Author Archives: Karen Fontinelle

Just for Kids August Promotion

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Just a short time until I leave for the Stampin' Up! Convention!  I finished my swaps last night (unless I have time to make one more!) so now it is time to get everything gathered up that I need/want to take.  Maybe next year you will be going to Convention, too, after you sign up to be a Demo!  Check out the specials going on now for signing up!  It's a great opportunity!

****Here is some detailed information about the August "Just for Kids" Promotion from Stampin' Up!  Let me know if you have any questions!  You can contact me with your order or place your order online yourself from my website:  www.karenfontinelle.stampinup.net

Dates: August 1-31, 2009

Promotion Details:

Spend $35 on stamp sets from the Growing Up section of the 2009-2010 Idea Book & Catalog (pages 74-90) and receive a FREE package of Designer buttons–a $7.95 value! Eligible buttons are listed below.

Item #  Page  Description  Retail Value 
116313  181 

Playground Designer buttons 

  $7.95 
116312  181 

Sherbet Designer buttons 

  $7.95
114333  181 

Button Latte Designer buttons 

  $7.95


Things to Remember:

  • Growing Up section stamps include the Pirate and Princess Personalized Name stamps from the party kits but not the kits themselves.
  • Stampin' Around wheels do not qualify as a stamp set.
  • There is no limit to the number of free buttons a customer may earn. For every $35 she spends on Growing Up stamp sets, she will receive a free package of Designer buttons.
  • Spanish and French equivalent Growing Up stamp sets are also eligible for this promotion. In addition, the Quinceañera stamp set (item 113820) fromCelebrando Creatividad is also eligible.

FAQs

Q: Will a customer get a free package of Designer buttons for each $35 she spends on Growing Up stamp sets? 
A: Yes! There is no limit to the number of free buttons a customer may earn. For every $35 she spends on Growing Up stamp sets, she will receive a free package of Designer buttons.

Q: Does the qualifying $35 include tax and shipping?
A: No. Customers must meet the qualifying amount before tax and shipping.

Q: Do "kid-friendly" stamp sets outside of the Growing Up section qualify for this promotion?
A: While we recognize there are stamp sets that are great for kids outside of the Growing Up section of the catalog, only stamp sets in the Growing Up section (pages 74-90) qualify for this promotion.

Q: Can customers choose colored or clear button sets (that are worth less than $7.95) as their free package of buttons?
A: No. Customers who spend $35 on stamp sets from the Growing Up section may choose any of the three sets of Designer buttons for their free package of buttons.

Tombow Multi Purpose Adhesive

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TombowMulti 

I love this Tombow Multi Purpose Adhesive!  I'm using it on all my Convention swap cards, except where I need Mini Glue Dots or Stampin' Dimensionals.  It is easy to apply, you need just little dots of it so more economical than SNAIL Adhesive (although I love that too!), only occasionally gets all over your hands (and then it washes off!), and you can use the Adhesive Remover (#103684) to get it off areas where you don't want it.  Another advantage is that for a few moments you can move your piece around to get it exactly right since it is a liquid glue.  It is permanent if you adhere your pieces right away, but if you let it dry it can be a temporary adhesive.  Besides the small tip, it has a broad applicator at the bottom of the bottle, which I always forget about! You can use it for beads and glitter, too!  If you are making a box or something other than a card, you may have to hold it for just a few seconds until it sticks, but that is the only real drawback, if you want to call it that.  Now if flying in an airplane to Salt Lake City causes the glue to malfunction, then my swaps are in serious trouble!  But I don't think that will happen!  You might consider adding this on to your next order!    

#110755   Tombow Adhesive   $3.95

August is “Just for Kids”!

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Today is August 1st and the start of a big month at Stampin' Up!  Of course it is the Stampin' Up! Convention in JUST A FEW DAYS (I can't believe it!!) and the start of preordering great new products in the new Holiday Mini Catalog for demos.  The Holiday Mini products can be ordered by customers starting Sept. 1st.  But Stampin' Up! has also kicked off their "Just for Kids" campaign. 

SUUSCA_KidCampaign_landingheader_550px 

Image copyright Stampin' Up!

Click HERE to read all about it or click on the images on the side of my blog!

If you and your kids are interested in some stamping fun before school starts, please contact me at KSFontinelle@gmail.com.



 

One Good Thing About Stamping….

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…….You don't have to have electricity!!  Some storms finally came through our area today, and after they were gone THEN the power went off for over an hour.  Fortunately, I was still able to work on my swaps for Convention!  Unfortunately, the power came on just in time to cook dinner!

SwapLattice

This is the new Lattice Die for the Big Shot, the new Crushed Curry card stock and the new Razzleberry Lemonade Designer Series Paper.  I think the Lattice Die has a lot of potential for creativity!

