Checkin' in!

Well, hubby's out of town again this week, so things are always a little crazy getting everyone organized. And I feel guilty stamping and leaving the kids with no parent to give them quality time... but I did manage to do yesterday's colour challenge tonight. It was Kraft, Black and Rose Red. I have a teen girl on my caseload whose birthday is in a couple of weeks; this one will be going out to her:

I love this girl. She is turning 17 but she is quite intellectually delayed. She LOVES the Backstreet Boys and actually got to go to their concert in Toronto a couple of weeks ago! OMG she was in seventh heaven! :o) She is IN LOVE with Nick Carter and has been wearing the same, threadbare BSB tshirt for FOUR YEARS, every Tuesday, religiously. I told her to buy herself a few new ones at the concert from me, and to retire the old one. I didn't want her to have to part with it though, so I suggested she make a pillow out of it and keep it on her bed. She liked that idea :o)

I also love my own children. I do. Even when they challenge my parenting and my patience. Take, for example, my 7yo (deep breaths). He's been very oppositional lately. Not sure what's gotten into him. Even the teachers at day camp have told me he's had issues there with not listening, getting physical with his brother... *sigh* I don't know what's wrong with him? Maybe the stress of going back to school? This morning he was mad at me because I made him wear a fleece hoodie over his sleeveless tshirt (it was 10C!!!); he called me a "mean mom". Tonight I was a "mean mom" because I "made" him lie to his friends because he told them he was getting a skateboarding magazine tonight, but I didn't want to take him to the store so he could buy it. And then I "made" him punch my craft table and kick stuff around because he was mad that he couldn't go and mad that I "made" him lie. Ah the logic of a 7yo. I tried to correct him and point out that he chose to hit/kick when he was mad, and that he could have made a better choice by, say, going to his room to cool off, but I might as well have been speaking Swahili. Instead he just kept sassing me. So he was sent to bed an hour early. Ugh.

Now you know why I stamp. It's therapy. LOL!

Happy Stampin'!

A-M

WOW! Faux embossing

This week's featured technique on SCS' Technique Lover's Challenge was a new one for me: faux dry embossing. Lynn, our new hostess for this weekly challenge, gave some very good directions for this simple WOW technique (click on the link above for details), and the card above is what I came up with. Isn't it cool?

The effect of this technique is kind of difficult to see from this photo, but you can see it better in this close up:

doesn't it look like it's embossed? It's really just a trick of the eye, achieved by layering a white image with a coloured one, one slightly offset from the other. Definitely WOWed me, in any case :o)

Happy stampin'!

A-M

It's VSN WEEKEND!

What is VSN, you ask? Why, it's Virtual Stamp Night - an online stamping event on Splitcoaststampers that occurs every few months, where a new challenge is posted every hour and stampers have 45 minutes to complete their card. Sound like crazy fun? ABSOLUTELY! :o) It's been a busy weekend, though, and I haven't been able to do all of the challenges yet, but I have until tomorrow night at 11pm to complete and upload them, so I should be able to finish. I have only done it from start to finish, in real time, twice - WHAT A RUSH!! My craft room was a disaster, but at the end of it I had something like 18 new cards, and tried lots of new techniques. I won't post all of my cards here (I've done 9 so far, and should have 15 by the time I'm done tomorrow), but I will post my favourite to date:

Isn't it adorable? The challenge involved using a color scheme that was inspired from the title of one of Joanne Fluke's novels, which all refer to a baked good of some kind (the theme for this VSN is BOOKS). I chose Key Lime Pie (YUM!). You can view the rest of my VSN album here, or better yet, COME PLAY!

Happy Stampin,

A-M

Tote THIS!

Isn't this the CUTEST tote?? It was designed by fellow SU! demo Andrea Walford, and as soon as I saw it this morning, I knew I had to try it! I altered her dimensions slightly to make a smaller tote. So the piece for my base is actually 4" x 6.5", and the pieces of DP are 6" x 8.5" and 6" x 7". My tote features the retired Berry Bliss Designer Paper (DP), as well as the Wonderful You stamp set (told ya it was one of my current faves LOL). I think I will put 4 or 5 cards in there and save it for a hostess gift.

Why don't you try one? They are a lot easier to make than they look.

Happy Stampin'!

A-M

You know summer's over when...

