Bohemian Moon Lake

One of my favorite stamp sets from the Occasions Catalog is the Moon Lake set. Quite a few of my other favorites from the Occasions Catalog have made it into the new Annual Catalog, but unfortunately Moon Lake isn't one of them. Don't worry however...there is still a few days left to grab this set if you haven't already.

Today I've combined a couple brand new items that will soon be available along with this great stamp set. The result is a striking (if I do say so myself!) masculine card.

The DSP I used is called Bohemian and I love it because it has some of my favorite rich colors...Blackberry Bliss, Island Indigo, Bermuda Bay and the new Delightful Dijon. It has some really bold patterns along with a more subtle pattern on the flip side.

I used one of the larger, bold patterns like I would have used a piece of ribbon, had I been making a more feminine card. The "to a wonderful man" sentiment is from a great new host set called Happy Birthday Everyone. It has a large birthday stamp in a beautiful font and you can add other phrases such as the one above to personalize the birthday wish.  I also used Gorgeous Grunge on the Island Indigo & Bermuda Bay layers.

If you are looking for more ideas on how to use this stamp set, earlier this month I put out a tutorial using the Moon Lake stamp set along with some fun techniques to create a set of six masculine cards...just in time for Father's Day!  Check it out here.

Have a GREAT weekend!

A Quick Tip

Today I just wanted to share a quick tip that you may find helpful to avoid frustration when using your brand new ink pads. I was working on something for an upcoming class and was using a brand new Watermelon Wonder ink pad and a butterfly stamp from Butterfly Basics. I inked up the stamp and stamped it onto Whisper White card stock, but I did not get that nice crisp detail that should be showing with this image.The delicate hexagon texture was lost all together.

Check out my photo to see what I mean...the top butterfly was the first one I stamped.

What happens with the many of the new foam ink pads is that when they sit, unopened or unused, excess ink may raise to the surface of the pad. What you need to do is simply work that ink back into the pad. It only takes a minute...run your bone folder, a plastic spoon or other utensil back and forth over the surface of the pad gently working the ink into the pad. I did this up & down from top to bottom, then repeated side to side.

After working the ink down into the foam pad, I inked my stamp and again stamped it onto Whisper White... you can see the results. A perfect, crisp image, without the frustration! Hope this helps!

My Mom, My Friend

I saw the quote, "If I didn't have you as my Mom, I would choose you as my friend," on Pinterest one day and thought it was the perfect quote to use on a scrapbook page of my Mom & I that I was planning to scrap.

I made a couple paper roses using the Spiral Flower Die. The larger one uses both Perfect Plum and Blackberry Bliss. I sponged the Tea Lace Paper Doily lightly with Perfect Plum ink so it blended with the other embellishments. I used only two stamps for this project...both are background stamps. Of course the Hardwood stamp inked in White Craft over the Basic Gray background, then the more subtle Canvas background over the printed quote and again on the Blackberry Bliss mat. Here's a closer look at the embellishments...

I layered Blackberry Bliss Stitched Satin Ribbon over Silver Satin Ribbon. The pretty pearl embellishments are something I've had in my stash for quite some time...glad I was finally able to use them. Here is the page inside the 8x8 shadowbox frame.

I gave this framed page to my Mom on Mother's Day. She loved it! I'm lucky to have her as not only my Mom, but my friend as well. (Even though she likes to tell people we are sisters...and she is the younger sister!)

Here's the Scoop

This years Ronald McDonald House set from SU! is called Sprinkles of Life, it's super cute, has a coordinating punch AND SU! donates $3 for every stamp set sold to the Ronald McDonald House...how cool is that!?

This is one of the new stamp sets that will be available in the upcoming catalog. I also used some other great new products...4 of the new In Colors...the three scoops of ice cream are Mint Macaron, Tip Top Taupe & Watermelon Wonder...don't they look yummy!? The cone was stamped in Delightful Dijon onto So Saffron card stock.

The DSP is part of the Cherry On Top paper stack. It comes in 6x6 now...I love that change! I also used an awesome new embossing folder called Boho Chic...love that pattern! For this card I printed the "Here's the scoop!" sentiment onto Mint Macaron card stock, but there are several great sentiments with this set that can be used.

 So, here's the scoop...

On May 27th I will be having my annual Hello/Goodbye party here. We'll be using some of my favorite retiring items along with some great new items for the make & takes. Of course there will be prizes, tasty treats and the NEW catalog!

I will also be having a class based around the Sprinkles of Life set  on June 16th so if you live in the Livingston County area of Michigan, message me for more details on these two events.

Share the Fun!

Look what showed up at my house yesterday afternoon!!!

It's my pre-order from the upcoming new catalog! Look at all these awesome new goodies...can you guess what I played with first???

The first thing I grabbed was the new In Color inks to see the true color stamped on Whisper White. I am never sure if I am going to like the new In Colors when they are only visible online. I ordered them all and after seeing them in person I'm happy to report that I like all the new colors. That's three years in a row now that I've really liked all the In Colors.

