Embellish

The Holiday Catalog's best-kept secret

Ignore the slanty sentiment... I know it's crooked... focus with me. Look at the pretty background on this Bravo Burgundy card. It features the best-kept secret in the entire Holiday 2012 Catalog--the Illuminate Watermark Ink Pad!! That thing is awesome! Whatever color you stamp it on acquires a translucent shimmer just a shade darker and slightly pearlescent from the original color. LOVE IT! It's like a modern update on the old Encore pads that used to vascilate between opaque and translucent and drive you nuts. I know, I know, "that's not a drive, it's a putt." Yuk yuk yuk... thank you, hubby.

Illuminate is shy, though, and it doesn't like to be photographed! So you can't see it on this card. When you stamp it on Whisper White or Very Vanilla, it doesn't really show unless the light hits it. Then you can see all the subtle sheen and details that I added with the Flowering Flourishes stamp set on these elegant cards.

Did you miss this product when you were perusing the catalog? It's on page 23, and trust me, order it, and you might as well get the refill now, too, because this is going to become one of your most-loved ink pads in a hurry!

Simpler times

Ok, back to cards...thanks to my stampers for putting up with more family posts than normal these days! It is gorgeously fall in Wisconsin right now, my personal favorite time of year coupled with all that is good about living in the Midwest. You know life is good when you have more pumpkin farms and corn mazes to visit than you have free weekends, and you think about playing hooky with your kids so you can go to an apple orchard you've heard about.

I have a new stamp club down in Fort Atkinson, and they wanted to learn to watercolor with the amazing Watercolor Wonder Crayons, blender pens and Aquapainters. They've been enjoying learning ways to add subtle, professional-looking color without the heavy-handed markers or ho-hum colored pencils.
I knew this tractor set was going to be a hit around here when it came out. You can't get away from tractors for long this time of year! Harvest Blessings is the name of it, and one of my favorite things to do with it is pair it in little stamped vignettes with the Countryside stamp set because they are drawn in identical art styles and complementary sizes. What are two of your favorite sets to pair up?

Dan Zwolanek, photog

I handed Daniel the camera today to keep him busy at an outdoor wedding reception we went to, and after the obligatory doggy photos, he really surprised me with his eye for color and attention to tiny details. What do you think--do I have a budding photog on my hands?

Fabulous Fall Field Trip

Yesterday I took the whole day off (love my fun and flexible stay at home job!) and went on the field trip that my daughter was begging me to attend. The fabulous Mr. Jones took us to the Mackenzie Environmental Education Center near Poynette, and it really could not have been a more gorgeous day.

Someday when Natalie's all grown up, she'll realize her mother reeeeeeally loves her, enough to voluntarily get on a school bus with the third and fourth graders and drive for an hour each way. But for yesterday, she was just a little girl blissfully happy to have her mom along, choosing to sit by me instead of her friends, holding my hand as we walked and stuffing my tote bag with brilliant fall leaves.The leaves have already crumbled into dust, but the feeling of that warm little hand in mine will never fade.

 

A Simple Kind of Christmas

Fourteen of us got together in Fort Atkinson last night to make Christmas cards, and did we ever get a lot done! We had three Big Shots and pretty much kept them in continual crankage the entire evening! This is one of the designs we made, just an easy and elegant Bashful Blue, white and silver card. Like most of the Christmas cards you'll see on my blog, it would also make a good candidate for mass-production--just two stamps, one outside and one in, and heat embossing in silver for a quick wow.

The embossed border is done with the new Delicate Designs folder, and the snowflake is made from silver Glimmer Paper and cut out with the wonderful new Snow Flurry die and accented with a Basic Rhinestone. When I need to make a LOT of cards, I often use the White Organza ribbon, because it is super inexpensive for a big roll, at just $5.95. You can spritz or shimmer it, sponge or heat-curl it, and even emboss it with both heat and dry embossing. Pretty cool stuff!

