PhillyInkers Fall Fest - Stamping on Candles

This is the third project I created for the Fall Fest. It features the Pines and Pointsettias stamp set (Wood 123762 or clear-123764). I added the details to the candles with my embossing gun. Then I created the box to add the candles to. And lastly the finished project complete with Real Red satin ribbon and a tag from the "Tags til Christmas" (wood-120847 or clear -121169).

I am happy with how it turned out! Stay tuned for a class featuring this technique coming in the near future!

A Technique Page

You are probably wondering what all of these little squares are for. Well once a month when our group of Stampin' Up Demonstrators, the PhillyInkers, get together we make a page for our Technique book. We take turns making up the squares for our technique page. In July I did one of the pages. My Technique was the Shaving Cream Technique. This is a lot of fun to do, although a little messy. But I love how different each page came out a little differently. When the squares were dry, I used Basic Black Craft ink to stamp on the flower image from Upsy Daisy.
At the meetings we adhere the squares down to Top Notes which are pre-cut. On the reverse side of this, are the directions of how to do the technique. Below is a finished example.

Swaps for Spring Fling - In Wilderness

I seem to be on a masculine kick when making cards recently. Anyway I wanted this set "In Wilderness" by Stampin' Up as soon as I saw it in the catalog. I love the realistic looking wild animals that the images portray. As usual I tned to shy away from coloring those images so as to not take away from them. Instead I usually do a great deal of distressing on them. I started with a Soft Suede piece, layered with a Very Vanilla piece which I crumpled up and distressed with Crumb Cake (formerly Kraft) and Soft Suede classic Ink pads. I adhered the buffalo to a smaller piece of Soft Suede which I anchored down with three silver brads. In an additional effort to distress the piece, I rolled the one edge around a paint brush to give the look of a poster peeling off a wall. I really like how this one turned out. All masculine and natural looking. This is one more of the swaps I made for the PhillyInker's Spring Fling.

A first Attempt - Easel Card

Each month at the PhillyInker's meetings we have been having a mail swap, where we each draw a name and we mail that one person a card. Last month I had Juliana. I wanted to try something a little different, so I created this easel card for her. It features Cherry Cobbler, Basic Black, and Whisper White cardstock, Cherry Cobbler Classic Ink, and Basic Black 1/4" grosgrain ribbon. The image is from the Pocket Silhouettes stamp set, and it is stamped over and over again in a circle. The sentiment is popped up with Dimensionals, and is trimmed with the scallop border punch. The sentiment is from Heard from the Heart. I really like how it turned out and I will definitely be making more easel cards in the future!!!

PhillyInkers swap - Version 1

This is one version for my swap for the upcoming PhillyInkers swap. I used the Just Believe set from Stampin' Up. The sun is done by cutting a circle frame in a Postit note and then using sponges to apply Daffodil Delight and a little Pumpkin Pie. The embossed piece I used my Square Lattice embossing folder, then I used my brayer to run Old Olive ink over the piece. Some places are lighter, while some is darker. I cut the corners with my Ticket Punch. I really like how it turned out. I finished it off with an Old Olive bow.

Diva Night Card - Elements of Style

One of the great things about being a PhillyInker, besides having such a great group of fellow Demonstrators, is having Claire Lawrence as an Upline! She is super sweet and so creative, and very inspiring! (and may be blushing at this point!) Another benefit of being a PhillyInker is that you can earn "Diva Night"!!! Diva Night is a night we get together to eat, talk, and stamp at Claire's house. Claire has a set criteria for you to earn this privilege, and I have to say I always strive to make it, even though it is tough!
This was one of the cards we created at the last Diva Night. It used the "Elements of Style" set. We embossed the strip with the new "Lattice" embossing folder made for Stampin' Up. A simple, yet great card!
STAY TUNED FOR MORE PROJECTS FROM DIVA NIGHT!

The PhillyInkers with Shelli!

I thought I should add the whole reason that Shelli came to our neck of the woods, and here she is...Melissa! (top photo).

