August Newsletter has been Posted

Just wanted to let all of you know that I've already posted my August Stamping Newsletter...It's a little early, but better early than late, right? My newsletter will fill you in on what's going on this month (or next month, depending on which month you read this post!), with my Heat Embossing Technique class, a Scrapbook in a Box Project Class, the Be Inspired page, the Craft Table project and Card Kit information. 

I’ve included my August class summary below, but you can find all the pictures and details inside the newsletter, just Click Here to view it.

August Classes

Creative Cards: Heat Embossing Techniques ($15)

Tuesday, 8/2 – 10 AM-Noon; 7-9 PM at Tumbleweed Recreation Center

Tuesday, 8/16 – 10 AM-Noon; 1:30-3:30 PM; 7-9 PM at Heidi’s House

Project: Scrapbook in a Box($20)

Tuesday, 8/23 – 12:30-3 PM at Heidi’s House

 7-9:30 PM at Tumbleweed Recreation Center

Triple Ice-Cream Scoops

This sweet Ice-Cream Cone Gatefold Card was created by Adriel and is one of the three Summer-Themed cards I taught this month. I love the triple ice-cream scoops; chocolate, strawberry and vanilla and the little rhinestone on the cherry is too cute. The Square Lattice texture impression folder creates the perfect Crumb Cake waffle cone. Add one of the Bring on the Cake stamp set sentiments and you have the perfect Summer-Themed birthday card to give away this season. Thanks so much for stopping by and visiting. I hope that you have a great day!

Click to Order Stampin' Up! Supplies 

My Summer-Themed Card PDF Tutorial and a few extra Card Kits for this class are available for purchase. You can Click Here for more information.

How About a Big Mac?

I've seen several Hamburger themed cards around and thought that I'd add my own to the mix, so here's my take on hamburgers this season. This is one of three cards I made for my Summer-Themed Card Class this month. I used MDS to create my DSP, which came out great. I used lots of punches: Word Window, Modern Label, Scallop Oval, Crimper, and the Big Shot Ovals to create the burger and all the little detailing.

This was a really fun class to teach and everyone's cards came out so cute. I'll be sharing the rest of the cards on my blog throughout the next few weeks. I hope that you stop by again. Thanks so much for stopping by!

Click to Order Stampin' Up! Supplies 

My Summer-Themed PDF Tutorial and a few extra Card Kits for this class are available for purchase. You can Click Here for more information.

Art Nouveau Blossom Petals

Do you ever end up with card parts just lying around? I do, I have little pieces and parts that pop up every now and then. One of the pieces that has been lying around for awhile is the largest flower petal from the Blossoms Petal Builder punch. Everytime I saw this little piece I kept seeing it as the focal point of some kind of Art Nouveau'ish type card. As I googled Art Nouveau images, the colors and the card began to emerge.
So what is Art Nouvea? Here's Wikipedia's definition: A style of decorative art, architecture, and design prominent in western Europe and the US from about 1890 until World War I and characterized by intricate linear designs and flowing curves based on natural forms. (Hmmm...that sounded to me like the flowing curves on the Blossom piece I was thinking about.)

So what I actually did was repunch the largest Blossoms Petal in Shimmery White CS. I used one of the little wooden tools that come with SU's rub-ons, and placed my punched petal on a piece of cardboard to dry emboss some curves onto the petal. I used the Reinker Spread technique (click on this video for a quick how-to) to create the light and dark areas on the petal. The embossed lines acted as little reservoirs for the ink to flow down into...kind of cool. The Old Olive leaves are punched from the Blossoms Petal punch, as well. I folded them in half and ran each one through the crimper, sponging Soft Suede over the surface and edges of the leaves and large reinker blossom. What a great tool the Stampamajig was to accurately place the small Charming medallion stamp around the perimeter of the circle.The rest of the supplies I used to create my card are listed below. Thanks for stopping by!

Supplies Used
Cardstock: So Saffron, Old Olive, Basic Black, Shimmery White,Calypso Coral

Punches: Blossoms Petal, 1-3/8" circle, 1-1/4" circle, Itty Bitty scallop

Stamp Set: Charming

Ink: Calypso Coral (and Reinker), Peach Parfait (and Reinker), Early Espresso, Soft Suede

Big Shot: Scallop Circle; Ovals #2

Accessories: Jewels-Pearls, Circle Cutter, sponge dauber, Crimper

 Click to Order Stampin' Up! Supplies

Summer-Themed Card Tutorial Available

If you missed my Summer-Themed class this month, you can still get in on the fun. If you're interested, I am offering the PDF tutorial for these cute cards, which are shown below. 

