Thursday, February 28, 2013

Happy Accident

Ever have one of those "happy accidents" (I'm a Bob Ross fan) that ends up turning into something pretty neat?  This card was one of those.  The Cherry Cobbler "Happy Birthday" was not supposed to be on a banner like that, but hey - it works!  I simply folded the two little banners on an angle and made it look like one continuous piece.

This uses the Vintage Verses Sale-a-Bration set.  Colors are Midnight Muse, River Rock, & Cherry Cobbler.

I hope you're all having a terrific week!  We've shoveled ourselves out of about 3 feet of snow over the course of a few days, but I am thrilled that some of my die-hard stamping friends STILL showed up on Tuesday to stamp with me!  Gotta love that!

Michele

Monday, February 25, 2013

Notecard Set

Remember this cute notecard set?  Well, I wanted to do another one - a little more "grown up."  Here is a quick set I threw together using the Tea for Two Designer Series Paper in the current mini:



The sentiment is using the border stamp from the Sale-a-Bration Pretty Petites set, along with a stamp from Tiny Tags.  It's punched with the new Petite Curly Label punch also in the Sale-a-Bration brochure. The dimensions for the box are in that original post (linked above), so go take a look and give it a go!  Not hard at all.

Michele

Saturday, February 23, 2013

A New Cousin!

One of my cousins had a baby a couple weeks ago... a perfect opportunity to bust out my Baby Bundle set!

I had some fun on this card.  Not only did I use the wonderful Delicate Details Lace Tape (#130966 $9.95 in the mini - I love this stuff.  You'll be seeing a lot more of it on my cards), but I also used my new Designer Frames Folder.  It also gave me the perfect opportunity to use one of those adorable Designer Printed Brads!

But the best thing about this card is that on the inside, I used a Talking Tag! I recorded a message to my cousins congratulating them and they will be able to listen to it when they scan the tag with their smart phone!

If you haven't seen Talking Tags, you should take a look - they're super cool!  Click on the thumbnail below to view the flyer.

Let me know if you have any questions!
Michele

Thursday, February 21, 2013

Get Well - QUICK!

Funny story.  Tuesday night, around 9pm, my husband comes to me and asks (and I quote), "Do you happen to know where I can find a get well card?"  Then I saw his smirk and knew he was being sarcastic.  I said I may be able to drum up something... then he said, "I don't want you to go to any trouble, I'm sure I can buy one at the airport in the morning," to which I responded with the appropriate dirty look that indicated, "don't you dare!"

So, at 9:05pm (because Michael was leaving in the morning), I set to work on a get well card for one of the managers in his company.  I quickly discovered that I don't have a single "get well" sentiment (I shall remedy that with my next order, me thinks!), and the few things I have that could work were all about love and hugs and kisses and stuff... not exactly what Michael and his co-workers would feel comfortable signing.  ;)

Alas, I had to dig in to my retired items.  But I managed to come up with something masculine enough to get the point across... tell me how I did!

Colors are Crumb Cake, Early Espresso, and Always Artichoke.  Took about an hour start-to-finish, but most of that time was trying to decide how to not be too feminine!  I opted for a faux-suede look by separating the cardstock into two layers and roughing up the edges a bit.  I had a nice piece of Crumb Cake seam binding ribbon tied across the middle, but Michael nixed it... so Linen thread it is!

I think he was pleased with the result... and I know he's proud to have a card-maker in the family to handle his last minute card-making requests!  (and I'm only happy to oblige!)

Michele

Wednesday, February 20, 2013

Feb 26th Stamp-a-Stack

Here are my three designs for my February 26th Stamp-a-Stack workshop.  This first one is, obviously, for little girls.  I love the Dress Up set and how it lends itself perfectly for Rhinestones.  The colors here are Pink Pirouette, Island Indigo, and Primrose Petals.

Now, let's get some practice using punches!  Check out this cute card for a young boy... of course, if you change the colors, it would easily work for a little girl, too.  Colors here are Gumball Green, Pacific Point, and More Mustard.


Since we have something for girls and boys, I thought it might be nice to have something for the adults - and that includes those elusive masculine cards!  The Sale-a-Bration "Feeling Sentimental" stamp set is an easy choice for masculine cards - and I just love how it stamps... it makes really beautiful images.  Colors here are Early Espresso and Cherry Cobbler.

It's so great to be back!  ...oh, wait, have I said that already?

Hugs,
Michele

Monday, February 18, 2013

Life is...

...a matter of wonderful moments!  I hope you all had a terrific holiday weekend.  Now, let's get back to "work!"  (it's so wonderful that my work is so much fun!)

