I am SOOOOOO Excited!!

The new catalogue preview and pre-order starts tonight at midnight Mountain Time for Stampin' Up! demonstrators!!  This is definitely one of the best perks of being a demo...I absolutely can't wait to see what fantastic new goodies are in store for us!  The best part is that if I get my pre-order in early I can expedite it and get my copy of the WHOLE catalogue by Friday!!  Even though it won't go live until July 1st, there is plenty to be excited about.  I don't think I'll be able to sleep tonight...even if I wanted to!

The other big news tomorrow is the Last Chance lists...these are the lists of products that are retiring at the end of June.  There will be two lists: one for accessories and one for stamps.  The accessories list will be while supplies last only...that means that if there is something on it that you really want, you need to order it ASAP to ensure it doesn't sell out before you get your hands on it.  This includes items like DSP, Stampin' Around Wheels, ribbon and Defintiely Decorative.  By the way, Stampin' Up is reducing it's Definitely Decorative line, so there will be several items on the last chance list.  Don't miss the chance to get some gorgeous vinyl wall art before its gone.  The retiring stamp sets will be available until June 30th.  Because SU makes their own stamps, they can control inventories and ensure that all orders are filled until the end of the month. 

The best way to order anything from the Last Chance list is to do so through my online store.  Stampin' Up will be updating the availability constantly so you can be assured that you will get the items you order.  Once something is sold out it will be removed from the website.  Click on the shopping cart in the sidebar to get started!

This is such an exciting time of year...like Christmas...but better!!  Only a few more hours...

Another Nautical-inspired card

Today's card is another one I did based on this week's A La Card Monkey sketch.  It is far less vintage than my guest designer submission, but still definitely has that maritime influence.  It also works for this week's Pals Paper Arts challenge which is to create a card that uses brads.  This one certainly does and I really think they provide the perfect finishing accent.  See what you think:

Nautical Card for PPA95 and  MC58 using Sail Away a la carte stamp from the Summer Mini

Close up of the focal image

Inside of card

So this card started out as the monkey sketch and then morphed a little.  The focal image was too big to fit the sentiment underneath, so I moved it up to the side.  That left too much empty space under the sentiment so that is where those nifty brads came in.  Then I heard my baker's twine calling out to me, feeling unloved and neglected and so I added a little...not in the sketch, but I like it.  Call it artistic licence...
This card is pretty simple in terms of composition, but I will explain how I did the focal image.  Starting with a piece of whisper white cardstock, I sponged the sky in marina mist ink and the sea in not quite navy.  I then stamped the image in basic gray once on the sponged piece and a second time on another scrap of whisper white.  I fussy cut out the sails and adhered them to the stamped image using dimensionals.  I then added whitecaps to the waves using my white gel pen.  A simple touch, but one that adds interest to the scene.
I'm pretty sure you savy stampers can figure out the rest...if not drop me a line and I'll answer your questions.  Off to do course work now...ugh!!

On the Grow

This weekend has absolutley flown by!  I've spent the better part of it working on my course.  Talk about time-consuming!!  I so would rather be stamping!!  I did manage to get a little inking in and worked on my card for this week's challenge over at Friday Mash-up.  Conveniently it also works for thee challenge over at Just add Ink  which is all about Fussy Cutting.  Check it out:

Here is my card:

Card for MU8 and JAI69 using On the Grow stamp set from the Summer Mini.

Close up of focal image

Trying to show you the popped up flowers!

I have to admit...I found this sketch tough to work with.  I had a hard time getting all of the different elements to work together.  In the end, I'm happy with the result, but it wasn't easy getting here!  Here is what I did:

Starting with a Night of Navy card base, I adhered a piece of pear pizzazz DSP (from the level one hostess stack) as well as a strip of pear pizzazz cardstock I had embossed with my Finial Press embossing folder.  I then wrapped a piece of pretty in pink taffeta ribbon around and tied a bow.  I punched a narrow strip of pretty in pink DSP (from the Subtles Stack) with my eyelet border punch and adhered it along the bottom edge of the card.  Setting this aside, I stamped the floral image from the On The Grow set in brown Staz-On in a piece of confetti white cardstock and then punched it out using my 2 1/2" circle punch.  I coloured the image using a blender pen and my night of navy, pear pizzazz and pretty in pink ink pads.  I then inked the glass bottle using my Versamarker and embossed it using clear embossing powder. On another scrap of confetti white cardstock, I then stamped the image a second time and coloured select blossoms which I fussy cut.  I adhered the fussy-cut blossoms to the original stamped image using bits of dimensionals.  I added tiny dots of Tombow liquid adhesive to the centres of each blossom and sprinkled them with Dazzling Diamonds glitter.  To create the eyelet border around the circle I punched another strip of pretty in pink DSP with my eyelet border punch and then cut each scallop.  I adhered each section individually around the circle using glue dots, ensuring each section was evenly spaced.  I glued the focal image to my card using Tombow.  The final touches were the sentiment (from Pocket Silhouettes set) which I stamped in night of navy ink on confetti white cardstock and punched out with my curly label punch.  I tucked it underneath the embossed pear pizzazz strip and adhered it.  I added a little string of pearls in the upper right corner, as per the sketch.  I think they add a nice, feminine touch.