My PDF tutorial includes a thorough and detailed list of supplies and dimensions along with an Illustrated Step-by-Step Tutorial to give you written and visual instruction for creating the cards below. The cost of the PDF class (which includes directions, PLUS a bonus PDF flip-flop template) is $3.95 and can be purchased below by clicking on the "Buy Now" button. The PDF will be emailed to you within 24 hours.

Summer-Themed PDF Tutorial - $3.95
(3 card PDF's plus Flip-Flop template)

In-Color Workshop Card Tutorial

Today I'm hosting my annual New Catalog Workshop and this is the card we'll be making. We'll be using some of Stampin' Up's new catalog items: Blossom Bouquet Punch; Postage Stamp Punch; Pretty Postage Stamp Set; and the new In-Colors (Calypso Coral, Pool Party, Wisteria Wonder, Lucky Limeade, Island Indigo).

If you'd like to make this card, Just CLICK HERE for the free PDF step-by-step illustrated tutorial. I hope you have fun and thanks a bunch for stopping by!

 Click to Order Stampin' Up! Supplies

Dust Storms and Poolside Tags

 I'm sure you all have seen pictures of the huge dust storm (aka haboob) that swept through the Phoenix area last week. It was quite a sight...very ominous looking and a little apocalyptic feeling. It came through just around dinner time. We could see the wall of dirt off to the south of us, so we piled into the car and drove about a mile south to watch it come through the mountain and fields.

It was pretty cool to watch it sweep through the mountain, it looked like a volcanic eruption.

As it got closer we decided we better head back home, there's nothing fun about getting stuck in a dust storm.

The pictures tell the best story...but within minutes the light disappeared beneath the cloud of dust, turning evening into instant darkness. As amazing as the storm was, the media totally overplayed it. We get crazy monsoon storms here with strong winds that can do quite a bit of damage, but this didn't bring much of either, but it was something you don't get to witness everyday.

It did dump a bunch of dirt everywhere, including our pool, which afterward, looked more like a pond. It took several days to get it clean again. So speaking of pools, I wanted to share with you these little Poolside Tags that I made for my stamping friends this month. I used a bunch of punches to make the embellishments. I used the Blossom Petal punch for the Pacific Point faux leather scallop flower; Itty Bitty punch for the little Tempting Turquoise 4-petal flower; Word Window punch for the stamped Whisper White sentiment; Tag Corner punch (retired) for the upper two corners of the Bashful Blue tag base; Corner Rounder for the bottom left corner of the Bashful Blue tag base; and the Dotted Scallop Ribbon Border for the Tempting Turquoise, Pear Pizzazz and Not Quite Navy trims. All the colors together remind me of the colors you find around a pool (a clean pool)...very cool and summery-looking. Thanks for letting me share my Dust Storm pictures with you. See you next time!

 Click to Order Stampin' Up! Supplies

White on White CASE

One of my stamping friends came over last week and brought with her the pieces to this card. We punched and ran pieces through the Big Shot and put our cards together in about 10 minutes. She'd done all the prep work and she'd brought a photo of the card, which made it a snap to create. I don't know who the originator of this card design is, but whoever you are the design is beautiful. I thought I'd share this CASE with all of you...I love the white on white and the embossed layers...and thanks Diane, for prepping the pieces and bringing them over. Love it!

And just a reminder that I've got my Summertime Themed card classes at Tumbleweed Recreation Center (Germann/McQueen) this week - Tuesday, 7/12, (10 AM/ 7 PM). If you'd like to attend, let me know...I'd love to have you come.

Some My Digital Studio News

FREE My Digital Studio Download!

As a "hurray" to the new catalog and beginning of a Stampin' Up! year, you can  get a FREE greeting card designer template!  This template showcases a great mix & match of the new catalog content and the new 2011 - 2013 In Colors!

To get this FREE download simply CLICK HERE, sign in and add to your shopping bag. It will be ready for you to download and use in your My Digital Studio.

Your free download will be available immediately if you already have an online ordering account. If you don't have an account, it may take up to 24 hours to appear after creating it.

The second My Digital Studio news is...Free Color Palette Update with 2011-2013 In Colors
You can update your My Digital Studio color palette by downloading the latest 1.0.7 update to the software by going to "Check for Updates" in the Help menu of your My Digital Studio software or by installing from the Updates section of MyDigitalStudio.net. Once installed, the color palette in your software will be updated with this year's In Colors: Calypso Coral, Island Indigo, Lucky Limeade, Pool Party, and Wisteria Wonder.