...soccer winds up! Tomorrow is the last soccer game for my 5yo, and it's also my turn to bring treats. I went to the grocery store to buy fruit tonight, but they were all out - guess I'll have to run there after work tomorrow after all... But I also wanted to give them a special treat since this is their last game, so I decided to make up little bags of candy and decorate them with little tags. All in the Family was the perfect choice for a stamp image!

This little one is for a girl, but I made some little boys too (there are three girls and five boys on the team). This is their team colours, too. Aren't they cute?

*sigh* It's really beginning to feel like fall, too. Mornings are soooo chilly! And I can't believe there are less than two weeks left before school starts! EEK! For once I have all of my shopping done. Although you know the kids are going to come home with another list on their first day!!

By the way, don't forget to check out my list of retired stamp sets that I am selling! There are still many nice ones left!

Happy Stampin'!

A-M

Fall Flowers

I recently joined another SU!-related Yahoo group, moderated by Jacqui Lines, a wonderful lady I met in April at a retreat in Kingston. This group does weekly challenges, and I joined just in time to participate in this week's challenge, which is a colour challenge. The palette - Tangerine Tango, Old Olive, More Mustard and So Saffron - is very fall-inspired, hence the name of this post.

The card I made features a Two-Step Stampin' set called Wonderful You, which is currently in my Top Five list - it's very versatile, and I've used the other main image (a leaf print) for many masculine cards, too! The colour palette immediately inspired me to use the two-step technique, as the orangey-yellows Jacqui picked all coordinate so well with each other. And to be different, I used a rub-on for the sentiment (from the A Perfect Day set).

What do you think?

Getting organized!

I love the beginning of the school year - always have! And I always start the year so organized. Sometimes, this organized state even lasts until December! ;o) This year I read a great school organization tip in Northumberland Kids magazine - it's by the "15-Minute Mom", who always has awesome tips! She suggests getting clipboards for each child and hanging them somewhere central (the kitchen is always the hot spot in our house, as it is in most homes, I think!), and using them to organize your kids' important papers (school trips, school schedules, sport/activity schedules, etc.) Having three kids, I can tell you that keeping up with everything they need to do for school, Girl Guides, Beavers, blah blah blah, is a nightmare! Plus, my youngest is in Senior Kindergarten, which is an every-other-day kind of thing, which means that he also attends daycare every other day, which means he (ie. ME) has TWO school schedules to contend with! And he's only FIVE!! LOL!

So I went to Dollarama on Friday and picked up three clipboards (yes, for just a dollar each!) and altered them to make them purdy:

I used some of my leftover Jersey Shore Designer Paper, which was retired last week - again, gotta make room for the NEW stuff! :oD The paper was adhered to the clipboards using Mod Podge (remember that stuff? If you did collages in the late 70s, you used Mod Podge LOL) - I like the "Paper Mod Podge" as it doesn't cause the paper to ripple. You can also put a coat of Mod Podge on top of the paper to seal it and make it more durable, but I didn't bother with this project. I girl-ified my daughter's clipboard (with ribbon, scallops and a more flowery paper), and identified each with the kids' initials, stamped with the Big Deal Alphabet set. Aren't they fun? I think I will hang these near the dry-erase board that I also installed in my kitchen this week. And I still need to buy my More Time Moms Family Organizer - it's the best family calendar I have found. I have used it for the last 5 or 6 years. I love it! It's got nice big squares for each day, and stickers for quickly labeling important days. And here's MY tip for making it even more useful for a busy family: I colour code things like appointments, activites, etc. by assigning each family member his or her own colour (I bought gel pens at Micheal's in five different colours). Yeah, I know, I'm a dork LOL! But it does work!

OK, enough 'work' for one day. I think I'll try the Featured Stamper challenge for this week - the featured stamper's gallery is super yummy!

ETA: Here's my card for the Featured Stamper challenge:

I loved the clean look of Jessica's card! I sold my Garden Silhouettes stamp set to another demo so had to sub; I picked the bamboo image from Embrace Life. I also changed the colour scheme - love this combo! It's Old Olive and Chocolate Chip. the Chocolate Chip layer under the layered stamped panel was run through the Cuttlebug with the stylized flower embossing folder.

Happy Stampin'!

A-M

Snow in August?

