Greenhouse Spritz & Shimmer

I had made this card a while back… thought I had posted it (during the 2-Step into Spring Promotion…) and alas, I have not! Whoops! So here it is, a card showcasing the "Greenhouse Garden" stamp set – which you can of course sill order!

ALY'S HELPFUL HINTS:

• To achieve this shimmery watercolored look on the flowers, you're going to mix up ahead of time some Rubbing Alcohol and Champagne Mist Shimmer Paint in a Sprtiz Bottle. Then, ink up your bold, colored, base image (So Saffron, Rose Red and Bashful Blue shown here) and BEFORE stamping the image on your cardstock, give the rubber and ink a direct sprtiz with our Shimmer Mist. This will add shimmer and blend your ink!
• The spritz look to the left of the main image was done with a Color Spritzer Tool and a Rose Red Stampin' Write Marker – sprtizing all the way through (a theme I seem to have going on these days!)
• Paper Piercing is made easing with the Stampin' Up! Mat Pack and Paper Piercing Tool, as shown along the thin strip of Sahara Sand Cardstock.
• Using the Corner Rounder on cardstock adds a look of subtle softness to any project!

Did you notice that I used the Champagne Mist Shimmer Paint that was in the Holiday Mini Catalog? Did you know that it's still available for purchase!? That's right! The Shimmer Paints and several other products from both the Holiday Mini and Occasions Mini Catalog are being carried over! To help you keep track of what you can still order, I've posted a PDF link to a printable brochure. Here's a look at the brochure…

To download a full sized version of this brochure, just click the "Carry Over Products" icon on the sidebar to the right under Catalogs!

WHAT TO ORDER:

Greenhouse Garden Stamp Set (113824), Rose Red Cardstock (102544), Rose Red Classic Ink (101778), Rose Red Stampin' Write Marker (100063), So Saffron Cardstock (105118), So Saffron Classic Ink (105213), Bashful Blue Classic Ink (105209), Sahara Sand Cardstock (105328), Sahara Sand Classic Ink (105208), Confetti White Cardstock (102028), Pretties Kit (109114), Corner Rounder (109047), Paper Piercing Tool (116631), Mat Pack (105826), Mini Glue Dot (103683), Stampin' Dimensionals (104430), Bashful Blue Satin Ribbon (117290) and Champagne Mist Shimmer Paint (116806)

TO ORDER STAMPIN' UP! PRODUCTS ONLINE 24/7 CLICK HERE!

Don't Forget!

• To register for the June Scrapbooking Class, "It's a Journey"!! Click Here for more details!!
  
• To register for the June Card Making Class, "Cards for Him"!! Click Here for more details!!
  
• To order from the Clearance Rack Today!!! Click Here to get started!!
  
• To join the Stampin' Up! Family and receive two FREE Technique DVDs! Click Here for more details! Contact Me to get started today!
  
• To order your favorite Retiring Stampin' Up! Colors before they are gone forever! Click Here for more details!
  
• To place a qualifying order to receive FREE Designer Brads! Click Here for more details!

I’ve Entered the Video Tutorial World!

That's right!! I've entered the world of video techniques and YouTube… eeeeek! I actually had FUN editing the Retreat Weekend Video, so decided to see if I could do a How To/Technique Video… that was kinda fun, too! So I've decided to run with it and begin uploading Video Tutorials.

My hope is that these videos will help better support my long distance customers and downline who cannot come to my classes, while at the same time provide another tier of service to the locals…

Off to the left sidebar you will now see a BRAND NEW Button that looks like this:

Just click the piece of Hodgepodge Hardware and you'll be brought to my brand new YouTube Channel! There you will be able to view all of my videos that are archived (we're not quite there yet with the "ALL of my videos"…. but will be SOON!) and subscribe to my Channel for updates!

So… here goes Video Tutorial #1 on Smootch Spritz and Presto Patterns Specialty Paper!

