Shelli Wasn't Kidding!!!

Stampin' Up Founder and CEO Shelli Gardner used the "Lovely As A Tree" stamp set last year during convention and mused (I paraphrase), "When is this set going to retire? It's been around forever." Whereupon everyone at convention moaned and booed and shed a tear or two (I exaggerate). And Shelli said, "Oh that set is never going to retire." 

Shelli wasn't kidding!! "Lovely As A Tree" is NOT on the list of retiring stamp sets. Yay!! 

Everyone loves this set--it's so versatile. It can be used in the fall, for Christmas, and in the spring. It's manly, yes, but I like it, too. (If you remember that, well...) 

I was in a "big box craft store" the other day looking for 4x4 frames so I could make more of the sweet Paper Pumpkin frames--I couldn't find them, by the way, so if YOU know where I can get them, please tell me! I went past several framed pictures that used background paper the looked like it was from an old book, with either a penny farthing or a mustache printed on top. It was simple. It was elegant. And I said, as I sometimes do, "I can stamp that!" Also our "Many Mustaches" stamp is retired and, seriously, how many times can I use the penny farthing from the "Timeless Talk" set? So I searched my stash of stamp sets and realized that I haven't used "Lovely As A Tree" in quite a while. Here's my recreation of the framed prints I saw in the store.

(Stamp Sets: Lovely As A Tree, Six-Sided Sampler: Inks: Gumball Green, Midnight Muse; Card Stock: Gumball Green, Midnight Muse, Very Vanilla; DSP: Modern Medley; Accessories: Hexagon Punch, Midnight Muse Stitched Satin Ribbon)

I stamped the tree using the "generations" technique. It's very simple: You ink the stamp once and make your impression, then do another--without reinking--and then another. Each successive impression is a lighter "generation" than the original. There are actually four generations on this card. Can you find them all? I fussy cut the stamped hexagon along the lines and then punched a Gumball Green hexagon with the punch.

REMINDER: The Stampin' Up catalog reveal event is this Monday. I'll be there--and I'll be tweeting what I'm allowed to tweet. I already know that we can show pictures of the catalog front page and pictures of demonstrators holding the new catalog. So if you want to be one of the first to see the catalog--and to find out whatever I'm allowed to tell you--then follow me on Twitter @kkstamps.