Shiloh Stamps

Valentine Party Favors

2010-02-10T20:50:00.005-05:00

Two posts in a week! My creative juices are flowing now that I'm on maternity leave. We'll see how long I can keep this up.

I made these party favors for a special Valentine party coming up this weekend.

Supplies:

Close to Cocoa cardstock

Whisper White cardstock

Real Red 5/8" grosgrain ribbon

Real Red polka dot ribbon

Full heart punch

scallop oval punch

Big Shot

Pillow Box Die

For more ideas and to order these and other supplies, go to http://shilohstamps.stampinup.net/

belated Christmas cards

2010-02-07T22:08:00.004-05:00

This past few months have been super-busy as we prepare to welcome Baby Wear, so it took us a while to send out our Christmas cards this year. I'm pretty pleased with how they turned out, though. I borrowed the designs from Julie Davison's Merry & Bright Christmas card kit. I didn't order the kit, sicne I already had all the supplies, so I just guesstimated on the measurements. I love how using the same supplies can give so many different card layouts. While this design uses some rub-ons and paper from the Holiday Mini, I'm considering offering a similar card kit for all-occasions, or maybe for Spring. What do you think?

For more project ideas and to order papercrafting supplies, click http://shilohstamps.stampinup.net

Patterned Pines

2010-01-03T15:32:00.006-05:00

Once I come up with a design I like, I have found it very helpful to just cut up the ingredients to make a whole bunch of cards with that design. That way, it's simpler to whip up a card on a moements notice. I designed this simple card for a PhillyInkers Shoebox Swap, and then I wound up using the remaining supplies to make my Christmas thank-you notes. I used the Patterned Pines set from the Holiday Mini, and it's only available until January 4th. It's available for free with a $150 order.

Patterned Pines hostess set
Rich Razzleberry, Crushed Curry, Always Artichoke, and Sahara Sand cardstock
Top Note Die for Big Shot
Rich Razzleberry classic ink
Circle Fire Rhinestone Brads

To shop for any of these supplies, click 'Shop Now' from my website http://shilohstamps.stampinup.net

2009-06-07T22:59:00.001-04:00

A new Stampin' Up! catalog is coming out soon! Which means they are discontinuing lots of stamp sets and accessories to make room for new items. There are accessories that have already sold out, so if there's something you want, be sure to let me know ASAP. The sets are guaranteed to be available through June 30th, but after that they are GONE - so be sure to check the list carefully so you don't miss out on any sets you've had your eye on.

You can contact me to place an order, or go to http://shilohstamps.stampinup.net and click the "shop now" button to buy items directly online.

Below you will find links to the set lists as well as the accessories list as of today. The availability of accessories changes constantly. If you want to find out if something is sold out or not, contact me, OR go to my online store and look it up.

There's also a page here: http://www.stampinup.com/ECWeb/CategoryPage.aspx?categoryID=310
where the list is broken down into 25% and 50% off items.

If you don't have a catalog and would like to see an accessory right away, use the link above to see it online.

Retiring sets, alphabetical order:
http://www.stampinup.com/us/documents/Last_Chance_Lists_0609_US_alph.pdf

Retiring sets, by page number:
http://www.stampinup.com/us/documents/Last_Chance_Lists_0609_US_num.pdf

Retiring Decor Elements (vinyl wall art)
25% off!
http://www.stampinup.com/us/documents/Decor_elements_Last_Chance_List_0609_US.pdf

Following is the Accessories list updated to show items that have sold out. Be sure to get in touch with me right away before your favorites sell out, too!

Item #	Product Description	Price	Discount	Sale Price	Availability
112735	RUB ONS HIDDEN GARDEN BLOSSOMS	10.95	0.5	5.48	Available
112970	LO MEJOR DE TODO	19.95	0.5	9.98	Available
105143	DAYS TO REMEMBER 6X6 FR	9.95	0.5	4.98	Available
113888	RUB ONS MANY OCCASIONS	10.95	0.5	5.48	Available
109044	PUNCH SNOW BLOSSOM	10.95	0.5	5.48	Available
111364	RIBBON POLY TWILL SO SAFFRON 7/8"	8.95	0.5	4.48	Available
106961	STAZON REFILL WHITE	4.95	0.5	2.48	Out of stock
114341	COURDUROY BUTTONS PACIFIC POINT	9.95	0.5	4.98	Available
114316	RIBBON ORIGINALS PIG TAILS	13.95	0.5	6.98	Available
111414	RUB ONS HIDDEN GARDEN	10.95	0.5	5.48	Available
114351	DESIGNER HARDWARE HOORAY	4.95	0.5	2.48	Available
114338	COURDUROY BUTTONS KIWI KISS	9.95	0.5	4.98	Available
114019	ACCENTS & ELEMENTS FLEURETTES	9.95	0.5	4.98	Available
114317	RIBBON ORIGINALS DRESS UP	12.95	0.5	6.48	Available
102875	HEMP TWINE RED	2.95	0.5	1.48	Available
101259	HEMP TWINE BLACK	2.95	0.5	1.48	Available
113979	ACCENTS & ELEMENTS CANVAS CUTS	7.95	0.5	3.98	Available
114350	DESIGNER HARDWARE SOHO	4.95	0.5	2.48	Available
111363	RIBBON GROSGRAIN PINK PIROUETTE 1 1/4"	7.95	0.25	5.96	Available
111365	RIBBON TAFFETA RIDING HOOD RED	6.95	0.25	5.21	Available
111847	RIBBON DOUBLE STITICHED BAJA BREEZE 1"	8.95	0.25	6.71	Available
111371	RIBBON GROSGRAIN STRIPED TANGERINE TANGO 5/8"	9.95	0.25	7.46	Available
111373	RIBBON GROSGRAIN STRIPED PINK PIROUETTE 5/8"	9.95	0.25	7.46	Available
111372	RIBBON GROSGRIAN STRIPED KIWI KISS 5/8"	9.95	0.25	7.46	Available
113884	RUB ONS FASHION DISTRICT	10.95	0.25	8.21	Out of stock
114318	RIBBON ORIGINALS VALET	12.95	0.25	9.71	Available
111374	RIBBON GROSGRAIN STRIPED RIDING HOOD RED 5/8"	9.95	0.25	7.46	Available
111370	RIBBON GROSGRAIN STRIPED PACIFIC POINT 5/8"	9.95	0.25	7.46	Available
111415	RUB ONS GREATEST MOMENTS	10.95	0.25	8.21	Available
113887	RUB ONS BRIGHT DELIGHTS	11.95	0.25	8.96	Available
111416	RUB ONS CHATEAU BELLA	10.95	0.25	8.21	Available
111338	NOTES TEXTURED LOVE ASSORTMENT II	12.95	0.25	9.71	Available
111879	RIBBON SATIN KIWI KISS VERY VANILLA	7.95	0.25	5.96	Available
111277	RUB ONS A PERFECT DAY	10.95	0.25	8.21	Available
110730	DIE CUTS POCKETS & PIECES	8.95	0.25	6.71	Available
107272	PUNCH KEY TAG	15.95	0.25	11.96	Available
113980	DESIGNER SERIES PAPER CANDY LANE	9.95	0.25	7.46	Available
111375	RIBBON GROSGRAIN STRIPED BAJA BREEZE 5/8"	9.95	0.25	7.46	Available
112010	DIE CUTS BLOOMS AGAIN	8.95	0.25	6.71	Out of stock
113991	TASTE OF TEXTILES	9.95	0.25	7.46	Available
101399	STIPPLE BRUSHES	6.95	0.25	5.21	Available
112092	BUTTON BOUQUET	7.95	0.25	5.96	Out of stock
112139	NOTES CAROUSEL II	11.95	0.25	8.96	Available
111336	NOTES SCALLOP II	11.95	0.25	8.96	Available
111840	CLASSIC STAMPIN INK REFILL PACIFIC POINT	2.95			Available
111841	CLASSIC STAMPIN INK REFILL TANGEIRNE TANGO	2.95			Available
111843	CLASSIC STAMPIN INK REFILL PINK PIROUETTE	2.95			Available
111839	CLASSIC STAMPIN INK REFILL RIDING HOOD RED	2.95			Available
111842	CLASSIC STAMPIN INK REFILL KIWI KISS	2.95			Available
112161	DESIGNER SERIES PAPER PATTERNS KIWI KISS	9.95			Available
112042	DESIGNER SERIES PAPER URBAN GARDEN	9.95			Available
112156	DESIGNER SERIES PAPER PATTERNS PINK PIROUETTE	9.95			Available
112150	DESIGNER SERIES PAPER PATTERNS PACIFIC POINT	9.95			Available
112153	DESIGNER SERIES PAPER PATTERNS TANGERINE TANGO	9.95			Available
111844	CLASSIC STAMPIN INK REFILL BAJA BREEZE	2.95			Available
111836	CLASSIC STAMPIN PAD RIDINGHOOD RED	5.95			Available
111838	CLASSIC STAMPIN PAD PINK PIROUETTE	5.95			Available
113966	DESIGNER SERIES PAPER GOOD MORNING SUNSHINE	9.95			Available
109123	STAMPIN WRITE JOURNALER BASIC BROWN	3.25			Available
113981	DESIGNER SERIES PAPER BELLA BIRDS	9.95			Available
112157	DESIGNER SERIES PAPER PATTERNS BAJA BREEZE	9.95			Out of Stock
113975	DESIGNER SERIES PAPER RASPBERRY TART	9.95			Available
114037	DESIGNER SERIES PAPER SPECIALTY SWEET SLUMBER	11.95			Available
113978	DESIGNER SERIES PAPER URBAN OASIS	9.95			Available
112041	DESIGNER SERIES PAPER BELLA ROSE	9.95			Available
112468	DESIGNER SERIES PAPER SWEET ALWAYS	9.95			Available
111834	CLASSIC STAMPIN PAD TANGERINE TANGO	5.95			Available
114039	DESIGNER SERIES PAPER SPECIALTY ROCKABILLY	11.95			Available
108590	CARD STOCK NATURALS ASST 12X12	8.95			Available
111337	NOTES GIFT ASSORTMENT II	9.95			Available
112471	DESIGNER SERIES PAPER RAINBOW SHERBET	9.95			Out of Stock
112464	DESIGNER SERIES PAPER MANCHESTER	9.95			Available
112006	ACCENTS & ELEMENTS FLOWER FUSION II	14.95			Available
111837	CLASSIC STAMPIN PAD PACIFIC POINT	5.95			Available
112461	DESIGNER SERIES PAPER WASHINGTON APPLE	9.95			Out of stoc
113993	DESIGNER SERIES PAPER SPECIALTY PARISIAN BREEZE	11.95			Available
112155	DESIGNER SERIES PAPER PATTERNS RIDING HOOD RED	9.95			Available
111353	CARD STOCK KIWI KISS 8-1/2 X 11	5.5			Available
111348	CARD STOCK RIDING HOOD RED 8-1/2 X 11	5.5			Available
112172	SIMPLY SCRAPPIN ROCK A BYE BOY	19.95			Out of stock
100900	GIFT SACKS WHITE	2.95			Available
114605	SIMPLY SENT CARD KIT MORE THOUGHTS	42.95			Out of stock
102264	COLUZZLE STARTER KIT	19.95			Available
111346	CARD STOCK IN COLOR 12 X 12	8.95			Available
111835	CLASSIC STAMPIN PAD KIWI KISS	5.95			Available
111350	CARD STOCK PACIFIC POINT 8-1/2 X 11	5.5			Available
105668	TATTOO KIT I	13.95			Out of stock
111349	CARD STOCK TANGERINE TANGO 8-1/2 X 11	5.5			Available
109231	SIMPLY SENT CARD KIT SENDING HAPPY THOUGHTS	54.95			Available
111351	CARD STOCK PINK PIROUETTE 8-1/2 X 11	5.5			Available
112165	SIMPLY SCRAPPIN ROCK A BYE GIRL	19.95			Out of stock
113950	DIE CUTS BUILD-A-FAIRYTALE	8.95			Available
111345	CARD STOCK TEXTURED IN COLOR 12 X 12	11.95			Available
105669	TATTOO KIT II	13.95			Out of stock
111833	CLASSIC STAMPIN PAD BAJA BREEZE	5.95			Available
113936	SIMPLY SCRAPPIN HOPPY MEMORIES	19.95			Out of stock
111347	CARD STOCK IN COLOR 8-1/2 X 11	7.95			Available
107288	ENVELOPE WHISPER WHITE EXTRA LARGE	5.5			Available
104310	CRAFTERS TOOL KIT	39.95			Available
111352	CARD STOCK BAJA BREEZE 8-12 X 11	5.5			Available
113943	SIMPLY SCRAPPIN 2 SWEET	19.95			Available
113925	SIMPLY SCRAPPIN SWEET NOTHINGS	19.95			Available
112179	SIMPLY SCRAPPIN LOVE STORIES	19.95			Available
113911	SIMPLY SCRAPPIN SUNSHINE GARDEN	19.95			Out of stock
112054	SIMPLY SCRAPPIN BEST EVER	19.95			Out of stock
111253	Blooms & Bulbs	6.5			Available
109684	Doodle	8.5			Available
111257	Happy, Happy Birthday	8.5			Available
109692	Love	6.5			Available
109568	My ABCs	6.5			Available
109682	Perfectly Pretty	6.5			Available
109687	See You Around	8.5			Available
109683	So Swirly	8.5			Available
111260	Something Fishy	8.5			Available
111262	Stems & Silhouettes	8.5			Available
105516	Watercolor Joy	6.5			Available
114528	Embosslit Flower	11.95			Available
116209	Note of Thanks	9.95			Available
116210	Birthdays Count	9.95			Available
112966	Curly Label Bundle*	33.95			Available
115535	Hand Drawn Bundle				Available

Great Grosgrains Ribbon Share

2009-02-01T15:38:00.003-05:00

Do you love embellishing your projects with ribbon, but don’t want to spend the money to own all of the Stampin’ Up! colors and styles? If so, join my Great Grosgrains Ribbon Share! You get to sample 20 colors for a fraction of the regular cost. Call or e-mail me to join. Once we have enough people for a club, then I can send you an invoice for payment. Stampin’ Up!’s grosgrain ribbon is top quality (100% polyester) and it coordinates with Stampin’ Up!’s colors!

• Seven spots available – You may purchase more than one spot if you want more ribbon

• Cost is $25 per spot – Includes shipping, handling, and tax!

• You receive two yards of each color – 48 yards total (52 cents per yard!)

• Receive FREE SHIPPING when you order any other ribbons on pages 178-179 of the Spring-Summer Idea Book when joining the Great Grosgrains Ribbon Share

Contact me at alison@shilohstamps.com to sign up today

Alison Shiloh Wear
http://shilohstamps.stampinup.net

Trim-a-Tree Class

2008-11-01T22:22:00.002-04:00

Online Event Registration - Powered by www.eventbrite.com

Happy Birthday to Me! (a little bit late)

2008-08-13T21:43:00.003-04:00

Here are some of the birthday cards I received this year. Aren't they lovely? My MIL Linda made this card using lots of punches. Can you guess which punches she used?

Hardware for Dear Dad

2008-06-08T16:06:00.007-04:00

My dad is here this weekend, so I get to give him his Father's Day card in person - yippee!

Here are two Father's Day cards I made, using different finishes of Hodgepodge Hardware to frame 'Dear Dad'. Dear Dad is part of the Holiday Blitz stamp set. The silver Hodgepodge Hardware, from the Occasions Mini, is only available until June 31, and the Copper finish is only available until August 10. The card also features Le Jardin Designer Series Paper, which we will be using at this weekend's Summer Gifts Class. Have you registered yet? We have 4 spaces left for Friday and many spaces available for Saturday. Register now at summergiftsclass.eventbrite.com Hope to see you this weekend!

