Get Your NEW Catalog tonight!!

Whoo Hoo. Okay, tonight is the night! Come and get your NEW 2011-2012 Catalog. You are gonna love it! It will be a fun night to hang out and browse this new catalog together. Oh, and I'm sure we might make a project or two as well;)

Please RSVP so I know you are coming. Cant wait to see everyone tonight and see what you think of the new catalog. Here is the event info:

New Catalog Launch Party
tonight! at 6:30PM
Panera, Trinity Pkwy in Stockton

Here is how you can get your catty for FREE:
Option : Place an order of $50 or more (during the party) and earn your book for FREE
Option 2: Book a party for the month of July or August and earn your book for FREE
Option 3: Hostess a silent party (must qualify as a party. Orders of at least $150) and earn your book for FREE
Option 4: Join a club or Super Stampers Group and everyone in the group earns their book for FREE

Or

bring a friend (new customer) with you to the New Catalog party and you both can purchase your book for two for the price of one!

I am sure you know this also means that today is the very last day to order from the current Idea Book and Catalog, more specifically, anything from the retired list. Remember you can shop online 24/7 through my online store by clicking here.

Responsibility Charts

So, Ava and Sam are on their way to trying to earn themselves a trip to Disneyland. Its a big deal, a HUGE deal. But you know how before they let you into the park they ask you if you have been good and if you are listening to your parents (wink, wink. You know how they do that?) Well, the girls know that before they get to play they are gonna be asked those special questions. Let me tell you, these little ones are on it! On their best behavior and mommy and daddy are very proud. But just to keep them on track we are giving them a little visual. Enter these:

Responsibility charts. Thanks to MDS, of course. I dropped in a few pictures since they cant read yet just so they know exactly what it is they need to do. The girls even got to pick a few of their responsibilities. I was thinking pretty simple. You know: be nice, sleep in your own bed, stuff like that. But they added in feed the animals and pick up your toys. And really? Who am I to argue with that! You got it!!

So currently they are hanging front and center on the fridge (just below those adorable Golf certificates.)

And one small little tip just to save a little paper (and not have to reprint them every week) I printed them out and attached a transparency film to the top with a few brads so now they are erasable at the end of each week.

Here is the little quote at the top of each Chart:

If you don't start out the day with a smile, it's never too late to start practicing for tomorrow

-Author Unknown

Not a bad motto, huh?

Journey

Define Your Life is a stamp set that I have had for a very long time. It's a great one. I use it a ton and I have always noticed it used through out all the catalogs and in Stampin Success a lot as well. So I will definitely be shedding a tear for this one. Goodbye Define Your Life.....sniff, sniff. But I am glad to say that even though we did use Lovely as a Tree in our "Last Chance 8 for $8", it isn't going anywhere. Wheeeew! Love that one too.

Now, this card is very different than all the other cards we make. Specifically, it has ONE layer. Yep, one. But look at all that dimension, right? And no we didn't use the brayer (even through that really is my favorite tool. It's really great to have more than one brayer for changing colors when doing a class and I don't. Soon. I will soon, but not yet.) This techniques was done with sponges. Its a very easy look to get but the key is Glossy Paper. Yeah, its a must. The colors move and blend so easily. And then, when you go to stamp the image you don't want to blend or move at all, we used Staz-on. Simple. Really simple. Do you like it?

More Summer Fun

The Popsicle card is always a fan favorite during the summer. It makes a really adorable summer party invitation too. This is another card that you want to be sure to build on top of an envelope (open ended envelope works best for this style card) just to make sure it will fit. I originally learned this card from my upline, Bev. She's amazing and has taught me so much!

I also remember her telling me when I first signed up to become a demonstrator, "Why not try to earn everything you want for FREE??" That sounds like a great idea to me and that would sure make the hubs happy too;) So that became my goal. I decided I would enter all the contests that Stampin Up offered and try my hardest to reach every goal SU set (especially when you get a chance to earn FREE product.) So the first one I entered was way back when and it was for Summer Ideas. ** FYI- When you sign up to become a demonstrator you will start to receive the Stampin Success magazine (IT IS AWESOME!!) and in that magazine is all the fun contests you can enter.

