Happy Birthday Beautiful Girl plus Hawaii pics

Hope your Christmas was a good one and you were able to spend some quality time with your friends and family!  Ours was nice and quiet this year.  It was a little different to have Christmas in my shorts and flip flops (or slippers as they call them here!)

We arrived in Hawaii Monday night around 10:30 pm (or 3:30 am EST).  Ashley met us at the airport with leis.  Believe me, the bed felt good to me when we finally got to Ashley's around midnight!

Thursday was Ashley's birthday.  This is the card I made for her using the new Beautiful You stamp set from the Occasions Catalog.

Our first stop on her birthday was to have breakfast.  We went to a restaurant for macadamia nut pancakes!  Soooo good!  Then we drove over to the Polynesian Cultural Center where we were able to learn about six Pacific cultures and visit the villages (Hawaii, Maori, Fiji, Samoa, Tahiti & Tonga). There was a canoe parade with the different cultures aboard the canoes and different Polynesian activities going on.  The Cultural Center did not open until noon and there was really too much to see and do in the few hours we had.  We had reservations at 5:00 for their luau and at 7:30 for the evening show.  We really needed more time to explore.

Our pig for the luau - it was delicious!

Ashley and I with our luau leis

Finally - a picture of all 3 of us.  Those leaves were huge!!

Sonny & Ashley - waiting for our table to be called to get our food!

Our Maori tattoos!  They used a rubber stamp and black ink!

Canoe Parade

Hawaii float from the parade

Bundle Up!

I love this fellow! 

This is not a Stampin' Up stamp but it's one I've had for several years and just love to color him.  This time I used my Copics to color him matching him pretty well to the Coastal Cabana card stock. 

I think I'm packed and ready to go.  My friend is coming to pick us up in the morning to take us to the airport.   I took Sammie to my mom's late this afternoon.  She was not a happy camper and threw up on the trip to Mooresville.   She'll be fine once she gets settled out on Mom's sun room.  She loves to sit out there and watch the birds and squirrels. 

Beautiful You meets Serene Scenery

Well, December has been a really busy month as you can see by the lack of posts!  Actually, until yesterday, I have not done any stamping for about a month - except for the inside of my Christmas cards!!  But .... I got my order from the Occasions Catalog on Monday (as a demonstrator, that is one of the perks).  To tell the truth, when I first looked at the catalog, I was not blown away.  But as I'm seeing what other demonstrators have done with some of the sets, my mind is changing!  Especially for the stamp I am sharing with you today - Beautiful You.  I've actually made several cards using the same image.  I will share one of them with you today.

Isn't this lovely?   There are 13 stamps in this set - 3 images of the girl; 8 sentiments; and 2 water washes that you can use to stamp her dress.  For this card, I stamped the girl on a piece of shimmery white card stock because I wanted to watercolor her with our NEW watercolor pencils!!  I layed the color down on her dress and hat and then used the Aqua Brush to smooth the color out.  For this card, I "fussy-cut" the girl out and glued her onto a piece of the Serene Scenery DSP paper stack (pg 174 in the annual catalog).  I stamped the sentiment directly on the DSP.  The DSP is layered onto a piece of textured card stock that I found in my stash but don't know the color but it matched the DSP so well, I had to use it.  The card itself is Pool Party.

I am still going to Weight Watchers and have lost 30 pounds.  The struggle now is to keep it off during the holidays!  I bounce back and forth with 2 pounds lost; 2 pounds gained!!  Last week, I went to 4 party events and this week, it is three plus my family is going to meet at an Asian restaurant Saturday for a little before Christmas get-together.  I will be going to Hawaii for the holidays (I know you feel sorry for me!!)  We leave on Monday for 3 weeks so not sure how often I will be updating the blog.  It's hard for me to wrap my head around the fact that I won't need a sweater or a coat!  Ashley took my summer clothes back with her when she was here for Thanksgiving.  Now I'll have room in the suitcase for a couple of cases of Cheerwine for her.  (For those who don't live in NC, Cheerwine is a local soda that is a little like a cherry Dr. Pepper.)

Stampin' Up SALE!

This is such a busy time of year and I have been neglectful about posting here on my blog.  So sorry but life just gets in the way sometimes!  Stampin' Up has been doing a little year-end cleaning and have some great deals to offer.  Their Year-End Closeouts include holiday retiring products, clearance rach items and current high-inventory catalog products.  The sale started today and will continue until Jan. 3.  Here are the details:

• Clearance Rack items are only available while supplies last.
• Following the Year-End Closeouts promotion, some products may remain on the Clearance Rack; other items may be removed from the Clearance Rack to be added at another undetermined time.
• High-inventory items will only be discounted through January 3; beginning
January 4, they will still be available, but at regular price.
• Retiring item availability will follow standard retiring item rules:
        • Retiring stamp sets are guaranteed available until December 21,
          after which they will be only available while supplies last.
        • Retiring accessories will only be available while supplies last.
        • Retiring items will only be available while supplies last. All retiring items
          will be discontinued after January 3.

You can call or email me with your order OR you can put your order in on-line by clicking on the box above that says "Order Online."  I would really appreciate it if you would include my current Workshop Code when ordering - GW4FKPWP

You can follow THIS LINK to go to the SU Store and see all the items on sale.  There are 2 catagories to check out - Closeout Stamps, Papers, Bundles and Everything Else so check them all out.  Remember - ALL of the Bundles will be on the list because Bundles are only sold together at a discount the FIRST time that they appear in a catalog.

Lovely As A Tree

This was Stamp Club week and I was taking requests - for a sympathy card, note cards and the technique using the Woodlands embossing folder.  Unfortunately, 2 of the gals who made the requests were unable to make it this week!!  Oh well, such is life.  This is such a busy time of year.

