One More Day!

Today's the last day to order from the current catalog.  If there is anything still on your wish list, NOW is the time to order!  Just let me know if you'd like to place and order, or better yet, have it delivered right to your door by ordering from my website.

I know it seems odd to post a Mother's Day card today, but I have my reasons.  When I first made this, I was going to post it on Mother's Day.  That didn't happen, and immediately after I made the card, I knew that I was going to change it into a birthday card for my daughter.  Unfortunately, I didn't take a new picture before putting it in the envelope.  She adored this card when she saw it, so I knew that I should just use it for her.  She's my pink girl, so this is perfect for her.  I can't believe my baby is eight years old!

I could go on and on about how fast my kids are growing up, but I'll give you card details instead. :)  The card itself is made with Naturals White card stock.  I clear embossed across the front with the new Betsy's Blooms wheel that coordinates with Betsy's Blossoms, the set I used for the flowers and leaves.  I did the same thing on Raspberry Ripple cards stock and put a strip of that along the top edge of the embossing on the card.  On top of that is a piece of Primrose Petals that was embossed with the Square Lattice embossing Folder, mounted on a piece of Gumball Green.  That's my favorite of the new InColors, and I even have one of the new firm foam ink pads in GG.  Can you see how perfectly those leaves are stamped?  I LOVE these new ink pads!  The flowers are Raspberry Ripple and Primrose Petals.  They remind me of an old, long-ago retired set called Island Blossoms, which was a favorite of mine.  And of course, the little banner was cut out using the new Bitty Banners Framelits.

Simple Summer Starfruit

I'm not one for overly simple cards, but I'm pretty happy with how this came out.  It's no secret that I have to put ribbon on practically every card I make, and even though this is simple, it's no exception.  But my ribbon usage is limited to one simple bow, something I rarely do!  The are only three colors on this card:  Baja Breeze, Whisper White, and Summer Starfruit, one of the new In-Colors.  And I love the color combination!  They work really well together.  The floral image is from the new set Betsy's Blossoms.  It's my favorite image from this set, and it's really trendy right now.  I've seen this all over the place, including a candle holder I got for Christmas and the sheets my niece has on her daughter's new big-girl bed. :)  I'm going to have to use it for her birthday card next month.  The DSP in the background is from the new Floral District DSP.  I love the papers in the new catalog...there are so many bright and cheery colors, which just make me happy to look at!

I know I keep saying how much I love everything from the new catalog, which can be pretty annoying, I'm sure. :)  But it's true!  Everything is so fabulous.  I promise!

Another In Color Sneak Peek!

Yes, this is a horrible picture.  Sorry about that.  I was in a hurry and well, getting the card posted was more important than retaking the picture!

Can you spot the new colors?  I hope so, because aside from Whisper White, that's all that this card is made of!  The card itself is Raspberry Ripple...it's such a pretty color!  The circles are Summer Starfruit.  What do you think about it?  I've heard from a lot of people that they hate it, but I really like it.  I can't wait to pair it with Midnight Muse, because those colors look great together.  And I really can't wait to get my hands on one of the new Designer Series Papers that features that combination...it's so pretty! 

Anyway, back to THIS card...the little banner in the middle is Primrose Petals, and the flowers from the Bright Blossoms set use all three colors.   I hope you like this little glimpse of the new colors...they'll be available on June 1...just a few more days to wait!

Paisley Petals

I wanted to quickly share a couple of cards that use the Paisley Petals DSP.  I love the green and brown combination...I wish I had put those together sooner.  The card stock is Early Espresso, and the green in the stamped image is Always Artichoke.  It's hard to see, but I topped that with some of the teeny tiny little pearls.  Trust me, it looks better in person than in a picture.

This one uses one of my favorite stamp sets, Just Believe.  I was so worried that it might retire, and was sooooo relieved that it made the cut!  This card uses just three colors:  Bravo Burgundy, Crumb Cake, and Very Vanilla.  There are pearls on these flowers, too, along with lots of Crumb Cake seam binding ribbon.  I also used the new Adorning Accents Edgelits from the Occasions Mini.  And guess what...there are more of them to come in the new catalog!

Old and New

Here's a bright, fun card using the retiring set, Always Elegant.  I've always thought that it matched the Elegant Lines embossing folder so well, which is why I used them together!

This card features the combination of Pacific Point, Tempting Turquoise, and Old Olive.  I simply ran the Pacific Point card stock through the Big Shot with the Elegant Lines embossing folder, and used the crimper on the little strip of Tempting Turquoise.  I'm sad that the crimper is retiring...I like to use it to give a bit of texture to little pieces like that one.  I tied a piece of whisper white 1/4" grosgrain ribbon around the crimped piece...the ribbon is retiring, too!  I used Staz-On black in to stamp the image on Whisper White card stock.  That's important, because the black won't run when watercoloring.  I dipped the tip of my aquapainter into the ink from the top of my ink pads to color in parts of the image, and then added some rhinestones to a couple of spots.  They're hard to see in the picture, but I promise they're there!  Oh, and those little tags...I stamped them with the Tiny Tags set and punched them with the Jewelry Tag punch, then poked a hole with my paper piercing tool. 

