March Monday Mailers

I received 3 beautiful Monday Mailers today.  These are for March.  Since I was out of town in March, Naomi waited until this week to send me all three cards at once.  They were definitely worth the wait!

This is my favorite one!  I will probably be CASE-ing this one for my stamp club soon. 

This one uses the stamp set, Always.  I love seeing how other people use stamp sets that I have overlooked in the catalog.

Great card using the darling Owl Punch!

March Monday Mailers

Here are the Monday Mailers that I sent to Brenda last month.

Baby Blossoms Monday Mailer

I wasn't so sure about this stamp set at first but after seeing all the pretty cards different people had made with it, I changed my mind.  Plus, it is a 2-step stamping technique set.  SU's two-step stamping is what attracted me to the company in the first place.  I love that technique.  There are several sets in the SU catalog that feature this technique.  They are noted in the catalog by this symbol:

The way two-step stamping works is that you stamp the first image in your lightest color.  Then you stamp the second image on top of the first image in a darker coordinating color.  For the Baby Blossoms stamp set, there are a lot of small images.  I ordered the clear set (less expensive plus better for space purposes!) and after putting the set together, I kept the rubber piece that you punch from and put my stamps back in the holes.  That way, I can tell at a glance if I am missing one of them and it is easier to find the stamp that I need.  

I also made a "cheat sheet" for stamping the images.  This is helpful to see which stamps go together.  Here is a close up picture of it.

 

Of course, a lot of these pieces can be interchanged to be used with each other - like the different size leaves, etc. but this is a good guideline if you need it.

So, on to the card I made with this set.

Doesn't this look like springtime???  I just love the colors - Baja Blue, Regal Rose, Old Olive and So Saffron.  The card base is Sahara Sand and the "white" piece that I stamped on is Confetti White.

I just learned how to make those ribbon rosettes too and was so excited that my first one actually turned out!

You need 10" piece of Seam Binding Ribbon (satin will probably work too), 1" circle punch, sticky tape, Crop a Dile.

Here is what I did:  punch a 1" circle from Baja Blue cardstock and a 1" circle from SU's sticky pages (or you can use red-line tape instead).  Cover the Baja Blue cs with the sticky circle (this will be the front side.)   Leave the protective cover on the sticky circle for now.  Punch a small hole in the middle of the circle with your Crop-a-dile and then cut a slit from the middle circle to the edge of the circle (just one side).  Put a piece of red-line tape on the opposite side of your slit.  Now, feed your 10" piece of seam binding ribbon up from the FRONT of the circle and stick the end down to the tape you put opposite of the slit (back side of circle).  Now, on the other end of the ribbon, cut it into a point so that you can grab 2-3 threads and pull them, gathering the ribbon.  Work your gathering down through the whole ribbon until you have about 8" length of ribbon.  Now, take the protective cover off the circle and begin rotating the circle while you stick down your gathered ribbon, creating a flower.  When you get to the end, pull your end piece around to the back and tape it down with red-line tape.   Voila!  You should have a rosette!

For those of you who do better with seeing the project, there is a video tutorial,  HERE.

This is my first Monday Mailer to Brenda.  Hope she likes it!!

I still have not been able to skype with Ashley but at least I am reassured that she is ok.  Her internet has been down in her building since last Friday.  She was able to send me an e-mail at the clinic although she cannot access her personal e-mail there.  I'm sure she knew I was worried.  She hopes it will be working later today and we can talk.  She has been really busy since she is the only doctor on site now.  The other docs are relieving people on leave at other bases.  She told me that the weather has been bad there for a few days.  I thought this was interesting - "The weather has been crappy the past couple of days...last night and this morning it is actually raining mud which is really disgusting.  After walking home with a to-go plate last night, the top of the white styrofoam was covered with orange colored rain drops...The sky in front of the aid station this morning was bright orange which was pretty cool although I guess it was actually mud containing rain clouds."  So I guess we can be thankful for the weather we have here in the states!!

Final Feb Monday Mailers

I am going to be sad not to receive Monday Mailers from Beth Fox any more.  She sent me some wonderful cards!  The card she sent me this week uses my favorite color combo - pink, green, blue.  I'll be CASE'ing it soon - maybe even for my club this month.

 

Beth sent me a note telling me her 7 year old daughter added the bling on the photo corners while she wasn't looking!  A future stamper in the making!  The stampset is the single stamp - Elizabeth

 

 This is the card I sent to Beth.  I love these colors together (Daffodil Delight, Pacific Point and Poppy Parade ribbon).  I stamped the image from Bliss in white on the blue and embossed it.  The bird is stamped in Pacific Point on white paper.  I used the Beveled Windowpanes to frame the bird.  The Daffodil piece is scallop punched and embossed with Elegant Lines die and the Big Shot.

