Birkin Petite Purse

Playing some more with the Petite Purse die that debuts on April 1 (email me if you want me to order you one as soon as they become available!!) ....what I came up with today is based on my favourite purse that I will never own...the Hermes Birkin bag! There is a waiting list of years for the real birkin bag, each is hand made & hand stitched with the highest quality materials and the cost last I heard was around $8,000...hence the reason I'll never own a real one.

BUT my Birkin Petite Purse is just as stylin', is also handmade and only cost about the price of a half a sheet of the highest quality card stock! AND it's adorable (if I do say so myself;)!!:)

Also a BIG reminder that today is the last day of SALE-A-BRATION...so if you have an order and want some FREE sale-a-bration products OR don't want to miss out on the EXCLUSIVE sale-a-bration stamp sets and products, be sure to place your order today. To ensure your order goes in by the deadline the safest way to place it today is by clicking here to go to my website and clicking 'shop now'! If you contact me I can also try to place your order for you, but in case you miss me, you can always order on line. REMEMBER tomorrow SALE-A-BRATION products like the Everyday Enchantment dsp, brads & ribbon, Fresh Vintage stamp set, the Elementary Elegance stamp set, the exclusive sale-a-bration decor element 'welcome', the exclusive digital collection and more will no longer be available, so be sure to get your order in today to receive these products for FREE (one sale-a-bration item is earned for FREE for every $60 in regular products ordered!)

AND starting tomorrow, it's no 'april fools' when I tell you that the Summer Smooches sneak peek line (including the petite purse die) will be available for order. If you are on my mailing list you will receive a newsletter with the details, but if you aren't contact me by commenting here OR emailing me and I'll get that to you:)

Petite Purse Die

This was my first attempt with the new petite purse die, that as a demonstrator I could preorder this month, but that you, my dear friends, can order starting April 1st!! The Petite Purse die is a preview item from the new catalog which is coming out on June 1st, and all I can say is it is SO ADORABLE!!! ...and easy to use!! To make this little purse all I did was run a piece of mocha morning dsp through my big shot, fold it on the scored lines, add a bit of sticky strip and voila! Oh and the clasp is just a couple of punches of black card stock with the boho blossoms punch and a rhinestone jewel.

If you don't want to wait to receive your petite purse die, contact me today and I'll get your order ready to go for April 1st!

Also, DON'T FORGET, there are just a couple more days of SALE-A-BRATION as it ends on MARCH 31, so email me today if you have a SALE-A-BRATION order!:)

Fresh Vintage and Elementary Elegance

I'm going to be sad when sale-a-bration is over...the two stampsets I used on this card are both exclusive to sale-a-bration, so once it is over on March 31st, they will no longer be available. But there is still time...between now and March 31 you can earn either (or both!) of these stampsets for free by placing your minimum sale-a-bration order. You can place an order by calling or emailing more or clicking on 'shop now' on my right sidebar. And don't forget, digital downloads count toward sale-a-bration orders too (and there is digital content you can earn for free including both of these stampsets in digital brushset form!).

Another product I used on this card that you can earn for free during sale-a-bration is the stripes embossing folder. This can also be ordered from our IB&C, but who wouldn't like to earn it for free?!

This was a very simple card to make, but by cutting out the images and matt with labels collection framelit dies from the occasions mini and then trimming the card with the pleated satin, the card ends up with a rather elegant look I think:)

More Elementary Elegance

Just another card with the elementary elegance set you can earn for free during sale-a-bration...this one was inspired by Shelli herself (co-founder of SU!)

AND there are a couple more hours left for you to place your sale-a-bration order today and have your name entered into today's sale-a-bration party doorprize draw, so place your order online (see link for 'shop now' in my side bar) OR by calling or emailing me before 10pm (Saskatchewan time) tonight to get your name into the draw:)

On this card I also used the edgelet dies and coordinating embossing folder...that's how I got that pretty bottom edge on the card. I absolutely adore the effect of the edgelits!!

The dsp I used on this card mostly (except for the newsprint piece from First Edition) comes from the everyday enchantment pack you can also earn for free during sale-a-bration...so even if you miss tonight's deadline for the doorprize draw, you can still earn any item for free from the sale-a-bration flyer by placing a $60 order with me before March 31st (see link on my sidebar for all of our current catalogs and minis, including the sale-a-bration flyer!)

