Can You Tell Me How to Get . . .

. . . get to Sesame Street?!

AND now that everyone has THAT song running thru your heads, you're welcome!!

I'm a little behind on getting this post of my 'Big Bird' card up for you, but I'm working in Dispatch at work tonight, so I have a little down time between calls to be able to share this card I created for Diva Day earlier in the month.  Our theme for Diva Day was 'Kid/Child Cards', and each Diva had some FUN cards they brought.  

I don't know about you, but coming up with cards to fit this theme can sometimes be a tad challenging for me.  But, it was fun to come up with this card.  And for those of you wondering about my Penguin Toe Rating (PTR) on this card, I'd probably give it a 7.  (Wondering what I'm talking about?!  Refer back to this blog post!!).  The card really isn't super difficult, but there are a few tips/tricks that could be mildly challenging (but certainly NOT impossible) until you get the hang of them!!

Now, the one thing I knew for the card swap was that there was NO way I could expect them to assemble Big Bird AND the card itself (Number One Rule for Shoebox Swap: Cards must be able to be completed in 5 minutes or less), which meant I needed to prep a few of the pieces for it!!  Though having 16 Big Bird faces staring up at me IS a tad disconcerting!!!

O.K., so a few features about creating the Big Bird Punch Art image.  First of all, I used the 1 3/4" Scallop Circle Punch for his head (I believe I used Daffodil Delight Cardstock for him).  Oh!!  And the tuft of 'hair'?!  Why, the Fringe Scissors, of course!!  And I used two different sizes of the eyes in the Owl Builder Punch (used the large 'eye' punched in Whisper White, Melon Mambo & Night of Navy--trimming part of the Melon Mambo and Night of Navy circles to create the eyelids; used the medium 'eye' punch for the pupils in Basic Black).

As for Big Birds' beak?!  I have to say, that was probably my favorite part of this!!  I started with one of my circle punches (I think the 1 1/4", but the 1 3/8" could work, too!!) and punched out a circle in the Daffodil Delight.

Then, I took the punched circle and re-inserted it in the punch until I eyeballed what looked like a good 'beak' size to me.  I gently pressed down the punch, but before punching thru completely, used a Sharpie marker to mark the top/bottom of the beak so that I could set up the rest of my punches the same way!

Oh!!  And another bonus?!  You can get TWO beaks out of each circle!!

And for the inside of the mouth, you follow the SAME process (but I used Crisp Cantelope cardstock), but folded the image in half and cut it down a little more to just 'fit' inside of the folded over beak (getting FOUR of those out of a single circle!!)!!

So, just a lot of tape/putz work to assemble Big Bird.  Perfect activity to complete while sitting in front of the TV!!

I also pulled out the Circle Thinlits dies (which ARE in the new catalog, but can even be ordered now!), Cycle Celebrations stamp set, Label Love stamp set, and the Decorative Dots embossing folder (was available during Sale-A-Bration, but if you missed out then, will be in the new catalog as well!!) for this card, and here are a few photos of the completed card:

Card Front, Closed

Card Front, Slightly Opened

Inside Card, Opened

And for good measure, here's one more close-up of Big Bird (attached with three dimensionals) on the front of the card!!

I hope you've enjoyed checking out this cute Big Bird 'kids' card!!  You can find all of the supplies to make this card in my online store, and don't forget--only about a week left to order items that are on the retiring list (and not yet sold out!)!!

Happy Stamping!

Pam

May Diva Blog Hop--Flowers!

It's hard to believe it's blog hop time ALREADY this month!!  I hope you've enjoyed all of the stops along the way!  If you're joining me from Amy's Blog, I'm the last stop for today.  If you just started here, feel free to head to Sue's Blog and start from there to hop thru all the sites!!  Today's theme is flowers, and I have to say, I own SOOOOOO many favorite flower sets from Stampin' Up!

I'm going to show you 'mostly' digital stuff today, but did want to start off showing a card I did for a recent swap:

The Flower Shop stamp set and matching punch is probably one of my favorites in the current (and new!) catalog!  The Fancy Fan embossing folder is such an elegant way to add texture (used the Pistachio Pudding cardstock).  I also used the new Scallop Tag Topper with a technique called 'Jump the Track' to create the tabs where I tied the ribbon (Garden Green cardstock).

I stamped the flower three times using Daffodil Delight.  Then with the two-way glue pen, added a touch of glitter to the center of each flower.  Once that was dry, I punched out the flowers with the coordinating punch and also punched out the leaves using part of the image from the Bird Builder punch.   (You'll see on the Whisper White cardstock on the inside of the card, I also stamped the flower in the upper right corner with a little glitter there as well!).  I attached the flower/leaves grouping using some SNAIL adhesive, then attached the entire piece to the front of the card using Dimensionals.  This was SUCH a fun card to put together!!