Dear Dad is part of the Holiday Blitz stamp set. I recently received this set for free because I met some sales goals.

Happy Father's Day, too!

Celebrate! (with a cupcake)

2008-05-29T00:01:00.009-04:00

I made a whole bunch of birthday cards tonight - some belated and some in advance. These are 3"x6" cards, so you can make 4 from a sheet of 12"x12" paper. They also fit nicely in Stampin' Up's long skinny envelopes.

Here are the card ingredients:

Cause for Celebration - hostess stamp set

Chocolate Chip, Purely Pomegranate, So Saffron, and Whisper White Cardstock

Basic Brown classic ink (doesn't run, so it's great for coloring)

So Saffron and Pink stampin' write markers

Chunky Essentials Glitter (adhered with 2-way glue pen)

Purely Pomegranate double-stitched ribbon

Did you know that time is running out for Purely Pomegranate and the other products in the In Color series? Stampin' Up introduced the In Color line as a collection of trendy colors, to be changed every 12 months. This year's collection includes: Purely Pomegranate, Wild Wasabi, River Rock, Soft Sky, Groovy Guava, and Blue Bayou. These colors will be available in limited quantities after June 15, and will no longer be available after August 10. That means all card stock, ink pads, refills, ribbon (like the double-stitched ribbon above) will no longer be available in the 6 In Color options. The good news is that on August 11, Stampin' Up will introduce a new group of In Color selections. Stay tuned to http://www.shilohstamps.com/ for more details about the new In Color collection.

(Thanks, http://rubbermoonlighters.com/ for the cool image!)

Summer Gifts class sneak preview

2008-05-28T07:48:00.003-04:00

Tiffany and I are finalizing the projects for the June 13 and 14 Summer Gifts class, and I thought you would want to take a look. Here's a wall hanging I'm working on.

My apologies for the grainy picture. My camera's busted, so now I'm taking pictures with my phone. In addition to the wall hanging, we will also be making a photo frame, a bag, and a party favor. Early Bird registration ends on June 30, so click http://summergiftsclass.eventbrite.com/ to register today.

amazing to zany card

2008-05-24T19:49:00.006-04:00

Today, a young friend came over and made a birthday card for her cousin. Look at how she used lots of words from the Amazing to Zany set!

Here are the card ingredients:

A Little Birdie Told Me stamp set

Amazing to Zany stamp set

Old Olive, Bashful Blue, and Whisper White cardstock

Summer Picnic Designer Series Paper (from the Occasions mini)

Real Red 1/4" grosgrain ribbon

Scallop punch

1 3/8" circle punch

Congrats, fabulous friend!

2008-05-21T23:06:00.009-04:00

My colleague and friend Debbie is getting married in a few weeks, so we had an office wedding shower for her yesterday. I don't have a stamp sentiment that says something specific about a wedding shower, so I used the Amazing to Zany set and stamped, "congrats fabulous friend". I think it did the trick. Since every bride and groom need thank-you notes, I made Debbie a folder full or thank-you notes in her wedding colors - pink and orange. I used Purely Pomegranate and Groovy Guava.

I also stamped the envelopes with an image from the Carte Postale set. I think it looks great on the envelope flap.

I made a folder for the cards using some Groovy Guava designer series paper. That's a trick I learned at Stampin' Down the Shore last year.

The card ingredients are:

Baroque Motifs stamp set

Purely Pomegranate, Groovy Guava, and Whisper White cardstock

Groovy Guava and Purely Pomegranate classic ink

mat pack (for paper piercing)

rhinestone brads in fire color assortment (Did I tell you I got the rhinestone brads for free?)

The folder uses:

Ginger Blossom Designer Series paper (thanks, Ashley Hill, for the pic! http://rubbertherapy.blogspot.com/)

Vintage brads

1/4" whisper white grosgrain ribbon

Purely Pomegranate and whisper white cardstock

scallop punch

rhinestone brads in fire

Carousel for Mom

2008-05-12T01:32:00.013-04:00

Yesterday, my Little Sister (through Big Brothers Big Sisters) asked if we could make Mother's Day cards together. I wanted to make a really special card for my mom, since she's always doing thoughtful things for me.

I had just gotten the Carousel Notes from the Occasions Mini (page 7) in the mail, so we decided to make our cards with Carousel Notes. Using the 3/16" hole punch, I punch a hole in each of the scallops, for a doily (sp?) effect. Then I cut a circle of dogwood paper from the Tie The Knot Simply Scrappin' kit. I stamped the definition for gratitude from the Define Your Life stamp set, and tied it all together with some Wild Wasabi double-stiched ribbon.

The cards come with lovely 6" square Chocolate Chip envelopes, so we enjoyed using white rub-ons on the envelopes. I tried to coordinate the dogwood motif from the card with a rub-on for back flap of the envelope.

The Carousel Notes are a set of 12 6" round scallop circle cards, in 4 each of Wild Wasabi, Soft Sky, and Groovy Guava. The set includes 12 6" square chocolate chip envelopes. If you would like to place an order for the Carousel Notes, please click the Add to Cart link below. If you would like to add additional items to your order, please e-mail me at alison@shilohstamps.com.

A little bit of happiness

2008-05-05T09:24:00.008-04:00

Part of my daily routine is checking the Stampin' Up demonstrator website, since they post new samples of cards and scrapbook pages daily. It's a great place for ideas and inspiration. Here's one of today's samples, by Michelle VanWiggeren. I like how it shows a trail of dots tracing the path of the butterfly. The card also uses Stampin' Pastels for some soft coloring. It features the A Little Bit of Happiness hostess set that Amy P. just earned as part of the Stampers 6 Club.

Here are the other supplies it uses:

Paper:
CARD STOCK APRICOT APPEAL 8 1/2X11
CARD STOCK ALMOST AMETHYST 8 1/2X11
CARD STOCK CERTAINLY CELERY 8 1/2X11
CARD STOCK WHISPER WHITE 8 1/2X11

Inks:
CLASSIC STAMPIN PAD APRICOT APPEAL, BASIC BLACK
STAMPIN WRITE MARKERS SOFT SUBTLES

Accessories:
STAMPIN PASTELS
SNAIL ADHESIVE PERMANENT
CRYSTAL EFFECTS

If you would like access to the Stampin' Up Demonstrator website, which includes thousands of professional samples, patterns, and business resources, consider signing up to be an SU demonstator. During the month of May, SU is offering 20% off the regular price of the new demonstrator Starter Kit and a free Hodgepodge Hardware set for everyone who enrolls in May. Click here for more details, or e-mail me at alison@shilohstamps.com.

Free Shipping now until April 30

2008-04-29T00:25:00.008-04:00

Since I haven't done any classes or workshops this month, I'm offering FREE STANDARD SHIPPING from now until April 30. This would be a great time to take advantage of the Free Wheelin' special, which is a free coordinating Stampin' Around when you order any of 6 pre-selected stamp sets. All of the Free Wheelin' wheels feature the jumbo wheels, which I find much more forgiving to use. Contact me today at alison@shilohstamps.com to place your order and take advantage of free shipping.

Also, here's a picture of the swap I made for our PhillyInkers meeting a few weeks back. I made a whole bunch of these, and I've been using them for all sorts of cards - thank you cards, sympathy cards, birthday cards, Thinking of You. I like that it's a pretty neutral floral motif that can be used for many different purposes. Here are the supplies for the card:

From the Garden hostess set

Basic Grey, Pretty in Pink, and Regal Rose Cardstock

Basic Grey Taffeta Ribbon (new in the Spring Summer catty)

Rhinestone Brads in Fire (the rhinestone is pink, but it's hard to tell from the scan)

I got the Fire and Ice rhinestone brads free as part of Great Rewards, an incentive program for Stampin' Up demonstrators. They are $10.95 a box, and I got both boxes FREE! Let me know if you would like to know more about the benefits of being a Stampin' Up demonstrator.

Anatomy of a Swap

2008-04-06T23:44:00.016-04:00

In my years of making cards I have tried to find the most efficient way to make lots of cards at once. Here's a sample of my process. This particular swap was for the January or February PhillyInkers meeting, and it was supposed to have a Valentine's theme. I was trying to make mine not tooo pink and red and heartsy, so I chose Groovy Guava, Purely Pomegranate, and So Saffron for my color scheme.

First, I stamped a bunch of large flowers on some Whisper White cardstock. Then I experimented with different coloring patterns using the blender pen and ink pads. Do you know that trick? If you squeeze the lid of a Stampin' Up inkpad, it leaves a little ink on the inside of the lid, and you can use that ink as a palette for watercoloring.

Blender pens pick up some ink for temporary coloring. If I'm doing lots of watercoloring, I usually do one color at a time, so I don't have to keep cleaning my blender pen or brush. I wound up using So Saffron, Groovy Guava, and Purely Pomegranate here.

After finishing my coloring, I cut out the images using my super-sharp Paper Snips. These are smaller scissors that are great for very detailed cutting, like the petals of these flowers. They're also good for cutting ribbons that can fray with duller scissors, like the 5/8" grosgrain ribbon.

Then I put a brad in the center of each flower, using my paper piercing tool. I also cut my paper to size, and cut the gingham ribbon to size. I stamped my sentiment, "Time with Friends is time well spent" using black Staz-On ink, so that the ink wouldn't run when I colored in "Friends" using my Versamarker. Have you heard of those? It's versamark ink in a marker form.

Now here are my finished swaps, ready for the PhillyInkers meeting! Have you ever thought about joining the PhillyInkers? You're more than welcome to join our next meeting. We stamp, snack, and talk about how to build our stamping businesses. It's great fun. We always bring swaps, too. Check my google calendar on the right for the dates of our meetings.

Happy Easter!

2008-03-22T22:30:00.011-04:00

I went to our quarterly PhillyInkers brunch today, and I brought these eggs to share with everyone. We also did a Shoebox Swap, so I'll be posting pictures of that soon. I had a bunch of rub-ons leftover from the Sale-a-Bration special, so I thought I would try them out on plastic Easter eggs. After some experimentation, I would say that the smaller images work better on curved surfaces. Have you had a chance to play with the new rub-ons yet? We made some cards with Rub-ons at our Stamp-a-Stack last weekend.

Does anyone know the history of Easter Eggs? I have been helping lead the kids group at my church recently, and we died eggs together on Sunday. We had a great time discussing the great symbolism of Easter eggs. Eggs are potential, new life, anticipation, and new beginnings. We had fun celebrating together. For more on the history of Easter eggs, check out the Easter Egg entry on wikipdedia.

I have really gotten into preparing for Easter this year. I have found the season of Lent to be a time of introspection and anticipation. For the first time ever, I actually gave up something for Lent. I've always been a bit skeptical about giving things up for Lent, since I know my tendency for drama and I feared that I would make a big to-do about my sacrifice. In past years, I've felt like it has been more beneficial for me to add things in to my life during the season of Lent - disciplines like praying, reading Scripture, listening to God. While I certainly am still working on those inward practices, this year, I chose to give up chocolate. I have to say, I had no idea how much chocolate I eat. It has been really challenging! I have tried to not make a big deal about giving it up, but I have had to acknowledge my choice several times as I was offered various chocoaltey treats. Sometime tomorrow, I plan to visit Philadelphia's Naked Chocolate to celebrate the end of my fast! They have this fabulous Drinking Chocolate, pictured above.

At dawn, I'll be attending a sunrise service marking Jesus' resurrection, and then I'm heading over to a friend's house for Easter brunch. How are you marking Easter this year? Post a comment letting us know the way you'll mark the day, and you will be entered into a drawing some Sale-a-Bration rubons, pictured at the left. To see a larger picture, just click on the image.

A Way to Budget Your Stamping Expenses - Stampers 6 Club

2008-03-15T12:16:00.008-04:00

I'm looking for a few good stampers. If you are looking for a way to budget your spending on craft and scrapbooking supplies, the Stampers 6 Club may be a good solution for you. I am looking for 6 stampers to commit to ordering $25 of merchandise every other month for a year. Club members would place their orders together, and take turns receiving the hostess benefits on the months they order. If you have any questions about how the club would work or you would like to join the Stampers 6, contact me by April 1. I hope to place the first Stampers 6 order by April 15.

Here are a few more details:
Stampers 6 Club will keep you in stamps, accessories and more with a $25 order every other month. You may order anything you want from any of our current catalogs- and you receive the Hostess Benefits one out of those 6 months!

Order amount: $25 minimum

Commitment Time: 12 months (ordering every other month)

Order by: 15th of each month (April, June, August, October, December, February)

When am I the hostess? Hostessess go in rotating order of who joins the club first.
Do we meet or do I have to have people to my home? No, but you can if you want to!
Anything else I need to know? You will receive the Idea Book and Catalog FREE as well as specials and offers just for Stamper’s Club Members!!

E-mail me at alison@shilohstamps.com if you would like to sign up.

Stamp-a-Stack Sneak Peak

2008-03-12T23:17:00.009-04:00

There are still 2 spots left for Friday evening's Stamp-a-Stack and several spots available for Saturday afternoon. Here's a sneak peak at some of the cards we'll be making. Tiffany and I have planned 3 card-making stations, where stampers will make 4 of each card.

Here are 2 versions of a Stamp-a-Stack card using the same supplies. Both cards feature the Friendship Blooms Sale-a-Bration stamp set and the coordinating Love and Happiness Sale-a-Bration rub-ons. During Sale-a-Bration, customers receive a free stamp set for every $50 of merchandise ordered. Sale-a-Bration ends Monday, March 17, so contact me today to place your Sale-a-Bration order. To download the Sale-a-Bration brochure, click http://www.stampinup.com/us/documents/US_SAB_08.pdf

For more details about this weekend's Stamp-a-Stack and registration information, go to http://gtownstampastack.eventbrite.com/

So Many Scallops - So Many Possibilities

2008-03-08T14:02:00.012-05:00

I love this new stamp set, So Many Scallops! I have been enjoying learning new ways to use the scallop punch, and this stamp set makes creating unique cards super-simple. These four looks use the same supplies:

So Many Scallops Stamp Set
Canvas background stamp
Print Pattern background stamp
Night of Navy cardstock
Mellow Moss Cardstock
Ultrasmooth Vanilla Cardstock
Mellow Moss classic ink
Whisper White craft ink
Night of Navy classic ink
Night of Navy grosgrain ribbon
scallop punch
brayer

The So Many Scallops stamp set is part of the Sale-a-Bration promotion, and so this stamp set is only available until March 17. During the Sale-a-Bration promotion, customers receive a free stamp set for every $50 order, so this stamp set is actually free! Contact me today at alison@shilohstamps.com to place an order.

Next week's Spring Stamp a Stack will feature products from the Sale-a-Bration catalog and the new Occasions mini catalog. Click http://gtownstampastack.eventbrite.com/ for details and registration information.

I made these 4 cardfronts using my supplies from the Feb. 23 PhillyInkers Stamp and Scrap University. Each participant received a 6x6 scrapbook, and then filled it with 24 technique pages. These samples show the double background technique. We used a brayer to ink the print pattern background stamp with mellow moss ink and then used a brayer to ink the Canvas background background stamp. Voila! Double backgrounds. That picture over on the right is a brayer, and it makes using background stamps even easier. I like the way the finished card looks like a screened door. For some great pictures of the Stamp and Scrap University, check out Tiffany's recent TLKreations blog post.

Announcing Germantown Stamp-a-Stack

2008-02-28T23:56:00.007-05:00

I have been asking around to see what kinds of classes would be most helpful, and I have learned that people would love to attend a Stamp a Stack. A Stamp-a-Stack is an event where stampers make several copies of a very similar card. This gives stampers the opportunities to experiment with different sentiments, interchange images, and have lots of cards to take home and send to friends. So Tiffany and I have planned a Stamp-a-Stack for March 14 and 15. We will be featuring some products from the Sale-a-Bration catalog and the Occassions mini. During Sale-a-Bration, customers receive a free stamp set for every $50 purchase until March 17. The Occassions mini debuts on March 1, and it's full of fresh ideas for Spring.