Anyhoo, I entered the summer idea contest........and I won! To my complete shock. Yeah, it was awesome and I got to pick any TWO stamp sets I wanted. Cool, right??

Here was my entry. I had to dig back in the SU archives to find it. But here it is. Clearly I was new and my picture taking skills were pretty weak. Try to look past that and just see the projects. But I just thought I would share this little blast from the past:)

As you can see I used a lot of Tart and Tangy here (on the Retired list, soon to be gone forever after Thursday!)

If you are interested in joining my team, receiving the Stampin Success magazine and starting to earn all your SU supplies for FREE then email me and let's chat: niki176@aol.com

New Catalog Party!!

You are invited to a

New Catalog Launch Party!

Thursday, June 30th

@ 6:30 PM (or whenever you can make it)

Panera in the Trinity Pkwy Shopping Center, Stockton

Stop by and pick up your new catalog. Lets browse the catalog together, drink coffee and oooh and ahhh over all the fabulous new products.

And that's not all. Lets play a few games to win some fun prizes and of course lets try out some product!

Remember, Idea Books are sold for $10 but here is how you can get one FREE:


Option : Place an order of $50 or more (during the party) and earn your book for FREE
Option 2: Book a party for the month of July or August and earn your book for FREE
Option 3: Hostess a silent party (must qualify as a party. Orders of at least $150) and earn your book for FREE
Option 4: Join a club or Super Stampers Group and everyone in the group earns their book for FREE

Or

bring a friend (new customer) with you to the New Catalog party and you both can purchase your book for two for the price of one!

Please RSVP so I can be sure to have goodies ready for you! Looking forward to seeing you. Whoo Hoo!

Play Date-MDS

Time for another MDS page. Here we are at one of our favorite play places, Pixie Woods. And the best part of this trip was we had a huge group of kiddos. Look at them all piled on the dragon and that's not even everyone. Like Ava. She wasn't in the picture, she just wasn't feeling it. Actually none of the kids were.It's kinda like hearding cats! If I could zoom in on the faces, you could see the adorable looks of little ones rolling their eyes as the mommies (specifically me!) make all the kids stop playing the take a quick group picture. Ugghhh!!!! They hate that;) I know. But I still make them do it. They will appreciate it someday, right?? Maybe not. They're kids. They just want to play.


So what do you think about this page? This is a hostess sneak peak of the new Digital Scrapping Kit Cheerful Treat. You are gonna want this one. Its beautiful. To tell you the truth you are gonna want ALLLL the new Hostess items! For sure! So start looking at you calendar and lets get your party on the books. Its gonna be a busy July;) Whoo Hoo!

Bugs and Kisses

Okay, this one was a little tricky to get a good picture of but here is another 8 for $8 card from the Last Chance list. Now normally I wouldn't put ribbon on an 8 for $8 card but I have a ton of this ribbon and I just couldn't resist. I was first taught this card years ago when I was still a customer. I did it at a Super Stampers club (ask me what this is: niki176@aol.com) with my upline, Bev. Do you remember this card Bev? Its so cute. Your card was pink and brown. Thanks for the inspiration.

And here is where the last chance list comes in. We stamped a, "bugs and Kisses" sentiment on the inside of the card from the very popular Bugs and Kisses Stamp set.

Remember, you only have until Thursday to fulfill any of your Last Chance orders. Click here to shop now.

Yee-Haw!!

When you grow up in Livermore the Rodeo is a big deal and actually anything that involves horses with Sammie is a HUGE deal. She's my little cowgirl for sure. Ava's my athlete: loves soccer, golf, swimming and everything else. Sammie just wants to ride horses, that's it! So the Rodeo parade is huge! The dancing horses are the best part. They are amazing!!

It was so cute we are watching the parade and Sammie was so excited. Then she kept asking me, " Where's Princess Kate? When are we going to see Princess Kate?" Huh??? Oh, I get it. She knows that they were coming to California and last time we watched Princess Kate there was a huge horse procession. I get it. I get it. Smart girl! But no, she's not in the Rodeo parade;)
One of the best parts of the parade was that we got to watch it with our cousin Garth, from Oklahoma. Now he really is a little cowboy. So cute in his Wranger Jeans and real cowboy boots. Ava and Sam I have to dress for the part. Here they are in the skirts I made them that morning. They loved them. I actually had two moms stop us and ask how I made them. That was cool! I actually found this super easy tutorial for them. Click here to check it out.

