Category Archives: Scrapbooking

Back from Colorado!

It's been a busy summer what with wedding planning and going to the Stampin' Up! Convention in July and making wedding invitations. But my husband hadn't had a trip or any of this fun so he was ready for one. And off to Colorado we went! Last night I began putting some photos into My Digital Studio to chronicle our vacation. Here are two pages I came up with, the first day driving through Big Thompson Canyon, from Loveland, CO to Estes Park, CO.

On the first page, I just chose an already designed page of photo boxes and inserted my photos. I added the Soft Suede background color, the photo mats, the text and the texture to the page. For the second page, I inserted a "mirror image" of the first page, but since I had so many photos to include, I added a couple small photo boxes. All very easy! If I had a laptop, it would be great to do a page or two a day as I traveled with My Digital Studio installed on my laptop. You are allowed to install the software on two computers in the same household, which is a great benefit!

Favorite Stampin’ Up! Convention Photos

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Let me see if I can possibly find and pick out some favorite things from Convention that I haven't shown yet!

Whew! That's not nearly all there is to show but I guess that is enough for now! You should be able to click on any photo to enlarge. Isn't it amazing the things you can make with Stampin' Up! products??! And the creative talent of Stampin' Up! artists and demonstrators??! The display area you see above is just one small part of what they had for us….and this was late afternoon when it was easy to get close to the display boards to get good photos…usually demonstrators were clustered around in crowds trying to get their shots at busy times, like lunch! I've always said it is the ideas that I love the most, even if I never got to stamp!

Want to be a part of all this??! You wouldn't be disappointed! Look into joining Stampin' Up! as a demonstrator! I'd be happy to talk to you about it! It's a fantastic way to start your own business and have fun at the same time!

Get Good Fireworks Photos for Your Scrapbooking!

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I just love watching fireworks on July 4th or any time any place, and I'm sure lots of you do too! I've tried to take photos of fireworks many times, and usually they don't turn out very well. But with my current camera (still a point and shoot) I'm getting closer to getting some good shots of the fireworks. Today, in my email from Photojojo.com, I was directed to some tips for taking good fireworks photos. They have eleven great tips here. They strongly recommend using a tripod (as in "Bring a tripod, bring a tripod, bring a tripod.") and finding a good location early where you can look straight at the fireworks, not just up. Some cameras even have a fireworks mode to shoot with (I'll have to check mine!). But you can read the camera-setting details for yourself.

A couple other suggestions I liked were:

Being near a body of water is good for the reflection of the fireworks (we usually are by a small lake in a park for our fireworks viewing!).
Include some buildings or landmarks which often add to the composition of the photo.
Turn your flash off!
Turn your camera for a portrait-oriented shot for a rocket's rise and explosion, but to capture multiple explosions, shoot in landscape.
Don't forget the best comes at the end…the Grand Finale….so save some space on your memory card for that!

And my own tip……don't forget to take some pictures of the people you are with, not just the fireworks!

And when you are ready to scrapbook those photos, a quick and easy way to do it is with My Digital Studio from Stampin' Up! You can make an album to print out or a few pages, or a multi-media presentation to share with your friends and family. Contact me to find out how to order or go to my Online Store.

Photography Tips for Summer Sun

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Since we'll be taking lots of photos in the sun this summer, here are a few tips I read from Darren Rowse of Digital Photography School that might help get you some good pictures!

Use your flash, even in the sunlight. It might help eliminate shadows on your subject's face or it might darken the background and make your subject stand out more.
Try shooting your subject in the shade….at least a little bit of shade, not in dark shade. Try for even light, not that falling through the leaves producing all kinds of spots and shadows. Sometimes just holding an umbrella over the subject (not getting it in the shot of course) may help.
Use a reflector, something with a white or light surface to give the subject extra light. This might be as simple as a white t-shirt or stand near a white wall.

Just experiment and see what produces good results for you! Then when you are ready to scrapbook those photos, Stampin' Up! has all the supplies and creative ideas you will need. I'm always available to answer your questions about your projects! Check out the Stampin' Up! online store here .

Vacation Photography Tips at a National Park

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Since summer vacations will soon be starting, I thought I would post some tips for getting good photos that you may want to scrapbook after you get home (or while you're traveling if you have a laptop and My Digital Studio!). I found these tips from Kodak. (Click on the photos to enlarge.)

