Wrapped In Plaid Mini Pizza Box

It's so much fun to give little gifts to friends at this time of year.  I like to make up a lot of little treats to spread my giving throughout the season ... our grandchildren's school bus drivers, our grandchildren's teachers, our yard workers, our furry babies' groomer, our mail person, my hairdresser, neighbors ... the list is long and I keep thinking of more.
This little Mini Pizza Box can actually hold several fun chocolate treats.

COMING SOON:
NEW CLASSES ... LOTS OF CREATIVE FUN 
           ... HEADED YOUR WAY!

That's it for now.  

Thanks for stopping by my blog neighborhood.   

Have a beautiful day!

Come Sail Away / Sentimental Rose Card / Paper Pumpkin News

I have a fun card for you today and some updates on Paper Pumpkin.  Enjoy!
First up ... for my local Paper Pumpkin subscribers ...
We've chosen a date to begin our free Paper Pumpkin classes.  We'll meet on the third Tuesday of each month, from 1:00-3:00.  We'll get together and work on our kits from the previous month and just enjoy creating together for a relaxing afternoon.  If you're not a local subscriber or unable to attend, I'll be posting my projects on line each month, as well as sharing some optional alternatives you can create with your kit.
Now, for today's card ...
I love coming up with new ways to use our products.  Our Come Sail Away DSP is really pretty and definitely NOT just for sailing or nautical related cards and projects.  I chose a paper that would look pretty in most any setting and combined it with a couple stamps from a past Paper Pumpkin kit.  (our Sentimental Rose kit)  The flower was one of my favorite stamps.  It can be used in so many different ways.  Here's my card:

I stamped inside the card and on the envelope, to coordinate everything.

See?  This DSP design, used this way, has nothing to do with sailing or a nautical theme.  Isn't this paper gorgeous?  I just love it!

In these 2 close-ups, you can see the gorgeous, subtle texture in the background of this DSP.  I actually added Wink of Stella to the leaf image and the flower image, but, alas, it does not show up in the photos.  It is really pretty in person.  I used a double strand of Baker's Twine for the bow and left the ties long, for added interest.  

I added a layer of Balmy Blue to give a little color to my card.  You could easily change it out for a layer of silver foil or another layer of Basic Black.  Double layers of the same color can add a very elegant and sophisticated look to a card.

UPDATES ON WHAT'S NEXT: 

FREE PAPER PUMPKIN CLASS FOR MY LOCAL SUBSCRIBERS.

We'll be meeting on the third Tuesday of each month, from 1:00-3:00.
We'll have our first class in August and will be working on the July Paper Pumpkin kit.  The class will be open to any of my local Paper Pumpkin customers and you can join at any time, once you've signed up for the kits.  Bring your kit and we'll create together.  This should be a lot of fun!

MY NEXT SCRAPS AND PRAYERS CLASSES ---

August 12 - Pay to register by August 5.

          Pressed Petals Journal
September 9 - Pay to register by September 2.
          Home Decor Sampler
October 14 - Pay to register by October 7.

          Decorating a Copper Tea Tin for the season.  
Our October class will be a very special one, as we'll be celebrating our 10th anniversary for our Scraps and Prayers class.  I can't believe we've been enjoying this class for all this time.  I am so very glad I brought this dream of mine to fruition.  I am blessed by this group and hope I bring great joy to each and every participant.
November 11 - Pay to register by November 4.
            Christmas Cards and/or Christmas Project
December 9 - Pay to register by December 2.
            Beautiful Christmas Cards 

MORE SPECIAL EVENTS -----
CHRISTMAS CARDS RETREAT
Sunday, October 6 / 1:00-6:00 / $35.00
Pay to register by September 27.
Fee includes snacks and all your supplies.

HOLIDAY OPEN HOUSE PARTY
Sunday, November 3 / 2:00-5:00 / Save the Date!  / RSVP

That's it for now.  Thanks for stopping by my blog neighborhood.  Have a beautiful day!