I got a big shipment this week and I have to share the boxes Stampin' Up is using for Sale-a-bration!  

 

Vintage Monday Mailer

I got a beautiful vintage-y Monday Mailer this week from Beth.  I'm really going to be sad when I receive the final card from Beth next week.  She does such outstanding work!  And she is really good about acknowledging when she receives my card.  Not everyone who participates in the Monday Mailer program does this even though I plead with them every month to share what they receive.  

Beth used the Wallpaper embossing folder (I just ordered it!!) and the Beveled Windowpanes.  I just love all the details in this card - the sponging, the little bits of lace, the newspaper DSP.

What a beautiful day!

Oh, what a beautiful day!!  We have had wonderful weather the past couple of days and the sun is shining brightly now!   I will probably be helping Sonny do a little yard work later today, but hopefully, will also have time to do some stamping.  I have a "chocolate" stamp that I am itching to use!!  Unfortunately, right now I am sitting with a heating pad wrapped around my neck!  I was talking to Ashley this a.m. via Skype and leaned back in my chair and this pain ran down the left side of my neck.  Ouch!!  I think it is muscle spasms just on that side of my neck.  I have been rubbing and massaging it and am now trying heat.  My mom had this last week and ended up going to the hospital and the doctor.  She was in pain for a week and was taking pain tablets as well as muscle relaxers.  I may be getting one of her muscle relaxers this weekend.  I don't know what has caused me to all of a sudden, get this!

I have received a couple of knock out cards this week that I want to share with you.  The first one is a Valentine.  Other than the one my hubbie bought me, this was the only Valentine I received and it is gorgeous!

 Margaret used Greeting Card Kids for this Valentine.  Isn't the pink and black just gorgeous?  I usually pair pink with brown but I'll be using black more now - Just love it!   Thanks friend!

Close up of the little girl.

This is the Monday Mailer that I received from Beth this week.  Can't get over how real those spools of thread look!  This is a set from the Occasions Mini (pg 6) that did not interest me in the least .... until I saw this card!  Beth said she went clean and simple this week and it is great!  She used SU's Color Coach (on pg. 165) to get started with the colors and the SU markers.  The Color Coach is a great tool!  I use it all the time.

 This is the card that I sent to Beth for my Monday Mailer.  I used the Color Coach to arrive at these colors - Peach Parfait, Not Quite Navy and Pear Pizazz.  The stamp set is from the Occ. Mini Baby Blossoms (pg 18). Lots of punches and dies again - I punched the bird and leaves out with the Bird Punch; used Heart Scallop punch on edges; Large Oval punch for "friends" and Tulip embossing folder & Square Lattice embossing folder.

Monday Mailers for February

Last week started a new month of Monday Mailers.  My partner this month is Beth - I am sending to her and she is sending to me.  Beth is a very talented stamper as well as a busy mom and teacher.  But, she got my card to me in record time!  I received it last Monday or Tuesday!  Unfortunately, I was not so swift this time.  With being out of town, I did not get her card made and mailed until Wednesday.  But it is one of my favorite cards that I have ever made.

 I used my SU butterfly punch to make the pansy flowers.  I punched Shimmery White cardstock (2 per flower).  With my Pretty in Pink marker I colored the edges of the butterflies and used So Saffron for the centers.  Then I sprayed them really good with water and crumpled them all up.  Then flatten them out and let them dry.  Glue the two together and put a little Chunky Glitter in the center.  I used the 5-Flower Punch for the leaves (Certainly Celery).  I used the Tulip Die on the white card.  And the finishing touch is the wide grosgrain ribbon in Celery and Pink!  Really spring like, don't you think?

I just love all the different elements in this vintage looking card!

We Made It!

Well, we made it to Pittsburgh .... safe and sound.  Sonny felt pretty stupid since he'd been worrrying about the weather on our drive up the past few days.  Well, he had nothing to worry about.  There was no problems AT ALL!  We saw a little bit of snow off the side of the road but nothing to speak of really.  We were all really surprised.  Even when we got to Pittsburgh, we hardly saw any snow.  It's cold here - I think it was about 27 degrees when we arrived (about 7 pm) but what do you expect in Pittsburgh in February??   Tomorrow it's supposed to be warmer - high around 35 which is warmer than Dallas and Sherrills Ford probably!!  And we had friends who didn't want to join us because they thought it would be too cold here!  We made our way to a bar/restaurant and had dinner and a couple of drinks.  Now Marianne and I are back in the room playing on our computers and Sonny has gone in search of some place to quench his thirst! 

