Mark Your Calendars! Royal Blog Tour-April 30th

I'm a Honorary Queen on the Royal Blog Tour! It's launching April 30 through May 3. I'm so excited I've been chosen for this honor! I hope you'll become a Royal Tourist and ride along in a Royal Coach. Please come and visit my castle during the tour! For more information, please check out these links!

Website: RBT Website
Home Blog: RBT Home Blog

Mini Milk Carton Watering Can

Last week when I was on Amanda Coughlin's blog getting the link to post with my Tote-ally Awesome Tote, I saw that she has made one of the Mini Milk cartons into a watering can and I knew I had to try it!

Isn't this a fun idea? I didn't know what to put in it, so I used...Floral Fusion die-cut flowers! I have them laying all over my desk so I used a Mini Glue Dot to put them on a tiny strip of Old Olive cardstock.

Cardstock: Almost Amethyst, Old Olive

Stamp Set: Happy Moments (FREE Sale-A-Bration set with any $50 purchase!)

Accessories: Mini Milk Carton die-cut, Floral Fusion die-cut, Big Shot (you need this!), Old Olive Grosgrain Ribbon, Scallop Edge Punch, Tiny Tag Punch, Ice Rhinestone Brads

Faux Alligator Gift Bag

Super simple gift bag using the Faux Alligator skin technique.

1. I cut 2 Scallop circles and one Box #2 with the Big Shot (you need this!) out of Real Red cardstock.

2. Cut the bottom of the scallop circles flat.

3. Press your Versamark pad right onto the carstock and get it all inked up.

4. Sprinkle with Clear Embossing Powder.

5. Run your Bone Folder through the Embossing Powder making a Faux Alligator print. Shake off the excess powder.

6. Heat with Heat tool until shiny and clear.

7. Cut the top folding flaps from the Box #2, leaving the box open

8. Adhere the 2 Scallop Circles to each side of the box with Sticky Strip and embellish as desired.
9. This one used 6 layers of DSP cut with the Scallop Circle Punch. Scrunch the layers in your hand, stack, insert the brad and fluff them up to look like a flower. The stem is one of the leaves from the Sweet Peas Stitched Felt.

10. Fill with a gift! This one was for a Simply Adorned Charm Ü

Tote-ally Awesome Tote

Remember the swap I participated in at Leadership in my January postings? This is one of the swaps I received...my own Becky's Tote-ally Awesome Tote made by Amanda Coughlin! I was SO excited to see she used one of my tutorials!! She gave them to us flat and I just got around to actually peeling the Sticky Strip and assembling it. Man it was easy! Too bad all our projects can't come pre-Sticky Stripped! Ü

She made this with the beautiful Shades of Spring DSP in the Occasions Mini Catalog (117160 $9.95).

The card is made with Garden from the Heart stamp set (117004 $22.95 wood mount OR 118568 $16.95 clear mount) from the Occasions Mini Catalog too.

Isn't it just beautiful? Thank you Amanda!!

You can order the tutorial to make your own Becky's Tote-ally Awesome Tote right HERE for just $5.95 OR on the right hand sidebar of my blog. The picture looks like this:

The tutorial will be e-mailed to you.

If you have question about the contents of this particular project by Amanda, please direct all questions to her at http://www.stampvamps.com/. All other questions can come to me.

March Stamp Clubs

Thursday and Friday Stamp Clubs...here are your projects!

Mini Milk Carton Container (I will e-mail you the tutorial when I get your RSVP)

Chocolates Bunnies with mats made using the Scallop Trim Corner and Scallop Trim Border punches together. One square and one rectangle.

Flower Fancy

I love how the Floral Fusion die-cut flowers fit perfectly as centers for the Flower Fancy flowers! I'm having so much fun with those little die-cuts!

This is pretty funny...I've received over 50 e-mail so far from people trying to find this little thing in the catalog. Well it is on page 196, the first picture on the second row, outlined in yellow.

115969 Floral Fusion $5.50

Cardstock: Taken With Teal, Barely Banana, Sweet Pea Designer Series Paper Pack
Stamp Sets: Flower Fancy, Thank You Kindly
Accessories: Scallop Edge Punch, Corner Rounder, 5/16 Neutral Brads, Flower Fusion die-cut and the Big Shot (you need this!)

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I've received a couple of awards!

Thank you Patti Lee...you all know Patti Lee, right? If not, go introduce yourself to her fabulosity right HERE!

Thank you Kathy B. You can see Kathy's blog right HERE.

Using Up Scraps!

I have hundreds of scraps from the Sweet Peas Designer Series Pack...why do they give it to us in a tablet style instead of a cello bag that can actually hold the scraps? I can't tell you how many times I've picked them ALL up off the floor! Maybe I should just get something to put them in instead of constantly frustrating myself! :)

I found this cute card on Twila's blog and thought it was perfect for using us some of these scraps!

Cardstock: Whisper White, Sweet Pea Designer Series Paper Pack

Stamps: Hello Again

Accessories: Old Olive and Pretty in So Saffron Striped Grosgrain Ribbons, Eyelet Border Punch

Nicholas turned 11 years old yesterday, my the years are flying by!!! He got some awesome baseball gear as his world revolves around baseball, baseball practice, baseball games, watching baseball, baseball things, etc. Sometimes I think this child was born with a baseball in his hands! Sunday is his party with the guys and boy is he looking forward to that!

