Playing catch up...

This is a little embarrassing to admit, but I completely forgot to post last week! I guess life really is what happens while you're making other plans :) I have a few projects to post this week in order to catch up, so it'll be a long post - but definitely worth it! I'm always inspired by the creativity of our divas.

Need a great idea for a birthday card? Check out these adorable cards from Kristine Memmott:

Have I mentioned before how much I love pink and brown? I especially like the popped up pink frosting on the cupcake!

Stamps: Party Hearty and On Your Birthday
Ink: Chocolate Chip and Pretty In Pink
Paper, Chocolate Chip, Regal Rose, Pretty in Pink, Whisper White and Sweet Always DSP
Accessories: Chocoalte Chip 5/8" Grosgrain Ribbon, Dimensionals and So Saffron and Regal Rose Markers, Scallop Edge Punch

Ok - I love this color combo too! I'll be so sad when this year's In Colors retire.

Stamps: Party Hearty,
Ink: Chocolate Chip, Baja Breeze
Paper: Baja Breeze, Chocolate Chip, Riding Hood Red, Whisper White
Accessories: Baja Breeze Double Striped Ribbon, Scallop Edge Punch, 1/4 “ circle punch, glue dots, crystal effects

Here's a great card from Brenda Taylor:

I really like the sponged look on the whisper white cardstock - such a great idea Brenda!

Always in my Thoughts stamp set

Bordering Blue, So Saffron & Whisper White card stock

Basic Black & Bordering Blue ink pads

Stampin' Up! Background I & Scallop Note die cuts for big shot

Basic Black ink pad

SU Markers & Sponge

*I sponged the bb onto the white note die cut, to make it less white

And in honor of the last day of Sale-A-Bration (sniff, sniff) here are some cute projects from Alicia Tomicich-Wiley:

Here's what Alicia had to say about her projects:

I absolutely loved the cute purse Becky Roberts created and was so excited when she had a tutorial on her blog (http://inkingidaho.blogspot.com/2009/03/top-note-purse-instructions.html). I've made various ones since then, but this is one we made this month as our club project. Everyone made three of the little 3x3 cards to fit inside. I ended up creating the same thing to give as a hostess gift with a couple extra of the 3x3 cards in it. She absolutely adored it!! Thanks, Becky for another fun project. :)

3x3 Notecard

Stamp-Elegant Thank You

Ink-Basic Grey

Paper-So Saffron CS, Certainly Celery CS, Whisper White CS, Delicate Dots DSP (SAB)

Accessories-Certainly Celery Polytwill ribbon (SAB), Scallop Square punch, Stampin' Dimensionals

Top Note Purse

Paper--So Saffron CS, Delicate Dots DSP (SAB), Certainly Celery CS

Accessories--Top Note die, Scallop die, Big Shot, So Saffron Wide Grosgrain (SAB), Jumbo Eyelets, Crop-A-Dile, Large Oval punch, flower and clear rhinestone from Pretties Kit, Paper Snips, velcro circle (half)

Such great projects this week - I don't know about you, but I'm ready to stamp - housework can wait another day ;)

Sketchy Saturday (#23)

As the end of March is approaching, so is the end of Sale-A-Bration. If you haven't taken advantage of this fabulous promotion, make sure to contact your demonstrator before the 31st.

Here's this week's sketch and what members of the team have created.

Adriana

Carol

Leonie

Ruthie

Tammy

Why don't you join in on the challenge?? Leave a comment with a link to your blog or upload to your SCS gallery using DivaSC23 as your keyword.

Have a fabulous weekend.

Diva Inspiration Challenge #36

Another Thursday has sprung up on us yet again! March is almost over which means is should be going out like a lamb. To celebrate nicer weather, this week's inspiration picture should get you in the mood. I love the bright colors of this floral arrangement - doesn't it just make you feel happy?!?

