Sneak Peak - Holiday Mini - Season of Friendship

Hi Everyone! I had a chance to make something tonight and broke out my holiday Mini Pre-ordered stamps. This is a new set called Season of Friendship from the Holiday Mini that is available starting Wednesday, October 1, 2008.

For the leaves, I stamped them first in the lightest color and then used the rock and roll technique to get the gradiation of color. I'm not really sure what to do with the top of that tree yet though. The little tabs are made with the new curly label punch. I cut one of them in half and mounted it to each side of the circle. The corners on the alway artichoke mat are made wiht the curly label punch too. I just slide the corner in and punched the end. The card looks much better IRL (in real life) and sparkles with the gold cording. Thanks for visiting me today!

Wedding Gift - Decor Elements Style

So here is the complete set for the wedding gift I've been working on. The wedding is not until tomorrow and I'm done with everything already?!? I just felt my forehead and I seem to not have a fever - LOL! Anyway, I switched the paper that's showing as the wedding colors are maroonish. The little d is on a 4 x 6 acrylic frame and the paper inside can be switched out. Same with the big monogram. There is repositionable tape on the inside of the frame and a bunch of pre-cut circles of various patterned paper so the bride and groom can change the look a they want. Also in this package will be the set of monogramed notecards. The little tag tucked in the corner of the frame tells them about the papers inside. Don't hesitate to contact me if you have any questions and have a great weekend!

the Rubber Room is OPEN! World Cardmaking Day Celebration!

What better way to celebrate WORLD CARDMAKING DAY than by inviting all my stampin' friends to come play in their new stamping space - the RUBBER ROOM! My basement remodel is finally 99% complete and I am so excited to hold my first Open House in it!

Saturday, Oct. 4th 11 am - 2 pm (stay as little or as long as you'd like)

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  There will be lots of new Stampin' Up! products to see, touch and play with! (and of course, order)


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  Prizes and specials (like 20% select Simply Sent Kits and Card Elements).


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  Garage Sale * - Everyone is welcome to bring their gently loved stuff (if it's SU, it must be retired) and offer it to a fellow stamper!


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  Food of course!


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  Bring a friend - I have LOTS of room now!

*If you will be bringing stuff for sale, please have it pre-marked with your name and price and come a bit early to set it out on the garage sale table!

Please let me know by October 1st if you (or a friend) are coming so I can have enough supplies cut for everyone! Can't wait to see you all and show off the room I've worked so hard on all summer!

Decor Elements Monogram Frame

This is a wedding gift for a friend's son and new DIL. I found a black 13.5 inch square frame at Michael's and dry brushed on some choc chip colored acyrilc paint, then I applied Stampin Up's Decor Element's frame directly to the glass part. Next, I cut circles using a pot lid for a template. Now she can change out the frame's look, just by putting a new piece of DP behind the initial. The extra's will be placed inside the frame with instructions for her.Oh, the dp is held in place by small pieces of repositionable tape applied to the back side of the frame on the "D". Have you tried Decor Elements yet? Send me a link, I'd love to see them!

Spooky Spider - Decor Elements Phase 2

Just in time for halloween, Stampin' Up! has released this new Spooky Spider Decor Elements vinyl cling. Check out the details here! Call or email me if you'd like to order one, or just click on the Stampin Up! logo near the top right hand corner and order it online anytime!

The Decor Elements will adhere to almost anything smooth and comes off with no damage to the surface. Once removed they are not reusable though. What will you use your spider for?

more rubber room pictures

I know you come here to look for stamping ideas and stuff, but this is sorta stamping related (and the closest I've come lately). Here are some more pictures of my almost done Rubber Room. Yep, I decided to call it that instead of my craft room or my stamping space - gotta be different ya know! Plus, most times I really NEED to be in a rubber room, so it seemed fitting. Anyhoo..... the first picture is what happens when you shake a previously opened can of white eggshell finish trim paint when the cover had not been replaced the day before with a hammer. After MANY choice words, my son and I were able to clean it all up pretty good and the second picture shows the same area 2 days (and alot of sweat) later. Sorry, didn't mean to gross you out - lol! The cabinets pictured here are yet another tale of woe in my book of the rubber room. I purchased the counter tops at a discount store about a month ago as they were the last 3 in black and at $30 each, I couldn't pass them up. So, for a month, I've been trying to decide what to put under those countertops. I knew I wanted white, so I bought the u-put-together ones (the ones with paint splattered all over them) and attemtped that. NOT GOOD! So, I will be returning those and in the meantime, went back to Lowe's and purchased the already put together ones you see pictured. On the way down into the basement, I dropped the drawer that you see sitting on top of the counter and the front busted off - ugh! The caulk is drying on it in this picture. Then, as I was putting the other drawers in after the counter tops were placed, I realized that they wouldn't close as the lip hung over too far - double ugh! After a short cry on the newly paint-free floor, I bucked up and decided to head into DH's workshop to see what I could finangle (is that a word?) I cut some "shims" and caulked them onto the cabinet bases to raise the countertop up just enough so it sat flush with the tops of the cabinets and viola - a desk!! Moral of the story.... well, I don't know the moral of this one, it just helps me to whine!! If you made it this far - wanna come play in the new rubber room? Hopefully, I be able to create some stuff in here soon!

craft room furniture!

I have furniture!!! Here is the first piece to go in my new studio. The top picture shows the view from the office wall where the cubies are and looking into the classroom area. The 2nd photo is taken from sitting on the stairs into the basement. These are bookshelves that I bought online from Target.com with a glass table top that I've had for about 10 years that I bought at the Harden Furniture factory sale for around $20!! As you can see, I have yet to fill up the shelves, but that won't be a problem... lol! I plan to do my standing stuff here, like cutting and big shot-ing as well as standing to type to all of you on my laptop:) It will also serve as overflow classroom seating when needed. Thanks for taking a peek. Can't wait to have everything down here and organized and filled with people!

