New Year's Resolutions

I'm not sure how many of you actually check my blog but my New Year's Resolution is to try to post at least twice a month. I vow to be in the stampin' room more often to show things I'm creating and since my husband is working on my Stampin' Studio, I need to prove to him that I'll use it! I hope everyone has a great New Year. Stay safe! Happy Stampin'!

The Stampin' Studio

Hi everyone--
Here are a few pictures of the Stampin' Studio! I am so excited. We are doing the mud on the sheetrock sometime this weekend. It won't be ready for my January event but we're getting closer. Happy Stampin'!

Mini Catalog Carry Over Items

Stampin' Up! has announced the carryover items from the Holiday Mini catalog. If you have items from the Holiday Mini still on your wish list that are not listed on this flyer, you will want to get your order to me by January 3, 2012!

http://www.stampinup.com/us/documents/CarryOver_Holiday_1211_US.pdf

www.stampinup.com

Audrey's birthday invitation

Here's an invitation I made for my daughter's birthday which includes a zoo trip. It turned out very cute. I got the idea from someone on Stampin' Connection! Thanks!

I've been stampin'!

Hi everyone! I finally got in my stampin' room and whipped up the cards for my Stampin' Buffet in December. We'll be making 5 birthday/general cards, 6 Christmas cards and tags. The cost is $10 for the first 8 cards then $2 for every card over that. I hope you enjoy the pictures! Happy Stampin'!

We're moving ahead!

No cards to post today because we spent part of the day cleaning out my side of the shop--our electrician comes on Monday! That means we're ready to start wiring for my stampin' room! I'll keep you posted--this will be a long process but we are on to the next step.
Happy Stampin'!

There are so many specials being offered this month by Stampin' Up!® that it was hard to decide where to begin. So I started with the most exciting one!

If you sign up to be a Stampin' Up!® demonstrator in October, you'll get a free Big Shot. And if you already have a Big Shot, how about $100 in free product? Isn't that great! So if you've been looking for an opportunity to do what you love, while getting a 20 discount on your favorite products, now is the perfect time! Use the Big Shot die-cutting machine and Stampin' Up!'s exclusive dies (sold separately) to create uniquely beautiful projects in a flash.

In addition, the new-demonstrator Starter Kit--a great deal at $175--contains over $345 worth of stamp sets, card stock, ink, accessories, and business supplies-everything you need to start your new business.

There are so many benefits of being a Stampin' Up! demonstrator, including

• A 20 percent product discount!
• A free monthly issue of Stampin' Success!--Stampin' Up!'s demonstrator-only magazine
  
• Sneak peeks at brand-new products!
• Invitations to exclusive Stampin' Up! events!
• Free access to an online community of 30,000+ crafters/stampers and creative artists, as well as 160,000+ project samples!
• Plus, access to an exclusive video and training for your new Big Shot!

Don't miss this BIG deal! Contact me today to learn how you can take advantage of this great opportunity and get your FREE Big Shot. Or you can sign up online through my demonstrator business web site. Just click the "Join Now" button.

Also during October, if you purchase two Simply Sent card kits at regular price, you can select a coordinating stamp set free! This is a great product for a new stamper or someone who has limited time. And what a great gift this would be. Who wouldn't want a card kit with coordinating stamps? Kits are priced from $11.95 - $13.95 (US), so they're quite affordable, too.

Buy any two of the following Simply Sent Kits:

Page	Item	Description	Price
192	122375	Simply Sent Great Day	$12.95
193	122377	Simply Sent Everyday Elegance	$11.95
193	122376	Simply Sent Sweet Moments	$13.95

And get a FREE coordinating stamp set:

Page	Item	Description	Price
192	123682	It's Your Day	$8.95
192	124685	Es tu día (Spanish It's Your day)	$8.95
192	124800	C'est ta fête (French It's Your Day)	$8.95
193	123686	Everyday Wishes	$9.95
193	123684	You're Cherished	$8.95
193	124865	Chérissons les anges (French You're Cherished)	$8.95

You can order online or contact me to place your order.

And finally - Cookie Stamps are available!

The easy-to-use cookie stamp has a solid wood handle with three interchangeable stamp images: a heart, a jack-o-lantern, and a snowflake.

Just make your favorite shortbread cookie dough (or one of the two included recipes) and stamp away! Create beautiful, hand-stamped cookies in a flash. The stamp images are completely food-safe and child-friendly. They're $16.95 (item number 125152) and the kit includes two recipes and tips for use. Order online or contact me to order your set of these adorable cookie stamps.

More holiday items have been added to the Online Store Clearance Rack, too. Be sure to check those out while you're browsing my site.

I also so have a Stamp A La Card coming up on Saturday, October 15, 1-4. Be sure to pre-register!

Enjoy the lovely weather this weekend!

The final cards for my class

Here are the final 5 cards for my Stamp A La Card. I hope you like them!

6x6 Scrapbook pages

I am so excited that I can stamp this week! I've worked on four two page layouts to swap with a new friend on Stampin' Connection. I hope you like them!

I'm in the Stampin' Room!

Well, I have finally gotten into my stampin' room--and realized that my husband really needs to get back to work on my Stampin' Studio! We have the ceiling finally done and we were waiting on the electrician when he got sick. He seems to be better so maybe things will start moving again if we ever get a break in the heat. My stampin' room is over flowing and I've been bringing things downstairs to the dining room table to work because I can't find any room upstairs.