Follow this link for details on how to register: http://gtownstampastack.eventbrite.com/

Stamp-a-Stack attendees will receive a stamp on their Shiloh Stamps Frequent Stamper card, pictured above. Frequent Stampers who receive 5 stamps on their card receive the 6th class free!

Cards of Love

2008-02-18T23:41:00.006-05:00

I had a wonderful Valentine's Day. How about you? My dear husband and I gave each other homemade cards. He made me a card that had pictures from each year of our five years together. Very sweet! Here's the card I gave him. I have to say, it's one of my favorite cards I've ever made. I made it a couple years ago, and I couldn't bear to give it away.

It uses a retired stamp set called Sweet of You, and a background called Handstitched. This was my first attempt at stitching on a card, and I have to say it's not too shabby. It's hard to tell, but I used Crystal Effects on the cake dome to make it look like glass. I love this color combination, too - close to cocoa, Chocolate Chip, and Regal Rose. Just sounds like Valentine's Day, doesn't it?

I have also been playing with my new A Little Birdie Told Me stamp set. Here's a wedding card I made for a swap with the PhillyInkers. I used a fun fold to showcase the 2-part sentiment. I have also used this set to make birthday cards. There's an itty birthday party hat with this set too. I gave those all away before I scanned a sample. Guess I'll just have to make some more!

This card uses:
A Little Birdie Told Me Stamp Set
Brocade Blue, Basic Black, and Confetti cardstock (recycled!)
Black Staz-On Ink
Brocade Blue and Sahara Sand classic ink pads
AquaPainter for watercoloring

What are your plans for Valentine's Day?

2008-02-09T21:34:00.001-05:00

I've gotten some lovely Valentine's cards from my PhillyInkers friends lately, so I thought I'd share. I plan to make my own Valentines this weekend, so I'll be posting those soon.

Ilina Crouse made this lovely card using the White Magic Technique and the True Friend Stamp set. White Magic is one of the techniques we'll be teaching at Stamp and Scrap University on Feb. 23. Click the link below for more details. It's not too late to register!

http://www.stampandscrapuniversity.eventbrite.com/

Claire made this lovely card using the Sweet Shapes set and the black gingham ribbon. I love how she sprinkled the hearts with Dazzling Diamonds glitter! By the way, today's her birthday, so stop by her blog to wish her a Happy Birthday!

Tiffany made this Love Note card using the Embrace Life stamp set. She used this card as a Make and Take at her recent workshop.

Kristin made this card using the Pick a Petal stamp set. I love how Purely Pomegranate and Groovy Guava work together so well. She added a pearl from the Pretties kit for a little extra flair.

Sale-a-Bration is Here!

2008-02-01T08:03:00.000-05:00

Starting today, when you place a $50 order you receive a free limited-edition stamp set from the Sale-a-Bration catalog. When you place a $100 order, you receive 2 free stamp sets. There's no limit to the number of free sets you can earn! This is one of the best specials during the Stampin' Up calendar year.

Here's the link to the Sale-a-Bration catalog. I especially like So Many Scallops, a collection of stamps that coordinate perfectly with the scallop punch. Contact me today at alison@shilohstamps.com to place your Sale-a-Bration order.

Happy Birthday to Mom

2008-01-29T00:36:00.000-05:00

Today is my mom's birthday, and here's the card I mailed her today. Let's see if she sees it on the blog before it arrives in her mailbox. I mailed the same card to my my mom-in-law, whose birthday was the 21st. My mom and my mom-in-law both requested stampin' goodies for their birthdays this year, so my mom got tons of stamp sets, courtesy of my dad. My mom-in-law got some punches and some stamps and some things for her new house.

Sorry for the blurry picture of this card. I was playing with the camera on my new phone, and it looks like I don't quite have it down yet. The card uses In The Spotlight (a retired hostess set) and a new celebrate set. It's hard to tell in this picture, but I used paper piercing in the corners and there's a brad in the middle of the starburst image. There's also a piece of grosgrain ribbon going across the middle of the card.

Coaster-Rama report

2008-01-25T00:00:00.001-05:00

Coaster-Rama went very well the past couple nights. Here's a sampling of some of the coaster creations. Above is a coaster I made with the new Time Well Spent hostess set. This might be a birthday or Valentine's gift, I haven't decided yet.

Kim made this lovely set of coasters using a retired stamp set called Batik. She spent lots of time mapping out the design on paper, and then came up with a perfect coordinated and symmetrical finished product - lovely!

Amy made these coasters using a combination of Time Well Spent and a retired hostess set. I love how she stamped a flower behind the sentiment using a light yellow ink. It really ties the whole image together. All class attendees received some satin ribbon to tie up their coasters, since they make a lovely gift. Although this ribbon was available by the spool in December, the chocolate chip satin ribbon is still available as part of the Theater ribbon originals collection.

I made this pirate coaster for Jon to commemorate his pirate birthday party we had last November. It uses a stamp set called Ahoy Matey.

I made this coaster tonight, as I was inspired by one of Tiffany King's designs. It uses one of my favorite stamp sets - Baroque Motifs.

Cutting Up with the Coluzzle

2008-01-19T16:56:00.000-05:00

Do you have any crafting supplies that you're not quite sure how to use? or you don't bother to take the time to use them? I don't own a coluzze, but I have to confess that I've never really learned how to use it properly. Here's a link to the recent Craft Critique review of the Coluzzle cutting system.

http://www.craftcritique.com/2008/01/cutting-up-with-coluzzle.html

I have to say I see its usefulness, but I just haven't taken the time to figure it out. I could have used the coluzzle when I was cutting circles for these cards I made for Angel Stampers for Soldiers. (ok, I can't find the picture right now, but I'll post it when I find it) I cut the circles the way my mom taught me - trace something round, and then cut it out. It's ok, but not perfect. Now see the Coluzzle is supposed to make cutting cirlces (and ovals!) much easier, since it's a stencil of graduated circles and ovals. You put your paper under the stencil and you use the special swiveling blade to cut around the stencil. It takes some practice, but I think I could get used to it. For a picture of the coluzzle, click here. If you'd like to order a coluzzle, send me an e-mail at alison@shilohstamps.com.

Have you used the coluzzle? What do you think of it?

Coaster-Rama

2008-01-15T21:13:00.000-05:00

Is making homemade gifts one of your New Year's Resolutions? This Christmas, I made tile coasters for lots of people on our list. Here's a picture of some of the coasters we made. For more samples of Shiloh Stamps coasters, scroll down to my Very Coaster Christmas blog post.

On January 23 and 24, I will be hosting Coaster-Rama (see google calendar in the sidebar for times). Come make some coasters - the best-selling Shiloh Stamps holiday item. (I sold MANY of these coasters at the Circle of Hope Art Shop back in December.

$15 materials fee includes supplies to make 2 coasters and a $5 coupon towards stampin' supplies from Stampin' Up's new Spring-Summer Collection. Additional coaster supplies can be purchased for $1/coaster. RSVP to events@shilohstamps.com by January 16. Additionally, all Shiloh Stamps class attendees receive 10% off stampin' orders placed at classes. Remember to bring your Frequent Stamper Card!

Stay tuned for more details about Stamp and Scrap University on February 23! Shiloh Stamps Frequent Stampers will receive a stamp on their Frequent Stamper card for each session they attend.

Super-Fast Christmas Thank-You cards

2008-01-12T20:49:00.001-05:00

Growing up in the Handy household, (yes, that's my maiden name) writing thank-you notes was part of our holiday tradition. Although I sometimes resented this practice as a kid, I have grown to value this tradition as an adult. I have tried to find ways to stay on top of thank-you notes as my dear husband and I establish our holiday traditions. This year, I think I figured it out. I packed a little card-making kit in my carry-on bag as we travelled to TX for Christmas. In a quart-size Ziploc bag, I included:

10 Really Red pre-cut cards - I cut the cardstock at home, since TSA doesn't like scissors and paper trimmers on the plane
10 Very Vanilla envelopes
10 pre-cut pieces of Designer Series paper, Cerise and Dashing (now retired, this was a great way to use up my scraps!)
10 pre-cut Christmas sentiments from the now-retired Perfect Presentation hostess set
10 pre-cut pieces of Real Red 5/8" grosgrain ribbon
my mini-stapler
bone folder
1 sheet of dimensionals
SNAIL

When we had a weather delay leaving TX, I was able to make my Christmas thank-you notes at the airport. It was like having my very own Simply Sent kit! I folded all the cards, then adhered designer paper to the front of each card, using my SNAIL. Then I stapled on some ribbon and added a sentiment using dimensionals. Super-fast and cute to boot! This may become a Shiloh Stamps holiday tradition. That is, if we travel every year...

I also made a similar card-making kit for my Little Sister through Big Brothers Big Sisters. She's a crafty gal, so I made her a card-making kit. Inside the pretty box, I put a stamp set, a mini-stamp pad, some dimensionals, pre-cut cards, envelopes, and lots of ribbon. I also included a sample card to give her some ideas. The next day, she presented me with a lovely handmade card!

Also, here's a picture of Gary (my bro-in-law), Jon, me, and my sis in the Santa hats my mom made us. We were all in TX for Christmas together this year, which is a rare treat. Gina's and Gary's have stars, since they are stars of the stage. You might remember from an earlier post that Gina won an Arizoni award for her role in Seussical with Childsplay and Gary was selected to attend an international conference on theater for young audiences. My mom must have taken the Buy Handmade pledge, too, since she made us Santa hats and aprons - fun!

PS - Sorry I haven't been updating the blog lately, although Jon did figure out how to make the page wider (nice, huh?). I've been working on getting my new Stampin' Up Demonstrator Business website up and running. Have you had a chance to check it out yet? You can view it at shilohstamps.stampinup.net. I haven't decided if I want to keep it or not, since it's not free like blogger. Let me know if you feel like it's worth paying for after the 2-3 month free trial period.

A Very Coaster Christmas

2007-12-30T12:48:00.000-05:00

Back in November, Super-Stamper Melanie Robson taught us PhillyInkers* how to stamp on marble tiles to make coasters. I absolutely loved this project, so I decided to make a whole bunch of coasters to sell at the Circle of Hope Art Shop in early December. After much success with the coasters at the Art Shop, I decided to make coasters for people on our Christmas list. After all, I had signed the Buy Handmade pledge, saying that I would give handmade gifts this year.

If you are interested in purchasing some coasters or learning how to make your own coasters, please e-mail me at alison@shilohstamps.com.

* = The PhillyInkers are a fantabulous group of Stampin' Up demonstrators based in the Philadelphia region. We are all part of Claire Lawrence's downline. Every month we get together to share business ideas and do some stamping together. You can find links to many PhillyInkers blogs in the Favorite Stampin' Links list at the right. Let me know if you would like to sit in on one of our meetings sometime. Our next meeting is January 14th, and it will be in NJ.

Last Day for 20% off retiring stamp sets and accessories

2007-12-23T08:49:00.000-05:00

Since I'm flying to TX tomorrow, today is the last day of my 20% off Retiring Stamp Sets and Accessories special. Let me know asap if you would like to place an order.

Here's a link to Retiring Stamp Sets in alphabetical order.
Here's a link to Retiring Stamp Sets in catalog page order.

Below is a list of Retiring Accessories, including wheels. S0ld Out items are in red.

Accents & Elements Borders & Blossoms
Accents & Elements Little Reminders 2
Accents & Elements Tagged
Album Leather Post Black 8-1/2x11
Album Linen Post Mellow Moss 8-1/2x11
Album Linen Post Natural 8-1/2x11
Album Linen Post Navy 8-1/2x11 - SOLD OUT
Album Linen Post Real Red 8-1/2x11 - SOLD OUT
Album Linen Ring Mellow Moss 8-1/2x11 - SOLD OUT
Album Linen Ring Natural 8-1/2x11 - SOLD OUT
Album Linen Ring Navy 8-1/2x11 - SOLD OUT
Album Linen Ring Real Red 8-1/2x11 - SOLD OUT
Boxes & Tags Pockets & Pieces Assortment I
Boxes & Tags Pockets & Pieces Assortment II - SOLD OUT
Boxes & Tags Tiny Takeout Confetti White
Boxes & Tags Tiny Takeout Kraft
Boxes Stamp & Supply Extra Large
Boxes Stamp & Supply Extra Large Divided
Boxes Stamp & Supply Extra Small
Boxes Stamp & Supply Jumbo
Boxes Stamp & Supply Large
Boxes Stamp & Supply Medium
Boxes Stamp & Supply Small
Brayer Attachment Foam - SOLD OUT
Cards & Envelopes Greeting Very Vanilla Medium
Designer Series Paper Brocade Background
Designer Series Paper Cerise
Designer Series Paper Charbon
Designer Series Paper Creepy Crawley
Designer Series Paper Darling Doodles - SOLD OUT
Designer Series Paper Dashing - SOLD OUT
Designer Series Paper Petals & Paisleys
Designer Series Paper Linen Prints
Designer Series Paper Notations No. 2
Designer Series Paper Outlaw - SOLD OUT
Designer Series Paper Uptown
Designer Series Paper Wintergreen - SOLD OUT
Envelopes Open End Very Vanilla Large
Envelopes Open End Whisper White Large
Envelopes Shimmery White Medium - SOLD OUT
Envelopes Square Vellum Large
Envelopes Square Very Vanilla Mini - SOLD OUT
Envelopes Vellum Medium
Envelopes Very Vanilla Large
Envelopes Whisper White Large
Eyelet Tool Kit - SOLD OUT
Eyelets Bold Brights II - SOLD OUT
Eyelets Silver
Eyelets Soft Subtles II - SOLD OUT
Fancy Fibers Bella
Fancy Fibers Elizabeth
Stampin' Glitter Romantic Red
Stampin' Glitter Silver Shine
Greeting Glue
Liquid Glue - SOLD OUT
Page Protectors Post 8-1/2x11 - SOLD OUT
Page Protectors Ring 8-1/2x11 - SOLD OUT
Paper Vellum 12x12 - SOLD OUT
Pastel Refills Bold Brights - SOLD OUT
Pastel Refills Earth Elements - SOLD OUT
Pastel Refills Neutrals - SOLD OUT
Pastel Refills Rich Regals - SOLD OUT
Pastel Refills Soft Subtles - SOLD OUT
Perfect Layers Tool
Post Extenders - SOLD OUT
Punch Spring Bouquet Flower - SOLD OUT
Simply Scrappin' Out & About
Simply Scrappin' Primary Colors
Simply Scrappin' Round Up
Simply Scrappin' Secret Garden
Simply Scrappin' Winter Bright
Simply Sent Friendship Shapes
Simply Sent Happy Day
Spectrum Pad Blue Frost - SOLD OUT
Spectrum Pad Celebration - SOLD OUT
Spectrum Pad Cotton Candy - SOLD OUT
Spectrum Pad Pumpkin PatchSpectrum Pad Un-inked - SOLD OUT
Stamp-a-ma-jig Imaging Sheets Refill
Stampin' Around Cartridge & Ink Refill Clear Embossing - SOLD OUT
Stampin' Around Cartridge & Ink Refill Whisper White
Stampin' Around Ink Refill Clear Embossing - SOLD OUT
Stampin' Around Ink Refill Whisper White - SOLD OUT
Stampin' Emboss Powder Hologram Highlights - SOLD OUT
Stampin' Kids Pad Bear Brown - SOLD OUT
Stampin' Kids Pad Beetle Black - SOLD OUT
Stampin' Kids Pad Boxcar Blue - SOLD OUT
Stampin' Kids Pad Gumball Green - SOLD OUT
Stampin' Kids Pad Poppin' Purple - SOLD OUT
Stampin' Kids Pad Princess Pink - SOLD OUT
Stampin' Kids Pad Robin Red - SOLD OUT
Stampin' Kids Pad Yahoo Yellow - SOLD OUT
Stampin' Pastel Applicators - SOLD OUT
Stampin' Pastel Erasers - SOLD OUT
Stampin' Write Marker Going Gray
StazOn Ink Refill Timber Brown - SOLD OUT
StazOn Pad Timber Brown
Tag Sheets Bold Brights
Tag Sheets Confetti White & Kraft
Tag Sheets Earth ElementsTag Sheets Kraft
Tag Sheets Rich Regals
Tag Sheets Soft Subtles - SOLD OUT
Watercolor Brush Flat
Watercolor Brush Medium
Watercolor Brush Small
Wire Works Metallic
Wrapping Paper Whisper White - SOLD OUT

Stampin' Around Wheels:
Acorns
All about Birthdays - SOLD OUT
All about Christmas - SOLD OUT
All about Gratitude - SOLD OUT
Autumn Dots
Bloomin'
Bodacious
Bouquet
Butterflies & Blossoms
Fishy
Happy Jacks
Ho Ho Ho
Hot to Dot
Leaf Prints
Leaves Awash
Rough around the Edges - SOLD OUT
Snowman Fun - SOLD OUT
Speckled - SOLD OUT
Spooky Skyline
Spotted
True Hearts
Wings & Things

Box of Gift Tags

2007-12-21T23:04:00.000-05:00

I made this little box of gift tags for our friends Steve and Julie. They hosted a party last week, after returning from several weeks in India. They had lots of people over to look at their pictures, sample some Chai and curry, and welcome them home. It was lots of fun hearing about their travels.

