In Praise of Stepmothers

I lost my mom to breast cancer when I was 23 years old.  As difficult as this was, there was more pain ahead.  As the eldest, I felt a burden to hold the family together, when my mom was the real glue of the family.  I watched helplessly as my dad tried to cope with his suddenly lonely, solitary life, and my two younger sisters were suddenly cut adrift, much too young.  I was incredibly relieved when my dad met and married Edna, my stepmom!  Edna was so good for my dad, full of life and joy.  She was just what Dad needed at that time in his life.  And Edna worked so hard to bring the two sides of our families together to be a unit again.  This was not an easy job and not always successful, but I will always be grateful to Edna for trying and for being there for us.  I wanted a way to say thank you to her as her birthday approaches.

Edna was born in England and for some reason, the Everything Eleanor stamp set makes me think of the British Isles and all that the English countryside embodies.

Here's the card I created just for Edna:

Marina Mist isn't the blue I usually choose for my cards, but I love it when combined with Basic Black and Whisper White.  This is the combination chosen this week for the Dynamic Duos challenge #29.  This is Black Tie Week and the challenge is to use Marina Mist and Basic Black with a dessert option of a Snowman Theme, although that wasn't mandatory.

 

I think the reason I like Everything Eleanor so much is the variety of beautiful elements it has.  The

flowers are exquisitely represented, but not difficult to fussy cut and curl with a bone folder. The flourish is so...well, flourishing!  And I love the treatment of the label!  And pearls work so well with it!  It was such a welcoming break from designing Christmas cards! (I never thought I would hear myself saying THAT!) 


 The card is fairly self-explanatory.  The blue panel in the background is embossed with the Fancy Fan embossing folder and the Big Shot.  To get the black shape shadowing the Happy Birthday label, I stamped the label on Basic Black with the Marina Mist and then traced around the border with a silver Stampin' Dazzle marker so I could see to cut it out.  Stampin' Up:  We need a framelit to fit this shape!  We have a smaller version in Apothecary Accents framelits, but not this size!  It's just begging for one!  (There!  Do you think they heard me? I'm sure you'll see one introduced in the next few days! lol)
I hand cut it and positioned it so it was off-set to the sentiment label. Speaking of the sentiment, it is one of the new single stamps from the Perfectly Penned stamp set - just perfect for this card!

Well, that's all my secrets revealed here....regarding this card I mean!  Let me know what you think of Everything Eleanor!  And do any of you have a special stepmom in your life?  I love to read your comments and get to know you a bit better.

Stamps:  Everything Eleanor (w124162; c124164); Perfectly Penned Happy Birthday (single stamp) (c132309)
Paper:  Marina Mist (119682), Basic Black (121045) and Whisper White (100730) card stock
Ink:  Classic Stampin' Pad in Marina Mist (126962); StazOn Jet Black (101406)
Accessories: 3/8" Taffeta Ribbon in Whisper White (109070); Pearl Basic Jewels (119247); Large Pearl Basic Jewels (125577)
Tools:  Fancy Fan embossing folder (127751); Paper Snips (103579); Stampin' Dimensionals (104430); Glue Dots (103683)

Busy! Busy! Busy!

A quick post today to remind you of the BIG Online Extravaganza Sale that begins tomorrow, Monday, November 19th and continues to Wednesday, November 28!! 

There are some amazing deals!  Check out the savings.  I want to alert you that on Monday, Nov. 19th for 24 hrs. only, you can save 20% on The Big Shot.  It will be selling for $98.36. The regular price is $122.95.  Let me know if you have anything you want to order.  Stampin' Up products make great Christmas gifts for the crafters on your list.

I have also updated my Classes page with some great new classes in December and January, including a new monthly class for beginners.  Just click on the "Classes" button on the top menu.  I'll be back with more card ideas on Tuesday.

Surprise, Surprise!

Those tricky folks at Stampin' Up are so full of amazing surprises these days!  First there is the new Stampin' Up iPhone app that lets you design and send cards from your iPhone (Don't worry, Android users - there is one coming for you soon!)  It's free and you can download the app from iTunes!

Then today, I woke up, checked the website and there were two new ultra-cool products introduced.  The first one is the Texture Boutique Embossing Machine!

