Christmas In July

Warm Winter Wishes to all of my stampin' blog friends! Well, maybe some warm summer wishes are in order today :) Christmas in July is upon us now and what a wonderful season it is! I've had such a wonderful time creating these holiday cards and it really has me in the holiday spirit! These sweet cards are so fun and easy to make. Join me for a scheduled class or host your own class to get a headstart on your holiday cards. Make 4 of each card with envelopes for just $40! I provide all supplies and adhesive. You just add your creative touch. Email me to set your date!

Scrappin' a Sunny Day

The new Sunny Day Simply Scrappin' Kit is sure to become a fast favorite! Get everything you need to make a variety of projects in this fabulous kit! Every Simply Scrappin' Kit comes with three sheets of exclusive die cute stickers, eight sheets of coordinating textured card stock, and six sheets of Designer Series Paper. All of this is just $19.95 plus tax and shipping!

Join me for a special class where you can turn your Sunny Day Simply Scrappin' Kit into 62 cards! For $40, receive a Sunny Day Simply Scrappin' Kit, scrap map and cutting plan for all 62 cards, and a pack of Whisper White cardstock to use as the base for the cards. Sentiment stamps, Cheep Talk, and various 1/4" grosgrain ribbon will be used to complete these fun and simple cards!

Can't attend the class but still want to create these fun, cards? Order the class by mail! Receive two different 1/4" grosgrain ribbons, the Cheep Talk stamp set, and everything listed above for just $79 (includes tax and shipping!) That is less than $1.25 per card and you'll have left overs!

Click here to send me an email to order this fun kit or get information on an upcoming class!!

It's time to do it!

I have been so blessed to meet an amazing group of stampers and scrappers over the years. I can honestly say, however, the people I've met while being a part of Stampin' UP! are like no others! It's so nice to always have other people around you who enjoy the same things you do!

Can you answer YES to any of these questions?

• I love Stampin' Up! products and supplies!
• I always seem to want it ALL and all at once!
• I enjoy learning new, creative techniques!
• I love a sale! Discounts are great!
• I enjoy meeting new people to craft and create with!
• I could use a little extra income to help my family!

If you can answer YES to just one of these questions, now is the time to join my team!! From July 15 - August 31, a special Mini Starter Kit is available for the incredible low price of $85!! You will receive all of the new In Color Ink Pads, a package of In Color Cardstock, a package of Whisper White Cardstock, "For All You Do" Stamp Set, and all of the business products you need to get rolling as a Stampin' Up! Demonstrator!

The standard $199 Starter Kit is also available during this period. In addition to the 4 stamp sets, 5 inks, and countless tools and accessories, you will also receive all 6 In Color Ink Pads and an In Color Cardstock pack!!

Think about what kind of Demonstrator you want to be. Do you want to get a great discount to help support your stamp and scrap habit? Do you want to make extra income by hosting a few workshops and classes? Do you want to build a career in a creative industry? Are you not sure? Let's get together for a little coffee and stampin' so you can learn more about how to becoming a demonstrator can help build, benefit and enhance your stamp and scrap hobby.

Ready to join my team? The first 5 people to sign up during this fabulous special will receive a special gift from me - your choice of Designer Series Paper, your choice of Corduroy Buttons, and a 1/4" Grosgrain Ribbon!! Simply email me to reserve your spot on my team!!

Just can't wait to sign up? Go to my website and click JOIN NOW. Use the password kellistamps4u and sign up today!!

So hot...so cool!

It reached a whopping 99° in my crazy town today and I swear it had to have been 99% humidity to go along with it! It was definitely an icky sticky day here in Illinois. What a better way to cool off than with a little snow!

I was having a little BLUE inspiration! Snow Swirled is the stamp set that was able to fulfil my chilly dream. The snowflakes are stamped in Brilliant Blue, Bashful Blue, and Bordering Blue. The card base is Brocade Blue. The mat is Brilliant Blue. I tried to incorporate the other three Stampin' UP! blues but just couldn't find any more space :) The sentiment is stamped with Whisper White Craft Ink. To finish it off, I created a "cheater bow" out of the 5/8" Whisper White Satin Ribbon. Remember, you can always click on the image for a larger view!