ALY'S HELPFUL HINTS:

WHAT TO ORDER:

Presto Patterns Specialty Paper (117175), Log Cabin Smootch Spritz (119921), Color Catcher (121093), Chocolate Chip Satin Ribbon (117287), River Rock Classic Ink (Coming SOON!), Chocolate Chip Classic Ink (100908), Whisper White Cardstock (100730), Filigree Designer Brads (112577 – FREE with Qualifying Order this Month!), Pretties Kit (109114), Corner Rounder (109047) and Brayer (102395)

TO ORDER STAMPIN' UP! PRODUCTS ONLINE 24/7 CLICK HERE!

Don't Forget!

• To watch the Spring Retreat Highlights Video Here!
  
• To register for the May Card Making Class!! Click Here for more details!!
  
• To order from the Clearance Rack Today!!! Click Here to get started!!
  
• To join the Stampin' Up! Family and receive two FREE Technique DVDs! Click Here for more details! Contact Me to get started today!
  
• To order your favorite Retiring Stampin' Up! Colors before they are gone forever! Click Here for more details!
  
• To place a qualifying order to receive FREE Designer Brads! Click Here for more details!
  
• To order your May Card Kit of the Month!! Click Here for more details!

Happy Birthday to Mom!

Finally!! I can share my mom's Birthday gift with all of you!!! Her Birthday is the same as mine, January 17th, but our family Birthday party just kept getting pushed back and back, finally we got together yesterday to celebrate January & February Birthdays so she's received it and I can share it!

First, here is the card:

And a close up of the card…

Then here is the box for her gift that I made to match the card:

And a close up of the box…

And then what was inside the box…

And a look at the Simply Adorned Bracelet & Charms!

A close up of this side of the charms…

The charms are reversible, here is the other side!

ALY'S HELPFUL HINTS:

• This set is ALL about vintage stamping!! Shelli gave a Vintage Stamping Presentation and Leadership and I fell in love… ever since, I've been ALL over it! In fact, I'm going to be teaching a Vintage Stamping & Stencils Class as part of our Spring Retreat in April!
• The thing I've been using most in my vintage stamping is the "Color Spritzer Tool" and a Chocolate Chip Marker. That's how I've gotten the splattered look you see here and there, see the flower pictured to the right for a sample of what I mean.
• I've also been using the heck out of the Pretties Kit with Vintage Stamping! I just love pulling in some pearls and "bling". While the Pretties Kit has some fabulous Rhinestone Brads, I've actually been using the Self-Adhesive Rhinestones in the Egg Decorating Kit right now. I just love the ease of peeling and sticking them on!
• Another great element to Vintage Stamping is creating some Shimmer Paint Mist by combining Rubbing Alcohol and Champagne Mist Shimmer Paint in a water spritzer and spritzing your cardstock or DSP with it.

WHAT TO ORDER:

Tiny Tag Stamp Set (118091 – Wood, 118592 – Clear), Charming Stamp Set (116519), Bella's Bloom Stamp Set (111600 – Purchased, 120228 – Code to take it FREE During SAB!), SAB Exclusive Set Vintage Labels (118392 – Wood, 119122 – Clear), Kaleidoscope Designer Series Paper (115680), Extra Large Fancy Flower Punch (118073), Medium Jewelry Tag Punch (117190), Eggcellent Eggs Kit (117179), Chocolate Satin Ribbon (117287), Simply Adorned Bracelet (117342), Simply Adorned 5/8" Circle Charm (117349), Simply Adorned 5/8" Square Charm (118476), Champagne Mist Shimmer Paint (116806), Rose Red 12×12 Cardstock (107086), Gable Green Cardstock (102795), So Saffron Cardstock (105118), Very Vanilla Cardstock (101650), Basic Brown Classic Ink (104315), Chocolate Chip Stampin' Write Marker (100071), Rose Red Classic Ink Pad (101778), Styled Silver Hodgepodge Hardware (111325), Pretties Kit (109114), Designer Label Punch (107590), 1 1/4" Square Punch (104400), Color Spritzer Tool (107066), Mini Glue Dots (103683), Stampin' Dimensionals (104430), Big Shot Die Cut Machine (113439) and Stampin' Up! Blossom Party Die (115971)

TO ORDER STAMPIN' UP! PRODUCTS ONLINE 24/7 CLICK HERE!