Thanks for stopping by. See you tomorrow!

More form the Retired List

For us demonstrators we only have about a week left to play with our retiring items. Sniff, sniff. Actually, when it come to this Tart and Tangy set I am actually more like crying a river. I love it so much! Its such a fun summer set. We used it on the following card that was part of our Summer 8 for $8 (where we used all sets from the retired list)

The sentiment on this card is from the Great Friend Stamp set that is also on the Last Chance List. The Lemon was jazzed up with a bit of Crystal Effects too just to make it look especially de-lish!

Be sure to check out those Last Chance lists one more time. Accessories are going fast and some items are already sold out.

***Also, are you a fan of the Simple Birthday Thanks Background stamp?? That one was just added to the Last Chance list today. Time to swoop it up!!

Last Chance Stamps

Last Chance Accessories

Last Chance Definitely Decorative

Punch Art Class #3

Join us for this weeks class

Punch Art Class #3
Thursday June 23rd @6:30 pm

$2 class fee and $15 minimum order.

In this class we will be making 10 more Summer inspired punch art creations to add to our book. If you missed the first two classes you can still join in now, class cost is $1 additional for the cost of your starter book

Please RSVP so I can be sure to have your supplies ready.

Lemonade?

So the girls had so much fun yesterday and the mustache straws were a hit. If you missed those from yesterday's post click here. I know, the sand box is a little weird there but I needed to give my girls some shade. It started slow and they would get so crushed when a car wouldn't stop. But I told them to "be patient, they will." And they did! Keep in mind, Grandma and Papa live on the best street for a Lemonade stand. Its right by a very busy flower nursery so there is plenty of traffic and there is a stop sign just in front of their house so everyone has to stop;)

Now I know that Lemonade stands are great for learning but I don't think I realized how much. We had to make a list of supplies, shop, measure ingredients for cookies and lemonade, made signs, set up and then there was the actual selling. How much is the total cost, giving change (though most people don't want their change and gave the girls tips),preparing the order and always remembering your manners. It was so cute them yelling ,"THANK YOU!" and "ENJOY!!" and always remembering to say , "happy father's day" to all the guys. And the funniest part was how the girls couldn't stop eating their own cookies. Go figure!

Here was the banner we made together. And because most of it was done on the Big Shot the girls were able to help. They love cranking things through the Big Shot. Even the minimal stamping we did they were able to help with. They loved that part.

Now remember, this Tart and Tangy set is perfect for your little Lemonade stand and it is retiring in just a few days. Time to swoop it up now before its gone forever!

Happy Father's Day!

Happy Father's Day to all the dads out there! We hope everyone has a great day and really spoils those amazing dads. I know we will. We are definitely spoiled when it comes to the dad department! We've got the BEST one out there, if I do say so myself. Above you will see the little gift the girls made for Daddy and Papa. Did you know that mustaches are all the rage right now?? Yes they are. They are stinkin' adorable. I have seen them on shirts, jewelry and I came across these really cute mugs and decided to give them a try. I found them and a tutorial over at Tortoise and the Hare. Pretty cute right? I should have snapped a picture of Bran sipping out of it. It totally makes the girls giggle. And they have great giggles!!

Of course we had to write a little love note on the back too. I love their little chicken scratch. I know in years to come I will adore it even more.

So today Daddy got to choose what he wanted to do and no big surprise he wants to play a little golf this morning with Papa. Then we are gonna do a little BBQ-ing out at Grandma and Papa's house. But that leaves me and the girls with nothin' to do for a few hours while everyone else is gone. So guess what we are gonna do? A Father's day Lemonade stand! We even baked cookies and made a bunch of these fun straws ( to keep with the Father's Day theme.) Here are the girls trying them out. Cute, right?

And here is what Sammie thinks of my relentless picture taking. I love that face, even when its looking at me like that;)

Anywhoo, lots to do today. So if you know that secret location we will be at today (Grandma and Papas front yard) please make a drive by and bring some quarters. It would make their day!

