Merry Christmas Great Granny

This is our Christmas card for Glenn's Granny. I got this pocket quad fold (that is what I am calling it) project idea from Stampin' Success magazine (a magazine for Stampin' Up demonstrators) It totally satisfied my need to include a gift card and some school photos of her great grandchildren. The photos are on tags that can be put up on her bulletin board so she can enjoy them year round. I made a little pocket insert for the gift card.

Deck the Halls DSP set the tone for the project's colors and theme. I love the Antique Brads and Victoria Trim ribbon!

I may have to make another because I am certain that once my Mother-in-Law sees it at her Mom's, she'll be wondering where hers is!

Happy Stamping!

Gigi

That Convention Flower

OK, I promised you instructions for that cool ribbon flower from Convention and I never posted them! So rather than keep you waiting until I actually take pics of the process, I have found someone else who has already done that! Click here for a great little tutorial for making these flowers.

Happy Stamping!

Gigi

That Convention Slider Card

Ohhh easy peasy! See here's another one!

Here's how: trim the flap off an envelope and decorate the front to the envelope. Cut (and decorate or not) a piece of cardstock to slide in and out of the opening of the envelope.

Thats it. Really! Try it for yourself.

Happy Stamping!

Gigi

Things I Learnt at Convention

My favorite part of Convention was the Main Stage Sessions. Most of these were sessions where various Stampin' Up! staff and even a few demonstrators shared project ideas and ways to use Stampin' Up!'s fabulous product. Various presenters included Shelli Gardner, founder of SU, Brent Steele (this guy is awesome! so funny and talented!), Sara Douglas, and Carrie Cudney to name but a few. This creative ensemble showed us some really, really neat things and I loved every minute of these sessions!

Today I am sharing a few photos that use ideas and techniques I learned from Main Stage sessions. You'll see the instructions in upcoming posts.

One is that fabulous flower! Simple stunning and the crowd definitely "ohhhed and ahhhhed" when that one was shared!

The second is a slider card. You may be thinking (a little sarcastically) "Whoopdedoo"...well just wait until I should you how simple that slider card is to make!

Happy Stamping!

Gigi

Convention Pics

Its been 4 weeks since Convention but I just finally had time to go through all of our photos (over 1200 of them between 4 of us). Wow! I saw some amazing projects and it seems I took a photo of every single one! I won't share those with you today, but I will share people pictures.

I went to Convention with my good friend Andra. We met up with her upline and sideline, Catherine and Lesley, who are both from Ontario. Catherine used to be my demonstrator way back in 2002 until she moved to Ontario.

A few things I know for sure....

• Convention was awesome and I can't wait until I can go again.
  
• Do not bring beef jerky snack packages on the airplane. Long story, just take my word for it.
  
• I love Stampin' Up!
  
• Awards night is inspiring, but much too long.
  
• Momento Mall does serious damage to one's credit limit on a Mastercard.
  
• Do not ask the cab driver if those are "mountains or hills"...he will become offended and reply with something like "Well I don't know where you come from lady, but those are mountains."
  
• PF Changs is really yummy.
  
• Stampin' Up!'s corporate office is a really cool place. The warehouse and shipping department was really, really neat to see.

Hope you enjoy the photos.

Love Birds Mini Album

I am back from Convention - what a great opportunity! It was so much fun and I actually learned a thing or two and I saw some amazing projects that I will soon be case'ing. I also came home with a few gifts from SU. Once I've had time to organize my thoughts I will post a detailed review of my time in Salt Lake City.


Today's project is a mini album created with Love Birds Simply Scrappin' Kit. I got the tutorial from Dawn Olchefske (I also had the pleasure of meeting Dawn at convention!).

My 'Aha' moment - the photo corners were actually punched from one of the bird stickers. I am not much of a bird girl, but these bird stickers are quite large and can be used for punching other pieces.

I still have a few family photos to add and a bit of journaling to write. If you have any questions please email me.

Happy Stamping!

Gigi

Convention Roomate Gifts

It is tradition to bring gifts for your roomates at convention. Karrie came up with one idea and I came up with the other and hopefully my roomates enjoy them!

First up is a purse calendar a la Karrie. Karrie designs a new one every year. I simplied the design a little bit since I was running out of time. I love these calendars and always have mine with me! Watch for a class in the Fall!

The second gift is a little package of convention survival goodies. The packaging is simply cardstock, Greenhouse Carden DSP and a 6x6 Page Protector. I saw this packaging project a few years ago and saved the idea knowing one day I would put it to good use! The survival kit includes earplugs, microwave popcorn (yes, I checked and we have a microwave in our room), little candy bars, Tic Tacs, ice tea mixes for water bottles and lip balm.