Now, many of you may know that I work at a college full-time in their Public Safety/security department.   I went to school with, and know some amazing men and women who are police officers.  This week is National Police Week, and the typical logo for the event is a badge with a red rose across it.  Now, being copyrighted, I don't want to use 'their' image, but with using My Digital Studio (MDS) , I was able to create 'my' version of the image and created a Facebook cover photo to post for the week (and since today's hop theme is 'flowers', it fits for sharing in this post, too!):

O.K.  Another great flower set that I love is Mixed Bunch.  Here's a digital version of 'triple time' stamping (and yes, you could create this card in 'real' life!) using that flower set:

Using flowers in my MDS is always fun, and the Paper Daisies are SOOOOOO cool!!  In this first page, I decided to create/add the flower on the page because it was the only photo I was able to get of the wedding party, but my nephew-in-law happened to get his arm across the lower right side of the photo, and there really wasn't a 'good' way to crop the photo and not loose part of the wedding party!  So, the daisy came in handy to 'cover' him up and not detract from the over all photo!!

I love the fact that I can camouflage things on the page using flowers.  I LOVE the Blooms (there are a few different versions) and the rest of the samples I'm showing use them!!

Another page done of the wedding.  We got a photo of all of my niece's aunts who were at her wedding.  I was NOT loving how I was looking in a lot of the photos, so the Blooms worked great to cover up a few 'strategic' areas that I was not caring for!!  And still be in the photo!

Another fun/simple use of the Blooms.  And recoloring them in MDS is SOOOOO easy!

For the page above, I decided the colors to use on the page based off of the outfit colors of the person in the photos.  I think it turned out pretty cute!



And LAST year (2013), I made up this cute calendar for my Parking Office Coordinator.  Each of the months was done a little different, but I absolutely LOVE how August came together using the various shades of purple, gray & white:

There is also a SUPER cute die (to use with the Big Shot) in the current Occasion Catalog that does these STUNNING 3-dimensional flowers.  I didn't have the time to play with that for this post, but maybe somewhere down the line I can show some cute ideas with that!!


And for quick reference, here's a list of our blogs for today:

Sue

Denise

Sandy

Amy

Pam (you're here!)

Happy Hopping!!

Pam

May 2014 Card Workshop

Wow!!!  I can't believe it's May already!!  And for those Star Wars fans of you out there:  May the Fourth be with you today!!  (Dare I admit that I've never seen any of those movies?!).  I just got back from a SUPER fun Diva Day, stamping with some other demonstrator friends (and sending well-wishes to our fearless leader who's been feeling under the weather as of late!), and today's theme was 'child/kid' cards.  I'll show the card I did later this week--I explored my inner-Sesame Street for that one!!  But today's post is all about this month's Card Workshop cards!!  I had two of the three cards for today designed a couple of days ago, but wanted to wait to see what other great ideas the ladies came up with for today, and wouldn't you know, the adorable caterpillar card came out of our get-together! 

I do try to no always use traditional red/green/white when it comes to Christmas cards, and I think I've done pretty well so far this year in regards to that--we DO have some of those colors, but not EVERY card EVERY month looks like that.  And while there IS red/green in this card, I added in Early Espresso & Very Vanilla to give it a little more 'vintage' look.  LOVE the Snowflake Soiree stamp set, which is one that is on our carryover list (meaning it was in an older catalog, and while that catalog is no longer current, the stamp set IS still available), and I was so excited to put it to use on this card!

May 2014 Christmas Card

I knew I wanted to use the Starburst Sayings and matching framelits on one of the cards for this month, and I love the use of the Silver on here.  I also was reminded this last month that I haven't had folks doing much/any heat embossing, so there's a little bit on this card as well!!

May 2014 Occasion Card #1

And then Mr. Tangerine Tango Caterpillar!!   I just thought he was adorable and SOOOOO much fun to do!  Love the Retro Fresh Designer Series Papers on here!!

May 2014 Occasion Card #2

Remember each month will be a different holiday card design with matching envelopes.  I'll do all of the prep work, and all you'll have to do is come and stamp and complete your cards!!  The cost of the each workshop will be $15 and you must RSVP by the 15th of each month (to give me time to order and prep everything). 

Now, Christmas Cards 'might' not interest everyone--perhaps you want to get a 'stash' of occasion cards made.  Well, you have that option, too!!  When you sign up for the workshop, you can choose the Occasion Cards instead of the Christmas cards (same price--$15, you'll make five cards of two different designs for 10 total cards, and matching envelopes)!!

If BOTH the Christmas and Occasion cards interest you, then you can register for both for only $25!  I just need the RSVP's in order to have the projects prepped and ready to go in time!  1146 Highland Ave, Nfld, MN.  May's Workshop (due to my other 'job') is going to shift one day to THURSDAY (rather than Wednesday), May 29, 2014 at 5:00 p.m.

