Monthly Archives: July 2014

Last Day! Buy 3 DSP Get 1 Free!

Stampin' Up! Designer Series Paper Buy 3 Get One Free Offer

Today is the last day to get a free package of Stampin’ Up! Designer Series Paper when you buy 3!  That’s like ordering 4 and getting $10.95 off your order! Just put in the three sets of papers you want to order and the fourth one will come up free. Today is the last day! You can chose from the papers on pages 186-7 in the new Stampin’ Up! Catalog.

As I’ve been enjoying looking at the DSP I already ordered, here is a cute box I made with the Big Shot and the Hamburger Box Die! (Don’t buy the Big Shot today, though!) I die-cut the tag with the Chalk Talk Framelits and just tied it on with a piece of Cherry Cobbler Baker’s Twine. The greeting and heart are from the stamp set Something To Say.

Flashback DSP Hamburger Box

Here’s a tip when making the Hamburger Box!  Instead of following the directions to fold in all the corners of the box on the score lines, it is much easier if you cut one of the score lines in each corner.   Do NOT cut the center score line, cut one on either side of the center score line like in this photo. It doesn’t matter which side, just do not cut the center one.  Then use a Glue Dot to adhere.

Hamburger Box Cut Corners

When choosing DSP, don’t go by the title or the main sheet shown on the top.  Many patterns in each package are good for other projects rather than just what you think they are.

Shop Today at my Online Store to take advantage of the

Buy 3 DSP Get 1 Free Offer!

Make a Cupcake Party Card With Flashback Paper

Cupcake Party Card with Flashback Paper

As I looked through the Flashback Designer Series Paper, the Real Red and Pool Party colors on this pattern really caught my eye. I love red! I wondered if I could use it some way with the Cupcake Party stamp set and the Cupcake Builder Punch, on sale this week in the Stampin’ Up! Weekly Deals. The Cupcake Punch is used for the top and bottom of the cupcake, but I handcut the little Happy Birthday flag for the top. With the punch, I could have punched out a little cherry for the top! You wouldn’t believe how many circles and scallop circles I punched in various colors and tried different combinations to see which one worked best behind the cupcake. Finally I just decided on this one! I also put a little strip of Real Red 1/8″ Taffeta Ribbon across the card, even though you don’t see much of it.

This card is cut lengthwise, meaning the Pool Party is cut 11″ x 4 1/4″ and then folded in half. Just a little change!

Don’t judge a pack of designer paper by the first sheet in the package! This one has retro cameras, but there are other pretty patterned papers in the pack. And don’t forget that the Buy 3 DSP Get 1 Free Offer from Stampin’ Up! during July! Much to my surprise, July is almost over! Tomorrow is the last day you can take advantage of this special deal to stock up on designer paper.  Specialty papers are not included. Choose from the patterns on pages 186-7 in the new Stampin’ Up! Annual Catalog.

One more day to order 3 designer series packs and then get the 4th one free!  Add some of the Weekly Deals to your order as well!

Shop any time at my Stampin’ Up! Online Store!

New Stampin’ Up! Weekly Deal July 29 2014

Weekly Deal July 29 2014

Stampin' Up! Weekly Deal July 29 2014 Washi Tape

Here they are!  The new Stampin’ Up! Weekly Deals for the week of July 29 – August 4. I think if I didn’t already own these items, the things that would jump out the most for me would be the Cupcake Builder Punch and the Gift Bow Die, as well as the 1/2″ Circle Punch and for sure the Watercolor Wonder Designer Washi Tape! (Plus maybe the Pool Party Embossing Powder and oh, of course the Brights Designer Buttons!). Who can pass up a bargain?!

Be sure to click to page 2 if you are looking at the Weekly Deals in my store or you will miss the Washi Tape!

Even though the Cupcake Builder Punch has been around for awhile, I have been getting lots of use out of it with the new Cupcake Party stamp setYou might want to check out that stamp set, in either clear- or wood-mount. It’s on page 58 in the new Stampin’ Up! Catalog with lots of cute examples on the page.

If you don’t own a Big Shot Die-Cutting Machine yet, just hang on a few more days until August! Then you might want to go ahead and order the Gift Bow Die and the Clear Oval Accent Bigz Die.

It’s time to go shop at my Stampin’ Up! Online Store! What Weekly Deals will you choose?