This week, my upload to SCS didn't seem to be working so I am posting my sample here. The background was made by spreading Lovely Lilac ink with a brayer over the texturz plate and running it through the Big Shot. My background now matches the basket from the picture. :) i added glitter to the rim of the flower pot, outlined the flower and pot with Sahara Sand marker, popped the main image up on dimensionals, and paper pierced all around the image and banner at the bottom. The banner is also made to look like it's blowing in the breeze by adhering the flat end and the part right under "of" to the background, then curled the banner edge.

I had fun with this one - the Bold Brights are such happy colors!! :)
Stamps: Wagon Full of Fun
Paper: Green Galore, Lovely Lilac, Gable Green, Yoyo Yellow, Whisper White
Ink: Lovely Lilac, Basic Black
Accessories: Stampin Write Markers - Pixie Pink, Lovely Lilac, Green Galore, Yoyo Yellow, Sahara Sand; Clips Assortment, Paper Piercer and Mat Pack, 2 way Glue Pen, Fine Cosmo Glitter, Hemp Twine, Dimensionals, Button Latte, SU Backgrounds 1 Texturz Plates, Big Shot,


To see what my creative team came up with, just click on their name:
Maria
Elizabeth
Carol

To view the submissions on SCS click here.

Post a link in the comments section with your blog entry or SCS gallery showing us what creation you were inspired to come up with!! If you upload to SCS be sure to put DivaIC36 (no spaces) as the keyword. Have fun!!

Inspire Stampin' happiness wherever you go!! :)
~~Maria~~

A Coaster Book from Carol!

Today's project comes to us from Carol in Michigan.

Here's what Carol said about her project.

This is a 4 x 4 chipboard coaster book. I made it as a gift for a friend. There is no stamping involved, but I did use the Pink Flamingo Designer Series Paper for the whole thing.

I am sure your friend loved this, Carol! Thanks for sharing with us!

Until next week,

Happy Stampin'!

Elizabeth

Sketchy Saturday (#22)

Welcome to another Saturday. Check out the team's creations for today's sketch.

Carol

Leonie

Tammy

Take the challenge with us. Leave a comment with a link to your blog or upload to your SCS gallery using DivaSC22 as your keyword.

Have a great weekend. :)

Finally Friday with Stephanie!!

Hello everyone!!! No I didn't forget! How could I?? This week our Finally Friday creations come to us from the wonderful Stephanie Gittins!!

Here's what she had to say:

I am ready for spring, and I have found myself using lots of bright, fun colors lately! I love the combination of Pink Pirouette and Tangerine Tango; it reminds me of ice cream! I also had fun playing with the new Texturz Plates for the Big Shot. It's such an easy technique, but I think it really adds an extra "WOW!" to any project. For the flowers, I stamped each layer on Very Vanilla cardstock, and then cut them out and layered them using Stampin' Dimensinals. The pink button was the perfect finishing touch!

Stamps: Petal Pizzazz, Thank You Kindly

Inks: Pink Pirouette, Tangerine Tango, Kiwi Kiss

Paper: Pink Pirouette, Tangerine Tango, and Very Vanilla Cardstock

Accessories: Paper Snips, Stampin' Dimensionals, Button Bouquet, Tangerine Tango 5/8" Striped Grosgrain Ribbon, Sizzix Big Shot, Stampin' Up! Backgrounds I Texturz Plates

These are just gorgeous Stephanie!! Thanks so much for sharing your creativity with us once again!! I agree with you about being ready for spring!!

