One for the boy in my class.

I have a lone boy in my Cardmaking Class for Conejo Valley Homeschoolers this year.  He's been good about not going, "EWWWW!" at the variety of "girlie" cards we've done over the weeks so I wanted to be sure he had the chance at a card which was more boy-oriented before we're done for the year.  :>)

Okay, it has ribbon, but we can consider those flames, right?  Yes it has the red glimmer paper.  but I thought he'd like it on this and it's fun for me to show them the use of the same product for both this and the very "girlie" Mother's Day Card we did. 

The card is on Basic Black Cardstock with a stamp from the "Need for Speed" stamp set (available June 1st) with the Jet Black StazOn Pad.  I hope he likes it!  :>)

Make and Take for my yard sale - COME PLAY ON SATURDAY!

Hi All,

It's gotten to that time of year. With the new Stampin' Up! Catalog coming out on June 1st, I now have a LOT of stamp sets I can no longer use for my business. I pared out those I intend to use anyway and will be having a yard sale with stamps, papers, embellishments and tools which have "retired". My turnover is YOUR good fortune!

Please come on out to thin my stock and I'll be ever so grateful. :>)

Here's one of the two Make and Takes you can choose from if you come by my yard sale on Saturday, June 2nd between 10 and 4. It's kind of a whacky card but it shows off a BUNCH of the new products using the Dahlia Fold Technique. You're looking at new Designer Series Paper, new colors (stamped from the new style of ink pad -- you HAVE to check these out!), new stamp set, and 2 new types of ribbon. Okay, it's probably a little busy but I had fun making it. :>)

Those of you who come out on Saturday will get to try your hand at this card or a Father's Day card I've designed ( I've been trying to upload it for 3 days! Sorry.). I'll have TONS of retired stamps available as well as other retired items and some general stuff I'm trying to dig out of the house.

I'll have copies of the new Stampin' Up! catalog for you to peruse. If you'd like to make a purchase from the new catalog, the catalog itself will be my gift to you. If you're not quite ready to order, you can purchase your own copy for $2.50 (this Saturday only). That's half off! Now would be a terrific time to book your own party too, as many of the products are brand new and you can use your friends' need to buy them for your own gain (HOSTESS FREE GOODIES!!!). Okay, maybe that's a little mercenary, but they can come after you later when they book their own party. :>)

I hope to see you: 

Saturday, June 2nd, 10am  - 4pm

Email me for the address in Camarillo.

Message from the Birthday Girl's Mama

I got this message from the Birthday Girl's Mama after doing a card class for a birthday party.   That feels good!

 

++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

 

 

 

A big shout out to YOU!!!!

Thank you for a lovely afternoon. The kids had a great time!

As always you were on time, super prepared, and fun!

My husband might be coming to your next card class. ;)

shhh, he said he had fun ;)

See you Wednesday.

:)

Stacey

More Cards for Kids

Some of you know I've been teaching a card class in Thousand Oaks for the last 5 weeks.  It's been fun to look at card design differently since my designs for the kids have to be simplified and because I'm doing my best to use up some retired and retiring products.

Today I did card-making at a child's birthday party (she's 7) and thought I'd share some of the designs.

Here's the outside of one:

Here's the inside:

I used the Cupcake Builder Punch and some retired cardstock, letting the kids pick what color "frosting they wanted.  I thought about using the Create a Cupcake stamp set to enhance it but had a lot of new card makers and didn't want to make things too complcated.

Thanks, Marianne, for suggesting cupcakes when I asked for ideas. :>)

This one uses the soon to retire set, Season of Friendship.  If this is one you need, order it by May 31st!.  It also uses the Bright Buttons. and Decorative Label Punch.  I had the kids try out "stamping off" to get various shades of green for the leaves.  This is one which could be dressed up SO easily and used for a LOT of occasions.                                                                                                        

Our Birthday Girl had a pinata so she wanted to have a card with a pinata too. Here's a simple thing I came up with using a dormant stamp, "Packed for Birthday".   It's just a fun, simple card.  

 

What do you think of what I came up with for when the clientelle  is quite young?  Please let me know.

My second donation -- Please bid on Friday!

I started putting all the goodies in the box for my Silent Auction Donation for Aaron's school and realized I should just make it two donations.  My second donation will be a Card storage box filled with a selection of 20 cards I've made, valued at about $70.  They're ALREADY MADE FOR YOU!!!

Los Primeros is a wonderful school and we're  so happy to have Aaron there.  If you can, I'd love to see you there to bid on my stuff or other auction items.  It's out annual carnival too and should be lots of fun!  Come on out to 1555 Kendall in Camarillo between 4 and 7 pm on THIS Friday, May 18th. 

Here are some of the cards which will be in the box along with the BRAND NEW Stampin' Up! catalog:

This one's a lot of fun made with our owl punch and a few others.

I DO love my punches!

This ones super simple, made with the "Fabulous Florets" stamp set.  I'm sad this satin ribbon is retiring.  The one below is made using our "Brights" buttons, the "Summer Smooches" paper coming out on June 1st, and Stampin' Write markers with our "Patterened Party" stamp set.

What did you do for Mother's Day?

Hi All,

I had a lovely Mother's Day and hope you did too, whether you're a mom or not.

I've told a number of people what I did and have had mixed responses.  I've either gotten something like, "That's the best idea I've ever heard!" or " "What?  Don't you want to be with your family?"   What do you think?