Stampin’ Up! Paper Pumpkin: New Subscriber 50% Off Special!

Paper Pumpkin 50% Off Special

Click to Enlarge

What is Paper Pumpkin anyway?

“I come to your door each month (a fully decked-out creativity carriage). I’ll help you to escape your life with some paper fun.

I come in a sweet box, but you’ll really love what you find on the inside:

All the stamps, ink, paper, and accessories to create pinable projects. Create stuff like cards, journals, décor, and more!

Paper Pumpkin by Stampin’ Up! is a monthly kit program that anyone (even you) can enjoy!

Get Started!

It’s so easy to get started. Simply sign up for the program by clicking THIS LINK and then click JOIN. Every month a new, surprise project kit arrives at your doorstep. Just think of the anticipation of creating a fun project to pin, showoff, and share with your friends and family every month!

Of course, you’ll want to know more. So here’s the nitty gritty:

  • Each month we send you a unique, surprise kit with a project-cards, journals, décor, and more! (We’ve even color-coordinated, measured, and cut everything for you!)
  • Each kit includes stamps, ink, paper, and accessories-everything but adhesive.
  • Each kit gives you a 30-minute creativity escape.
  • We will ship your Paper Pumpkin on or around the 15th of the month.
  • You need to sign up for a kit by the 10th of the month to get that month’s kit. If you sign up on the 11th of the month, your first kit will come the next month. (Let’s say you sign up on August 10, we’ll send your kit around August 15. If you sign up on August 11, we’ll send your first kit around September 15.)
  • A Paper Pumpkin membership is $19.95 per month (and shipping is included!). There’s no commitment, you can cancel your monthly Paper Pumpkin at anytime. You can also skip a month if you want.

New Subscribers:  There is a special for you from now until September 10th! Enter the code HALFOFF2 and get the first two months at 50% off!

Stampin’ Up! continues to improve these kits!  There is a lot more “stuff” in each month’s box. You will often have extra left over to make even more projects of some kind. Follow the directions or dip your toe in the creative pool and see what you come up with yourself!

Sign up TODAY for Paper Pumpkin, the monthly papercrafting kit that comes to you in the mail, so the August Kit can be mailed to you mid-August! With the holidays coming up, the kits will come in handy perhaps as an easy way to make a gift for someone or some holiday item for you to have. You can subscribe for more than one kit, and you can change that quantity every month.  Just do it before the 10th of any month to make any changes in your subscription.

 

 

Back To Black Designer Paper Congratulations Card

Back To Black Congratulations Card

I think just using black and white can make a beautiful card, and that’s why the Back To Black Designer Series Paper from Stampin’ Up! is so useful. Here is an easy black and white Congratulations card that you could be proud to send to anyone. Or change out the greeting and make it a birthday card or whatever occasion you need. I just chose several scraps of my Back To Black DSP and cut strips and made them into banners of varying widths and lengths and adhered them to my card front (stamp first in case you mess up!). I tend to just cut the flag end of the banner with my Paper Snips, it doesn’t have to be perfect, but you could also punch with the arrow punch or the square punch or some others.

The greeting is from the Hey You Stamp SetAnd for a finishing touch, I added some black Neutrals Candy Dots to look like they are holding up the banner.

Buy 3 Get 1 DSP Free Offer (last day July 31)

Stampin’ Up! Weekly Deals (last day July 28)

Subscribe to Paper Pumpkin Use HALFOFF2 code.

 

Back to Black Designer Paper Colored with Blendabilities

Back to Black DSP Black and WhiteWhat if you take this Back to Black Designer Series Paper from Stampin’ Up! and color all the white images on the paper with Blendabilities alcohol markers?

Back to Black DSP Colored with Blendabilities

You get this! Since the background is black, it doesn’t matter if you color outside the lines! I even used two colors on some leaves or used the Color Lifter just to add some different shades of green. I love the feel of coloring with the Blendabilities! All of the Blendabilities colors (so far!) will be available to order August 1.

Back to Black DSP back

What if you turn the designer paper over to apply Liquid Multipurpose Glue (in the green bottle) and see the other side since the color soaks through from the Blendabilities Markers and think “Wow! Even the wrong side looks kind of cool with the color showing through!”?

