Hot Summer Savings!

Summer just got a whole lot hotter!  Starting today until August 3rd, there are MORE items in the Clearance Rack and Weekly Deals. That means you can save up to 30% on even more Weekly Deals, or up to 60% on extra items in the Clearance Rack. You’ll want to hurry though, because Weekly Deals discounts are available in limited quantities before the items return to regular retail prices. As always, Clearance Rack prices are only good while supplies last...once they're gone, they're gone for good!

 What are you waiting for?  Click HERE to visit my online store now!

Aahhhh...Summer vacation is finally here!

Even though you wouldn't know it, based on the cold, rainy weather we've had this weekend, I am officially on summer holidays...woohoo!!  I am so ready for a break from having my life dictated by the ringing of the school bell every day.  Time for LOTS of crafting time for little ol' me!
Today I want to show you the design I came up with for thank you cards for various departing staff members at my school. 

Here is the prototype...

Thank you card featuring the Awesomely Artistic stamp set with sentiment from One Big Meaning

I began by heat embossing the floral image from the Awesomely Artistic stamp set on a 3-3/4" x 4-1/4" piece of Whisper White card stock using white embossing powder.  I sponged the entired surface with Pool Party ink and then mounted the sponged panel onto a 4" x 4-1/4" piece of (retired) Brushed Silver card stock.  The entire panel is adhered to a Smoky Slate card base that I embossed using the (retired) Perfect Polka Dots TIEF.

The sentiment, from the One Big Meaning stamp set, is heat embossed on vellum using silver embossing powder.  The butterfly is die cut from Brushed Silver card stock using the Bold Butterfly Framelits.  I added some rhinetones coloured with alcohol-based markers for a bit of sparkle on the butterfly.

Inside view with sentiment from the Wild About Flowers set

On the inside I stamped the floral image using Pool Party ink and heat embossed the sentiment from the Wild About Flowers set in silver.
Once I had a template, I decided to try the same design in different colours, simply changing the ink colour with which I did my sponging.  Check them out...

Blackberry Bliss

Daffodil Delight

Island Indigo

Melon Mambo

Watermelon Wonder

Which one is your favourite??

Smiling Heart

Today is my birthday :)  I'm another year older and wiser, as my mom always says.  Some day I hope to actually FEEL wiser, because I sure do feel older!!
Today I have a project for you using another of my favourite new stamp sets.

Thinking of you card featuring the Timeless Love stamp set.

This is a super-simple one to put together.  I began by stamping the half-circle floral image from the Timeless Love stamp set in Tip Top Taupe ink on Whisper White card stock.  I stamped it off the right edge.  Then I used the new Happy Patterns decorative masks, a sponge dauber and Mint Macaron ink to stencil the little dots.  I moved the mask around so that I wouldn't get a regular pattern and used varying amounts of ink on my dauber to get different shades. 

The sentiment, which is also from the Timeless Love set,  is stamped in Mint Macaron ink and punched with the 2" circle punch.I stamped the floral image along the edges using Tip Top Taupe ink and then adhered it to the card front using dimensionals.  I added  some Tip Top Taupe Dotted Lace Trim and some rhinestones before adhering it to a card base in Mint Macaron.

On the inside I stamped more flowers using Tip Top Taupe ink.  This was another under-10-minute card...who says they don't have time to be creative?!

Big Butterfly Congrats

Happy Wednesday!  Have you missed me?  Sorry I've been AWOL the past few days...I am up to my eyeballs in end-of-year marking, exams, report cards and clean-up at school.  I can't wait for Friday at 3:00...ahhhh freedom!!
With the end of the school year come the requisite good-byes as we say farewell to various staff members who are leaving for a variety of reasons.  I am typically charged with making the cards for everyone to sign, which means I need to think BIG!  Today's project is an over-sized 5-1/2" x 8" retirement card...

Retirement card featuring the Watercolour Wings and Awesomely Artistic stamp sets with sentiment from Sassy Salutations

For this one I pulled out two of my favourite new stamp sets:  Watercolour Wings and Awesomely Artistic.  I also used the Bokeh technique to create my background.  I began by sponging  Whisper White card stock all over with Lost Lagoon, Wisteria Wonder and Mint Macaron inks.  I really like the way those three shades blend and complement each other.  Then I used Whisper White Craft ink and a template I created with various-sized circle punches to create my points of light.  Once that was completely dry, I heat embossed the floral image from the Awesomely Artistic stamp set in silver.  Such a gorgeously delicate imge!  The final touch on the background was some silver ink spatters, which are also from the Awesomely Artistic set.

