Blog Awards!

I was so fortunate to receive some blog awards this week from Sparkly Pink Star. You really need to check out her blog...which even includes videos of some of her creations!! She is exceptionally creative!

Thank you so much for thinking of me in such a sweet way!

The Sunshine Award

The Magical Blog Award

The Stylish Blogger Award

Kim - Stampin by the Sea

Erica - Pink Buckaroo Designs

Kimberley - Procrastistamper

Dawn - Raspberry Suite

Nadine - The Beautiful Ordinary

Be sure to go and check out the blogs of these fabulous ladies!!

Who doesn't need a little chocolate?!

These treat pouches are made from the SU Two Tags die for the Bigshot & each is filled with 4 choco- lates!:) I just *love* the new Eat Chocolate stampset in the Occa- sions Mini!

I saw Kim use the die for treats back around hallo- ween, but I didn't have the die then.

Recipe (all SU):

Cardstock - ridinghood red, crumbcake & very vanilla

Ink - chocolate chip & ridinghood red

Stamps - Eat Chocolate, i {heart} hearts

Ribbon - 1 1/4" striped grosgrain

Accessories - jumbo eyelets, scallop trim border punch, small oval punch & decorative label punch

Love Letter Scraps

As you know I've taught several tri-shutter mini album classes over the last two months and the dsp we used was love letter, so I had a bunch of half inch to inch wide pieces of dsp scraps sitting on my cutting bench. What to do, what to do? :) The idea for using strips came I think from Kim maybe a month ago - thanks!!

Recipe (all SU):

Cardstock - basic black, very vanilla, ridinghood red

DSP - love letter scraps

Stamps - artistic etchings

Embellishments - vintage brad, vintage trinkets & chantilly lace

Also - just a reminder that the deadline for registering for my Sale-a-bration workshop which will be on Saturday January 29th is tomorrow (ie. Friday) - so if you are interested, be sure to email me. OR...if you're interested in hosting your own Sale-a-bration workshop and earning extra free stuff, contact me and we'll set up a date:)

Sale-a-bration is just 1 Week Away!!

Have you heard of Sale A Bration? It is the VERY best time to be a Stampin' Up Customer! Basically, this is the gist:

1. For every $60 you spend, you get a FREE stamp set. This is cumulative. So, spend $120, get 2 free stamp sets, and so on.

2. Host a Workshop and earn a FREE stamp set for every $395 in Workshop sales.

3. JOIN ME! Become a Demo and receive $60 in FREE products, plus 15% OFF YOUR STARTER KIT!! Plus, receive all the fabulous benefits SU offers their Demos!

If you are interested in ANY of the Sale-a-bration fun, please email me at sherriBstampin@yahoo.ca ! I have a few dates still available for Workshops! OR consider yourself invited to my own Sale-a-bration workshop on Saturday January 29th at 2 pm (please RSVP by Friday January 21). Also, if you want to join in the fun but can't do a workshop at this time, please feel free to order directly through my website or call/email me with your order and I'll include it in my workshop!

I will post a link to the Sale-a-bration flyer as soon as it is available to the public. In the meantime, if you just can't WAIT, then contact me and I can give you a peak at mine!;)

Don't miss out on all the FREE fun!

January Challenge #1 at ACP

Each month I try to complete at least two of the challenges over at A Charming Place (ACP). The first challenge for January was just that - a challenge. I had to scrapbook a page of myself which as I sat down to do, I realized that I don't usually scrapbook about me. So here is what I came up with.

Recipe (all supplies SU except for charms which are ACP):

Cardstock - early espresso, naturals ivory, basic black

DSP - love letter

Stamps - artistic etchings

Punches - word window, small oval, label, square & eyelet border

Ribbon - victoria lace

Other - hodgepodge

Occasions Mini Accessories Share

There are some adorable new accessories in the new Occasions Mini. Some have said they want them all but don't need a full pack of them all, so how about this!

Fabric designer brads

- 1 each of 6 designs

Big buttons (springtime vintage)

- 3 each of 4 colours

Rosettes (vanilla)

- 2 each of 3 sizes

Adornments

- 2 each of 3 colours

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Total cost includes taxes & handling $12.95

...and if you are from out of town and would like to participate and have your accessories mailed to you, I will add on whatever Canada Post charges me for actual shipping (not available to customers outside of Canada). (Note all payments must be cash, cheque or money order).

So in total for $12.95 you will get 30 accessories, including the most popular choices from the new Occasions Mini.

Please email if you are interested at: sherriBstampin@yahoo.ca

Also, if there is enough interest I'll also be putting together a ribbon or seam binding share, so let me know in your email if you might be interested in that too!

