Blog MOVED!!!

I now have my very own website! Please come and visit my blog at www.PaperAndStamps.com! See you there! Meredith

Updates to Gifts Galore Class...

I have added pictures of three more projects to the Gifts Galore class! See previous post for links! I've started getting in orders, so for the best selection, choose your projects quickly!

Fourth Annual Gifts Galore Stamp Camp

Hi folks, Are you eager to create some handmade Holiday gifts this year? This is the perfect chance! I will be holding my 4th annual Gifts Galore Stamp camp on Saturday December 1st and Sunday, December 2nd. The class will be held in Gilroy, so if you are from the South Bay Area (San Jose, Morgan Hill, Gilroy, Hollister, San Martin) I'm in your neck of the woods. Of course anyone willing to head my way is welcome to attend. This class is different than most, I prepare samples of a variety of different projects... and since everyone has different gift giving needs, you get to pick which ones you make! Whether you need 20 Coaster calendars, or one of every project on the list, the flexibility of this is class is for you! So... what should you expect out of this class? First, we set the mood... There will be hot spiced cider simmering away for your sipping pleasure (and that great scent that fills the room)... holiday tunes playing in the background, and a fantastic set of people to chat with while you're creating away. I will have as much of the pre-work (cutting papers, organizing supplies, etc) done before you arrive as possible. This is where your project and color pre-selections are important! Once you arrive, you'll get your supplies for a day of fun! Sample projects are out, and I wander around to give instruction on how to put together your projects, offer assistance when needed, and make sure you're having a great time! (Yes, I **KNOW** this requires chocolate!!!) Ok.... so what can you make?

Fantastic stuff! Some items are perfect as stocking stuffers, some are very nice gifts you would be proud to give to your family and friends.

For your conveneince, I have created a handy-dandy little set of worksheets to help you plan your holiday gift giving. The file linked below has an sheet where you can jot down who you need to have gifts for, gives you some suggestions on which class projects are good for the kids, or for the grandparents, for co-workers, etc, and it includes an order sheet you can email back to me and still photos of the projects.

Holiday Gift Guide/Order Sheet

Please register for the class with your item choices no later than November 27th. I have limited quantities of some gift choices, and they will be alloted first come first served basis... so get your choices in quickly! I can accept cash, checks, Discover, Visa, Mastercard, and Paypal. Contact me by phone or email to register (I'll be out of the area Friday 11/16 though Monday 11/19, but will return your call/email ASAP upon my return).

I hope you'll join us!

Meredith

Help bring baby Drake home and have fun making cards at the same time!

Drake was born with VATER syndrome, which is a set of congenital anomalies that tend to occur together. He is two months old, and has already been through three surgeries, with others that will be necessary in the future. Drake has been in the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU) since his birth, but there is hope that he will be able to go home soon! The proceeds from my World Card Making Day event will be donated to the Fields family for use on the many costs associated with bringing him home. (Many who have attended my classes know my dear Friend Diana, who is Drake's mom.) As an Independent Demonstrator for Stampin’ Up!®, World Card Making Day is giving me the chance to hold a fun, hands-on event that will also make a difference to a wonderful family during a difficult time. I hope you will consider joining us! All skill levels are welcome. One of the greatest joys in my life is to see someone discover their creativity and then share it with those they love. In this class, you will receive the materials and instruction to create 40 quick, easy and cute cards. The kit will also contain a take home template so that you can create additional sets of cards with any of our Simply Scrappin' kits. For the class, choose a Holiday themed kit, or an multi-occasion (non-holiday) themed kit. Event Info Date: Saturday, October 6th, 2007 Cost: $45.00 Location: Forest Park Inn, Gilroy, CA Register by: September 21, 2007 Please bring your favorite adhesive and a pair of scissors (I can include these with a pre-order if you need them).

To Register Contact: Meredith Kofnovec (408) 846-9896 meredith95037@yahoo.com http://www.stampinfun.blogspot.com/

Holiday Kit:

Multi-occasion (non-holiday) Kit:

Please feel free to send this class information to anyone who may be interested. I also have a flyer that I can email to you if there is someplace that you can post one... break rooms at work, church bulletin boards, etc. Please help me get the word out so that we can make a big difference for this family! Stampin' Up!®, a Silver Sponsor of World Card Making Day, is a leading manufacturer and distributor of decorative rubber stamps and accessories for card making, scrapbooking, and home décor. For more information, please visit: http://www.stampinup.com/

Club Challenge - August Results

Wow, you ladies did a fantastic job! I knew I had a very creative group... thank you again for playing along! This was a challenge for my two hostess clubs. I posted the original challenge here. I prepped and cut supplies for everyone and they created something using those supplies... the fun was seeing how different all the results were. Patti's Shirley's Natasha's (Outside and inside) Lori's Cary's (Outside and Inside) Amanda's (Outside and Inside) Lisa's And last, my original design.

