Sunset Work of Art

I finally broke down and ordered the Wetlands Stamp Set during the stamp sale back in November because I needed some more sets that would work for masculine cards. Plus, I have seen so many beautiful things with this set that I just had to get it!

While browsing Pinterest, I came across this card created by Jenn Tinline that I just knew I had to CASE! The Wetlands stamp set pairs up with the Work of Art set to create a beautiful sunset beach scene. This card, although it uses a lot of colors, is very clean and simple. The colors speak for themselves! I used the longer image from the Work of Art stamp set to create both the beach and the ocean, but just kept stamping and not re-inking each time. This gave it a different color effect so all the shades were different. A simple Early Espresso candy dot finishes off the card nicely with the images being the star of the show!

Stamp Sets	Wetlands, Work of Art
Ink	Early Espresso, Crumb Cake, Pool Party, So Saffron, Calypso Coral
Paper	Crumb Cake, So Saffron, Whisper White
Accessories	SNAIL Adhesive, Stampin’ Dimensionals, White Glitter Ribbon, Season of Cheer Washi Tape, Cherry Cobbler Baker's Twine, 2-Way Glue Pen, Dazzling Diamonds Glitter
Tools	Big Shot Die-Cutting Machine, Softly Falling Textured Embossing Folder, Scalloped Tag Topper Punch

For more masculine card ideas, visit the Stylin' Stampin' INKspiration blog today!

SSINK Card Sketch - April

Last Tuesday was one of my monthly card nights and I had some cards to plan, so I needed a little bit of inspiration. For one of the cards I used the Stylin' Stampin' INKspiration April Card Sketch to help me put together a card that the ladies would love (I know many of them love purple and butterflies!)

{Join in the fun by linking up YOUR creation using this sketch!}

And this is what came to life...

Stamp Sets	Work of Art, Papillon Potpourri, Six Sided Sampler, Hardwood Background Stamp
Ink	Blackberry Bliss, Hello Honey
Paper	Whisper White, Crumb Cake, Blackberry Bliss, Rich Razzleberry, In-Color DSP Stack (Hello Honey in polka dots)
Accessories	SNAIL Adhesive, Stampin’ Dimensionals, Pearls, Paper Doilies, Hello Honey 3/8" Satin Stitched Ribbon
Tools	Big Shot Die-Cutting Machine, Circle Framelits, Elegant Butterfly Punch, Bitty Butterfly Punch

Quick & Easy - Work of Art

This is truly a Quick & Easy card!

I used one of the images from the Work of Art stamp set, inked it up with Lost Lagoon and stamped it onto the front of a pre-cut/scored note card (did you know we sell these in packs of 20 for only $5.95...and they come with envelopes!) I did not re-ink the stamp before stamping it again underneath the first image. This is how the color is a little lighter.

Using the "thanks" from the Another Thank You set I stamped it off to the side using Memento Black (my favorite black ink pad!).

I finished it off with a couple of Hello Honey flowers using the Bitty Flower Punch from the Bitty Punch Pack. I added a rhinestone to each and popped them up on Dimensionals.

There you go...quick and easy and plenty of time to spare to make as many as you need! I did whip up five of these at once as I needed some thank you cards in a jiffy!

Stamp Sets	Work of Art, Another Thank You
Ink	Memento Black, Lost Lagoon
Paper	Whisper White Note Cards, Hello Honey
Accessories	SNAIL Adhesive, Stampin’ Dimensionals, Rhinestones
Tools	Bitty Flower Punch

Friday Favorites - Rich Razzleberry & Blackberry Bliss

It's Friday Favorites today at Stylin' Stampin' INKspiration and I wanted to share with you some of my favorite colors out of the catalog. In fact, it's one of my favorite color duos. I have always been a fan of purple and so when Blackberry Bliss showed up in the 2014-2016 In-Colors I was so excited! This color is actually the closest purple Stampin' Up! has come out with that was what I used in my wedding (11) years ago! I created a card with this color duo and added a splash of Pear Pizzazz in there for some contrast. The giant polka dots from the Sweet Taffy DSP were a perfect addition!

I created this card for last week's Card Making Night and each of the guests got to pick whichever sentiment they wanted from the February Photopolymer Set called Lovely Amazing You. The watercolor "smear" in the background of the circle is from the Work of Art stamp set. If you look closely on the base of the card you will see that I used the Polka Dots Embossing Folder to match the polka dots of the DSP. I added a bit of Blackberry Bliss ribbon and tied off with a knot for a little something extra. I also added two hearts punched from the Hearts Border Punch and popped them up with Dimensionals. I love adding little details to a simple card.