I'd love for you to join me at the Card Workshop!!  RSVP by the 15th of May and I will have a packet ready to go for you when you come on the 29th!!

Happy Stamping!

Pam

Weekly Deals & Digital Downloads--April 30, 2014

Wow!!!  Hard to believe it's already at the end of April.  The past couple of weeks have been busy at work, so haven't had a lot of 'blog time' happening.  LAST week, the Retiring Stamp Sets & Retiring Accessories lists were released.  If you'd like your own copy of those, just click on the hyperlinks above.  If that doesn't work, just shoot me an e-mail and I can send one off to you that way!!

In addition, current Stampin' Up! demonstrators had the chance to attend the 2014-2015 Catalog Release Party on Monday night at theaters all across the U.S. & Canada!!  I've been paging thru the advance copy that I got there for DAYS, and can't wait to share all of the fabulous new goodies from there with you!

BUT, for this week, here are the Weekly Deals and new Digital Downloads.  Remember, the Weekly Deals price is ONLY good while supplies last, and since several of the items this week are also on the Retiring Lists, I'd suggest picking them up sooner, rather than later, if they're on YOUR wish list!!

Daffodil Delight 1/4" Stitched Grosgrain Ribbon
#126872
Regular Price: $4.95 (US)
DISCOUNT Price: $3.71 (US)

Downtown Grunge Photobook Template - Digital Download
#126056
Regular Price: $19.95 (US)
DISCOUNT Price: $11.97 (US)

Dress Up Framelits Dies
#130101
Regular Price: $24.95 (US)
DISCOUNT Price: $18.71 (US)

Early Espresso 1/4" Stitched Grosgrain Ribbon
#126871
Regular Price: $4.95 (US)
DISCOUNT Price: $3.71 (US)

Merry Minis Punch Pack
#126882
Regular Price: $16.95 (US)
DISCOUNT Price: $12.71 (US)

Raspberry Ripple 3/8" Stitched Satin Ribbon
#126845
Regular Price: $8.95 (US)
DISCOUNT Price: $6.71 (US)

Regals Core'dinations Cardstock Pack
#129955
Regular Price: $23.95 (US)
DISCOUNT Price: $17.96 (US)

Talking Tag Message Labels
#129723
Regular Price: $7.95 (US)
DISCOUNT Price: $5.96 (US)

And for this week's new Digital Downloads:

Dictionary Stamp Brush
# 137948
Price:  $1.95 (US)

My Digital Class Hi There Kit
# 137942
Price:  $14.95 (US)

And I can't leave you today without sharing a couple pages I made a while back using the Downtown Grunge Digital Download.  I must admit, when I first saw that download when I was getting started in MDS, I was not a fan of it.  BUT, once I started using it and realized how versatile it actually is (and how GREAT is to use as a foundation for adding other things to it!), I fell in love with it.  Now, I did embellish the pages with some designer papers and embellishments from other downloads, but the page layouts are both from the downloads that come with the kit.

See?!  You're not just limited to the black/brown/white of the download--how fun and colorful are the pages above?!

You can check out all of these great deals (& more!) and new digital content by visiting my online store!

Happy Stamping!

Pam

Weekly Deals & Digital Downloads--April 17, 2014

I had EVERY intention of getting the Weekly Deals and new Digital Downloads up for you guys yesterday, BUT, I was at my conference & then spent the afternoon attempting to get my car started in a snowstorm to try to get home, and finally had to just give up and choose to stay another night.  Hopefully the weather will clear up and my car will cooperate for me to get out of here this morning!!

In the meantime, enjoy checking out the specials!  Remember, for the Weekly Deals, the price is ONLY good while supplies last this week!

Adorning Accents Edgelits Die
#125595
Regular Price: $9.95 (US)
DISCOUNT Price: $7.46 (US)

Anywhere Glue Sticks
#104045
Regular Price: $3.95 (US)
DISCOUNT Price: $2.96 (US)

Floral District Photobook Template - Digital Download
#127211
Regular Price: $17.95 (US)
DISCOUNT Price: $10.77 (US)

Natural 5/8" Chevron Ribbon
#132982
Regular Price: $6.95 (US)
DISCOUNT Price: $5.21 (US)

Needlepoint Border Textured Impressions Embossing Folder
#129383
Regular Price: $7.95 (US)
DISCOUNT Price: $5.96 (US)

Night of Navy 1/4" Stitched Grosgrain Ribbon
#126874
Regular Price: $4.95 (US)
DISCOUNT Price: $3.71 (US)

Outer Space Stampin' Around Jumbo Wheel
#126938
Regular Price: $8.50 (US)
DISCOUNT Price: $6.38 (US)

Venetian Romance Designer Series Paper
#130144
Regular Price: $10.95 (US)
DISCOUNT Price: $8.21 (US)

New Digital Downloads:

Gorgeous Grunge Stamp Brush Set
# 137939
Price:  $4.95 (US)

Hello Spring Stamp Brush Set
# 138038
Price:  $8.95 (US)

Simply Celebrate Stamp Brush Set
# 137913
Price:  $2.95 (US)

You can check out all of these great deals (& more!) and new digital content by visiting my online store!