There's still MORE My Digital Studio News...With the new 2011 - 2012 Idea Book & Catalog came 26 NEW My Digital Studio downloads! The new downloads coordinate with your favorite traditional stamps, embellishments, and Designer Series Paper from the catalog. You can purchase all of this content as individual downloads or as four large DVD collection bundles, each bundle is priced at over a 10 percent discount from the individual download prices.

Take a peek at this flyer that showcases these DVD collections.  They are beautiful!

Don't own My Digital Studio yet?

Purchase My Digital Studio by CLICKING HERE - read about your purchasing options below.

My Digital Studio Software - Item #118108

Use the same great artwork, colors, and accessory images found in our current product line to create personalized digital projects. The options are endless: create photo albums, calendars, and greeting cards using My Digital Studio. Once you've created your personalized gift or heirloom, have it printed in our high-quality print facility and delivered to your door or print it at home.

• Available in English only

My Digital Studio Express Software - Item #124483

My Digital Studio is perfect for you—no matter your skill level or experience—because you can start from a blank canvas or use designer templates for inspiration.

This downloadable version comes with the full software and fresh, minimal digital content using Stampin’ Up!’s artwork, designs, and colors! Windows and Mac compatible.

Includes over $50 worth of content:

• 12 Designer Series paper patterns
• One 9-piece stamp brush set
• 81 embellishments
• 26 punches
• Five designer templates (24-page 11" x 8-1/2" photobook, 7" x 5" postcard, 5" x 7" postcard, 4-1/4" x 5-1/2" greeting card, 4" x 9-1/4" trifold card)

My Digital Studio Downloadable Booster Pack - Item #124484

Pair this downloadable booster pack containing over $500 worth of digital content with My Digital Studio Express (item 124483) to enjoy the same full digital content from the packaged DVD version of the software.

Content includes:

• 408 Designer Series paper patterns
• 62 stamp brush sets
• 187 embellishments
• Six designer kits with designer templates, Designer Series paper patterns, and embellishments
• Seven 12-page photobooks in each of these sizes: 5" x 5", 8" x 8", 12" x 12", 8-1/2" x 11", and 11" x 8-1/2", seven greeting cards in each of these sizes: 4-1/4" x 5-1/2", 5-1/2" x 4-1/4", 5" x 7", 7" x 5", and 6" x 6"

The last of the Scrapbook Pages

   I hope that you're having a wonderful Fourth of July. One thing you can always count on for the Fourth here in Arizona is that it's going to be HOT! We may grill and swim outdoors on the Fourth, but that's about where the outdoor activities end, but the family, friends and yummy food part always make for a fun day, in spite of the heat.
   Well, here's the last of the 3 Baby Scrapbook pages I found in my drawer a few days ago. I really like this one...I like the circles, the colors, the buttons...well, I just like it all!
Colors: So Saffron, Bashful Blue, Blush Blossom (retired), Certainly Celery, Whisper White and MDS Digital striped background, non SU DSP. Punches: Boho Blossom, Scallop Edge, 1/2" circle, Scallop Circle, 1-3/8" and 1-1/4" circle, 3/4" circle. Big Shot: Scallops Die

Thanks for visiting my blog and letting me share with you. I hope that you have a Happy Fourth of July!!

July Newsletter, New Catalog, New Classes

    Well, this month marks a lot of NEW and exciting stuff...The big news is the 2011-2012 Stampin' Up! Idea Book and Catalog. It's full of new stamps, new In-Colors, new designer papers, and accessories, which means more fun!

       I'll be hosting a New Catalog Workshop this month, July 17, and you're invited. For more information click on my July Stamping Newsletter.
       Speaking of July's Newsletter, it's free and ready for you to view by clicking the above link or the button on the side of my blog. This month's newsletter includes the "Be Inspired" page, which features cards that our stamping friends have submitted, along with a new "Craftroom" project for you to try out for yourself. I've also posted all of my July classes with info and pictures which I'm excited to share with you...they are all about celebrating Summer! I'll be offering the PDF Tutorials for July's classes later this month, so if you're interested be sure to check back. If you miss a class or don't live nearby, I have July Card and Project Kits available for purchase. Email or call me for more information. I'll be happy to send a kit out to you.
It's great to have you stop by!