OPEN HOUSE-ish

When life hands me lemons, I make lemonade. Or margaritas, depending on the crowd.

Two short months ago, my honey was diagnosed with a cancer. We were told it was inoperable. Then they operated. We were told there would just be radiation. Then there was radiation and chemo. He is still in treatment and we, along with his care team, remain very positive.

In the interest of my honey's health, I am not hosting my usual Open House Party at our home. Instead, I am having an Open House-ish Party. As things would have it, our church is having their annual Garage Sale on June 8th. I had rented a table and could fill it with dodgy stuff from the house that you probably don't want. Or I could cover it with incredible Stampin' Up! happiness. I chose the latter!

It will be just like my regular Open House/Catalogue Release Parties, but in a church hall. (With a bunch of other people who are trying to get rid of their junk.) I will be at the table with all the balloons (hopefully the only one.) There will be retired products for sale, there will be a make & take and of course *drum roll please* ... there will be the FREE NEW CATALOGUE!

Have a peek at the poster and contact me with any questions. I hope to see you there.

Cheers,
Adrienne

Time to Say Goodbye

Hello talented stampers, fabulous followers and my beloved lurkers,

It is time to say good bye to many fabulous products and incredible stamp sets. Their official retirement date is June 3rd so you only have days left to order. While it is admittedly hard to see some of these items go, Stampin' Up! needs to make room for all the amazing new stamp sets.

This post is a nod to all things retired. The projects featured here are all my own designs but I encourage you to copy them, alter them if you like, and make them your own. If you have any questions about these creations, feel free to ask. I am always happy help.

The first project (and one of my all time personal favourites) features 3 retiring sets: Foxy Friends & the Fox Builder Punch, Pick A Pennant & the Playful Pennants Framelit Dies and the Labeler Alphabet & Large Letters Framelit Dies. While I'm gong to miss all these, the Large Letter Framelits was one of my go to sets. It is an incredible tool to have in your repitoire. Many of you know I sell my retired products. However, the Large Letter Framelits will continue to enjoy a place on my shelf. It was also a lot of fun crafting a great Canadian Beaver from the Fox Builder punch. In fact, I loved him so much, he showed up on several cards.

I had so much fun with this hostess set, Hand Delivered, especially making 3x3s. These cards were created when I was a Display Board Artist for the now retiring Annual Catalogue. It was such an incredible learning experience and opportunity. The creation process was so much fun! No one had ever used or seen these sets before. There were no Pinterest, Instagram or Google searches. This was an aha moment for me and now the majority of my cards are created out of my head. People sometimes asked me about my "why." Why do I do this?  Now, I can answer... it's two things. The opportunity to create something from scratch and making friends.

My Display Board.

The Gingham Gala DSP made my heart skip a beat and I will miss it so. (The good news is the Buffalo Check Stamp stays! We can make our own gingham.) These samples feature the Humming Along Stamp set. Since they're native to my island, I really loved the humming bird. These cards were created when a fellow demo was too sick to participate in a local team swap she had arranged. It was the first time I used this beautiful and timeless set.

Brusho bows out! I had so much fun creating backgrounds with Brusho. Happily, this wildly versatile stamp set, Rooted in Nature, is carrying over. This is just a sample of what magic one can create with Brusho. Spoiler alert: I'm excited to announce Stampin' Up! has a new amazing product coming - stay tuned!

Thank you Bella & Friends and Pretty Kitty for so many amazing cards. Most of the cards I made with this set were commissioned by a local pet store. 100% of funds raised went to a local animal rescue. (The Christmas cards pictured here used some previously retired items and some of the greetings were done on my computer.) These two adorable sets are a must have for any animal lovers on your list.

As a complete coffee addict, it's hard to say good bye to the lovely Coffee Cafe. This set was featured in many of my classes over the past couple years. In addition to being fabulous for coffee aficionados, this set is perfect for craft fairs. So many gift card holders!

and finally...

After 18 years in the catalogue, the incredible Lovely as a Tree set has decided it's time to say goodbye. Used year round, this is one of the most versatile stamps sets I've been lucky enough to lay my hands on. I've made birthday cards, thank you cards, sympathy cards, and much more. Here are the very first and last cards I made with the same iconic stamp from this set.

Writing this post made me realize I need to start taking photographs of ALL my cards. I have made so many cards and projects with these sets but they're no longer in my possession. Even with the latest technology, I haven't quite figured out how to download my memory of a card into my blog. Henceforth, every card will be subjected to a photo shoot before being sold to the highest bidder or given away. I even bought a proper photo light box. This is going to be fun!

Remember, June 3rd is your last chance to get these and many other fabulous retiring products. For all your stamping and scrapbooking needs, my shop is here. On orders under 200 remember to use the current host code, located on right side of my blog, underneath the image of the catalogue. You will be entered into my monthly draw to win a fabulous prize.*

UPDATE: As of May 30th, many of the retired items are now 30% off!!!

Until next time.

Cheers,
Adrienne

* In order to comply with Federal Regulations, potential winners need to first correctly answer a skill testing questions before being declared a winner. Odds of winning are dependent on the number of entries received. Without giving too much away, the prize will be a retired Stampin' Up! item, not a new car.

Seashore Stampers May Blog Hop - Father's Day

Hello fabulous stampers, lovely followers and my beloved random lurkers,

Next month is June, which brings us Father's Day - a time to remember and honour all Dads, Stepdads, and people who selflessly father without the benefit of the title.

I was blessed to have an incredible Dad. He was careful with people's feelings and very kind. He not only cared for us but for the rest of the community, country and world. He was an avid reader and not into sports. He taught me so much and we shared a deep love of music. (I still have his electric piano and guitar.)