So .... I want to share with you a card I received last week from Carol for my Monday Mailer.  She used a Sizzix die that is still available on the Clearance Rack (click on the left side bar).  It is called Build A Flower.  It really makes a cool flower!

Monday Mailers #2 and #3

I received the most beautiful cards this week from my Monday Mailer partner, Carol.

 Isn't this card gorgeous?  It uses the Blossom Punch and the Blossom stamp set that is in the Occasions Mini Catalog.  There is glitter around the center of the petals.  The flower is done in Pretty in Pink and the card is Chocolate Chip.  I showed this off yesterday at Stamp Club and ended up selling three punches and stamp sets!

 This is my first attempt at using the Blossoms stamp and punch.  I wheeled the background with the Whimsey wheel.  The flower is done is Melon Mambo.  I used the Button Embosslit for the center of the flower.

 
 This card uses the set, I (Heart) Hearts (pg 46 in catalog) and the Heart Punch that I still need to get!!  The picture isn't so great but the card is Pretty in Pink.  This is a simple but very pretty card.

It's getting cold here again!!  And there is more SNOW in the forecast!   The past few days have been nice with temps in the 40's & 50's.  Today it got to 46 but now at 7:00, it is already 34 degrees with the low predicted to be 19.  We're considering going shopping tomorrow so I guess I'll be bundling up!!
 

Monday Mailer from Me

I forgot to take a picture of the first Monday Mailer that I mailed out last week!  It was so pretty.   I used some new DSP from the Occasions Mini Catalog and the new button Embosslit.  And .... it included a bookmark too!  Oh well, you'll just have to picture it in your mind!

I did remember to snap a picture of this week's Monday Mailer before I trudged up to the mailbox - in the snow - to mail it.  Well, to be truthful, Sonny trudged up to the mailbox while I stayed nice and warm inside!!

It is a simple card which is ok I keep telling myself.  Why is it so hard to do a simple card?  Probably if I were redoing this card, I might pop up one of those buttons.  This is the new Button, Button stamp from the mini catalog.  I stamped them in Poppy Parade (in color).  The bow is made with the Bow Easy - a double loop bow.  I used dental floss for my thread through the button and just colored it with my Poppy Parade marker!!  Clever, huh?

Hope you are staying warm.  It is still bitter cold here - 25 degrees right now - but we are supposed to get to 40 today!  A virtual heat wave!!  I think we finally got to the freezing mark last night around 6 pm.  Not one bit of the snow has melted and this is the third day school has been canceled.  They are going to be eating into their Spring Break soon.  The sun is out though and we will probably venture in to town after lunch.  Sonny is about to go stir crazy!!

January Monday Mailer #1

Our Monday Mailer program has started back up.  I am glad!  I missed receiving a card each week.  I love seeing what other people make.  So if you ever want to make a card and don't know who to send it to, just send it my way!  My partner this month is Carol and she made the prettiest thank you card - although it would be easy to add another sentiment and use this card for a birthday or "thinking of you."

 

The card base is Crumb Cake (or Kraft if you prefer!)  She used the Vintage Wallpaper embossing folder on the Pretty In Pink piece.  This is about the only folder that I don't own.  It just may be on my order form next time!  I had to thumb through the catalog to find which stamp set she used since I didn't recognize it.  It is from Printed Petals (pg 106) and is really pretty!  Only $15 for the clear set .... maybe that one will be on my list too!  It looks like a very versatile stamp set.  

Yesterday I felt like all I did was eat and drink!  I rode with Sonny up to Hickory.  He had to get a part to fix my mom's fireplace.  I needed to go to Hobby Lobby to return something, but half-way there, I remembered the Hobby Lobby bag was still hanging on the door in my craft room!  Oh well - another trip, another time.  While we were there, we had lunch at the Mellow Mushroom which is fairly new to Hickory.  We've eaten at the one in Savannah and really like it.  So lunch with a couple of brews and we were headed home.  Just in time to wash my hair and get dressed to meet some friends in Statesville for dinner.  Not good planning!!  We met them at a favorite Mexican restaurant - really, about the only good one we have found here.  But neither one of us were very hungry - plus, by the time you eat a bowl of chips and salsa and have a couple of margaritas, you're definitely not hungry!!  It was fun anyway. 

This weekend will be a lazy one.  I am going to a jewelry party this afternoon.  But, after that, I'll have my comfy clothes on and settled in to watch some football.  There are two play-off games today and two tomorrow.  After the weekend, we'll know who Pittsburgh will be playing next weekend.