Well it DID hail this morning... LOL! As strange as it may seem, though, today's Limited Supplies challenge was to make a card featuring a SNOWMAN!! I was so sad when this set retired ("It's Snow Time") - those snowmen were so cute! This card is actually another double-challenge, as it also fulfils yesterday's Ways to Use It challenge, which revolved around Copics. I talked about these alcohol-based markers in an earlier post - once again, as I do not own Copic markers myself, I used the "No Copics, No Problem" technique, which uses regular dye-based markers and an aquapainter (there is a wonderful tutorial here - check it out!).

Now I have to confess, this card is not purely SU!... see the glittery snowflakes on there?

They were made using the small snowflake stamp from the same It's Snow Time set, and a wonderful new-ish product made by Tsukineko called the Essential Glue Pad. It's used like an ink pad, but instead of ink it is an adhesive! So all you need to do is stamp your image and then sprinkle with glitter (I used SU! Dazzling Diamonds for these snowflakes). SO easy! I really hope SU! considers adding this product to their catalogue - it's so much easier than heat & stick powder! Just one step and no heating required! I picked up my glue pad at a LSS (Local Scrapbook Store) for about $15 - it comes with the pad (which is foam and uninked) and a refill bottle. Totally worth it, as far as I'm concerned!

I hope everyone has a nice weekend! In sharp contrast to this 'cool' card, we are planning a day at the beach tomorrow - my sister and her family are heading to Sandbanks Provincial Park for the next few days and we are going to meet them there for the day. Pray for nice weather! :o)

Happy Stampin!

A-M

Watercolour Resist?

I'm not sure what to call this technique - I can't find anything similar on SCS, so I am going to christen it, Watercolour Resist. As I mentioned yesterday, it's a technique I saw at a wonderful stamp store in London called Stamp Art. The card looked stunning even from a distance, and immediately got me curious as to how the effect was achieved. So I picked it up and studied it LOL!

To do this technique, you will need:

- watercolour paper (SU! makes a wonderful version, nice and thick so it can absorb a lot of water without getting warped)

- VersaMark ink

- white embossing powder

- embossing gun

- aquapainter

- classic (dye-based) inkpads and/or reinkers

- line image stamp

For this card I used the Wonderful You stamp set - LOVE the images in this set! First, stamp your image using VersaMark ink onto the watercolour paper. Then emboss using white embossing powder. It will be difficult to see what you are doing when you are stamping your image(s), and you need to work relatively fast or your ink is going to dry and your embossing powder is not going to stick very well. Once the image is embossed, watercolour using your aquapainter and dye-based ink. This card was for this week's Colour Challenge, and uses Elegant Eggplant and Taken with Teal (Old Olive was the third colour, but I did not use it to colour my image). I find that, to get a nice watercolour look to your project, it helps if you slightly wet the area you are going to 'paint' before you apply colour to it. What you'll find with this technique (which also strongly reminds me of silk-painting - which I did quite a bit of years ago), is that the embossed outline will retain much of your colour within the space inside your outline. So what you'll find is that the white outline stands out and blocks out the various 'zones' of your images. Doesn't that look cool? Here is a close-up of one of the flowers:

This card also fulfils this week's Sketch Challenge - which I was THRILLED to see, because it suited this technique perfectly, leaving me with a big panel to stamp and paint (this is really the only suitable stamp I had for this technique and it is quite a large image LOL).

As always, thanks for looking, and Happy Stampin'!

A-M

NEW CATTIE IS HERE!!

YAY!! 'Bout time, too...
Which means it's time to make room for all the NEW GOODIES on my list! :o) Here is what I have so far. If the stamp set name is highlighted, you can click on it to see its SCS gallery, which all feature samples of all the images as well as (in most case) hundreds of samples! All sets (retired) are assembled and in most cases, have seen ink on at least one occasion ;o) I am fairly good at keeping my blocks clean - if there is excessive staining I will note it below. Please note, price is in Canadian dollars and does not include shipping - I have access to Purolator (courier) at work for domestic shipping at very reasonable rates (as in, WAY cheaper than Canada Post in most cases!), but will ship whatever way you prefer (actual shipping costs will be added to price of items). Please contact me by email for arrangements. I accept Paypal and Canadian cheques (order will not be shipped until payment is received and cleared by my bank).
Here is my list:

$5
Background Basics
Riveting - SOLD! (Payment and delivery pending)
Merci - SOLD! (Payment and delivery pending)
Petals Jumbo Wheel - SOLD! (Payment and delivery pending)

