Need a Gift? Think Stampin’ Up!

Posted on November 26, 2014 by Stamp with Jini

If you need a great gift for someone – I’ve got some great ideas just for you! Stampin’ Up! has some wonderful products that are just made for gift giving. What ever the age – I can help you choose the right gift for that special someone in your life.

Check out these great gift items –

Prepaid Paper Pumpkin Subscriptions – You choose how much you want to spend and a fully designed project kit will arrive each month with inks, stamps, and paper! Great for all ages and experience. Paper Pumpkin is a wonderful gift that keeps giving!

And I have to tell you that part of the fun is finding this little red box tucked in your mail box each month – It’s like Christmas year round!

Memory Keeping with Project Life by Stampin’ Up!

It’s sooo simple, affordable, and fast to create a gift with someone special in mind. Simply pick one of each item from the different groups – album, pages, card collections, and add a pack of Journaling Pens, and voila! You’ve given the gift of memories!

Shhhh…don’t tell, but I’ve got several friends expected babies in December – and I’ll be giving them a easy and fast way to memory keep the first year of their child’s life using Project Life.

Doing a cookie swap or recipe exchange? How about a Project Life album to keep them all nice and neat – what a great idea, right?

Want some more ideas? Ask me about Project Life by Stampin’ Up! today.

KITS, KITS, AND MORE KITS

Our kits contain everything you need to create the projects included. What a great gift for someone who hasn’t crafted in a while, a young person, college student, or even an experienced stamper!

This & That Journals

Great for capturing life as it happens, quickly and easily! Simply pick one of our journals and coordinating Designer Stickers and go!

The Gift of Time

Why not treat a friend to a night out? Choose one of my events and treat someone to some girl time and pampering. Ask me about this option.

Can’t Decide? How about a Gift Certificate?

Gift certificates can be used for any occasion and can be purchased in any amount. Just ask me how to get yours!

2014 Holiday Gift Guide

Want a copy of my 2014 Holiday Gift Guide that you can print? Click HERE or on the flyer image below for your copy with more details.

And remember our Online Extravaganza – some of these items are included in this week’s sale! Woo hoo gifts at a great price!

Click here to order your Stampin’ Up! Products online 24/7! (US only)

Hostess code C6X6WMXD

Place an Online order with me and use my Hostess Code C6X6WMXD and I’ll send you a FREE Tutorial with instructions to create 4 fun projects using the Bright & Beautiful stamp set!

Click Here to learn more about using the Hostess Code

Online Extravaganza (Special ends Monday, December 1^st, 2014 at 11:50 p.m. (MT) or while supplies last)

Weekly Deals (Special ends Monday, December 1st, 2014 at 11:50 p.m. (MT)

Holiday Gift Guide (click here for a printable PDF with ideas for your holiday gift giving of all ages)

4th of July Work of Art

Posted on July 3, 2014 by Stamp with Jini

Were celebrating the 4th with a good old fashioned family cookout here in Clarkesville and it looks like the weather will be perfect for it. I’m really looking forward to seeing everyone again and getting to meet new family members too. Some we haven’t seen in years, along with marriages and babies. What fun.

And since it is the fourth of July I thought it would be fun to do a little something for the kids. So I’ve put together this fun bucket of items for each family.

And created this cute little tag that I attached to it with our Metallic Silver Baker’s Twine (132142) that is part of our Weekly Deals this week.

What do you think? Cute? I’m hoping these will be a hit with everyone since it contains a little something fun for all ages that can be used all day and even until the fireworks!

What’s inside? Well I’ve got some bubbles, a beach ball for the pool, bug boxes for catching the fire flies, glow sticks, sparklers, poppers, and other goodies for the evening.

I’ve got the one done – now just to put the others together. LOL Larry’s got a big family!

Home improvements – oh my!

Today I thought I would also share with you what I’ve been doing lately with my free time. I think I’ve shared with you I’ve had the home improvement bug this spring, my love of painting trim….. and so the projects continued.

