Color your World!

New colors coming! Stampin' Up has revamped their color palette to keep in line with the current trends and are discontinuing the colors that were not as popular. 

If you want to order any of the pictured above discontinued colors, now would be the time.  Just let me know and I would be happy to get them for you.  They will be disappearing very soon.  Don't let them escape without checking to see what you can't live without. 

For those that are enjoying the current in-colors, you will be happy to know that Rich Razzleberry, Melon Mambo and Soft Suede will be continuing on with the new launch.

Also, if you want to order the new colors, I can put your order in and as soon as they are available they will ship to you.  The new colors that are premiering are Daffodil Delight, Marine Mist, Cajun Craze, Cherry Cobbler and Early Espresso!

To preview the new colors, click here! If you print it on good quality photo paper, the colors will be more true.

You can order them 24/7 from my stampin up website click here to see promotions.  Once you are ready to shop click on 'buy now'.  Or you can contact me to place an order.

Keep in mind that the paper once depleted of the retiring colors will be replaced with textured where possible.  Also, the textured will not be replenished after 5/31/10 in the retired colors where possible.  They will have the retiring ink until 5/31/10 but, after 6/1/10 it will be available while supplies last.

Sage Shadow 12" x 12" card stock (item 107079) has been depleted and we are unable to order more.
If there are any more stampin Up colors that you are interested in, order before the end of this month.

I thought I would give everyone a heads up on this.

I have the colors listed above in case you wanted to know which ones are affected.

I will be placing an order this week if anyone is interested let me know.

Top 20!

Here are my top 20 stamp sets that I am hoping continue from the 2009-10 catalog into the 2010-11 Stampin' Up catalog!

These are not in order of preference but, are in order of the catalog.  You can either enter the number into my online Stampin' Up store or click on the name below to view the image.

In fact, there are some beautiful samples shown made with stamp sets as well.  If you click on the images of the samples, it will pull up the recipe (supply list) to make that card or project. 

Sweet Season 116471


Humor in High Heels 111652


Things I love 115229


Fast Flowers 109679


Chic Boutique 113744


On a Pedestal 113814


Birthday Bliss 115442


Just Soccer 115010


All in the Family 113488


Family accessories 113494


Flower Fancy 111578


Fresh Cuts 111634


Petal Pizzazz 113417


Tart & tangy 111514


En Francais 109521


Once Upon a Time 113746


Elegant Thank you 114484


Define Your Life 114950


Jayne’s Type Alphabet 114401

What are your top favorites?

July Chicago CHA!

The Craft & Hobby Association (CHA) is pleased to announce it's 2010 Summer Convention & Trade Show and Craft SuperShow will return to the Donald E. Stephens Convention and Conference Center in Rosemont, Illinois after one season in Orlando, Florida. The annual CHA Summer Trade Show will be held Tuesday, July 27 through Thursday, July 29, followed by the CHA Craft SuperShow consumer event Friday, July 30 and Saturday, July 31, 2010.










Do you plan to attend?

It's Official!

Can you believe that this precious baby girl is officially 1 right at the time of this post?  Happy Birthday dear Katharina!  It is bittersweet because she is my last baby so, while I am excited for her successes, she is no longer my little baby girl.  I wanted to share my joy with you but, pardon me while I sneak away to embrace the last few moments before she is officially a year old!  Then, we will celebrate the joy of her becoming an official 1 year old!

Predict and Win Contest!

Let's have some fun!  The last chance list of stamps sets will be posted on June 1st for Stampin' Up!  Let's look forward and see how good you are at forcasting the trends.  What stamp set do you think is in the current Stampin' Up! idea book & catalog 2009-2010 and will remain in the 2010-2011 catalog?  Pick 12 that you think will remain from the 2009-2010 catalog and be carried over into the new 2010-2011 catalog.  (hostess sets do not count) and post your predictions as a comment to this Post.  Be sure to include your email address so, that I can contact you.  Or, you can email me your list by clicking here!  To enter the drawing, first become a follower of this blog.  Then, you need to contact me by posting a comment on this post or email no later than Midnight on May 30th, 2010 Eastern Standard Time with your 12 picks.  Your name will go into a drawing for any price clear stamp set (no hostess sets) or a la carte stamp of your choice from the Summer Mini Catalog (May 1, 2010-August 31, 2010).  If there is a tie, the tie breaker will go to the earliest entry received on this post or my personal email.  I will notify the winner by June 2nd and the prize will be shipped in July.  Please note that demonstrators are not eligible and entries are for the United States, Peurto Rico or APO Addresses.  If you have a demo, please check with them.  Thank you for understanding. :)  

In addition, I will randomly draw a winner that will receive the 2010-2011 catalog (no stamps or product included) for free.  You can view the 2009-2010 catalog to make your predictions by clicking here!

