Cool Treats for As You See It Challenges

Today was gorgeous! Blue skies, sunny and warm, it must have hit 23 degrees! (That's Celsius, for my American friends!) It certainly held promise of the summer to come! It made me remember the summer days when my kids were little, and a sound I dreaded above all else! It was a tinny rendition of The Entertainer, playing over and over and over, throughout the neighbourhood, gradually getting closer and louder. My girls would eventually become aware of it and the next thing I would hear would be the screen door slamming as they ran in the house screaming, "Ice cream truck! Ice cream truck! Can we have money?" Which would have been okay if it was once every two weeks or so, but this happened almost every other night! You get tired of saying no all the time, and strangely, it wasn't quite enough motivation to get the girls to do chores in order to earn themselves some ice cream money!

But ice cream treats and summer do go hand-in-hand! So when I saw the sketch for As You See It Challenge #149, it was the first thing that came to mind!

I just haven't been able to get enough use out of the Cool Treats bundle from the Occasions Catalogue. I suppose I've been waiting for the weather to warm up a bit to get in the mood! Luckily, this set is not retiring. It will be seen in the new 2017-18 Annual Catalogue, although not as a bundle. So if you want the Cool Treats Stamp Set and the Frozen Treats Framelits Dies, you can save yourself 10% by getting it now, before May 31st!

• I used the Tasty Treats Specialty Designer Series Paper as the background for this card. It will be retiring on May 31st, just like all current DSP, so this is something you should definitely get before the deadline if you like it!
• It's so much fun figuring out what colours to use and how to design all the tasty treats. There are so many options. I haven't even tried the ice cream cones yet! I used Daffodil Delight and Peekaboo Peach on one, Flirty Flamingo and Watermelon Wonder on another and on the middle one I used the new Lemon Lime Twist*. I stamped off once for the lighter base and used it full strength for the indents in the middle.
• I needed to add the Stitched Shape Oval and Layering Ovals Framelits in the back because otherwise they got lost on the striped paper.
• The sentiment is from Thoughtful Banners stamp set which coordinates with the Duet Banner Punch. Both of these will still be around in the new Annual Catalogue, but not as a bundle again, so here is another instance where you can save 10% by acting now.
• The Burlap Ribbon added a fun bit of texture to the whole design.

*New products from the 2017-18 Annual Catalogue, available on June 1.

I hope you have time to pop on over to As You See It Challenges this weekend and play along with this challenge and have a little stamping fun this weekend!

I'll leave you with the links to the Retiring Products. Place your order anytime on my On-Line Store or message me with your order. Just click on each banner to see what's still left and all the great deals you can get!

Click on the links below to take you to my On-Line Store, where you can read about, look at, and purchase if you wish, the products used to make this card today.

Product List

Cool Treats Photopolymer Stamp Set [142982]	Cool Treats Photopolymer Bundle [145181]	Thoughtful Banners Photopolymer Stamp Set [141614]	Thoughtful Branches Photopolymer Bundle [144328]	Tasty Treats Specialty Designer Series Paper [142770]
Crumb Cake 8-1/2" X 11" Card Stock [120953]	Chocolate Chip 8-1/2" X 11" Card Stock [102128]	Whisper White 8-1/2" X 11" Card Stock [100730]	Daffodil Delight Classic Stampin' Pad [126944]	Peekaboo Peach Classic Stampin' Pad [141398]
Flirty Flamingo Classic Stampin' Pad [141397]	Watermelon Wonder Classic Stampin' Pad [138323]	Lemon Lime Twist Classic Stampin' Pad [144086]	Sahara Sand Classic Stampin' Pad [126976]	Chocolate Chip Classic Stampin' Pad [126979]
5/8" (1.6 Cm) Burlap Ribbon [141487]	Duet Banner Punch [141483]	Stitched Shapes Framelits Dies [145372]	Layering Ovals Framelits Dies [141706]	Big Shot [143263]
Liquid Multipurpose Glue [110755]	Fast Fuse Adhesive [129026]	Glue Dots [103683]	Stampin' Dimensionals [104430]

Eastern Palace Thank Yous

It was time for some new customer thank yous and having just received my Eastern Medallions Thinlits in my last order (the ones that coordinate with the Eastern Beauty stamp set), I was excited to try them out so I came up with a simple design and added it to the new Very Vanilla Note Cards and Envelopes that I got as a free gift when I purchased the Starter Bundle. The Eastern Palace Specialty Designer Series Paper that you see on the cards is also in the Starter Bundle. The only thing you don't get in that bundle is the Thinlit dies and to get those you need to purchase the Premier Bundle, which I would honestly recommend, because those Thinlit dies are so worth it. They really make the whole suite and you can create a thousand looks with them. Take a look at my Pinterest Board to see what I mean.