Larry and I have “discussed” painting the stairs for years, or should I say I have. He just didn’t think it was necessary and I thought it would be a big help to protect the pressboard and make cleaning easier too.

Well on June 3rd I decided I’d jump in. I’ve never painted stairs so I was a bit intimidated, but after reading up on it I figured what the heck – it couldn’t be that hard, right?

I tried stain first at the suggestion of my sister, unfortunately it didn’t cover up all the spots that had been created from spills over the years. And apparently my brain wasn’t functioning well either, because I didn’t think of solid color stain that the gal at Home Depot had recommended before I started to kilz. Oh, well. I guess paint was meant to be.

So here is the first picture I took – Seems I always forget to take the before photo – caulked, Kilzed, and first coat of trim.

I know it looks a little strange with only part of the stairs done to this point, but I figured I wanted to see how it went. And I wanted to get the color on the tread to see how I liked the color we chose to go with the wood landing. LOL – Like I’d have a choice once I started.

The biggest challenge was making the stairs usable since my guys are always up and down them and of course my classroom is downstairs too. I sure didn’t want to go long without getting to stamp!

So I learned if I started first thing in the morning they’d be dry enough for everyone to go up and down when they got home and the trash and dirt from their shoes would not stick. (It seemed to rain a lot so going around wasn’t really an option Johnathan wanted to deal with.) I also did every other step and added the green paper to keep things clean.

Here is the finished project now after I finished all the touch ups and door trim this week. Yea!

Painting the stairs really brightened up the space and I really love the look. They are so easy to clean now!

However, I am still thinking about stamping on the risers. I’ve had this great two step stamp set I’ve always wanted to use for that, but for now I’ve got other things on my list I want to do first.

Everyone who has been to my classroom before noticed the new look immediately and made my day by commenting about how great they looked. Thanks guys!

Funny thing is my husband, Larry asked me what took me so long to paint the stairs! (He’s a hoot.) They don’t squeak any more which is the part he loves. Of course that means my “alarm system” for the kids is gone since I always knew when someone was coming up the stairs. I’m not sure what made them stop creaking and squeaking, but I’m glad my husband likes the end result too. Now I’ve just got to get him to put trim up where the concrete and sheet rock meets. That little space drives me nuts. After all who knows what can live in that space – eek!

Supplies:

Stamp Set: Work of Art (134111/134114), Fabulous Four (134171/134174), and Something to Say (134177/134180)

Inks: Pacific Point (126951), Real Red (126949), Melallic Silver Encore Ink (132142), and VersaMark (102283)

Paper: Pacific Point (111350), Real Red (102482), Basic Black (121045), and Whisper White (100730)

Accessories: Silver Baker’s Twine (132976), 1/8″ Handheld Circle Punch (134365), Black Embossing Powder (109133), and Heat Tool (129053)

Click here to order your Stampin’ Up! Products online 24/7! (US only)

Hostess code KGM3XHTJ

Weekly Deals (Special ends Monday, July 7th 2014 at 11:50 p.m. (MT)

Get your favorites Designer Series Paper in July – Sale ends July 31, 2014 at 11:50 p.m. (MT)

Blendabilities are here – Click HERE to get yours today!

Patriotic Dotty Angles

Posted on July 1, 2014 by Stamp with Jini

Fourth of July is Friday this week and so I’m thinking Red, White and Blue. How about you? So today’s card has a patriotic feel today.

This card can be easily made into any occasion since I’ve used the sentiment from the And Many More stamp set. And Many More is one of our new sets that contain 23 sentiments that work perfectly with our Word Window Punch. What a great deal, right? And this one set covers pretty much any occasion you can think of through out the year!

Did you notice the pop of gold on this card? Well it is our Gold Sequin Trim (132983).

Just pull a few off the string and adhere. Sooo easy to do! And great news the Gold Sequin Trim is part of this week’s Weekly Deals – so why not check it out along with the other items too?