The weather is supposed to get bad early in the week.  High's today just barely above freezing with snow on the way.  Monday and Tuesday are supposed to be snow days.  We'll see!  I'd love more snow as long as I don't have to drive in it.

Playing Catch Up

I had to share this beautiful tree!  This was taken right outside our bank last Saturday.  The fall colors here came in a jiffy this year.  If you weren't in the right place at the right time, you missed them.  We had hoped to go to the mountains to see all the beautiful foilage but never made it this year.  Hope next year is better.

I haven't stamped anything in three days!  Wow!  I've just been doing nothing.  I think I burned myself out getting ready for that craft fair and now I have to find my mojo again.  I've got to get my butt in gear and get to work on Christmas cards and calendars.  I've got ideas in my head by they haven't reached my fingers yet.  I forgot to mention last week that I won some blog candy!  It was my first time to actually win AND receive it.  A couple of years ago, I won some blog candy but never received it so that didn't count.  This time, I won from Nancy Dawson over at Paper Dreams & Creative Wishes.  She sent me Technique Junkie 2010 Edition CD!  So, I'll be learning some new techniques soon.  I used to subscribe to Technique Junkies newsletters (for several years).  It is a great resource.  If you are interested, check it out HERE. 

So .... back to playing catch up.  I have several cards I have received in the past few days / weeks that I have not shared.  So, here you go!



Halloween Card from Margaret



Sonny's birthday card - from Margaret

Monday Mailer from October

Monday Mailer from October

Monday Mailer Christmas Collage

I've had the Christmas Collage stamp (from Holiday Mini) for a couple of months and haven't been totally thrilled with anything I've made with it .... until I made this card!  I love it and hope you do too!

 It wasn't the quickest card to make but that's probably what makes it so special.  I stamped two pieces of Very Vanilla cardstock with the whole stamp in Early Espresso.  One was used as my card base  and the other was cut up - I tore the top corner and cut a rectangle of the song (Silent Night) to use.  I sponged all the edges with Espresso.  The base piece was adhered to the Always Artichoke card.  Then I layered the corner piece with a strip of torn Cherry Cobbler in the right corner.  I used my blender pen and squeezed a little ink (Cherry Cobbler & Artichoke) in the lid of my ink pad and colored the holly leaves, berries and poinsetta.  I used So Saffron marker for the bell.   I punched two holes in the small rectangle Silent Night piece and threaded the Cherry Cobbler seam binding (love it!!) through it and adhered it to the card at an angle.  I stamped Merry Christmas from the Bells and Boughs stamp set and adhered it to the card (with dimensional tape).

Here is a close up view of part of the card.

So, what do you think????

Monday Mailers from Last Week

I want to share a couple of Monday Mailers with you tonight. 

This is the one I received - another thank you card.  What is so great about this card is it is made with one of the SU Single Stamps you can purchase (pg 18-20).  They are such a great deal - check them out!

The color combo of Cherry Cobbler, Pear Pizazz and Early Espresso is great!  Martinette added a tiny clip with a piece of thread tied onto it.  I have no idea how she tied that tiny bow!!

This is the card I sent to Becky last week.  I love it & it just may be my Christmas card this year.  The set is called Peaceful Seasons and it is a Hostess Level 2 set (found in the Holiday Mini).  I used two scallop punches.  The one in the middle is the  new Dotted Scallop Ribbon Border and the bottom one is the Scallop Trim Border (pg. 201).  The DSP is Deck the Halls from the Holiday Mini.

Christmas Monday Mailer

It's a new month for Monday Mailers and I decided to switch it up a little bit.  This month I am letting the recipients ask for the type of card they would like to receive.  As for me, I really don't care - just don't need any more Halloween cards!  Becky, who I am sending to, requested Christmas cards.  That's great because I need to get my butt in gear with my own Christmas cards so I can do mine right along with doing hers.  I really tried something different with the first card I sent her.  She should have received it today (or tomorrow) so I figured it would be ok to share it with you.



Front of card

 

View of card opened

I used the DSP from the Holiday Mini, Always Artichoke and Cherry Cobbler.  The sentiment is from Word Play.  The ribbon is actually vanilla ribbon - I used my dauber to color it.

Here's how I did it using the Sizzix Movers & Shapers Die.  I only wanted to cut half of the ornament out on the fold of my paper.

• I started with a piece of  cardstock 4 1/4" x 11". 
• Score at 2 3/4" & 5 1/2" (or instead of scoring, fold in half; then fold 1/2 back onto itself). 
• Line the cardstock up so the fold is lined up on half of the ornament punch.    

