Too Kind for the budget minded

I'm on the hunt for card designs that are beautiful but cheap. That is cheap in a smart way. As in a good investment.

So let me back up a minute.  I have a Private Party scheduled this Saturday and I have a feeling that the majority of the attendees have never been exposed to stamping. I could be wrong, but I just have a hunch about this.

I feel my job as a Stampin' Up! Demonstrator is to introduce a new customer to the world of stamping in a kind and gentle manner. I am her guide into a world that can sometimes seem mystical and definitely overwhelming.

I certainly remember the first time I was exposed to stamping. I had no idea that normal people did this kind of stuff!

Yesterday I found this design on Splitcoaststampers by Ingrid Blackburn. Amazing!  Here is my CASE of her card. The only thing I changed was I used Pear Pizzazz ink instead of Wild Wasabi for the stems. And I tweeked the measurements a wee bit.

Now I'll tell you why I like this card. It's "cheap" for what you get. A person who has no stamping supplies at all could purchase everything to make this card for less than $50.

You must be laughing by now thinking one card for $50! That's not cheap!  Let me clarify. You will have supplies to make dozens of cards, including this one, that will stun your friends, wow your neighbors and make you feel proud of your new found accomplishments, for less than $50. Now that's a bargain!

Let's cost it out:

The Too Kind stamp set in wood is $19.95

A pack of Neutrals Assorted cardstock is $6.95.  Inside this pack you get 2 sheets each of Early Espresso and Whisper White, along with 8 other neutral colors.

The Ink could be purchased as markers at $3.50. Or you could get ink pads for $5.95 each. I recommend ink pads because these colors will be used over and over again.

One more thing. A little bling! Maybe bling isn't an essential, but it adds so much. The bling in this card is Basic Rhinestones Jewel Accents. You get 150 rhinestones in 3 different sizes.

The total so far is $49.70 (based on the purchase of ink pads rather than markers). This makes me very excited because all of these items are great investments that you will certainly use in the future!

Now here's the clincher.  You still need a paper trimmer and adhesives!  These are super basic tools comparable to a baker needing an oven and flour.  I'm talking basics here, right?

The Stampin' Up! paper trimmer is $29.95.  GET THIS TRIMMER! I've had lots of trimmers in my life, and I could not live without this one. Not only does it cut with precision, it also scores!  That means you score too. Plus you can order replacement cutting blades. This trimmer has so many great features that I just can't list them all right now. Believe me, this is a worthwhile investment.

Adhesives are a personal choice. I made this card using the Stampin' Up! Anywhere Glue Stick because that's what I will be using at my Private Class on Saturday. It's a super easy adhesive to use, especially for beginners. But honestly, I use SNAIL (tape runner) and Tombo Multi-Purpose Adhesive much more than the glue stick. These last two I could not live without. Lately I've opted more for the Tombo because it works so well!

And of course you'll want Stampin' Dimensionals. Dimensionals are awesome. They make your card special with such little effort. It's like placing the queen on her throne. Hey, you've done all this work, why not let it shine on dimensionals for everyone to see.

So the new total including paper trimmer, Tombo and dimensionals is 29.95 for the Trimmer and $3.95 for Tombo.

Total is now $87.55. Now you are on your way to doing some serious cardmaking.

To recap, here's the Card Recipe:

Stamps: Too Kind
Paper: Whisper White, Early Espresso
Ink: Calypso Coral, Pear Pizzazz and Early Espresso
Accessories: Basic Rhinestones
Tools: Tombo Mono Multi-Purpose Adhesive, Dimensionals

Of course, at my class on Saturday I will teach the "stamp off" technique to make the wonderful flowers and show everyone how easy it is to make beautiful, hand stamped cards. It's really a blessing.

CLICK HERE TO SHOP 24/7 

Hugs & blessings, Angela

Celebrating the first day of Fall

I grew up in Santa Barbara, California and enjoyed beautiful weather all year round. I lived in sandals and wore them even when it rained! I didn't know any better because I expected the next day to be sunny again.

Now that I live in Northern California, I am always amazed by the changing of the seasons. I love seeing the colors of autumn appear and deepen as the days grow shorter and cooler weather sets in.

Although I don't have a card to share today, I want to make sure you know about the Best of Autumn stamp set that are available at a bargain price of $14.95.  I say bargain because you really get a nice variety of stamps in this set. It's always great when there are both images and sentiments included in a stamp set and that's what you get here.

Click here for PDF

Click here to order the Best of Autumn Stamp Set.

Even without a card to share, I do want to show you how I celebrated Fall today. I picked up some mums and transplanted them in my small garden. I already had the yellow mums established, but I transplanted three new ones in white, orange and pink. I really enjoyed them along with the fresh feel of autumn in the air.

CLICK HERE TO SHOP 24/7 

Hugs & blessings, Angela

thankful for...

I'm thankful that I'm feeling better since having my surgery on August 12. Now I can get back to the business of stamping!

Lately I've been stamping like crazy! I worked on organizing my stuff which has made it easier to craft. It's hard to work on projects when everything is a mess!

