I'll take SCRAPBOOKS for $100, Alex

SCRAPBOOKS for $100: Yes, seriously!

buzz ! ~ what is Do you stamp in your scrapbook?

I had the best time watching these puffins at the Alaska SeaLife Center in Seward.  

The visit was included in a land and cruise tour as we ended the land tour in Seward where we picked up the ship for the inner passage cruise. These playful guys were seemingly laughing at themselves and their playmates as they swam and dove and played hide and seek. 

I felt just like a child, tickled to death to watch and to hear them. I am not sure how long we stayed watching, until Dave had to drag me out to get to the ship I expect. Needless to say, I took several, plus a few extra, pictures of them.

I knew I wanted them to have their own space in my Alaska album. And that was before I ever saw

Party Puffins

Party Puffins stamp set will be released on the May 4 launch of the Stampin' Up! 

2021 - 2022 Annual Catalog. 

This was the perfect embellishment for this page. I simply stamped two puffin designs in Momento Tuxedo Black Ink on Basic White cardstock and colored in the bills and feet with Pumpkin Pie Stampin' Blends. Then a little fussy cutting and they flew right onto my page of photos.

Stampin' Up! has lots of stamp sets featuring animals, trees, flowers that can be used in scrapbooks.

On the same land and sea cruise I went whale watching. Those creatures were quite hard to photograph; every picture looks like a splash or a fluke. But, I was excited to see them so I clicked away anyway. I will journal the excitement beside some mediocre pictures, but with some cool punches from the Stampin' Up! Whale punch.

My scrapbook stash includes many Stampin' Up! products: Memories and More Cards, dies, punches, 12 x 12 cardstock, Stampin' Blends, Take Your Pick Tool and of course the Stampin' Cut and Emboss Machine and the Mini. I tucked my Mini right into a satchel and headed off to a scrapbook retreat last weekend ~ die cut letters for titles. 

If you need any of these tools and product, you can shop directly from this blog site - except for the Party Puffins, they land on May 4.  

Please share any ideas you have; ask any questions. 

So, do I stamp in my scrapbooks? Yes, seriously!

Let's stamp!

 I Am A Pearl Girl!

Do I have a little black dress?

   not at the moment, 

   (don't tell Mama)

Do I have a pearl necklace?

    but of course!

(and earrings, bracelets, ring) 

I was born a pearl girl. Born in the month of June, my birthstone is a pearl. Mama named me Margaret, the meaning of which is pearl. Depending on what you read, the pearl is associated with the moon. It is symbolic of hidden strength and wisdom, terribly feminine. Well, I am not sure about all that (except I am attracted to the moon and the man in the moon and moonbeams and  ...), but, there is a fellowship of several liked-minded girls that takes strenth in our friendship, and we refer to ourselves as The Pearl Girls.

So, with all of the embellishments that Stampin' Up! offers to add a little elegance, sparkle and bling to our cards, which embellishment do you suppose I reach for first?

                                    as pictured in Stampin' Up! 2020-2021 Annual Catalog, pp. 156 -157

Not hard to guess, right?  Pearls!

Find Pearl Basic Jewels in the Annual Catalog on page 156. A package contains 140 pearls in three sizes. 

Now, if you think basic is not fancy enough, you can color those white pearls with Stampin' Blends alcohol markers. Would you prefer Blushing Bride or Purple Posy? Easy. Color all over the pearl piece, pick up with the Take Your Pick Tool and place on your card.

as pictures in the 2020-2021 Stampin' Up! Annual Catalog, p. 159

They are adhesived backed so will stay in place. But you'll need more than one pearl, seriously!

And if pearl is not your gem of choice, take a look at our rhinestones, gilded gems, frosted droplets ...

Shop in my 'jewelry' store that you can access directly from this blog; I am also happy to place an order for you. 

http://www.stampinup.com/shared-lists/051a9ca6-4a45-4e35-ade5-8e249333b773?;

Let's dress up those cards!  

 I Hear the Ice Cream Truck!