Stamp Sets	Lovely Amazing You, Work of Art
Ink	Blackberry Bliss, Pear Pizzazz
Paper	Whisper White, Rich Razzleberry, Blackberry Bliss, Pear Pizzazz, Sweet Taffy DSP
Accessories	SNAIL Adhesive, Stampin’ Dimensionals, Blackberry Bliss Ribbon
Tools	Big Shot Die-Cutting Machine, Polka Dot Embossing Folder, Hearts Border Punch (little hearts)

fabulous work of art

Tomorrow night is card making night at my mother-in-law's and so I am preparing some cards for her and her friends to create! I found this sketch on Freshly Made Sketches and I knew it would be the perfect one to get my creative juices flowing for a quick and easy card!

I reached for my stamp set Work of Art and one of my favorite DSP stacks (Moonlight) and got right to work! I was able to bust out this card in a matter of 10 minutes! I wish it was that "easy" all the time. You don't really want to know how long it takes me to design a card on most days. Can you say perfectionist? ;)

I used the larger butterfly punch to punch out a piece of vellum and then placed a smaller butterfly (from Kinda Eclectic) on the top, finishing it with a couple of rhinestones. The butterfly is popped up on Dimensionals.

Stamp Sets	Work of Art, Kinda Eclectic
Ink	Blackberry Bliss, Hello Honey
Paper	Whisper White, Hello Honey, Blackberry Bliss, Moonlight DSP Stack
Accessories	SNAIL Adhesive, Stampin’ Dimensionals, Rhinestones
Tools	2-1/2" Circle Punch, Elegant Butterfly Punch, Bitty Butterfly Punch, Texture Boutique Machine, Decorative Dots Embossing Folder

I have been taking a little bit of a break from blogging (have you noticed?) as this mama has been needed a lot more at home lately. I've still been busy creating and being inspired...just haven't been able to SHARE much! I did participate in World Card Making Day with some of my team last Saturday, so I will share pictures soon of our fun day! I also created a fun swap card for the Control Freaks Holiday Swap, so that's coming, too!! Hope you all have a blessed day!

beach themed favor tags

A couple of weeks ago a friend of mine asked if I would be interested in making some favor tags. She had these cute foot scrubbers in the shape of fish and starfish to go with her beach-themed bridal shower (her sister is getting married in Hawaii!). Of course I was happy to help!

I printed out what she wanted the tags to say on a word document, which included the date of the wedding. I could fit 8 on a page and I was planning to make 35 in total. The font is Jenna Sue (a favorite of mine!)

I knew I wanted to use the new Tag Topper Scalloped Punch, so the width needed to be two inches. I pulled out my Paper Trimmer and got to work at cutting up all 35 tags.

Next step was punching the edge of each...

OK, all done with that part!

 Time to stamp!

I wanted to stick with the beach theme, so I used one of the stamps from Work of Art to resemble the water and stamped each tag using Pool Party. I wanted it softer, so I stamped off each time before stamping on the tag.

 The starfish image from Sea Street was the perfect accent to the tag, so I stamped it in Sahara Sand in the corner of each tag.

I had quite a bit of leftover Pool Party satin ribbon from Sale-A-Bration a couple of years ago and this was the perfect color/texture for this tag!

It's so fun to be able to create for others!

year end teacher luncheon

Things are super busy around here as I am wrapping up the school year with lots of school volunteer responsibilities, teacher gifts, end of year fun, and four birthday parties for the kids' friends just this week! One of the things I get to help with is the year end teacher luncheon. I partnered with a couple of my neighbors/friends to put on this fun event to bless our teachers. I call the three of us "the dream team" because we each bring something great to the table to get it done...one to help find the caterer (she's a self-proclaimed "foodie") and one who has magic fingers with flowers and an awesome vision for table settings! I come along and fine tune the details and act as a work horse! ;)

Here are just a few things to accent the luncheon tables...

Last day of school for the kids today!!

Summer is HERE!

itty bitty work of art

I wanted to create some simple 3 x 3 cards to hand out to the women in my Bible Study group and so I pulled out my Work of Art stamp set and created a little design that was bright and cheery. The sentiment alone lets the gals know that I think each of them is truly a work of art. I was so blessed by them this last year! I decided to leave the inside of the cards blank in hopes that they would give it away to help make someone else smile!

2014-2015 catalog is live!

If you haven't already heard, the new catalog is now LIVE!!

You can begin your shopping by checking out the PDF catalog HERE or check out my online store HERE. And if you want your own hard copy of the catalog, I can send you one in the mail for free with just a $25 purchase!

It's been a busy last few days in our household. We're in the home stretch with school wrapping up and that usually means lots for mommy to coordinate...not only with "kid stuff", but also my own responsibilities!