My Little Junior Golfers

Between our play dates, golf camp, the Rodeo parade and everything crazy the past few days my camera has been screaming at me that there is "No more room for ANY more pictures!"
Its full to the max. That means, time to throw some of those pictures into MDS. So that is what I did yesterday.

I couldn't wait to do this page and narrowing down the pictures was a tough job. How cute is Ava carrying her golf bag into camp? So cute. Of course Sammie tried too but the bag just about pulls her over backyards. She's such a little pip;) But I love the shot of her getting her chipping lesson with one of the coaches. She actually did really great at chipping. They did great at everything. I was one proud mama!! It was a fun week.

Summer 8 for $8

Stampin in a new place can make me stress a bit. Especially when it comes to 8 for $8. This class is by far the most cards we make in one sitting and I was worried about Panera turning off the lights and locking doors around us........Nope. Not with this group of amazing stampers. These ladies were knockin these cards out faster than you can believe. They finished so quick that we had time just to chill, chat, drink coffee, shop the catalog and a few of the ladies even ordered some delicious Panera dinner. It was a great Girls Night Out!!

I think that ladies where happy with my selection of cards as well. All the cards were summer inspired and every card had at least one item that was retiring. This pinwheel card used the Hostess stamp set Afterthoughts (*** All hostess sets retire at the end of the year. But mark your calendars for July 8th! That is the date of our Multi-Demonstrator Garage sale. If you were not able to earn free hostess sets, these sets will be available for purchase. Whoo Hoo!)

Did you notice the embossed stars on the card base? To do this we created our own embossing folder using the stars die and the backing to the DSP packets. If you would like to learn more about this technique email me and we can schedule your party.

Blasts from the Past

ughhhhh. Its a crazy week here with Golf Camp everyday, prepping for workshops and classes, Ports game last night and more. I'm feeling like I barely have time to breath over here. So hang in there with me. I know some emails are taking me some time to get back to but I promise I will catch up soon. Although soccer starts next week too. Hehehe. You gotta love summer, right!?!

So, just to make it a bit easier on myself I am pulling some cards from my past to share with you today. Remember, Fathers Day is fast approaching and here are some of my favorite Masculine cards from the past. Now, keep in mind some of these are from a long time ago and my picture taking and watermarking have improved over time.
This one was from the girls to Papa, I think for his birthday. I miss that specialty DSP it was so pretty.

This was a series I did last year for all the fathers in my life. Professional guy (the hubs), Golfer guy (my Grandpa), Handy guy (my Dad), and Fisherman Guy (my Father-in law)

Brandon's birthday card this year. I think this was his favorite card I have made him. Score!

Super easy birthday card for Bran last year. I love how the Loads of Love birthday sentiment works perfect for a golf card.

See, how blah do these pictures look? This one I made for my dad so long ago and I wasn't sure if you could tell that it read Dad on it. I posted it on splitcoast and since then it has been recreated a ton, so I think it works. It was even cased by someone I am super inspired by and since then it has sort of became her card since her blog is WAY more popular than mine. That is a-okay by me;)

Again, blah with the picture, right? Sorry about that. But I hope you can get the idea here. I made the illusion of the beer emptying by using my markers and omitting part of the stamp.

Thanks, for stopping by. Gotta run!

Get Well Wishes

I love punch art. Don't you? This super easy card was a case from a cutie I found on Splitcoast. We recreated it for a past 8 for $8 class. Our next 8 for $8 is tomorrow and today is the last day to RSVP. Hope you can make it.

For the band aid we ran a small scrap piece of card stock through the polka dot embossing folder and used the reserve side of it of the card.

Thanks for stopping by today, gotta run!

Wish Big

Boy, was it a busy weekend this past weekend. We had three parties to attend, a Pixie Woods play date, one workshop for me, the Rodeo parade(which is a MUST in our family. I have some really fun stuff to show you from that.) and my cousin was here from Oklahoma with her son for three days.
But honestly I had to drop everything to just be with my cousin for a bit. That was great!! It really warmed my heart just to be with her and watch our kids play.