I also made bag tags for our convention bags. I forgot to take a photo and they are now packed up so I will post a pic once I return.

Happy Stamping.


Gigi

Convention Swap - Wedding Card

Hi,

My wedding swap card is a remake of these cards.

Stamp Sets: Elements of Style and Occasional Quotes (Hostess Level 3)

• Cardstock: Basic Black, Basic Grey, Whisper White
  
  Other: Scoring tool, Basic Black Satin Ribbon and SU Basic Rhinestones
  
  Happy Stamping!
  
  Gigi

Convention Swap - Christmas Card

Christmas in July! You may see this one at my Christmas Card Event later this Fall. I love, love, love these colors together - Cherry Cobbler, Old Olive and Very Vanilla.

• Stamp Set: Christmas Greetings
• Cardstock: Very Vanilla, Cherry Cobbler
• Classic Ink: Cherry Cobbler
• Other: Jolly Holiday DSP, Scallop Edge Punch, Corner Rounder Punch and Old Olive Taffeta Ribbon

Happy Stamping!

Gigi

Convention Swap - Hostess Set

Hi! I am part of a (tiny) organized swap at convention. The swap group is only 7 people - my roomates and a few others. We had to do a wedding card, a fancy fold card, a Christmas card and a card using a Hostess set.

Here is my Hostess set swap. It is difficult to see in the photo but the image is cut out and popped up on dimensionals. And you can barely see it, but there is Dazzling Diamonds on the heart.

• Birthday Bakery (Hostess Level 1)


• Cardstock: Early Espresso, Crumb Cake, Pear Pizzazz and Blushing Bride


• Classic Ink: Black Staz On, Early Espresso (used with a Blender pen to color since I haven't ordered this marker yet)


• Markers: Pear Pizzazz and Blusing Bride


• Other: Glue pen, Dazzling Diamonds, Dimensionals, 2-3/8" Scallop Circle Punch, 1-3/4" Circle Punch, 1" Circle Punch and Early Espresso grosgrain ribbon

Happy Stamping!

Gigi

Reed's Baptism

It was Reed's baptism this weekend. Reed is my nephew, but also an honorary member of my Stampers 8 Club since his Mom was pregnant throughout most of our club and Reed joined us for our Club nights soon after he arrived. He is such a quiet little guy and true to form, he didn't cry once during his baptism!

His card came together pretty quick. I decided on Night of Navy since that was the one of the colors from his Parents' wedding. I used the new (available in the new catalogue July 1, 2010) Vintage Wallpaper embossing folder on the top half of the Whisper White layer. The image and sentiment are from Special Blessing set and were stamped with Night of Navy classic ink. The cross was stamped a second time on a scrap, cut out and popped up on dimensionals. The ovals were cut using my nestabilities.

Night of Navy narrow grosgrain with a little bow finish this card off perfectly!

Happy Stamping!

Gigi

Katie's 1st Communion

We celebrated Katie's 1st Communion a few weeks ago. Of course, she had a fancy new dress and even got her hair done for the occasion (her cousin is a hair stylist so it makes that part easy). It was a special day for her.

I had a really difficult time coming up with her card. As a matter of fact, my nephew also celebrated his 1st Communion the same weekend and I bought his card! Seriously, I had no creative mojo whatsoever that week! None. Once I finally got Katie's done, there was nothing left to try for Zack. I also ended up mostly case'ing a card from SCS.

A few embossing folders, some ribbon, a few tiny black self-adhesive pearls and a sentiment from "Special Blessing" stamp set.

Happy Stamping!


Gigi

More Elements of Style

I tell you, this set is awesome! This card with a detachable bookmark was another of May's club projects.

The toile style is a common one created with this stamp. I did this one with Chocolate Chip on Very Vanilla. On the main top image I added very, very soft color with classic ink and blender pens (Pretty in Pink and Old Olive). The color was also added on the bookmark panel. The edges of all of the Very Vanilla pieces are lightly sponged with Chocolate Chip.

The sentiment is from Watercolor Trio, also in the Summer Mini.

Instructions for a bookmark card can be found here. I used my Stampin' Up! Cutter Kit perforating tool for this project; worked great!

Happy Stamping!

Gigi

Island Oasis Mini Album

This cute album was one of May's club projects. I used the Island Oasis DSP and a few other embellishments and punches. It ends up folding to a 5-1/4" aquare so it fits in SU Medium Square envelopes.

I found the instructions here. Many thanks to this demonstrator for sharing the measurements and instructions for this project. I have made a few others and find it is a great little gift.

