Say Yes to New Adventures

#stampinup   #faithfulinkspirations   I don't know why, but graduation season always seems to sneak up on me and then I'm in a hurry to make a bunch of graduation cards. This year, I remembered that I had a stack of Best Route Memories & More Cards (retiring) that would be perfect--perfect for graduation cards and perfect for cards-in-a-hurry! Take a look at the cards I pulled together in a snap!

I love the Best Route color palette--I think it's fun and fresh! And, as always, starting with a Stampin' Up color palette makes designing cards a breeze.  

For the card bases I used Blueberry Bushel, Pineapple Punch, and Mango Melody Card Stock. Then I layered on a variety of cards from the En Route Memories & More Card Pack (retiring). I fussy cut some of the sentiment cards, used some of the stickers from the pack, some Best Route Designer Series paper (retiring), Best Route Washi Tape (retiring), and Best Route Enamel Shapes (retiring).

When I ran out of Memories & More Cards, I stamped sentiments from the "En Route" stamp set (retiring) in Blueberry Bushel Ink onto Whisper White Card Stock. I cut these sentiments out using a square Stitched Shapes Die. You can see a stamped sentiment on the partial card on the bottom left.

I had so much fun creating these quick and easy cards and I think they turned out totes adorbs! The Memories & More line will continue in the new Stampin' Up annual catalog, but the Best Route cards are retiring on Monday June 4th, so get yours before they're gone forever!

NEWS FLASH! Stampin' Up just discounted more retiring items--some up to 30% off! Click my "Shop Now" button to go to my online store, then click the "shop now" button again, and look for the "shop retiring items" button. You'll then see the items that are discounted. Two of my favorites are:

148552    INCREDIBLE LIKE YOU PROJECT KIT     $27.00     25%     $20.25 
148531    HAPPINESS BLOOMS MEMORIES MORE CARD PACK   $10.00  15%  $8.50

The discounted items will go fast this weekend, so get shopping!

tams# 33764

Product List

En Route Clear-Mount Stamp Set [146594] $21.00	Blueberry Bushel Classic Stampin' Pad [147138] $7.50	Blueberry Bushel 8-1/2" X 11" Cardstock [146968] $8.50	Pineapple Punch 8-1/2" X 11" Cardstock [146971] $8.50
Mango Melody 8-1/2" X 11" Cardstock [146989] $8.50	Whisper White 8-1/2" X 11" Card Stock [100730] $9.75	Best Route Designer Series Paper [146897] $11.00	Best Route Memories & More Card Pack [147036] $10.00
Stitched Shapes Framelits Dies [145372] $30.00	Best Route Washi Tape [146901] $5.50	Best Route Enamel Shapes [146900] $7.00	Stampin' Dimensionals [104430] $4.00

Best Route Masculine Swap Card

#stampinup   #faithfulinkspirations   #onstage2018   One of the best things to do when you attend a Stampin' Up event is to swap cards. You get so many ideas from a variety of stampers--and you get samples of cards made with stamp sets that you might not own. This time, I participated in five organized swaps. That means that I signed up for a spot in a swap group and made a set number of cards. You can also swap in general swaps--swap with any of the attendees--but I didn't have time to make more than my 76 cards for the five organized swaps I participated in. Do you think 76 cards is a lot? It is! But I'm a piker compared to some of the demonstrators who swap 100, 200, or more!

I made today's card for a masculine card swap. We all need cards for the men in our lives, but sometimes it's hard to make a card without flowers or ribbon or other doodads, right? My card is made with products from the Best Route Suite on pages 52 and 53 of the annual catalog.

I embossed a 3-3/4" by 5" Blueberry Bushel Card Stock mat with the Maps Etc. Embossing Folder. I adhered that to a 3-7/8" by 5-1/8" Pineapple Grove Card Stock panel and then onto a Thick Whisper White Card Stock card base.

Next, made a banner from a 1" strip of Best Route Designer Series Paper using the Banner Triple Punch. I adhered that to the back of a 3" by 4" piece of Best Route DSP and onto the card. I adhered a 1/2" by 2" strip of another piece of Best Route DSP to the card front.

I stamped the map image and sentiment from the "En Route" stamp set in Pineapple Grove and Blueberry Bushel Inks onto Whisper White Card Stock and cut it out with a square Stitched Shapes Framelit. I adhered this to a larger Pineapple Grove Card Stock square, also cut with a Stitched Shapes Framelit. I adhered this element to the card with Stampin' Dimensionals.

To finish the card, I added two of the cute Best Route Enamel Shapes to the card.

