Author Archives: Karen Fontinelle

Stamping Off Easy Petite Petals Congratulations Card

I’m getting a little more use out of my 2014-16 In Colors before they retire in this Stamping Off Easy Petite Petals Congratulations Card. I have to admit, I stole the idea from a sample in the new upcoming Stampin’ Up! Catalog! Mine is even simpler, just stamped on a folded piece of Whisper White Thick Cardstock and stamped the greeting right on the center of the card. I could have stamped and punched a few extra Petite Petals to adhere in a popped-up fashion, but I just kept it simple.

I chose to use three of the retiring In Colors: Hello Honey, Tangelo Twist, and Blackberry Bliss (ink pad not available). I did LOTS of stamping off to get the lighter colors of the flowers and less stamping off to keep getting darker colors. What is it about having a stamp in your hand and doing repetitive stamping that is so satisfying?! The flower is from the Petite Petals Stamp Set, which is not retiring and you will see in the new catalog. And for the small price difference, only $4, I would recommend getting the wood-mount stamp set.

For the greeting, I chose the Bravo Photopolymer Stamp Set with it’s great bold greetings for many occasions. Sadly, this is a retiring stamp set, so if you are interested, be sure to put it on your order!

This Stamping Off Easy Petite Petals Congratulations Card is fun to stamp and would work for graduations, weddings, thinking of you, birthday, hello, birthday, Mother’s Day – many occasions!

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Adult Coloring Flower Shop Card

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Yesterday I made my own adult coloring page and today I have made it into this Adult Coloring Flower Shop Card! If you are into the adult coloring craze, don’t forget, you can make your own coloring pages! Just stamp randomly with Stazon Ink or Archival Black Ink and then color in with Stampin’ Write Markers, watercolor with ink, color with colored pencils, whatever you would like to do! It’s fun, easy and therapeutic! Just take a little while to stamp and relax, and color like when you were a child! I recommend using lighter colored markers or else pick up the ink with an Aqua Painter so it doesn’t get too dark for your images. I used the Flower Shop stamp set to stamp these outline flowers.

After “adult coloring” this page yesterday, I decided to make it into a card today! It is layered on a piece of Basic Black cardstock with a very thin margin and then layered on a card base of So Saffron. The greeting is from the Tin of Cards Stamp Set (one of my favorites!). I stamped it and then punched out with the popular Decorative Label Punch. I couldn’t resist adding a couple of Rhinestone Jewels. The ribbon is the Basic Black 3/8″ Stitched Satin Ribbon (retired).

If you want a layer behind your Decorative Label Punch, punch out two pieces of the contrasting color. Then cut each piece in half, one horizontally and one vertically and layer behind the top label.

If you want to see my adult coloring Flower Shop page before I made it into a card, visit my Facebook page HERE.

Take a few minutes and stamp some Whisper White card stock with an outline image of your choice. Just holding a block and stamp in your hand will feel wonderful! Stamp and then color in with whatever art supplies you have. Stamping and coloring is good for the soul!

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Flower Shop Mother’s Day Card

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Mother’s Day is coming next Sunday so here is a Flower Shop Mother’s Day card! Sometimes I totally surprise myself with what I end up making compared to what I thought I was going to make when I get out my supplies and start stamping. This card was inspired by one I saw in the Stampin’ Up! Catalog on page 126, made with the Flower Shop Stamp Set. I don’t even know how they made it so I just came up with something similar.

The card base is made with the Whisper White Thick Cardstock with a layer of Whisper White (regular) Cardstock. The flowers are stamped with Crumb Cake ink, but stamped off first before stamping again on the Whisper White layer. A couple of the flowers are stamped and punched out with the Pansy Punch.

Now the unusual part of the card is the fiber heart. Can you guess what that is made from? I used the White Jute Ribbon! I’m not sure at all how they made the heart on the sample I was copying, but I made mine with the Jute Ribbon. It wasn’t wide enough, so I just took 3 pieces of the ribbon, laid them side by side to make one heart. I actually folded the center piece in half lengthwise, then put the side pieces on each side of that folded center piece and cut out a heart shape like you would out of folded paper. Then I used Fast Fuse to adhere the three pieces down on the card in the heart shape.