But of course, I couldn't forget about those little birthdays. I made them each their own No-sew blankets and matching pillow, like the ones I made for Ava and Sam. Click here to see those again. Here you will see a close-up shot of the birthday card that went along with the gift. And yep, that's a little sneak peek too. I can tell you I am LOVIN' this set and new punch. Whoo-hoo! Oh yes, and those are new In Colors too;)

Okay, gotta run now. As if we aren't tired enough, Golf camp starts today. Yippie, now lets cross our fingers that the girls do good and no kids gets smacked with a golf club. See you back here tomorrow.

Another Sneak Peek

Look closely on this one and you will see some of my new favorites and sneak peeks of the upcoming New Catalog. Remember, customers are allowed to pick up their cattys on June 20th and the catalog goes live July 1st!

This card went to my mother in law. She had a rough week and I wanted her to know that we were thinking about her. I know the card lifted her spirits. I am glad she liked it. What do you think?

Tool Time

I love this set! Love, love, love this set. And it recently got even more fun for me to use. I love the little tools to be silver or metal looking and I used to stamp them on our brushed silver paper and cut them out. Ugh! I hate cutting. But I do love to paint. Enter, Shimmer Paint. Ta-Da!! Way easier, way more fun and I love the look.

This picture doesn't even do it justice, in my opinion. In person it really shines. For this card we really got our aggression out too with the distressing tool. I wanted this card to have a real rugged and manly feel. How do you think it came out?

Quick and Easy Water Color

This card is not an original. I believe this card was first shown at a SU! Event and since then has be recreated and cased a lot. I used this card as part of my watercolor class recently. I have already shown you two other cards we made that were actual water color, using reinkers and water color paper (a must for really great water coloring.) But this one gives us the same look of water color in an "Express Card" feel. It uses basic supplies, markers, regular cards stock and a solid stamp image (verses the outlined images usually used in water coloring)

This techniques is a great quick alternative to traditional water coloring because it shows how any stamp can be used to get a water color look not just certain sets.

In this technique all you have to do is color in your image with markers, then spritz with water until you see the ink start to bubble and bead, then just stamp away. Pretty, huh?

Got Beer?

This one is a blast from the past. I originally made this card for Brandon's buddy's birthday. We then recreated it as part of our FORE! Dad class a few weeks back. This card is basically a lots of punches and a lot of sponging.

One tip I do have for you when making this card: Build it on top of an envelope. The Saffron base is standard card size trimmed down about a 1/4 of an inch on all four sides (well, three sides. So you don't actually cut off the fold.) Then place your scallops around as puffy as you can, making sure it will still fit in the envelope. Clearly a mistake I had to learn the hard way;)

Thank You

Recently I hosted a Thirty-One party and I was so much fun! What is Thirty-One? Well, here check it out:
http://www.mythirtyone.com/mascara/

It is adorable totes and bags (can you ever have too many totes and bags?) They are perfect for traveling, going to the beach, packing the family gear for sporting events and I even got some great bags for organizing my Stampin Up gear for when I am going to workshops.

There really is something for everyone. The prints are cute, you can personalize stuff and the prices are great. And thanks to my friends, I had a great party and was able to earn a ton of great stuff. So, of course, I wanted to say thank you.

Here is the little card I slipped into each of my girls' bags. I wanted the card to go with the theme so I did a little purse punch art. Fun, huh?

Oh and by the way, if you are a fan of punch art, check out my June class schedule and reserve your space for my upcoming Punch Art Class. In the class we will be making 10 summer inspired punch art creations. Hope you can make it!

Happy Birthday, Dad!

Today is my Dad's birthday. Happy Birthday, Dad! This card I cased from an adorable version I saw on Downstairs Design. I love the mustache. It cracks me up. A little tricky to make, though. I don't think mine came out as good as Heather's. Hers is perfect. But I had a really hard time figuring out how she did it. She says to use the Designer Label Punch and the Corner Rounder. I then figured out that you use the Designer Label Punch but it is the reverse part (the scraps) that actually make the mustache. At least when I did it it was, and then, I just used my snips to round the paisleys. But like I said, hers came out better than mine. Click here to see her version.

Do you notice anything new on here? A little sneak peek perhaps?? Yep, the DSP. Its new and adorable! I love it on this card.

Anyway, back to Dad. Happy Birthday, Dad! We hope we get to see you a bit today. If not, we will celebrate with you soon. Have a really great day and don't work too hard........... Oh, and your girls want to say something to you too: