I really got into using this Flower Pot Designer Series Paper yesterday and using this simple layout. This small flowery pattern is another sheet in the pack so I just jazzed it up with some of the new Lost Lagoon 3/8″ Satin Stitched Ribbon (really nice in person!) and stamped the “hello” greeting in the corner from the Four You stamp set. I thought the Whisper White front was still a little plain so I stamped the little flower in the Something To Say stamp set. I stamped with the ink colors that coordinated with the Flower Pot Designer Series Paper which were Crushed Curry, Lost Lagoon and Tangerine Tango. I like the way the card turned out. Very simple, yet cute! And you could even embellish with a few Candy Dots or Rhinestone Jewels on the little flowers or a contrasting piece of card stock along the Flower Pot paper or the greeting stamped on a tag or punch with a layer behind it.

Be sure to get your choice of Stampin’ Up! designer paper this month during the Buy 3 Get 1 Free offer!

Also, check the Clearance Rack because Stampin’ Up! added some items today.  Click the drop down box for “Show:  ALL” to make your browsing easier instead of having to jump to the next page.

Shop Stampin’ Up! Online for all the best in stamping and papercrafting supplies!

Flower Pot Designer Series Paper

$10.95

Lost Lagoon 3/8″ Satin Stitched Ribbon

$8.95

Four You Wood Stamp Set

$14.95

Something To Say Clear-Mount Stamp Set

$21.95

Tangerine Tango 8-1/2″ X 11″ Card Stock

$6.95

Whisper White 8-1/2″ X 11″ Card Stock

$8.50

Snail Permanent Adhesive

$6.95

Crushed Curry Classic Stampin’ Pad

$5.95

Lost Lagoon Classic Stampin’ Pad

$5.95

Tangerine Tango Classic Stampin’ Pad

$5.95

Table by StampinBuddy. Try it FREE.

This is an easy basic card. If you need to make a card in a hurry or just don’t have a creative idea in your head at the moment, make a card like this and everything will be right with the world! I used the Flower Pot Designer Series Paper in the new Stampin’ Up! Catalog – either side of the sheet would have been fine on this card. I cut the designer paper about 2″ high and 5 1/4″ wide to fit on the Whisper White layer over Tangerine Tango (one of the coordinating colors for the Flower Pot DSP). Do this before adhering to the card base so you can adhere a piece of ribbon around the card (just the ends tuck under the sides of the card). I used my favorite ribbon, the Whisper White 5/8″ Organza Ribbon. I tied the bow separately and attached it with Mini Glue Dots. The greeting is stamped with Night of Navy ink using a stamp from A Dozen Thoughts. That’s a stamp set worth owning with all the choices of greetings included.

This is an easy layout for a card for any occasion. Make a card base, with or without a layer on top, and adhere a strip of designer series paper either horizontally like I did on this card or vertically on one side. Stamp or punch out a greeting, maybe add some ribbon or a contrasting strip of card stock and you are set. This card is just as nice as anything more complicated! Or start with this design and MAKE it more complicated if you like!

Stampin’ Up! is offering Buy 3 Get 1 Free Designer Series Paper this month, so it is a great time to get all your favorite packages or multiples to have on hand! Specialty papers and Paper Stacks are not included, but you can get all the brand new DSP right now!

Here is a close- up of the two sides of the Flower Pot Designer Series Paper I used on this easy card:

Visit my Stampin’ Up! Online Store to check out all the choices of Designer Series Paper in the new Stampin’ Up! Catalog.

Sympathy cards are something we should all make to have a few on hand, because, unfortunately, we will need them now and then. This one is going to the daughter of my mother’s best friend. Our mothers had been friends since they were seven years old! I lost my mother many years ago and I know her friend missed her all these years. I remember them being on the phone almost everyday the years I was growing up. I remember “way back in the olden days” it was even a toll call for them to talk on the phone even though they only lived about fifteen minutes apart and in the same city! The night I met my husband I was struck by how much he looked like this lady’s oldest son!

I found this card design on Pinterest I think, and meant to keep track of the lady’s name who made it, but I forgot. I was going to make my card slightly different, but hers was so pretty as is I only have minor changes, such as the greeting and the card base color. The card base is Soft Suede and the designer paper layer is a page from the 2013-15 In Color Backgrounds Designer Series Paper Stack (soft suede). I used two of the dies in the Apothecary Accents Framelits on Very Vanilla Paper. I stamped the flourish from the Everything Eleanor Stamp Set on the large framelit piece in Old Olive and then embossed with the Fancy Fan Embossing Folder. For the sympathy greeting I had to dig out my recently retired stamp set Loving Thoughts and used the Stamp-A-Ma-Jig to get the two words placed one above the other on the smaller framelit piece.

