A Lotus Blossom Valentine

I have 7 Grandchildren with one more due in February. There are 5 grand-daughters and 2 grandsons (February brings the 3rd grandson). I have a couple more Valentine cards to make after this one. Obviously this one is for a girl.

Playing with this three step stamp set, "Lotus Blossom" is so much fun. At the Open House I had on the tenth, this stamp was played with by almost everyone that came! I think that says how much fun it is to use. One blossom is stamped directly onto the card piece, while another is stamped onto a scrap piece and cut out. This one is then popped up with dimensionals.

The two hearts were punched out of the DSP and then sponged with Calypso Coral to give them a finishing touch. They are also popped up with dimensionals as is the white confetti heart strip.

On the inside of the card I added a sponged heart as well.

I was thinking after I made this card that it could be a wedding card too! Just add the names of the bride & groom in the hearts, or some sentiments of some kind.

Hope you've received some inspiration from this card. To view the product used you can scroll down to the end. Thank you for checking out my creation for you today!

Happy Stamping!

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Using Velum to Tone Down a Busy Pattern

I realized that if I wanted to get Valentine cards out to my Grandchildren I had better get a move on and make a few more!

I love the "Stacked With Love" DSP stack, but what to do when the pattern may be too busy or strong for your project? That's what happened to me in creating this card.

I didn't want to use a different pattern, because I felt that the arrow pattern was a good fit for my Grandson and for a more masculine card. After a few minutes of trying to solve the problem I remembered 'velum'! I cut a piece the same size at the arrow paper and when I placed it over the paper, not only did it tone down the pattern, it also has a slight gray hue that goes well with the Basic Gray cardstock.

You can see that I used the "You Plus Me" stamp set for this card. I hand cut the ampersand after stamping in with black onto the Basic Gray cardstock.

You can see in this next video how I layered everything on the card.

The circle has one layer of dimensionals, the ampersand has two layers of dimensionals, and the heart has three layers! The little punched hearts are attached with a glue dot giving them, too, an ever so slight popped up dimension.

You'll also note that I took my Cherry Cobbler ink pad and a sponge to add shadow and dimension to the punched hearts. It only takes a few seconds and gives the punched shapes a little more of a finished look. To learn what products were used for this card, see below. (I forgot to put the velum in the list)

Thank you for stopping by for a peek at this card. Hope it gives you some inspiration. Happy stamping!

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Baby Girl Wall Hanging - Sold!

A couple of weeks ago I made a wall hanging for my home (view here). I decided to make another to display and sell at the Open House. I must apologize for the poor lighting in these photos. My usual photo spot couldn't be used the evening I took these.

Maybe in this next one you can see the layers a bit better.

I think I could easily become addicted to making a number of different framed wall hangings like this one and the previous one. There was interest at the Open House to have a class on making a couple projects like this, and this one I had up for sale at the Open House and it wasn't long before it was sold. Product used to make this project can be found below.

Hoping your week is off to a good start. Thank you for checking in for a peek. Happy Stamping!

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Lotus Blossom, Bow Builder & Project Life!

Good Day Everyone!

Today is my Open House, so I'll be away all day, and busy.

Yesterday I mentioned that I would be showcasing some of the new Stampin' Up videos. Now some of you may have enjoyed yesterday's so much that you went to YouTube to watch more of them. That's what I would have done, lol! But for those of you that didn't do that I'm going to share two today that are about items that I actually have and have used!

Lets begin with a technique video showcasing the beautiful new "Lotus" 3 step stamp set.

To see what I did with my "Lotus" stamp set, see it here.

Now lets have a look at another product video with a construction tip it for you. It is about the "Bow Builder' Punch! I love this punch and you have already seen that I have used it here just a few days ago.

And one more for today. This one is a "Project Life" video using the Sale-a-bration free "This Day" mini-set. She shows you how to use it basically and different stepped up versions! A great video.

I look forward to working with some of these products too!

Wait till you see the ones I post tomorrow! Lots of fantastic tips and ideas to learn form some of these videos. Tomorrow's are no exception!

Thank you for stopping by! Happy Stamping & Crafting!

How to use the Hostess code (upper right corner of blog):

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Build A Bouquet Video by Stampin' Up

Happy Day to you all!

As you know I am currently busy getting ready for my Open House.

So I thought I would schedule some new Stampin' Up Videos for you. They will showcase some of the new products and some techniques too. Today I chose to include for your pleasure the video on how to make that gorgeous paper flower bouquet on the front cover of the Occasions Catalogue. Yes you can purchase the kit (page 29) to make it and build this gorgeous bouquet!

And this video is on the Perpetual Calendar Kit (page 17), which I have but haven't made yet. This would be a fun workshop in your home!

 I'd love to teach this as a class or at a workshop and see all the creative ideas everyone has as they put their calendar together! So if you live in Victoria, BC and would love to host a workshop to create this with your friends, and earn some wonderful free Sale-a-bration items, just email me at sabradcreations@gmail.com.

That's it for today. I'll have a couple more videos for you to watch tomorrow, so checking again.

Happy Stamping & Crafting!

How to use the Hostess code (upper right corner of blog):

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My Top Five Favorite Items in the Occasions Catalogue & More Open House Prep

What did you do yesterday?  Did you spend the entire afternoon flipping through the new catalogues and dream about all the things that could be yours?  Did you mark your book and plan your next order?  If so, you’re not alone.

Now that the catalogue has been shared online, I want to help you prioritize your list.  As such, I’ve selected my five favorite items from this amazing book, and I’m happy to share them with you today.  It was difficult to control my list, and I’m sure my “likes” will fluctuate a bit over the next couple of months.  Even though these are my top five favorites, I don't have them all yet, s some items can wait for a later day and are more season appropriate. Without any further ado, here are my favorite items in the 2015 Occasions Catalog

These first three items I am calling as one, because to me they are a set. You can find all three on page 19 of the Occasions Catalogue.

Isn't this hand painted DSP just gorgeous! I think I could use three sets of these papers!

 

This stamp set to match or accompany the paper is something that I look forward to using, and it coordinates with the DSP so beautifully, as does the following Embossing/Impressions Folder.

Even though these are my first pick, I still don't have them yet. I thought I would get Valentines out of the way first. OK, that's the first one. The following stamp set is a must have, and I don't have that one yet either, and its called "Sheltering Tree". Love that as a name for the set. It alone brings comfort. This is a set you can use all year round! (found on page 22)

My third choice is this gorgeous serif 'Alpha' set. I'm imagining many beautiful note card sets made with this "Sophisticated Serifs" stamp set, amongst other things. (don't have this set yet - found on page 44)

Next would be the "Balloon Bash" stamp set. I just love the hand-drawn, chalkboard inspired birthday banners in this set! (on page 13 - again I don't have this one yet either) This set goes so beautifully with the richly coloured "Birthday Bash" DSP (which I do have - page12).

It's hard for me to pick my fifth one. It would probably change again tomorrow, lol! But for now I'll say it's the "So You Project Kit" & "So You" stamp set. Again these are two different items, but they are meant to go together, so I'm counting this as one. Both of these are found on page 44.

I have a few others that I would have loved to have put in this fifth spot, and tomorrow I will probably wish I had put one of them here. But I hope that you are having as much fun browsing the new Occasions Catalogue as I am.

Now, for my Open House prep work!

I want everyone to have some fun at the upcoming Open House on Saturday, so I am punching and stamping away for some "Make'n'Takes" and samples to play with. Here are samples of layered stamping, colouring with Blendabilities, and multi-colour stamping using the "Stampin' Write" markers. Some of these I will demo at the Open House, and others guests can experiment with.

Thank you so much for stopping by today to check out all the fun things that are going on right now. There's more to come!

Happy stamping and crafting!

How to use the Hostess code (upper right corner of blog):

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New Occasions & Sale-a-bration Begins!!! & Open House Prep With Punches

This is an exciting time of the year at Stampin' Up!. Not only is Stampin’ Up’s 2015 Occasions Catalog live today, but it brings Sale-a-Bration with it, too! Over the past several weeks I’ve been sharing projects made with new items from both catalogs.  I am absolutely love these products, I’m super-excited about these books, and I’m so thrilled that you can start ordering from them today.  Can you tell I’m a bit excited?

A Little Bit About the Occasions Catalog. This catalog is filled with amazing bundles of coordinated products at a discount – if you are a “just gotta’ have my bundles” stamper, then you are going to love this catalog. There are some wonderful new bundles to be had. From one end to the other, this catalog is filled with the joy of Spring and the excitement of love.  It’s perfect for the season – and just what we all need after months of Autumn-themed and snow-filled projects.
 

What is Sale-a-Bration?  Sale-a-Bration is Stampin’ Up’s annual sales event that’s targeted to customers, hosts, demonstrators and demonstrators-to-be.  Who DOESN’T benefit from Sale-a-Bration?  Here’s a review of the ways you can take advantage of Sale-a-Bration:

• Between January 6 and March 31, customers earn a free Sale-a-Bration product for every $60 you spend in a single order.  If you spend $200, then you earn $35 in host rewards (standard) and THREE FREE Sale-a-Bration items.  Wow! Right?
• You also earn additional host rewards on orders greater than $265 and up.  Whether it’s your order or a combined order with your friends, everyone loves more money.
• When a Stampin’ Up’s Starter Kit is purchase during Sale-a-Bration (you'd make a great addition to my team), you earn your choice of two Sale-a-Bration items or one of the kits from the Occasions Catalogs.  There’s no commitment to sell Stampin’ Up! after you join.  Please email me at sabradcreations@gmail.com if you want more information.

There will be more about the wonderful advantages of Sale-a-bration in the next few days! But right now I would like to share with some of the prepping I've been doing for my first Open House, Saturday, January 10th at the Canadian Legion Hall in Langford, BC (greater Victoria, BC). Let's begin with all the punching I've been doing. Since the new 2015 Occasions Catalogue is now out with all the wonderful spring items in it, and since we've had enough of the winter things of snowflakes, polar bears, and stars, I thought it would be nice to see some beautiful hearts, flowers, and bows spread about the display tables.

I had a blast making all the flowers, and it's easy with the punches! Did you notice the new 'Build-a-bow' Punch!

These little bows don't take much longer to build than making the flowers, at all! You can use cardstock or DSP! Aren't they sweet! Check the Occasions Catalogue on page 13 (137414). Lets have a closer look at the flowers, shall we.

These are made with the "Fun Flower" punch (133785) and the little flower from the "Itty Bitty Accents" punch set (133787).

These next flowers are made using the "Pansy" punch (130698) and the "Itty Bitty Accents" punch set (133787).

And then, since I love Stampin' Up, and with Valentines not far off, I had to throw in some hearts too!

The "Sweetheart" punch (133786), and again the "Itty Bitty Accents" punch set (133787) were used for these punched hearts.

Well that's it for today. I have other photos of prep work for the Open Hose to show you tomorrow.

It's TUESDAY today so not only do we have the new catalogues to go through, but we also have new "Weekly Deals" out today!

 Thank you for going through this long post! So much going on right now! Hope that you will have fun going through your new Catalogues!

Happy Stamping & Crafting!

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Beautiful Wall Hanging In 45 Minutes!

I've wanted to make a really nice wall hanging for my home for a while now. When I received my Sale-a-brations order and saw the stamp set "You Brighten My Day", I knew I could make one using this set. The DSP "Best Year Ever" has colours that I wanted to use, plus I wondered about using a little glimmer, too.

Back at the end of Summer or beginning of Autumn, I had come across an image, that I wish I had pinned or saved, because it is the inspiration for this project. Do you think I could find it? Nope. So I'm not sure who to credit the inspiration to.

Here is a side view so that you can better see the layering.

I had so much fun making this and was surprised how quickly it came together. May have to use this idea for gifts in the future, and maybe make one or two more different ones for myself.

This frame is from IKEA and measures 12 3/4"w x 16 3/4"h. An 8 1/2"w x 11"h piece just barely fits in the mat area.

A couple of close ups...

What colours would you be using to make a home decor wall hanging? You can see what I used to make this project, below. (except for the Sale-a-bration stamp set and 2015 Occasions DSP)

Thank you for stopping by to have a look.

How to use the Hostess code (upper right corner of blog):

• when shopping online, enter your items into your cart (total must be under $200)
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There Is Always Something to Be Thankful For

HAPPY NEW YEAR EVERYONE!! It's now 2015!

The New Year brings with it new hope, new determination to do better and accomplish what you didn't the years before. One thing I have learned, is that when a person is happy you achieve more. I have also discovered that happiness comes when you are thankful for what you have, who you are, what you do, and what is all around you. So in that spirit, having a gratitude journal helps you keep track of all that you are blessed with, resulting in the realization that you are truly blessed and happy. Being happy will help you to achieve your goals in life.

So with that in mind, I have taken the new Large Kraft Journal (137865) available in the New Occasions Catalogue coming January 6th, and created a "Happiness" Journal/"Gratitude" Journal. It's a great size, and you can make it your very own using your creative design!

This is mine.

You can see that I used the "Modern Mosaic" impression folder. I did it because I've always liked a little texture on a book that I use often, plus it adds a bit of interest. The Kraft Journal is a bit darker than the Crumb Cake, but it frames everything nicely.

I do have a few photos of this project, but decided it might be best to view it in a short video. So here we go.

Here are a few more photos.

With the exception of the Large Kraft Grid Journal, you can see the product used for this project, below. I wish you all a very Happy New Year, filled with wonderful good things!

Thank you for stopping by to have a look. Leave a comment on how you would use the new Large Kraft Grid Journal in creating something from it. I'd love it if you would share your ideas.

Happy stamping and crafting!

How to use the Hostess code (upper right corner of blog):

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You Brighten My Day Sneak Peak

Using product from the Occasions Catalogue and Sale-a-bration Booklet is such fun! Soon you will be able to get yours too! In the mean time here is a sneak peek of the Occasions' "Birthday Bash" DSP (137783) and the Sale-a-bration's "You Brighten My Day" stamp set (free a with $60 purchase).

This whimsical and cheerfully coloured card is one that uses my favorite 'dimension' look on a card. This is a 'give in person' card.

Aren't the colors and patterns of the "Birthday Bash" DSP bright and cheerful? The little house and curved sentiment are so adorable. Here is a look at the stamp set.

One of the things I like about this stamp set is that there are so many punches that works with it!

This is a pretty easy card to whip up. Just punch away, press to shape the blossoms, layer, and attach!

And here is what I did on the inside of the card.

So are you a 'keep it simple & flat' creator, or a 'love layers & dimension' creator? To see all the punches I used, etc., check below at the end of this post.

Thank for checking in to have a look at today's card. Have a great New Year Celebration tonight!

Don’t forget about the Year-End Clearance Rack.  With new items added this week, there are SO MANY great items currently available on the Year-End Clearance Rack – even great items from the Holiday Catalog!  To check out the entire list of items still available (they are only here until they sell out), click here!

How to use the Hostess code (upper right corner of blog):

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• at check out, look under "Special Offers" (bottom left)
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NOTE: If your order is $200 or more, do not use this code

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