Capture the landmarks. Yes, everyone will be photographing the same sites, but after all, that is what you came to see. Take a picture of it. Take several. When I went to find a photo for this article, I realized I didn't have quite the perfect picture of Old Faithful erupting even though I had taken lots of photos plus video.

Place the point of interest off center. Here is the Grand Canyon of Yellowstone, one of the biggest photo attractions in the park.

Here I have the waterfall in the center of my photo.

Here it is off center. Makes it a little more interesting.

Include people for scale. Often you can't get an idea of size or area, but if you include people in the photo it might illustrate the sheer size better.

Here we are at Grand Prismatic Spring, but you can't get an idea if it is large or small.

But here where you can look across the landscape and see the people on the walkway you get a better idea of how large an area it really is.

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Some of our best vacations have been to the national parks….Yosemite, Zion, Bryce, and most recently Yellowstone. If you haven't been to a national park, please go because they are spectacular. If you want to find lodging inside the park (a plus!) keep trying even on short notice because there are often cancellations and you just might snag accommodations shorter than a year in advance!

Flip Album for a Graduation Gift

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I have just LOVED these flip albums ever since I saw my first one! I've made several for gifts and this one was for a graduation gift. I left it rather generic so she could use it any way she wanted to, whether for graduation pictures or college or family or friends or anything. The first one I ever made I thought was incredibly complicated, but they really are pretty simple and this one went together easily. I won't go into detail on how I made it because there are a lot of directions out there, but if you have questions, leave a comment or email me. I did use retired Designer Series Paper, Bella Birds but I think everything else is current…..at least for June!!

When you make one of these albums, you can hardly stop yourself from flipping all the pages back and forth! The Big Shot and our Stampin' Up! punches really help to make interesting elements in the album.

Click: Be sure to check the retiring lists of stamps, accessories and Decor Elements before they are gone June 30th….or sooner!

National Scrapbooking Month Special—Ends May 31, 2010

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Is it really the end of May already??! What a fast month and so much going on for so many people with graduations, end of the school year, etc. I just wanted to send one more reminder of the Stampin' Up! promotion going on today and tomorrow:

Take your scrapbooking to a whole new level with Stampin’ Up!

During National Scrapbooking Month, get a FREE package of Designer brads with the purchase of My Digital Studio (item 118108) or any of the following stamp sets:

Page	Description	Wood- Mount Item	Wood- Mount Price	Clear- Mount Item	Clear- Mount Price
81	Extreme Elements	115181	$26.95	—	—
119	Framed with Love**	114389	$27.95	—	—
128	Certified**	113706	$27.95	—	—
129	Circle Circus	115778	$28.95	—	—
12*	Elements of Style	118611	$27.95	120045	$19.95
13*	Momentos	119910	$27.95	120105	$19.95
13*	Éléments de style	119900	$27.95	120099	$19.95
14*	Rough Type	118659	$26.95	120072	$18.95
22*	Sentimental Journey	118513	$23.95	120075	$17.95
25*	First Day	118521	$23.95	120051	$17.95
25*	Camino a la Escuela	120152	$23.95	120154	$17.95

*From the Summer Mini Catalog
**A Last Chance stamp set!

Choose from the following Designer brads with qualifying purchase:

Page	Description	Item
179	Flower Designer brads	112579
179	Filigree Designer brads	112577
179	Circle Designer brads	112571
179	Star Designer brads	112572

View the flyer for more information and some great scrapbooking ideas.

Notice that the sets with the double asterisk are sets that are going on the retirement list on June 1st.

If you want to purchase any of these sets just go to my Online Store and watch the video if you'd like or click on the "Shop Now" button and go straight to the store. You can set up your Customer Account and you're ready to go! Or email me your order and I'll take care of it for you. Once your merchandise is entered, you can choose your free brads for each stamp set on the list!

Don't forget, this offer ends tomorrow!!

Going, Going…….Better get them while you can!

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Don't forget with the new Color Renovation by Stampin' Up! a lot of favorite colors are retiring….and not only the card stock but the refills, the markers, ribbons, buttons, etc. Be sure you get what you want because when they are gone, they are gone! Already a lot of things are either not available or on backorder. Stampin' Up! will substitute textured card stock for the smooth when it is no longer available for as long as possible.

These are the retiring colors:

The following items are no longer available to order. Our inventory has been depleted, and we are unable to order more.