I added a few embellishments: two of the Neutral Designer Buttons (retiring and discounted) and one of the 2015-17 In Color Blossom Accents (retiring and discounted). The greeting is from the retiring stamp set And Many More. This stamp set, in the wood-mount, is discounted almost $10! Change the greeting to anything you like for a card for another occasion!

If you need inspiration, just look through the Stampin’ Up! Catalog and look at the samples. I’m sure you will find something that jumps out at you that you want to make. You can copy exactly or change the paper or the embellishments or the colors or the stamp set! It’s fun and easy! That’s how I came to making this Flower Shop Mother’s Day Card.

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Botanical Gardens Big News Birthday Card

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Yesterday I showed you a baby card made with the retiring Big News Stamp Set and today I have used one of the birthday stamps in the set to make this Botanical Gardens Big News Birthday Card. Today is May Day, the 1st day of May, so I thought a few flowers would be appropriate!

Normally I don’t care for the off-kelter, look of cards that seems to be popular recently, like I have done with the designer paper on the background of this card. However, I was looking at a sample that I was copying except for changing the designer paper, so I decided to give it a try. The card base is Hello Honey Card Stock and I used the Botanical Gardens Designer Series Paper for the background layers. This paper is retiring, so get it while you can! I angled them slightly, which normally I don’t like. The greeting from Big News is stamped on Whisper White Card Stock with Old Olive Ink.

The flowers are cut out from another pattern of the Botanical Gardens Designer Series Paper. The flowers are pretty as is, but if you like, you can use the stamps in the Botanical Bloom Photopolymer Stamp Set to stamp the flower centers, as I did. I simply cut out the flowers myself, but you can use the Botanical Builder Framelit Dies to die cut them. If you want it all, get the Botanical Blooms Photopolymer Bundle while you can and get the stamp set, the framelits, and the designer series paper. You will save 15% with the Bundle and get everything you need! You could also add some other embellishments if you wanted – ribbon, rhinestones, Candy Dots.

Now that it is May, this is the last month for the Stampin’ Up! Retiring Products! See all that is still available in my Stampin’ Up! Online Store HERE. Accessories are only available while supplies last and some are sold out already. Stamps, since Stampin’ Up! manufactures them, will be available through May 22 even if they sell out. Stampin’ Up! will make more until that date.

See if you like the angled look of my Botanical Gardens Big News Birthday Card today, and if so, try it yourself for something different!

Big News Baby Card

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Make a Big News baby card for that new arrival with the Big News Stamp Set! It’s on the Stampin’ Up! retiring list so you only have a few weeks to order it. But this stamp set is not just for babies, it has greetings for several life events, such as birthdays and weddings, as well as good old “awesomeness”!

I hate to see this stamp set retire. It made me happy just to see it!

I used the Birthday Bouquet Designer Series Paper on this card so I used the colors that coordinate with the paper. The card base is Mint Macaron layered with Whisper White Card Stock. The words are stamped in Soft Suede ink.

I stamped the outlined words “Big News” right on a scrap of the Birthday Bouquet Paper with Stazon Black Ink so it wouldn’t bleed when I colored in the letters. You can stamp the whole stamp on a larger piece of designer paper and then cut it accordingly rather than trying to stamp it precisely. I cut the banner ends and then layered it on a piece of Watermelon Wonder card stock. You might not be able to tell from the photo, but I colored in the outline letters with the Mossy Meadow Marker from the 2014-16 In Color Stampin’ Write Markers. This set of markers is one of the retiring In Colors and the pack of markers is discounted, so be sure to check that out!

The baby booties are from the stamp set Something For Baby. I colored the stamp with two markers, Watermelon Wonder and Mint Macaron, and stamped and then cut out. I tied a small bow with Whisper White Baker’s Twine and adhered the booties to the ends of the twine. You can also get coordinating framelits for this baby stamp set in a bundle with the stamp set, the Something for Baby Bundle. Save 15% with the Bundle!

