Recipe Book using Flip Flaps

Hi Stampers!

I’m back from Stampin’ Up! Onstage in beautiful Long Beach, California and I’ve got a lot of great news to share with you!

There are a few new changes coming to Stampin’ Up! That I’m really excited about.  The first being new ink pads!  I don’t know about any of you, but I and many of my customers often struggle with opening our current ink pads.  Our new ones will now be magnetic and they are awesome.  The tops lift off easily and are easily replaced.  They are starting small and only switching to the new pads with the 2026-2028 In Colors so the transition will be a gradual one.

Another new change is Stampin’ Up! Will no longer offer a larger annual catalog, but they will offer 3 smaller catalogs through out the year along with their online exclusives.  The catalogs will run from January to April, May through August, and September through December. The first of these three catalogs will be available in May of this year.

New In Colors will be available in May as well; Barely Blush, Crisp Cantelope, Golden Glow, Hydrangea Hue, and Peaceful Pine.  Oh, be still my heart!  Peaceful pine looks like black in this photo.  Rest assured it is a beautiful pine colored green.

Along with these changes are some others relating to products and joining as a demonstrator that I am not now at liberty to share.  Just know there are some really good changes coming.

I also want to share my latest project with you.  But first, here’s how I came up with the idea.  I was searching through my “recipe book” which consists of a gallon size zip lock bag stuffed with recipe cards and sheets of paper looking for a cookie recipe my mom gave me. As I was searching  I said to myself for the millionth time that I need to get my recipes organized.  Actually, who doesn’t?  I found the recipe I wanted, made the cookies, and they were delicious.  Even if I do say so myself.

Later that day I was looking through the Stampin’ Up! Annual Catalog when I noticed the flip flaps they offer for scrap booking.  That’s when the idea hit me.  They have more than one purpose. Not only are they great on a scrap book page to add multiple photos, but some of them are the same size as a 4” x 6” recipe card.  Then the creative wheels started turning and I thought I would make a recipe book to hold my recipes!  I am making one for each child as well with copies of family recipes to pass on to them. How cute would something like this be as a bridal shower gift!  Unfortunately, Stampin’ Up! Doesn’t have a cooking stamp set other than the retired one I found on Ebay  called Perfect Mix.  I did find a few others on Amazon, along with 4 x 6 recipe cards.  I thought the fruit design on the recipe card would go well with the retired Mediterranean Blooms DSP.  Another DSP that would make a great recipe book cover is retired Berry Delightful DSP or retired To Market DSP.  I’ll be using Berry Delightful in my tiutorial video.  There is also be a printable tutorial available.

The retired products I used in this project were Mediterranean Blooms and Berry Delightful Designer Series Papers and Perfect Mix and Citrus Blooms stamp sets.  Enjoy!

 

 


 

Until next time!
Happy Stamping!

Fence/Gate Card with Tutorial

So, we are just back from our second annual trip to Puerto Morelos in Mexico with my daughter and her family. It was a quick trip but refreshing none the less. We spent a lot of time floating around in the resort’s pools and ordering beverages from the bars. All inclusive resorts are great! My biggest concern while we were there was, “What time will we be eating?” LOL!  But alas, we came back to reality a little over a week ago and I got back to the old grind immediately. After a brief episode of scale-shock, I went back to my regular eating and exercising routines.

While in Mexico, we also had the opportunity to swim in a cenote. A cenote is a natural sinkhole that occurs when the limestone rock beneath the ground surface collapses exposing groundwater underneath. They are found mostly in the Yucatan Peninsula which is where we were. The ancient Mayans thought they were sacred places. So, I was not only fortunate enough to get to swim in a sacred place, but I also had the opportunity to swallow a bit of the sacred water as I forgot to plug my nose before I dove in. My husband and I visited one in 2015 during our first trip to Cancun which involved floating down an underground river for a while. The grandkids thought it was impressive (ages 8 to 10) except my granddaughter was a little unsure of the little fish that were swimming around in the water. It was great fun, and the water was a cool respite from the heat and humidity of the jungle above.

There were three entrances to the cenote. The original steps went down to the water through a narrow hole with no railing and unevenly spaced. The second a dive into the water from the opening above. Both entrances were not for the weak of heart. We all opted for the 3rd entrance which involved an uneven set of stone steps and rough railing installed by the park’s owner. There was also an underground diving platform and swing the kids, big and little, enjoyed. My daughter’s significant other eventually gave in to the children’s wishes and dove in from the top. From the view below, it doesn’t look like it’s very far.

 

Enough about my winter vacation! In my quest to find something new to share with you, I found a card technique that you can use that is like the lattice cards I did awhile ago. I’m calling this one a fence card because it is oriented differently than the lattice card and looks more like a fence or gate than a lattice. I’ve typed up a tutorial that you can download if you like. I recommend you watch the video first.  I used Delicate Whispers Bundle that will be available through Stampin’ Up! this month.  I’m including a photo of the bundle and the item number for it is 167506.

 

Enjoy the video!  Sorry my big head got in the way a few times, but at least you didn’t get a close up look of my gray roots!  LOL!

 

 

 

 

Enjoy and Happy Stamping!

 

 

 

 

 

 

It’s Still January, Isn’t It?

 

Happy New Year! I can still say that can’t I?  It’s still January…barely.

Time has flown by quicker than I thought!  My last visit here was in August last year!  Where does the time go?  I know it is very cliché to say that, but it is true.  The older I get the quicker it flies by.  If my yearly New Year’s resolution weren’t to “not make any resolutions,” this year’s would be to blog and share a video more often! But yes, my yearly resolution is to not make one because by the end of the month they are usually forgotten and old habits prevail.  LOL!

It’s like all the new gym memberships that are sold in January!  The classes at my gym have been packed this month.  But all of us regulars say that things will be back to normal by the end of February.  Not many people will make regular gym attendance a committed lifestyle change.  I did a bit of  checking and only 26% of people make a New Year’s  resolution, 12% of people who make them keep them, and 50% of those who make them lose motivation.  So, by not making New Year’s resolutions, I am never going to be part of those statistics.  LOL!

I am currently taking an improv comedy class that started the first week of January.  It meets weekly and has proven to be a great deal of fun!  It’s like an adult play date.   We play improv games and laugh often.   And our instructor is fabulous!  I did improve a million years ago when I was on my university’s speech and debate team, and it was great fun. I have been a regular cast member of the Dinner Detective True Crime Murder Mystery Dinner Show since 2019.   Sometimes I am even fortunate enough to be able to be the show’s host. Good improv skills are important when performing.  Heck, they are important in anything we decide to do. There are Dinner Detective shows nationwide and if you are ever looking for something fun and special to do you will never forget or regret attending one.  When this improve class is over, I’m seriously considering signing up for another or perhaps a writing class.

So, I finally had card club again this mont after taking November and December off.  Even if I say so myself, the cards were great.  I thought I would share them with you!

My first card is a slimline cared.  I’ve always wanted to make one of these and I finally did.  I used the Petals of Beauty and Words of Beauty Bundles for this one.  I copied the layout for this card from another card that I made somewhere along the line in another card class that I took from another Stampin’ Up! person a few years ago.

 

Here’s what I used on this card:

  • Petals of Beauty and Words of Beauty Bundles
  • Secret Sea, Darling Duckling, Basic White, Old Olive and Vellum card stock
  • Secret Sea, Darling Duckling, Calypso Coral and Early Espresso Ink
  • Glass Embossing Folder (Retired)
  • Spotlight on Nature Dies
  • Rhinestone Basic Jewels

Another card we made is for Valentine’s Day. It’s a very simple card and I love it!

For this card I used:

  • Valentine’s Day Stamp
  • Bubble Bath, Real Red, and Basic White cardstock
  • Made with Love DSP
  • Real Red Ink
  • Sweet & Sassy Framelits Dies (Retired)
  • Radiating Stitches Dies (Retired

And a third card we made is:

Finally:

  • Nature’s Symphony Bundle
  • Simply Said Stamp Set
  • Very Vanilla, Crumb Cake, and Pretty Peacock  cardstock
  • Beautiful Patterns Embossing Folder
  • Crumb Cake and Pretty Peacock Ink
  • Crumb Cake Stampin’ Blend
  • Pearls (colored with Crumb Cake Stampin’ Blend)
  • Sponge Daubers (sponge around embossed piece with Crumb Cake ink)
  • Linen Thread

So that’s it for this month.  Perhaps next month I’ll have a video. If you need cardstock measurements for any of these feel free to email me!

Until next time!

Happy Stamping!

 

 

 

 

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Floating Easel Card

Hi Stampers!

It has been a long time, but I do have a new video for you today!  I’ve created what I call a floating easel card for lack of better terminology.  It’s an easel card with a window so that’s why it is floating.  If any of you can think of a better name for it, I am definitely interested in hearing what you would call it.

I used the Mixed Florals Bundle and the Beautiful Butterflies Bundle to make this card, but it would work with any stamp set you might have.  I love the colors in this too.  I used Melon Mambo, Highland Heather, and Lemon Lime Twist.  It’s definitely a summer time card and even though it is almost the end of August and school has started for a lot of the country,  I am not quite ready to put my summer stuff away.  Fall doesn’t start until September 22nd so I am one of those people that says…”Keep your spiced pumpkin latte’s until then”  LOL!

As always, I am providing you with a freed PDF tutorial for this project.  I hope you enjoy making this card as much as I did.

 

Enjoy the video and as always…

Until next time…

Happy Stamping!