Happy New Year 2008

I have been having fun playing with some of the new sets from the brand new 2008 Spring and Summer Idea and Catalog. I'm SO excited to share a few of the wonderful new products we will soon be able to order (January 2nd after noon!) And you can believe I'm going to be ordering!!

I made 10 cards today - just had to share!!



Stamp Set: Embrace Life
Card Stock: Ruby Red, River Rock, Ginger Blossom Designer Paper
Ink: Basic Black, Ruby Red Stampin Write Marker
Accessories: Groovy Guava Double Stitched Ribbon, Rhinestone Fire Brad, Eastern Elegance Rub-ons (YES, these are brand new and SO fun - the words "so very very cute" are rub-ons)
Punch: Large Oval



Stamp Set: Embrace Life
Card Stock: Ruby Red, River Rock, Groovy Guava, Ginger Blossom Designer Paper
Ink: Basic Black, Cameo Coral Stampin Write Marker
Accessories: Half Pearl from Pretties Kit, Eastern Elegance Rub-ons



Stamp Set: A Beautiful Thing, Sincere Salutations
Card Stock: Whisper White, Groovy Guava, River Rock, Ginger Blossom Designer Paper
Ink: Ruby Red,
Accessories: Pretty in Pink 1/4" Grosgrain Ribbon, Eastern Elegance Rub-ons
Punch: Key Tag



Stamp Set: Fabulous Flowers, All Holidays
Card Stock: Ruby Red, Cameo Coral, River Rock, Ginger Blossom Designer Paper
Ink: Ruby Red, Basic Black
Accessories: Groovy Guava Double Stitched Ribbon, Gold Brads
Punches: Double Rectangle, Ticket Corner Punch



Stamp Set: Embrace Life
Card Stock: Taken with Teal, Pumpkin Pie, Blush Blossom, Bali Breeze Designer Paper
Ink: White Craft Ink, Taken with Teal Stampin Write Marker
Accessories: Bold Brights Brads, Ice Rhinestone Brads, Winter White Embossing Powder, Eastern Elegance Rub-On (Smile sentiment)
Punches: Photo Corner, Large and Small Oval
Technique: Stained Glass

I stamped the flowers in white craft ink and then embossed with Winter White Embosssing Powder. I then used my Taken with Teal Stampin Write Marker and colored the flower petals. On the big flower I used the same technique by stamping the flower on pumpkin pie with craft white and embossing it with Winter White Embossing Powder.



Stamp Set: Fabulous Flowers, Celebrate Everything
Card Stock: Taken with Teal, Bali Breeze Designer Paper
Ink: Taken with Teal, White Gel Pen
Accessories: Tempting Turquoise 1/4" Grosgrain Ribbon, Bold Brights Brads
Punches: Photo Corner Punch

I cut out the big flower from the Bali Breeze Designer Paper.



Stamp Set: A Beautiful Thing
Card Stock: Taken with Teal, River Rock, Bali Breeze Designer Paper
Ink: Taken with Teal, White Gel Pen, Taken with Teal Stampin Write Marker
Accessories: Tempting Turquoise 1/4" Grosgrain Ribbon, Gold Brads
Punches: Corner Rounder, Round Tab, Scallop Circle, Large Oval



Stamp Sets: A Beautiful Thing, Celebrate Everything
Card Stock: Pumpkin Pie, Taken with Teal, Bali Breeze Designer Paper
Ink: Taken with Teal, White Gel Pen
Accessories: Tempting Turquoise 1/4" Grosgrain Ribbon
Punches: Scallop Circle, 1 3/8" circle, Large and Small Oval



Stamp Sets: Big Flowers, Scatter Sunshine Jumbo Wheel, Short & Sweet
Card Stock: Almost Amethyst, Soft Sky
Ink: Almost Amethyst, Soft Sky
Accessories: Soft Sky Double Stitched Ribbon
Punches: Scallop Circle, 1 3/8" & 1 1/4" Circle, Word Window



Stamp Set: Cause for Celebration (New Level 2 Hostess Set)
Card Stock: Soft Sky, Soft Sky Designer Print Paper, Whisper White
Ink: Blue Bayou
Accessories: Soft Sky Double Stitched Ribbon
Punches: Scallop Circle, 1 3/8", 1 1/4", 1" circle punches

Secret Garden Simply Scrappin' Kit 80 Cards

I hope you all had a wonderful Christmas. We did, with lots of family and much much too much to eat!! But it was fun and relaxing.

