Just One More Curve

On November 30, 2020October 18, 2023 By JanetIn Uncategorized

Hello Friends!

I hope you all had a wonderful Thanksgiving and have recovered from the self-induced food coma that inadvertently follows the Thanksgiving meal! Our Thanksgiving was extra special this year. My son, Adam, who’s a cowboy in Nevada, called me Wednesday morning just to chat. During the course of our conversation he mentioned that he was driving on icy roads. I asked him where he was headed and his reply was, “To see you!” This momma instantly got teary, as it’s been several years since he’s been able to join us for Thanksgiving, or any holiday for that matter! What a fantastic surprise that was! It’s been too long time since I’ve had all three of my beautiful kids home together under the same roof! Yes, Thanksgiving was truly a day to give thanks!

I love the holidays and I love cooking for family and friends. As usual, I told myself I’d keep it simple this year, stick to the tried and true recipes. But…what fun is THAT? I love trying new recipes and always manage to throw in something NEW and untried when large gatherings are anticipated! This year was no exception!

Dean wanted to smoke our turkey(s) this year which left me with a dilemma… What would I do about GRAVY? Thanksgiving REQUIRES mashed potatoes and gravy, right? So to the internet I turned and found a “Make-Ahead Turkey Gravy”. Perfect! The recipe called for 6 turkey wings which are then roasted in order to get the drippings for making gravy. I thought sure, why not; turkey wings are SURELY super cheap, right? I mean, who would buy turkey wings after all – they’re not exactly the prime piece of turkey! Well, was I ever in for a surprise! I ended up paying $5 per turkey wing (x6)! The recipe said I would yield about 8 cups of gravy…NOT! I followed the directions to the “T”, using 2 quarts of chicken broth, and even throwing in an extra cup of “Better Than Bouillon”. All said, I only ended up with about 4 cups of turkey gravy. Thankfully it turned out to be enough, but that gravy ended up costing about $35! It was delicious, however, and received several compliments! Note to self… next time use chicken wings/thighs/drums which ARE cheap – pretty sure nobody would know the difference!

I also elected to try a new corn casserole this year. For years now, our Thanksgiving dinners have included a type of creamed-corn casserole that we affectionately call “Landon’s Corn”, as my nephew, Landon, absolutely went nuts over this corn when he was a little boy (he’s now 32)! Given the Covid concerns this year, we didn’t do our usual huge family gathering and I elected to try something different with the corn, since Landon wasn’t going to be there anyway. Thankfully the new corn casserole was delicious also and will now go into the Thanksgiving meal repertoire! I think Landon will approve of this one too, once we’re able to gather in large groups again!

At any rate, my crafting time has been minimal the last few weeks between cattle and Thanksgiving. We finally bought the last of our cattle a week ago – our herd is now complete! Unfortunately, a few of them have started coughing so the round-up of the coughers ensued with treatment of antibiotics. There’re still a few looking a bit droopy today, so we’re keeping a close eye on them and will treat with antibiotics again if needed!

I decided to make “just one more curve” before I move onto some of the other new items in the upcoming catalog! Today’s card is a quick and easy Christmas card using the Christmas Curvy stamp set and Curvy dies. It also features the Classic Christmas DSP which is only orderable NOW during the pre-release, as is the Christmas Curvy stamp set! Neither of these items will be in the new catalog, or orderable, once the new catalog goes live on January 5! If you’re interested in either, order NOW while you can!

LET’S GET INKY!

Continue reading “Just One More Curve” →

Are you the KIS type; or Give It Everything You’ve Got?

On November 21, 2020October 18, 2023 By JanetIn Uncategorized2 Comments

Hello Friends!

Just wondering how many of you out there are the Keep It Simple (KIS) type of crafter, versus “I’m going to put a little bit of everything I have in my crafting supply” type of crafter? I tend to be the latter, and often have to remind myself that “it doesn’t all have to go on ONE card!”.

It’s a tendency I’ve always had, I think. I tend to over-complicate things, and over-think things. Sometimes it takes a gentle nudge from family or friends to remind me that sometimes simple is better! Be it preparing for the holidays, i.e. I’ve got to decorate every room in the house, have all matching dishes, silverware, tablecloths, centerpieces, for every table (our family has gotten quite large over the years!), the exact same number of presents for everyone under the tree; to I want to know all there is to know about a certain subject and won’t rest until I feel I’ve studied it to death; to did he/she really mean what he/she said, or is there more to the story? – and come up with all sorts of scenarios in my head.