$10
In the Spotlight - SOLD! (Payment and delivery pending)
Fun Filled
Event Full
Be Happy
A to Z Accents
Polka Dots and Petals - SOLD! (Payment and delivery pending)
For a Friend - SOLD!
Delight in Life

$15
Basket Full of Fun - SOLD!
Sweet Shapes - SOLD!
Friendly Flowers
Office Accoutrements
Time Well Spent
Dotted (background)

I have some more, older stamp sets also, but have not dug them back out of my secret hideaway yet. If there is enough interest, I may go searching through... And I have to tell you, some of these I am very sad to part from... Most notably, Office Accoutrements, Sweet Shapes and Delight in Life. But I know from experience that with all of the new sets that I will be getting, these will be sadly neglected, and if they can find a new friend to get inky with, then so much the better :o)
And I know I promised I would do the SCS colour challenge tonight, but to be honest I am POOPED from my looooong day of driving to and from London, AND I have a new cattie calling my name from my table... I will do it though, I promise! I also saw a FAB technique at an awesome stamp store in London (Stamp Art - check it out if you are ever in the area!), and I made a mental note to share it with you soon also.
Happy Stampin'!

A-M

It's time...

...for the big reveal! LOL! My blog is now officially named! What do you think? Surprisingly, the name was suggested by my husband (I know, SHUT UP!!!) Who knew he had a creative bone in his body?... I tried to resist but, damn, it was too good to pass up... Thanks to those of you who took the time to make suggestions also - I really appreciated that you did! :o)

Now for cattie news: no, I have not received my supply order yet (or my complimentary demo copy). So like the rest of you, I have had to wait patiently at the SU! website to try to load the online version. Be patient, people - it appears there are several (thousands) of us (demos and customers) who have yet to get our hot little hands on a hard copy, and we are apparently overloading the server... but that being said, DON'T GIVE UP!! It is totally worth waiting for, from what I have seen so far!! And hopefully, I will have my order by week's end, and you can all fight each other for your very own copy :o)

Well, that's all I have tonight. It's been a busy work day for me, and I have an early morning tomorrow (driving to London and back - about a 4 1/2-hour drive from here, each way). I will definitely get the SCS colour challenge done tomorrow (if nothing else, it's the one challenge that I try to do each week), and should have something to post at that time.

OH!! And I have another winner to announce!! I had posted an online survey for my customers, and it was also closing last night. I drew randomly from the names of the customers who answered my survey, and the winner is HAPPY MIREAULT!! (Yes, her name really is Happy - and she TOTALLY suits it! :o) ) CONGRATULATIONS HAPPY!! As soon as I get my catalogue and can place that first order, you will be the lucky recipient of a brand-spankin', never-before-seen-new stamp set, as well as other assorted goodies. Thanks SO MUCH to everyone who participated in the survey, also - this blog is actually partially in response to the feedback you provided on that survey.

Oh, and I guess it wouldn't be a stamping blog if I didn't upload at least ONE photo, so here's one of a card I made a few weeks ago featuring some of our new In Colors (LOVE THEM!! This project features Kiwi Kiss, Tangerine Tango and Pink Pirouette):




Isn't it cute? It is a super easy design - and the scallop layer is made that much easier with the use of the new scallop border punch!! Oh and the pink ribbon is actually white taffeta ribbon that I dyed using Pink Pirouette reinker - just squirt some reinker on the inside of your stamp pad lid, and use your aquapainter to pick up the ink. Then simply 'paint' your ribbon - TA-DA! Make sure you use paper towel to avoid getting ink all over the place. You might also need to use your embossing gun to dry your ribbon. This technique can also be used to dye the silk flowers from the Pretties Kit, so they perfectly match whatever project you are working on. Easy-peasy!
OK, I'm really off now.

Happy Stampin'!

A-M

Feelin' inspired

In more ways than one. First, I have made a card for this week's Inspiration Challenge. The inspiration piece - place settings - reminded me of two of the new SU! In Colors (Baja Breeze and Riding Hood Red), so that's what I started with. Then the round shape of the plate inspired me to make a 'tent card' with a circular cut-out (using my Coluzzle). And the designs on the china reminded me of the Embrace Life stamp set, so that is what I used.

The card also features one of the new In Colour buttons that will be available TOMORROW (still no cattie, btw). One side of the button is shiny and kind of rounded (the side I chose to show on this card), while the other is kind of sanded looking, with a circular groove (which you can see the underside of on this close-up as well). I don't know if you're supposed to be able to use both sides like that? I think the matte side is supposed to be the 'right' side, but I kind of like the shiny side better...

