Stamps And Tea

Great tip for using the new edgelit die!

2012-02-05T05:34:00.000-08:00

Hi!

Have you seen the new edgelits and their matching embossing folders in the Occasions Mini? They are so cool but I was having trouble getting my embossing to line up with my cut edge... watch this short video to give you some great hints on how to use these two pieces together. (Wish I'd known this sooner!)

Another idea I learned at Leadership was to place the edgelit where you want it on your card and then use a post-it note to hold it in place. Saves a LOT of fiddling around! (Another tip I wished I'd known before I made 40 cards using these dies for my Leadership Swaps!)

Look at some of the lovely cards I got!

2011-12-30T06:05:00.000-08:00

One of my favourite, favourite things about Christmas is receiving cards from my friends! I especially love the handmade ones, some of these are just too lovely to put away without sharing... Here are a sample of some of the beautiful ones I received...

I just love the paper piecing on this card from Vicki...

Bev made this card fun by it's unusual fold and she stamped onto foam sheets!

Grace made these beautiful poinsettias using the Big Shot and fabric

Melissa's card combined different textures and bling for a fun effect

Teresa's beautiful card doubled up as her Master's Class homework using DSP to make a lovely "quilted" design

I'll be posting more cards tomorrow so please check back! Don't miss the final days of the clearance rack sale either, click here to find out more!

New Clearance Rack items!

2011-10-02T21:44:00.000-07:00

October is going to be a good month, I can just feel it in my bones! This is just a super quick post to let you know about the new CLEARANCE RACK items! Click here to check them out - right now there are punches, previous year's Halloween stuff and lots of lovely RIBBON (my favorite) Everything is reduced and just "while supplies last" - you can't order these items at a club or workshop you have to order online - so don't delay! Remember - if you ever hit $150+ in orders online you can get the same benefits as a hostess (at $150 you choose $25 additional free! at $200 you choose $35!) This ONLY applies if you order directly through my website www.brendamarshall.stampinup.net Have a wonderful day - Brenda

Look what we did at our BLISS team meeting!

2011-09-11T09:12:00.000-07:00

Before our last team meeting Shoni mailed us all a little packet of card stock and a few embellishments and challenged us to make a card using those materials. We were allowed to use whatever stamp sets or tools we wished but we were not allowed to add any other materials. It was so fun! Here is what we came up with:

Paula's card

Teresa's card

Janessa's card

Pat's card

My card

Tammy's card

I love how we ended up with such different designs from the same basic materials - which one is your favorite?

Be Very Merry at the Very Merry Card Class!

2011-09-09T14:12:00.000-07:00

So I am in total Holiday mode already! I've been working on Halloween treats (already consumed quite a lot), Thanksgiving cards and Christmas/Holiday cards & gift ideas. Somebody get me a candy cane ;-) I am kicking off with a Very Merry Card Class on Monday in the morning or evening - I hope you can come along! Don't you think it would just feel amazing to be able to send some personal handmade cards this year? I think a card in the mail has increased in value exponentially in recent years with the growing trend to send electronic cards and messages. Don't get me wrong: I love to hear from family and friends in whatever form they choose, but I really treasure those envelopes that arrive in the mail with a stamp on them... So here is a peek at the cards we'll be making on Monday, 4 each of 4 designs. There will be 2 more classes like this but with different designs so try to come this week if you'd like to make these!
I hope you are having a great week and I look forward to seeing you soon :-)
Brenda

The Morning After

2011-06-30T06:04:00.000-07:00

We had so much fun at our Oldies but Goodies event! I wish I'd taken more pictures... here's Lindy winning a door prize she really wanted, a ribbon bundle! I'm so sorry to see her leave town :-( Other winners were Marissa, Betty Jo & Vicki. Several people went for the "What was I thinking" dress mode, you can see Heather in the background above in a lovely 80's outfit, complete with the ponytail on the side of her head, ha ha. Robin wore this great Mickey Mouse bling shirt which she ended up giving to me because I loved it so much, very appropriate as I finally earned the 2012 DISNEY TRIP at the 11th hour, yay!!! My kids are over the moon as you can imagine, and I am too!!!

