Celebrate! (with a cupcake)

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

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.

Carousel for Mom

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.

Philadelphia Regionals pics

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!

Leafy goodness

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!

My first scrapbook page and Love Note

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.