Hello stampers and happy Christmas Eve to you all. Today I am sharing some adorable Seasons of Fun cards that I made during my weekly Stamping Through My Stash videos. This host set is a real gem. I am hoping that in the coming year we can do some fun parties together. We need some more fun and we need to get creative in the way that we do it don’t you think??
First, Happy Mail
The first thing I want to do is share the happy mail that arrived this week. We have a bit of a black and white theme going and I love it. The third card is the new black- red!!!
Brighton, Ontario
This lovely card uses the Delivering Cheer stamp set which is totally appropriate for a Happy Mail in Holland card don’t you think? I love the classic and elegant black and white colour scheme with some silver embossing to make it pop. Thank you so much Cheryl Ann Pulver for this lovely card. Cheryl Ann is a talented team member of mine who lives in Brighton Ontario. She is also a florist in her spare time!
I looked up Brighton, Ontario and it looks like a fantastic place to visit. Presqu’Ile Provincial Park is here and I used to visit there when I had a summer job in Cobourg. Small world! Check out this restaurant, would you like to join me there some day for a lovely lunch?
Maasluis, the Netherlands
The second card is also from a team member, but she is my very first team member in the Netherlands!! How awesome is that? Thank you so much Barbara van den Berg-Zeegers for this beautiful card. I absolutely love the clean and crisp feel of Peaceful Cabin in black and white. Barbara comes from Maasluis which is a town about 15 minutes away from where Gerard lives. I have a cousin living in Maasluis and I used to visit my aunt and uncle there. Mom’s oldest sister lived in Maasluis until she died a few years ago. This city was founded around 1340; what a history!
Listowel, Ontario
The last card was sent to my by Karen Gerretsen. I have only met Karen via Zoom for Bingo events and other online card making. Karen has supported my virtual coffee and a card classes and my Parcels in the Post. I am so grateful for loyal customers like Karen. Thank you so much for this cheerful and classic card. The Merry Melody embossing folder is the star of the show. Well done!!
Karen lives on a farm just outside of Listowel, Ontario. I know from my daughter Stefanie that Listowel is in the “snow belt”. Stefanie used to have to drive through Listowel when she worked for the Huron-Perth Centre in Stratford. Listowel is beautiful farming country with rolling hills and lovely farms. It became a village in 1866 and was named after Listowel in Ireland.
Seasons of Fun Cards
Normally I would not add any more cards to this blog post, but next week it will be after Christmas and then it will be too late to share Christmas cards don’t you think? These cards turned out so well in my Stamping Through My Stash video on Wednesday. If you missed that video, I will include it here for you. Don’t forget to subscribe to my channel and to comment on a video and share it so you can have a chance to win the Poinsettia Petals bundle!
These are both fun and easy Z-Fold cards. Just take a piece of thick basic white cardstock measuring 4 1/4″ by 11″ and score at 2 3/4″ and 5 1/2″. Fold in half and then fold the front flap back towards yourself.
I used Whimsy & Wonder paper to finish off the Seasons of Fun cards and the images were stamped on shimmery white cardstock and coloured with Blends.
Merry Christmas!
Thanks for joining me today and I hope that you have a very merry Christmas with the people that you love. Perhaps like me, you will only be able to be with some of the people that you love, and you will be missing the rest. Thankfully we have technology to help us stay in touch. God bless and keep you!! Big hugs from Holland from both myself and Gerard.
Well hello stampers and happy Monday to you! Today I am going to share the first projects that I hope to share with you in conjunction with my Parcels in the Post. Parcels in the Post is a kit program that I am offering to make it easier and more affordable to create along with me. I remember when I first started papercrafting that I was often missing something when I wanted to recreate a card. There is only so much you can buy and I was sad to miss out.
How Does Parcels in the Post Work?
With the Parcels in the Post I will be putting together a package of basic supplies including patterned paper, cardstock, ribbon and perhaps other accessories. I will then use this package as a source for my projects. Every Tuesday I will share some projects that I have made using these Parcels in the Post. The other thing that I will offer you is a supply list of the main stamp sets or bundles that are featured in my kit. To save you money, I will suggest that you put these items in a starter kit so you can get your own discount.
How Will This Save You Even More Money?
