Are you thinking about your Easter cards yet?  This is from the set called Abundant Hope from the Occastions Mini Catalog (p 24).  It is really designed for an Easter card – but here you'll see another way to combine it with the Only Ovals set (a must have!) for a thank you card.  The Abundant Hope set comes with it's own greetings;

• Easter Blessings
• Rejoicing with you in the abundant mercy and hope of Christ the Lord

This card was designed by my downline Sue Hood – I love the contrast of the colors and the texture she created in the background by using the texturz plates. 

We are winding down to the last few weeks of Sale-a-Bration. . .think ahead and order your Easter card and project stamp sets today – while you get the Sale-a-Bration freebies!

Friends – you are all welcome to join me the 3rd Monday of every month for an open workshop night at my stampin' spot!  This is the perfect solution when you want a night out, don't have a Stampin' Up! workshop to go to and you just plain want to have fun!   Bring a friend and come on over!   This month, we will concentrate on layouts.  Using simple layouts, how can you use different stamp sets, layers, and techniques to give you different looks. 

Join me on March 15 at 6:30pm.  Don't forget to RSVP as I want to have make-n-take supplies for everyone!

with a quick and easy scrapbook! 

Can I say, I love quick and easy?  This was made in l hour from concept to finish – including journaling!  What do you think?  I am sure you can find an hour to make this memory that will look great on your coffee table – and your friends will think it’s great too!

This scrapbook celebrates the fun I had at the Stampin’ Up! convention in 2008.  Many of my downline went and we had a great time celebrating with each other.  In this pic, Sue, Tatiana and myself enjoyed a great night of entertainment from a Minnesota group – Tonic Sol Fa!  They were awesome – and they are coming back this year!  (If you want to go to convention with me – it’s not too late.  Give me a call and I’ll tell you when and where)

To make this scrapbook, you will need the clear Card, Telephone & Address die from the bigz clear die sizzix line.  The clear die is just that, clear so that you can place over your picture and see what the result will be.  Then you just flip and send through your sizzix!  I bought the holder from WM. 

This gorgeous card was one I created for my stamp a stack this weekend – wish you were there!  The embossing folder – Manhattan Flower is only $7.95 and creates such gorgeous cards so easily!  In this creation, I brayered baja breeze ink on the folder and placed a sheet of white cardstock over the top and sent it on through my big shot and Voila!  This was a technique shown to us at the Minneapolis Regional a couple of weeks ago – finally got around to trying this new technique!

I also used the baja breeze prints paper, Basic Grey cardsock, Oval All stamp set from the Occasions Mini catalog (NEW!) and the scallop oval punch coupled with the large oval punch.  Yummy!  The pearl is from the Pretties kit.  Make sure you check out the Oval All stamp sent in the mini catalog - I think it is a great set and very versatile as well. 

My next stamp a stack is May 14 – but you could host your own before that!

Check out this customer favorite from Techniques Class and Big Shot Class night last week – bet you wish you were there!  This card uses a great technique utilizing your brayer and the texturz plate (page 203) of your choice.  Simply brayer your plate with your ink color selection and then cover with a thin sheet of paper and send through your Big Shot.  The original color of cardstock will come through on the raised images.  The cool effects you can get with this technique by changing cardstock and ink colors certainly is stimulating my creative juices! 

In this card, the base is Bashful Blue with Sahara Sand.  I brayered Chocolate chip on my texturz plate and placed a piece of Bashful Blue cardstock on it.  The flower is from our Die Cuts Blooms (they’re from textured cardstock, soooo easy to work with – and inexpensive!).  Check them out on page 181.  I also used 1" Chocolate Chip Double Stitched ribbon (page 178) and the Flower assortment brads (page 175). 

I am lovin’ the Occasions Mini Catalog. . . and did you see the Stampin’ Up! special that coincides with the mini? 

This set is called Scene in a Garden and is on page 4 in the mini.  In fact, you’ll see a card very similar to this on that page.  (I had to add ribbon!)  This was a WOW card at club this month.  After embossing, we used bleach to wipe out the color in some sections and then using a blender pen and pastels colored over the top.  The bench isn’t bleached but, instead, I used the versamark pen to highlight it.  The phrase is from Curvy Verses stamp set.