Matchbox Dresser

The new occasion mini starts on Wednesday and I am so excited! There are so many new items that are "must haves". One of these "gotta get its" is the Matchbox die for the Big Shot. My upline Sara shared this project with us at our downline meeting, but there are millions out there. One of the cutest I've seen is one made by Gretchen Barron. Unfortunately I couldn't find it on her blog, but maybe she will post it as soon as the occasion mini goes live on April 1st! Until then, you will just have to enjoy mine.

My Gift!

Yesterday I told you all about how great it is to be a demo because of the downline meetings, but there are also other perks. This is the cutest door hanger ever made by my upline Sara! I'm currently the only demo that has a dedicated stamp room, so she made this for me. Isn't it awesome!

Come On Sun!

Ok, here it is the end of March, and here in Germany we have yet to see even one full day of Sun. I think we are all feeling the draining effects of the gray raining/snowing days. A week ago a bunch of us got together at my upline's home and did another shoe box swap. These are so much fun, and yet another reason to be a demo. We get to go to these special meetings about once a month (sometimes more if we beg!). You can go with me if you want. I can take a guest each month. The only catch is once you go as a guest you can't come back unless you sign up to be a demo. Let me know if this is something you would like to check out. Our next meeting is May 3rd.

So....back to the lack of sunshine. I think the gray days are really affecting one of my sidelines, Christina. She created this "simple" (her words not mine) card in YoYo Yellow. This is a bright card, but you could actually feel the mood brighten in the room. I thought I would see if it would brighten across the WWW too, so here is my Lemon card!

My husband has corrupted ,my mind!

Ok, the quote I was trying to use yesterday was " I want Candy, Bubble Gum and Taffy" and comes from the show Aqua Teen Hunger Force. If you don't know what that is consider yourself lucky. Its juvenile and definately "man" humor. My husband introduced it to me....and insists on quoting it. If you still aren't satisified click here, but don't say I didn't warn you.

Ok, back to the hostess gifts.....today is the last day of our first ever Theme Week. How did you like it? should I keep it up, or go back to just a random project a day? Let me know.

This last gift is a test tube holder. My sideline Emily (hmmm, she has been in my blog a lot lately.) came up with the idea for a shoebox swap for my SU demo family. We have different tastes so we both decided to make one. We used the same color pallet, the same stamp set, and the same DSP. It's amazing how different they look. Which one do you like better?

Chocolate and Bubble Gum and Taffy

Ok, I can't remember what that is from, or if that is even the right quote...if you know what I'm trying to quote let me know please :) Every hostess likes Candy. If you give them a cute container full of candy they will ooohhh and ahhh. This one is unfortunately not mine. My sideline Emily gave it to me and I filled it with matching DSP covered toblerone. Isn't it adorable. I was going to give this to a hostess, but she cancelled at the last minute, so.....I have to admit it.....I ate the toblerone myself!

Magazine Card Holder the Sequel

Ok, yesterday I showed you the mini cards. Today I will show you the standard one. Someone (I wish I knew who so I could give you credit...let me know if it was you) took the mini magazine holder and figured out the measurements to increase it. Same Simply Scrappin kit as yesterday, same stamps, just different size. Which one do you like better?

Magazine Card Holder

Ok, I don't only horde DSP, I also horde Simply Scrappin Kits. I'm horrible aren't I. Once again, when the last catalog retired, I had a whole set left. I finally broke it out and used it to make cards and a mini magazine holder to put them in. I also made a full size one I'll show you tomorrow. Nothing outside of the kit was used for this except the stamps. If you would like the directions just leave me a comment. As with everything else, it wasn't my idea, but I'll be willing to give you what I have.