I’ve heard the exasperation in others’ voices many times in my life – “You’re making it too complicated, you’re overthinking it – QUIT!” And, it’s true; I do have that tendency and I know it. And, it carries over into my crafting as well.

So, today I decided I would start simple, and gradually add to my creation. I’ve been paper crafting for decades now and have a, ah-hmmm, “very comprehensive collection of supplies”. However, I know that isn’t necessarily the case for all of you, so I wanted to scale back, starting simple if you’re a crafter with minimal supplies, and step it up gradually.

I often have a hard time knowing where to stop when I’m working on a project, and by the time I’m done, I’ve thrown “a little bit of everything” onto it and for the most part, am generally happy with the results.

But today, in dialing things back and then comparing all three cards – simple, moderate, more complicated – I learned something. I actually like the more moderate card (middle) the best. While I’m overall pleased with the final result (more complicated), in comparison of the cards, I don’t really think it needed the extra supplies, time and effort.

Here are the three versions below. Let me know in the comments which one you like best. I actually went ahead and submitted the second one to the CASology card challenge this week; the theme is “stag”. Of course, CAS stands for Clean And Simple, hopefully the the second one is clean and simple enough!

Are you able to see the progression?

The first card is quite basic but still very effective.

Continue reading “Are you the KIS type; or Give It Everything You’ve Got?” →

Quite Curvy – My New Go-To

On November 18, 2020October 18, 2023 By JanetIn Uncategorized

Hello Friends!

I’m back today after a bit of a blogging pause due to increased activity on our ranch. It’s cattle-buying season and we’ve been busy going to auctions, hauling cattle home, and “working” them once they’ve had a couple days to settle in. What does “working” them mean, you may ask? Well, each calf we buy, we run through the “squeeze-shoot” and give each one a numbered ear tag, a series of vaccinations and wormer, antibiotics if they have any sign of cough or runny nose, and use a scalpel to turn any bulls into steers. It’s sometimes wild, always loud, and a very busy time for sure! I always sleep well after a day of working cattle, and I don’t even do the hard part! Dean does all the man-handling, I just draw-up the multiple injections, make sure the ear tag and back (think over-sized earring) is loaded in the “tagging pliers”, log the new ear tag number with the auction number/color of the animal and whether they got antibiotics; and hand Dean the scalpel and latex gloves when he hollers “BULL”.

I know it’s not for everyone, but I sure do enjoy ranch life! There’s just something about going out each day to feed and care for the animals, listening to the cattle “moo” , the horses “neigh”, the smells, the muck after a heavy rain, and getting the boots and jeans dirty. There are days in the middle of winter when it’s just downright cold and nasty outside that I think I’d rather snuggle up by the fire with some cardstock and rubberstamps, but once out there with the cows and horses, it’s all good again. And when the morning chores are done, I kick off my muddy barn boots (outside), hang my coat over a chair to dry, and cozy up to the fire to warm up. Life on the ranch is good!

But, back to why you’re here!

Did you know that the new “Spring” catalog will be out very shortly? Along with the January-February SALE-A-Bration catalog?

As a demonstrator, I have them in my hands already and because of my attendance at OnStage, (Stampin’ Up’s event for demonstrators only which was done virtually this year due to “the virus”), I was able to order a select number of products from the new catalog which I received a few days ago! While I can’t show you the inside pages of the catalogs yet, I can show you the covers of them! And, I’ll be sharing some of my new products with you soon!

For those who may not remember, SALE-A-Bration, it’s that time of year when, for every $50 or $100 you spend on Stampin’ Up product, you earn FREE products from the SALE-A-Bration catalog! There are multiple exclusive stamp sets and designer series papers (DSP) in the Sale-A-Bration catalog that you can get for FREE! Yes, I said FREE! Trust me, you’re going to want it ALL!

There’s so much crafting goodness between those covers, I just can’t wait to begin giving you glimpses of what’s in store!

The stamp set and dies I used for today’s card is in the new catalog and IS AVAILABLE TO ORDER NOW! That’s right, the new Quite Curvy stamp and die set can be ordered NOW! Just click here to go to my Stampin’ Up online store where you can get a better look at all this set has to offer! I must confess, it’s fast becoming a favorite of mine!