Simple Elementary Elegance

Elementary Elegance was one of my favourite stampsets you could earn for free in this year's sale-bration. And this card couldn't have been more elementary to make and yet I think it has an elegance of it's own:)

It's not too late for you get your own elementary elegance stampset for free. Just place a $60 order before the end of this month and you can have it or anything else from the sale-a-bration mini for free! Oh and if you place your order TODAY, your name will be entered into the doorprize draws in conjunction with the workshop I'm doing today too!!)

I started with a 5.5 x 8.5 piece of crumb cake cardstock to form the base of the card. I stamped it with a couple of images from the elementary elegance stampset in early espresso. And then I added a ribbon, a spiral rose, a punched leaf and a hello banner (also stamped from that set in early espresso). The rose was just punched with my largest circle punch and then I cut a spiral into it and rolled it the opposite way. To finish it off I added a rhinestone jewel. Edges of the card and all carstock used were sponged in early espresso as well.

Prizes for Tomorrow's Workshop:)

These are just a few of the prizes for tomorrow's sale-a-bration party/workshop. (Pardon the darkness of the picture...the sun has started to set here;) I always have a gift for the hostess of a workshop and one doorprize to draw from the guests. Since I'm the hostess tomorrow and since it's not just a workshop, it's my wind up of sale-a-bration party, I'm doing more prizes and bigger prizes.

These three items all come from the current occasions mini. To wrap them I just created a belly band out of the sale-a-bration everyday enchantment dsp (that you can earn for free). The flowers are just using several layers of packing brown paper and the new blossoms punch from the occasions mini. They are held together by some wonderful fabric brads from last year's occasions mini, BUT if you love them as much I do, then I'll share a secret with you...from April 1-30th Stampin Up will be sharing a preview of a suite of products from the upcoming Idea Book & Catalog that will be released June 1 - Summer Smooches! AND as part of this preview there are Summer Smooch Designer Fabric brads available (Just from Apr 1 - 30th) that are very similar and just as adorable as the ones from last year's mini!

If you didn't sign up for tomorrow's workshop but wish you had now that you have seen some of the prizes, I have an incentive for you. If you place an order with me via phone, email or online tomorrow, your name will be entered into a draw to win a doorprize too!! So be sure to contact me by 10pm March 24th to be elgible to win!!

Vintage Heart Box (in marina mist)

At the class this past week participants had a choice of making their boxes in pink (like my original sample) or in marina mist. Since I had already made the pink one, I made one in marina mist and this is it! It's a beautiful spring-like day here so I thought I'd post pictures of this one too as the lighting was so much better than it was on the day I photographed my pink one:)

If you weren't able to make this class but would like to learn how to make a heart box (as a number of you have indicated), I am thinking about putting together another evening for those who want to learn (though probably instead of beau chateau I'm thinking of using the timeless portrait suite of products). So email me or mention in your comment if you are interested. I will set this up if there are 3 or more people interested. (Cost would be $15 or $10 with a minimum order of $25).

Happy St. Patrick's Day!

Just a quick card for a friend in honour of St. Patrick's Day today!

This card uses many of the goodies you can earn for free during Sale-a-bration including:

- everyday enchantment dsp

- elementary elegance stamp set

- fresh vintage stampset

- luck limeade cardstock (included in the in colours cardstcok pack)

- everyday enchantment brads

To finish off the card I also used a sentiment stamp from the 'blessings from heaven' set and my hear to heart punch...it's super easy to make a shamrock from 4 hearts (and cute!:)

Be sure not to miss out on the sale-a-bration fun (and free stuff) by placing your order by March 31st. Contact me by my workshop on March 24th if you want to place an order in person as my order that weekend might be the last 'paper' order going in before the end of this promotion or you can place an order online at (link) any time right up to March 31!

Tonight's Class - Vintage Heart Box

Tonight is my vintage heart box class, and I am looking so forward to it! It's a smaller number of people registered, but I just think not everybody is a girlie girl;) But everything about this project just delights the girlie girl in me:) We'll be making the box from the heart framelilt dies, beau chateau dsp, baroque motif and designer lable stamps sets, beau chateau fabric, victoria lace and first edition dsp...not to mention, pearl jewels, champagn fine galaxy glitter and vanilla smooch spritz! Oh I'm twirling around getting ready for the girls to come and make this one with me!:))

More Apothecary Art

I just love how versatile the Apothecary Art stampset is. As you can see I've been using it the last several days and each of the three cards, including todays, looks completely unique!:) Today's card was also created using the labels collection framelit dies and a couple of embossing folders for the big shot. The whisper white cardstock on top was created using the stripes textured impressions folder which you can purchase directly from the IB&C OR earn for FREE during sale-a-bration (see page 16 of the Sale-a-bration mini). The grey matt for the sentiment piece was also embossed with an textured impressions folder, this time, the vintage wallpaper one from the IB&C. This card uses the twitterpated dsp from the Occasions Mini and is finished off with basic black taffeta and the pearl jewels from the IB&C.