Here's a closer look:

• I am totally in love with that little flower you can make by stamping the outline (here in Tranquil Tide, a new In Colour), then adding stamped embellishments to the middles (here in Fresh Fig, another new In Colour), then using two of the thinlits to die cut it. One of them just cuts enough of the inside of the petals to make them lift up for a 3D effect but doesn't completely cut them out. Love it!
• The beautiful rich paper you see on the Very Vanilla Note Cards is from the Eastern Palace Specialty Designer Series Paper. It has some gorgeous designs in it and it uses three of the five new In Colours. The other is Lemon Lime Twist. It comes in both the Starter and Premier Bundles.
• I added a Rhinestone Basic Jewel to the center of each flower for an accent.
• The sentiment is also from the Eastern Beauty stamp set, which you get in both the Starter and Premier bundles.

Today was Pre-Order day for me! I put in an order for some favourites among the limited selection we were allowed to order from and I also ordered all my new Catalogues! And you know what that means! It means that in about a week, I will have them and I will be able to begin distributing them to you, my customers!  If you want one right away, I suggest that you place an order with me and I will then be able to put one right in your order for you when I deliver. Otherwise, you will be waiting for the second round of deliveries later in the month. If it's been a while since I have heard from you, let me know that you would like a new catalogue and I will see that you get one.   Oh, the excitement!!

Click on the links below to take you to my On-Line Store, where you can read about, look at, and purchase if you wish, the products used to make this card today.

Product List

Eastern Palace Premier Bundle [147207]	Eastern Palace Starter Bundle [147196]	Very Vanilla 8-1/2" X 11" Card Stock [101650]	Rhinestone Basic Jewels Embellishments [119246]	Big Shot [143263]
SNAIL Permanent Adhesive [104332]	Stampin' Dimensionals [104430]

Ribbon of Courage and Refugees

One of the new stamp sets in the upcoming 2017 - 18 Annual Catalogue is a set called Ribbon of Courage*, which is a set inspired by Million Dollar Sales Achiever Patty Bennett. It was an all-attendee give-away at OnStage this time. There is a coordinating set of framelits called Support Ribbon Framelit Dies* that can be bundled with this stamp set for a 10% saving, but they weren't part of the give away so I don't have those yet. These loops of ribbons in all different colours signify support for different causes and salute the courage of the victims and survivors of different diseases or experiences.

I wanted to highlight one of the new In Colours, and I chose Berry Burst*, but I found later that there are no causes that use ribbons of this colour, so I decided to pick one myself. Today our Refugee Care Collective from our church met for a pot luck lunch, and for the first time, we were able, via Messenger, to meet and interact with the Syrian Refugee family that we are sponsoring to bring to Canada in the next ten to twelve months! It was wonderful to see them all and talk to them. The family consists of a mother - a widow - and her 6 children ranging in age from 9 to 18 years of age. The mother's sister already lives in our area, sponsored by another group, and her family joined us as well and helped to act as our translators. It was very exciting. In the meantime, we have a lot of fundraising to do, so that we are well prepared to support our family for a year and beyond when they arrive!

Since the father of our family was killed in the bombing in Syria, the family have had a very difficult time ever since and have certainly earned a ribbon of courage! My proposal is that this colour, Berry Burst, be the colour saluting the courage of refugees fleeing their homes in effort to find safe haven from the horrors of war. What do you think?

• The ombre-looking Berry Burst Designer Series Paper you see is a new product called Colour Theory Designer Series Paper Stack*. There are some fantastic ombre and crackle designs in this series. You'll have to have it when you see it! I've paired this Berry Burst hue up with Crumb Cake and I think it's a good fit!
• The ribbon and sentiment are both stamped with the Berry Burst Classic Stampin' Pad*. The enamel shapes you see are new and are called Glitter Enamel Dots* and will be available in the Annual Catalogue. I love that they are ombre as well!
• The Layering Ovals Framelit Dies die cut the ribbon and the backing for this card and the new Pretty Label Punch* took care of the sentiment and its backing.

*New products from the 2017-18 Annual Catalogue, available on June 1.

Starting today, you can order the beautiful Eastern Palace Suite of products in an early release bundle. You have to buy one of two bundles, outlined below; The smaller bundle, geared to beginner stampers, is $77.75, and the larger bundle for the experienced stampers is $134.75.

Message me if you interested in learning more about this offer or placing an offer.

Speaking of our Syrian refugees, I am sponsoring a fundraising 1 Day Crop/Retreat in the bright, spacious lobby of our church on Saturday, May 27.

It goes from 9 am to 9 pm and Lunch and Supper are provided. There will be a goody bag for each participant as well as door prizes and make & takes and challenges! The cost is $50. The proceeds will go to the Refugee Resettlement Fund. If you are interested, here is the Facebook Link to the event.

Click on the links below to take you to my On-Line Store, where you can read about, look at, and purchase if you wish, the products used to make this card today.

Product List

Crumb Cake 8-1/2" X 11" Card Stock [120953]	Whisper White 8-1/2" X 11" Card Stock [100730]	Layering Ovals Framelits Dies [141706]	Big Shot [143263]	Liquid Multipurpose Glue [110755]
Fast Fuse Adhesive [129026]	Stampin' Dimensionals [104430]

Ribbon of Courage Stamp Set*, Berry Burst  8 1/2" x 11" Cardstock*, Colour Theory Designer Series Paper Stack*, Berry Burst Classic Stampin' Pad*, Pretty Label Punch*

*New products from the 2017-18 Annual Catalogue, available on June 1.