The Art of Simplicity

My blogging for the summer months is going to change a bit, but I think you'll appreciate it. Stay with me . . .

Summer goes by so fast and everyone likes to be out and about, spending time with family and friends, traveling, and soaking up the sun. During the next three months I will blogging as I usually do, but the focus for the summer will be The Art of Simplicity.

I will post short and sweet entries with cards & scrapbook pages that you can create in no time. I know we all enjoy the hobby year-round, but during the summer, most of us tend to spend less time crafting. The Art of Simplicity I will share with you this summer will keep you creating and still have time to enjoy your summer activities. Sound good? I sure hope so! You won't be disappointed, I promise.

To kick off my summer theme -The Art of Simplicity, check out the card pictured above!

Here are all the Stampin' Up! materials you will need:

Cardstock: Whisper White and Chocolate Chip

Stamp Set: Trendy Trees

Ink: Green Galore, Chocolate Chip

Accessories: Chocolate Chip Corduroy Buttons

This Whisper White card is 4.25 x 4.25 inches square. It's a really cute size card - not too big, not too small. I used square Nestabilities to punch out the front 2x2 inch centered window.

To the left of the window I stamped on the side "thinking of you" from the Trendy Trees set in Chocolate Chip Ink.

I stamped one of the trees from the Trendy Trees set on Whisper White cardstock & punched that piece out with square Nestabilities (1.75 inch). I took a 2 inch square of Chocolate Chip, layered that behind my tree piece, and attached the entire piece to the inside of the card matching up directly behind the window.

To finish it off, I added a cute little Chocolate Chip Corduroy Button to the bottom right.

Stay tuned . . . sneak peeks from the new Stampin' Up! Catalog (due out in July) will be posted next week. I can hardly wait!!! Have a wonderful weekend!

Soft & Pretty

Did you enjoy the nice long weekend? I sure did! The weather was great and we had a huge party on Monday with all our friends. Back to work today! Boo hoo!

I am so inspired to create soft & pretty looking cards with the Stampin' Up! Thoughts & Prayers set. You've seen my other creations with this set, and pink always seems to sneak in there. Hee hee!

I used Stampin' Up! Green Galore, Regal Rose, and Apricot Appeal for my color combination. I took my picture taking to the outdoors so it may be hard to see the background, but I used the Cuttlebug Swiss Dots embossing folder. Then I simply stamped the saying in Regal Rose ink on Whisper White cardstock and matted it on Apricot Appeal cardstock for my centerpiece.

The leaf/flowers cascade stamp was inked using brush end of Stampin' Write Markers in Green Galore, Regal Rose, and Apricot Appeal. Just brush/color on the rubber stamp where you want each color to be and stamp it onto your cardstock. I cut this piece completely out using Stampin' Up! Paper Snips to get into those tiny areas and then glued the piece along the edge of my sentiment.

These Stampin' Write Markers are a must have! I have owned my set since way before I was a demonstrator and never had to replace one yet. One end is a fine point and the other a flexible brush. If you ever want to purchase a set from me, I will sell them to you at 20% off at any time. Just mention this blog post. They are such a great tool, I want you to have them at my cost.

Lots of exciting Stampin' Up! news coming your way! Here is a sneak peak of what's going on:

* Designer Series Paper Sale - Ends May 31st

Buy 3, Get 1 Free!

*June 1st - Stampin' Up! Last Chance

Retired List Published

Find out which of your favorites will no longer

be available in the new catalog!

* June 15th - Country Living Summer Cookout Kit Available!

Click HERE to view this promotion! It's so cute!!!

*July 1st - 2009-2010 Idea Book & Catalog

products available to order!

Are you excited? I can't wait to receive my sneak peaks from the new catalog. Be sure to subscribe to my blog in the upper left sidebar so you can see them too! I will be sharing!!!

Have a wonderful day and stop back soon!

Recipe (all supplies from Stampin' Up! unless noted otherwise):
Stamps: Thoughts & Prayers (item #113252)
Ink: Green Galore, Regal Rose, Apricot Appeal
Cardstock: Whisper White, Apricot Appeal
Other: Cuttlebug Swiss Dots Embossing Folder

It's a Nice Day . . . For a White Wedding!

Do I have you singing along to Billy Idol's song White Wedding? For some reason, as I was making this wedding card, that song kept playing my mind. Silly!

I used a lot of different products for this wedding card. They will be listed at the end of the post. You may be more curious about how I created this wedding cake shape card from scratch? If so, read on!

1) Start with a 6.50 x 5 inch white card

2) From the top, measure & mark with a pencil 1.5 inches

down and 2 inches in from either side. Cut out the 2 x 1/5 inches from each side.

3) The middle layer is 1.75 inches tall and 1.25 inches removed

from each side. Cut out the 1.25 x 1.75 piece from each side.

4) You are now ready to decorate your cake!

I hope my directions make sense. If not, drop me an e-mail tiffanyscardtique@verizon.net and I'll be more than happy to e-mail you the pattern. You could also use this type of card for a birthday or anniversary card!