Happy Stamping!

Gigi

Delinquent Blogger

Yeah, that's what I am. It's not that I am not stamping, I am, lots! I just don't blog about it as often as I'd like to.

Here's a card. A bad photo of a card. Don't know what happened, sorry about the quality.

This is actually a Basic Grey base. Then a textured Pink Pirouette layer and a piece of DSP from an old retired Simply Scrappin Kit. A piece of wide Regal Rose grosgrain hides the seam nicely.

A Basic Grey base holds a the image that is stamped with Regal Rose and Wild Wasabi Classic ink on Whisper White. I stamped the centre of the flowers a second time, punched them out with the circle from the new SU Itty Bitty Shapes punch pack. Then the centres got a little bit of bling from a glue pen and Dazzling Diamonds.

The sentiment is a retired rubon from the Occasions Mini.

I made this card for my God-daughter: happy 13th birthday to Kelsey!!

Happy Stamping!

Gigi

Guess What?

I AM GOING TO STAMPIN' UP!'s ANNUAL CONVENTION!!

Watch out Salt Lake City, here I come!!

I am seriously excited. Can you tell?

Sorry no stamping, but I had to share my news.

Gigi

Happy Anniversary

We celebrated my in-laws wedding anniversary this weekend. This is the card I made for them.

Knowing I wanted to use my Vintage Vogue stamp set, I then chose my color combo. I wanted Old Olive for the vines, so I choose Pink Pirouette and Rose Red to accompany the Olive. Each flower was hand cut and embellished with a half back white pearl from the Pretties kit.

I do not own a stamp with "Happy Anniversary". How is that? This one is okay, but a little too "beginning of the relationship" rather than "married a really long time" type of sentiment. Oh well, couldn't be helped when I was making this card an hour before the celebration. {Have I ever mentioned I am a last minute kind of gal?}.

Since I was using some of my hoard of pretties, I also used some Hodge Podge hardware. I hoard this stuff. Why, I don't know since I can buy more if I need it. Seriously, its ridiculous, but I do know I am not alone hoarding embellishments!

Happy Stamping!

Gigi

Color Renovation

I am excited to share a Stampin' Up! announcement with you! I am so excited by this announcement and I just can’t wait for July! What is it you say? Colour Renovation!

It's huge and it's super! The color renovation changes will take place in the new Idea book and Catalogue that is released July 1st. We will see 4 Color Collections that each contains 10 core colors. Of the 40 core colors, 5 are brand spanking new, 10 are returning In-Colors from previous years and the rest are carryover colors. The collections are called Brights, Neutrals, Regals and Subtles. As well, we will have 5 brand new In-Colors that will stay current for 2 years!

Of course this means we do have to bid a fond adieu to a quite a few current colors. But there is lots of time to stock up on your favourites that are leaving.

You may see or hear some negative comments about this change. Stampin’ Up! did not decide to do this on a whim. This change came about after almost 2 years of extensive research, focus groups, etc. Any company needs to stay fresh and current and Stampin’ Up! is doing just that with this Color Renovation!

The Color Collections will be:

Brights Collection: Regal Rose, Melon Mambo, Rich Razzleberry, Pacific point, Tempting Turquoise, Old Olive, Daffodil Delight, Pumpkin Pie, Tangerine Tango, Real Red

Neutrals Collection: River Rock, Chocolate Chip, Soft Suede, Early Espresso, Crumb Cake, Sahara Sand, Very Vanilla, Whisper White, Basic Gray, Basic Black

Regals Collection: Elegant Eggplant, Night of Navy, Not Quite Navy, Always Artichoke, Garden green, More Mustard, Cajun Craze, Riding Hood Red, Cherry Cobbler, Bravo Burgundy

Subtles Collection: Pink Pirouette, Pretty in Pink, Rose Red, Perfect Plum, Marine Mist, Bashful Blue, Baja Breeze, Wild Wasabi, Certainly Celery, So Saffron

{Can you guess which two colors have me jumping for joy?}

We are saying goodbye to the following:

Neutrals: Basic Brown, Going Gray

Bold Brights: Glorious Green, Green Galore, Yoyo Yellow, Only Orange, Pink Passion, Pixie Pink, Orchid Opulence, Lovely Lilac, Brilliant Blue

Earth Elements: Close to Cocoa, Creamy Caramel, Really Rust, Ruby Red, Cameo Coral, Summer Sun

Rich Regals: Bordering Blue, Brocade Blue, Ballet Blue, Taken With Teal, Handsome Hunter

Soft Subtles: Pale Plum, Blush Blossom, Apricot Appeal, Barely Banana, Mellow Moss, Sage Shadow, Almost Amethyst, Lavender Lace

In Color: Crushed Curry, Dusty Durango, Bermuda Bay

This is a very exciting time and I look forward to sharing the new Color Collections with you!

