Stampin' UP! Last Chance Sale

Tonight at 12AM Stampin’ UP! will announce the “Last Chance” sale items. The items on this list will be retiring with the Spring-Summer 2009 catalog on June 31. There are rumors that there will be stamp sets and accessories discounted as much as 50% off. So if there’s something you have been considering ordering -- now just might be the last time to get do so. It should be noted that the “Last Chance” sale items usually disappear quickly so plan accordingly. Finally, online ordering is most certainly the way to go and that begins at 2AM.

Incidentally, the first online order placed and valued at $35 or higher will receive a Darling Dots (113708) Level 1 Hostess Set from me and a Stampin’ Classic Stamp Pad (excludes In Color 2009 selections) in the color of their choice!

Thanks for looking and yes HE stamps!

Flower wreath thank you card

Thursday David asked me to create a card for the retiring executive assistant of the college. I created a more basic version of this card and liked the idea so much I had to revisit it. It's probably not a new technique to anyone but me -- I drew a circle on the Whisper White cardstock and then stamped the images around it. I really like this look, I'll be looking for more stamps of this type in the future to keep refining the look.

As you probably can tell from the last few posts I bought me some patterned paper during the big buy 3 get 1 free sale. I am loving all these great papers. For this card I used a bit of the Tea Party Designer Series Paper. I am anxiously awaiting the new catalog and the new designer series paper choices!

Duh, I also forgot to mention that the sketch for this card is a design from Monday Mojo . A great place to get a little inspiration!

The details:

Cardstock: Certainly Celery and Almost Amethyst

Patterned Paper: Tea Party Designer Series Paper

Stamp: Pocket Silhouettes

Rubon: Memory Makers

Ink: Certainly Celery and Almost Amethyst

Accessories: White Dots Colorbok

Thanks for looking and yes HE stamps!

Scrapbook pages

What follows are several pages that I created for NSM. Unfortunately, the pages did not turn out as I hoped through one reason or another. I am a horrible judge of my own work ... too much comparing. I wasn't going to show the pages but in the end decided that I needed to do it for myself, so here they are:

Gatsby's Casino

Our adventures in the Princess Cruise casino.

Cardstock is So Saffron. Patterned paper is Jackpot Designer Series Paper. Computer journaling. Titling and large diecut is from the Opposites Attract catridge for the Cricut.

Scrapbooking Pages

What follows are several pages that I created for NSM. Unfortunately, the pages did not turn out as I hoped through one reason or another. I am a horrible judge of my own work ... too much comparing. I wasn't going to show the pages but in the end decided that I needed to do it for myself, so here they are:

The Butterfly Farm

An excursion we took in St. Thomas to a butterfly farm.

Cardstock is Kiwi Kiss, Brilliant Blue and Tangerine Tango. Patterned Paper is Good Morning Sunshine Designer Series Paper. Diecuts

are Cricut Home Accents cartridge, and stamped

with Autumn Leaves Block Stamps 2 stamp set. Pewter Jumbo Build-A-Brads are embellished with paper selections from Good Morning Sunshine DSP. Ribbon is Kiwi Kiss 5/8" Striped Grosgrain Ribbon.

Sorry for the weird view of this post, having a hard time controlling how the content appears!?!

Scrapbooking Pages

What follows are several pages that I created for NSM. Unfortunately, the pages did not turn out as I hoped through one reason or another. I am a horrible judge of my own work ... too much comparing. I wasn't going to show the pages but in the end decided that I needed to do it for myself, so here they are:

How vegetarian are YOU?

A dining experience from a Princess Cruise that we took two years ago.

I used the Sunshine Garden Simply Scrappin' Scrapbooking Kit on this page. I'm not really a sticker or self-adhesive diecut person and I think that shows on the page. But I sure gave it a good try and it has it moments.

Face Time

Celebrating just three of the many faces of my 2 year old nephew Jase who has been living with us for the past seven months.  I found the LO on a site called Choubox Scrapbook Design I was able to grab the sketch as a pdf file and refer back to it often as cutting sizes were included.

Being a new demonstrator creating samples can be challenging to say the least ... so here's another example of using cardstock exclusively on these pages.  I think using the background stamp from the Sweet Sampler stamp set turned out really nicely though.  Cardstock is the extremely like able Barely Banana and always faithful Bashful Blue.  Ink was the stand-alone Bashful Blue.  Unfortunately, I did have to veer into non-SU products for titling and fonts.  Fonts were downloaded over the Internet and were freeware.  Titling was completed using the Sure Cuts Alot software for the Cricut.

Thanks for looking and yes HE stamps!

About quality and cardstock

I just discovered something and had to share -- many of you may already know this but like I said I had to share!