Back to Black Blendabilities Colored DSP CardAnd then what if you adhere the colored piece of Back to Black Designer Series Paper to a card base and layer and start adding some other elements to make a card? What if you cut off a tiny scrap strip of another pattern of the designer paper and adhered it to a strip punched with the Scallop Edge Border Punch for a little accent piece? What if you looked through stamp sets and found this greeting from the Yippee Skippee Stamp Set and then by chance pulled out an already punched piece of Melon Mambo in a tag shape with the Tag Topper Scalloped Punch and made a tag for the focal point of the card? The little flowers are punched from the Boho Blossom Punch and the flower punch in the Itty Bitty Accents Punch PackThe small leaves are from the Bird Builder Punch. I added some Daffodil Delight Seam Binding Ribbon to the tag and of course, a bit of bling with a Rhinestone and Candy Dots!

To purchase this Back to Black Designer Series Paper and two other packs so that you can get 1 pack FREE during July, please visit my Stampin’ Up! Online Store!

Back to Black with Gold Birthday Card

Back to Black with Gold Birthday Card

I’m finally taking the time to play with the new Back To Black Designer Series Paper to make a birthday card with a touch of gold. I learned a long time ago in my stamping that black and white could be very stunning – and really all you need sometimes to make a card. That’s all I was going to use on this card, but somehow a little bit of gold snuck in! Once I made the flower using the Blossom PunchI decided the Gold Baker’s Twine would look good with the Vintage Faceted Button. I thought little strips of the Gold Foil Sheets would look great against the black and while. If you could see this card in person, you would see that the extra glimmer really looks nice. Once I had the gold foil accent, I had to emboss the greeting from the Four You stamp set with my Heat Tool and Gold Stampin’ Emboss Powder. Remember, before you emboss, rub the Embossing Buddy on the card stock to try to keep stray flecks of the embossing powder from sticking. Then stamp with Versamark.

I also have another technique I saw recently that I will share with you soon using this paper!  With the July special offer on Designer Series Paper from Stampin’ Up!, now is the time to stock up on paper! Get all the new ones in the catalog while you can get one free!

Be sure the Back To Black Designer Series Paper is on your Wish List!

Stampin’ Up! Weekly Deals July 22 2014

Stampin' Up! Weekly Deal July 22 2014

Here are the newest Stampin’ Up! Weekly Deals for the week of July 22.  These deals are good while supplies last or through midnight MT on Monday July 28. Get ’em while you can!

And don’t forget about this deal during July!  Time to stock up on the new papers!

Buy 3 Get 1 Free Designer Series Paper Stampin' Up! July Offer

Choose any 3 Designer Series Papers, get the fourth package FREE! Designer Series Paper Stacks and Specialty Designer Series Papers not included. Check out all the beautiful new papers in the new Stampin’ Up! 2014-15 Catalog! They’re on pages 186-7.

Stampin’ Up! Inspire.Create.Share.2014 Convention Highlights

I almost felt like I was at the Stampin’ Up! Convention, now referred to as Inspire.Create.Share.2014, the last few days because of the live streaming they did every day. I initially thought they would show only a few minutes, but they were quite generous with the convention time they showed. It was really great for those of us who did not go this year. Really great!! Yesterday afternoon they streamed the entire Closing Session and it did not disappoint. Sara Douglass showed how the kits can be used as is and also with alternate ideas. I can’t wait to get my hands on the holiday ones! Shelli also stamped and showed samples and ideas for easy get-togethers or parties to make things that people need and use. It’s always hard to believe that Convention is REALLY coming to an end, it would be nice to live in that happy Stampin’ Up! world a little longer!

If this looks like so much fun to you, you might be interested in being a Stampin’ Up! Demonstrator too! Stampin’ Up! is making it easier and easier to be a demonstrator so you don’t need to worry it will take too much time or that you have to be a creative person in order to do Stampin’ Up! Find out more about being a Demonstrator HERE. Then contact me to answer your questions or get more information!

Enjoy the highlights video!

 

Watching the Stampin’ Up! Inspire.Create.Share.2014 Convention from Home

Donna Griffith of Stampin' Up!