I fell in love with these two papers from the Print Poetry DSP Stack (found in the current mini catalog - item 129312, $6.95).  I don't know what it is about them, but they are just beautiful together!  I made this card first...

...and then I made this lovely journal!  This was made with a mini composition notebook... the smaller sheets of DSP (they are 4-1/2" x 6-1/2") were the perfect size for cards and this journal.  I finished the journal off with an Antique Brad on top of a folded Modern Label punch and then added some Crumb Cake Seam Binding ribbon.

An embossed monogram makes it a really stunning gift... but as you can tell, this one is for ME!  ;)

Have a great week!
Michele

PS:  Another way to follow my work is to "Like" my new Stampforce page on Facebook!  I'll watch for you!

Friday, February 15, 2013

Open House Gifts

Oh, my open house Tuesday night was SO MUCH fun!  I had several friends over, along with a couple of new ladies I hadn't met before and we had a blast looking through all the things they could do with Stampin' Up!  I am totally psyched up and ready to go!

Here are the cards I made for everyone who came.  They each got a set of four cards - 2 birthday and 2 thank you - and they were each a different color.  I had several colors available, but here are just a few.  A very simple card, but yet very elegant with the addition of the rhinestones.

Added note:  I don't have a contact e-mail for the commenter that asked which set this was, but it is using the "Madison Avenue" set in the Sale-a-Bration brochure.  Any circular flower-type stamp would work, though.




Have a great holiday weekend, everyone!
Michele

Thursday, February 14, 2013

Will You Be My Valentimer?

When I was a little girl, I would always find a heart-shaped box of chocolates and a store-bought card on the table from my dad on Valentine's Day.  Before I knew the real name of the holiday, I would always call it "Valentime's Day," and my dad and I had a special saying, "Will you be my Valentimer?"  I smile at this memory every time Valentime's Day come around and wish that I lived closer to my dad so we could still be each others' Valentimers.  :)

Now that I'm all grown up... (and I use that term loosely)... I like to place a heart-shaped box of chocolates and a card on the table for each of my boys on Valentine's morning.  Here are the cards I made for them this year:

The Feeling Sentimental Sale-a-Bration set was perfect... not only because I love the images and not only because they have a natural masculine look, but because each of the images seemed to convey something about my three boys.  My oldest, Mason, loves to travel.  We took them to England/Scotland   about 18 months ago and he thrives in new cultures, soaking up everything he can.  This phone booth looks like it belongs in London, so it was perfect.  Red is his favorite color, and so Cherry Cobbler became the perfect color for this phone booth.  (one of my friends told me that I could've stamped it in blue and made it a Dr. Who card!)


My middle son, Morgan, is a fantastic unicycler, and so that made this image perfect for him!  It may not be a unicycle, but I bet if I actually had a bike like this, he'd have it mastered within 30 minutes.  Blue is his favorite color, so I chose Not Quite Navy.


...and just in case you don't believe me, here he is sporting his newest cycle that he got for Christmas.

My youngest, Maddox, is a hoot - always looking for fun.  The ferris wheel just seemed to round out the trio perfectly!  His favorite color seems to change daily, so I went with his birthstone... peridot - in this case, Wild Wasabi.

Maddox was required to take a box to school to collect his Valentines.  Back in my day, that entailed a shoe box covered in pink paper and candy hearts (can anyone relate?!).  Now, they tell us to "get creative" with it... Well, okay!!  As much as I would like to claim this next photo as my own, unfortunately I did not see it in time and therefore could not CASE it... which I would've done in a HEARTbeat because it's so stinkin' cute!

This came straight from the Stampin' Up! website, maybe some of you saw it, too.  Absolutely adorable.  Us?  Well, we decided to do a robot (mainly because robots lend themselves to un-altered box shapes - ha!).  Here is what Maddox and I came up with:

Nothing like gettin' creative with a few toilet paper rolls, huh?!  But, if you look closely, I did incorporate some Stampin' Up! goodies - his eyes (which are the fun, sparkly glitter paper), nose, and his name.  For the little bit of time we had to spend on it, I think we did okay.  Maddox is pleased as punch, and that's what counts.

And finally, here are the Valentines we made for Maddox's classmates:

This is a modification of the Scallop Envelope die.  We made them in all different colors - believe me, he told me what EACH of his classmates' favorite color was... *sigh*.  :)  Inside, we tucked a little individually-wrapped gummy candy.  He included a tag on the back with the to and from part.  It's great being a Stampin' Up! mom for holidays such as this!!

