My Stamping Garage

Fall and Christmas Samplers

I have had several requests for more sampler classes. I finally finished designing my fall and Christmas samplers.

I will be offering both classes this Thursday in Urbana, IL.                                                             (I will offer the classes in Livermore, CA later in October as well)

Here are the pictures of the samplers:

These classes will be offered this coming Thursday, September 29 from 6:00 - 9:30 PM in Urbana, IL.

The classes will be help at the Liberty Commons Clubhouse at 1776 Independence Ave, Urbana, IL 61802.

The cost for each class is $25 per sampler (you can make one or both). For each sampler you make, you will receive at least $15 in product that you will take home with you.

The frames are not included in the price of the class. I will have some frames available if you want them for $5 per frame (I am offering them at cost).

Although the samplers look involved, it really doesn't take long to complete them. I held these classes this past weekend, and people were able to complete both samplers in 3 hours. I will have all supplies cut, prepped and ready for you to stamp and assemble!

To register for the class, please email me at [email protected].

All you need to bring to class is your scissors and adhesive!

 

 

 

ImPeckable Stamper's Retreat - goodies!

Our group has an annual retreat at a local campground. It is SO MUCH FUN!

Most of us make table favors for each other, we share great projects, ideas and swaps. It is a much anticipated event each year!

I was excited to be able to fly back to Illinois for the event this year. It is coming up later this week. I have been working on fun projects to give to my awesome team members!

I won't give away what is IN the packages, but here is a sneak peek of the tags on the gift bags.

I hope my team members love the tags and the gifts!

I made the red tags with the banner triple punch. I texturized the white strip with the cable knit texture folder. I used the Candy Cane Lane Designer Paper for an accent strip, and used the Candy Cane Lane washi tape across the center. The cute gingerbread girl was made using the Cookie Cutter Christmas Bundle.

If you would like to join us for this fun annual retreat, join my team!

The starter kit is a great value at just $99. You get to choose $125 in product of your choice for your kit contents. You also receive business supplies including catalogs and order forms. 

You will become part of a team of great ladies (and an occasional gentleman) who help one another to succeed, and cheer each other on. Our team is more like a family! 

Contact me at [email protected] for more information. I would love to help you get started today! You get to decide if you would like this to be a business, or if you would simply like to get a discount on your own purchases while becoming part of our Stampin' Up! family.

I will share some more details from our retreat over the next few days!

 

 

 

 

Glad Tidings!

With my goal of keeping my Christmas cards simple, quick and easy this year, I decided to do another monochromatic card. Even though we don't get snow in our area of California, I still associate Christmas with a serene and snowy scene. The Merriest Wishes Bundle lends itself very well to making just such a scene! It is meant to be used for tags, but really it offers so much more! I have used this bundle for making cards, gift tags, and accents for various Christmas projects.

This card took very little time and I like the clean and simple design. I used the Merry Tags Framelits to make the ornament. I have always love the look of a shilhouette! The saying came from the Merriest Wishes stamp set, and I stamped it on the Night of Navy tag using Whisper White Craft Ink. The framelits and stamp set are bundled for a 10% discount when you buy them together. I used the Softly Falling texture folder to get the subtle snowy background. It added just the touch of texure I was looking for without making the card difficult and time consuming. I used the Night of Navy Baker's Twine to "hang" my ornament from the silver ribbon bow. 

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Christmas with all the trimmings!

My oldest daughter is a decorator at heart. Sometimes I wonder why she didn't go into interior design. Now that she is married and living back in the Midwest, I miss her all of the time -  but the very most at Christmas! While I love to make cards, I don't enjoy decorating my home. I do it because my kids like the festive look (and actually so do I, I just hate the actual PROCESS of decorating). My daughter was always enthusiastic about getting out all of the decorations and making the house look very cheerful. Maybe I need to hire her to come home each year to haul out the decorations!

I find a bit more inspiration when it comes to decorating my Christmas cards! If you are one who likes to decorate for Christmas with all the trimmings, then this card is for you! The set that I used to make this card was created to be used with the Forever Evergreen Project Kit that can be found in the 2016 Holiday Catalog. These two products make a great pairing, but the stamp set can easily stand alone! The Forever Evergreen Stamp set has all of the elements you need to create your Christmas cards or other projects. 

The Forever Evergreen Stamp Set comes with 23 stamps, 5 of which are sayings. It is a photopolymer set, so the stamps are completely clear, making it easy to place them exactly where you want them. It makes creating a grouping like the one on this card very easy! My favorite accents on the card are the gold stars from the Metallic Enamel Shapes. 

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Merry Christmoose!