I think this would be a great card for a teen-aged or young adult guy, don't you?

Don't forget to stop by tomorrow to see another of my card swaps.

tams# 27680

Product List

En Route Clear-Mount Stamp Set [146594] $21.00	Blueberry Bushel Classic Stampin' Pad [147138] $7.50	Pineapple Punch Classic Stampin' Pad [147141] $7.50	Whisper White 8-1/2" X 11" Thick Cardstock [140272] $7.75
Pineapple Punch 8-1/2" X 11" Cardstock [146971] $8.50	Blueberry Bushel 8-1/2" X 11" Cardstock [146968] $8.50	Whisper White 8-1/2" X 11" Card Stock [100730] $9.75	Best Route Designer Series Paper [146897] $11.00
Stitched Shapes Framelits Dies [145372] $30.00	Banner Triple Punch [138292] $23.00	Best Route Enamel Shapes [146900] $7.00	Stampin' Dimensionals [104430] $4.00

Thanks For Your Service

#stampinup   #faithfulinkspirations   I really love the Best Route Suite of products on pages 52 & 53 of the annual catalog. I love the stamp set, the Maps Etc. Embossing Folder, the washi tape, the Best Route Designer Series Paper, and the Memories & More Cards. I also love the Blueberry Bushel, Gray Granite, and Mango Melody color combination. 

I have a friend retiring from the Air Force and I wanted to wish him well as he steps into civilian life. I used all kinds of goodies from the Best Route Suite for this card.

I started with a 3-3/4" by 5" Whisper White Card Stock mat. I added a 2" diagonal strip of Mango Melody Card Stock. On top of that, I added 1/2" strips cut from Best Route DSP and Best Route Memories & More Cards. I stamped the sentiment from the "En Route" stamp set in Blueberry Bushel Ink. I adhered this piece to a 3-7/8" by 5-1/8" Blueberry Bushel Card Stock mat and then onto a Mango Melody Card Stock card base. The Mango Melody card front is embossed with the Maps Etc. Embossing folder. 

I punched three different pieces of Best Route DSP with the 2", 1-3/4" and 1-1/2" Circle Punches and layered them on the striped element. I cut a strip of Mango Melody Card Stock and layered on a strip of Blueberry Bushel Card Stock and used my Paper Snips to turn this into an arrow heading for the bullseye. I added the "congratulations" sticker from the Best Route Memories & More Card Pack. Finally, I added some Blueberry Bushel and Daffodil Delight En Route Enamel Shapes.

I cut down one of the Best Route Memories & More Cards for the inside of the card. I love the way Stampin' Up coordinates everything! It makes card making so easy!!

tams# 25733

Product List

En Route Clear-Mount Stamp Set [146594] $21.00	Blueberry Bushel Classic Stampin' Pad [147138] $7.50	Mango Melody 8-1/2" X 11" Cardstock [146989] $8.50	Blueberry Bushel 8-1/2" X 11" Cardstock [146968] $8.50
Whisper White 8-1/2" X 11" Card Stock [100730] $9.75	Best Route Designer Series Paper [146897] $11.00	Best Route Memories & More Card Pack [147036] $10.00	Maps Etc. Textured Impressions Embossing Folder [146822] $9.00
2" Circle Punch [133782] $18.00	1-3/4" Circle Punch [119850] $18.00	1-1/4" Circle Punch [119861] $16.00	Best Route Enamel Shapes [146900] $7.00
Stampin' Dimensionals [104430] $4.00

Creation Station: Power of the Punch

#stampinup   #faithfulinkspirations   #creationstation   Hello there! Welcome to the September 2018 Creation Station blog hop! This time we're featuring projects made with Stampin' Up's awesome punches. My projects this time are fairly simple--I have to keep them simple because I'm getting ready to go out of town on a 3-week business trip and I have so many things to take care of. But there's always time for a little stampy creativity, right?

First up is a card that uses punches to create negative space--and contains a little punchy tip for you!

I started with a 3-3/4" by 5" Whisper White panel and punched 1", 3/4", and 1/2" circles out of the left side. I adhered this to a 4" by 5-1/4" piece of Tranquil Textures Designer Series Paper, letting the edges of the DSP show around the panel. I adhered everything to a Thick Whisper White Card Stock card base, cut lengthwise.

I stamped a sentiment from the "En Route" stamp set in Fresh Fig Ink directly onto the card. Then I stamped the same sentiment onto Whisper White scraps, masking word "awesome" to give me some space around the words. My trick is to use the Classic Label Punch to punch out individual words. I can never fussy cut my words straight enough--so I use the Classic Label Punch and snip the vertical spaces between the words. This trick also lets you arrange the words as jaunty angles, if you like. I adhered the snipped words to the card with Mini Stampin' Dimensionals.