Don't Forget!

• To order your March Card Kit of the Month! Click Here for more details!!
  
• To Sign Up for the Spring Card Class! Click Here for more details!!
  
• To Sign Up for our Spring Stamping Retreat Weekend!! Click Here for more details!
• To place your qualifying orders to earn FREE Stamp Sets, it's Sale-A-Bration!! Click Here for more details!

U Pick 2: Quilted Bird

It's time for the eighth and final U Pick 2 Card for January – April! This card features the brand new bird 2-Step Punch, and quilting with paper, punches and the big shot!

Because this is a U Pick 2 offering, you won't find Aly's Helpful Hints here. BUT, you'll get LOTS of Helpful Hints AND get to make the card yourself when you coordinate a U Pick 2 Private Stamping Class of your own! Click Here for more details.

So as I said before, that completes our U Pick 2 Menu!! Be sure to check out the full offering by selecting "U Pick 2" in the Navigation Bar:

And then don't forget to Contact Me to schedule your U Pick 2!!! The first 3 people to schedule a U Pick 2 by e-mailing me from this post will get a bonus FREE Stamp Set!!!!

One of the punches that we're using on this card, the Scallop Trim Border Punch, is something that you can earn for FREE During Sale-A-Bration by spending just $50!! Here's a look at the punch:

WHAT TO ORDER:

Extra Large Two-Step Bird Punch (117191), Sweet Pea Designer Series Paper Stack (117161), Old Olive Satin Ribbon (117292), Scallop Trim Border Punch (Earn it FREE During Sale-A-Bration!), Rose Red Cardstock (102544), Chocolate Chip Cardstock (102128), Pumpkin Pie Cardstock (105117), Whisper White Cardstock (100730), Horizontal Slot Punch (105089), Big Shot Die Cut Machine (113439), Top Note Bigz Die (113463) and Stampin' Dimensionals (104330)

TO ORDER STAMPIN' UP! PRODUCTS ONLINE 24/7 CLICK HERE!

Don't Forget!

• To order your February Card Kit of the Month! Click Here for more details!
  
• To order your 14 Days of Love (Bandit!) Class on the Go! Click Here for more details!
  
• To contact me about registering for the Syracuse, NY Regional Seminar!!
  
• To Sign Up for our Spring Stamping Retreat Weekend!! Click Here for more details!
• To place your qualifying orders to earn FREE Stamp Sets, it's Sale-A-Bration!! Click Here for more details!

U Pick 2: Spring Leaf Prints

I had a lot of fun with the 5th U Pick 2 Card! I don't usually work in these colors, but this fabulous "Shades of Spring" Designer Series Paper really pushed me out of my element!

Because this is a U Pick 2 offering, you won't find Aly's Helpful Hints here. BUT, you'll get LOTS of Helpful Hints AND get to make the card yourself when you coordinate a U Pick 2 Private Stamping Class of your own! Click Here for more details.

WHAT TO ORDER:

Kind & Caring Thoughts (Hostess Freebie! 115324), Well Scripted Stamp Set (117072), Shades of Spring DSP (117160), Pretty in Pink 5/8" Satin Ribbon (117289), Whisper White Cardstock (100730), Sahara Sand Classic Ink (105208), Certainly Celery Cardstock (105125), So Saffron Cardstock (105118), Orchid Opulence Cardstock (100969), Orchid Opulence Classic Ink (101859), Pretty in Pink Stampin' Write Marker (100045), Pretty in Pink Cardstock (100459), Certainly Celery 1/4" Grosgrain Ribbon (109031), Horizontal Slot Punch (105089), Color Spritzer Tool (107066) and Stampin' Dimensionals (104430)

TO ORDER STAMPIN' UP! PRODUCTS ONLINE 24/7 CLICK HERE!