Happy Stamping!

Pam

April Diva Blog Hop--Spring/Easter!

Hey, Folks!!

I hope you've been enjoying the Blog Hop today.  If you're joining me from Amy's blog, I'm the last stop for today.  If you just started here, feel free to head to Sue's blog and start from there to hop thru all the sites!!  And with Easter (and hopefully Spring!) just around the corner, I just LOVE the fact that we're 'hopping' today!!

This month's theme is Spring/Easter, and I can't tell you how timely that is!!  I am at a conference for work this week (got up to it on Sunday and head home on Wednesday) and Easter (and I'm hosting my brother & sister-in-law) will be less than a week away when I get back!  There is NO way I'll have time to do a ton of decorating, so for me, it was My Digital Studio to the rescue!!  If you go to any demonstrator's online store, and select 'Digital Downloads', and then select Occasion, you can see all of the great stamp brush sets and embellishments available for download that fit today's 'theme'.  I, however, being time-challenged this week, want to spend a little time talking about the kits.  There are a few kits (and one newer one that I showed when it came out a few weeks ago) that are GREAT for having quick/easy decor projects.

The Easter Blessing Ensemble is really great.   The download includes:
* 2 postcard templates (5" x 3-1/2" and 7" x 5")
* Greeting card template (4-1/4" x 5-1/2")
* 17-page décor templates (8-1/2" x 11")
* 2-page box template (12" x 12")

* 38-piece SVG stamp brush set
* 8 Designer Series Paper patterns
* 24 embellishments
* 2 punches

Features:
* Templates for hot cross buns box, banners, framables, brunch invitation, card, and more

Oh, and here's a little hint:  The box template (as you can see from above) is  a 12" x 12"template.  Well, I wanted to be able to print it at home, so I exported the pages as jpegs, and then inserted the square photo boxes on to an 8 1/2" x 11" page.  It gave me an automatically re-sized box that I just had to cut out and assemble (and add a clear window sheet to the top), and is super cute to boot!!

The banners are great, too!  I have one in my entry way, and the other up in my living room!

Of course, frameable art is a must have, too!!  The two larger images are from this same set.  The smaller image in the front is one I designed last year, but couldn't find, so just printed it on a 5"x7" cardstock and cut it out and put it in a black frame!

Everything Easter Ensemble is another favorite of mine.  

This download includes:
* 5" x 3-1/2" double-sided postcard designer template
* 7-page 11" x 8-1/2" décor designer template
* 9-page 8-1/2" x 11" décor designer template
* 18-piece stamp brush set
* 9 Designer Series Paper patterns
* 30 embellishments
* 1 punch

Features:
* Décor templates include basket boxes for favors; belly bands perfect for wrapping eggs, silverware, or napkin rings; table tents; oversized 3-D egg centerpiece (simply score in half vertically and attach multiple together)
* Includes Easter invitation photo postcard
* Elements included individually for use on other coordinating projects
*Imagery coordinates with traditional Everybunny Stamp Set

I actually have the baskets that come in this kit made, but with my disaster of a basement, can't even BEGIN to guess where they are to take a photo of them (and no time to dig!)!!  I did, however, take the postcard from the kit to use as my inspiration for my personal Facebook page Timeline Cover Photo:

So if you're pressed for time (like me!) consider going digital for your home decor needs!!

Now, I didn't 'just' go digital for this week.  I don't know about you, but the color 'yellow' always seems to mean 'spring' to me, so wanted to show a little closer-up photo of one of my March card workshop cards:

I 'did' use My Digital Studio for the saying.  I actually  had SEVERAL sheets with different sayings printed out, so my customers could pick what sort of occasion they wanted the card to be for their use.  And the great thing is I have lots of sayings printed that I could leave the oval blank until I needed the card, and just punch it out and attach then!!

The image was stamped using StazOn Black, and I used Garden Green and some water (to dilute it) to color in the leaves.  

Now, check out this close up of the flowers:

The image was actually stamped on Daffodil Delight cardstock then each flower was individually cut out and attached to the front of the card (in the right spot, of course!) using a dimensional!  HOW COOL IS THAT?!

O.K.  I need to get back to my conference, but just wanted to leave you with the list of all of our blogs for today:

Sue

Kat

Sandy

Autumn

Amy

Pam (You're here!)

Happy Hopping!!

Pam