I'm a DSP Addict

Ok, I admit it. I have another addiction besides the Pretties Kit. My name is Kelly and I'm a paper-a-holic. I love all the Designer Series papers. I buy them. I look at the, in their protective plastic covers. The one thing I never do........I never use them. When the Fall/ Winter catalog ended I had 11 yes you read that right ELEVEN DSP packs that I hadn't' even opened. I've decided that I need to use my DSP. One of the ways I am using it is as hostess presents. I have cut 4 x 3 7/8 pieces of each of the paper in a package (I only have medium bags right now, but hopefully I can get bigger ones and give away 6x6 pieces) and then bagged them up as gifts. I have given them to hostesses, to workshop participants, as advertisments with my business cards, pretty much to anyone who will take them, and I still have more left. I just topped the bag with a top note and left it at that. Anyone want one?? :)

Theme of the Week: Hostess Gifts

I thought it might be fun to do a theme of the week. You know....talk about the same thing all week long. I wanted to do something to switch it up a little bit. While almost anything can be used as a hostess gift (a card, a stamp, some cardstock,) I thought it might be fun to share some more projects I have given to my hostesses. Yesterday you saw my totally tags, today you see the same box but it holds a SU! pen. No, the pen doesn't fit into the #2 Box, you have to extend it. Basically you cut the box twice and then piece them together to make a longer box. It sounds easy doesn't it....for most people it probably is. Me on the other hand....well lets just say that I made one of these boxes at my upline's house. Mine ended up in the garbage, and her's is here on my blog. Thank you for saving me again Sara!

(anyone know why my picture won't load correctly? It is right side up when I look at it on my computer, but Blogspot wants to turn it.....Any assistance would be greatly apprecited!)

Totally Tags

I've been meaning to share this with you for a while. This was a hostess gift I made a few workshops ago. It is the #2 Box die filled with punched tags. I made ovals, scallops, squares, pretty much any punch I could think of. It was simple, it used up scraps, and it was cute. What more could you ask for of a hostess gift? I would let you know what the colors were, but they were all scraps. Sorry. Next time I will take better notes.

Scrapbook Part Deux

Ok, I promised I would show you the pages that my upline, downline, and friend made for Oma's scrapbook. These are all still made with the Sunshine Garden Simply Scrappin Kit. It is an amazing deal! For less than 20 dollars and using only items in the kit you can make 8 double sided scrapbook pages. It is amazing. Plus everything already matches. So, without further ado...here are Emily, Sara, and Cora's scrapbook pages. Thanks guys! I couldn't have done it without you.

Scrapbook

A week ago I had an impromptu craft night with my upline, my sideline, and a friend. One of the things we did was put together pages for my children's Oma (Our German neighbor who my kids have adopted). Her birthday is coming up next month and she really wants a scrapbook. She asked for one at Christmas and time kinda got away from me. We all did a couple page and were able to complete the whole thing in one night. Using a Simply Scrappin Kit sure made things go quickly. These are the pages I made. Tommorrow I will show you the rest. These are all made using Sunshine garden. We did us a little Regal Rose, So saffron, Baha Breeze, Certainly Celery and Old Olive cardstock in addition to what was provided. So. what do you think? My favorite is the HI page, which one do you like?

A Cute Bunny

Ok, I figured that since yesterdays bunny was so disturbing (at least to me, if not you) that today I would post a cute bunny. This is the bunny I am going to use for my Demo families shoebox swap this Sunday. Sandi MacIver provided the idea. I just adjusted it from a card to a decoration. Isn't she adorable? This project uses Kiwi Kiss, Whisper White, and DSP Raspberry Tart. Sandi has the templates on her blog at www.sandimaciver.com. Let me know if you decide to make one of these as well. I would love to see it!

Bunny Card

Ok, have you ever saw the cutest thing and thought, I can do that easy? Well that is what happened to me. I saw this adorable card on Splitcoaststampers. I thought to myself, how hard can it be? She said she used SU! punches and I own almost all of them. Well, lets just say I am not worth. I can't make this card to save my life, but I thought you all might need a laugh. So. without further ado....here is my tragic rendition of the bunny card!