My second 'inspiration' involves the NAME OF MY BLOG!! I think I have a winner, but said I would wait until the end of today for anyone to post their inspired names. The name was actually suggested by my DH (I know!! Who knew?), but I don't want to have to give him my blog candy (he wouldn't appreciate it anyway - he thinks all my cards "look the same" - the nerve, eh??), so PLEASE SUBMIT YOUR IDEAS!! I'm sure someone out there can come up with a name to top the one he came up with! :o) I will REVEAL the winning name tomorrow night.

Happy stampin'!

A-M

Jewels for a Friend

HEY did you know tomorrow's my birthday? Yep. Today is officially the LAST DAY I will have been 40 years old. That deserves some bling, right? Which is why I was thrilled that today's Ways to Use It challenge involved using JEWELS in your card!

I am trying to build up my collection of samples for the new catalogue season, so decided to use items that will all still be available come next week. The stamps I used were from two different sets: Fresh Cuts and All Holidays. I also used three of the NEW '08 In Colors: Pink Pirouette, Riding Hood Red and Kiwi Kiss. I think KK is going to be my favourite :o) And the bling is all from the Pretties Kit, which was not retired! The punched out five-petal flower (in Pink Pirouette) was sponged with Riding Hood Red, as I felt it did not stand out enough when I first put it there as I was designing the card.

And NEWSFLASH: I still have not received my catalogues. My toes are twitchin'. I have not even received my complimentary demo copy!! AAAAARGH! Canada Post sucks. *sigh* Here's hopin' that I get a surprise bday cattie in the mail tomorrow...

And HEY, don't forget to give me ideas for naming this blog!! Only THREE DAYS LEFT!! :o)

Happy stampin'!

A-M

Neglected garden

Yeah, well, weeds are technically perennials, right?... It's a losing battle, so I may as well give up LOL! Actually, I was really referring to this stamp set, called Garden Whimsy, which was a "must have" as soon as I got the new catalogue this time last year, but which has alas not seen nearly enough ink. So I'm showing it a little love with this week's Sketch Challenge over at SCS.



This card is actually very simple, no fancy techniques here. The only 'technique' to speak of is what I did to the larger butterfly, which is called the "rock and roll" technique. Basically, I inked the butterfly in Pumpkin Pie, and then rolled the edges of the stamp in Real Red before stamping onto my cardstock. This simple technique yields lovely depth and colouring to solid images. I use it often in my classes and workshops and stampers are always amazed at the results they get :o) I have also used the Summer Picnic Designer Paper on this project - SO HAPPY to hear that it will be offered in the new catalogue next week!! YAY!! I'm onto my third package of it and was hoping I would get to keep demonstrating its versatility this coming season! Plus I love the colour combination it uses: very fresh and fun. In case you are wondering, the two triangles of designer paper are actually a 2 3/4" square that I cut diagonally - easy, huh? And the 'grass' is just a strip of designer paper that I snipped randomly with my scissors - that's it!

Why don't you try the sketch challenge? Post your card to SCS and leave me a comment with the link!

Happy stampin'!

A-M

Ta-ta, In Colors!

This week's Colour Challenge on Splitcoaststampers challenged us to use one or more of the retiring '07 In Colors in the design of our card/project. This card features three of my fave from the six - Soft Sky, Blue Bayou and River Rock. Purely Pomegranate was definitely in my faves also, but somehow didn't really go with the scheme I picked? Perhaps I will design another card this week to honor this other fallen hero... To be honest, the other two colours - Groovy Guava and Wild Wasabi - didn't really do it for me. But to each her own, right?