We always need more words and greetings for our stamping projects so check out the Big News Stamp Set (both the clear- and wood-mount stamp sets are discounted!) and see if you should add it to your Stampin’ Up! order, and make sure you get all the retiring accessories you want while they are still available.

Shop the Stampin’ Up! Retiring List Online!

See the products that are still available right here in the Online Store!

Blended Bloom Shimmery Thank You Card

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We are in the midst of the Stampin’ Up! transition to the new catalog with the Retiring Products List and two of the retiring products on the list are on this Blended Bloom Shimmery Thank You Card. The Retiring List is a list of products going away by May 31st (if not sooner) in order to make room for the exciting new products and stamp sets in the new Stampin’ Up! 2016-17 catalog coming out June 1, 2016.

This beautiful stamp, Blended Bloom Wood-Mount Stamp Set, is a single wood-mount stamp. If you are in to the adult coloring craze, this is a good stamp for coloring! You can stamp it as many times as you like without having to buy an expensive coloring book! This stamp is discounted by a few dollars on the Retiring List, so check it out!

I stamped this beautiful flower on Shimmery White Card Stock with Stazon Ink. Shimmery White paper holds up to watercoloring pretty well, better than Whisper White, although Watercolor Paper still is the best. But I love the shimmer on the Shimmery White Paper. I think you can see it a little bit in the photo above. I used my Aqua Painter and ink refills to color in the flower, then cut it out with Paper Snips.

The card base is Rich Razzleberry Card Stock (as is the main color of ink on the flower) with a Shimmery White layer. I wrapped a piece of White 1 1/4″ Jute Ribbon around the left side of the card using Fast Fuse to adhere the end and also to adhere it along the front of the card, but not all the way over to the right. Then I tied on some Linen Thread around the Jute and trimmed the end with my Craft Scissors (they are sold out!). Then I adhered the Blended Bloom flower using Stampin’ Dimensionals.

The greeting is from the Tin of Cards Photopolymer Stamp Set. This stamp set is a great one to have, lots of great greetings plus a few little cutesy stamps that I have often used for just an extra little something on a project. I would also recommend you take a look at the Tin of Cards Project Kit because it is discounted right now and on the Retiring List! A great price and lots of crafting fun to make 16 cards!

Grab the Blended Bloom Stamp while you can and check out the other products used on the Blended Bloom Shimmery Thank You Card. Just change the greeting, of course, to make it a card for any occasion.

Stampin’ Up! Retiring Products in the Online Store

Join Paper Pumpkin! Get the May Kit!

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The Stampin’ Up! Paper Pumpkin Kits for April 2016 have been delivered to subscribers! If you don’t want to miss out on the next kit in May, be sure to get yourself subscribed!

It’s easy to join!

Sign up on my Paper Pumpkin page HERE! (or just get more information)
Add a Prepaid Paper Pumpkin Subscription to your Stampin’ Up! order! You’ll receive a code via email right after you order. It will tell you to set up your account on the Paper Pumpkin page and you will be set to go!
Sign up either way by May 10th to receive the May kit.
Watch for your Paper Pumpkin kit in your mailbox around mid-May!

Everything you need comes in your kit! A stamp set, an ink spot, a clear block with your first kit, and all the paper and supplies you need to make the project. Sometimes it is cards, sometimes it is something else. It’s always a surprise.

No risk! If it doesn’t suit you, just cancel. If you are busy and want to skip a month, just go in to your account and pause your subscription. Resume when you are ready.

Give Paper Pumpkin as a gift! I send one to my daughter as a gift and if she is too busy, she just pauses her subscription for a month or two.

Who do you need a gift for and want something different? Who do you know could use a little “me” time to just sit down and relax while they have some crafting time? Who do you know would enjoy a little surprise gift who doesn’t even craft? Paper Pumpkin is for everyone and anyone!

Take a look at April’s Paper Pumpkin Kit! Sometimes there are plenty of extra pieces left over that you can make even MORE projects with! If you don’t like the project or you don’t want to make all the cards or whatever, just go with your own design and creativity. Nothing says you can’t change it up! Just have fun with it! That is what Paper Pumpkin is for!