NEW Weekly Deals start Today!

On a personal note – I’ve spent the day yesterday processing goodies from the garden and so I didn’t get to post. I got my first batch of summer squash in the freezer along with some other items I baked using the blueberries we picked.

I’ve got three strainers this size and with all the rain we’ve had it has been tough to pick at times. A good problem to have for sure. LOL Unfortunately our blueberries are bursting from all the rain – they just don’t seem to be able to grow as fast as they need to, so they end up splitting which is kind of a bummer.

So as a special treat I’ve got another recipe for you Blueberry lovers. This one is a favorite of mine. Light and cool – give it a try and see what you think. Why you could even put strawberries on the top for a red, white, blue look for the 4th!

When put into a clear bowl – it is rather pretty. I’m sorry to say I had a hard time getting a good picture of that and this one was the best I could do. Hopefully you get the idea.

Blueberries in the Snow

½ c. sugar

½ c. milk

1 pkg. (8oz.) cream cheese, softened

1 ctn. (16 oz.) whipped topping

1 ½ c. fresh blueberries

1 lg. Angel Food Cake, prepared

1 can (21 oz.) Blueberry Pie Filling

Combine sugar, milk and cream cheese in a large bowl. Beat until blended. Fold in whipped topping and fresh blueberries. Crumble Angel Food cake into small pieces and add to cream mixture. Mix well and pour into a large bowl packing mixture down and spreading evenly. Pour blueberry pie filling on top and spread evenly. Cover and refrigerate for at least 3 hours before serving.

If you’d like to see more recipes that I’ve shared in the past? You can find them under the Categories section by scrolling down the right hand column of my blog. Just look for recipes and click.

Enjoy!

Supplies:

Stamp Set: Dotty Angles (133658) and And Many More (134273/134276)

Inks: Pacific Point (126951)

Paper: Real Red (102482) and Whisper White card stock (100730)

Accessories: Gold Sequin Trim (132983), Gold Baker’s Twine (132975), Real Red 1/4″ Cotton Ribbon (134563), Modern Label Punch (119849), and Word Window Punch (119857)

Click here to order your Stampin’ Up! Products online 24/7! (US only)

Hostess code KGM3XHTJ

Click Here to learn more about using the Hostess Code

Weekly Deals (Special ends Monday, July 7th 2014 at 11:50 p.m. (MT)

New Digital Downloads

Retirement Stamp Contest – What’s Your Best Guess?

Posted on April 17, 2014 by Stamp with Jini

On Monday, April 21st this year’s Retirement List will be announced. And for the first time ever Stamps and Accessories are only while supplies last – that’s big, really big!

There is always a lot of speculation as to what stamp sets will be on the Retirement List, and since everyone seemed to have fun participating in my contest last year I thought why not do it again. And of course you need a prizes for it to be a contest, right?

So this year everyone who participates in my Retirement Contest will receive a FREE Tutorial from me for a great project! And the person who guesses the most stamp sets correct will receive a special prize!

Sound like fun? Want to play along? Well there is only one way to test yourself and see how you stack up. Are you ready to challenge yourself and your stamping friends and play along?

Well here are the details:

Make a list of the top 10 stamp sets that you think are retiring from the 2013 Annual Catalog. Then add one more in case I need a tie breaker.
Send me an email – subject line Retirement Party Contest (to [email protected])
Include your name, address, and phone number (I’ll need these if you are the winner so I can get your prize to you!) along with your list
Email me your list by 9 pm Saturday, April 19th
Late entries will not be included

Then sit back and wait for the Retirement List…. It’s coming on Monday, April 21st.

Want a list sent right to your mailbox? If you’re not on my mailing list why not sign up now? You’ll find my sign up box for my Newsletter at the top right hand corner right here on my blog – And you’ll receive a FREE gift when you do – a free pinwheel tutorial just for you!

