Move Over Laura Secord!

I'm apparently in a boxing mood!  I've made my third box to date since starting this blog, but this one is a little different than the first two.

This one is great for holding those individually wrapped/cupped chocolates, like what you would get from Laura Secord or Godiva. (YUM!)  I just might have to walk down to Laura's tomorrow to fill this empty box...

This box was so much fun to make; all it took was one sheet of 8 1/2 x 11" card stock, some embellishments (a brad, ribbon, rub-ons,) and my Big Shot!

I loooovvvvee my Big Shot! *hugs it tightly*

Next time I make one of these boxes (which could be right after I make this post) I'm going to stamp the inside of the box just after scoring the outlines. Stamping the"Simply Thanks" into the inside was one of the last things I did with this one (because the idea had just come to me then), so the last couple of lines got smooched since I didn't have much room to work with.

This was Simple (complete with a capital "S"); if you want help making your own, contact me and we'll make a party out of it, heh. :D

There is also a tutorial online; I found how to make these by following Angie Tieman's instructions on her site here.

Keep Stamping!

EVENT: Stampin' Palooza

It's less than a month away!

Ever been to a paper crafting workshop before?  If you have, then you know they can be tons of fun; and if you haven't... well, then you're missing out!

Stampin' Palooza is an all day workshop event, where you'll:

• get to hang out with a great group of people while learning six different fun projects;
• receive a brand new 7 piece stamp set, "Watercolor Trio";
• as well as a goody bag, including note-taking supplies and instructions for the six make and take projects, as well as fun surprises!;
• enjoy breakfast, lunch and an ice cream dessert bar! (Yum!);
• and watch additional demonstrations;
• contests;
• shop at the sales table;
• and more!

If you owe yourself a treat and a fun day out, this will be the place to be on Saturday June 5th from 9:30 AM to 4:30 PM.

For more information, click here.

And let me know if you're going, as I'd love to meet up with you there!

Keep Stamping!

Scrapbooking with Stampin' Up!

Carrie Cudney is too cute for words with her Stampin' Up! videos, and this time is certainly no different!

This vid shows some basic ways to create scrapbook projects using the SU! products that just came out earlier this month.  The reason why I want to share it with ya'll is because of the first project Carrie goes through; so that you can see how cool the Rough Type stamps really are!

Want to get started in scrapbooking?  Or want to know what Stampin' Up! products can do to really make your pages dazzle?  Contact me for more info!

Keep Stamping!

Reasons to Host a Workshop at Home

	It's a great way to have a party with your friends, without worrying about keeping everyone entertained. You provide the refreshments; we'll provide the fun!
	You get to choose what you and your friends will learn at your Workshop! Have a shower coming up? Kids graduating? Maybe it's about time to change the home decor? Stampin' Up! has an enormous collection of products; we'll put together sound projects that will work around any kind of themes you're interested in!
	FREE STUFF! Your friends will be creating projects (cards, gift boxes, bags, scrapbook pages, etc.) that they'll be able to keep.
	YOU also get to earn FREE limited edition, exclusive hostess-only stamps and other goodies when your friends place orders at your party!†
	There's nothing more satisfying then giving a person a gift or even a simple card that you made yourself. Help your friends get their hand-made collection started for when they need a birthday card (or thinking of you, or congratulatory, etc).
	Let me help you start your own club! Some people join book clubs; so why not start a crafters club amongst your friends? Put aside one day every month to get together with your friends for crafting fun; each member will have their own turn at earning the hostess gifts.

^† Minimum $200 group order to begin qualifying for
hostess benefits - see the benefits chart here.

Let's get started! Contact me with the form below for more info:

Keep Stamping!

Mother's Day Gift Part II

Well, I finally got the last scarf done for Mom's Day! This one will be going to my mother (good thing neither moms use the internet much!)

And as the first pic shows, I also got the box done for it (rather quickly) too!

Have to admit, I wasn't all that impressed with the Fifth Avenue stamp set just by looking at it in the Ideas & Catalogue book for 2009-2010, but it's really something else when you get to play with it!  The entire time I had "making scarfs" in mind as Mother's Day gifts, this was the stamp set that I kept picturing for use.

The inks used for this were Real Red and Perfect Plum, and I think they turned out pretty well.