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Make An All-Occasion Card with Everything Eleanor

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One of the Stampin’ Up! retiring stamp sets is Everything Eleanor , which is a set that has been around a long time, it seems, and is good for all-occasion and any occasion cards! It’s an elegant set of stamps that you can make as simple or formal as you like. I’ve always loved the flourishes and the special shaped images to use as a background.

This card has Lost Lagoon, one of the retiring In Colors, as the card base with a Whisper White layer. I stamped the flourishes in Mossy Meadow and the cute background shape in Lost Lagoon (stamped off once first). The flowers were all stamped in Stazon Ink on a scrap and colored in and cut out. I used my Aqua Painter and the ink in the lid of the ink pads ( Calypso Coral, So Saffron, Melon Mambo). The bird is also stamped and cut out.

The greeting is from the stamp set A Dozen Thoughts. It is also on the retiring list. I noticed that the wood-mount version is discounted so it is only $1.25 more than the clear-mount! For that little price difference, I would rather have the wood-mount! Once you mount the stamps on the wood blocks, the stamps are ready to go all the time! If you don’t mind the extra storage space that the wider case takes up!

Stampin’ Up! Retiring List

Check it out soon because some items have already sold out! Don’t miss out on what YOU want!

*Due to high demand for retiring stamps, Stampin’ Up! will keep producing retiring stamps until May 22 (not accessories, which are only while supplies last).

Cherry on Top Easy Amazing Birthday Card

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Here is a Cherry on Top easy Amazing Birthday card! If you are looking for a simple birthday (or most any occasion) card to make, this is one you should try. All it takes is a change of paper and/or greeting to fit any reason to send a card!

One of the retiring stamp sets I am going to miss is the Amazing Birthday Stamp Set! It is even discounted on the Retiring Stamps List. It has birthday-specific stamps but some of the other stamps you can use for other occasions, too!

The card base is Bermuda Bay, with a layer of Crushed Curry, both of which coordinate with the Cherry on Top Designer Series Paper Stack. My Cherry on Top Paper Stack had gotten lost in the shuffle somehow so I was glad to think about it again, find it, and use it because it has some fun, colorful papers in it. It’s “Happy” paper to use!

I used my Banner Framelits Dies to die cut the layered banner on the front of the card. If you like, you can save 15% by purchasing the Amazing Birthday Stamp Set and the Banner Framelit Dies together in the Amazing Birthday Bundle. I had forgotten these two products came together in a Bundle!

All Bundles are being retired right now, but that doesn’t mean all the products individually are being retiring. They are just taking apart the Bundles to make room for NEW Bundles in the new catalog and perhaps one of the items in the Bundle is retiring, such as the stamp set or the designer paper.

For a final embellishment, I wrapped some Gold Metallic Thread around the top of the banner. This is not retiring but you may as well put it on your order to have on hand because it is an inexpensive, fun bit of pizzazz to add to any of your cards or projects.

Try making this Cherry on Top Easy Amazing Birthday Card or change it up with your own design!

Stampin’ Up! Retiring Products: Stamps and Everything Else!

Cherry on Top Washi Tape Card

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The sun is finally shining today in Houston! No rain is forecast so I think it’s time for a bright and cheerful card like this one made with some of the Cherry on Top products! It’s all going away by the end of May (or while supplies last!). I got the idea for this card in our Demonstrator magazine we all receive quarterly. They used different paper and washi tape, but I was in the mood for the Cherry on Top designs!

The card base is made with Watermelon Wonder. The paper layered in the background is from the Cherry on Top Designer Series Paper Stack. Then I took a smaller piece of Whisper White cardstock as a base and wrapped Cherry on Top Designer Washi Tape around it, leaving space for a greeting.

The word “Celebrate” is from the stamp set And Many More, which is retiring. It’s one of the stamp sets I hate to see go because I like the ones with lots of words and greetings in it. This stamp set is even discounted so if you need more words for your cards and projects (and who doesn’t?!) I would grab it for your collection. I have the wood-mount. Certain sets I like to have the wood-mount so the stamps are ready to go or if they are small I think they work better with wood-mount.