This sympathy card was so easy to make but was a big hit with everyone.  It uses everyone's favorite stamp set, Lovely As A Tree.  The sympathy sentiment is from Teeny Tiny Wishes.  First I stamped the trees on Smoky Slate with Basic Gray ink and punched out a hole using the 1 1/4" Circle Punch.  Stamp the tree on a scrap of Soft Saffron and line up the trees on the scrap behind the trees on the Smoky Slate piece.  Trim the scrap of Saffron so it doesn't peek out at the top, bottom or sides.  Mat the whole thing on a piece of Soft Saffron.  It gives the illusion that you have stamped those trees on the large piece of Saffron.  

The next card uses the Woodland embossing folder.  I rubbed Soft Sky ink all over the embossing folder (on the side that has "Sizzix" in the top corner).  Next I stamped the trees (Lovely As A Tree) with Chocolate Chip ink directly on the embossing folder.  I used a Q Tip to go over the birch trees and removed some of the ink off of them.  Next I inserted a piece of white card stock in the folder and ran it through theb Shot.  If you want your trees whiter, you can use a dauber and rub some White ink over them.  Use the Chocolate Chip marker to make the marks on the birch tree.  The sentiment on my card is from a previous Paper Pumpkin kit.

We also made a Note Card Portfolio with note cards and envelopes.  I'll be sharing those later.

Christmas Card Stamp-a-Stack

I will be hosting my annual Christmas Card Stamp-a-Stack on Monday, Nov. 21 and Tuesday, Nov. 29.  If you live in the area, and would like to attend, please contact me.  My telephone number and e-mail address can be found in this blog header at the top of the page.  The way it works is you choose the cards you want to make and make them in sets of 5 each.  I will have everything pre-cut for you so it makes it easy to put them together.  I just need at least 3 days notice so I can have your packets ready!!  This is always a fun event with prizes given out while you create.  The price is

$35 for 20 cards   /   $65 for 40 cards   /   $95 for 60 cards.  (amounts will be pro-rated for other quantities)

I had a hard time narrowing down the card choices this year!  Well, truthfully, I have this problem every year!!  Here are the cards you can choose from.

CARD #1 Your choice of Fox or Owl below

CARD #1B

CARD #2 - Your choice to do the trees in any of the papers from Warmth and Cheer DSP stack (pg 13-Holiday Catty)

CARD #3

CARD #4 - Your choice of background colors - see card below for another option.

CARD #4 B

CARD #5

CARD #6

CARD #7

CARD #8

CARD #9

CARD #10

CARD #11

CARD #12

CARD #13

CARD #14

CARD #15

November Paper Pumpkin

Be aware - the November Hostess Code is in the column on the left side of this blog.

 If you are short on time, space, supplies, etc. . . . Paper Pumpkin might be a great solution for you.  The November box is sure to hold something exciting for the holidays!  Now would be the perfect time to try it for yourself.  Sign up by the 10th to get the November box.  Remember, you can skip or cancel anytime AND your satisfaction is guaranteed!  I also think this would be a great Christmas present for a teen on your list.

This past weekend was Stampin' Up's On Stage which is an events program designed to bring together SU demonstrators from all over the world.  At the event, the newest catalog is revealed and well as demonstrators being recognized for their achievements.  It's been described as a little like attending a very big and fun party where you can meet new friends, re-connect with old friends, create Make and Takes, do some card swapping, take home free products and much more.  There is one big live On Stage and several local ones where you watch some of the recorded content from the live On Stage.  Last weekend the live On Stage was held in Brisbane, AU and the closest local event for NC was Atlanta.  I had a lot of friends who attended.  Sadly, I did not - too much traveling for me lately so had to sit this one out.  I hope to attend the next local On Stage in Savannah thought in April!

But, I didn't miss out on all the fun of On Stage.  A lot of demos posted picture on Facebook or on their blogs of the fun they were having.  Last night was my monthly demo meeting with Allison and, what a sweetie!  She brought us the Occasions Catalog which will be revealed Jan. 1!!  Plus we got to see all the swaps that she and the other gals had gotten at the event.

I have a few more birthday cards to share with you today.

My card from Ashley

Sweet card from an NC Demo friend, Jo Anne

Love all the details in this card from Margaret.

This was Ashley's card to her dad.  His birthday was a week after mine.

Christmas Cards plus more traveling pics!

I'm on a roll this week with  keeping my blog updated!  I have been working on Christmas cards all week getting ready for my annual Christmas Card Stamp a Stack.  I am still working on the date - late November I know for sure but I am surveying my regulars to see what works best for them.  I always have room for new people though (as long as I know in advance!)  I design 10-15 cards and the gals each pick which ones they want to make (in groups of 5).  When they come to my house on the designated day, I have everything ready to go with a lot of things cut out and embossed.  All you have to bring with you is your basic supplies - adhesive, bone folder, scissors, etc.  The cost is

$35 for 20 cards   /   $65 for 40 cards   /   $95 for 60 cards.  (amounts will be pro-rated for other quantities), including envelopes.  Contact me if you are interested in attending!

This is such a cute set but it is a hostess set called Cozy Critters.

I love this using the Jars framelits and Jar of Cheer.

I think I am obsessed with the Christmas Pines thinlits and stamps!  Love, love, love this set!

I don't know that you will see these 3 in the finals mainly because they are too time consuming.  I try to do great cards but without a lot of time having to be spent on them!  That is sometimes tricky to do!

OK - now a few more pictures - this time from Sonoma and our wine tasting!

This was one of our last stops and it was a good thing for me!  The winery was in a cave.

We got pretty good at taking selfies!

Yum - I got chocolate with this tasting!

Taking a break on a beautiful day.

Help yourself to a bottle!