These tags use the frame from Holy Triptych, sentiments from Star-Studded Season, and Holiday Harmony designer series paper. I also used Purely Pomegranate and Chocolate Chip paper as backgrounds. The tags are tied with gold elastic cord. I love how the satin ribbon gives these tags an elegant touch. Although these stamp sets are no longer available, the ribbon is for sale Buy One Get One as part of the Wrapping Up the Holidays promotion, which has been extended until December 31.

Wrapping Up the Holidays Extended!

2007-12-16T10:51:00.001-05:00

Stampin' Up announced today that due to demand, they will be extending the Wrapping Up the Holidays promotion. That means that Purely Pomegranate Satin Ribbon I used to wrap Tiffany's gift is still Buy One, Get One free until the end of December! Here are all the products featured in this promotion.

112409 Holiday Tag Bundle $4.95

110380 Tags for All Stamp Set*(20% off) $24.76

110264 Designer Gift cards* (30% off) $4.55

109862 Chocolate Chip satin ribbon* Buy 1, get 1 free!**

109863 Purely Pomegranate satin ribbon* Buy 1, get 1 free!**

112410 Tin 3-Pack $9.95110147 Celebration wrapping paper* $17.95

110228 Hand Selected Accents & Elements (25% off) $8.21

Click here for the full-size flyer.

Gift Wrapping Fun

2007-12-15T00:53:00.001-05:00

My satin ribbon arrived the other day, and I think it's so elegant! Here's a gift I wrapped for new demonstrator Tiffany King, using the Purely Pomegranate satin ribbon, the On Board trimmings snowflake as a gift tag/ornament, and the Holiday Harmony paper as a belly band around the gift. Isn't it lovely? This didn't take very long to make, either. Us PhillyInkers are having a brunch over at Claire's tomorrow, so I'm hoping to bring some special gifts along. Here's the first one!

On Sunday, I'm having a Gift-Tag Making Drop-In. We'll drink egg nog, make some creative gift tags, and play with some stamps from the catalog. If you stop by, you'll also receive a voucher for a Spring-Summer Collection catalog when I receive them. Hope to see you Sunday!

Christmas Shopping

2007-12-07T00:16:00.000-05:00

Have you started your holiday shopping yet? Are you distributing a wish list to your friends and family? I've been collecting wish list from my family, but I have to confess that I haven't bought any presents yet! Now I took the Buy Handmade Pledge, so I plan to give everyone on my list a handmade gift this year. I plan to do some shopping at Circle of Hope Art Show this weekend.

If you have crafters on your gift list, you may want to check out Stampin' Up's 5 Fantastic Gifts Under $25. I personally would love to have Paper Trimmer they feature in this lift of suggested gifts. If you would like to receive some Stampin' Up products this year, e-mail me at alison@shilohstamps.com for a Stampin' Wish List to pass on to the Santas in your life. In order to receive Stampin' gifts in time for Christmas, be sure to order no later than December 14.

Are you planning on special gift wrap and tags this year? Stampin' Up is Wrapping Up the Holidays with a special holiday promotion. The Satin ribbon from the Holiday Mini is Buy One, Get One free throught this promotion. I ordered a roll of Purely Pomegranate and a roll of Chocolate Chip. You can also buy empty Accents and Elements tins. People are enjoying making special gift card holders by 'altering' these tins. Click here for some ideas using the products in this promotion.

Also, don't forget that I'm offering 20% off all the retiring stamp sets. Now might be a good time to make sure you get those sets before they are no longer available.

Tree Trimming fun

2007-12-03T21:16:00.001-05:00

On Friday afternoon, my new recruit Tiffany King led her first Stampin' party, a Tree Trimming for the staff at Eastern University's Campolo School for Social Change. (Tiffany's an alum of Eastern's MA in Community Development program; I went to Palmer Seminary, part of Eastern U.) Here's Tiffany and I with some of the ornaments we created. Each of the 15 party attendees received a bag of supplies that they used to make ornaments, cards, and gift tags. We especially enjoyed using the On Board Trimmings from the Holiday Mini, Designer Series paper, and embossing with the heat tool.

Friday evening, I hosted another Trim-a-Tree class at my home. Participants received a craft keeper full of supplies to make 20 ornaments. They also used the On Board Trimmings set, Designer Series paper, dazzling diamonds glitter, and some grosgrain ribbon.

I will also be selling some of these ornaments at the Circle of Hope Art Shop this weekend. Stop by and do some holiday shopping!

Jon and I are finally going to get our tree this weekend, and I look forward to decorating a full-size, live tree together. For our first 3 Christmases together, we lived in a little 1BR apartment and our small fake tree took over our "dining room". It will be fun to have the smell of pine in our Living Room!

Make way for the Spring-Summer Collection - Retiring Stamp Sets are 20% off

2007-12-01T02:34:00.001-05:00

Stampin' Up just announced the List of Retiring stamp sets from the Fall-Winter Collection. Follow the link for the list in alphabetical order or listed by page number. I will be offering 20% off any retiring stamp sets until December 23. Stamp sets make great Christmas gifts! If you have stamp sets on your holiday wish list, fill out a Shiloh Stamps Wish List. Your loved ones can then contact me to place an order. Contact me at alison@shilohstamps.com if you would like to start a wish list or place an order.

my Thanksgiving table

2007-11-25T09:51:00.000-05:00

This year, we hosted Thanksgiving in our home. We were joined by my parents, Jon's mom and aunt, and Jon's sis and her hubby. It was truly a grand time. We had plenty of time for feasting and laughing, but we also got lots of projects done.

Jon's mom and aunt and I made these placecards and napkin rings together. The placecards use Old Olive, Really Rust, and Chocolate Chip cardstock with the Best Friends alphabet. On the back of each placecard, we stamped the pumpkin from Year After Year, and watercolored it using the Aqua Painter. The napkin rings use the Apple Cider designer series paper for the ring (only available until Nov 30) and the Thouroughly Thankful stamp set inside the scallop punch medallion.

My dad and Jon put together 2 new bookcases by our fireplace. They look great.

The ladies and I had a recipe swap, and we used the What's for Dinner? stamp set to make our recipe cards.

Yesterday, Jon made shelves for our antique pantry. He cut them using his new circular saw. Fun with power tools!

COH Art Shop 2007

2007-11-19T01:46:00.001-05:00

Circle of Hope is having another Art Shop this year, and I have decided to participate! There will be 75+ artists selling ceramics, hip t-shirts, handbags, photography, soaps, chocolate, and all sorts of other great goodies. I'm going to have a card-making station, and I will be selling some handmade goods as well. Right now, my plans include cards (of course), coasters, Christmas ornaments, gift tags, and who knows what else. My bro-in-law Jeff may be selling some monsters at my booth, if he gets into mass production mode. I'm also thrilled to announce that I will be sharing my booth with photographer David Difuntorum. He'll be selling some of his fabulous prints. So is there anything you're interesting in buying at the Art Shop this year? Leave a comment to let me know what you're shopping for.

The Circle of Hope Art Shop would be a great place to buy some gifts this holiday, especially if you're into supporting local artisans and buying handmade stuff. I took the Buy Handmade pledge, and I plan to give everyone on my list at least 1 homemade gift this year. I'll keep you posted on how that turns out. Are you buying handmade this year?

Pumpkin Ornament for Trim-a-Tree class

2007-11-15T22:42:00.000-05:00

Here's another ornament I made today. It's a pumpkin lantern, made with 12 6"x1" strips of Designer Series paper. Would you like to make this ornament for your home or tree? E-mail me at events@shilohstamps.com to RSVP for the Shiloh Stamps Trim-a-Tree class.

This ornament uses the Certainly Celery designer series paper. Did you know that all the designer series papers are on sale this month? It's Buy Three, Get One free. Contact me at alison@shilohstamps.com today to place an order.

Why I Love Stampin' Classes

2007-11-12T08:05:00.000-05:00

Since I became an SU demonstrator in May, I have attended quite a few stamping classes - Philadelphia Regionals, Fall Fest with Tina's INKredible Impressions, and Kristin's Thankful Banner class. Not to mention, we PhillyInkers stamp every time we get together. The best part about attending a stamping class is that someone else has already purchased the supplies, designed the project, and cut all the paper in advance. If I choose, I can just assemble the project. Of course, I can always make changes and modifications, but someone has already given me a framework.

On November 29+30, I am offering a Trim-a-Tree class. We will make 4 ornaments together, and you will receive chipboard to make 20 ornaments. These ornaments are super-simple to make, and they would also make fabulous gifts or gift tags. We'll be using the On Board trimmings chipboard set (from the Holiday Mini catalog), Dazzling Diamonds glitter, designer series paper, and that fabulous new elastic cord. Here's a link to some fabulous samples of chipboard ornaments that use the On Board trimmings.

As a bonus, the first person to register and mention this Stampin' Classes blog post will receive 6 sheets of holiday Designer Series paper. Materials fee for this class is $20. Contact me at events@shilohstamps.com to register ASAP.

Note: The Thankful banner pictured above uses the On Board Garland chipboard and Apple Cider designer series paper from the Holiday Mini catalog. It also uses the Wild Wasabi twill tape from the Jersey ribbon orginals set.

Designer Series Paper is on sale!

2007-11-09T11:12:00.001-05:00

Stampin' Up has announced another great special this month - Buy 3, Get 1 free on all Designer Series Papers. I have really enjoyed using this paper for cards, 3-D projects, Christmas ornaments, scrapbooking, and all sorts of other things. If you click designer paper in my link list on the right, you'll see all the blog posts that inlcude designer series paper.

Here's a link that shows a large swatch of each of the papers.

Here's a link to some project ideas that use the Designer Series papers.

Here's a link to a list of colors that coordinate with our Designer Series Papers.

BLUYS - Stampin' for a Cause

2007-11-05T23:30:00.000-05:00

Six stampers gathered at Amy's house tonight to make Christmas cards for friends of Brotherly Love Urban Youth Services (BLUYS). Here's Amy with the elegant (and super-simple!) card she designed using the Season of Joy stamp set. The card uses a Purely Pomegranate background, with Always Artichoke layered on top. The swirl across the tree is Encore silver ink, and the star atop the tree sparkles with Dazzling Diamonds glitter. Isn't it lovely?

We're talking about doing another Stampin' for a Cause night in January. Check the Shiloh Stamps calendar for updates soon.

Stampin' For a Cause

2007-11-04T08:36:00.000-05:00

I've always been a do-gooder, so it's no surprise that I've been doing some charitable things with my new stamping business. In September, I hosted two Shoebox Swaps for Soldiers. We made cards for Angel Stampers for Soldiers. Now our cards are posted in their online gallery. Click here for the gallery. Type shilohstamps into the search box, and you'll see our cards.

Last week, I did a card-making class for Operation Shoebox. We made over 30 cards to send in care packages to soldiers overseas.

Tomorrow night, we'll be making Christmas cards for Brotherly Love Urban Youth Services (BLUYS). They're a youth ministry in my neighborhood. Super-stamper Amy is on their board, and she's designed a lovely card that uses the Season of Joy stamp set from the Holiday Mini collection. E-mail me at events@shilohstamps.com if you would like to participate in the Stampin' for a Cause night.

I have also used my stamping to benefit last weekend's Lupus Loop. Every person on our team (Nathan's Knights) who raised $100+ will receive some free Shiloh Stamps greeting cards. We've been walking and running the Lupus Loop for 4 years now in memory of our friend Nathan and in honor of our friend Karen. If you would like to contribute, please click my donor page.

Do you have an idea for our next Stampin' For a Cause? I'm looking for our next project to be in February sometime. I'm thinking about Keiki Cards. They send cards to terminally ill kids. What do you think?

Jon's Birthday Special - stamps at 40% off!

2007-11-02T15:24:00.000-04:00

Jon's birthday is tomorrow, and I'm in the mood to celebrate. Stampin' Up is offering the Wishing You Cheer stamp set at 20% until November 3, and I'm going to increase the savings to 40% for my blog readers. That means the set, regularly priced at $13.95 is now $8.37. It includes 4 stamps that would be perfect for holiday cards, gift tags, and ornaments.

If you would like to order this set, please e-mail me at alison@shilohstamps.com by tomorrow. Please include "Jon's birthday special" in your subject line.

Philadelphia Regionals pics

2007-10-24T21:30:00.001-04:00

I went to the Stampin' Up Regional Convention in Philadelphia back in September, and I realized the only info I posted about the conference was pre-conference. Click here for my pre-conference post.

Here are some samples of projects we made at Regionals. I have to confess... I didn't love the projects. I felt rushed during our crafting time and some of the projects were way too complex. However, the speakers were inspiring and full of great ideas. In fact, one of the sessions inspired my recent paper piercing and Dry Embossing class. (I'll be posting samples from that class soon, too).

The True Friend is You Friend card uses the True Friend set from the Holiday Mini on the new Basic Gray paper. (It's a darker gray than Going Gray). I do like how the gray looks with the Purely Pomegranate ribbon.

The Thanks card is an example of a way to complex project. It uses kraft paper, textured cardstock, eyelets, double-stitched ribbon, linen thread, and a button. Way too much happening, for my taste.

Stay tuned for pictures of the display boards!

Holiday Glitz Promotion

2007-10-21T11:51:00.000-04:00

It seems like ever since I became a Stampin' Up demonstrator, they have offered at least one special per month. I enjoy the way they are featuring new products and trying to simplify card-making with kits. Starting October 1, SU is offering the Holiday Glitz kit to simplify holiday card-making.

Take advantage of this fantastic kit two different ways:

Purchase one of holiday stamp sets (below) and get the Holiday Glitz card kit (110286) for the special price of $24.95 each, or
Purchase the Holiday Glitz card kit (110286) for $28.95 each with no additional purchase required.