Happy Stamping!

Gigi

Spring Classes

Flower Frenzy

Make 9 cards for all occasions featuring flowers! Flower stamps, 3D flowers - its going to be petals a plenty!

2 each of 4 designs and an extra of the design of your choice.

Cost $20

April 17th, 9:00AM


Mini Album Class

Come make two mini albums One albums features the Love Sparkles SSK; the other features the Tailor Made SSK.

Perfect for Mother’s Day and Father’s Day gifts! Or teacher gifts! Or make them for a friend! Or keep them for yourself!

Cost $30 for one set or $50 for two sets

May 1, 9:00AM

Space is limited so contact me soon to register!

Gigi

Busy Butterfly

This is a busy card. Lots to look at here, but to an

8 year girl, "Its beautiful!" (Thanks Katie!)

I started with a Very Vanilla base, topped with a Real Red layer. On top of that, is this cute flower DSP from the Sending Love Specialty designer series paper (Occasions Mini catalogue).

The image panel is Very Vanilla and the scallop oval is Real Red. I added the little strip of Pretty Pink that was punched with the Eyelet Border to bring the eye down a bit and finished it off with some Real Red narrow grosgrain ribbon and a tiny bow.

This two-step stampin' image is from the set Flight of the Butterfly. The main body was stamped with Pretty in Pink and the dotted perimeter was stamped with Real Red. I used my Stamp-a-ma-jig to make sure I had the images perfectly aligned. The sentiment was stamped with Basic Black (again using my Stamp-a-ma-jig for perfect alignment). The body of the butterfly was also blinged up a bit with some glue and Dazzling Diamonds.

Happy Stamping!

Gigi

Welcome Baby Reed!

A sweet new baby to love arrived this week: my nephew Reed.

With Reed's arrival, my Katie is still the only female grandchild on her Dad's side of the family. She was really hoping for a girl cousin, but it wasn't to be! She is Grandpa's only princess. Regardless, she fell in love when she met him.

Anyway, this post is supposed to be about Reed, or rather Reed's card, not Katie! Started with a 5-1/4" Chocolate Chip square card (it seems I haven't used this size in a long time), added a layer of Whisper White, then Taken with Teal. Another layer on the bottom half of the card of Chocolate Chip and a design from the Sale-A-Bration pack of DSP, Welcome Neighbor. I used my Scallop Edge punch on these pieces. {By the way, Sale-A-Bration is on until March 31st}.

The letters were done with my Timeless Type Sizzlits. I think I should have embossed them, but I thought of that after I had them on! Two pewter brads were added the top left side to fill up bare space. The star and the sentiment are from Nursery Necessities. And, of course, ribbon, cause I love ribbon, especially wide grosgrain ribbon! I think this is called a tailored bow, but whatever, it suited the card.

Happy Stamping from the proud Auntie!

Gigi

Really Cool Flower

So this card is a total case of my last post. I decided not to do the easel card I posted about for club, but still wanted to use that DSP. So this is the card. I added this really cool flower. I love this flower! Super easy to do too.

Punch yourself 5 scallop circles. Snip between each scallop; don't cut too far into the middle. Then scrunch them up. Lots. For a few minutes. Seriously, you need lots of good scrunching to get the desired effect. Then carefully un-scrunch the pieces. Then spritz them with water and set them aside to dry. Layer them one on top of the other, pierce the centre and stick a brad through all the layers. And ta-da you have this cool flower.

I must point out that I did not "invent" this flower. I have seen instructions on several blogs and websites. I don't recall the exact links or webpages but someone else came up with this little technique.

Happy Stamping!

Gigi

Clean and Simple Stamping

Clean and Simple Stamping (CAS) sounds so simple, but it really isn't! It takes an immense amount of willpower to STOP....DON'T ADD ANYTHING ELSE! I always find it a challenge (which may be why I don't often attempt it).

These are SU's Note Cards - they are 5" x 3-1/2", a nice size for a gift set (which would normally have at least 4 cards, not sure why I stopped at 3).

A Razzleberry Scallop rectangle with the cute flower (Razzleberry and Old Olive) from Hello Again stamp set and a sentiment from Short & Sweet. That's it.

Seriously simple.

Happy (simple) Stamping!

Gigi

Sending Love Easel Card

A few new products were used on this easel card: Sending Love Specialty Designer Paper and epoxy brads, both available in the Occasions Mini.

