Trinity Designs

Look out for Cupid!

2012-01-24T08:45:00.001-05:00

I promised you something creative today too - not just Leadership photos, so here you go!

This cutie-patootie card is one that I designed for my Very Valentine Stamp Camp last weekend. I liked it so much, that I made 17 more of them for my GoDivas Leadership swap too.

This card is made with the NEW P.S. I Love You stamp set that's in the Occasions Mini catalog. I chose Cherry Cobbler and Blushing Bride with Very Vanilla for my color combo - love the subtlety of these colors together.

My card base is Cherry Cobbler and the first layer is a piece of Blushing Bride Patterns Designer Series Paper. It's edged with Dazzling Diamonds Glitter applied with the 2 Way Glue Pen.

The next layer is Cherry Cobbler as well, and the collage stamped layer of Very Vanilla is adhered to it. I tied a piece of Blushing Bride Poly-Twill Ribbon around it in a knot and added the punched embellishments with Stampin' Dimensionals. The top circle also has Dazzling Diamonds added around the edge - you can never have too much glitter!

There is another Very Vanilla inside that's stamped with the heart and cupid as well as a Be My Valentine greeting. All in all, a very simply card to make.
The gals at Very Valentine class loved this one and so do I!

Here's a few of the products I used to create this card:

#119267 - Blushing Bride Poly Twill Ribbon $8.95 (15 yard spool)

#117158 - 2010 In Color Designer Series Paper Stack - $21.95 (four sheets of each color and double sided pattern)

#125462 - P.S. I Love You Stamp Set - $27.95 (clear-mount)

As always you can shop in my Online Stampin' Store for all your Stampin' Up! supplies - and don't forget NOW through March 31st - for EACH $50 in merchandise you purchase, YOU get a FREE product choice from the Sale-A-Bration Brochure!!! Check out all the selections on my website!

Have a great day everyone!
Happy Stampin' and shoppin',
~~Robin

Place your order for your Stampin' Up! needs at this link here: Robin's Online Stampin' Store
Simply click the SHOP NOW button at the top right corner to get started!

Leadership - Fun with Friends!

2012-01-24T08:15:00.016-05:00

I had such an amazing time at our Leadership Conference last week in San Antonio, TX. The best part of any Stampin' Up! event is being able to spend time with friends that I love dearly and only get to see a couple of times a year. Today's photos are all about the friends!

This photo was before we went in to the Manager's Reception:
L to R - Michelle Theriault, Tara Bazata, Tiffany Bauer, Me, Patti Chesky
(side note - the food I'm holding in my hand never was consumed - I just plain talk too much!! Good thing we had appetizers in the hotel restaurant before the event!)

Here I am with my roomies at breakfast the next morning - note the large cups of coffee being consumed.
L to R - Michelle Theriault, Michelle Suit (her 1st Leadership!), me, Tara Bazata.

This is a photo of my wonderful group of swappers, the GoDivas. Amy Caraluzzi, who is to my left in the photo named our group because of my well known love of all things chocolate. She's the bomb! These girls are all hand picked by me because of their style and the quality of their work. We have all different styles in our group so we always get a great variety of cards, but all are the best quality. Love these girls! Do you recognize any of them??

Here's my BFF Tiffany showing off one of the All-Attendee prize giveaways! We can't show the stamp set - it's coming out in June with the New Catalog!
No matter how many times we attend an SU! event, we still LOVE getting FREE stuff!! And the best part - Stampin' Up! never disappoints!

Here I am with two good friends, Debbie Naylor and Rachel Yurkanin. Debbie and I met at her first Founder's Circle and I met Rachel and her husband on our Hawaii Incentive Trip. They are two of the sweetest girls I know!

Me with my roomies on the Riverwalk at night. Not the greatest photo, but trust me, it's so beautiful down there!
My upline, Jan Wakeland, held a little get together in her room for her Dreambuilders Group. We somehow all managed to pile on the bed for this photo. Cathie Gaspart is not pictured because she is taking the photo for us.
I'm truly surprised that we didn't collapse that bed!

Me with Jan, my upline and fellow Advisory Board alumni.

Me with my secret sister, Kathy Hamrick.

We ate at a restaurant called Casa Rio down on the Riverwalk two nights in a row! The mexican food was authentic and oh, so yummy! This photo is of our last night there. We picked up a few more friends along the way that night. Next to Tara is Brenda Marshall, Tammy Morgan and across from her, Diana Eichfeld.

Waving goodbye to the Cindy, my fellow Facebook reporter for the event. It was so much fun, but it was time to go.
Did you follow our photo journey on Facebook?

Like I said before, my SU! friends are dear to me. I love that our company has brought me together with ladies I'd probably never have met otherwise, but are truly my sisters. It's the best part of my job!
I'd love to have you join me. Starting today, our Demonstrator Starter Kit is on SALE for just $125! Plus you get a whole year of FREE Designer Series Paper as Stampin' Up!'s gift to you!
Want to know more??
Check out this link here: Join the Fun with Robin!
Or you can e-mail me at stampwithrobin@yahoo.com - I'd love to chat with you!
We've already had one new stampers join our team with this special - last night at 3:15 am! She just couldn't wait to get started - how about you??

Stamped blessings,
~~Robin

Birthday Treats are the Best!

2012-01-23T15:02:00.005-05:00

Howdy Stampers!!
Can you tell I just returned from San Antonio?? heehee.
There were definitely some cowboys hanging around our hotel, but I didn't do much "howdying" - SU! kept us pretty busy with our conference!

Something really cool did happen to me and my friend Michelle Suit. We had gotten on an elevator to go up to a little get together in Jan Wakeland's room, when all of a sudden this guy in a bright blue cowboy shirt practically sprinted onto the elevator. Well, I didn't pay him much attention, but then I heard Michelle talking to him behind me. So, I turned around and found myself staring into Mr. "God Bless the USA" himself, Lee Greenwood!
Lemme tell ya - THAT was a pretty cool moment.
What was really cool was that I maintained my composure (I think. I'll have to check with Michelle) and stuck out my hand to shake his. I said, "Hello Mr. Greenwood. Thank you so much for your music." Or something like that. He said "You're welcome." and I think I told him to have a good evening.
Honestly, it's kind of a blur right now. But, hey! I didn't go all fan girl on him and ask for a picture or gush or anything - and I'm pretty proud of myself.
Good thing he got off the elevator pretty quickly or things might have been different. Just sayin'.

I'll share some fun photos from leadership with you tomorrow. We had a blast and came home so ready to share all that we learned. I've got some great ideas for projects and classes too, so look out - we're gonna have some Stampin' fun this spring!

Here's a card I created for my card classes this month:

It uses a mix of old and new stamps and accessories. I love how some stamp sets blend so beautifully together - like they were made for each other.
The colors are from the current year In Colors - Lucky Limeade, Calypso Coral, Pool Party, Wisteria Wonder. I added Whisper White as my neutral.

The candies that are stamped on the White background layer come from the Sweets for the Sweet stamp set (which was all the sweeter because it was a gift to us on the Alaska Cruise this past year!). I added a little Dazzling Diamonds glitter with my 2 Way Glue Pen so they would stand out a bit.

The six punched squares are pieces of the new Sweet Shop Specialty Designer Series Paper. I used my 1 1/4" Square Punch to punch out 2 each of 3 different designs. I think it's a fun mix of candies, cakes and ice cream! Actually, it's making me hungry........

I stamped the greeting from the new Sweet Cake stamp set on a Whisper White scrap with Wisteria Wonder Classic Ink. It's punched out with the Decorative Label Punch and edged with Dazzling Diamonds Glitter. I trimmed off part of the bottom of the punch out so it would sit nicely behind the Wisteria Wonder Ruffled Ribbon that's tied around the top layers. Those layers were attached to the stamped background with Stampin' Dimensionals - you know I had to! Dimensionals make the card dontcha know!

This was a fun card to create and one of the class favorites this month. It's perfect for anyone's birthday, young or old.

Have a great evening everyone! I'll be back tomorrow with fun photos and another project too!
~~Robin

Place your order for Stampin' Up! supplies at this link here: Robin's Online Stampin' Store
Simply click the SHOP NOW button at the top right to get started.

Looking for Something New in the New Year?

2012-01-23T08:09:00.001-05:00

For many of you, the idea of being a Stampin' Up! demonstrator has crossed your mind a time or two. Now, at the start of a NEW year, is a great time to give it some more serious consideration.

There is a fabulous special offer beginning tomorrow, January 24th for anyone wanting to try out Stampin' Up!
The Full Size Starter Kit goes on SALE for just $125 - that's a $50 savings on the regular price! Plus, Stampin' Up! is giving you a BONUS that lasts ALL YEAR!
For every month that you place an order - for the rest of 2012 - you can choose either a package of our exclusive Designer Series Paper (10.95) OR any Digital Download for our My Digital Studio digital design software suite. That's over a $100 BONUS - minimum!

I could tell you over and over again what a fantastic opportunity it is; or how wonderful a company Stampin' Up! is to work with; or how much it has enriched my life - in countless ways. But you already know that if you are a regular blog reader!

Take a minute to listen to our CEO Shelli Gardner tell it in her own words:

I'd love to welcome you to my team of Demonstrators as either a Hobby Demonstrator, Part-Time Demonstrator or Full-Time Demonstrator. It's YOUR Business done YOUR Way!

Check out these survey answers from our current Demonstrators:

Top 10 Things Demonstrators Love about Being Part of the Stampin' Up! Family

Tens of thousands of cards, scrapbook pages, gift ideas, and home décor items that no one else has access to!

Plenty of social opportunities to share fun and creativity with others!

Receiving Stampin' Success, a monthly publication for demonstrators only, that features great techniques, inspiring spotlights, exciting product information, and so much more!

First to see and try new products and receive free product giveaways!

Fabulous getaway opportunities at annual Stampin' Up! events, plus opportunities to travel around the world--FREE--with family and friends!

Part of an exclusive online community where creative minds share their thoughts and feelings on. . . well, just about everything!

Flexibility to make it all happen when it fits best in your life!

Savings on the best products in the crafting industry and plenty of exciting specials!

Being part of a strong sisterhood of women who share bonds of friendship, creativity, and integrity!

Partnering with a company that puts people and relationships first--ALWAYS!

I'd love to chat with you more about being part of my Stampin' Up! family!

Send me an e-mail at stampwithrobin@yahoo.com so we can arrange the best time for you!

There's more information for you on my website as well: Robin's Stampin' Up! Webpage

Just click the "Join Now" button and check it out!

Can't wait to share more with you!

~~Robin

Blog Vacation!

2012-01-17T21:09:00.004-05:00

Hello stampers!!

Just a quick note to let you know that I'm on a blog vacation until Monday the 23rd. I'll be leaving early in the morning for Stampin' Up!'s Leadership Conference in sunny San Antonio, TX and I won't be back in the studio until next Monday.

I'd planned to leave you with some new projects already loaded and ready to post for you, but folks, I simply ran out of time today! I need to pack all my swaps and my unmentionables in my suitcase so I've got what I need while I'm there, so no posts for now. :(

Check back on Monday, I promise I have enough new projects to show you to carry us into the first week of February!!
And if you want to keep up with my adventures in San Antonio, check out the Stampin' Up! page on Facebook - I'm their reporter again for this fun event!!

Happy Trails!!
~~Robin

Simple Mixed Bunch

2012-01-13T08:41:00.002-05:00

I'm having a GREAT morning!
Well, any morning that I wake up is a great morning, but really - today is starting off fantastic!

It's been kind of a rough 6 weeks or so around here. Busyness galore, missing my Dad at Christmas, changes with our church, skating, skating and more skating. Pretty much every area of my life was affected by STUFF, know what I mean?
Today though, I see a little light at the end of my tunnel and I'm getting very excited about next week especially because I'll get to be with so many of my fabulous stampin' friends in San Antonio at SU!'s Leadership Conference! Can you say "mini-vacation for Mom"??
I still have a ton of work to do both for my classes next week and stuff for the conference, but today, it seems do-able. Like God is whispering to me "It's all gonna be ok, just trust me." And I do. He gives the peace that passes all understanding and I see it in so many things when I take the time to acknowledge them in my life. A sunny morning when you expected rain; a sweet text from a friend saying "Hey Petunia!", getting to have a few hours out to shop and play with another friend, having my sweet Buster curled up beside me as I type this post. They are all small, simple things, but they bring me joy and peace and I know that each is a gift from the God who loves me so much!
What are YOUR simple joys? You know you have them, wanna share?
I've loved reading your comments and e-mails on this post the other day - Early Twitter. You guys are awesome!

Since I was thinging about simple joys this morning, I thought I'd share a simple card with you as well. It's one that we made at my Open House last month.

I know, I know, Mixed Bunch again!
It's the simplified version of my Marimekko style cards from the other day, but how quick and easy can this be?
Poppy Parade cardstock, Poppy Parade ink for the background flower, Poppy Parade Twill Ribbon. Add a splash of Daffodil Delight with the two punched flowers and Basic Rhinestone for the bling and you've got it!
Simple, elegant and easy - and sure to bring a smile to someone's face when you send them a sweet note in it.
You know, a card is a hug with a fold in the middle!

So, I hope you all have a sunny day too - even if it's not sunny outside.
Here's a great song that I shared on my Facebook this morning. It's a great reminder that everything we do is a reflection of our creator. When we show Jesus to those around us, it's a two way blessing!
Stamped blessings,
~~Robin

Live in the Sunshine - Shaped Notecard

2012-01-12T08:39:00.002-05:00

Today is the perfect day to share this card with you.
The sun is out this morning and after the yukky, on and off downpours we had here yesterday, it's truly a welcome sight!
Monday we had snow, Tuesday, sun; yesterday, pouring rain; today, sun - anyone betting that tomorrow will be some form of stuff falling from the sky??
Guess I'd better check the weather report........

So for today, I'll "Live in the Sunshine". Actually, I try and do that everyday. It's easy to let circumstances and people drag you down, but really the key is not to let it happen. We're the only ones who have control over our emotional choices and it's a tough life lesson when we're going through it.
My daughter Emma was pouring out her heart last night on the way home from skating. She's having a tough time with another girl on her team who just doesn't like her. She's spent the entire season going out of her way to make Emma miserable. Emma doesn't understand, especially in light of the fact that she's friends with EVERY other girl on the team. At 14, it's hard to see that some people are just difficult, period. Whatever their reasons, there are some who choose to make those around them miserable. Sadly, like we told Emma last night, the world is full of girls like this one and hard as it may be, it's best to learn how to deal with them now and hold on to the truth that NO ONE can make you feel bad unless you let them. We can't control the thoughts and actions of others, but we can control ourselves - and that lesson makes all the difference!

Bah! I've been talking an awful lot lately - hope you're ok with that. Well, I guess you wouldn't come back if you weren't! Ha!
Today's card just reminded me of this conversation last night so I shared.

Now about the card.
I signed up for a Vintage card swap at Leadership this year. I've never done that before and you know I love that style, so I figured I'd give it a whirl.
This card was one that I also featured at my Open House last month - kind of trying it out, ya know? Well, they loved it so I went ahead and kept it as my swap design.
One thing I did differently was to use Stampin' Write Markers on the swap cards. My sample, shown here, used sponged daubers and q-tips with ink pads to color in the flowers and I just wanted a deeper color after I pondered it a bit.

I actually created the card using the new Framelits Labels Die Set. All the cardstock pieces were cut with them, so easy!
The stamp set is the coordinating Apothecary Art - honestly, this seems to be the most popular set from the New Occasions Mini so far judging by the samples I've seen. About 1/2 the swap cards I've received this season so far have used it!

The greeting actually comes from the Full of Life stamp set. I stamped it in Basic Black then cut it out with the right size Framelit. It's sponged in Blushing Bride, blinged up with a couple of pearls and popped up over the ribbon with some Stampin' Dimensionals.

The main image was stamped with Versamark ink then heat embossed with Basic Black EP. (I did use my now retired Embossing Buddy to de-static the cardstock first, but you can also use a new dryer sheet for the same purpose)

Once it was embossed, I cut it out with the matching size Framelit Die. I sponged the edges with Crumb Cake then the color was added to the flowers and leaves - Blushing Bride and Lucky Limeade. It was attached with Stampin' Dimensionals to the Blushing Bride card front underneath. Once it was attached, I threaded the Lucky Limeade Ruffled Ribbon underneath and tied it off in a bow. I think I used 18" of ribbon, but don't quote me on that!

That card front was just a piece of 4 1/4" x 5 1/2" cardstock (easier to just use a 1/4 sheet of cardstock), cut out with the largest Framelit in the set, then sponged with Crumb Cake ink.

Here's a look at the back side so you can see how I did the notecard itself:

I cut a piece of Whisper White at 4 1/2" x 8 1/2" (you get two card bases out of one sheet of cardstock this way and the strip leftover from the end is large enough to use for the greeting here.).
It's folded in half and I placed the folded edge just below the cut line of the Framelit so when it ran through the Big Shot Machine, it would create a folded note card.
It's adhered to the Blushing Bride card front with Tombow Multi Adhesive.

All in all, it's a very easy card to make, just a few steps, that's all!

Well, I'm off here now to get to work! I've got cardstock to cut and swaps to make!! :)
Have a wonderful, SUNNY day!
~~Robin

Place your order for Stampin' Up! supplies at this link here: Robin's Online Stampin' Store
Simply Click the SHOP NOW button at the top right corner to get started!

Twitterpated - Early Twitter

2012-01-11T08:30:00.000-05:00

I am pretty old. I actually grew up in the time when we only had one phone in the house. It was a standard black rotary dial that had a cord long enough to reach the chair in the corner of the dining room.

I'm pretty sure that I had some serious conversations on that phone. You know, life changing conversations like what did you put for #9 on your math homework, did you hear who got caught smoking in the bathroom, what I was wearing to the dance and who my best friend was going with.
I'm more than sure that I had my first phone call from "a boy" on that phone and I know without a doubt that my parents were in the other room, listening intently then making me hang up once the clock hit 8 pm.

That phone sat on an old desk in the corner of our dining room that my Mom had painted yellow - it was the 70's, ok? - and it coordinated with the lime green carpet and mirrored tile room divider. I don't remember the curtains, but I might be repressing that image.
Anyway, I remember pretty well that we never answered the phone during dinner, and hold on to your hats - we didn't even have an answering machine! We knew that people would call back if it was important, and if it wasn't, well, we didn't miss anything now, did we?

What I really remember is that our lives weren't as frantic then. I'm not sure how much of that peacefulness came from the lack of phone communication, but I do know that there are days now when I'm not always thrilled to be so connected all the time.
Don't misunderstand, I LOVE my iPhone. I enjoy Facebook. I have a Twitter account, but don't really "get" it. Maybe that's a good thing??
I guess what I'm wondering is how we got to this point in the first place. This "need" to always be connected. I didn't feel like I was missing anything before, but now, God help me if I leave my phone at home. Isn't that crazy? I mean, if it rings when I'm in line at Target, I get annoyed. If I get a text when I'm driving to the rink, I can't answer it and I get annoyed. And goodness knows, if I text or call someone and don't get them, I really get annoyed. Yeah, it's true.
If it's more of an annoyance than a "convenience" why do we use the darn things anyway? Would it really kill us to miss a message from time to time? After all, if it's important, they'll call back, right?
Just a thought. I feel like Andy Rooney this morning!

So, I know you didn't come here for an essay, you want to see a card!
Well, alrighty then! Here you go:

I created this for my sweet friend Diana Gibbs' swap a couple of weeks ago and the best part was that it made my daughter laugh out loud when she saw it. If she "got" it, then I figured everyone else would too!

I chose the You're My Type stamp set to work with for this swap - it's one of my favorites in the new Occasions Mini Catalog. I think it has great creative possibilities!
I don't know where the "Early Twitter" idea came from - it just occurred to me one evening while I was pondering a design. I thought how funny it would be, so tongue in cheek.

The swap card has a base of Riding Hood Red, layered with Whisper White and then a layer of the text paper from the Neutrals Designer Paper stack. I used the Basic Gray color.
A strip of the Twitterpated Designer Fabric was torn off the piece and used for my ribbon wrap and bow -you know I don't sew, so since I love the matching fabrics we have, I have to find another way to use them!

The focal image typewriter was stamped in Basic Black onto Whisper White and it's layered on another piece of Riding Hood Red. I used the little bird from the "Best of Everything" stamp set and stamped him in Baja Breeze then trimmed him out with my Paper Snips. He's popped up on a Stampin' Dimensional and is tweeting "Hello" on the typewriter paper.

The layered punch greeting was made on my computer. I just found a font that was close to the stamp set and matched the color to Riding Hood Red as best I could. it's punched out with the Word Window punch and layered on a punch out from the Modern Label Punch.

I really, really love this card, maybe because I love the stamp set so much, but yeah, this ones a keeper.
Here's another photo with a version I did with the Blushing Bride Designer paper.

You've kind of got masculine and feminine options, right?

I'm off for another busy day today - I'll get some stamping done, no worries, but Mark and I are starting Weight Watchers today and we have skating tonight. I'm hoping to have my pieces cut so I can assemble Leadership swaps at the rink. I'm so behind the 8 ball on those!

Have a great day everyone, maybe you'll find a way to be unconnected for a while today. Might give you some time to stamp!
~~Robin

Place your order for your Stampin' Up! supplies at this link here: Robin's Online Stampin' Store
Simply click the SHOP NOW button at the top right corner to get started!