You can still register for my sale-a-bration workshop which will be held on March 24th at 2pm by contacting me today or commenting on this post. Sale-a-bration ends March 31st, so you will want to be sure to get your sale-a-bration order in before the end of of the month to get your free items from the SAB Mini!! Online ordering is available here.

Everyday Elegance/Apothecary Art Card 2

Today's card uses a cherry cobbler card base from the everyday elegance simply sent card kit that I've been talking about the last few days that you can order or earn for free with a minimum SAB purchase.

I also used the Apothecary Art stampset and the coordinating label framelit dies from the Occasions Mini on this card, and once again I trimmed the finished card below the sentiment this time, with the pleated satin ribbon from the Occasions Mini (this time in ridinghood red)..love this ribbon! The dsp I used on this card is from the twitterpated pack in the Occasions Mini which I thought set off the red cardbase the the beautiful laser cut detail edge of the cardbase beautifully! I also used the pearl jewels from the IB&C to accent the roses in the stamped image.

The shaded effect in the colouring of the wreath of roses comes from a technique using watercolor wonder crayons and a blender pen.

To order any of the products listed above and earn your free Sale-a-bration item, click here or contact me!

Everyday Elegance/Apothecary Art Card 1

Here is another card I made on the weekend using a baja breeze everyday elegance simply sent card base. The tag with the 'so grateful' sentiment is also from the simply sent kit too! I created this card using the Apothecary Art stampset (and the coordinating label framelit dies for the Big Shot) from the Occasions Mini. I love these new products and how easy it is to stamp your art work and then cut it out with the big shot in a snap! I used some of my scraps from the twitterpated dsp pack that is is also in the Occasions Mini, and I completed the card with the pleated satin ribbon that I talked about yesterday from the Occasions Mini too! I cut the butterflies out for this card with the beautiful wings embosslit from the IB&C and I finished them off with rhinestone jewels form the IB&C as well. Oh, and the button on the larger red butterfly is from the designer button collection that you can earn for free from the Sale-a-bration mini too!

If you want to earn your simply sent card kit or a designer button collection (or BOTH!) for free, contact me before the end of March to place your Sale-a-bration order! You can order online here, or contact me to register for my March 24th SAB workshop or place your order for you:)

Everyday Elegance Simply Sent Cards

I am loving the everyday elegance simply sent card kits that I have earned for free during SAB! I had never tried these kits myself and I am thrilled with how versatile they are and how helpful they are when you need to make a quick card, like this thank you card which is not only simple, but elegant, I think!

I used one of the baja breeze cards from the kit. That beautiful die cut edge is laser cut into each card you receive in your kit! Love it! Also you get labels like the one I've stamped the 'thanks' sentiment on in this card in the kit and coordinating envelopes too!

To complete this card, I used the Rue Des Fleurs stampset from the Occasions Mini...that is where that pen image you see on the envelope (and I've also stamped it inside) comes from along with the 'thanks' sentiment. The dsp I used was from the beau chateau pack. I finished the card by trimming the thanks label with some baja breeze pleated satin ribbon form the Occasions mini. I love this ribbon, there is so much you can do with it and because it is already pleated you don't use very much to trim your projects!

I have already shown you a treat box idea using the everyday elegance simply sent card kit here. And over the next few days I show you a couple more cards I made with this simply sent kit over the weekend (and featuring the Apothecary Art stampset too!). You can earn this kits for free with a minimum $60 order until March 31st or if you just want the kit (or any other simply sent kit) you can order them off of page 193 in the Idea Book and Catalog. These kits range in price from 14.95 to 16.95.

You can place an order online by clicking here. OR you can contact me by commenting on this post, emailing me or phoning me. OR you can register to come to my sale-a-bration workshop on March 24th and get to make 2 free make & takes and see these products up close!