You can view the summer mini catalog 2010 here or email me if you would like a copy mailed to your home.

Perhaps, I am having Summer fever!  Let's kick off to a great Summer!

You can order 24/7 from my stampin up website click here to see promotions.  Once you are ready to shop click on 'buy now'.  Or you can contact me to place an order.

New Stampin' Up! idea book & catalog 2010-11

Contact me to find out how to receive the NEW Stampin' Up! idea book & catalog 2010-11 FREE! PM/email me direct Available for pre-order Now!


http://www.stampinup.net/esuite/home/stampiton/promotions

Stunning!

I must say that this is the most stunning cake!  HobbyHo struck again with this cake that takes my breath away!  I have been agonizing with what cake to get for my beautiful darling daughter's 1st birthday this weekend until I saw this!  ok....still a problem because I know that I cannot make it look this good besides not having the time to get the tools necessary.  Atlhough I already do have the perfect dress for darling daughter to go with this cake! 

I would have loved to have this cake for my wedding to go along with that beautiful castle cake!  Ah... at least I got my Prince Charming in reality! :) 

Anyways, Awesome!

Picturesque Cherry Blossom

You can view the video above on the blog or double click on it to view in youtube.  I cut the Cherry Blossom using some fruit roll up as my medium.  What is cooler than making edible images especially for or with your little ones? 

It even cut out the cute little circles within the cut.  It just had to be picked out.

Scrapbooks

Do you wonder how your scrapbooks will look in the coming decades?  Here is an album from the 40's.  It was interesting to even see a telegraph.  I suppose that would be the equiv. to our modern text or email or perhaps twitter or facebook.  How will our communications be viewed in the coming decades?

Be sure to use some acid free, lignin free items when possible and encapsulate those items that are not.  Also, remember that over time your ink might fade and we wouldn't want our setiments to disappear or our efforts to crumble.  The Stampin Up craft (pigment ink) is the best to use for archival items to last a lifetime and beyond.

You can order them 24/7 from my stampin up website click here to see promotions.  Once you are ready to shop click on 'buy now'.  Or you can contact me to place an order.

Picturesque Tulip Cake

I posted my Picturesque Tulip Cake the other day but, what goes into it? I think you grow a greater appreciation for cake decorators when you make your own.

First, you need to select what type of cake that you want. There are so many different types of cakes that could be made. And although you would think that everyone's favoite would be chocolate...it is not! Some people do not like chocolate cake. Stranger so is if they love chocolate but, not chocolate cake. hmmm yes there are those out there. For this cake a white was selected but, it was not a wedding white because I used whole eggs and butter rather than egg whites. It made it not a true white.

After I baked the cake according to the recipe, I let it cool on a rack.  Afterwards, I leveled the cake with a knife and sliced it into layers. 

As I wanted to add a filling, I made some buttercream frosting from scratch for the outside of the cake and a bit for inside. I put it into a bag with a tip to be able to pipe it more evenly.  I spooned it into the bag by folding the inside of the bag out.  It makes it a lot easier to get it into the bag with not so much mess.

I piped some frosting on one of the halves creating a well to put the filling in.  This helps to avoid the filling from oozing out of the cake. 

Now it is time to add the filling!  For this cake the flavor of choice was strawberry....yum! 

Now it is ready for the other layer to rest on top and it will seal the strawberries inside the cake. 

On to the next step which is the crumb coat!  This is where you put a thin coat of frosting on the cake and unfortunately the cake crumbs will mix into it.  Place it in the fridge for a few minutes to set. 

Now the real fun starts!  Your final coat of frosting goes on and smooth it over. As you can see, the above picture is more bumpy.  Apply your buttercream and smooth it over with a clean knife to get it smooth.  I would dip my knife in a glass of hot water and wipe it clean.   

I used the large star tip to put a decorative bead around the border of the cake as well as the bottom.  I also added my decorative cuts that I made out of gum paste.  Those were cut from the picturesque cricut cartridge. 

Below is the final cake. 

 You could also add some cuts to go around the sides of the cake but, I opted to keep the focus on the beautiful tulip cut on top.  My son sure was eyeing up the flower and spied that for his plate.  The cake was a huge success!  Not only was it quality time with my family in making it but, it was also something to talk about and it tasted great too!  It was overall a huge hit! 