Isn't that the cutest thing?  It embosses paper just like the Big Shot, but unlike the Big Shot, it doesn't do die cuts.  But if you love texture in your cardmaking, this is the tool for you.  Only $36.95, and if you bundle it with two embossing folders:  Stripes and Flower Garden; it's only $45.95!  Just in time for Christmas!  But you have to act fast because there's only 4000 of them available for all Canadian and American customers!  Give me a call today, email or facebook me if you want one of these great tools.  I've ordered one to use at workshops to speed things up in the Big Shot corner!   Here's a Stampin' Up video giving you all the details:





The second amazing product is something called Talking Tags, which allows you to use your smart phone (Apple or Android), to record messages for these tags and add them to your cards for the recipient!  Brandi explains it much better:






That's crazy enough, but if you go to Stampin' Up's website tomorrow there will be details on an Online Sale coming soon with savings up to 50% off, if you shop online.  Don't forget to pick me as your demonstrator for more savings!

Now if all that doesn't get your MOJO going, I don't know what will!  Please contact me with any questions you might have!

Texture Boutique Embossing Machine (132657) and bundled with the two embossing folders (132700) ; Talking Tags (129723) for 10 tags.

Hurtling Train

Does anyone else out there feel as if they are in a speeding train hurtling toward December 25?  Or maybe it's in a plane nosediving directly at Christmas?  I probably say this every year but every year it is truer:  Christmas comes faster and faster all the time.  I can't believe it's almost here!  I just put my capris away for the year.  I just tucked my flip-flops in the closet!  How can it be almost Christmas?

Oh, well, Christmas will come whether I'm ready for it or not, so I might as well......
stamp another Christmas card!

This one was inspired by the MOJO Monday sketch #267 by Julee Tilman.  I just felt like it had a vintage feel, and I hadn't used my Christmas Lodge stamp set enough yet this year.  Or my red glimmer paper either!

The base is Cherry Cobbler card stock, with a piece of Candlelight Christmas DSP as the back panel.

The next layer is more Cherry Cobbler card stock with some Early Espresso Core'dinations card stock embossed with the Woodgrain embossing folder.  I punched one edge of the Red Glimmer paper with the Scallop Trim punch and added a layer of Very Vanilla, stamped with the lodge from the Christmas Lodge set in Early Espresso and the sentiment from Come To Bethlehem in Cherry Cobbler.  I tied a little fork bow using Real Red 1/8" taffeta ribbon and added it to the panel, then mounted it on dimensionals to give it some vertical interest.  Finally, I used the Snow Flurry BigZ die to die cut the two smaller snowflakes, combined them with glue dots and adhered them to the project.  I think red and brown is my favourite Christmas combination - it looks so warm and rustic.

And that's my card for today!  Focus on your Christmas tasks, but don't take any hurtling trains!



Stamps: Christmas Lodge (w123767; c123769); Come to Bethlehem (w118732; c120591)
Paper:  Cherry Cobbler (119684) and Very Vanilla (101650) card stock; Early Espresso Core'dinations card stock (127848), Candlelight Christmas Specialty DSP (126901), Red Glimmer Paper (121790)
Ink:  Classic Stampin' Pads in Early Espresso (126974) and Cherry Cobbler (126966)
Accessories:  1/8" Real Red Taffeta Ribbon (119251)
Tools:  Snow Flurry BigZ die (127813); Scallop Trim Punch (118402), Woodgrain Embossing Folder (127821)

Christmas Lodge



New Video

It's SOOO late.  I stayed up chatting and previewing the new cattie with my upline and sidelines!  Oh, my heavens - it is amazing!!! and huge!!!  There are so many cute, new products and papers and stamps and embellishments!  I can hardly wait to start ordering in December so I can start to show you all the neat things!  You're gonna love it!  Let me know if you want to have one mailed to you.  And you've got to become a demonstrator, so you get these awesome first peeks!

But I finally finished a new video, a tutorial for making Christmas illuminated easel cards like these:

So here is the video.  Enjoy!

 

We Remember...

Tomorrow is Remembrance Day in Canada.  It's a day to take the time to remember.  To remember the courage of a past generation, fighting for the rights we all take for granted so often.  A Canadian soldier in WWI wrote these words:

In Flanders Field

In Flanders fields the poppies blow
Between the crosses, row on row
That mark our place; and in the sky
The larks, still bravely singing, fly
Scarce heard amid the guns below.
We are the Dead. Short days ago
We lived, felt dawn, saw sunset glow,
Loved and were loved, and now we lie
In Flanders fields.
Take up our quarrel with the foe:
To you from failing hands we throw
The torch; be yours to hold it high.
If ye break faith with us who die
We shall not sleep, though poppies grow
In Flanders fields.
~ John McCrae (1872-1918)

My card today honours those who gave their lives in two World Wars and in many conflicts since.  It includes my own father, who was wounded in France and carried the scars until he died a few years ago.

