Thursday, February 26, 2009

Eggplant Butterfly

Evening Everyone,

I wanted to get a quick post in before I leave town this evening for Alabama. This card was so fun to make and another great excuse to get your stamp-a-majig out! I can't hardly stamp without mine anymore:)

This card highlights the Flight of the Butterfly stamp set which is a great 2-step stamp set. I also used the Sprinkles stamp set which is comprised of 4 small background stamps- these provide great and easy texture to your projects.

Line up the butterflies using the stamp-a-majig and ink up in Almost Amethyst & Eggplant Envy classic ink pads- stamp the sprinkles butterflies in the background in Eggplant Envy.

The base of the card is Eggplant Envy, layered with Whisper White, Almost Amethyst, and more Eggplant Envy. Scallop edge the center Eggplant Envy layer. The "lace" was made by punching holes in the scallops using the 1/16inch circle punch- this punch is also used for brads! The white band is a 5inch length of the 1/4inch white grosgrain ribbon. The center butterfly is actually cut out and popped up with a dimensional.

Hope you enjoy! Contact me today to order these supplies and make a beautiful Eggplant Butterfly card of your own!


Happy stamping,

Tiffany

Tuesday, February 24, 2009

Q & A

Hi Everyone,

I wanted to post some info concerning a question that was recently brought up:

"Which Stampin' Up! adhesives should I use and when?"

I'd like to highlight the following adhesives: SNAIL, Anywhere Gluesticks, Tom-Bow Multi Purpose Adhesive, Mini Glue Dots, Sticky Strip, & Dimensionals.

SNAIL: the 'neat & tidy' adhesive, perfect for applying layers on cards and scrap book pages etc.... This is my favorite all purpose adhesive!

Anywhere Gluesticks: these gluesticks are great for reaching into the corners of your projects, being rectangular in shape- they also give you a little 'wiggle room' before drying. Once this adhesive dries, it's there for keeps- another great all purpose adhesive option.

Tom-Bow: this adhesive is very strong and perfect for chipboard elements, pearls, hodgepodge hardware etc... as well as applying hand stamped covers to notebooks. You'll have a few moments to adjust placement and then it's not moving again! The applicator is dual tipped for different widths of adhesive application. Tom-Bow is a must for projects that you're wanting to last and that will be handled a lot.

Mini Glue Dots: these cute little dots are the perfect solution for applying flower fusion elements (felt flowers), ribbon, buttons etc.... They're another 'tidy' adhesive option for small elements!

Sticky Strip: this adhesive is one of the strongest and perfect for forming boxes, mini scrapbooks etc.... Once applied this adhesive is not moving so place carefully! It's also a great option when covering notebooks.

Dimensionals: these little 'pop up' spongy dots allow your elements to have a 3D appearance- they're one of my favorite adhesives! I often say that I can't design a card without using at least one dimensional:) They're great value and I promise you'll love them!

As a Stampin' Up! demonstrator, I firmly stand behind all of our products and especially their adhesives. I've tried many other adhesives in the past and always came back to Stampin' Up! adhesives- they're the best quality and the best value. I vouch that you won't find an alternate adhesive with equal quality to Stampin' Up! adhesives for a better price tag. There are plenty of alternate adhesives but the quality is lacking. I challenge you, as co-creators, to choose Stampin' Up! adhesives and see the difference for yourself. You won't be disappointed and your projects will be happier:) Your recipients should receive cards that are well made and made to last!

Contact me today to order your Stampin' Up! adhesives or 'shop now' through my website!

Happy stamping,

Tiffany

Monday, February 23, 2009

Sale-a-bration Card


Hi Everyone,

I'm just now sitting down to share with you a great card designed by my Stampin' Up! upline and wonderful mother, Candy Rattray- this card showcases a great, exclusive Sale-a-bration stamp set only available for a few more short weeks! The Polka Dot Punches stamp set coordinates with at least 5 Stampin' Up! punches, including the 1 3/4inch circle punch, shown here. The Sprinkles stamp set is also used to add texture to the background of the upper half portion of the baja breeze cardstock. Don't miss out on placing your Sale-a-bration order today to earn this great stamp set for FREE! Contact me today to see how easy it is!