Be sure to become a follower by clicking on the 'follow' button on the right hand side.  Also, please add my botton to your blog.  The button can be found on the upper right hand side of this post.

Picturesque Cake

Here's a yummy cake that I made from scratch including the buttercream frosting.  Considering that I have never had any cake decorating training, I think it turned out pretty cute.  I did not do a fondant base on this cake instead I used buttercream.

I used the Picturesque cartridge.   For sizing details, see the youtube video just click here!  Come back Sunday to see more on the making of the cake.

Elements of Style!

I really love this stamp set from Stampin' Up!  It is called elements of style!  You can order this from my Stampin' Up site by clicking here or contact me directly. 

It is item 118611 for wood mount or 120045 for clear mount. 

Be sure to check out the special promotions on my Stampin' Up site above.  There are a number of stamps that are offering a set of free brads and this stamp set Elements of Style is one of them.

Choose from the following Designer brads with qualifying purchase:
Page Description Item Number

179 Flower Designer brads 112579

179 Filigree Designer brads 112577

179 Circle Designer brads 112571

179 Star Designer brads 112572

Lynda created this card and did an incredible job.  You can see more details on her blog.  Be sure to back click to come back to my blog to check out my other posts.

Cricut Expression vs Cricut Cake!

As you recall from my earlier post, this image was cut out at 2" not the recommended 3" and is a more detailed cut as you can see.  This was cut using the Elegant Cakes Cricut cartridge.  

For your viewing pleasure, I have attached a video of this cut on the Cricut Expression and the Cricut Cake.



We used the Cricut frosting sheets to cut out the edible image.  I hope you enjoyed the video.

Picture...This!

We have been enjoying the Picturesque cricut cartridge. I figured rather than playing with play dough why not gum paste!? He mixed the colors and did an excellent job. It can be a bit difficult to get it going but, the reward is some really cute edible images.

I hope you enjoy the video. I will be posting more pictures so, check back periodically. You can also subscribe by becoming a follower and view the posts in a viewer. Be sure to grab my button on the upper right side of my blog to add to your blog.

Have a great day!

Recent Leaks!

A recent leak has some sneak peaks on 4 of the cartridges to be released.

Cindy Loo

Freshly Picked

Wall Decor and More

Mini Monsters

For more information check out

I am not sure if she will be stocking these particular carts but, she usually does sell the seasonal mini cartridges. 

First Cut!

This is my first cut. I used the Elegant Cakes cartridge. Edible images are more fun! What do you think?

I have a video that I will post in the next day.  I just have to get it uploaded.  Unfortunately, this cookie had a small encounter.  I had it in a plastic bag to protect it and show my husband.  As you can see it has a small little indentation on the upper right.  It was not the cricut that did that but, my husband.  He threw my brayer on top of the cookie not knowing it was in my bag! lol Oops he felt bad as he should! ha ha

I was thinking of making a cake for my beautiful baby girl's first birthday.  I just cannot decide what I want to cut! 

By the way, this image was cut out at 2" not the recommended 3" and is a more detailed cut as you can see.  I am thinking that edible art might be more fun than paper! You can eat your mistakes!

M I C K E Y....Why?

Why?  Because it LOOKS AMAZING!!!!!

HobbyHo made an incredible cake using the cricut Disney cartridge!  I made some cricut cookies a while back and you can see them by clicking here! 

Be sure to stop by and share the love with HobbyHo Here!

I am going to be playing some more and hopefully I can share some more of the things that I made.  This definately is inspiring and shows what can be done with some time and imagination.  Now, if my kids would cooperate so, I could test out some ideas. 

New Color Line Up

Stampin up Color Familes starting July 1st

* New colors available July 1st

There are a total of 10 in-color that are returning and 5 all new colors marked with an astrick above. 

The 10 returning colors are Melon Mambo, Rich Razzleberry, Pacific Point, Tangerine Tango, River Rock, Soft Suede, Riding Hood Red, Pink Pirouette, Baja Breeze and Wild Wasabi.

The five new in colors will be Marina Mist, Cajun Craze, Cherry Cobbler, Early Espresso and Daffodil Delight.

There will be 30 colors retiring so, catch them now before they are gone.

Be sure to check out my promotions section on my stampin up site.  You can order 24/7 online. 

http://www.stampinup.net/esuite/home/stampiton/promotions