I went out for Chinese this afternoon with a colleague. I thought my fortune was quite appropriate -- which is unusual. Usually they say things like "Confucius says that..." or "You are a kind and good person." Well, duh! lol But today's fortunate seemed to be related to my Stampin' Up! endeavors, so I am taking it as a sign and a true fortune. It reads:
"You will find an outlet for your creative genius and accomplish a great deal."
I love serendipity!
Sunday, August 5, 2012
Friday, August 3, 2012
Not Reinventing the Wheel
I often get a bit stumped about where to go with my paper and ink. I may need to make a card for a birthday, or anniversary, or whatever, and I have no idea where to start. These are the times when I turn to others for some inspiration -- or outright "borrowing," whichever works. :-) I mentioned that card crafters often CASE -- copy and share everything -- rather than attempt to reinvent the wheel. This is one of the reasons many of us participate in Swaps, where we trade full cards with each other for display and inspiration. Below are a few of the swaps I received at Stampin' Up's convention this summer. I received too many to share with you -- all of them wonderful cards -- but these stood out for me. Whether it's the way the stamps were used, the use of Designer Paper, a new technique, or the general layout, all of these spoke to me in a special way that I wanted to share them with you. I hope these inspire you as much as they've inspired me.
This card was created by Martha Armstrong, a demonstrator from North Carolina. I love the way she used sponging to create an ethereal feel to the nature scene. I also love the colors she chose.
This card was created by Liz Haddon, another North Carolina demonstrator. I love the look of the spiral technique she used. This card is a great all-occasion card that isn't too complicated but packs a 'WOW'!
Obviously I LOVE the new Pleasant Poppies stamp, and I really love the way Susan Merrell created the vase for the flowers. Her attention to details -- the embossing and antiquing on the vase and the use of filler adds an amazing 3D effect to this card. Simply breathtaking!
This card was created by my friend, Robyn Polinsky. She does gorgeous work, and this card is no exception. What I love about it is it's elegant simplicity. There are several embellishments here -- dry embossing, brads, and popped up flower for a punch; but all of it works together in a balanced and harmonious way. What I take away from a card like this is that less is more. I tend to get carried away with sponging and such -- I can't seem to help myself; so cards like this remind me that often the simpler the card, the prettier it can be. Of course, Robyn can also keep up with me in the sponging department, but obviously she's learned better than I when to stop. :-) I know I have lots to learn from her!
This gorgeous baby card was created by Mary Rushing. I love her use of various embossing folders and, more importantly, the use of non-traditional colors. Too often we get bogged down by pale pink and blue, or pale green and yellows for those neutral baby cards. Instead, Mary chose to use bold colors that are reminiscent of pink and blue, but are different enough that one can change the sentiment and make this an anniversary card or a congratulations card. I love it!
The final, but no less gorgeous card, is by Tammy Shaia. I love the colors of this card and the vintage elegance. She also used the new set, Papaya Collage, which is a set that seems to have unrelated stamps, but which Tammy made work in a way that makes me see that stamp set in a whole different light. This is also the "danger" of looking at others' work -- stamp sets that didn't "grab" you immediately become must-haves when I see the beautiful cards other create. :-)
I thank these women for sharing their talents with me, and allowing me to share their cards with you. I aspire to their talents! I also appreciate all who allow us to be inspired and CASE their work.
This card was created by Liz Haddon, another North Carolina demonstrator. I love the look of the spiral technique she used. This card is a great all-occasion card that isn't too complicated but packs a 'WOW'!
Obviously I LOVE the new Pleasant Poppies stamp, and I really love the way Susan Merrell created the vase for the flowers. Her attention to details -- the embossing and antiquing on the vase and the use of filler adds an amazing 3D effect to this card. Simply breathtaking!
This card was created by my friend, Robyn Polinsky. She does gorgeous work, and this card is no exception. What I love about it is it's elegant simplicity. There are several embellishments here -- dry embossing, brads, and popped up flower for a punch; but all of it works together in a balanced and harmonious way. What I take away from a card like this is that less is more. I tend to get carried away with sponging and such -- I can't seem to help myself; so cards like this remind me that often the simpler the card, the prettier it can be. Of course, Robyn can also keep up with me in the sponging department, but obviously she's learned better than I when to stop. :-) I know I have lots to learn from her!