Happy Stamping!!

~~~Ann~~~

Diva Inspiration Challenge #35

Happy Thursday everyone! This week I've been enjoying the week with my kidos who are on Spring Break. I'm very happy the weather has dried up and the sun has been kind. We are definitely enjoying the Spring weather!

In celebration of Easter coming up in the next few weeks, the next few challenges will be very fitting to Spring and Easter.... :)
This week's picture was found on a church blog. I loved the bright colors and just had to grab it!

To see what my creative team came up with, just click on their name:
Maria
Elizabeth
Carol

To view the submissions on SCS click here.

Post a link in the comments section with your blog entry or SCS gallery showing us what creation you were inspired to come up with!! If you upload to SCS be sure to put DivaIC35 (no spaces) as the keyword. Have fun!!

Inspire Stampin' happiness wherever you go!! :)
~~Maria~~

An Inspired Tag

Happy Wednesday! Only 2 more days to go until the weekend! WooHoo! I have special plans for this weekend, too. :) I am driving to Tallahassee for my foster-grandmother's 90th birthday party! AND...I get to have breakfast with a fellow SU! demo and UDI sister, Jill, on Sunday before we head home! Yippee! Thanks to Stampin' Up! and UDI for introducing us!


Today's project comes to us from Adriana, a fellow Floridian. I have had the pleasure of spending time with her twice...once at Convention and again at Orlando Regionals. Thanks again to SU! and UDI! :)

Here's what Adriana said about her project:

This piece could be used as an oversized tag or as decoration. I will be hanging mine on the door to my office. The base of the project is an oversized laminate chip. I used StazOn black to stamp the silhouette flower image from "Inspired by Nature" onto the chip and the sentiment onto very vanilla cardstock. I roughed up the edges of the sentiment then toned the brightness of the paper down with stampin' pastels (applied with sponge daubers). Linen thread holds it in place and also ties together the olive and black grosgrain loops on the top of the tag. I added the rhinestones just for a little extra shine and shimmer.

What a fabulous idea, Adriana! I need to find some of those chips! Thanks so much for sharing with us!

See you all next week!

Happy Stampin'!

Elizabeth

You Lucky Duck!

I saw this card on Gretchen Barron's blog and just had to post it here! I really love this set from the new mini catalog - I just can't get over how cute the duck is. Some of my favorite things about this card are the glittery egg and the jumbo eyelet wheels - and you can't forget those adorable clouds. Check Gretchen's blog for instructions on how to create the clouds!

Hello everyone! Don't you just love this little ducky from the new set, Wagon Full of Fun? This little guy just looks so proud of himself and the egg-ceptional egg that he's created for Easter! Let's only hope he can make it to his destination without hitting any bumps!

I used Wagon Full of Fun and the Scallop Oval Punch from the Occasions Mini Catalog. I stamped the wagon on Close to Cocoa CS and then cut off the handle and attached it to the other side so the duck could pull it in the right direction (LOL). The duck is colored in with Stampin' Write Markers and then cut out and applied to the card. His wing was stamped again on a scrap and attached with a dimensional so he could hold the wagon handle. The wheels are Antique Brass Jumbo Eyelets. The egg is colored in with markers and DD glitter was applied with a 2-way glue pen. The Egg Hunt Wheel is rolled on the Almost Amethyst CS. The DSP is Tea Party and the Certainly Celery Ribbon is from the SAB bundle. The grass and Sky were sponged using Garden Green and Baja Breeze. I used my own homemade Cloud Template (made from Scallop Circle Punches) to give the puffy-cloud effect.

You do such great work Gretchen - thanks for another fantastic idea!

Magnet Book Marks

Hello Everyone,

Today we get to see a fun project shared by Adriana Benitez who wrote this:

They are small magnet book marks easily made with our stampin' supplies. I got the idea from bookmarks seen in the book store. I loved them, but they were about $5 for 3 little bookmarks! Not terribly expensive, I guess, but I knew it was something that we could easily make!
To assemble the flower bookmark, I punched out 4 circles with a 1-3/8" circle punch. I laid 2 out, attached a small piece of sticky strip to each and then ran 2 strips of ribbon between them. I then topped them with the other 2 circles. Attach a small magnet to each circle and then flip both pieces over. On one side, attach a flower made of 3 (5 petal punch) flowers and a small 1/2" circle of chocolate chip. You can leave the petals as they are or rub them with chalk to add some color and dimension. This type of bookmark straddles the page (like a clip), with the flower portion laying on one side of it and the circle portion laying on the other side. The magnets help the flower and circle to hold onto the page and keep it in place.

Another way to make a cute book mark can be made with our tab punch. For mine, I stamped and cut out the small owl from "Owl Together Now" and applied him to one side of the punch. This is a much smaller bookmark, but with the magnets it works just fine!

Hope you enjoy these bookmarks!

Thanks as always Adriana, for sharing your wonderful talent with us.

Happy Stampin'

Max

Sketchy Saturday (#21)

Saturday?? Again?? How I love my Saturdays, but they come and go so quickly. Here are the fabulous creations for today's sketch.

Adriana

Carol

Leonie

Tammy

Take the challenge with us. Leave a comment with a link to your blog or upload to your SCS gallery using DivaSC21 as your keyword.

Hope you all have a wonderful weekend. :)

Finally Friday with Good Friends!!

Hello everyone!!! Hope this Friday finds all of you healthy and ready for the weekend!! Here in Michigan we are supposed to have an awesome weekend!!!

This weeks creation comes to us from Courtney Carpenter and she used the new set: Good Friend! (Hence the goofy title!!)

Cardstock: real red, bashful blue, whisper white, old olive

Ink: bashful blue, choc. chip, old olive

stamps: Good friend, Absolutely Fabulous- I just heard, Congrats on your big news

accessories: real red grosgrain ribbon

Thanks Courtney for a fabulous card! I love the layout you used on here!!

Happy Stamping!!!

