Happy New Year!

Posted on January 1, 2016 by mauistamper

One of my favorite traditions of every New Year is a new calendar:

You may have noticed that I have a bit of a thing for birds. We have both North and South American cardinals in Hawaii, so I am especially fond of the cardinal from Joyful Season.

You have until January 4th to order these stamps for $17.85 (#139770). After that, when you decide you really SHOULD have gotten them, you’ll start looking on all the usual (extortion-priced) websites and beating yourself up for procrastinating. Shoot, you can knock off that Don’t Procrastinate New Year’s Resolution today! (You’re welcome!)

I have one or two DIY Easel calendar kits left if you’d like to make one. Details are HERE.

My BFFs Cheryl and Crystal are joining me again this year with a mini-blog-tour on the first of every month. Check out their calendar inspirations too!

And from me to you, with deepest affection, Happy New Year!

Last Weekly Deals of 2015!

Posted on December 29, 2015 by mauistamper

Here you are – the last DEALS of 2015! These savings are available December 29, 2015 through January 4, 2016.

Click HERE to shop – and don’t miss the last of the Year End Sale! I’m telling you, next December you’re going to be so glad you picked up an extra Oh What Fun bundle on sale!

# 139602 – THIRTY TAGS – for just $14.70!

I made quite a few of these gift tag holders, and I used a couple of variations. They were quick, easy, and I loved the presentation. (Have you noticed how often I highlight projects that are quick and easy?)

This was another variation – kind of a “same song, second verse” edition.

Inside there was a little bit of Designer Series paper (a great way to use up those odd scraps) and a pocket for the gift card. Some of the cards I purchased came with a small envelope, and it fit nicely inside the pocket too.

Change the paper and make gift card holders for birthdays, Valentines, Easter…or just because. Enjoy the options!

Weekly Deals and Last Minute Goodies

Posted on December 22, 2015 by mauistamper

It wouldn’t be Tuesday without Weekly Deals from Stampin’ Up!

There are still lots of great deals on the Year-End Sale page as well – I just ordered a few more Oh What Fun tag kits (#139602, on sale for $14.70). I have used them on absolutely everything this season and they take simple wrapping to WOW in a flash!

I also have some cute packaging to share, done by the oh-so-talented Robbie. She is the Gift Queen every year for our Stampin’ Holiday Party, and this year was no exception. She used the Mini Treat Bag thinlits to make these:

The antlers!!! I love them – they’re from the Tree Builder Punch and they are perfect with the googlie eyes (any excuse to use googlie eyes is a valid excuse in my book.)

Is there an elegant someone on your list? This combination is very classy – the beautiful Winter Wonderland paper is retiring and is on sale (#139588, $10.40)

Last but certainly not least, Robbie made bags with the gorgeous red foil and used glimmer paper for accents. The Black Glimmer paper is on sale (#139605 for $3.50) and it’s retiring too.

Don’t miss these great last-minute deals – shop online HERE!

A RemARKable Last Minute Holiday Tour

Posted on December 10, 2015 by mauistamper

Time for a RemARKable Blog Tour – and this one is perfectly timed. It’s not quite the last minute, but it’s close enough.

I’m a big fan of using things that I have on hand when I’m looking for a last-minute solution, and last month I assembled the Oh What Fun tags kit (#139602, on sale for $14.70 for 30 tags) just for this purpose. I also try to keep our packaging solutions on hand – this is the Petite Café Gift Bag (#135826, $6 for 10 bags). Finally, this time of year I stock up on fun ribbon, and nothing says FUN like the Real Red PomPom Trim (#139617, on sale for $4.20 for 5 yards). I added a little 1/8″ Striped Ribbon to finish off the package (#139615, on sale for $6.40 for 5 yards each red and green stripe ribbon).

Here’s the same treatment using the Mini Muslin Bags (#132180, $10 for 8 bags). You’ll notice that other than the gift tags, there is no stamping involved. Make up the tags and you are ready to assemble your gifts and go!