Top Note Die Basket

This is another project from my SU! team's shoebox swap. I really like the way this turned out, but I'm not sure I will be making many of these. This took forever and was pretty work intensive. It is possible that I am just a slow learner, but I think I will leave this project for the rest of you who have more patience than I do. We used the SAB designer series paper (better get yours quick, it's free with a $50 order and is only available until March 30th) and certainly celery. I loved the green on green, but then I figured I had to give it a little punch of color. The flower brads from SU! were perfect for this. Enjoy!

More from the Pretties Kit

Ok, I admit it. I am addicted! These gorgeous flowers just scream to be used. Imagine how happy I was when one of my sidelines pulled them out to use at our shoebox swap. Almost this entire card is retired, but I still got to use the pretties!!!! We used markers to color each of these, it was the first time i have ever done pen on pretty before. I really liked the way it turned out. Enjoy. Oh, and it has green so I figured it was appropriate for St. Patrick's Day.

Late Night Call

Living in Germany is not without it's challenges. For example, you're sitting in your favorite chair on a Sunday evening watching TV when all of a sudden you remember you have a going away party tomorrow afternoon! In the states it's no problem. You have several options. #1 you rush out right then (Pj's and all), and hit Walmart. #2 you wait until, the following morning and stop at a Kroger's to pick up a card on your way into work. Not a problem. Now, same situation but in Germany. #1 not an option...no Walmart and nothing open any later than 2pm on a Sunday. #2 PX doesn't open until 10 AM so no way to grab anything before work. What do you do? Well lately it's been , Pick up the phone and call Kelly. That's what happened early this week. A lady who is a friend of a friend of a friend of mine called around 9:00 Pm asking if I could make a card for tomorrow. Someone was going away. The person leaving was a financial advisor, and could I possibly put money on the card......Ummmmmm sure! So, this is what I came up with. Almost everything is SU! except the money ( I printed it and the saying on the computer). Unfortunately I think everything is retired. Oh well, no one claimed I was perfect. I really like it. I think it turned out cute. What do you think?

Yet Another Workshop Card

I had a workshop last weekend. Since the majority of the attendees were from the military unit that is leaving, we decided to make "sorry to see you go" cards. The outside of this card is embossed using the dots texture plate for the big shot. It is made using very vanilla, and chocolate chip card stock as well as chocolate chip ink. I also used up some of the half back pearls from the pretties kit. We used eastern bloooms and welcome home stamp sets. I learned something really cool when I was planning out this card. If you click on the stamp images at the online store you get a true to life size of the stamped image. I was able to copy the images and create a sketch to make sure everything fits. It is a great tip, and I will be using it more often.

Another St. Patrick's Day Treat

Ok, what can I say...I'm starting to feel a bit Irish. This was a prize used at one of my workshops last week. I was lucky enough to participate in one of the test tube bulk buys. Now I have a hundred to figure out what to do with :) This used up one...so I only have 99 to go. The candies inside this are some of the nerd jelly beans. I don't know how they taste, but the color was exactly what I needed! Once again, these are super easy. You still have time!

St. Patricks Day Lifesaver Treats

Didn't I tell you I loved these little Lifesaver treats? If you would like to make some, you can follow my tutorial. They are so quick and easy. With even less than a week to go until St. Patty's day you could still whip up a bunch of these to hand out. This one uses Garden Green and Whisper white cardstock, and Whisper white ribbon.

Katie's Cards

Remember the mom and me stamp camp I ran a week or so ago for Katie and her friends? I guess we have made quite a stir. The girls took their projects to school with them and everyone loved them. Especially the Cherry spinner card. Katie being the good hearted girl that she is decided to "take orders" for these spinner cards and she has been busily making them for her other friends ever since. These two were made for Malichi and Tatiana. I think she did a great job. She may be a SU! demo yet.

No Stamp Flip Album

Have you ever seen anything so cute. These are the flip albums I mentioned last week. We created these at a class at my upline's house. They are so simple to make! I made one for my daughter (the flamingo one of course) and one for my Son. They both picked out their own paper (which is why there is some non-SU! paper in my daughter's album). My upline was kind enough to share this pattern with all of us, so if you are interested, leave a comment and I would be happy to email you the pattern. Hope you enjoy!