Have a wonderful holiday weekend and stop back soon!

Recipe for Wedding Cake Card:
Stamps: Stampin' Up! Oval All
Ink: Stampin' Up! Pretty in Pink
Cardstock: Stampin' Up! Whisper White, Pretty in Pink
Patterned Paper: MOD (from Hobby Lobby)
Punches: Stampin' Up! Oval Scallop, Eyelet Border, 5 Petal Flower, 3/4" Circle, Butterflies (Martha Stewart)
Accessories: Plastic Hearts (American Crafts), Pearl Brad (K & Company), Ribbons (from Michaels Arts & Crafts)

Got Your Sunglasses On?

Boy, this card bright! I hope you have your sunglasses on for today's post! I debated sharing it with you because I'm not sure if I like it or not. Here it is anyways!

I started this card with using Stampin' Up! YoYo Yellow for the card base. I embossed just the front using my Stampin' Up! Big Shot and a Cuttlebug embossing folder.

I stamped the plain flower from the Stampin' Up! set, A Beautiful Thing ,in YoYo Yellow ink on Whisper White cardstock. Then I took the flower with the design from the same set and inked that in Glorious Green and stamped directly onto my yellow flower.

I punched out each flower using the 1 3/8 square punch and layered them evenly onto a 3.25 x 4.00 piece of Glorious Green cardstock. I finished off this piece with a little ribbon around the bottom. A sentiment from the SU! Fundamental Phrases set was stamped and added underneath the green piece.

I was going for a summer looking card and that YoYo Yellow from the Stampin' Up! Bold Brights collection sure reminds me of a hot summer day!

Just an FYI - Stampin' Up! is having a Designer Series Paper sale in honor of National Scrapbooking Month! Buy 3 and get the 4th free. Stock up and save today! Sales ends May 31st.

I hope you are having a great week and I'll be back soon! Take care.

Recipe (all supplies from Stampin' Up! unless noted otherwise):

Stamps: A Beautiful Thing (item #113618), Fundamental Phrases (item #114968)

Ink: Glorious Green, YoYo Yellow

Cardstock: Whisper White, YoYo Yellow, Glorious Green

Misc: Ribbon (from Michaels Arts & Crafts), Cuttlebug Embossing Folder

I Like You Berry Much!

Did you know that May is National Strawberry Month? Strawberries are a big hit at my house! I make pie, shortcake, dip, and we just eat them plain too! Locally, they come out in June and I love them fresh off the farm. You can go pick them yourself. The only problem is I eat too many when I'm picking and leave with a stomach ache! It's all good. I plan to take my little one this summer. He will love it! Recipe for Card (All supplies from Stampin' Up! unless otherwise noted):
Stamps: Tart & Tangy, Berry Much (A Muse Artstamps)
Designer Series Paper: Summer Picnic (retired)
Cardstock: Kraft, Whisper White, Real Red
Ink: Always Artichoke, Real Red
Tools: Eyelet Border Punch, 1 3/8 inch Square Punch
Stampin' Dimensionals

Speaking of strawberries, a great summer stamp set to have on hand is Stampin' Up! Tart & Tangy! I used a stamp from this set for my creation above. Not only is it a cute set, it's inexpensive too! You get a strawberry, cherries, apple, and orange stamp. There are 4 stamps in all but really you can make 6 out of it. The orange stamp could also be a lemon or lime depending on how you color it in! Clever? You bet! I like to make the most out of what I buy.

Enjoy those strawberries and pass along to me any good recipes you might have! I'd love to hear from you. Have a wonderful day!

Happy Mother's Day

Happy Mother's Day To All The Mom's Out There!

"M" is for the million things she gave me,

"O" means only that she's growing old,

"T" is for the tears she shed to save me,

"H" is for her heart of purest gold;

"E" is for her eyes, with love-light shining,

"R" means right, and right she'll always be,

Put them all together, they spell
"MOTHER,"A word that means the world to me.

Howard Johnson (c. 1915)

Kick back and relax today! My favorite way to relax is stamping. If yours is too, how about trying out a new technique?

Got a sponge? I used a cosmetic sponge and simply dabbed it on my Stampin' Up! Old Olive and Tempting Turquoise stamp pads, and then brushed it lightly back and forth on my Whisper White cardstock to created a naturalistic background for my butterfly.

It's hard to see in the picture, but the upper left polka piece is raised using Stampin' Dimensionals. The opposing polka dot piece is flat against the card. The scallop circle has Stampin' Dimensionals only on the lower right side and the other half rests against the already raised polka dot piece. Just a little different dimension to add to a card.

The bottom of the card was finished off using one of my favorite Martha Stewart punches. Isn't it neat? Fun, fun, fun!

Are you curious about how Mother's Day came to be? Click HERE for the history.

I hope you enjoy your day today and take time to stamp! You deserve it.