The print of the paper I used is normal DSP, but some of the designs are *blingy*! The sentiment is from SAB Well Scripted, however any sentiment from Well Scripted or Whimsical Words could be used. The little butterfly is from the set Hello Again, a catalogue item that is also available as a SAB pick! I love those additional choices from the catalogue for SAB!

This is a club project for February.

Happy Stamping!

Gigi

Girly cards

Katie is invited to birthday parties over the next week. I thought I'd get a head start on the cards since I usually leave it until

the last minute. Look at me being proactive!

The first card is Old Olive, Rose Red and Pink Pirouette 1-1/4" squares layered on a piece of Basic Black. Obviously some squares have Flower Fusion flowers, but do you recognize the what is on the others? They are Love & Happiness Rubons from SAB 2007! I forgot I had them. Pretty simple layout, but I like the way it turned out.

You may recognize layout #2 from this post. I love dots! I love this color combo of Taken with Teal with the Rose Red and Pretty in Pink. I laid a piece of sticky strip across the card and just kind of played around with the ribbon to create this funky look. Its really fun. the sentiment is from Chat Room rubons.

Two quick easy cards.

Happy Stamping!

Gigi

Club Card

This is one of my club projects this month. Aside from cardstock and the half back pearls, all product is either from the Occasions Mini or SAB.

Once again I used some of the yummy Sweet Pea DSP (you will be seeing more of this, I {heart} it). The edge is made with the new SAB punch. The butterflies were created with another piece of Sweet Pea and the new Stampin' Up! Beautiful Wings Embosslits die (this die allows simultaneous cutting and embossing) and the sentiment is from Chat Room rubons.

The Occasions Mini catalogue is full of great papers, embellishments and tools!

Happy Stamping!

Gigi

Occasions Mini and Sale-A-Bration

How could I almost forget about the release of the Occasions Mini Catalogue and Sale-A-Bration?

The Occasions Mini means all-new, exclusive products for spring.
Available January 5 through April 30, 2010.

Sale-A-Bration, Stampin' Up!'s biggest event of the year, means fresh ideas and free products! And with three ways to earn exclusive Sale-A-Bration products, there's something for everyone.
•Spend: Buy $65 worth of Stampin' Up! products and get a FREE Sale-A-Bration reward!
•Host: Host a $395 workshop, and get a FREE Sale-A-Bration reward!
•Join: Become a demonstrator, and get a FREE stamp set (up to a $56.95 value)!

This promotion ends March 31. Click here to see the Sale-A-Bration brochure.

I hope you are as excited as I am with the new product offerings. I am really happy with the clear stamps I ordered. I will probably continue to order clear rather than wood mounted as more become available. The clear stamps have really cool storage; they take up way less space than the wood mounted sets do!

Happy Stamping!

Gigi

Occasions Mini and SAB Event

Come one, come all to the Occasions Mini and SAB FREE event!

Each class is exactly the same – we are offering 2 dates to provide you with more options for your busy schedules! Details as follows:

CLASS #1

• Date: Friday, January 22nd
• Time: 7:00pm
• Location: TBA

CLASS #2

• Date: Saturday, January 23rd
• Time: 1:30pm
• Location: TBA

We will be making 1 free card, which is shown here. There will also be 2 bonus projects that you can make if you choose (the bonus projects are $2.50 each). I’ll show you those in the coming days so you can decide whether or not you want to bring $5 with you.

There will also be door prizes, special deals, and samples. Sign up today! Either email me or add a comment to this post. Thanks - hope to see you there!

Happy Stamping!

Gigi

Happy 2010!

I hope you had a wonderful Christmas and I wish you a safe, healthy and happy 2010.

It was my baby's 8th birthday the week before Christmas. She is so funny and cheerful. She really, really enjoyed her birthday this year - for some reason it "was the best birthday I've ever had!".

Her card. Very simple. I usually try to take more time with projects for the kids, but I just wasn't as organized this year.

This is a 5-1/4"x5-1/4" square Rose Red base with a layer of Pink Pirouette. A piece of the new Sweet Pea Designer Series Paper (Occasions Mini catalogue, January 5th - April 30, 2010) is layered on two pieces of Chocolate Chip that have been punched using the new Sale-A-Bration Scallop Trim Border. The sentiment is Well Scripted and that cute embellishment is Sweet Pea Stitched Felt (also both from the Occasions Mini). The little chocolate colored pearls are just something I had around. I finished it off with some faux stitching using my white gel pen.

Here she is on her birthday.

Happy Stamping!

Gigi