2nd Round of Stampin' Up 2014 Holiday Mini Catalog Product Videos

Here's my second round of 2014 Holiday Mini Catalog product videos. ( I forgot to mention yesterday that email subscribers need to click on this post title to get to my blog to watch the videos!)
 
Have a great weekend and enjoy!

Star Boxes video tutorial:

Simply Pressed Clay Ornament Video:

Snowflake Card Die Video:

A Stampin' Up New Year's Resolution

This Post is from the Stampin' Up Blog and was written by Melody H, a Stampin' Up Concept Artist, click here to go to it.    I'm posting it because stampers must think a lot alike - I did the same thing this year!  I gave cards to my sister and niece, and I had my customers come over and go through my swap cards to put together their own card gifts!

 "Continuing a Resolution"

In January, I decided that one of my resolutions for the year would be to work on my Christmas gifts throughout the year (instead of driving myself crazy during the last three months).  I love to give hand-stamped cards. To me, they are the gift that keeps giving because they're meant to be given away to someone else.

My relatives have expressed a need for cards—sometimes more often than I can make them. My goal was to make enough cards to give everyone a stack they can use throughout the year.

Many of the cards I gave away this year were from kits that were left over from my monthly card class. Some were from other random creating sessions. I loved that I had a purpose for what I was creating and it was fun to see the box I was storing the cards in fill up as the year went on.



I purchased a couple of the Festive Flurry Ornament Kits and used them as the embellishments on each gift.



It was so fun to see everyone's reactions as they flipped through the cards. I feel as if the packs of cards were a huge success, so I'm going to make it a tradition.

Melody H.
Concept Artist

Merry Christmas and some Stampin' Up Holiday cards!

I hope that everyone had a wonderful Christmas celebration with family and friends!  I also hope that you all have a New Year filled with joy and good health.  As I look to next year, I pray that I can handle the challenges ahead; this past year and a half have truly been difficult for me.  Since my husband passed, I feel like half of me died with him; I now understand how Humpty Dumpty can't be put back together again. 

I know that all of us face some kind of challenge daily, so I pray for all of us.  Living is hard, but have faith that you will be guided to a better place and given the strength to deal with whatever comes your way. 

So, for now, let's stamp and think about pretty things!  Here are some cards I've made the past couple of months.  A couple were inspired by cards I saw on our Demonstrator website made by fellow demonstrators Dee Slater, Kay Kaltoff, and Lorri Heling (thank you fellow demonstrators!), a couple are from Kits in the Holiday Mini Catalog, and a couple are from my imagination!  

Also, I want to give you all a heads up that tomorrow Stampin' Up is going to add more goodies to the Clearance Rack, so click here on Dec. 27th to take a look.  Hope you like the cards and Happy New Year!

SU Simply Pressed Clay Mushroom Ornaments

This article is from the Stampin' Up Blog here; it was written by Cindy B., Sr Staff Writer:

 

Stampin' Up!’s new Simply Pressed Clay is lightweight, easy to mold, and absorbs ink beautifully.  Cindy has a Scandinavian Christmas theme at her house, so she thought she would try to make some mushroom ornaments for her tree.

To make the cloche (covered) ornament, Cindy cut the stem off a plastic glass using a dremel (or tool of your choice). She ran wire or twine through a clear bead, created a loop for hanging, and adhered the bead with hot glue to the top of the cup.  Cindy then covered the edges of the cut glass stem by encircling it with gold garland; she used hot glue to adhere it.

Cindy made a circular base for the cloche ornament using the Big Shot, Circles Collection Framelits, and Pool Party Cardstock.  Be certain to reinforce the circular base by adhering it to Coaster Board.

Finally, Cindy hot glued the mushroom to the circular base then dabbed hot glue around the rim of the plastic cup and adhered it to the base.  Ta da - what an amazing idea!
 

Sour Cream Container "Countdown to Christmas" idea using Stampin' Up's Morning Post Numbers stamp set

This post is from today's Stampin' Up blog here.  I love the idea of using these cute sour cream containers in a new way!

"Countdown to Christmas"

Got someone in your house who just can’t wait for Christmas? Help them count down the days by making this fun project.



The design/layout of the numbers and tags is from page 13 of the holiday catalog (US/CA); the stamp set can be found on page 36 of the holiday catalog.  The tags were die cut using the Deco Labels Framelits.

 The containers were made using the Season of Style Designer Series Paper Stack. So easy—no cutting necessary!

To make the containers, apply the adhesive like this. (I recommend using Sticky Strip.)


Roll the container into a tube, then pinch one end closed. Add candy (or whatever you want to put inside), then pinch the other end closed in the opposite direction.


Attach the tag using a stapler, then adhere the button using a Glue Dot to hide the staple.

Twelve containers will fit nicely inside the Extra-Large Gift Box. To make the box look a little more festive, I wrapped Season of Style Designer Washi Tape around it.


 

Stampin' Up Christmas Card using Expressions Thinlets Dies

This trendy and elegant Christmas card was designed by Sharon and Holly at Stampin' Up.   Shelli Gardner, Stampin' Up Cofounder, featured it on her blog at SoShelli.com; you can read the article here.  Have a great week!

Christmas Card using Stampin' Up's Santa's List stamp set

Here's a card made by Mercedes Weber that was on the Stampin' Up Blog; Mercedes is another member of Stampin' Up's Artisan Design Team and she is a great talent too!  I'm so glad SU gets a group like this together; the designers give us great ideas and motivation!

Supplies used:    Santa's List Stamp Set, Black Stazon Ink and I think Cherry Cobbler ink (Santa's coat) and Crumb Cake ink (for sponging around the snowflake), Cherry Cobbler Baker's Twine, Festive Flurry Framelits, Big Shot, and Delicate Designs Embossing Folder.   Thanks for visiting!

Cards made using Stampin' Up's Be Merry and Wonderful Blessing Stamps

This article is from the SU Blog and it was written by Alanna Wharf - 2013/2014 Artisan Design Team - Alanna made these beautiful "more than cards"!

Since the Be Merry and Wonderful Blessing Single Stamps both have a matching Framelit, I was excited to create something to share with you using these two stamps!

The Be Merry stamp—featuring 'to/from' lines and the hot and trendy chalkboard look—makes a perfect gift tag. Cut it out with the matching Chalk Talk Framelit, and this ensemble becomes a cinch to use for creating all the tags you’ll need for Christmas gift-giving this year!



I like to create multiples of whatever I'm making so that I have at least one to keep as a sample and some to give away. This got me thinking that this tag would make a perfect gift for a teacher, neighbor, or hostess if bundled in a larger quantity and packaged up nicely! So I stamped a set of 10 tags and created this box using the Season of Style Designer Series Paper Stack and a Window Sheet. I wrapped the Cherry Cobbler 1" Stitched Edge Grosgrain Ribbon around the Window Sheet sleeve and tucked the bow through a fancied-up tag on the outside of the box. I kept the rest of the tags simple and will gift the set with a White Stampin' Chalk Marker so that the recipient is all set for gift-giving!



When I saw the Wonderful Blessing Single Stamp I thought it was the perfect image for a Christmas ornament—and then the thought of creating a dual-purpose card/ornament came to mind. (I do love when one creation can serve two purposes!) And when all you are giving someone is a card—sometimes you want to make it just a little bit more. This card can do that for you!



I stamped the World Map Background Stamp on the Naturals White Cardstock using Midnight Muse ink, stamping off three times. Then I layered the Naturals White 8-1/2" x 11" Cardstock onto the Midnight Muse card base using Stampin’ Dimensionals. I left the top mostly open so that the ornament could slide in and out. 



This ornament will look beautiful on a Christmas tree with twinkling lights shining through the White Vellum Cardstock. It would also work really nicely in a paper luminary. 

To achieve the colored/embossed image on the vellum layer, I first inked the Peace on Earth stamp using VersaMark, applied Midnight Muse ink right on top of that, then stamped it onto the Vellum. (I heat-set it using Clear Stampin’ Emboss Powder to keep it from smudging . . . and to give it a nice shine!) I also used the Circle Framelits and Silver Glimmer Paper to frame the opening in the card as well as the ornament.  



Now, imagine switching the stamped image out for a photo of your family. That would make a great photo ornament/card! The possibilities for this stamp—and for the layout and style of this card—really are endless!
 

Stampin' Up's NEW Festive Flurry Ornament Kit and NEW Weekly Deals!

Starting today, you can purchase this great Festive Flurry Ornament Kit!  It contains enough supplies to make 10 beautiful ornaments you can use to top presents, embellish cards, create a wintery garland, or trim the tree!


The kit includes everything you need (minus adhesive) to create 10 snowflakes, including

• 10 feet of Soft Sky Ribbon
• Printed cardstock - die cut and scored, ready to be assembled (Soft Sky, Crumb Cake, Whisper White Cardstock and Silver Glimmer Paper)
• Large Rhinestone Basic Jewells (40)

Product name:	Item #:	Price:
Festive Flurry Ornament Kit	135813	$14.95

These are only available while supplies last, so get your orders in early so you have plenty of time to make them for Christmas gifting-or for your family tree!  And when you go order Online here, don't forget to check out this week's AWESOME Weekly Deals here!        

Watch the video below for instructions on making these ornaments.

Stampin' Up's November "Best of 25 Years" Stamp Set with Samples

The Best of Snow "Best of 25 Years" Stamp Set

Samples below were created by 2013 Artisan Design Team Member, Jennifer Timko:

Silver Stampin’ Glitter from the holiday catalog.
Sliver Glimmer Paper
Midnight Muse Classic Stampin’ Pad
Whisper White Cardstock.
Festive Flurry Framelit Dies.
VersaMark ink
Heat and Stick Powder
Stampin’ Dimensionals

Basic Gray Classic Stampin’ Pad
Blender Pen with Old Olive, Cherry Cobbler, and Crumb Cake inks.
Season of Style Designer Series Paper Stack
Season of Style Designer Washi Tape
Stylish Stripes Textured Impressions Embossing Folder
Multipurpose Glue
Silver Stampin’ Glitter.
Vintage Faceted Designer Button and a Rhinestone Basic Jewel.

Chalk Talk Framelit Dies.
Early Espresso Classic Stampin’ Pad.
Blender Pen with Early Espresso, Crumb Cake, Tangerine Tango, Old Olive, and Cherry Cobbler inks.
Early Espresso Cardstock
Season of Style Designer Series Paper Stack
Season of Style Designer Washi Tape
Petite Pairs Stamp Set
Neutrals Designer Button tied with Cherry Cobbler Baker’s Twine.

Stampin' Up Holiday Table Decorating Ideas

Here are some table decorating ideas from the November/December 2013 issue of Stampin' Success (our Demonstrator magazine):

Gift Boxes

Paper
Season of Style Designer Series Paper
Stamp a Tag Kit
Kraft Gift Boxes
Decorative Window Gift Boxes
Ink
Whisper White Craft Stampin' Pad
Crumb Cake Stampin' Write Marker
Accessories & Tools
Cherry Cobbler 1" Stitched Edge Grosgrain Ribbon
Build a Banner Kit (Stencil)
Sponge Daubers

Silverware Place Setting

Paper Season of Style Designer Series Paper Ink Old Olive Classic Stampin' Ink Refill Accessories & ToolsMini Muslin Bag Build a Banner Kit (Stencil) Big Shot Gift Bow Bigz L Die Sponge Daubers Food Picks Stamps A Banner Christmas Stamp Set Tags 4 You Stamp Set Paper Old Olive Cardstock Whisper White Cardstock Season of Style Designer Series Paper Silver Foil Sheets Silver Glimmer Paper Season of Style Designer Washi Tape Ink Cherry Cobbler Classic Stampin' Pad Old Olive Classic Stampin' Pad Accessories and Tools Stampin' Dimensionals Label Bracket Punch 1-1/4" Circle Punch 1-3/4" Circle Punch Craft picks

Stampin Up "Merry Little Christmas" Simply Created Card Kit Tutorial

Below is a tutorial showing you another way to use the Merry Little Christmas Card Kit Bundle - be sure to click on the image to view it enlarged.  The bundle includes the Card Kit and the Merry Little Christmas stamp set; you get a 15% discount when you buy the 2 together (wood mount item #133286 $19.95 or clear mount #133287 $17.95)!    Thanks for stopping by and have a great week!



Pop & Place Holiday Gift Tags Flyer and Video; and the Best of October Stamp Set- Christmas

Here's Stampin' Up's newest Holiday offering; it a great holiday tag kit! You can buy just the stamp set or bundle it with the precut tag kit. Watch the video below for some great ideas and have a great week!

Also, here's the "Best of 25 Years" Stamp Set for October; Christmas!

Stampin' Up Holiday Single Stamps and Christmas Star Sample

Here are the new Holiday Single Stamps Stampin' Up is offering. Don't forget that the actual stamp size is twice as big as shown on the flyer. This Christmas Star sample was made by Stampin' Up Concept Artist Melody H; you can see the full Stampin' Up Blog article here.

2013 Holiday Catalog Snowflake Framelits Video, Expressions Thinlets Video, and Envelope Framelits Video - so much GREAT stuff!!

The Festive Flurry Framelits video below shows you how to assemble the great snowflake tags shown here.  Carrie Cudney at Stampin' Up gives you a great tip on how to make the snowflake have dimension; you'll love watching the video!

Festive Flurry Framelits, Item # 132193 $24.95 or buy them
as part of a Bundle with the Festive Flurry Stamp Set
(wood) Item # 133284 $54.95
(clear) Item # 133285 $46.95

Here's a Stampin' Up Video showing how easy it is to use the Expressions Thinlets Dies.  I tried using them before watching this video and I wish I hadn't!  The wax paper and tapping are great ideas that I didn't try.  But I can tell you that the die cut words are beautiful and graceful; you'll really love them!

Expressions Thinlets Dies  Item # 132171    $24.95

And finally, below is a video showing you how to use the new Envelope Liner Framelits.  These framelits were designed to work with Stampin' Up's medium envelope, note card envelope, and small 3x3 envelop.  You'll notice that the liner doesn't go all the way to the top of the envelope, that's because they were designed to not cover up the "lick strip" to seal the envelope.  I can't remember what that strip is really called!

Envelope Liner Framelits   Item # 132172    $26.95

Don't forget to click over to my blog to watch the videos if you're an email subscriber.  Have a great weekend and thanks for stopping by!

Stampin' Up Holiday Catalog Banner Videos, NEW Thinlets Video, and August "Best of 25 Years" Stamp Set!!

OMG! I can tell you honestly that I've never really been a "banner" person, but when I saw these banners at Convention, I changed my mind! The Halloween Banner is AMAZING!! And the Christmas Banner is BEAUTIFUL!! The pictures in the Holiday Catalog  really don't do these banners justice. The black glitter on the parts of the Halloween Accessories Kit are AWESOME and have a great shimmer! 

Watch the 2 videos below to see how Stampin' Up assembled the Halloween Accessory Kit and the Christmas Accessory Kit.  The Holiday Catalog starts today YIPPEE - see the front cover on my sidebar-and click on it to view the catalog!  You can order any of the products you see by clicking HERE.  Be sure to choose me as your Demonstrator when you order ONLINE to take advantage of my Frequent Shopper Rewards Program!



ALSO, available starting today are these great NEW thinlets dies!!  Watch the video below to see how they work and how cool they are!

FINALLY, here is the "Best of 25 Years" August Stamp Set.  I am soooo in a Halloween mood; this heat is killing me!

Day 12 Merry Christmas and a Stampin' Up Happy Holidays Video!

MERRY CHRISTMAS TO YOU ALL!  I hope you and yours are well and warm this holiday season.  I think that with the devastating weather and sadness this country has seen this past year, we are all looking forward to a better year to come! 

PERSONAL NOTE:  Some of you have emailed asking how I've been doing. I can tell you that this holiday season has been VERY difficult since my husband passed away a few months ago. I never thought I could bear this kind of pain and heartache, yet I am forced to. Everyday I think about him and wish he was here with me.  My eyes still hurt from crying so much! 

On a happy note, I hope your New Year is filled with joy and good health!  Luckily, I'll be starting a new job soon; this will give me some much needed distraction and money to pay the bills.  It's been difficult financially, but I I was lucky to have help from family and friends.  

VIDEO:  I hope you all have enjoyed my blog posts this past year; I think it's kept me sane too! So, here's a Stampin' Up video where the employees sing for us; it's really cute. You'll need to go to my blog to watch the video if you're an email subscriber.  

 

Day 11 of the 12 Days of Stampin' Up Christmas - Beautiful Season Stamp Set

 

I made this for a Convention Christmas Card Swap.  I used the Beautiful Season stamp set and then used the AquaPainter to color it.  Ink colors are: Gumball Green, Cherry Cobbler, Basic Gray, Crumb Cake, Soft Suede, and More Mustard.  I added some Be of Good Cheer Designer paper and Cherry Cobbler seam binding ribbon. 

 

The background Gumball Green cardstock was run through the Petals-a-Plenty Embossing Folder then I put dots of Champagne Mist Shimmer Paint in the centers of the flowers.  The Very Vanilla and Cherry Cobbler cardstock pieces were cut using the Labels Collection Framelits.  After I assembled the entire card, I sprayed it with Champagne Mist Shimmer paint mixed with 70% rubbing alcohol for some great shimmer and shine (too bad you can't see it in the picture)!

 

HAVE A GREAT CHRISTMAS EVE WITH YOUR FRIENDS AND FAMILY!  See you tomorrow for a fun SU video.