You're Hired!

Remember that group that I told you about ....the Late Night Stampers Group? Well Sherrill Graff is the list owner, and she is absolutely amazing. Want to know who her upline is? Shelli Gardner (co-founder of Stampin' Up!). There are so many talented experienced artists on on that group. Sherrill hires demonstrators from the list to make cards for her to show at her workshops. Later they are sold off to support a charity of Sherrill's choice. While I thought that would be a wonderful honor to be chosen, I've always been so intimidated and felt that my work just wasn't up to the same standards as the other artists on there that I didn't apply. Well, after some encouragment from other list members and Sherrill herself, I sent her a link to my blog asking for some constructive criticism. Imagine my surprise when she informed me that I was HIRED for the month of April! I am so excited. I've been walking on air all day, and I feel like I just won the lottery. If you still haven't checked out our group you have to do it today! It's amazing how much I have grown since I have become a part of them. Also, keep an eye out on my blog for the new cards I will be making to send to Sherrill. I'm hoping they will knock your socks off (or at least be stamped straight!).

Gift Certificate and Criss Cross Card

I love giving away gift certificates for Stampin' Up products, classes, and just about anything. The fact that my friends are also customers makes it so easy for me. I never have to worry about forgetting to shop for a gift (shhh don't tell!). I wanted a pretty holder for my basic computerized gift certificate, so I found these criss cross cards. They are so easy to make, and absolutely cool. This one is made of Riding Hood Red paper and Bella Rose DSP. Now tell me, wouldn't you love to get one of these?

Is it summer yet?

Ok, here in Germany we had a few gorgeous days and it got me all geared up for spring/summer. Then in typical Bavarian fashion it changed it's mind and turned cold again. Since the weather wasn't cooperating, I thought maybe I could make myself warmer by stamping summer. Here is my attempt. This is made with Regal Rose, Black and Gable Green Cardstock. The seeds are drawn on with a black marker. The watermelon was a circle cut with our new circle scissors and of course the oval punches and SAB Yummy stamp set are on there as well. I loved making this one. I used the scalloped circle punch to take the bit, although It almost looked good enough to try myself. Thanks for looking! Think summery thoughts.

My First Ever Tutorial

Ok, we have a little shoe box swap happening tonight at my upline's house. I decided I wanted to make the little lifesaver treats. Since I wanted to make a tutorial for my sidelines to take home, I figured I might as well post one on my blog. I think I might have gone picture happy. Any suggestions for the next time I do this would be greatly appreciated. Anyway, without further ado....here goes nothing.


Supplies Needed
1 1/2" x 2 1/2" colored cardstock
1 1/2" x 3" whisper white cardstock
The ribbon needed is 7" long.
individually wrapped lifesaver

Tools Needed
Ribbon Scissors
Versamark
embossing powder
Heat Gun
scalloped square punch
1" circle punch
snail
Stamp Set
Crop-a-Dile
(forgot to add Crop-a-Dile in picture)


Step 1:Punch a scalloped square punch out of the white cardstock.



Step 2: Fold the punched square in half and stick it to each side of the lifesaver package with snail adhesive.



Step 3: Using your Crop-a-Dile, punch a hole in the middle of the top of the folded square.



Step 4: Trim your ribbon down to sharp points with your ribbon scissors.



Step 5: Thread one end of your ribbon through the hole from the back.



Holding the piece already through the hole Wrap the other end of the ribbon around the square and thread it through the back again (Using the exact same hole).




Step 6: Position your ribbon so the wrapped around part is centered in the middle. Tie one half of a knot and then trim, the ends.



If I have completely lost you, please see this video tutorial by AllInkedUp.


Step 7: Stamp chosen image onto colored paper using versamark.




Step 8: Using white embossing powder and the Heat Gun, emboss the stamped image.




Step 9: Using the 1" punch, punch out the embossed image and stick it on the front of the individually wrapped lifesaver.