For a little pizzazz, I added to Brights Candy Dots in Bermuda Bay to each side of the word. And then I tied a piece of Metallic Gold Baker’s Twine around the front of the card. Easy to do and fun to use my Cherry on Top Washi Tape!

Check out the Stampin’ Up! Retiring Products in my Online Store! This is the easiest way to see everything that is still available! When you are on the page of Retiring Products, choose either “Stamps” or “Everything Else”. Then on the right side of the page, choose “View: ALL” in the drop down box so you can just scroll through everything!

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Stampin’ Up! Retiring List PDF

Simple Birthday Card with Birthday Bouquet Paper

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Here is a simple birthday card to make using the retiring Birthday Bouquet Designer Series Paper. I love this Birthday Bouquet paper, and if you do too be sure to order it while it is available! The ice cream cone patterned paper is layered on a card base of Mint Macaron cardstock.

The greeting is from the retiring stamp set Enjoy the Little Things Stamp Set. This stamp set coordinates with the Enjoy the Little Things Project Kit, which is really cute! But even if you don’t have the kit, this stamp set has many useful greetings and cute little stamps. For a little embellishment, I just gathered some of the Gold Metallic Thread at the back of the punched circles and popped it up with Stampin’ Dimensionals.

You could use any greeting and any designer paper for a card, so keep this card layout in mind when you want something quick! Start with something simple and you can always embellish to your heart’s content!

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Retiring List 2016 PDF

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Time to Say Farewell to Stampin’ Up! Products

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Yesterday the Stampin’ Up! list of Retiring Products came out. Wow! I was quite surprised at a lot of them, but we’ll see! Stampin’ Up! doesn’t usually leave us hanging so I think whatever we are missing will be replaced with something better and nicer for us! Really, I haven’t taken it all in yet. I did mark my catalog last night, using a Sharpie to mark the retiring products. Now I’ll have to go back through and take stock in my mind what all the things were!

Shop Retiring Stampin’ Up! Products

Get the List

The Retiring List by Page Number

Excel File

(for your sorting pleasure!)

I hope you received my special newsletter yesterday with the list. If you didn’t, check your Spam folder just in case it went in there. If you are reading this and aren’t on my Mailing List, go ahead and sign up in the box and you will be good to go for receiving all the latest news on this catalog transition from the retiring catalog to the brand new catalog coming June 1st! Make sure you “Confirm” your email subscription after you initially fill out the form. You will get an email with a link you need to click to make it all official. Some people never do this little step and miss out! It’s a pretty standard practice with emails to make sure we have your permission.

As you can imagine, every excited stamper was on the Stampin’ Up! website trying to shop and get information as soon as the list came out yesterday so there were a lot of website problems, crashes and slowdowns. If you had any problems, try again today or tomorrow. Frustrating for sure, but it shows how much everyone loves Stampin’ Up! products!

Things to Remember:

Accessories will be available while supplies last.
Due to high demand for retiring stamps, we’ll keep producing retiring stamps until May 22 (Accessories are only while supplies last).
The lists of retiring products will be updated every business day by 4:00 PM (MT).

Enjoy shopping! Let me know if you have any questions! This is a fun time!

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Shop Stampin’ Up! Retiring Products Today!

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Here it is! The Retiring Products are up in my Stampin’ Up! Online Store!

Discounts up to 50% off!

Only available while supplies last!

Also, last day for Stampin’ Up! Weekly Deals! Add them to your order!

Gorgeous Grunge Timeless Elegance Thank You Card

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Sometimes when you think you are going to copy a card, it doesn’t turn out exactly like what you expected, like this Gorgeous Grunge Timeless Elegance Thank You Card. I was going to copy a card I saw in our Demonstrator magazine although I didn’t have the same stamp set or the same framelits. I substituted nearly everything and am undecided whether or not I even like this card! What do you think?

