LAST CHANCE MAUI STAMPER FAVES

It’s almost bedtime here on the Valley Isle, but I can’t rest until I share these favorites that are on the Last Chance list. Take a look and tell me if you agree!

Branching Out is a classic, year round set. It can be evergreens, or florals, or a wreath…don’t let this one slip by.

I personally think Wishing You Joy is a sleeper. It hasn’t gotten a lot of attention, but it should! 4 classic sentiments, expressed in 4 classic fonts – you’ll reach for it year after year.

The Traditions of Christmas DSP is a fabulous mix of florals and neutrals that will give your holiday crafting a quick boost. BONUS: the coordinating Christmas Greenery dies cut out multiple images from this DSP. If you want the companion stamps, order the dies and stamps as separate products. The bundle isn’t discounted, but the individual products are. IYKYK!

I was pretty sure Petal Arrangements would be on this list as it is a red rubber cling set. If you love tropical flowers, check this one out – the 6 images can be assembled as shown and stamped, or can be separated and used individually. I’m sad to see this one on Last Chance.

Our card and envelope sets are a great value. Design with the Christmas Greetings Cards & Envelopes and your cards will be done in a flash!

Awww…I really wanted these guys to stick around. Sigh. Pick up Long Time No See while you can and think of me when you make a card, ok?

LOVE LOVE LOVE the 6″ x 6″ Traditional Wreath 3D embossing folder! The card-front-sized Peaceful Greenery 3D Embossing Folder is also on Last Chance.

There’s so much more on the list…Stampin’ Up! really cleaned house this time. Take a look and see if your list is different from mine. Either way, you’ll find it all in the Online Store.

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PEACE ON EARTH

Do you love DSP that does all the heavy lifting the way I do??????? Here’s Traditions of Christmas again with a completely different feeling. This luxurious red and gold poinsettia motif does all the work.

Friends, you NEED the Embossing Additions Tool Kit. The tray has an end cap that screws on and off – no more breaking fingernails pulling out the plug! There’s an embossing buddy, a brush, and THE BEST craft tweezers you’ve ever held in your hand. Run don’t walk to get this one!

This DSP is amazing. Snap it up while you can – it’s in the Online Store.

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TRADITIONS OF CHRISTMAS DSP AND THE PEACEFUL GREENERY EMBOSSING FOLDER

The Traditions of Christmas DSP does it again! This image can also be cut with the Stamp Cut and Emboss Machine using the Christmas Greenery dies. You’d be surprised how quickly this card comes together when you have a ready-made focal point.

This image is plentiful on the page of DSP, and comes in 3 color ways. Look closely at the background of the Pool Party die cut, as it’s been stamped with our new Lasting Linen stamp. The texture is GORGEOUS and I hope this one sticks around for a very very very long time.

When the coloring is done for you, the cards go together very quickly. I don’t know about you, but it seems as though this time of year I need a LOT of cards. Head over to the Online Store if you need a little more DSP or some dies.

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QUICK CARD MAKING WITH THE CHRISTMAS GREETINGS CARDS & ENVELOPES

Our card and envelope packs are one of my favorite short cuts to card making. The Christmas Greetings Mix and Match cards and envelopes remind me of a Hawaiian fabric pattern called palaka, so I snapped up a couple of packs in my sneak peek order. Turns out they are a great match to the Traditionsmof Christmas DSP!!

Multiple images from the DSP can be cut with the coordinating dies, another big time saver. You’ve seen my coloring: it’s not like this!! And all that gold detail is just glorious.

Our Gold Mesh ribbon was on Last Chance and has sold out, but there’s a beautiful new option in the Online Store. And that new Christmas Words Hybrid Embossing Folder is AWESOME. You can cut out the individual words, but I like it just as it is!

The cards come with coordinating envelopes and the overall look is luxurious but just a little bit country. Pick up a couple of packages for your holiday cards and you’ll be halfway done! Shop the Online Store.

