Made of Wonderful!

Before we get the jump on all the wonderful, new products from Stampin' Up!, I've got to show you the fun you can still have with your oldies, but goodies! :-)

So, whip out some old seaside stamp sets and have fun with this design!

I used Tranquil Tide, Mint Macaroon and Crumb Cake with this one....and what's better than 

Whisper White on Crumb Cake??! :-)

TOMORROW IS THE BIG DAY FOR THE NEW CATALOG RELEASE!! :-)
Are you excited?!

Burlap Ribbon #141487

Textures 6x6 DSP #144177

Vellum Cardstock #101856

SHOP HERE!

Thankful!

Shout out to all the men who have, and do, give their service for our country!!
My husband, my family and friends!

My wonderful Dad gave twenty years of his life in service to our country and although it wasn't easy on the family moving every two years or so, it certainly broadened our world, introduced us to other cultures and helped us learn how to adapt to change very quickly.
Not sure I'd change any of it, if I could.
Thank goodness my Dad is still with us....and continues to give of his time to his family and others, in his retirement.

These cards were made using a great Retired stamp set called "For Your Country."
Sometimes I like to go back to my retired stamp sets and re-introduce you to them, in case you've forgotten about them yourself! Helps us pull out our older stuff and get some more use out of it! :-)
I used all the same colors and basic design, but altered the backgrounds with a few different techniques to show you the fun in it!
I created the flag background behind the standing soldier by just scribbling on an acrylic block with Stampin' Write markers, spritzing it with water, and 'stamping' it on Whisper White heavy card stock.
It's fun and exciting because you'll get a different look each time depending on how much water you spritz. :-)

~Happy Stamping!!

For those of you who do not have this set, Stampin'Up released a similar one you can use in the same way, called "Loyal and True."  It's fantastic too!! I'll attach a picture of it below. :-)

Hope this inspires you to make some cards to honor the people you know whom have served our country and are still serving....the guys overseas would LOVE to get some random cards too. Connect with your local squadrons for addresses to get cards to our boys far from home!! They'd greatly appreciate them!

God Bless our men in ALL uniforms who serve us and our country!!

~Happy Stamping

Loyal and True stamp set #143879

Oh My Stars embossing folder #143710

Stampin' Spritzers # 126185

Acrylic Block bundle # 118491

(sold separately too)

SHOP HERE

Wonderful Things!

Nature.....

Beautiful, inspiring and unpredictable.

Best place ever to get away to, to reflect and re-connect to our Creator, in my opinion. :-)

The beauty of nature is what inspired me to make this card and the colors I chose.

We've had two major snowfalls this winter and these are the colors that stood out in both snowstorms. :-) 

The fern in the "Butterfly Basics" stamp set is my favorite! It came really handy is creating this natural look. I also found the 'pod' in the Hostess set "Tranquil Tulips" to work well here too. I used white embossing powder for the pods and the white gel pen to draw on the curly cues. :-) 

Pull out your edge punches and favorite sentiments and you'll have an all-occasion card!

If you love these stamp sets, hurry up and order before they are gone!!!
 They are retiring the end of this month! :-(

~Happy Stamping!

Tranquil Tulips stamp set # 143767

Butterfly Basics stamp set #138816

Daubers (pack of 5) # 133773

Decorative Ribbon punch # 143771

SHOP HERE!

Good Friends!

Friendship comes in all shapes, sizes and types!

Some friendships last a lifetime....even though you rarely see them....

Some friendships are short and sweet....

Some friendships are mistaken and you learn lessons from them....

I'm thankful for each and every one of those relationships, good and bad, and the dear people who are the valued friends in my life today! 

I went with lots of color for this card and enjoyed using the floral stamp sets "Painted Harvest" from the Holiday catalog carryover and "Tranquil Tulips" Hostess stamp set (retiring soon!). 

The cutting was fairly easy, so don't let that stop you from making your own! :-)

Have fun with your color and DSP choices!

~Happy Stamping with Friends!

Painted Harvest stamp set # 144783

Tranquil Tulips stamp set # 143767

Whole Lot of Lovely DSP # 144110

Basic Pearls #144219

Layered Leaves embossing folder #143704

SHOP HERE!

Kindness!

Purples.....not a color I normally gravitate to, but for some reason it drew me today to work with.

Weird how that happens, right?

So, this stamp set is fast becoming a favorite of mine! 

SO glad it's been carried over from the Holiday catalog of 2017!!

I went for a lot of white on this card, so the purples would really stand out....using Perfect Plum and Fresh Fig together, it gave some nice depth to the colors. Perfect Plum and Fresh Fig are retiring, so if you like those colors hurry up and order your ink pad and 

re-inker! The stamp sets, paper and re-inkers go faster than lightning!

Great sentiments in this "Painted Harvest" stamp set....a great set to have in your collection!

I used the die cut from the "Window Box Thinlets" set for the cutouts you see in the background for some added interest and depth to the card.

~Happy Stamping!

Window Box Thinlets #142762

Painted Harvest stamp set #144783

Leaf Punch #144667

SHOP HERE!

Retiring Products!!! Oh No!!!

OMG!!

So many exciting changes coming your way for the new 2018 catalog!!

Unfortunately with change, comes more change in the way of retiring products.....lots of great products are retiring and they will move quickly, so order yours before they are gone!!

Lots of favorite stamps going to make room for new favorites!

https://www.stampinup.com/ecweb/products/100501/retiring-stamps

Many Bundles with stamps and matching die cuts!!

https://www.stampinup.com/ecweb/products/100502/retiring-bundles

Paper, Ribbon, Stamp Pads, Re-Inkers, Punches....so many things!!

https://www.stampinup.com/ecweb/products/100503/everything-else

HURRY UP and don't miss out on all the goodies before they are not available anymore!

~Happy Shopping!

Trusted Hands

This is a crazy world we live in....full of much beauty...and maybe just as much pain.

Life has a way of taking our breath away sometimes.

We enjoy the moments of joy in watching our children grow and thrive, watching others we care about succeed in life, celebrating life events, traveling and absorbing the beauty around us....but sometimes we are stopped in our tracks.....

Someone close to us may pass away, our children may suffer a dangerous illness, we are called to care for an aging parent long term, or we develop a life threatening disease ourselves....pain and stress that can sometimes go beyond comprehension....it can drive us down into very deep, dark places and steal your joy you were just experiencing the day before.  

This sentiment in the "Hold on for Hope" stamp set is a wonderful reminder that there's Someone bigger than you and me and our problems, stresses and pain! All we have to do is put our trust in Him and watch Him work through it all for the best.

Trust His hands to carry your burdens and lighten your load so you can see and experience the joy and beauty around you again!

Hold on to Hope! and Joy!

~Happy Stamping!

Hold on to Hope stamp set #145780

Hold on to Hope Bundle #145970

Southern Serenade stamp set #145921

Eastern Medallions Thinlets #143725

Stitched Shapes #145372

Decorative Ribbon punch #143721

Dazzling Diamonds DSP #135315

Stampin Piercing Mat #126199

Paper Piercing tool #126189

SHOP HERE!