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Hello all~

I have been working on a brand-new website that merges both my card gallery site and a blog. It is now finally ready. If you are a follower to this blog, please check out my new website - www.stampwithjane.com

This space will remain, but I will no longer be posting on this site.

Thanks to all of you who have visited and enjoyed this site.

Fall Card

Although the weather in Wisconsin isn't cooperating, it is time to start posting fall projects. Fall is probably my favorite time of year - the changing colors of the trees and the crunch of leaves underfoot.

Branch Out is one of our dormant stamp sets. I love the tree all by itself. Here is one of the cards I recently made with this set.

The tree is embossed with Gold Glory EP. I have had the clear buttons for years, but I just don't seem to grab them when finishing a project. I need to use them more often!

Butterfly Punch Cottage Wall Cards

Pretty soon my blog will be filled with Fall and Halloween samples and ideas...but I can't let go of summer quite yet!

One of the Stampin' Up! colors I find difficult to use in my stamping is Orchid Opulence. It just isn't one of my favorites. However, a customer of mine needed help using the color right before the new catalog came out...thank goodness for Stampin' Up! coming to my rescue! The new Cottage Wall DSP uses Orchid Opulence with Old Olive and Rich Razzleberry (secondary colors might include Pale Plum and Mellow Moss).

When I was prepping for my New Catalog Stamp Camp, I also wanted to find a way to use the adorable new Butterfly Punch. This example also uses the Hi Embosslit (used with the Big Shot).

Here is another version using the new Modern Label Punch:

I punched out different pieces of the Cottage Wall DSP and colored pieces of card stock. The punched butterfly pieces are just attached the the lower punched piece with the small silver brads. You can fold the dsp punch piece to give the butterfly more dimension.

Summer...we'll miss you!

September 2009 Card Kit

This is my September Card Kit Card! If you would like to purchase the September Card Kit, you need to contact me by September 15th. The cost of the card kit is $15.00. The card kit will be available for pickup/mailing on October 1st. Payment can be made through Paypal or by checks/cash for my local customers.

Each kit will provide all the supplies to create 12 cards including the pre-cut card stock, embellishments, envelopes, and instructions. The phase used on this card is from Teeny Tiny Wishes, one of the new stamp sets from the 2009-2010 Stampin’ Up!® Idea Book & Catalog. However, you can substitute another phrase if you wish. This is a great fall-themed card – it can work for a general occasion, Halloween, or Thanksgiving card!

My September Card Kit also features Stampin’ Up!®’s wonderful punches. The five punches you should have for this kit are the large oval punch, the 1" circle punch, the 3/4" circle punch, the Modern Label punch, and the Word Window punch. If you don’t have the Modern Label or Word Window punches, you could easily adapt the card with different phrase/punch pieces. You will also need a Pumpkin Pie ink pad, hole piercing tool, sponge, and Stampin’ Dimensionals or excess rubber pieces.

Why do I create card kits? I LOVE having my customers come to my home for stamp camps and events, but I know there are several stampers out there who just can’t make it to my events. This is an easy way for them to keep their creative juices flowing and their card stash filled. These card kits are also great for my stampers who love to create cards, but don’t always enjoy planning out and cutting out their cards.

Have any questions? Want to order my September Card Kit? Just send me an email!

September Card Kit (Local Pickup) $15.00
September Card Kit (With Shipping) $20.00
Each Additional Set of 12 Cards $12.00

Here are some add-on items you may want to purchase along with the September Card Kit (shipping and handling costs will also be added):

Teeny Tiny Stamp Set $36.95
Pumpkin Pie Inkpad $ 5.95
Large Oval Punch $15.95
Modern Label Punch $15.95
Word Window Punch $15.95
1” Circle Punch $10.95
¾” Circle Punch $10.95
Paper Piercing Tool $ 3.50

Contact me by September 15th to order your September Card Kit!

Retired Stamps for Sale

I spent much of the weekend uploading my photos of my collection of retired stamps to my new website.

Here is a direct link:

http://stampwithjane.com/retired-stamp-sets

A button on my sidebar is now installed to get you there in the future. For my local customers, I have reduced prices on many of the stamp sets.

I will keep updating the information as items are sold or more items are found!

Wild Wednesday Deal #3

Make a $35 purchase from the Growing Up section of the 2009-2010 Stampin' Up! Idea Book and Catalog (pages 74-90) and you can purchase the Small or Jumbo Grommets (page 179) for only $5.95 (save $1.00). Don't forget - you'll also receive a free package of your choice of the Designer Buttons - Playground, Sherbert, or Button Latte.



The grommets are so fun and very easy to use. Here is an example of the Jumbo Grommet:

My stampers made this card - which is a scratch and sniff card - at last night's Technique Tuesday class. With a foam pad behind the card stock, they just pushed the grommet through by hand and then used a small hammer or bone folder to push back the grommet prongs.