My card also has lots and lots of homemade Shimmer Spray on it, so that's four ways this card shines. This Christmas, it's all about the bling... what's your favorite way to add sparkle? Take my advice and don't try sprinkling it with COFFEE... see the little brown smudge in the upper right corner of my card? Yep... that occurred during the Great Iced Coffee Disaster of '12. Don't ask.

Photo Tutorial: Ascending Rectangles Card

I received no less than five separate swap cards with this Ascending Rectangles layout when I went to Convention this summer, so I think you guys are going to like it as much as I did and everyone else did, too, apparently! Enjoy this quick photo tutorial--FREE AS ALWAYS--of a cool and easy card layout.

You will need the following: card base and two mats in one color (I used Crumb Cake), measuring 8.5 x 5.5, 3.25 x 4.5 and 2.25 x 3.5; and neutral mats in another color (I used Very Vanilla), measuring 4 x 5.25, 3 x 4.25, and 2 x 3.25; repositionable adhesive such as Dotto; and your stamps, ink and embellishments.

It is kind of a lot of cutting, but it is WORTH IT! Cut enough for a bunch, because you are going to LOVE this layout and use it over and over again. Here we go!

Cut your layers as above, then layer only the Very Vanilla pieces centered on top of each other. Set the Crumb Cake mats aside for right now. I use Dotto repositionable adhesive to keep the layers from moving while I am stamping them.if you don't have Dotto, you can use a tiny bit of SNAIL adhesive in a pinch.

Next, stamp your card as desired, making sure to position some of the stamps across all three layers, as it looks really cool when the mats are added back in. I used The Open Sea stamp set with Crumb Cake and Early Espresso inks, but I think this layout would look FABULOUS with snowflakes or flowers, too. I can't wait to experiment with it!

The photo above shows the layers separated out again after all the stamping is finished. These look cool just by themselves... but we're going to start assembling the card and adhering the Crumb Cake mats back in between the Very Vanilla layers.

There you go! Isn't that just the spiffiest? I remember looking at those swap cards and thinking, "how did they get the images lined up so perfectly across all those layers?" And I figured out the trick and now YOU know it, too! It's actually ridiculously simple, when you think about it!

Hope you've enjoyed this idea. Please take a second leave me a comment below if you appreciate free blog tutorials and all the marvelous sharing that Stampin' Up demonstrators do!

 

Mini Photo Tutorial: Quick Ruffled Tulle Trim

I am loving the new scalloped tulle trim from the 2012 Stampin' Up Holiday Catalog, which comes in three gorgeous colors and is taking embellishing to a whole new level. This morning I came up with a fun technique totally on accident while I was working on something else, and I put together a quick mini-tutorial for you. You'll need your "tool" and your "tulle"--the heat tool and the scalloped tulle--and that's it!

Tulle is synthetic, so unlike natural fibers, it melts--and in this case, that's a good thing! Cut off twice as much tulle as you think you're going to need, because it shrinks down considerably. Sometimes the ends shrivel more than they should, too.

Make sure you are on a heat-safe surface. I use a discarded concrete kitchen tile my friend Tracy gave me from her workplace. Use your heat tool on the #2 setting so it is good and hot (love that the new tool, in addition to new safety measures, has two different heat settings!)

Hold it over the center of the tulle in the MIDDLE of your strip. Why not the ends? Because the ends burn the fastest, and you'll have less control of the pacing and consistency if you are trying to move away from the melt too quickly.

Start in the middle and work your way out to the edges. You can go back and hit areas that did not ruffle enough, but remember, there is no way to undo the melted parts, so less is more.

The melted center strip is not particularly attractive, so you'll want to run ribbon down the center of it. Then you can use it on your package, basket, page or card! Cute and easy--and super quick! No Sticky Strip or needle and thread necessary. I hope you enjoy this holiday trim idea as you decorate for Thanksgiving and Christmas.