Ingredients for this card:
Stamps: Sprinkles, Polka Dot Punches
Card stock: Chocolate Chip, Baja Breeze, Baja Breeze Designer Series Paper
Ink: Chocolate Chip Craft, Whisper White Craft
Accessories: Chocolate Chip 1/4 inch grosgrain ribbon, Flow Fusion Too, Corner Rounder punch, 1 3/4 inch Circle punch, Embossing buddy, White embossing powder, Heat Tool, Brads, Mini Glue Dots, SNAIL, & Bone Folder.

Happy stamping:)

Friday, February 20, 2009

Purrfect mini card


Good Friday evening to everyone,

I've enclosed a sweet little mini card that literally took about 5- 10 minutes to make! These mini cards are wonderful to place inside kid's lunches, spouse's luggage for a trip, gift bags etc... I thought this would be 'purrfect' to share:)

The stamp sets featured are Pun Fun and the Define Your Life alphabet- both great sets and great additions to your stash:) Blender pens with earth element ink pads made my tabby cat complete after stamping in staz-on black. The last touches were made with the spiral punch and pumpkin pie striped grosgrain ribbon:)

Enjoy and happy stamping,

Wednesday, February 18, 2009

February Stamp Club Success!


Hi again,

I wanted to share the great cards that we made last night in our Feb stamp club meeting- it was wonderful as always:)


I was definitely in an 'almost amethyst' mood! We did water coloring using watercolor paper for both of these cards- the Doodle This & Fun & Fast Notes stamp sets work so well for water coloring! The images can easily be exchanged for others in these stamp sets- two of my club members made 'Happy New Baby' cards in place of the "Get Well Soon' design and they came out so well:)

Hope you enjoy. Contact me today to add these great stamp sets to your stash- place the order through my website and receive a FREE Stampin' Up! Idea Book/Catalog!

Happy stamping:)

The History of Greeting Cards

Good afternoon,

I've enclosed an article below that I hope you will enjoy browsing, courtesy of my business coach- thanks, John!

The History of Greeting Cards

(from the Postcard and Greeting Card Museum - www.emotionscards.com)

Sending greeting cards to friends and family is a tradition that goes back about 200 years. They were mostly sent by the elite and wealthy in the early to mid 1800's. Most of the early greeting cards were hand delivered and many were quite expensive, but they soon gained mass popularity with the introduction of the world's first postage stamp issued in 1840 and a few ambitious printer's and manufacturer's perfecting printing methods, hiring artists and designed both elaborate expensive cards as well as simple affordable ones by the 1850's.

As you visit our galleries you will see that cards of the past were fine pieces of art. Manufacturer's used quality artists and many of the large manufacturer's held "art" competitions to generate interest and to get new ideas for cards. Some of these competitions awarded as much as $1,000.00 to the winner!

The oldest known greeting card in existence is a Valentine made in the 1400's and is in the British Museum. New Year's cards can be dated back to this period as well, but the New Year greeting didn't gain popularity until the late 1700's. The Valentine and Christmas Card were the most popular cards, with Valentine's offering us the most "mechanical", "pop-up" and filigree cards, followed by Christmas, St. Patrick's Day, Easter, Halloween and Thanksgiving. Cards gained their highest popularity in the late 1800's and early 1900's offering us cards with some of the most unusual art. The Victorian age give us the most prolific cards.

Valentine greetings were popular as far back as the Middle Ages, when lovers said or sang their Valentines. Written Valentines began to appear after 1400. Paper Valentines were exchanged in Europe where they were given in place of Valentine gifts. Handmade paper Valentines were especially popular in England. In the mid to early 1800's, Valentines began to be assembled in factories. Early manufactured Valentines were black and white pictures painted by workers in a factory. Esther Howland (see below) known as the Mother of the Valentine made fancy Valentines with real lace, ribbons and colorful pictures known as "scrap". She introduced the Paper Lace Valentine in the mid 1800's. By the end of the 1800's, Valentines were being made entirely by machine.