I had heard about a Stamp A La Card from a wonderful demonstrator on Stampin' Connection. I'm sorry I don't remember her name. Well, I thought I would try one and I have been working diligently on the first set of cards. All of the card ideas come from talented demonstrators on Stampin' Connection. Thanks to all of you who share so freely. I don't know what I would do without you. If one of these cards is yours, please let me know so I can give you credit. When I copy the ideas I like, it doesn't print the name of the person I got the idea from. Sorry!

I have 7 of the twelve made and they are posted above. I'll share the final five when they're finished as well. I hope you enjoy them. Until then, happy stampin'!

OK everybody!
It's the day you've been waiting for. The new catalog is up and running. If you'd like a copy before my next workshop (I'm working out the details) just let me know and I'll get it to you ASAP. You're going to love what you see! I have my wishlist already started. Contact me today for to set up a workshop or to place an order.
Have a great 4th of July!

I finally made a card!

Hello, everybody!
I finally made a card this afternoon. I'm making gifts for the three wonderful ladies who helped me in my classroom this year as Room Mothers. I saw the card on the cover of the July issue of Stampin' Success and used Cheep Talk with some rhinestone brads to make my own card. I used the current In Colors as well. It's simple and easy to make--which is the only kind of card I make :)

The Summer Mini Catalog Is Here!

The summer mini catalog is here! It begins on May 1st. I think this is one of the best mini catalogs in a long time. I'll have to do a lot of workshops to earn all the stuff I want out of this one so call me to set up your in home workshop today!
I made a card using the new Sunny Fun stamp set in the mini catalog. There are also flip flops and popsicles in the set! I have a feeling I'll be using this set a lot. Happy Easter and enjoy!

A very productive weekend!

The weather made a turn for the worse this weekend so I took the opportunity to play in the stampin' room. I actually made 20 cards for a special event I'm doing with a friend (I can't post that card or I'll give away our plan) and 20 baby shower invitations. I'll post that one after the mother-to-be sees them--don't want to spoil her surprise either. So I'll post two cards I made for my stamp camp this week. I CASEd them from Stampin' Connection and now I can't find the originals to give credit. If it's your card, please let me know! I've got to get better at writing down names.

I used the Big Shot embossing dies on both of these cards. I like the way they turned out. Remember to stamp and color before putting the cardstock through the Big Shot.
Anyone who would like to have an in-home workshop, please let me know! I'd love to share the stampin' experience with you.

My hostess gift

I thought I would try the notebook in the February Stampin' Success. I thought it would make a great hostess gift. My upcoming workshop is for my daughter's dance teacher and this is just something she would be able to use. I love the Fun Flowers die that's in the Mini Catalog. I think I'll be using it a lot. Be sure to let me know what you think. Have a great week!

Check out my new blog!

Thanks so much to Laycock Designs and Blogs by Heather for setting up my blog layout! Michelle worked on the cute people and layout this week. Heather keeps my buttons up to date. I have to tell you that it makes my life easier knowing someone who knows what she's doing is helping me with all of this technology. I hope you visit often--I think I'll be posting more just so I can look at it! I'll post new cards at the end of the week, I hope. Have a great week!
Melinda :)

My first Stamp A Stack

On Sunday, I'll host my first Stamp A Stack. I'm pretty excited about the cards I made. You've seen two of them. I finished the other two today and I'm pretty pleased with how they turned out. I got the ideas off of Stampin' Connection, of course. I looked at several samples and put them together. I'm sorry I don't have the names of those who helped me be creative today. I'll try to find them again and I'll post your names later. I hope you enjoy the cards.

February Fun

Before I head back to my kindergarten classroom tomorrow I wanted to post three pictures of some cards I made while on break. They use retired sets and papers but I found the scraps and decided to see what I could do with them. I think the cards turned out very cute.
I'll post pictures of my stamp a stack cards as soon as they're all finished. Have a great rest of the week.

More cards!

One of the reasons I love track out is the time I get to play in my Stampin' Room! Here are the lastest cards. The LOVE card is CASEd from Erica Cerwin. I used what I had on hand which changed the card a little but the layout is basically the same. I tried to use colors that didn't say Valentine's Day because sometimes you just need to say "I love you".
I loved the Morning Cup set! I finally got to play with it yesterday. I CASEd a card from Madeline Morcelo, again, using colors I had. I think it turned out very cute! I used the Watercolor Wonder Crayons to color the images.
Let me know what you think!

Cute Tags

I just made the cutest tags using our new Cupcake Punch from the Occasions Mini Catalog. They were very simple to make. I used Marina Mist, Crumb Cake, Early Expresso and Daffodil Delight cardstock with Daffodil Delight ribbon. I made 24 tags in about 30 minutes last night. I love simple but cute projects!

January Workshop

Here are the cards we're making at my workshop and Stamp Camps this month. They were fairly easy to make. I tried to use some of the In-Colors as well this month. I don't use those very often. I'm not sure why, I usually tend to stick to the regular color families. If you'd like to join one of my classes, just let me know. Check out my website for the dates. Happy Stampin'!