Unfortunately you can't see the full glory of this shirt here. Robin was a 1st grade teacher for many years though so I think that's kind of a requirement to wear clothes that have pictures and bling on them don't you?

Look what I woke up to the next day though - ug. I'm really bad at tidying up as I go along and I always regret that when I get up in the morning!

We made a cute Ghiradelli holder, a fun "Popsicle" card and then decorated one of the pendant notes with one of the pages from my Designer Series Paper sampler, which I won't need any more after today now all that lovely paper is retiring, sniff, sniff! Here is a close up of the easiest card ever:

Today is the last day to order from the current Idea Book & Catalog :-( But tomorrow is a brand new day with a brand new catalog! Let me know if you need to get your hands on a copy, you're going to loooooove it!

I hope you're having a wonderful summer, please let me know if I can be of any help. Brenda

Happy Easter Everybody!

2011-04-24T10:44:00.000-07:00

I hope you are having a lovely Easter - here is a card I made combining ideas from a couple of different people... I love these carrots made from the Trendy Trees set! On my final copy I ran the basket & handle through the lattice square folder which made it way better but I forgot to take a picture :-(
I borrowed the oval frame die to cut the basket. And I used lots of punches on the bunny! 1 3/4" circle, 1/2" circle, large oval for the feet and the boho blossom punch for his tail. Too cute!

Fabric Covered Bookmarks

2011-04-18T10:15:00.000-07:00

Aren't these adorable? These bookmarks are one of the projects that stamp club members got to make this month. We used the Sizzix adhesive sheets to make a piece of card stock sticky, then we stuck the fabric on before running the whole piece through the Big Shot. It looked great just like that! Then I broke out a different type of sticky paper - the sticky sheets that are made from the same material as sticky strip. I wanted to punch out a circle but, in the past, I've found the red rubbery overlay too thick to punch. But I had a brainwave (first ever!) I pulled off the red layer and stuck on a piece of card stock instead. Then I could punch through! I peeled off the backing and got my Melon Mambo Pom-pom trim and laid it around the edge of the sticky circle, TOO CUTE! Then all you have to do is stick a button or ribbon in the middle and you have this lovely embellishment. I punch out a circle of turquoise card stock using the Scallop punch that fits exactly inside the top of the tag. And I used Puffies (Stampin' Dimensionals) to attach the card stock and the button embellishment. I just love these! And this fabric is so... cute! I entered into a quilt block swap and I'm using this fabric. I've never quilted ANYTHING before so I'm in that "What was I thinking?" place right now but I'm excited too! I'll have to show you what I come up with...

This fabric and the pom-pom trim is in the Occasions mini that ends in less than 2 weeks so if you need anything be sure to let me know! Or you can shop online here

Have a great week! Brenda

No Stamping Required!

2011-03-29T21:31:00.001-07:00

Last night was our BLISS team meeting - too much fun! Several of the members bought swaps along for us to make. This is Shoni's card - no stamping at all! She punched out 6 circles from the ice cream parlor Sale-a-bration Designer Series Paper and then we just folded them to a point, no scoring, you just kind of crease a point and flatten the sides over. It was actually easier than I expected. Then we taped them onto a circle and put a brad in the center to cover up the middle which was a little funky. The hardest part was making a little loop in the hemp twine, I just got Shoni to do mine for me ;-)

I can't believe there are only two more days of Sale-a-bration! Have a lovely night. Brenda

BLISS day! Two samples for you :-)

2011-03-28T03:07:00.000-07:00

I am really going to miss this set when it retires on Thursday! Especially because they named it after our team, BLISS (Brenda's Lovely Independent Sassy Stampers ;-) ) Well, maybe they didn't name it after us, but we've had our team name for AGES and so I think we can lay claim to it! We have a team meeting tonight, I can't wait to get together and play with the girls! I love this color combo above, Crumb Cake, Early Espresso & Baja Breeze. And the Vintage Adornments & Baja Breeze seam binding add the finishing touches. Below is a real simple card using the same set. I stamped the images using Concord Crush on Confetti White. This is a great card for beginners. Using a dimensional to pop out the circle and a pearl in the center add a little extra. The greeting is stamped using the Sale-a-bration set So Happy For You. Also retiring on Thursday, yikes! The time has gone so fast! That means you have just 3 days left for Sale-a-bration, you can earn one free set with every $50 you spend.