Want to join in more Retirement Party Fun? Watch face book and here too for more Retirement Information and Giveaways over the next few weeks!

But for now – Save the date, Sunday, May 18th, for my 2014 Retirement Party! More details will be coming soon. We’ll have to say goodbye to our old favorites, but we’ll be welcoming new goodies too, such as the exclusive Stampin’ Up! Project Life line.

Have fun going through the catalog – and don’t forget to make your wish list so you can order your favorites before they are gone!

fine print:

If the retirement list is posted early I reserve the right to end the contest early.
contest is for my customers – If you’re a Stampin’ Up! Demonstrator you can play along for fun, but won’t be included in the prizes.

Click here to order your Stampin’ Up! Products online 24/7! (US only)

Hostess code JZT4F3FZ

Get a FREE Tutorial when you place an order with me in April and use the Hostess Code.

Birthday Card Contest – Click HERE for details

Clearance Rack (while supplies last)

Weekly Deals (Special ends Monday, April 21st 2014 at 11:50 p.m. (MT)

Serene Silhouettes

Posted on April 4, 2014 by Stamp with Jini

I love the soft look of a watercolor wash behind an stamped image and the Serene Silhouettes stamp set is perfect for this technique.

Silhouette images are great for all kinds of techniques and the Serene Silhouettes has a wonderful selection of nature based images so it is great for all kinds of occasions and year round use. I happened to use the Afternoon Picnic Designer Series Paper as my color inspiration for this card, but can you image it done with a bolder pallet for sunset instead of sunrise?

And if you need a very versatile ribbon try our Whisper White 5/8″ Organza Ribbon. I know that it is Whisper White, but because of the nature of the ribbon it lends itself to all kinds of colors. The sheer portion of the ribbon allows it to adapt even when using Very Vanilla as the neutral. So why not try it out – I think you’ll be surprised with the results.

Notice the pop of color in the lower right hand corner of the card? Did you say, Candy Dots? If so you are right, these happen to be the color Wisteria Wonder from the Subtles Collection of Candy Dots. Just perfect when you want a little something!

Stepping back in time with Undefined

Yesterday I shared with you the card and cake I made for my son’s birthday this week and I told you I’d dig out my project from high school. Well, I found it under my stack on my desk! I’ve been meaning to share it with you since January. (Thus the fact it was under a stack on my desk. LOL!)

I made this in my art class during my freshman year of high school. It was during our printing unit – we did all kinds of cool mediums and then printed them in different ways. You can see I’m no artist, but I’ve always loved art class and wanted to be an art teacher when I was little, so I took every class I could in school. Oh, wait I guess I am sorta… after all I teach stamping!

Here is the linoleum carving – As you can see I was into mermaids in the late seventies. Hmmmm… maybe that had something to do with the Disney movie at the time – oops… I’m dating myself!

And here is the print that I made using the linoleum. For this print we brayered (is that a word?) on the acrylic ink and then layer the paper on top running a clean brayer over the top.

It’s a bit ragged, but it’s held up pretty well for it’s age I guess. Looks like I’ve got another project on my list of to dos – going through my old childhood boxes.

And here we did prints with a background of tissue paper.

As you can see, this makes me think of how much that stamping really has in common with my old art class days. We use a lot of the same concepts and procedures in our stamping. And Stampin’ Up! has made it sooo easy for all of us to be a successful stamping artist with the products found in our catalogs. It’s not just stamping folks – It allows us all to tap into that creative nature we all have inside us and maybe even forgot about!

If you’d like to tap into your forgotten inner artist, learn stamping techniques with me, and live locally why not check out my technique classes on my Calendar of Events? You too can join in the fun and become a stamping artist too.

