Petal Potpourri Thanks

We've been having a strange Winter around here, but I'm not complaining.  It has been 10-20 degrees above normal for the past month or two and I'm loving it.  I wouldn't mind another 10 or 20 degrees :)  We typically have piles of snow that just won't melt and temperatures that don't go above freezing for weeks at a time.  I must say that I'm enjoying a bit of sunshine.  My little guy loves being able to go out and play (and I love not having to bundle him up in snow clothes).

Maybe it's the warmer temperatures and the lack of snow, but I'm ready to stamp with bright colors and forget the drab colors of Winter!  I think this card fits the bill.  I used the new Petal Potpourri set from the Occasions Catalog and stamped a background using Melon Mambo, Tangerine Tango, and Daffodil Delight.  Just the names of those colors are fun and cheerful!  I used the sketch over at Freshly Made Sketches to place my ribbon and greeting.  It's a great basic sketch and would work with just about anything!  I tied some daffodil delight seam binding around the card and then added my greeting.  For the punched layers on the greeting, I stamped words from the Crazy About You set and punched them with the oval punch, the scalloped oval, and finally the decorative label punch. 
 

Polka Dot Petal Thanks

I've been away from my stamping table for a couple of weeks, so I decided to take advantage of a bit of nap time and get some stamping done.  My little guy was so excited to help, so he got out his ink pads and created while I did.  It's fun to pass on my love of stamping with my children.

I love participating in color challenges because they help get my creative juices flowing.  Today's color challenge comes from ColourQ and the colors are Strawberry Slush, Coastal Cabana, Chocolate Chip, Crumb Cake (Kraft), and White.  I decided that this would be a great combo to use some new stamps on, so I chose the Petal Potpourri set for my flower and the new Crazy About You  set for my greeting.  I'm still trying to be better about expressing my thanks, so I make this a thank you card.  I figure if most of my cards have thank you on them, then I'll be reminded to actually use some of them :)

I stamped my flower in Strawberry Slush and added a 1/4" hole punch from Coastal Cabana to help tie it into my background.  I used a Stampin' Dimensional to pop it off the Crumb Cake strip (with the greeting stamped in Chocolate Chip), polka dot paper from the Backgrounds DSP stack, Chocolate Chip strip, and finally the Coastal Cabana card base that I textured with the Polka Dot embossing folder.  Check back to see more card ideas with the new Occasions stamp sets!

 

Crazy About You Flower Trio

It's time for another thank you card!  I'm trying to be more grateful this year and show my gratitude by sending out more thank you cards.  Last week I gave out a couple and I need to get more done this week.  I just sent a thank you email, does that count? :) 

Today I used the new Crazy About You set that is in the Occasions Catalog.  This set has some fantastic greeting combinations so that you can make sure your cards say just what you want!  I stamped my flowers in Melon Mambo, Daffodil Delight, and Pink Pirouette and stamped my greeting in Melon Mambo.  Next I ran the whole stamped panel through my Big Shot with the Perfect Polka Dot embossing folder to add some texture.  I added some little rhinestone jewels to the center of each flower for some bling and to help highlight the textured dots.  After mounting the panel on Melon Mambo, I tied some Melon Mambo cotton ribbon around and then layered it all onto my white card base.  I find that white card bases give my cards a more clean look (and they make the writing on the inside show up a lot better). 
 

Strawberry Lotus Thanks

It's the second day of Sale-a-Bration, so here's another Sale-a-Bration idea for you.  How fitting that it's also a thank you card.  That reminds me that I should send out another note of gratitude to someone.  I made this card to use as a sample for the next few months, so I guess I need to go do more stamping so I have some cards to give away.  Hmmm, it's nap time right now, so should I clean my cluttered house or go stamp, hard decision!

Years ago I fell in love with Stampin' Up!'s 2-step Stampin' sets.  Just by stamping some coordinating images (made to layer or combine with each other), you get a beautiful detailed image with very little effort.  Well, the Lotus Blossom set (another Sale-a-Bration set you can earn for FREE) feels like a blast from the past, but it is actually a 3-step stamp!  This set wasn't a must-have at first glance in the Sale-a-Bration brochure, but as soon as I saw it stamped I quickly changed my mind.  I chose Pink Pirouette and Strawberry Slush as my blossom colors, and then added Wild Wasabi for the stem.  I textured the background with the Beautifully Baroque embossing folder to give the card the elegant feel that the blossom hints at.  Hope you enjoy!
 

Sale-a-Bration Thanks

It's the first day of Stampin' Up!'s Sale-a-Bration and it's about time that I get busy stamping!  Life sometimes throws a few curve balls that change priorities around a bit, but it's good to be back.  I'm not a big New Year's Resolution maker, but I am going to try to show my gratitude a little more this year.  In fact, I'm giving out my first two thank you notes today.  This is a quick one that I made for our amazing swimming teacher.  I intended to give a Christmas card to her, but life prevented that from happening.  I figure it's better late than never (although I changed it just to a "thanks" instead of a holiday card).  She is amazing and teaches all three of my children.  I couldn't ask for a better teacher!  We love hanging out at the pool year-round and having lessons is a good excuse to get us there.  I find it only appropriate that I used the color Lost Lagoon for this card--it's a good swimming-ish color, eh?

I made this quick and easy card using the Lost Lagoon card stock along with the coordinating Backgrounds DSP stack.  I textured the card base with the Polka Dot embossing folder (love those embossing folders)!  I added a 1/2 inch strip of the Dazzling Diamonds glimmer paper to bling the card a bit and then finally added my "thanks" using the Sale-a-Bration set called Simply Wonderful (you can get it for FREE with a $50 order).  I punched that with the decorative label punch and mounted it with some Stampin' Dimensionals.  Gotta love 5 minute cards!