Only 3 days left for my amazingly brilliant Big Shot promotion too, if you're sitting on the fence it's time to jump! Here's a quick re-cap: purchase the Big Shot ($99.95) and 2 dies of your choice (value at least $43) and here's what you'll get for free!!!

One Embossing folder (value $7.95) of your choice!

THREE Sale-a-bration items of your choice!

$15 of free product of your choice!

One level one hostess set of your choice!

A free BIG SHOT 101 class to help you learn how to use your new toy!

Woo Hoo! It doesn't get any better :-)

Please let me know ASAP if you'd like to take advantage of this terrific special only available from me...

Have a great week! Brenda

Super Easy Card!

2011-03-23T21:35:00.000-07:00

Often I just get way... too complicated! It's good to remember that a handmade card doesn't have to be fancy, there's a lot to be said for a simple card - especially because, if you can make it quickly, you might actually get around to sending it in time! The punches are a huge time saver. I stamped this cute owl using the Sale-a-bration set, Punch Bunch, then it was really quick to punch him out and then, using the same punch, snip out a little pink heart for him. I stamped the hearts on a piece of Pretty in Pink and layered it onto a strip of Designer Series Paper - it honestly took about 2 minutes to make, love that!

Brenda

2011-03-23T08:00:00.000-07:00

I love this card that Susanne made for our BLISS team meeting - I've enjoyed playing with the Sweet Summer Sale-a-bration set, but I've been stuck into more muted colors. When Susanne showed up with this card and it's bright colors and the rhinestones I thought it gave the set a completely different look, isn't it fun? She used the Punch Bunch set for the greeting, I love how the Happy Birthday fits perfectly inside the square scallop punch. Watch for another card later today, I'm playing catch up :-)

Another Sale-a-bration share!

2011-03-18T19:04:00.000-07:00

I love this colorful paper that we've had this year - I decided to make a card that I could tuck some money in... I wanted to use my Scallop die to make the little envelopes but I couldn't fit them on unless I made my card really huge so I decided to cut them down into squares. I love how they came out! I also cut a little piece from the envelope flap in a contrasting color to make the edges pop out. Finally I added some little tags using the Tiny Tag stamp set and the Jewelry tag punch.

Cute Cupcake treat holder!

2011-03-17T13:32:00.001-07:00

We made this easy little treat holder at last month's stamp club - there is a really cute stamp set in the Occasions mini called Create a Cupcake - it matches an equally cute cupcake punch! We stamped the base in Daffodil delight, the frosting in Pretty in Pink and the sprinkles in Melon Mambo. Then it's easy to hold the punch upside down and slide it along until the shape you want matches the stamped image. We learned how to cut the paper into 1" strips before we stamped so that we could save wasting card stock when punching - I'm so cheap - I'm always looking for ways to save on card stock! Then everybody punched out the little cherry from the red Glimmer paper - I love this paper and was making everybody use the teeniest scraps! See how I am?! We wrapped the paper around a candy bar and stuck the cupcake on the front. Too cute! Now I need a birthday party to go to!
Have a great week, watch for another idea tomorrow! Brenda

Nature Walk Card

2011-03-16T05:42:00.001-07:00

From today through the end of March I'm going to be sharing samples using stamps you can get free with Sale-a-bration, the Big Shot or from the Occasions mini! I hope you enjoy them and I hope they inspire you to get out your stuff and start stamping! This one uses the set Nature Walk from the mini - I was trying to get a "vintage" look, which is not my usual style. So I stamped an image from the Notables set and crumpled it and distressed it using the distressing kit before I put it together. I added a Build-a-brad using a scrap of the Botanical Gardens paper, it's ages since I've used those brads and I forgot how fun they are! When Finlay saw this card he said "Mum! It looks like you found it in the street!" I'm thinking that might be a good definition for "vintage" what do you think?

Have a great day and I hope you stop by tomorrow for another sample!

Brenda

Easter is around the corner!