Here is my first Fall card of the season made with the Truly Grateful stamp set. I used colors based on a card challenge requiring that I use of the colors Summer Starfruit, Pumpkin Pie and Basic Black.

RECIPE:
Stamps: Truly Grateful
Paper:  Pumpkin Pie, Summer Starfruit and Basic Black
Ink: Pumpkin Pie and Summer Starfruit
Tools:  Big Shot, Deco Labels framelits, Dimensionals

CLICK HERE TO SHOP 24/7

Thank You cards

Today I made a few thank you cards for hostesses who booked private classes with me. A private party is an opportunity to have a papercrafting class in your own home.  You get to invite your friends and family to spend time crafting together and I bring all the supplies needed to make wonderful projects.

At one of the private classes coming up next week, we will be making a variety of super cute Fall cards.  At my other private class in October each person will make 10 beautiful Christmas cards using the Festive Flurries stamp set.

I really try to customize my private classes to suit the needs of my hostess as she knows her guests much better than I do. Perhaps my hostess would like to do embossing projects. Or do a stamp-a-stack such as making 10 Christmas cards. I'm open to these ideas and more.

If you live in Northern California near the Lake County area, consider booking a private party with me. I can travel up to 1 hour away if you can gather at least 6-10 people for your class.  Right now is the perfect time to make Christmas cards that your friends and family will treasure. It's really fun and I'm available to be your personal creative coach.

Here is the card I made today which were inspired by Chat Wszelaki.  I used Stampin' Up!'s new colors including Calypso Coral, Crisp Cantelope and Bermuda Bay.

I used the Stamp Shop and Hello Lovely stamps sets.

All my hostesses are absolutely "THE BEST"

RECIPE:
Stamps: Stamp Shop and Hello, Lovely
Paper:  Coastal Cabana, Crumb Cake, Very Vanilla, 2013-2015 In Color Designer Series Paper
Ink: Coastal Cabana, Crisp Cantelope, Bermuda Bay
Accessories: Basic Pearls
Tools:  Big Shot, Stripes Embossing Folder, Deco Labels framelits, Dimensionals

CLICK HERE TO SHOP 24/7

My WOW Convention Card

I thought I'd share one of the cards I made for the Stampin' Up! Convention I went to in July. The design was inspired by Stamping School.com. The flowered butterfly was embossed with gold embossing powder on the new Gingham Garden Designer Paper. The stamp set I used for embossing was Papillon Potpourri.

Here's a close up of the embossed butterfly.

If you like this stamp set, you can now save 15 percent when you buy the bundled Papillion Potpourri Stamp Set and Bitty Butterfly Punch.

Bundle special ends September 30, 2013.  To order, click on the highlighted product numbers below!

Bundle Item	Page in Catalog	Description	Retail Price	15% Savings Price	Amount Saved!
135311	90 183	Butterfly Bundle (Clear-Mount) Papillon Potpourri Clear-Mount Stamp Set Bitty Butterfly Punch	$30.90	$26.27	$4.63
135312	90 183	Butterfly Bundle (Wood-Mount)  Papillon Potpourri Wood-Mount Stamp Set Bitty Butterfly Punch	$34.90	$29.67	$5.23

CLICK HERE TO SHOP 24/7

Clearance Rack Updated Today

Lots of new items added today to the Clearance Rack. There's lots of great deals on paper, ink pads, ribbon and so much more. Don't miss out!!!  Everything is available while supplies last, so don't wait!

CLICK HERE TO SHOP THE CLEARANCE RACK NOW

 
***********************
Use this Hostess Code and get a chance for Free benefits:

September Hostess Code: ZN9GMEUT

How it works:

**Win $25 Hostess Rewards as this month's Mystery Hostess

Order between $20 and $149.99*** during this month. Order online or directly with me.  Important: You must use Hostess Code listed above with your online order.

You will earn a raffle ticket for every $20 of purchases you make.  For example, if you order $100, your name will be in the drawing five times to give you five chances to win!

If total orders from everyone reaches at least $150, I will draw a raffle ticket on May 1 and the winner will get $25 free hostess rewards!

Special note:  If you're ordering $150 or more you will not need to use the Hostess Code because you'll receive hostess benefits on your own.

I'm back and feeling better everyday

Sorry for the long absence. I've mostly been gone from the blogging world due to personal health issues.  I'll spare you the gory details, but the good news is I'm doing better!

Despite my health issues, I attended Stampin' Up's 25th Anniversary Convention in July. I couldn't miss out on the fun, even though my doctor advised against it.

Here's a picture of me holding up this year's convention bag.

I also brought over 170 cards to swap.  Here I am with my WOW swap cards.

I finished up my 76 cards while I was at Convention.

Here's a closer look at my WOW cards which were inspired by Stamping School. 

Even though Convention was two months ago, I wanted to share that once again it was a highlight of my year. I love seeing my demonstrator friends and enjoying the excitement of it all. Everyone is always so friendly and even with 5,800 in attendance, the joy of sharing was ever so present.