I've been seriously stressed out of late and also have fallen behind on my record keeping for my Stampin' Up! business.  This weekend I remedied both of those.  Here's what I did:

Friday afternoon I took Aaron to the park with his kite.  We met friends there and the kids had a great time running around the field with their kites and trying to dive bomb the mamas.  When Roger got off work he met us in the park and took over Aaron.  Whoo Hoo!!!  The guys went on their way for a weekend of  Boy Time.  I took my computer, paperwork, suitcase, and snacks and checked into the Days Inn on the other side of town. 

I went and saw, "Dark Shadows," I went back to the motel and ordered a pizza from Round Table.  Ahhhhhhhhhhhhh.  Chowed down.  Worked for a while. Napped. Watched a movie on TV. Read.  Worked.  Napped.  Gave myself a facial. Read. Watched another movie on TV. Repeat.  Went for a chocolate malt at 2am.  Napped. Worked. Etc.  On Sunday I woke up, checked out of the motel and called my mom.  We talked and laughed for a while.  Tried to call Mom-in-law (out).  Drove in a leisurely manner across the county.  Picked up a Reuben Sandwich at Jersey Mike's.  Went the beach in my sweatshirt and read for 3 or 4 hours.   Came home and hung out with my guys for dinner and went to bed.  Ahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh. 

I was still stressed out on Saturday night, but after listening to the ocean and the birds (and dodging a couple of extremely persistent seagulls) for a few hours, I came home relaxed and happy to be with my guys again.  

What did you do and what do you think?

Tons of Stampin' Up! Goodies and a good cause

Hi All.

I spent the afternoon putting together a "basket" for my son's school's Silent Auction next week.  I used all retired items I have around but it's an amazing bunch of stuff.  I just kept putting things in and, before I knew it, the value had hit $256.  I probably shouldn't even THINK about how much my full inventory is worth.  :>)

If you're in the market for some terrific Stampin' Up! goodies for all your paper needs, and will be in Camarillo next Friday, come by Los Primeros School ( 1555 Kendall Ave.) and bid on my basket between 4 and 7 pm. I'll have another Auction Item (a package of cards and the new catalog!!!!!!!!) too.

P.S.  Please bid generously.  This is our school's primary fundraiser for the year and pays for our music program and some of our science. 

P. P. S.   Yes, I'm VERY excited about the new catalog.  I got it today and am having to be VERY, VERY well controlled to get this done before I dive in.  :>)

What Have YOU Been Reading?

In the last few days I've looked back at the books I've read so far this year and concluded that my reading habits are ridiculously eclectic.  :>)  That's okay.  It certainly works for me.  The last few books I've read have been:

• When the Emperor Was Divine -- an AMAZING book about the de-humanization of the Japanese-American population during WWII and in the following years.  Told through the eyes of the characters.
• The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks -- a very interesting blend of science an sociology -- it tells the story of Henrietta Lacks, the woman whose cells have been multiplying for about 60 years after her death from cancer, the story of how these cells were taken from her and spread throughout the world for research purposes, an examination of the ethics behind that, and the story of the fallout of the whole thing on her family.
• The Hunger Games and Catching Fire -- Books 1 and 2 of a young adult trilogy. FAR better than I had anticipated! I'm currently reading Mockingjay (#3). Don't you DARE tell me how it ends! :>)

Lest you think I only read "heavy" books, I also recently finished:

• Abraham Lincoln, Vampire Hunter -- a fictionalized account of Lincoln's life telling of how the population of American vampires effected the slave-trade and the outcome of the Civil War.  Truly weird but kind of fascinating.  The author almost makes you believe it.
• Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children -- quite odd but curiously compelling - a story of time travel and good vs. evil.

Going REALLY light, there was also:

• How to Wash a Cat -- a mystery, not an instruction manual
• Dr. Nightingale Rides to the Hounds -- eh...  I was glad I paid 50 cents for this at "Friends of the Library"
• The Cat, the Quilt, and the Corpse --  eh +  Not bad but not good either , another mystery
• Grave Sight, Grave Surprise, and An Ice Cold Grave -- 3 of 4 of a series by Chalaine Harris (the Sookie Stackhouse author) -- Also mysteries.  Not great, but pretty good.  Good enough for me to plan to hunt down the 4th one. 

Then, of course, there's always the "Stay ahead of your child reading":

• The 39 Clues: Maze of Bones -- I read the first one and went ahead and get the series for him.  I plan to start the first on with him this coming week.   We'll see how the plan goes...  :>)
• Where Did I Come From? -- explaning the mechanics of sex, I KNOW he's gonna ask soon. 

So what have YOU been reading.  Please tell me.  I'm always on the lookout for a good book (my other paper love).   :>)

Heart-Shaped Pouch

Here's a little heart-shaped pouch I'm having the kids make on Wednesday too.  Maybe they'll be able to use them for something special for their moms.  I CASEd this from Lynda Fraser's example, changing several element, but hte basic idea was her's and I thank her. 

Here it is:

I used the Petal Cone BigzL Die ( the same die I've used for adorable "Carrot boxes" last Easter), the Big Shot Die-Cutting Machine, the Delicate Doilies stamp set, the Mixed Bunch stamp set, the Blossom Punch, Wisteria Wonder cardstock and a few other goodies.  It measures just under 6" x 6". 

A Card for Mom

Here's a card I designed for the kids  in my class for Conejo Valley Homeschoolers to make for their moms this coming Wednesday.  A little glimmer paper goes a  LONG way but I think they'll like it.  :>)

I used the Red and SIlver Glimmer Paper for a little sparkle. Designer Label Punch for the words, 3/4" Circle Punch for the silver circles and the Samll Heart Punch.  I'm so sad to see the Satin Ribbon retiring but I'm sure Stampin' Up! will be replacing it with something just as beautiful.