VSN Entries

Last night I participated in a few online challenges as a part of a Virtual Stamp Night on one of my favorite websites. Each challenge has a set of rules to follow, or a theme... but they all have one thing in common... you only get 45 minutes from reading the challenge to create something! I tend to take forever when I'm designing projects from scrap... so these challenges really are challenges for me... but I figure it's good for me and if I do it often enough, maybe it will start to be easier? That's the hope anyway! Challenge One: The first challenge that I participated in was the "Smashing Autumn" one, whiwch was to Make a card using fall colors and the Ink, Spray and Smash technique. Well, I hadn't ever heard of that technique before... so it was definitely fun to try something new! In this technique, you use LOTS of newspaper spread out and rubber gloves (or you'll get ink everywhere... believe me... I thought I wouldn't really need the gloves, that I was just using them "in case" but I was sure glad I did use them! lol). You mist a piece of Glossy White cardstock with water, then drop or dribble re-inkers onto it. You then mist a second sheet of paper, and sandwich it on top of the first and smash them together to transfer the ink. Pull them apart, and you can keep doing this for several sheets of paper before you fade off to very light shades transferring over. The challenge said you could do up to 10 sheets, I think we did about 6 before it looked like it was about done... but this probably varies with how heavily you apply your original re-inker. The challenge hostess, Faith, posted a picture tutorial on her blog... check it out here.

Stamps: Thoroughly Thankful, Season by Season Paper: Chocolate Chip, Glossy White, Whisper White Ink: StazOn Jet Black, StazOn Timber Brown Accessories: Choc. Chip Wide Grosgrain ribbon, Reinkers, Watercolor Wonder Crayons, Aquapainters Techniques: Ink, Spray and Smash This is a pretty simple card other than the background. For the background, I used Summer Sun, Really Rust, and Pumpkin Pie reinkers. I stamped my main image on a 3 1/4" x 3 1/4" Whisper white piece of cardstock and watercolored it in using the Watercolor Wonder Crayons and an Aquapainter. If I were to do this card again though, I would choose Very Vanilla or Naturals Ivory paper instead of the Whisper white... so that it would harmonize better with the muted look of my background. The white seems a little start to me... but since I only had 45 minutes to work in, there was no time for a switch! The ribbon is attached with glue dots, this is the new wide grosgrain ribbon that we started carrying this year, I love it! The main image is matted onto a 3 1/2" x 3 1/2" piece of Chocolate Chip paper, and attached with dimensionals. I stamped "Autumn" right on top of the background using the Timber Brown StazOn ink, then mounted the whole thing onto a standard sized (8 1/2" x 5 1/2" folded in half) Chocolate chip card base.

Challenge Two:

The second challenge was a "Trick or Treat" challenge where you were to create a treat holder out of a 2-4-6-8 box. I have done these types of boxes in classes before, but for new folks, or as a refresher, here's how you do it...

1. Take a piece of cardstock 5 1/2" x 8 1/2".
2. Along the long side, score the paper at 2".
3. Turn the paper 90 degrees, and score along the short width at 2", 4", 6" and 8".
4. Cut along the heavy lines in the diagram below (the small piece at the bottom right is discarded)
5. Stamp and decorate the upper 2" wide panels as desired. The 2" x 2" squares at the bottom will become the box bottom and will not be seen, and the 1/2" wide panel on the top is used to glue the sides of the box together and will not be seen.
6. Apply sticky strip as shown with the red lines below. I find that this placement of the sticky strip holds my box bottom together best without gaping flaps.
7. Fold up the bottom squares in the order indicated in blue, removing the red protective barrier on the sticky strip as you go to adhere the next square.
8. Remove the red protective strip from the last piece of sticky strip along the top edge and adhere to the panel next to it (shown in diagram as the far left panel, but after you adhere the box bottom together, it will be overlapping the section with the sticky strip) to close the side of the box.