Baby Wipe Stamping

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I'm working on swaps for Convention and trying to find the fastest way to get the look I want for a certain card.  It's one thing to make one card or several cards with one technique, but if you are making a stack of 25 or 50 card fronts certain techniques can be slow going.  Today I happened to think of the Baby Wipe Technique…..you use a baby wipe as an ink pad and place drops of ink on the pad.  Then you ink up your stamp on the colored baby wipe pad.  It produces kind of a tie-dye multi-color look.  Very easy and rather fun to see what look you will get!

BabyWipetech

Making a Swap Card

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Swappieces

Finally cut out the paper for a swap card for Convention yesterday!  And last night I used the Big Shot Texturz Plate to make the texture on the Whisper White cardstock and stamped the giraffe from the new set "Animal Stories".  A week from today I will be on the plane to Salt Lake City to the great Stampin' Up! Convention!  If you want to be going next year, you should consider signing up to be a demo, especially right now with the great sign up deal!  Swapping is a big part of Convention…..usually we make just a card front and then trade with all the other demos!  I'll make several different designs (hopefully, anyway!) so I don't get tired of making the same thing over and over.  Sometimes I think bigger deals are being struck between demos and their swaps, especially the 3-D ones (like little gifts and things) than you find on the floor of the stock market!  If you want to see what this card will look like, you should be following me on Twitter at www.twitter.com/karenstamps!  Go to www.twitter.com to sign up!

Playing with the Heart to Heart Punch

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HeartHeartPunchcard

Just a fun card, a Pink Passion card base studded with hearts from the Deal of the Week, the Heart to Heart Punch!  I just reached into my basket of scraps and punched out lots of hearts.  Love the Tombow Multi Glue for easy adhering!  The sentiment is from the "Oval All" stamp set, colored with Stampin' Write Markers, punched out with the Scallop Oval Punch and a layer from the Wide Oval Punch.

Deal of the Week: Heart to Heart Punch sale $10.99

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You'll love this last Stampin' Up! Deal of the Week…..lots of hearts!  For this week only, July 27-31 buy the Heart to Heart Punch, regular price $15.95, for only $10.99!  You can use these hearts anytime but with Valentine's Day right around the corner……okay, Valentine's Day isn't right around the corner but you know it will get here!!  It's really a cute punch and I'm sure you will enjoy it!  Just be sure to order it by Friday, July 31 to get the sale price.  I love all our punches!

DBWS_dealofweek_heartpunch

Start Your Own Stamping Business…and Love Your Job!

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**When is a good time to start your own business?  Anytime, if you want to be a Stampin' Up! Demonstrator!  But if you want some extra-special deals, then from now until August 31 is a really good time!  Want some extra cash to pay a few bills or want to take your own stamping and scrapbooking business to the top levels?  Start off with either of these kits and start enjoying the world of Stampin' Up!

Already have a lot of stamping supplies or just want to get started at a minimum price?  Then the Mini Starter Kit is for you……only $85!

  • For All You Do stamp set
  • In Color Classic Stampin' Pads (6)
  • Whisper White card stock (8-1/2" x 11")
  • In Color assorted card stock (8-1/2" x 11")
  • Business forms and tools 

    •   

       Want a whole slew of supplies that are a great value PLUS the In Colors for free?  Then the $199 Starter Kit is for you!

  • Five stamp sets 
  • A Stampin' Around wheel, handle, and ink cartridge
  • Stampin' Pastels
  • Card stock
  • Eastern Blooms Décor Elements and applicator tool
  • Five Classic Stampin' Pads
  • VersaMark Pad
  • Stampin' Scrub and Mist
  • Blender pens
  • SNAIL 
  • Business forms and tools 

    •   

  • PLUS all six of the new In Color Classic Stampin' Pads and one pack of In Color assorted card stock (8-1/2" x 11")–a $43 value! Click HERE to read more about becoming a Demonstrator and then contact me if you would like to sign up or have any questions.  

    • Razzleberry Lemonade Notebook

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    NotebookKF 

    This is what you can do with a little notebook in the Dollar Bin!  I covered it with the new Stampin' Up! In Colors…..Rich Razzleberry and Melon Mambo, then some Razzleberry Lemonade Designer Series Paper.  Of course the Lovely Letters Alphabet is perfect for a monogram.  For the butterfly, I finally tried out my Big Shot Die "Beautiful Butterflies" with a layered butterfly on top punched out of Sticky Pages with the new Butterfly Punch  and covered with Chunky Sprinkles Glitter plus two little half pearls from the Pretties Kit.  I love the new In Colors Polka Dot ribbon and the Organza Ribbon.

