Cards for the Troops - Armed Forces Day !

Today was the big day - Stamping for the Troops ! What a wonderful morning spent making all occasion cards to be sent to military men and women at forward deployed bases overseas. We were honored to have a Navy JROTC Class from North Augusta High School join us in making cards. These young men and women selflessly gave up their Saturday morning to show their support for our active duty military. Plus - I think they actually enjoyed the morning. I know I sure did ! Here are some pictures of our groups of stampers:

Here are samples of some of the cards we made. All of these cards are CASEed from somewhere. I regret that I can't give credit to the original designers - just know that myself, along with everyone helping today, "loved" the cards ! For me, I thank you for sharing your creativity - I'd be lost without it !

Until next time -- have a Stamp Happy weekend !

Biker's Week - Myrtle Beach

Steve and I went to the beach for Mother's Day weekend. It was a wonderful weekend but little did we know that we were driving right into the middle of Biker's Week.

We met my friend, Jan and her hubby down there; and then my niece (Laurin) joined us for dinner. We talked and laughed the night away.

The Beaver Bar and the SuckBangBlow are 2 popular biker bars in Murrells Inlet. Very interesting, indeed !

This is my brother, Bo, and his wife, Toma. They came down to the beach so we met them for lunch on Mother's Day.

All Day Crop in Augusta

Recently, I had the pleasure of spending the day with these wonderful ladies, doing what we all love to do -- stamping and scrapbooking !! It was an all day crop in recognition of National Scrapbooking Day, at the Augusta Historical Society.

This is the make-n-take I had available for everyone. I used my favorite new stamp set - Vintage Vogue; Elegant Eggplant, Pale Plum, and Very Vanilla cardstock; Elegant Eggplant, Pale Plum, and Always Artichoke Classic ink. It's hard to see but I added half pearls to the center of the flowers. I was pleased with the layout and the ladies all seemed to like it as well.

It was a GREAT day !

12x12 Double Page Swap

Every year I host a scrapbook page swap at Stampin' Up's! Convention and again at Leadership. Here are some examples of the adorable, creative pages made by other Stampin' Up! demonstrators. Many participants use these ideas for their Scrapbook Clubs and other classes throughout the year; therefore, I do not typically post them on my blog -- sorry ! I know - GREAT ideas that should be shared with everyone !

At Convention 2009, there were 50 ladies that participated in this swap - broken down into groups of 10. I received lots of wonderful ideas to use in my Scrapbook Club and Stamp Camps. If you are interested in scrapbooking; as a beginner or an advanced scrapbooker -- sign up today for one of my monthly Scrapbook Clubs that are now forming -- there's something for everyone.

The following pages were created by Sue Herron from Las Vegas. Look at the detail on these pages -- it still amazes me !! Absolutely adorable !!

These pages were created by the very talented Jill Hillard from Pennsylvania.
Very elegant !

These pages were created by Aniko Brewer from Georgia. Check out the Big Shot dies she used and the border punches. The layout and color combination are awesome !

There wasn't a name on these pages so I can't give credit.
Love the layout and color combination !

These pages were created by Ronda Winn. She used a Big Shot die and border punches, half pearls from the Pretties Kit, brads and ribbon. Love the color combination and design.

These pages were created by Sarah Wills for Sherrill Graff. Love the bright colors and creative punch characters.

If you are a demonstrator attending Convention 2010, looking for scrapbook ideas - look no further ! Join this swap now ! Just send me an email (almondy1261@aol.com with 12x12 swap in the subject line).

Have a Stamp Happy weekend -- I'm off to spend time with my son in Kansas !

Gift Ideas.....

This is a framed gift idea for a friend's Stamp Studio. It turned out right nice - don't you think ? I used the Lovely Letters Alphabet, Razzleberry Lemonade DSP, with coordinating cardstock, matching polka-dot grosgrain ribbon, and felt flowers with brads.

This gift box was covered with Razzleberry Lemonade DSP and I used the Beautiful Butterlies die to make the butterfly embellishment, and just tied a piece of Regal Rose ribbon on the handle. I then filled the box with travel size Tylenol, chap stick, sunscreen, hand lotion, etc. It made an easy, cute little gift.

This wooden letter was covered with Razzleberry Lemonade DSP (can you tell that I really like this paper ? The colors are awesome !). I ran Regal Rose ribbon to cover the outside edge and added more of the Beautiful Butterflies with half pearls as embellishments. I gave this to a friend at Convention last year.

Hopefully, you now have several easy gift items that are REALLY cute !