Did the ice cream truck used to come through your neighborhood, drive slowly down the street until a gaggle of youngsters ran to stop it?  Do you remember what tunes it played? 

The Smithsonian's  National Museum of American History collection includes a 1938 Chevrolet White Good Humor Truck. probably from Boston, MA.

 

photo pictured on www.si.edu/newsdesk/snaps

According to cultural history, Harry Burt of Youngstown, Ohio produced the Good Humor Bar in 1920, a vanilla ice cream bar covered in chocolate and frozen on a stick.  It was the wooden stick that revolutionized the way ice cream became easier to eat and enjoy. And the cherry on top? Burt began selling his patented cool treat from trucks rather than push carts.  Now the ice cream truck drivers could drive as far and as long as they wanted, unhindered by the manual pushing of those wooden carts.

Something I did not know until I began reading about the ice cream trucks and their music boxes, before Burt's trucks, ice cream men used to sell Penny Licks, a small bowl of ice cream that the customer licked clean. The bowl was returned to the vendor who rinsed it out from his cart and filled again for the next customer. Hmmm .... could have been the reason Burt had his men drive white trucks and wear white uniforms.

Confession ~ I did not grow up with ice cream trucks. There were soda fountains in drug stores and there were High's Ice Cream Shops in Norfolk.  

But stuck in my memory is a short little girl with bangs, in a dress, holding a grape popsicle out of the window of a monstrous sherbet green Pontiac of the late 50's (I had to kneel on the front seat to even reach the window). And I can see my brother standing at the ready with the garden hose to wash down the sticky purple streaks on the side of the car. 

My best friend's mom made popsicles in the freezer for us; I can remember tupperware-like molded ice treats. She also froze Kool Aid in small paper cups and added that stick to hold on to. 

I have just have to say, ice cream sticks and popsicle sticks do little to prevent a mess when eating, especially for children.  Right?

 

Well, one neat way to enjoy these treats today 

is with April's Paper Pumpkin kit, So Cool. 

Not from the ice cream man, but from Stampin' Up!, this paper crafting kit is delivered to your door and it includes supplies to craft 12 colorful, fun shaped cards with coordinating envelopes. This is a perfect kit to share with the youngsters in your life: grandchildren, students, Sunday School children ~ make the cards with children, send the cards to children, or order an entire kit for children to have and craft on their own. 

                   Take a look here:  https://youtu.be/5kN4485fYdQ.

I am ready to treat anyone and everyone who orders the April Paper Pumpkin So Cool kit to an icy treat (a gift certificate to your favorite ice cream shop) ~ you must be a new or returning Paper Pumpkin customer and order by April 9.  There is an orange Paper Pumpkin button to your right on this blog for your convenience in ordering;  please list me as your Demonstrator when prompted. Of course, I am also happy to order for you if you wish ~ just call or email me with your order. 

And if you need more really cool treats, Stampin' Up! has a new suite of products,  Ice Cream Corner. Choose from a stamp set of 18 images and sentiments, an Ice Cream Punch, Designer Series Paper featuring refreshing colors and treats, coordinating ribbon and a package of multi-colored Sprinkles embellishments. The colors in the suite coordinate with the Paper Pumpkin kit, too! 

                as pictured in the Stampin' Up! Mini Catalog January - June, p. 48

The suite product is available through June and may be ordered here or with me. This is a happy stamp set on its own, even if you do not order the Paper Pumpkin kit (I think I see a future class using this suite).

So, what's your favorite cool treat? I love most anything that has the word chocolate or brownie attached to it:  Brownie Sundae, Rocky Road, Belgian Chocolate Gelato, and I have stories about each flavor, recent stories even!

But what I treasure the most about ice cream is the memory of watching the Wonderful World of Disney on Sunday nights with an ice cream sundae that Daddy made: simply vanilla ice cream, chocolate syrup and peanuts. 

Let's stamp!

  I ❤ Stampin' Up!

              

I know, stating the obvious. But seriously, I do love Stampin' Up! 

Why? Well...