Perfect for a fall Saturday

I have a BUSY weekend, and I bet you do, too! How about an easy fall card today, that you can make in less than ten minutes? Yeah, I thought you'd like that! I was inspired to make this for my clubs and workshops this week by a great Founder's Circle swap card made by my friend Desiree. She said she was inspired by some things she saw on Pinterest. Pinterest is so awesome!! You can "follow" my boards there by clicking on the red button on the right hand sidebar.

All you do for this layout is cut a 4.25x3 rectancle and stamp it as desired. Then slice it into three roughly equal (or not, uneven would be cool, too) parts and adhere them back on the cardfront in the right order, but spaced a little apart, with dimensionals. Just make sure you don't slice right where your word(s) are located.

That's it! I told you it was quick!! I used the Gently Falling stamp set and More Mustard, Garden Green and Cajun Craze inks, but you can imagine it with snowflakes, or flowers, or just about anything. I will definitely be using this quick and cute layout again in the future.

Woodsy Christmas Card

We made 120 of this cute bird and holly branch card at my Christmas Clubs this month! Whew!! And guess what? I tied ALL the taffeta bows!! Yes, my stampers are just that spoiled!!
This would be an easy card to replicate at home. The base is just Chocolate Chip cardstock run through the Big Shot with the new Woodgrain embossing folder from the 2012 Holiday Catalog, and sponged to bring out the grain along the edges.

Then you just stamp the bird image from Beautiful Season in Chocolate Chip ink on Very Vanilla and cut out with the Framelits, and sponged. Cut a mat from Riding Hood Red with the corresponding Framelit and use the awesome new piercing templates to paper-pierce around it (no need for free-hand anymore!)

That's it! Quick, cute, and easy to mass produce. How many Christmas cards do you make each year? I make several hundred, not to mention the ones I make to sell at craft fairs and for special orders. Give me a holler if you are interested in coming to the remaining two sessions of Christmas Club and getting some of that holiday to-do list whittled down early this year!

Thank you, SU

I wanted to send a heartfelt thank you to Stampin' Up for the fabulous Founder's Circle retreat last week, and you know, not just any card will do when you are sending it to the home office of the best papercrafting company in the world! I made this pretty peekabo one from Raspberry Ripple and Pink Pirouette, with the Designer Frames embossing folder and the Everything Eleanor stamp set, with lots of shimmer and spritz. Sorry I can't show you the inside, as I didn't take a pic before I wrote in it.

The flower is my favorite part. It is two of the mid-sized Paper Daisies, with their petals slit and ruffled up.  The center was sponged with pink, and then I added a Jumbo Pearl and ringed it with Basic Rhinestones. When I had the rhinestones where I wanted them, I put a drop of Crystal Effects on the pearl, which dries clear and hard. Those rhinestones aren't going anywhere!

Now, as my Dad says, I'm going to quit preachin' and get to meddlin'... when is the last time you sent a thank you card? I bet you can think of three people without hardly even trying, that you owe a thank you note. Plan to do it this weekend. I know you're busy, but so are they, and they took the time out of their lives to do something nice for you.

We can't pass an attitude of gratitude along to our kids if we are not modeling it ourselves. I want to be a person who notices and appreciates not only the big things like an all-expenses-paid retreat, but the little things like a laugh when I was down or a blog comment that brightened my day. Who should you thank today?

Founder's Circle '12 Camelback Hike and Zipline

The Saturday of Founder's Circle 2012 was a free day, and some of us booked some excursions. I got brave and said I'd go--and the one we went on that morning blew me away!!!

We got up early that morning, backpacks and water bottles in tow, and were picked up by two awesome Paragon Adventures guides and driven out to a wilderness area south of St. George, where it is a really good thing no one informed me that we were going to climb to the top of Camelback Mountain. I would never have signed up for it if I'd realized it was going to be that challenging--but I'm SO GLAD I didn't know, because it was AMAZING. Ah-MAZ-zing!! I am really proud of myself for making it.