I know this card looks very similar to my last post. If you follow through my instructions on that last post, under “Let’s Get Inky!”, you’ll see that I forgot to take pictures of the process of putting together the front panel, so I made another one with a different DSP across the middle for “instructions” sake.

Today I used that panel to create this card using the same layout, just different stamps. I think I already mentioned this, but Quite Curvy is fast becoming my “go-to” stamping bundle!

So, here we go!

LET’S GET INKY!

Continue reading “Quite Curvy – My New Go-To” →

Love The Curves – Quite Curvy Bundle That Is!

On November 6, 2020October 18, 2023 By JanetIn Uncategorized6 Comments

Hello Friends!

I’m back today with another Quite Curvy card. I do love the curves! Did you know that YOU can now order this fantastic bundle? As a demonstrator, I was able to pick this up before it went “public” and I’ve been experimenting with it for a little while now. AND NOW YOU CAN ORDER THIS SUPER-DUPER SET, TOO!

I’ll admit that when I first saw this bundle of products, I was not overly excited about them. I waited several days before I went ahead and ordered it. But, Oh My! I’m so glad that I did! The Quite Curvy stamp set is extremely versatile with sentiments for birthday, thinking of you, love you, and even a simple hello. And birds…they’re adorable! Who doesn’t like birds, right?

As far as Curvy Christmas, what an easy way to make beautiful Christmas cards! I combined the curves with poinsettias on my last post, but I’ll be bringing you MORE ideas using this exclusive stamp set, and the exclusive “Classic Christmas DSP” in the next few days!

However, today I needed a birthday card for the first man I ever loved… my dad! His birthday is coming up in the next few days and I have to say, at age 84 (almost), he’s still looking good and could likely out walk, out work, and out think me! I am blessed indeed to have a mom and dad as devoted to God and family as they are.

Another big announcement! Starting today I get to attend the Stampin’ Up OnStage event which is held every year for demonstrators only. It’s an event that spans three days and is held in multiple locations across the country. Ours (for the western region) is generally in Portland, OR. I attended last year for the first time and oh-my-goodness, such fun! Unfortunately, this year because of “the virus”, it’s being held virtually and I’m “attending” with my sister and other team members from home. Thanks to you all…I’m being recognized for achieving my sales goals this year! So, a huge thank you to all of you who’ve placed orders with me over the past year! I thoroughly enjoy being your Stampin’ Up demonstrator and look forward to continuing to serve you in this manner, hopefully giving you some creative inspiration along the way!

As part of the OnStage event, I get an early look at the new January-June, 2021 Mini Catalog (spring catalog) and even get to place an early order from it! I’ll be giving little sneak peeks of new products as I’m allowed per Stampin’ Up guidelines over the next several weeks! May I say (sing), “I’m so excited, and I just can’t hide it, I’m about to lose control and I think I like it!”

Okay, so that’s the Pointer Sisters and I’m aging myself here! (Yes, I was an ’80’s teen!) Stampin’ Up hires special music for these events and this year’s musical artist is ….. Pat Benatar! So, hit me with your best shot, fire away!!! Again, (heavy sigh) the concerts will be virtual, so not nearly as fun as in person, but I’m sooo looking forward to new ideas, networking with other demonstrators to learn how I can better serve you, my loyal customers and blog subscribers, during our OnStage event! Fingers crossed that next year we’ll be back to “normal” and able to meet up in person!

Continue reading “Love The Curves – Quite Curvy Bundle That Is!” →

Curvy Celebrations: It’s Almost Here!

On November 2, 2020October 18, 2023 By JanetIn Uncategorized4 Comments

Hello Friends!

Are you ready for some fresh stampin’ inspiration? Get ready for Curvy Celebrations! It’s almost here…just a few more days!

In anticipation of the new January – June, 2021 Mini Catalog’s release on January 5, 2021, Stampin’ Up is offering an early release bundle from this catalog! It’s just in time for the holidays and the WHOLE variety bundle is only available during the pre-order period which begins on November 3 and runs through January 4!

The Quite Curvy Variety Bundle is shown below.

After January 4, you will no longer be able to get the Curvy Christmas stamp set, or the Classic Christmas DSP – these two items are EXCLUSIVE to the preorder period.

The Quite Curvy stamp set, which is very versatile for many occasions, and coordinating Curvy Dies, will continue and be in the new catalog.

Remember, if you order products in a bundle, you’ll save 10% off the purchase price!

The Curvy Christmas stamp set is fabulous for it’s country rustic images, but add in the Curvy Dies, and suddenly you’ve taken your project from cute, to WHOA-worthy!

Here’s an up-close look at the Classic Christmas 6″ x 6″ DSP. I’ll be using it in tomorrow’s blog post!

Just look at that curved border edge on my project today, and the curved sentiment that runs so perfectly along it! May I say, WHOA? I’m loving this set so far and can’t wait to share more of it with you! These dies make it sooo easy to dress up a card to FABULOUS, especially when paired with that gorgeous Brushed Metallic Cardstock!

My color choices were inspired by Color Throwdown Challenge 617 (#ctd617):

To get that chartreuse green, I had to pull out some retired SU cardstock, Lemon-Lime Twist. I also chose to use my Wink Of Stella glitter pen to jazz up my Lemon-Lime Twist sprigs!

So with no further ado:

LET’S GET INKY!

Continue reading “Curvy Celebrations: It’s Almost Here!” →

Have A Spooky Halloween

On October 27, 2020October 18, 2023 By JanetIn Uncategorized2 Comments

Hello Friends!

I’m back with a quick card for the Fusion Card Challenge “Purple Night”.

This challenge is as below. One can use just the sketch for inspiration, just the picture, or both. I decided to go big or go home and went with both.

I bought the Camouflage background stamp several months ago, but had yet to use it. I decided it would be great for making a “spooky” purple background. I actually used three different stamp sets to achieve my final result.

I don’t think of the tree stamp in “Life Is Beautiful” as spooky, but given that it’s photopolymer, it’s easy to bend the stamp around a bit to give it more insidious look. And, of course, Festive Corners filled in for the rest of the “spooky” look!

LET’S GET INKY!

Continue reading “Have A Spooky Halloween” →

Keeping It Clean & Simple

On October 26, 2020October 18, 2023 By JanetIn Uncategorized4 Comments

Hello Friends!

I’m playing along with card challenges this week; this one from CASology with the theme “DRY”. As the name implies, “CAS” stands for Clean And Simple. This is hard for me, as I prefer using lots of layers, texture, and of course, bling! But, always up for a challenge, I decided to play along! (#CAS376)

Last night Dean and I took an evening hike up to our future cabin site (AKA Janet’s future stamp-camp site!). The crisp evening air, the changing color of the leaves, and the sunset were spectacular!

This is where Dean proposed to me 8 years ago, and whether it’s because of this, or just simply the beautiful scenery, or both, this spot elicits a magical feeling inside me. I can’t be in that spot and not wrap my arms around him and say….YES, YES, YES, a thousand times YES! I am so very blessed to love, and be loved by, him. We stayed up there and watched the sun set before we made our way back down the mountain in the dark.

And, oh my, after the sun set it got very cold! When we reached home, I made my way down to the barn and put blankets on my boys (horses), which they seemed to greatly appreciate judging by the snuggles I got! Yes, Fall is certainly here! And, our walk is where my inspiration for this challenge came from; lots of “dry” autumn leaves on the ground!

Continue reading “Keeping It Clean & Simple” →

Repeat a single image for maximum effect

Repeat A Single Image For Maximum Impact

On October 24, 2020October 25, 2020 By JanetIn Uncategorized6 Comments

Hello Friends!

Today I popped over to SUO Challenges to find that this week’s challenge (#SUOC260) was “Birthdays”. Well, that leaves the door WIDE OPEN to create as one pleases! Who doesn’t need birthday cards, right? Birthday and Thank You cards are by far my most needed cards to stock up on! With not a lot of time for creating lately, I elected to select just a single stamp and repeat this image across the page to maximize it’s effect. Flowers work especially well for this technique.

Sponging ink is one of my favorite ways to create a background, layering the color to achieve some depth. Just remember to always start with the lightest color first, and then build upon that with the darker colors, overlapping and blending with the color before. Keep a piece of scratch paper underneath your panel, and start the sponging process on the scratch paper, working your way onto the cardstock to prevent a heavy “smudge” of color. (Maybe I like sponging ink because I usually end up with INKY fingers, which ranks right up there with horse-dirt on my hands!)

In this case, I chose to start with Balmy Blue. I started at the top and applied ink about three-quarters of the way down the panel, letting it lighten the further down the panel I got.

I then moved to Pacific Point. Again, start at the top and work your way about two-thirds of the way down into the Balmy Blue, allowing the color to fade as you move down the panel.

Finally, I topped it off with just a hint of Night of Navy across the very top.

I used my Stamparatus to assure continuity in height of my poppies across the panel, stamping the taller flowers first, and then coming back in with the two shorter flowers.

I colored the poppies with Stampin’ Blends Combos: Pumpkin Pie and Old Olive.

As usual, I couldn’t leave the card front looking pristinely clean, so out came a Stampin’ Spritzer with a little bit of water and a single drop of Night of Navy ink from a re-inker. A couple squirts across the top of my “sky” gave it the little bit of distressing that I feel adds more character to a piece. I think either looks great, it’s just a personal preference of mine to give an image some distressing!

Pristinely clean versus Slightly distressed

I wrapped a piece of Braided Linen Trim across the front, securing the ends with tape on the back; tied a small bow with the same Braided Linen Trim and applied with a glue dot.

The “happy birthday” sentiment is from the Timeless Tulips stamp set and stamped on a scrap of Whisper White CS in black ink. I then hand trimmed it into a rectangle.

I used the Triple Banner Punch to crop the ends of a scrap of Pumpkin Pie DSP from the Regals Designer Series Paper, and applied the sentiment on top of it.

Three graduating sizes of Champagne Gems in the right upper corner finished it off with some bling!

This card is easily reproduced without a lot of fuss, so it’s easy to make several to keep on hand for upcoming birthdays!

The cool Fall weather we’ve been experiencing has gotten me back outside and in the saddle more. I managed to chalk up three rides this week!

We also brought home our first load of steer calves for the year.

The grass is growing and turning green again, even while my flower beds are dying back and almost ready to be tucked in for the winter.

The house was a little cool last night when we got home with our calves, so Dean built the first fire of the season in our woodstove as well.

Now it’s time to put on a pot of homemade soup and bake some cookies!

Oh how I love this time of year! YAY FOR FALL!!!

I hope you’re enjoying the change of seasons as much as I am!

Again, thank you for stopping by and sharing a little part of your day with me today!

The products I used for my #SUOC260 (SUO Challenge) card are listed below. Each picture is a clickable link to my online Stampin’ Up store. If you have questions, need help placing an order, or just want to say hello, please feel free to comment below, or use the “Contact” tab at the top of this page. (If you’re using a cell phone, click on “Main Menu” and a drop-down list will appear from which you can click on “Contact”).

Until next time, I hope you get INKY!

Janet

Product List

Painted Poppies Cling Stamp Set [151599] $23.00	Timeless Tulips Photopolymer Stamp Set (English) [151534] $18.00	Regals 6″ X 6″ (15.2 X 15.2 Cm) Designer Series Paper [153073] $11.50	Whisper White 8-1/2″ X 11″ Cardstock [100730] $9.75	Tuxedo Black Memento Ink Pad [132708] $6.00
Balmy Blue Classic Stampin’ Pad [147105] $7.50	Pacific Point Classic Stampin’ Pad [147098] $7.50	Night Of Navy Classic Stampin’ Pad [147110] $7.50	Stamping Sponges [141337] $4.00	Stampin’ Spritzer [126185] $3.00
Night Of Navy Classic Stampin’ Ink Refill [103033] $3.75	Banner Triple Punch [138292] $23.00	3/16″ (1 Cm) Braided Linen Trim [147808] $7.00	Champagne Rhinestone Basic Jewels [151193] $6.00	Mini Glue Dots [103683] $5.25
Stamparatus [146276] $49.00	Paper Trimmer [152392] $25.00	Pumpkin Pie Stampin’ Blends Combo Pack [154897] $9.00	Old Olive Stampin’ Blends Combo Pack [154892] $9.00

How To Make A Paper Hoarder Share Her Stampin’ Up Stash

On October 21, 2020October 20, 2020 By JanetIn Uncategorized4 Comments

Hello Friends!

I’m blessed with a cute little 7-year-old granddaughter, named Kambria, who loves, loves, loves to craft with Grammy. She definitely got my genes when it comes to pretty paper, ink, rubberstamps, and lots of embellishments! She and I can pass an entire day away in my craft room NO PROBLEM!

In fact, this little cutie began scrapbooking with me when she was 3-years-old. I’ve been a “scrapper” since my children were babes and she loved looking through my albums when she would come to see us. I didn’t work Fridays, and so before she was of school age, she would come hang out with Grammy & Papa every Friday while Mom and Dad worked.

Noting that she could spend hours looking through scrapbooks and looking through all of my pretty paper piece by piece by piece; and drawer upon drawer upon drawer of “embellishments”, I introduced her to papercrafting at a very young age. It wasn’t long before she was asking, “Can I scrapbook with you, Grammy?”

Though everything is digital these days, I still have a lot of my pictures made into prints (someday I’ll get around to scrapbooking all of them…) and so I’d let her look through the envelopes of pictures and pick out several that she wanted to scrapbook.

As a paper lover (hoarder), it was very difficult for me to let her have free pick of my paper stash, ribbon, gems, etc. But, with some guidance and eventual reorganization of my supplies, i.e. you can use anything in this cupboard, this tote, this box, this drawer…I did learn to share!

A darling little grandchild can make any paper-hoarding grandma share her stash!!!

Here are just a few of her scrapbooking beginnings. Washi tape and glitter glue were big on these first pages!

As time has gone by and my focus turned more to card making, hers has likewise shifted that direction. Now the second she hits the front door, the first words out of her beautiful little mouth are, “Hi Grammy! Can we make cards today?”

And that leads me to the here and now! She spent the day with us a few days back, and I was putting together a shaker card. As a girl after my own heart, who loves a little “bling”, the sequins in my shaker card were quite “swoon-worthy” to my little princess, and she wanted to make one too.

Soooo, of course we did!

She decided hers would be for her friend, and her friend likes cats…”I mean, like REALLY likes cats, Grammy!”

Without blinking an eye, I knew in that moment, I had to bring out “the good stuff”. Yep, current Stampin’ Up catalog stuff. If Kambria wanted to make a shaker card with cats, by golly, she was going to have the best cats I had!!!

And just like that, I handed over my “Playful Pets” suite of products. So much for “This is your paper, stamps, ink, embellishments to play with!” At age 7, with four years of paper-crafting experience behind her, I guess she’s earned the right to graduate to “the good stuff”. She’s had a good teacher after all! Of course, letting go is never easy, so we’re testing the waters carefully with a paper-hoarding Grammy’s ever-watchful eye as to exactly WHAT & HOW MUCH she’s using! LOL!

She wanted to make her shaker card in the same layout that I’d used, so that was easy.

She then proceeded to tell me exactly what she wanted in terms of cardstock, DSP, sequins, and she wanted her window to read “BFF”… “with hearts, Grammy”. This little girl was suddenly in charge of the craft room and completely in her element! With a little help on measurements and guidance on how to put it all together, 7-year-old Miss Kambria made her first shaker card for her “BFF who likes cats…I mean, REALLY likes cats!”

Oh how I love days with my grandkids; and finding something that we enjoy doing together IS PRICELESS! I have many fond memories of crafting with my grandma…it just runs in the family I guess! Kambria will look back at her early-years scrapbook and smile someday, remembering the time spent crafting with Grammy.

And that, my friends, is how you make a paper-hoarder share her stash!

My card features the stamp set Butterfly Wishes; Artistry Blooms DSP; Square Vellum Doilies; Playful Alphabet Dies; Whale Of A Time Sequins.

Kambria’s card features Playful Pets DSP & Dies, Playful Alphabet Dies; Be Mine Stitched Dies; Playful Pets Trim Combo Pack; Poppy Parade Sequins.

A list of the products with links to my online store are noted below.

Thanks for stopping by today!

Until next time, I hope you get INKY!

Janet

Product List

Butterfly Wishes Cling Stamp Set [149346] $23.00	Playful Alphabet Dies [152706] $34.00	Window Sheets [142314] $5.00	Artistry Blooms Designer Series Paper [152495] $11.50	Night Of Navy 8-1/2″ X 11″ Cardstock [100867] $8.75
Whisper White 8-1/2″ X 11″ Cardstock [100730] $9.75	Square Vellum Doilies [152484] $5.00	Stamping Sponges [141337] $4.00	Whale Of A Time Sequins [152461] $6.50	Night Of Navy Classic Stampin’ Pad [147110] $7.50
Bermuda Bay Classic Stampin’ Pad [147096] $7.50	Coastal Cabana Classic Stampin’ Pad [147097] $7.50	Water Painters [151298] $12.00	Foam Adhesive Strips [141825] $8.00	Playful Pets Designer Series Paper [152489] $11.50
Flirty Flamingo 8-1/2″ X 11″ Cardstock [141416] $8.75	Real Red 8-1/2″ X 11″ Cardstock [102482] $8.75	Basic Black 8-1/2″ X 11″ Cardstock [121045] $8.75	Playful Pets Trim Combo Pack [152466] $7.50	Pets Dies [152705] $23.00

Sometimes We Just Have To Press On

On October 17, 2020October 17, 2020 By JanetIn Uncategorized2 Comments

Hello Friends!

In deliberating what direction I wanted this post to go, I pulled out the Stampin’ Up! Press On stamp set.

This is a perfect set for the coffee lover in your life, but it also contains some really good encouragement sentiments to remind us that sometimes we just have to press on. I think all of us can look back at this year, 2020, and apply that “press on” attitude!

I needed a thank you card, however, and so used the “A cup of thanks” sentiment from the Stampin’ Up! Press On stamp set. I really like how the In Good Taste DSP can be used to simulate a kitchen counter with tile backsplash, and chose to use this effect for my card. Don’t forget that this designer series paper, as well as the Heartwarming Hugs DSP that I used for the coffee cups, is all on sale, 15% off, until the end of this month. Stock up while you can!

I don’t know if you noticed, but I tried to make the kitchen counter as authentic as possible – complete with coffee cup ring, spilled coffee beans, and coffee grounds! Now, if only we all had an Alice (Brady Bunch) to tidy up after us, right?

LET’S GET INKY!

Materials:

Stamp set:

Stampin’ Up! Press On stamp set

Paper:

In Good Taste DSP (Designer Series Paper) – 5 1/8″ x 3 7/8″
Heartwarming Hugs DSP – scraps of 3 different patterns for cups
Early Espresso CS (cardstock) – 5 1/2″ x 8 1/2″ – fold in half at 4 1/4″
Real Red CS – 5 3/8″ x 4 1/8″ (cut 2)
Whisper White CS – 5 1/4″ x 4″ (cut 2) + scraps for sentiment tag and coffee lids
Sahara Sand CS – scrap for 3 cup-wraps

Ink:

Tuxedo Black Memento Ink
SU (Stampin’ Up) Real Red Ink

Accessories/Embellishments:

Soft Suede Combo Stampin’ Blends
Wrapped In Texture Embossing Folder
Crystal Effects
Brown Glitter
Stampin’ Chalk Marker
Dimensionals

PUTTING IT TOGETHER:

Stamp the coffee to-go cup image on three different colors of the Heartwarming Hugs DSP, then using snips, fussy cut them out.
Stamp the top “lid portion” of the same stamp on Whisper White CS x 3, and then fussy cut the lids out.
Adhere lids to DSP cup images.
Stamp the mid-portion of the same cup stamp onto a scrap of Sahara Sand CS and fussy cut the center-section cup-wraps out.
Place the three Sahara Sand pieces into the Wrapped in Texture embossing folder and run through Stampin’ Cut & Emboss Machine.
Adhere the textured cup-wraps to center of DSP cups.
Set the 3 cups aside while we work on the card base background.
Apply one of the Real Red mats to the Early Espresso card base front.
Take the In Good Taste panel that you cut for the card (Stacked stone/tile on front & gray on back) and cut 1 3/8″ from the long edge.
Adhere the larger piece with tile side up, to the top of one of the Whisper White mats, leaving a thin white border.
Randomly stamp some coffee beans (from Press On stamp set) on the gray side of the 1 3/8″ piece of DSP, in black ink, allowing some to go off the edge of the paper. Color coffee beans with Soft Suede Blends. I colored the whole bean in the light Soft Suede, and then simply highlighted the middle line of the bean with the dark Soft Suede marker.
Squeeze a little dot of liquid glue to the tip of your finger and smudge it onto the gray DSP (countertop). Sprinkle a little bit of brown glitter (from my stash) “coffee grounds” over the glue and let dry.
Adhere the stamped gray DSP below the tile piece and butting edges up.
Place dimensionals to the back of the three (3) coffee cups and apply to image panel equally spaced over the gray DSP (countertop).
To create the coffee ring around the bottom of the first cup, I drew a thin line of clear Crystal Effects (from my stash) around the bottom of the cup and let it dry. I then used the Dark Soft Suede Stampin’ Blends marker, small tip, to draw over the Crystal Effects, giving it some color. I then used the Light Soft Suede Stampin’ Blends to somewhat fill in the ring.
The “A cup of thanks” sentiment was stamped in black ink onto Whisper White CS and then I used my paper trimmer to cut the rectangle tag.
I had a narrow strip of Real Red CS which I trimmed to length and applied to the center back of the sentiment tag. The whole thing was then adhered with liquid glue to the card front.
Stamp the heart image from “Press On” in Real Red above the first cup, and use a white chalk marker to hand draw some “steam” lines.
Adhere the entire image panel to the red mat on card base.
For the inside of the card, I used a 1″ strip of the same gray DSP (1″ x 3 7/8″), and again stamped some coffee beans randomly across it. I colored the beans the same as I did above, and added the heart in Real Red to the center.
Stamp the inside sentiment in black ink to the Whisper White panel, and adhere the stamped 1″ gray strip to the bottom, leaving equal borders.
Adhere the Real Red mat to the inside of the Early Espresso card base, followed by the white stamped sentiment panel.

DONE!

Whether a coffee lover or not, I think this card will brighten someone’s day. So, let’s keep on Pressing On! 2020 will soon be over and I hope you’ll all join me in praying for a calmer, “less memorable” 2021!!!

If I can assist you in anything Stampin’ Up, or “crafty” simply reach out to me via the Contact tab above! I’d love to hear from you, even just a simple hello to let me know you’re all still pressin’ on!

SU has a new promotion coming SOON. This promotion, Curvy Celebrations, includes early-release products from the January–June 2021 Mini Catalog in addition to exclusive Christmas products. It includes a 10% discount when purchased all together with the Quite Curvy Variety Bundle item number.

Some of the items in this variety bundle are only available during the pre-release order period! I got mine today and will be sharing it with you in the next couple days, as the bundle will be orderable by YOU, my customers, on November 3. The promotion-exclusive items will only be available in the bundle between November 3 – January 4, so take a look at at the bundle and decide if you’ve “gotta have it”, as you’ll get more with the bundle during the promotion than after the new catalog comes out (the promotion-exclusive items will go away).

I’ll have more on that for you in my next post!

Thank you for taking some time today to check out what’s happening at Bright Acres Creations! Please don’t hesitate to reach out to me with questions, suggestions, or a simple “hello”! If I can assist you in placing an order, please just let me know. I’ve included the Stampin’ Up products used for today’s card below, and each one links back to that product in my online store.

Just as a reminder, both packs of DSP used today are now on SALE, 15% off, though the sale prices aren’t reflected below. If you click on the link and go to my online store, it will be listed at the correct sale price there.

Keep on pressing on my friends!

Janet

Product List

Press On Cling Stamp Set [153392] $22.00	Heartwarming Hugs Designer Series Paper [153492] $11.50	In Good Taste Designer Series Paper [152494] $21.00	Early Espresso 8-1/2″ X 11″ Cardstock [119686] $8.75	Real Red 8-1/2″ X 11″ Cardstock [102482] $8.75
Sahara Sand 8-1/2″ X 11″ Cardstock [121043] $8.75	Whisper White 8-1/2″ X 11″ Cardstock [100730] $9.75	Wrapped In Texture Embossing Folders [153574] $8.00	Stampin’ Cut & Emboss Machine [149653] $120.00	Paper Snips [103579] $10.00
Paper Trimmer [152392] $25.00	Tuxedo Black Memento Ink Pad [132708] $6.00	Real Red Classic Stampin’ Pad [147084] $7.50	White Stampin’ Chalk Marker [132133] $3.50	Soft Suede Stampin’ Blends Combo Pack [154906] $9.00
Stampin’ Dimensionals [104430] $4.00	Multipurpose Liquid Glue [110755] $4.00