Stamping Bliss

A Scarecrow Revisited

If you have been following my blog for a while you probably saw this project last fall.  It is such a cute project that I knew I wanted to make it again.  My daughter had so much fun putting one of these together last year that I wanted to share that fun with some more kids.  

 

Here are all of the scarecrow boxes we made.  Each kid added their own ideas and made their scarecrows very unique.  This is a slightly simpler project than I made last year.  I didn't add as many details but they are still adorable.

Here is the scarecrow sample up close.  I created my own pattern for the box.  I then used the Top Note Die to make the scarecrow's face and hat.  The face is created with a variety of punches and dies.  This is a great little "thank you" gift for someone this Thanksgiving.  

Kid's Stamp Camp

A few weeks ago I had a Kid Stamp Camp.  We had so much fun!  I love stamping with kids.  They are so spontaneous and creative.  =)  With fall upon us we made a variety of fall crafts.  Here is one of them.

 

These are fall photo albums.  I just used chipboard I had around the house, cut them down to size and then we covered them with paper.

Here is an up close picture of my sample.  I used the Autumn Meadows DSP that is in the Holiday Mini Catalog.  The stamp set is retired but the bold images are great for fall.

Here is what the album looks like opened.  We could of covered the inside but I thought the kids would have more fun stamping random leaves all over.  To make the inside photo pages I just used our clear envelopes.  You take the adhesive off the envelope flap.  Stack the sticky flaps together and attach to the book with brads and a Crop-a-Dile.  Very easy!

Letterheads

I am still playing around with My Digital Studio and enjoying it.  I wanted a cohesive look to the newsletters I send out to my clubs--My Stamp Club and my Big Shot Club.  So I started playing around with My Digital Studio to see what I could come up with.

One of the perks of My Digital Studio is the variety of stamps sets that are on it.  Most of the stamp sets that are on it are not ones that I personally own.  Many of them are on my wish list as well.  So it is fun playing with stamp sets that I haven't had the chance to play around with.  One of those stamp sets is the "Cheep Talk" stamp set that I love.  It is so cute!

This is the header for my Stamp Club newsletter (included in each month's order).  I did this in black in white since that is how I print my newsletter.  

This header is for my exclusive Big Shot Club.  I also did this in black and white for printing purposes.  I wanted to use the same stamp set for both headers just changed a bit.  I think this one is my favorite of the two.

What is my Big Shot Club you ask?  My Big Shot Club is an exclusive club only open to customers who purchase a Big Shot from me.  You get a free 1 year membership to this club.  Each month you receive tips and ideas on how to get the most of your Big Shot.  You also get an exclusive pattern for a box with each newsletter.  Have you been thinking about purchasing your Big Shot?  Than order yours today from me and you also can become a member of this exclusive club!

So as you can see, My Digital Studio goes beyond digital scrapbooking and really is a digital paper-crafting solution!!

Deal of the Week #4

Do you have a Princess living with you?  How about a mischievous Pirate?  If you answered yes to either one than you are in luck.  This week's special is the Princess Party Kit and the Pirate Party Kit, both are on sale for $9.95!!  What a great deal!  Now would be a great time to purchase these kits and put them aside in plenty of time for your child's birthday party!!

My Digital Studio

On October 1st Stampin' Up! released its new product line--My Digital Studio.  My Digital Studio is a computer program featuring all of the things we have come to love about Stampin' Up!--our exclusive color families, exclusive artwork, our wide selection of embellishments and so much more--all on your computer.  That's right!  This is a "digital paper crafting solution" not digital scrapbooking.  Let me tell you a little bit about the difference:

Digital Scrapbooking--just what the name states.  Scrapbooking on your computer using digital downloads and a type of photo editing software.  Generally you buy kits of "scrapbooking supplies" and create your scrapbook page.  This is HUGE in the scrapbooking world right now.  Stampin' Up! now has digital downloads (which are in the My Digital Studio program) on sale in the online store for people who prefer traditional digital scrapbooking.  

I must admit about a year ago I attempted to jump on the band wagon and tried to digital scrapbook.  Let's just say I got kicked off that wagon pretty fast.  I am fairly computer efficient but the learning curve for digital scrapbooking was huge for me, so huge in fact that I gave up before I really gave it much of a chance.  Plus I really like pulling out all of my paper and tools and just playing.  Don't you?  =)

Digital Paper Crafting Solution--My Digital Studio is a program for your computer that allows you to create more than just scrapbook pages.  With this software you can create calendars, cards, scrapbooks, pages, blog headers, stationary, multi-media projects, hybrid projects and so much more.  It features select Stampin' Up! stamps and embellishments (with additional digital downloads available), our beautiful, coordinating colors and our exclusive Simply Scrappin' Kits.  It is all the fun of Stampin' Up!'s products without having to clean up your mess!!  ;)  This is a great program that is easy for beginning digital crafters and more advanced digital crafters.  Trust me!!