101563: Sage Shadow card stock (8-1/2" x 11")
102837: Only Orange card stock (8-1/2" x 11")
107079: Sage Shadow card stock (12" x 12")
107101: Close to Cocoa card stock (12" x 12")
119833: Old Olive Polka-Dot 6" x 6" Designer printed album (in the new Summer Mini Catalog)

Availability can change at any time, of course! You can place your order with me or Shop Online HERE. Also, don't forget the May National Scrapbooking Month Promotion….great stamp sets and FREE Designer Brads….or purchase the My Digital Studio software!

Island Oasis Tin Album

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In my "stash" I've had these tins I purchased from Stampin' Up! awhile back and finally I got one out and made something with it. I decided to work with the new Island Oasis Designer Series Paper (#117173) in the Summer Mini, and I had SO much fun with it! I'm going to order another pack of this paper on my next order!

Now I can always go back and do more embellishing on my pages, but for now I wanted it rather generic. You could add more pages but the tin is pretty skinny so it had to stay fairly small. And after struggling to get exactly the right shape to have the card stock fit the entire front of the album, I opted for just a strip across the middle! Much easier! The paper flower is made with five punched flowers from the Extra Large Fancy Flower Punch #118073 (a carryover from the Occasions Mini so still available!) and one card stock flower on the bottom, all scrunched up individually and then assembled together with a brad and scrunched up once more toward the center. Really fun!

If you are interested in this tropical Island Oasis Designer Series Paper and any other great products for stamping and scrapbooking, please click HERE or the Online Shopping button in the upper right corner to go to my Stampin' Up! Online Store.

Great Scrapbooking Ideas

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To get National Scrapbooking Month started off right, Stampin' Up! has a video with Carrie Cudney for you to view. It features some of the new products in the Summer Mini Catalog and some ways to use the free Designer Brads you can receive by purchasing select stamp sets in the Stampin' Up! Scrapbooking Month Promotion. We always enjoy seeing Carrie Cudney present at Convention or Regionals or in online videos and see her wonderful ideas. Hope you enjoy it, too! Just click on the photo below to go to the video on the Stampin' Up! website.

After you watch the video, if you would like to order any of the items in the new Summer Mini and get an early start on the new products just go shop at my Online Store or contact me if you like. And if you would like to become a Stampin' Up! Demonstrator and start your own business, let me know and I can tell you how easy it is to sign up and what you will receive!

Happy National Scrapbooking Day!

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What a way to start off the month of May! The new Summer Mini Catalog is available today with all its fantastic products!

AND

Today kicks off National Scrapbooking Month! To celebrate, Stampin' Up! has a special for you! Just purchase My Digital Studio (our digital papercrafting solution for making cards, scrapbook pages, calendars, many other projects) or any of the following stamp sets and receive a FREE package of Designer Brads. Just check the information below!

Take your scrapbooking to a whole new level with Stampin' Up!
During National Scrapbooking Month, May 1-31, get a FREE package of Designer brads with the purchase of My Digital Studio (item 118108) or any of the following stamp sets:

Page	Description	Wood-Mount Item	Wood-Mount Price	Clear-Mount Item	Clear-Mount Price
81	Extreme Elements	115181	$26.95	—	—
119	Framed with Love**	114389	$27.95	—	—
128	Certified**	113706	$27.95	—	—
129	Circle Circus	115778	$28.95	—	—
12*	Elements of Style	118611	$27.95	120045	$19.95
13*	Momentos	119910	$27.95	120105	$19.95
13*	Éléments de style	119900	$27.95	120099	$19.95
14*	Rough Type	118659	$26.95	120072	$18.95
22*	Sentimental Journey	118513	$23.95	120075	$17.95
25*	First Day	118521	$23.95	120051	$17.95
25*	Camino a la Escuela	120152	$23.95	120154	$17.95

*From the Summer Mini Catalog
**A Last Chance stamp set!

Choose from the following Designer brads with qualifying purchase:

Page	Description	Item
179	Flower Designer brads	112579
179	Filigree Designer brads	112577
179	Circle Designer brads	112571
179	Star Designer brads	112572

If you are interested in any of these products, you can shop online right now by clicking on the red Online Store button in the upper right of this page.

Good News and Bad News: Last Day for Occasions Mini Catalog! (April 30)

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The bad news is that the Occasions Mini Catalog comes to an end today Friday April 30th! So if there are certain items you want, you have to get them today. Some items may reappear in the Idea Book & Catalog in July, but we don't know all the ones that will and you'll have to wait until July.