If you want to make your own scarfs, Ilina Crouse has graciously provided a free tutorial on how to make them.

Keep Stamping!

Online Tutorial - One Sheet Box w/ Lid

Wow, my first tutorial! How cool?! :)

I decided that the scarf from the last post needed it's own gift-box, so last night I opened up Adobe Illustrator and mashed-up a box, with a lid attached, only using one sheet of cardstock.

And here's the result:

Since I already made a tutorial of sorts for myself, it was simple to put it together in Acrobat as a pdf to share with ya'll.

So if you too need a quick and simple box, download the tutorial here!

Keep Stamping!

Mother's Day Gift

I had recently come across a fellow Stampin' Up! demonstrator's website and truly loved her stamped silk scarf tutorial.

So this year, I've decided to do something a bit different for Mother's Day.  For years before it would be a card and a bouquet of flowers; one year that bouquet was of fruit on sticks in the shape of flowers - but the gifts were fairly standard.

I ran with the tutorial (linked above) and am going to give both mom and mom-in-law a silk scarf each, designed with my stamp and ink collections. The pictures below are of the one going to my mom-in-law.  My mother's will hopefully be done by the Friday!

What do you think?  I was really pleased to discover that text stamps work just as well as any other would on cloth. The blue ink seems to have run a bit into the woven fabric, but the purple and green inks look gorgeous on this material.  The second one I'm doing will hopefully be in various pink colours (if I can get those inks in time!)

And funnily enough, the stamps are floral motifs.  Guess I have to keep up the flowered-gifts pattern, huh?

So... what are your plans for this mother's day?  :)

Keep Stamping!

Summer Mini & National Scrapbooking Month!

May may bring us one step closer to summer, but this month is also the beginning of tons of fun! Starting off with...

The new Summer Mini catalogue from Stampin' Up! to look at and drool over! :)

I've fallen in love with the Itty Bitty Bits on page 11, along with the Bitty Buttons and Punch Pack!

And the 12" x 12"  Designer Series Paper "Presto Patterns Specialty" is truly gorgeous on page 15, which brings me to the other cool thing about the month of May, it's...

National Scrapbooking Month!

Stampin' Up! has a few promotions on this month, including one geared towards Scrapbooking enthusiasts!  By purchasing one of the stamp sets below, you'll get a set of designer brads for FREE.  For full promotion details, click here.

Stamp sets

Page	Description	Wood-Mount Item	Wood-Mount Price	Clear-Mount Item	Clear-Mount Price
81	Extreme Elements	115181	$35.95	---	---
119	Framed with Love**	114389	$36.95	---	---
128	Certified**	113706	$36.95	---	---
129	Circle Circus	115778	$38.95	---	---
12*	Elements of Style	118611	$36.95	120045	$26.95
13*	Mementos	119910	$36.95	120105	$26.95
13*	Elements de style	119900	$36.95	120099	$26.95
14*	Rough Type	118659	$35.95	120072	$24.95
22*	Sentimental Journey	118513	$31.95	120075	$23.95
25*	First Day	118521	$31.95	120051	$23.95
25*	Camino a la Escuela	120152	$31.95	120154	$23.95

*From Summer Mini Catalogue
**Last Chance stamp set!


FREE set of Designer Brads (choose one from):

Page	Description	Item	Retail Price	Price with Qualifying Purchase
179	Flower Designer brads	112579	$8.50	FREE
179	Filigree Designer brads	112577	$8.50	FREE
179	Circle Designer brads	112571	$8.50	FREE
179	Star Designer brads	112572	$8.50	FREE

Out of the stamps list, I would definitely go check out Rough Type! (page 14 in the Summer Mini catalogue)

Scrapbooking isn't just about adding pictures to pages; it's about telling a story for you to remember in the many years to come!  Rough Type is an excellent stamp set to write out short stories onto your scrapbook pages that will last a lifetime.

Plus?  Free Brads!  I'm looking at my stack of brads and buttons while I type, lol.  They're so simple to use to embellish anything, from cards, to gift boxes to scrapbook pages...
 

And if that wasn't enough to get you in gear on restocking your scrapbooking supplies, join PaperSweets on Facebook right now and you'll get $5 off your order.

Keep Stamping!