More Teacher Appreciation Gifts

I have seen a lot of these little backpacks popping up lately. Aren't they perfect for Teacher Appreciation? I think they are so stinkin' cute! It's the back I think that's the cutest. Those little straps. Looks like you could actually wear one, right? They are fairly simple to make too. Just remember to put those Jumbo Eyelets on before you assemble your box. I forgot both times. Ugh! Darn Short Term Memory!!

There is really no perfect way to tell your teacher how much you appreciate them. I wish I could give them so much more. But I decided to go with Starbucks gift cards and chocolate. Hopefully it will brighten their days a bit. Don't forget to let your teachers know how much they are appreciated!

Teacher Appreciation Day is Tuesday May 4th

or

the First Week in May

Click here for the step by step guide

My First Blog Award!

I just received my first Blog Award!! I am super excited. The best part is I received it from a blog that I follow every day. So, to my surprise, I was ecstatic when I hopped onto one of my favorite blogs and saw my name! What!?! So cool. So here are the rules for the Sunshine Award:

1. Put the Sunshine Award on your blog and/or within your post.
2. Pass the award to 12 other bloggers.
3. Link the nominees within your post.
4. Let them know they received this award by leaving a comment on their blog.
5. Share the love and link to the person from whom you received the award.

I received my award from:

Cindy's Nutmeg Creations

Blog Hopping is part of my day. It makes me happy to see creation that other talented demos post. Here are my favorite picks:

1. all i create
2. Crafting and Rambling
3. Share Inspire Create
4. Jill's Card Creations
5. Lorraine's Stampin Corner
6. Stamp Your Dream
7. Stampin All Day With Bev
8. Vancouver Stampin Grounds
9. Simple and Sincere
10. Me, My Stamps and I
11. Stamp With Tammy
12. Hand Stamped By Ashley Romo

Teacher Appreciation

For those of you with little ones in school don't forget that the first week of May, or more importantly the first Tuesday, is Teacher Appreciation day. These are some desk organizers that I made for some of the office Admin.

These gifts are a one sheet wonder. They only take one sheet of card stock or less than one sheet of DSP. One side holds some scratch paper (cutting down the scratch paper is really the most time consuming part of this project) and the other side holds business cards.

If you would like to make one of your own here are the instructions:
One Sheet Wonder, Desk Set Template

2010 Mini Printable Calender

Recycled Easter Baskets

Today while looking around my stampin space I notice these baskets that I forgot to share with you. These cute tin baskets were actually Easter Baskets that were given to my girls by their Auntie Raine. They loved them. I wanted to snap a picture of them with all the goodies inside so you could see how cute they were filled up but my little ones dove into them faster than I could grab my camera.

I love the tag on these guys. They say Happy Easter but I don't mind because the tag it's self is really pretty. This tag is a case of a tag we saw at a recent craft show. The flower is one of our newer punches and the tag is from the fabulous Two Tags Die. Unfortunately, I just learned that both the Sweet Pea DSP and the Sweet Pea Stitched Felt are both SOLD OUT due to popular demand.

These baskets are now hanging in my Stampin room and they hold projects I am working on and ribbon scraps. I will try to snap some pictures of my full Stampin space so you can see my work area too.

Promos Ending Soon

Stampin Up has been so good to us lately. So many great promos to choose from. But as the month closes to an end so does some of these great promos. Here is one quick look back at some great deals you may want to take advantage of before time runs out.

Occasions Mini Catalog.

(Punches, Decor Elements, Dies, Embossing Folder will continue to be available for purchase)
Build A Bear Coupon
For every $20 spent on products from the Build-A-Bear Workshop Collection, receive a coupon (item 121105) for $5 off a $25 purchase at any Build-A-Bear Workshop store.

Country Living Cards à la Carte Stationery Kit
This exclusive kit (item 119113) includes the following products:

Dinner Party stamp set (set of 3)
Ballet Blue Classic Stampin' Spot
Preprinted stationery (24 sheets: 4 each of 6 designs)
Click here to download flyer

Two-Step into Spring Promotion
Hostesses:
Host a $350 workshop and receive the brand-new Two-Step Awash with Flowers stamp set FREE!

Customer:
Two-Step into spring with a sneak peek from the 2010-2011 Idea Book & Catalog! Be the first to add the Awash with Flowers stamp set to your collection.

