Thanks So Much

Here's a sneak peek!  One of my cards will be in the Apr/May/Jun issue of The Stampers' Sampler, scheduled to hit newsstands April 1st.  (No, it's not an April Fool's Day joke!)   You'll see this one on page 75.

Supplies:
Stamps:  Chit Chat (Paper Smooches)
Paper:  Lime Rickey (BasicGrey)
Paint/Ink: Memento Ink in Pear Tart, Bahama Blue, and Danube Blue (Tsukineko)
Accessories: Felt Arrow (Creative Imaginations)

This card is my first published since I returned from my all-too-long stamping hiatus.  I'm hoping to spend lots more time stamping as (a) my husband has had his kidney transplant and (b) my doctors prescribed stamping to help me with my Caregiver Stress Syndrome.  I'm lucky to have some wonderful friends to stamp with, and I hope you do too!

Speaking of sneak peeks...  Stampington & Co. often posts a few pages of upcoming magazines to advertise for that issue, and I noticed one of my cards shown on the page for the new 400 More Ideas for Handmade Cards (formerly called Catch Up Issue), hitting newsstands on May 1st.  If you've read my blog, you'll recognize the card.  It appeared here and is one of my favorites.

Happy Stamping!
 

New Pub, Old Card

There's nothing quite like seeing "Artist Comp Copy" printed above your name on the address label of a magazine. It means a smile (usually accompanied by a squeal) and then tender turning of the pages while you examine every single project inside to see which you recognize. Today, my comp copy was for the brand new Stampers' Sampler Catch Up Issue Vol. 13 which hits stands on May 1st.

I submitted my card back in February of 2008. It has been quite a while, hasn't it? This is why I always let Stampington keep all my submissions. You just never know when they'll need something in a certain color scheme or style! I had one card that was over 2 years between submission and publication. I bet there are more in piles at the Stampington offices that they'll use someday.

My favorite thing about this card is that the stamp used for the focal image reminds me so much of my mother. (My dad doesn't see the resemblance, he says... but I REALLY do. We'll have to let my sister Kris break the tie, I guess.) I can just see Mom wearing clam diggers and sitting on a dock at the lake somewhere.


Supplies:
Stamps: Woman (Alluring Impressions); Postage (Oxford Impressions); Happy (Verve)
Paper: Close to Cocoa & Very Vanilla (Stampin' Up!); Striped PP (unknown)
Paint/Ink: Basic Brown (SU); Chestnut Roan ColorBox Chalk Ink (ClearSnap)
Accessories: Tag Punches & Copper Cord (SU); Authentic vintage postage stamps

I'd also like to offer a congratulatory shout out to my friend Debbie Emmons who has a beautiful Easter card published on page 104. Woohoo!

Back in a day or two with a new project using Shimmerz in a cool way with acetate! Completed it tonight while 'scrapping' with the girls, but it's too dark to photograph properly. It may be Monday before I get daylight time at home to take pictures.

Happy Stamping!

Memorable Memorial Week

Didn't have any big plans for the week before Memorial Day, but I had a few fun stamping surprises to share with you.

On Tuesday night, I had a chance to meet with Amy. I did not know that this would turn into a stamping-related event. She was in Boise (for the first time) representing Sigma Sigma Sigma, the sorority to which I belong. We discussed some of our collegiate experiences and our hopes for an alumnae chapter to be formed here. Somewhere in the conversation, she was talking about crocheting on the plane and said something that I thought might have sounded like "I make cards". So as we were packing up to leave the Boise favorite Flying Pie (we enjoyed Gourmet Night), I asked her "So, did I hear you say that you make cards?" And that led to another hour or two of discussion... ink pads, Greek letter stamps, etc. I can't wait to hang out with Amy again when I travel to Colorado and/or next time she's in Boise. We had a million things in common. So a quick shout out to Amy: Hi Amy!

Then I noticed an ad on the Stampington Web site advertising the Summer 2008 Take Ten magazine that's due out on June 1. I clicked on it and read through the promotional page... and then I saw a card I recognized right there on the page! It was a card I submitted back in November '07 and it had been used in the Take Ten and Catch Up issues recently to advertise the coming Take Ten. So here's a quick glance at what I saw. The print is awfully small, but it looks like its on page 3. I'll keep you posted if any of my other submissions are inside. Oooh and I can't wait to see the work of Teri Anderson, a former Idaho Scrapper. She's the Guest Artist.

Tonight, I cleaned off some desktop space in my craft room. The room might never be completely cleaned and organized, but at least I can stamp in there again. It'll be nice to have a place to hide out and stamp!