The good news is that there are some items from the Occasions Mini Catalog that WILL still be available for order after the catalog period ends today!!

These products will appear in upcoming catalogs and are available for ordering:

Item #	Description	Price
116519	Charming STMP	$19.95
117690	Vintage Vogue WM	$23.95
118598	Vintage Vogue CM	$17.95
118882	Vague vinatge WM	$23.95
119109	Vague vinatge CM	$17.95
118091	Tiny Tags WM	$22.95
118592	Tiny Tags CM	$16.95
117535	DÉCOR ELEMENTS F IS FOR FOX CHOCOLATE	$4.95
117536	DÉCOR ELEMENTS G IS FOR GIRAFFE CHOCOLATE	$4.95
117529	DÉCOR ELEMENTS IS FOR BLACK	$1.95
117541	DÉCOR ELEMENTS L IS FOR LION CHOCOLATE	$4.95
117542	DÉCOR ELEMENTS M IS FOR MONKEY CHOCOLATE	$4.95
117544	DÉCOR ELEMENTS O IS FOR OWL CHOCOLATE	$4.95
117528	DÉCOR ELEMENTS SCALLOP FRAME BLACK	$6.95
117549	DÉCOR ELEMENTS T IS FOR TURTLE CHOCOLATE	$4.95
117552	DÉCOR ELEMENTS W IS FOR WHALE CHOCOLATE	$4.95
118072	PNCH CRNR PINKING HEARTS	$9.95
118870	PNCH CRNR SCALLOP TRIM	$9.95
117191	PNCH LG 2 STEP BIRD	$15.95
118073	PNCH LG FANCY FLOWER	$15.95
117649	PNCH MD BRDR PINKING HEARTS	$15.95
117190	PNCH MD JEWELRY TAG	$10.95
117193	PNCH SM SMALL HEART	$5.95
117310	SZX BIGZ L MINI MILK CARTON	$32.95
118138	SZX EMBSLTS BEAUTIFUL WINGS	$11.95
117332	SZX EMBSLTS SCALLOPED HEART OF HEARTS	$11.95
117335	SZX TI PERFECT POLKA DOTS	$7.95
120435	HEART TREAT CUPS	$2.95

The bad news is these products will not be featured in upcoming catalogs:

116772	RECIPES BY DESIGN	$24.95
118139	DS FOLK FLOWERS -SHELLI SIGNATURE COLLECTION	$12.95
117597	DS PAISLEY PATTERNS 2-STEP	$14.95

The good news is if you want to order any of the above available items PLUS some new items from the Summer Mini Catalog (which starts tomorrow May 1st), you could combine those items on an order tomorrow. Just be sure something you want from the Occasions Mini is on the carryover list or you will miss out.

The bad news is these fabulous items from the Occasions Mini ARE NOT available as they are sold out:

117161: Sweet Pea Designer Series paper stack

117266: Sweet Pea stitched felt

117236: On Board Heart Book

The good news is Stampin' Up! has a Clearance Rack, so don't forget to check it when placing your orders online because there are some great deals to be had and you can put these items on your order.

The bad news is today is the last day for the Two-Step into Spring Special…get that new Awash with Flowers stamp set EARLY before it appears in the new Idea Book & Catalog in July….plus get 20% off select two-step stampin' sets from our current catalog.

Item	Page	Description	Discount Price
113824	94	Greenhouse Garden	$20.76
113734	98	Fifth Avenue Floral	$19.96
111578	101	Flower Fancy	$29.56
113258	112	Trendy Trees	$14.36

The good news is these items from the Holiday Mini (the previous mini catalog) are available for order!

Holiday Mini Carryover Products

Item #	Description	Price
116794	Ornament punch	$15.95
116806	Champagne Mist Shimmer Paint	$5.95
116854	Frost White Shimmer Paint	$5.95
116807	Platinum Shimmer Paint	$5.95
116829	Décor Elements Blocks	$9.95
116824	Stampin' Up! Textured Impressions Folder Petals-A-Plenty	$7.95
116821	Stampin' Up! Holiday Windows Magnetic Movers & Shapers	$29.95
116819	Stampin' Up! Table Setting Bigz XL die	$42.95
116820	Stampin' Up! Embosslits Merry die	$11.95
116823	Stampin' Up! Sizzlits Merry Details die	$5.50
116822	Stampin' Up! O Christmas Tree Pop-Up Bigz XL die	$42.95
118140	Stampin' Up! Tree Decorations Sizzlits die	$5.50
118108	My Digital Studio	$79.95
116519	Charming stamp set	$19.95

The BEST NEWS is that Stampin' Up! always has great products to help you unleash your creativity! Just click HERE to do your Online Shopping 24/7 (but before 11:50 pm MT tonight! for the Occasions Mini!) Contact me if you have any questions or need any help ordering.