Since I am still lamenting the soon retirement of the 2008-09 In Colors I have become incredibly Scrooge-like with cardstock.  This morning I am working on a two page scrapbook LO and decided to mount all the photos on Pacific Blue.  After I got over the shock at the sheer amount of cardstock that would be required for the photo mounting I arrived at the decision to brayer a couple of pages of white cardstock.  Still being Scrooge-like I pulled out an old stash of white cardstock and went to town.  For the second sheet I decided to try out my precious stash of Stampin' UP!  Whisper White cardstock.  I can't believe the difference - take a look for yourself.  Be warned I am not a brayer type stamper this is my first go at brayering so there's lots of lines but the truth is in the pudding.  

The amount of ink accepted by the Whisper White cardstock is amazing.  Now I have never been a cardstock snob (patterned paper yes) it took me quite some type to jump on that whole Bazzill bandwagon.  For me cardstock was for matting or often behind the patterned paper (don't ask!)  Stampin' UP! has high quality standards for all their products and it shows with this little unknowing experiment.  Take some unsolicited advice and get yourself a package of this paper you won't regret it!  Am I biased?  You bet, but my love of the products of Stampin' UP! is the reason I became a demo.

Don't forget that for the month of May all patterned paper and textured cardstock are buy 3 packages get 1 free.  By the way, that free package can be more expensive than the 3 you purchase.

Thanks for looking and yes HE stamps.

SU Marker Club at a manageable price!!

Does your Stampin’ Up! “Wish List” include the 48 Stampin’ Write Markers with the storage case. Do you wonder how you can financially “swing it”? Well, here’s a way to get the full set of markers and the storage case without going into your grocery money! Here’s all the details and how it will work: 

• Team up with 7 others to form a Marker Club. 
  
  
• Over eight months we will incrementally order 8 complete sets of markers with the accompanying storage case. 
  
  
• Each member will receive 6 markers of a color family monthly and the storage case at a specified time. 
  
  
• The club will not meet the Workshop minimum ($150) for Hostess benefits so I’ll give a free Classic inkpad in the color of your choice during the month you receive your storage case. 
  
  
• The total cost including shipping from SU and me to you for each member will be $23.10 per month. 
  
  
• Payment will be due to me by the 15th of each month and payable by PayPal bank withdrawal or by credit card to Stampin’ UP!. 
  
  
• I will be taking one spot in the club so just 7 more to go. 
  

Check out my website at HeStamps.com for more info on me, details about this club and all my projects. Thanks! 

_____________________________

Benjaman Turner 
Independent Demonstrator 
Website: http://hestamps.com 
Blog: http://hestamps.blogspot.com

Mother's Day and a ribbon awakening

Thanks to fellow Demo Cindee Wilkinson I can say that I appreciate Stampin' UP! Flock Together Designer Series Paper.  This card is CASEd from one Cindee created for a Stamp A Rama her upline's group holds.  

This is my first experience with good quality ribbon and it is a world of difference from that .99 spool stuff the big box craft stores sell.  Trust me when I say if price is a consideration (and in this economy when isn't it?) try one spool of a neutral color of quality ribbon and feel the difference.

As for the specifics of the card: Whisper White, Tempting Turquoise, and Certainly Celery Cardstock, 5/8" Certainly Celery grosgrain ribbon, large oval punch, scallop oval punch, computer titling, and diamond jewel embellishment.

Reflection

This has got to be one of my favorite cards (at least that I've created in sometime.)  I should say that this was CASEd from two different cards that I saw on SCS in the Clean & Simple challenge.  Beyond the beauty of the card is just the ease of it.  Such a simple card to make and to achieve such a classic look.  Do I wish I would have had a SU ribbon?  Yes, but I'm still trying to build my supplies not to mention the business.

Speaking of which, the business that is.  I wish I could report that things are moving along swimmingly but that would be a lie.  I'll just say that I am my own best customer.  I never went into SU with the intention of following the traditional model of success - my aim was to grow an Internet business until the children are in school and then move into workshops and the like.  But I'm not so sure about that any longer. 

I am trying hard to remain confident and upbeat.  I know that my first "real" sale is there - I can feel it.   This evening I got an email from the upline of about at least 3 possibly higher from me (pardon me if I don't get the terminology correct.)  The email was really a report of the top sellers and gifts to them.  The writer's intention was probably to rally everyone to do better but it just distressed me.  $1,000 a month in sales is so far from my reach at this moment.  I'm good for this quarter but next is a whole other story.  Okay, now that I've done the usual Ben thing and talked way to much I'll go.

Thanks for looking and yes HE stamps and wants to sell Stampin' UP!