Making a scratch and sniff card is easy when you know the ratio of clear embossing powder to smell powder (in this case Lemonade Kool-Aid). The ratio is 1 and 1/2 to 1.

Here are the basic instructions for a scratch and sniff technique:

With the powder mixed and the card stock brushed with an embossing buddy, stamp the image in a VersaMark pad first, then reink the same stamp into a dye inkpad (in this case Crushed Curry), and then stamp the image onto card stock. Cover the image with the mixed powder, tap off excess, and heat emboss. Be careful as the embossing effect will not be as smooth as usual - the embossed image will look a bit bumpy due to the nonmelting powder added to the mixture. Kool-Aid (in the little packets), coffee granules, and spices work great for the scratch and sniff technique! Jell-O does not as it has too much sugar to give a strong smell.

Wild Wednesday Deal #2

Make a $35 purchase from the Growing Up section of the 2009-2010 Stampin' Up! Idea Book and Catalog (pages 74-90) and receive your choice of 30 Gold Brads or 30 Silver Brads from me! Don't forget - you'll also receive a free package of your choice of the Designer Buttons - Playground, Sherbert, or Button Latte.

One of the cards my stampers made last night at my New Catalog Stamp Camp featured the new Loads of Fun stamp set, the Under the stars stamp set (from the Growing Up section), and the new wood sheets. The wood sheets are so easy to work with! Very thin and pliable, you can easily stamp on them, use punches with them, or run them through your die cut machine. This example used the ovals die cut. Many of my customers are campers so they adored this card!

This offer will be available from August 12th through August 18th. Contact me via email or phone to place your Wild Wednesday #2 order!

Jane's Wild Wednesday #1 Deal

Last month, Stampin' Up! offered a "Deal of the Week" every Monday. That special was so popular with my customers, I thought I would continue the excitement in August. I will be offering a Wild Wednesday Deal each week. Here is this week's deal -

Wild Wednesday Deal #1 - Gel Pen Deal

Make a $35 purchase from the Growing Up section of the 2009-2010 Stampin' Up! Idea Book and Catalog (pages 74-90) and receive a free Gel Pen (a $3.95 value) from me! Don't forget - you'll also receive a free package of your choice of the Designer Buttons - Playground, Sherbert, Button Latte.

Here is an example using one of my favorite stamp sets from the Growing Up Section - SOCK MONKEY!

This offer will be available from August 5th through August 11th. Contact me via email or phone to place your Wild Wednesday #1 order!

Stampin' Up! Growing Up August Promotions

Growing Up August Promotions
During the month of August, Stampin' Up! is offering two Growing Up Promotions - Free Buttons and Growth Chart Special Offer!


Free Buttons
From August 1-31, customers who spend $35 on stamp sets from the Growing Up section of the 2009-2010 Idea Book and Catalog (pages 74-90) will receive a free package of designer buttons - a $7.95 value. There are three button choices (Playground, Sherbert, and Button Latte designer buttons).


Growth Chart Special Offer
Customers who purchase the brand-new Decor Elements Growth Chart (which is only available from August 1st through September 30th will receive a free applicator tool. The Decor Elements Growth Chart is $24.95.

Check out my Stampin' Up! website for more information on these items - http://www.stampwithjane.stampinup.net/

Fun Kid Project-Bingo Game

I stamped with some great kids last week. We made a bingo card game. The kids were told to use several stamps in different colors. The only rule was not to stamp the same stamp more than once in the same column. Here is the blank card the kids stamped on:

Here is the unstamped leader card:Here is one of the stamped leader cards (you need at least 2 stamped leader cards):

I used the 1-3/8" circle punch to punch out the stamped images for the leader. You will need to cut off sections to get to each column.
Then I punched circles with the 1" Circle Punch in Real Red (enough for 20 circles for each child). I put the leader board circles in bag and shook them up! After the children finished their bingo cards, we played a few games. It was great fun!

Christmas in July Stencil Card

This is another example from my Christmas in July Stamp Camp this week. Stampin' Up! introduced stencils in their Decor Elements line last year. This is a new addition! These stencils are perfect for home decor, but they can also be used in cards and scrapbook pages! This card also used the Big Shot texture plate - Perfect Details.

Christmas in July Stamp Camp

Last night I held my Christmas in July stamp camp. It was a full house filled with fabulous stampers! Here is one of the projects they did:



This card used a lot of punches! Here is a list of what I used:

1-3/4" Circle Punch (1-Blush Blossom and 1-Real Red)

Scallop Square Punch (1-Whisper White)*

Small Oval Punch (1-Whisper White)*

Large Oval Punch (1-Real Red)

Wide Oval Punch (1-Real Red)

Word Window Punch (3-Basic Black** and 4-Real Red)

3/4" Circle Punch (Whisper White)

1/4" Circle Punch (Basic Black and Real Red)

Warm Words Stamp Set and Real Red and Chocolate Chip Ink (sponged edges of Santa piece)

*Punch out a Whisper White small oval punch-then punch out Scallop Square Punch for beard
**Cut off ends of two black Word Window Punches for mittens and boots

I also made a dessert everyone loved. Here is my Double Berry Trifle recipe:

2 Angel Food Cakes (Store Bought)

2 pkgs small vanilla pudding

3 cups milk

2 cartons of Cool Whip

Frozen Blueberries and Frozen Strawberries

Make pudding with 3 cups of milk. Let set until not quite firm. Fold in 1 and 1/4 of the cartons of Cool Whip to the pudding.