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COLOUR INKSPIRATION CHALLENGE #CI193 FEATURING BRANCHING OUT

Oh, I loved colour challenge #CI196 – Shy Shamrock, Summer Splash, Gray Granite and Early Espresso. I knew I wanted to use a lot of white space with those intense In Colours and Branching Out provided just the image I needed.

  • Stamps: Branching Out, Layers of Beauty
  • Color Palette: Basic White, Shy Shamrock, Summer Splash, Gray Granite, Early Espresso
  • Accessories: Stamp Cut & Emboss Machine, Branching Out dies, White 1/4″ ribbon, Woven Textures DSP, Blending Brush, Stampin’ Blends, Stampin’ Write Marker, Stampin’ Dimensionals

Shy Shamrock and Summer Splash are next door neighbors, but I assure you they’re both here. I used Shamrock for the greenery, then added a gentle wash of Summer Splash behind it with the Blending Brush. The layer under the Woven Textures DSP is also Summer Splash. And the Stampin’ Write Marker splatters are Shy Shamrock. (I may have to stock up on markers just so I can make those fine splatters!)

The white ribbon was transformed to Gray Granite ribbon with the magic of Stampin’ Blends. That ribbon is now on the Last Chance list (sigh) so you might want to stock up while you can.

I enjoy the Colour INKspiration challenges so much, and the team is the nicest group of crafters you could ask for. Take a look at their page – maybe you’d like to give this challenge a try! Here’s the inspiration photo for CI#196

And as always, I’m grateful for your support at my Online Store.

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MAKE THIS BEAUTIFUL GALLERY DSP FLOATING FLIP CARD!

Well! Can you say that 3 times?? I’m calling this a Floating Flip. The idea came from Susan Seki, and I’ve followed her design pretty closely with just a few adjustments to the floating strips. It’s a great fun fold, and the Beautiful Gallery Designer Series paper makes it quite suited as a Manly Card.

  • Stamps: Beautiful Motifs
  • Color Palette: Mossy Meadow, Pecan Pie, Basic White
  • Accessories: Stamp Cut & Emboss Machine, Exposed Brick 3D Embossing Folder, Textured Notes dies, Window Sheets, Beautiful Gallery Designer Series Paper

The DSP is trimmed to fit the sides of the card, which are stationary. The center panel is mounted on a window sheet, which is then added to the moving part of the Split Fold card. It’s another way to use your DSP stash!

Inside the flap is a panel for your message. I’ve matted it with Pecan Pie to emphasize and pull together the earth tone color palette.

You can stamp on DSP! This piece was a remnant from trimming the panels to fit the card, and I love the textured look it offers. A solid color would be distracting from all of that gorgeous scenery.

How are you using your DSP? I hope you’re using it up! Here’s one more card with the gorgeous Beautiful Gallery DSP – I hope you have it in your stash!

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ANOTHER MANLY BIRTHDAY: TIMELESS PLAID

There are lots of ways to use our Timeless Plaid DSP, and my latest-favorite-layout is a great example. Trim a piece to 3 3/4″ by 4 3/4″, cut it in quarters, and you’ve got a card!

  • Stamps: Elements of Text, Spooky Halloween, Something Fancy (retired)
  • Color Palette: Basic White, Old Olive/Misty Moonlight OR Gray Granite/Misty Moonlight OR Lost Lagoon/Pool Party
  • Accessories: Stamp Cut & Emboss Machine, Textured Notes dies, Linen Thread, Stampin’ Dimensionals

I made a bunch of these the other evening, because we’re entering Manly Birthday season in my family! Timeless Textures has two different designs in the same color way on each sheet, so I cut the paper to size, cut it in quarters, and flipped over two of the four quarters. Done!

Are you sold on this layout? I sure am!! I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again – get out that stash and make some cards!

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MAKING MANLY CARDS: USE YOUR DESIGNER SERIES PAPER!

Manly Cards shouldn’t be hard to design, but I always struggle a bit. I came across this great card layout using Designer Series Paper and realized it had a lot of Manly Potential. Best of all, it’s quick and easy!