2011-03-01T14:24:00.000-08:00

I have been LOVING this Spring weather! Unusual for this time of year and I know, being Colorado, it could still DUMP but that's not stopping me from enjoying it while it lasts! So, yesterday, I pulled out an Easter set to play with... A Good Egg. I used a sketch from SUDSOL as my starting point.

I used some Sweet & Sour designer paper, which has some varnished areas in, it's hard to see in the picture but it looks really cool in real life. I paper pieced the chick and egg to make it really bold and used the new jumbo scallop circle as well as the 1 3/4" circle. I ended up using five punches on this card, three with the greeting! The word window, modern label and large oval. Then I had to use some of the Melon Mambo pompom ribbon to finish it off...

I had a lot of fun with this card, I hope you enjoy it!

Have a great week, Brenda

Explore Your Creativity with Stampin' Up!

2011-02-17T09:18:00.000-08:00

Here's a little video of Shelli talking about Stampin' Up!'s creative ideas!

Dazzling Baby Card!

2011-02-12T10:03:00.001-08:00

This is a fun little baby card I did last night, we are all waiting for our friends Kyla and Steve to have their baby and we don't know whether it's a girl or a boy, I can't wait to meet that little cutie! I really enjoyed using these dazzling colors which were suggested by a Chat & Challenge on SUDSOL. I stamped the little onesies and then bent a piece of wire to look like a hanger using the retired craft kit, love those pliers! Then I attached them with a puffy to make them pop out. Come on Baby! We're all waiting for you!

A fun playdate

2011-02-06T16:21:00.000-08:00

One of Finlay's friends came over last week for a playdate with me ;-) She worked on some super cute birthday cards and I played with this hostess set, Slice of Life, that is in the new mini - I just love it. I stamped each of the images in Staz-on on a piece of watercolor paper and then colored them in using the watercolor crayons and a blender pen. I edged the mat with the scallop edge border punch and added a strip of Sew Suite designer paper. Quick and easy. You can choose this stamp set for free if you host a workshop before the end of April, OR if you put together an order of $150+, this is in addition to Sale-a-bration sets you earn with every $50 you spend! These extra benefits make this a great time of year to stock up on card stock or adhesive or maybe something on your wish list! My calendar is filling up so please give me a call if you'd like to book a girls night out! Have a great week,

Brenda

Blue Valentine

2011-02-01T13:22:00.000-08:00

Probably the saddest song in the world... I've been thinking about making a "Blue Valentine" all week and this song has been echoing around my head - do you know it? Tom Waits... such a great voice and truly heartbreaking lyrics. Anyway! my card isn't too sad I don't think! I used the rock and roll technique to ink up the main image, inking it first in Baja Breeze and then rolling the edges in Marina Mist. Then I stamped it again in Marina Mist and cut out the banner with the words on and attached it with some puffies. I tied some of the new Baja Breeze seam binding around - the picture really doesn't do it justice, the color is just beautiful and it's so soft and has a lovely sheen! This is one of the cards we are making at card class tonight... I still have openings if you'd like to join me at 6:30! Have a great day - Brenda

Sew fun!

2011-01-30T16:18:00.001-08:00

Today I've been playing with some of the new Stampin' Up! fabric that is in the mini... this is from the Sew Suite collection - I love the designs on all the different things in this line, they are such fun colors and remind me of those fun 50's designs, maybe I've been watching too much Mad Men. However, unlike some of those 50's housewives, I am NOT a seamstress! So far I've made lots of the fabric flowers using the flower folds die - easy, and no sewing required... today I decided to get out of my comfort zone and break out my sewing machine - previously, only used to sew card stock and paper, ha ha! I found this pattern on a website of somebody who knows what she's doing - it really wasn't too difficult and here's what I ended up with... I sewed on one of the giant buttons, also from the mini, and now I have a fun new business card holder! You could also use it for keeping all those loyalty cards that clog up your purse...

Upcoming Events

2011-01-27T09:23:00.000-08:00

I have some fun classes coming up, would you like to join me? Card class next Tuesday at 10 a.m. or 6:30 pm. Above is one of the cards we'll be making, all card are suitable for beginning or experienced crafters. Do this class for FREE with a $25+ order (for four free cards) or a $40+ order (for eight free cards!)