Item Description Price
117062 Awash with Flowers (wood-mount) $39.95
120549 Awash with Flowers (clear-mount) $27.95

Plus, purchase spring-themed Two-Step Stampin' sets at 20 percent off the retail price--no additional purchase necessary!

Qualifying stamp sets are listed below:

Item Page Description Discount Price
113824 94 Greenhouse Garden $20.76
113734 98 Fifth Avenue Floral $19.96
111578 101 Flower Fancy $29.56
113258 112 Trendy Trees $14.36

Click Here to download flyer

Masculine Thank You

Today I have a very simple and quick thank you that I made for one of my mom's co-workers. He was nice enough to think of my girls and give them a little gift. Guy cards are hard. It is had not to make them frilly. So I decided to go with something clean and simple.

I really wanted to use my Love Bandid one more time too. I just love this set. It was absolutly my favorite set from our Occasions Mini that is ending this week. Good bye Love Bandit. I will miss you!

Supplies:

Chocolate Chip Card Stock

Bashful Blue Card Stock

Sweet Pea DSP

Double Stiched Bashful Blue Ribbon

Love Bandit Stamp Set

Bashful Blue Ink

Chocolate Chip Ink
Mini Library Clip

Dimentionals

Click here to shop our supplies now!

MDS Scrapbook Page

I realized that I haven't shown any scrapbook pages in a while. But have no fear, the month of May is national Scrapbooking Month. So I hope to have lots of pages to show you. I have been working away on my MDS (which is so easy to do, I am able to keep up on all those scrapbook pages that would otherwise get away from me.)

This page is a case of a page that I found on Stampin Connection. For those of you that have access to Stampin Connection I encourage you the follow Heather Summers. She makes the most beautiful MDS pages (and cards too.) I case her ideas a lot.

Now for an explanation of this page: I had just gotten out of the shower to find my little Sammie looking like this. Ava tried to hide to evidence right away but it was too late. "What are you guys doing!?! What happened to Sammie's face!?!" Apparently Ava was trying to "paint" Sammie's face. With pens! I was so mad! But look how cute she thinks she looks;) I think these were my exact words," Oh, this is NOT good! You guys are in so much trouble!...................................Now hold on while I get my camera."

Sweet Hello

What a cute card, huh? So sweet. This one is from my cousin, Lorraine. This was her trade at our Imprints meeting. I really love this layout. I have been using it myself a lot. Those butterflies were made by using our butterfly punch and running then through our fabulous new Polka Dot Embossing Folder.

The sweet little button and the tiny tag are a nice touch too. I think this card could work for just about any occasion. It would make a sweet baby card or a friendly thank you and don't forget Mother's Day is just around the corner.

Time to start thinking of some cards and gifts for those Moms in your life. I hope to have some other special ideas for you soon.

Another Beautiful Swap Card

Here is another beautiful card I received in my Imprints card exchange. My card didn't have a name on the back but I am pretty sure that this one was made by Kim Molesworth. If I am wrong please correct me with a comment. I really love this card there are so many fun products use on this one.

Check out that flower. Fancy, huh? And of course, Dazzling Diamonds make everything fancier, right? Very, Very pretty! I love it!

Thank You

I recieved this cute little Thank You from my cousin, Lorraine, for attending her son's birthday party. Isn't it cute? If you look closely you will see another Summer Mini sneak peek. Check out the texture on the card base. That is our new Lattice Embossing Folder. Be sure to add that one to your wish list. I have been seeing it pop up on a lot of cards right now (at least on demo cards, remember one perk to being a demonstrator is being able to pre-order our goodies!) This is a really popular item.

Remember, our Summer mini is just around the corner but that also means that the current mini will soon be leaving us. That means this cute little monkey from the Fox and Friends set and this great DSP too. If you still have goodies on your wish list now is the time to shop. Click here to start shopping now!

Shower Treats

I know, I know, these aren't Stampin Up! product but I thought they were too cute not to share. And just think how easy they would be to recreate with our favorite product. These are the favors from the shower I attended last weekend. I thought they were adorable...........I hope its okay that I took two!?!

