Retiring - Raining Flowers and Word Play

Here are two more cards I've made this week using the retiring sets.  This time I used Word Play (oh how I am going to miss this one!) and Raining Flowers.

Word Play

With the Word Play card, I just cut some strips of DSP to create my candles.  I used the Bird Punch for the flame - easy peasy! 

I had a little help while working on my cards this week.  Sammie wouldn't let me out of her sight!  I guess since I was gone over the week end, she was making sure I wouldn't be leaving her again any time soon. 

Checking out my lunch!

Taking a nap in the box!

For the Raining Flowers card, I also used Best Friends Forever (retired) to stamp the leaves in the background.  The flowers were stamped, cut out, and popped up.  A very quick card to make.

Raining Flowers

Retiring Stamp Cards for Blog Candy!

Now that the retired lists have been announced, I am going to share cards I've made using the stamps that are retiring.  AND if you leave comments each day, I will be putting together packets of the cards and doing a GIVE AWAY at the end of May!  So, stay tuned and let me hear from you!!

I will be selling a LOT of my retired stamps this Saturday at Stampers Alley's Used Stamp Sale in Mooresville.  If you live close, you can get some great deals at this annual sale.  Last year I got a Big Shot for a friend for about $25 so come on down if you live close!

This card uses the Button, Button stamp set.  Not only is it good for a focal image but it is also a great stamp for making your own backgrounds.  The DSP on this card is also retired - Sweet Shop (I think).  The border above and below the stamped image is Island Indigo Ruffled Ribbon.  I used DSP Brads for the centers of the stamped buttons.  The buttons are stamped in Calypso Coral, Island Indigo and Pool Party - all colors that will be staying with us next year.

On this card I used the wonderful Word Play - I will really miss this set!  It was a really simple card to make - just cut a few banners from DSP!  The large button was retired a couple of years ago but I thought it made a great focal point.

Sick?

Just a quick post before I head out to play cards today.

I made this card a few months ago.  I CASE'd it from one I received at convention a couple of years ago.  I had kept the card because I thought it was so adorable.  Don't you?  And easy to make!  That's the key, huh?  Use a large circle punch for the "cookies" and the Scallop Punch for the "bites"; then punch out some Chocolate Chip's with a small circle punch and glue them on.  The glass, I cut freehand - Whisper White overlayed with Vellum.  The sentiment is from Word Play and is stamped on the Whisper White.

We took my mom with us last night and tried out a new (to us) restaurant that a friend recommended to me.  It was delicious!  Really good Mexican food!  Sonny said it wasn't as good as the Texas restaurants, but it would do for here.  It is Azteca Mexican - if you live local, it is at Exit 18 (Hwy 77) off of Harris Boulevard.  Mom told Angela when I took her home that it was much better than the Mexican places in and around Mooresville.  I think she really enjoyed it and just getting out.  I was supposed to take her to the eye doctor yesterday morning, but Angela called me to tell me she didn't have to go to work until later in the afternoon so she could take her.  Mom was not happy!!  She likes me to take her because I take her to different places to eat. 

Have a good day!!

MDS - Top 10 Template

I was going through some CD's the other day and found several from a few years ago that I had put pictures on when I had them developed.  Now that I use a digital camera, I don't keep the pictures as well as I should.  I need to start putting them on CD's again!  Anyway I decided to make use of My Digital Studio and scrapbook the pictures.  These pictures were taken when Ashley graduated from Medical School and that same weekend, she was sworn in as a Major in the Army.  The ceremony was held at The Alamo in San Antonio and it was really neat.  (You can click on the pictures to view them larger.)

Ashley, her Grandmother and her brother

Her brother pinned her ensignia on her.  He was a Captain at the time and was not happy his sister was about to outrank him!

A great picture of the two of them!

We had a lot of family and friends there to help us celebrate.

The materials I used to create these pages were simple.  I started out with a 24 page template called Top 10 and just edited some of the embellishments on it. Using a template like this, makes putting together scrapbook pages a snap!! 

Some of the materials I used:

• Top 10 Template
• Torn Edges Stamp
• Red, White, Blue Kit
• Word Play stamp

Day Trip

I took a day trip today with some ladies from Newcomers to Winston Salem.  We toured the Reynolda House which was built in 1917 as the home of Katherine and R J Reynolds, the founder of R J Reynolds Tobacco Company.  The property originally consisted of over 1,000+ acres but is now a little over 100 acres having donated a large portion in the late 1940s to Wake Forest University to move from their location in eastern NC to Winston Salem.  In the late 60s, the home and outbuildings were opened to the public as an institution dedicated to arts and education.  It is renowed for its extensive American art work.  Today we heard a presentation about Audobon's work and saw several of his pieces.  We also wandered around in the Historic Village that houses very expensive shops!  I went in a couple of dress shops and everything I saw was in 3 figures!!  Too rich for my blood!

Here is one of the cards that will be an option for my stamp clubbers this month.  Simple but great!