Fun with Build-A-Bear!

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Yesterday I played around with Build-A-Bear…..and I mean "played"! It was so much fun, just like being a little girl and playing with paper dolls! You can just cut out the bears with the Big Shot (Stampin' Up! Bear Bigz Die #117977) and then make any kinds of outfits and embellishments you want, either from the additional dies (see Occasions Mini pages 38-40) or using your own creativity! Here are my two bears, and in a few days I will post the finished projects!

This bear uses some rhinestones from the Eggscellent Eggs Kit in the Occasions Mini (but no longer available), a half pearl from the Pretties Kit (#109114), some Soft Subtles Brads (#106954), the cake from Bitty Birthday (#114934), and her chic hat is made from two oval punches, an idea I got from another demo, Mary Fish.

This bear has a total rhinestone necklace and matching bracelet! The cupcake is from the stamp set "Sock Monkey" (#111550).

REMEMBER…..the Occasions Mini is only good one more day! The last day to order is April 30! A few items will carry over! Ask me!

My Digital Studio UT Honors Day Pages

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Today I watched a training webinar for My Digital Studio presented by Stampin' Up! for demonstrators. The presenter on the webinar was a Stampin' Up! demonstrator who did a fantastic job showing how to use My Digital Studio to make a calendar. Even though I had already planned to make these pages, watching the webinar today inspired me to get these done! One of her best tips was to get in the program and see what ALL is included in the software plus all the extra downloads we can purchase. My Digital Studio is really a goldmine of fun things to use in all kinds of projects!

Here is what came of my playing tonight!

Even the star metal brads are digital! I thought they went well with the Texas page! But if I had wanted to, I could leave those off and add real brads after I had the pages printed. That is called hybrid scrapbooking!

My Digital Studio is easy enough even for us beginners to use. So don't think you have to be an expert to use it! If I can do it, you can learn too! And if you are already familiar with digital scrapbooking, you can enjoy using fabulous Stampin' Up! designs and products in your projects.

Learn more about My Digital Studio! Click on the link! Let me know if you have any questions or want to know more about using this product.

Stampin’ Up!’s New Color Renovation!

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WOW! Stampin' Up! really knows how to knock our socks off! They have surprised us with a "Color Renovation" which is a new updated color palette comprised of 25 current colors, 10 returning In Colors, plus 5 new Core Colors!!!! AND there will be 5 more new In Colors in July! They have put two years of study and research into this using focus groups of demonstrators, Stampin' Up! artists, other color professionals, and sales data. Consideration and concern for every demonstrator and customer is behind all the decisions Stampin' Up! makes so you can be assured that a lot of thought and research went into this color change. This Color Renovation will take effect July 1st with the new Idea book & Catalog. Stampin' Up! Demonstrators will be able to get our hands on the new colors in June with preorders, so there's a tip……if you want to get in on this early, you should become a Demonstrator right now!! It only takes minutes, so contact me if you are interested!

Here is a chart of the new color palette!

There will be lots more information coming out about these changes so stay tuned!

We'll all have LOTS to be excited about as these color changes will lead to new products as well!

Stamping With Karen

Having Fun With Paper, Ink, and Stamps

Category Archives: Scrapbooking

Back from Colorado!

Favorite Stampin’ Up! Convention Photos

Get Good Fireworks Photos for Your Scrapbooking!

Photography Tips for Summer Sun

Vacation Photography Tips at a National Park

Flip Album for a Graduation Gift

National Scrapbooking Month Special—Ends May 31, 2010

Going, Going…….Better get them while you can!

Island Oasis Tin Album

Great Scrapbooking Ideas

Happy National Scrapbooking Day!

Good News and Bad News: Last Day for Occasions Mini Catalog! (April 30)

Fun with Build-A-Bear!

My Digital Studio UT Honors Day Pages

Stampin’ Up!’s New Color Renovation!