Stampin’ Up! was kind enough to live stream a portion of the Inspire.Create.Share.2014 Convention from Salt Lake City so those of us who did not attend this year could watch it. It’s almost as good as being there! And I still found myself trying to take photos of my laptop screen and write down notes of the projects all at the same time like I would be doing if I were there! This morning Donna Griffith was the presenter on stage teaching about using the new Stampin’ Up! Blendabilities alcohol markers. I missed a little bit of the beginning since they started a few minutes earlier than they’d planned, but I still saw plenty of cute ideas!

Did you know you can color the Vintage Faceted Buttons? Just be careful on the sharp edges with your marker so you don’t wear out the tip. You can also color pearls, rhinestones, and other embellishments.

Button colored with Blendabilities

You can color on Window Sheets. Here she stamped the flower with White Stazon Ink but did not let the coloring touch the Stazon ink. The ink sits on top of the window sheet so you have to let it dry and add more if you want.

Window Sheet Blendabilities

You can use Blendabilities on the Mini Muslin Bags.

Muslin Bag with Blendabilities

Start with light colored lines at the bottom and make them darker as you go for the ombre effect!

Muslin Bag Ombre

Coloring Washi Tape

Amazingly, you can color on black & white photos! This is Donna’s granddaughter! See the headband?

Coloring on Photo with Blendabilities

And how about a mask on the superhero! (Donna’s grandson!)

Coloring on Photo Boy

To see another really neat idea, come over to my Stamping With Karen Facebook Page HERE!

Stampin’ Up! Convention – Inspire.Create.Share.2014 – From Home!

InspireCreateShare 2014

I may not be attending the annual Stampin’ Up! Convention in Salt Lake City, Utah this year, but I’m trying to keep up with every tidbit of it that I can find from home!  Thank goodness for the internet! Stampin’ Up! even had a live stream yesterday morning of the opening of Convention (this year called Inspire.Create.Share.2014) and a good part of the first General Session. I was beyond thrilled that they broadcast more than a few minutes of it! My live stream worked great until it got to Becky Higgins of Project Life being interviewed by Shelli Gardner, then it konked out! I can’t wait until they live stream another segment of Convention this morning! It really is just like being there, except my feet don’t hurt! Of course my feet wouldn’t have hurt yesterday morning yet, but there is a great amount of walking all over that convention center and to and from the hotel.

Often the Stampin’ Up! convention begins with many Stampin’ Up! employees standing just inside the doors when the demonstrators enter. It’s a thrill to be greeted by all of them, it makes us feel like celebrities! But this year, the employees, by department, were part of the opening on stage which looked fun! Looked like some fireworks on stage, too! Real fireworks!

Shelli Gardner came out, tissue in hand. She often gets emotional on stage during her presentations, part of her charm, and it’s not hard to feel emotional about Stampin’ Up! She barely got started in her remarks when everyone in the audience got a free stamp!

Pam Morgan gave her presentation about the Holiday Catalog! I think most people are saying this is the best catalog ever, which I know we said last year and probably the year before that! This year’s Holiday Catalog will have lots of Sizzix products in it, so be sure you have a Big Shot (and next month will be a good time to order one!). Lots of packaging products and ideas for the holidays, kits for making cards, more stamp sets with sentiments for the front of the card AND the inside! More of the photopolymer stamps for easy alignment, Project Life, and builder sets. The beautiful photopolymer stamp set Endless Wishes, that sold out quickly last fall when photopolymer stamps were new, will be reissued. There will be gift wrap, ribbon, a gift box punch board, more Project Life for the holidays, beautiful papers, and more, of course!

Also, the most recent demonstrator to reach $1 million in sales, Connie Heisey, was brought up on stage by Shelli to be recognized! She had previously been invited to the Home Office to spend the day and celebrate this amazing milestone! While on stage, the “delivery man” wheeled out about four Stampin’ Up! boxes (you can barely see him leaving behind Connie) (wish I’d gotten a better photo of him!) as Shelli told Connie she would be receiving EVERYTHING in the Holiday Catalog! Then there was a poof of confetti to celebrate this amazing milestone!

Connie Million Dollars

Here are some more of the photos I took of my laptop screen while I watched the live stream yesterday! Didn’t think of doing it from the beginning!

Pam Morgan on stage

Holiday Catalog Package

Holiday Catalog packages

Peace on Earth Bag

Shelli Gardner and Becky Higgins

In the afternoon and evening there were classes and additional demonstrations, which, from what I read online, sounded like they were terrific!

