Memories & More is Stampin' Up!'s line of pocket scrapbooking supplies.  I don't do much scrapbooking, but have found that these cards are a great way to make a lot of cards with little effort. 

In my April Monthly Card Class I threw out a challenge to my participants: use the Petal Passion Memories & More Card Pack along with coordinating cardstock, ink and Stampin' Blends markers to create a quick-and-easy card in 20 minutes.

Here's what I showed as my examples:

This used one of the 4"x6" cards, with the blackboard/chalk flower drawing already on it.  I trimmed it down to 4"x5¼" and stamped the sentiment in Whisper White Craft Ink, then heat embossed with White Embossing Powder.  I mounted it on a Powder Pink mat and a Basic Black card base. 

This one uses a 4" x 3" card from the pack.  It had the flowers printed in black along the edge, and I added the sentiment and colored in the flowers with Stampin' Blends.  Then I matted it in Basic Black and adhered it to a Whisper White Note Card.

Not wanting to use up a lot of the Petal Passion card pack, I went to an older pack of cards for this example.  The Calypso Coral card on the bottom has a sentiment in the center that was more appropriate for scrapbooking, but the watercolor look is great as a background for the floral card.  Offsetting them, adding a sentiment and mounting them on a Whisper White card base lets both cards shine.

​Here's what the class attendees made:

Ellen's front and inside.

Marilyn's front and inside.

Jan's card.

Pat's front and inside.

Despite some serious trepidation at the start, everyone decided that it was a fun change from making my pre-designed cards.  Next time you find your mojo is flagging, maybe you can give this a try, too!

Brusho Crystal Color Class
Learn different ways to use these exciting new powder watercolors featured on page 26 of the Occasions Catalog.
$20 - all supplies included

RSVP Deadline:  Sunday, April 22. 

Wednesday, April 25
9:30 - noon in Nancy's Craft Room in Scottsdale
6:30 - 9:00 pm in Nancy's Craft Room in Scottsdale

​May Monthly Card Class
Make 5 projects featuring a variety of techniques and great Stampin' Up! products. Perfect for experienced and novice crafters!
​$20 - all supplies included

RSVP Deadline:  Sunday, May 6

Tuesday, May 8
6:30 - 9:00 pm in the NW Valley - Address TBA

Wednesday, May 9
9:30 - noon in Nancy's Craft Room in Scottsdale
6:30 - 9:00 pm in Nancy's Craft Room in Scottsdale

Stamp with Me, Get it Free!
Come make some projects featuring products from the beautiful Sweet Soirée Suite (OC pp.10-13) and take home the Sweet Soirée Embellishment Kit and a partial pack of Sweet Soiree Specialty Designer Series Paper! Because I need to order the supplies in advance, an earlier reservation deadline and prepayment will be required.

Note:  the coordinating Cake Soirées stamp set and Sweet Cake Framelits are carrying over to the new Annual Catalog, but the DSP and Embellishment kit are not.

Cost is $20 - I will send you a PayPal invoice once you RSVP or you can mail me a check.

RSVP Deadline: Sunday, May 13. 

Wednesday, May 30
9:30 - noon in Nancy's Craft Room in Scottsdale
6:30 - 9:00 pm in Nancy's Craft Room in Scottsdale
This class is also available as a Class-in-the-Mail, with all card supplies and written directions supplied.  Send me an email to reserve your class kit.

Here's a quick-and-easy card we made in my April Monthly Card Class:

It uses the Color Theory Designer Series Paper Stack as the background, and the Swirly Bird stamp set to make the sailboat focal image.  Participants had their choice of the 4 colors in the DSP:  Berry Burst, Old Olive, Crushed Curry and Dapper Denim.

I'm sorry to say I can't remember which demonstrator I CASE'd this idea from...there have been several similar posts over the last year.  Sometimes I'm a really bad pinner, LOL.

Brusho Crystal Color Class
Learn different ways to use these exciting new powder watercolors featured on page 26 of the Occasions Catalog.
$20 - all supplies included

RSVP Deadline:  Sunday, April 22. 