Kindness Matters - Vintage Butterfly Card

I got some inspiration for this card from Sandi McIver. I loved getting inky and creating my own vintage background on a softly patterned piece of dsp from the everyday enchantment sale-a-bration pack. And I just love these butterflies from the Kindness Matters stampset! They are the reason I bought the stampset last fall long before I knew that they would be offered to you all for free during sale-a-bration. So hurry if you want to get your set for free as sale-a-bration ends on March 31st! You can call me or email me (or leave a comment if you would like me to call you) OR you can click on my online store to place an online order.... OR if you can come to my sale-a-bration party which I posted about yesterday and the day before!

Recipe (all SU):

cardstock - pool party, ridinghood red, very vanilla

dsp - everyday enchantment

ink - versamark, soft suede

marker - baja breeze

stamps - charmed, kindness matters

other - victoria lace, black embossing powder, stampin sponges

Fun-folds Card for Sale-a-bration Party

At the sale-a-bration party on March 24th that I spoke about in yesterday's post, we'll also be doing this card which uses some fun folds. This is the sort of project I do with my clubs and I wanted to give my sale-a-bration party guests a taste of what club is like:)

If you haven't received an email invite for March 24th and are in the Saskatoon area and would like to attend, please just leave a comment on this post with your email address and I will get in touch with you!

______________________

Details:

Because I know that people are so busy, and I know that many of you have shown interest in having a sale-a-bration workshop or attending one but it just hasn't worked in your schedule this year, I wanted to extend this special invitation so that you, if you will be in the Saskatoon area, you don't miss out as sale-a-bration only last until March 31st!

So I'm planning a party! ...well, a sale-a-bration workshop really!

When: Saturday March 24th 2 - 4 pm

Where: My home

RSVP by: Wednesday March 14th

Sale-a-bration is Stampin' Ups biggest promotion of the year! When you place a minimum order you receive free item(s) of your choice from the sale-a-bration mini! Here is a link to the details on my website.

My website - promotions

We will be playing with some of my favourite sale-a-bration products at this workshop along with some of the new products in the occasions mini! Also, because it's a party!, I will have some great prizes from the occasions mini that I will draw for from those who attend!!

There is no cost to this workshop (except for whatever products you might order for yourself). I will have two projects for you to make for free.

Don't miss out on the sale-a-bration...email me now (or comment on this post) to save you a spot!

Mary Engelbreit Inspired Card

This card was inspired by the way that Mary Engelbreit makes her flowers...I just love 'Mary'! This card will be one of the make & takes for my sale-a-bration party coming up on March 24th at 2pm. If you haven't received an email invite and are in the Saskatoon region and would like to come, please leave me a comment and I will provide you with the details.

There is no cost to this workshop other than your sale-a-bration order:) You will get to make 2 fun make & takes and see many of the products in the sale-a-bration mini and the occasions mini. PLUS there will be prizes...some awesome products from the occasions mini, so you don't want to miss it!! Be sure to register by March 14th; space is limited.

Everyday Enchantment Card

Just a simple card today using goodies you can earn for free from the sale-a-bration mini. Sale-a-bration ends on March 31, so be sure to contact me to get in on the fun and freebies! Also I will hosting a special sale-a-bration party on March 24th. Watch my blog for details later this week and rsvp by March 14th!

Recipe (all SU):

cardstock - pool party, very vanilla, ridinghood red, lucky limeade

dsp - everyday enchantment

stamps - fresh vintage and mixed bunch, rue des fleurs

punches - scallop trim border, bird builder, 1" circle & blossom punch

Another Mixed Bunch Butterfly Card

As I mentioned a few days ago I am loving my new mixed bunch stampset and the coordinating blossom punch. They are great for flowers, but, as I mentioned a few days ago, they are also great for butterflies. I showed you one version of a butterfly you can make with this set a couple of days ago, and today, here is a second! So adorable:)

Recipe (all SU)

cardstock - lucky limeade, soft suede, very vanilla, calypso coral

dsp - everyday enchantment

stamps - mixed bunch, belssings from the heart

punches - blossom punch, bird builder punch (for leaves) and boho blossoms

Other - framelit dies, pearl jewels, new vanilla scented embossing powder

ink - old olive, calypso coral (and a sponge), soft suede

Club Project #2 - Kindness Matters Card

You can earn practically everything you need to make this card for free from the sale-a-bration mini with a minimum purchase. The stamped images come from the kindness matters stampset which you can purchase from our main catalog or earn for free by placing an order over $60. The cardstock used includes pool party and lucky limeade which are the in colour cardstock pack you can also earn for free, and the dsp is the everyday enchantment pack you can earn for free during sale-a-bration too. Oh and see that ribbon and brad, you could select the ribbon and brad back as your free sale-a-bration item or if you have a big shot, you will want the frames embossing folders which you can either purchase from the main catalog or earn for free during sale-a-bration (the oval frame from this pack was embossed on the dsp behind the oval butterfly image on this card).

