Sum, Sum, Summertime Blog Hop

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Welcome to our August blog hop!  Today we are featuring projects that reflect summertime.  The weather here in Northern Illinois can get pretty hot and steamy about this time of year, but we’ve been having some really pleasant days this last week or so.  Temps in the mid to upper 70’s with very tolerable humidity.  Kind of rare for us – not that I’m complaining!

I can’t seem to put the Abstract Impressions stamp set down for very long.  Here’s another one, this time in purples and greens; yet another color combination that I love!  I recently held a Stamparatus class, and this was one of the cards I demonstrated.  I started off with a base that is 4.25″ x 11″, scored at 5.5″.  I ran the front through the Big Shot with the Subtle Textured Impressions Embossing Folder.  The flowers in the focal point were stamped in Gorgeous Grape and Highland Heather; the foliage is Soft Sea Foam and Granny Apple Green.  That panel was layered over a piece of the Subtles 6″ x 6″ designer series paper – the thin striped Soft Sea Foam pattern and adhered over a length of Whisper White 5/8″ Polka Dot Tulle Ribbon that was attached in a ‘Z’ fold pattern.  Thank You was stamped in Gorgeous Grape and punched out with the Pretty Label Punch.  It’s a little difficult to see in this photo, but I ran the brush end of my Gorgeous Grape marker around the edges of the punched sentiment to give it a little more accent.  It’s a very quick and easy card to put together, especially when you use the Stamparatus for perfect alignment every time!

Next up in our hop is Kathya and I know you’re going to enjoy what she has in store for you!  Thanks for stopping by, and if you get lost on our hop, the full line-up is listed below as are the ‘ingredients’ for today’s project.  Thanks for stopping by!

Barb's Signature

 

 

 

August Line-Up:

Di           http://www.stampingwithdi.com

Barb      http://www.beelinestamping.com

Kathya   http://www.stampwithkathya.com

Mary     http://www.doggandponyshow.blogspot.com

Melissa  http://www.stampinupwithmelissa.blogspot.com

Trisha    https://creativelystamping.blog/

 

 

 

Red, White and Blue, and a Blog Hop Too!

 

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Welcome to another Di’s Country INKers blog hop.  In honor of our nation’s birthday, we have chosen to show projects that either reflect the 4th of July, or something Red, White, and Blue.  

The Details

My card starts with a Blueberry Bushel base that’s layered with a piece of Watercolor Paper.  I added a masking strip towards the top of the card to create the illusion that there is a layer there, and the flowers are behind the ‘layer’.   I used the Abstract Impressions stamp set to create the lovely flowers.  For the roses, I used Real Red ink and began with the ‘heaviest’ layer of the large flower image.  I used an aqua painter to wet and spread the ink in a circular motion.  Before the paper dried, I used the matching medium flower image and stamped in Real Red again.  Finally, I used the lightest large flower image and stamped it over the first two layers with Cherry Cobbler.  The smaller flowers were stamped with the heavier small flower stamp in Balmy Blue.  The lighter small flower stamp was inked in Blueberry Bushel and stamped over the Balmy Blue, then rotated 1/4 turn and stamped again without re-inking.  Really looks like there’s a layer there, eh?  The ‘Happy Birthday’  is from The Perennial Birthday stamp set.  It’s a little difficult to get crisp, even coverage when stamping on Watercolor Paper, so I used my Stamparatus and Balmy Blue ink to get the greeting to come out clearly.  The final touches were a couple of pieces of Blueberry Bushel ribbon to further enhance the layer look above and below the greeting, as well as several Pearls in the centers of the blue flowers.  So there you have it – my Red, White, and Blue card!

Now On To The Free Stuff!

Two new promotions begin today.  First, when you join as a Demonstrator during the month of July, Stampin’ Up! will add your choice of one of the color families of inks to your starter kit for free!  What will your choice be?  Brights, Regals, Neutrals, Subtles, or perhaps the In-Color collection?  Whichever one strikes your fancy, I’d love to add you to my Stampin’ Family, and see you get your own Ink Family too!  Sound interesting?  Contact me and we’ll talk about it!

The second promo is another goodie – Buy Three pkgs of DSP and get the fourth one Free!  Take a look at the list of papers included in the promo and stock up!

Now off you go to see what Kathya has to show you.  Thanks so much for stopping by.  Our full line-up as well as a list of products used in today’s project can be found below.  

Barb's Signature

 

 

 

This Month’s Line-Up is:

Barb    (You are here)
Kathya 
Mary    
Trisha 

 

 

It’s a New Stampin’ Year!

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Happy New (Stampin’) Year!  Not only is today our blog hop, but Stampin’ Up!’s 2018-2019 Annual Catalog goes live today, and I’m so excited to share some new stuff with you!  

My Favorites

Hands down, the color revamp is my favorite ‘new’ from this catalog.  While there are a couple of colors I’m sad to see retire (Soft Sky and Island Indigo) there are so many lovely new colors to choose from including some long-awaited purples, a couple fresh greens, and some former In-Colors that I am thrilled to see return (Can you say Blackberry Bliss and Coastal Cabana?  Woot!!)  Following the color revamp, the Graceful Glass suite wow-ed me from the moment I was introduced to it at OnStage in April.  This suite is what I chose to work with for today’s project.

Graceful Glass

The Graceful Glass 6″ x 6″ Designer Vellum pack is adult coloring on steroids!  24 sheets, 2 each of 12 raised, printed, designs are enough to keep even the most dedicated colorist busy for a very long time.  You can color on the front for a more vibrant look, or soften things up and color on the back of the designs.  You can use your Stampin’ Write Markers, Stampin’ Blends, Watercolor Pencils, or Aqua Painters on them.  You can use full sheets or cut off sections as I’ve done on this card.  

My card begins with a base of Gorgeous Grape (new color!) cardstock with an additional Gorgeous Grape layer that was embossed with one of the Petal Pair embossing folders. My Irises were colored with Highland Heather, Gorgeous Grape, Granny Apple Green, and Shaded Spruce  Stampin’ Write markers  (New Colors!) and was mounted on a Whisper White panel by sponging some Tombow Multi-Purpose glue on the back.  The Iris panel was then layered over a partial panel of Granny Apple Green and was accented with a strip of Black 1/8″ Cord.  The die-cut greeting, from the Painted Glass set, was stamped in Gorgeous Grape and cut with one of the Stitched Labels Framelits.  The last bit of embellishment is a couple of Clear Rhinestones that were colored with a Sharpie Marker.  In a couple of weeks, I will be able to use the new Granny Apple Green Stampin’ Blends markers to color them.  The new Blends colors are expected to be orderable approximately mid-June.

Are you ready?

If you’re anything like me, I’ve been adding to and editing my wish list for the last couple of weeks.  Today’s the day – at noon Mountain Time you can begin ordering from the new catalog.  I’ll probably have to win the lottery or take out a second mortgage on the house to pay for all the stuff I’d like to order – Ha!

Ok then – I’m off to play with some more new products.  How about I send you over to Kathya now to see what she’s been playing with?!  Thank you so much for stopping by today.  If you get lost on our hop, the line-up is shown below.  Please remember to give each hopper a little comment love – it really means a lot to hear from you…

Happy Stamping!

 

Barb's Signature

 

 

 

 

Di          
Barb      (you are here)
Kathya
Connie  
Trisha    

 

 

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