Happy "Valentime's" Day, everyone!
Michele

Monday, February 11, 2013

Open House Make & Take

Oh, I wish everyone could come to my Open House tomorrow night!  We're going to have big fun!  Here is the card I came up with for everyone to make.

It's simple enough for beginners, but elegant enough for seasoned stampers to enjoy as well!  Colors are Crumb Cake, Primrose Petals, Pool Party, and Very Vanilla.  There's also some More Amore DSP... and again, my favorite little pearl (see previous post!).  I'm a big fan of Versamark, and it looks very nice here on the Crumb Cake.

I hope I made enough kits!
Michele

Sunday, February 10, 2013

Framed Valentine

Yes, I'm working on a Sunday... but can you really call stamping "work"??  I'd put up a good argument for that one.  For me, it's the perfect leisure activity!  ...but the fact that I have an Open House coming up on Tuesday makes another great reason to be at my stamp desk today.  ;)

Here's another beautiful Valentine using the More Amore DSP and the You are Loved stamp set.  Colors here are Pool Party, Primrose Petals, and Very Vanilla.  Be sure to notice the little pearl!

Who would've thought that these colors would go well together?  Just goes to show you that Stampin' Up! knows their colors.  ;)

Hugs!
Michele

Friday, February 8, 2013

So Grateful...

I'm so grateful for so many things... but today, I am grateful to be back with Stampin' Up!  I have been very busy planning for my Re-Open Houses - the first one is this Tuesday the 12th, and the second one is on Saturday the 23rd.  I am getting more and more excited to share my love for stamping with my Colorado friends!

I made this card just this morning for my new upline, Amy Taylor.  She has been great at answering my plethora of questions (I've been trying to get back up to speed and catch up with all the new stuff going on with Stampin' Up!) and she also loaned me some Rhinestones when I ran out yesterday.  Anyway, the colors here are Primrose Petals, Basic Gray, and Very Vanilla.

Have a fantastic weekend everyone!  I think we're scheduled for a few snow showers up here.

Hugs,
Michele

Tuesday, February 5, 2013

Paper Pumpkin - Coming Soon!!

I am so excited about this new program!  Starting in March, we can all receive a beautiful red box each month full of goodies to make gorgeous handmade projects to share with those we love!  This is the perfect solution for those of you who want a simple way to have a creativity break each month.

Of course, you'll want to know more.  So here's the nitty gritty:
  • Each month, Stampin' Up! will send you a unique, surprise kit with a project... it could be cards, journals, decor, or something else!  The best part is that they have color-coordinated, measured, and cut everything for you!
  • Each kit includes stamps, ink, paper, and accessories - everything but adhesive.
  • The kits only take about a half-hour to complete - that's a 30-minute creativity escape!
  • Your Paper Pumpkin kit will ship on or around the 15th of the month.
  • You need to sign up for a kit by the 10th of the month to get that month's kit.  If you sign up on the 11th, your first kit will come the following month.  
  • A Paper Pumpkin membership is only $19.95 per month!  ...and shipping is INCLUDED!
  • There's no commitment - you can cancel your monthly Paper Pumpkin at any time.  You can also skip a month if you need to.
Here's how you order:

The Welcome Kit is the very first Paper Pumpkin you will receive in your first month of membership.  The Welcome Kit includes a FREE GIFT - a clear acrylic block!

Sign up with me today!
Michele G. Force

Friday, February 1, 2013

Faux Chalkboard Valentine

I can't believe that it's time to think about Valentines, can you?!  But what a perfect holiday for stampers, don't you think?  Here is a Valentine I made using my newly-learned faux chalkboard technique.

Mr. Brown brought me a whole giant box of goodies a couple days ago and I've been playing non-stop ever since!  Well... okay, I've also had to feed my family, do some laundry, cart the kids to/fro, feed the chickens, etc. etc. etc. so that non-stop playing is more of a wish than a reality.  ;)

I used the Bitty Banners stamp and embossed it with white powder.  The doily is a gorgeous piece, but you have to patiently pick the pieces out - not hard with a paper piercer, but takes a couple minutes.  I wouldn't want to mass produce cards with it, but definitely worth it when you're wanting to make a special card for someone - such as a Valentine!  I also used some items from the Hearts a Flutter bundle.  I'm learning to love those Framelits!  Colors are Pool Party, Primrose Petals, and Basic Black.

I've scheduled my "RE-Open House" and can't wait to show my Colorado friends how much fun stamping is.  If you happen to live in the Denver area and are interested in coming, shoot me a note and I'll send you the details!  ...I wish the rest of you could come, too.

Have a fabulous weekend!
Michele