Here is an up close picture of those cute tags without the glare from the cello bags. I know we don't have a punch that exact shape but have you noticed how much the tiny tag punch looks like a tiny bottle?? It kinda does!

And here are my little monsters begging me to open these. Pleeeeeaaaaasssee????Ok, ok, now you can have them.

Oh, and they were really yummy too. I only got a tiny nibble before they were devoured but still yummy!

Punch Book Class #4

It's time to reserve your space for our next class.

Punch Book Class #4

Thursday, May 20th at 6:30

Cost of class is $5 and a $15 minimum order the day of class

And remember, all classes can be done my mail as well. If you can't make it to the class, there is no reason for you to miss out. Did you miss the first 3 classes? Well you can buy those too. If you would like to join now and start at class #4 then the cost of the class is only $5 but if you would like the first three classes as well then I can do that for you too! The cost is just $20. Hope to hear from you soon.

Baby Shower Gifts

Yesterday, I attended a double baby shower for some of my high school girl friends. It was so much fun. I saw so many old friends that I haven't seen in a really long time. So, if you are reading ladies, thanks for the invite. I had a lot of fun! I am sure you guessed, but one friend is having a little girl and the other is having a boy. For their gifts I made these scrapbooks and journals (you know to keep track of those feeding and diaper changes. It gets even harder to remember stuff when it is your second baby. Sometimes I think that the "Preggo Brain" I got when I was pregnant never really came back after my second baby. But maybe that's just me!?!)

Here is an up close picture of the baby girl's ensemble I made. For the baby boy gift I used the Moments and Milestones Simply Scrapping Kit and for the baby girl I used both the Love Sparkles and the Moments and Milestones Kit. And yep, I still have a lot of supplies left over to make more creation with.

Here is a peek at some of the pages inside. I am not sure why one picture always wants to turn sideways like this but I just can't seem to get it to flip the other way. Sorry. The inside pages are all decorated and ready to go. Now all the mommies have to do is add their favorite pictures.

And here they are all bagged up and ready to go! I cant wait to meeting the new little ones!

Bridal Shower Favors

Good Morning Ladies! Yesterday, one of my friends came over to work on some favors for a Bridal Shower she is having today. She decided to go with the M&M's in the cello bags. These are always a crowd favorite. I like them too. They are cute, inexpensive and quick to make. The colors of the wedding are Black, White and Hot Pink (we used Melon Mambo.)

Part of the Wedding decor is also the Damask print and I found that I had a Damask style stamp in my Framed With Love Stamp Set. So, we used the Damask stamp, in black, for the front of the tag as shown in the top picture and this picture shows the "thank you" on the back on the tags.

And here is the full bunch all together. 20 in total. I hope the bride likes them.

Now, I am off the a baby shower this morning. I have goodies to show you tomorrow that have to do with babies..............Stay tuned!

Color Collection Bookmarks

Since the announcement of the new color renovation, I have been trying to learn the new order of our colors. I keep my Fond Farewell and my New Color Collection print outs handy but I need something more. So I created these catalog bookmarks as easy quick references for me. I can easily tuck one into my catalog and have it with me when I need it. These are two sided and they have our Neutrals and Brights on one side, and the Subtles and Regals on the other.

I gave these to the ladies that attended last night's Flip Out Album class. Would you like one too? Well here are a couple ways you can score one for yourself: Hostess a party (it can even be a silent party if you are far away), place and order, or join my team! Just let me know and I will start working on yours right away.

Another Great Imprints Exchange

Here is another great card I got as an exchange from our Imprints meeting. This card was made by one of my talented downlines, Emi. Isn't this a pretty color combo? And that background stamp is an my wish list. I love it.

Really pretty card, Emi! You did great at the Bold and Bright theme.

A Little Birthday Gift

Yesterday was my mother-in law's birthday. Here is a little birthday ensemble that I put together for her. The gift is a pre-made bundle of cards that she can give out and a matching tote to carry them in.

Both cards and tote are CASEs. But I really loved the easy designs. Sometimes I notice it is the really simple designs and layouts that really catch my eye. But sometimes those are really hard for me to do. You know, I am just having so much fun it's hard to stop. But I really like the clean and simple look. This first card is a birthday card and I put 3 in the tote.

This second one is a Thank You card and I also made 3 of this one too. So one tote, six cards, six envelops and of course her birthday card. I am also going to spend the day with her and enjoy her company over lunch.