ONLINE ORDERING IS HERE!

You can be in charge now of when your order gets placed and delivered from Stampin Up! I'm so excited to offer my customers this convenience. If you're like me, you like to surf around the web after work or after you put the kids to bed, but you hesitate to call or email the demonstrator every time you see something you "must have". Well, fret no more! When you visit my Stampin' Up! Demonstrator Website, you can click on the Shop Now Button in the top right hand corner and order whatever you want, whenever you want! There is a link to my demonstrator website on the right hand side of my blog. When you get there, just favorite it and it will be easy to find whenever the Stampin' Up! itch hits! Keep in mind that if I'm offering a special, you'll want to place your order with me. Have fun shopping and as always don't hesitate to contact me if you have any questions!!

Rolling Marble Technique

Each month, I hold a DIVA Club, where 10 girls have comitted to spend $15 each month and we all take turns being the hostess. The hostess of the month gets to pick 2 techniques to play with on the night of the meeting. This months hostess is Jenn (hi Jenn!) and she has chosen the Rolling Marble Technique as well as Faux metal. I have never tried the rolling marble technique, so I put aside my own safety and ventured into the floor of my kids' closet to see if I could find some marbles....

I didn't find marbles in the true sense, but I did find some round magnet thingies and they seemed to work just fine. I used tempting turquoise reinkers on a scrap of soft sky I had lying around. The flowers from Upsy Daisy are done using the faux dry embossing technique - first stamped in whisper white and then overstamped using basic gray. I think it came out okay for a first try. What do you think girls - is it DIVA worthy?

So what does a Big Shot Cut you ask?

Big Shot Approved Materials

Cut through the following 50 materials using steel rule dies and your Big Shot machine. Please note the maximum thickness of several materials.

Brass (.055)
Light weight steel
Aluminum (.016)
Tin (.008)
Aircraft plywood (1/64")
Basswood (1/16")
Balsa (3/32")
Paperwood
Mat board (adhesive or none)
Chipboard
Fabric
Silicone
Foam with chipboard (.1)
Corrugated pad
Adhesive-backed cork
Fine sandpaper (.00)
Strene
Extra thick template plastic
Template plastic
Plastic canvas (7 mesh)
Bubble wrap
Sheet foam
Friendly (jewelry) plastic
100% pure beeswax (cut with parchment paper on top & bottom of beeswax)
Adhesive and non-adhesive rubber
Ruffleboard
Static cling vinyl
Warm & natural batting
Fusible fleece
Quilt batting
Adhesive and non-adhesive flexible magnet
Heat n' shrink plastic
Adhesive and non-adhesive felt
Pop-up sponge
Shiny self-adhesive and non-adhesive paper
Iron-on fabric
Poly foam adhesive and non adhesive
3-D illusionary plastic
Glow in the dark adhesive and non adhesive
Suede paper
Funky fur
Personal Embossing Plastic (PEP)
Shaggy plush felt
Canvas
Vinyl flooring
Shelf lining
Placement
Embossing rubber
Thin leather
Gasket material

Note: Not all dies sold by Stampin' Up! are Steel Rule Dies.

The Big Shot is Here!

The Big Shot is here! I just ordered mine yesterday and I can't wait to share it with you all at classes and camps! You can get the machine and any of the dies starting today! Just click on the picture above to see the catalog and view informational videos on this cool new must have tool!

The Sizzix Big Shot for Stampin’ Up! makes creating die cuts easy. With the Big Shot you can cut over 50 different material types and duplicate creative and intricate designs quickly and easily.
Stampin’ Up! has also designed exclusive dies that coordinate with their current product lines–such as their stamps and punches–as well as Sizzix dies that coordinate with the Stampin’ Up! look and feel. The Big Shot product line will continue to expand, so check back to see what exciting new things are on the way.

Elmo says Daniel is 1!

Don'tcha just love elmo? I do! My nephew is turning 1 already and he loves Elmo (smart kid, like his aunt tilly). This idea is not my original idea, I saw it on Splitcoast, but I did the card all on my own by first cutting the largest circle with my coluzzle and then free handing in his "fur" and notching it out with scissors. The eyes are made with circle punches and his nose and mouth are done with oval coluzzles. The mouth I altered to reshape it a bit and then after it was adhered, I extended the corners with black marker. I shaded (a little too much) his nose and his red fur to give him some dimension. I thinks he's pretty cute! Thanks for popping in!

addition and craft room update

Here's some basement remodel update pictures. Below are the pictures of the posts that I worked on all weekend. The red part is chalkboard paint and has 4 coats. The blue part matches the back wall and has 3 coats. Then there are the white molding trim pieces.... these suckers were a PIA (that's pain in the ass!) Once we (by we I mean I) put the pieces in the miter saw the right way, it was a piece of cake, but until then, we (by we I mean DH) wasted a bunch of wood and all of our (by our I mean our) patience. But, I think the kids will have a ball playing down here and writing on the walls. DH and I had a couple of beers and played pool last night after all our work was done and I was thinking how lucky our kids are - I wish I had a place like this when I was a kid!

To the left is an overview looking past the pool table and into the craft room portion of the basement.

To the right is a close up of one of my mitered corners - anyone need anything mitered?

This is what was happening in the backyard this morning while I was in the basement finishing up the posts. DH is in the blue shirt and somehow ended up being the excavators best friend today. He came alone and DH ended up shoveling out all the backfilled material and then tamping it with the tamper thingy. I took a quick picture, then retreated before they found something for me to do! The contractors say they will have the walls built by thursday!