Stay with me here. It gets better. When you get your starter kit you will also get 8 catalogs. If you share my YouTube videos with Parcels in the Post with your friends, chances are they will want to join you in this fun journey. You can then give them a catalog, show them the list of supplies needed to play along and then you will have orders from them so that you can keep your discount. If they love it, then you can have them get the starter kit with you! You won’t have to do anything except share what I do.
That also means that you will be a part of my Beyond Pampered Team and you will be able to join me on fantastic retreats like the one happening from June 3 to June 5 2021. There are still 8 spots available. Check out the link to this gorgeous retreat cabin here.
Parcels in the Post Inspiration Projects
Here is the first card that I made for my Parcels in the Post projects. Many of my projects use the Encircled in Beauty dies. They are actually part of an Encircled in Friendship bundle and there is also an Encircled in Warmth set to go with it as well. That is the stamp set that I used for these cards. Check it out!
The next Peaceful Deer Parcels in the Post inspiration card uses a neutral Sahara Sand palette. I love how the buffalo plaid deer just pops with his Be Dazzling antlers.
The next card was inspired by Heather Forgan. It uses the beautiful snowflakes that are included in your Parcel in the Post. This is my “Where’s Waldo” card. That crumb is not on your computer screen, it is on my card!! It really is all about the treats!
The last project that I am sharing today is a gift bag and it continues the garden green theme as well as the Encircled in Beauty dies. On Wednesday we will switch to the real red and cherry cobbler palette for the remainder of the projects.
How to Get Your Parcel in the Post
If you want to get your Parcel in the Post, don’t delay. There are three options. $25 for porch pickup, $32 for mailing anywhere in Canada and $40 mailed to the US. Here is the PayPal link. I did tweak my prices a wee bit. Not the base price, but the shipping included prices. It was time to be realistic and stop eating the extra shipping costs myself. Thanks for understanding!
A PDF Option
There will also be a pdf only option, but it is not available just yet. You will get notified once it is my tutorial store. You can check out the ones that are available now, there are lots to choose from!
Get Your Own Discount
I know that I am in danger of sounding like a broken record, but I am truly passionate about this. If you love stamping and card making or scrapbooking, you deserve your own discount. It is honestly so easy to introduce this fun hobby to your friends without ever having to do a class. Simply invite them over to help you make the cards in your Paper Pumpkin kit that is included in your starter kit.
For the month of November this kit is only $100 and you get to fill it with $165 worth of products of your choice. Click here to get started or message me if you have questions.
Thank You!
Thanks for joining me today, I hope you have a super day. Take a good look at the supply list below, that is what I used to create the projects from my Parcels in the Post for my December videos. Just so you know (I did a little math for you) if you get the Peaceful Deer bundle, the Encircled in Beauty Dies, the Encircled in Warmth stamp set, the Snowflake Wishes stamp set and a spool of either gold shimmer or black gingham ribbon that totals exactly $165. If you would put these on a normal order it would be $202.95. Until the end of November you pay only $100. Tell me that doesn’t just blow your mind?! That’s all for now….
Hello stampers and happy Wednesday to you. Transforming your paper with Blends is a very rewarding experience. Many of us love to colour and when you take your monochromatic paper and chop it up to a manageable size you are ready to transform it. That is what I did with my card for my private Prime Time group. I used the Peaceful Place paper to make this card.
Transforming Your Paper With Blends
At the heart of this technique is another practice called #loveitchopit. Truth be told, we often hoard our pretty paper. Experience has taught me that when I chop my paper I am much more likely to use it. The best measurements for chopping are 4″ x 12″ strips and then you can cut them into 4″ by 5 1/4″ for card fronts. This will leave some smaller strips that you can use in the inside of your cards.
The Paper as the Focal Point
I decided to turn this gorgeous paper into the focal point of this easel fold card. It looks great combined with Early Espresso and Old Olive cardstock. Transforming your paper is easy with Blends don’t you think?
The Finishing Touch
I added a few metallic dots and some linen thread for the sentiment. It was so much fun making this card and I am looking forward to doing a video tutorial with it for my Prime Time group on Thursday.
Follow Me on YouTube
Did you know that I do a weekly virtual coffee and a card class on YouTube? You can follow along even if you don’t order the kits to do it yourself with me. Each Tuesday morning at 10am EST I do the video. This past week I actually showed this colouring technique at the end. I’ll share the video here. Keep an eye out for the little red rectangle in the corner of my video. If you click on that you can subscribe to my channel and then you will be notified every time I post.
