Bouquet Blooms and Gatefold Blossoms: Annual Catalog Sleepers

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I recently chanced upon this bundle in the new 2018-2019 Annual Catalog, and honestly, I think it’s a real sleeper! The stamps and framelits don’t really jump off the page, but oh, my, can you do fabulous things with them:

Maui Stamper Stampin' Up! Bouquet Blooms Gatefold Blossoms

All the stamped images are from Bouquet Blooms – a sleeper, am I right? I left off the sentiment because a) I like the uncluttered appearance of the focal point and b) I like to have a few cards in my stash without a sentiment so that I can add an appropriate one when I need a card pronto.  I’ll add it on the inside for this one.

The Tranquil Textures DSP is GORGEOUS and starting on Sunday, you can indulge yourself because it’s part of the Buy 3 Get One Free promo running the entire month of July. I’ve got my list ready – do you? (Hint: In addition to Tranquil Textures, you absolutely NEED the Wood Textures DSP pack – maybe TWO packs. Trust me.)

Maui Stamper Stampin' Up! Bouquet Blooms Gatefold Blossoms

I stamped off a few leaves – yes, from Bouquet Blooms – to dress up the inside of the card. The framelits are easy to use and create a beautiful gatefold enclosure. This card is notecard sized – 3 1/2″ x 5″ – and as my friend Desiree pointed out, would be perfect as a gift card enclosure.

The circle stamp was cut out in one pass with the Layering Circles Framelits. Use the Magnetic Platform and line up the inside and outside of the image with nesting circles and you’re all set.

Check out this video from Stampin’ Up! to see exactly how everything works together:

If you’ve made it this far, there’s even more news! Stampin’ Up! has gotten the shipment of the new tones of Stampin’ Blends and they are in the Online Store. I’m gonna go out on a limb here and say that these new colors will be HOT HOT HOT and you might want to act quickly.

Colour INKspiration 36: It’s an honour!

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Maui Stamper Stampin' Up! Colour INKspiration banner

Welcome to the Colour INKspiration Blog Hop and Colour Challenge #36. I’m quite honoured to be a guest designer with the Colour INKspiration Crew this month. The 2nd and 4th Wednesdays of each month this talented group of crafters design projects focusing on the Stampin’ Up! colour palette. The 2nd Wednesday challenge is currently working through the newly revamped Colour Families (CI #35 was Neutrals) and the 4th Wednesday – like this one –  uses a Pinterest-based image for inspiration. #CI36 features Crushed Curry, Soft Suede, Basic Gray and Silver Foil, with Basic Black, Whisper White, Very Vanilla and Metallics permitted as well.

Maui Stamper Stampin' Up! Colour Inkspiration 36 Palette

(PS doesn’t that adorable little girl look as though she has been asked to eat something she has never seen before and can’t imagine putting in her mouth? Just saying!)

I confess to having been just a bit intimidated at the thought of using Soft Suede and Basic Gray on the same project – a little outside my comfort zone – but this is a challenge, after all!

Maui Stamper Stampin' Up! Colour INKspiration 36 Guest Designer

I think I pulled out most of my craft room and had it spread all over the desk trying to put this together!

Maui Stamper Stampin' Up! Colour INKspiration 36 Guest Designer

I honestly don’t remember where I began! When I stamped the large flower from Flourishing Phrases in Crushed Curry, I immediately thought I should layer it, and once I embarked on that process, I just couldn’t seem to stop. (I used a LOT of Stampin’ Dimensionals on this project!!) I had leaves and berry bits and ribbons all around me, and I just kept arranging and rearranging them until I was happy.

The Stamparatus was indispensable in aligning the sentiment so that I could stamp in both Soft Suede and Crushed Curry. If you haven’t taken the ‘Ratus Leap, treat yourself!

In order to find a balance between light and dark, I used the largest Stitched Shapes Framelit circle to ground my floral abundance. The Silver Foil behind the Woodland DSP also added some light, and I used Wink of Stella (a crafter’s best friend)  to emphasize the trees in the Woodlands TIEF.

All the little bits and pieces are tucked in and adhered with Glue Dots. The Silver Metallic thread is also held fast in the same way, but all of the main layers are adhered with Stampin’ Dimensionals.

Maui Stamper Stampin' Up! Colour INKspiration 36 Guest Designer

The Colour INKspiration Crew is a South Pacific team, but the challenge is international. I hope you’ll give it a try! All entries are posted to the Colour INKpiration Facebook group.

One note for those of you outside Australia and New Zealand: challenges open and close in AEST (Australian Eastern Standard Time). Many of us are on the other side of the International Date Line, and sometimes the math gets a little tricky. You can Google the current time, but I use a free app called Miranda that allows me to select any time in my time zone and see what it is in any other time zone. My family is spread halfway around the world (quite literally) and this app has come in quite handy!

Thanks for stopping by my part of the Pacific. You’re headed West now to Canberra and Monique Fielder, and I know you’ll enjoy her beautiful artwork. If you’re in the U.S. and you’d like to shop for the supplies to create your own version of this card, visit my Online Store.