A Card for Les

I recently noticed that I never posted the card I made for my husband's birthday at the end of November, so I thought I would since I'm often asked about masculine cards - and I think this one counts as that as my husband informed me it was 'very rock & roll'!;) ...and apparently he isn't just referring to the guitar image...dots and herring bone are rock & roll he says;)

Recipe (all SU):

Cardstock - basic black, very vanilla

DSP - love letter

Stamps - music notes wheel, extreme guitar, artistic etchings, broadsheet alphabet

Ink - basic black, crumbcake & versamark

Ribbon - black satin

Pardon the blog while I'm redecorating...the finishing touches should be complete in the next couple days!:)

Desk Calendar

I'll share just one more of the calendars I made - this one for my husband as you can see by the sentiment:)

The design is similar to the easel card I posted a couple of days ago, but the idea of the drawer below was inspired by this post I saw on Mary's blog.

Today is January 4th as as a new SU demonstrator, I am participating in 'book-a-thon- to try and book as many workshops during the sale-a-bration period as possible. I have copies of the the sale-a-bration flyer for anyone who'd like apeak at what's coming up, so contact me today to book your workshop and earn extra free product during sale-a-bration! Sale-a-bration runs from January 25th - March 31st.

Also, with today being January 4th, that means the new Occasions Mini is out. Here is a link! I'm 'in like' with so many things in this catalog. One of them being the paper I used in yesterday's post. If you'd like your own copy of this catalog, please contact me:)

Recipe (all SU):

Cardstock - basic black, ridinghood red, very vanilla, crumbcake

Stamps - artistic etchings

Ribbon - seam binding

Ink - crumbcake, ridinghood red, basic black

Punches - scallop trim border

Purse Calendar

This is the purse calendar that I made for my MIL who loves pink. I just made a basic matchbook design. If you haven't done one of these, there are instructions in the resource section over at Splitcoast (link is in my sidebar). I think their instructions are based on making a post-it note pad holder, but that is something I like to do, adapt things:) Also, you can find monthly calendars that you can printout all over the web, just do a search. The one I printed for each of the calendars I made this weekend was this one. I tried to make the cover fairly flat since it was going in a purse, so there isn't as much dimension between the layers created on the cover on this one.

Recipe (all SU):

Cardstock - rose red, naturals ivory, crumbcake

DSP - Vintage spring ***new in the Occassions Mini coming out on January 4th:)

Ribbon - Chantilly lace

Ink - Rose red, early espresso

Punches - eyelet border, curly label

Happy New Year

For new year's I made 'crackers' for everyone around the table. My crackers don't end up looking like crackers or cracking really - it's just kind of a package that commemorates a new year before the new year's day meal - and in it I put a new magazine that I think the person will like, a couple of their favourite chocolates and something I've made. This year I made everyone a desk or purse calendar. I'll show you a couple of them over the next few days.

This desk calender is what I made for my FIL who loves clocks. The design is an easel card (if you haven't done one before there are instructions over in the resource section on splitcoast).

Recipe (all SU):

Cardstock - soft suede, whisper white, basic black

Ribbon - dotted grosgrain, this was from last year's catty, but I have seen some on the clearance rack online

Stamps - Sense of Time

Accessories - silver hodgepodge

Ink - basic black, versamark (the phrase banner was black embossed)

Happy Birthday Alana!

Today is a dear friend & tea-lover's birthday! When you are born around Christmas I'm sure it sometimes just gets mixed in, but this is a very special lady, so I always make sure to separate it in my mind & heart and, of course, in her gifts and card. This is this year's special birthday card.

I took some inspiration from Artistic Avenger in terms of coming up with the idea for what to use to make the tea bag. It's a piece of ivory cardstock, with the punchouts from the eyelet border punch and a heart punchout and then a piece of vellum which is folded around:)

Recipe (all SU):

Cardstock - natural ivory, early espresso, cherry cobbler, old olive

DSP - jolly holiday

Stamps - take a sip, occasional quotes, tiny tags, very vintage

Ink - cherry cobbler, old olive, early espresso, versamark

Buttons - button latte

Ribbon - victoria lace

Santa Stockings

I saw this idea last weekend on Becky's blog and decided to make my own for my neighbour gifts this year since I was running out of time but still wanted to make something a little special. Usually I give a bit of my baking, but since I haven't had time to bake yet, this year it's store-bought, so at least I made the stockings - kwim! I also loved that it gave me an idea of how to use some of my punches in new ways like the ornament punch!:)

Recipe (all SU):

Cardstock - old olive, cherry cobbler, naturals ivory

DSP - jolly holiday

Ink - early espresso, versa mark, old olive, cherry cobbler

Punches - ornament, xlarge oval, small oval, 1 3/4 circle, 1/2 circle (and bird punch if you have it; if you don't use ornament punch and trim down for the moustache!)

Noel Banner

I made this 'Noel' banner this weekend using an early Christmas gift from my hubby. He gave me a Bigz alphabet for my Big Shot and gave it to me early because he wanted me to make a Christmas banner. The initial idea for this banner was a fall banner - see this link (and it's original inspiration came from Kimberley as linked in that post:)

The dimension of each flag of the banner are 3 1/2 x 8.