My goal this year was to make cards for the girls in my family. I made 80 cards from the Secret Garden Simply Scrappin' Kit. The kits come with 8 sheets of textured cardstock, six sheets of double sided designer print paper and 6 sheets of adhesive die cuts all to match.

For these kits, you need the actual Simply Scrappin' Kit and 40 pieces of cardstock for the card bases. I used the matching card stock colors of Groovy Guava, Old Olive, Always Artichoke and River Rock. The original instructions say to make up sets of 4 cards alike, but since I like my cards different, I change each card as I go to make it a little different, but use the same layout. Since I do add a few things I would say the cost would include about 4 extra sheets of cardstock to add layering.

If you are interested in a class, I will make up instructions to fit that class. This is a wonderful way to make up cards to last a long time at a very reasonable cost. I estimated the cost of the kit and the cardstock (including shipping) and extra embellishments (ribbon, brads, etc.) to be under 50 cents per card.

Here are the 80 cards I made from the Secret Garden Simply Scrapping Kit

Criss Cross Nugget Box

I'm having fun tonight - read through my new Spring and Summer 2008 Idea and Catalog and have it all marked up!

Now I must get down to business and get my last minute gifts done.

Here's a darling little nugget box to make. It's small, but will hold about 1/2 a cup of nuts or whatever else you might want to put in it. I'm going to make one for each of the men in our family!!








I first saw this little gem on Cambria Turnbow's Blog. She made a darling box and pointed us to directions on Nichole Heady's site. Nichole has directions and a template to download to make this little jewel.

It takes one piece of 8 1/2 x 11" cardstock. Instead of stamping the cardstock, I used Close to Cocoa cardstock and added some Outlaw Designer Paper. The box measures 4 1/4" x 3". Just enough to add a little something to someone's stocking or package.

I used creamy caramel card stock and punched out with the scallop circle punch. I backed that with Chocolate Chip (round tab punch circle). I didn't have a stamp, so I printed out "Nuts For You" from my printer and then punched it out with the 1 1/4" circle punch.

I used the Round Tab Punch to make the closure for the little bag with about 1/2 cup of cashews then stapled the punch over the top with Happy Holidays from Tags on Board.

If you need a quick thank you, this would make a cute little box to hold a couple of brownies, M&M's, or even a bar of savory soap!!

That's all for tonight - I promise!!

Flip Flop Album

A few weeks ago, Catherine and I were invited to a local scrapbooking store by our friend, Char, for a class on Flip Flop Albums. WOW! They were SO fun and easy. Ellen Smallwood taught this class and I give her all credit - she deserves it for figuring this out.

So.....a light went on in my head!! Gifts for Christmas!! So...a little background...

My mother had to leave her home almost four years ago. We moved her into a foster care home and cleaned out her place. There are five of us children and all came home to help - in one day we completely packed her little home and moved everything into storage. While going through things my oldest brother found a box of negatives - not being too sentimental, he chucked them into the garbage. My son rescued them and eventually started scanning them to see what they were. WOW - a treasure for us scrapbookers. Pictures we never remember seeing!!

My Mom passed away in September 2006 at the age of 90 (Dad had been gone for 16 years); last year was too soon to do anything. But this year, I took those pictures my son scanned and had them printed and am making these flip flop albums for my brothers and sisters.

It's very hard to take a picture of the album and really get the feel, but I wanted to share my creation. I can feel a class coming on for these books!!

FRONT COVER




LABEL



INSIDE COVER:

Daddy and Mother's Wedding Day November 14th, 1936



NEXT OPENING



THE ALBUM OPENED UP WITH THREE DOORS



DOOR #1

Us five kids taken about 1955 or 1956



NEXT PICTURE

Daddy and Mom taken not long after they were married



DOOR #2

My Brother and His Wife (this album is for them)



NEXT PICTURE

My Dad loved to hunt (mostly in Colorado). Here he is with a prize buck and my oldest brother proudly showing it off



DOOR #3

Us five taken around 1952 (yes, I'm the youngest!)



ANOTHER PICTURE (Inside one flap)



I had such fun with these photos and putting this album together.

I used Almost Amethyst and Whisper White textured cardstock for the album itself and decorated it with Almost Amethyst Prints Designer Series papers. The "doors" are decorated with flowers from the Pretties Kit sponged with a sponge dauber in Almost Amethyst and then attached with a rhinestone brad.

Can you imagine the combinations? My next one will be red, then probably a green one and a brown one........

Well, that's all for tonight.

BIG NEWS

I received my complimentary copy of the NEW STAMPIN' UP IDEA AND CATALOG for Spring and Summer 2008. So, guess where I'm headed? Going to read it from cover to cover!!