Much of it was "just" walking over relatively mild terrain, but even just walking is an adventure when you are a sit-at-home-mom like me and the altitude is high and going higher with each step. I was huffin' and puffin' during parts of it, let me tell you, and struggling with dizziness and a little nausea. But the views! My goodness. Everywhere you looked there were both big and small things to drink in. The recent rains had caused some really cool pools and a lot of gorgeous desert flowers, and we even saw critter tracks in the softened sand. And the geology was just astounding--all those different types of rock, and such strange natural formations.

Nothing like being on a mountain top... it was perfectly exhilarating, just an absolutely quiet and pristine high desert morning. I kept thinking, "My Dad would be so proud if he could see me right now!"

I didn't worry too much about taking photos because the trip included a CD with a couple hundred, so that was really nice. We will definitely be planning another adventure with Paragon if I ever get to go back to this area. Will have to try really hard to earn myself a spot in the Top 100 Demonstrators again!

I'll admit, I was very ready to be done, though, by the time we climed back up the last hill to the vehicles! I enjoyed God's creation immensely, but this city girl needed to sit a bit! But there was more adventure to come--my first time ziplining!!!



It was totally awesome! I loved it and wanted to go again right away. It was a little freaky waiting for my turn and then sitting on the edge of the cliff wall with my legs dangling out over nothing. But the instant--the instant--they let me go and I sailed out, I was totally relaxed and I even broke the death grip I had on the rope and waved at the others, then twisted around and waved at the ones waiting on the other end of the line (as I was rushing through the air straight at the canyon wall. But they stop you in time). It was super fun and that will definitely not be my last time ziplining!

I hope you've enjoyed my posts about the trip YOU guys made possible! I appreciate every single person who hosted a party, placed an order, ordered online, and signed up to start their own stamping adventure this last year. I am incredibly grateful for the mind-blowing experiences I've enjoyed on this and other Stampin' Up incentive trips! I'll return to posting mostly stamp pictures now, but I'll try to remember to snap a pic of the thank-you card I made for Shelli and the Events Team before I put it in the envelope. I will never forget this fabulous trip!

Founder's Circle 2012 manufacturing tour

I know it might seem strange, but a highlight of the Founder's Circle retreat each year is the tour we take of the Stampin' Up manufacturing facility. Here is where stamps are born and dreams come true! Last year I got to take a tray full of stamps literally from the rubber sheets to the ovens, the die-cutting and all the way through to packing and labelling. We aren't allowed to take photos of the process, of course, but I wish I could show it to you because I will never forget it that experience! This year we watched them assemble ink pads from the blank Firm Foam pads through the gigantic ink barrels and mixers, and gluing and lid assembly all the way to shrink-wrapping. Then I got to make an ink refill from start to finish. It was so cool! Just think, someone is going to get a Garden Green reinker that *I* made!


After we tour the facility, Shelli graciously welcomes us into her apartment there for photo ops. I always love seeing her fabulous Shelli-chic decorating style in person. I missed the pink laundry room last time we were there! So adorable. I really like how she has the old kitchen canisters to hide away the stain removers and detergents and stuff. I think even I would be happy to do laundry in a room like this!

Next we had the pleasant surprise of having a wonderful picnic lunch with the employees. It was a standout amongst so many highlights of the trip. It is just an awesome time when you have enthusiastic demonstrators meeting the people who work so hard behind the scenes to make sure we have the quality and quantities of products we need. Everyone always remarks on how happy they are! They are truly thrilled to work there, and I was thrilled to have the privilege to meet them and be able to thank them. I hope they felt half as appreciated as we felt by the time we left!



Wouldn't it be cool to go to work in a place like that, with these kinds of views every day? Wow! Kanab is a ways away from St. George, and very remote--in fact, you have to dip down into Arizona and then come back up into Utah to get around the gorgeous and rugged mountains. It is super funny to watch your phone try to figure out what time it is when you are in three states within a very short period of time. Next time I come--if I manage to earn a spot next year!--I am bringing a MAP so I can figure out where we are! I am my father's daughter--always gotta KNOW what mountain I am looking at!