Maui Stamper Colour Inkspiration Next Button

 

Colour INKspiration 35: Petal Palette in Khaki

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I loved my own layout so well that I did a second version. The gray version, lovely as can be, is a bit somber. I wanted to lighten things up:

Maui Stamper Stampin' Up! CI35 Petal Palette in Khaki

Maui Stamper Stampin' Up! CI35 Petal Palette in Khaki

This card parallels my first CI35 submission with just a few exceptions. I added the Linen Thread and the Corrugated Elements tag – much lighter in feeling – as well as a few clear sequins from the Metallics collection. I don’t know which came first – the chicken or the egg – but Glue Dots fit PERFECTLY underneath our sequins.

Maui Stamper Stampin' Up! CI35 Petal Palette in Khaki

Which version do you like better? If you’d like to try your hand at this, all the supplies can be found HERE. Happy Crafting!

PS. Back in the day, Crumb Cake was called Kraft in the Stampin’ Up! Colour Palette.  When I created my title, Petal Palette in Khaki just sounded better to my ear.

Colour Inkspiration #35: Petal Palette in Gray

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I love monochromatic design, and lately it seems like the card-o-sphere does too.  Colour Inkspiration challenge #35 is all about neutrals – anything from the Stampin’ Up! Neutral Colour family – and I chose gray:

Maui Stamper Stampin' Up! CI35 Petal Palette in Grays

Maui Stamper Stampin' Up! CI35 Petal Palette in Grays

In order to keep it tone-on-tone, the roses had to be gray. I used Stampin’ Blends to create some depth without losing the definition of the image. Blends are really forgiving, and despite my reservations, my gray roses worked.

Maui Stamper Stampin' Up! CI35 Petal Palette in Grays I can’t say enough about the Marbled Background Stamp. I liked what I saw in the catalog, but I wasn’t sure how much I would use it.  Well, buckle your seatbelts, crafty friends, you are going to see a lot of this! This design is exactly what I want in a background – it doesn’t distract but rather enhances anything you layer over it.

Colour Inkspiration is a closed group on Facebook, but if they let me in, they just might let you in too! The challenges are posted every other week, the quality of the submissions is high, and the camaraderie is excellent.

Do you need any of these products? I’m certainly glad I have them – you can shop HERE to add them to your crafty stash.

Varied Vases in Mint and Heather

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I’ve already made dozens of cards with Varied Vases, but this is one of my favorites:

Maui Stamper Stampin' Up! Varied Vases in Mint and Heather

I used a sticky note to create a mask for the stems. It was a bit of fussy cutting, but I couldn’t NOT do it. The beautiful stems in this versatile set lend themselves to tropical arrangement, and I’ve had so much fun arranging these flowers.

Maui Stamper Stampin' Up! Varied Vases

Fussy cutting isn’t my favorite thing, but when it’s worth it, it’s worth it. The only difference in this second stepped-up version is the fussy cut stems, but I love the added dimension. Sharp eyes will spot tiny dots of Daffodil Delight in the blossoms.

Maui Stamper Stampin' Up! Varied Vases

One more version, this time with the current Silver Metallic Edge ribbon.  I also used a Blender Pen to hand color the stems so that I could vary the tones.  You’ll want to do the coloring before you cut this one out, as the cuttings is VERY fussy.

Maui Stamper Stampin' Up! Varied Vases

Inspired? Find everything you need HERE.  When you place your order, be sure to enter Host Code 32K6EETG for a special new catalog gift. Hint: it’s all about color!

Waterfront Four Ways

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Waterfront is a fabulous stamp set to use for tropical cards, but I recently started playing with the individual stamps and had a lot of fun thinking just a bit outside the box. With my favorite palette of blues and greens, I experimented with a very clean and simple concept and loved the results:

Maui Stamper Stampin' Up! Waterfront

 

  • Stamps: Waterfront, Happy Birthday Gorgeous
  • Color Palette: Whisper White, Coastal Cabana, Lemon Lime Twist, Granny Apple Green
  • Accessories: Note Cards, Paper Snips, Stampin’ Dimensionals, thick Bakers Twine (retired), stapler

 

This is a super simple card, and the color combinations – and sentiments – are limitless. It would be possible to make this card without blue or green, but it would be a tragic loss. <wink>

Maui Stamper Stampin' Up! Waterfront

Version two: Just palm trees. Nothing else! I thought about a LOT of different things to add, and maybe another time I’ll do a whole series (sun, surf, splatters…) but for now, it’s just about the palm trees. And the Linen Thread, of course. You MUST have Linen Thread. (Colors are Granny Apple Green and Soft Suede, in case you’re wondering.)

Maui Stamper Stampin' Up! Waterfront

Next up: dots! You don’t get a whole lot easier than this! I subbed Balmy Blue in for the Coastal Cabana and used a little Ombre Lemon Lime Twist ribbon – it ties so beautifully and has such a soft hand.

Maui Stamper Stampin' Up! Waterfront

This last card is inspired by the beach huts at St. Kilda near Melbourne, Australia. We were there about 5 years ago, and their whimsical, colorful rows along the beach are just delightful.