I know that at the Paper Pumpkin party the night before, demos got to make one item in the September Paper Pumpkin kit. It looked pretty cute to me! And apparently they got to view some other months’ kits, with a guard nearby, so no one would take photos! But they say the Paper Pumpkin kits just keep getting better so if you would like a Stampin’ Up! Paper Pumpkin papercrafting kit to come to you in the mail each month, remember the special going on! Save 50% on the first two months, for new subscribers only, by using the code: HALFOFF2 

Subscribe HERE for Paper Pumpkin!

And now I have to go check on the time for the live stream from Convention!

Owl Punch Anniversary Card

Owl Punch Anniversary Card

Yesterday was our wedding anniversary and this is the card I made for my husband using the Builder Owl PunchThe Owl Punch is so incredibly versatile you can’t believe it – unless you look online and see all the ideas people have come up with for dressing up the owl shape or cutting it differently to make something else. I found this basic idea online for my card, of the owls and the moon, and changed mine up a little bit. I figured the owl silhouette shapes were fine for my husband’s card because while he might appreciate it, he wasn’t going to ooh and aah over the card if I dressed up the owls!

Since we just had a “supermoon” here in Houston, I thought the owls and the moon were appropriate.  I punched a 2 1/2″ circle out of Hello Honey, our new In Color card stock, and then shaded it a bit by sponging on some Tangerine Tango ink and White Craft ink. It’s barely noticeable but sometimes it is the tiny little things you do that add a lot.

The little branches are punched with the Builder Bird Punch but I hand cut the tree branch out of Basic Black scrap. For the Night of Navy background, I embossed it with the Cloud embossing folder (retired). Since it didn’t emboss all the way to the bottom of the layer, I used a wider strip of the Silver Glimmer Paper to cover and put my greeting from Loving Thoughts (retired) on top of that with a couple Candy Dots. Couldn’t resist playing with the Glimmer Paper some more so I punched out a few stars with the star punch in the Itty Bitty Accents Punch Pack for the nighttime sky! The little Real Red hearts are punched with the Owl Punch.

Today the Stampin’ Up! Convention gets underway! Actually, this year they are officially calling it “Inspire. Create. Share. 2014” They are livestreaming a little bit of Convention each day for those of us sad demos at home!  I can’t wait and have an alarm set so I don’t forget! I’ll keep you posted on whatever news I hear out of Convention. Check back here, or better yet, follow me on my Facebook page at www.facebook.com/stampingwithkaren by clicking the “Like” button. You can also follow me on Twitter  (which I use now and then!) at www.twitter.com/karenstamps

You can bet that Salt Palace lobby is filled with demos already in line for General Session to get a front row seat and tons of swapping of card fronts going on! They swap while waiting in line, while walking by, while sitting down, everywhere, any time!  It’s so much fun and makes for such a friendly experience!

For great papercrafting supplies, please visit my Stampin’ Up! Online Store. Check the Weekly Deals and the Buy 3 DSP Get 1 Free Special Offer.

Join Paper Pumpkin For 50% Off First Two Months

Paper Pumpkin 50% Off

If you haven’t tried Paper Pumpkin, now is a great time to sign up–get 50% off your first two months! Paper Pumpkin is the paper crafting kit that comes in the mail to you once a month. The projects vary and it’s always a surprise. Just take 30 minutes for yourself, once a month, to enjoy some fun crafting time.  All you need (sometimes) are scissors and adhesive. The rest all comes in the box!

Offer Dates: July 16, 2014–September 10, 2014

Offer Details: Use the code HALFOFF2 to join Paper Pumpkin before September 10, 2014, and get 50% off the first two months! After that, keep the creativity coming for only $19.95 + tax per month (shipping included).

The Fine Print:

  • For new subscribers only.
  • Available for month-to-month subscriptions, not prepaid subscriptions.
  • Discount applied to one kit per month for the first two months of a new subscription. After the first two months, the price for each month’s kit will go to the regular price: $19.95.
  • Visit MyPaperPumpkin.com to join.
  • Enter the Promo Code, “HALFOFF2” when you sign up.
  • New subscribers must join by Wednesday, September 10, 2014; 11:50 PM (MT).

It’s like a class coming to your door, for brand new and experienced stampers and crafters alike! Instructions are included so anyone can follow along.  Make it according to directions or strike out on your own and make your own creation.