Below are some teeny tiny chipboard albums we'll be making at the end of the month... I only have NINE of these albums so please sign up soon if you're interested! These photo's are just to show the albums, you will have a choice of colors/papers/embellishments etc. More details about all my events are here

Sale-A-Bration Starts Today!

2011-01-25T10:31:00.001-08:00

Look at this cute stamp set! It's called Punch Bunch because each of the images matches one of our punches - I especially like the little owl - match him up with the owl punch and make a quick and easy embellishment! You can't buy this stamp set for any money... but you can get it FREE in either the clear or wood format with any purchase of $50! There are lots of other stamp sets/accessories to choose from too! And you earn one free with EVERY $50 you spend (so if you spend $100 you choose two). Plus if you host a qualifying workshop or stamp club during Sale-A-Bration you will earn a Sale-A-Bration item too! And new demonstrators are getting a discount and LOTS of free extras. Too much fun... This is a great time of year in the Stamping world, please let me know if I can be of any help, or place your order here.

Stamp Sets Anybody?

2011-01-18T16:20:00.000-08:00

We had a great couple of days with the sale and I'm so excited to be able to report that we have over $860 to give to the family... I was stressing yesterday that we wouldn't have a good turnout but we just had a steady trickle the whole time, lots of stuff bought and sold, lots of cards made, M&M's eaten, counting, and reorganizing - lots of fun! Here are some group shots of the stamp sets that are left... If you are interested you can click on the images to see them bigger. If you see anything you fancy please let me know ASAP and we can see if we can make a deal! I will continue to put all the proceeds towards our fundraiser throughout this week... I would just love to get that number up to a round thousand :-) And I'd be happy to mail the stamp sets to you at cost if you're far away! Have a wonderful week - Brenda

GIANT SALE/BENEFIT TODAY & TOMORROW!!!

2011-01-17T08:50:00.000-08:00

The boys and I are getting ready for our BIG SALE today! We are trying to raise money for our friends and neighbors, the Espinosa family, Donnie passed away last week and the family could use a little sunshine right now.

I had a big mountain of stamp sets I've been accumulating and hoarding for years and I decided to try and sell them for the family - then a few of my friends donated some more stamp sets, then a few more friends gave me some to sell on consignment, a percentage of those sales will go into the pot. I also put together a basket of goodies to raffle off, including a $50 gift certificate! If you come along there will be door prizes too, plus you'll get to make a free Valentine's card if you wish. And we are going to stamp up some little notecards to give to the Espinosas too.

Phew!

Please come along if you can! Today, from 3-8 p.m. Tomorrow from 8-11 a.m.

Happy Martin Luther King Day! Brenda

New Journal

2011-01-16T03:44:00.000-08:00

If you have ever attended an class or workshop with me you may well have seen me toting around my giant green notebook. I know the thing to do is to carry all your pertinent info. in a PDA or fancy phone or something but I'm not quite with it yet... I rely, heavily, on my scruffy old notebook. It seems to be the only way I can manage to keep track of money, appointments, just life in general! Anyway, when I saw that we now have the option in My Digital Studio of creating a journal I had to have a go... I used an assortment of pictures from our cruise to decorate mine and hovered by the front door waiting for the UPS man to deliver it. I love it! It's about 6" x 9" and is just a blank book full of lined pages. Perfect, and so much more fun that my giant green notebook! It cost $24.95 which I don't think is a bad price - I'm thinking it would make a great personal gift and you could even design one as a Guest Book at a wedding etc. I'm dying to make more - and I'm sure I'm going to be so much better organized now ;-)

I am having fun getting ready for our Giant Stamp Sale tomorrow and Tuesday. You wouldn't believe how many stamp sets are piling up! I started off with a big pile myself and every day people have been bringing me more. I hope you'll pop by and take a peek! We are raising money for our friends and neighbors, the Espinosa family. Hope to see you!

Have a great week, Brenda

More New Toys!

2011-01-10T20:29:00.000-08:00

It was just a blast playing with all the new toys at our demo. meeting last week! This is the card that Teresa bought along for us all to make, it uses the new set Build a Blossom and the matching punch... really fun! I apologize for my crooked picture... I hadn't been drinking, honest guv.
I love how the Pretty in Pink ink came out on the Vanilla cardstock, much softer than it looks on White. Have a great week and I hope to see you next week at my GIANT stamp set sale, more info. on that tomorrow :-)
Brenda

New Accessories!