Mixed Bunch Bridal

2012-01-10T08:30:00.001-05:00

Well, the snow turned out to be a blessing.
It actually was really beautiful and the best part was that it didn't mess up the roads too bad. I had to drive Emma to skating yesterday at the height of rush hour and I won't lie, it was a little hairy on the way to the rink.
But coming home, we took a back road to avoid some of the traffic and it was so stunningly beautiful seeing all the snow hanging in the trees along the road. I wish I'd stopped to take a photo to share because it was just so soft and lovely. On that drive home, there was no inkling of the frenzied, crazy traffic problems that we usually encounter on Mondays. Emma kept saying "Oh, Mom, look how pretty it is! No! Don't look, you drive!" Ha! She cracks me up, but I love that she takes the time to appreciate the beauty around her.
The last month or so of my life has simply been overwhelming at times, for many different reasons, but last night, on that peaceful drive home in the snow, I felt a calm in my spirit that hasn't been there in quite some time. It was like God was putting a blanket around my shoulders and reminding me that He was walking with me. That He was my comfort and strength.
He always knows just what we need, doesn't He?

Today's card kind of reflects the soft, peaceful feeling that the snow brought me last night. I actually made it the first week of December, the day my order arrived from the New Mini Catalog.

Again, I used the Mixed Bunch stamp set, but this time, I chose the vintage image in the set. It's embossed on Blushing Bride cardstock with Pewter Embossing Powder. There are three flower layers, all punched out with the Blossom Punch - the embossed piece, vellum cardstock and another layer of Blushing Bride. They are adhered together with Stampin' Dimensionals and I curled the petals with my Bone Folder. One of the new Large Pearls adorns the center.

The card base itself is Very Vanilla that was trimmed and embossed with the New Adorning Accents Edgelit and Adorning Accents Embossing Folders. I love that these work so easily together. I used my Paper Piercer to add a little hole in each scallop, making it look more like lace.

I used my Blushing Bride Smooch Spray to splash up the background - it dries into a lovely, shimmery pink and was perfect for this wedding card. A piece of Twitterpated Designer paper is attached to the card front bottom. I added it with the scallop pattern down, so it continues the scalloped edges of the Vanilla cardstock.

The final touch was a piece of Very Vanilla Seam Binding tied around the card front in a bow. I frayed the ends and added the greeting from Tiny Tags, punched out with the Jewelry Tag punch. The little safety pin is from the Vintage Trinkets.

Well, that's it for this card! I'm headed down to the studio to get back to work on projects for my card classes and my Valentine's class this weekend. I did a stained glass card and a collage card yesterday, so who knows where my brain will take me today~!!

Stamped blessings,
~~Robin

Place your order for your Stampin' Up! Supplies at this link here: Robin's Online Stampin' Store
Simply click the SHOP NOW button at the top right corner to get started!

Mixed Bunch Marimekko

2012-01-09T16:15:00.002-05:00

It's snowing.
I knew it wouldn't last all winter long, these wonderfully warm temperatures, but I was REALLY hoping that the snow would miss us altogether this year. After being bombarded the past two years, I'm just not excited to see the white stuff coming down.
Don't get me wrong, I don't hate snow, not at all, it's lovely to look at and normally I'm happy for a snow day or two for our family. It gives us a chance to be lazy and curl up by the fire with a good book or a movie on the tv. I think I'm just snowed out for a little while.
Even our trip to Lowell this past weekend was snow free. Not a flake on the ground anywhere and the temps were in the 50's. That was awesome!

Emma's team skated beautifully, but still ended up placing 8th out of 11 teams. Frustrating, but they knew that they'd skated well, and honestly, that's what you hope for - that they are satisfied that they did their best.
I was way too busy to even think about posting while we were gone - sorry about that - but you guys know, the Mom stuff comes first!

So, because of the snow, today's card(s) are bright and cheerful and put me in mind of Summer - which I wish was here already!
Here, take a look:

The new stamp set, Mixed Bunch has so many design possibilities - I can't wait to really get some quality time playing around with it. There is a new matching punch that coordinates with all four of the flower images in the set too. Love that!

The cards I'm showing you today came out of my love for the Marimekko design style. If you're not familiar with them, they are a company based in Finland that deeply influenced design and fashion in the 60's and 70's. They are really known for their bright, bold design schemes. Most consider their style to be contemporary, but I consider it more eclectic because of it's ability to work in many design schemes.
Anyway, when I saw the boldest image in the stamp set, I knew right away that it would be killer done in some bold jewel tones, so I got busy creating!

The first card uses Concord Crush, Whisper White and a touch of Daffodil Delight - I've always loved purple and yellow together, how about you?

You can't see it, but I embossed the punched out flower with the New Melon Scented embossing powder. I stamped the flower using Elegant Eggplant Craft Ink, which coordinated nicely with the Concord Crush. Once I embossed it, I punched it out and layered it with Stampin' Dimensionals on the punched out Daffodil Delight Flower. I added a Basic Rhinestone to the center for a little bling. The Concord Crush Twill Ribbon is wrapped around the front of the card and tied off in a knot on the left.

I loved the design so much that I couldn't stop there, I had to make it again in another color combo.
Poppy Parade and Daffodil Delight.
Honestly, I can't decide which I like better. Opinions?

Here's a close up of the focal point:

So, there you have it - some bright, flowery fun for a cold, snowy day. I hope it's made you feel a bit sunnier today!
You can be sure you'll be seeing a lot of this stamp set here over the coming months. I know SU! has a lot of floral designs, but this one has a little bit of several different styles and the creative possibilities are intriguing to me.

Have a great evening everyone!
~~Robin

Place your order for all your Stampin' Up! supplies at this link here: Robin's Online Stampin' Store
Simply click the SHOP NOW button at the top right corner to get started!

The "U" in Us

2012-01-05T07:00:00.001-05:00

Hey stampers!!
Keeping this post short and sweet - I'm in the middle of packing up and movin' out - headed up north again to Lowell, MA for Emma's next skating competition.
Her team competes on Friday at the Tsongas Arena in Lowell in the Colonial Classic Synchro Competition. It's a pretty big event - there are 24 teams at her level alone - but it's one we enjoy a lot each year! LOTS of great skating to be seen.
If you've never seen Synchronized Skating, it's AMAZING! I can barely stand up on skates, but the things these skaters do, all in sync, feet oh, so close together is mind boggling.
There's a bunch of videos on You Tube so you can get a feel for it. Way cool!

Anyway, just sharing another version of the super simple card I posted a week or so ago. I added a few layers to this one and switched up the colors, but it's still super simple! Love that!

I combined Very Vanilla and Island Indigo for a little more male friendly card.
Yes, I know, it's still got glitter, but hey - it's a Valentine for goodness sake! Ya gotta have a little glitter!!
The stamp sets I used are from the NEW Occasions Mini catalog - Take it to Heart and P.S. I Love You.
The new Hearts Framelits cut out that heart shaped image perfectly and I love the hearts impression from the Adorning Accents Embossing Folder set.

I did this card for my GoDivas swap group - I hope they like it. It's a little more clean and simple than I usually do for these gals, but it was what I was feeling at the time so I went with it. :)

Have a great day everyone and send us some good wishes for safe travel and a GREAT competition!
I'll update here as I have time!
Go National Blades!!

~~Robin

NEW! Occasions Mini Catalog Product Shares!!

2012-01-04T10:15:00.012-05:00

Hey! It's TODAY!!!
The start of this AWESOME New Mini Catalog!
And you are gonna flip your lid over all the fantastic goodies inside!!

In fact, there is so much crafting candy jam-packed in there, I've decided to offer some sampler packages for you just to help you get a taste of all the fun NEW accessories in this little beauty!
I sent this out to my e-mail newsletter stampers last week to give them a heads up on what was coming, but now that I can publish the images from the catalog, I'm sharing it with you here too!

Click this link to download all the details!
Robin's Occasions Mini Product Shares

There are Four Shares to choose from:

Ribbon - $11.43 (plus $2.00 shipping)
1 yard each of all four Pleated Satin Ribbon colors

2 yards of the Pool Party Seam Binding

5 yards of all 5 New Baker's Twine colors

Buttons, Brads and Do-Dads - $12.32 (plus $2.00 shipping)

Twitterpated Buttons - 3 each of 4 designs

Large Pearls - 10 pearls

Jelly Bean Brads - 1 each of 4 designs

Attic Boutique Side Notes - 1 each of 12 designs

Sweet Shop Stickers - 1 each of 2 different design sheets

Designer Series Paper - $10.07 (plus $2.00 shipping)

Twitterpated - 2 pcs. 6" x 6" each double sided design

Attic Boutique - 2 pcs. 6" x 6" each double sided design

Sweet Shop - 2 pcs. 6" x 6" each design (2 raised, embossed designs)

and the "I Want It All" Package! - BEST VALUE! $33.82 (plus $2.00 shipping)

EVERYTHING listed above in ONE Sweet package!

When you e-mail me at stampwithrobin@yahoo.com to place your order, I will send you an e-mail with PayPal links in it to make it easy and quick for you! (Using PayPal adds a $1.00 fee per transaction.)

I'll be submitting the first Share Group orders on Friday, another set of group orders next week!
Happy Stampin'!
~~Robin

Twitterpated Meets Waffle Paper! Results in Happy Dance!!

2012-01-04T08:30:00.002-05:00

And it was love at first sight!

Two things before I start yammering on about this project - 1) If you are signing up for my Very Valentine's Class on January 14th - THIS is one of the projects you will be making! And spaces are already filling up. Better get a move on if you want to come!
2) Laura (Petunia) - We are using Waffle Paper!!
(That's an inside thing - but she knows........heehee!)

Ok, so last night I was spending quality time in the studio working on projects for the Valentine's class while Mark was finally putting the chicken wire in my painted antique frames. Love that man! Anyway, I'm surprised you didn't hear the whoops and hollers as I was doing the Stamper's Happy Dance after finishing up this banner!

Wanna see??
Ok, enough chatter, here you go -

I am in love, love, LOVE with this banner!
Honestly, I started with the idea that I had to find a way to use the New Dresden Designs Big Shot Die other than with fabric. You guys know I don't sew!
So I looked at the die and thought "Hey, I could use those layers to make a banner." So, I pulled out a few things, co-ordinated a few designer papers and colors and off to the races I went.

This banner uses the New Twitterpated Designer Series Paper combined with Island Indigo, Riding Hood Red and Blushing Bride cardstock. I took those colors directly from the DSP - love how SU! makes it easy to co-ordinate everything!

All the pieces are cut out using Big Shot Dies - Perfect Pennants for the scalloped circles, Serif Essentials Alphabet and of course, Dresden Designs.
Here are close ups of each panel:

It's hard to see in these photos, but each letter is stamped with the floral spray from the New stamp set Bordering on Romance. I used Riding Hood Red ink for a tone on tone effect.

All the cardstock and DSP pieces are also sponged with Crumb Cake ink to give it a bit of depth. The unintended effect was to make each piece look like a vintage apron. Don't you love it when something cool happens like that??

I used Tombow Multi-Adhesive to adhere all the pieces together, but each letter is popped up on Stampin' Dimensionals. This is a great use for those edges of the dimensional sheets. Just cut them apart to give you long dimensionals! Perfect for these letters!

I used 1" wide strips of Waffle Paper and adhered them to the back of each banner piece with SNAIL. Worked like a charm!
The ribbon bows on each end are Baja Breeze Seam Binding and are attached with Mini Glue Dots. I used the 1/8" Very Vanilla Taffeta Ribbon for my banner string. About a yard I guess. I didn't measure it last night.

I'm thinking I may add some Twitterpated Buttons to it today, but both Mark and Emma voted for NO glitter! They liked the vintage apron look of it just like it is.

So, there you have it - the project that rocked my world last night! I can't wait to make it in class on the 14th with all my stampers! Are you coming??
I guess I can add another class if I need to. Let's see how quickly this one fills up.
The banner isn't going to be the only project we do. There will be something with chocolate; something with glitter and a couple of great cards!

I'm also posting in another post today the info on my Product Shares from the Occasions Mini. Be sure to check that out! It's a great deal for those of you who want a little sampling of lots of fun accessories!

Happy stampin'!
~~Robin

Place your order for Stampin' Up! supplies at this link here: Robin's Online Stampin' Store
Simply click the SHOP NOW button at the top right corner to start shopping!

Time to Get Moving Again!

2012-01-03T07:37:00.001-05:00

Well, the Christmas break is well and truly over today.
My house is so quiet right now. Mark is back to work. Emma is back to school. Aaah......love the sound of quiet.
Don't get me wrong, I LOVE having my family home and getting to spend time with them, BUT, I also love the absolute peace in this house when it's just me and the dogs. I feel like I can think again. Know what I mean?
Since my "office" is in the house, sometimes my work life and home life get muddied and frankly I struggle with that. I think it would be easier sometimes to have an "office" to go to. That I have to physically leave the house to get to. But, then I remember why I work from home in the first place and I'm grateful all over again for that HUGE blessing.
Yes, sometimes it's true. I am the blogger sitting at the computer in my pj's. Ha!
And NO, I won't post a picture of that! I'll spare you, k? :)

So, now that Christmas and New Years are behind us, I'm checking out my January calendar. It's kinda like December all over again! We have skating travel to Boston this weekend, leaving Thursday. (Emma is ecstatic that she only has school two days this week!)
We have skating travel to Hershey, PA at the end of the month for four days and I'll be traveling to San Antonio, Texas for four days for the Stampin' Up! Leadership conference.
Add into that mix, six Stampin' Up! events, skating practice galore and being part of a new church plant in our area, I've got a busy month ahead!
Maybe I'll schedule in some Naps!!

One of the highlights of my trip to San Antonio is the annual Advisory Board Reunion meal. This year, it's a luncheon, which pretty much guarantees that I won't oversleep and be late for it.
Oh, yes......I did.......sigh.
Here's the gorgeous invitation that came in the mail a few weeks ago. It has a little sneak peek of a new Occasions Mini product on it too:

Isn't it gorgeous?
So, can you guess the sneak peek product? If you have your new mini, you should be able to figure it out pretty quickly!

If you don't have your new mini catalog yet, let me know and if you're not working with a local demonstrator, I'd be happy to send you one!
My Product Shares begin tomorrow too. I have four different options to choose from: Ribbon; Buttons, Brads and DoDads; Designer Series Paper and the "I Want It All" Collection.
The "I Want It All" Collection contains everything in the other three shares for only $33.82!! (shipping to you is $2 extra)
My clients received the information in an e-mail over the weekend and those who attended my Open House last week got to see the new products up close and personal. So, needless to say, share groups are filling fast so don't miss your chance to get a fun sampling of the great new accessories in the Occasions Mini!
I'll be posting complete details and photos tomorrow, but if you want the info today, simply e-mail me at stampwithrobin@yahoo.com and I'll forward my client newsletter to you.

Happy back to work and school day everyone!
Here's a fun video to help you get up and moving today. It's a cool, toe-tappin' song collaboration by Mandisa and TobyMac. You'll love it!
Happy Stampin',
~~Robin

Brushed Silver Wedding

2011-12-30T09:30:00.000-05:00

Did you know that there is a fantastic Valentine/Love themed stamp set in the Holiday Mini Catalog?
Did you know that the Holiday Mini Catalog expires in just 5 days?!!
Yep, it's true. Which means that you only have 5 days left to purchase the You Are Loved stamp set OR most anything else you need from that awesome collection!

Here's a card we did at my December card classes using the You Are Loved stamp set for a wedding theme.

We used Wisteria Wonder and Concord Crush cardstock - love that purple combo! And the main heart image is stamped with Versamark then heat embossed with Pewter Embossing Powder. Instead of cutting it out, we tore around the image, giving a texture contrast to the layer underneath. It's adhered with Stampin' Dimensionals.

For the next layer, we ran the cardstock through the Big Shot with the Stripes embossing folder. To give it the silvery sheen, we took a sponge brush and lightly brushed on some Platinum Shimmer Paint. It dries to the touch within a minute since it's formulated for paper.
The card front was finished off with some Whisper White Organza Ribbon and the bow was attached with Mini Glue Dots.

Here's a peek at the inside:

The flowering vine image from You Are Loved was stamped in Wisteria Wonder ink on Whisper White cardstock. The greeting, from Word Play, was stamped with Concord Crush ink.

Here's a look at the stamp set:
It's item # 123779 and is only $23.95 in Clear Mount.
The Sweet Friend greeting fits perfectly in the Modern Label Punch, and of course, the "Love" image was made for the Decorative Label Punch. I love when stamps and punches coordinate - it makes our stamping that much easier!

You can order this stamp set and everything else I used for this card from my Online Stampin' Store. Just visit my website: http://robinstamps4u.stampinup.net and click the SHOP NOW button at the top right corner.
Don't forget about my Robin's Rewards Program! It applies for all online merchandise orders of $40 or more! You could be on your way to earning FREE Stampin' Up! product!

Have a great New Year's Eve Eve!
Hope it includes some stampin'!
~~Robin

An Empty Spot at the Christmas Table

2011-12-28T09:30:00.002-05:00

Please forgive me for not posting for the last few days like I'd promised.
We traveled to visit Mark's family this year for Christmas, taking my Mom along with us.
It was a very different kind of Christmas, one with a great big hole in the middle.

I wasn't sure how I'd feel this year. We got through Thanksgiving pretty well so I thought I'd be good. But I really wasn't prepared for how much I'd miss my Dad on my favorite holiday of the year.

December is usually a crazy, joyful month for our family. Mark and I celebrate our wedding anniversary - this year was our 20th - Emma has her birthday and of course Christmas, the wonderful anniversary of Christ's birth. So, two major life events and a great holiday combined with skating, work and celebrations usually keep us moving pretty well. This year was no exception, but my Dad was missing from all of it.
Like I've said before, I wouldn't wish him back at all to suffer the effects of cancer. He's whole and healed in Heaven with Jesus now - how awesome for him! But I felt the loss of his presence so keenly, it hurt physically.

I'm indulging myself today with some pictures from Christmases past. There's no stamping on this post, but I needed to share and hope it helps heal my heart.

This was last Christmas - Mom, Emma and Dad. It's the last photo I have of the three of them together. Emma was the apple of his eye.

One that always makes me laugh is this one of my Dad trying to convince Emma to let him eat one of Santa's cookies. Santa couldn't possibly eat them all, he explains. You can see that Emma is not buying it at all.

When she was little, Dad used to sit with Emma and read to her or share popcorn or just watch tv. She used to love sitting with her Grandpa.

All of us at our Christmas table one year. I remember we had a heck of a time with the camera delay, but we finally managed to get this shot and I treasure it. Mark's Mom is on the far left.

Just a shot of my Dad last Christmas opening his gifts. He loved anything to do with WWII and this is a book that Mark found for him.

Emma got one of those jumbo pillows for Christmas one year and she and Dad were doing a bit of clowning around with it.

Christmas Eve meal after church. We always went to the same restaurant in Manassas for our dinner. And he always got the Prime Rib, his favorite.

I don't have many photos of me with my Mom and Dad and Emma. I'm usually manning the camera, so I treasure this one as well.

A different year at our Christmas Eve meal.

And Mom and Dad at our Christmas table.
You were missed this year Dad. There was a big empty spot at our table and a big hole in my heart.
I love you.

~~Robin

The Gnomes

2011-12-28T06:37:00.001-05:00

I have a confession to make.
I really dislike gnomes.
I do not think they are cute. I do not think they are funny and they do not make me smile.
Well, the Travelocity gnome on tv makes me smile, but HE is not cute and someone else is doing his voice, so it really doesn't count.

So when I expressed my dislike of gnomes at a recent team event (after discovering a new gnome stamp set in the Occasions Mini) I was heckled pretty good. Apparently the rest of the world likes gnomes and I'm the oddball.
So be it, I just don't like them.
And if SU! had just come out with a stamp set of gnome images, I wouldn't have looked twice. BUT, they came out with a companion set of greetings that makes me laugh out loud.
You know I like offbeat humor and sadly, I needed the gnome images to make the greetings work. Sigh. I did not want to spend my hard earned $$ or even my freebies on this gnome stamp set.
BUT, along comes SU! with an incentive to earn them for FREE. Now I'm all over that, so I did it.
I earned them and gladly plunked down my $$ for the greeting set just so I could tell someone that I was "hanging with my gnomies".
Yeah, it had to be done.

Anyway, the card I'm sharing today is a pretty simple one - I included it with a gift of gnome salt and pepper shakers that I sent to my heckler in chief for Christmas.
Check out that greeting:

Cute, huh?
My card is made with Lucky Limeade cardstock and I stamped it partially with the Woodgrain background stamp in Early Espresso.
Some of that way cool polka-dot Chocolate Chip ribbon was wrapped around the card front and tied off in a knot. Had to make it cute somehow! Sheesh!
For the greeting, I stamped it in Early Espresso on Whisper White cardstock and punched it out with the Decorative Label Punch. It was trimmed in half and adhered just under the ribbon band.

Keeping the woodland color scheme, I stamped the gnome image (cute frog!) with Basic Black on more Whisper White. I colored him in with Stampin' Write Markers - Always Artichoke, Sahara Sand, Pumpkin Pie and Chocolate Chip. The froggie is Lucky Limeade.
It's mounted on a piece of Pumpkin Pie cardstock and popped up with Stampin' Dimensionals.

I added a piece of Whisper White cardstock to the inside to write my greeting so I stamped a bit of the gnome on the inside left corner and colored him in too.

So there you have it. I'd love to know what you think about gnomes. Am I the only non-gnomer?

Hey, if you come over to my Open House tomorrow from 10 am - Noon, you'll get to see Mr. Gnome in person. Now that wouldn't be a draw for me, but I will have the other Occasions Mini products out for you to see and you'll make a couple of projects too! On me! There might be a few prizes too AND I'll be letting you get first dibs on signing up for January Product Shares and a New round of In Color Clubs.
Let me know if you're coming! I'm doing the prep work today, k?

Happy Stampin',
~~Robin

Best Friends Forever Birthday Invite

2011-12-23T08:20:00.001-05:00

Being a stamper, there's kind of an unwritten rule that for any card giving, occasion inviting event, that I have to make the cards or invitations.
Ok, I know I don't HAVE to, but it sure is more fun to hear " Oh, you MADE these? They're fantastic!" than "Wait, I thought you MADE cards......."