In the bottom photo, are some of us, the PhillyInkers!!! Not everyone was able to make it to meet Shelli today, unfortunately. A lot of the ladies that were with us have just recently joined Stampin Up, but we also had a few "seasoned" Stampin' Up Demos there as well! As I have said before, this is the group to be in! The PhillyInkers is like a big happy, supportive family! They listen to your ideas, cheer for you when your experiences have been good, and on occasion kick you in the rear when you need it! Just like any family should do!

Speaking of family, that is my real mom, Ginnie (who is also my Downline), in front of me in the brown colored shirt. My, as we call her, Stampin', Mom, or Upline, Claire is to the right and slightly in front of Melissa (in the floral shirt with the black trim).

Interested in meeting Shelli or becoming a part of this awesome family? The only way to do that is to join Stampin Up! Contact me for details! :)

Stamp Camp Creation 2010

I was asked to help put with the Stamp Camp put on by my Upline Claire Lawrence, and my fellow PhillyInker Heather Yates yesterday. It was a lot of fun, and the ladies that attended were just great! This is the second Stamp Camp that I helped them with, and both were a great experience! A few of us got together before hand and made the projects. This is two of the cards the participants were able to make. We kissed the "Butterfly Accent" stamp with the "Dot, dot, dot" stamp from Stampin' Up. I had never tried this before, and I love the results! The little butterfly accents are from the "Beautiful Wings" embosslit folder. And the sentiment is from the "Whimsical Words" SaleABration set. If you want these stamp sets, don't wait! The Whimsical Words is available for FREE during SaleABration ONLY! And currently all of the other butterfly items are in the Mini Catalog which ends on April 30th!!!!

These cute cards were Claire's design!! Thanks for sharing with us Claire!

I {heart} hearts - PhillyInkers SWAP

As usual I am behind in posting. Ugh I think that is the hardest part, getting to post things once they are created!! The creating is the easy part!

So ayway...I made these fronts for the swap we had at the Philly Inkers February meeting. I used the new (and for a limited time only) "I {heart} hearts" set for the hearts, and the SaleABrations set called "Whimsical Words". I am really going to miss being able to demo "Whimsical Words" It is such a cute set! I used Pixie Pink, Whisper White, and Real Red Cardstock on these. And pretty much all of the sades of pink/red that SU carries, as well as the Versamark and Basic Black Classic Ink. Some of the brads were black, while on others I used silver.

Philly Inkers Shoebox Swap

Today I was able to attend the semi Annual brunch that the PhillyInkers group holds. When we have these, we get together, have wonderful food and conversation, and afterwards, those who are able, participate in a Shoebox swap. This brunch was held at Heather Y's house, and she made FABULOUS Quiches and Skier's French Toast! YUMMY!!!!
This is the card I made for the Shoebox swap. It uses Real Red, Whisper White, and Handsome Hunter cardstock. The snowflakes are from the "Serene Snowflakes" set, and the sentiment is from "Heard From the Heart". The brads are from the Vintage Brads set. I also added a little Dazzling Diamonds here and there for a little sparkle!

Fall Fest 2009

Ok first let me say that Fall Fest was AWESOME!!! It was so cool meeting lots of Demonstrators from all around our area!
So let me tell you I was swapping out card fronts that I had made and Karen Barber asked if I would like to swap with me. I was so honored!!!! I turned to my friend Heather (and fellow PhillyInker) and said "I got a Karen Barber card!!!" I was so excited. Then a little while later I was swapping and a very nice lady handed me a swap and I am looking at it thinking that it looked like a Michele Zindorf. I looked up and there standing before me was Michele!!! Can I tell you it was like meeting royalty meeting the two of them! Later they both joined the PhillyInkers that were in attendance for lunch. It was a little unnerving sitting at the table with two extremely talented ladies! But they both were super nice and very sweet!
While at Fall Fest we had a chance to sit with both ladies and create cards that they were teaching. So I came home with a Karen and a Michele card that I swapped AND a card that each of them had taught me to make.
So here are some pictures I'd like to share:

That's Michele getting ready to teach us our card. Trust me it was awesome! You will surely be seeing it soon!

