fun!

It's a...

WREATH!! This cool wreath was made with Jackpot Designer Series paper and embellished with some 10mm dice beads. I was inspired by my bunco group to make this wreath. It's my first "official" decoration in my new craft room! You can click on the image for a larger view.

Congratulations to DawnMay, Teri, Beth Redding, Ellen Kemper, and Chrissiesz for guessing the project correctly. And a super special congratulations to Ellen Kemper!! Your name was selected to win a 6x6 DSP pack!! Please email me with your mailing address and I'll get your prize out to you!!

I will post a tutorial for making this wreath in the next day or two. The quick basic instructions are as follows:

10" Styrofoam wreath

6 full sheets DSP, cut into 1" x4" strips

sticky strip

Create loops of DSP holding them closed with sticky strip. Use sticky strip to glue each loop to the wreath. Work in rows going around the wreath. I didn't cover the whole back so it would lay against the wall nicer.

This took about 4 hours to complete. I'm going to do another one with the Autumn Spendor DSP and die cut leaves. I'll post as soon as it's complte. Enjoy!!