And a post wouldn't be complete without sharing a card......this is a card that I made for a showbox swap at Convention last year. Oh my -- it's time to start thinking about swaps and gifts for this year's Convention.........gonna be busy !!!

Cards for the Troops

Having a strong military family history, one of my favorite things to do is make cards for the troops ! There are 2 different programs that I try to support by providing handmade cards. The first, Operation Welcome Home Maryland !, provides a warm Hero's welcome to Sailors, Airmen, Soldiers and Marines as they enter the states through the international gates at Baltimore/Washington Airport. Volunteers hand out "goodie bags" to the military men and women. The goodie bags contain bottles of water, snacks, and a handmade card (welcoming them home and thanking them for their service). Here's a sample of one of the cards I make for this program.


The second program I provide handmade cards for is From Our Hearts. We provide a variety of cards (birthday, miss you, love you, holiday, etc) that are sent to military chaplains at forward deployed areas. These cards are for the military folks to send home to their loved ones.

If you are interested in supporting either of these programs, please leave me a msg and I'll contact you with additional information.

Now.....off to play with my new Stampin' Up! products !! Hope everyone has a Stamp Happy weekend !!

Card Shares.....

Check out this beautiful card ! My friend Kathy Alt made this amazing card using an embossing folder and several punches....very elegant !

The card below was made by Dacia Smith, using the new Vintage Vogue stamp set. It was one of my favorite swaps from Leadership. I've already cased it several times !

And here's a very simple card using the Top Note die and the Thoughts and Prayers stamp set.

Hope everyone has a Stamp Happy week ! Until next time........

I'm Baaaccckkkkkk !!!

Well folks -- it was operator error ! Not really - just took me awhile to figure out the problem ! I've upgraded my software so I can post pictures again -- took awhile, but it finally occurred to me what the problem was........I know....duuuhhhhh !!!!

Even though I haven't been posting, I have been stampin' ! Here are some pictures to prove it:

I was invited to join a group of ladies to make cards for The Lydia Project. I designed 2 cards, provided the supplies and we made handmade "Thinking of you" and "Praying for you" cards to be sent to cancer patients. It was a wonderful morning spent with a fun group of ladies. We used one of my favorite new stamp sets - Vintage Vogue, for this card. I was asked to use purple in my designs so I chose Elegant Eggplant as my primary color, added some small Pale Plum flowers and used Always Artichoke for the leafy vines. The first picture is a work in progress.

These two pictures show my new stamping friends, hard at play.....

And, here are several samples....but I wasn't really happy with either

The is the card design I finally decided on. I even made up a set of cards using several different sentiments, to give to a friend.

I hope you like this card. I'll load the second card tomorrow.....for now....sweet stampin' dreams !

Another Fabric Flower and More Pages.....

I've had so much fun making these beautiful fabric pins. The best part is....they're sooooooo easy ! Don't you just love the vibrant colors in this one ? And the Summer Sun corduroy button in the middle ? I just love it !! If you'd like to learn how to make these gorgeous pins, give me a call or drop me an email to set up a date.

Here are a few more 12x12 double page spreads from the swap I hosted at Leadership 2010. I love the color combinations and the variations in the layouts. Check out the use of punches to make borders -- very, very nice !! If you're a demonstrator and would like to join this swap at Convention, drop me an email (almondy1261@aol.com).

Until later....have a Stamp Happy week !!

12x12 swap at Leadership 2010

Each year at Convention and Leadership I host a 12x12 double page swap. Here are a few more samples of the swaps. It amazes me the creativity that some of these ladies have. All swaps were EXCELLENT. Hope this helps to get you creative juices flowing. For info on my new Scrapbook Club, drop me an email: almondy1261@aol.com.

And here's a beautiful card that I received from Melissa Riker -- what a wonderful surprise - made my day ! Love the simplicity of the card and the color combination -- isn't she just the sweetest thing ....

And, here's a fabric pin that I made last weekend while visiting my fellow demonstrator friend Carol. She's made tons of these beautiful pins to sale at craft shows and bazaars. The fabrics and color combinations she uses are gorgeous ! So... would you like to learn how to make these fabric pins ?

Embossing Folders

I'm really liking the embossing folders -- they add so much to the card ! By using the embossing folders, you take a simple card and make it a WOW card -- soooo easy !! As you can tell from the following cards, I really like using punches too - again, punches just add that extra touch. Have you seen the new style punches that Stampin' Up! is offering ? Drop me an email or give me a call if you would like additional information about the embossing folders or punches. Back to my craft room to play some more !! Enjoy..........