Just Punchy Card

I love Stampin' Up!'s punches. They are so fun to use when making cards, scrapbook pages, and gift projects. I have hosted two Just Punchy stamp camps - where I always feature some "out of the box" ideas for our punches. My customers love these! When I plan a card or item for my Just Punchy stamp camps, they have to meet the 4-punch criteria or they are not used.

I uploaded my Just Punchy stamp camp on my card gallery website last weekend. One of the cards that I showed my guests for inspiration was this card:

This one certainly uses more than 4 punches! I loved the Just Celebrate stamp set from the Spring Mini Catalog - The "whoo! hoo!" actually was on the owl image, but it reminded me of when my boys played trains when they were younger.

If you want to check out my other stamp camp projects including my Just Punchy stamp camps, here is the link -http://www.stampwithjane.com/

2008-2009 New Catalog Ponderings

Yesterday was the first day to order from our brand-new catalog!  I was at the ready at my computer at exactly 1:00 pm CST to place a few orders!  I cannot wait to get my goodies!  What am I most excited about this year?  In past years, it has been about the accessories for me, and this year that is still somewhat true.  However, I am so excited about the new stamp sets-plus Stampin' Up! had a special with several of my must-have new catalog sets!  Here are some of my purchases:

Snow Swirled
Under the Stars and Skeeter Wheel
Just Jawing and Scary Skulls Wheel
Owl Together Now
Upsy Daisy
Only Ovals
Say It With Scallops

Trust me, the new accessories (especially the new styled brads and ribbons) have me nearly swooning!  I love using both of these in my projects.  The new designer papers and simply scrappin' kits are knock-out gorgeous!  I think the more "manly" versions of the DSP will go over very well too - as it can be difficult to "dress up" masculine cards.

I've already put together my Wow Flowers Card Elements Kit (this was a demo preorder item).  I think this is a perfect kit for those card-makers who don't have a lot of time, but still want to send something with a personal touch. 

The new rub-on collection has such a variety!  I think these will become a staple in every stamper's craft room!

Although demos have seen sneak peeks of the new punches, they are still fabulous to see in the catalog!  My stamping table always seems to have two or three punches on it!

I have been busy creating samples with my demo preorder stamp sets.  These will soon be scanned in my card gallery website.  I spent much of Sunday preparing my card gallery website for new additions and moving the newly retired stamp sets to the retired gallery.

Hope you get a chance to stamp today!

Sock Monkey Birthday Card

I do love this sock monkey set - hopefully, my customers will too! Here is Sammy my Sock Monkey (don't you think he should be christened with a name?) getting ready for a birthday party!

Catalog Coupon Club Pick-Up Party

Thanks to all of my loyal Catalog Coupon Club who stopped by and picked up their catalogs last night. It was a fun night, and I truly appreciate your business!

First off, here is my coupon book this year - I think it is adorable!

I used Chocolate Chip and Baja Breeze colors. What a fantastic color combo! Hopefully, my customers will enjoy their own little sock monkey this year!

It was a whirlwind evening - with lots of food and a new drink! However, my customers were more concentrated on the new catalog than the food. It is a fabulous catalog - with lots of beautiful and fun stamp sets - the Under the Stars stamp set with Skeeter wheel was a big hit. Hmm, maybe that should be on my first order! I love the new punches - the wider oval and the new label punch will be favorites for me. Plus the new papers - WOW!!! I will be planning lots of stamp camps around these gorgeous designs!

I made a delicious Asti punch - it was taken from an online recipe - but I never make things EXACTLY like it says on recipe cards. Here is my punch recipe:

Jane's Asti Sangria

1 bottle Asti Spumante (does not have to be expensive!), chilled
3 c. Ginger Ale, chilled
2 c. Lemonade (not concentrate), chilled
1 c. Frozen Peaches
1 Lemon, sliced in wedges

Mix together in a glass pitcher - and serve cold and on ice. You can add strawberry slices or lime slices too!

It was delicious!

Another crowd pleaser was my Strawberry Lemon Trifle. I bought a trifle bowl at a Pampered Chef party this year - this is a great item! Well, it holds a lot too - so I am actually revising the recipe I had to make it fill up the bowl more completely. Here is my revised recipe:

Jane's Strawberry Lemon Trifle

INGREDIENTS
8 ounces fat-free cream cheese, softened
2 cups lemon yogurt (I used Yoplait Original)
4 cups skim milk
2 (3.4 ounce) packages instant lemon pudding mix
4 teaspoons grated lemon peel (optional)
4 cups sliced fresh strawberries, divided
2 (9 inch) prepared angel food cake

DIRECTIONS
In a mixing bowl, beat cream cheese and yogurt. Add the milk, pudding mix and lemon peel; beat until smooth. Tear cake into 1-in. cubes; place a fourth in a Pampered Chef trifle bowl. Top with a fourth of the pudding mixture and a fourth of the remaining strawberries. Repeat twice. Top with remaining cake and pudding mixture and add whole or sliced strawberries on top. Cover with trifle bowl lid and refrigerate for at least 2 hours.