Supplies:

Stamp Set: Serene Silhouettes (132073/127324)

Inks: Basic Gray (121044), Wisteria Wonder (126985), Blushing Bride (131172), and Crisp Cantaloupe Classic Stampin’ Pad (131298)

Paper: Afternoon Picnic Designer Series Paper (131390), Shimmery White (101910), Crisp Cantaloupe (131298), and Wisteria Wonder Card Stock (122922),

Accessories: Subtles Candy Dots (130933), Whisper White 5/8″ Organza Ribbon (114319), Aqua Painters (1039654), and Stampin’ Spritzer (126185),

Click here to order your Stampin’ Up! Products online 24/7! (US only)

Hostess code JZT4F3FZ

Click Here to learn more about using the Hostess Code

Birthday Card Contest – Click HERE for details

Clearance Rack (while supplies last)

Weekly Deals (Special ends Monday, April 7th, 2014 at 11:50 p.m. (MT)

Undefined Birthday

Posted on April 3, 2014 by Stamp with Jini

Earlier this week I mentioned that it was my son’s birthday on April 1st. Over the years, I’ve often wondered if the joke was on me since our son has given me an education through the years as his interests have changed that I didn’t expect. I’ve made up bed time stories about building a gazebo with Norm, learned all the names of the tools in my local Sears, and the difference between a backhoe and a front loader. Not exactly things that I’d ever thought I’d need to know – but motherhood is full of surprises.

What does this have to do with an Undefined Birthday? Well, when Stampin’ Up! introduced the Undefined Stamp Carving Kit I knew it would be something that I could use. In this house we don’t always have the image I need for that someone special.

So this year I knew I had it knocked and could create what I needed with the Undefined Stamp Carving Kit (item133402).

Here is what I came up with for our son, Johnathan’s birthday. I started with the cake since I knew that that would take some time to dry. (I used royal icing to create the design. It didn’t dry completely so you’ll notice it cracked a bit.) And the special cake is really his favorite part of the day.

I simply went online and found an image that I thought would be fairly easy to recreate for both the cake and the stamp carving.

It took a little bit of time and there is nothing like waiting until the last minute, but I had just what I needed and knew my son would love it! Really I was surprised how quickly it went once I started carving. (I just kept reminding myself as I went along that what I left would show up as the black and what was gone wouldn’t show up.)

And here is the inside of the card, notice the bullets at the bottom that I carved also? Larry wasn’t sure he thought they looked like bullets, but Johnathan said he knew what they were from the context of the card. LOL

And I’m sure those of you who watched movies in the 70s recognize where I took the sentiment from. LOL

Johnathan’s gift consisted of a new shirt, (since I know he won’t buy his own) and a DVD set of guess who.

He didn’t say it, he just did his usually grunt, but I know he was tickled when he saw the cake since he immediately took a photo and texted it. With that quick move I knew I’d made the kid’s day!

Do you need that special image you can’t find? Why not give our Undefined Stamp Carving Kit a try? Bring out the inner artist in yourself. It is easy to do – just draw or google an image, trace, and carve. Remember our old art class days from school? I know I did one of these for printing back in the old days. Hmmm…. I’ll have to dig that out of my school day stash and share with you one day.

And better yet you can get refills for the kit. Yippie! I believe I need one for my daughter’s birthday at the end of the month. Try and find a flute!

Since birthdays are a big deal here in our house during the spring I’m holding a Birthday Card Contest. Joining in the fun is easy. Just send me a handmade birthday card and be entered to win a cute birthday stamp set from my stash!

I’ll be sharing these cards here on my blog and on my face book page Stamp with Jini – so why not stop by and like my page?

Here are the details:

1. Contest ends April 29th, 2014 (My daughter’s birthday, yikes!)

2. Make a birthday card using Stampin’ Up! or My Digital Studio (Or even a combination of both!)

3. Place a sticky note on the inside with your name, address, email, and phone number so I know how to contact you when you win.

4. All cards will be donated to my Caring with Cards program which includes Hospice, Ronald McDonald House and Operation Write Home.

5. Mail the card to me

Jini Merck

2320 Dooley Rd.

Clarkesville GA 30523

On May 1st I’ll be announcing the winner of my Birthday Card Contest here on my blog!