This gorgeous baby card was created by Mary Rushing. I love her use of various embossing folders and, more importantly, the use of non-traditional colors. Too often we get bogged down by pale pink and blue, or pale green and yellows for those neutral baby cards. Instead, Mary chose to use bold colors that are reminiscent of pink and blue, but are different enough that one can change the sentiment and make this an anniversary card or a congratulations card. I love it!
The final, but no less gorgeous card, is by Tammy Shaia. I love the colors of this card and the vintage elegance. She also used the new set, Papaya Collage, which is a set that seems to have unrelated stamps, but which Tammy made work in a way that makes me see that stamp set in a whole different light. This is also the "danger" of looking at others' work -- stamp sets that didn't "grab" you immediately become must-haves when I see the beautiful cards other create. :-)
I thank these women for sharing their talents with me, and allowing me to share their cards with you. I aspire to their talents! I also appreciate all who allow us to be inspired and CASE their work.
Wednesday, August 1, 2012
New Catalog and Promotions
It's August 1st, which means a new Holiday Mini catalog and new promotions from Stampin' Up! First up is our Spooktacular offer for those who join our Stampin' Up! family this month. I saw the finished product at convention and it is CA-UTE! You get everything you need to create this beautiful shadow box (except the inks) as it is. But I know some of you out there will look at this and make it your own -- you know who you are! Let me know if you have any questions about joining my team.
Our next promotion is for My Digital Studio. Now, I will admit that as a more tactile person, I prefer to feel the stamps and paper and get my fingers inky. But my brother convinced me that it would be a great way to play with layouts and such before I actually cut into my cardstock and Designer Papers, so I do play with it now and then. I especially appreciate the outstanding quality of the print services for cards, scrapbook pages, and photo memory books that can be created with MDS. And now that MDS2 has been made simpler, I can see myself using it much more often. And now YOU can try it too -- for free!!
Finally, we have our Holiday Mini Catalog (see it on side panel). Stampin' Up! has certainly outdone themselves with this seasonal catalog. The new stamp sets are gorgeous, we have a ton of new Framelits that match the stamp sets, and for the first time, Stampin' Up! created discounted bundles of the stamp sets and their corresponding framelits! Be sure to check out the goodies. I recently got a bunch of them and will be busy getting creative in the coming weeks, so I'll be sure to post some of the items I've made. Happy Stamping!
Our next promotion is for My Digital Studio. Now, I will admit that as a more tactile person, I prefer to feel the stamps and paper and get my fingers inky. But my brother convinced me that it would be a great way to play with layouts and such before I actually cut into my cardstock and Designer Papers, so I do play with it now and then. I especially appreciate the outstanding quality of the print services for cards, scrapbook pages, and photo memory books that can be created with MDS. And now that MDS2 has been made simpler, I can see myself using it much more often. And now YOU can try it too -- for free!!
Finally, we have our Holiday Mini Catalog (see it on side panel). Stampin' Up! has certainly outdone themselves with this seasonal catalog. The new stamp sets are gorgeous, we have a ton of new Framelits that match the stamp sets, and for the first time, Stampin' Up! created discounted bundles of the stamp sets and their corresponding framelits! Be sure to check out the goodies. I recently got a bunch of them and will be busy getting creative in the coming weeks, so I'll be sure to post some of the items I've made. Happy Stamping!
Sunday, July 29, 2012
But I'm not crafty!
When I share my love of stamping and card-making with friends and family, I often hear, "That's great. But I couldn't do that. I'm not crafty." And I know how they feel. My brother was blessed with artistic abilities coming out of the whazoo. I, on the other hand, couldn't draw a stick figure if my life depended on it. In my younger days, I took up needle crafting -- cross-stitching, to be specific -- in an attempt to be "artistic." I figured I couldn't go too wrong with a pattern and floss. But eventually my eyesight and carpel tunnel (not to mention being a full time student and worker) got the best of me and I put it aside.