Oh, this was cool--I have seen pictures of the original Stampin' Up facilities, but never seen them in person. The buildings are now used as a recycling plant, but they have left the Stampin' Up sign and the original Western-themed facade, which I felt was a great testimony to how the community feels about this awesome company. 

So we spent a lot of time on the bus this year, but the Events Team always makes it super fun by having door prizes, all-attendee giveaways (!!!), question and answer times, and an enormous basket of snacks. On the way back from our river rafting trip, we watched a movie, and then because it was so dark, someone said we should share ghost stories. We all laughed and decided to share hostess horror stories instead! You would not BELIEVE some of the things some demonstrators have had to put up with! I was soooo happy I really didn't have anything that compared to those! Don't worry, no names were shared...

I already posted about the AMAZING Colorado River rafting trip here... I am behind and slightly out of order (but you knew that.) Stay tuned for photos of the Camelback mountain hiking trip and my adventures in ziplining!! What a fabulous trip!

Founder's Circle business share night

There was one part of Founder's Circle 2012 I was dreading... not the flight....not the Milwaukee rush hour traffic... not the ziplining...the public speaking! And in my jammies, no less!! It's become a Founder's tradition to have a business share night, because you can't stop these women from talking shop, even when they are supposed to be relaxing. We just can't help ourselves! So we do it with comfy couches and lots of gooey goodies and in our pajamas...

This year they selected five demonstrators to share a pre-submitted tip, and I was one of them. I was sooooo freaked out--who am I to tell the top 100 demonstrators anything?--but I also really believed in my idea and wanted to tell them about it. You can read about the Convention Club idea in its entirety in this three-part article series on my free, no-password demonstrator blog. In a nutshell, I have a program for my team members to earn their way to the national Stampin' Up convention each year, because I think the inspiration and ideas you find at convention are truly life-changing, and definitely business-impacting. With the 25th anniversary convention up next, I am excited so many of my demos are taking part in this program! We're gonna have a great group in Salt Lake City next year!


This pic was taken before I spoke, so that smile is FAKE and I am actually sickly green around the gills. Hee hee! Actually, I did manage to get most of it out without making too big of an idiot of myself, and before I started I took the golden opportunity to teach everyone to say my name while I had all 120 of them as a captive audience! lol! It's Lyssa, as in 'Melissa' without the muh!


So anyway, we got that part over with (not sure I even heard the tips from the other demos) and took a group picture (always a challenge with a group that size!) which we will be sent later, and then set about the business of SWAPPING!! We stand in this huge long single file line with snakes all the way around the hallways to the cafe and lobby and out to the elevators. Then one end turns around and starts making their way down the line swapping all the way back to the other end. You drop your card in one of their bags while they drop one of theirs in yours. It's pretty cool to watch, and it goes quite fast, really!



The Gathering Place and Snack Shack were just filled with all kinds of adorable things that people had brought to share. You really had to take your camera with you at all times, because you never knew when something amazing was going to pop up. Some of those CUTE things are definitely going to show up in my fall and winter class schedule! If you're not on my local mailing list, let's get that fixed right away so you don't miss the fun! And if you're thinking of joining the Song of My Heart Demonstrator Team, I can promise you it will be a total blast (especially if you come to convention with us!!). I'll have all my Founder's goodies at the October meeting, and you are welcome to be my guest. Shoot me a message if you'd like to come stamp, with no pressure! 

Founder's Circle Colorado River Rafting

On the Friday of Founder's Circle 2012 we went on one of the most amazing experiences of my whole life! Our surprise event of the retreat was a  three-hour float down the Colorado River from the Glen Canyon Dam at Lake Powell, around Horseshoe Bend to Lee's Landing, where a lot of rafters start off to go through the Grand Canyon. It was TOTALLY amazing. I ran out of superlatives to describe the breath-taking views at every turn.