I layered my Bokeh background on a piece of Lost Lagoon card stock, on which I had heat embossed, in silver, the sentiment from Sassy Salutations and embellished it with some (retired) Blackberry Bliss stitched satin ribbon.  To create the butterflies, I stamped the solid butterfly images from the Watercolour Wings stamp set in Wisteria Wonder ink and then stamped the detail images in Blackberry Bliss.  I die-cut the stamped butterflies using the Bold Butterfly Framelits and Butterflies Thinlits.  The top layer on each butterfly is die-cut from Dazzling Diamonds Glimmer paper (on sale this week!).  I embellished each butterfly with a Vintage Faceted button (also on sale this week!) and some Silver Metallic Thread.
The background panel is a piece of Blackberry Bliss card stock that I embossed using the Elegant Dots TIEF.  The panel was larger than would fit in the folder, but I was able to carefully match the pattern so that the seam wasn't obvious.  The card base is Basic Gray card stock. 

Inside view with sentiment from the Wild About Flowers set and butterfly images from the Papillon Potpourri set.

On the inside I added Whisper White panels to allow lots of room for our staff to wish the retiree well and then added some stamped flowers in Blacknerry Bliss.  The sentiment is from the Wild About Flowers set and is heat embossed in silver.  I die cut the labels using the Lots of Labels framelits.  The butterflies, from the Papillon Potpourri set, are heat embossed in silver on vellum and then punched using the Bitty Butterfly and Elegant Butterfly punches.

Now, I was so busy yesterday I fogot to post this week's Weekly Deals!  Here they are...prices are good until Monday at midnight :)

Dazzling Diamonds Glimmer Paper Price: $6.25   Sale: $4.69	Gold 1/8" Ribbon Price: $6.25   Sale: $4.69	Lucky Stars Textured Impressions Embossing Folders Price: $9.25   Sale: $6.94
Mini Treat Bag Thinlits Dies Price: $49.00   Sale: $36.75	Pink Pirouette 1/2" Seam Binding Ribbon Price: $8.75   Sale: $6.56	Polka Dot Textured Impressions Embossing Folder Price: $9.25   Sale: $6.94
Silver Glimmer Paper Price: $6.25  Sale:  $4.69	Vintage Faceted Designer Buttons Price: $7.50   Sale: $5.63

Vintage Rose Congrats

Happy Sunday...and happy Father's Day to all the dads out there! Today is the start of a new sketch challenge at Sunday Stamps.  You all know how much I love working with sketches and this one is a keeper...so many possibilities!  Check it out:

...and here is my DT project:

Wedding card featuring the Timeless Elegance DSP with sentiment from the Timeless Love stamp set

This is another card with very little stamping!  I let the gorgeous roses in the Timeless Elegance DSP do the heavy lifting in this one.  I used it for both the focal image and for the background mat.  I sponged the roses using a sponge dauber and Wisteria Wonder ink...not exactly one of my go-to colours, but one that is slowly growing on me thanks to it's versatility and ability to change hue depending on what other colours it is paired with.  Here, with the greys and black, it takes on a much grayer tone than when paired with other, brighter colours. 

The Very Vanilla background panel is embossed using the new Elegant Dots TIEF and is layered on a card base of Basic Gray.  I added some silver 5/8" satin ribbon, a Vintage Faceted button and some silver metallic thread by way of embellishment.  The sentiment, from the Timeless Love stamp set, is heat embossed in silver on vellum. I decided that I had to make a coordinating gift bag for this card, so I pulled out my new Gift Bag Punch Board and another sheet of Timeless Elegance DSP and about 5 minutes later I had a beautiful coordinating gift bag :)

Now, as I mentioned above, this sketch is super-versatile!  Just check out the rest of the Design Team's projects and you'll see how many amazing possibilities there are.  You'll have lots of time to give this one a go and enter our challenge, as this one runs for three weeks due to the July 4th holiday weekend.  So go get inky and give our challenge a try! 

Birthday Roses

Today I have a project I created for the display at my new catalogue launch event last weekend.  It features very little stamping but sure does offer a wow-factor:

Birthday card featuring Timeless Elegance DSP and the Happy Birthday, Everyone hostess set (free with a qualifying order!)