2011-01-06T11:28:00.000-08:00

My favorite new accessories (today anyway!) are the bevelled windowpanes - you get a pack of 12 for $5.95 and they really make your image pop. On this card I used the new textured folder to emboss the border. As you can see I embossed a square instead of a rectangle. If you are a member of stamp club you will learning this easy & effective technique next week! I used the Charming stamp for the image and the ribbon is vanilla seam binding - I expected the binding to be much more utilitarian but it's really lovely to use, it's soft and has a gentle sheen.

Have a terrific week!

Brenda

Baby, don't worry, about a thing!

2011-01-05T07:55:00.000-08:00

Last night we had our BLISS demo meeting and everybody bought along a shoebox swap from the new mini... I was excited to get to play with the new stuff and can't wait to share it with you! One of my favorite projects was Janessa's "Pizza" box... I think this is the first time I've made one of these. She designed hers using the new set Clearly Adorned. I love the little birds in this set - they remind me of that Bob Marley song - "Three little birds - by my open door" - I've been singing "Baby, don't worry, 'bout a thing..." ever since, thanks Janessa! I'll be posting more samples over the next few days...

Thank You card using My Digital Studio

2011-01-03T15:16:00.000-08:00

I had a rotten cough between Christmas & New Year and I spent a few days unable to do much of anything. I used some of my downtime to play with My Digital Studio! I made a journal and then this trifold Thank you card - it folds into three - I ordered them to be printed and now I can't wait for them to get here... I decided to use goofy pictures of the boys in the center of these flowers -too much fun!

Anyway - Happy New Year to you all! I hope to see you soon - have a great week, Brenda

Just Catching Up!

2010-12-22T19:55:00.000-08:00

Ooh - I've been such a slacker! I could bore you with excuses but instead I'm just going to share some pictures of what I've been up to!

One of the cards we made at the library to send to the Ronald McDonald House in Denver.
Janessa, fellow BLISS teammate, sharing her adorable gift tag at our demonstrator meeting.

Projects we made at my customer appreciation Holiday open house - card, candy box & Santa gift card holder.Some of the adorable gifts and cards I received from my amazing customers & friends.

Finlay's Ninja birthday cake - pushing my creative boundaries!
Above is a "Packing Tape" card - November Stamp Club.
Making teacher gifts with Finlay and Callum - we made forty of these boxes!
The "Secret Santa" gift I made for one of our BLISS team... shhh... don't tell! Inspired by:
A beautiful candle, stamped by Rhonda, that I received in our December club gift exchange.
Leslie & Sherri munching on goodies at my customer appreciation Holiday open house.

So - this really is just the tip of the iceberg but hopefully gives you a glimpse into my crazy wonderful life! I have had such a great year and I am so grateful for all the people I get to stamp and create with. Sending you all the best for a wonderful Holiday season and I hope to see you soon!

Take care, Brenda

Half Price Starter Kit!!!

2010-11-12T12:12:00.000-08:00

What do you call it when you get over $310 in crafting & business supplies for only $87.50? You can call it an amazing deal but I call it an AMAZING opportunity! From November 15-30, you can purchase either our Standard or Digital+ Starter Kits at 50% off the regular retail price of $175 (plus free shipping!), and enjoy these great benefits as a Stampin' Up! demonstrator.

Earn additional income while sharing creativity.
Make new and lasting friendships.
Receive a free subscription to an exclusive monthly magazine.
Receive two free months subscription to you own business website.
Opportunity to earn free products and incentive trips.

Interested? Please let me know if you have any questions or if you'd like to find out more!
Sincerely, Brenda

Happy Halloween!