Wednesday, April 25
9:30 - noon in Nancy's Craft Room in Scottsdale
6:30 - 9:00 pm in Nancy's Craft Room in Scottsdale

​May Monthly Card Class
Make 5 projects featuring a variety of techniques and great Stampin' Up! products. Perfect for experienced and novice crafters!
​$20 - all supplies included

RSVP Deadline:  Sunday, May 6

Tuesday, May 8
6:30 - 9:00 pm in the NW Valley - Address TBA

Wednesday, May 9
9:30 - noon in Nancy's Craft Room in Scottsdale
6:30 - 9:00 pm in Nancy's Craft Room in Scottsdale

Stamp with Me, Get it Free!
Come make some projects featuring products from the beautiful Sweet Soirée Suite (OC pp.10-13) and take home the Sweet Soirée Embellishment Kit and a partial pack of Sweet Soiree Specialty Designer Series Paper! Because I need to order the supplies in advance, an earlier reservation deadline and prepayment will be required.

Note:  the coordinating Cake Soirées stamp set and Sweet Cake Framelits are carrying over to the new Annual Catalog, but the DSP and Embellishment kit are not.

Cost is $20 - I will send you a PayPal invoice once you RSVP or you can mail me a check.

RSVP Deadline: Sunday, May 13. 

Wednesday, May 30
9:30 - noon in Nancy's Craft Room in Scottsdale
6:30 - 9:00 pm in Nancy's Craft Room in Scottsdale
This class is also available as a Class-in-the-Mail, with all card supplies and written directions supplied.  Send me an email to reserve your class kit.

The second of my new series of classes, "Stamp With Me, Get It Free!" featured the In The Trees stamp set.  We made a nice collection of cards using a variety of techniques.

This very straightforward card was made extremely easy through the use of the new Stamparatus stamp positioning tool from Stampin' Up!  Available for general purchase on June 1, it allowed us to perfectly stamp both trees, then align the banner and sentiment between them.  Stampin' Blends provided a quick and easy way to color the images.

This card used a watercolor smooshing technique to make the background...we applied Soft Sky and Old Olive ink pads directly to an "E" size acrylic stamp block and spritzed it a few times with water before smooshing it onto a piece of Whisper White. Once dry, we masked the sides of the cardstock before stamping the tree image on and coloring it in.

This card used the same watercolor technique for the background as the one above, but we applied the ink horizontally on the block, and spritzed with more water before smooshing.

We then masked the bottom edge and stamped the trees in Crumb Cake ink.  After coloring and masking the trunk, we made a baby wipe ink pad with a variety of ink refill colors and used the tree stamp mounted wrong-side up to apply the multi-colored ink. After the right tree canopy was stamped it was masked before stamping the left one.

Yes, this card is made exclusively with stamps from In The Trees.  We started by using an Aqua Painter to add Melon Mambo and Daffodil Delight to a piece of Watercolor Paper, blending the two colors in the middle.  Once dry, we again used the Stamparatus to stamp the lightbulbs and pennants stamps down the piece.  We freehanded the banner and sentiment and cut them out to apply over some Silver Mini Sequin Trim and a strip of DSP from Picture Perfect Party.

Stay tuned for details on my next "Stamp With Me, Get It Free!" offering in May!

I made this card when I was playing around with ideas for the Stamp With Me, Get It Free! class featuring the Bird Banter set in February. I had made a few sheets of the Whisper White cardstock marbled with reinkers on shaving cream, and was looking for ways to incorporate it with the birdies.

I stamped the pair of parakeets and colored them with Stampin’ Blends and cut them out. Instead of having them stand on a branch, I decided to make them a nest. Do you recognize the framelit that I used to make the nest? It’s one of the lids from the Coffee Cups framelits:

After cutting it out of Soft Suede cardstock I ran it through the Big Shot with the Basket Weave Dynamic Textured Impressions Embossing Folder (available through the end of March as a Sale-A-Bration choice bundled with the Blossoming Basket stamp set, or by itself in the upcoming Annual Catalog in June). Then I sponged it lightly with Soft Suede ink to add shading.