Old Olive Plaid Card

What a fun party we had Sunday!  I was so pleased that my guests spaced themselves out in such a way that I got to spend time with each one!  We partied until a little past our time ... and it was so much fun!  
I had an early doctor's appointment yesterday and then I kind of took the day off and enjoyed reading a book by Clint Harp, their go-to carpenter from the Fixer Upper.  I loved his book and highly recommend it.  It's so inspirational to hear him share how he did so much to follow his dream. 
Now, on to today's card.  I love plaid and I love Old Olive, so when I can enjoy them together ... I'm a happy camper.
Spoiler Alert:
We're going to have Old Olive Linen Thread in our upcoming Occasions catalog!  Yay!

I spent some extra time being sure to center the plaid design before I cut it.  It gives it a much more elegant look.

I love the look of this card, but there's more you could do with it.  If you just changed out the sentiment, I think you could turn it into a great birthday card, especially for a guy.  It's always good to have more ideas for masculine cards and plaid always works.

--- NEXT CLASSES / EVENTS: 

- Dec. 10 / Scraps and Prayers / 5:30-7:30 / $15.00
     Beautiful Christmas Cards
     ONLY 3 REMAINING SPOTS.
     PAY TO REGISTER SOON.

 --- Special Drawing for Customers
You have until the end of November to qualify. 
You'll get your name in the drawing once for EACH order ... Now through Nov. 30.   
CLICK HERE FOR ALL THE INFO. 

Thanksgiving is almost here!

Five Days of Daisies, Day Four

We're winding down on my Five Days of Daisies.  Here's my fourth card for you to enjoy.

- Thanks for stopping by my corner of the blogging world.

- Come back often for more creative inspiration.

- Let's create something beautiful today.

New Catalog Inspirations, Part 1

I love when Stampin' Up! adds such gorgeous ideas for cards and projects to their catalog.  I've found inspiration from several examples in our new catalog.  The catalog goes live in a week now, so I hope you go ahead and get your copy now, so you can be studying it.  Today's card is actually using a stamp set that carried over to the new catalog.  I love the way they showed it.  Here's my take on it.

My color story:
- Pool Party
- Lemon Lime Twist
- Dapper Denim

I love this color story!  If you take a look at the 'labels' at the end of today's post, you will see that I used a lot of products.  This makes it easy to create a really nice design and a card that you'll love when it's all finished.

 SECRET MESSAGE:
If you live in the area, you can stop by and pick up your copy of our new catalog.  Call first so we don't disturb the baby's nap, please.

June Events:
June 12 / Scraps and Prayers / All Occasions Cards / 5:30-7:30 / $15.00 / Make some beautiful cards to add to your stash to send to special friends and/or family.  Sign up early to save your spot.  My Saturday Stampers classes have been filling up really early.  Your payment holds your spot.

June 17 / Saturday Stampers /  Mixed Media Patriotic Project / 1:00-4:00 / $20.00 

REGISTRATION CLOSED.

June 22 / EARLY BIRD GARAGE SALE / 5:30-6:30
June 23 + 24 / GARAGE SALE / 8:00-5:00

June 25 / Open House New Catalog Party / 2:00-5:00

- Thanks for stopping by my corner of the blogging world.

- Come back often for more creative inspiration. 

Another Stenciling Project

Here's another of my 'working with stencils creatively' projects.  And, before I share, be sure you've sent me your RSVP for my Spring Open House Party, so I can have a really fun gift waiting for you.  You'll never guess what it is! 

We made this card at my class to show how you can use stenciling as a background.  Be sure, when working with a delicate stencil like this one, that you sponge carefully so you don't ruin the design.  You could also try this one with one of our sponge rollers.

The flowers are all embossed (Black EP) --- on the card front, on the inside of the card, and on the coordinating envelope.

I lightly sponged over the flowers on the envelope.  I love the look of crisp black and white with touches of bright yellow (Crushed Curry).  Once again, you could change the sentiment and have a great card for several other occasions.

Don't forget:  Sunday, March 26 -- 
Spring Open House Party / 2:00-5:00 / a 'no fee' event ' / RSVP by March 24 and I'll have a special gift waiting for you.  Come and join us for an afternoon of creative fun! 
ALSO:
Be sure to look over on the left side of my blog for sneak peeks at the projects for my April classes!!!

- Thanks for stopping by my corner of the blogging world.

- Come  back often for more creative inspiration. 

Flower and Hearts Avant Garden Card

This is one of the cards we made at my last Scraps and Prayers class.  I love working with this group.  We have such a good time, share joys and concerns and always look forward to this night of creative fellowship. 
After a brief devotion and prayer, we worked on 5 beautiful Spring cards --- 2 with flowers, 2 with dragonflies, and a darling little puppy card.  Thus, we worked with stamping, die cuts, Brusho, and our new Watercolor Pencils. 