Supplies:

Inks: Jet Black StazOn Ink Pad (101406) and Pumpkin Pie (126945)

Paper: Basic Black (121045), Pumpkin Pie (105117), and Whisper White Card Stock (100730)

Accessories: Undefined Stamp Carving Kit (133402), Circle Collection Framelits (130911), Blender Pens (102845)

Click here to order your Stampin’ Up! Products online 24/7! (US only)

Hostess code JZT4F3FZ

Clearance Rack (while supplies last)

Weekly Deals (Special ends Monday, April 7th, 2014 at 11:50 p.m. (MT)

New Digital Downloads

The big 50!

Posted on March 21, 2014 by Stamp with Jini

Yesterday was my birthday and it was the BIG 50! Doesn’t bother me a whole lot since I’m the youngest in the family – my husband and his brothers are still older than me which I’m always happy to point out to them! So it is hard for them to give me too hard a time since they’ve been there and done that already. LOL.

So today I thought I would share with you the card that my husband made for me. Yes, he stamps, and I figured he was up to something when he snuck down to my classroom the other night. Of course, the fact he didn’t clean up after himself was a clue too so I was curious to see the card he made based on what scraps were left on the table.

Want to see what he came up with? He had a hard time finding things like a stamp set with numbers, although I’m not sure why since Memorable Moments was sitting on the shelf clearly marked. (But then you know how guys are – they can’t find their socks either. LOL)

Ok. Now that you’ve seen the card – let me tell you how he explained it to me, he had a plan in mind. You’re going to love this – Larry is a hoot!

1. He chose black to go with the over the hill theme of 50.

2. He chose the Love You to the Moon image, because after all he still loves me even though I’m now over the hill.

3. He chose the cup cake punch, for the birthday cake of course. (No calories included.)

4. He chose the circle punch and made a moon to go with the Love You to the Moon image.

5. And finally he chose the White Stampin’ Chalk Marker to write with since he couldn’t find the stamp set he wanted.

Here is the best part – get ready for it…. Why? “It’s not a full moon” he tells me and then goes on to explain that “The full moon would be for when you were young, you’ve only got a little life left – that is why the sliver is there.”

I howled with laughter and Kaitlin who has been listening to this explanation with me says to him, “I guess that means your sliver is even smaller dad since you are older than mom, huh.”

After the explanation we went out to a nice dinner at our local Mexican restaurant, El Patron, (so I wouldn’t have to cook). Of course, they sang and brought the dessert, which I dodged and only ended up with a bit of whip cream on my nose. Kaitlin I think was rather disappointed since she was really looking forward to that part of the birthday dinner.

It was a fun week and since today ends our daughter Kaitlin’s Spring Break from College with us, I thought I would share some photos with you from our week together.

We hiked on one of our local trails, Panther Creek, and enjoyed the first taste of spring along with the warmer temperatures last Saturday. This first picture is the three of us taking a break and enjoying the scenery at the half way point of our hike.

Here is the view we were enjoying. It’s a beautiful trail if you are looking for a enjoyable day in the mountains.

And this last photo is one I took in our yard. The grass is covered with these lovely little wild violets. I always enjoy the spots of color in the yard – until Johnathan decides he’s just got to cut the grass and then they are gone!

Such delicate little flowers and violets have always been one of my favorites.

Supplies:

Stamp Set: Love You to the Moon (133140/133143)

Inks: Whisper White Craft Stampin’ Ink Pad (101731)

Paper: Basic Black (121045), Island Indigo (122923), Cherry Cobbler (119685), and Whisper White Card stock (100730)

Accessories: White Stampin’ Chalk Marker (132133), Cupcake Builder Punch (121807) and 1 3/4″ Circle Punch (119850)

Click here to order your Stampin’ Up! Products online 24/7! (US only)

Hostess code 6JDYYVZ4

Birthday Wishes Four You

Posted on March 7, 2014 by Stamp with Jini

Why does this time of year always get me motivated for home improvement projects? I’m not sure but it seems that this time of year my husband and I are always getting into something. This weeks project – Finishing the pantry downstairs. Now don’t get me wrong I’m really excited about getting some more storage space in my house to organize things. I’m just not nuts about painting trim – which I guess is why it wasn’t done last fall. My excuse was I couldn’t find what I needed and the holidays were coming, thus the newly built shelves sitting in our garage still.