Stamps: Spooky Skyline Jumbo Wheel Paper: Vellum cardstock Ink: Stazon Jet Black, markers, Elegant Eggplant, Night of Navy Accessories: Night of Navy grosgrain ribbon, Elegant Eggplant grosgrain ribbon, Vintage brads, 1/16" punch, sponges, Jumbo Wheel Handle For the challenge, I created the 2-4-6-8 box using vellum cardstock, then scored an extra 1/4" at the "top" of the box so that I could fold it down as a cuff. The scene was made by inking the wheel in StazOn, then letting it dry. On the back side of the vellum, I colored over the black ink with markers. Then to create the colored bands in the scenery, I sponged Elegant Eggplant over the tree portion, and Night of Navy above (though it's hard to see in the picture). The ribbon is adhered to the cuff with sticky strip. Then a ribbon handle was added by punching a 1/8" punch through opposite sides of the cuff and the Elegant Eggplant ribbon and using Vintage brads to hold them together. Challenge Three: The final challenge for the evening (at least for me!) was "Falling in Love...With Baby". The challenge was to make any card that was for a new baby or an expecting mom/couple. I was stumped at first, then jackpot! I had an idea.

Stamps: Wanted, Event Full, Jumbo Outline Alphabet Paper: Chocolate Chip, Naturals Ivory, Whisper White, Creamy Caramel Ink: Chocolate Chip, Creamy Caramel Accessories: Markers, Metallic eyelets, Choc. Chip wide grosgrain ribbon, Bashful Blue narrow grosgrain ribbon, dimensionals, scallop punch, water mister, cutter kit Techniques: Distressing

The size of this card is 4 1/4" X 7 1/4". I stamped "Wanted" and the "For Escape" onto the main piece of Naturals Ivory. I colored in the outline alpha with markers (darker where the letters overlapped). Then the main piece was distressed... Edges with the cutter kit, then direct to paper on the edges with the Creamy Caramel ink pad, then sponged in with Caramel a bit further. I then misted the whole piece of paper with water and crumpled it up... then dried with the heat tool so that I would stay within the 45 minutes! I adhered the layered ribbon with sticky strip.

The "Sweet Pea" is from the hostess set Event Full. I colored it in with markers, except the face. The blush blossom marker is a little too dark to look right for skin tone for my pale family, so I do the face with watercolor wonder crayons and an aquapainter. It is trimmed out and layered with dimensionals onto a Creamy Caramel scallop. The scallop is layered with more dimensionals over the ribbon. The main piece is then matted onto the Chocolate chip paper using the metallic eyelets. How fun! I kept giggling the whole time I was making this card. :) Yes, I'm a dork!

Have fun, and if you create something with one of these techniques or ideas, please send me a picture! :)

World Card Making Day - October 6th - Save the Date!

Yeah Baby! In preparation for my MEGA World Card Making Day class... half of my Christmas cards are done!! Done, I tell you, DONE!!! Now I just need to do the other kit up to be *really* finished... and to make sure I have an idea on how long to expect this set to take to create. So, what's it all about? The first Saturday of each October is World Card Making Day. To celebrate and get in on the action, I will be holding a special MEGA class on that day. We will be using Simply Scrappin' Kits that have patterened paper, textured cardstock, self adhesive die cuts. I'll have the supplies cut and ready for you to assemble, and add your sentiments. You'll also have the template used to take home with you... and you can use the same template on any of the Simply Scrappin' kits in the current catty that strike your fancy! That's 40 cards in just one session... Fantabulous! I love the bright, cheery, semi non-traditional color combo of the Winter Bright Simply Scrappin' kit.

Please note the new poll over on the right hand side asking for your preference on times for this event. I'm also working up a set of non-Holiday cards with another kit (see my messy "in progress" table below). My intent is to give each person their choice between the two kits... and possibly the option of doing two class kits' worth (I'll know more once I finish my second set of cards now that they're all designed to see how long the assembly and stamping part takes).

Plus, we'll have a fantastic special for FOUR days only (Oct. 4th - 8th)... 20% off any of the Simply Sent kits in the beginning of the catalog (pages 12-14)! I've been holding off getting one of these kits, just prioritizing other things first, but I'll definitely be picking some up now. They're great to have on hand when you need a card quick... and are also a great gift. It's an easy way for someone to try out stamping to see if they like it since everything you need is right in there. Which simply Sent kit is your favorite? Post in the second poll on the right (if you're one of my stamping customers and vote, you'll be entered in a prize drawing)! I hope you'll join us in celebrating World Card Making Day on October 6th! Meredith

Fall Frenzy Promotion (Sep 1-30)

Woo hoo, I LOVE these kinds of promotions! During September, when you purchase $30 of regular priced merchandise, you can select Fall Frenzy Promotion During September, spend $30 in regular priced merchandise and qualify to purchase one of each of the six promotional stamp sets at 30 percent off! DOWNLOAD FILE Stamp Set - Item # - Page - Discounted Price Bitty Boos Too - #105355 - Page 26 - $12.57 Haunting Halloween - #109284 - Page 29 - $13.27 Thoroughly Thankful - #107383 - Page 30 - $16.07 Autumn Fest - #109373 - Page 108 - $16.77 Elementary Essentials - #109421 - Page 91 - $19.57 Stem Silhouettes* - #110366 - Page 17 of the Holiday Mini Collection 2007 - $22.37 * The Holiday Mini Collection will be available online on 9/1! Check out this link after 9/1 to see the new mini collection. They're very nice... and I LOVE, LOVE, LOVE that they are all die cut! I mounted three new sets from my mini preorder in just 15 minutes! Yes!!! Meredith

Halloween Themed Stamp Camp - Sep. 15th

Host: Meredith Kofnovec Location: Meredith's House7666 Santa Inez Ct., Gilroy, CA 95020 US View Map When: Saturday, September 15, 7:00PM - 10:00PM Phone: (408) 846-9896 Cost: $18 per person It's getting to be that time of year when we start preparing for the spooky fun of Halloween! I'm still working out the details on the projects... but at present the ones I have in mind are a treat basket, Special Monster spray to keep the monster's away, a home decoration idea, a non-candy treat since many schools are requiring that this year... and of course we have to throw in a candy treat too! You are welcome to invite friends... and will receive a gift from me for each new friend that you bring. Please make sure you include them in your RSVP so that I will have all the materials available! :) Please RSVP by 9/6 as I need to pre-order some supplies for this class.

Subscribe for Email Updates

Another cool new thing... If you look over on the left there at the top of the column, there's a new little box that will allow you to subscribe to recieve an email when I update the blog... that way you'll never miss out on any of the fun! Meredith

Three For You Punch Box Samples

Ooohhh, isn't this fun?!? I just learned how to add a gallery of some recent projects. The promotion to receive the FREE 30 textured Love Notes ($12.95 value) with the purchase of the Three For You Punch box ends on Friday. If you want in on this fabulous deal, you need to act fast! Many of these projects were CASE'd and modified from wonderful SCS users. Thanks all for your inspiration!

Club Challenge - August

The challenge that I am giving to my club members this month is a blind project. I put together a card using the new True Friend stamp set and Boho Friend wheel that are featured in the upcoming Holiday Mini collection. The little goodie bag that you received (or will receive) at your club meeting has all the pieces that I used to make the card. (See below)

Your challenge is to make something using these pieces... but you don't get to see my card first! You are NOT trying to figure out what I did, the fun is going to be in seeing how different all the projects come out when everyone started with the same pieces.

Here are the "rules"

• You must use at least part of everything in the project bag
• You may cut the pieces
• You may use any one other stamp (the same stamp as many times as you want)
• You may use any one other accessory (ribbon, eyelets, hardware, etc)
• Don't show your creation to any other club members...

Bring your finished creation with you to the next club meeting and give it to me on the sly. We'll put them all out and have a guessing contest for who created which card. The person with the highest number of correct guesses will win a prize. :)

If you have any other questions, please post with a comment and I'll get answers back out so everyone can see.

(If you would like information about joining one of my stamping clubs, please ask for more info... we would love to have you!)

Pick Your Family promo... want $191-$232 worth of free stuff?!?

Hot news... Hot news... Hot news... Stampin' Up! just published our newest promotion! This one is special for those who have ever thought about joining the Stampin' Up family... my family! Now through the end of September, when you purchase the Starter kit, you also get to choose a whole color family of classic ink pads to be added to your kit! That's an extra 12 ink pads... an additional $57.95 value. The starter kit is already a fantastic deal, but when you add in the extra pads, it's almost irresistable. The value of the kit is over $390, but is just $199 to purchase! You can see the starter kit options by clicking here. It's also on the inside back cover of the catalog. You can swap out which stamp sets and ink colors to be included in the main kit, and there is an optional Stampin' Memories add on too that makes the kit an even better value (over $481 value for just $249). Plus, as I posted earlier, each new person that signs up with me get to choose a stamp set out of my special stash! What have you got to lose? Contact me with any questions. I can't wait to build my little family! Meredith

Faux Silk Class Samples

In last weekend's technique class, I also taught the Faux Silk technique. I just love the look of this one. I'm not sure the camera is doing justice to this technique... so if you're local, ask me to take a peek the next time you're by. Here is the one we actually made in class: Stamps: Bud Basics, En Francais, Carte Postal Ink: Certainly Celery, Wild Wasabi, Brocade Blue, Brilliant Blue, Regal Rose, Rose Red Paper: Rose Red (hidden base), Rose Red, Whisper White, Brilliant Blue Accessories: Two way glue pen, Dazzling Diamonds glitter, both oval punches, Liquid Glue, Tissue Paper, Glue dots Techniques: Faux silk This one has lots of little sparkle accents with the dazzling diamonds glitter. I love the bling, and don't mind that I ALWAYS wind up wearing some of the glitter! As it turns out, I could have just used a Regal Rose card base since you don't see the Rose Red base in the final card... but I wasn't sure what I was going to wind up doing as I designed the card, and I had alread cut and was using the hidden Rose red. The centers of the big flowers have a glue dot applied to the tissue paper, and then the glue dots were sprinkled with dazzling diamonds (DD). The Bonjour sentiment was circled just outside the white part with a two way glue pen and then sprinkled with DD. And these two were additional samples Stamps: Snow Flurries, Many Merry Messages Ink: Brocade Blue, Brilliant Blue Paper: Brocade Blue, Whisper White, Brushed Silver Accessories: Tissue Paper, Liquid glue, Stamp-a-ma-jig, Bashful Blue grosgrain ribbon Techniques: Faux Silk This card was a nice & easy to put together, and I love how simple it is. It is a 3" x 6" card... fun to do a different size. Stamps: Baroque Motifs Ink: Wild Wasabi, Brilliant Blue Paper: Whisper White, Wild Wasabi, Brilliant Blue, Soft Sky Accessories: Tissue paper, Liquid Glue, Bold Brights Brads Techniques: Faux Silk This panel card was interesting to make. I wanted to try doing the faux silk with a different colored background paper to see how it would look. I used Soft Sky under the tissue paper, and it winds up with a more mottled look than when you mount it on white. I made the whole large panel at once, then cut it up into the three sections. The edges seem to have stuck down fine, but I would be careful handling this card too much since those tissue edges are unprotected after they are cut. Looking back, I probably should have just added an acetate piece over the panels and attached it with the brads in the corners. Happy stamping! Please feel free to ask questions in the comments section. Meredith

Faux Leather Cards

Okay, so this is the card I mentioned in my July 30th post that was an additional sample in class for the Faux Leather look. I was going for the "pleather" very fake leather looking stuff. I thought the card was fun and bright. For my technique class, we created one card using each of the three techniques, a technique card with instructions and a small sample of the technique, and I showed two additional samples using the technique. We had a great turnout and it was a lot of fun! The second sample uses Booglie eyes, these guys are just so darned cute! I wanted to have the faux leather look like the little mummy's bandages. I tore strips of masking tape instead of little pieces. I coated them in white craft ink and tried to dry them with the heat tool.... which wasn't happening very quickly. The masking tape seems to take longer to heat when you're emboss anyhow, and then with using craft ink... it just was taking a while. Since this was in the last hour before class, I gave up after a few minutes and continued with the card. I sponged on some Going Gray ink, then coated with clear embossing powder and embossed. No more issues! The sentiment was added word by word using the Stamp-a-ma-jig so that I could have them in a row instead of top to bottom as the stamp is. Stamps: Booglie Eyes Paper: Basic Grey, Whisper white Ink: Going Grey, Basic Black Marker Accessories: Masking tape, Basic Grey taffeta ribbon, Clear embossing powder, stamp-a-ma-jig

Three For You Punch Box Promotion & Class & Sneak Peek

We're having a PROMOTION this month! This brand new punch box includes a 9-piece die-cut stamp set (click here to see it at the right of page 183), a Trio Flower punch, 3 Stampin' Spots (small ink pads) in the colors Basic Black, Wild Wasabi, and Purely Pomegranate {2 of the brand new In Colors!} all packaged in a keepsake tin. And with Stampin' Up's August promotion, you will receive an exclusive set of thirty textured 3" x 3" Love Notes (10 each of So Saffron, Purely Pomegranate, and Wild Wasabi) with Very Vanilla envelopes. This set of textured Love Notes is valued at $12.95 and is not sold in the catalog- you can only get them with this promotion! I am offering a special class on Sunday, 8/19, to get you started using your new kit, we'll make up some of your new Love Notes and some bonus cards at this stamp event. Card designs and instructions in addition to layering cardstock, ribbons, and brads will be provided for you to use with your new punch box. The class fee must be prepaid by August 8th to get the punch boxes in time for the August 18th stamp event date.

Contact me for more details! Here is a sneak peek at some of the class projects...

Looking for a good home

It's that time again when I have gone through my treasured stamp sets and have picked a few that need to find a good home. Some of these retired just this year, and some are from the past couple of years. If you are interested in applying for the title of "good home" ;) let me know which sets you would like. These are first come, first served. I'll try to keep this post updated as sets are claimed. NUM = New, Un-Mounted Loved = Used, some may have staining, but the stamping performance is unaffected All Around Argyle (Level 3 Hostess - Loved) $28 PENDING All I Have Seen (Loved), $15 Artifacts (Mounted, but I don't think it has been used) $23 Basket Full of Fun (Level 3 Hostess - NUM) $30 Best Barcodes (Loved) $15 Beyond the Basics (Loved) $12 Birthday Best (Loved) $13 Blooming with Happiness (Level 1 Hostess - NUM) $15 Flowers for a Friend (Level 3 Hostess - NUM) $28 PENDING Flowers of Gratitude (Level 1 Hostess - NUM) $12 Holiday Blocks (Hostess Appreciation set - NUM), $20 In Any Event (Level 2 Hostess - NUM), $22 In Full Bloom (Loved) $25 Love It (Level 2 Hostess - Loved), $22 Measure of a Life (Level 2 Hostess set - NUM), $22 Mon Ami (Loved) $15 Provencal (Level 2 Hostess - NUM), $22 Sew Seasonal (Loved) $28 Simply the Best (Hostess Appreciation - NUM), $20 Springtime Stems (Level 1 Hostess - NUM) $15 Found a Home Stipple Celebrations (2 Stamps mounted & loved, rest NUM) $25 The World Over (Level 1 Hostess - NUM) $15 Treat Yourself, (1/2 loved, 1/2 NUM) $30

It's beginning to look a lot like Christmas.....

Well, maybe not... but I've started thinking about Christmas projects. These were some cards that I put together using some of the new Dashing paper (click here). I still have a ton left of even just this one pattern, guess I should go make some more projects! These pieces were cut from a One Sheet Wonder template, which is a template where you make a bunch of pieces from a single sheet of stamped or patterned paper to create projects from. It is a great way to make projects that coordinate without being all the same. Would you be interested in having a class on One Sheet Woners? (You can post a comment below.) I've also started making a list of project ideas for my annual Gifts Galore Stamp camp in December (this has so far been my most popular event each year). The projects in this stamp camp are all items that can be given as gifts, as well as fun gift packaging ideas. I create a project list and prices for each project, and then you get to choose which projects and how many of each you would like to make for gifts. Some ideas for this year:

• All In the Family Frames, similar to the sample on page 77 of the F/W collection here
• Decorated Plates to use as Candle holders
• Decorated On Board Bitty Books as mini photo albumns (unfinish book here) These would be great to contail the kids school pictures for the year to send to grandma!
• Mailboxes for Santa, decorated mini mailboxes as a decoration, or a place for special kids to leave notes for Santa!

Happy stamping!

Scrapbook Samples

I've been working on samples for this weekends technique class... and don't want to spoil the fun before class... so I'm posting some Scrapbooking pages that we did in a previous class. These used a Simply Scrappin' kit that is now retired, but we have some great new ones on pages 174-177 of the Fall-Winter Collection (click here)

Incentive Program - Join my family!

Hi folks, I am really wanting to earn the Incentive trip this year (an all expense paid trip for two to Hawaii!!!!!), so with that in mind, I am launching another Incentive... incentives to join my Stampin' Up! family! Stampin' Up! has all kinds of demonstrators, some who just want a discount on thier own purchases, some who do just classes, some who do home workshops, some who make it a full time business, and everything in between. If you become a demonstrator with me, I'll help you to set goals that fit *your* life and *your* dreams. Whether that is making enough income to cover your minimums to stay a demonstrator, earning enough to pay for an amazing trip to Convention next July, or aiming to join me in Hawaii! Being part of my Stampin' Up! family means having help and support when you need it, fun group meetings, trying new techniques together, occasional swaps, and much more! Incentive Program: When you Join you get:

• To pick an additional stamp set from my special stash
• Project instructions and samples using just the starter kit materials so you'll be off and running with ideas
• A binder of inspration sheets with additional project instructions and samples (these will no longer be offered by Stampin' Up!)
• A fabulous upline (Me!) who wants to help and share this business with you. I would LOVE to have a stampin' family!

As you promote to new titles by 6/30/07, you will earn the following from me:

• 1st Promotion: $25 gift certificate
• 2nd Promotion: $25 gift certificate
• 3rd Promotion: $50 gift certificate

And if for whatever reason, you need to drop your demonstratorship, you are always welcome to return to being my customer! Come on... you know you wanna! Let's have some fun! Meredith

Faux Shaving Cream Cards

I made another sample using the Faux Leather technique to show in class this weekend (secret 'till after class!)... and while trying to create something I liked, I wound up with lots of extra accents that weren't right for *that* card. So I created other cards with the ready made pieces! The two flowers were made using the Faux Shaving Cream technique that was taught at Convention last year. The brighter flower was the first stamping, the paler one was another stamping without re-inking.

Bright Flower card: Stamps: Office Accoutrements, Garden Annuals Wheel, It's Your Birthday Ink: Pink Passion, Brilliant Blue, Only Orange Paper: Ballet Blue, Pixie Pink, Whisper White Accessories: White Grosgrain Ribbon Technique: Faux Shaving Cream

Softer Flower card: Stamps: Office Accoutrements, Fine Lace Background Ink: Pink Passion, Brilliant Blue, Only Orange (all stamped off once) Paper: Ballet Blue, Pixie Pink, Whisper White, Orchid Opulence Accessories: Rich Regals eyelets, Two Way Glue Pen, Dazzling Diamonds Glitter, Markers, Key Tag Punch Technique: Faux Shaving Cream, Thumping (for "Original" Sentiment) The Thumping Technique is done by thumping the brush end of your markers randomly over the surface of the stamp. Start with your lightest color, then the next lightest, etc, graduating to the darkest color you are using. Huff on your stamp (Open your mouth and breath heavily on it) to remoisten the ink and stamp! Voila! Have a great day! Meredith

August Technique Class Sneak Peek

Okay... here it is! This card uses the Faux Leather technique that I will be teaching in the class on August 5th. Let me know if you would like details about attending the class! RSVP's are due by August 2nd.

Convention News - Unconfirmed

Hi folks! Some of the wonderful demonstrators at convention this year (lucky ducks! I *really* wanted to go again this year... I haven't had that much fun since... I can't remember when!) anyway... off topic a bit there... the wonderful demo's are posting some news. Since I'm not there in person, I'll list this as unconfirmed at this point, but I suspect it is accurate. ALL sets in ALL future mini collection catalogs will be die cut... not just the upcoming mini collection!! Wahoo!! I think this will be great! All too often, my new sets sit unused for way to long because I haven't gotten around to mounting them yet, so I hope this will get me using them faster and creating more great projects to share with my stamping friends. So far, they are not saying that the whole collection catalog will be die cut. I guess time will tell on this one! Also, we will be getting a fantastic update to our Demonstrator Business websites. The sneak peeks I have seen are simply gorgeous... and there will be a ton of new functionality. I'll be able to post my class/event calendar and color code the dates by event type... so you can easily find the exact type of event that you're interested in. We will be able to do newsletters, eCards, and the equivalent of Evites through our main website. I can't wait! They will be rolling the new changes out later this summer... I'll be sure to post when the changes are ready for you to check out!

August Technique Class Invites out

Back by popular demand... technique classes! I'll be hosting one on Sunday, August 5th. Evite invitations have already gone out for this class... please let me know if you would like to be added to the invitation. August Technique Class Info: In this class, we will be learning three techniques... Faux Leather, Tye-Dye Wax Resist, and Faux Silk! Check back in a few days for a sneak peek of one project!

Getting ready for Swaps

I'm getting ready for a swap! I am so excited... it's been a while since I've participated. This swap was full, but someone had to drop out and they were in search of an angel (a swap angel is someone who can join a swap with very little notice and fill a vacant spot). Here's the finished card: And my table as I do my assembly line stamping!

Stamps: Priceless and En Francais

Ink: Purely Pomegranate, Wild Wasabi, Versamark

Paper: Purely Pomegranate, Soft Sky, Wild Wasabi, Shimmer White

Accessories: Antique Brass Hodgepodge Hardware, *new* Taffeta ribbon in Whisper White

These cards are very fun to make. I CASE'd the layout from Sharon's gorgeous card here: Sharon's Card and swapped everything out for brand new stuff! I thought the small swirl pattern in the Priceless set would be very cute as stems for the heart "flowers". I used my trusty Stamp-a-ma-jig to line them up the crutch in the swirl with the point of the hearts. This was done on a 2 1/2" x 3 1/2" piece of Shimmer White paper for a little sparkle. The piece was then matted with a 2 5/8" x 3 5/8" piece of Wild Wasabi paper. Slip on a Hardware clip and tie a know with the gorgeous new ribbon. The card base is an 5 1/2" x 8 1/2" piece of Soft Sky cardstock, scored at 4 1/4". "Priceless" was inked in Wild Wasabi and stamped into the lower left corner of the base. I was so sad when the French script background stamp was on the retired list since I loved it and used it all of the time... but I have to say I love the new En Francais even more!!! This stamp is just gorgeous. I inked it up in Versamark and stamped it onto a 4 1/4" x 2 5/8" piece of Purely Pomegranate. They adhere all these pieces as shown in the finished picture. Happy stamping! Meredith

Hot News! Holiday Mini sets are ALL die cut!

Wow, even more exciting news! ALL of the stamp sets featured in the Holiday Mini collection will be die cut... which means no trimming! You just pop them out of the rubber sheet and apply them to the wood block. Thanks, Stampin' Up! They realize how busy we are during the Holiday season, and this will be a great time saver... we be able to use that time savings to create more projects! The mini collection will begin mailing out in the middle of August, and will be open for ordering from September 1st to November 30th. One of the great benefits of being a demonstrator is that I get to see the mini collection early, and am able to pre-order supplies in the month before everyone else can. So join us for a class in August to get a special sneak peek at new products! There are some great new Christmas sets, a really cool double sided giant snowflake stamp (the size of a background stamp, and you mount the solid snowflake on one side of the block, and the outline snowflake on the other, cool!), new Chipboard, new designer papers (love the Apple Cider set!!) and gorgeous double sided wrapping paper! I think I'm going to go broke! lol

Sell-a-bration 2008!!

We just received news that Sell-a-bration 2008 will be held from Feb. 1st through March 17th, 2008! By pushing it back a little farther, it will allow us to order from both the new Spring-Summer Collection (will be out on January 2ND) and the Occasions Mini Catalog (March 1st - May 31st), while earning free stamp sets! Wahoo! I love free rubbah!

Pics from July Stamp Camp

I often get inspiration from stamping friends online, and preparing for this class was no different. The Three For You Punch box card "Thinking of You" combined two ideas I saw on SCS... 3D punched flowers from Julesstampin and faux polka dot ribbon from douthit5. Thanks to you both! This card uses two of the new In Colors (Wild Wasabi and Purely Pomegranate... yummy!).

The Birthday Birds card was inspired by a CASE (Copy And Share Everything) of a CASE supposedly originating from a convention sample several years ago. I just love these little guys! This uses the new Zoofari and Hugs and Wishes stamp sets, and four of the new In Colors.

Another idea from SCS was to use the Pick a Petal set petals to make the wings of a ladybug! I've seen this idea on SCS many times, so I'm not sure who the originator was. This set is so fun to play with and this is a great "out of the box" idea for it. Also showing off a new Fire Circle rhinestone brad. This last picture shows three cards. The far left is one that I received in a swap from my good friend, Laurie Wilson... isn't it fantastic?!? The middle one was posted on the Demonstrator website by Stampin' Up!, and the far right is another card that I used the 3D Punch box flowers on with the new colors. All images copyright 1990-2007 Stampin' Up!

Happy new blog to me!

Happy new blog to me, Happy new blog to me, Happy new blog for Meredith Happy new blog for me!! Well folks, I am trying to enter the electronic era! I plan to post pics of new stuff I'm working on, share class photos, post new info, and link to other great resources to use in your quest for wonderful stamped creations! Please feel free to drop me a note or comment anytime to let me know what you would like to see, or if you have any questions that I can answer. P.S. I am completely new to this... so it may take me a bit to figure it all out! LOL