There are two flowers on this card.  One is stamped directly onto the card front.  The second flower is stamped on a scrap of Whisper White, hand cut, and attached (offset) over the first flower using Stampin' Dimensionals.

Notice how adding just a teeny, teeny, tiny sliver of black CS showing on the left really pulls the card together.  I love it!

The little leaf sprig stamp (also in this stamp set) adds a little touch of whimsy to the inside of the card and to the coordinating envelope.  This was a real favorite from the class.

My next classes and events:
Saturday, March 18 -- Saturday Stampers / 1:00-4:00 / Using stencils creatively (on cards) / $20. / Pay to register at least 2 days prior to the class. 
See sneak peeks on left side here.
Sunday, March 26 -- 
Spring Open House Party / 2:00-5:00 / a 'no fee' event / RSVP by March 24 and I'll have a special gift just waiting for you.  Come and join us for an afternoon of creative fun! 

Special Reminders:
As always, you must pay to register at least 2 days prior to each class.  If you are using a coupon, you still need to register at least 2 days prior to the class and present the coupon at that time.  I need it for tax records, please.
See the left side of my blog for sneak peeks on upcoming classes and events.  Class schedules and descriptions can be found by clicking on 'my classes' at the top of my blog.

- Thanks for stopping by my corner of the blogging world.

- Come  back often for more creative inspiration. 

5 Days of Emerald Envy, Day One ... and the Cutest Little Frog Ever

I think this is the cutest little frog I've seen for a while.  I just love his little smiley face.  I chose him to kick off 5 days that may leave you green with envy... or at least enjoying our new shade of green Emerald Envy.    

 Somehow, I think the polka dots just work perfectly with this card.  

I had a little 'frog fun' playing around with the envelope.

I added more hearts to the inside of the card.  The simple strip of CS with the hearts on it really makes the inside of the card special.  There's still room for a nice little message. 

I just love my little frog.  I have 4 more green days, so be sure to come back and see what's next.

- Thanks for stopping by my corner of the blogging world. 

- Click on the tab at the top to see my class schedules. 

- Look on the left for sneak peeks and registration policies. 

- Please sign up to follow my blog and/or leave a comment. 

- Come  back often for more creative inspiration. 

A Couple of 4" Cards to Share

I've finished sharing all of my 3" cuties, so today, I have a couple of 4" cards.  Then, it's on to full-size cards again.

I used Baker's Twine to make some fringe hanging down from the heart.  Of course, I had to add a tiny piece of bling.

I stamped a compass on each of the envelopes.  I used a full-sized envelope, so you can actually mail these little cards or you could use them on their own as gift enclosures.

I love the compass.  I decided to place a large pearl in the center of it.

In my next post, I'll share a card that's what I call a Botanicals neutrals card.  Be sure to check it out.

- Thanks for stopping by my little corner of the blogging world. 

- Click on the tab at the top of the page to see my class schedules and registration policies or look on the left for sneak peeks. 

- Come back soon and come back often for more creative inspiration. 

 

3" Cuties, Cards 6 and 7

I have two more 3" cuties to share with you today.  These are the last of the bunch.  

This one is done with a Sahara Sand card base.  I sponged a few highlights onto the 'brick wall' background, along with a stamped off image at the bottom corner.  It adds a lot of texture to it.   

Sadly, this dotted embossing folder is retiring, but I hang onto most of my embossing folders.  When a new catalog comes out, I try my best to purge my stamps, but I have trouble letting go of any of my Big Shot items.  Anyway, most people who are not demonstrators hang onto their products, so I like to show them ways they can still use them and combine them with some of our new products.  

I did a major purge of my punches this last week, which is a big deal for me.  I will be having a nice big sale as a part of my Open House/New Catalog Party on June 26.  If you live in the area, you'll want to drop over for the party and enjoy some great deals, some new Make and Take projects, and a ton of fun.

- Thanks for stopping by my little corner of the blogging world. 

- Click on the tab at the top of the page to see my class schedules and registration policies or look on the left for sneak peeks. 

- Come back soon and come back often for more creative inspiration.