The flowers are stamped with the Flower Shop Stamp Set with Crisp Cantaloupe ink and outlined a little more with the Crisp Cantaloupe Stampin’ Write Marker since they were a little light. Not that hard, just use the thin tip. Punch out the flowers with the Pansy Punch. Then embellish with Pearl Basic Jewels.

This card would make a beautiful birthday card, get well, thinking of you – just change the greeting. When we lose someone, it is so comforting to hear from all the people in your life. Be sure to write a personal note inside, don’t just sign your name. I think making a handmade sympathy card for someone really shows you care.

Flower Shop Wood Stamp Set

$23.95

2013-2015 In Color Backgrounds Designer Series Paper Stack

$21.95

Apothecary Accents Framelits Die

$24.95

Everything Eleanor Wood Stamp Set

$36.95

Fancy Fan Textured Impressions Embossing Folder

$7.95

Stamp-A-Ma-Jig

$11.95

Pansy Punch

$15.95

Pearl Basic Jewels Embellishments

$4.95

Table by StampinBuddy. Try it FREE.

Normally I wouldn’t be posting this late in the evening, but when I opened my box tonight from Stampin’ Up!, this is what I found inside!!  A little handmade notecard!  I did a double-take and realized whoever packed my order had snuck in this little treat!  When I turned it over, it was a little note from “Julia” at Stampin’ Up!

Isn’t that just the nicest thing??!!!  We shouldn’t underestimate how much our handmade cards, notes, and projects mean to people. Who would think such a little piece of paper could bring such a nice feeling of surprise and happiness in one ordinary evening?!  I don’t know who Julia is, but she is obviously a special lady and special employee at Stampin’ Up! who loves what she does and shares what she loves!  Thanks, Julia!  Made my Stampin’ Up! order even more extra-special!

And yes, that is my order of Stampin’ Up! Designer Series Paper that is on sale during July, buy 3 get 1 FREE! (Specialty papers and Paper Stacks not included.)

Sometimes when you need inspiration, just look through your stamp sets and see what strikes your fancy for stamping. When I saw the For the Birds stamp set on my shelf I decided that would be a fun and easy stamp set to use, and I could also color in with my new Blendabilities Markers. I just wanted to make an easy card with some of the new designer series paper. For the card base, I chose one of the new In Colors, Tangelo Twist and decided that the Sweet Taffy Designer Series Paper would probably work with that paper. I stamped on Whisper White with the new Memento Ink and layered that on Hello Honey and then on Old Olive. At the end I added a little strip of Hello Honey accented with Brights Candy Dots.

The Blendabilities Markers are not available quite yet but they will be in just a few days!! Tuesday, July 1st is when Stampin’ Up! will make these products available to customers:

• Cherry Cobbler (item #130995)
• Coastal Cabana (item #131000)
• Daffodil Delight (item #130998)
• Old Olive (item #130999)
• Pumpkin Pie (item #130997)
• Rich Razzleberry (item #131003)
• Skin Tone Assortment (item #129370
• Memento Ink Pad  (item #132708)
• Memento Ink Refill (item #133456)
• Color Lifter (item #129369)

Remaining Blendabilities Colors will be available August 1.

Don’t forget about the Stampin’ Up! Weekly Deals which end on Monday, June 30.

Shop anytime at my Stampin’ Up! Online Store!  Let me know if you have any questions or if you want me to put your order in for you!  I’m happy to do that.

For The Birds Clear Stamp Set

$24.95

Sweet Taffy Designer Series Paper

$10.95

Hello Honey 8-1/2″ X 11″ Cardstock

$6.95

Old Olive 8-1/2″ X 11″ Card Stock

$6.95

Brights Candy Dots

$5.95

Whisper White 8-1/2″ X 11″ Card Stock

$8.50

Tangelo Twist 8-1/2″ X 11″ Cardstock

$6.95

Table by StampinBuddy. Try it FREE.

I was looking for stamps that were an outline image so I could practice with my Blendabilities markers, and I found the beautiful set Everything Eleanor that had some nice flowers I could color in. The flowers are stamped on Whisper White with Memento ink, which is recommended to use with the Blendabilities because they are alcohol markers. These flowers already had a lot of lines on them for shading so I only used two of the colors in the marker set, the medium and light shade. I cut each one out with my Paper Snips (a must have for cutting around images!) and popped up a few with Stampin’ Dimensionals. I also wanted to use the new In Colors so I stamped the swirl in Blackberry Bliss ink and the medallion with Hello Honey (stamped off once). The ribbon underneath is the Natural 5/8″ Chevron Ribbon. The greeting is stamped in Blackberry Bliss from the Fabulous Four Stamp Set.