  • Stamps: Elements of Text (Last Chance), Something Fancy (Retired)
  • Color Palette: Very Vanilla, Secret Sea/Mossy Meadow, Smoky Slate/Crumb Cake, Cloud Cover/Basic Beige
  • Accessories: Stamp Cut & Emboss Machine, Textured Notes dies, Linen Thread, Stampin’ Dimensionals

I tried this layout with two different designs from the Beautiful Gallery DSP pack. The DSP comes in 6×6 sheets, and I trimmed an inch and an eighth from top and bottom to get a 3 3/4″ height. I trimmed the sides to 4 3/4″ based on the image, centering the part I wanted to feature. The last step was to cut the resulting rectangle into quarters.

Elements of Text is such a great textural set of stamps! I wish it would be around much longer, but you can still snap it up from the Last Chance list. The sentiment, I’m sorry to say, is retired, but there are a number of current sets with similar fonts and sizing. Just search “happy birthday” in the Online Store. And the Textured Notes dies are truly indispensable- have I said that before??? 😆

This layout using Designer Series Paper is a great way to use up that DSP stash, and the end result is a stack of Manly Cards in a flash! Guys have birthdays too, you know.

Pull out your stash and start chopping.

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COLOUR INKSPIRATION #193: SPOOKY HALLOWEEN

Colour challenges are a lot of fun, but I often end up scratching my head as I begin.My starting point is generally a stamp set, not a colour set, so it throws me off a bit. CI #193 isn’t a traditional set of Halloween colours, but after a few false starts, I got them to work.

  • Stamps: Spooky Halloween
  • Color Palette: Basic White, Cloud Cover, Balmy Blue, Highland Heather, Memento Black
  • Accessories: Stamp Cut & Emboss Machine, Spooky Halloween dies, Stylish Shapes dies, Perennial Lavender DSP, Kintsugi Inspirations DSP, Cloud Cover Faux Linen Ribbon, Purple Fine Shimmer Gems, Blending Brush, Stampin’ Blends, dauber, Wink of Stella, Stampin’ Dimensionals

There are a few adaptations on this card – I stamped on the Perennial Lavender DSP with Memento Black and Highland Heather for the background, and I stamped the sentiment on the Kintsugi Inspirations DSP. I also cut up the Cloud Cover Faux Linen Ribbon because I like the way it gets skinny and stringy.

It’s a small detail, but I cut off the cat’s paw and arranged it on top of the broom because the original looked unnatural. And there’s Stella on all of the Memento Black elements, because every Halloween card needs a little sparkle!

Here’s the INKpiration photo – how do you think I did? I had fun, and in my book, that’s the most important thing.

Have you tried a Colour Challenge? You can find all the details at the Colour INKspiration Facebook page.

(Note: Yes, I know in the USA we spell it color, but this is a South Pacific group and they spell it colour. For this post, so do I.)

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WOVEN TEXTURES FOR A MANLY CARD

The Woven Textures DSP is absolutely perfect for a Manly Card. This card is a CASE of a stunning card by my dear friend Cheryl Hamilton, and I didn’t make a lot of changes. I did choose to add some Gold Foil for a little shine, and of course every card needs Linen Thread!

  • Stamps: Patterns of Friendship
  • Color Palette:Crumb Cake, Pecan Pie, Early Espresso, Gold
  • Accessories: Stamp Cut & Emboss Machine, Textured Notes dies, Gallery Blooms dies, Woven Textures DSP, Gold Foil, Linen Thread, Stampin’ Dimensionals

Be sure you adhere your diagonal strips to the DSP panel BEFORE you attach the panel to the card stock mat. Ask me how I know. 😳

There are multiple variations within the Woven Textures pack, and there are certainly other die cuts that would work to embellish the sentiment panel. This is a design that can be adapted almost indefinitely – use what you have.

What DSP has been neglected in your stash? Isn’t it time you pulled it out? I’ve done my best to give you some ideas – let me know how it goes.

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