~~~Ann~~~

Diva Inspiration Challenge #34

This week's inspiration picture has been a favorite of mine. I took this picture 4 years ago when I was visiting Squire's Castle in 2005.
I was born and raised in Cleveland, Ohio, but moved to Texas and have been here for 16 years. I definitely miss the change of seasons! One of the things about the seasons I miss are the turning of the leaves. I love how colorful these leaves were against the green grass. I hope you enjoy this week's picture!

To see what my creative team came up with, just click on their name:
Maria
Carol
Elizabeth

To view the submissions on SCS click here.

Post a link in the comments section with your blog entry or SCS gallery showing us what creation you were inspired to come up with!! If you upload to SCS be sure to put DivaIC34 (no spaces) as the keyword. Have fun!!

Inspire Stampin' happiness wherever you go!! :)
~~Maria~~

Still Sale-A-Brating!

Today's projects come to us from Kristine Memmott. Sale-A-Bration continues through March 31st. Make sure to get your favorites before it's too late!

Stamps: Congrats, Polka Dot Punches.
Ink: Chocolate Chip, Bashful Blue
Paper: Delicate Dots DSP, Whisper White, Certainly Celery, Bashful Blue, So Saffron
Accessories: Notecards, So Saffron 5/8” Grosgrain Ribbon, Certainly Celery poly-twill ribbon, 6x6 page protectors, sticky strip, full heart punch, 5 petal punch, scallop edge punch, 1 ¼” circle punch, neutral brads (white and chocolate chip), flower brads.

Happy Stampin'!

Elizabeth

Birthday Card idea

Good Morning Divas! We have another fantastic card idea from Stephanie Gittins. She made this great birthday card for her mom and I have to say, I love the sentiment. Everyone needs this reminder!


Here's what Steph had to say about her design:

It was my mom's birthday on March 1, and I wanted to make something special for her. I had a great time using our wonderful Sale-a-bration products! I love the Delicate Dots Designer Series Paper, but I decided to pair it with a stamp set other than Polka Dot Punches, which was designed to match. I used Botanical Blooms instead and I really like the result! I also branched out of my comfort zone just a little bit and used two different patterns on top of each other. I really like the result; I'll have to try being brave more often! I sponged a little Sahara Sand ink around the edges of the Top Note die cut to make it stand out a little more against the stripes.

Stamps: Botanical Blooms
Inks: So Saffron & Sahara Sand Classic Pads
Paper: Certainly Celery and Whisper White Cardstock, Delicate Dots Designer Series paper
Accessories: Very Vanilla 1/4" Grosgrain ribbon, Stampin' Sponges, 1 3/8" Circle and Scalloped Circle Punches, Crafter's Tool Kit, Stampin' Dimensionals, Sizzix Big Shot, Top Note Die

As you may already know, Stephanie is my upline and I just have to say - I'm always in awe of her creativity. Thank you so much for sharing Steph!!