Recipe (all supplies from Stampin' Up! unless noted otherwise):
Stamps: Flight of the Butterfly
Cardstock: Whisper White, Tempting Turquoise, Summer Sun
Designer Series Paper: Petals and Paisleys (retired)
Ink: Old Olive, Tempting Turquoise, Summer Sun, Close to Cocoa
Clear Dew Drops
Tools: Nestabilities, Martha Stewart Punch

Do You See Spots?

Yep, that's right - you are Seeing Spots from Stampin' Up! and those are good spots to be looking at! This stamp set is so much fun. It can be used with any theme. I chose to use it as my background today making my own designer series paper. Hee hee!

The bright colors are Green Galore and Pixie Pink. I tried to put together a bright, fun looking color combination.

To jazz it up a little, I added a little rhinestone to the center of the flower and used Dazzling Diamonds glitter on the petals. I don't try to sell you things you could buy elsewhere cheaper, so take my word for it that this glitter rocks! It's ultrafine and very nice to work with.

Another tidbit of interest for this creation is I wrapped the ribbon around the back of the centerpiece and cut it short in the front. I didn't want the ends to show, so I folded each end in a little and secured it to the card with little white brads. Love it or leave it?

I'm sorry my photograph at the top has a shadow in it. Sometimes my picture taking skills are lacking. I'll get better. I promise! :)

Have a wonderful day and stop back soon! Take care.

Recipe (all supplies from Stampin' Up! unless noted otherwise):

Stamps: Seeing Spots, Best Yet (retired)

Cardstock: Whisper White, Green Galore, Pixie Pink

Ink: Basic Black, Pixie Pink

Accessories (from Michaels Arts & Crafts): rhinestones, white brads, white pen, ribbon

Accessories (from SU!): Dazzling Diamonds Stampin' Glitter

SU! Punches: Scallop Circle, 1 3/8 circle, 1 1/4 circle, Corner Rounder

Celebrate Today!

I mentioned in my last post my husband & I went to see Joel Osteen last weekend in Ohio. His message included thanking God for everything good and right in your life. When you wake up, be happy you can see, walk, have clothes to wear, a job to go to. It's such a simple thing to do, yet I know I am guilty of taking things for granted. I am going to try harder to "celebrate today" each and every day.
My creation goes along with my new theme in life! I hope you like it. It's also fitting for a birthday card too! The "Celebrate" comes from the Stampin' Up! retired set Wonderful Words. It's very similar to Heard from the Heart or Warm Words, another favorite of mine. You could also use Celebrate Everything and really personalize what you are celebrating!

The big scallop circle in the background is the Scallop Circle Die (item #113468) from Stampin' Up! This die is not only great for scallop circle die cuts, but you can also make scallop circle cards from it. If you don't have a die cutting machine and would like scallop circle cards, Stampin' Up! sells Carousel Notes which include 12 cards with envelopes!

I created my own center for the Prima flowers using Stampin' Up! Jumbo Brads and adding a little flower rub-on. Don't be shy about using your rub-ons. They go on practically anything! Gotta love em!

Leave me a comment and let me know what you are going to celebrate today! It could be that your kids are healthy, the UPS man came today with your Stampin' Up! order, or you ate candy for breakfast! The candy for breakfast would do it for my little one!

Have a great day and thank you so much for visiting my blog!

Recipe (all supplies from Stampin' Up! unless noted otherwise):

Stamp: Wonderful Words (retired)

Designer Series Paper: Cutie Pie (retired)

Cardstock: Whisper White, Real Red, Summer Sun

Rub-Ons: Love & Happiness (retired)

Hardware: Jumbo Brads (item #112533), Making Memories Clips

Prima Flowers

Scallop Circle Die (item #113468)

Red Satin Ribbon

The Bold and Beautiful Challenge

I've been gone a couple days, but I'm back! My husband & I went to see Joel Osteen in Columbus, OH this weekend. It was a great time! My little one stayed with my mother overnight for the first time. He did great! I was a wreck as we drove away. :)

Anyways, are you a fan of card challenges? They seem to be everywhere these days from Splitcoaststampers, to scrapbook stores, to personal blogs. I personally am not a big fan of card challenges. When I create something, I like to be all my own from scratch! It's like a personal challenge for me, sometimes torture (hee hee). Silly, I know! However, I understand there are times where you sit there with all these great supplies and don't have a clue what to do with them. That is where challenges can be helpful.

The Stampin' Up! group I belong to has weekly challenges primarily based from Splitcoaststampers. Last week we used SC225. I'm not a faithful participant, but I do try. Here was what I came up with.

I used the bold and beautiful Raspberry Tart Designer Series Paper from Stampin' Up! I paired it up with Whisper White & Old Olive cardstock. The white behind the patterned paper really pops the color. The stamp I used, Elegant Thank You, can be found on the last page of the current catalog. I used Pink Passion ink for the stamped image.

Have a wonderful Sunday and stop back soon! Take care.

Recipe (all supplies from Stampin' Up!):

Stamp: Elegant Thank You (#114484)

Designer Series Paper: Raspberry Tart (#113975)

Cardstock: Old Olive, Whisper White

Ink: Pink Passion