It was a Valentine Extravaganza last night as I helped two moms make class valentines for their kids to take to their school valentine parties this week!  We’ve been doing this for a few years now.  I make some sample ideas, they see which ones their kids like, and then we get together and make them, sometimes with one of the girl’s help because Elsie has been stamping and scrapbooking since she was in preschool!  Really!  She taught a class on stamping in preschool!

The Magical Day Stamp Set in the Occasions Catalog proved to be perfect for Carl as he had just done some Shakespeare in school!  I tried various combinations of designs as you will see.  I used the new Stampin’ Blends markers to color in the knight.  That was a little time-consuming for making 30 valentines, but it had to be done and I knew the moms would want to try out the Stampin’ Blends markers. (They loved them!)

Using a different greeting (“Awesome”) from the Marquee Messages, which the mom liked, but her son liked the greeting that came in the Magical Day Stamp Set.

This version I thought using punches was going to be quicker and easier that cutting or die-cutting squares. That’s something you have to consider when you are making a quantity of cards.  What can you mass-produce fairly easily?

In the end we made a card with the “Magical” greeting, the knight layered on a  piece of Silver Glimmer Paper punched with the Starburst Punch and that all layered over a Black Glimmer Paper (retired) strip flagged at the ends like this silver one.  And we stamped the little stars in the stamp set around on the card front in Versamark ink, which was better than using the Bermuda Bay ink.

Wyatt is a soccer player so I dug out a retired stamp set called I Love Soccer.  I bought this set in case I ever make scrapbook pages for my two boys who played soccer!  Luckily I met Wyatt who likes soccer valentines!  The grass is stamped from the Sheltering Tree Stamp Set. I stamped it in both Old Olive and Crumb Cake to look like some dirt mixed in. In the final version of the card (and late at night!) we decided it would be quicker to just stamp the “Woohoo” in Real Red ink right on the card instead of stamping and cutting out.  It looked fine!

All these cards were just one-sided (no fold) and the kids will sign them on the back.  Since this one is mounted on Basic Black, we added a Whisper White layer and stamped with some more soccer stamps.

Last but not least, Elsie likes cats, so this was her card she chose!

The cat is from the retired stamp set Pun Fun. I got a lot of use out of that stamp set back in the day! The cat is stamped in Memento Black ink and colored in with the Smoky Slate Stampin’ Blends.  The cat is punched out with the 2″ Circle Punch and then layered on the Starburst Punch piece in Real Red.  The little hearts are from Heart Happiness (love that stamp set!) and the word “Love” is from Watercolor Words (another great set!).  Pretty quick and easy valentine to make for a cat-lover! If you are looking for a cat stamp set, the current one in the Annual Catalog is this adorable one, the Pretty Kitty Stamp Set.  If you need a dog, order this stamp set, Bella & Friends.  This stamp set was designed by one of the Demonstrators who reached $1 million in sales, Angie Juda.

This was another potential sample using the Cat Punch.  Her eyes are stamped from the Halloween set, Spooky Cat (retired).  The “friend” is die cut with the Lovely Words Thinlits Dies.  It comes attached to an oval, but to get only the word, just snip the ends to separate.

And this was another sample I played around with.  I stamped the Whisper White in Melon Mambo with the beautiful flowery stamp in the Wood Words Stamp Set.  Then I used the Cat Punch to punch out the cat. Next, adhere the Whisper White layer to the Melon Mambo card base. Pop the cat up on Stampin’ Dimensionals and adhere it in the empty space.  This is called the Eclipse Technique and you can do it more elaborately with the Large Letters and Large Numbers dies, but it is very easy with just a punch!  She may give this card to one of her teachers.

For more ideas for class valentines for kids, check out my blog post from last year to see the valentines I designed for the kids!

So there you have lots of valentines ideas for kids!  I sure wish I’d know about Stampin’ Up! back when my kids were in elementary school.  I hope the schools don’t give up the tradition of handing out valentines. I think it is one where they can all participate and enjoy receiving their little cards and treats!  It’s even more fun if you can stamp some valentines, perhaps with your child’s help, and have a Valentine Extravaganza making their class valentines!

Valentine’s Day is coming soon so here is a Simple Hearts Card For a Valentine! I decided to use the color scheme from the Painted With Love Designer Series Paper, so I chose Melon Mambo and Calypso Coral, which is an unusual color combination.  You can certainly use this card for other occasions besides Valentine’s Day!

The card base is Melon Mambo with a layer of Calypso Coral. The top layer is Whisper White with a thin strip of the Painted With Love DSP.  I needed some piece of that paper so you could see the color combination.

I stamped two hearts from the Heart Happiness Stamp Set and cut them out.  This is a great stamp set to have on hand because hearts, like stars, can be used for many occasions!  I love this heart stamp! A grouping of the little hearts are also in this stamp set so you can stamp several little hearts at one time.  The greeting is from the Petal Palette Stamp Set.

Just to go with the gold accents, I used a piece of the 1/8″ Gold Ribbon to tie around the top layer.  This ribbon has been around for years and I use it a lot.  It also comes in silver. It’s perfect for when you need a little something.

This is the weekend to be making valentines and getting them in the mail. So I hope you can use this simple card with the hearts for a valentine idea!

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Today I thought I would make a simple, easy to stamp valentine card using the Gold Vinyl Stickers! It’s time to start making some valentines as tomorrow is the first day of February! Making valentines is something that takes us back to our childhood – the decorated shoebox or lunch sack to put on our school desks, the handmade valentines with doilies and red construction paper, the bottle of white paste!  Wow!  Does that bring back memories??! Now we can be a little more sophisticated with our wonderful Stampin’ Up! cardstock, creative stamps, and beautiful embellishments!