Yeah, you know what I mean.

So, for Emma's birthday last week I made the invitations and of course, Stampin' Up! had all the colors and stamps I needed (that SHE liked!) to make them.
Here's a photo:

It's a one panel design sized at 4 1/4" x 5 1/2". I used the colors we used to create Emma's bonus room this summer, Calypso Coral and Basic Black.

I used the Inviting stamp set for the basic lines of the invitation and the rest of the stamping was done with the Best Friends Forever stamp set. I stamped the heart image first in Calypso Coral, then stamped over them with the vine image inked in Versamark. They were heat embossed with Black embossing powder to give the invitation a raised and shiny, elegant effect.

Emma was thrilled with how they turned out and I was thrilled that they only took about 45 minutes to make!
A Win/Win in my book!

Well, I'm headed out to pick up my Mom and bring her back home so we can all leave tonight to visit Mark's family for Christmas. Lots on the to-do list still but I'll be back with another post tomorrow - promise!

Have a wonderful, low-stress day!
~~Robin

Sweet Silhouette Valentine - A Sneak Peek!

2011-12-22T09:00:00.001-05:00

Well, I survived Fair Oaks mall yesterday.

Actually, Fair Oaks mall and Potomac Mills mall and Wal-Mart.
And a near rear-end accident (again!) on a wet road.
(note to other drivers - I do NOT need yet another new bumper for Christmas!)
And driving to skating practice and a Christmas Party.
And sorting and wrapping presents.

I am a tad tired today.
I have also decided that if it's not bought by now, it's not gonna be. Things were going so well when I "thought" I had 99.9% of my Christmas shopping done before Thanksgiving. There I go thinking again! Ha!

So, to take my mind off Christmas - at least for the moment, you should see the pile of gifts still to wrap - I'm sharing a little sneak peek of some new Occasions Mini catalog products with you today!
It's a sweet, simple card, but I LOVE it! And I hope you will too!

I started with Whisper White cardstock and embossed it with my Big Shot and the hearts from the NEW Adorning Accents Embossing Folders. They are 5 1/2" long so they will cover a whole card front! Isn't that cool? And there are 3 designs in one pack - awesome!

The greeting is stamped with Real Red ink and comes from the NEW Sweet Cake stamp set. I loved how the retro feel of this greeting complimented the silhouette image so well. Speaking of the silhouette image - it's NEW too! It's from the Take It to Heart stamp set which has 4 different heart images and a sweet banner image.
And if you're wondering how I cut out that heart shape, well..........
Stampin' Up! has NEW Framelits! They are wafer thin dies that work with our Big Shot to perfectly cut out a stamped image. The Hearts Collection has 6 different sizes in one package! You simply stamp your image then lay it on the Big Shot with the platform and cutting pads. Select the size die you need and lay it in place over the area you want to cut out. Awesome and EASY!

For this card, I added some Dazzling Diamonds glitter to the edge of the heart before mounting it on Stampin' Dimensionals over a wrapped piece of Real Red Satin Ribbon.
Don't you love it?!!

I know, you are dying to see the new products I've used and talked about here. Has your Mini Catalog come in the mail yet? If not, and you don't already have a local demonstrator, please let me know and I'll send you one in the mail! You NEED it! Trust me.
And if you'd like to try out some of these new products for FREE - just RSVP for either of my Thank You Open Houses on Thursday, December 29th. Choose 10 am - Noon OR 7 pm - 9 pm. Come see the new products, make a couple of projects and enjoy some special treats and offers too! All the details are on my Events Page on my Stampin' Up! Website. I'd love to have you in the studio and say Thank YOU in person for supporting me and my business.

So, I know that things are a bit crazy being just 3 days before Christmas and all, I know they are here for me too. BUT, in all the craziness, all the rushing and madness and losing my mindness remember, God is still God. He is still on His throne. He is holding us tight and loving us every minute of every day. His son Jesus is who we celebrate during this special season and He came not only to bring us salvation, but peace and joy!

I have a fantastic, pick-me-up song video to share with you today. It's not a Christmas song - I'll have one of those for you on Christmas Day - but it's one of my favorites when I seem to lose sight of the TRUTH in my life that I've just shared with you.
It's upbeat, jazzy and will have you dancing around a little bit as you get on with your wrapping or shopping or baking or whatever still needs to be done. What I really hope is that it will BLESS you.
Have a beautiful day my friends!
~~Robin

Easy Gift Tiles!

2011-12-21T06:35:00.003-05:00

Guess what I'm doing today?

Going Christmas shopping!!
Yes, I'm venturing out into the madness with my friend Lissa, buoyed only by the promise of Chick-fil-A Chick'n-minis for breakfast and the Cheesecake Factory for lunch. Aiyiyi, are we crazy or what?!!

But, it has to be done.
We both have returns - yes, already! And I still have two, count em' TWO things on my list that must be bought AND I discovered last night that I desperately need shirt boxes. Why oh why, do we always throw away the boxes on Christmas morning when we KNOW we're gonna need them next year? Why not just store them in the Christmas Closet with all the other Christmas paraphernalia? They don't take up THAT much room. Sigh....

Anyway, I had a wonderful, quiet day here at home yesterday and I managed to get 7 Christmas gifts made! WooHoo!! I made two sets of boxed cards for two of Emma's coaches and 5 of these fancy, schmancy Decor Elements Tiles.
Here, take a look:

Yeah, I know you wanna say it - Oooh. Aaah! Fancy!!
Yep, and you can't really even see the glittery spray all over them. Oh yeah - glitter!!

Look, these were so super easy!
I used tiles that we had bought at the big blue home improvement store (not the orange one!). They are called Rialto tiles. Simply wash them off and dry them thoroughly.
The design is one section of the Holiday Damask Decor Elements from the Holiday Mini Catalog. I trimmed one out with my Paper Snips and applied it to the clean tile.

Next, I sprayed the whole thing with my own homemade shimmer spritz made with spray hand sanitizer and Champagne Mist Shimmer Paint. Let it dry and it stays put!

Here's a close up:

You can see the shimmer on the tile in the background pretty well here.
To decorate the tile, I wrapped about a yard or so of Old Olive Satin Ribbon around the left edge and tied it up in a pretty bow.
The tag was made with the Merry and Type stamp set. I stamped the greeting in Real Red on Naturals White cardstock and punched it out with the Decorative Label Punch. The edges were sponged with some Old Olive ink and I spritzed it with shimmer mist too.
I punched a small hole in the corner of the tag and threaded it with some Early Espresso Baker's Twine and added a Mini Jingle Bell before tying it off in a bow.

I didn't take a photo of the back, but to hang it, I attached a small sawtooth hanger with Hot Glue.

Super cute and SO easy!!
The best part? This whole project cost less than $3.00 total!
Shhhh! Don't tell on me, ok?

The Holiday Damask Decor Elements are still available in the Holiday Mini Catalog and you get 27 of them for just $29.99!
But, they are only around until January 3rd, so be sure to get them before they are gone.

Also, be sure to get the Stocking Builder Punch if you are still needing it. SU! told us yesterday that it WILL NOT carry over into the next big Idea Book and Catalog and is available now on a While Supplies Last basis! Guess that means that the Stitched Stockings stamp set won't carry over either - just a guess on my part, but it stands to reason, don't ya' think?

Ok, enough chatter - I'm headed out to the craziness that is the Mall. Wish me luck!
You on the other hand can stay home and shop from my Stampin' Up! Website! It won't get here by Christmas, but you're shopping for YOU anyway, right? Ha!
Don't forget, my rewards program applies to any orders of $40 in merchandise from my Online Store!
The punch and the decor elements would earn you more points towards Stampin' rewards!

Stamped blessings,
~~Robin

Place your order for Stampin' Up! supplies at this link here: Robin's Online Stampin' Store
Simply click the SHOP NOW button at the top right corner!

A Snowy Hello

2011-12-20T08:30:00.001-05:00

My title may be a bit confusing so let me clear that up for you - yes, I am saying Hello!, but no, it is NOT snowing here. Thank goodness!!
My friend Lissa thinks I'm a scrooge or something because I told her last week that I could really do without snow this year. We've been bombarded the past two years here in Virginia, plus with all our skating travel up north, we see PLENTY of snow.
She grew up in Michigan, so she's used to it, but listen, I grew up here - in the South - we always got some snow, some years, but my Winter does not include a prerequisite for snow. 'Nuff said!
And I'm not a scrooge! :)

So now that I've gotten that off my chest, how 'bout a card?
Here you go:

It's a another quick and easy design for you. I made it for my card classes this month and I think they loved it!
I used the Gift Givers stamp set from the Holiday Mini catalog for my image - isn't she just the cutest thing??
That stamp set is great because you can punch out every image in it! Love that!
Here, I stamped the little girl image in Basic Black on Whisper White and used my Stampin' Write Markers to color her in. Pear Pizzazz, Soft Suede, Blushing Bride and Blush Blossom. A little Bashful Blue for the snowy hill and flakes and a little glitter too for some sparkle. (I forgot to put it on this card, but it was on my sample!)

It's punched out with the Scallop Circle Punch and layered on a punched piece of Pear Pizzazz cardstock, punched with the Large Scallop Circle Punch. I used my Paper Piercer to add pinholes to the scallops to give it a lacy effect. It was popped up on Stampin' Dimensionals over the Early Espresso Quilted Ribbon. The little knot of ribbon was attached with Mini Glue Dots.

The card front is a piece of Letters to Santa Designer Paper - you really should check out this paper - it's so much more than Christmas designs! Just sayin'!
I layered it over a piece of Blushing Bride cardstock on a card base of Pear Pizzazz. What could be easier?

Here's a peek at the inside:

Just a simple panel of Whisper White stamped with the sweet snowball/bird image from the Snow Much Fun stamp set. I colored it a bit with Bashful Blue. The greeting from the same set finishes it off nicely.

So, there you have it, my snowy hello!
I'm off to get some major stamping done today - yes, I'm still working on Christmas cards, plus thank you notes, plus In Color Club projects, plus gift wrapping! Aiyiyi! Good thing I opted not to bake this year......
But, man, I sure would love some gingerbread cookies. Sigh.
I can make them in January, right?

Happy day!
~~Robin

Button Up Christmas

2011-12-19T20:30:00.001-05:00

Still need Christmas cards? If you do, can I tell ya something?

Christmas is 6 days away friend.
If you still need Christmas cards ya' kinda gotta get a move on!

Here's a cute, quick idea for you:

This card is so easy to put together and what I love the most is that the colors in the Designer Paper I used coordinate so well with many different button colors. I especially love that I was able to use retired buttons from last year because the colors were perfect! It's awesome to be able to use up your stash and make room for more stampin' goodies!

The card base is Crumb Cake and the top layer is a piece of Whisper White cut at 4" x 5 1/4". I started building the design by adding a strip of Riding Hood Red cardstock cut at 3/4" x 4" across the bottom. Next, I added a piece of Letters to Santa Designer Paper cut at 4" x 3". I left a slight separation in between so I could add a line of Dazzling Diamonds glitter with my 2 Way Glue Pen.

On top of the DSP, I added another strip of Riding Hood Red cardstock and then drew a line of glue across the top of the strip and added more glitter.

The greeting from the Christmas Greetings stamp set was stamped across the top in Riding Hood Red ink.
Last, I chose a button and added Linen Thread and a Mini Jingle Bell to it. It was attached to the card front with Mini Glue Dots and all that was left was to add the sentiment to the inside of the card.

Voila! Quick, cute and easy Christmas card.

Now, I'll be with the rest of you and making up a bunch of these tomorrow! HA!
Have a fun evening!
~~Robin

A Special Shower

2011-12-18T06:00:00.001-05:00

Today is a special day in the lives of two very special people to our family.
Our Pastor Brandon is marrying his fiancee Ellen during the morning service.

What a beautiful reflection of Christ's love for the church. They wanted their first act as a married couple to be to participate in worship together. Isn't that awesome?
Needless to say, we are so excited for them and the future God has for them together.

This past Monday, I had a few close friends over and we had a small "private items' shower for Ellen. Every bride needs to feel beautiful, right?
Ellen has very simple, but elegant taste so I made the invitation to reflect her style:

It's done with Very Vanilla cardstock only, the top layer being run through the Big Shot with the Manhattan Flower embossing folder.
I embossed the salutation from the Inviting stamp set with Pewter embossing powder and added a simple ribbon bow made with Cherry Cobbler Seam Binding. The vanilla satin rosette was added to the center of the bow with some Mini Glue Dots and it was all done except for the inside.

A special invitation for a very special friend.

Have a beautiful day stamping friends!
~~Robin

My Type of Birthday

2011-12-17T06:00:00.002-05:00

Actually, it's not, but I'm a good Mom, so what can I say?
Stampers, as I write this post, my basement is filled with singing, dancing, squealing and non-stop talking teenage girls.
So pardon me if my normal witty comments are replaced by hopeless gibberish.

Yes, I love my daughter so much I let her have a sleepover party for her 14th birthday.
WHAT was I thinking???

Actually, so far, it's not so bad. They have plenty of food - pizza, wings, chips, dip, soda - enough to keep them going until midnight when the lights go OUT!
Yeah, I'm mean like that.

Anyway, now that the presents have been ripped open and the cupcakes consumed, I can show you the card I made for my girl. We had our family birthday celebration on Wednesday, her actual birthday and it was nice to celebrate in a quieter way. Mark's Dad and Step-mom came up to celebrate with us and it was great to have them here. We missed not having the rest of the grands here as well, but that's just how it is sometimes.
So, here's the card:

Emma is an aspiring writer and I knew her birthday card should reflect that so I turned to a brand new stamp set to make it happen.
The awesome vintage typewriter image comes from a new stamp set coming out in January called You're My Type. I stamped it here on Naturals Ivory cardstock with Versamark and heat embossed it with Black EP. I used the birthday greeting from the set to add the words to the "paper" in Melon Mambo ink.
It's mounted on Melon Mambo cardstock and popped up over the background and accents.

I used a strip of First Edition Designer Paper and added a torn strip of Flirtatious Designer Fabric to the back side of it. I tied another thin strip of fabric into a bow and added it with Mini Glue Dots to the paper strip.
The background was stamped with a much loved, retired favorite of mine - Tres Chic. I cannot part with this beautiful background stamp and it proved it's worth once again here. It was perfect stamped in Melon Mambo on Naturals Ivory. I love the text contrast it provides to the type style of the Designer Paper and the greeting. Love it!

My card base is Melon Mambo and on the inside I placed a panel of Naturals Ivory to write my message on. I added just a portion of the small background stamp A to Z to the bottom right corner.

Emma loved her special card and she "got it" right away! Yay!

So, now I'm off to make sure the squealing masses are good to go for the night.
It's been a good week.

Stamped blessings,
~~Robin

Santa's On His Way!

2011-12-16T09:11:00.004-05:00

Okay, okay, I know - I didn't post at ALL yesterday!
Can I just tell ya', I don't have enough hours in the day right now. There is so much going on in our life - all of it GOOD STUFF, but Oh, so much of it at one time. And I hate dropping the ball on anything, especially YOU guys!

Anyway, thanks for being so patient with me. You wouldn't believe the number of projects I have stored up to share - and I will get to each one of them!

Today I wanted to show you what the Stampin' Fools made last night:

We had such a great time in the studio together! Christmas was definitely in the air, with lots of gifts and goodies being shared, treats to eat and of course - fun stampin' projects! I love these ladies so much!

So, just in time for Christmas, Santa made his appearance in the studio. I'd seen many projects using Santa's suit over the past few months and finally decided to make my own version. Here is the cute tote:

It's an old, old design idea that uses one full sheet of 8 1/2" x 11" cardstock for the tote. From there, you can decorate it however you wish. I saw Selene's photo tutorial for it on Stamping 411 yesterday and it all just clicked for me! Make a Santa tote!!
Here's the link to the Stamping 411 tote tutorial for you: Tote or Card Holder Tutorial

For mine, I used Real Red cardstock for the body, Shimmer White for the furry placket, Silver Glimmer Paper for the belt buckle and Basic Black Satin Ribbon for the belt.
The fur was made with the Vintage Wallpaper Folder in my Big Shot and I just tore down both edges. The belt buckle was made with the small size on the Scallop Square Duo Die.
The handle is Basic Black cardstock cut at 3/4" x 11". It's attached with two Silver Jumbo Brads. I made the tag with the Tags Til Christmas stamp set and used my Tag Punches to punch it out plus the layer. It's tied on with Baker's Twine. SO easy!!

Here's the card I designed to go with it:

All the same supplies, just a regular card size of 4 1/4" x 5 1/2" folded.

On the inside, I used two Whisper White panels. One for our family photo on the left (no, the Stampin' Fools did NOT use my family photo, even though some of them asked me for it! ha!), the other for the greeting stamp. I used one from Many Merry Messages stamped in Real Red.

Really quick and easy projects to complete, but they are sure to bring a smile to anyone's face!

Ok, so that's it for today. I'm headed out the door to go pick up stuff for Emma's 14th Birthday Party Sleepover. Yep, I'm a crazy woman! 8 teenage girls all in my basement overnight! Aiyiyi!! What was I thinking?!!
I can tell you this - it will be LIGHTS OUT at Midnight! No cranky kid running around here tomorrow! Hmmph!
And Momma needs her beauty sleep!

Have a good one and wish me luck!
~~Robin

I'm Still Here!

2011-12-14T17:02:00.003-05:00

Hi stampers!

Just a quick post to let you know that I AM still here!
I've been busy, busy, busy these past few days having too much fun with friends and family. AND, today is my baby girl's birthday!
She is 14 years old!

So we are celebrating by going to her orchestra concert tonight then ice cream and cake afterwards. Party on Friday night!

I have lots of new stamped stuff to show you, so I'll be back tomorrow with a creative post and a personal post to catch you all up.
For now, here's a great picture of Emma just two weeks ago at her synchro competition in Connecticut! If you are my friend on Facebook, I put a bunch of Emma photos on there today - what a walk down memory lane that was!

Happy Birthday Emma!!

~~Robin

Glimmer Valentine Card

2011-12-09T07:45:00.001-05:00

Don't tell me! I KNOW what you're thinking!
It's not even Christmas yet and here I am showing you a Valentine!

Well, yes.
Yes, I am.
Mainly because this week has been especially full of fun and craziness and even though I have MANY stamped projects to show you, this is the only one that I had photographed and ready to go this morning. Ha!
BUT, Valentine's IS just around the corner and this is a pretty easy card, so it'd be simple for you to recreate it if you need a lot of them.

My upline, Jan Wakeland, came to Virginia to hold a meeting the weekend before Thanksgiving and the swap theme was Valentines. So this was my swap card.
Do you likey?

I likey it a lot!
It's so my style - clean and simple, but just enough bling to make it pop.
I used Real Red and Pool Party as my color scheme - love those two colors together!

The Pool Party layer was run through the Big Shot with the Perfect Polka Dots folder to give it texture. What ever did we do without those embossing folders?
I stamped the hearts in Pool Party ink from the I Heart Hearts stamp set on Whisper White, then tied a bit of Real Red Satin Ribbon around the panel.
The sparkly red heart was punched out with the Large Heart Punch from Red Glimmer Paper and I added the greeting from Teeny Tiny Wishes. It's punched out with the Modern Label Punch and attached with Tombow. You do have to let it dry completely though - it doesn't like to stick to the glimmer paper.

So, there you have it - a completely simple, good for guy or girl, Valentine card.

Thanks to all of you who wished Mark and I well on our Anniversary - we were overwhelmed with all the sweet comments from so many.
We had a wonderful afternoon and evening - I promise to blog about it, with photos, but I was waiting so I could include our evening out tonight as well. He not only surprised me on Wednesday with wonderful things, but tonight, he is taking me to the Kennedy Center to the symphony and to enjoy a meal at their Terrace Restaurant. I'm so excited!

Have a wonderful day friends, see you tomorrow!
~~Robin

The Day "We" Began

2011-12-07T10:40:00.004-05:00

Today, is a very special day in my life - it's the 20th Anniversary of the day I married my very best friend.

I have so many wonderful memories of our wedding day and the days leading up to it, it would take a novel to write them all, because, inevitably, it would lead into the story of our life's journey together. And that, my friends is a story that continues to write itself.

The photo above was taken at the reception hall when the photographer got us away for a few minutes alone. It's one I cherish and Emma keeps a copy of it in a frame in her room.
I don't think we look much like that anymore, but we are still that much in love.

My Mom and I hosted a Bridal Tea for my attendants at Mom and Dad's house two days before the wedding. Here's a photo of me with my Mom and Grandma that day.

I miss my Grandma a lot. She's been with the Lord now for 14 years - she died the year Emma was born, but we figure that she got to meet Emma in Heaven and told her how much she'd be loved when she got here.

This is me with my forever BFF, Missy. We were friends since the day we met in 9th grade. She was the one friend in my life who knew everything about me and loved me anyway! We went through a lot together - another novel - but no matter where we were or what we were doing, we were always friends and that bond was never broken. She was one of my Matrons of Honor for the wedding.
Missy is in Heaven now with my Grandma. She died 4 years ago from cancer and I miss her everyday. God has sent me some wonderful new friends - and I love them - but there will only ever be one Missy.

Ok, so now I'm crying, but they are happy tears - because it was such a beautiful day and I had so many that I loved there with me.
Here's me with my Dad while we were getting ready.
He hated getting dressed up, but never complained once about wearing that tux.

He and my Mom were all smiles. It really was a wonderful day. They loved Mark almost as much as I do, and I know they were thrilled that we were getting married. (Well, they were thrilled that I was FINALLY getting married. Apparently 27 was a little long to wait! Ha!)
This is a great picture of them. I love seeing my Mom's smile so big.

My cousin Tina and my Aunt Theresa are in this photo. Tina was my other Matron of Honor. She holds a special place in my heart as we shared a birthday, just 3 years apart. I'd been her Maid of Honor just a year earlier, so this was a special day for us both.
Tina went to be with the Lord last April after struggling for years with life issues. I'm so glad we had memories of happy times together.

I'm glad to have this photo of my Dad and I re-creating my walk down the aisle for the photographer. Wasn't he handsome in that tux?

I wish I could find the box of photos that our photographer gave us after we chose our album. There are so many other loved ones that I want to share with you, I just can't find the pictures.
We were so fortunate to be surrounded by so many family and friends that day - it was one of the best days of my life!

Here Mark and I are in the back of the limo. Funny story - we had just been served our meal at the reception when our photographer called us away to take some pictures of just the two of us. When we got back, the servers had removed our plates! We didn't get to eat! So, when we left the reception, we had the limo driver go to a convenience store so we could get some snacks. Not many people can say that they had Lays Potato Chips for their wedding meal. Ha!

Mark had this beautiful black velvet cape made for me for the wedding. We figured since it was December it would be cold - not! It was 60 degrees that day! But I was determined to wear it since it was so lovely. He had it lined with fabric that matched my wedding dress. I still have that cape and hope that Emma can wear it one day.

We honeymooned in Camden and Portland, Maine; a place we both loved. Here we are in front of one of the B and B's we stayed in - The Elms in Camden.

And here we are doing what we did the most of on our honeymoon - played Scrabble!
Yes, it's true. I came down with a nasty sinus infection the day we flew to Maine and was sick our whole honeymoon. Never a dull moment with us - still isn't!

We were back in time to celebrate Christmas with my Mom and Dad and my Grandma. My Dad made this sign for us for when we bought our first house.

So, there you have it - a glimpse of one of the best days of my life - ever!
Mark and I have been through a lot these past 20 years, some good, some not so good, but we've done it together and walked the road together and looked to the Lord to guide us. It's been a fantastic adventure and I can't wait to see what the next 20 years has to offer!

Happy Anniversary Mark - I'll love you forever!
~~Robin

Enjoy our wedding song!

Vanilla Sparkle Snowflake

2011-12-06T08:30:00.001-05:00

Mornin' folks!
I am so happy to be sitting here in my jammies and typing my post for you, knowing that I don't have to leave the house today until after 4pm! Doesn't mean I'm not working, but I at least get to chill and enjoy my coffee today. I'll be in the studio most of the day getting ready for Stampin' at the Firehouse on Thursday - probably won't get to play today with my box of NEW Stampin' Up! goodies that came yesterday, but at least I'll be creating! That's always good.

I did stop everything yesterday and make two cards with some of the fun new treats that are coming out in the Occasions Mini Catalog in January. So fun!! I can't wait to share them with you!!
But for now, I'm still focused on Christmas. And my 20th Wedding Anniversary. And Emma's 14th Birthday. And our friends Brandon and Ellen's Wedding. Yep, if it sounds like it, it's true. Things are a little extra crazy around here this month. But it's all good, so we're just gonna go with it!

We head out to get our Christmas tree tonight and FINALLY decorate it! A friend posted on Facebook the other day about describing in one word your Christmas decorations. I put "sparse". I literally have a wreath on the door, a flag in the holder and a wreath and cute towels in the studio bathroom. Got my poinsettia yesterday, but it's currently sitting in the middle of the kitchen table waiting for me to place it.
What's that song? "I need a little Christmas, right this very minute.". I don't know the rest of it, but that line describes my home right now.

How 'bout a little Christmas for you today?
Here's a card I designed for my Last Chance Christmas Card classes last week, and I really like this one a lot! It's pretty simple, and I think I'll be making a few more of them.....

I used Very Vanilla cardstock and cut it at 4 1/4" x 11". It's folded in half and I then ran it through the Big Shot with the Northern Flurries Embossing Folder to texturize the front.

The embossed oval is a piece of cardstock that was done with the Oval Folder in the Embosssed Frames set with the Big Shot. It was trimmed out with Paper Snips. I stamped the greeting from the Word Play stamp set in Real Red ink on more scrap cardstock and punched it out with the Extra Large Oval Punch. Those layers were adhered together with Stampin' Dimensionals and to the card front as well.

The snowflake was punched out of the polka dot glitter paper from Holly Berry Bouquet with the Snowflake Punch and adhered to the card front with a Mini Glue Dot.
A Riding Hood Red taffeta ribbon bow and some Basic Rhinestones finish off this very simple card.

Here's a couple of the products I used to make this card:

#120902 - Northern Flurry Embossing Folder $7.95

#124004 - Holly Berry Bouquet Designer Paper $12.95 (12 sheet pack)

You can find these products and everything else Stampin' Up! in my Online Stampin' Store. Remember, the Holiday Mini Catalog is winding down - you have until January 4th to purchase your favorites! Most of what's in that awesome catalog will not be available anymore after that date, so don't miss out on something you really, really want!

All Online Orders of $40 or more qualify for my NEW Robin's Rewards Program! Click HERE to read all the details and to download your tracking sheet!

Happy stampin' everyone!
See you tomorrow,
~~Robin

Place your order for Stampin' Up! supplies at this link here: Robin's Online Stampin' Store
Simply click the SHOP NOW button at the top right corner!
Robin's Rewards Program Here

Bright Hopes Card

2011-12-05T08:00:00.001-05:00

It feels so good to be home again!
We had a great weekend in NYC and Connecticut for Emma's skating competition, but it was so good to pull into the house last night and sleep in our own beds again. Really, there's no place like home.

Emma's team skated beautifully and out of 13 teams competing, they came in 8th. They skated their personal best and the coaches were giddy, one of them even did a little happy dance in the locker room afterwards. We don't know what those judges see, but sometimes we wonder if they are taking a nap when our girls skate. There were some really good teams there yesterday, no question, but I'm not sure 8th was where our girls deserved to be. Just sayin'.
At least the girls were proud of their performance and could leave holding their heads high. And in the end, that's all that really matters, isn't it?

So, having been gone all weekend, I have a LOT on my stampin' plate today, but I want to at least show you another quick and easy Christmas card idea. It's a card I designed for a new stamper, a sister of one of my clients who has decided to make her own cards this year.
Here's the design:

I do have to apologize for the poor photo quality. My camera was being a booger that day and I was about ready to throw it out the window! These pics are the best of the bunch.

For this card, I went back to the simple "Z" fold design again. It's a great fold that packs a lot of Wow factor, yet is very easy to do. The card is done in all Riding Hood Red and very Vanilla.
All the stamps used in the design are from the Bright Hopes stamp set.
So, not only is this card simple, but it's economical as well.

I used the snowflake stamp and covered the front folded back panel with that image, stamped randomly. The wreath image was stamped on a piece of Very Vanilla and punched out with the 2 1/2" Circle Punch. It's sponged on the edges to make it stand out and then some Dazzling Diamonds glitter was added to the image with some 2 Way Glue.
The ribbon bow is Riding Hood Red Taffeta and is adhered with Mini Glue Dots. I used a few Stampin' Dimensionals to adhere it to the card front.

For the little banner, I simply stamped the greeting on a piece of Very Vanilla scrap and cut it out with my Paper Snips. It's curled with the Bone Folder and added to the wreath with Mini Glue Dots.

Here's the inside view:

Just a simply stamped greeting behind the fold and room to write your message. The stamped Christmas tree has Dazzling Diamonds glitter on it as well for a little finishing bling!

I was so happy with how this card turned out. It was my first time using Bright Hopes this season, but I think now that I've used it, I'll have to find a reason to do it again! Beautiful stamp set!

Don't forget, you can order from my Online Store anytime to get the supplies you need for this card or any other project on my blog. And any order of $40 or more qualifies for my new Robin's Rewards Program too!

Have a wonderful Monday!
Happy Stampin',
~~Robin

Place your order for Stampin' Up! Supplies at this link here: Robin's Online Stampin' Store
Simply click the SHOP NOW button at the top right corner to get started!
Click HERE for details on Robin's Rewards Program!

Christmas Lane Leftovers!

2011-12-03T09:00:00.001-05:00

It's the holiday season - everyone likes leftovers, right? HA!
Me too, just not too much turkey, please!

Well, my Christmas Lane Scrapbook project had lots of leftovers - including 4 pieces of 6" x 6" cardstock that were just begging to be made into cards. When my cardstock begs, I just have to answer - don't you??
This size card will fit nicely into our Small Open End Envelopes.

Here's the Early Espresso one:

I love the reindeer stamp from the Winter Post stamp set. He looks so cute stamped in a row, walking across a page or card. Here I just stamped him in Early Espresso and added some Sticky Die Cuts and an Old Olive Button with some Baker's Twine. Simple!

My reindeer friend appears again on the Lucky Limeade cardstock:

I stamped the Dear Santa A La' Carte stamp with Cherry Cobbler on Whisper White and punched it out with the 2 3/8" Scalloped Circle Punch. Using more white scrap, I stamped the reindeer again and added the snowflake from Winter Post in Cherry Cobbler. It's punched out with the 1 3/4" Circle Punch and adhered to the punched scallop. The Sticky Die Cut border was glittered up with Dazzling Diamonds and my 2 Way Glue Pen. I even added some glitter to the scallop punch out before adding the Cherry Cobbler ribbon knot. The background of this card was done with the fun Dec. 25th image from Winter Post in Lucky Limeade Classic Ink.

More glitter on the Cherry Cobbler cardstock:

The background was stamped with the snowflake again in Cherry Cobbler Classic Ink then I added a Sticky Die Cut striped border that I'd glittered up. The cuff of the stocking was coated in glitter as well, then I added a Mini Jingle Bell with some Baker's Twine to finish it off.

Ok, last but not least, the Soft Suede cardstock:

The center of this Sticky Die Cut "ornament" had two Stampin' Dimensionals added to it and before I removed the backing, I added some baby powder to nullify the stickiness on the die cut. I was able to pop it up above the ring for some dimension that way. A piece of Sticky Rik Rak makes the hanging string and I simply added a Lucky Limeade Ruffled Taffeta Ribbon bow and a Cherry Cobbler button with more Baker's Twine.

For an inside panel on each of these cards, cut a piece of Whisper White cardstock at 2 3/4" x 5 3/4". It fits nicely inside and you can stamp your greeting easily along with some images from Winter Post to jazz it up.

So, have you enjoyed the Scrapbook and card projects this week? I know I had a BLAST making them! If you're just coming in on this series of posts, all the scrapbook pages can be found on the last three posts on my blog. You'll also find information on my NEW Robin's Rewards Program! You can also click this link HERE to read more about earning FREE Stampin' Up! product when you order from my Online Store! You're all so good to me, I wanted to give YOU something too!

Happy Saturday everyone! We have a busy day here in Stamford, CT getting ready for Emma's competition tomorrow. She has off-ice with her team this afternoon and an early curfew since we have to be at the rink at 6 AM on Sunday!! Uggh! I think the girls on the team will fare better than the parents......
But anyway - Go National Blades!!! :)

Blessings,
~~Robin

Place your order for Stampin' Up! supplies at this link here: Robin's Online Stampin' Store
Simply Click the SHOP NOW button at the top right to get started!

Christmas Scrapbook in a DAY! Part 3

2011-12-02T07:30:00.001-05:00

Ok, kids, here's the last installment of this fun scrapbook!

I had scheduled a second class for this scrapbook for December 19th - but it has already filled! Are there enough of you out there for me to find time for a THIRD class?!! Let me know, ok?

So, as you are reading this, we are headed north for our second skating competition this season. We'll be in Stamford, Connecticut this weekend for the Terry Conners Synchro Classic. But today - we are spending the day in NYC!!!
We have tickets to see the Radio City Music Hall Christmas Spectacular and we'll be eating in a couple of our favorite restaurants too. I'm looking forward to seeing the tree at Rock Center and checking out the Christmas window displays and decorations.
Love NYC! I'm sure I'll have photos on Facebook from today and from the skating too. I know some of you follow Emma's skating, so I'll try and get a video up of their performance as soon as I can.

Now, how about some scrapbook pages?

Lots of white space on this one for journaling:

I stamped the background with the swirl from Season of Joy and added a bit of glitter to the berries on the holly Sticky Die Cuts.

I love this page! Two die cut Scalloped Square tags (from the duo die) Hey, you either duo or die! Get it?! Ha! I crack myself up!
Anyway, Sticky Die Cuts used for the reinforcements and threaded with Cherry Cobbler Baker's Twine. The tags fit down in the white cardstock pocket.

Ok, THESE are my two favorite pages in the whole album!
I got the idea for the Santa's list from SU! demo Ashley Marostica and just altered the design to suit my style. Even if you don't have a "letter for Santa", this would be a great place to journal about your holiday!
The Santa medallion on the second page is popped up on Stampin' Dimensionals so the photo will slide under it.

The cute rik-rak Sticky Die Cuts frame out this photo mat nicely and leave a space for journaling too. The little Sticky Die Cut tag was nullified with more baby powder and added to the ribbon with a Mini Glue Dot.

Nothing fancy here, just a nice space for two photos!

Almost done! The Big Shot makes these pages easy. Northern Flurry embossing on the Lucky Limeade cardstock panels and two Cherry Cobbler Top Notes for photos. A little bling, a button and some twine finish it off.

Last one! Two tags for photos, journaling or both, each in it's own little pocket. I used the greeting from Notes and Details for the one tag corner.

So, there you go, all done!!
What do you think?

I'll post the photos of the four cards we made tomorrow for you, ok?
In the meantime, if you need to shop for stampin' supplies, stop by my Online Store! With my NEW Rewards Program, you earn points towards FREE Stampin' Up! products each time you shop there!

Happy stampin'!
~~Robin

Place your order for Stampin' Up! supplies at this link here: Robin's Online Stampin' Store
Simply click the SHOP NOW button at the top right corner!

Christmas Scrapbook in a DAY! Part 2

2011-12-01T07:45:00.001-05:00

Wow!
Judging from the e-mails I got yesterday - you all really LIKE this scrapbook project!
THAT makes my heart so happy and really makes me want to do more scrapbooking!!

Here's the next few pages in the album:

The Sticky Die Cut Stocking was just screaming for glitter, so I added some Dazzling Diamonds to the cuff with my 2 Way Glue Pen.

On this page, I added some baby powder to half of the Sticky Die Cut so the photo would slide under it and not stick. Cool, huh?
The center image is stamped out of the Perfect Punches Stamp Set, punched out and popped up on Stampin' Dimensionals. That gorgeous Cherry Cobbler Ribbon makes it into a sweet wreath accent.

I love the border element on this next page. I just punched a border strip out of Whisper White cardstock with my Scalloped Ribbon Border Punch and threaded some Old Olive 1/8" Taffeta Ribbon through it and topped it with a sweet bow. Cute and Easy, plus the photo will slide right under the border or you can journal below it.
The Cherry Cobbler cardstock on this page was texturized with the Snow Burst Embossing Folder and the photo mat has a simple wrap of Old Olive Satin Ribbon. More baby powder on the Sticky Die Cut keeps it from sticking to the mat/photo and a button finishes off the element.

These next two pages are two of my favorites in the whole album - my other two favorites will post tomorrow - I added Dazzling Diamonds to the torn edges of the cardstock on each side and on the Sticky Die Cut Border piece on the next page. Lots more stamping with the Winter Post Stamp set too!

This page was fun with the Scalloped Square Die cut piece for the photo mat. Just a little Rhinestone Bling to finish it off!

So, there you have it - more fun pages!
Tomorrow you'll get the last few pages and then on Saturday, I'll show you the four cards that were made with the kit leftovers!

Don't forget that my new Robin's Rewards Program begins officially TODAY!! You can get all the details at this post HERE. Be sure to download the simple tracking form so you can begin keeping track of all your qualifying orders and earn your FREE Stampin' Up! product!

Happy Stampin'!
~~Robin

Place your order for Stampin' Up! supplies at this link here: Robin's Online Stampin' Store
Simply Click the SHOP NOW button at the top right corner!

NEW! Robin's Rewards Program

2011-11-30T21:45:00.007-05:00

I love being a Stampin' Up! Demonstrator!
I especially love being YOUR Stampin' Up! Demonstrator!

I've said it so many times, but I'll say it again - I have the BEST clients in the world. YOU make my job so fun and rewarding, that I wanted to find a way to REWARD YOU for being loyal to me and allowing me to inspire your creativity!

So, starting at Midnight December 1st, any time you place an Online Order through my Stampin' Store that totals $40.00 before tax and shipping you will earn 1 (one ) Rewards Star from me. After you have earned a dozen (12) Rewards Stars, you can choose $30 in FREE Stampin' Up! Products as a Thank You Gift from me.

I've created a handy PDF Tracking sheet for you to print out to keep track of your orders and watch them add up to FREE Products!

The link below, so click on it to print out the flyer. It also explains all the other details about the rewards program.

Download Robin's Rewards Program Tracking Sheet

Remember stampers, this rewards program is being offered by me, Robin Merriman. The rewards you earn are NOT directly redeemable with Stampin' Up! or any other Stampin' Up! demonstrator.

If you have any questions, let me know.

I'm so thankful for your continued support and business, it means so much to me that you have chosen me to be your Stampin' Up! Demonstrator.

Stamped Blessings,
~~Robin

Christmas Scrapbook in a DAY!

2011-11-30T08:15:00.002-05:00

Last Saturday, I got to do one of my most favoritest things - I got to scrapbook!
Yes, believe it or not, I started off this paper crafting adventure wanting to scrapbook - cardmaking had never entered my mind.
But as you all may know, once you start making cards, it's kind of addicting. Not to mention the joy it brings to someone when they receive a card you've made! There's something special about getting a hug with a fold in the middle.

However, I still love to create pages and albums to hold my photos and memories - it makes me so happy, and sometimes wistful, when I go through my photos and recall the events of the day or the season. I love looking at the faces of my loved ones at different times in their lives and think about how their life was then, wonder about what was on their minds or in their hearts then. Mostly it just makes me smile and experience all over again the warm fuzzies of having them in my life. Our relationships are the most important thing in this life - it's the people we love and care for and the people we impact and who impact us that help us to leave a legacy of love.

So, last Saturday, I held my first scrapbooking class in a very long time - and I can tell you, it WILL be a more frequent occurence here in the studio! First of all, the ladies who took the class LOVED it and two of them were first time scrapbookers! Secondly, it filled a need for me in creating the sample book and I'm not walking away from that so quickly again.

Today, I'm showing you the outside of the book we made along with the first 5 pages - sans photos - if you like what you see, I've been asked to add one more of this class to my calendar this season. It will be on Monday, December 19th from 10 am - 3 pm; details are on my Events page on my Stampin' Up! website.

Here's the album cover. I used the Cherry Trim 6" x 6" Designer Album from the Holiday Mini. It has 20 pages inside and includes the page protectors!

The cover has a big bow of Old Olive Striped Ribbon tied around it (retired ribbon, but it was perfect!), and I used one of the sticky die cuts from the Simply Scrappin' Kit that the album is designed around for a fun tag. Some Basic Rhinestones and a Trinket Key (Santa's Key) tied with some Cherry Cobbler Bakers Twine finish off the cover embellishment.
Are you wondering how I got the sticky die cut to not be sticky? Well, here's a little secret for you - baby powder! Yep, I put a little baby powder in an empty embellishment container and use a paint brush to brush it on the back of the die cut. It neutralizes the adhesive and allows me to use the die cuts any way I'd like! Yes, folks, that tip alone is worth the price of admission right there! Ha!

Here's page one:
All my pages were designed using one-half of the Christmas Lane Simply Scrappin' Kit that's in the Holiday Mini Catalog. The best part was that I had enough supplies left over to make four Christmas Cards too!

Here's page two:
I added many other embellishments along the way - Dazzling Diamonds glitter, ribbon, buttons, etc.

Here's page three:
I designed the album using several different stamp sets - Winter Post (which today is the LAST day to get it at 1/2 price - just $13.47!), Season of Joy and Perfect Punches.

Here's page four:
Lots of punches and ribbon and Baker's Twine through the album - see the glitter on the stamped and punched ornament? Really, just little touches like that can elevate a page. I like my scrapbooks to let the photos tell the story, so I try to keep my embellishments subtle or minimal.

Here's page five:

The color combination of this Simply Scrappin' Kit is gorgeous! Cherry Cobbler, Lucky Limeade, Early Espresso, Soft Suede - so yummy!

So, want to come take the class now?!! I hope so, I love having a studio full of stampers and scrappers! But, if you can't come or want to do it yourself, here's the info on the main products I used to create this album. You can shop in my Online Stampin' Store anytime 24/7 and have it delivered right to your door!

#124008 - Cherry Trim Designer 6" x 6" Album w/ 10 page protectors $10.95

#111780 - Winter Post Stamp Set (wood mount) SALE $13.47 TODAY ONLY!!

#124007 - Christmas Lane Simply Scrappin' Kit $21.95

Be sure to order the stamp set TODAY before the 50% off sale closes! It's part of the Online Extravaganza SALE that Stampin' Up! has been offering since the 21st! You can place your order from my website up until Midnight Mountain Time.

Have a great day folks - thanks for coming to visit!
I'll have the info available for you on my NEW Robin's Rewards Program posted this evening, so be sure to check back!
Stamped blessings,
~~Robin

Place your order at this link here for all your Stampin' Up! needs: Robin's Online Stampin' Store
Simply click the SHOP NOW button at the top right corner to get started!

Stampin' Fools Recipes!

2011-11-29T21:30:00.001-05:00

Just a quick creative post this evening -
my day got away from me entirely and I'm just now sitting down to share with you!

Anyway, you've read about my Stampin' Fools party group here before, they are a fantastic bunch of stampers who meet at my house each month to stamp, laugh, eat and have a fun, foolish time. They are also my friends and I love them dearly.

