Flower Patch Blooms Pages

I scrapped some photos of my family from this past Mother's Day this week. I used a sketch challenge from the Stampin' Up Scrapbooking Global group in Facebook. It's a very inspiring group, and if you like to scrapbook with SU! products...then you should join! Here's my two page layout...

Here's the sketch...

I didn't follow the sketch exactly because I did not want to crop down my photos too much, but this sketch really helped me get started with my layout.

I knew I wanted to use Sweet Sugar Plum 12x12 as my base along with Blooms & Bliss DSP to compliment the flowering crabapple tree in the background of my photos. I cut my title using my Silhouette Cameo and printed my journaling from the computer. This ended up being a royal PITA! **insert terribly angry face here**. After numerous attempts I finally got it cut out and like the end result, BUT it shouldn't have been that difficult and time consuming! I need to get a new sticky mat, so that should help save my sanity next time!

I used the Flower Patch stamp set and the coordinating Flower Fair Framelits to create some simple embellishments for my pages. The Flower Patch set and it's framelits are on the Retiring List along with my favorite DSP...Blooms & Bliss, so if these are items you would like please place your order soon.

Everyone who places an order with me this month and uses the Hostess Code: ZMUUCXE6 will receive a card kit with supplies to create 3 cards.

Cake Crazy Balloon Adventure Blues

Now that the retirement list is out, we know which stamp sets and accessories will not be carried over from the current Occasions Catalog  to the upcoming new Annual Catalog. Two such sets are used on the card I have to share with you today.

Funny thing...up until today I've had the name of this stamp set backwards! I've been calling it Crazy Cake when it's really named Cake Crazy! This card is for a guy, so I went with a masculine color combo and minimal embellishments. For added texture I popped up the banner and used the Confetti Embossing Folder on the main panel. This EF is one of the items that has been discounted on the Retirement list by 50%...so it's only $3.75!

Colors used: Pacific Point, Tempting Turquoise, Bermuda Bay & Emerald Envy.

The outside is fun and festive, but the inside really pops...literally!

I used the Balloon Adventures stamp set and the coordinating Balloon Pop-Up Thinlits Dies. Those are also a real bargain right now at 1/2 off...thats only $16.50 for the set of 8 thinlits that both cut and score to create this unique pop up for the inside of your card. One of the dies in this set creates a slot, shown on the left panel of the card. It easily creates a pocket for a tag or in this case a gift card.

I love the sentiments and the fonts used in the Balloon Adventures set as well. I've had a lot of fun combining these two stamp sets  to make fun birthday cards. I have not used them on any scrapbook pages yet, but I hope to do that soon. If you have not yet ordered these items, I'd suggest to do that soon as well! Especially with them being on sale, they could be gone quickly at that price.
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Thanks for stopping by my blog today!

Papillon Potpourri Serene Spring

HAPPY EASTER! This morning I have an Easter card that I created for my grand daughter's 1st Easter. The adorable baby bunny in a basket image from the retired hostess set Serene Spring has long been a favorite of mine and I thought it was the perfect choice for a baby's first Easter card.

I stamped the image in Basic Black ink, but first masked off the little bird that sits on the basket handle because I wanted to use a butterfly from one of my favorite retiring sets instead. I've used the Papillon Potpourri set so often since it first came out. I just

love it! Especially for accents on cards. I'm sure you already have it...but if not, you need to add it to your collection before it retires!

I watercolored the image using my Aqua Painter and these inks: Blushing Bride, Rich Razzleberry, Sweet Sugarplum, Soft Sky, Mint Macaron & Tip Top Taupe. The last two inks listed are part of the In Color collection that is retiring this time around. Here's a closer look at the sweet bunny.

The flower and butterfly were both painted with Clear Wink of Stella for some sparkle. The DSP used here is from the Blooms & Bliss pack. The cute Lace Doily under the image and the Ruched Sweet Sugarplum Ribbon are also retiring...so be quick like a bunny and get yours before they're gone! Here are a few of my favorite past creations using the retiring Papillon Potpourri set where the beautiful butterflies were the main focus:

Easy Watercolor Background Papillon Potpourri Card

Hello In Colors Card

Butterfly Bookmark Pocket Card

Have a wonderful Easter Sunday!