Happy Birthday Nicholas!!

Floral Fusion Flowers

Do you ever get on something you like and just keep going? I'm am loving these colors and this darn bird punch and can't get enough of them... so here is one more card made with almost the same ingredients as the last posting.

The bird body is in Barely Banana, the wings are Apricot Appeal and I gently sponged the edges with Regal Rose.

Cardstock: Barely Banana, Chocolate Chip, Apricot Appeal, Old Olive, Sending Love DSP

Accessories: XL 2-Step Bird Punch, Scallop Trim Border (FREE with a $50 Sale-A-Bration purchase), Scallop Trim Corner Punch, Old Olive Satin Ribbon, Big Shot (you need this) and the Floral Fusion die-cut

The Chocolate Chip cardstock started out at 3-13/16" x 4-3/4". DSP is 3" x 4". Punch the corners first then use the corners as a guide on the border punch.

One of my next favorite things is the flowers you can make from the Floral Fusion die-cut. Crush the flower with your hand, just wad them up in a ball like you are going to toss them in the trash, unfold and stack them together and secure with a brad. Attach to your project with Mini Glue Dots. So easy!

113439 Big Shot $99.95

115969 Floral Fusion die-cut $5.50

118877 Scallop Trim Corner Punch $9.95

118402 Scallop Trim Border Punch FREE with a $50 purchase during Sale-A-Bration

117191 Extra large 2-Step Bird Punch $15.95

Order your Stampin' Up! supplies HERE.

Springtime Bird Card

I love spring and the first few cards of the season are so refreshing and light! It's good to break out the pastel colors again! This one is based on a card I liked on Stampin' Connections made by Michelle VanWiggeren. This is such a soft feeling card.

Cardstock: Barely Banana, Chocolate Chip, Apricot Appeal, Old Olive, Sending Love DSP
Accesories: XL 2-Step Bird Punch, Trio Flower Punch, Scallop Trim Border (FREE with a $50 Sale-A-Bration purchase), Scallop Trim Corner Punch, Old Olive Satin Ribbon

The Chocolate Chip cardstock started out at 3-13/16" x 4-3/4". DSP is 3" x 4".

Chocolate Bunnies Basket and a Carrot

This little basket was made with the Top Note die-cut and the Box #2 die-cut.

Cardstock: Pretty in Pink, Chocolate Chip, Old Olive, Whisper White
Stamp Set: Chocolate Bunny
Accessories: Big Shot (you need this!!), Top Note, Box #2 die-cuts, Scallop Circle, 1-1/4" & 1-3/8" Circle Punches, Pretty in Pink Taffeta Ribbon, Old Olive 5/8" Grosgrain Ribbon.

This idea was on the display boards at Leadership. I'm not sure who created it, but it was a GREAT idea!! Connie Babbert also has a bunny on her blog, http://inkspiredtreasures.com/3d-items/february-tour-de-freaks/, must be the season for Easter decorations! :)

They are so fun!

Cardstock: Pumpkin Pie, Old Olive, Chocolate Chip, Whisper White
Stamp Set: Chocolate Bunny, All Holidays
Accessories: Big Shot (you need this!!) Scallop Circle die-cut, Scallop Oval, 1-1/4" & 1-3/8" Circle Punches, Old Olive Satin Ribbon

Chocolate Bunny

I love this little Chocolate Bunny from the Occasions Mini Catalog! You can look for a lot of him to come on my blog Ü

Cardstock: Pretty in Pink, Whisper White, Old Olive, Chocolate Chip, Sweet Pea Designer Series Paper Pack (117161)
Stamp Set: Chocolate Bunny (116980), Happy Everything, Teeny Tiny Wishes
Accessories: Wide Oval Punch (112021) for the eggs, Scallop Edge Punch (112091), Polka Dot Embossing folder (117335), Old Olive Grosgrain Ribbon and Pretty in Pink Taffeta Ribbon. Non-SU! White Rick Rack

Order all your Stampin' Up! supplies HERE!

Kind Thanks

Lots of Kind Thanks going on here! I spotted a card similar to this on Stampin' Connections by mommie2quads (which just makes me exhausted to write) and loved how she let the Designer Series Paper take the focus on the card.

Cardstock: Old Olive, So Saffron, Rose Red, Whisper White
Stamp Set: Thank You Kindly, With All My Heart
Accessories: Extra large Fancy Flower, 1" Circle, Eyelet Border Punch, Rich Regals Brads, Trio Flower (which perfectly cuts out the small flower in the With All My Heart stamp set...gotta love that Stampin' Up! for always thinking for us!!

My Ace In Training son, Benjamin is still making cakes! This one was a practice one to keep up his skills on fondant roses. The colors were beautiful, even though you wouldn't know it by the color in this picture Ü

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Good news for all of you who have e-mailed me about the sock monkey hats!

I contacted Debbie Orme, Store Director for the Fuego store where I purchased them. She said to contact her directly if you want to purchase a sock monkey hat and she will see what she can do. Her number is 208-287-3292 and e-mail is Boise@shopfuego.com . Good luck!