Each Holiday Glitz card kit makes 15 cards and includes:

Precut card stock (real red and wild wasabi) and soft sky Designer Series paper (15)
Whisper White Envelopes (15)
Rhinestone brads (15)
Real Red zigzag ribbon (15)
Full-color instruction sheet (1)
- Instruction Sheet 1
- Instruction Sheet 2

Item	Page #	Stamp Set	Price
109234	45	Snowfall	$23.95
106786	36	The Snowflake Spot	$20.95
109266	35	Big on Christmas	$18.95
110359	5*	Love & Joy	$23.95

*Holiday Mini Collection 2007.

from Craft Critique: Stampin Up On Board Chipboard

2007-10-19T18:07:00.000-04:00

Here's a great article from Craft Critique about SU's chipboard products. I'm doing a Trim-a-Tree class Nov. 29-30 that will feature the On Board Trimmings chipboard set. Participants will get the supplies to make 20 Christmas ornaments. Check out my google calendar in the margin for more information.Craft Critique: Stampin Up On Board Chipboard

These images of ornaments are from Stampin' Up's Holiday Mini catalog.

Leafy goodness

2007-10-18T22:37:00.001-04:00

When Jon and I were doing our wedding registry and picking out gifts we'd like to receive, we quickly noticed a pattern - Jon loved anything that was blue or chrome or both; I loved many things green or vine-patterned or both. Well I'm not suprised that Jon loved the blue sparkly snowflake card from Christmas in August stamp camp, while I'm very drawn to all the leafy images and earth tones of autumn. Here are two earthy leafy cards I've made this week. Above, I used the Sidekick Sayings set on Chocolate Chip cardstock with Wild Wasabi accents - I love that green! Sidekick Sayings is a hostess set I received with a recent order. It's lots of fun, so I'm sure I'll be posting more samples soon.

Note: This card is a new trendy size 3"x6". This size is perfect for 12"x12" cardstock. You can make 4 cards out of 1 sheet!
Above is another leafy card using the Stem Silhouettes stamp set from the Holiday Mini catalog. This set was part of the Fall Frenzy promotion. I stamped the leafy images using Versamark ink on glossy cardstock. Then I brayered over the images with So Saffron ink. I love the Sun Print look it creates. I layered it on Really Rust cardstock, tied some hemp twine around it, and put it on a Bravo Burgundy cardfront. Super-simple!

Good for You, Gina and Christy!

2007-10-13T00:10:00.001-04:00

I have lots of congratulating to do lately. My sister, the fabulous stage actress, recently won 2 Arizoni Awards for her role as The Sour Kangaroo in Seussical the Musical. Now she's touring the country with Tomas and the Library Lady. Check out their tour blog at http://www.talltour.org/tour/

Also, our friend Christy just got engaged. Yippee! So I sent these cards to Gina and Christy. They use designer series paper in the background, the Good for You stamp from the Figures of Speech stamp set, the scallop punch (my favorite!), the paper piercing tool, Dazzling Diamonds glitter (applied with the 2-way glue pen), and some organdy ribbon. Super-simple!

Sympathy card with Scripture

2007-10-12T22:20:00.001-04:00

A friend mine lost both her parents within a month of one another, so I made her this sympathy card using the Elegant Inspirations set on some retired designer series paper. This is actually a scrap of paper left over from the mug I made a few weeks back. My MIL bought this set back in June, and she let me borrow it for a while before I passed it on to her. I stamped a page full of scripture verses, and I've just been using them as I need them. On the inside, I stamped an image from the God's Blessings set in whisper white craft ink, so it would show up on the Chocolate Chip cardstock. It says, "May God's love heal your sorrow, and may His peace replace your heartache with warm and loving memories." I didn't scan it since I wrote on the inside before I thought to scan it. Using the patterned paper makes card-making go so quickly! Sorry for the poor quality image. My scanner doesn't do as well with cards that are more 3-D with ribbon and such.

Tomorrow, I'm going to the INKredible Impressions Fall Fest, led by Super-Demonstrator Tina Rosenkrans. I have to meet at Claire's house at 6:15am in order to be in northern NJ by 8:30-eeks! Fall Fest is a day full of stamping fun and business ideas. Stampin' Up's demonstrator of the year Ronda Wade will be there to inspire us all. I look forward to sharing all about it!

Simply Sent Kits - 20% off plus free shipping

2007-10-05T10:53:00.001-04:00

To commemorate World Card-Making Day (Oct. 6), Stampin' Up is offering 20% off their Simply Sent kits from today until October 8. To sweeten the deal, I'm offering free shipping as well. Here are some samples using one of the kits. Contact me at alison@shilohstamps.com to place an order
Super-stamper Erica made these cards using supplies from the Friendship Shapes Simply Sent card kit. Aren't they cute? In the first card, Erica used only supplies that are included the kit:

Cameo Coral, Bashful Blue, Certainly Celery, and Whisper White cardstock
stamps
Cameo Coral stampin' spot
Certainly Celery grosgrain ribbon

This kit also includes:

4 piece die-cut stamp set (that means no trimming for you)
Bashful Blue Stampin' Spot
Certainly Celery Stampin' Spot
light blue gingham ribbon
stampin' dimensionals
glue dots
12 whisper white envelopes

That means you get all the ingredients for making a minimum of 10 cards for $34.36 (regular price is $42.95).
Erica made this Certainly Celery card as one of her swaps at the Stampin' Up Regional Convention in Philadelphia. The background is Certainly Celery, from the Simply Sent kit, and Erica used Whisper White craft ink on Basic Black cardstock in the middle of this card. Then she stamped another image from the kit in Basic Black on the Certainly Celery background. I love the whimsical style of this card.

Here are some samples using the other Simply Sent kits, which include:

Happy Day - great for birthdays, includes a cute snowflake, includes supplies to make 20 cards!

Sending Happy Thoughts - a lovely flower and hip colors
Simple Delights - an ornate motif in Anna Griffin style
Three Thoughts - Happy Birthday, thanks, and thinking of you

Are you a Shiloh Stamps Frequent Stamper?

2007-10-04T23:20:00.001-04:00

Recently, those who have participated in my stamping classes received a Frequent Stamper card and a schedule of my upcoming classes. Click on this image to view a larger sample of the paper piercing and embossing techniques I used on this card.

Hostess Gift for Susanne

2007-09-30T10:15:00.000-04:00

This weekend, we visited our friends Jason and Susanne in Lancaster. They were having a House Concert/CD Release party for Jay's band Living Fables. You can download their CD through Musicblaster here.

Since we were staying overnight (and we flaked on Susanne's birthday earlier in the summer), I made her a set homemade notecards and a matching folder.

I used some double-sided Designer Series paper to make the folder and the coordinating cards.

The Much Appreciated card features Paper Piercing in the corners, and the Birthday hugs and wishes card features dry embossing. These are 2 techniques I'll be teaching at my upcoming class on October 19 + 20. Click those dates on my Google calendar to the right for more info.

Jason and Susanne have 2 precious little girls who are very creative, so I brought along the Stampin' Kids Tattoo Kit for them to play with. It was a big hit! They were covered head to toe in tattoos by the end of the evening.

Autumn Fest - 30% off sale ends tomorrow

2007-09-28T15:00:00.000-04:00

Here's a swap made by Lori Conroy. I got this card through a swap with the INKredibles group of demonstrators. It uses the Autumn Fest set, which is part of the 30% off Fall Frenzy promotion. With a $30 purchase, you can receive any of 6 stamp sets at 30% off.

I love the technique Lori used in this card. She stamped the leaf images with Versamark ink on glossy cardstock. Then she used a brayer with a spectrum pad on top of the leaves. I like the way she polished it off with a piece of Hodgepodge Hardware, grosgrain ribbon, and crimped accent.

For more Fall Frenzy samples, check out these blog posts:

Shiloh Stamps: Fall Frenzy - stamps at 30% off!
Shiloh Stamps: Thankful Thoughts

Shiloh Stamps: Shoebox Swap Ingredients

I will be placing a final Fall Frenzy order tomorrow. Contact me at alison@shilohstamps.com to place an order today!

Graduation card

2007-09-26T12:37:00.001-04:00

Here's the card I made to go with college care package I'm sending. Since he's going to Georgia Tech, I used a Summer Sun and Basic Black color scheme. It uses the mortarboard from the Year After Year set, gingham ribbon, congratulations from Hugs & Wishes, and a retired sentiment.

Custom coffee mug for a college care package

2007-09-24T12:15:00.000-04:00

All the cool kids are carrying travel coffee mugs these days, did you know? Perhaps you've already joined the club of coffee-on-demand, but I've just recently caught on. See, I'm making a care package for my hubby's cousin who recently began studies at Georgia Tech, 777 miles away from his TX hometown. I thought a care package would be a nice gesture. So far, I have EasyMac, coffee, green tea, and a white board. I asked a college student friend what I should add to complete the package and she said a travel coffee mug. Apparently, the Nalgene bottle of my college days has been replaced by the travel coffee mug.

So I started hunting for a cool travel coffee mug. I found the perfect one at Starbucks (conveniently located in my local grocery store) - the Create Your Very Own tumbler. I just traced the provided template (at left) onto some patterned paper, stamped an oh-so-masculine vintage car on the page, and stuffed it back into the bottom of the tumbler. Super-easy!

Now my care package is complete, and I'd like to make some more of these as gifts. I'm going to hunt around online to see if I can find them cheaper anywhere else. I'll keep you posted on my hunt for cheap mugs.

Here's what I've found thus far:

a link to another lady who has been making custom mugs
maybe Starbucks really does have the best price at $11 ish. I've found mugs for as much as $16 in my quick web survey
Starbucks has some travel mug art online that you can download for free, although they don't seem to sell the mugs online
Treasured Tumblers carries a variety of styles of create-your-own travel mugs, but the cheapest is $14.95. They also have free artwork for your mug in the "Free Stuff" section.

UPDATE:

I found these mugs called Scrapbook tumblers at Target for $7.99. They're a smaller version of this mug, and the trim is in a bright color. I think they had pink and purple. I'll buy one and post samples soon. They are not listed on the Target website, but I found them in the store with all the travel mugs.

Shoebox Swap Progress

2007-09-22T01:10:00.000-04:00

So far, we've made 30 cards for the Shoebox Swap. My mom sent 10 last week, and then Amy and I made 20 more cards tonight. On Monday, we'll be making at least 40 more cards to send to Angel Stampers for Soldiers. They'll be sending out hand-stamped cards to soldiers stationed around the world.

Here's the oh-so-creative card my mom made for the soldiers. The ghost is made from a milk jug, and she sewed him onto the card. Brilliant! I love the googly eyes, too. On the back of the card, she stamped "Oct 31 2007" with the library due date stamp. You know, the one that they stamp on the card to let you know when it's due. So clever. She also wrote a really sweet sentiment on the inside of the card. My mom has been a card-making machine lately. She came to Stampin' Down the Shore with me, and she's been making stunning cards ever since. She's really good at sewing on the cards, which I think is the coolest thing ever.

Here's the card Amy designed for the soldiers. It uses a fun stamp set and SU's Cool Caribbean cardstock, which is now retired. I like how she uses the tiny dotted stamp as the background and brads in the center of all the flowers.

Here's another version of the card I designed for the Shoebox Swap for Soldiers. I love how this medallion image from the Apple Cider Designer Series paper matches the Really Rust cardstock perfectly. The shiny copper brad in the middle is a nice finishing touch.

Shoebox Swap Ingredients

2007-09-18T01:31:00.000-04:00

Since the horrors of 9/11, I have struggled to find ways that I can make a difference in our country's tenuous global relationships. I have chosen to support peacemaking organizations and I have prayed for a resolution to the complex conflict around us. Several years ago, as we were discussing the Iraq War in a small group I led, we were spinning our intellectual wheels trying to figure out how our country can move forward in this new age of terror. As a group, we concluded the following:

an immediate withdrawal of troops would be irresponsible - bear in mind this was 3+ years ago, but still true
American troops can play a vital role in bringing stability to troubled regions around the world
we should find ways to connect with the troops directly and provide emotional and spiritual support

Years later, I'm finally making good on that pledge, thanks to some stampers who would like to make a difference with the crafting skills. This Friday and next Monday, I'll be hosting a Shoebox Swap for Soldiers to benefit Angel Stampers for Soldiers. Each participant will bring card ingredients for 10 simple cards (about the size of a shoebox). We will make one another's cards and keep a sample of each card. Then we'll send the remaining cards to the Angel Stampers for Soldiers project. They send cards to troops overseas, and they've sent over 27,000 cards so far! I will be providing snacks, adhesives, envelopes for all the cards, and some fun door prizes. The covered box below is one of the prizes - fun!

There are two ways you can participate in the Shoebox Swap for Soldiers. If you design a simple card and bring supplies to make 10 cards, then you will be able to keep a sample of each card you make. If you don't have time to prepare a shoebox swap, feel free to come stamp and enjoy the creative process. Those who choose the second option will be donating all their cards to Angel Stampers for Soldiers. Either way, you are supporting a great cause - providing some encouragement to some people in a very difficult situation.

Some stampers have said they might need help preparing for a Shoebox Swap, so here's what I'm doing. I designed this super-simple card that features leaves and a sentiment from the Thoroughly Thankful set (30% off this month with the Fall Frenzy promotion) and a cut-out from the Apple Cider Designer Series paper from the Holiday Mini.

If you need ideas for card designs, Angel Stampers for Soldiers has some suggestions on their Mailing Schedule page. Bear in mind that you are not limited to current Stampin' Up products. Feel free to use retired SU supplies or supplies from another manufacturer. Click here for Guidelines from Angel Stampers for Soldiers regarding card size and design.

Here are the supplies needed to make a shoebox swap card:

a sample of your card, maybe some directions if you think that would be helpful
stamp set

stamp pad(s)

paper for 10 cards - please pre-cut or come over early to cut your paper

embellishments - brads, ribbon, eyelets

tools - scissors, paper piercer, bone folder

Here's a message from a soldier who received some cards through Angel Stampers for Soldiers:

Dear Carol,
Thank you very much for the gifts you sent us. Words can't begin to express our gratitude. On be half of the men and women of the 41st Electronic Combat squadron, Davis Monthan AFB, AZ currently serving in Uzbekistan. I would like to thank you for your outstanding support, generosity and thoughtfulness. Knowing that so many in our country have us close in their thoughts and prayers makes it easier for us to get through the challenges that we face each day. We know we are not alone. Life is hectic and fast-paced--and for you to have thought of us, and then to stop and take time from your personnel life to write--is an honor. I just want to say I really appreciate the thought and time you put into sending us something special. I'm so grateful for the support of many, many wonderful people in our country. Thank you, for making our Christmas a little brighter and letting us know there are people that appreciate us, I am proud to be serving the people of the greatest nation in the world. And once again, I thank you! May you be blessed each day, and may God bless America! Can you please past this message on to your other fellow stampers.
Sincerely, Ron Pollock

Swaps, swaps, swaps

2007-09-17T17:17:00.000-04:00

Last Friday, I attended the Stampin' Up Philadelphia Regional Convention, so I made some swaps to trade with other conference attendees. Here are the cards I made while I was on vacation in Cape Cod. I brought very limited supplies - the Merry & Bright stamp set (from the Holiday Mini), the Christmas stamps from Loads of Love and Figures of Speech, double-stitched ribbon, gingham ribbon, my paper piercing tool and template, and an assortment of cardstock. Here's what I came up with...Note to self: "Don't forget your Stampin' Scrub! Stamping is not as fun without it."

Thankful Thoughts

2007-09-11T10:45:00.001-04:00

I just received the Thoroughly Thankful stamp set in the mail. This set is part of Stampin' Up's Fall Frenzy promotion. Here's a draft of a card I plan to send to our family members who will be joining us for Thanksgiving this year. It uses Really Rust, Old Olive, and Summer Sun cardstock. I watercolored the images using the AquaPainter on confetti cardstock. I tied it all off using some Hemp Twine. I think it might look even better with some background stamping on the Really Rust cardfront. on What do you think?

Fall Frenzy - stamps at 30% off!