Special Reason Thank You

Have you seen Stampin' Up!s Retiring List yet?  There are so many awesome things leaving *sniff, sniff* to make room for awesome new things. Sadly, one of my newest favorites is retiring...the Special Reason stamp set along with the Stylish Stems Framelits. If you don't already have these items, they are just a couple of the many products that are not only retiring, but retiring with a deep discount. I'd really recommend this set along with the coordinating framelits...especially if you are a scrapbooker.

This card also features DSP and ribbon in my favorite retiring In Color...Mint Macaron. Love, love LOVE the Blooms and Bliss DSP, wish is also retiring along with all the current DSP. So if you have a favorite pack of Designers Series Paper, better scoop it up now while its still available!

Shop Now before they are gone!

Special Reason Sweet Baby Girl Page

I've been busy doing a little scrapbooking this past week. Why is it that every time I get busy with a project (especially scrapbooking!) it looks like a tornado went through my studio!?

I swear....every flat surface is covered with a pile of supplies. Because I just have to pull out everything that could possibly work on my pages, and then decide nope, don't need that! I even had to drag in an extra table for my DSP!

Look at my messy desk...I end up with just enough space to barely work. Then I spend way too much of my precious stampin' time searching for things that I misplaced. It drives me nuts!  Please tell me I'm not the only one who does this! OK...rant over, and my space has been cleaned, so time to share my page.


I had a  "special reason" in mind when I purchased the Special Reason Bundle...creating some pages featuring our new grand daughter. I decided to use one of my favorite photos I took of her during our first official photo shoot for my first page. She was wearing a little purple headband...so I wanted to use purple on my layout...off to a good start!

I thought so...until I searched through stacks and stacks of beautiful paper (part of the reason for mess!) looking for the perfect print to use with the photo...only to realize I'm seriously lacking in DSP featuring a shade of purple anywhere near close to the headband! How could that be? Purple is one of my favorite colors, and I have enough pretty patterned paper to open a scrapbook store! (Don't tell my husband!) So I decided I needed to make my own Designer Series Paper.

Right now the closest shade that Stampin' Up! carries to the headband is Wisteria Wonder. I like the way it looks with Sahara Sand...which is featured in the lace printed paper from the Falling In Love pack, so I went with those two colors for this page.

In addition to the Special Reason stamp set I used Timeless Textures, Gorgous Grunge and Jar of Love (tiny flower and leaves) to create my own patterned paper. The tiny flower from Jar of Love is a smooth, solid image so I used the kissing technique with the burlap image in Timeless Textures to add some texture so they better coordinated with the flowers in the Special Reason stamp set. I die cut some of the leaves from the Mint Macaron Glimmer Paper that was available during SAB to add a little sparkle. I love that this set has a stamp and framelits to create layered labels, used here to record her name & age.

I used the retired Pennent Punch to create part of the title. I stamped the word "sweet" using the retired Occasions Alphabet set and punched them out with 1/2" Circle Punch. I made the bow using Wisteria Wonder Seam Binding Ribbon. I miss having the seam binding ribbon in the catalog...sure glad I stocked up on that before it retired.

Speaking of retiring...today is the day we find out which items in the current catalog will be retiring. Even after so many years as a SU! demo, I still have a hard time saying goodbye to my favorites. That's why I end up keeping most of my old sets!

Bella's Birthday Cupcake

Bella came out to play and helped me make an adorable birthday card.

I embossed the Delicate Details lace border onto the Blooms & Bliss DSP and along with the Mint Macaron Ribbon it finishes off the cute, watercolored image nicely. I stamped my envelope to match using the Avant Garden stamp set. Sadly that set, along with Delicate Details, was part of the 2017 Sale-A-Bration offerings, and no longer available...but I will keep them as part of my collection of favorites.

Have a GREAT day!