Well, for our party this month, we started something new. Two of the Fools brought a dish they had cooked for us to sample and they sent me the recipe ahead of time so we could scrapbook them as one of our projects. We're going to do this each month for a while and fill up a 20 page 6" x 6" Stampin' Up! album. What a cool project huh?

Here are the two recipes and pages for November.

The recipe on the left is from Pat for Praline Sweet Potato Casserole and the one on the right is from Betty for Corn Pudding. Both were really delicious and I was lucky enough to be able to keep the leftovers!

Since this is a recipe album, I kept the page design very simple. The base page is Crumb Cake cardstock and it's stamped all over with a floral image from Day of Gratitude in Soft Suede ink. I printed out the recipes on Very Vanilla cardstock and sponged the edges with Crumb Cake ink. I laid them side by side and used More Mustard to ink up the large medallion stamp from Day of Gratitude and stamped it on both pages at once. It creates a cool effect when you separate them in the album. The recipe itself was mounted on a mat of Soft Suede cardstock and adhered to the page.
For a nice border, I took a piece of 2" x 6" Spice Cake Designer Paper and tore it down one edge, sponging the exposed edge with more Crumb Cake ink. It was adhered to the outside edge of the page to finish it off.

I can't wait for next month to see what we get to sample and share!
Have a great evening friends - I'll be back tomorrow with another fun project for you AND the details of my Robin' Rewards Program!

Stamped blessings,
~~Robin

A Quiet Thanksgiving

2011-11-29T09:00:00.001-05:00

Hello again!
Just a little catch up post this morning. I have some fun creative stuff to share too, just gotta get it uploaded!

I know it's been a week since I posted, and I probably should have told you guys that I was taking a Thanksgiving blogging break - sorry if you were wondering where I'd disappeared to!
We had a very relaxed, low key Thanksgiving this year.
Mom came up to stay for a few days and we just hung out mostly. Watched the parade on tv, ate a simple, but very yummy dinner thanks to my super chef hubby; did a little online shopping and just sat and snoozed.
No Black Friday craziness this year for us, even though it had been our plan - and truth be told, I didn't miss the crowds this year. It was nice to just sit and decompress a bit.

My Dad's absence was definitely felt - I wasn't sure what to expect really, but it was weird not having him here. Especially when it was time for football. And dinner. His two favorite things about Thanksgiving!
So yes, I was sad, and I miss him, but I still wouldn't bring him back for anything. Not to face the pain of this life again. He's healed and happy and whole in Heaven and that gives me peace.

Here's a few photos of our day:

Me and Mark at the dinner table. Yeah, it was a no make-up kind of day too.

Emma and my Mom at the table. No fancy dishes again this year, but you don't need them to make the food taste good! I love seeing Mark in the mirror on the wall - cool picture!

Mark and I took the dogs for a long afternoon walk and this was one of the sights we saw in our neighbors yard. He'd been very busy that day - the day before there was a giant inflatable turkey there, by the time we walked by, he had 2 inflatables on the roof and 4 in his yard - including this one. Santa's gonna get awfully chilly by the time Christmas rolls around. Just sayin'.

Like I said earlier, we did a lot of snoozin':

Susie really enjoys "her" spot on the couch.
Buster was enjoying the warm, sunny spot by the fireplace.
Wish I could do that all day sometimes........

So, there you go - our quiet Thanksgiving.
Hope yours was a special one too!

~~Robin

Spice Cake Faux Tile

2011-11-22T07:45:00.004-05:00

Howdy stampers!

So, are you ready for Thanksgiving yet? Nothing like getting right to the heart of the matter, eh? If you're not thinking about Thanksgiving and that big, juicy turkey, then you're probably trying to decide if you're gonna go out at midnight on Thursday and scoop up some of those crazy doorbuster deals, right?

Well I can tell ya where this ol' girl will be - snoozin' in my warm, snuggly bed! This year, I'm really ahead of the game and my Christmas shopping is 97.8% done! And the rest I'm doing online - oh yeah! But even if it wasn't, I'm not the doorbuster type. I love to shop, but not when I'm so sleepy that I can't see the price tags

Nope. Since Mark is working Thursday evening and then again on Black Friday, Emma and I will head out and get breakfast, then hit one of the malls with all the other 5 million people in NoVA just to say we did. I know it's crazy, but it's always fun girl time for us and the best part is that since I'm usually done with most of my Christmas shopping by this time of year, we don't HAVE to buy anything! We can just look at those super long lines and count our blessings that we aren't in them.

That's my kind of Black Friday shopping!

So, if you're not shopping on Black Friday - you can always stamp!

Here's another one of the cards we made at my card classes this month. I showed everyone how to do the Faux Tile Technique with the Simply Scored Scoring Tool - makes it so easy!

Did you pick one of those up yesterday during that great 24 hour sale SU! ran? Well, if not, you can still get one, just not on sale.

Here's a thought - put it on your Christmas list! :)

Just a few details about the card. The card base is So Saffron, sponged with a little bit of Crumb Cake on the edges. The next layer is Not Quite Navy and after I adhered the scored and stamped Spice Cake Designer paper to it, I ran the bottom section through my Big Shot with the Lattice Embossing Folder.

So, the Faux Tile was done by taking a piece of Designer paper - this was cut at 3 3/4" square - and scoring it at even intervals all the way across. I turned the paper one quarter turn and scored all the way across again at the same intervals, creating a grid pattern.

Next, I sponged Crumb Cake Classic Ink lightly all over it then stamped my image from the Inspired by Nature stamp set on top with Early Espresso Classic Ink.

A little bit of Not Quite Navy Taffeta Ribbon added a little feminine element and the stamped and punched greeting from the Perfect Punches stamp set finished the card. I did add an Early Espresso brad to the greeting layer before popping it up on Stampin' Dimensionals - a little extra bling never hurts!

Did you know that the Perfect Punches greeting set is part of the Online Extravaganza? It sure is! It's on Sale for 40% off the regular price making it only $10.77 for the clear-mount option! That, my stamping friends is what we call a steal! I love the versatility of this stamp set and I really love that each image works with one of our punches making it so quick and easy to use!

So, take a minute and head on over to my Online Stampin' Store and check out ALL the great deals and steals in the Online Extravaganza! While you're there, check out the Clearance Rack too - I saw some fantastic buys on there yesterday that I think you'll love!

Remember, ALL your November purchases from my Online Store will count towards my NEW Robin's Rewards Program that begins on December 1st! Shop now, Save now and get a head start on earning FREE Stampin' Up! merchandise from me! For every $40 merchandise purchase you make, your rewards start to add up into FREE Stampin' Up! goodies! Full details on this program will be published here on November 30th, so be watching!

Have a great Tuesday ya'll! Happy Stampin'!

~~Robin

Place your order for Stampin' Up! Supplies at this link here: Robin's Online Stampin' Store

Simply click the SHOP NOW button at the top right corner to get started!

Wonderful Winter Post

2011-11-21T14:08:00.003-05:00

Without a doubt, Winter Post is my all-time FAVORITE stamp set!

Shelli, if you are reading this - PLEASE don't ever let it retire!!!

But, putting it on SALE - well, that's a different matter entirely. I think everyone should own this beautiful stamp set!

Well now, that's exactly what my buds at Stampin' Up! have done - put it on sale at 50% OFF!

Yeppers! From today through November 30th - you too can own this beautiful stamp set for only $13.47!!

Isn't that awesome?!!

Here's all the images that are included in the stamp set:7 great winter and Christmas themed images that can either work separately or together - your choice. There's even a couple of images that are great for Christmas tag making!

Here are a few projects I've done over the years - among many:

Love this little box of gift enclosure cards - the box is made with the Scalloped Envelope Big Shot Die.
The two scallops on this card are made with the Scalloped Circle Dies and my Big Shot as well.

Love the Medallion Background stamp on this one:

And this card is really one of my faves. I used the Top Note die for one of the layers and that double bow with the Very Vanilla Seam Binding and Antique Brad just make me smile!

So, there you go - lots of great ideas for using this beautiful stamp set! Don't you want to own it now? I thought so!

Alright then, skate on over to my Online Stampin' Store and place your order! It's only 50% off until the 30th, but the sooner you order it, the sooner you can be stampin' with it!

Here's the item number for you: #111780 Winter Post Stamp Set (wood mount only) regular price $26.95; SALE Price $13.47!!

When you get to my website home page, simply click the SHOP NOW button at the top right to get started!

Happy Shoppin' and Stampin'!

~~Robin

Fab Deals! Online Extravaganza is HERE!

2011-11-21T07:37:00.021-05:00

Can't wait? Well, click the Hot Holiday Deals box below to get started shopping! But be sure to read to the end of this post for my picks and a special offer!

WOW! Stampin' Up! is offering some AMAZING deals for all of us! Check this out;

#125152 - NEW! Sweet Pressed Cookie Stamps - Regular Price $16.95 - SALE TODAY ONLY!! $13.56
These make fantastic Teacher, Co-Worker and Neighbor gifts. They come boxed for easy wrapping with 2 delicious cookie recipes - Sugar and Shortbread - and can also be used for crafting! Be sure to add a set for yourself as well, at this price, you have to try them out!
#122334 - NEW! Simply Scored Scoring Tool - Regular Price $29.95 - SALE TODAY ONLY!! $23.96
You all know how I feel about our new Cadillac of Scoring Tools - The Simply Scored is in a word - FANTASTIC! It scores as small as 1/8" intervals, has a graded scoring surface so your paper stays put, rubber feet keep it stable and in place on your table, the double tipped stylus locks in place and there is a handy storage compartment in the back! It's definitely a must have for any paper crafter - and "scoring" it on sale is a wonderful bonus for you!

Bundles are available until November 30th!!

#129035 - Ribbon Bundle - price if purchased separately $31.80 - SALE PRICE $22.26
The Online Extravaganza Ribbon Bundle contains four packages of 1/2" Scallop Dots Ribbon in Basic Black, Cherry Cobbler, Chocolate Chip, and Old Olive. This adorable grosgrain ribbon with printed white polka dots on one side and scallop edges with pinholes can be used to dress up any project in style!
Ribbon is approximately 1/2" wide; each package of ribbon contains approximately 10 yards.
This exclusive bundle—40 percent off the retail price—is only available November 21-30!
#129034 - Glimmer Brad Bundle - price if purchased separately $14.85 - SALE PRICE $10.40!!
The Online Extravaganza Glimmer Brads Bundle contains three Glimmer Brad assortments—Basics, Brights, and Subtle—all for 30 percent off the retail price!
Each assortment contains 40 3/8” brads in five colors (8 ea. of 5 colors):
* Basics: Basic Black, Basic Gray, Champagne, Silver, Gold
* Brights: Real Red, Rich Razzleberry, Pumpkin Pie, Tempting Turquoise, Old Olive
* Subtles: So Saffron, Perfect Plum, Wild Wasabi, Rose Red, Marina Mist

There are tons of great deals on many Stampin' Up! favorites during this SALE- 20% off up to 60% off! You HAVE to check them out on my website!

Here are a few of my favorite items - must haves in my opinion!

All available until November 30th!

#111780 - Winter Post Stamp Set - regular price $26.95 - SALE PRICE $13.47!!

If you follow my blog, you know that Winter Post is my ALL-TIME favorite stamp set! and at this price, you HAVE to add it to your stampin' tool box! I'll be posting some samples with this stamp set later today to give you some great ideas for making some terrific cards with it.

#116586 - Many Merry Messages - regular price $34.95 - SALE PRICE $17.47!!

Seriously a GREAT deal! This versatile Christmas greeting set has been around for several years now and with good reason - there's a greeting for every type of Christmas card! I've used this stamp set at EVERY Christmas card class I've EVER held in the last 5 years because it's simply timeless. Another must HAVE stamp set and at a fantastic price!

#120890 - Candy Wrapper Bigz Die - regular price $32.95 - SALE PRICE - $26.36!!

Have the Big Shot? Looking for a fun. new die to play with? This one is THE one! You can make adorable party favors, treat boxes, Christmas ornaments and more! You can even make an extended length Candy Wrapper for those extra-long treats! So easy to use with the Standard Premium Crease Pad to make sure your fold lines come out clean. I've never regretted this purchase for my Big Shot toolbox.

So, these are just a few of my picks for items you SHOULD own! Here is a link to the PDF file that lists ALL of the Online Extravaganza Sale Items - CLICK HERE!

Remember - ALL your Online purchases of $40 will earn you early Rewards points in my NEW Robin's Rewards Program that begins in December. You can shop the SALE and earn rewards points before the program even starts. This applies to each merchandise amount of $40 spent online before November 30th!

You can SHOP my Online Store right NOW! Here's the link: Robin's Online Stampin' Store

Simply click the SHOP NOW button at the top right corner to get started!

Happy Shoppin' and Stampin'

~~Robin

Spice Cake Scalloped Circle Easel Card

2011-11-18T09:07:00.001-05:00

Happy Friday Stampers!!

It's a beautiful day here in NOVA - if you don't go outside! Brrrr....it was a chilly 28 degrees when we got up this morning. Not sure I'm ready for winter yet. HA!

But, I'm so grateful for the sunshine. I'm really a sunny day kind of person - it lifts me up like nothing else and I love to find the sunny spot in the house and just sit and be a turtle. (That's what Mark calls it anyway!)

So today, there's lots of excitement around here - my friend, and upline, Jan Wakeland is coming to visit and we are hosting a special event for some Special Achievers on my team here in the studio. Stamping, eating and fun will be the order of the evening!

Then tomorrow, Jan is holding her first ever meeting for Virginia demos in the RemARKable Stampers group right here in Manassas! Can't wait to see so many of my good stampin' friends.

The card I'm sharing today is one that I designed for my card classes this month - see what you missed by not coming to stamp with me?! HA!

Maybe next month, ok?

Anyway, this entire card was cut out with the Big Shot - yep, it's true! Here, take a look:

I used the gorgeous Spice Cake Designer paper for an entirely NON-Fall look. The Pear Pizzazz paper has this beautiful paisley and flower design on it and was so feminine looking, I went with a more sweet, delicate look. Monochromatic color schemes always make me smile, not only because it's easy to match, but they look so elegant as well. So here it's all Pear Pizzazz and Very Vanilla.

The card is an easel style cut with the Scalloped Circle Die. The Designer paper layer is cut with the 3 1/2" Circle Die, the banner is a strip of cardstock embossed with the Finial Press Textured Embossing Folder and sponged with Pear Pizzazz ink.

I cut the oval shape with the Ovals Die then stamped my greeting on it with the Perfectly Penned Stamp Set in Pear Pizzazz as well.

Here's a side view:

You can see that I added a border of Dazzling Diamonds glitter around the Designer paper circle by running my 2 Way Glue Pen around the edge then dipping the whole thing in glitter - yes, it did end up on my face, but that's half the fun of glitter!

All the edges were sponged with more Pear Pizzazz ink and I added a few Basic Pearls to accent the greeting. For a final touch, I used my Paper Piercer and Mat Pack to add a hole in each scallop on the top layer - I love the look this gives!

All the pieces were assembled with Tombow Adhesive and I used Stampin' Dimensionals to lift up the greeting.

If you're not sure how to do an easel card, feel free to comment and I'll answer back on Monday. They've become pretty popular so I'm guessing that most of you experienced stampers have the basic idea by now.

Stampin' Up! has a Big Shot design contest going on right now, so maybe I'll enter this card in the contest - what do you think? Would you vote for it?

Here's a few products I used for today's card:

#122892 - Perfectly Penned Stamp set (clear Mount) - $12.95

#124003 - Spice Cake Designer Paper - $10.95 (12 sheet pack)

Remember, you can order from my Online Stampin' Store anytime for these and ALL SU! products. My new Rewards Program starts in December, but I'm including all November Online orders to give you a head start as you shop for the holidays!

And Don't Forget - Stampin' Up!'s Online Extravaganza Sale begins on Monday, November 21st at 2:01 est. Check this post here for the details. You won't want to miss it!

Have a fun, sunny, happy stampin' day!

~~Robin

Place your order for Stampin' Up! Supplies at this link here: Robin's Online Stampin' Store

Simply click the SHOP NOW button at the top right corner!

Online Extravaganza is Coming!!

2011-11-17T20:28:00.007-05:00

JUST ANNOUNCED!!!

Online Extravaganza, Stampin' Up!'s annual sale to kick off the holiday shopping season, will begin
Monday, November 21, 2011, and run through Wednesday, November 30, 2011.
You may place orders either through my Online Store or by e-mailing me directly at stampwithrobin@yahoo.com

You'll want to be sure to log in to my Online Store on
Monday, November 21, to take advantage of great savings!

-FREE digital downloads valued at $40 when you buy My Digital Studio Express,
-60 percent off select Designer Fabrics,
-30 percent off an exclusive ribbon bundle!

And WOW - look at this!
There will be two items on sale for 24 hours only (November 21, 12:01 AM - 11:59 PM [MT]) That's 2:01 AM - 1:59 PM EST
-so make sure you don't miss the first 24 hours of Online Extravaganza!

Remember, ALL November merchandise orders from Robin's Online Stampin' Store of $40 or more qualify you for my NEW Rewards program that begins on December 1st! How awesome for you that you can shop now and SAVE and EARN rewards early!

Exciting news!
Happy Stampin',
~~Robin

French Foliage Collage

2011-11-16T08:30:00.001-05:00

Welcome to Wednesday!

It's not such a lovely day outside here today - icky rain and gray skies - but it's going to be warm and bright in the studio - I get to stamp all day!!

And it's a good thing too - I am still in catch up mode and there's a big weekend ahead!

So let's get right to the card today, shall we?

It's another card I designed for my regular card classes this month.

Such a simple design really. I used Crumb Cake cardstock cut at 4 1/4" x 11" and folded in half lengthwise. Using that gorgeous stamp set French Foliage, I stamped a collage of leaves all over the front of the card. I used Cajun Craze, Old Olive and Early Espresso for my leaves and finished it off with some raindrops of River Rock.

The layer is made of Naturals Ivory and it's stamped with a collage of the french script and the postmark stamp from that same stamp set. I used EVERY stamp in that set for this card - awesome! This layer too has more River Rock raindrops - that's my favorite stamp in the set, I think - I use it on a lot of cards!

Here's a close up of the focal image:

At the bottom of the stamped layer, I added a torn piece of Cajun Craze cardstock.

Some Linen Thread was wrapped around the layer and tied off in a messy bow then the whole piece was popped up on Stampin' Dimensionals.

The layered tags were cut with my Big Shot and one of the Sizzlits from the Lots of Labels collection. There are 4 dies in that set and they make beautiful tags! On the bottom tag, I stamped the large oak leaf in Old Olive to make it stand out a bit, then stamped my greeting from Teeny Tiny Wishes on the slim tag. After adding a Vintage Trinket button brad, each tag layer was popped up on dimensionals and adhered to the card front.

Voila! It was fini!

My French is a little rusty - maybe I should have Emma check me since she's learning that fine language this year.

Speaking of Emma, I have to do the Mommy brag for a minute - Emma came home yesterday with her first report card of the year. She made straight A's!!! And the Principal's Honor Roll!! We are over the moon proud of her! She works so hard and is busy all the time with school, skating and church - she hardly has any down time. It amazes me that she's able to juggle it all and still make awesome grades! Love that girl!

Ok, so back to regularly scheduled programming.

If you like today's card, you can purchase all the supplies you need to make it from my Online Stampin' Store. And remember, all merchandise orders of $40 or more count towards my New Rewards Program that's starting on December 1st! Get a head start on your Rewards Card by ordering now!

Here's a few of the items I used on today's project:

#121166 - French Foliage Stamp Set - $14.95

#118764 - Vintage Trinkets - $4.95

#104199 - Linen Thread - $4.50

The Lots of Tags Sizzlits Die Set photo wouldn't load for me, but it's a set of 4 dies that cuts 5 different tags, all different and lovely! The Item # is 114508 and it's $21.95 for all 4 dies. It's a great basic to have in your Big Shot collection.

Have a wonderful Wednesday everyone! I hope you get some stampin' time in!

Blessings,

~~Robin

Place your order for Stampin' Up! Supplies at this link here: Robin's Online Stampin' Store

Simply click the SHOP NOW button at the top right corner!

Quilted Spice Cake

2011-11-15T15:15:00.001-05:00

Happy Tuesday Stampers!

I know what you are thinking - where has she been and why hasn't she posted in 5 days?!! I know, I know. I can hardly believe it myself. Life has just been nutty lately! Yes, even more than usual. I told Mark that I feel like I've been hit with a Mack Truck.
Add to that some stupid, crazy computer problems and it's not a good combination for blogging. It's much easier to throw up my hands in disgust and just step. away. from. the. computer. Before I throw it out the window!

Anyway, the sweet folks at Verizon are sending me a new router that may or may not solve my issues, so we'll see.
I'm not holding my breath.
Stupid computer.

Thank goodness we have something fun and stress relieving to help - stamping!
Here's a card I designed last week for my Just Cards class and Stampin' Fun at the Firehouse:

This card was probably my favorite of the 5 I designed for these classes. I love the vintage feel of it and you know how I love square cards!
This one is 4 1/4" square. I had a question e-mailed to me about that size and while I can't mail out a piece of cardstock cut to size to everyone who asks me for it, I can explain how to get that size. Cut a piece of cardstock at 4 1/4" x 8 1/2". Fold it in half to make a 4 1/4" square card. It really is that simple.

My layers here are a card base of Naturals Ivory, 4" square layer of Early Espresso and a 3 3/4" square layer of Spice Cake Designer Paper.
I adhered the Spice Cake to the Early Espresso and ran both layers through my Big Shot inside the Houndstooth Embossing Folder. After rubbing it all over with some Soft Suede ink and a sponge, it looks a bit like an antique quilt to me.
After adding a piece of Soft Suede Taffeta Ribbon, I moved on to the focal point. The bow was added with Mini Glue Dots after I placed my greeting pieces.

You can see this is a two layer greeting, the bottom layer is Naturals Ivory cardstock that's been embossed with the oval from the Designer Frames Embossing Folders set. I trimmed it out with my Paper Snips and rubbed a little Soft Suede ink on the edge to bring out the detail. The greeting is from the Always Thankful stamp set in the Holiday Mini. It's stamped with Soft Suede on a cardstock scrap, then punched out with the Extra Large Oval Punch. I sponged it as well and added the Antique Brad before using Stampin' Dimensionals to the back to pop it up on the other oval. The whole thing was adhered to the card front with more Dimensionals.
After stamping a greeting on the inside, this baby was done!
And yes, it really is my favorite of the bunch.
I'll show you the rest through the week, so you can decide for yourself!

Here's a few of the products I used on today's card:

#123789 - Always Thankful Stamp Set - $19.95 clear mount

#124003 - Spice Cake Designer Series Paper - $10.95 12 sheet pack

#117273 - Antique Brads - $5.95

You can place an order for these supplies in my Online Stampin' Store anytime! And don't forget, my special REWARDS program is beginning on December 1st for all my online clients! Your purchases in November count towards filling your first rewards card! All Online purchases from my Stampin' Store over $40.00 will receive REWARDS! Each $40.00 you spend gets you closer to filling your card and your REWARDS!
Be sure to check back for details on Wednesday, November 30th!

Have a great evening stampers! I have a FREE Cardmaking 101 class here tonight so I'm off to prep for that!
Stamped blessings,
~~Robin

Place your order for Stampin' Up! Supplies at this link here: Robin's Online Stampin' Store
Simply click the SHOP NOW button at the top right corner!

Birthday Notecard Pocket

2011-11-10T08:25:00.002-05:00

Happy Thursday Stampin' Peeps!

And Happy Birthday to my Marine Corps friends! Semper Fi!

Today's post is gonna be short and sweet - I have ALL of my prep work still to do for tonight's Stampin' Fun at the Firehouse event, so I gotta get movin'!!

Even the card is Clean and Simple, short and sweet!

Here you go:

This card and it's pocket are actually the Note Cards and Envelopes that are sold as a blank set of 20 in the Idea Book and Catalog.

You seal the Envelope, trim off about 1 1/4" from the end and use your Extra Large Oval Punch to make a small divot.

The stamped card slides right inside - isn't that sweet?!!

I used the Easy Events Stamp Set for this one along with the It's Your Day stamp for the greeting. It's all colored in with Stampin' Write Markers and I finished off the little cupcake with a punched flower from the Boho Blossoms Punch and a Basic Rhinestone.

The ribbon is Melon Mambo Scalloped Polka Dot ribbon.

Super cute, quick and easy! Just how I hope my day goes - wish me luck!

Happy stampin'!

~~Robin

Sweet Friend Candy Treat

2011-11-09T08:15:00.003-05:00

I love M & M's!

I love that they come in so many different flavors and varieties, colors and blends. We've got Almond, Pretzel, Mint, Dark Chocolate, Candy Corn flavor and Holiday Mix, Harvest Mix, Valentine's Mix, Easter Mix - the list goes on, but really, it's just a good excuse to buy some anytime you are in the store.

They really are the perfect candy in so many ways - not the least of which is that they are just good chocolatey fun.

When I was a kid, there were just two types of M & M's - plain and peanut. I don't know where their marketing department was on the day they decided to call M & M's PLAIN - how can you call something so colorful AND yummy PLAIN! It's just plain wrong!

We used to get the small bags in the grocery line or at the 7-11 store and dump them out on the table, sorting by color. I always ate the brown ones first and saved the green ones for last.

Did you do that?

Recently, I picked up a bag (or two) of the Harvest or Autumn Mix. (Not sure what the exact name is, but does it matter, really?) I thought it would be fun to make some little fall treats with our new 1" x 8" Cello Bags - and it was. Especially when some of the M & M's escaped and I had no choice but to eat them.

Here's what I came up with:

And yes, I did alternate those on purpose - my husband says that presentation is everything when it comes to food.....

I just used a few simple supplies to make the topper - all current in the catalogs. The wreath stamp is from the Warmest of Wishes Hostess Stamp set and it's punched out with the 2 3/8" Scallop Circle Punch. I added the greeting from the You are Loved stamp set which is in the Holiday Mini. It's punched out with the Modern Label Punch. A button and some Baker's Twine and you've got a cute little gift for a friend or co-worker.

Now who wouldn't love to find a little chocolate love on their desk?

So, here's a few of the products I used for this treat:

#123779 - You are Loved Stamp Set - $23.95 clear mount

#122672 - Warmest of Wishes Stamp Set - $10.00 for Hostesses!!

Hostesses between NOW and December 15th earn an ADDITIONAL $35 Free for a qualifying party!!

#118874 - 2 3/8" Scallop Circle Punch - $16.95

You can place your order anytime in my Online Stampin' Store for any of these items and all your Stampin' Supplies!

**I'll be starting a special REWARDS program in December for all my Online Clients - the BEST news for YOU is that REWARDS will be retroactive to cover ALL your November orders!

Stay tuned for information on this exciting NEW program!

Have a great day everyone! Mine is a whirlwind today - maybe I need some M & M's for some extra energy! HA!

~~Robin

Place your order for Stampin' Up! Supplies at this link here: Robin's Online Stampin' Store

Simply click the SHOP NOW button at the Top Right!

Stocking Surprise - A WOW Card

2011-11-08T10:24:00.004-05:00

Well, I've made you wait long enough I guess.

I realize that I haven't posted since Thursday - and honestly, I'm sad about that. I really do love to get on here and share my thoughts and artwork with you, and I love to hear back from the many of you who choose to comment or e-mail me.

But the last 4 days have been a whirlwind both for me and my family.

Emma's skating season has begun in earnest.

Yep, if you follow my blog, then you understand the weight of those words. HA!

Pretty much between now and the middle of March, our lives are not our own. If I don't schedule time for something AND write it on the calendar, it just doesn't happen - simple as that.

Last Friday we traveled for Emma's first synchronized skating competition this year. We headed down to Hillsborough, NC for the Carolina Synchro Classic - a first for her team, the National Blades.

Anyway, I'd intended to write my blog post on Friday morning AND I even packed the computer so I could blog while we were there.

Alas, it was not to be. My "To Do" list was much longer than the hours in the days and so here I am now, finally showing you the last of my WOW! Christmas Cards projects.

Oh, and because some of you may want to know - Emma's team earned a Silver Medal! Awesome job! Here's a pic of the medal ceremony:

And a pic of Emma and a few of her teammates about to take the ice to skate:

I know their dresses look a bit "Elvisy" if that's even a word - but they look awesome on the ice! They are skating to the Glee version of Singing in the Rain and Rhianna's Umbrella. Pretty catchy!

Here's something else that's catchy - the last WOW! card:

This one was a card and an ornament gift all in one, so of course it has it's own bag and bag topper! I used the Large Cello Bag to hold the finished project and made my bag topper with a piece of Whisper White cut at 4" x 6 1/4". Half of it was embossed with the Big Shot and the Snowburst Embossing Folder to give it some texture.

Now for the prize inside!

We used the Holly Berry Specialty Designer papers with Real Red cardstock. The stocking was made by folding the cardstock in half and placing the fold just below the top cut line of the stocking on the Big Shot Stocking Die. Then the front was texturized with the Snowburst Embossing folder before the Designer paper cuff, toe and heel were added with Tombow.

Here's a close up of the removable ornament:

An Antique Brad holds it in place on the card for giving, just remove it and you have a hole for your wire ornament hanger for hanging on the tree. The brad goes back in place on the card for an accent.

I loved some ornaments on my friends Diana Gibbs and Kimberly VanDiepen's blogs, so I took their ideas and made my own design for this card.

We have a base of Silver Glimmer Paper cut with the Scallop Squares Duo Die (that always makes me laugh to say that "Duo Die". Sounds like "do or die". Well, it's funny to me anyway!)

It's layered with a rosette made of Holly Berry DSP and decorated with a stamped image from A Beautiful Season on Watercolor Paper. It's colored in with classic ink reinkers and the Aqua Painters, punched out with the 1 3/4" Circle Punch and glued on with Tombow. I used a sponge brush to add a thin layer of Tombow around the outside edge and pressed it into a pile of Mica Flakes to give it the fluffy, glittery look.

Each ornament had either a Real Red or Wild Wasabi Holly Berry Button on it with some Baker's Twine for a bow.

Some Very Vanilla Velvet Ribbon was added under the rosette for a soft accent.

I really loved this part of the project - a lot!!!

Here's a picture of the greeting on the front of the card:

It's stamped on Whisper White cardstock, punched out with the Designer Label Punch and edged with Dazzling Diamonds glitter.

The inside greeting was very simple and leaves lots of room for your personal message:

We used all the stamps from A Beautiful Season stamp set for this card.

So, there's a lot going on with this card/ornament project, but I loved it so much! It's not really a difficult project at all, just a lot of steps, but it would be very easy to mass produce for some special friends.

Here's a few of the projects we used to create this beauty:

#125637 - Very Vanilla Velvet Stitched Ribbon - $7.95 10 yard roll

#124098 - Holiday Stocking Die - $32.95

#124096 - Snowburst Embossing Folder - $7.95

#122334 - Simply Scored Scoring Tool - $29.95

#124004 - Holly Berry Bouquet Specialty Designer Paper - $12.95 12 sheet pack

Did you know that you can order all these supplies and more from my Online Store?! It's open 24/7 and is super convenient for you! There's even a Clearance Rack for some super savings on retired Stampin' Up! products that you can't find in any catalog any more!

You really should check it out!

Have a great Tuesday everyone! Emma is off school today, so it's kind of a lazy day for us here - just playing catch up and hoping to stamp some today!

And Hey - Don't forget to VOTE today! If you don't get any other exercise - be sure to exercise your Right to Vote!

Have a great day!

~~Robin

Place your order at this link here for your Stampin' Up! Supplies: Robin's Online Stampin' Store

Simply click the SHOP NOW button at the top right corner to get started!

Holly in Silver - A WOW Card

2011-11-03T08:00:00.001-04:00

Some days are just crazy, know what I mean?

You go from one thing to another to another to another and at the end, it's all you can do to make it up those stairs and climb in bed.

And not that all those things you do are bad - most of them are stuff you want to do or places you want to be, but it all adds up doesn't it?

I'm trying harder lately to not plan those kinds of days - but truth be told, I'm not very good at it. I don't "sit" well.

But God is teaching me to enjoy and savor the quiet spots and spaces in my life and He's teaching me that I need to expand them and that it's ok to say "No" once in a while.

Not so easy, but like everything else, it's a process.

Anyway, the card I'm sharing today reminds me of one of those quiet spots - it's lovely, calm and soothing to the eye, and it just feels peaceful.

Here, take a look:

I was inspired by my friend Lee Conrey in the design of this card. Her original was done with Cherry Cobbler and that gorgeous Silver Glimmer paper - really striking.

But like all stampers, I decided to put my own twist on her design and brought out the Brushed Silver cardstock and that shimmery Baja Breeze Seam Binding. With all the Whisper White cardstock, it just says "aaaahh" to me.

The card base is cut at 5 1/4" x 10 1/2" and folded in half to make a square card. The first silver layer is 5" square and the next Whisper White layer is 4 1/2" square.

I took another cue from Lee's card and used my Simply Scored Scoring Tool to add a subtle 'frame' around the focal point squares. All four sides of that layer were scored at 4", leaving a lovely 1/2" edge. Very subtle, but perfect for this card.

Here's a close up so you can see it better:

The focal squares of Brushed Silver and Whisper White were cut at 3 3/4" square and 3 1/2" square. I embossed the holly leaves from the Bells and Boughs stamp set with Versamark and Silver Embossing Powder. A Cherry Cobbler Stampin' Write Marker added just a hint of color to the berries. Perfect!

Both of those layers were popped up on Stampin' Dimensionals to add to the elegant feel of this card. I wrapped a piece of Baja Breeze Seam Binding around the middle layers and then placed the bow on top of the card with Mini Glue Dots.

I truly love this card design and I know I'll be making more of these for my Christmas Cards this year. They fit perfectly in our Whisper White Square Envelopes too, so you don't need to search elsewhere for the perfect ones. For our WOW! cards, we ran the envelope flap through the Big shot with the Vintage Wallpaper Embossing Folder to make them extra special.

As always, you can find all the supplies you need to make this card in my Online Stampin' Store!

Here's a few of the things you'll need:

#121142 - Bells and Boughs Stamp Set $14.95 Clear mount

#102283 - Versamark Stamp Pad $7.95

#120175 - Vintage Wallpaper Embossing Folder $7.95

Thanks so much for stopping by today, I have one more WOW! card project to show you tomorrow and boy, it's a doozy! You have to be sure to come back - this was the card that almost did my stampers in!

For now, Mark and I are off to the funeral of a good friend from our church choir. Gloria died last week after losing her battle with Pancreatic Cancer. She was an amazing person and right up to the end, she was the picture of calm serenity, never losing her wonderful spirit and loving and praising God in all her circumstances. I know she's well and whole now with Him in Heaven, and the best part for me is that I'll get to see her, and sing with her again someday. What an awesome hope we have in Christ!

Have a blessed day!

~~Robin

Place your order for Stampin' Up! supplies at this link here: Robin's Online Stampin' Store

Simply click the SHOP NOW button at the top right corner!

Quilted Christmas - A WOW Card

2011-11-02T09:00:00.001-04:00

So, I guess this is WOW! week here on the ol' blog. Believe it or not, I'm still cleaning up from the weekend's classes. There was a snow layer of Stampin' Dimensional backings - among other things - on my carpet, and my hubby was not happy to find Gold Embossing powder on the BluRay Player.......
THAT was not a Wow for him, believe me.

Anyway, things are slowly getting back to normal in the studio and today, I'm headed out for a few hours with my friend Lissa. Just a little shopping r & r, nothing big, but we always manage to have a good time! I need to find a dressier coat for the winter. When we left for church on Sunday, it was 35 degrees outside and I realized that all I had were my winter parka and my Alaska Cruise jacket - not great choices for nicer clothes. So, that's on my list today.

But I bet you'd like to see the next WOW! card that the stampers did this weekend, wouldn't ya?
Ok, here ya go:

Yes, it's another Z-Fold card, this time with a little twist - I added a flap to the right side for the greeting, both inside and out. Cool, huh? :)
The Z-Fold is made with a piece of cardstock that's 4 1/4" x 11" long. It's scored at 2 3/4" and again at 5 1/2" down the long side. Fold it up and it looks like a "Z".
I call this card Quilted Christmas because of the top left portion of the Z-Fold - the Frostwood Lodge designer paper and Crumb Cake Cardstock are adhered to the Cherry Cobbler cardstock and then run through the Big Shot with the Petals-A-Plenty embossing folder. I then rubbed Crumb Cake ink all over it to give it the appearance in real life of a worn quilt.
Actually all the cardstock pieces on this card are sponged with Crumb Cake - Hey, I had no one to stop me! What's a girl to do?

Here's a close up of the embellishments:

I used 22" of Cherry Cobbler Quilted Ribbon to tie the bow and then opened up the back of the Antique Brad and wrapped the prongs around the knot. It's secured to the front piece with a Mini Glue Dot to hold it steady.
The birds are colored with Stampin' Write markers - Garden Green and Early Espresso, stamped and then punched out with the 1 1/4" Circle Punch. It's layered on a 1 3/8" Circle Punch and adhered by the bow. Glitter was optional, but I used it - why not?

Here's the opened up version:

The tree from the Christmas Lodge stamp set (along with the birds and the gold embossed front greeting) was inked up in Garden Green, stamped off one time on Grid Paper and then added to the Crumb Cake inside layer. More Dazzling Diamonds glitter added with a 2 Way Glue pen, really sets it off nicely.
The flap is Whisper White (1" x 3 3/4") and Cherry Cobbler (1 1/4" x 4 1/2"). I scored the Cherry Cobbler piece at 4", leaving a 1/2" piece to fold under and glue in place with Tombow Multi.
It's a pretty easy element to add, and I love the grand way it opens up and extends the card. I added my inside greeting from Many Merry Messages to the inside of the flap with Garden Green ink. That leaves plenty of room to write a message and even add a school or family photo to the inside.

I liked this card a LOT and you'll be seeing a few more versions of it on the blog coming up soon. If you are subscribed to my Holiday Helper Newsletter, you already received 4 more ideas for this Z-Fold card - including a Valentine's version to give you a real head start!

Here's a couple of the products I used in creating this card:

#124002 - Frostwood Lodge Designer Series Paper $10.95 12 sheet pack

#124105 - 3/8" Quilted Satin Ribbon, Cherry Cobbler $7.95 10 yard roll

#117273 - Antique Brads $5.95 20 pack

#123769 - Christmas Lodge Stamp Set $25.95 clear mount

If you need any of these products - or any Stampin' Up! supplies and don't already work with another Stampin' Up! Demonstrator, I'd love to fill that role for you!
You can shop in my Online Stampin' Store anytime 24/7 - easy peasy!

Thanks so much for stopping by today - I'll have another WOW! Card for you tomorrow and Friday, so be sure to check back, ok?

Stamped blessings,
~~Robin

Place your order for Stampin' Up! supplies at this link here: Robin's Online Stampin' Store
Simply click the SHOP NOW button at the top right corner!

Elegant Joy - A WOW Card

2011-11-01T07:00:00.001-04:00

Well stampers, I survived WOW! weekend. And so did my stampers here in the studio.
Apparently there was enough chocolate and coffee and apple cake and brownies to keep them going through all the WOW! projects. No one collapsed, no one had an adhesive emergency and no one lost a finger or their mind. Everyone left with 10 extra-ordinary Christmas Cards!
You know, the kind you'd pay $7 and up for at the big box store or that fancy card shop. Yep, that kind.

I was in that big RED spot store the other day and they have their Christmas cards out already so I decided to take a gander.
They are carrying a pretty well known, upscale brand of cards, all individually wrapped up and they are selling for $7 each. They have one printed layer, one popped up piece on the front and maybe a little glitter somewhere.
It just kills me to think that some poor souls are paying that kind of money for something so cheesily made, especially because they have a big name printed on the back. They could be making something like this instead:

Who can resist the combination of Shimmery White cardstock, Brushed Gold cardstock and Concord Crush cardstock? Add in some awesome Gold embossing, hand cut embellishments and sparkly rhinestone jewels and you've got something really special.

And the best part - it's handmade from the heart. You can never go wrong with that now can you?

This card was one of the favorites from the two WOW! classes this past weekend, and it's one of my favorites too. It's hard to make an ugly card with this stamp set - The Sounding Joy. It's in the Holiday Mini, so don't wait to own it if you love it too. It may not be around next Christmas.

Instead of stamping and embossing the large greeting directly on top of the stamped star, I opted to stamp and emboss it on a separate piece of Shimmery White cardstock, then cut it out with my Paper Snips. More time consuming, sure, but the look is fabulous! What do you think?

The three rhinestones at the bottom right corner add just the right amount of bling to this card. Plus I love the use of three of them on this card that represents the true meaning of Christmas. They could stand for the Trinity or for the three gifts of the Wise Men.

This card is a 4 1/4" square card and the layers are all cut at 1/4" smaller increments. There are 12 Stampin' Dimensionals on this baby, but the lifted layers just add to the elegant feel.

Several of my weekend stampers chose to make this card THEIR card for this year and ordered all the supplies they needed to make their own.
Here are a few of the things we used so you can order them and make it YOUR card too:

#121979 - The Sounding Joy stamp set $18.95 Clear Mount

#109129 - Gold Embossing Powder $4.75

#119785 - Concord Crush Classic Ink Pad $5.95

#102283 - Versamark Ink Pad $7.50

You'll also need Shimmery White Cardstock, Brushed Gold Cardstock, Concord Crush Cardstock, Stampin' Dimensionals, a Heat Tool and SNAIL adhesive. Don't forget your envelopes either!
My Online Stampin' Store is open 24/7 for your convenience, so just pop over there to place your order and you can be working on your Christmas cards next week!

Have a great Tuesday everyone!
Back tomorrow with another design from my WOW! classes!

Blessings,
~~Robin

Place your order for Stampin' Up! Supplies at this link here: Robin's Online Stampin' Store.
Simply click the SHOP NOW button at the top right of the page.

Glimmer Poinsettia - A WOW Design

2011-10-27T09:00:00.001-04:00

Question: What do Shimmer White Cardstock, Red Glimmer Paper and Gold Embossing have in common?
Answer: They are all prepped and packaged and ready to be used this weekend at my WOW! Christmas Cards classes.
Oh yes, AND they are simply gorgeous! Especially when combined to make one crisp, clean yet WOW Christmas card.

I said I wasn't going to show any of the cards I've made for this weekends classes before the stampers got to see them, but I just can't STAND it! I have to share!

AND the best part for you is that I've created a downloadable photo tutorial for making this fabulous poinsettia. Can I get an "Oh Yeah!!"?

Here's a photo of the Glimmer Poinsetta card:

My inspiration for this card came from one I'd seen on the Stampin' Up! private art gallery known as Stampin' Connection. It's for demonstrators only and is chock full of fantastic ideas. I'd seen a card made with Very Vanilla cardstock and Silver Glimmer Paper by Debbie Henderson and I knew right away that I had to make it my own using the Red Glimmer Paper and Shimmer White cardstock. In fact, I created my prototype for this card within 10 minutes of seeing her silver one. Sometimes, you just know, ya' know?

Anyway, I used the Shimmer White cardstock for both the card base and the layer - that cardstock is so rich and elegant, it has such a weighty feel to it and is infused with beautiful pearly shimmer. Stunning on it's own, to be sure, and a favorite of mine for holiday cards.
The greeting is from the Contempo Christmas stamp set and was the perfect font for the contemporary look of this card. I stamped in Versamark and embossed it with Gold embossing powder and my Heat Tool.

I popped up the layer on Stampin' Dimensionals to give it more impact and then added my Red Glimmer Poinsettia flower.
Here's a close up:

I know you're wondering how I created that flower. Well, I kind of made up my own after seeing Debbie's silver one and figured out a way that worked well for me.
Would you like to know how to make it? Great!
Because I've created a FREE PDF Tutorial that you can download from this link here: Robin's Poinsettia Tutorial.

So now, even though you can't come to the WOW classes this weekend, you can still make your own Poinsettias at home!

Here's a few of the supplies I used to create this card:

#121808 - Blossom Petals XL Punch $16.95

#120594 - Contempo Christmas stamp set (clear-mount) $11.95

#121790 - Red Glimmer Paper $4.95 (2 - 12" x 12" sheets)

If you aren't currently working with a local Stampin' Up! demonstrator, I'd love to fill that need for you! My Online Stampin' Store is open 24/7 for your convenience and your orders will ship straight to your door! Everyone who orders online in my store receives a beautiful handmade card from me in the mail with a special Stampin' Up! treat inside.

Thanks for stopping by today and I hope you enjoy the FREE tutorial! Have fun making your Poinsettias!
Stamped blessings,
~~Robin

Place your order for Stampin' Up! supplies at this link here: Robin's Online Stampin' Store
Simply click the SHOP NOW button at the top right corner to get started!

Holly Berry Merry and Type

2011-10-26T08:30:00.001-04:00

Well stampers, it's felt like Christmas around here for the past few days since all I've done is work on projects for my WOW Christmas Cards classes this weekend. The glitter has been flyin'! Funny thing is though that I can't get Christmas music on my music channels - I turn it on the "Sounds of the Season" channel and they are playing halloween music. I didn't know that halloween had music except maybe for Monster Mash, but that's not enough to play 24/7 on a music channel for how many days?
Shows what I know, eh?

Guess I'd better get iTunes working again on the studio computer so I can play Christmas music this weekend. Wouldn't be the same without it. Gotta get in the spirit of the season, right?

Anyway, I've got a Christmas card to show you today - it's not one of my WOW cards for this weekend, I'll show those next week, but it's the card I created last month for my GoDivas private swap group.

Once again I turned to the Inverted Z-Fold layout that I used for this card here: (Pinetree Z-fold)
But this time, I used the beautiful retro designed Holly Berry Designer Paper as an accent. It's layered on a piece of Chocolate Chip cardstock which is adhered to the front flap of Crumb Cake. It's hard to tell in the photos, but I ran that section through the Big Shot with my Petals-A-Plenty embossing folder to texturize it and give it the look of an old quilt.
That section was finished off with 22" of Real Red Satin Ribbon wrapped around the flap and tied in a pretty bow. Love it!

Here's the inside opened up:

The stamping was done using Wild Wasabi and Real Red ink on Whisper White cardstock. I added Dazzling Diamonds glitter to the ornaments with my 2 Way Glue pen.
This is such an easy card to make - the card base is cut at 4 1/4" x 11" and scored lengthwise at 2 3/4" and 5 1/2". Just fold it in a Z fashion and let your creativity take over!
One of my WOW Christmas cards for this weekend uses this fold, but with a fun twist! I can't wait to show you!!!

Here's a few of the products I used to create this card:

#124004 - Holly Berry Specialty Designer Series Paper $12.95 (12 sheets - 4 glittered)

#122334 - Simply Scored Scoring Tool $29.95

#122552 - Merry and Type Stamp Set (clear-mount) $18.95

If you only purchase one Christmas stamp set this year, get this one. It's beautiful and versatile and the price point is superb. Plus it's one of my favorites too! HA!
You know my Online Stampin' Store is open 24/7 for your convenience so all you have to do is click to shop!

Have a great day everyone! I'll be back tomorrow with a new project for you, so stop by and say hi!
Stamped blessings,
~~Robin

Place your order for Stampin' Up! Supplies at this link here: Robin's Online Stampin' Store
Simply click the SHOP NOW button at the top right corner to get started!

More from my Talented Team!

2011-10-25T10:06:00.004-04:00

Hey ya'll!
I know you think I've fallen off the face of the mountain I was on this past weekend, but no, I'm back home safe and sound - but OH, SO, BUSY!!!

My two WOW! Christmas Card Classes are coming up on Friday and Saturday and I have two FULL classes of stampers that are expecting WOW projects, so I've been working my little fingers to the bone to make it happen for them!

So, this is the perfect time to show some Fall and halloween themed cards from my TDS Team Meeting swap in September.
My downline members are fantastic stampers and I know you'll love their cards!
None of these cards are mine, however, I've added my watermark to some to protect their artwork.

Here you go!
Cute monster card by Lynda Barnes:

Nice halloween card by April Sinclair:

Another cute halloween by Nancy Clark:

Beautiful Spice Cake card by Cathy Pendley:

Clean and simple design by Rose-Ellen Eastman (one of my adoptees!):

And more clean and simple by Shannon Angel:

Aren't they fabulous ideas? Very cute and caseable!

Well, I'm headed back to the cardstock cutting - I'll have something ORIGINAL to share tomorrow, so c'mon back, ok?

Stamped blessings,
~~Robin

My Talented Team!

2011-10-22T07:00:00.001-04:00

I love my downline team!
Not only are they wonderful ladies, but they are great stampers!!

Last weekend, we got together to make the Pleated Paper Wreath project and a few of them swapped card projects as well.
Here are photos of their lovely cards:

Card by Shannon Angel:
Card by Michelle Suit:

Card by April Sinclair:

Card by Carol Arnold:
Card by Cathy Pendley:

See! I told you they were talented!
Hope you found some inspiration for your holiday stamping today!

Stamped blessings,
~~Robin

Another Friendship Friday!!

2011-10-21T07:00:00.004-04:00

RAK's are in da' house!!

But I am not!
As you read this, I am either on my way or already arrived at my first ever Female First Cousins Reunion. FFRC for short.

Back in April when my Dad died, ALL but one of my cousins was able to come up for the funeral - and that's saying a LOT. My Dad had 6 sisters and that's a plethora of cousins -male and female!
Our family used to have a big family reunion each year at the beach mostly, but over the last few years, with our parents aging and such, we've not done it. Frankly, I miss it.
It was a blessing to have such a large extended family, especially with me being the ONLY in our family. I had the benefit of brothers and sisters without having to share a house with them. That's pretty awesome in my book.

So, long story short, my cousin Peggy e-mailed all of us a while after the funeral and had a fantastic idea of all the female first cousins getting together. She found us a gorgeous cabin in the mountains of Southwest Virginia and I'm headed there tomorrow! Not only is the perfect time of year to be headed to that area - the leaves are going to be gorgeous - but it will be so special to spend the weekend with my cousins again. I'll take lots of pictures and I'm sure I'll be on Facebook with pictures too so Mark and Emma can keep up from here.

For now, I've got some more beautiful cards from some wonderful stampin' friends to show you. None of these projects was done by me, even though my watermark is on them. I did that just to protect the artist's work. Ready to see?
Ok, let's go!

This card is by my dear friend Tara Bazata. Tara and I served together on the Advisory Board during my first term and my friendship with her was one of the greatest gifts I got that year. She lives in Colorado, so we don't get to see each other much, but she has the uncanny ability to know just when I'm getting out of the shower in the morning and calls me to talk! Hey, guess everyone needs a talent! HA! As you can see, she's a talented stamper as well. She sent me this beauty in her swap package last month:

Next is a card from Susie Wood. Susie and I met on my first Founder's Circle trip and hit it off right away. She's such a sweet, lovely person and has one of the biggest hearts of anyone I know. She's also the youngest looking Grandmother I know too! Beautiful inside and out!
This was her swap card for Founder's Circle this year and she sent me one too - see what I mean? Just so sweet!!

Another great friendship I've been privileged to make is with Stella Mackay. Stella and I have known each other for several years, we met on the Bermuda cruise, but we really got to know each other while serving on the Advisory Board together last year. Stella lives in Califorinia so again, we don't get to see each other except at SU! events, but the e-mails fly fast and furious!
This card was Stella's Founder's Circle swap card as well and you guessed it - she sent me one! Love it Stella!

Now, this next set of projects deserves a round of applause. They were made by Michelle VanWiggeren - also from California. I read her blog because she has great ideas and she reads mine too, which is fun to know! Well, we trade e-mails and comments from time to time and I consider her a friend even though we've never met in person. Someday!! Anyway, I think it was last month, she was showing these Kusudama paper balls on her blog. Well, she was offering one up as Blog Candy and you know me - I'm not likely to do that project any time soon (actually never!) I'm too lazy a stamper - but it was so beautiful, I had to try to win the Blog Candy!
So I left her a comment, never expecting to actually get it!

Well, on Tuesday, September 29th, I got a Priority Box from Michelle in the mail and inside was the Kusudama Ball and this gorgeous card! I have to tell you, I was going through a pretty stinky time in my life and that Tuesday was very bad. So when her package arrived in the mail - and it was special, just for me, I cried. Lots.
See how a handstamped card and a handmade project can really make someone's day? Yep, never underestimate the power of some paper, glue and glitter and a big heart behind it. Michelle has a huge heart!

Ok, now that you've sniffled a little bit, that's it! No more for today, although I have many more things to show you! I'll do another Friendship Friday soon, so be looking for it! In the meantime, be sure to stop by tomorrow. I'm posting some fantastic Christmas cards that my downline members made for our October team swap. You're going to love them!

Happy Friday!
~~Robin

Simply Stampin' Up - Edition 14 A Lollie Christmas

2011-10-20T07:59:00.006-04:00

Lollies, Rosettes, whatever. Call them what you like, but they are so pretty!!
I know, most of you thought after the Wreath that Ate Manassas project, I'd be cutting way back on the Lollie making. Like, way, way back to ZERO! But NO.........just couldn't step away from the Lollies.

For my weekly Simply Stampin' Up! feature - where I take a published Non-SU! project and re-create it with ALL SU! products - I found a beautiful card in a recent holiday issue of a paper crafting magazine. I HAD to recreate it - it was calling my name.
I'm sure you've heard the call of the card before: "Robin, pick me! Pick ME!! Pick MEEE!!! I'll look beautiful in ALL SU!"
So, there you have it - how could I ignore that voice?

Here's my version of the card:

And here's my card next to the magazine photo:

(disclaimer - the magazine photo does have designer paper that is BLUE, but my camera didn't pick it up well. Also, I know you are going to say that I didn't border punch my center, vellum layer. I know! I got ahead of myself and FORGOT. And believe me, I didn't want to start over with the folding....)

Anyway, it's really a pretty simple card to put together - ready?

Layer 1 - Crumb Cake cardstock cut at 5" x 10", folded to make a 5" square card

Layer 2 - Beau Chateau Designer Series Paper cut at 4 7/8" square. I used the greeting from Contempo Christmas inked up in Basic Gray Classic Ink for the greeting here. Awesome how it was exactly the same greeting!

Layer 3 - Lollie base - Crumb Cake cardstock cut in 4 strips - 1 3/4" x 5 1/2". Each strip was scored at every 1/4" using the Simply Scored Scoring Tool. After folding, the ends were glued together with Tombow and after letting it set up, I added a cardstock 2 1/2" circle to the back with more Tombow. I weighted it down with my 2 1/2" Circle Punch (yes, they are a multi-tasker!)

Layer 3 - Middle Lollie - Vellum CARDSTOCK (not paper, the cardstock is thicker) cut in 4 strips - 1 1/2" x 5 1/2". Each strip was assembled as described above, circle attached to the back as well.

Layer 4 - Brushed Silver cardstock - punched a 2 3/8" Scallop Circle with the punch then ran it through my Big Shot with the Vintage Wallpaper Embossing Folder.

Layer 5 - Top Lollie - Beau Chateau Designer Paper cut in 2 strips - 1 1/4" x 6". Use the Eyelet Border Punch along one edge of both strips, then score and assemble as described above. For the backer circle on this one, I used a 1 3/8" Circle of cardstock.

I used my Paper Piercer and my Mat Pack to add a hole to the center of the Designer Paper Lollie and inserted my Antique Brad in the middle. It's glued to the Silver cardstock circle.

Once all the glue on the lollies was completely dry, I glued them all together with more Tombow, and glued the whole piece to the card.
Another option would be to adhere it with a few Mini Glue Dots and attach a hanging string so it could be removed from the card and used as a tree ornament. If you do this, be sure to use something pretty for the backing!

In all honesty, even with the cutting and scoring, this card only took me about 1/2 hour to complete. So if I were making a lot of these, they would probably only take about 20 minutes each. Not bad if you are making them for some special people on your list!

Here's a few of the products I used on this card:

#122357 - Beau Chateau Designer Series Paper $10.95 (12 sheet pack)

#120594 - Contempo Christmas $11.95 (clear mount)

#110755 - Tombow Multipurpose Liquid Glue $3.95

#122334 - Simply Scored Scoring Tool $29.95

So, now that you've seen what I did to re-create this project, you can make one too! For all the supplies you need to complete it, just visit my Online Stampin' Store! It's open 24/7 just for you.

Thanks for stopping by today, back tomorrow with some more Friendship Friday RAK's!
Stamped blessings,
~~Robin

Place your Stampin' Up! Supply order at this link here: Robin's Online Stampin' Store
Simply click the SHOP NOW button at the top right of the page!

Spice Cake Collage

2011-10-18T08:15:00.003-04:00

I've been holding out on you.
I made today's card about a month ago especially for my Stampin' Fools group and I've neglected to share it with you! Hopefully, it's worth the wait - Ha!

I'm not even sure what style to call this one, Shabby Chic? I dunno, but I do know that when I was making it, I just couldn't stop and each new addition seemed perfect to me. Guess you'll be the judge, huh?
The Stampin' Fools loved it though!

Here's the card:

I took the colors of the Spice Cake products in the Holiday Mini and kind of did my own thing here. My favorite part is the Very Vanilla Velvet Ribbon. It kind of elevates the card from shabby to chic! Ha!

This one has More Mustard for the card base and Pool Party for the layer. I stamped it in Pool Party ink with the Triple Treat Flower stamp and ran it through my Big Shot with the Framed Tulips Embossing Folder then added Crumb Cake ink for some distressing.

The First Edition Designer Paper was torn, then crumpled and sponged with more Crumb Cake ink before adhering to the card front.
I cut a Spice Cake Fabric circle from the Perfect Pennants Die and that's crumpled a little bit and adhered with SNAIL.

The Triple Treat Flower stamp was colored with Sponge Daubers using More Mustard, Pool Party and Early Espresso. They blended together beautifully on the stamp and once I stamped it on Very Vanilla cardstock, I punched it out with my Fancy Flower Punch. It's adhered with Stampin' Dimensionals to the card front.
The greeting is from Teeny Tiny Wishes, stamped in Early Espresso and punched out with the Modern Label Punch. I added a few Basic Pearl self adhesive jewels and finished it off with the velvet ribbon.

Yep, there's a lot going on with this card, but I'm really happy with the way it turned out. I have to say that it does look much prettier in real life, the photo isn't doing it any favors!

So, I've got a busy, busy day ahead of me. I'm finalizing designs for my WOW! Christmas Cards classes over the next two days - and they are gonna be some fabulous cards. I love doing this class each year and the two sessions I offer always fill to capacity. It's awful fun to have happy stampers in the studio!

I'm also working on my Christmas Scrapbook in a Day class later this week. I'll be offering that in November so you have a complete album ready for all your holiday photos before Christmas even gets here! More details on that class coming up soon! I will most likely be offering that as a kit as well, so watch for an announcement.

AND, last but not least, my Holiday Helper newsletters begin soon to all my newsletter subscribers! If you're not on my mailing list, you won't be getting them, so be sure to sign up so you don't miss an issue! The link is in the sidebar of my blog. The Holiday Helper is chock full of fantastic project ideas to help make your holiday season crafty and handmade. There are full tutorials with each project and you'll be able to order the supplies you need right from my website!

Speaking of, here's a few of the products I used today:

#121809 - Framed Tulips Embossing Folder $7.95

#125637 - Very Vanilla Velvet Ribbon $7.95

#122909 - Triple Treat Flower $8.95

#124066 - Spice Cake Designer Fabric $9.95

#123126 - Perfect Pennants Bigz L Die $32.95

You know, as always, these product and all Stampin' Up! has to offer can be ordered from my Online Stampin' Store, anytime, 24/7!
The Big Shot was used twice on this project and if you don't yet own yours - well - you can get it FREE this month only! Check out the link in my sidebar for all the details of this AWESOME offer!

Have a great Tuesday everyone!
~~Robin

Place your order for Stampin' Up! supplies at this link here: Robin's Online Stampin' Store
Simply click the SHOP NOW button at the top right corner!

The Wreath that Ate Manassas

2011-10-17T14:53:00.011-04:00

At least you'd think so looking at these two "Stampin' Fools"!

That's Laura and Betty - two of my favorite stampers - clowning around after finishing their Pleated Paper Wreath project.

This project was awesome, and everyone had a great time making them!
I held my class for my clients on Saturday and my downline team had the chance to make it on Sunday afternoon.
They worked hard at it for the whole class time - it's honestly never been so quiet during a class in my studio - ever! I think they were ALL really glad to finish and go home!
Thank goodness though, the final result was truly worth all their effort.
Here, take a look at my sample wreath:

and the full on front view:

One side close up:

And some more closer detail:

And here's the REAL Laura and Betty - all smiles!

Ok, so here's a few things I did to create my version of this wreath. Most of you who have seen the Holiday Mini Catalog know that it's the featured project in the front of the catalog and it's been duplicated many, many times by demos all over the place. This was just what I did to make it work for me. It's by no means a comprehensive tutorial, but in reality, it's a pretty easy project even if it's a bit tedious.

I used printed 12" cardboard Cake Circles for my backer board that I found at a local big box craft store. I used my Craft and Rubber Scissors to cut out the middle circle - worked like a charm! The remaining border was the perfect size for my wreath base. There are sawtooth picture hangers hot glued to the back of the board for a hanging mechanism. These will fit either over a nail in the wall or on one of those over the door wreath hangers like in my photos.

My cardstock and dsp strips were cut in 1", 1 1/4", 1 1/2", 1 3/4" and 2" wide x 6" long strips.
For the 1 1/2", 1 3/4" and 2" strips, I cut 4 pieces making 24" total.
For the 1" and 1 1/4" strips, I cut 2 pieces making 12" total.

I cut my strips in 6" long pieces because for me, folding all those little score lines along a 12" piece was difficult. I got frustrated after trying to deal with that length and just cut them down. It made it much easier for me. Since the time I've finished my wreath, I had a demo friend tell me to just cut 6" square pieces, score them, then trim to the width I need. THAT would have been handy to know ahead of time and I think would have saved a little cutting time, but not necessarily FOLDING time. There's just no way to avoid that.

I attached all the edges with Tombow and let them dry before adding a backer cardstock circle with more Tombow. I just used my circle punches to make the backers in sizes that would fit and not show. That was a great way to use up scraps of retired cardstock.

Everything is glued together with Tombow. I did find it easier to assemble one rosette at a time - fold and glue the strips together, flatten out and glue on the backer circle and then decorate the top by gluing on the pieces for it. The Tombow dries pretty quickly, but I did need to hold everything place while it set for about 30 -45 seconds. My downline got creative on Sunday and started using all my drink coasters in the studio to hold the rosettes in place while they dried. Brilliant!

I used Mini-Glue Dots to attach the buttons, pearls and leaves.
The leaves were cut from 3 pieces of 4 1/4" x 5 1/2" cardstock that I smooched ahead of time with Gold Smooch. Hard to see in the photo, but it's really pretty in real life.
I also embossed them with the Vintage Wallpaper folder before cutting them with the Leaves Die. It made 12 leaves and I used all of them.

You can see that I made 5 of the large, 2" strip circles. They took up more space and helped me to finish it faster. That's my only reasoning behind it. I've seen some of these wreaths with upwards of 20 rosettes - I couldn't do it, I just couldn't.......
All the scoring on all the rosettes was done at 1/4" increments. All the rosette pieces were hot glued to the base and to each other so it would hold up well.

The ribbons are 1 yard each, tied in separate bows and tied to the button with Linen Thread. I hot glued them to the rosette and that was THE END!

Here are Linda and Lin showing off their finished wreaths:

Amy with hers:

Val and Marcie (who I have to thank for cutting cake circles when they arrived early! They were so kind to volunteer to help!):

Here's a few of my downline.
This is Mary:

And the photo of her entry display in her home:

and last but not least, Nancy and Michelle:

That's not everyone who made the wreaths, but some just didn't get finished during the 4 hour class, so they took theirs home and have promised me that they are finishing it!!

If you are brave enough to tackle one of these beauties on your own, please let me know. I'd love to see your finished ones and hear your experiences!

Have a great evening everyone,
~~Robin

It's Friendship Friday - RAK Me!

2011-10-14T09:24:00.004-04:00

First things first,
Angie, my snowy card did NOT send away the rain. Uggh! That's painfully obvious this morning isn't it? But I guess it was a nice thought anyway. Hope your commute was not too bad this morning......

Oh, hey, let me clue you stampers in here - Angie is my awesome, non-stamping friend that sings next to me in our church choir. We tend to talk too much and get in trouble with Pastor Scott (which is fun, btw), but we end up doing pretty good, so I guess we figure it's ok. Especially since it's about the only time we have each week to catch up.
Angie is awesome, well, because she is, even though she doesn't stamp - maybe on an envelope - but she pretty much views crafting as a communicable disease. And that's ok, because at least she likes my stuff and even reads my blog - hence the shout out in response to her snowy card comment on Facebook last night.
Anyway, Angie is pretty special to me. We've been friends for over 10 years, I think. It's hard to remember at my age. But point is, we all have special people in our lives; in different parts of our lives, and even though not all of our interests are the same (I dislike baseball - Angie is a FANatic) there is some common bond that makes each one unique and beautiful.