2007-09-04T22:56:00.000-04:00

Stampin' Up has just announced Fall Frenzy, one of the specials I've seen yet as demonstrator. They're offering 30% off selected Fall stamp sets with a $30 purchase until Sept. 30.

Here's the deal:

Spend $30 in regular priced merchandise and qualify to purchase one of each of the six promotional stamp sets at 30 percent off!

Bitty Boos Too (Item 105355, page 26) discounted price $12.57
Haunting Halloween (Item 109284, page 29) discounted price $13.27
Thoroughly Thankful (Item 107383, page 30) discounted price $16.07 - I just ordered this one, so I'll post some samples when I get to play with it a bit. I'm planning on using these for Thanksgiving invitations, placecards, and favors. (here's a link to a sample)
Autumn Fest (Item 109373, page 108) discounted price $16.77 - This is the set used in the card above.
Elementary Essentials (Item 109421, page 91) discounted price $19.57
Stem Silhouettes (Item 110366, page 17 from the Holiday Mini Collection) discounted price $22.37

Contact me at alison@shilohstamps.com if you would like to place an order.

Stampin' Up Regional Convention in Philadelphia

2007-09-03T21:49:00.000-04:00

I'm going to my first SU Regional convention in a couple weeks, and I'm super-excited! My stamping friends Claire and Kristin went to the national convention back in August. They had such a great time stamping in Colorado. The national convention is only open to SU Demonstrators, but the regional conventions open up to guests if there's room. Since Friday's registration didn't fill up, I'm bringing a stamping friend to the Friday session.

Today, when I arrived back from my long weekend away, I found this in the mail ----

SU! mailed me my nametag for Philly Regionals in advance. I guess this is one way they confirm registration. It also helps raise my anticipation level. They featured the stamp set "So Much" on the background of the nametag. We'll be receiving that set as part of our registration fee.

The agenda also includes:
• Hands-on stamping
• Business tips
• Paper-crafting and stamping techniques
• Swapping with fellow demonstrators (and guests)
• Presentations by Stampin’ Up! staff and local demonstrators
• A boxed lunch
• Make & Take projects
• Hundreds of display samples for inspiration

I will be making lots of swaps in preparation for Regionals. I'll make lots of cards that I can trade with other attendees. That way, we get to have sample cards of a variety of techniques and stamp sets. I'm looking forward to seeing what samples I'll collect. Check out the swaps Claire collected at convention!

I made a bunch of Christmas cards while I was out of town this past weekend. I'll be posting samples tomorrow. I had lots of fun playing with Merry & Bright from the Holiday Mini catalog. If you didn't receive a copy of the Holiday Mini in the mail, you can view it online here.

More In the Spotlight with the scallop punch

2007-08-30T10:53:00.000-04:00

I love experimenting with different color combinations and layouts. Which of these is your favorite?This one is for my cousin Alisa's birthday. It's all part of my goal of staying on top of my birthdays! I now have my Birthday Calendar posted on the wall of my stamping room, so there's no excuse for missing birthdays. This was a thank-you for a birthday gift. I have so many generous friends!

This was a thank-you for a super-stamper friend who loaned me her Powder Pal for Christmas in August Stamp Camp. It made the Dazzling Diamonds glitter a lot less messy!

This was a thank-you for my latest workshop hostess. I'll be sending her a $5 gift certificate, too!

I'm off to Cape Cod today for a few days of vacation, so I won't be posting until after Labor Day. I'll be bringing some stamping supplies with me so that I can make swaps for the Philadelphia Regional convention. I will post some samples when I return.

Hope you enjoy the long weekend, too!

Color coordination - paper and ribbon

2007-08-28T08:48:00.000-04:00

Here are the colors found in SU's Designer Series Papers and Designer Ribbons. Elizabeth Craddock posted this list on a Stampin' Up Demonstrator forum, and thought you might find it helpful.

I used Certainly Celery designer series paper in this scrapbook page and the Dashing Designer Paper in this Christmas card. Lots of fun!

DESIGNER PAPERS
Brocade Backgrounds: Always Artichoke, Chocolate Chip, Old Olive, River Rock
Cerise: Real Red, Very Vanilla
Charbon: Basic Gray, Very Vanilla
Creepy Crawly: Basic Black, More Mustard, Pumpkin Pie, Really Rust
Cutie Pie: Bashful Blue, Basic Black, Certainly Celery, Rose Red, So Saffron
Darling Doodles: Brocade Blue, Groovy Guava, Rose Red, Wild Wasabi
Dashing: Old Olive, Real Red, River Rock, Very Vanilla
Fall Flowers: Old Olive, Really Rust, Sahara Sand, Soft Sky
Flowers for You: Certainly Celery, Lovely Lilac, Regal Rose, Tempting Turquoise
LeJardin: River Rock, Soft Sky, So Saffron, Very Vanilla
Linen Prints: Apricot Appeal, Cameo Coral, Close to Cocoa, Old Olive, Pink Passion
Notations No.2: More Mustard, River Rock, Very Vanilla, Wild Wasabi
Outlaw: Chocolate Chip, Creamy Caramel, Really Rust, Sage Shadow, Very Vanilla
Petals & Paisleys: Certainly Celery, Tempting Turquoise, Rose Red, Old Olive, Pretty in Pink, So Saffron, Soft Sky
Prints: Monochromatic papers available in Almost Amethyst, Always Artichoke, Blue Bayou, Brilliant Blue, Certainly Celery, Close to Cocoa, Groovy Guava, Lovely Lilac, More Mustard, Old Olive, Pumpkin Pie, River Rock, Rose Red, So Saffron, Soft Sky, Tempting Turquoise
Porcelain Prints: Blue Bayou, River Rock, Wild Wasabi
Uptown: Almost Amethyst, Basic Gray, So Saffron, Wild Wasabi
Wintergreen: Always Artichoke, Certainly Celery, Sage Shadow, Soft Sky

DESIGNER RIBBONS
SU colors that coordinate with the new Ribbon Originals.
Beachfront:
White - rickrack
Sahara Sand - zig zag
River Rock - pleated
Very Vanilla - gathered grosgrain
Basic Gray - velvet

District:
Pumpkin Pie - stripe grosgrain
White w/ Celery - diagonal stripe woven weave
Basic Gray w/white - stripe grosgrain
Blue Bayou/Sage Shadow - checkered weave
Sage Shadow - grosgrain

Fairy Tale:
So Saffron - jacquard flower
Rose Red - grosgrain w/white stitch
Certainly Celery - woven loop
Regal Rose - gathered grosgrain
Almost Amethyst - grosgrain

Jersey:
Basic Black w/white -stripe grosgrain
Real Red - twill w/zigzag
More Mustard/Wild Wasabi - grosgrain
Brocade Blue - wide grosgrain w/stripe
Wild Wasabi - twill

Sherbet:
So Saffron - wide grosgrain w/stripe
Groovy Guava - woven loop
Purely Pomegranate - w/white polka dot
Mellow Moss - velvet
Soft Sky/Very Vanilla - elastic w/gather

Theater:
Always Artichoke - grosgrain w/loop
Close to Cocoa - velvet
Old Olive/River Rock - reversible satin
Old Olive/ Vanilla - elastic w/gather
Chocolate Chip - satin w/border

Stamp Sets that Coordinate with SU punches

2007-08-25T18:12:00.000-04:00

Some customers have asked me for a list of which stamp sets coordinate with punches, so here it is. I pulled this straight from a thread on SplitCoastStampers. Here is the link to the thread I take NO credit. http://www.splitcoaststampers.com/forums/showthread.php?t=267949&highlight=punch

Scallop Circle Punch: In the Spotlight, Glorious Garlands, Punch Pals, Double-Line Doodles, Wanted, Priceless, Big Flowers, Big Deal Alphabet, Looks Like Spring, Fabulous Flowers, Ginormous Flowers, Sweet Shapes, Illuminations, It’s Your Birthday, Warm Words, Pictograms, Short and Sweet, Sincere Salutations, All Holidays, Jumbo Alphabet, All About Occasions, Brocade Basics, Baroque Motifs, Sparkling Sayings, So Much, Fun & Fast Notes, On Board Blossoms and Basics

Tag Punches: Perfect Presentation, All About Occasions, Flakey Friends, Punch Pals, Be Happy, Tagger’s Dozen, Bundled in Love, Business Boosters

Designer Label Punch: Party Punch, Labelicious

Round Tab Punch: Party Punch, Office Accoutrement, Totally Tabs

1” Circle Punch: Sending Happy Thoughts kit, Perfect Presentation, Glorious Garlands, The Snowflake Spot, Perennial Favorites, Holiday Blitz, Double-Line Doodles, Polka Dots & Petals, Create a Coupon, Genuine Articles, Business Boosters, Calendar Cues, On Board Blossoms and Basics

1 ¼” and/or 1 3/8” Circle Punch: Simple Delights Simply Sent kit, Perfect Presentation, Batty For You, Holiday Tag Team, Sparkling Sayings, Be Happy, Figures of Speech, Double-Line Doodles, Polka Dots & Petals, Big Flowers, Stamp of Authenticity, Carte Postale, Think Happy Thoughts, Big Pieces, Seeing Spots, So Happy, Dots Are Hot, Brocade Basics, Labelicious, Genuine Articles, Circle of Friendship, It’s All Good, Sporting

½” and/or ¾” Circle Punch: In the Spotlight, Holiday Tag Team, Glorious Garlands, Cold Play, Snow Flurries, Merry Merry, Punch Pals, Forever in My Heart, Holiday Blitz, Double-Line Doodles, Sweet Thing, Wanted, Star Struck, Little Flowers, Little Pieces, Please Come, Dot Spot background, Alphabits, Art by Design1

¼” and/or 1 3/8” Square Punch: Simple Delights Simply Sent kit, Perfect Presentation, Forever in My Heart, Sealed With a Kiss, Be Happy, Figures of Speech, Tagger’s Dozen, Sweet Thing, Office Accoutrement, Stamp of Authenticity, Carte Postale, Glad Tidings, It’s All Good, Art by Design, Sporting, Business Boosters, It’s a Date

¾” Square Punch: Punch Pals, Calendar Cues

Large Oval Punch: I did it, many of the word sets

Star Punch: Wanted, Starstruck, Sporting, Wild West Alphabet, On Board Blossoms and Basics

5-Petal Flower Punch: In the Spotlight, Be Happy, Priceless, Simply Said, Looks Like Spring, Heartfelt Thanks, Ginormous Flowers, Office Accoutrement, Big Pieces, Cutie Pie Double Sided Paper, On Board Blossoms and Basics

Snow Blossom Punch: In the Spotlight, Simple Snowman, Wondrous Gift, Snowflake Spot, Merry Merry, Snow Flurries, Punch Pals, Snowfall, Be Happy

Spring Flower Bouquet Punch: Looks Like Spring

Three for You Punch: Three Thoughts Simply Sent kit, Punch Pals, Take Three, Three for You punch box

Word Window Punch: So Many Sayings, Block Party, Boatloads of Love, Fun & Fast Notes, Take Three, Everything Baby, Short & Sweet, Happy Everything, Wonderful Favorites, Warm Words, All Holidays, Everyday Flexible Phrases, Amazing to Zany, Fundamental Phrases

Much Appreciated - scallop punch!

2007-08-25T16:26:00.001-04:00

I have been making lots of thank-you cards lately for all the housewarming gifts, birthday gifts, and just generous friends. Here's a thank-you card featuring my new favorite punch, the scallop punch. It fits just perfectly with this image from the In The Spotlight hostess set. I love how Wild Wasabi and Purely Pomegranate look with Night of Navy here. It's hard to tell in this pciture, but my Wild Wasabi layer is actually a scrap leftover from another scallop punch. It gives this card some extra dimension. For more thank-you note ideas, click the "thank you" label list at the right.

Christmas in August Stamp Camp

2007-08-23T23:10:00.000-04:00

I hosted a Christmas in August Stamp Camp last weekend, and we had lots of fun listening to Charlie Brown Christmas music and making Christmas cards. Here's a sampling of some of the projects we made. I am considering offering the class again this weekend, since some people have been out of town and such. Let me know if you would be interested by e-mailing me at events@shilohstamps.com.

Christmas in August Stamp Camp would also be a great opportunity to take advantage of the Christmas in August special and get a head start on those Christmas cards this year. Here are some more examples of Christmas cards.

This is a pop-up tent card. The tree pops up when it's standing up. We used watercolor paper, staz-on ink, and the aquapainter to paint the tree from Year After Year. The polka-dots on the bottom are from the Dashing designer series paper.

This sparkly Merry Christmas card was inspired by a card I made at a stamp camp a few years back. On this card, we used an image from In The Spotlight as the snowflake, stamped with Encore silver metallic ink. Then we laid a stripe of Sticky Strip across the top and sprinked the whole card with Dazzling Diamonds glitter. The glitter sticks to the sticky strip and the Encore ink. We topped it off with a Merry Christmas tag from the Holidays and Wishes set and tied it with a white grosgrain ribbon. Warning - this card is messy (but fun) to make. Be sure you have a Powder Pal so you don't get glitter everywhere!

This Merry & Bright card uses a set from the new Holiday Mini catalog. It's a Love Note (3"x3") so it's super-quick to make. Stampin' Up is giving away free Love Notes this month when you order the Three for You Punch set. See this post for another Love Note example that uses the punches.

Word of the Day and Match Up

2007-08-21T16:22:00.000-04:00

I added some new gadgets to the sidebar of the blog today. They're down on the right at the bottom. Take a look and let me know what you think. I can't decide if they're interesting or annoying. Should I keep the blog strictly stamping? Or is it fun to have some other tidbits on the blog, too?

to have and to hold

2007-08-19T17:08:00.000-04:00

One of my customers is getting married next month, so I made this card for her. I used some old patterned paper in the background, and I stamped the big swirl from Baroque Motifs. The 5/8" chocolate chip ribbon is lots of fun. I also used Dazzling Diamonds glitter on the diamond, although it's hard to tell in this scan. I used the Versamarker on the diamond to make the Dazzling Diamonds glitter stick - supereasy!

My first scrapbook page and Love Note

2007-08-16T14:21:00.001-04:00

This picture is from my 30th birthday trip to Las Vegas with my family. Read more about our trip here. One of my goals in becoming a Stampin' Up demonstrator was to learn more about scrapbooking. A friend of mine scheduled a workshop recently. When I asked what sorts of projects she would like me to demonstrate, she said, "scrapbooking". I took this as my opportunity to try some scrapbooking, and I designed this 6"x6" scrapbook page for us to make together. It uses the Certainly Celery Designer Series paper. This comes in a package of 12 sheets of 12"x12" paper, so you can make 48 6"x6" pages with it. I love the idea of using vellum for the titles of scrapbook pages. You could print all your titles on one sheet of vellum paper, and then cut them up for your pages. Since vellum is sheer, you don't have to worry about coordinating the colors. I think Year After Year will prove to be a great stamp set for scrapbooking. It hits all the holidays and milestones, since it has a wedding cake, graduation hat, Christmas tree, baby toy (a cute elephant), and some other goodies.

This is a Love Note that we'll be making at my friend's house on Monday. It's a mini-card at 3"x3", the perfect size for enclosing with a gift or tucking in a lunchbox. This uses the Three For You punchbox, which includes 9 stamps, 3 stampin' spots, and a punch that makes 3 little flowers.

This month, Stampin' Up is offering a special promotion with this box. When you order the Three For You punchbox, you receive 30 Love Notes (10 each of Purely Pomegranate, and So Saffron) and matching envelopes. We'll also be using the Love Notes for the Christmas in August Stamp Camp this weekend. For some more ideas of how you can use the Punch box, check out the gallery at SplitcoastStampers.com.

I got promoted!

2007-08-13T22:33:00.001-04:00

Stampin' Up! just changed my title from Associate to Senior Associate because I met a sales goal. Woohoo! I just started this little business in May, and I've already gotten promoted. Very exciting.