I stamped the branch directly on the marbled square and colored in the leaves with my Garden Green Stampin’ Write Marker, and stamped the sentiment on the Whisper White layer, using Soft Suede for both. A fun way to flex my creativity!

At the end of February I offered the first of a new series of classes I'm calling, "Stamp with Me, Get it Free!"  We made 4 cards that featured the Bird Banter stamp set, and each participant got to take home that set to make more cards of their own.  Here's what we made:

This was inspired by a card I saw by Sarah Berry, but I made some changes.  First, I used the Foil Frenzy DSP for the entire note card-sized card.  Then I used some retired Kraft cardstock for the mat under the image panel. I also changed up which bird we used.  I kept the neat way she stamped, punched and mounted the sentiment, colored the background with Stampin' Blends, and paper-pieced the balloon that was stamped after masking the bird.  It just so happened that the February Paper Pumpkin kit had Kraft note card-sized envelopes, so it all came together!

This one was CASE'd from Tracy Bradley.   It's pretty straightforward, with the strip of Petal Passion DSP providing just enough to balance the strong Cherry Cobbler and Whisper White.  Again, Stampin' Blends provided a quick and easy way to color in the toucan.

This note card was inspired by Karen Shallam.  I didn't have the same DSP as she used, so I substituted some from the Color Theory Designer Series Paper Stack.  Once again Stampin' Blends were used for coloring...on the head we blended Daffodil Delight and Pool Party to make the green.  Also note the fun shading on the balloon made by layering the Dark and Light Old Olive Stampin' Blends.

This card's layout comes from Carol Payne, but I changed up almost everything else. One of the attendees had a request to do the Shaving Cream Technique, so that's what we did to make the marbled paper.  We used the Lemon Lime Twist, Garden Green and Old Olive Re-Inkers to make it, so those are the Stampin' Write Markers we used to color in the bird (plus Daffodil Delight for the beak).  Where some of the colors mixed it looked like Soft Suede, so that determined the color of the mat.  I also liked the deep Garden Green for the card base, Starburst Punch behind the bird and the ribbon.

Want to see more ideas using the Bird Banter set?  Check out my Pinterest board: SU - Bird Banter!

April Monthly Class
Make 5 projects featuring a variety of techniques and great Stampin' Up! products.  Perfect for experienced and novice crafters!
$20 - all supplies included

RSVP Deadline:  Sunday, April 8

Tuesday, April 10
6:30 - 9:00 pm at Marilyn's House in Glendale

Wednesday, April 11
9:30 - noon in Nancy's Craft Room in Scottsdale
6:30 - 9:00 pm in Nancy's Craft Room in Scottsdale


Brusho Crystal Color Class
Learn different ways to use these exciting new powder watercolors featured on page 26 of the Occasions Catalog.
$20 - all supplies included

RSVP Deadline:  Sunday, April 22. 

Wednesday, April 25
9:30 - noon in Nancy's Craft Room in Scottsdale
​6:30 - 9:00 pm in Nancy's Craft Room in Scottsdale

This is a very quick-and-easy card that packs a huge impact.  You just need an 8.5" x 5.5" card base scored as usual at 4.25".  Then, to make the "fancy fold" score one more time at one end at 1.25".  Fold the card closed as normal, and then fold back the small flap to make a z-fold:

Then you need one piece of Designer Series Paper cut to 4.25" x 5.5".  For this card I used these very pretty oranges from the Whole Lot of Lovely DSP.  Cut 1.25" off the long edge.  Adhere the larger piece on the front of the card, under the small flap.  Adhere the small piece on the inside of back of the card, right at the edge so it shows when the card is closed. 

I used the Lemon Zest set to make the orange slice...inking up the entire image in Peekaboo Peach and running my Tangerine Tango Stampin' Write Marker around to color the peel.  The leaves were made with the same set using Pear Pizzazz ink and cardstock and coordinating Lemon Punch.  Circle punches (or one could use Layering Circles Framelits) cut out the orange slice and Pool Party circle to layer it on.  The sentiment is from Lovely Wishes.