Busy Squirrel
Sometimes life gets a little hectic and then I drop a few things that I was super enthusiastic about. One of those things was my Parcels in the Post program. I hope to revive that very soon!! Another is stamp clubs. I miss my stamp clubs and am hoping to start them up again but on a virtual platform. Many people are not big fans of more technology so they stay away from Zoom. Did you know that you can also use Facebook rooms to get together. Maybe we will have a little play session to see how it works. Who is interested?
Thanks so much for joining me today. Happy stamping and have a super day!
Hello stampers and happy Monday to you. Did you know that you can get the gorgeous Peaceful Prints Paper for free? This paper is part of the summer saleabration campaign. Perhaps you have been so busy recovering from COVID stress and concerned about a possible fourth wave that stamping has taken a backseat in your life.No worries! There is so much exciting stuff waiting for you and it is not too late to take advantage of saleabration. It goes until September 30. Here is the link to all the saleabration offerings.
Peaceful Prints Paper
This beautiful paper is free with a $60 purchase and with that purchase you are also entitled to the huge tutorial bundle that this card is a part of. What I especially love about this paper is that it coordinated with our Peaceful Deer Bundle on page 26 of the holiday catalog. The Peaceful Prints paper has Garden Green, Real Red, Cherry Cobbler, Sahara Sand and Basic Black in its designs. You can punch the buffalo plaid deer out with the punch and in my YouTube video I show you how you can punch them out in BOTH directions which is a super cool trick. Check it out below.
Peaceful Prints Fancy Fold Card
I’m so happy that I decided to go back and check on my previous blog posts because I thought I had already blogged about this card. I love it so much!! This paper is stunning and I don’t want you to miss out on it. I am not going to share how I made the card because that information is all in the tutorial that you can get for free with a $60 purchase. You can also purchase it for $20 US if that suits you better. This particular tutorial focuses on the saleabration and holiday catalog so there is lots of variety for you and of course tons of talent!
A Hidden Gem
Do you see that gorgeous focal point? That buffalo plaid deer really stands out on that lacy white circle doesn’t it? Do you know where it comes from? Let me tell you! Check out page 70 and page 159 in the annual catalog. Encircled in Beauty is the name of the dies and the bundle is called Encircled in Friendship. Wait. It gets better! There is another stamp set in the holiday catalog that also coordinates with these dies making it an even better investment. That stamp set is called Encircled in Warmth. All the links to these products will be at the bottom of my blog post, you can simply click on them and then shop in my online store. How excited are you??
One More Photo
Have you noticed when you look at a pretty card that someone has either given you or is sharing with you so that you can be inspired that you look at it closely? I know that I like to check it out from different angles so that I can see all the details. A blog post can be that way too and I like to share a card from different angles and perspectives. Sometimes due to time constraints this is not possible, but when it is, it does make me happy to do so.
Don’t you love how the black and white twine from the Playful Pets Combo trim pack looks with this paper? It made me super happy too. I hope you enjoyed my card today and that you feel inspired to make one of your own. It’s always nice to have a few fancy Christmas cards made ahead of time for the special people in your life. Who are you going to send yours to?
Sharing the Joy
I have decided to start beginner card classes in the Netherlands. It’s time to share my joy of stamping with new stampers and I intend to share that journey with you as well in the hopes that you too with share your hobby with new people. Often I remind my team to consider how happy they are when they are stamping. More people could use that type of joy in their lives. I know that before I started stamping I had no idea that papercrafting would be something that I would enjoy and excel at. You just never know how something simple like stamps, ink and paper can change a life.
Thanks for joining me today! I hope you jump on the saleabration bandwagon before it is too late. Happy stamping and happy shopping. If you need inspiration, check out my tutorials here and indulge. You deserve it.
Hello stampers and happy Friday to you. Today I am sharing with you an Expressions in Ink Slimline Cascade Card. I did not make this card but I love it so much and couldn’t have done it better myself. It was in a package of happy mail from Susan Forsythe, my wonderful team member who keeps blessing me and our local Hospice with her beautiful work. Her timing was perfect. I had my first COVID vaccine yesterday and today my arm is sore and I was feeling a bit tired. So lovely that I have a beautiful card to share with you without having to do any of the work!!