    Stenciled Picture Frames

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    Since I loved doing the picture frame in THIS post, I had to run back to Hobby Lobby and get more frames.  This time I got the light-colored frame.  It gives a whole different look, which of course you can control depending on how much glaze you apply or wipe off.  Here are some photos of the process and the end result. The first stencil is "Kind Thoughts Brocade" and the second stencil is portions of the "Brocade Flourish" stencil.  You can find these in the Definitely Decorative Catalog.

    • Just place the Stampin' Up! Decor Stencil where you want it. 
    • Lightly tape it down to hold it in place. 
    • Smear the embossing paste over the stencil to cover. 
    • Place post-it notes over areas where you don't want the paste to go. 
    • Then wipe off the paste with your palette knife. 
    • Carefully life the stencil up. 
    • Clean off your stencil right away.

    Let me know which design and look you like the best!

    Stencilingpaste 

    Stencilingpaste2 

    Stencilingpaste3 

    KThoughtsstencil2 

    Brocadestencil 

    Brocadestencil2

    Tip: Designer Series Paper Coordinating Colors

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    This is something I have been doing for awhile but just realized it might be a tip worth sharing.  When I go to work with my Stampin' Up! Designer Series Papers (DSP), I like to know what colors coordinate with each pack.  Stampin' Up! now provides that information under each DSP item in the catalog (did you notice that?).  Usually I also have a list that another demo somewhere has compiled of all the papers and colors that I try to keep handy.  But sometimes you want it even handier!  So I write the coordinating colors on the back cardboard of the DSP pack, right above the name of the paper.  That way the information is right at hand!

    This photo shows the selections for the new "Tall Tales" Designer Series Paper that coordinates with the stamp set "Animal Stories".

    ColorsDSP 

    And when the paper retires, I still have that information handy, as long as I have that cardboard in the back of the package and still have some paper left……and we all know we wouldn't want to use up ALL of our paper!  :)  Better to hoard extras just in case we need it!!

    If you need some of the NEW Designer Series papers, please contact me at KSFontinelle@gmail.com or order online at my store at www.karenfontinelle.stampinup.net.  Click the "Shop Now" button!  You KNOW you need it all!

    Friends 24-7

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    BirdcardVHPHW  

    Here is an easy card using the Styled Vanilla Hodgepodge Hardware and the "Friends 24-7" stamp set.  You could add lots of different embellishments to cards and scrapbook pages with the pieces in this kit.  Get it while it is on sale!

    Deal of the Week: Styled Vanilla Hodgepodge Hardware $18.99

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    DBWS_dealofweek_hodgepodge Our Styled Vanilla Hodgepodge Hardware adds class to any project. Get them for just $18.99 (over 30% off the regular price of $29.95)—only July 20-26!

    Here's a fancy bookmark I made for a gift.  Although it is made with the Silver Hodgepodge Hardware, all you have to do is substitute with a Vanilla piece if you like.  With this special offer you will have lots of hardware pieces to play with on your cards and scrapbook pages!

    BookmarkHodgepodgeHardware

     

    The Moon Landing: 40 Years Ago Today

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    When you are a child, you never really think you are going to be old enough to say "Forty years ago…"….. but here I am!  Forty years ago today my whole family watched the first man, Neil Armstrong, walk on the moon, at my grandmother's apartment, probably celebrating my dad's birthday.  I remember having a fit that I had to leave the TV at my house, afraid I would miss something significant, while we drove the fifteen minutes or so over to my grandmother's…..and again when it was time to go back home.  I remember my parents being just amazed, repeating over and over again how this accomplishment was only considered science fiction to them in their lifetime, and now it was really happening right before their eyes….men landing on the moon…and this was something my brother and I would be reading about in the history books!  Even now I think it is pretty amazing that we would have pictures of the moon landing and the men walking on the moon live that many years ago.  My parents wondered what accomplishments like this my brother and I would see in our lifetime.

    Since Stampin' Up! doesn't have a stamp of a lunar module or an astronaut I had to be a little creative with this card!  But just a circle punch and some sponging made do for the moon (plus a little touch of "Itty Bitty Backgrounds" for those craters!) and the earth and a retired wheel created the stars in outer space! (I really think you cannot do without some stars in your stamping collection.  They are so versatile!)  Of course the rocket is from the great set "Pun Fun", not exactly Apollo 11 but it will do!

    FlyMetotheMoon 

    Little did I know then that forty years later I would be living in Houston, TX where we have visited the Johnson Space Center many times over the years and always find it fascinating.  There we can see the actual moon rocks and how they are stored very carefully and precisely that we watched on TV as the astronauts picked up on their missions to bring back to earth.

    It's been interesting to hear the local media coverage of this anniversary here in Houston.  The great Astrodome, opened in 1965, had groundskeepers called "Earthmen" dressed in faux-spacesuits and the ushers were called "Spacettes".  The baseball team was renamed "Astros".  And of course the first word spoken from the moon was, "Houston, Tranquility Base here."