Super fast, super easy with a lot of Wow! factor.  Here's a version I did last year for Valentine's Day:

March Monthly Class
Make 5 projects featuring a variety of techniques and great Stampin' Up! products.  Perfect for experienced and novice crafters!
$20 - all supplies included
RSVP Deadline:  Sunday, March 4

Tuesday, March 6
6:30 - 9:00 pm at Ellen's House in Peoria (near 75th Ave & Deer Valley Rd)
Wednesday, March 7
9:30 - noon in Nancy's Craft Room in Scottsdale
6:30 - 9:00 pm in Nancy's Craft Room in Scottsdale


Stamp with Me, Get it Free!
Come make some cards featuring the fun, new
In The Trees stamps (OC p.35), and take home your own set! Because I need to order the stamp sets, an earlier reservation deadline and prepayment will be required.

Cost is $20 - I will send you a PayPal invoice once you RSVP or you can mail me a check.
RSVP Deadline:  Sunday, March 4. 
Wednesday, March 21
9:30 - noon in Nancy's Craft Room in Scottsdale
6:30 - 9:00 pm in Nancy's Craft Room in Scottsdale
This class is also available as a Class-in-the-Mail, with all card supplies and written directions supplied. Send me an email to reserve your class kit.

Happy birthday to us! March 2018 is Paper Pumpkin’s 5th anniversary and we are kicking it off with a truly exciting campaign. Not only are we celebrating five years of creating and sharing together, but we also want to say thank you to all of our demonstrators and customers who have helped us reach this great milestone. And what better way to do that than with a March kit which includes a fantastic, FREE gift and a specially designed, one-of-a-kind box? This kit is gorgeous, collectible, and is almost sure to go down in Paper Pumpkin history as an all-time customer favorite! 
Promotion Details

• The free gift complements the kit but is not needed to complete the kit.
• The free gift is exclusive to the March Paper Pumpkin kit and cannot be found anywhere else. 
• The free gift is a crafting product with a wide range of use that can be used on a variety of papercrafting projects.
• The free gift holds an approximate retail value of $6-$8 USD/$8-$10 CAD when compared to similar products offered by Stampin’ Up!.
• Subscribe between February 11–March 10 at 11:50 PM (MT).

BONUS:  Purchase a 3-month or longer prepaid subscription
​and qualify for FREE Sale-A-Bration Item(s)!

The Floral Statements set incorporates bold text with beautiful flowers that are very fun to color.  Stamping in Memento Basic Black on Crumb Cake cardstock allowed me to create a soft, antique look.  I used the Stampin' Blends to color the roses in both Light and Dark Old Olive, Light Daffodil Delight and Light and Dark Calypso Coral.  I outlined everything with the Crumb Cake Light Stampin' Blend, which created a shadow to help the image pop.  I'm sorry the picture turned out so dark, because it mutes the colors.

I simply mounted the image panel on a layer of Basic Black and a Crumb Cake card base.  I've really been into easy-to-mail cards recently, without a bulky embellishments.

What have you made recently?  Send me a picture!

Happy birthday to us! March 2018 is Paper Pumpkin’s 5th anniversary and we are kicking it off with a truly exciting campaign. Not only are we celebrating five years of creating and sharing together, but we also want to say thank you to all of our demonstrators and customers who have helped us reach this great milestone. And what better way to do that than with a March kit which includes a fantastic, FREE gift and a specially designed, one-of-a-kind box? This kit is gorgeous, collectible, and is almost sure to go down in Paper Pumpkin history as an all-time customer favorite! 
Promotion Details

• The free gift complements the kit but is not needed to complete the kit.
• The free gift is exclusive to the March Paper Pumpkin kit and cannot be found anywhere else. 
• The free gift is a crafting product with a wide range of use that can be used on a variety of papercrafting projects.
• The free gift holds an approximate retail value of $6-$8 USD/$8-$10 CAD when compared to similar products offered by Stampin’ Up!.
• Subscribe between February 11–March 10 at 11:50 PM (MT).