Expressions in Ink Slimline Cascade Card
Isn’t that a mouthful? I had to google what this type of card is called. Can you believe that I have never made one? To me it looks like Susan made a very clever version of it without having to measure a lot of mats. Here is a photo of her fantastic card.
Slimline Cascade Card Instructions
Here is a website that I found that explains how to make one version of this card. For your information Susan’s base cards is 10 1/2″ wide by 8 1/2″ tall scored at 3 1/2″ and 7″. The rest of the instructions can be found here with some adjustments. I plan to make this card with different designer series paper for my Prime Time Group next week. If you have made one of these cards, I would love to see it!
Behind the Scenes
If you are wondering why this blog post is being posted so late in the day let me let you in on a little secret. I got my first vaccine shot yesterday and felt fine yesterday. Last night in bed however, my arm was quite sore and I had a lousy night. I decided to set my alarm for later than usual and then I watered my new gardens while my coffee was brewing. That was a bit of wasted time because as soon as I was sitting on the back porch with my coffee and pie it started to rain. No worries. This squirrel was in a rare zen mood and I stayed in my chair and enjoyed the rain, the greenery and the birds.
After breakfast I found a lovely surprise in the mail, a package of gorgeous cards from Susan for the Hospice program. What a delight! I will do a video of them tomorrow so you can see them too. Finally in the afternoon I was sitting at my desk to write my blog when my three year old granddaughter called. Oma, will you come over and make cards with me. Well, of course I will!! Coming out of a two week quarantine after 7 weeks away, those grandbaby snuggles and interaction are the best!! Ana has not forgotten how to “tap, tap, tap” and she listens so well to instructions. We only had a large block and a small stamp for the sentiment but she wanted to do it all by herself.
I told her, you need to be very gentle, and she did it perfectly. There might be someone to take over my business when I become old and feeble in about forty years!! That will make me the same age as Pap!!
Thanks!
Thanks for joining me on my ramble today. I hope you are getting some chances to see your loved ones and also a bit of time to be creative. Happy stamping and have a wonderful weekend and a super day. As always, if you live in Canada and want to purchase the supplies that were used, just click the images in the product list below to shop online with me.
Hello stampers and happy Monday to you. Today I have a Criss-Cross card for you. I saw one by Leena Girsa on Instagram and I loved the look of it. I haven’t made one of these in years!! Guess what? It’s so simple and so much fun to do. I will be doing a video on it next Thursday in my Prime Time group. This card will also be a part of the monthly lineup for Virtual Coffee and a Card class in July. Let’s take a look.
Criss-Cross Card
The you’re a Peach designer series paper lends itself perfectly to this style of card because the patterns coordinate so beautifully together. I think I may have fallen in love with the criss-cross card.
Here you can see what the insert inside looks like. Of course you could stamp the inside with another sentiment and more peaches but I left it plain with just a 1/4″ by 5 1/4″ strip of patterned paper. If you make a criss-cross card, I would love to see your creation!
How Does it Work??
Well, that’s a loaded question. Do I mean how does the card work, or do I mean, how does the Demo Design Dream Team work? First the card. You actually take two card bases, each 4 1.4″ by 11″ scored at 5 1/2″ and then trim one card front on both of them and layer them together. The following picture will help. The rest of the instructions are in the DDDT tutorial.
The Demo Design Dream team is a group of 14 very talented demonstrators across North America. Actually, I think it is all Americans and I am the token Canadian!! Together we create a monthly tutorial which is free with a $60 purchase. Very soon I will be posting previous tutorials which will now be available for sale at $15 each. Each month has a theme, so you will undoubtedly be able to find something you love. Tutorials help you create beautiful cards with no stress. You can see all my tutorials here.
In Person Class Soon??
I am really hoping to be able to offer my first in person class in a very long time. Tentative plans are for Tuesday July 20 at 9:30am. Cost will be $25 for four cards and of course coffee, tea and treats. If there is a lot of interest I will offer an afternoon and evening session as well. If you bring someone new then you will each only pay $20. The class will be the same one that I am doing for my virtual coffee and a card. Makes sense doesn’t it?
Thanks!
Thanks for joining me again here, I truly appreciate you. I hope that someday you will be in an even deeper relationship with me, either through my Training Group, becoming a member of my team or becoming a customer online, through Prime Time or in person. My stamping community is strong and vibrant and we truly do feel like a big family without the stress! I hope you have a super day.