Christmas cards were introduced and popularized by John Calcott Horsley, the artist of what is known as the world's first Christmas Card and Louis Prang, known as the Father of the American Christmas Card.

The rest is History. With the exchange of New Year's, Valentine's, Easter, St. Patrick's Day, Halloween, Thanksgiving, Christmas and Birthday Cards, just to name a few, there is probably no occasion that doesn't have its own greeting card!
__________________

Friday, February 13, 2009

Free Catalog!!!


Hi Everyone,

I wanted to share with you the exciting offer that Stampin' Up! is currently running- place an online order of any amount and receive a FREE Spring/Summer 2009 Idea Book/Catalog! This promotion is running through April 30th and you can place your order through my website: www.ladybug.stampinup.net using the shop now link! Take advantage of having the best source of inspiration for all of your stamping adventures, the Stampin' Up! Idea Book/Catalog!

Enjoy and happy stamping:)

Wednesday, February 11, 2009

Personalized Stationary


Here's one more post for today.

I love anything personalized and used to hoard my personalized stationary- I no longer hoard! I have an endless supply of card stock & ink to use with the Lovely Letters Stampin' Up! alphabet set:) Take a few minutes to stamp some personalized stationary to share with your friends & family- the card shown here took 5 minutes to make! You can do it too- the pattern is here and ready to be used:)

To replicate the card shown here: I used kiwi kiss, whisper white, cameo coral, rose red card stock and raspberry tart designer series paper. The inks are kiwi kiss classic stampin pad and the uni-ball white gel pen. I also used my SNAIL adhesive, 1 3/8 inch & 1 1/4 inch circle and scallop circle punches. Have fun!

Happy stamping:)

Mommy & Me Event



Good evening,

I've uploaded the card that the Moms will be making on Presidents Day- remember tomorrow is the last chance to RSVP! Hope you to see you there:) Check out my website for further details.

Happy stamping.

Tuesday, February 10, 2009

Baby Gift!


Good afternoon,

I was honored to attend a baby shower this past weekend for one of my stamp club members- I love baby showers!

I decided to branch out and stamp a framed piece for the baby's nursery with a matching card- this was great fun:) I used a trendy style watch for the color palette: chocolate & bashful blue. I also used the Wild About You stamp set which is very user friendly and versatile. My favorite part was the paper piercing I added all around the frame to add even more interest to the textured card stock and chip board pieces. I was so happy with the result and hopefully Sara is too:)

Hope you enjoy and happy stamping!

Saturday, February 7, 2009

Complimetary Valentine!

Hi Everyone,

I wanted to let you know about a great opportunity to stamp your own Valentine for FREE, today at Cody branch library at 2pm. I'll be there till approx 4pm so come when you can and bring a friend:)

See you soon:)

National 'Send a Friend a Card Day'!!!


Good Saturday morning,

Today is national 'Send a Friend a Card Day' and I wanted to share this project with you:) My 'Friend' card is being sent to my wonderful sister-in-law, Nicole, who is one of my awesome stamp club members, a dedicated high school teacher, and a fantastic sister:) Hope she enjoys! Now it's your turn- feel free to send me pictures of the cards you send out to your special friends.

Happy stamping!

Wednesday, February 4, 2009

'Get Weel Soon'


Hi Everyone,

I realized that I haven't made a 'get well soon' card in a very long time, usually because I don't get the card mailed/delivered till after the person is better! I've taken a challenge to more organized and to stamp cards ahead of time to ensure I can deliver in a timely manner:)

Here is my latest creation, and it's already en route to a neighbor recovering from surgery! Perfect timing! Hope you enjoy:)

Happy stamping