I really hope she likes the gift. Here it is all package up. What do you think?

Click here to shop supplies used for this creation:

Sweet pea DSP

Rose Red Card Stock

Whisper White Card Stock

Vintage Brads

Clear Rhinestone Brads

Jumbo Eyelets

White Taffeta Ribbon

Teeny Tiny Wishes Stamp Set

White Med Envelopes

Scallop Circle Punch

1 3/8 Circle Punch

1 1/4 Circle Punch

Scallop Edge Punch

Felt Flowers

Baby Shower Treats

A few week ago I showed you some Baby shower invitations that I helped a friend make for her sister's shower. I promised some favors to follow. Here they are. In the invitations we used Ballet Blue but for the favors we switched to Bermuda Bay because it matched the M&M's better. I actually really like this color combo.

Here is the bunch of them together. I guess I should had turned off my flash. Sorry I didn't catch that before the favors left for the party. Those bags are pretty shiny so the glare is pretty bad. I apologise. Do you have a little party coming up that you would like to make these little favors for? There click here to start shopping. Here is what you need:

Sm Cello Bags

Scallop Circle Punch

1 3/8" Circle Punch

1 1/4" Circle Punch

Linen Thread

1/16" Handheld Hole Punch

Your Favorite Ribbon

Coordinating Ink Pad

Your Favorite Stamp Set

M&M's or other candy

Enjoy!

Card Exchange Winner

I received a lot of really beautiful cards at our IMPRINTS meeting last Saturday. This card was voted as the winner of the exchange. Isn't is pretty? This card was created by Angela Jackson. I don't think the picture does it justice to how pretty it really is.

This card also has a lot of detail. I love the Dazzling Diamonds on the bird and all the tiny rhinestones on the butterflies. This detail really makes the card. Its just beautiful. Thanks for a great exchange.

IMPRINTS Fun!

Yesterday, was another great IMPRINTS meeting. Here is a picture of all the goodies I came home with. The make and takes were great. The card exchange was fun. And the desert was delicious! Home-made ice cream sandwiches!! Yummy! Beverlee even decorated the wrappers with stamps. I tried to snap a picture of them but my flash made the picture too bright. It was a really fun day. Thanks Bev!

I really do have an amazing upline! Here are a few gifts that she gave me yesterday. I love them. The first gift she gave me was this adorable tag for my scissors. Yesterday, I nervously did a demonstration for the meeting. I have to tell you, there is nothing more nerve racking than demoing for a room full of super talented demonstrators. So I apologize for my blushing and shaking hands;)But I hope everyone liked the demo.

Then Bev gave me this beautiful photo box that she decorated for me. This gift was for my promotion to Senior Supervisor. I have to thank my downline for that one! I love my gift. And what a great idea. I think I might copy this one for gifts in the future.

But that's not all! When I opened the box it was filled with some exciting new products from our upcoming Summer Mini. I will show you what these goodies do soon enough. Thanks for stopping by, now go enjoy your Sunday.

IMPRINTS Today!

Today I am off to another IMPRINTS Meeting. I love these meetings. They are so much fun! Time with other demo friends, stampin discussions, make and takes, card contest, and more. I am lucky be bringing two of my new recruits with me to this meeting also. I am excited to share a fun day with these ladies and I hope they love it as much as I do. Our theme for today's card exchange is Bold and Bright. Here is the card that I am bringing. I cased this card from one that I found on Stampin Connection (one of my favorite sites!) I tried to see if the creator had a blog so I could link to it but it doesn't look like she does. Bummer, because she make really beautiful cards. The color combo for this card I pulled from some new DSP that is coming out in the new Summer Mini (those were just mailed out so be sure to keep an eye out for it if you are on my mailing list.)

Card supplies:

So Saffron Card Stock

Rose Red Card Stock

Textured Tempting Turquoise Card Stock

Sweet Pea DSP

Cottage Wall DSP

Teeny Tiny Wishes Stamp Set

Embossing Buddy

Craft Whisper White Stamp Pad

Clear Embossing Powder

Heat Tool

White Taffeta Ribbon

Hemp Twine

Beautiful Butterflies Die

Polka Dot Embossing Folder

Corner Rounder Punch