I am addicted to paper (and sugar, but Stampin' Up! has little to do with sugar), all kinds of paper. Salesman's receipt books were like magic slates to me when I was little and my daddy was a sales manager ~  an intriguing size, lined, perforated AND carbon paper! 

Paper used to be everywhere: wallpapered rooms, paperback books, Sunday comics, drawing paper, paper bags, magazines, wrapping paper ~ ooh, the stationery and school supply aisles in Rose's Five & Ten.

So really, is it any wonder that I have to have all the Designer Series Paper that Stampin' Up! creates? Am I a hoarder, no, but sometimes I am a little apprehensive about cutting into that last precious piece of my favorite paper.  I do think Stampin' Up! has wonderful designs and the quality cannot be beat.

Truthfully, I can open the catalog to almost any page, point to any item pictured there and say  'that's why I love Stampin' Up!'.  Especially if I open to the pages with Die Cuts and Embossing Folders!

I  ❤  Stampin' Up!  Demonstrators ~ some of my new best friends are fellow demonstrators.  I have met them online, in meetings, at corporate conferences,  at dinners, in lines at the ladies rooms. My demonstrator friends and acquaintances are generous and genuine and I consider myself fortunate to associate with them and to learn from them. And not to be sacrilegious, but whenever two or more are gathered, there is guaranteed fun. 

I ❤ Stampin' Up! because somewhere inside of me there is a teacher that did not major in education (even though I attended Virginia's best known school for such a degree), but loves to teach outside of the classroom. 

I love sharing my love for paper crafting.  My classes take place anywhere there is a table or two ~ in my dining room, your dining room, church social hall, library, museum. I get as excited as my stamper does when she's astonished with what she's created. 

Some of my other new best friends are my stampin' friends. 

 

I ❤ Stampin' Up! because as a demonstrator, the company gives me a discount ($) for shopping with them! Who doesn't like a discount? I joined eight years ago for the discount and have stayed because of the community of my Nite Owls team of demonstrators, my demonstrator friends and colleagues, the company staff and my Stampin' Friends in my classes.

 

I whole heartedly invite you to consider joining me and Stampin' Up! Scroll back to the top of the post and select Join the Fun for more details.  Then contact me and we can chat about it. 

I ❤ Stampin' Up!

 Mini or Mighty?

Just about eight years ago I hosted a Stampin' Up! party in my home. We were probably six gals gathered around the dining room table experimenting with stamps and ink , making cards. 

AND THEN...

the Demonstrator brought out her Big Shot. I don't really remember whether it was the magic of the Big Shot or the framelits that cut out miniature paper dresses, but I was SOLD! I had to have that machine; I was going to have that machine.  

I joined Stampin' Up! and purchased the Big Shot and the All Dressed Up Framelit Dies.

Well, one dress, one card was not nearly enough for me. I was back in my childhood of the '60s playing paper dolls. Every month McCall's magazine published a Betsy McCall paper doll with an ensemble or two for the season or the holiday: Betsy McCall has a Merry Christmas, Betsy McCall goes to the ballet, Betsy McCall visits the White House ...

 

Although I was pretty adept with craft supplies, Mama would help me; she did have an excellent idea for cutting around the dresses, mounting them onto index cards or old file folders, and then trimming them out. They were much sturdier that way and the tabs would would not tear. (Mama used rubber cement as her glue of choice ~ ahhh, I can still smell it, can you? )

So, although 50 some years have ensued, it just was not a far leap from Betsy McCall to this:

Designer Series Paper, ribbon, pearls, buttons, washi tape, all after die cutting those dresses. 

I have seriously told my stampin' friends that the best value in the catalog is the Big Shot, hands down. I kept and used my first machine until Stampin' Up! released their new Stampin' Cut and Emboss Machine last year (that first Big Shot still lives on in the craft room of one of those friends).

AND THEN ...

the Mini was born, just a few months ago.  

Do I have both? Yes.