This card also features a technique called, "emboss resist" for the main panel. This technique involves stamping an image using Versamark ink and then embossing it with clear embossing powder (in this case, I stamped Versamark onto Soft Sky cardstock). Then, using a brayer, you ink over the entire surface using a darker ink (in this case, Blue Bayou) - the ink will colour the plain cardstock, but will not stick to the embossed image, thus revealing the light-coloured image you have stamped! This technique is also perfectly suited to our Glossy White paper - this gives your project an entirely different, glossy finish (as opposed to the matte effect you get by using regular cardstock like I did here). Here is a close-up of the emboss resist panel:

Along with the 'old' I have also used one of our NEW products that is coming out next week - can you guess what it is?? Our new SCALLOP BORDER PUNCH!! Yep - no more lining up the corner rounder punch a gazillion times to get that scallop border! I know, it's gonna make your life SO much simpler, isn't it? You won't be able to live without it, am I right?... Perfect scallops without the headache. You know you waaaaant it. ;o)

Only SIX MORE SLEEPS until the new catalogue comes into effect! Can you tell I'm excited? I have to say, I was way envious of all my demo colleagues who got to go to the SU! convention in Salt Lake City over the weekend, and who not only got their copy of the catalogue when they arrived, but got to PLAY with some of the new stamps and toys. I had promised myself I would go this year, but unfortunately because of our family vacation plans, I had to let go the dream... But NEXT YEAR, baby!! It's also rumoured to be happening around my bday next year, so HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO ME!! :oD

Alright, that's it for me tonight. PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE don't forget to participate in my blog-naming contest (see post below) - yummy blog candy to the one who comes up with the best name!

Happy Stampin'!

A-M

Arrrrrr...

My boys LOVE this pirate! So it's a favourite go-to set when I have to make cards for their friends' birthday parties (three in the next week - ACK!) I therefore used today's Technique Lover's Challenge on SCS as a starting point for my card. This week's featured technique is called a Square Spring Card - isn't it fun? It folds down flat and fits perfectly into a standard card envelope, too!

I am making a commitment to use some of my retired designer papers to make room for all the NEW DPs coming out next week (I've spied some of the designs on the blogs of demos who were at the SU! convention on the weekend - YUM!), so this card uses a DP that was retired a year ago (I can't for my life remember what it was called tho...). Also, the main image panel uses a technique developed by a fellow Canadian SCSer named Julie Buhler, which she calls "No Copics, No Problem!" (check out her fabulous tutorial here). Copic markers are outrageously expensive professional-grade, alcohol-based markers that were originally used by Japanese comic-book illustrators. They are now very popular amongst stampers and other paper-crafters, as they provide flawless colouring with infinite blending possibilities. Alas, as I've already mentioned, they are also outrageously expensive LOL! So Julie developed a technique that allows you to use our own SU! markers to achieve very similar results, with the help of aquapainters and watercolour paper. Yes, it is a painstaking technique, but it yields awesome results! I finished off the card with a photocorner adorned with some hemp twine, and a SU! button threaded with linen thread. It's now ready to go!! Not sure which of the three little birthday boys this one will go to - I will let the boys decide.

Happy Stampin'!

Name this blog!

OK, twist my rubber arm... I'm jumping on the blogging bandwagon. I resisted, I did, but have now realized that resistance is futile. Actually, all truth be told, this is my second attempt at blogging. I started this blog about two years ago (the name has been changed to protect the innocent) and I *think* the last time I posted to it waaaaaaas... a year-and-a-half ago? And I can count the number of visitors on three fingers, so... Hopefully this is a more interesting venture.

Introductions: my name is Anne-Marie, and I live in a small town in southcentral Ontario (Canada), on the shores of beautiful Lake Ontario. By day, I am a social worker. The rest of the time, I'm a mom to three busy kids, a wife, a terrible housekeeper, and a STAMPER! Capitals and exclamation mark and all, as this is the primary purpose for this blog - to share my love of stamping with the rest of the cyberworld (did I mention that I am also a Stampin' Up! demonstrator?)

And in an attempt to start things off with a bang, I am proposing a wee contest - NAME THIS BLOG and WIN SOME BLOG CANDY! Obviously, "The Bandwagon" is not a very creative title, and for some reason I can't come up with anything clever this morning (although "Hold No Punches" was a brief and promising contender as I was pondering this issue in the shower). So please post your suggestions here - I will pick a winner next Sunday, August 10 and officially name my blog. The winner will receive the darling set of four notecards that I made for the Splitcoaststampers Inspiration Challenge this weekend:

It features three of Stampin' Up!'s newest In Colors, which will be available for purchase beginning August 12. Here's a close-up of one of the cards, featuring textured Baja Breeze cardstock:

The green is called Kiwi Kiss - aren't the colours gorgeous? Kind of retro and contemporary, all at the same time.

So, let your creative juices flow and post your ideas! Can't wait to see what you come up with! Remember, the theme of this blog is STAMPING and PAPER CRAFTS.

Happy stampin'!

A-M