Kits are mailed around the 15th of every month. No risk, no obligation:  change your subscription, pause, or cancel it by the 10th of any month to take effect that month. You’re welcome to call Stampin’ Up! any time the kit doesn’t not meet your expectations or you have questions and they will try to make it right for you.

Order some extra kits or get a few friends together to order and then make a gathering out of it every month when everyone receives their kit! It’s a Girls’ Night Out with no muss or fuss, just fun!

JOIN PAPER PUMPKIN TODAY HERE!

HALFOFF2

 

 

Stampin’ Up! Helps You Get Punchy! New Weekly Deals!

Stampin' Up! Weekly Deal July 15 2014

Here are the new Stampin’ Up! Weekly Deals for July 15 – 21. Get Punchy! Check out all the punches on this deal! And how about some products to use for embellishments:  Gold Baker’s Twine, Melon Mambo Ribbon, and Mini Metallic Clothespins! I have loved the Gold Baker’s Twine! It adds a bit of glitz and glimmer to your projects AND you can unravel the twine, take out the gold thread and use it separately like I did in THIS POST.

Also, remember that through My Digital Studio downloads you can access retired stamp sets and papers that you might have missed before or find you could use now. You can even use MDS downloads with other programs on your computer. So if you missed or used up the Summer Smooches designer paper before, you can purchase the download now and print out the paper plus the other items in the MDS kit.

New Project Life products now available:

The following products are now available:

Check back tomorrow for a Paper Pumpkin special for new subscribers!

Shop Stampin’ Up! at my Online Store!

A Handy Baby Shower Gift for the New Mother

Sock Monkey Baby Memory Tin

Hopefully this will be a handy baby shower gift for the new mother. I used to use a (clean) paint can that I wrapped designer paper around and decorated, but since I had these “purse tins” in my stash, it will serve the purpose just as well. While the new mother can use this for anything she wants, the purpose of it is for the mother to write a little note to herself about the baby – a milestone, a funny story, a baby first, etc. – and just stick it in this can to remind her to write it down in the baby book later when she has more time! Someone came up with a poem (YEARS ago!) and I’ve saved it and printed it out on a tag that I enclosed in the tin (but didn’t take a photo of). I also decorated a little notebook and pen with the Lullaby Designer Series Paper for her to write the notes to herself.

The tin is wrapped in the Lullaby Designer Paper in two pieces.  One strip doesn’t completely wrap around. I started by adhering the back piece, using the Liquid Multipurpose Glue (in the green bottle). In the past, I have used Stampin’ Glue Sticks on both the paper and the container on these kinds of projects and they worked well. Right now I don’t have any new glue sticks to use so I better put them on my next order! But I like using the Tombow Glue because it gives you some “wiggle room” to get the paper placed exactly how you want it. Sticky Strip works but you have to be very careful adhering the paper so that it goes in the right place or things become very “sticky” and difficult to move! So if you adhere the paper on the backside first, when you apply the paper on the front, the edges on the side will overlap facing the back which just looks a little nicer. I used to try to cover the top with paper, cutting out around the handle and on the front cutting out around the latch – but that is all too much trouble!  Now I do it the easy way! Just decorate the lid some other way!

I used my retired Sock Monkey stamp because it sort of matched the expectant mother’s nursery decorations. I even kind of altered the Sock Monkey to color it like the nursery decoration. And I used my new Blendabilities to color him. The tag on the front has a bow made with the Crisp Cantaloupe Thick Baker’s Twine. 

The decoration on top of the tin is from the stamp set Label Love. Just tying some ribbon on to the handle adds a nice touch, like my favorite ribbon, Whisper White 5/8″ Organza Ribbon.

Sock Monkey Baby Memory Tin

Here’s a photo of the little notebook I covered with designer paper and stamped a little title for Baby, We’ve Grown. The pen is another oldie but goodie:  Use an RSVP pen that has a clear barrel and you unscrew the top part and insert a small rolled up piece of designer paper to show through the barrel.

Altered baby notebook and matching pen

Take advantage of the special offer on designer series papers this month of July, Buy 3 DSP, Get 1 Free. Visit my Stampin’ Up! Online Store 24/7. If you have any trouble, I’m happy to put your order in for you.