Today's post is me sharing what some of my special friends did to make me feel awesome! Each of them are part of my stamping life, but they ALL are special to me just because they are who they are.
Over the last 6 weeks, I've gotten a BUNCH of RAK's (random acts of kindness) in the mail and it's time I showed off a few of them to you and tooted my friend's horns a bit!

Here's a card I received from Meg Wheeler:

Isn't it adorable?!!
Meg and I served on the Advisory Board together last year and we have many things in common - our faith for one. She sent me this sweet card along with a little treat in mid-September and I've been remiss in sharing it. With all that's going on in her life, she still thought of me.

This card is from Karen Duke:

Karen is my surprisingly, umm, shall we say - feisty Canadian friend. I'll just leave it at that. WE know what I mean!
Anyway, Karen also served on the Advisory Board last year with me and she was so sweet to mail me one of her Founder's Circle swaps last month. I love it sweet Karen!

This one is from my crazy chocolate bunny mutilating friend Diana Gibbs:

We knew an awesome friendship was in the making when I flipped over her way too funny Easter cards a few years ago. She is awesome for trading wisecracks with, and some sweet words too - but I have found in her a kindred, comedic spirit. She GETS me, and that's pretty cool. I still need to go visit her and eat at The Deli. She kills me with the food photos she shares. Yeah, I know, like I should talk!

Lastly for today - I have MORE for later - is this cute treat pouch from Barbara Dondero:

Now I did not know Barbara personally when she was recommended to me at the beginning of my GoDiva swap group. But having exchanged e-mails and traded stamped pretties for the past several years, I've come to know her heart - and it's beautiful! She sent me the most lovely letter when my Dad passed and I still have it. AND she knows me pretty well - she always sends chocolate!

So, there you go - a Friday full of friendship and kindness. Don't you LOVE that?!
Like I said, I have more RAK's to share, so keep checking in so you can see some of the beautiful work that my stamping friends do and see yet another reason why stamping brings us together.

Have a wonderful day!
~~Robin

Simply Stampin' Up! - Edition 13

2011-10-13T09:30:00.007-04:00

Rain, rain go away; please send us a snowy day!

Ok, that's pretty desperate, wanting snow to come and replace the rain! But I'm tellin' ya', I am sick of it! Oh, I know that big, beautiful sun is up there, still shining, I just need it to shine on me!! I can't think of much that I dislike more than a dreary, rainy day. Maybe Peas. And Cabbage. But not much else. Can you relate??

Well, I'm sort of bringing you some snow today with my Simply Stampin' Up! card. This is my semi-regular series of taking a published NON-SU! project and re-creating it with All SU! products. I got one of my Holiday card making magazines recently and this one practically jumped off the page at me!

Here's the magazine card shown with my creation:

As always, mine's not exactly the same, but I kinda like it better. Maybe I'm biased, so that's what I have YOU for - to tell me the truth!! Ha!

So, you ready to take it step by step?
Ok, let's go!

Layer 1 - I used a piece of Crumb Cake cardstock cut at 4 1/4" x 11" and scored it at 5 1/2" lengthwise with my Simply Scored Scoring Tool to make the fold. After folding, I set it aside.

Layer 2 - I cut my piece of Night of Navy cardstock at 4" x 5 1/4"
Taking out my Delicate Doilies stamp set, I inked up the stamps with my Whisper White Craft Ink Pad and then covered them with White Embossing Powder, tapping off the excess in my Powder Pal tray. They were then embossed with my Heat Tool.

**TD Tip - Since I was embossing white onto dark cardstock, I needed to use my Embossing Buddy to de-static the cardstock before stamping. Well, I couldn't FIND my Embossing Buddy (guess I need to clean the studio) and I pulled out a used dryer sheet instead. Why not? Well, after rubbing it across the cardstock, it did the trick pretty well AND there was the added bonus of no white chalky residue on the cardstock. The Embossing Buddy can leave a bit of that on darker cardstock so you have to watch it. Never let it be said that a determined stamper can't find a solution!

Once the embossing was done, I set the piece aside and worked on the greeting strip. I took a scrap of Whisper White cardstock and ran it through my Big Shot with the Petal Cone Die. There's a nifty little banner piece on one end of that die and it was perfect for my card!
After cutting it out, I inked up my greeting from the Four the Holidays stamp set with Early Espresso Classic Ink and stamped it on the banner. I did use my Stamp-a-ma-Jig for placement. Made it easier since the stamp set is wood-mount only.
I then added two Basic Rhinestone jewels to the greeting and adhered it to my card front with SNAIL. I trimmed off the right end to line up with the navy layer.
That whole layer was popped up on 5 Stampin' Dimensionals and adhered to the folded Crumb Cake card front.
Now if that's not easy, then I don't know what is!
Do you like it too?

Here's a few products I used to create today's card:

#122592 - Delicate Doilies stamp set $16.95 clear mount

#122334 - Simply Scored Scoring Tool $29.95

#100005 - Heat Tool $29.95

As always, you can purchase everything I've used to create my card today in my Online Stampin' Store!
A special thanks to those of you who do place orders there! You have no idea what a blessing you are to me and my family. You can think of your orders as contributing to Emma's skating career! Because I can assure you, that's where most of it goes! HA!

Have a wonderful day stampers! I hope you stay dry and get to stamp something fun!!
Back tomorrow with another project to share!
~~Robin

Place your order for Stampin' Up! products at this link here: Robin's Online Stampin' Store
Simply Click the SHOP NOW button at the top right corner!
Thank you!!

Tintype Style Christmas

2011-10-12T08:00:00.001-04:00

I love looking at old photographs. Especially old tintypes and sepia tone pictures. They have a character and a feel that you can't compare to modern day photography. As I look at the stoic faces I wonder what their lives were like, how they lived, who they loved. For some of the people in the photographs, it was the only time they ever had their likeness made. You think about the Civil War soldiers who visited the photographer as they headed out to duty, some never to return home, but leaving their likeness for their family to cherish. Our early photographs document vividly the history of our young nation, not just the big events, but the small, everyday occurrences which made up individuals history. That is where our story is told and it's beautiful.

When I created this card, I had in mind to recreate the look of an old tintype photograph. My picture of this card doesn't truly show the focal point the way it looks in person, but hopefully, it gives you a good idea.

The card project is made up of several things from my Serendipity pile that I talked about the other day. The plaid Frostwood Lodge paper, the stamped Early Espresso cardstock, the Silver Glimmer Paper snowflake and the main lodge image from the Christmas Lodge stamp set.
The lodge itself is stamped on a piece of Whisper White cardstock with Early Espresso Classic ink. I'd been playing with it for another project that didn't work out, so I saved it since it was still good.
In order to make it look like an aged photo, I inked up my Brayer with Crumb Cake Classic ink and rolled it over the stamped image. It's deliberately uneven to mimic an old photo.
Next, I covered the entire cardstock piece with Versamark ink and then coated it with Clear Embossing Powder. After embossing it with my Heat Tool, it has a semi-shiny coating and a little thickness to it.

I matted it with a piece of Garden Green cardstock and popped it up on Stampin' Dimensionals on the card front.
The card front itself is pretty easy, I adhered the designer paper to the Early Espresso cardstock that I'd stamped with that gorgeous tree from Christmas Lodge.
The ribbon I used is the Crumb Cake Seam Binding and I tied a double bow for it which is attached to the focal point with Mini Glue Dots.

I used an Antique Brad through the center of the snowflake which was cut on my Big Shot with the Northern Flurries Decorative Strip Die. It's attached with a Stampin' Dimensional to the card front also.
I did lightly sponge each layer with some Early Espresso ink for a more vintage look, but otherwise, that's the card complete.

Here's a look at the inside:

Again, super simple, just a portion of the tree in Early Espresso and the greeting in Cherry Cobbler on Whisper White cardstock.

I really liked this card and even Mark gave me an "Oooh, that's really nice!" when I showed him. Would love to know what you think though!

Well, I gotta run, I've got one of those important Annual women's Dr.'s appointments this morning - you know I can't wait for THAT! But I'm sure they would appreciate me coming in having showered and brushed my teeth, wouldn't you?

Have a fantastic day stampers - I hope you get to stamp something fun today! That's what I'll be doing this afternoon, yay!

Stamped blessings,
~~Robin

Place your order for Stampin' Up! supplies at this link here: Robin's Online Stampin' Store
Simply click the SHOP NOW button at the top right corner!

It Was an Apple Kind of Day

2011-10-11T16:06:00.011-04:00

Well, I promised you that I'd share the pictures from our fun day at the orchard last Saturday. I do have to tell you that as I write this post, I have an Apple Cake baking in the oven - and it smells heavenly!
And it's gonna taste heavenly too!
It's the second one I've made since Saturday, along with two apple pies. The first Apple Cake didn't last the weekend, so I had to make another one - wouldn't you?
Since you are probably drooling right now and there's no way I can give you a piece of cake, I'm going to include the recipe for you at the bottom of my post! It's super easy and so yummy delicious!

Saturday was a truly glorious Fall day here in Virginia.
Absolutely clear blue skies with a nice breeze - perfect for heading to the orchard.
I took this photo of some of the trees along the drive as we get closer to the orchard. The leaves are just starting to turn as we made our trip a bit early this year, but they are simply breathtaking!

Here's the entrance to the orchard we go to every year. It's outside of Winchester, VA and is our favorite of the ones in the area, and there are MANY! See that BAKERY sign? Well, that's one of the reasons it's our favorite orchard! The Apple Cider Donuts are nothing short of amazing!!

I'll let you be the judge:

I know you can't taste or smell them, but let me assure you - they are so yummy delicious! They sell so quickly that they never have time to get cold in the case. Sometimes they don't even make it off the cart bringing them from the bakery area! They are the perfect combination of crispy, sugary outside and soft, warm, squishy inside.
You can tell that we really, really LOVE those donuts!

We brought a new adopted family member with us this year - Ellen, our friend from church. Brandon was going to come with us, but his flight was changed and he was sitting in Atlanta about the time we were chowing down on the donuts. Sorry Brandon! You did get some Apple Cake and homemade Chili, but it's not the same is it?

Emma as always HAD to climb up one of the trees. I think this is a no-no, but I refuse to read the sign.

She's growing so fast - I just want to hold back time a wee bit longer.
But, I'm counting my blessings. I can't think of many almost 14 year olds who still can't wait to go apple picking with their family each year. Maybe it's the donuts.

Had to share this picture of me with Mark. I love how the sun is kind of washing over us here. Pretty cool.

Here's my awesome hubby showing off a Crispin apple. We were stunned at the size of the apples this year. They were the size of softballs in some cases! And the trees were absolutely full! We filled up two 1/2 bushel bags in no time!
Well, it's hard to keep the kids off the playground and Ellen is no exception.
Farmer Ellen, folks.

And Farmer Emma.
Yep, I guess you're never too old.

On our way home, we had to make our stop at Merrimans Lane. We chose a different sign this year along that road for a little bit different photo op.
Of course Emma had to ham it up a bit.

Ellen was our hero, climbing up on the back of our car to get a good picture for us.
Ellen the Awesome!

And once again - the happy family!
Love this picture AND the people in it!
What do you think? Christmas Card worthy?

And of course, I had to show off our pies.
The one in the front is from a Food Network Recipe. It was on the lower rack and the crust turned out perfect!
The back one is a recipe that Mark and I made up, sadly, it was on the upper rack and the crust is a little dark. We haven't cut into that one yet, so I'll have to give an update on how it was. The first pie was excellent! Warm right out of the oven with a little Vanilla Bean ice cream. Oh yeah!!

If you look in the back right corner of that picture, you can just see the corner of the Apple Cake in the pan.
Here's the recipe for you. My friend Lissa shared it with me and it really is da' bomb!

Apple Cake

Mix together:
1 c oil
1 c brown sugar
1 c white sugar
2 eggs
1 t vanilla

Add:
2 c flour
1 t baking soda
1 t salt
1 t cinnamon

Add:
3 c diced, unpeeled apples
1/2 c chopped nuts
1/2 c white raisins or Craisins

Bake in 9 X 13 greased baking dish @ 300 for 1 hour

For our cakes, I left out the nuts, but used one snack sized box of regular raisins and one snack size pack of Craisins. I couldn't find white raisins at the store and to be honest, I don't think I missed having them in the cake. I also subbed out the cinnamon for Apple Pie Spice.

Pretty yummy!!
If you try the recipe, you have to let me know how you like it, ok?

So, if you haven't gone apple pickin' this year, there's still plenty of time! You'll make memories that really will last a lifetime.

Stamped blessings,
~~Robin

"A Bushel and a Peck"

2011-10-11T08:00:00.001-04:00

Ever seen the movie Guys and Dolls?
It's one of our all-time favorites!! When Emma was a toddler, sometimes when we'd put her to bed at night, Mark would sing the "Bushel and a Peck" song to her -
"I love you,
a bushel and a peck,
a bushel and a peck
and a hug around the neck.
A hug around the neck and
a barrel and a heap.
A barrel and a heap
'cause I'm talkin' in my
sleep about You!"

It was originally sung in the movie by long-suffering Adelaide the lounge singer, but the melody is so bouncy and sweet and the words just seemed to fit how much Mark loves his girl. Even now that Emma's 13, every now and then we'll be driving somewhere and one of us will start singing the song and all of us chime in to sing along. Yeah, we're a silly family, but we sure do have fun!

Anyway, the focal image on this card reminded me of that story and I thought I'd share!
Here's the card, by the way:

I designed this one for my Stampin' Fools group last month in order to teach them the Stripes Folder plaid embossing technique. It's pretty simple, for example on this card, I used my Brayer and added Crumb Cake Classic Ink to one side of my Stripes Embossing Folder. Then I place a 4" square piece of Very Vanilla cardstock inside and rolled it through my Big Shot, creating Crumb Cake stripes.
Next, I rolled more Crumb Cake ink on the Embossing Folder and turning the cardstock 1/4 turn, rolled it through the Big Shot again. The ink transfer this time created plaid! Isn't that cool?!!

The rest of the card is so easy. I used the bushel basket of pears image from the Always Thankful stamp set which is in the Holiday Mini. It's stamped in Early Espresso Classic Ink on a scrap of Very Vanilla cardstock then colored in with Stampin' Pastels and a q-tip. I don't use my pastels nearly enough and it was good to break them out again for this card. I punched it out with the 1 3/4" Circle Punch. It's layered with Stampin' Dimensionals on a piece of Cajun Craze punched out with the 2 3/8" Scallop Circle Punch.

For my accent, I used one of the leaves from the Gently Falling stamp set - also in the mini. I colored down the center with a sponge dauber and my Always Artichoke Classic Ink pad, then added color to the outside with another sponge dauber and the Cajun Craze Classic Ink pad. It's stamped on a scrap of Very Vanilla and trimmed out with my Paper Snips. I just attached it with another Stampin' Dimensional behind the stamped circle image. Sweet!

The final touches came from a piece of the Always Artichoke Denim Jean Ribbon tied around the card front. I added two little punched tags from the Tiny Tags stamp set and the Jewelry Punch. They're pinned on with a tiny safety pin from the Vintage Trinkets.
All the cardstock layers were sponged with Crumb Cake ink and the card base is a piece of Always Artichoke cut at 4 1/4" x 8 1/2", folded to make a square 4 1/4" card.

So, there you go, easy peasy!
Here's a few products I used to create this card:

#123789 - Always Thankful stamp set $19.95 clear-mount

#123804 - Gently Falling stamp set $28.95 clear mount

#123128 - Stripes Embossing Folder $7.95

I'm really loving the products from the Holiday Mini this year - there's so much in that little catalog, something for every taste and style.
As always, you can shop for all your Stampin' Up! products in my Online Stampin' Store. It's open 24/7 to make it oh, so easy for you. That's gonna be important the closer we get to the holidays! Have you made your wish lists yet?

Have a wonderful day stampers - I hope you have time to stamp something fun!
Stamped blessings,
~~Robin

Place your order for Stampin' Up! products at this link here: Robin's Online Stampin' Store
Simply click the SHOP NOW button at the top right corner!

Christmas Serendipity

2011-10-10T08:15:00.002-04:00

Happy Monday stampers!

I probably should be showing you a Fall card today because of the glorious Fall weekend we had here, but this was next up in line so I'm just gonna go with it.
I will be posting pictures AND a recipe from our annual Apple Pickin', Apple Donut Eatin' trip on Saturday either tonight or tomorrow. We had an awesome time - as always - and the pies and cake we made Saturday evening turned out fabulous!! I'll be sharing the Apple Cake recipe because it's SO yummy and SO easy. Be sure to check back, ok?

Let me quick show you this Christmas card:

I called it Christmas Serendipity because it includes three pieces from my serendipity pile on my counter top in the studio. That's my pile of little pieces of stamped, punched or die cut pieces that I just KNOW I can do something with, so they are saved from the circular file. Here, I had the Early Espresso 4 1/4" square layer and the Very Vanilla 4" Square layer along with the Riding Hood Red texturized 2 1/2" circle piece in my pile, and I just knew they could come together in a new card.

The background is stamped in Always Artichoke with the swirl from the Pines and Poinsettias stamp set. I added those two layers to a folded 5 1/4" square Very Vanilla card base. I really like the wider border on this one. The focal images were easy to choose, I simply punched out a 2 3/8" Scallop Circle from Early Espresso and layered it on top of the Riding Hood Red circle that had been run through the Big Shot with the Petals-A-Plenty Embossing Folder.

The main stamped image from Pines and Poinsettias as well, was markered with Always Artichoke, Early Espresso and Riding Hood Red. I stamped it on a scrap of Very Vanilla and punched it out with the 1 3/4" Scallop Circle punch. The pinecones were dusted with Dazzling Diamonds glitter using my 2 Way Glue Pen.
Those layers were popped up on Stampin' Dimensionals.
The greeting, from Teeny Tiny Wishes, was stamped in Riding Hood Red on Very Vanilla then punched out with the Word Window Punch. I layered it on a punch out of Early Espresso done with the Modern Label Punch. It's popped up on more Stampin' Dimensionals and completed this quick and easy card.
The most surprising thing for me on this card? I didn't use any ribbon. I know - crazy huh? But it didn't need any more embellishment so I left it alone!!

Well, I'm off to a busy, busy day in the studio. I have lots of prep work to do for my classes and team meeting later this week and the last thing I need is to get behind again!
As always, you can purchase your Stampin' Up! supplies from my Online Stampin' Store. I use Stampin' Up! only on all my projects, so you don't have to visit any other store but mine to recreate my projects. Makes life a lot easier, doesn't it?

Have a fantastic Monday!
~~Robin

Place your Stampin' Up! order at this link here: Robin's Online Stampin' Store
Simply click the SHOP NOW button at the top right corner!

A Vibrant Fall!

2011-10-07T09:00:00.001-04:00

Finally! Fall has arrived here in NoVA!
Next to Spring, this is my very favorite time of year - ok, next to Christmas and Spring, it's my favorite! :) Yesterday, Mark and I took the dogs on a really long evening walk on some of the trails here in our community. It was WONDERFUL to see some of the trees starting to change color. I just love how God's paintbrush creates a new masterpiece every year. The colors are so glorious and vibrant, especially on a bright day with a clear blue sky.

Yep, I LOVE Fall!

My card for you today is reflecting how I feel about the season. I created this one for my Trinity Design Stampers team meeting last month, when I was longing for Fall to begin. The color combo of Island Indigo, More Mustard and Lucky Limeade came straight from the Color Coach, and I added the Soft Suede to ground it a bit.

Here, take a look:

The new Gently Falling stamp set was perfect for what I had in mind. I don't do too much 2 Step Stamping, but here, I used the stamps as they were intended to add just a touch of gold to the leaves with the More Mustard Classic Ink Pad. I stamped the full leaf first in Lucky Limeade Classic Ink, then added the outline stamp over them. The cardstock I used was Naturals White to add to the rustic feel.

It's layered on a piece of More Mustard cardstock with a card base of Island Indigo. All the cardstock layers were sponged with Soft Suede Classic Ink to tone down the bright colors a bit. Fall is not Neon, it's vibrant, subtle; and the brown touches bring it there.

For my accents, I tore a strip of 1/2" Spice Cake Fabric and wrapped a piece around the top two layers like ribbon. It's adhered on the back of those layers with SNAIL. Then, I used the rest of the strip and tied a sweet bow, adding it to the card front with Mini Glue Dots. An Early Espresso button from the Neutrals Collection was added in the center with another Glue Dot.

The little medallion was layered punches of 1 3/4", 1 3/8" and 1 1/4" circles. I used my Early Espresso and Soft Suede Stampin' Write Markers to color the acorn stamp. The circles were all sponged and adhered together, then I added it to the card front with Stampin' Dimensionals.
Pretty easy-peasy card, but it's one that made me do the stampers happy dance around the studio! Does it remind you of Fall too?

Here are a few of the products I used to create this card:

#123804 - Gently Falling Stamp Set $28.95 Clear-Mount

#124006 - Spice Cake Designer Fabric $9.95

So, if you'd love to re-create this card, or anything else I've shown you here on the ol' Blog, you can visit my Online Stampin' Store anytime to find all the supplies you need.

I hope you have a fantastic weekend! We are headed up to the mountains tomorrow for our annual apple picking, apple cider donut eating, apple pie making day. It's something we look forward to as a family each year and tomorrow promises to be the perfect FALL day for it! I'll probably share some pictures next week with you, and I'll be sure to eat an apple cider donut for you too! :)

Stamped blessings,
~~Robin

Place your order for your Stampin' Up! supplies at this link here: Robin's Online Stampin' Store
Simply click the SHOP NOW button at the top right corner to get started!