Nautical Man-Card for A La Card Monkey

I'm a guest designed over at A La Card Monkey again this week!  The challenge is to create a Man-Card using the sketch provided:

It seems I've had to do a lot of Manly cards over the last couple of weeks and it has been a reminder that I am sadly lacking in my masculine stamp selection!  I can't wait for the new catty to come out so I can get shopping!!  In the meantime, I've used my fav set from the Summer Mini:  The Open Sea, along with the Nautical Expedition DSP.  See what you think:

Card for Monkey58 using The Open Sea set and sentiment from Define Your Life set.

 I went a little hog-wild distressing this one!  I wanted it to look worn and weathered...I think I succeeded!  I also discovered a new technique I'm calling "Faux Wax Seal".  I'm sure I'm not the first to come up with this, but I was pretty pleased with the result!  To get the look, start by pre-inking your stamp with Versamark...this is an important step!  Setting the stamp aside,  pour a small pile of embossing powder on your cardstock in the location you want your seal.   Spread out the powder so that it is even and then heat it FROM THE UNDERSIDE with your heat tool until the powder melts into a pool.  It will start to bubble, so stop when this happens.  Then immediately stamp your image into the pool of melted powder, holding it there for a few seconds to allow the pool to harden.  Gently peel your stamp away and voila...instant "wax" seal!  A couple of tips for this technique...make sure your pile of embossing powder is even and not too thick.  You want as uniform a depth as possible.  If you use too much powder, the pool will be too deep and you'll get a messy image.  It took me  a couple of tries on some scrap paper to get the amount of powder right.  Just play and experiment until you get something you're happy with.  It's worth the effort...I really like the look!

Sick...AGAIN!!!

...and here I thought with the coming of spring I'd be saying good-bye and good riddance to the cold and flu bugs that have been plaguing our household all winter.  WRONG!!  Half of my students at school are sick and, what they get, I inevitably get.  How could I not?  They blow their germs at me every time the play their instruments!  I am feeling quite lousy this evening and will post something more fun tomorrow.  For now I am taking some quality drugs and heading off to bed!  TGIF...

His and Hers Baby cards

I have babies on the brain these days!  My brother and SIL are expecting in early September and every time we see them the conversation inevitably turns to babies.  They were here on the weekend to babysit so my DH and I could have a date night and we got talking about the PILES of baby gear they are going to inherit from us.  We also discussed how terribly inconsiderate it is of them to keep us in suspense as to the baby's gender...they are making us wait till s/he arrives!  So, I decided to make two baby cards...one for a boy and one for a girl.  I initially set out to make possible samples for my upcoming Stamp-A-Stack...and who knows, maybe these will crack the line-up.  I got the idea for the focal image from the Stampin' Up catalogue  but then had to add more embellishments...because...well...just because!  See what you think...

Baby Girl card using Fox and Friends stamp set and sentiment from Teeny Tiny Wishes.

Baby Boy card...same everything...except using baja breeze instead of pretty in pink!

I kept these cards fairly simple, since I was trying to come up with SAS designs.  I didn't want anything too involved, or my stampers would be here all day!  I actually did the boy card first and decided to try stamping off some of the crumb cake images to make it a bit softer for a girl.  I like the look and kind of wished I had done the same on the boy card too!  I will make the suggestion to my stampers if we end up doing these ones!

Summer Splash for The Paper Players

 A while back I did a card for a colour inspiration challenge over at Stamping 411.  I really liked the combo and today's card uses two of the three colours from it.  The sketch for this week's challenge at the Paper Players is a REALLY versatile one...so much so that I am sure I will use it again and again.  It lends itself so well to so many different themes.  My first thought was of the Summer Splash set and what I could put in those little circles...but before I get ahead of myself, here is the sketch:

...and here is my card using the Summer Splash set from the Summer Mini:

Card for PP48 using Summer Splash stamp set with sentiment from Sunny Fun set.

Inside of card sans sentiment!

Isn't this a fun, summery card?  I wanted to keep it as simple as possible, given the simplicity of the sketch.  You likely know by now that simple is a REAL challenge for me! My name is Leena and  I am an embellishment addict!  But look ma, NO EMBELLIES!!  Just stamps, ink and paper...not something I generally do!  I did do a little funky punching with my scallop circle to create the sun...really simple and easy to do.  I just punched a scalloped circle, stuck it to a post-it note and then reinserted into my punch, offsetting the scallops, and repunched.  Voila...instant sun!  This isn't my idea...I stole it from my upline, Jamilla (thanks Jam!).  The sand is courtesy of my spritzer tool...LOVE that thing...how did I live without it for so long?!?  I spritzed the crumb cake cardstock with crumb cake, soft suede and chocolate chip ink to get the textured look.  I then sponged it lightly with crumb cake to blend the colours...kinda makes you want to touch it, no? 
The sentiment is from the Sunny fun set and just worked perfectly for this card.  I left the inside blank and will likely stamp something when I'm ready to use this card...for a summer birthday, thank you, invitation, whatever.  I had to include the little shovel and pail because they remind me of my son and the hours he spends in his sandbox!