Stampin' Up is always offering these great incentives to its demonstrators. Last week, they announced a new promotion for those signing up to be a demonstrator. It's called "Choose Your Family". When you purchase the starter kit (everything you need to start your business) between now and September 30, you will also receive a family of 12 classic stamp pads for free - that's a $58 value. (That's the Rich Regals family pictured - it's my favorite color family). What a great deal! Contact me at alison@shilohstamps.com if you would like more information on how to become a Stampin' Up demonstrator.

Also, check out what Super-Demonstrator Tina has to say about her dream job.

Christmas card ideas from my stack of samples

2007-08-09T21:33:00.001-04:00

Here are a bunch of Christmas card samples, to get you thinking about how you can take advantage of the Shiloh Stamps Early Christmas Special. I want to help you make homemade Christmas cards early this year, so I've thought about what could be most helpful. If you order a stamp set, cardstock, adhesive, envelopes, and embellishments (everything you need to make your Christmas cards), then I will mount your stamps, cut your cardstock into cards, and make you a page of custom return address labels. The last day to place an order is August 29th. E-mail me at alison@shilohstamps.com for more information.

If you would like to try out some new stamp sets (including some from the new Holiday Mini) and work together to design your Christmas cards, sign up to attend my Christmas in August Stamp Camp. I have one spot open for Friday evening and a few spots open for Saturday afternoon. Let me know ASAP if you would like to participate.

This was our Christmas card last year. It opens in the middle and uses the tree from the Loads of Love stamp set. It also uses the stipple brush for some shading. I made this card at an in-home workshop the previous year, and loved it. My generous stamping friends loaned some of the supplies I needed for this card. I liked Loads of Love so much, I wound up ordering it for myself!

This was Claire's Christmas card last year. It uses the City of David stamp set. I love how she put the Luke 2:11 scripture on the back of the card. She used markers to color in the star and palm trees on the front.

I made this card at an in-home workshop I attended last year. I love this color combination - mellow moss, always artichoke, and whisper white. It uses The Snowflake Spot stamp set. Hemp twine is one of lowest-priced embellishments, so this is a more cost-effective card.

I made this card at a Stamp Camp I attended at Claire's house years ago. This may have been one of the first stamping events I tried. This card uses a cool technique with glossy cardstock and reinkers. I would be glad to show you this technique.

My husband loves the blue and chrome color combination, so this may be his favorite card I've ever made. These silver snowflakes are raised up using a technique called embossing. It's lots of fun, and it looks fabulous!

This card uses a beautiful stamp set that is now retired. It also uses the crimper, my new favorite tool. I love how artistic this card looks with the splotchy paint look in the background. It's a stamp set called Itty Bitty Backgrounds.

This card was made by another stamper - Yolanda Croucher. When I signed up to be a demonstrator, Claire let me pick some cards out of her stash of samples. This is one of the cards I chose. I'm guessing she got this card through a swap.

This may be the first Stampin' Up card I ever made. I attended a Stamp Camp at Claire's house, and she had a drawing to give away her hostess benefits that night. I won! I got to order all sorts of goodies for free, and I was hooked!

My first "big" swap

2007-08-07T16:47:00.000-04:00

One of the joys of being a Stampin' Up demonstrator is participating in card swaps. A bunch of people (in this case 10) make 10 of the same card, mail them to the "host" and then someone mails everyone 1 of each card. Swapping is a great way to get samples of stamp sets you may not have or to have samples of a different style than yours.

This particular swap calls for a stamp set that's new in the Fall-Winter Collection 2007 that was not in the Preview catalog. I chose to use my favorite new set, In the Spotlight. It's a hostess set. This is the same layout as a card we made at my Open House in June, but it uses a different color background. The other one used Vintage Violet, which is now retired.

Sometimes when you make a swap, you include a "recipe" on the back of the card listing all the ingredients needed to make that card.

This swap was hosted by a member of the INKredible Impressions group of demonstrators. We all share common uplines, so we're 'related' in the Stampin' Up family through Super-Demonstrator Tina. I'm also a part of the PhillyInkers, Claire's downline. Being connected to these groups of creative ladies is half the fun of being a demonstrator!

new pics!

2007-08-06T15:41:00.000-04:00

I've posted a bunch of new pictures from my trip to Vegas and some crafty projects. Thought I'd point that out since they're a bit buried at the bottom of the page.

much appreciated MIL

2007-08-04T21:19:00.001-04:00

So my dear Mother-in-Law/Love was in town for my at the end of June. She's from TX, so we don't get to see one another very often. We had lots of fun together. We attended a conference in DC, hung curtains in our new (old) house, did some stamping, although the 4th of July fireworks got rained out (so we thought).

Her visit just happened to overlap with my Stampin' Up Open House, so she got to help me launch my new business. One of our projects that day included some fun with punches. I think that got her thinking about all sorts of punch possibilities. She ordered 6 punches! In addition to giving me a great sales boost, she said I could hang on to the punches for a while after they arrived, so that I could make some samples. Woohoo! So I've been having fun playing with all these new punches, and here are some things I've made.

I LOVE this card with the black-eyed susan. This flowers looks perkier than the flowers in my front yard, that's for sure! I think I probably got the idea from some of the galleries on splitcoaststampers.com. I punched all the petals and the leaf using the large oval punch, and then I made the center of the flower (forget the science term) using the 1 3/8" punch.

I made a fake bow for this Elegant Inspirations card using my MIL's 1/8" circle punch and some chocolate chip 5/8" grosgrain ribbon. It's a trick I learned from Claire. I love the way this sentiment looks with Baroque Motifs. The swirly lettering coordinates with the swirls in the design.

I punched a whole bunch of flowers with the Spring Flower Bouquet punch. This is a great way to use up scrap paper and it makes 3 flowers at once. I learned that this punch works much better with thinner paper like the designer series paper, vellum, or dare-I-say copy paper. It takes some muscles to punch SU cardstock with this punch, since the cardstock is so thick. I'll post some more samples once I make some cards with the little flowers.

For a listing of all the SU! punches, see pages 182-183 of the Fall-Winter Collection 2007.

(My dear husband figured out our scanner and gave me a little tutorial, so Shiloh Stamps should have better quality images now.)

Shiloh Stamps Early Christmas Special

2007-08-03T10:50:00.000-04:00

Get started on Christmas cards this summer!

So I've gotten inspired by reading The Martha Rules. Since I'm starting a new crafty business, my mom gave me Martha Stewart's rulebook about starting a new business. I admit, I was skeptical, but the lady has sure made some dough with all her cooking/cleaning/crafty tips. Much to my chagrin, the book opens by Martha talking about doing time. She says that while she was locked up, lots of women approached her with business ideas. You see, when people do time, they have lots of time to think and dream about what can happen on the outside. At the minimum-security facility where Martha paid her debt to society, many of the women had aspirations about starting businesses. Martha described one pair of ladies who had drawn up a business plan with lots of specifics and concrete plans. Martha decided that she could help others with entrepreneurial spirits by putting some of her lessons learned into a book.

In the chapter entitled "Teach so you can Learn", she tells how business owners should 'think like a customer'. So I started thinking about what my customers have told me. Many have said that they would like to make birthday cards and they have trouble keeping up with birthdays. So I knew I was on track with planning my birthday calendar workshop I hosted earlier this week. Many others told me they would like to make homemade Christmas cards. Then I thought about what challenges people face in trying to make Christmas and birthday cards. I addressed all of these challenges by designing the Shiloh Stamps Early Christmas Special. For many stampers, the first challenge after choosing the perfect stamp set is getting those darn stamps mounted. This was a pain for me for 3 years until I got the Craft and Rubber Scissors as part of my new demonstrator kit. Now it takes me minutes to mount a stamp set. Another barrier to making cards is not having all the right supplies, so I will pledge to help my stampers inventory their supplies and order the proper quantities. The next challenge is cutting all that cardstock, which can be difficult if you don't have a paper trimmer. Finally, I decided it would be helpful to make each stamper a page of address labels. So here's the Shiloh Stamps early Christmas Special, inspired by The Martha Rules.

Many of you have told me that you would like to start on your Christmas cards early this year, or perhaps make handmade Christmas cards for the first time this year. I would love to help you make that happen. I have designed a special to help you bypass some of the challenges that can keep you from getting your cards done in a timely manner. I will help you by mounting your stamps, cutting your cardstock, and making return address labels if you follow the steps below:

1. I can help you design a card that suits your style and schedule, whether simple or complex, modern or classic, bold or subtle; I would love to help you design your cards. I am hosting a Christmas in August Stamp Camp to help people design their Christmas cards.

2. You take a look at your address book and decide how many home-made cards you would like to send.

3. I will help you inventory what supplies and quantities you will need to complete your cards.

4. You place an order by August 29 that includes:
page numbers refer to the Fall-Winter Collection 2007
a. A stamp set –or- wheel and handle
b. Ink (pp. 165-167, 186)
c. Cardstock (pp. 165-167, 170-179) - colors, neutrals, designer paper included
d. Adhesive(p.185) - includes SNAIL, glue dots, etc.
e. Embellishments (pp.178, 187-191) - ribbon, brads, eyelets, etc.
f. Envelopes (p. 169)

5. When your order arrives, I will
a. Cut and mount your stamps
b. Cut your cardstock into cards
c. Print a page of custom address labels for you

For all those who take advantage of this promotion, I will schedule a special Christmas card assembly session in September. We will meet at my home and work on our cards together, and maybe even listen to Christmas music.

Remember – this offer ends August 29, so contact me soon and we can start designing your Christmas cards together.

alison@shilohstamps.com

Birthday Fun

2007-08-02T10:31:00.000-04:00

So today is my 30th birthday. I know, I know, it's hard to believe.

Well, just the other day I had a bunch of stampers over to make birthday calendars. See, one of my goals is to be better about sending birthday cards and gifts on time. So I made this birthday calendar to help me remember. I'm going to hang it on the wall in my craft room so that I will have cards on the ready when needed. My mom and my grandma are both really great about sending birthday cards. They send out all their birthday cards for the month on the 1st day of the month. So if your b-day is the 20th, you're getting a card early. If it's on the 1st, it may be a bit late. What a novel idea, though. I have lots of friends with August birthdays, so this month is a good time to start the new habit.

These are some samples of birthday cards we made together (and matching envelopes).

There's also some samples of pages from the birthday calendar we made together. If you'd like a birthday calendar of your own, let me know. I would be glad to show you how I decorated mine, or I could decorate one for you (for a small fee, of course). Sorry for the white boxes in the photos. I didn't think to take photos before I started writing everyone's birthdays on my calendar!

June - with watercolor mortarboards. The AquaPainter works well in the calendar since it has thicker paper. Otherwise, the moisture makes thinner paper curl. Watercolor paper is on my wishlist!

July - Jon was excited to see me doing a patriotic theme. I think these stars almost look like denim - very Americana.

May - I love these flowers in Year After Year. They're so versatile, and they're easy to color in with markers.

October - These pumpkins are watercolored in Really Rust with the AquaPainter. These colors are so vivid!

Stampin' Up Convention

2007-07-31T02:17:00.001-04:00

So my "upline" Claire and my "sideline" Kristin are both at the Stampin Up! convention in Denver right now. They're having a great time.

Here are some links to SU bloggers who have been writing about convention:

Teresa

Gwen

Stasia

Debbie

Michele

Kathy

While I wasn't able to make it to the big convention this year, I am participating in the SU Regional conference in Philly. Regional conferences are open to guests, so let me know if you'd like to join me at the conference. Click on Sept. 14 on my google calendar for more info about the convention.

Waterfall cards from an in-home workshop

2007-07-26T15:13:00.001-04:00

When I do an in-home workshop, I try to demonstrate projects that the hostess is interested in trying out. For a recent in-home workshop, the hostess requested the waterfall card. It's what's called a "movement card". When you pull the tag on the right, it waterfalls open revealing a message inside. I demonstrated the waterfall card at a workshop last week. The hostess really liked the sage shadow/chocolate chip color combination that she saw on a sample at my Open House, so I chose a waterfall card design that incorporated those colors. I love the Baroque Motifs set looks with this color

combination. I think this would be a very elegant card for a wedding, since it says "cherish" inside. You could certainly change the sentiment inside to make it a thank-you or birthday card, too.

Here are a couple other examples of waterfall cards. I learned how to make waterfall cards when I participated in Stampin' Down the Shore with Claire and Kristin. (You can see pictures of the weekend if you click those links.) We spent the weekend at the Jersey Shore making all sorts of crafty projects.

Adding a layer of neutral cardstock on each layer of the waterfall can make for a more polished design, but it's a bit more complicated. Both these cards use hostess sets that I got for free when I signed up to be an SU demonstrator.

If you would like a template for making the waterfall card, e-mail me at alison@shilohstamps.com. PLEASE INCLUDE "WATERFALL CARD" IN THE SUBJECT LINE, SO I KNOW THAT IT ISN'T SPAM. I would be glad to mail you a sample if you will send me your address. There's also a tutorial about making waterfall cards on Splitcoast Stampers. They have an amazing gallery of waterfall cards, too. There is also a sample of a waterfall card on Claire's blog here.

Thank you - 2 versions

2007-07-23T20:16:00.000-04:00

So I've been very thankful lately and I've been making lots of thank-you cards. I can't decide which design I like best here. What do you think?

I'm thankful for my dear friends and family who are so good to me. I am so thankful to my husband, who gives me a comfortable stretch when needed. I am thankful for Claire, who introduced me to Stampin' Up, and offered me the opportunity to start a new business. I am thankful to my hostesses and customers, who are enjoying learning new stamping techniques and supporting me as I start my business. So if you fit one of those categories, you might be getting a thank you note in the mail soon! Who are you thankful for?

This is a really simple card to make. The two cards shown here use the same color background cardstock, regal rose. (Sorry they look so different in the pictures). I stamped the flowers in basic black with the stems coming off the edges, so it looks like you're looking down into a bouquet. I stamped the sentiment, and punched a perfect square using the 1 3/8" square punch, and then mounted it on black cardstock and wrapped some gingham ribbon around. Then on one of the cards, I colored in the flowers using stampin' write markers. I don't normally like doing so much coloring on my cards, since it takes so much time. However, since this set is kind of sketch-like, you don't need to be so careful about staying in the lines. This makes the coloring go much faster!

Some of the supplies used:

year after year stamp set
figures of speech stamp set
black gingham ribbon
stampin' write markers - regal rose, so saffron, mellow moss

You may have noticed the Google calendar in the toolbar on the right. My software developer hubby has convinced me of the virtues of Google calendar. I think it will be a good way to inform my blog readers about upcoming stamping events. You'll notice that I have a Birthday Calendar class coming up next week. I have one space left in the class, so click the date you'd like to attend for more information. I'm also having a Christmas in August stamp camp. We'll be making a variety of Christmas cards to help people get started on making their Christmas cards before the holiday season. Let me know what you think of the new addition!

Sorry for the silence...

2007-07-22T14:12:00.000-04:00

...but I've been a busy gal lately. Last weekend, my family and I took a trip to Las Vegas to celebrate my 30th birthday. That's right, I'm turning 30 on August 2nd. Hard to believe. Anyhow, we had a blast. My mom got me a Stampin' Up apron and money bag to help me in my new endeavor as a Stampin' Up demonstrator. She also got me The Martha Rules, a book that inspired my fabulous Shiloh Stamps Christmas in August special. Click here for more details.

We had dinner at the top of the Stratosphere, where Michael Buble happened to be dining, too. Do you see him in between our heads? We were trying to be slick and pretend like we weren't taking his picture.

We went to Red Rock Canyon, M&M's world, and Ethel M's chocolate factory. Outside the chocolate factory, there's a cactus garden. That's where we took the picture up top.