BONUS:  Purchase a 3-month or longer prepaid subscription
​and qualify for FREE Sale-A-Bration Item(s)!

March Monthly Class
Make 5 projects featuring a variety of techniques and great Stampin' Up! products.  Perfect for experienced and novice crafters!
$20 - all supplies included
RSVP Deadline:  Sunday, March 4

Tuesday, March 6
6:30 - 9:00 pm at Ellen's House in Peoria (near 75th Ave & Deer Valley Rd)
Wednesday, March 7
9:30 - noon in Nancy's Craft Room in Scottsdale
6:30 - 9:00 pm in Nancy's Craft Room in Scottsdale


Stamp with Me, Get it Free!
Come make some cards featuring the fun, new
In The Trees stamps (OC p.35), and take home your own set! Because I need to order the stamp sets, an earlier reservation deadline and prepayment will be required.

Cost is $20 - I will send you a PayPal invoice once you RSVP or you can mail me a check.
RSVP Deadline:  Sunday, March 4. 
Wednesday, March 21
9:30 - noon in Nancy's Craft Room in Scottsdale
6:30 - 9:00 pm in Nancy's Craft Room in Scottsdale
This class is also available as a Class-in-the-Mail, with all card supplies and written directions supplied. Send me an email to reserve your class kit.

Were you as disappointed as I was when Stampin' Up! announced that the Picture Perfect Paper Ribbon from p. 5 of the Occasions Catalog would not be available?  You may not have heard why:  environmental audits in China closed down factories all over the country, and SU's supplier was unable ship it in time for the Occasions Catalog sales period.

I decided to take this as a challenge, and pulled out my Silhouette Cameo e-cutter.  I developed a template to cut my own out of card stock, which I then crumpled up a bit and was able to separate into 2 layers.  I used some on this card:

I CASE'd the basic idea from Jacque Williams, but changed it up to make it my own.  You can see that I used a white gel pen to add faux stitching on the paper ribbon, since Stampin' Up!'s ribbon appears to be stitched.  Those color-coordinated pearls?  Just our regular pearls colored with the Rich Razzleberry Dark Stampin' Blends marker.

If you'd like to have my cut file to make your own paper ribbon, just send me an email and I'd be happy to share!

March Monthly Class
Make 5 projects featuring a variety of techniques and great Stampin' Up! products.  Perfect for experienced and novice crafters!
$20 - all supplies included
RSVP Deadline:  Sunday, March 4

Tuesday, March 6
6:30 - 9:00 pm at Ellen's House in Peoria (near 75th Ave & Deer Valley Rd)
Wednesday, March 7
9:30 - noon in Nancy's Craft Room in Scottsdale
6:30 - 9:00 pm in Nancy's Craft Room in Scottsdale


Stamp with Me, Get it Free!
Come make some cards featuring the fun, new
In The Trees stamps (OC p.35), and take home your own set! Because I need to order the stamp sets, an earlier reservation deadline and prepayment will be required.

Cost is $20 - I will send you a PayPal invoice once you RSVP or you can mail me a check.
RSVP Deadline:  Sunday, March 4. 
Wednesday, March 21
9:30 - noon in Nancy's Craft Room in Scottsdale
6:30 - 9:00 pm in Nancy's Craft Room in Scottsdale
This class is also available as a Class-in-the-Mail, with all card supplies and written directions supplied. Send me an email to reserve your class kit.

I'm playing catch-up today after my parents' week-long visit.  In the meantime, enjoy this video from Stampin' Up! featuring Shannon West showing off the new Blooming Basket Bundle available with a qualifying purchase during Sale-A-Bration.  She shows a few ways to use both items in the bundle...enjoy!

Hi everyone!  I'm taking a short blogging break this week while my parents are visiting us here in not-so-sunny Arizona (that should change as of tomorrow).  I did want to pop in though to let you know that a second selection of products is now available to earn for FREE with a minimum $50 purchase.  They, along with the original collection, are available while supplies last through March 31.  Click on the cover pictures below to see both brochures, and then head to my online store to place your order!