Say hello to Stampin' Up!'s 2015-17 In Colors...

The base of the card and the leaves are Mint Macaron, which was over stamped with Cucumber Crisp for the leaf detail. The Hardwood stamped panel and center of the flower are Tip Top Taupe. The largest layer of the flower is stamped in Watermelon Wonder and the "HELLO" greeting is stamped on the coordinating card stock. The medium sized flower is stamped in Delightful Dijon.

The delicate lace down the center of the card is one of the new In Color accessories called 1" Dotted Lace Trim. It is available in all five colors.

Don't you just love having new colors to play with!? Which one is your favorite? Any guesses on which new color is my fav?

Moon Lake Masculine Card Set

I've been working hard on my latest tutorial, and I finally have it finished just in time for Father’s Day!

The Moon Lake stamp set is such a beautiful set and combined with the Adventure Bound Designer Series Paper, its the perfect combo to create masculine, nature inspired cards. I had fun playing with different background techniques to further enhance the watercoloring technique used on this set of six cards.

My detailed 18 page tutorial filled with over 40 clear photos, will take you step by step to easily re-create these cards. You will use the bokeh technique, the salted background technique and the cracked glass technique, along with watercoloring. Cards in this set include an easel card, a flip card and even one designed to hold a gift card inside.

You can purchase the Moon Lake Masculine Card Set Tutorial for just $5.99 by simply clicking the PayPal button below.

After receiving payment, I will send the PDF file to the email provided with your PayPal payment. I usually check my email a few times daily, but please allow up to 24 hours for delivery to your inbox.

The Moon Lake stamp set and Adventure Bound DSP are only available until June 2nd...so don't delay adding them to your collection if you haven't already. To complete the cards as shown, in addition to the Moon Lake stamp set you will also need a sentiment set (I used Teeny Tiny wishes and Petite Pairs) or you can simply use the "thinking of you" or the quote stamps provided in the set. I also used Gorgeous Grunge & Hardwood Background...but those two really are optional.

These cards will be perfect to give to the guys, or any nature lover in your life.

No Bow? No Problem!

Have you ever been in a time crunch...got your gift wrapped, only to find that you have no bow to finish it off? I have a whole big box filled with gift wrapping supplies, but this seems always seems to happen to me. That's when my Big Shot comes to the rescue!

It only took me a few minutes to die cut two butterflies in colors to match my gift wrap using the Butterfly Thinlits Die and add some Basic Rhinestone Jewels. Then the butterflies were layered over some embossed Wild Wasabi card stock with some Black Chevron Ribbon. It looks better than using a regular old bow and I didn't have to run back out to the store! Win/win!

Here is what is all wrapped up inside...

My Mom is a quilter so when I saw this graphic offered in the Silhouette Store I knew I had to get it so I could make her something with it. I cut out some blackboard vinyl I had back from when SU! used to sell the Decor Elements. After cutting the design with my Silhouette I applied it to a piece of Basic Grey paper from the Stella Ruby pack. I has a distressed sewing pattern in the background. These colors match my Mom's sewing room, so I know she will love it! But you know what the best part of this shadow box is?

The vintage sewing notions I used are from my Grandmother's sewing basket. A few of them still have the price tags from the dime store she purchased them from, probably when my Mom was just a little girl. How cool is that!? I don't sew...except for an occasion button, so I'm glad I was finally able to put these notions to good use! I'm sure my Grandma would be tickled to know how these items she purchased so long ago are going to be displayed and my Mom is going to LOVE it!

Have a GREAT weekend and a WONDERFUL Mother's Day!

Happy Balloons

This fun, die cut birthday card fits in a standard sized business envelope and is perfect to send to the guys in your life.

I used the Celebrate Today stamp sets and the coordinating Balloons Framelits...available in the Occasions Catalog. The Basic Black background is embossed with the Lucky Stars Embossing Folder. It's difficult to tell from the photo, but each balloon has a letter die cut from it, and is popped up from the background using Stampin' Dimensionals. Take a look from another angle.

I was inspired by this cute card I originally saw on Pinterest.

Have a GREAT weekend! It's supposed to be sunny and warm here...FINALLY!

Daydream Medallion Wishes

I really love the fun layered flowers you can create with the Daydream Medallions stamp set and it's coordinating Floral Framelits. I am sad to see the stamp set go, yet excited to see what possible new stamp set will be in the new catalog to coordinate with the framelits since they are not retiring.

I used the retiring 2013-15 In Colors here as well as the Blooming With Kindness set for the sentiment. That's another great set...I will especially miss the pretty sentiments in that one. Don't you just love the pretty silver embellishment on the center of the flower? It is one of the Something Borrowed Embellishements available in the Occasions Catalog.

I've used the Daydream Medallions set quite often for scrapbooking...it makes such pretty embellishments for any page. Here are a couple favorites...

I used the Dots Decorative Mask to create the polka dot background. See the entire layout here.

The Sycamore Street DSP from 2013 SAB had a floral design that cut out perfectly with the smallest floral framelit...loved that! See the entire layout here.

Here's a card made using the same colors along with the die cut center from Sycamore Street DSP.

Itty Bitty Banners and the coordinating Bitty Banner Framelits are also retiring. More here.

This pretty set of flip cards fit inside the coordinating box with belly band. I just love how these layer to create beautiful accents or focal points. More on this project here.

I think this is the first creation I made back when I first got this set...see more here.

What are you sad to see retiring?

I'll Miss You Mixed Bunch!

I will really miss Mixed Bunch set and the coordinating Blossom Punch! I have used them both quite a bit. When I got this fun set out to stamp I knew I wanted to combine it with some of my favorite retiring accessories. So I used the Beautifully Baroque Embossing Folder to create a cool background, check it out...

If you want to try this stamped background technique with your embossing folder just ink up your folder in the desired color(s) and then spritz it with some water so the colors can start to blend a bit. Then, place a piece of watercolor paper inside the folder and close. Press and rub with your hand and allow the watercolor paper to absorb the ink and water. When you open your folder you should have a beautiful print. Experiment with different color combos. I used Bermuda Bay, Pear Pizzazz & Crushed Curry.

Depending on which side of the folder that you apply the ink to, your design will vary as shown in the photo above. I also used the Itty Bitty Banner stamp set and the Bitty Banner Framelits with some Black Chevron Ribbon on my card  ...all of will be retiring.

Now for some "Flashback Friday".... here are a few favorite projects I've shared here in the past using the fun and versatile Mixed Bunch.

This flower pot and pocket card set was made for Craft Project Central. Read more on that here.

This easel card uses lots of soon to be retired items including the Hearts Collection of framelits, the Four Frames stamp set and Boho Blossoms Punch. More about this card in this post

.

For this card I trimmed away two of the petals to create a fancy butterfly. Read more here.

The same image is used here to create a delicate snowflake. More on this card here.

I like the color combo on this one...but a few of these colors have since retired. As you can see, the little circle pieces in this set are great for creating a backgound. See more on this card here.

After looking at these cards I think you'll agree that this set is more than just another flower set...it's actually pretty versatile. If you don't already have it...I'd highly recommend adding it to your collection!

Have a great weekend!

Farewell Apothecary Art

I'm back again today to share more of my favorite items that will be retiring. Apothecary Art is such an elegant set and my very first Stampin' Up! set that had a coordinating set of framelits. I think it may actually be the first set they offered with the coordinating dies?

I haven't used the stamp set too often recently but I have gotten a lot of use out of the coordinating Label Framelits....which sadly are also retiring. Another favorite that I use a lot is the Fancy Fan Embossing Folder, that is retiring as well...along with so many other embossing folders and dies.

Here are a few more creations that I've shared in the past using the Apothecary Art stamp set.

Find out more about this set in this post.

I like the layering on this one...it uses several different framelit sets including the Apothecary Accent Framelits which is another retiring favorite of mine. Find out more about this card here.

Do you think I like the color purple? After looking back at some of my favorites using this set, purple was for sure the dominate color choice! I'm looking forward to seeing what the new In Colors are! I hope there is a new shade of purple...that would make me happy! If you want to see more on the above card, check out this post.

So...now you've seen a few of my retiring favorites, what items will you miss the most? What are you hoping to see in the new catalog?

So Long Stippled Blossoms

The list of Stampin' Up! retiring items is out! Each year I have favorite items on the list that I had hoped wouldn't be there. This year I am so sad to see one of my all time favorite stamp sets...Stippled Blossoms on the list. I made a few cards with it just the other day and I had a feeling it might be retiring. Here's my creation using Stippled Blossoms along with the retiring In Colors.

I have really enjoyed this set of pretty pastel colors...especially for spring time creations. Of course we already knew that the In Colors from 2013-15 would be retiring. Each year the card stock and re-inkers for the In Colors are usually the first thing to sell out from the list. So, if you have not purchased them yet, I would highly recommend doing so as soon as possible so you are not disappointed.

This week I will be sharing some of my favorite projects that I've created using items that will soon be retiring, so make sure to visit again soon. It's almost impossible to make a card that isn't pretty using this stamp set...here are a few of my favorites I've created with the beautiful Stippled Blossoms...

This one uses the 2014-16 In Colors and the retiring Fancy Fan Embossing Folder. You can see more on this card in this post.

I created my own DSP for this card. You can read more about it here.

The blossoms looked beautiful in Baja Breeze...still one of my all time favorite SU! colors. I was so sad when they retired that color...and I'm still hoarding some in my stash. Read more about this card here.

This card uses several soon to be retired items...the Window Frames Framelits and Beautifully Baroque EF are favorites of mine. Read more about this card in this post.

A lot of the framelits and punches are going to be retiring...including the Labels Collection & Modern Label Punch used above. I hope that means there are going to be a whole bunch of great new punches & framelits to take the place of what will be retiring! If you want more info on this pretty purple creation, click here.

Check out the Retiring List and make sure to get your favorites before they are gone!