Happy News + January Club Projects

Hello All! Wow... it sure has been a long time!  Well, over the holidays DH and I found out we are expecting baby #2!  This was most welcome and prayed about news - we could not be more excited and happy!  Unfortunately, my body did not take the news so well and I had a very exhausting and queasy first trimester.  And instead of "morning sickness" I had a daily and consistent case of "afternoon and evening sickness."  This did not bode well for my stamping productivity, as the evenings are my time for stamping and creating.

Well, long story short... my poor blog suffered the consequences - hence the lack of posting lately.  So, here I am - finally into my second trimester and my energy is on the rebound!  So I'm taking a little time to get caught up and get up my pics for my last 2 months of clubs!

First, I'm going to post January's projects, where we had lots of fun making Valentine's day projects and playing with bubbles!

Yes, that's right!  Bubbles!  The card we made featured an awesome technique I learned at the St. George regionals last September, and I had been dying to use it!

This was so much fun to do, and all it required was a bowl, a straw, some bubble solution and some Stampin' Up! classic ink refill!  Simply mix the bubble solution and your ink in a bowl, stick the straw in and blow some bubbles!  Once the bubbles rise above the lip of the bowl, touch your card stock piece onto the bubbles and a beautiful pattern will appear! Click Here to see a great tutorial video for this technique put together by fellow demo, Dawn Olchefske!

To add a little extra pizzaz to our card, we sprayed a bit of Vanilla Shimmer Smooch on top! The stamp set used on the card was the "Filled With Love" set available from the Holiday mini and during the Filled With Love promo.  We finished off our card with some Basis Black satin ribbon, some of the new pom pom trim (from the Occasions mini) and some lovely rhinestones!

Our second project was another one I had been itching to try in one of my workshops.  I received a version of this gorgeous treat box during my trip to Founder's Circle last September.  I instantly fell in love with the idea and knew it would fit in perfect for the V-Day theme, but at the same time also work great for any other occasion.

This adorable treat box uses the Perfect Setting XL Die for the Big Shot.  When you flip open teh top (made from the 2-1/2" circle punch), you can place a cupcake liner and your treat or gift inside!

The key to getting the size just right, so your cupcake liner doesn't fall out of the bottom, is to overlap the ends by one scallop when putting the cupcake piece together:

For our treat holders, we used a simple but lovely color scheme of Crumb Cake and Pretty in Pink.  The stamp set is "Valentine Defined" from the Occasions Mini Catalog.

"Love" Mini Album Class!

Hello everyone!  Just wanted to pass on this great opportunity!  One of my recruits, Michelle Walker, is having her very first class on how to make a mini album for Valentine’s Day!  The class will be held on Saturday, February 5th from 12-4!

This is one absolutely gorgeous album with some amazing techniques… I can’t wait to learn how to make those flowers!  And what a great opportunity to create a very special handmade gift for that special someone on Valentine’s Day!

All information on the class can be found here on the the class flyer.  Please contact Michelle directly if you would like to attend!

Hope to see you there! :o)

December Club Projects

For this month's projects we focused entirely on different techniques using the Watercolor Wonder Crayons!

First, we made an ornament/gift card holder with the Holiday Line-up stamp set.  Everyone got to choose which image they wanted to use, then we used the WWCs to color the image.  For this technique, we colored onto a hard plastic surface with the WWC and then used an Aqua painter to pick up the color and transfer it onto the image.  

This fabulous gift card holder idea was passed on to me from my upline, Alecia Connelly!

Our second project was a desktop calendar.  You can find a tutorial for this nifty idea here!  We used the Friends Never Fade stamp set and a color combination of Regal Rose, Rose Red, Always Artichoke and Early Espresso.

We used two different WWC techniques on this project.  For the background image, we used the crayons to color directly onto the stamp and then we misted the stamp with some water before stamping onto the watercolor paper.  

For the sentiment, we first stamped the image in Early Espresso craft ink and then applied embossing powder and heat set it.  Then we used the crayons to directly color onto the paper. Lastly, we blended the color using an aqua painter.

I got the calendars we used in our project here, and they can also be purchased in other sizes and varieties here.

For demonstrations of all the different watercolor techniques we used, watch this great video from Stampin' Up!

Lastly, I wish each and every one of you a very merry Christmas and a happy New Year!!!

"Merry Christmas" Blocks

Here's a fun little project I put together in a snap!  I used some pre-cut wooden blocks from my local craft store and died them with a solution of classic re-inker and alcohol.  The blocks sucked the ink solution right up, held the color beautifully and dried in a snap!  I used Cherry Cobbler, Always Artichoke and Soft Suede as my color scheme.

I stamped my letters (Broadsheet Alphabet) in Versamark and embossed them in gold stampin emboss powder.  This is such a beautiful font for vintage Christmas items!

Filled with Love Promo starts today!

This Valentine’s Day, give your loved ones a beautiful handmade gift using products from Stampin’ Up!®

December 17–January 24, get a FREE package of Bitty Buttons when you purchase a Filled with Love Bundle, including the Filled with Love Stamp Set and exclusive Love Patterns Designer Series Paper Pack—only available through this special promotion!

Click Here to view the flyer and bundle information!

So what are you waiting for?  :o)  V-Day will be here before you know it... click here to shop online now or contact me to place your order today!