Thursday, December 31, 2020

Birthday Bash and Sale-a-Bration sneak peek!

During this week's Tuesday Night Stampin' Club, I made birthday cards and gave some tips on how to get birthday cards out ON TIME to friends and family. It's always my goal at the beginning of each year to stay on top of birthdays and get those cards out so they arrive on time.

I sent A LOT of cards this year since I was a Stampin' Up! Great Lakes Demo Council member and we had some trial initiatives. I also sent more cards during the past 9 months because who didn't need a little surprise of joy, love, and appreciation during this crazy year of 2020!?! I learned much about the positives and negatives of my card-sending logistics. Hopefully, you will be inspired to create hand-crafted cards and send them "snail-mail" this year after reading about how I got it done!

This one below was made off camera after the live video. Sometimes I just keep stamping due to the creative juices starting to flow! And not to mention that I had to use up that embossing powder I spilled;) I embossed the candles (from the upcoming Approaching Perfection SAB set) with white and then colored them with Stampin' Blends. I used the negative image after I cut out letters using the Playful Alphabet Dies and added leftover strips of colored cardstock behind. All of the colored cardstock were scraps laying on my table from earlier in the night after cutting out layers for my initial card that inspired me.

My favorite card of the night was CASED from Melody Hyde from Hammond & Penny. I absolutely loved the card she shared on our Demonstrator Facebook group and knew I had to re-create it! I used my favorite embellishment...Artistry Blooms Sequins. Watch my Facebook Live for tips on how I paper-pieced the focal point greeting. Sometimes you just need to pull out that "Scotch Tape."

The next two photos show how I used the Approaching Perfection stamp set to decorate my envelopes and the inside of my cards.

Approaching Perfection and A Touch of Ink are two stamp sets that are part of the Sale-a-Bration 2021 offering starting January 5, 2021. Approaching Perfection is a great greetings set for the inside of your cards! You can earn it for FREE with a qualifying purchase of $50. You can watch my Facebook Live video to see the stamps included in the Approaching Perfection set and check back here on January 5 to see the beautiful A Touch of Ink. Contact me if you'd like your copy of the Sale-a-Bration brochure.

GET IT DONE!

Here are some tips and photos of how I've been organizing my card-sending endeavors.

1. Collect addresses and birthdays. Create an Address List in a spreadsheet (I use Excel, but I think I'll make a Google Sheet so I can access it from anywhere). If you don't use spreadsheets, you can just print of your sheet of address labels and use that as your guide.

2. Make 12 tabs on your spreadsheet for each month to make a perpetual birthday calendar. You can even copy and paste addresses to that sheet too. That worked very well for me during my time on the Demonstrator Council.

3. Stamp a stack of cards! You can see some quick card ideas in these posts HERE and HERE. It's easier to get the cards out on time if you have some already made instead of waiting until you make "that perfect card".

4. Address envelopes and add birthday date to the upper right-hand corner where the stamp goes. I address envelopes once a month and then stick them in my cute mini dish drainer. Add the stamp when you stuff the envelope with the signed card.

5. Monday is a great day to mail your cards. I typically write them out on Sundays so they're ready to go Monday morning, but if I don't get to it, my Monday Mailing alarm I set on my phone reminds me!

Product List

Happiest Of Birthdays Cling Stamp Set (English)

[152539]

Artistry Blooms Designer Series Paper

[152495]

Artistry Blooms Sequins

[152477]

Brights 8-1/2" X 11" Cardstock

[146975]

Classic Stampin' Spots Assortment

[153183]

Night Of Navy Classic Stampin' Pad

[147110]

Bermuda Bay Classic Stampin' Pad

[147096]

Versamark Pad

[102283]

White Stampin' Emboss Powder

[109132]

Heat Tool (Us And Canada)

[129053]

Brick & Mortar 3D Embossing Folder

[149643]

Playful Alphabet Dies

[152706]

Granny Apple Green Stampin' Blends Combo Pack

[154885]

Magenta Madness Stampin' Blends Combo Pack

[153106]

Bermuda Bay Stampin' Blends Combo Pack

[154878]

Daffodil Delight Stampin' Blends Combo Pack

[154883]

Clear Block D

[118485]

Whisper White 8-1/2" X 11" Thick Cardstock

[140272]

Tuesday, December 22, 2020

Three Cheers for Shaker Cards!

Shaker Cards don't need to be complicated! I made two versions during my weekly

Tuesday Night Stampin' Club Facebook LIVE video. You can watch them in action HERE!

The "cheater" version used a card from the You Are Amazing Project Kit which is featured in the upcoming January-June 2021 Mini Catalog. I love the colors in this kit and they coordinate so well with the Sequins for Everything that I used to make the shaker card. The original card and the stepped-up shaker card are below.

The You Are Amazing Project Kit is available for purchase starting January 5, 2021. Stampin' Up! Demonstrators were able to pre-order it during December and I'm so glad I did! The kit comes with pre-cut cardstock and supplies to make 16 cards. You'll also need the coordinating You Are Amazing stamp set, some ink pads, and adhesive to complete the cards as designed in the kit.

To make my shaker card I added a clear envelope, Sequins for Everything, and Granny Apple Green cardstock. I cut the card base in half and used the striped side. Put the card front into the clear envelope and add some sequins. Seal the clear envelope tightly, fold over the excess envelope towards the back and adhere with tape. Adhere the card front to a colored cardstock base. Then complete the card as directed and voilà...you have a Simple shaker card!

The Cocktails card is a "traditional" framed shaker card using foam adhesive strips and window sheets. I was inspired by the project featured next to the Sequins for Everything in the mini catalog. I just couldn't bring myself to make a valentine card before Christmas, so I opted for a much-needed cocktail...card.

I hope you've been inspired to make some shaker cards! No need to be intimidated by them...they can be created pretty SIMPLY! Make a frame from cardstock using rectangle framelits. Adhere a layer of window sheet to the back of the frame. Adhere the foam adhesive strips to the back of the frame. Adhere a stamped layer to the card base...it's best to have that layer cut a bit smaller than the size of the frame. Sprinkle some sequins onto the card. Carefully position the frame over the stamped layer.

You can follow me on my Facebook Page to be notified when I post my Tuesday Night Stampin' Club Live videos. If you do not already have a Stampin’ Up! Demonstrator, I would LOVE to be yours. Would you like to enjoy the demonstrator discount? Join my team, The INK Crowd! Click here for details.

The supplies used to create these projects can be ordered through my online store here or by clicking on the photos below. Please use the host code found on the right side of my blog when ordering through my online store if your order is under $150. If it is over $150, don’t use the code so you can redeem all the Host Rewards.

Thanks so much for stopping by! Julia Mazur @ SimplySheStamps

Product List