Card Buffet

A card buffet? What's that? A buffet is defined as a meal in which people serve themselves from various dishes set out on a serving table. So a card buffet is an event in which you can pick and create cards from a variety of predesigned options. This month I premiered this event for the first time with rave reviews. Here is a sampling of some of the "dishes" I offered.



The cards cover a variety of occasions and stamping levels. I am now up to 16 cards in my buffet and will keep adding new cards each month. Cards will remain on the buffet until the stamp set or embellishments retire (or you just get sick of seeing it!) so if you can't make them all one month, they'll be there the next month.
My October Card Buffet classes will be held on Oct 5th and 13th so if you are in the area, please register (see the My Events link to the right to RSVP). There are even some Christmas cards on the buffet now to get your creative juices flowing for the holiday season.
If you see a card design you'd like to create, send me a picture and I'll add it to the buffet. Is there an occasion you need cards for? I'll add those as well. I hope to see you at the next Card Buffet!

Heather

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It's the Most Wonderful Time of the Year!

I'm sure you've all seen the Staples commercial with the parent singing and dancing their way through the isles buying back-to-school supplies while the kids scour in the background. Yes, September means back to school and back to my house staying clean for more than 3.5 seconds, but that is not the only thing that makes this the best time of the year. The new Holiday Mini Catalog is here and it will knock your stockings off!





If you haven't received one of these babies from me you can view it by clicking here or contact me and I will gladly mail you one. This is one of the best mini catalogs in my entire Stampin' Up career. The new Simply Scored knocks the competition out of the water and I received a cute tote for it made out of the Spice Cake fabric when I attended Convention in July (I love the perks of being a demo!) The Christmas sets along with the coordinating punches and dies will make your holiday gift-giving a breeze! As always you can place an order right through my website (use the links to the right) or stop by one of my two Card Buffet classes being offered this month and get your hands on some of these new sets. Check out my calendar for the dates and descriptions. I will also be adding the first Christmas card class toward the end of the month. This will be a great opportunity to get a jump start on creating beautiful handmade cards your friends and family will treasure.

Heather

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Field Flowers CASE

If you are not familiar with the term CASE, it stands for Copy And Share Everything which is what many demonstrators do regularly. We share our project and business ideas for others to copy and in turn share with others. Even the company does this for us (and you) by filling the Idea Book & Catalog with hundreds of sample projects. One project in particular caught my eye and was the motivating factor for me to purchase the stamp set. The sample is on page 97 of the catalog and uses the stamp set Field Flowers. I recently recreated this card for my Stamp-a-Stack class.



The card base is Pink Pirouette layered with another piece of Pink Pirouette that I ran through the Big Shot with the Lattice Embossing Folder. The Old Olive and Pool Party scallop strips were made with the Lace Ribbon Border Punch cut in half down the middle. I stamped the image with Old Olive and More Mustard ink. The piece of Crumb Cake along the top of the White was punched with the Crop-a-Dile and then cut with the Paper Snips. The old Spiral Punch would have been perfect but that punch retired last year. :( oh well. I then finished it off with some White Bakers Twine. I realized too that just by changing up the color scheme of this card you could easily make it appropriate for a masculine card, sympathy of any other occasion. I love using the Idea Book & Catalog for inspiration and no matter how many (thousands of) times I look through it, there is always something new that catches my eye. I challenge you to pick your favorite sample from the catalog, recreate it and share it with someone today. Then tell me about it!

Heather
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Convention Day 1

Wow, what an exciting day! General session this morning was a wild thrill as always. Rockin' music, all the Riverton employees there to welcome us and tons of excitement. Shelli talked about the importance of growth (obviously the theme of convention) and it's benefits. Bonnie Thurber unveiled several super exciting products from the Holiday Mini and then surprised us all by giving us a pack of minis right then and there! Wait till you see it, I am in love! A Simply Score Tool, gorgeous fabric, stocking stamps, matching punches and a die, advent set (see pic), card keeper box and a stamp for cookies! Yes, you actually stamp on the cookie!



Then we broke for lunch and a few classes. I learned some great new techniques in the My Digital Studio class and Bonnie taught a great class on embracing change and keeping the right attitude about it. Very appropriate and timely for me.
The second general session featured Shelli's daughter Sara demonstrating some super ways to overcome the "I'm not creative, I don't have time..." etc excuses we often here when we try to share the art of stamping.
I skipped the Awards Night tonight in favor of a relaxed dinner with friends and some retail therapy. We did head back for the After Party though which was great. Usually they have a performer (band, group, etc) but this year they opted for the cheaper and much more fun, night club idea. Loud speakers, lots of bass, a great DJ, disco ball, dance floor and chocolate. There's no going wrong with that. It was a long day and I have Make n Takes at 8am so time to get some zzzzz. Good night from Salt Lake!