Why? I have a lot of Stampin' Up! tools and supplies, so much that I need a little more room than I currently have in my craft space. I have wonderful storage in my kitchen craft space but I still need to spread out sometimes - out to that dining room table. The Mini is the perfect fit to sit on the table at my right hand - I can reach over and die cut smaller dies rather than getting up from the table, going back into the kitchen crafty space and cranking the Mighty Stampin' Cut and Emboss Machine. 

Lazy? I refuse to answer that question. I prefer to think of it in terms of convenience and efficiency.  Sometimes it is easier to cut out a few small dies on a smaller plate. This is all personal preference, but I will say that I am not the only Demonstrator finding it easy to use right on the craft table or dining room table or ... 

I die cut these detailed butterflies from a 3 x 6 inch strip of Designer Series Paper; I was able cut two and three detailed dies at once with the Mini and they cut perfectly (I did not get up from my chair at the table). It is a dream! 

However,  

this picture from Stampin' Up! shows the standard sized Stampin' Cut and Emboss Machine poised to die cut six butterflies from the Butterfly Bijou Designer Series Paper using the one large outline die from the Brilliant Wings die set. The Mini cannot take that size of a die as a whole. IF you snip the large die into six individual dies, one for each butterfly, then you can die cut the butterflies one at a time, BUT you will likely lose some important real estate on that paper. 

With that being said, the Butterfly Bijou Designer Series Paper will not be around for ever, but you can continue to cut from other papers and from the stamped images using the Mini.

If you notice in the catalogs, die sets that can be accommodated by the Mini are so indicated; as are embossing folders designed for use with the Mini. 

So, what'll it be? Mini, Mighty, or both?

Whenver you are ready to make a purchase, you can do so from right here - hit Shop Now and look around. I am happy to order for you and to offer any suggestions, answer any questions. 

Since I have named my machines Mini and Mighty, I can frequently be heard singing  "Mighty Mouse to save the day!" 

Let's stamp!

  

 Deaming in Green

I am still dreaming about my next trip to Ireland, some day in the future. I can't help it, I have had only wonderful experiences there and I can drink in that countryside all day - and the towns and cities, too, for that matter.

Twice my husband Dave and I have sailed into the port of Cobh, once named Queenstown in honor of a visit from the British Monarch Queen Victoria. And to greet us, the towering spire of Saint Colman's Cathedral. The woodwork, the tile, the stained glass windows, the pipe organ (undergoing restoration)  ~ magnificent. Construction was begun in 1868 and completed in '79 and it was concecrated in 1919.

It is fitting I think for a catherdral in a harbor to include a depiction of Jesus calming the waters.  When I visit I always lift up a prayer beneath that window for my oceanic ventures. I am sure my prayers have not been the only ones as Queenstown/Cobh was the last port of call for the HMS Titanic on her maiden voyage April 11, 1912. Titanic boarded 123 passengers in Cobh; 79 perished. 

  

Commemorating  HMS Titanic ... In special memory of the Irish emigrants and all those who lost their lives in this great tragedy.   

The Queenstown Heritage Center located at the cruise piers/train station tells the Titanic story, along with the stories of thousands of emmigrants leaving the Irish shores for the US shores and Ellis Island. Although questioned by historians, the story is told of a young Annie Moore traveling with her two brothers as the first emmigrants to leave Queenstown, arriving in New York on January 1, 1892.  A happy ending ...

May your days be blessed with happiness and safe adventures.

This little card was reworked a couple of times for you ~ it requires a wee bit of math and there was a fiesty little leprechaun stealing me hearts and playing with me stamp. 

I used a surprising combination of Pear Pizazz and Granny Apple Green colors and designs from the 6 x 6 Designer Series Paper Assortments. It takes only a bit of paper, scraps almost, to create the windmill. 

I cut 2 Pear Pizazz squares  2 7/8; 2 Whisper White squares at 2 3/4.

Layer a white on a green, twice,  and place one new square diagonally on top of the other.

Choose 2 coordinating designs of DSP and cut a 2 5/8 sqaure from each.

Cut each 2 5/8 square into fourths for 8 8 squares.

Start at top point and adhere one square, on teh diagonal, guiding it into the corner  ~

glue down only the right side.

Alternate the 7 remaining squares  - the last will slide half way under 

your first placed square.

I created the shamrocks by punching the reverse side of one of the DSP patterns 

with a heart punch (retired ~ use any die or framelit that will fit, or draw and cut).

Lucky golden gems sparkle from the middle of the shamrocks. 

I think there is still one other rework in the furture of this greeting card.

But I think I need a nice cuppa of strong Irish black tea before I continue. And maybe a little something on the side ...

Care to join me?

Don't forget, you may order any Stampin' Up! supplies right from this blog ~ 

click on Shop Now! I am also happy to order for you if you'd prefer. And I am happy to make any suggestions, should you need. 

Let's stamp!

 An Irish Blessing

No, I am not Irish but I have been lucky enough to have visited the beautiful Emerald Isle several times ~ by ship, by plane, by train.  And I will happily venture that way again whenever the opportunity arises.  

Why Ireland? The drama of the landscape, Irish Breakfast Tea, Belleek china, Aran Isle Sweaters, fiddles, scones, castles, Guiness, shepherd's pie, Oscar Wilde, Maeve Binchey ... 

Like all wonderful destinations there is much to see between cityscapes and countryside.  Do I ever tire of hills dotted with sheep? No! 

On one guided train tour through parts of Ireland I had the good fortune to visit a sheep farm and meet the shepherd and his herd and his dog. The shepherd had species of every sheep known to live on the island. They are indeed less than bright animals and they are scaredy-cats  ~ easy for the dogs to herd.

Blarney Castle is in the middle of the woolen mills of Blarney, County Cork. Did I kiss the Blarney Stone? No! Some will say that I already have the gift of gab. But the line up the tower was incredibly long so we chose to stroll through the gardens and glens of the castle ~ with thrilling bagpipe music in the background. 

Lush Bluebells were everywhere, but I saw no faeries. Curiously, the Poison Garden was the closest garden to the castle ... In the small village, several woolen mills were rehabed into wollen retailers, shops and pubs! Fish and chips, a guiness and a fisherman's knit sweater ~ made us the last ones back to the tour bus and our seats had been taken by a group of tourists who evidently were not familiar with motor coach etiquette. 

As long as we are talking about food and drink and I am not finished gabbing, one of the country's best offerings to mankind is Baileys Irish Cream. One nippy spring morning on tour we were treated to a Bailey's Hot Chocolate at a lone roadside attraction and inn, The Red Fox. Baileys is a staple in our house, and with a bit of experimentation and reliance on another Irish spirit - Jameson Whiskey - we enjoy home crafted Irish Cream now. And here is the recipe ~ as good as the Blarney Stone for imparting the gift of gab:

Irish Blessings in a Bottle 

1 can sweetened condensed milk

1 cup half and half

1 Tbs. Vanilla Extract

1 cup Jameson's Irish Whiskey

2 Tbs. instant coffee granuels

2 Tbs choclate syrup

pour all into blender ~ blend 60 seconds

enjoy straight up, on the rocks, in hot chocolate, martinis, or ...

In the mood to try some punch art tonite, I searched for little sheep created from various sizes of scallop, circles and ovals punches. So here is my variation on that theme:

Two little ewes doing an Irish jig. I should have crafted little green bowler hats. I save scraps and recycle and reuse. The DSP is Paper Blooms from Sale-A-Bration; I have barely cut into it. The lambs wool is curly and fluffy thanks to the Ornate Garden Embossing Folder. The little fluttering butterflies are brand NEW from the Butterfly Brilliance Collection released just today! You can find it in my online store - check Shop Now.

Leaving the sentiment off till I know the recipient ~ but I am thinking grandchildren.

Let's see your take on these little guys. Go ahead, pull out your green cardstock and punches and pearls ~ make your scraps work for you. 

 

                 May the luck of the Irish be with you all month long! 

  

 

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