And that is Karen getting ready to teach us the Black Magic technique! I am working on perfecting that one and you'll be seeing it soon as well.




Just a little side note. If you are looking for a group of ladies that you would like to join as a Demonstrator for Stampin Up, can I suggest you seek out the PhillyInkers? You don't have to contact me, if you don't want, there are many other great ladies, and a Gentleman in our group. There are quite a few of us from PA, NJ, DE all the way to Ill, and NM. After spending the day with the ladies at Fall Fest, I came to realize what a great group of ladies they really are. I already knew that they were supportive and all very nice, but I came to realize this past weekend that it is more then that. In Stampin Up we say that the person we sign up under is our Mother, And the person she signed under is our Grandmother (which by the way Karen is our Grandmother) and there are sisters, etc. Last weekend I came to realize that it is more then just a great group of ladies, but the group really IS a family. And I am so proud and honored to be a part of it!


And now my friends I am off to a class with my AWESOME Upline, (and mother) Claire! I have more to post about Fall Fest, but I have to be on my way for tonight!

Until then, Happy Creating!

A Card for Heather Y.

Side view:

I made this card for a fellow PhillyInker, Heather Y. We participated in a card swap among some of the PhillyInkers. I LOVE making these quilted cards! They are so cool and each one can look different depending on which papers or Cardstock that you use.

For this one I used the new In Color Dusty Durango Designer Paper, Dusty Durango and Whisper White cardstock, and Dusty Durango Classic Ink. I used all of the following punches also: Large Oval, Scallop Oval, 1 1/4" Square punch. I also used the Top Note Die exclusive to Stampin' Up. I finished it all off with some Whisper White 1/4" Grosgrain ribbons and some Stampin' Dimensionals. Then I added some little stitch marks so it looked more like a quilt. All items are by Stampin' Up.

I hope she likes it!!!

Echos of Kindness and Pretty Petals card

Another picture that didn't come out very bright! It doesn't do the card justice!

Anyway I made this one for a Swap with the PhillyInkers SU group that I am a memeber of, for a shoebox swap. The background is a background stamp from Stampin' Up called Pretty Petals. The sentiment is from a hostess set called Echos of Kindness. I stamped it in Real Red classic ink on Very Vanilla card stock. I then distressed the edges a little with the Real Red stamp pad. The Sentiment is stamped on Pretty in Pink cardstock, adhered to Real Red cardstock. I tied it up with a Pretty in Pink 1/4" grosgrain ribbon, and adhered it to a Real Red card.

Sometimes I think background stamps get overlooked. I don't know why. They make such great backgrounds on cards! And since Stampin Ups are big, they fit a A2 size card perfectly! Distress the edges for a nice look.

Big on Christmas

I made this Card front for a Monthly Card front swap I am hosting on Cricut.com, and also for a swap for my Stampin’ Up group. I used the Big On Christmas set from Stampin’ Up. I stamped the image on the Whisper White cardstock, matted it on Bashful Blue. I then used bleach with the snowflakes from the “Season of Joy” and the “Short and Sweet” sets from Stampin’ Up. I used the Brilliant Blue Cardstock for the background. I must say when I made them, I used two different qualities of cardstock. I made some with the Brilliant Blue from Stampin’ Up (shown in this picture) and some with a dark blue I bought at a store. The ones I made with Stampin’ Up’s cardstock came out much clearer, with the bleach.

Snow Swirled Christmas Card

I made this card for a shoebox swap for my Stampin’ Up group , The Philly Inkers. I used the Real Red cardstock as a back ground. I stamped “En Francois” background with black StazOn ink. Then on Whisper White cardstock I stamped the tree and sentiment from “Snow Swirled” in Glorious Green Classic Ink. I attached that to Glorious Green Cardstock, and tied it up with ¼” Real Red Grosgrain ribbon. I attached that to the Real Red card. To give it a little shine I added some Dazzling Diamonds to the tree. I must say that I am very proud of this card!