You could certainly add or improvise with different fruits - a blueberry lemon trifle would be unbelievable!

Oh, I forgot to mention this - I had this party planned for about 2 months...and thankfully, my UPS man came about Noon on Thursday with my catalogs! I was panicking wondering what I would do if I had to tell my customers their catalogs were not in yet!!!!

Can't wait to spend time with my new stamps and play!

Christmas in July Stamp Camp

Last night I held my annual Christmas in July Stamp Camp which featured retiring stamp sets. My stamp campers made four cards. This one was my personal favorite.

I love the Peaceful Wishes stamp set; however, instead of using the berry stamp, I used the top of a pencil so I had more freedom of placement. I also liked how I used the Hodgepodge Hardware with the ribbon. The bottom phrase is embossed. I will miss the Purely Pomegranate color when it retires in August. This was a 5.25x5.25 card - it was the crowd favorite too!

To get my stampers in the mood, I played Christmas music and made Christmas cookies. My family's favorite cookie - peanut blossoms (peanut butter cookies with a Hershey's Kiss) was also a big hit. My husband thinks I make the best ones - they do always turn out perfect!

Thanks to my customers who attended last night!

My New SU Items Just Arrived

I am so excited - I could just burst! The UPS man just rang my bell and delivered my new Stampin' Up! items. As a demo, I could preorder from a selected group of new items (we haven't seen the new catalog yet - this is just a sneak peek)!

Here are the stamp sets I ordered:

This one is called Dreams du Jour

Here is Sock Monkey!

This is Heard from the Heart

This is WOW Flowers

Remember - these are all die cut!!!! Now, all I have to wait for is my husband to seal my blocks!

The new 2008 In Colors (from left to right) - Pacific Point, Baja Breeze, Tangerine Tango, Riding Hood Red, Kiwi Kiss, and Pink Pirouette:

New Designer Series Paper - LOVE IT!!!

New Scallop Punch

New Buttons!

New Simply Sent Kit

Can't wait to show my customers who are coming to my Christmas in July Stamp Camp tomorrow!

New Stampin' Up! Stamp Sets

This morning, there is a lot of information to share. On the demonstrator side of the website, we have a sneak peek of items from the new 2008 Fall/Winter catalog. Here are some exciting tidbits:

#1. ALL BRAND-NEW STAMPS SETS WILL BE DIE CUT!!!!!! Any stamp sets from previous years will NOT be die cut however.
#2. Stampin' Up! will be carrying a long scallop punch
#3. We have different buttons - with a raised flower in the middle! (Unclear if we will have the old-style buttons yet)
#4. We will have a new Flower Power Simply Sent Card Elements Accessory package - really cute!
#5. Bella Rose Designer Series Paper - really pretty with Pink Pirouette, Riding Hood Red, Chocolate Chip, Creamy Caramel colors
#6. The new In Colors are: Baja Breeze, Kiwi Kiss, Pacific Point, Pink Pirouette, Riding Hood Red, and Tangerine Tango (look for these on my blog as soon as I get my new products in my hands)

Want the scoop on some of the new stamp sets? Since this was a sneak peek, we didn't see very many, but here is a rundown of customer stamp sets:

#1. Heard from the Heart - if you love the script-style stamp set (Wonderful Words), this is a 4-piece set with phrases and the main word is in script.
#2. Wow Flowers - Bold 4-piece set with Thank You (flower is the "o"), Circle with Happy Birthday and Flower, Large Dotted Flower, and small birthday wishes (There is also a Spanish Set for this one too)
#3. SOCK MONKEY - Ok, all you Carol Duvall fans - this is it!!!! REALLY cute 10-piece stamp set with sock monkey, banana, balloon, pennant, cupcake and candle, heart, flower, birthday hat, and the phrases just for you and thanks a bunch!
#4. Dreams du Jour - 4-piece set with the feel of a seed packet - LOVE you in a square with a flower, butterfly, WE GROW GREAT BY DREAMS -Woodrow Wilson with flower and leaves, and the phrase The way to KNOW LIFE is to LOVE many things - Van Gogh

Want the scoop on some of the new HOSTESS stamp sets? We only saw a few of the Level 2 and Level 3 hostess DIE CUT stamp sets...GET OUT YOUR CALENDAR AND MAKE A DATE FOR A WORKSHOP WITH ME - You are going to want these for sure!