• Cardstock is Rose Red with a white card stock layer.
• Emboss white layer across the middle with the Adorning Accents Textured Embossing Folder (mini catalog, pg 7) and the Big Shot
• Wrap Wisteria Wonder Ruffled Ribbon around white cardstock and adhere to card.
• Stamp “Remember When” from Word Play stamp set on bottom right of card.
• On a scrap of Wisteria Wonder cardstock, stamp the heart w/girl & boy on bike (Take It To Heart set) in White Craft Ink. Cover with white embossing powder and heat emboss.
• Use Hearts Framelits Die to cut out the embossed heart and adhere to card front with dimensionals.

Great News and a few cards too!

Imagine my surprise today when I was checking my e-mail and had an e-mail from my daughter in Iraq!!!  She is doing good - tired and ready to rest - but she arrived at Camp Buehring in Kuwait around 6 a.m. this morning.  Her major complaint is the heat.  The showers are basically in a trailer with 8 stalls which by the time they were in there at 10:00 was  a sauna and miserably hot.  She said it  made the outside air temp (which must have been in the 100s by then) feel cool when they walked outside!  Then a few hours later, I received a phone call from Ashley!  Wow!  I didn't think I'd hear from her for a couple of weeks - not the very day she arrived.   Sonny was not home at the time so she tried to call him on his cell phone.  I think she taught him a lesson though.  He didn't recognize the number on his phone so didn't answer!  

OK - now a few cards.  My Texas friend, Margaret, was here a few hours today.  She & Graham are babysitting their grandson in Charlotte.  When they took him to school, they came out to visit.  Gra went skeet shooting with Sonny and Margaret & I visited and made a few cards.  She worked on the cards from club last month and I made a couple of Christmas cards.

Here are the cards my club will be making on Thursday:

This cutie is the new Owl Punch and the Greenhouse Gala DSP.  I used the little pearls for his eyes.

This is a simple card using Funky Forest wheel and the luscious Pear In Color!  I wheeled the trees in green and used my brown marker to make the tree trunks.

This is the Halloween card they will make using Wicked Cool stamp set.  The card is Rich Razzleberry with Old Olive spider web made with the embossing folder from the Summer Mini.  I rubbed a little Glimmer Mist over the web.  The pumpkin is also a die cut.

Old and New Stampin' Friends

I had some friends - old and new - over this morning for a little stampin' fun.  I designed three cards for them to make and I believe they were a big hit.  I used some of my new goodies - stamps, paper, ribbon .... no more hoarding for me.  That is my resolution this year!  Let's see if I can do it.

This card uses the new in color, Peach Parfait.   The stamp sets used are Wildflower Trio (pg 16 of Summer Mini) and Word Play (pg 147).  I used my handy Color Coach to pick the coordinating colors for this card which are Pear Pizzaz and Not Quite Navy.

You should consider getting this color coach.  It's great for having all the colors right in front of you and on the back of each card, it lists coordinating color suggestions.

This card uses that yummy DSP, Greenhouse Gala.  It was so simple to make.  We just used the 1 1/4" Square Punch to punch out 4 squares of the DSP and mounted them on a 3" square of Whisper White.  We stamped the friends saying on a scrap of white and used the Curly Label Punch.  Then just make the little dotted lines all around the edges.  The saying is from the Friendly Words Wheel (pg 138) that I cut apart.  By cutting apart that wheel, I got about 12 small stamps .... all for $8.50!!    I am thinking about doing the same thing with the Hero Wheel.  Also the Bright Blessings Wheel would be another good one for this trick.  I used the Boho Blossoms Punch for the flower.  I just love the new twill ribbon!!

This owl punch is "da bomb"!!  I love it.  And, yes, I'm one of those people who were really "into" owls back in the 60's & 70's when they were the Thing!  Remember the macramed owl hangings?  Don't think I had one of those but I did love to macrame!   Anyway, back to the card ... I used some new DSP - Elegant Soiree which is perfect paired with the owl.  I also used the fabulous Baja Breeze, Vanilla and Crumb Cake.  The scallops on the side are made by punching out 7-8 3/4" half circles and glueing them under the DSP.  The Baja Blue large scallop is a new punch - 2 3/8" Extra Large!  The sentiment is from an old standby, Sincere Salutations (p 155).  Unfortunately, the ribbon is not available anymore.  I am really surprised that there is not any Baja Blue ribbon available in the catalog - what's up with that?

Even though these cards were great and a hit, the biggest hit of the day was this:

This is a great tool that everyone should have.  I got this several years ago in a swap.  I need to update mine - haven't included all the new punches that have come out in the past couple of years.  Each card has a punch out on it (along with a sample) so you can just hold it up to an image in the catalog to see if it will fit.

If there is enough interest, maybe I will consider making a few and offering them for sale.  Would you be interested?  Mine are enclosed in an acrylic holder.  I found these at Wal Mart a few years ago.  They are for holding baseball cards.  But I have looked the past year for them again and cannot find them anywhere.  But, it should be easy to get them laminated.