We got in the river at the dam, where we had to go through Homeland Security procedures and don these lovely hard hats to walk down to the boat landing. Then they put us in groups of 15-20 on these enormous inflatable rafts. We had a really knowlegeable guide who kept us very entertained and informed during the ride.

We stopped at a really cool historic site where you can hike a little ways and get within a few feet of some petroglyphs, definitely the best ones I have ever seen. A few have only been exposed in recent years as the sand shifted away from the base. The park ranger said that they believe there is more under there, but they aren't allowed to touch it as it is considered a sacred site.

Sooooo incredibly gorgeous and cool and soooo quiet. It really was amazingly spiritual. I have about a bazillion pictures, which I won't bore you with, but I can't wait to make an album of this trip!

To give you some idea of the scale, there is a motor boat with three people in it at the base of this fault line. The cliffs just are indescribably tall. And when we came out at the end of our trip, we could see these giant cliffs just dwarfed by what lay further ahead along the Grand Canyon, truly dwarfed. There is a reason for the name! 

We saw a fair amount of wildlife, mostly birds and ducks but some wild Navajo ponies had made their way down to munch on the good grass on the edge of the river.

Of course, Stampin' Up being who they are, they had arranged for a fabulous gourmet supper at the end of the day, and served it to us in these adorable insulated totes with handstamped tags. Another cute souvenier of a trip of a lifetime! I will never EVER forget this trip down the Colorado.

Founder's Circle swap and share

Just some quick pics tonight as I am so tired I am not sure I can type straight, and the internet is really slow right now... I will pop back in here tomorrow or Saturday and add text. Suffice it to say, the spoiling continues!

Founder's Circle pretty things!!

I'm all set up in the Gathering Place with My Digital Studio and my camera, to take pictures of all the amazing things to be seen here! Here's some photos of a few of our Make N Takes... made with upcoming products!! SQUEE!! Can't wait to do those later... although mine won't look quite as good as theirs do, of course!

The stamp set has one of my favorite sayings of all time in it--"She believed she could, so she did."Take THAT, nay-sayers!! Take your negativity elsewhere. : )  The Feel Goods stamp set will be available in an upcoming catalog.

The Gathering Place is soooooo amazing.... I ADORE the rattan couches, and of course, there's candy EVERYWHERE. Everywhere! And look, we have our own ice cream freezer!! Sounds like a mid-morning snack to me...

The events team has outdone themselves once again. These ladies and Bonnie and the others are just anticipating our every need. Since the whole hotel is Stampin' Up, the ENTIRE thing is decorated for our theme. Soooo cute!

Ok! I am GOING to knock out another MDS album if it kills me... before the awesome 31% off special ends tomorrow! I am about halfway done with my Disney World album and mostly done with my Convention 2012 album. Be sure to check the SALE out at www.mydigitalstudio.net for details on the downloads on sale and the print products sale, too.

Founder's Circle Welcome Dinner

This horse is headed for the barn, but I wanted to put up some great pictures from this evening's festivities. All the teams have nautical names, and we are the Fire Island Girls. Here we all are after dinner... I was totally geeking out. My teammates are Mary Fish, Meg Loven, Michelle Zindorf, Karen Trelfa and Jackie Ross!!

Before dinner we had a poolside "ice breaker" reception with the cutest little lemonades in etched glasses and fruit skewers with sugar around the rim. Today has been full of little touches like that! And...we get to take the glass home with us!

The decorations were AMAZING. If I was going to plan an island-themed wedding, this is what I'd want the reception to look like! The flowers were fresh and each table was a little different. I also loved the burlap-wrapped chairs and the little placecard pennants. And then, in an even more amazing touch, the food was all themed, too! There was hot cornbread, crab legs with melted butter, shrimp and clams, boiled potatoes, corn on the cob and chicken--all served in a "paper" lined metal bucket. They even gave us lobster bibs! What a hoot.