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Last Chance!

Hi Stampers,
I have 3 very important bits of information to share with you today.  Please read them through carefully!
* Last Chance Lists
* Open House Event
* Garage Sale (with special note to Club members!)

Its June 1 and you know what that means!  We are getting ready to say goodbye to some of our current stamps sets to make room for the brand spanking new 2011-2012 Idea Book & Catalog which debuts July 1st!  Use the links on the side bar to view the Last Chance Stamp Sets and Last Chance Accessories Lists.  You will only be able to purchase the items on these lists until June 30.  After that they are gone for good.  Stamp sets orders are guaranteed to be filled but the items on the Accessories List are while supplies last and will likely sell out before the end of the month.  Please look over these lists and be sure to order those items you want as soon as possible.  You can place an order 24/7 through my website by clicking here! 

You are also invited to attend my New Catalog Open House on Friday, July 1 from 7-10pm.  Stop by for a chance to flip through the new catalog and begin creating your wish lists.  I will have several new stamps sets on hand as well as the new In Colors.  There will be a FREE make-n-take project available to get your creative juices flowing and special gifts and giveaways as well.    Desserts, snacks and beverages provided as well.  It will be a fun night of ooing and ahhing so let me know you plan to attend so I can have a catalog waiting for you!

Finally, since I cannot demonstrate or take orders for retired stamps sets, I will also be having a Garage Sale on July 1 during the Open House.  My retired sets will be sold on a first-come, first-serve basis and I can only accept cash or checks for Garage Sale items.  These sets will be sold at 50% off retail price!  If you are a member of my Stampin' Club, you will have first access to these sets during our June Club meeting so come prepared! 

Mother's Day

Tomorrow is Mother's Day and I am blessed to be able to celebrate it. There were many years when I was not sure I would ever be graced with the title of 'mom' but now I have 4 beautiful sons and my role as a mom is my favorite "job". I am also grateful that I have a wonderful mom to celebrate as well. She is spending her Mother's Day doing what she has done her whole life, serving others. She is currently in New Orleans helping to rebuild homes still devastated from the floods. This is her second or third trip there and she has also served as a relief worker in Haiti and as a nurse on several medical missions in the Dominican Republic.
One of my favorite parts of Mothers Day is receiving those beautiful hand made cards my kids proudly make. This year my oldest couldn't wait to share his so I received it tonight. He was especially proud of what he had made in school because it is "like you make in your stamping classes!" my response, "no sweetie, its even better!"


The flower on the giant clip comes out of the pot to use as a bookmark! You can be sure it will only be used in my favorite of books. I tend to think that even though I am no longer the cute little girl with the crayon and construction paper card, my mom will still treasure the handmade greeting she will receive when she returns next week. I taught this card along with 2 new techniques we used to my Club last night.


This is an easel card and can stand open as a display.


The card uses the new Strength and Hope stamp set in the Summer Mini. For every Strength and Hope stamp set sold, Stampin' Up! will donate $2 to the Breast Cancer Research Foundation so not only do you get a beautiful stamp set but you help out a great cause as well.


The other technique I taught was how to dye our ribbon. Did you know that you can dye any of the white Stampin' Up! ribbon to match any SU color using the reinkers? Come back next week and I will share a tutorial on just how to do that!
Happy Mother's Day and remember, moms will always treasure a handmade card, even if you are no longer 5!

Heather
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Nothing Alive

I know it's a weird title but believe it or not that was a Challenge posted by a fellow demonstrator. I love when I see an interesting Challenge like this and am anxious to see what what gets posted. The Challenge was to make a card without using any images or representations of anything living (no flowers, trees, butterflies etc). Since that eliminated a great deal of my stamp sets I decided I would try a card without any image at all! Now THAT'S a challenge. What did I come up with? Shaving cream! Have you tried this technique? It's very easy and not nearly as messy as you might think.



The base card stock is Pacific Point embossed with then Framed Tulips Embossing Folder. The white is mounted on Certainly Celery and Pretty in Pink. The swirl pattern used Pacific, Celery, Pink and Perfect Plum reinkers. How would you have met this Challenge, I'd love to hear!

Heather

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