And now for some new stuff!  This card has a fun color combination, which I pulled from the Floral District DSP.  It, and the bird from Betsy's Blossoms, are both mounted on Daffodil Delight card stock.  I also used a piece behind the strip of Tangerine Tango, both of which I punched with the scallop edge punch and then pierce with my paper piercing tool (did you know there's a brand new one coming out in the new catalog?  The mat is bigger and there are templates that match some of the new Framelits...so exciting!)  Back to the card...I rounded the corners on the DSP and bird pieces, then added some brand new Daffodil Delight 1/4" stitched grosgrain ribbon...it's such cute stuff!  I also sponged the edges of the bird and added a little bit of white baker's twine to a button before popping it on as a final touch.

Stamp-a-Stack

It's time for a Stamp-a-Stack!  Come make 12 all-occasion cards (2 each of 6 designs) using brand new products from the 2012-2013 Stampin' Up! catalog.  No prior experience is necessary—whether you’re an experienced stamper or brand new, this will be a fun time!

Please be sure to bring your own adhesive with you.  All other supplies (and snacks!) will be provided.  Prepayment is required to secure your spot.   

Date:  Sunday, June 24 

Time:  1:00 PM - 4:00 PM  

Location:  April's house (directions provided upon registration)

Cost: $25 (add an additional $5 if you'd like me to supply adhesive) 

Please contact April to register for this event: 610-287-0572 or a_l_stoudt@yahoo.com, no later than Wednesday, June 13. 

More Spice Cake

Yeah, did I mention how much I love the Spice Cake DSP and how sad I am to say goodbye to it?  Here are a couple more Spice Cake cards, this time little square ones.  I've been in a rut lately with my cards all seeming to be the same, so I mixed it up and changed the shape and the size.

This card is loaded with retiring products, not just DSP.  The card itself is Soft Suede card stock, cut to 4"x8" and scored down the middle.  The DSP is, of course, Spice Cake.  I simply used a More Mustard marker to color the Thinking of You part of one of the stamps from the Thoughts and Prayers set.  I wanted that white piece of the card to be simple, since there's so much going on around it.  I cut out a square of the same paper I had used on the top part of the card, mounted it on a slightly bigger piece of Soft Suede card stock, and then topped that with a beveled window (the smallest size).  These are retiring, and I'm a little sad, because I never used them as much as I had planned to.  I have this hoarding problem when it comes to pretty things like that.  I save them for the perfect project, and then never seem to use them.  Anyway, I tied it to the card using the More Mustard 1/4" grosgrain ribbon (also retiring).  The little flower at the top was punched with the Boho Blossoms punch using the two smallest flowers, and then put together with an old (already retired) eyelet.  But you could easily just use a brad.  I won't allow myself to buy brads until I've used up my endless stash of eyelets.  I loved eyelets and have them in every. single. color.  And probably will forever.  There are that many of them.

This is a completely different card, but made with the same DSP.  I love how versatile our packs of Designer Series Paper are...there are so many different designs in each package.  This one uses the striped paper, and looks a little more masculine.   This is a very easy card...just some Old Olive grosgrain ribbon wrapped around (in both the retired 5/8" and the retiring 1/4"), both scallop punches to punch some Soft Suede and More Mustard, as well as a circle from Circle Circus stamped in More Mustard and punched with a circle punch.  The little banner at the bottom is from the soon-to-be-available Bitty Banners Framelits, and stamped with a Father's Day sentiment from Teeny Tiny Wishes. 

There you go...two quick and easy square cards using my beloved Spice Cake DSP!

2012-2014 In Colors

Here they are!  From left to right, Raspberry Ripple, Primrose Petals, (Pumpkin Pie), Summer Starfruit, Gumball Green, Midnight Muse, and (Rich Razzleberry).  And those cute little banners?  Those are brand new Framelits!

Spice Cake Stamped and Stitched

Welcome!  For my first post, I have to have something stamped, AND something stitched, right?  First, the stamped...I absolutely fell in love with the Spice Cake DSP.  I love the colors and the patterns, and even though it comes as no surprise, I'm still sad it's retiring on May 31.  This is a super easy card that uses two different patterns from the Spice Cake DSP, and is topped with a double layered Triple Treat Flower, another retiring stamp.  I'm really sad about that.  I love that little flower and the two punches that match it.

And now for the stitched...more Spice Cake!  I made this purse with the Spice Cake Designer Fabric, which is NOT retiring!  I'm so excited, because I love this fabric and can definitely use it for many other projects.  The buttons are some old (and already retired) Stampin' Up buttons in Soft Suede.  They were a perfect match, so I had to use them.  I used this pattern, and it was easy to put together.  However, this bag is HUGE.  It really is more of a bag than a purse.  So if you decide to make it, be sure to check the dimensions first. :)

I'll be posting more cards using retiring items, as well as some sneak peaks from the new catalog, which comes out on June 1.  It's fabulous!