I have to admit, when I hear a pun or play on words, I often roll my eyes or groan. Secretly, when it is something that someone comes up with quickly and off the cuff, I am rather impressed (although I would never let them know that!). My son has a quick wit and does this routinely. He gets that from his dad who also does this frequently. I think they like to hear me groan. That groan is the reward they are seeking for their crazy comments.They were the inspiration for this Christmoose card (this is where you are supposed to groan or roll your eyes).

 

I love the moose in the Jolly Friends set from the 2016 Holiday Catalog. The set can be purchased individually or as a bundle with the matching Jolly Hat Builders Punch - and of course, you can't forget the Mini Jingle Bells! The Warmth and Cheer Paper Stack coordinates wonderfully with this bundle!

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Quick and Easy Christmas Card

The holiday season always sneaks up on me and then explodes in my face. All my plans and good intentions start to unravel. That is when the stress kicks in. I vow every year not to let this happen.

With that in mind, I am starting my cards early this year. There is something extra special about a handmade card arriving in the mail. Honestly, these are the ones I hold on to each year. I just cannot bear to throw them away! I know a lot of love and care went into them, and they feel like a special gift, not just a card. This is why I hand make my cards each year. I hope that those that receive a card from me know that they are loved and thought of during the holidays!

Because I don't want the "holiday frenzy", I am keeping my cards clean and simple this year. This is one that I may use. It is a really quick and easy card to make!

For this card, I used Early Espresso card stock for the base, and Early Espresso ink for the stamped images. I stamped the images onto Crumb Cake  card stock

. The santa comes from the Father Christmas Stamp Set. I stamped the background with the Merry Medley background stamp. I cut the oval around the santa using the layering ovals framelits.

 

As a special offer, If you purchase the supplies to make this card from me now through October 31, I will cut the cardstock for you for free!  All you will need to do is stamp and assemble the cards. This will save you even more time for your holiday preparations! You will simply need to stamp and assemble your cards!

 

To take advantage of this special - email me at [email protected]. We can then decide how much card stock you need for the number of cards you would like to make. 

(This special applies only to those who purchase at least the two stamp sets and one package of each of the card stocks from me. If you already own these stamp sets, order two sets of equal or greater value plus the card stock to receive this special.)

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Ghoulish Grunge - not just for Halloween!

Whew! What a crazy few days!!  I have been furiously packing to get ready to go and visit my stamping friends and my family back in the Midwest. I love the weather in California, but somehow, the Midwest still feels like home. I wonder if that will ever change?  I guess only if I can move all of my friends and family out here with me!  Then, it would truly be heaven! I do have to say, I don't really miss the weather back there!

In the midst of all of the packing and prepping for classes and events that I will do while I am visiting, I took some time to make a sample for my blog. It has been a few days since I posted, and I didn't want anyone to give up on me!

I was looking at the Ghoulish Grunge set from the Stampin' Up! 2016 Holiday Catalog, and admiring the various stamps in the set that make great backgrounds. Despite the name, I realized that I will use this set all year long!  When I decided to think of the stamps a bit "outside of the box", I immediately saw the stamp that is of something dripping. (I don't even want to think of all that you could make "dripping" with this stamp at Halloween!) I have been working on Christmas cards for some classes, so I guess that is what made me think of a candle.

 

I cut a strip of Real Red card stock slightly narrower than the stamp. I stamped the "drips" using Versamark ink and then embossed with clear embossing powder and my heat tool. this truly made it look like a candle since the embossing powder is wax! I used the Festive Flower Builder Punch to form a flame, and used the black baker's twine as a wick. I sponged a little cajun craze ink along the top of the flame. I adorned the bottom of my candle with pine boughs made by cutting Emerald Envy Card stock with the Pretty Pines Thinlit Dies. I also made some holly leaves and berries using the Holly Berry Happiness Bundle. All of this was mounted onto the Fancy Frost Specialty Designer Paper. This paper has a very soft texturing built right into the white card stock. It still allows you to stamp sayings directly onto the card stock, while giving a subtle textured background. The package comes with twelve 12 x 12" sheets (2 each of 6 different embossed designs).

I plan to play with this set a bit more in the coming days to see what other ideas I can come up with!

 

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2016 Holiday Catalog - Today is the Day!!

Today is the day we have all been waiting for! The Stampin' Up! 2016 Holiday Catalog is live! You can order from the catalog starting today and running through January 3, 2016.

The Catalog is loaded with great new stamp sets for all the coming holidays - and even some that will work for every day!

I have posted several samples using items from this catalog over the past couple of weeks. If you scroll down to older posts, you can see those samples.

Click here to see the catalog online

 

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