Enter card-making. I also thought I wasn't "crafty" enough to do this. But with some practice (thanks to my friend Linda) and looking at a lot of magazines and online sites, I slowly figured out how to do layouts, combine colors, and make cute cards. It also helps that Stampin' Up! has great rubber stamp images that I can color in -- because I've always been good at that!
My early cards are amateurish, I will admit. But they're still cute and recipients loved getting them. Eventually I learned new techniques, new color combinations, how to use new tools and embellishments, and my cards have become a bit more sophisticated. But I still look back at my early endeavors with pride because, well, we all have to start somewhere, right? And to be honest, I look back at those cards with a bit of nostalgia for their simplicity, something which I struggle with now -- sometimes (I mean, do I REALLY need more sponged edges or another ribbon?) lol One of these days I'll get the courage to post some of those early cards -- not all of them use Stampin' Up! products, so they're not as clean and crisp as they could be. But for now, I'll post a few of the cards I made for convention swaps. (For those who are new to papercrafting, the beauty of being "crafty" is that we don't have to reinvent the wheel each time we want to make a card. Instead, we can CASE -- copy and share everything. Sometimes it's an exact duplicate, more often we change something up -- the Designer Paper, the colors, the image -- to make it our own. Trust me, if I had to be "crafty" all by myself, I'd be in trouble!)
Here's an ATC card I made for a Stampin' Addicts swap. An ATC (Artist Trading Card) is a 2.5 x 3.5 card that can then be added to a full card. I made this using the stamp sets Elements of Style (Item#120045 [c]), Kindness Matters (butterfly, Item#122902 [c]), clear embossing powder (Item#109130), and ink colors Daffodil Delight, Gumball Green, and Melon Mambo.
This card was for a single-layer swap, which means using only the card base as one's canvas. Here I used the bleaching technique, which is painting bleach on colored cardstock to take color away. I used the En Francais background stamp (Item#109521) and the Sunflower background stamp (Item#123608 [c]) and clear embossing powder. I used Early Espresso cardstock (Item#119686) and as you can see, it bleached to a really pretty light yellow.
Finally, this card was for an upline swap with Martha Armstrong's group. Because it was for people that are in my same organizational group, I felt like I needed to step things up a bit more, so this card was more labor intensive, as I did a lot of detailed coloring and sponging. But as always, it was a labor of love! And if I do say so myself, I think it is rather gorgeous. :-) I used our new Pleasant Poppies background stamp -- love it!! (Item#129499), our Watercolor Pencils (Item#101879) and lots of sponging with Gumball Green, Daffodil Delight, Tangerine Tango, and Real Red.
So, as you can see, I am indeed "crafty" -- and you can be too! All it takes is some patience, practice, and a willingness to get your fingers inky!!
So, as you can see, I am indeed "crafty" -- and you can be too! All it takes is some patience, practice, and a willingness to get your fingers inky!!
Saturday, July 28, 2012
Stampin' Up! Convention 2012
I thought I'd share with you the highlights video from our convention last week, as well as the video for our theme song. I love our theme song -- it's quite catchy, don't you think?
This is our theme song video, featuring staff from Stampin' Up!, including our founder and CEO, Shelli Gardner.
This is a taste of our week at convention. Unfortunately, I couldn't find myself in the video. Perhaps next year! :-)
This is our theme song video, featuring staff from Stampin' Up!, including our founder and CEO, Shelli Gardner.
This is a taste of our week at convention. Unfortunately, I couldn't find myself in the video. Perhaps next year! :-)
Welcome!
Welcome to my new blog! I figured it was time I "joined the club" and started one. I'm an independent demonstrator for Stampin' Up! and I recently returned from our annual convention in Salt Lake City, Utah, excited and re-energized about my favorite hobby -- stamping and card-making. If it has something to do with ink, rubber stamped images and paper, I'm there! I hope you're willing to go on this journey with me and that I can help you catch the papercrafting bug as well! (I also hope you'll be patient with me as I learn how to navigate this medium, along with all the other parts necessary -- pictures, video, etc.) :-)
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