We saw the Bellagio fountains and dined at the foot of the Eiffel Tower.

While we were in Vegas, my family and I each made a coaster book. Even my Dad made one!

Here are some pics of my sis and my mom each making their mini book. We covered coasters with patterned paper, and then made a small book inside. Here are the directions on Splitcoast Stampers.

This weekend, we went to The Police reunion concert with some friends. (My husband is HUGE fan of The Police). I think that was probably the closest I've been to the stage for a big-name concert. My ears are still ringing, but it was a very exciting show. (and no, I didn't take that picture)

Just a little something + fun with punches!

2007-07-17T14:20:00.001-04:00

Here's another card we made at my recent Open House. I like how the polka-dots on the card coordinate with the ladybug polka-dots. It's super-easy to make, and involves very little stamping and coloring. You just punch out circles of cardstock to make the polka dots (using the 3/4" circle punch), then stamp the greeting, cut it in a perfect square with the square punch, it in using the blender pens, and then attach some gingham ribbon! I also like to stamp something special on the back as a "Hallmark" signature.

Some of the supplies:

Stampin' Tip: Did you know that you can align images in punches pefectly by just turning the punch over? For example, instead of punching out the square in this card first and then trying to line up the stamp perfectly in the center, you can stamp the image first and then punch it out.

Thank you very much + an experiment with brads

2007-07-10T23:32:00.000-04:00

This is one of the cards that we made at my Open House last weekend. I love its simple design and crisp palette. I made a bunch of these cards, and I just changed the sentiment at the bottom to "Birthday Hugs and Wishes" on a few.

This card was inspired by a few stampin' things I've learned on the web. First, I was hoping to use up my Vintage Violet cardstock, since it's no longer available. I discovered the Color Combinations Tool, a website that helps you coordinate Stampin' Up colors. I selected Vintage Violet, and then clicked "search". It gave me all sorts of color combinations that use vintage violet. I don't think I would've put these colors together on my own. There's a link to the Color Combinations tool in the Stampin' Links list on the sidebar of my blog.

Also, I have new favorite tool, thanks to this card. I'm really enjoying the paper piercing tool and the paper piercing template. Using the guide, I can punch evenly spaced holes in my cardstock. It makes a really cool effect, and I like how it looks with this stamp set that already has dots around the edges. I can punch holes wherever I like, which means that I can punch holes to put brads in the center of these flowers.

I got this stamp set for free when I signed up to be Stampin' Up Demonstrator. It's called "In the Spotlight" and it's a hostess set from the new Fall-Winter Collection 2007 which debuted July 1st. You can get it for free when you host a Stampin' Up workshop in your home. I got it in May, though, so I got a head start on making projects with it. (My stamping friends were jealous!) I'll be posting some other samples soon.

So I learned a lesson with brads while working on this card. I haven't worked with brads very much before. I was trying to use up my stash of non-Stampin' Up brads, while I was waiting for my SU brads to arrive. (It doesn't make sense to demonstrate products that I don't sell.) I discovered that these pewter mini circle brads (pictured on the left) are really hard to open. You know how the legs on brads are usually two different lengths, so you can open them up? Not so with these brads... so you have to try and pry them open with your fingernail, and they don't come open easily, let me tell you. I chipped my nail and risked sending a brad under the fingernail trying to get these open. When the Stampin' Up brads finally arrived, I discovered that not only do the brad-legs have different lengths, but that they're already slightly open, thus saving the fingernails. Only SU brads from now-on for me!

By the way, the other thing I learned online before making this card is that the dotted line in this stamp set can actually be used as a flower stem! It wasn't until looking through the In the Spotlight gallery on Splitcoaststampers.com that I connected the dots, so to speak.

Carte Postale bookends

2007-07-08T16:02:00.001-04:00

I found these great bookends at Circle Thrift, and I thought, "I can use these for a craft project!". I made these bookends as a belated anniversary gift for my sister and brother-in-law. "How belated?" you might ask. Well, they're anniversary was in March and I mailed the book-end/frames last week. Their house is decorated with lots of reds and purples, so I think these will fit in just fine.

Some of the supplies I used:

carte postale stamp set
white craft ink pad
1 3/8" square punch
brads
1/4" grosgrain ribbon

b-day card - fun with pastels

2007-07-02T00:37:00.000-04:00

I made this card for my sis, who wanted some birthday cards. (She was my first paying customer!) I had lots of fun playing with my new stampin' pastels. So you stamp a pretty image with a versamark ink. It's a clear sticky ink that you can use for lots of things. Then you take a Q-tip and dab some stampin' pastel color on top of the versamark ink. It looks lovely!

Supplies:

Heartfelt Thanks stamp set
Itty Bitty backgrounds stamp set
God's Blessings stamp set
versamark ink pad
stampin' pastels
barely banana cardstock
old olive cardstock
whisper white ultrasmooth cardstock

Did you know that you can click on pictures to get a closer look?

What brown can do for you...

2007-06-28T10:32:00.000-04:00

Over the past few days, I've gotten two UPS packages and a FedEx package. I love getting mail! The two UPS packages were from Stampin' Up, and you can see their contents in the picture here - sorry for the glare. I got 4 stamp sets, 6 packets of papers, a set of brads, 8 catalogs, a cool white gel pen, 3 markers, a roll of a black and white gingham ribbon, a coordinated scrapbook set, a paper piercing template, and the Aqua Painters. This order included my new catalog "preview" items. As a Stampin Up demonstrator, I get to order new products about a month before everyone else and I get a discount- woohoo! I'm having fun getting my new stamping business off the ground. The discount is great, and this was all a 'business expense'!

The FedEx package was tickets to a Phillies/Pirates game. We're going to a game in July with our friends Andy and Tracy. Our seats aren't bad. Should be a grand time!

Fall/Winter Collection 2007 is here!

2007-06-26T12:02:00.000-04:00

My box of new Stampin' Up catalogs arrived today! Here's a picture of the cover. I'll try to post some of the pages soon. I can start accepting orders for the new catalog on July 1st.

Here's a quick look at some of the highlights:

208 pages

the beginning of the catalog includes 3 "style watch" collections, where they showcase coordinating stamp sets, colors, papers, punches, etc. My favorite is called "tapestry". You can find it on pages 6&7 of the catalog. It has a baroque background stamp, designer papers, taffeta ribbon, and chipboard script letters that coordinate with it.

there are 5 simply sent kits. These are kits that include a stamp set, mini stamp pads, ribbon, adhesives - everything you need to make at least 10 cards!

the next section shows all the hostess benefits. These are the stamp sets and supplies that you can earn for free by hosting a Stampin' Up workshop.

the page with all the ink, papers, markers, refills has pictures of the product at the top of each column - very helpful! See pages 166-167.

going gray isn't gone, but there'a new gray, too - basic gray. it's a little darker.

there are more chipboard simon things - capital alphabet and clipboards

more accents and elements - make cardmaking fast!

there's a new punch - a scalloped circle - this will be the first thing I order! It coordinates perfectly with a stamp from the In the Spotlight hostess set.

they've organized the accessories better - adhesives, tools, applications, etc.

there's beautiful new ribbon - taffeta, a big 5/8" grosgrain, double-stictched

I can't wait to hear what you think!

Open House invitations - 3 versions

2007-06-22T11:58:00.000-04:00

So I'm having an Open House at our new house on June 30. We'll be celebrating the launch of my new stamping business by making cards, winning door prizes, and checking out the new catalog. If you'd more details, e-mail me using the Contact Me button at the right.

Which card do you like best? I always make a few versions to have my options open. It's interesting how a card design evolves after you work with it a while.

Supplies:

Right at Home stamp set - (retiring June 30!)
Itty Bitty Backgrounds stamp set
buckaroo blue cardstock
so saffron cardstock
barely banana cardstock
chocolate chip cardstock
whisper white cardstock
basic black classic stamp pad
real red classic stamp pad
buckaroo blue classic stamp pad
chocolate chip classic stamp pad
so saffron classic stamp pad
blender pens
AquaPainter
mellow moss marker
hemp twine

happy together - anniversary card, 3 different versions

2007-06-20T15:04:00.001-04:00

My parents (35 years together), grandparents (60+ years together!), and sister/brother-in-law (4 years together) all recently celebrated anniversaries, so I'm sending this belated card. What a legacy of long marriages! My husband and I recently celebrated 3 years of marriage. We are thankful for this family legacy.

Supplies:

A Little Love stamp set - (retiring June 30!)

It Stamp set - hostess set 2006-2007

Barely banana cardstock

brocade blue cardstock

mellow moss cardstock

chocolate chip cardstock

very vanilla cardstock

chocolate chip classic ink

watercolor pencils

blender pens

1 3/8" square punch - this makes everything go quickly!

Which is your favorite?

thank you

2007-06-20T01:40:00.000-04:00

Would you like to learn how to make any of these cards? Use the contact me button on the right to set up a workshop in your home. You can earn free stamping supplies and exclusive stamp sets by hosting a workshop. This card features a new hostess set from the new catalog.

Supplies:

In The Spotlight stamp set - a new hostess set from the Fall/Winter collection
chocolate chip cardstock
sage shadow cardstock
chocolate chip classic ink pad
brown grosgrain ribbon

This card uses a really simple technique called masking. Just use scrap paper to cover up part of the page, and then stamp wherever you would like on the paper. Then when you remove the scrap paper you can have a different image in that blank space!

I made this card for a swap at Claire's recent "downline" meeting. Claire's the gal who got me hooked on stamping. She's recruited a bunch of new demonstrators lately, and once a month we get together to share ideas. You can find links to some of their blogs in the Stamping Links list on the right. Claire's "downline" includes bloggers Kristin and Melissa, as well as super-stampers Jan, Latrell, and Melanie.

Loads of Love - for Father's Day

2007-06-15T21:38:00.001-04:00

This was the other make-and-take from Amy's workshop. It uses a signature Katy slant.
I sent this card to my dad, my father-in-law, and my grandfather for Dad's Day. My dad loves cars, so I think he'll like this card. Trucks and blue means its instantly masculine, even though it doesn't say Father's Day.

Supplies:

Loads of Love stamp set
Itty Bitty backgrounds stamp set
brocade blue cardstock and classic ink
chocolate chip cardstock and classic ink
watercolor pencils
blender pen
crimper - such fun!

secret to happiness - b-day card

2007-06-08T20:11:00.000-04:00

This one works well as a gender-neutral/masculine birthday card. No embellishments or fussiness make it a simple card to make, too!

Supplies:

Simple Shapes stamp set
Edgy Eloquence stamp set (from the Winter Mini, so it might be in the new catalog!)
buckaroo blue cardstock (retiring June 30!)
chocolate chip cardstock
very vanilla cardstock
chocolate chip classic ink pad
buckaroo blue classic ink pad (retiring June 30!)

Thanks

2007-06-01T22:53:00.000-04:00

This is one of the Make and Take's I did for my first workshop (at Amy's). It has an artistic, forgiving style so you don't have to be perfectly precise.

The color scheme just shouts, "Spring!" to me.

Supplies:

Heartfelt Thanks stamp set
barely banana cardstock
ruby red cardstock
whisper white cardstock
ruby red classic stamp pad
mellow moss classic stamp pad
so saffron classic stamp pad
mellow moss 1/4" grosgrain ribbon
Crystal Effects

This card uses a technique called Two-Step Stampin'. You have to use a set that has an outline stamp and a base stamp, like Heartfelt Thanks. Stamp the base image in a lighter color (or you can stamp on scrap paper once to get a lighter color). Then stamp the outline image in a darker color. In this card, I used Ruby Red for both the base stamp and the outline stamp. This is an easier effect for frugal stampers like me!

Crystal Effects is fun to work with. It's kind of like puffy paint in that it adds a shiny texture to everything. I used Crystal Effects on the center of each of these flowers.

nest - one card, two different backgrounds

2007-06-01T22:43:00.001-04:00

My sister asked me to make some housewarming cards, and I was stumped. I had a really hard time coming up with ideas, since I didn't have a "house" stamp. Then I noticed this old retired stamp that I won as a door prize ages ago. I decided to do a robin's egg blue (Cool Caribbean) background, and make it spotted like robin's eggs. I tried it with two different background stamps to see which I liked best. Which is your favorite?

Supplies:

Itty Bitty backgrounds stamp set - my new favorite set!
cool caribbean cardstock - retiring June 30!
chocolate chip classic inkpad
nest stamp (retired)
small letter stamps
watercolor pencils
blender pen
brown grosgrain ribbon

believe

2007-05-28T19:53:00.000-04:00

So my mom loves dogwood trees. When I was a kid, we had two dogwood trees in our yard - one in front and one in back. The one in front was not doing so well. I remember pulling into our driveway and hearing my mom lament the ailing tree. One day, I decided I would help make the tree better. I carefully took some blossoms off the tree in our backyard, and taped them on the tree in our front yard. The next time we pulled into the driveway, my mom was so excited to see her tree "coming back to life". Sadly, I don't think the tree made it, but it's become a great story in our family lore.

Supplies:

Natural Beauty stamp set (retiring June 30!)
chocolate chip classic ink
chocolate chip cardstock
pretty in pink cardstock
regal rose classic ink
hand-stitched background stamp (retired)
watercolor pencils
blender pen

Here's a link to the list of stamp sets retiring this year. I have to say, I'm sad to see this one go. I'm sure there's something even better to take its place.

I just wanted to use the word BELIEVE from a stamp that has lots of words on it, so I just colored the word "believe" with marker and then stamped it.

Background stamps are so easy to use, and they make a polished effect quickly!

Placecards from Andy and Tracy's big day

2007-05-27T00:05:00.000-04:00

Welcome table at the Mad Batter - Cape May, NJ

Supplies:

Some Like It Hot stamp set (retiring June 30!)
so saffron cardstock
vintage violet cardstock (retiring June 30!)
chocolate chip cardstock
white confetti cardstock
so saffron classic ink pad
chocolate chip classic ink pad
elegant eggplant classic ink pad
white craft ink pad

I made these placecards for my dear friends Andrea and Tracy. They had their commitment ceremony last weekend in Cape May, NJ. It was a lovely day!

I used a different card style for each table. The tables had names of Cape May landmarks. It was really neat!

Funny tidbit: My husband decided that he wants hawaiian print swim trunks after seeing how cool they look on the placecards!

Joy is not in things, it's in us.

2007-05-25T21:11:00.000-04:00

This is a sweet card I made at a Stamp-a-Stack last summer. It reminds me of fun times on the beach as a kid.

Supplies:
Seaside Sketches stamp set (retiring June 30!)
Beyond the Basics background set
stampin' pastels
paper crimper
Versamark ink
hemp twine

The paper crimper is my new favorite tool. My friend Andrea gave me one last week. It's so fun!

Snappy Birthday

2007-05-24T22:45:00.001-04:00

I made this cute card at Stampin' Down the Shore with fellow demonstrators Claire and Kristen.

Supplies:
Crab and Company Stamp Set - from the Spring Mini catalog
Sandy Shells wheel
chocolate chip cardstock
chocolate chip classic stamp pad
tempting turquoise cardstock
turquoise 1/4 inch grosgrain ribbon
chocolate 1/4 inch grosgrain ribbon
tempting turquoise marker
blender pen
confetti cream cardstock

Gabe flags

2007-05-24T22:40:00.000-04:00

I made these flags for a newborn's nursery

Supplies:
Ballet blue cardstock
Night of Navy cardstock
On Board Simon lower letters (for tracing)
patterned paper
navy grosgrain ribbon
1/2 inch circle punch

I traced the On Board Simon letters with an exacto knife on a self-healing mat. I love this look!

I got this idea from a pricey item I saw in The Land of Nod catalog. I thought I could try making it on my own. Their letters are almost $3 each plus $3.50 for a shoelace to hang the letters on. That would be $21 for ALISON.