Recipe (all SU):

Cardstock - crumbcake, cherry cobbler, early espresso

DSP - deck the halls

Stamps - medallion, tiny tags, winter post

Ribbon - cherry cobbler seam binding, chocolate taffeta

Accessories - vintage brads, vintage trinkets

Punches - ornament, label, tag

Buttons - button late

Filled with Love

It's never to early to start thinking about valentines or love by any means! Stampin' has started a new promotion when you pick up the new Love stampset and the Love patterns paper, you get the coordinating buttons for free:))

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And fellas, if you need a last minute Christmas gift or stocking stuffer for your wife or girlfriend for Christmas, contact me by December 22nd and I can provide you with a Stampin' Up Gift Certificate. Just call or email me at: sherriBstampin@yahoo.ca

December Non Traditional Challenge

One of the challenges over at A Charming Place (ACP) this month was to make a Christmas card using non-traditional colours. I chose marina mist & early espresso. My inspiration came from the fact that I hadn't even used my new marina midst ribbon & ink yet.

Recipe (all SU except for charm which is from ACP):

Cardstock - early espresso, baja breeze, natruals ivory, crumbcake

Stamps - winter post, contempo Christmas, baroque motifs

Ink - crumbcake, marina mist, eary espresso

Ribbon - marina mist satin & chantilly lake & linen thread

Snowflake is a la a sizzex die

Punch is large oval

Buttons are from button late

Right corner uses vanilla smooch spritz

Christmas Post-it Notes

I was helping my daughter get her secret santa gifts ready for next week and made this little post-it note pad for her friend. The ornament punch sure made quick work of it!

Well, I placed the last SU order with guaranteed delivery for Christmas this week! I actually taught a mini-album class to a group of fun ladies Wednesday evening as well. At it, I was asked if I could "help" if one of their husband's contacted me for a Christmas idea for them - and I can!....

If your husband or friend wants an idea for you send them my way and I'll put together a Stampin' Up Gift Certificate of almost any amount so you can go shopping after Christmas or into the new year when the new Occasions Mini comes out! I might even be convinced to wrap it! (Any gift certificates sold are only redeemable with me as SU does not directly offer certificates.)

Recipe (all SU):

Cardstock - old olive

DSP - jolly holiday

Stamps - baroque motif

Ink - old olive

Simply Adorned Bundle

This necklace was made with the Simply Adorned bundle that SU has on sale until December 16th. It comes with the charm, a 24" chain and the coordinating stampset 'Charmed' which can be used for making charms and so much more.

I love the simply adorned charms - the quality is amazing and the bevelled glass on the front adds such dimension (hard to see in the picture)- and can accomodate some layering. These are such quality pieces (so much better than memory glass which shattered when I tried to make a necklace).

If you are interested in ordering the bundle you can click on the link to my website on the right bar and click 'shop now' or contact me before December 8th because this will be the last non-online order that I place before Christmas. Stampin' Up is recommending ordering by December 8th if you want delivery before Christmas.

I plan on making of of these for my sister for Christmas and making a number of inserts that she can switch out throughout the year depending on seasons or outfits.

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Recipe for inserts above (all SU)

Stamps - artistic etchings, charmed, tiny tags

Cardstock - natural ivory

DSP - naturals dsp pack

Ink - basic black, cherry cobbler, crumbcake, bravo burgundy (on the create charm back), always artichoke

Accessories - black bauble & vanilla satin ribbon

Hockey Night in Canada

Saturday is Hockey Night in Canada - our team, the Canucks, isn't playing tonight, but we recently celebrated my father-in-law's brithday and his team, the Habs are. He is their best fan and if they would only listen to him they would win the cup every year!;) It's sometimes hard to come up with card ideas for male family members, but I just always try to go back to what they love. I may love romance & vintage, but that definitely isn't my FIL, so I made him this card using his favourite team's colours. I used SU's All in the Family stampset along with the Family Accessories and came up with an equation that made him smile. My FIL + hockey = winning combination. I tied a piece of striped taffeta around the bottom and attached a computer charm from ACP on the bottom since he does most his coaching from his computer!;) It's not my favourite card I've made, but it was one of my FIL's favourites so I achieved my goal!:)

Recipe (all SU except for charm which was ACP):

Cardstock: cherry cobbler, not quite navy, very vanilla

Stamps: All in the Family & Family Accessories

Ink: basic black, cherry cobbler + markers

Jolly Holiday Contempo Christmas

This is a card that we've been making in my workshops lately. It uses a stampset & paper pack that are part of current bundle Stampin' Up has that is still 20% off until December 16th. If you're interested in the bundle or learning about any of our other current specials, be sure to contact me!:)

Recipe (all SU):

Stamps - contempo Christmas

DSP - jolly holiday

Cardstock - old olive, very vanilla, cherry cobbler

Ribbon - cherry cobbler seam binding

Accessories - rhinestone