Don't Forget!

• To place your qualifying orders to earn FREE Stamp Sets, it's Sale-A-Bration!! Click Here for more details!
  
• To register for the Valentine's (and more!) Class – Click Here!

A Rose for You

I had way too much fun watercoloring this rose! It's a little early for a Mother's Day Card… but it just sort of happened, it wasn't my intention for it to be that… that was just what RubOn I had that fit in the bracket and worked with the card!

The Designer Paper that I used here is from the Occasions Mini Catalog and it comes from this FABULOUS SLAB of paper!!! 48 sheets of Designer Series Paper — heaven! And it's such a wonderful price. 48 sheets would normally cost $39.80 in normal packaging, but in this whole slab is just $24.95!
Check out all of the fabulous prints:

ALY'S HELPFUL HINTS:

• To create this detailed rose, I stamped the image in Basic Brown Classic Ink 3 times on Watercolor Paper. I then cut out different layers of the rose.
• I watercolored the rose by using Pretty in Pink, Regal Rose and Chocolate Chip Watercolor Wonder Crayons and Blender Pens. I just adore Watercolor Wonder Crayons for vibrant watercoloring, and I find that they keep their rich pigment better with Blender Pens. Aqua Painters seem to dilute the color a bit more.
• The ribbon that you see here is one of our fabulous new colored Satin Ribbons! There are 9 delightful colors to choose from in the Occasions Mini Catalog.

WHAT TO ORDER:

Sweet Pea DSP Stack (117161), Pretty in Pink Satin Ribbon (117289), Old Olive Cardstock (100702), So Saffron Cardstock (105118), Basic Brown Classic Ink (104315), Watercolor Paper (105019), Chit Chat RubOns (111804), Rich Regals Brads (106953), Styled Vanilla Hodgepodge Hardware (112454), Small Oval Punch (107304), Eyelet Border Punch (113692), Blender Pens (102845) and Stampin' Dimensionals (104430

TO ORDER STAMPIN' UP! PRODUCTS ONLINE 24/7 CLICK HERE!

Don't Forget!

• To check out Leadership Samples & Updates on my Facebook Fan Page – Click Here!
  
• To place your qualifying orders to earn FREE Stamp Sets, it's Sale-A-Bration!! Click Here for more details!
  
• To order the January Card Kit of the Month – Click Here!
  
• To register for the Valentine's (and more!) Class – Click Here!

Valentine Clear Pouch

I have something to share with you today! Not because I had time to stamp for fun last night, but because I decided to do a different 3-D for the Valentine Class instead of this one. This is an adorable little project so I had to share anyway, but over time the Sticky Strip just isn't holding the pouch together. Not a problem if the recipient eats the candies right away! But I still didn't want to teach it in a class and cause frustration.

ALY'S HELPFUL HINTS:

• I used a Thick Window Sheet to create this pouch – it goes right through the Big Shot with ease, yet another surface that heavy duty machine can cut!
• Sticky Strip, Sticky Strip, Sticky Strip — no other adhesive has a chance at working!
• Tying the Basic Grey Satin Ribbon around the pouch snuggly holds the side flaps down and where you want them to stay.
• I punched out the heart with the Full Heart Punch and jazzed it up with some images.
• The heart in the center of the "i love you" is one of our brand spankin' new epoxy brads from the upcoming Occasions Mini Catalog!

WHAT TO ORDER:

A Happy Heart Stamp Set (111758), Things I Love Stamp Set (115229), Thick Window Sheet (114324), Very Vanilla Cardstock (101650), Basic Grey Classic Ink (109120), Real Red Classic Ink (103133), Full Heart Punch (113693), Sticky Strip (104294), Stampin' Dimensionals (104430), Big Shot Die-Cut Machine (113439), Pillow Box Bigz Die (113466), Basic Grey Satin Ribbon (Coming Jan. 5th!) and Real Red Epoxy Brads (Coming Jan. 5th!)