So since my friend Rosemary from Leadership could paint her bathroom during a northeastern winter storm I could paint my trim, right? Here is what I’ve learned during the process of my painting the latest trim.

1. I really don’t believe it is cheaper to have painted trim. (This was our builders reason for going with white trim, verses the stained trim I wanted. I’m not sure he included the fact it has to be painted, repeatedly. But it sounded good to my husband at the time and it does pop and look nice when the paint is fresh.)

2. I’m not very neat at caulking. It seems like I end up getting more on me and the rag that the trim. Thus the pile of rags – that reminds me I need to locate more rags for tomorrow. (However, since I’ve taught myself through trial and error and the end project looks ok, I guess caulk and soap are cheap.)

3. I really hate caulking and painting the trim around framed openings and doorways. There are waaay too many corners and edges and some how I always need to lean on the wall next to me. Thus the paint on the right side of my body and hair – I forgot the fact I just painted that wall – LOL!

4. I reeeally really dislike painting an exterior door – why did they make those gaskets black anyway? And what was I thinking wanting all those doors?

5. If anyone were to tell you I’m a perfectionist, they are wrong and they obviously haven’t seen me paint trim. A good enough job is perfectly okay with me! Shhh… don’t tell my husband.

6. Being able to frost and decorate cakes does not mean you’ll be good at mudding sheetrock, caulking, or painting trim. This is the logic my husband has used since 1987 for the reason I do the detail and trim work when painting. Personally, I just think he hates doing those things more than me. But since he does the hanging, sanding, spackling, and rolling which I’m REALLY bad at it works out, right?

7. Bifocals make detail work a bear – especially when you’re blind as a bat! I’m sure my husband would have been howling with laughter if he were watching me paint today holding my glasses in my one hand while painting with the other! Thus the paint on the left side of my head – hopefully I got it all when I showered, that way he’ll never have to know!

Of course, all of this is like childbirth right? When you’re done you forget all the pain involved. And I’m really looking forward to the finished result – a new storage space to organize!

So now to treat myself, I’m off to stamp in my classroom. (Even though my video space is covered in wet trim, I made sure I left enough space to stamp. Priorities – seriously:) But first I wanted to share this fun card I made.

The color pallet for this card was pulled from the Fresh Prints Designer Series Paper. Don’t you love our Designer Series Paper Stacks? They are so great for card making and since there are 12 different designs to choose from they’re great for all kinds of projects! I’m reaching for mine all the time.

Just a tip when recreating this card you’ll want to attach your Designer Series Paper to your card stock before you punch the two ends – it will make things a lot easier, ask me how I know. And since the base layer is Whisper White you won’t have a problem with your punch.

And do you recognize the ribbon used on this card? It’s the Coastal Cabana 3/8″ Ruffle Stretch trim that can currently be found on our Weekly Deals list. How cool is that right?

Click HERE to see all our Weekly Deals for this week.

