Faux Dry Embossed Snow-Swirled

Faux Dry Embossing was the Technique Lover's Challenge for Monday on SCS (search TLC183 to see more samples). First you stamp in White Craft Ink and then you stamp in your base color. It creates the look of having been dry embossed. I like the look, and I hope you do too.

I used the star brad from the Styled-Silver Hodgepodge Hardware as a tree-topper and the new large oval punch for the sentiment. The colors are Certainly Celery and Ridinghood Red. The Snow Swirled Snowflakes in the background are just stamped in White Craft Ink.

Big Shot Ornaments

These little ornaments were so simple to make using the Big Shot machine that SU! has now. I simply used the Birds and Blooms Sizzlits dies and the Join in the Cheer Decorative Strip die to create them......not amazing I guess, but a ton of fun for someone like me who is new to die-cutting! I punched an extra flower and center for the back of the bird so it would look nicer. (I used the 1/8 inch punch for the flower centers, and Boho Blossoms punch for the Old Olive leaves.)

The ornaments are so nice and light that they'd be perfect for when you need a lightweight ornament to fill a space when the branch isn't quite sturdy enough for other ornaments on a real tree.

Acetate box and new Sizzix dies

For this little box for the Technique Lover's Challenge on SCS, I used the Humor in High Heels set as well as my new BIG SHOT with the Birds and Blooms "Flower Pieces" and "Scallop Circles" dies. I think it really helped coordinate the new Maine Blueberry paper with my project.

The light blue bling brad is perfect with it, but we're having a strangely rainy August here, so it doesn't show well in the photograph.

Inspired by Nature

This great new set makes a lovely Rudbekia (brown-eyed Susan), Daisy or Purple Coneflower. The possibilities are many, and I had felt a little deprived of this style by SU! lately, so I am thrilled with it! I used the butterflies and LOVE from Dreams du Jour as well. For my first try I chose Lavendar Lace to make Purple Coneflowers since I grow them in my flower beds....I also grow white ones, and the lady down the street has a coral-like orange :). So many cards to make! :)

Convention Highlights!

Ladies, I am so excited about the new catalog and new products Stampin' Up! is offering this fall!We will have phase two of the new decor elements line which adds more colors and designs, a catalog for which my wish list is huge, and starting in September, the BigShot diecut machine by Sizzix! SU! will have several exclusive dies as well as providing a variety of Sizzix dies for purchase through SU!

Here is just a sampling of the fun things they had for us in Salt Lake City:

The views were lovely and so different....mountains all around, and Salt Lake City had delicious restaurants. My friend Brooke from church in Edmond now lives there and took us to a great local restaurant called Ruth's out in Emigration Canyon and then on a great tour of the city. This picture looks toward the Great Salt Lake:

Jessika (my upline) and I toured the Stampin' Up! headquarters in Riverton, UT with all the other demonstrators. This is in the entry/eating/break area of Stampin' Up!.

Here's a quick picture of the distribution area within the building:

We also saw lovely staging areas where products are showcased called the Legacy Rooms. The things shown here are not in the catalog, but are likely in the holiday mini catalog:

The presentations and classes were helpful and great fun. Here is a bookmark and also a picture of the new colors of decor elements:

There are also limitless displays of items and cards made by fellow demonstrators. I think this cookie sheet calendar would make a great Advent calendar.

Here's a picture of the Artisan Award winning submission by Mary Jo Albright. I was amazed by her fabulous creations, and her scrapbook page has already been featured on Shelli Gardner's blog here: http://www.soshelli.com/ (Shelli is the owner and co-founder of Stampin' Up!):

Here are some online friends I was finally able to meet in real life....They are challenge chasers....we like to do the Splitcoaststampers challenges as often as we can. I also had a great time at the SCS (splitcoaststampers) dinner and enjoyed meeting the girls posting to the Swapppers Anonymous threads. I'll have great swaps to show you all at the New Catalog Open House on the 28th!

Final day of swaps....Saturday August 2nd

I hope to see lots of new technique ideas for you all when I swap this Cracked Glass Bird from Spring Song and this Serigraph technique Pretty Amazing set card!

What I'm swapping today....Friday August 1st

Today I will be swapping in two WOW swaps and my own Ten Minutes to Terrific Swap as well as with the SCS Challenge Chasers....I haven't had time to chase challenges lately--too many swaps!

This is the 10 minute card...so simple and quick!

The gingerbread men were cut from the Deer Friends set after embossing them with spiced embossing powder for a bit of a scratch and sniff effect with a cute texture. I added faux red hot candy dots, a licorice mouth and raisin eyes as well as white icing trim. Then, I popped them (with dimensionals) onto a silver sheet pan with silver embossed edges on a checked table cloth. I like the Ridinghood Red with Moss and Not Quite Navy much as I liked Cranberry Crisp with those colors year before last. The Merry Christmas from Load of Love seems to fit this style nicely too. This was sketch challenge 70 (SC70) on SCS as well.