Aren't those rose gorgeous??  Those are hand-drawn by one of Stampin' Up's amazingly talented artists for one of the patterns in the Timeless Elegance DSP pack. The paper is neutral-toned featuring Very Vanilla, Basic Black and Sahara Sand.  For this card I wanted a pop of colour, so I sponged on Rose Red ink using a sponge dauber to give the roses rich colour. 

The sentiment is from the new Happy Birthday, Everyone hostess set and I heat embossed it in gold right on the piece of DSP.  Super easy and quick!  Then I adhered the DSP to a Basic Black card base and added a few metallic sequins in black and gold for some sparkle. 

On the inside I simply adhered a piece of Very Vanilla card stock on which I had stamped another sentiment from the Happy Birthday Everyone set in Memento Tuxedo Black ink.  Of all of the cards on display at my event this is, by far, the one that got the most attention...and it took me under 10 minutes to make!

Don't forget that today is the last day to take advantage of my annniversary specials.  Click HERE (and scroll to the bottom of the post) to check them out!  Orders must be in by midnight tonight to receive sale prices.

Awesomely Artistic Hello

Today I have a project that features several new products, including one of the new In-colours...check it out:

Hello card featuring the Awesomely Artistic stamp set and Greetings Thinlits

I decided it was high time I cracked open my new Delightful Dijon ink pad, so I opted for a relatively monochromatic look on this card.  I began with a Delightful Dijon card base upon which I stamped the floral and fern images from the Awesomely Artistic stamp set using Delightful Dijon ink.  I the heat embossed the dragon fly image in gold and added some metalic gold splatters using the Gorgeous Grunge stamp set and the (sadly) retired metallic gold Encore ink pad.

To add some texture, I used a torn piece of Kraft corrugated paper I had leftover from another project, adding some burlap ribbon and an Antique brad by way of embellishment.  The sentiment is die cut from gold foil card stock using the new Greeting Thinlits.

On the inside, I decided to forego a sentiment and simply stamped more of the floral and fern images from the front of the card, along with a few more gold metallic splatters for some shimmer.

This was a super-quick and easy card to put together...I love projects that come together quickly and look great!


Now, in case you missed it, I am celebrating to my five year Stampin' Up! anniversary this week and in honour of the occasion, I am offering some special savings on five of my Go-to Stampin' Up! products.  Check out this post to see what is on sale and just how much you can save.  Savings on anniversary items are good until Thursday at midnight :)

Before I sign off, here are this week's new Weekly Deals for your shopping pleasure ;)

1" Square Punch Price: $20.00   Sale: $15.00	Circle Card Thinlits Dies Price: $41.00   Sale: $30.75	Gold Stampin' Glitter Price: $5.00   Sale: $3.75
Honeycomb Textured Impressions Embossing Folder Price: $9.25   Sale: $6.94	Marina Mist 1/4" Cotton Ribbon Price: $7.50   Sale: $5.63	Sweetheart Punch Price: $20.00   Sale: $15.00
Very Vanilla 5/8" Satin Ribbon Price: $8.75   Sale: $6.56	Whisper White 1/2" Seam Binding Ribbon Price: $8.75  Sale:  $6.56

Now, to celebrate my five year anniversary, I am offering some special savings on five of my Go-to Stampin' Up! products.  These are items that I can't live without and use almost daily.  For the next five days (until Thursday at midnight), save 15% on: - See more at: http://alacards.blogspot.ca/2015/06/its-my-stampin-up-anniversary.html#sthash.9EiEzunu.dpuf

Now, to celebrate my five year anniversary, I am offering some special savings on five of my Go-to Stampin' Up! products.  These are items that I can't live without and use almost daily.  For the next five days (until Thursday at midnight), save 15% on:

Big Shot (113439) Reg. $136.00, Anniversary Price: $115.60

Magnetic Platform (130658) Reg. $49.00, Anniversary Price: $41.65

Stampin' Trimmer (126889) Reg. $37.00 Anniversary Price: $31.45

Paper Snips (103579) Reg. $12.50  Anniversary Price: $10.63

Grid Paper (130148) Reg. $13.75 Anniversary Price: $11.69

These prices are available only if ordered through me and are not available through my webstore.  To place an order simply email me.  The order will go in on Friday morning, so don't miss out! - See more at: http://alacards.blogspot.ca/2015/06/its-my-stampin-up-anniversary.html#sthash.9EiEzunu.dpuf