This is a hybrid card, using some elements created on My Digital Studio 2, including the cross and the sentiment.  I used the Pleasant Poppies background stamp, inked in StazOn Jet Black and embossed with clear embossing powder, then watercoloured using an Aqua Painter and Cherry Cobbler and Sahara Sand ink.

When I saw several beautiful photos on Facebook today of the poppies in Flanders Fields, I was inspired to create this card.  Of course, I can't do the real poppies justice, but I think the card gives the right feel of honour and respect.

Dynamic Duos challenge this week is a subtle combination of Sahara Sand and Cherry Cobbler, the perfect colours for this card.

 

I used Crosses of Hope and Words of Courage Stamp Brush sets for the MDS2 parts of the card, but added an Antique brad and some metallic brads to both.  I hand-cut several poppies as well and added them for the look of 3D poppies, blowing in the wind.

 

 

I hope you like the card, and I hope you pay tribute this weekend to some aging heroes and to the concepts of courage and sacrifice.  Don't let their deaths be in vain.

 

 



 

 

Stamps: Pleasant Poppies (w126480; c129499); Crosses of Hope (129595); Words of Courage (130858)

Paper: Sahara Sand (121043), Cherry Cobbler (119685) and Whisper White (100730) cardstock

Ink: Classic Stampin' Pads in Cherry Cobbler (126966) and Sahara Sand (126976); StazOn Jet Black (101406)

Accessories: Antique Brads (117273); Metallic Brads (119741); Clear Stampin' Emboss Powder (109130)

Tools: Aqua Painter (103954); Heat Tool (129053); Lacey Brocade Embossing Folder (127819)

Pleasant Poppies Stamp

 Crosses of Hope Stamp Brush set

 

 

Pacific Sunset

No, I'm not posting from a South Pacific Island (I wish!!).  This is the name of a maple tree in our back yard - a Pacific Sunset maple, and from this photo, I think you can see why.

 

Aren't the colours lovely?  So warm and glowing!  This is what I see everyday when I look out my kitchen window.  This tree actually inspired my next card:

 



 



I used the Mojo Monday #266 sketch for this one, designed by Julee Tilman, and it created a lovely, balanced design.

 



The palette, taken from the autumn colours on my maple are Pumpkin Pie, So Saffron, More Mustard and Cajun Craze, with a little Soft Suede thrown in there for good measure!  And it uses a sentiment from the Trust God stamp set, to comply with The Paper Players' Challenge #120, where the theme is "Give Thanks".  Thanks, Ann Schach, for that topic, because even though Thanksgiving is over here in Canada, it is still an awesome idea to be grateful everyday!

 

The stamp set I used for this card is a favourite of mine, and Ann Schach's too, I'd say:  French Foliage.  It has such a lovely vintage feel to it.  I started with a card base of Pumpkin Pie and added a piece of So Saffron embossed with the Square Lattice embossing folder.  I added a vertical flag from some Orchard Harvest DSP mounted on Pumpkin Pie, then stamped the rectangle panel with images from French Foliage.  I distressed and sponged the edges and mounted it on Cajun Craze.  The small square panel is a piece of Polka Dot Parade DSP on Pumpkin Pie.  I punched out a circle of Very Vanilla using a 1 3/4" Circle punch and backed it with a 2 3/8" Scallop Circle punched out of Cajun Craze.  The image is also from French Foliage and the sentiment, again, from Trust God.  The horizontal flag is made from Victorian Crochet Trim and I added a Naturals Designer Button threaded and tied with some linen thread.

 



So try this one out - great for lots of occasions!  Thanks for dropping by!

Stamps:  Trust God  (w126700; c126702), French Foliage (w120845; c121166)
Paper:  Pumpkin Pie (105117), So Saffron (105118), Cajun Craze (119684) and Very Vanilla (101650) card stock;  Orchard Harvest DSP(126895); Polka Dot Parade DSP (126902)
Ink: Classic Stampin' Pads in Soft Suede (126978), Early Espresso (126974), Pumpin PIe (126945) and More Mustard (126964)
Accessories:  Victoian Crochet Trim (118481); Naturals Designer Buttons (127554) tied with Linen Thread (104199)
Tools:  Stampin' Sponge (101610); Square Lattice Embossing Folder (119976); 1 3/4" Circle Punch (119850); 2 3/8" Scallop Circle punch.(118874)