I've moved again... (check out my new mailbox!)

This is turning into an annual event... we've moved yet again! That's one of the reasons why I've been lax in posting on my blog lately. Hopefully that'll change now that we're in our new house and the end of wrangling boxes is in site.

Driving through our new neighborhood I noticed that all the mailboxes looked alike--Whisper White mailboxes sitting on Sahara Sand colored posts trimmed with a little Chocolate Chip... or is that our new Early Espresso? Yes, I see the world in Stampin' Up! colors! Don't you?!

Well, one of the first things that came to mind was how easy it would be to add a Decor Elements image to give our box a little personality. Here's what I came up with:

I used the Flourishes DE in Sahara Sand (117756/$14.95). It comes with 3 flourishes and 3 flowers. I chose to use just the flourishes. What do you think?

To see Stampin' Up!'s full line of Decor Elements, go to the SHOP NOW page on my website and click on Decor Elements.

Happy Stampin!

Brenda

Scrappin' Recipes

As I continue with the National Scrapbooking Month theme during May, I'll show you a fun way to organize your special family recipes. Unless you're a Bush (from the baked bean company), then you'll want to add a lock and key to this idea. :) Since my recipes are not secrets, I like the idea of creating a pretty book and scrapping mini recipe pages.

I started with a 6x6 ring bound scrapbook. This is one of Stampin' Up!'s albums and I'm predicting it will be soon retiring, since it's Mellow Moss--a retiring color. So, if you want this exact album for your own recipes, order it now (105391) through my website! I chose a ring bound album so that I can add and rearrange my recipes easily. A post bound album would make that more complicated.

The cover is decorated with Decor Elements. The flower is a Demo sample. If you were to host a workshop with me, I could start the process of decorating your recipe album with one of these. Give me a call! The title was cut out using the Timeless Type Junior Sizzlits Alphabet Dies (115951) and a roll of Chocolate Chip Decor Elements sheet (114337).

Now for the pages. I used the From the Kitchen of stamp set (114964) for the recipe cards. The rest of the pages are decorated with card stock, designer papers and stickers from a Simply Scrappin' Kit. There is really no wrong way to do this. Treat your recipe like a photo and SCRAP IT! Since they're small pages (6x6), they are fun and easy to create. It would also be a great way to use up scraps you have leftover from other projects.

I will say that this Recipe Book only contains my very special recipes. They may not be secret, but they are definitely tried and true recipes that my family loves. Who wants to spend all that time and energy scrappin' a crappy recipe?! NOT ME!

Happy Stampin & Scrappin!
Brenda

Handcrafts + High Tech = Happy Birthday Boy!

My son, Nicholas turned 13 years old today. Thankfully he still enjoys receiving my handmade goodies... meaning, he doesn't think they're not cool... or sick... or whatever slang they use these days. Here are the party favors I made:

Stamp Set: Just Perfect Alphabet

Accessories: 1 3/4 Circle Punch, Crimper, Crop-A-Dile, brads (retired), large cello bags

and his birthday card...

Stamp Sets: Nature's Nest & Celebrate Everything

Accessories: 1 3/4" Circle Punch, 3/4" Circle Punch, 1/16" Circle Punch, Slit Punch, Designer Circle Brad, Large Polka Dot Texturz Plate, Big Shot, Clear Embossing Powder, Heat Tool, Versamark Marker & Basic Black Craft Ink

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I was so excited that Stampin' Up! came out with a new turtle stamp in the 2009-10 catalog! Nick LOVES turtles! I didn't want to go with the traditional colors with this birthday turtle, so I decided to use some bright cheery colors. First, I stamped the turtle in black craft ink and heat embossed it with clear embossing powder. Then I colored him in with our Stampin' Write Markers and let him dry a little... I got impatient, so I dabbed off the excess ink before I used a Versamark marker to color over the entire turtle to be able to emboss him with more clear powder. Had I not dabbed off the excess color from the markers, I would have smeared my work of art. Then I cut him out and attached him to the card front with dimensionals.

Here's a closer look:

As I said before, Nick LOVES TURTLES! So when he requested that the laptop he gets for his birthday be different from the rest of our laptops (yes, we're a laptop family), I immediately thought...

A DECOR ELEMENTS TURTLE!

What a fun day!

Happy Stampin!

I'm On A Decor Elements Kick!

Okay, I have to share a project I just did while hanging some things in our new house.

As you may know, my hubby is deployed. I decided to hang 2 clocks so the boys and I can keep track of what time it is in Kuwait... and here, of course.

Well, I've had this roll of Chocolate Decor Elements sheets (114337) for quite some time now and have, for some reason, been afraid to use it. I think it's my hoarding complex kicking in. Whatever it was, I got over it. For those of you who may not understand what hoarding is all about, I'll explain how it works for me. I buy things because I think they're cute or a great idea or I JUST HAVE TO HAVE THEM. These things may or may not cost all that much, but they are very "rare" and "valuable" things to me, so they can only be used on a VERY SPECIAL project... if they ever get used at all. I figured this was a "Decor Elements sheet worthy" idea, so I finally cut into it! I have to tell you, this project took me all of 30 minutes. The most challenging part was lining up the letters, which wasn't too difficult (just don't look too closely).

The letters are cut out with the Big Shot (113439) and the Serif Essentials Alphabet (113464). Here's a look at the clocks where they hang over our desk and the elderly desktop computer that I try not to use much anymore since getting my laptop.


Now that I've cut into these sheets and find that it's actually kind of fun (and maybe even a bit liberating), I'm wondering what else I can label!

STARTER KIT SPECIAL REMINDER: While we're on the subject of time, don't forget that time is running out to take advantage of the awesome $85 starter kit special! It ends in less than a week on August 31. If you've ever thought about becoming a Stampin' Up! demo, now is perfect the time to take the plunge! Even if you're not interested in "selling stuff", you don't have to! Just think, you can hoard even more with your very own 20% demo discount! Not that I condone hoarding... I'm just saying... If you'd like more information or are interested in signing up, give me a call or send me an email. My contact info is on my website.

Happy Stampin & Decor Elements Applyin!

Blogging on my New Computer!

Today is a bittersweet day for me. My kids went back to school, which should have me doing back flips of excitement. However, at the wee hours of the morning, I had to bring my hubby to the airport for his deployment to the middle east. He will only be gone for about 4 months, but during those 4 months we will be celebrating several holidays and a couple birthdays--including mine (Sept 7). Since he was taking his laptop with him and our desktop computer has become so sluggish in its old age, I got my birthday present, my very own laptop computer, a little early! I've had it for about a week now and spent yesterday transferring all of my files from my hubby's computer to my own. AND... I made it look pretty with some So Saffron Upsy Daisies Decor Elements ($9.95/117926):

These were super easy to apply. All I did was trim them down a little bit, gently rub them with my finger and peel back the backing paper.

To make it through the day, I think I'll head to my craft room to create some new Holiday Mini samples for my upcoming Holiday Mini Open House on September 3... it's called Stamp Therapy!

Happy Stampin!

Convention Continued: Turtle Montage

Having a son who has LOVED turtles for over 7 years (he's 12 now), I am always on the lookout for turtles wherever I go. My trip to Utah was no different. How excited do you think I was to see that the "demo flight" (yes, the plane was filled with mostly demos on their way to convention) from Denver to Salt Lake City on Wednesday (Aug 5) had Sheldon the sea turtle on the tail?! This was the first picture I took on my trip... and I HAD to call home to tell my son about it. His reaction... cool.


Later that same day, during our tour of Demo Support at the Riverton campus, I saw this:

I forgot to note which DS agent's cubical this was... whoever she is, she's cool in my book! BTW, isn't that butterfly basket of flowers cool too?! That entire thing was made using our awesome Big Shot with Beautiful Butterflies ($21.95, 114507) & Daisies #2 ($19.95, 114520)!

Then, on the last day, someone asked if I had seen the pop-up ball turtle on display... um, NO! Why had she not mentioned that earlier... I do not know! So, as soon as I was done with my lunch, I was off in search of the turtle! Here it is!

And a side view:

I don't have this Pop-Up 3D Ball die ($39.95, 116759), so I don't exactly understand the engineering behind how it works, but isn't this turtle COOL!

AND, then I walked around the displays some more and found this:

It's our Decor Elements T is for Turtle in Old Olive ($4.95, 117908) and "Is For" in black ($1.95, 117529).

Happy Stampin!

More from the Riverton Campus (Legacy Room): Day 1 cont.

As promised, I'm back with more from my trip to Utah.

Stampin' Up!'s Legacy Room is not a single "room", it's actually a collection of several rooms that is a wonderful museum of the company's history along with wonderful room displays that any crafter and non-crafter alike would LOVE to have in their home. Here are a few of my favorites:

I bet you can guess why this is tops on my list. (hint: yarn & knitting needles)


How cool is this border?!

That's are Decor Elements!

This Advent Calendar would be a wonderful family project that could be used for many years to come:


What kid (or mom) wouldn't love to have a room like this?

I know Amy would!

Happy Stampin!

"Create" on canvas!

As Randy on Idol would say, Check this out!

Because we live in military housing and know we won't be here forever, I wanted to attach the Decor Elements Create Definition to a movable surface. So I applied it to a pre-made stretched canvas that I found at a big box store.
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Prior to applying the DE to the canvas, I first painted it with a mixture of white acrylic paint and Baja Breeze ink refill. My first attempt at this step was not exactly successful. Since I have dabbled in many different crafts over the years, I thought, Hey! I have white acrylic paint in my stash! *Note that this paint has probably been in my paint stash box for half of the 17+ years I've been married AND has been moved half a dozen times. So, it wasn't a surprise that it was a "bit" clumpy and didn't create that nice smooth surface I was hoping for--but not because of a lack of me trying. :) After a few hours of trying to pick off the little clumps and wondering if the little marks from where the clumps used to be on the canvas added "texture & interest" to the look, I ended up ditching the clumpy paint--both huge bottles of it--and going out and splurging another $1 to buy a brand new bottle. And, boy, did that make all the difference in the world!
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In all its' glory, this inspirational canvas is hanging above my creative crafting space. It would be a perfect addition to the decor in anyone's creative space--whether it's on the wall or on another surface.

Be Creative, while you're
Happy Stampin!

Decor Elements Monogrammed Journal

I'd like to share a journal I decorated with a monogram from Stampin' Up!'s Decor Elements line:

This is a super quick project. I found the plain black journal on the clearance rack at Borders Book Store. After applying the monogram , I figured it needed a little something else, so I pulled out some satin ribbon and my much hoarded Pretties Kit and add just the right touch to make the cover... well, Pretty! Here's a close-up:

This may not be the most practical embellishment for a book that will be stored on a bookshelf, but I think it would be oh so inspiring to write in at bed time if it were laying on my bedside table. By the way, each letter comes in a pack with an upper and lower case letter, so I have an upper case B leftover to use on another project.

Happy Stampin!

Spooky Spider Decor Elements

If you like decorating for Halloween, here is a fun product I think you'll like--Spooky Spider Decor Elements:

The spider comes in three sizes in either black or white, so you can use them for different applications. Perhaps hang a medium or large one in your front window and apply a small one on a candy jar (as in the picture). These spiders are only available until October 31! Contact me today to place your order!