I think this will make a wonderful addition to my Christmas in July Stamp-A-Stack! Register today through my Meetup site or by emailing me now!

I'm Cracked!!

I've been playing with cracked glass again. Oh my! I just love how each piece turns out so differently depending on where the veins of each crack run. I'm not going to reinvent the wheel. There is an excellent tutorial on Split Coast Stampers that explains the process of how to create cracked glass. The hands on experience, however, gives you a much better understanding of this cool technique! I think I may just have a class coming up!


I've been on a Basic Black/Real Red kick lately. So I used that combination to show this quick and easy Cracked Glass card. Each of the flowers was stamped in Basic Black on Whisper White cardstock and punched with my 1-3/8" circle punch. The middle flower was highlighted in the middle of each blossom with a touch from my Real Red Marvelous Marker. Each piece was then embossed with three layers of Glassy Glaze and cracked to perfection!



While I was cracking things, I wanted to get in another project with one of my absolute favorite stamp sets, The Free and the Brave. I'm very sad to see it retire this year but I know that it is being replaced with an equally beautiful Patrioitic set that I'm so excited to get! For this fairly simple card, I colored the stamp using Chocolate Chip, Real Red, and Brilliant Blue Marvelous Markers. After I stamped on some Whisper White cardstock, I colored in the body of the eagle with Creamy Caramel and the beak with Almost Apricot. Then, it was off to emboss and crack. I really like the way he turned out. The card was finished off by stamping the stars on the base of the card with Versamark and adding the sentiment, colored with Chocolate Chip and Brilliant Blue Marvelous Markers.

Seeing Red...and Spots...and Circles...oh my!!

I've really been wanting to do something fun with my new Circle Circus stamp set. It is a new set from the 2009-2010 Idea Book and Catalog that I got in my sneak peek order. It contains loads of different sizes and patterns of circles. I can't wait to be able to show you everything it offers!!

I made this card for a swap in one of my Korner Klub groups (a.k.a. Hostess Club). The inspiration came from a Technique Junkie tutorial called "Depth of Field". It uses three progressive colors to create a background, middle and forward focus of the eye, almost like creating faux layers.

Card Recipe

Card Stock - Real Red, Sahara Sand, Basic Black

DSP - Jackpot

Stamps - Circle Circus, Teenie Tiny Wishes

Ink - Real Red, Sahara Sand, Basic Black

I think this card makes a nice representation of how a little paper and ink can go a long way in creating a beautiful work of heart. You don't have to spend loads of money on embellishments to turn out greetings that you would be proud to give to your family and friends.

Fifth Avenue Vellum

As promised, I've added one of my favorite vellum overlay cards today. I'll be using this card as an example in the vellum technique class I'm teaching next week. I won't get into the how to's of this technique in this post.

I came back to one of my favorite color combo again...Not Quite Navy, Old Olive, and Chocolate Chip. The vellum has been dry embossed with one of the flowers from Fifth Avenue Floral. The back of the vellum was sponged lightly with Not Quite Navy and Old Olive classic ink before meeting the Scallop Edge Punch. The vellum has been layed over a piece of white cs that was randomly stamped with the other two flowers from Fifth Avenue Floral in Not Quite Navy and Chocolate Chip and mounted on a card base made of Not Quite Navy card stock.

One of the hardest things about working with vellum is trying to get it attached to your card without seeing the adhesive. Using brads or eyelets to attach the pieces is a great option but what if your design doesn't work with bling? A great solution is Stampin' Up! Glue Dots! They are small and show very little through the transparent paper. I used them on this Fifth Avenue Vellum card in four spots (and not all in the corners!) The brad is just an accent. Can you find them?