If you would like a catalog, please let me know - they should be here before the end of the year. They are $5 and you receive a coupon with the book for $5 off your first order of $25!!

Happy Holidays to all my friends!!

Retirement Party!!

We had our "retiring" party last night. We had fun making some cards out of the retiring sets.

Catherine showed us this card - didn't she do an excellent job with the Serene Sunflower? Check out the other Serene Sunflower sets - this is SUCH a versatile set. Christmas Cards, Spring cards - it will be going, going gone on December 31st!!




Stamp Sets: Serene Sunflower, Itty Bitty Backgrounds, Short and Sweet
Card Stock: Wild Wasabi, Summer Sun, Really Rust, Whisper White
Ink: Summer Sun, Really Rust, Wild Wasabi
Embellishments: Wild Wasabi Double Stitched Ribbon, Jumbo Pewter Brads, Small and Large Oval Punches

These next three cards are all made with Looks Like Spring which is retiring December 31st. The punch, Spring Flower Bouquet, which accents this set is also retiring.

Pink and Brown Looks Like Spring



Stamp Sets: Looks Like Spring, Short and Sweet
Card Stock: Pretty in Ink, Close to Cocoa, Chocolate Chip
Ink: Chocolate Chip
Embellishments: Rhinestone Brad, Spring Flower Bouquet Punch, Large and Small Oval Punches, Chocolate Chip Satin Ribbon

I stamped the large flower on Pretty in Pink Card Stock and then sponged Chocolate Chip over the outside of the petals and cut them out. Adhered it to the Whisper White on which I had stamped the open argyle. Stamped the three smaller flower again on the Pretty in Pink with Chocolate Chip ink and then used the Spring Flower Punch to punch them out and adhered them on the card.



Looks Like Spring Emboss Resist

Stamp Set: Looks Like Spring
Card Stock: Apricot Appeal, Bashful Blue, Glossy White
Ink: Versamark, Apricot Appeal, Old Olive, Bashful Blue
Embellishments: Winter White Embossing Powder, Blue Gingham Grosgrain Ribbon, Crystal Effects

Technique: Emboss Resist
This is such a fun technique. I stamped the large flower in versamark on the glossy white card stock. I then poured the winter white embossing powder over the versamarked flowers and heat set it. MAGIC - the flowers just popped out. I then sponged over the embossed flowers with bashful blue - just a little to really make them stand out. Then I stamped with Old Olive the smaller flowers. For the centers of the daisies I used a sponge dauber and sponged apricot appeal by bouncing up and down (this was embossed, so the ink was very faint, so I sponged many times to make it as dark as possible. Then I used crystal effects and heat dryed that.

This will definitely have to be a class sometime!! Such fun!!



Looks Like Spring

Stamp Set: Looks Like Spring, Short and Sweet
Card Stock: Tempting Turquoise, Whisper White, Old Olive, Petals and Paisleys Designer Paper
Ink: Pretty in Pink, Tempting Turquoise
Embellishments: Scallop Circle Punch, Roud Tab Punch, Pretty in Pink Grosgrain Ribbon, Large and Small Oval Punch, Crystal Effects, Dazzling Diamonds Stampin' Glitter

This card was fun for everyone to make. I stamped the large flower with Pretty in Pink on Whisper White and then cut it out with the scallop circle punch. I punched two pieces of Tempting Turquoise with the Round Tab Punch to make the circle behind the scalloped flower. I put Crystal Effects on the center of the flower and then poured some dazzling diamonds stampin' glitter over that and heat set it - makes a wonderful flower center.

Hope you enjoyed seeing these cards we made out of some of the retiring sets.

The new catalogs should be here next week. Let me know if you would like one!! They are $5 and come with the $5 coupon to use on your first order over $25!!

Explosion Box

We had a great time yesterday - Catherine taught us how to make Explosion Boxes. These make wonderful gifts. The are a box, that when the top is removed explodes with wonderful pictures!! We didn't get the pictures done, but you can get the idea!!

Here are the pictures of the ones Catherine, Heidi and I made.

Here is Catherine's:

She used Blue Bayou, Rose Red and Soft Sky Designer Papers with Blue Bayou, Rose Red and Soft Sky Textured Card Stock



Here is Heidi's She used Dashing Designer Paper, Real Red, Wild Wasabi and Certainly Celery Textured Card Stock



This is mine and I used Porcelain Prints Designer Paper, Blue Bayou, Certainly Celery and River Rock Textured Card Stock



And here they are EXPLODED:



Here is mine close up: