Saturday, July 23, 2016

Hope Your Day Goes Swimmingly!

My day went swimmingly, indeed.
It was a good day to swim ~ I heard on the news last night that most of the country is under a 'heat dome.'  And actually, I don't swim. But I was in the pool with my noodle and some of my favorite people, including my buddy, my three year old grandson.
He swims better than I do ~ he'll dive right in, fall in, jump in and sometimes even walk down the steps. He is brave, in my opinion, but he also sports green 'floaties' while he is still mastering his strokes.
And my noodle is really his noodle.
After such an energizing morning in the pool I was motivated to dive into the new Seaside Shore stamp set.


Kathleen Wingerson (kathleenstamps.com) inspired me with this design.
Thankfully she not only had info on her blog, but also a video. This was a smidge tricky, but now that I have completed one, I think I can handle a few more.
The 'aquarium' feel to this card was the real draw. It is created with a slice of window sheet on the front of the card between two panels of embossed pool party waves and stamped images behind it (on the inside of the card). The fish are also on the front of the card, in case you cannot tell from my photo.
There are no framelits for this stamp set, so be prepared to fussy cut; but the SU Paper Snips makes it easy going.
One day, perhaps, I will get to the point where I do not have more ink on my hands than on my card. And maybe also learn how to use the tombow liquid glue without gluing my fingers together. And how not to smudge window sheets, at least where it shows.
But, this was a fun design and I like my finished card. I will create more; thanks Kathleen.

I played with the set for more fun:

I came across Brandy Cox (brandyscards.com) designing this card, creating her own DSP by stamping the images in the new Dapper Denim ink on Dapper Denim card stock. The fish are swimming in two directions and bubbles fill in the gaps between the fish. The By The Shore DSP is fabulous, but this is more creative to make with the stamps, And, honestly, it takes me forever to decide which of the collection's designs I want to use! So, for today, this worked. I am anxious, however, to cut and layer the DSP. Stay tuned.




Thursday, July 14, 2016

You're a grand old flag

It is still July, right?
Look at what my sweet  long distance downline mailed, all the way from Washington state! She is so much more that a downline; and I  feel so lucky and loved and blessed when she signs off  'love you and miss you.' She is proudly serving in the United States Navy and all of her friends in Tidewater  are hoping she will return to us.


We started using this die cut at Valentine's and it seems to have become  one of her favorites. I  think this is a clever design! 
And I  immediately  broke out into song - no one was close enough to  hear.  But it also reminded me of all the great George M. Cohan songs, songs that we don't seem to sing often enough anymore. 
So, thanks Jess for the card and for reminding me of some of the old songs. 
Wouldn't  it be wonderful  if we would all proudly wave our flag for our country and for we Americans? 

Wednesday, July 13, 2016

Just sitting here...

I  have new seating on our screened - in porch, but not a swing. Perhaps that's one reason I was drawn to the swing image in the new Sitting Here stamp set. See page 100 in the annual catalog.

The possibilities with this set are endless! I have seen many cards designed by demonstrators; mine are CASEd from Carolina Evans www.studioevans.blogspot.com.au.  I thought this design was a more simplistic one for my first attempt,  plus I am also a blue person. My two cards are almost identical,  but the card beneath the top has a torn or ragged top - I am really liking this look.

So, I am anxious to keep playing with this set ~ kind of like color forms!
You need this stamp set!  And,


as one of my stampers said, 
'this is so relaxing.'

(the flowers are from Awesomely Artistic, as is the splatter ~ the shades of Dapper Denim have been created with a blender pen, an aqua painter and sponge)


Tuesday, July 5, 2016

Christmas is Coming, Again

Often my reaction to the Christmas holidays is "Bah, humbug." And when I begin seeing 'Christmas' displayed in stores in October, I am completely put off.

Even with stamping, I don't usually get to Christmas till Christmas. But, some of the new Stampin' Up! holiday product is now available, along with some favorite stamps set from last season.

Contemplating the schedule of classes, I ordered the new This Christmas Specialty Designer Series Paper. In my haste, I thought the paper was one of the great and convenient 6 X 6 paper stacks. It isn't, but it has served me well all the same. (see pages 26 & 27 in your catalog)








Included in the variety of designs is sheet music ~ can you see it, cut into an oval as a mat for the gold and the stamped holy family? There are no words printed with the musical notes, so, this paper can be used for more than just Christmas carols and holiday strains.

Musical designs beg to be used in romantic settings: Valentines, anniversary, love, birds ...







The musical score was not my favorite design in this pack. My favorites were the dark green and red patterns, which are not particularly Christmasy at all. I do have cards designed with these papers, but I think, again, these patterns will outlive the holidays.
As will the Fabulous Foil Designer Acetate!
I have plans for that! (see page 31)

My bah humbug-ness will not last forever; I enjoyed stamping with the holy family and it provided an evening of peace, that which we all pray for during the holiday season, and every season.