My final project uses the Gift Box Punch Board (#135863, $20). I’ve used some retired heavy-weight printed kraft card stock, but it works just as well with the plain Heavy Kraft Cardstock in the Annual Catalog (#133674, $6 for 12 sheets of 12×12 cardstock) or with our regular cardstock. Our DSP will work in a pinch, but I find it makes a rather fragile box so I prefer the heavier paper.

Do you see a theme here? Fun Ribbon = Fast Packages!

There are 2 of these little hazelnut-chocolate delights inside each box. I used the 1.75 x 1.75 x 2.5 box and didn’t cut the angles (with the reverse punch) in the top. Instead, I used a glue dot to secure each set of flaps and let the ribbon finish the job. Because the box was tall, the chocolates are stacked. They didn’t want to play nicely at first, but I found a solution:

That little piece of scrap is 1 1/2″ wide and 4″ long, scored 1 1/4″ from each end. It slides easily into the box and keeps the chocolates nicely stacked. And just for your reference, I made 10 of these boxes in 40 minutes – starting with cutting the card stock and finishing with tying the bows. Not bad!

Don’t have these exact items on hand? Time to go dig into that stash you’ve been hoarding – that’s how I found that retired cardstock! Depending on where you live, an order put in tonight might well arrive in time for last-minute gifts – check out the Year-End Sale and you’ll be on your way to D.O.N.E!

As always, I hope you’ve been inspired. Heather‘s next on the tour – click below to see her wonderful projects. The full tour is at the end of the post in case you get lost in the woods.

Nancy Amato
Melissa Bolinger
Tamra Davis
Arden Dougan
Tracie Langley
Anne Matasci – you are HERE
Heather Mathieson
Audra Monk
Maria Pane
Michele Reynolds
Pam Staples
Janet Wakeland

Year End Sale!

Posted on December 9, 2015 by mauistamper

Time for one more sale!

Visit the Online Store to get YOUR deals! Holiday catalog and more at clearance prices – and don’t miss the Weekly Deals as well.

Oh, I do love a good sale 😄

It’s time for a December Calendar……

Posted on December 1, 2015 by mauistamper

…and I’ve turned to For The Birds one last time:

After this year I’ll have to find a new favorite – I was so sorry to see For the Birds retire.

I used the treetop from Lovely as a Tree and positioned a sticky note to create a mask, allowing me to vary the height of my trees.

A little smudge of Smokey Slate with the Aqua Painter gives my skater a little color to stand out from the snowy Whisper White background.

And a heartfelt Happy December to you all.

Visit Cheryl and Crystal to see how they’ve finished out their 2015 calendars!

Weekly Deals and the Online Extravaganza

Posted on November 24, 2015 by mauistamper

Weekly deals keep their holiday crafting focus:

Dazzling Diamonds in the house!!

And while you’re shopping be sure to check out the Online Extravaganza and the Holiday catalog retiring list. There’s a lot to keep track of.

Shop at http://www.AnneMatasci.StampinUp.net

Online Extravaganza – Shop in your Slippahs!

Posted on November 20, 2015 by mauistamper

Big news and big deals!

FIts a Flash Sale with special limited edition bundles on November 23rd and November 30th! Savings of up to 50% on crafting staples as well as whimsical extras.

Quantities are limited – plan ahead. No minimum purchase required. Visit my Online Store for details beginning the 23rd. If you’ve made a purchase in the last 6 months, watch your email for an advance listing of the deals!

Update on the Woodlands TIEF

Posted on November 19, 2015 by mauistamper

The Woodlands TIEF (Textured Impressions Embossing Folder) has been a huge hit from the holiday catalog – there are projects all over the blogosphere and Pinterest like this:

The news from Stampin’ Up! this morning is that this great product is currently on back-order. It was also announced earlier this week that the Woodlands TIEF will retire at the end of the Holiday catalog or when supplies are exhausted.

Here’s the back-order status as of yesterday, November 18th:

There are 7,088 on back-order
2,304 are expected on November 30
9,792 are expected on December 7

Can you do the math? Even with new math (front end estimating nearly pushed me over the ledge) I can see that this product may sell out. Stampin’ Up! has not made a statement about how many additional units may or may not be ordered.

If you think you might EVER want to own the Woodlands TIEF, I strongly suggest you go HERE and place your order now – product 139673 for $8.50.