Now you are probably wondering why all of a sudden I am jumping up and down with excitement about this new product.  After all, it has been available for a few weeks and this is the first time I have mentioned it on my blog, right?  I just received my copy of My Digital Studio and spent this evening playing with it.  I wanted to get a feel for this great new product line before giving a review.  Plus it is a little hard to promote a product without having used it for yourself.  And well, let's face it, I was a little intimidated by the software after my last experience with digital crafting...

So tonight, while in bed still recovering from the flu, I installed My Digital Studio onto my laptop.  Now I have an Apple computer which can often cause problems when buying software because a lot of software is not compatible.  My Digital Studio works with PCs and Macs.  It was very easy to install and surprisingly fast.  I was able to start playing around with the program in less than 7 minutes.  10 minutes later, I had my first scrapbook page done...

Now the watermark at the bottom of the page is just so I can post this on my blog and will not be part of my scrapbook page.  This is a 12" x 12" page that started out as one of the designer templates that the program has (you can also start with a blank canvas) which I tweaked until I got the colors and looks that I wanted.  Not bad for someone who is totally intimidated by digital scrapbooking huh?

Some of you may be thinking, that looks great but how can you print it?  You can print your projects on your home printer but be aware that you may have to play with it and adjust margins, color, etc. so you finished project looks the same in real life and on your screen.  If you don't want to mess with getting to know your printer better than Stampin' Up! is offering professional printing services and book binding.  You just send it in to Stampin' Up! digitally and it will be sent to the press.  How great is that?  A super, fast, easy way to make great looking, personal gifts.

I am just tipping the iceberg at all this software can do.  So keep checking back to see what else I create with this fun software.  Please leave a comment and let me know what you think about my first project!!

October Deal of the Week #3

Deal of the Week #3 is available today and it is a great one!  Do you love to add embellishments to your cards, scrapbook pages and other projects?  Than you will want to take advantage of these sweets deals on some of our most popular embellishements.

 114348   Basic Jumbo grommets   regular price $6.95  sale price $4.49

109857  Mini Library clips   regular price $12.95   sales price $8.99

112571 Circle Designer brads   regular price $5.95   sales price  $3.99

112581 1/2" Library clips   regular price  $6.95  sales price  $3.99

Remember:  these prices are only available for a week.  So don't miss out on these great deals.  You can order online 24/7 at my website or call me to place your order!!

Cute Punch Crow Card

This card is another one featuring Stampin' Up!'s punches.  I saw this card on my upline's Sandy Hancock's blog.  It was just so stinking cute that I had to CASE it.  (CASE-to Create And Share Everything).  I couldn't wait until Stamp-A-Stack when I could share it with my customers.  I am not going to give a recipe for this card but if you want to know what was used than click on Sandy's blog and check out her list.

Since this crow is so adorable I really wanted to keep the card itself simple.  So we just textured the background using the Big Shot to add some visual appeal.

Scrap With Me Night Cancelled

I hate to do this but the flu has hit my family and I really don't want to share with the rest of you.  So I am canceling this month's Scrap With Me Night.  I hope to see you at next weekend's Christmas Jingle Tri-Shutter Class.  I only have about 6 more openings in that class so claim you spot now!!

Pumpkin Punch

Stampin' Up!'s punches are wonderful products to have on hand.  There is so much that you can do with them.  I also love the fact that they coordinate so beautifully with so many of our fabulous, exclusive stamps.  Another great thing about our punches is all of the fun things you can create with them.  Today's card shows another great way you can use our Oval punches.

Pumpkin Punch Tutorial:

1.  Punch three ovals.  You can use any size oval-Small, Large or Wide-for this project.

2.  Sponge the edges of the ovals with the matching ink (Pumpkin Pie).  I do this to add depth to the pumpkin.

3.  Adhere two ovals to the back and side of the third oval.   

4.  Use a scrap of card stock to be the stem.

5.  If you want a Jack-o-lantern look to your card than the face for the Autumn Harvest stamp set is great.

RECIPE:  Stamps-Teeny Tiny Wishes & Autumn Harvest; Ink-Basic Black; CS-Elegant Eggplant, Basic Black, Pumpkin Pie & Green Galore; Punches-Large Oval, Wide Oval & Modern Label.

Gifts of the Earth With Watercolor Pencils

This card was another one we did for a Stamp-A-Stack.  I don't generally find myself drawn to detailed stamps like this because of the time they can take to fill in.  Let's face it-when I have time to stamp I generally have to stamp fast.  =) I think I am going to have to start trying out more of these after this card.

We used Stampin' Up!'s watercolor paper, watercolor pencils and blender pens.  I love each of these products because they allow me to quickly and beautifully fill in my lined images.  The watercolor pencils are so easy to use that anyone from the beginner to the most advanced stamper will love them.  Our watercolor paper is the perfect weight and can hold up even when saturated with water.  And the Blender Pens are just fabulous for so many different projects.

RECIPE:  Stamps-Gifts of the Earth & Lovely as a Tree; Ink-Staz-on & Chocolate Chip; CS-Kraft, Watercolor paper, Chocolate Chip & More Mustard; Embellishments-Playground Designer Buttons.