So, with that said...it's short and sweet today!

Love these Whisper White note cards you can purchase! When folded in half they are 3-1/2" x 5" and come with envelopes! You get 20 note cards and envelopes for just $5.95 (item #107311). They make it so easy for you to create quick and simple cards.  

I was inspired by Julie Davison's Work of Art note cards and so I made a quick CASE of one of the note cards for a couple of friends I wanted to say thank you to! I used the Calypso Coral ink pad. At the top I inked it completely and then each time stamped again (lining it up with my Stamp-A-Ma-Jig) before re-inking to create an ombre effect.

Stamp Sets	Work of Art, Lots of Thanks
Ink	Calypso Cora, Black Stazon
Paper	Whisper White Note Cards (with envelope)
Accessories	SNAIL Adhesive, Stampin’ Dimensionals, Rhinestone Accent
Tools	Bitty Punch Pack (available until June 4th!), Stamp-A-Ma-Jig

control freaks tour - catalog preview

It has been an exciting last couple of months for me as I have been invited to be a part of a couple groups full of talented Stampin' Up! demonstrators. I am so thankful for these opportunities! Yesterday I shared with you the exciting journey I embarked upon with The Creation Station and today I get to share with you that I am now a member of the Control Freak Stampers! EEK! This group is full of some amazing paper artists. What a pleasure and honor it is for me to be a part of the fun! A couple of months ago I participated in my first swap with The Control Freaks (I'll share that card sometime this week!) and today I will be participating in my first "Tour De Freaks". I'm not gonna lie ~ I feel a little intimidated to be a part of this tour because there is SO MUCH TALENT on this hop!! But I am choosing to embrace it and be confident in my own clean and simple style. We all need to see a variety of ways to use Stampin' Up! products, right?

So, without further ado...if you are following the hop you have just come from Cindy's blog!

The theme for this month's tour is "Catalog Preview". As a demonstrator, we are given the opportunity to purchase select products made available to us a little sooner than our customers. I decided to place a small pre-order to get a few goodies early and I will be showcasing some of those today. Each of these cards uses the stamp set called Work of Art, a stamp set I am sure will be getting lots of ink on it! For each of the cards I will also be using some of the new 2014-2016 In-Colors.

Card #1: The card base is Blackberry Bliss. I was instantly drawn to this color for a couple of reasons; 1) purple is my favorite color, 2) Blackberry Bliss is pretty close to being my exact wedding color 10 years ago! I paired Blackberry Bliss with another new in-color, Hello Honey. The combo goes nicely together, especially when tied together using some of the paper from the new Moonlight DSP Stack. I tied a bow on the top of the card using Hello Honey 3/8" Stitched Satin Ribbon (available in all new in-colors). The background images are stamped in Hello Honey with one using the full color and then stamped again without re-inking. I stamped the two heart images on a separate piece of Whisper White and then hand cut the two hearts using my Paper Snips...then popped them up using Dimensionals. I added three rhinestones in the bottom left to fill in some of the blank white space.

Card #2: The card base for this card is Mossy Meadow, another 2014-2016 In-Color. I thought it would look pretty paired with Blackberry Bliss. I decided to wrap both colors of 3/8" Stitched Satin Ribbon around the card and tie with a bow at the top. The hearts are both stamped in Blackberry Bliss onto a separate sheet of Whisper White and then cut out with Paper Snips, but one was stamped again before re-inking. The heart on top is popped up with a Dimensional. This is the same technique I used with the chevron image. The bottom chevron image is with full Blackberry Bliss ink, then the second I used the Stamp-A-Ma-Jig to line them up and stamped again without re-inking the stamp. I did this a third time and still did not re-ink. This is how I got the three different shades of the Blackberry Bliss. 

Are you wondering where I got the green accents? 

 

I used my *NEW* Stampin' Blendabilities (alcohol-based marker) to color some of the pearls. This works perfectly as it won't rub off all over your fingers like a Stampin' Write Marker will. Although this particular marker is from the Old Olive Blendabilities Collection, I think it matches really well to the Mossy Meadow cardstock.

Card #3: I chose to pull out another sheet of the Moonlight DSP Stack, but wanted to use the Lost Lagoon in-color cardstock this time. It is paired with Hello Honey, as well as Basic Gray. I used the coordinating Circle Framelits for the layering of circles and stamped the image from Work of Art using Lost Lagoon and the sentiment is in Basic Gray. Again, I tied a bow with the Hello Honey 3/8" Stitched Satin Ribbon. I'm going to love this ribbon!

For a fun little accent, I added one of the itty bitty flowers from the Itty Bitty Punch Pack. Unfortunately this punch pack is retiring (but still available right now, #118309, $16.95), but I will say there will be a close replacement, so keep your eyes peeled when the new catalog arrives!

