Stampin' Up!'s Greenhouse Garden

Are you ready for the weekend? I know I sure am. A long break from the full time job and a lot of relaxing will be much appreciated as I celebrate the upcoming Memorial Day holiday with family and friends.

Today's card features a two step-stamping technique using Stampin' Up!'s Greenhouse Garden two-step stamp set.
If you are not familiar with two-step stamping, this is where you stamp your focal image, which in this case is the base of he flower, in a lighter color and then stamp directly over the focal image with a accent stamp image, which is the lines of the flower, in a darker color.

The base colors I used in to make the flowers were, Peach Parfait and Daffodil Delight, and the accent lines of the flower were stamped in Chocolate Chip ink.  I am dedicating this card to my dear friend Zondra. She is one of the sweetest and inspirational people I know. Thank you Zondra for being such a good friend to me, I always look forward to our chats and your words of wisdom. Hope you all enjoyed today's card.

Happy Stamping,

Stampin' Up!'s - Artistic Etchings

Hi Blog Friends,

I know it has been a minute since my last blog post and the reason for my missing in action is truly attributed to the many projects I have been working on in addition to stamping. For the past several weeks, I have been helping my brother and his fiance' with their upcoming wedding and wedding reception plans and my dear cousin with the planning of her upcoming baby shower. Both projects have required a lot of my attention which has temporarily pulled me away from stamping and blogging.

Instead of letting another day go past, without me blogging, I decided to take some time this morning to post one of my recent card creations.

Today's card features Stampin' Up!'s Artistic Etchings stamp set from the 2010-2011 Idea Book and Catalog.  This fun, yet versatile stamp set is great for stamping very simple designs and is perfect for creating collage stamping projects. Recently I have become a big fan of the vintage style card designs.  So I decided to pratcie this technique and create today's feature card representing this style of stamping.
Hope you have enjoyed my recent creation. To purchase the supplies to make this card, simply visit my Stampin' Up! website.

Till next time...Happy Stamping!

Supplies
Stamp sets: Artistic Etchings, En Francis
Cardstock: Whisper White, Very Vanilla, and Basic Black
Designer Series Paper: Love Letter
Accessories: 1 1/4 inch Black Striped Ribbon

Stampin' Up!'s - Elements of Style Stamp Set

Happy Friday!

Today's featured card comes from one of the most beautiful stamp sets in the 2010 -2011 Idea Book and Catalog, called Elements of Style.  This stamp set is perfect for lovers of Vintage and Shabby Chic designs.

If you are in need of a Mother's Day card, Birthday card, or a Thank You greeting, this is the perfect image for just about any occasion. The creating possibilities with this stamp set are virtuously endless.

To make this card, I stamped the roses in Stampin' Up!'s black classic ink and then colored them in with the Stampin' Write markers. To soften the image, I used the Stampin' Up! blender pen to decrease the color intensity of the markers. The background of the card was stamped using the flourish image from the stamp set. I texturized the paper using Stampin' Up!'s Lattice embossing folder and my Big Shot machine.
The lattice embossing folder has recently become one of my favorite accessory tools for embellishing my cards.

To purchase the materials of this card, visit my Stampin' Up! website today. I'm sure you will just love designing projects with this stamp set. Don't forget to post your comments below.

Thanks for stopping by.

Stampin' Up!'s - Always Elegant Stamp Set

"Many fine things can be done in a day if you don't always make that day tomorrow" - Anonymous

Today's quote is words of inspiration to stop procrastinating. Often times I find myself not accomplishing tasks related to my goals of running a successful Stampin' Up! business simply because I fear the results will not be perfect. What I did not know it that the stress and anxiety I often feel to have a perfect business is a direct link to my procrastination. Since making this self discovery I am now making strides to avoid the perfectionism trap. I am learning to focus more on completing the necessary tasks of running my Stampin Up! business and less on how perfect my Stampin' Up! business really is.

What I have learned is that no matter how hard I may work at my business, it will never be perfect. Perfection is an idea not a reality. People were born to make mistakes and to learn from the mistakes they make. So rather than berate myself for not being perfect, I will continuously remind myself that building any successful business is a journey. The only way to reach the end goal of that journey is to take the necessary steps to get that business up and going.

As I work through the trials and errors of my Stampin' Up! business I will come to see that the mistakes I make will actually be little gifts in disguise. Because each mistake I make, will teach me what not to do and help me do a better job the next time around.

I hope this blog post on my self discovery for procrastination is inspiring enough for you to tackle your habits of procrastionation. As I embark on my journey towards being a better person, I hope the testimonies I share with you each week, will inspire you to work at being a better person as well.

Today's card uses the Always Elegant stamp set and Elegant Lines embossing folder, found inside the 2010-2011 Stamin' Up! Ideas Book and Catalog.  This stamp set and embossing folder is perfect for wedding cards, anniversary cards, and even for bridal shower invitations. Visit my website to purchase the stamp set, embossing folder and cardstock used in today's featured card.

 Happy Stamping!

Supplies
Cardstock: Baja Breeze and Whisper White Cardstock
Stamp Set:  Always Elegant
Accessories: Elegant Lines Embossing Folder
Ribbon: 1/4 inch white grograin
Non-Stampin' Up! Products: Martha Stewart border punch

2011 Summer Mini Catalog

Well it's finally here, the 2011 Stampin' Up! Summer Mini Catalog that is. From May 1st, through August 31st, 2011, you can purchase new and exciting products from Stampin' Up! This mini catalog features new tools, stamps sets, ribbons, and accessories that will give your stamping and scrappin' projects endless creativity. Click on the link below to see what all Stampin' Up! has to offer.

Click here to Download

To make a purchase, simply visit my Stampin' Up! website.  Shop now while supplies last. Items found in this mini catalog are available for a limited time. After August 31, 2011 these products will no longer be available for purchase.

Want to earn free Stampin' Up! products? Host a workshop with a minimum sales volume of $150.00 or more, and you can choose from one of the many hostess level stamp sets from both the New Summer Mini Catalog and the 2010 -2011 Stampin' Up! Idea Book and Catalog. Book your workshop today by e-mailing me at craftingelegance@gmail.com.

Don't want to host a workshop in your home, but still want the opportunity to earn free stamps? Then simple purchase a $150.00 or more in products from my Stampin' Up! website and take your pick from the variety of free items made exclusively for you.

Not only does the new Summer Mini Catalog have an array of new stamp sets and accessories that you will absolutely adore, but the catalog is also loaded with full color projects and sample ideas to inspire your creativity. Download your copy of the new 2011 Summer Mini Catalog today and get stamping and scrappin' with new products from Stampin' Up!

Happy Stamping!