In enabling news, Frugalities is offering everything 49% off until May 28th. No coupon code necessary. I noticed they have some Daisy Bucket stamps for $1.17!

Happy Stamping!

Fell in Love... in a Hotel Room

Yes, I admit it. I fell in love in a hotel room. It was autumn. And we were too tired to shop. So we stamped. And colored. With Copics. Sure, I mispronounced their names, but it was love.

Today, the new Stampers' Sampler Take Ten Catch Up Issue arrived. It's in a new format now. I appreciate updates. I do. But I'm not a big fan of the fact that this particular layout choice causes most cards to be partially obscured. If you have a copy, check out page 28, for example. There's a "Wanted" card with some string. Is it a lasso? A bow? And then with "Mona and Leo" on page 18... what's the rest of the saying?

How are the two related? "Winter Wishes" appears on page 97, and it was my very first Copic creation. There are visible lines in the coloring, but I'm armed with training and practice now... so future projects will be better. This snowman card was posted back in October, but here he is for an encore.

Supply List:
Stamps: Sentiment from Winter Wonder (Verve Visual); Snowman With Checkered Hat (Lockhart Stamp Company)
Paper: Peapod Notecard (Memory Box); Textured Cardstock in 2 shades of green (Bazzill); Gingham patterned paper (Making Memories Kids Collection); White
Ink: VersaFine Ink in Onyx Black (Tsukineko); ColorBox Fluid Chalk Ink in Deep Green (ClearSnap)
Accessories: Sketch Markers and Glitter Pens (Copic); Dimensional Foam Squares (3M)

Today has been the warmest day so far this Spring. It got up to 79 today, but they're saying we're at a risk of snow tomorrow and Wednesday. Brrr. Better not put the fleece away yet.

Happy Stamping!

Five in Ten

There was a little treat waiting for me in my mailbox today -- The Stampers' Sampler Take Ten issue for Spring 2008. I hadn't ordered it yet, so this must be my "artist comp" copy. Yeay!

Five of my cards are in this issue. Do you recognize them?

Many Thanks appears on page 4. Snow, which I created as part of the Mandarin Pixie DT finalist challenge, appears on page 28. Make Me Smile, my very first Verve card ever, appears on page 113. Then two cards are in special areas of the magazine. Beaming with Happiness is featured on page 138 in an advertisement for the Summer 2008 Take Ten issue. Then, most exciting for me, is Wishing You which appears on page 26. It's exciting because it has been chosen as the DESIGN CHALLENGE TEMPLATE for this issue. *squeal* Since I haven't shown Wishing You yet here on my blog, here it is:


Supply List:
Stamps: Starlight Starbright (Verve Visual)
Paper: Cowboy Collection (Crate Paper), Star Kissed Star Mile (Daisy Bucket)
Ink: Chestnut Roan Chalk Ink (ClearSnap), VersaFine Vintage Sepia (Tsukineko)
Accessories: Extra Jumbo Scalloped Oval Punch & Super Jumbo Oval Punch (Marvy Uchida); Grograin w/ Satin Center Ribbon (May Arts)

Thanks for sharing my special news! I have quite a bit of stamping time scheduled over the next couple of days, and I hope to have more projects to share with you soon!

Happy Stamping!

Dress Form for Non-Sewers

We were on a bit of a drive together this summer, and Dad overheard a telephone conversation I was having with Lila. We were discussing sewing machines and the cheezy "craft" ones that don't work too well for sewing on cards. Lo and behold, a few days later, Dad got me a fabulous sewing machine with lots of bells and whistles. Kelly inspired me to sit down, read the manual, and try it out... but I admit that I haven't spent any time on it since that evening. I have been looking into taking sewing classes.

This month, The Stampers' Sampler's Tempting Template is a dressmaker's form. I stamped the top heart first onto vanilla cardstock. Then, I took the template printout and placed it over the heart so the neck was centered over the point of the heart and traced the template... careful to leave enough for the heart. Next, I cut out the dress and stamped the 'skirt' using the reversed heart image twice. The final touch was Swarovski flat-backed pearls to make the necklace.

Supply List:
Stamps: Boho Blossoms (My Favorite Things)
Paper: Very Vanilla CS (Stampin' Up!)
Ink: VersaMagic in Aegean Blue (Tsukineko)
Accessories: Flat-backed pearls (Swarovski)

This was definitely out of my comfort zone, and I enjoyed it quite a bit!

Happy Stamping!