I hope you enjoyed my cards today!! I only missed one color from the new 2014-2016 In-Color. It is called Tangelo Twist. I'll plan to share more with that color coming up in the future, so come on back.

Please continue to hop along with the Tour de Freaks. Next time stop is the amazingly talented Connie Babbert at Inkspired Treasures. You're in for a real treat!!



If for some reason a link is broken or you get lost along the way, you can click on any of the links below!

Control Freaks Blog Hop List

1. Heidi Baks at Running with Scissors
2. Mindy Backes at Bada-Bing Crafting!
3. Debbie Henderson at Debbie's Designs
4. Melissa Davies at Rubberfunatics
5. Justin Krieger at JK Cards
6. Wendy Weixler at Wickedly Wonderful Creations
7. Cindy Elam at Heart's Delight Cards
8. Heidi Boos at Stuck on Stampin' (you are here!)
9. Connie Babbert at Inkspired Treasures
10. Judy DiScipio at Judy Stamps
11. Julie Davison at Julie's Stamping Spot

creation station blog hop

About a month or so ago, I was asked to be a part of a new team of {super talented} Stampin' Up! demonstrators! Jen Arkfeld of Stamped Silly asked me to join her and 10 others on a new journey to inspire! I must admit I felt honored to be given this opportunity to "stamp alongside" some creatively blessed people! It is our goal to help you see some of the Stampin' Up! stamp sets and products in a new way. Twice a month (1st and 3rd Sunday) we will be sharing some creative ways using two stamp sets and one product from the current Stampin' Up! catalog. Each of the designers will either choose one stamp set or product to share...or they might choose to showcase all three! This is technically the second hop with The Creation Station, but because I was away on vacation with my family for the first one, this hop will be my first to join everyone!

If you are new to visiting my blog (and coming through on the hop), thank you so much for stopping by! You will soon discover that my stamping style is very clean and simple. One thing I just love about this group of stampers is that we all bring a unique flair and style to the stamping table. As you hop through you will soon notice this!

The stamp sets we were able to choose from were Blast Off (currently on the retiring list and only available in wood mount) or Work of Art, which is a sneak peek stamp set coming soon in the new catalog available June 1st! Seeing as I don't own Blast Off (although it's SUCH a cute set!), the obvious choice for me was to play with the Work of Art stamp set. Our product to play with for this hop was Baker's Twine. We could choose from any of the current catalog twine (which will also be retiring!) or some of the yummy NEW twine that will be available in the 2013-2015 In-Colors! I just love the perks of being a demonstrator to be able to order a few things early!

{Work of Art Stamp Set}

{2013-2015 In Colors Baker's Twine}

I decided I would mesh the stamp set and product together into one card. The polka dot background is created using one of the images from the set and I love the simplicity of the Baker's Twine wrapped around the center of the card. All those colors together are just so divine! I used my Paper Snips to cut out the heart and then added one simple rhinestone. My goal for this card was to ink it up using each of the five in-colors to match the twine.

Stamp Sets	Work of Art
Ink	Strawberry Slush, Pistachio Pudding, Coastal Cabana, Crisp Cantaloupe, Baked Brown Sugar
Paper	Strawberry Slush, Coastal Cabana, Whisper White
Accessories	SNAIL Adhesive, Stampin’ Dimensionals, Rhinestone Accents, 2013-2015 In-Color Baker's Twine
Tools	Paper Snips

When I saw this twine in my box that arrived on my doorstep last week, I also pictured using it to tie up a cute little box and finishing it with a big bow. I just love this look...especially against the kraft box (which Stampin' Up! sells!). I added a fun tag using the same Work of Art stamp set cut out with the Circle Framelits. It's all dressed up and ready to be given to someone extra special!

Stamp Sets	Work of Art
Ink	Strawberry Slush, Coastal Cabana
Paper	Strawberry Slush, Whisper White
Accessories	SNAIL Adhesive, Stampin’ Dimensionals, 2013-2015 In-Color Baker's Twine
Tools	Big Shot Die-Cutting Machine, Circle Framelits, Paper Snips

Thank you so much for joining us on the hop! I sincerely hope you feel inspired and excited for what's in store for you in the new catalog. It's just a short 2 weeks away before you can begin ordering! Please continue on the hop and visit the amazingly gifted Jennifer Frost. You will not be disappointed! Just click on the next button to take you there! And if you need to go backwards on the hop, you are able to do that as well...just click on the back button to visit Sara Levin again! Hope to see you all again soon and if you have any questions or just want to say hi, please feel free to leave a comment!