For dessert there were individual warm wild berry cobblers and ice cream in little cast iron skillets. And look--I'm not the only one who takes food pictures!!

What a FUN evening! I'd love to include one last picture for you, and that would be our first night's pillow gift that I found upon retiring to my room tonight--BUT.... the package contains several brand new products, so you'll have to wait until tomorrow and look at the samples we'll be making, as we are not allowed to photograph the product itself. But let me just say, I have a new favorite sayings stamp set!!!

Founder's Circle Arrival Day

Whoo000000OOOOOoooooo hoooooooo!! I am reporting in from Founder's Circle 2012, bay-beee! I don't think it really hit me that I made it until we drove up through the red hills from Vegas and there lay St. George waiting for us. And once again there was a room with my name on the door!

There is an adorable nautical theme this year, and everything is decorated to the hilt. These are just some quick pics I snapped on my way in and up to my private room : )I PROMISE to take more later. Tomorrow is my relaxation day. I don't plan to do anything more strenuous than digital scrapbooking.

I've already made a new friend--everybody say "hi, Nancy!"--Nancy Lewis is a first-timer--and immensely enjoyed recconecting with Alison Solven and Brenda Marshall on the way up from Las Vegas as it was just the four of us in the van. Flights went smoothly, luggage all arrived, and we are ready to PAR-TAY!!! I leave in a couple minutes here for the poolside welcome reception and then dinner.

This next picture is for my hubby--we went to Hoover Dam in June, so I knew he'd enjoy this view from the plane! Miss you guys already, my little fam! Be good for Daddy, you two!!

More to come! And may I just express my profound gratitude once again to my customers and team members who made this trip possible. No one gets to the Top 100 in anything without a lot of help and support and encouragement and even a few kicks in the pants along the way. You are APPRECIATED, and I hope I can share some of the rewards as you vicariously attend Founder's Circle with me this week!

Fun at the 10-10-10

Saturday was super fun! We had a blast stamping a stack of cards and trying out all kinds of new things from the new catalog and the fabulous Holiday Catalog, too. Everybody especially fell for the new Illuminate ink pad!

That's it from me today! I have an enormous demo meeting tonight, two sick kids at home, and a to-do list a mile long before I leave for Founder's Circle on Wednesday morning. Stay tuned for awesomey goodness from that exclusive retreat, and hopefully some My Digital Studio things I got done on the plane on the way there and back. Well, maybe just on the way back. Let's face it, I will probably sleep the whole way there, once I am safely in my seat and on the way!

Live Simply

I love this stamp saying... "Live simply, love generously, care deeply, speak kindly, and leave the rest to God." Only thing I would add in there is "pray like the Dickens!" but then that might not fit with the beautiful typography, I suppose!

I am excited to make this card tomorrow with my 10-10-10 attendees. Actually, I am excited to be with them, regardless of what we do or make! I just love my stampy friends! Very best part of the very best job on the planet! But I think they'll really enjoy this one. It combines River Rock with Bravo Burgundy and a lot of crumpling, splattering, smudging and sponging. I used the 2-Step Gently Falling stamp set with a saying from the Trust God stamp set.

TIP: It's really trendy right now to stamp directly on newsprint-patterned papers like the First Edition Designer Series Paper collection. You see it all over Pinterest and in magazines right now, even on baby cards and Christmas cards and things you wouldn't normally think of. I think if I had to limit myself to one pack (heaven forbid!) it would be First Edition. It's a great way to instantly update your papercrafting look. I'm just thankful it comes in a big pack!

Ok! I'm off to the stamp room. I have a bajillion (actual count) things to wrap up for the 10-10-10 event. Penni is baking for your lucky ladies, so come hungry! And if you missed the RSVP, shoot me an email and I might be able to squeeze you in as I did some extras when I cut.