Supplies:

Stamp Set: Four You (130535/130538) and Petal Parade (Sale-a-bration 133599/133602)

Inks: Coastal Cabana (131175) and Real Red Classic Stampin’ Pad (126949)

Paper: Fresh Prints Designer Series Paper Stack (132996), Coastal Cabana (131297), Crumb Cake (120953), and Whisper White Card stock (100730)

Accessories: Coastal Cabana 3/8″ Ruffle Stretch Trim (130024), Scallop Tag Topper Punch (133324), Rhinestone Basic Jewels (132187), and Arrows Embossing Folder (132187)

Click here to order your Stampin’ Up! Products online 24/7! (US only)

Hostess code 6JDYYVZ4

Click Here to learn more about using the Hostess Code

Clearance Rack (while supplies last)

Weekly Deals (Special ends Monday, March 10th, 2014 at 11:50 p.m. (MT)

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Best Of Stamp Sets (Only available through March 31^st, 2014

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Slip Free Yarn Hangers

Posted on March 2, 2014 by Stamp with Jini

Today’s post is one that is a non stamping project, but I thought you may enjoy it. Lately I’ve had several people ask me to share how I make these Slip Free Yarn Hangers that I’ve made for family and friends. So I thought to myself it would be easier to show you with a video tutorial.

These slip free yarn hangers are easy to make, use up those left over skeins I’ve got laying around the house, and keep my hands busy so I don’t snack while watching TV at night! (My weight loss program at its finest since late night snacking is a tough one for me – LOL)

My daughter has recently discovered the benefits of these after she took her batch that I made as a Christmas gift to college. No more tank tops on the floor of her college closet. She has recently said to me “These are great. Can you make me another 20?”

So I’m looking for more of those wire hangers. The biggest problem I have is finding two that are the size shape and size hiding in my stash.

Hope you enjoy my tutorial. Leave me a comment and let me know what you think. And if you make some – why not share your creations with me on my Facebook page? I’d love to see your slip free yarn hangers!

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Clearance Rack (while supplies last)

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Tanglewood Lodge Retreat

Posted on February 17, 2014 by Stamp with Jini

Wow, I’m back home from Tanglewood Lodge in Helen now and have the car unpacked. I just need to put my supplies away. I know I should be crashing after a weekend of crafting until the wee morning hours, but I’m not, I’m psyched and over flowing with positive energy. Girl time – it’s a wonderful thing! And since my husband was on call all weekend I had no guilt either about spending Valentine’s weekend away from home.

When my girlfriend invited me to the retreat I wasn’t real sure about it since I’ve never done this kind of thing – but I’m soooo glad I did. What a wonderful group of ladies I met. I really enjoyed visiting and getting to know them during our chats and sharing. And it wasn’t just paper crafting and scrapbooking. There was a wide variety of projects everyone was working on so it was really cool to see everyone’s projects and learn about new things.

Here are one of the projects the ladies were working on – it’s wool felting, and when I got back from dinner they were working on the bead work. I really love the colors in Joy’s purse.

And here is another one done in blue tones – each was so different, based on how they chose to combine the wood and then shape it.

Do you see the line art or doodling below the purse? It’s the Zentangle Method – Christine shared with me how Zentangle is done – it’s suppose to be very zen and relaxing. One of the ladies was working on a bear that was just fantastic! What a group of 19 fun and talented ladies I shared the weekend with.

I originally planned on working on my band scrapbook but got side tracked with all the creative energy and wanted to play with my paper and stamps since my computer was taking so long to load the many cds of photos, but I guess that worked out for the best.

Here is my space on day 2 – we each had a table and of course I my son thought I’d taken too much. I thought I’d packed everything but the kitchen sink, but that turned out it wasn’t the case because I still regretted not taking all my circle punches – I’ll know better next time. There’s no such thing as too much! LOL

I can’t wait to share with you all the great projects I worked on in the up coming weeks – watch for my class schedule.

And for my Hostesses, I’ve worked on a special project just for you this past weekend and can’t wait to share it with you during the Hostess Appreciation Brunch this coming Saturday. If you were one of my hostesses in 2013 and you haven’t gotten your invitation in the mail yet, please contact me ASAP so you can be included too – I don’t want any of my Hostesses to miss out on the fun.

Want to get an invitation to my 5th Hostess Appreciation Brunch? It’s sooo easy – just contact me to set up a time for your private party! After all with Sale-a-bration happening right now it’s a fantastic time to be a Hostess and earn additional FREE merchandise too!