Tear Angel Food cake into pieces and line a layer in the trifle bowl (mine is a Pampered Chef Trifle Bowl).

Add a layer of pudding mixture. Layer one of the fruits on top. Then add another layer of Angel Food cake and pudding mixure. Layer the second fruit. Add one more layer of Angel Food cake and pudding mixture. Then top with the remaining Cool Whip.

Add a few fresh berries on top if desired.

Big Shot Stamp Camp Project

This is one of the items my stamp campers made at last week's Big Shot Stamp Camp! They loved how easy it was to make the basket using the Big Shot. The color combination was perfect for a summer event!

Another Fun Project for Kids

I was stamping with some West Bend kids last week. The theme was July 4th - so I designed a Parade Goody Bag! I love making these bags using a paper bag and cardstock. We used several different star stamps (my example used a retired set called All Through The Year).

I told the kids that with this bag they could really "clean up" when the candy is thrown out at the parade!

New Catalog Anticipation!

You can just feel it in the air - today will be an exciting day! The new 2009-2010 Stampin' Up! catalog will be going "LIVE" in just a few hours!

For Stampin' Up! demonstrators, the first day of a new catalog is like waiting for Christmas. Our CEO, Shelli Gardner, is OUR SANTA CLAUS. This year was extra sweet as demonstrators had the opportunity to receive our catalogs earlier than ever before. We were good boys and girls this year I guess. We've made our lists, checked them twice (probably a LOT more), and now we just need to place our orders.

I will be placing an order for myself today. On my first order this afternoon, I plan on purchasing some new Christmas stamp sets and accessories to prepare for my Christmas in July stamp camp later this month. My husband used to be in charge of sealing my wood blocks, but now my son Michael has the job (he has a true knack for spray painting). He's "only" 12, but has been at my husband's side in the garage since he could walk.

After the blocks are sealed and stamps are assembled - it will be time to make samples! The new 2009-2010 In Colors will add some excitement to the mix for sure!

So why oh why is my computer clock moving sooo slow???

My Catalog Coupon Book

I offer a free catalog coupon book to my customers who preorder a catalog. For this year's version, I used the new Circle Circus stamp set, the newer Statement of the Heart stamp set, and some of the 2009-2010 In Colors. I really like how this year's book looks!

Fun Summer Project for Kids

One of my customers asked me to do some fun kid projects for the West Bend summer daycare program. Here is the first one we did last week. This is a summer photo album - perfect to keep pictures and memories of the summer.

The background design is so easy - just put your hand in a fliptop sandwich bag dab with an inkpad! A perfect technique for little ones (kept their hands clean too)! They stamped the fish and the woody wagon on top (and put a fish and their name on the back cover).

They had fun and so did I!!!!

New Catalog Thoughts

Hello stampers~

Well, I expedited a demonstrator order so I could get my hands on the upcoming 2009-2010 Stampin' Up! catalog and some of the In Color preorder items.

There are some very strict rules in place for demonstrators about what we can and cannot post on our websites and blogs. I will be posting what I can when I can...

All I can say right now is WOWZERS. The new In Colors up close are gorgeous. My favorite combo will probably be Soft Suede and Rich Razzleberry. I love the new In Color ribbons too (and we have MARKERS to match!!!!)

I love the new stamp sets...without giving too much detail...the holiday sets and coordinating items ARE THE BOMB!!! They also have pleased me with the amount of new stuff relating to my boys' interests.

New Big Shot items will make gift giving effortless this year!

Some of my favorites from the mini catalogs made it in this year's catalog too.

Have to go back and look over the new items. One time through is definitely not enough!

Under the Stars One Sheet Wonder

A while back, I showed my stampers one of my favorite techniques for quick stamping results - the One Sheet Wonder. Basically, you stamp a collage on a full sheet of card stock. Then you cut it in smaller pieces to serve as a focal point or a background for cards or other projects.

This is the sheet I started out with:

You can view the slide show above to see the results! There are a few tacked on the end of the slide show which didn't use the OSW sheet...but they were so cute I had to include them!

Enjoy!

Stampin' Up! and YouTube

Stampin' Up! has launched their own YouTube channel. They've created the YouTube channel to help spread the word about fabulous Stampin' Up! products and opportunities. These videos are a great way to learn about current and upcoming products as well as assist you in learning new techniques.

http://www.youtube.com/stampinupvideo

Happy Stamping and Surfing!