Now, to celebrate my five year anniversary, I am offering some special savings on five of my Go-to Stampin' Up! products.  These are items that I can't live without and use almost daily.  For the next five days (until Thursday at midnight), save 15% on:

Big Shot (113439) Reg. $136.00, Anniversary Price: $115.60

Magnetic Platform (130658) Reg. $49.00, Anniversary Price: $41.65

Stampin' Trimmer (126889) Reg. $37.00 Anniversary Price: $31.45

Paper Snips (103579) Reg. $12.50  Anniversary Price: $10.63

Grid Paper (130148) Reg. $13.75 Anniversary Price: $11.69

These prices are available only if ordered through me and are not available through my webstore.  To place an order simply email me.  The order will go in on Friday morning, so don't miss out! - See more at: http://alacards.blogspot.ca/2015/06/its-my-stampin-up-anniversary.html#sthash.9EiEzunu.dpuf

Now, to celebrate my five year anniversary, I am offering some special savings on five of my Go-to Stampin' Up! products.  These are items that I can't live without and use almost daily.  For the next five days (until Thursday at midnight), save 15% on: - See more at: http://alacards.blogspot.ca/2015/06/its-my-stampin-up-anniversary.html#sthash.9EiEzunu.dpuf

Now, to celebrate my five year anniversary, I am offering some special savings on five of my Go-to Stampin' Up! products.  These are items that I can't live without and use almost daily.  For the next five days (until Thursday at midnight), save 15% on:

Big Shot (113439) Reg. $136.00, Anniversary Price: $115.60

Magnetic Platform (130658) Reg. $49.00, Anniversary Price: $41.65

Stampin' Trimmer (126889) Reg. $37.00 Anniversary Price: $31.45

Paper Snips (103579) Reg. $12.50  Anniversary Price: $10.63

Grid Paper (130148) Reg. $13.75 Anniversary Price: $11.69

These prices are available only if ordered through me and are not available through my webstore.  To place an order simply email me.  The order will go in on Friday morning, so don't miss out! - See more at: http://alacards.blogspot.ca/2015/06/its-my-stampin-up-anniversary.html#sthash.9EiEzunu.dpuf

Now, to celebrate my five year anniversary, I am offering some special savings on five of my Go-to Stampin' Up! products.  These are items that I can't live without and use almost daily.  For the next five days (until Thursday at midnight), save 15% on:
- See more at: http://alacards.blogspot.ca/2015/06/its-my-stampin-up-anniversary.html#sthash.9EiEzunu.dpuf

Now, to celebrate my five year anniversary, I am offering some special savings on five of my Go-to Stampin' Up! products.  These are items that I can't live without and use almost daily.  For the next five days (until Thursday at midnight), save 15% on:

Big Shot (113439) Reg. $136.00, Anniversary Price: $115.60

Magnetic Platform (130658) Reg. $49.00, Anniversary Price: $41.65

Stampin' Trimmer (126889) Reg. $37.00 Anniversary Price: $31.45

Paper Snips (103579) Reg. $12.50  Anniversary Price: $10.63

Grid Paper (130148) Reg. $13.75 Anniversary Price: $11.69

These prices are available only if ordered through me and are not available through my webstore.  To place an order simply email me.  The order will go in on Friday morning, so don't miss out! - See more at: http://alacards.blogspot.ca/2015/06/its-my-stampin-up-anniversary.html#sthash.9EiEzunu.dpuf

Now, to celebrate my five year anniversary, I am offering some special savings on five of my Go-to Stampin' Up! products.  These are items that I can't live without and use almost daily.  For the next five days (until Thursday at midnight), save 15% on:

Big Shot (113439) Reg. $136.00, Anniversary Price: $115.60

Magnetic Platform (130658) Reg. $49.00, Anniversary Price: $41.65

Stampin' Trimmer (126889) Reg. $37.00 Anniversary Price: $31.45

Paper Snips (103579) Reg. $12.50  Anniversary Price: $10.63

Grid Paper (130148) Reg. $13.75 Anniversary Price: $11.69

These prices are available only if ordered through me and are not available through my webstore.  To place an order simply email me.  The order will go in on Friday morning, so don't miss out! - See more at: http://alacards.blogspot.ca/2015/06/its-my-stampin-up-anniversary.html#sthash.9EiEzunu.dpuf