Your "sandwich" will be an acrylic plate on the bottom (I used a long one) and a short acrylic plate on the top.  Run it through the machine and you will have half of the ornament punch!

If you would like to watch a video of this technique, I found one on You Tube.  You can watch it HERE.

I hope some of you took advantage - well, you still can - of the Clearance Sale.  I was putting an order in last night around 8:00 and it took forever to get to the Clearance page.  I think everyone in the country was checking out the great deals!  Stampin' Up made some server optimizations and code changes to enhance the Online Store's performance so now you should notice that Online Store orders will be processed faster.

Look On the Bright Side

Found this recently in a forwarded e-mail .... I'm trying to follow this!

For every negative that consumes your happiness,

Affirm two positives that sustain you.

For every "should’ve" you wish you’d done,

Acknowledge something you’re glad you did.

For every loss that has altered your world,

Count from it something you have gained.

For every limit that has ever beset you,

Consider your possibilities.

You can’t always change the way things are,

But you can change the way you wish to see them.

Never stop looking

Here is the last Monday Mailer I received last week.  I really like the size of the card she made!  You can mail it in a business envelope.

My face painting experience turned out pretty good.  I wasn't too sure to begin with though.  My first customer of the day, a little girl about 8 or 9, wanted a butterfly.  So, I painted a butterfly on her cheek.  She looked in the mirror and didn't like it (it wasn't exactly like the one in the picture she had seen), so I offered to do a flower on the other cheek.  When I finished that pretty flower, again she looked in the mirror and pouted.  Her mom told her to say thank you and get up - she started crying and pitching a fit!  It took her mom a little bit to drag her up out of the chair and leave!  What a brat!  It got much better after that though.  My most popular request was a dog face!   After I did one, a lot of the little boys wanted one.  I made black circles around both eyes - coloring one in all the way and colored black spots all over the face.  Then I blacked the tip of the nose and made a red tongue from the bottom lip to the chin! 

After the festival was over, I still had time to made it to the Open House at the stamp store in town.  It was nice to see a lot of my "Alley" friends there who I hadn't seen in a while.  A couple of them have been real pals and have sent Ashley cards while she has been deployed.  I did a great make-and-take with Karen and watched a good demo about making your own background papers.  I bought the small Scor Pal (for cards).  It was the last one in the store so I was pretty lucky.  Plus, I had a full punch card and got $15 off my purchase!  I'll be keeping this on my desk all the time.  It even comes with a zippered bag!

 

 

Saturday night, we met Marianne and family in downtown Mooresville for a benefit concert.  Harrison & Derek's ex soccer coach plays in the band, Cold Bait & Live Beer.  They were very good.  The venue was rather strange - in the parking lot of Ted's Famous Chicken but it was a benefit to raise money for Kellie Dayton who is the daughter of Ted's Chicken.  She is battling melanoma cancer.

 

Sunday was football watching at Big Al's.  When we got there, the place was packed so we didn't get our usual "lucky" table!  We finally scored a few seats at the bar to watch the game.  It was a nail biter (aren't they all though?) and we ended up losing in the last 32 seconds!  Guess we were due but I was hoping for 4-0 when Ben returned.  We have a bye week this weekend, then Big Ben will return Oct. 17.  Sonny keeps hinting that he'll look for tickets for that game and we would make a road trip to Pittsburgh.  We'll see! 

Monday Mailers for September

I had a nice day today playing bridge with friends.  I haven't played in about a month.  The morning started out great with me having good cards but after lunch, it went down hill.  Oh well .... I had fun anyway!  After bridge, I was good and went to the "Y" to do a little exercise.  I had a book I wanted to finish so decided it would be a good excuse to get on the stationary bike and finish it.  Then, I went to Target & M's to pick up some items Ashley had requested to perk up her quarters.  I want to give a "shout out" to the nice cashier at M's (Karen).  She made me feel like a celebrity when she told me she enjoyed reading my blog!  Hi Karen! 

I forgot to take a picture of the Monday Mailer I sent to Jana last week but she posted a picture of it today so now I can share it with you.  Our theme this month has been holidays.  I did a couple of Halloween cards, a Thanksgiving card, and a Christmas card.  Here is the Thanksgiving card I sent last week:



French Foilage stamp set



inside of card

I really like this stamp set and needed a good leaves set.  This one (French Foilage) is from the Holiday Mini Catalog (pg 6).  I also used some of the In Colors that I have been neglecting - Concord Crush and Peach Parfait.  The "gratitude" definition comes from Define Your Life.  I used Glossy Effects (or Diamond Glaze) over the Peach leaf after I cut it out.