This card starts with a base of Real Red Cardstock and a layer of Whisper White Cardstock stamped in Real Red Ink!  Basic red and white for Valentine’s Day with a touch of gold! I stamped the various hearts from the Heart Happiness Photopolymer Stamp Set. Just choose whichever ones you want and stamp away!

To add a little bit of pizzazz to this valentine, I used some of the Painted Love Gold Vinyl Stickers.  If you haven’t noticed these in the Occasions Catalog, it’s not your fault!  They are barely noticeable on the page. But now that you know they are there, go look on page 19 on the left edge of the page in the fold!  These are self-adhesive stickers in gold that coordinate with the stamp set Sure Do Love You.  However, they coordinate with lots of stamp sets and designs, so you can use them even without this stamp set.  The stickers are really good quality, not flimsy, and they DO stick….so make sure you know exactly where you want to put them because you aren’t likely to be able to move them once they stick on the paper! Don’t ask me how I know!

Since the stickers come on a clear sheet, you can hold the sheet over your project and see where you want to place a certain sticker and what it will look like.

Here are the Painted Love Gold Vinyl Stickers on page 19 of the Occasions Catalog.  Be sure to check them out!  They aren’t just for Valentine’s Day either!  They will go with any pretty card or project!  You get two sheets, so you might want to order an extra package or two to have on hand!  You will want to use them!

If you need any of these products to stamp an easy Valentine Card with the gold vinyl stickers, please visit my Stampin’ Up! Online Store HERE!

Make your own easy custom note cards with the new Stampin’ Up! Narrow Note Cards & Envelopes.  We’ve always had the Whisper White Note Cards & Envelopes, but these are new in the Occasions Catalog on page 19.  They are very easy to miss at the bottom of the page! But you will find that you can do so many things with these Narrow Note Cards!

All it takes is a little bit of designer paper layered on the note card or a little bit of stamping, and you will have a quick and easy note card to enclose inside a gift or hand to someone. Moms put them in their children’s lunch box for a little encouraging note for them to find. Stick a gift card or cash inside. Having a package or two on hand will save you a trip to the store for a card or gift enclosure on short notice!  You WILL want more than one package on hand because they are fun to make once you get your supplies ready to go!  Good way to use up small scraps of cardstock or especially designer paper! Add a greeting and a few small embellishments or ribbon.

The Narrow Note Cards I made above only took minutes. I just used different patterns of the Painted with Love Specialty Designer Series Paper. This paper is so beautiful and artistic with its gold foil accents!

The top note card has a stamped greeting from the Labels to Love Stamp Set  punched out with a Circle Punch and layered on a piece of the Iridescent piece of paper in the Myths & Magic Glimmer Paper. I layered the circle pieces over a strip of Rich Razzleberry and added two light colored Glitter Enamel Dots.  Even though the greeting says “Love”, you wouldn’t have to only use it for a valentine, but if you wanted to, it could easily be for Valentine’s Day!

The bottom note card has another pattern of the Painted with Love Paper (love the little hearts!) and decorated with die cut hearts from the Sweet & Sassy Framelits Dies.  I also tied a little bit of Gold 1/8″ Ribbon around it, tying the bow first!

Get yourself a couple packages of these new Narrow Note Cards & Envelopes on your next order and then sit down and play with a package of designer paper and a few embellishments at hand.  After you make one or two you won’t want to stop!  By the way, they come with the cutest envelopes! Check out these birthday note cards I made recently HERE.  You will love making your own custom note cards!

You will find the Heart Happiness Stamp Set in the new Stampin’ Up! Occasions Catalog, and what a fun stamp set to make a valentine or any occasion card like this Heart Happiness Thinking of You card!

At this time of year, with Valentine’s Day coming up soon, you might think this stamp set is great for Valentine’s Day……and it is!  But as you can see, hearts are wonderful for lots of occasions so this stamp set can be used year-round!  I could have chosen a birthday greeting or congratulations or other fun greetings to put on this card.

I use my Big Shot most days when I am stamping, but sometimes it feels good to “just stamp” on your card, like this one! Honestly I didn’t really know what I was going to make for this card, just got out the stamp set and started with this particular heart stamp. I thought I would make a line of these hearts across the middle of the card but this is what evolved!

And sometimes when you stamp, you just love the look of a particular stamp. That’s how I felt about this heart stamp when I used it. That IS the way it is supposed to stamp – not completely solid all the way across – it’s the trendy watercolor look.  I really like it.  And I really liked choosing several colors of ink pads from the Brights Family and rather randomly stamping on the Whisper White card layer.  It seemed to maybe need a bit more, so I added the tiny hearts that are also in the stamp set to fill in the empty space.  I looked for a greeting that was a decent size to stand out, and I found this one in the Window Shopping Stamp Set.

I think you could make your own beautiful designer paper pattern by stamping these large and small hearts on a larger piece of paper, even 12″ x 12″ of Whisper White and then cutting it down for cards or using for a scrapbook page or whatever project.

If you would like this Heart Happiness Stamp Set, you will find it in the Occasions Catalog HERE.  The greeting is from the Window Shopping Stamp Set.

If you would like a copy of the Stampin’ Up! Catalog and/or the Occasions Catalog plus ME for your Demonstrator, I would be happy to mail you the catalogs if you are interested in Stampin’ Up! products!  Keep in mind that through March 31 is Sale-A-Bration, the Stampin’ Up! promotion that gives you a FREE Sale-A-Bration product for every $50 you spend!  Who doesn’t love free stuff?!  Just email me at Karen@KarenStamps.com with your contact information and any questions you have or anything you are particularly interested in. I would love to help you.

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