This card is created in his memory. His favourite colour was green and he loved trees. Since he was unlike all my friends Dads, I wanted to put a different twist on this card. I took the standard "bridge" style and put my own personal spin on it. Meet my "double bridge" card! And it's way easier than it looks. I used one of my all time favourite stamp sets, Rooted in Nature. (All your supplies, other than adhesive & tools will be listed at the end of this blog.)

Start with an 4 1/4" x 8" piece of Pretty Peacock cardstock. You will also need two 3/4" x 5 1/2" pieces. From your Whisper White, trim a piece to 2 3/4" x 4", two pieces to 1/2" x 5 1/4" and have some scraps to stamp the leaves. Cut two 1" x 4" pieces of coordinating 2019-2021 In Color Designer Series Paper (DSP).

Score the 4 1/4" x 8" piece at 1 1/4", 2 1/2", 5 1/2" and 6 1/4". If you're using your Paper Trimmer rather than a Score Board, score at 1 1/4" & 2 1/2" and turn the paper 180 degrees and do the other end at 1 1/4" & 2 1/2" too.

Next fold back the 1 1/4" ends and burnish with your Bone Folder. Then fold forward at the two middle scores and burnish.

Using Black Memento Ink, stamp the tall tree from Rooted in Nature on the Whisper White and the  "Fathers Day" (from the Well Said set) onto one of the 1/2" Whisper White strips. I stamped it just to the right because I liked it offset. I ran the stamped tree through the Subtle 3D Embossing Folder to add some texture. Stamp the 3-leaf stamp on scraps of Whisper White 2-3 times in Pretty Peacock (depending on how many leaves you want. Optional: you can stamp off here to lighten the intensity of the ink on some of the leaves.)  Using the 3-leaf die (from the Nature's Roots dies), cut out the leaves and set aside. On your Silver Foil, use the Happy die (from the Well Written Dies).

For the assembly, use your snail to attach the 2 pieces of DSP to each edge of your card base and the 2 skinny pieces of Whisper White to the matching skinny bits of Pretty Peacock. With your Precision Glue, adhere the "Happy" to the blank skinny strip (the one that doesn't have "Father's Day" on it), avoiding the bottom loops of the p's and y. Using Tombo, attach the stamped & embossed tree to the centre of the card. Also use it to attach each of the skinny pieces to the one side. Wait a few moments and then attach them to the other side. (I really recommend Tombo for this bit because you have a few moments of forgiveness if you need to reposition.) Finally, attach the decorative leaves (I trimmed some of them.) Here is your finished card.

Have fun creating and if you have any questions, please feel free to contact me.

My shop is here. On orders under 200, remember to use the current hostess code (listed on the right, under the picture of the  catalogue.)

If you would like a discount on all your Stampin' Up! products or want to start your own small business, join my team this month and in addition to all regular amazing perks, I'll arrange to have your new catalogue spiral bound.

Cheers,
Adrienne

Supplies:
Rooted in Nature Stamp Set Stamp Set (146482) & Nature's Roots Dies (146341) and Well Said Stamp Set (148796) & Well Written Dies (148534). Pretty Peacock (150880), Whisper White (100730), Silver Foil (132178), 2019-2021 In Color DSP (149617) Cardstocks, Black Memento (132708) & Pretty Peacock (150083) Inks, and the Subtle 3D Embossing Folder (151775). New items, in italics, will not be available until June 4th, when the new catalogue goes live.

Both bundles, Rooted in Nature (148353) & Well Said (150609) are 10% off until June 3, 2019.

Sneak Peak and A Friend in Need

Hello all,

My most favourite thing about being a Stampin' Up! Demonstrator are the incredible friendships I've developed over the years.

A couple weeks ago I attended On Stage in Vancouver. One of the benefits of being an attendee is the Product Purchase Premiere (PPP.) This means you get to order select items from the new catalogue before it's even been released. Not surprisingly, I took advantage and ordered a few of the new suites along with ALL the new In-Colors.

Let me introduce you:

Pretty Peacock, Seaside Spray, Purple Posy, Rococo Rose and Terracotta Tile
(L to R)

As of May 1st, all Demonstrators can order these select items. This gives us time to prepare samples for our Open Houses and Catalogue Release Parties. Yesterday, on the Demonstrator Facebook page, I notice a post indicating one of the new colours wasn't going to be available for another month or two. (Sorry peeps.)

Since I already had my PPP order in hand, I am lucky enough to have this colour. One demo, in Germany, commented on how badly she wanted to see this colour in real life, sooner rather than later. I messaged her for her address and now we're having a wee international card swap.

Here is the card I made for her to illustrate the beauty of Purple Posy. I used the beautiful Floral Essence stamp set. The flowers are stamped in Purple Posy, onto Purple Posy cardstock. 

If you have any questions about this project or want me to reserve a copy of the New Annual Catalogue for you, feel free to message me.

Here is supply list for this card: Cardstock - Whisper White, Purple Posy, Highland Heather & Gorgeous Grape; Stamp Set - Floral Essence: Ink - Purple Posy & Gorgeous Grape; Punches - 2", 2 1'4" Circles & the Leaf; Embellishments - 5/8" Polka Dot Tulle Ribbon & Metallic Sequin Assortment. (The items highlighted are not available until the new catalogue goes live on June 3rd.)

My shop is here. On orders under 200, please be sure to use this month's host code. (Just to the right, underneath the picture of the catalogue.) Using this code will enter you into my fabulous monthly draw.*

Until next time.
Adrienne

* In order to comply with Federal Regulations, potential winners need to first correctly answer a skill testing questions before being declared a winner. Odds of winning are dependent on the number of entries received.