The butterfly image on this card is stamped with our second technique from this month's club which was 'rock and roll'. Bascially what you do is stamp your image in a lighter colour and then roll the edges in a darker or contrasting colour to achieve the effect you see on the edges of the butterflies. It is simpler to use this technique with round images, but it is totally doable with various shapes too!

Club Project #1 - Simply Sent Favor/Treat Box

This little treat box was created using a card from the simply sent everyday elegance card set. You can order this simply sent kit or you can earn it for free by placing a minimum $60 order before the end of March. The kit includes 4 cherry cobbler and 4 baja breeze cards with lovely embossing and that beautiful laser cut edge! It also includes 16 self-adhesive tags and coordinating envelopes.

One of our techniques for this month's club was 'kissing'. this is the stamp treatment on the body of the flower (which was stamped with an image from the mixed bunch stampset). First the image was inked with a lighter colour (we used a baja breeze marker) and then it was stamped onto a french background stamp that had been inked in cherry colour and then it was stamped in whisper white cardstock and punched out with the blossoms punch. You can also do this technique without inking the stamp in a lighter colour first and then you would just get the effect of the background stamp on the image shape (great for adding texture!)

The treat box was completed with one of the tags that comes with the everyday elegance simply sent kit which was stamped with a sentiment from the clearly for you stampset. The centre of the flower was stamped in cherry cobbler and punched with a 3/4 inch circle punch and embellished with a pearl jewel. And what treat box is complete without treats? This one contains five chocolates...and since I was out of small cello bags, I used our clear envelopes and cut off the end...and the treatback is tied with the cherry cobbler dotted grosgrain ribbon:)

Club Hostess Gift - Blossoms Journal

Last night was our techniques club and at each of these I try to make something for the hostess based upon things I've been meaning to try or use more. This club I made this journal using the new blossoms punch, the everyday enchantment dsp and the creative elements stampset.

I love the sale-a-bration dsp, everyday enchantment, so much and I wanted to make something that mixed a number of the patterns. You can earn this paper (and the coordinating ribbon and brad pack that I used on this journal for free during sale-a-bration:) I was a littl elate to ordering the mixed bunch stampset and blossom punch...right when the occasions mini came out I was so excited about the framelits etc that I kind of overlooked it, and I only got around to ordering it a few weeks ago and now I'm wondering why I waited?! They are wonderful. I think that probably my wait had something to do with the projects pictured in the mini using these products...while they are very pretty they just weren't my style, but once I got my hands on them I realized that they are oh so versatile!:) You'll see a few more projects using these products here over the next few days.

If you haven't placed your sale-a-bration order to receive your free product(s), be sure to contact me in the next few weeks as sale-a-bration only lasts til March 31st. You can also click on my website on the right sidebar and place an online order if that is easier for you!

Recipe (all SU):

cardstock - lucky limeade, pool party, very vanilla

stamps - creative elemnts, fresh vintage

DSP - everday enchantment

Ink - marina mist, old olive, soft suded

Ribbon & brads - sale-a-bration everyday enchantment pack

Punches - blossom punch & boho blossoms & large tag

Look What You Can Do with the new Blossom Punch & coordinating stampset...Butterfly Card

Inspired by page 16 of the Occasions Mini, I made this little butterly card using the new Mixed Bunch stampset and the coordinating Blossom Punch. I am loving this new punch even more than I thought I would!:))

Recipe (all SU)

Cardstock - wisteria wonder, early espresso, whisper white

Ink - wisteria wonder, rose red, early espresso

DSP - flirtatious

Stamps - mixed bunch & blessings from heaven

Other - labels framelits, blossom punch, pearl jewels

Simply Scored - NEW Diagonal Plate!

I'm so excited to tell you about this new product debuting today!!

This plate sits on top of your Simply Scored tool and is perfect for creating envelopes, boxes, and more! It's the must-have companion to your Simply Scored scoring tool.

Item	Description	Price
125586	Simply Scored Diagonal Plate	$15.95

Watch this video to see it in action!