Soon you will be able to play and color with the new Blendabilities Markers, too!  Stampin’ Up! says ordering will begin for customers on July 1st!  You won’t see them in the Online Store until July 1st.

In the meantime, you can check out all the Stampin’ Up! papercrafting products in my Online Store HERE.

Today is the first day of summer, the Summer Solstice, the longest day of the year. Well, it’s not really any “longer” than any other day of the year, but it is the day with the most hours of daylight. If you walk outside here in Houston you will know that it is the beginning of summer because it is very hot and humid outside! (But then I can say that for most days in Houston!)

I decided to make a “sunny” card for the first day of summer.  I used our new 2″ Circle Punch for the body of the sun, punched out of Brights Backgrounds Designer Series Paper Stack. Then I punched more of the same paper with the Banner Punch. The polka dots are actually the opposite side of the pattern I used for the sun! The word “Summer” is from the new Project Life stamp set Day to Day.  And just for a little something, I couldn’t resist using some Brights Candy Dots on the front of the card!

Go enjoy the first day of summer 2014! And when you’ve had enough of the sun and heat, come inside and stamp since you have those extra minutes of daylight today!

I saw an ad in the magazine the other day of a striped sofa in something close to these two colors, Melon Mambo and Tangerine Tango,  so I decided to use the Work of Art stamp set and the Hello stamp from the Hi There stamp set to make a card. The Work of Art stamps are so fun to play with – anything goes! You just feel free to create! I stamped the word “Hello” at the top and liked it so much I made another card, which you will be able to see later on my Facebook Page HERE. The flower is made with the new punch called Fun Flower Punch. Although the flower itself is only punched from card stock and not stamped first, I did stamp the flower image on the single wood stamp Bloom For You. twice, once in Melon Mambo and once in Tangerine Tango ink so I could punch out pieces for the center of the flower. I used the 1/2″ Circle Punch and the 7/8″ Scallop Circle Punch. Then I mounted those center pieces on the flower using Stampin’ Dimensionals to pop them up.

If you wonder where inspiration comes from, here is part of an ad I saw in a magazine of a striped sofa.  I think the one color was fuschia, but I used Melon Mambo. Just think of these three colors:  Whisper White, Melon Mambo, and Tangerine Tango. They are  a summery combination for sure! Make something with these three colors and brighten your day!

Get ready for summer! Stamp something bright and colorful!  You will find all the latest colors here at Stampin’ Up! in my Online Store!

This cute little 3″ x 3″ gift card or note card is made with the Banner Banter stamp set and the Banner Punch. It was fun and easy to make! Just stamp some banners in whatever colors you like (I used Melon Mambo, Pistachio Pudding and Bermuda Bay) and adhere to card.  I used Stampin’ Dimensionals to pop them all up.  You could adhere several straight to the card and pop one up, perhaps the one with the greeting. You could even stamp right on the Whisper White card layer. To make it look more like a hanging banner, I used Subtles Candy Dots. (LOVE those things!)

If you already own the Banner Punch that you might have gotten free during Sale-A-Bration, I would definitely encourage you to purchase this stamp set to use with your punch.  I would also suggest that you purchase the wood-mount version of the stamp set because the stamps are small, and I think having them already mounted on the wood makes them easier to use.  But to each their own! It’s whatever you prefer!

One more tip – to mount the greeting on the banner on a background layer of card stock, I trimmed that down a little so it would fit on the punched banner. Since it was such a small piece, I just did it with my Paper Snips, and although not perfect, it is fine!  We have to let go of the perfectionism sometimes. No one I give this to will say, “You know, there is  a slight angle to your cutting on this greeting on the banner. Please take it away and make me a new one!”

If you did not choose a free Banner Punch during Sale-A-Bration, you can purchase one in the Stampin’ Up! Online Store HERE along with the Banner Banter stamp set. There is also another stamp set to use with this punch. It is called Itty Bitty Baby on page 81 of the Stampin’ Up! Catalog. It is absolutely adorable, but I had to pass it up (this time!).

Itty Bitty Baby Wood-Mount Stamp Set

$17.95

Banner Banter Wood-Mount Stamp Set

$17.95

Subtles Candy Dots

$5.95

Stampin’ Dimensionals

$3.95

Table by StampinBuddy.