Maui Stamper St. Kilda Melbourne pc Matt Matasci

My son took this great shot, and it was the image I had in mind when I approached this card.

The Whisper White Note Cards are perfect for quick messages and can be mailed with standard First Class postage in the US. They lend themselves to creating sets, as well, and would make a great little gift.

Need supplies? Shop HERE.

June: Love What You Do

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How can it be June already? Crystal got it right: May is like December, but without the presents.  And, I might add, without the cookies. The good news is that when the month changes, so does the calendar page:

Maui Stamper Stampin' Up! Love What You Do DIY Calendar June 2018

  • Stamps: Love What You Do
  • Color Palette: Whisper White, Poppy Parade, and Lemon Lime Twist
  • Accessories:  Blender Pen, Stampin’ Write marker

I am THRILLED that Poppy Parade has made a return to the Core Colors. It’s always been one of my favorite red tones – that vibrant, orange red that says LOOK AT MEEEE!

Maui Stamper Stampin' Up! Share What You Love DIY Calendar June 2018

There’s a big, gorgeous new 2018-2019 Annual Catalog that goes live today – what’s on your shopping list??  There are so many new colors – returning favorites and brand new shades to love – and I want them all. Ordering begins by noon Mountain Time today (June 1st).

When you place your order, be sure to enter Host Code 32K6EETG for a special new catalog gift. Hint: it’s all about color!

Crystal and Cheryl have June calendars for you too – be sure and stop by!

One last Moon Baby

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Today’s the last day for lots of great stamps – including this one:

Maui Stamper Stampin' Up! Moon Baby Lift Me Up

Maui Stamper Stampin' Up! Moon Baby Lift Me Up

Great news: Stampin’ Blends are available for purchase! They were such a hit when they were initially introduced that we broke the store, but they’re back in stock. The new colors being introduced in the 2018-2019 catalog won’t be available til mid June, but the existing color palette is available right now. Order them HERE.

Maui Stamper Stampin' Up! Stampin Blends

Colour Inkspiration #34: Waterfront

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UPDATE:  I WON!

Colour Inkspiration 34 Winner

I’m thrilled to have been voted the winner of CI34. This is a lovely group, and a new challenge – CI35 – has just begun. See the details HERE.

Time for another Colour Inkspiration challenge! I sat out the last round (remember? May is like December without the cookies) but when I saw this gorgeous photo my colour mojo kicked into gear:

Maui Stamper ColourInkspiration34

My daughter lives in Australia, just north of Sydney, so I feel a special affinity for this group. I’m including the letter U in the word COLOUR in their honour.

I saw these fabulous colours as tropical sunset tones, and I’ve been looking for an opportunity to try a technique with the versatile Waterfront stamp set. You could say it was a perfect storm:

Maui Stamper Stampin' Up! Colour Inkspiration #34 Waterfront

Maui Stamper Stampin' Up! Colour Inkspiration #34 Waterfront

I would have never added Basic Grey to this card, and I’m so glad it was included in the challenge because I love how it anchors the other colours. Waterfront is a photopolymer set, so keeping the lines horizontal was easy to do.

It’s been a couple of years since I’ve visited Australia, and more than that since I’ve been on the East coast. I think I’m due. (I keep telling Mr. Maui Stamper that I need my own plane. He agrees, but then starts in on this thing about what it costs. I just hear that he agrees.)

If you’d like to contribute to my airplane fund, shop HERE. Make a note: Colourful Seasons is a bundle only through May 31. After that, the stamps and thinlits will be available separately, but there won’t be a discount.

 

A Gorgeous Birthday In Color

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Crystal and I have decided that May is as busy with December but without the presents or the cookies. RIGHT???? How can we be a week away from the end of the month? That means we’re a week away from the end of the current Annual Catalog and the debut of the 2018-2019 catalog! It was high time I cracked open the 2018-2020 In Color Collection:

Maui Stamper Stampin' Up! Happy Birthday Gorgeous Beautiful Bouquet

The Beautiful Bouquet stamps and Bouquet Bunch framelits are available as a discounted bundle for one more week – don’t miss that great deal! This is a really versatile set.

Maui Stamper Stampin' Up! Happy Birthday Gorgeous Beautiful Bouquet

I don’t usually share my progression, but I enjoyed the way this card evolved, and I thought I’d share the process with you. The first image is the first card, and some of those die cuts are covering up things I didn’t like. The result left me feeling I could do better, so I gave it another shot:

Maui Stamper Stampin' Up! Happy Birthday Gorgeous Beautiful Bouquet

I like the left offset on this one, but the scalloped mat disappears into the stamped images. I also decided that the little green thingamajigs were better than the leaves for this design. It was back to the drawing board one more time:

Maui Stamper Stampin' Up! Happy Birthday Gorgeous Beautiful Bouquet

This version was the winner in my mind! I skipped the tiny Lipstick flowers in favor of the green deely-bobbers. Changing the scalloped oval mat to Lemon Lime Twist helped pop the sentiment out of the floral arrangement. The differences are minor, but I’m convinced it’s the little things that count.

If you’d like to save on this bundle, get yourself to the online store and order today!