Movers and Shapers Curly Label Die

Are you just loving the Big Shot? Look at this cute creation that one of our Design Team Members, Ruthie Burkey came up with. What a great card to demo as we are on our countdown to Sale-A-Bration ending. Ruthie used:

SET: Cute and Curly
PAPER: So Saffron 6” x 12”
Certainly Celery 2 ½” x 3 ½”
Delicate Dots DSP (SAB) 2” x 4 ¼”
Confetti Cream 4” x 5 ¼”
INK: Basic Gray
ACCESSORIES: Accents and Elements Flower Fusion Too, Certianly Celery Twill Tape (SAB), Soft Subtles Brads, 1/8” Punch, Curly Label Punch, Movers and Shapers Curly Label Die, Stampin’ Dimensionals

If you would like to host a workshop or become a demonstrator, be sure to contact your Demonstrator today. If you do not have a demonstrator, email utahdivasinternational@gmail.com

Happy Stampin'

Max

Sketchy Saturday (#20)

Here's today's sketch challenge and what has been created by the team members....

Adriana

Carol

Leonie

Ruthie

Tammy

Take the challenge with us. Leave a comment with a link to your blog or upload to your SCS gallery using DivaSC20 as your keyword.




Have a wonderful weekend. :)

Diva Inspiration Challenge #33

It's the first week of March already! I don't know about you, but where I live the weather has been beautiful lately. Even though it is still technically Winter, I've been enjoying these lovely Spring days.

Today's bit of inspiration comes to us from an internet article. I loved this picture and thought the colors were bright and the butterfly was beautifully shown.

There are so many stamp sets (and Sizzix Die) that come to mind when thinking about what to use for this week's creation. I'm thinking the Level 1 Hostess set God's Beauty shows their butterfly just as beautifully as the picture does.


To see what my creative team came up with, just click on their name:
Maria
Elizabeth
Carol

To view the submissions on SCS click here.

Now it's your turn! Post a link in the comments section with your blog entry or SCS gallery showing us what creation you were inspired to come up with!! If you upload to SCS be sure to put DivaIC33 (no spaces) as the keyword. Have fun!!

Inspire Stampin' happiness wherever you go!! :)
~~Maria~~

Scrapbooking with Selene

Good Wednesday morning! Today's projects come from the enormously talented Selene Kempton.

I did a spring scrapfest for my customers with SAB products and lots and lots of punches.

My customers made 8 pages for $35.

It uses:
Stamps: polka dot punches.
Ink: Versamark, certainly celery, so saffron , bashful blue, sahara sand.
Paper certainly celery, so saffron , bashful blue, sahara sand, SAB DSP.
Accessories: Lots and lots of punches, and the SAB ribbon.

All pages were stamped with versamark and one stamp from the polka dot punches as a background. I used www.pagemaps.com to help get started with sketches for some of the layouts. Becky Fleck is da bomb.

Thanks for sharing, Selene! I may just break out some of my half-done books and get some pages completed!

Until next week...

Happy Stampin'!

Elizabeth

Blooming with LOVE

Hello Friends,

I am totally excited to share a fabulous project with you today. Becky used Parisian Breeze Specialty DSP, Baja Breeze, Chocolate Chip and Whisper White cardstock, and Blooming with Love Stamp Set. If you would like the directions you will need to go to Becky Roberts blog at http://www.inkingidaho.blogspot.com/

Becky is our blog manager and does a wonderful job sending our coordinators projects to upload for you each day. Becky just happens to be one of the most talented stampers I know.

There is a cost of $3.95 for the directions, but what a wonderful, reasonable price to either make this for your Mom, a special friend or even for yourself. If you are a Stampin' Up! Demonstrator, what a fabulous idea for a class.

If you are interested in becoming a Demonstrator, email utahdivasinternational@gmail.com and I will refer you to a demonstrator in your area. Sign up before March 31st and you will be able to purchase the starter kit at $169 (value of $355) and choose a stamp set of your choice. You will receive 30% off your first qualifying order and you can purchase the stamp sets in the Occasions mini catalog at an additional 20% off (not including your instant income).

Happy Stampin'

Max