Level 2 - Fall Flair - 8-piece set - Flowers and leaves - bold and pretty
Level 2 - Deer Friends - 8-piece set - THIS IS JUST ADORABLE - holiday images with cute sayings in a circle (comes in Spanish too)
Santa Face- from the guy with the red suit
Snowman Face - season's greetings
Present - a little something
Angel Face- little angel
Christmas Tree - o christmas tree
Reindeer Face - deer friend
Baby Jesus and Star - o holy night
Gingerbread Man - sweet treat
Level 2 - Occasions Collection - Set of 14 - sayings with a line of images you can punch out to fit in circle stamp (comes in Spanish too)
HAPPY st. patrick's wedding halloween thanksgiving new year valentine's day birthday christmas to you Easter
Level 2 - Serene Spring - Set of 4 (Comes in Spanish too)
Bunny in Basket with Flower and Bird
Clay Pot with Flowers, Bird, and Butterfly
A friend is what the heart needs all the time. - Henry Van Dyke
A kind word is like a spring day.
Level 3 - Happiness Always (Set of 14) - 2-Step Stamping Style (bold phrases) (comes in Spanish too)
Butterfly (2)
Half-Flower (2)
Leaf (2)
Full Flower (2)
Stem (2)
Stamen (2)
happiness always
Be ALL that you DREAM to be.
Level 3 - Window Dressing - set of 10 (comes in Spanish too)
Large Window
pumpkin grouping
trio of vases with flowers
kitty cat
little girl head and hands (peeking out of window)
group of 2 snowmen
bird
3 Curved phrases (to fit over window) so thankful for you; you make me smile!; very merry christmas
Level 3 - Holiday Happening Bundle
Large Rub-on Sheet with holiday phrases
Set of 4 Seasonal Icons Stamps (snowflake, leaf, heart, flower-bold images)
Holiday Happenings Designer Series Paper - 9 sheets - 3 each of 3 designs)

Watch for more information in the coming weeks!!! If you have been interested in becoming a demonstrator, this may be the year to do so! Stampin' Up! is celebrating its 20th anniversary, and they are giving demonstrators many reasons to celebrate!!!!

My Ponderings on the 2008 Stamp Set Retirement List

With each new catalog, there is some sadness in seeing previous favorite stamp sets hit the dust so to speak. This new retirement list is no different.

As a Stampin' Up! demonstrator, it is in my best interest to showcase stamp sets that are available to purchase. That is why I rarely keep retired stamp sets. I do hold on to a very few (I can count 8 stamp sets I have saved since 2000 - mainly religious and children/school related). I also have a customer garage sale that is always a huge hit. My customers get first dibs on my retired stamp sets. I then list the ones that didn't sell on my website garage sale (we are not allowed to sell the stamp sets until they are retired).

What will I miss from this year's retired list?

Happy Camper - this one was so fun to work with, but I had always hoped there would be a phrase accessory stamp set

Yappy Day - although I do not have a dog, I really enjoyed working with this set

Unfroggettable - Perfect set for those in-between kid cards

Peaceful Wishes - I thought this set was so elegant - it was one of the few non-snow holiday stamp sets I had!

Touch of Nature - I especially loved the Shakespeare phrase in this set

Although I will miss these stamp sets, I know Stampin' Up! has many new and exciting stamp sets that I will love with the new catalog!

Care to eScape?

eScape with Stampin' Up!

Put down the phone, turn off the computer, and break free from the 'e'!

Remember when you got letters in your mailbox instead of your inbox? On June 25, 2008, Stampin' Up! is taking the day to unplug and unwind, and reconnect on a personal level with friends and loved ones through handmade cards. And we invite you to eScape with us throughout the month of June!

Take advantage of the 25 percent discount on select items in the eScape bundle to help you create that special message from the heart.

eScape Bundle (item 113700):
Description Page Number Price
Circle of Friendship stamp set p. 143 $17.95
Love Notes assortment p. 167 $8.95
Rose Red Classic Stampin' Pad p. 165 $5.25
Very Vanilla 5/8" grosgrain ribbon p. 191 $7.95
Total (non-bundled) $40.10
eScape Bundle price $30.00

eScape in June! Contact me today for details about this exciting special.

Basement Flooding

It has been a while since I have been online due to the recent Midwest flooding. We were very lucky as we had just an inch or so of rainwater in our basement (thank goodness it wasn't sewage). I am praying for all those who have been affected by the flooding...we lost items (including computers and tax documents) and a few personal items like my childhood dollhouse, but really it was a blessing in disguise. We really cleaned out!

I haven't had much urge to stamp, but I did upload lots of cards to my card gallery before the flood.