The card base is made with Sahara Sand with a pattern from the Timeless Elegance Designer Series Paper layered on the front. I found the already die cut shape in my package of Very Vanilla cardstock from (oops, maybe that one is already retired!) (I was thinking it was Deco Labels). I stamped the greeting from One Big Meaning. Then I used my Gorgeous Grunge Stamp Set to very lightly stamp to make a textured background.

Behind the die cut I adhered two pieces of the 1/4″ Cotton Ribbon (Melon Mambo and Pool Party) plus a stand of the Silver Sequin Trim. I also pulled off a few sequins from the trim and adhered them to the greeting die cut. It’s easiest to use the Fine Tip Glue Pen for tiny things like sequins. And then I also used a few small and tiny pearls from the Pearl Basic Jewels.

So sometimes when you go to stamp something, you might surprise yourself with something very different than what you planned. You just have to go with the flow and see where it takes you!

The Stampin’ Up! Retirement List is due to come out this afternoon at 1:00 pm MT (2:00 pm Central Time). I will post the link to the list or whatever is available and all information as soon as I can. That’s as much as I know at the moment!

Sounds like the Stampin’ Up! OnStage 2016 event in Salt Lake City was a big success and that everyone is excited about the new catalog! The new catalog will go live June 1st. I should be able to give out/mail out catalogs to my customers when I receive them, probably around early to mid-May. If you do not have a Demonstrator, I would be happy to be yours and mail you a catalog if you are interested in Stampin’ Up! products. Just email me with your contact information at Karen@KarenStamps.com.

If you have ordered from me as “No Contact” customer, THANK YOU!, but know that I do not have your name or address. If you would like a catalog, just request one from me.

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Watch for the Retirement List later today!

Make a Cute Mini Album For A Friend

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I thought you would enjoy seeing this cute mini album a friend sent me recently that she made! You can use it for inspiration to make an album of your own! I think mini albums are one of the cutest things we can make with all our stamping supplies!

I’ve often said one of the best things about being a Stampin’ Up! Demonstrator is the people you meet. It was just chance that another Demonstrator saw my name on an email group I was part of and noticed I lived in Houston. She invited me to come join a group of them for stamping, swapping and lunch out! What could be more fun than that?! We all got together once a month for a few years. It was great because most of us would never have met any other way. Most of us are still in touch one way or another even though some have dropped as Demonstrators or moved away. We just enjoy talking about stamping and Stampin’ Up! and having lots of laughs together. I wouldn’t have met these people without being a part of Stampin’ Up!

When you open the album completely, this is what the inside looks like. So fun to discover all the cute tags and sayings my friend slipped inside!

In the photo below, if you fold the right portion back to the center, you see another pocket and cute little tag and envelope.

Such cute little things in the small envelope, not to mention a unique clasp for the envelope flap, tucking it behind the punched flower!

And even on the back of the album is one more surprise!

You can make something like this and put photos inside of your family or whatever occasion you are making the album for. You will find many ways to make mini albums online. This one is the same size as a regular card.

Just as I was thrilled to receive this from my friend and know how much thought and love she put into it, imagine how much one you make will make to someone special!

Join the Stampin’ Up! family and make new friends!

Tomorrow is the last day for Stampin’ Up! Weekly Deals as we have known them! After tomorrow we will have occasional “Special Offers” instead. Lots of deals to choose from! Be sure to check it out!

Tomorrow also begins the transition to the new Stampin’ Up! Catalog! Demonstrators who attended the OnStage convention in Salt Lake City the past few days already received theirs and get extra-early ordering opportunities! Demonstrators who did not attend will be able to view the catalog online tomorrow and we’ll all be able to see projects made with new products. Customers will start receiving catalogs about mid-May and the new catalog goes into effect June 1. That means the Retiring List will be released tomorrow afternoon, 1:00 pm MT! If there are things you want, you can get a jump on ordering today or be ready to order as soon as the list is released. Some things will sell out most likely, you never know. More details will be released tomorrow about the Retiring List.

Join my Mailing List to keep up with all the news coming out from Stampin’ Up!

Try your hand at making a mini album for someone. You’ll have fun making it and they will appreciate it!