My next project uses the Daisy Punch and Leaf Punch. When I heard about the theme for our hop, I knew I'd make something with these two punches and I let that idea cogitate for a while until everything came together in a really easy, but beautiful project. I had this tin chalkboard in my studio just waiting to be used and the combination came together just as I had imagined!

First, I stamped a sentiment from the "Colorful Seasons" stamp set in Versamark Ink right onto the chalkboard. I sprinkled on some White Stampin' Emboss Powder and set it with my Heat Tool.  I wasn't sure that was going to work, but goodness! It turned out perfectly! (I'm a messy embosser--I always have stray powder. I'm OK with that.)

The flowers were super easy to make. I made one each of Berry Burst, Calypso Coral, and Daffodil Delight. For each flower, I stamped the daisy from the "Daisy Delight" stamp set in its own color on its own card stock. So, I stamped the Daffodil Delight flower in Daffodil Delight Ink onto Daffodil Delight Card Stock, and so on. I stamped three of each flower. Then I took my Blender Pen and picked up some more ink and colored in the petals of each flower. I punched them out with the Daisy Punch and curled the petals back with the Bone Folder. I stacked each flower on top of the other, adhering them together with a little bit of Snail Adhesive.

For the centers, I stamped the daisy center stamp from the "Daisy Delight" stamp set in Versamark onto Early Espresso Card Stock. I cut that piece out with the 1/2" Circle Punch. For each flower I also punched one 1" circle and one 3/4" circle of Early Espresso. I used my Paper Snips to fringe the edges of the 1" and 3/4" circle pieces. I held each piece, pushing my thumb into the center to make a cup, and then flicked the fringed edges to rough them up.

I adhered the centers to the flowers and continued pushing with my thumb to make the cup in the center of the flower. You have to keep working, flicking, pushing, shaping the paper until you get it to look like a flower.

I adhered the flowers to the chalkboard with Stampin' Dimensionals. (I suppose you could use a glue gun, but ain't nobody got time for that.) I punched three leaf sprays from Granny Apple Green Card Stock and adhered them to the chalkboard with Glue Dots, tucking them behind the flowers. Even after the flowers were adhered, I kept fussing with them and shaping them.

Well, that was fun! I hope you were inspired--and if you'd like more inspiration, then hop onto our next design team member Tanya Bell by clicking on the next button below. See you next time!

tams# 25717 Awesome Card

Product List

En Route Clear-Mount Stamp Set [146594] $21.00	Fresh Fig Classic Stampin' Pad [147144] $7.50	Night Of Navy Classic Stampin' Pad [147110] $7.50	Whisper White 8-1/2" X 11" Thick Cardstock [140272] $7.75
Whisper White 8-1/2" X 11" Card Stock [100730] $9.75	Tranquil Textures Designer Series Paper [146331] $11.00	1" Circle Punch [119868] $13.00	3/4" Circle Punch [119873] $13.00
1/2" Circle Punch [119869] $6.00	Classic Label Punch [141491] $18.00	Mini Stampin' Dimensionals [144108] $4.00

tams# 25718 Daisy Chalkboard

Product List

Daisy Delight Photopolymer Stamp Set [143669] $17.00	Colorful Seasons Photopolymer Stamp Set [143726] $27.00	Daffodil Delight Classic Stampin' Pad [147094] $7.50	Berry Burst Classic Stampin' Pad [147143] $7.50
Calypso Coral Classic Stampin' Pad [147101] $7.50	Versamark Pad [102283] $8.50	Daffodil Delight 8-1/2" X 11" Card Stock [119683] $8.50	Berry Burst 8-1/2" X 11" Cardstock [144243] $8.50
Calypso Coral 8-1/2" X 11" Card Stock [122925] $8.50	Granny Apple Green 8-1/2" X 11" Cardstock [146990] $8.50	Daisy Punch [143713] $18.00	Leaf Punch [144667] $16.00
1" Circle Punch [119868] $13.00	3/4" Circle Punch [119873] $13.00	1/2" Circle Punch [119869] $6.00	Blender Pens [102845] $12.00
White Stampin' Emboss Powder [109132] $5.00	Heat Tool [129053] $30.00	Bone Folder [102300] $7.00	Paper Snips Scissors [103579] $10.00
SNAIL Permanent Adhesive [104332] $7.00	Glue Dots [103683] $5.25	Stampin' Dimensionals [104430] $4.00