2010-10-31T05:38:00.000-07:00

I had so much fun making this little house... did you see it in the mini? It's just $5.95 and is plain white heavy card stock so you can decorate it however you like, it's a bit like a gingerbread house (but you can't eat it!) I copied a design Brent showed at convention and sprayed mine black, stamped cobwebs onto vellum for behind the windows, punched out some bats to fly around the chimney and stamped a sign for over the door. Finally I spritzed the whole thing with some Smooch Spritz. Easy peasy! I put a battery operated tea-light inside and I was done. Callum wants to do a Christmas one now and I thought that would be fun to do together, and a good excuse to break out the glitter and fake snow, gotta love that!
Happy Halloween!
Brenda

Handmade Holidays Promotion

2010-10-28T07:20:00.000-07:00

Check out these fun bundles that are on special! The Vintage Christmas Bundle is only $19.92 for the Clear Mount Stamps Set and the Fabulous Designer Paper that goes so well with it. Make sure to check it out below.
If you decided to purchase you can either email me at BrendaStamps@Q.com or place an order online at my Stampin' Up! Store....click on Products and then Shop Now.
THE BUNDLE SALE

Vintage Christmas Bundle #124067 wood $23.92
Vintage Christmas Bundle #124068 clear $19.92

Contempo Christmas Card Bundle #124071 wood $20.72
Contempo Christmas Card Bundle #124072 clear $17.52

Tags Til Christmas Bundle #124077 wood $38.32
Tags Til Christmas Bundle #124078 clear $31.92

Gift Packaging Bundle #124083 wood $26.32
Gift Packaging Bundle #124084 clear $19.92

Simply Adorned Gift Bundle #124076 $39.88

Frame Gift Bundle #124075 $19.92

ALL bundles represent a 20% savings from catalog pricing.

Have a great week and please let me know if you have any questions

Brenda

Eek - You're Sweet!

2010-10-01T07:11:00.001-07:00

It's October and the weather has been just gorgeous around here... I love this time of year in Colorado - bright blue skies and amazing leaves. I'm loving it! And now I'm looking forward to Halloween! This week I held a class to make Halloween treats, I had so much fun prepping for this, we didn't celebrate Halloween growing up so I love to see all the kids dressing up and, of course, I love having an excuse to eat all that sweet stuff!

This week I had prepped everything for my Halloween class on Tuesday but I had an extended Christmas card making open house on Monday so I put the Halloween boxes in my office. However, when I went to bed I went into the office where the boys had been watching TV and found that they'd been snacking on the candy corn all night and there wasn't enough for my class! Ack! I had to run all over Bayfield looking for more and eventually I found some at the gas station - needless to say I bought it using THEIR pocket money ;-)

I had a couple of people who couldn't make the class on Tuesday so I'm holding it again this Monday, the 4th, at 7 p.m. Please let me know if you'd like to come along! More info. here

Have a great week, Brenda

Express Card Class

2010-09-30T03:59:00.000-07:00

I have been super busy this past couple of weeks so I wanted to share some of the fun projects with you... here are a couple of our cards from the Express Card Class last week. I love this one: we stamped the leaves from the French Foliage stamp set onto Naturals Ivory card stock and then ran that piece through the Big Shot in the Square Lattice embossing folder.

I haven't used my old favorite, The Sock Monkey, for ages but I saw an adorable card on Mary Fish's blog and had to copy it. It involves lots of cutting out to paper piece the monkey together but I love how he turned out. I made some into birthday cards like this and some I made into new baby cards for all the baby boys that are being born on my street! We have three in three months, pretty good going huh?

Have a great week, Brenda

More stamp club

2010-09-20T20:08:00.001-07:00

Here's another card we made at stamp club this month. We stamped the leaves onto the wood sheets - the wood is thin so it's easy to cut around the shapes using craft scissors. I LOVE this French Foliage stamp set. The finishing touch was spritzing the complete card with the gold lame Smooch Spray, fun. I really like this time of year, especially in Colorado when we have bright blue days, pumpkins and the sun shining through luminescent leaves. But I kind of miss Autumn in England where it's damp and you can traipse through wet leaves-it's so pretty and soggy. This stamp set includes an abstract kind of splattery raindrops stamp and it really reminds me of England. Walking though the leaves here is usually dry and crunchy - that's not the way it was for me growing up! The only thing I don't like about Fall is that it precedes WINTER... groan. I'm trying to appreciate every sunny autumnal day while it lasts!

Have a great week! Brenda

I LOVE Stamp Club!

2010-09-14T19:56:00.000-07:00

I love my stamp clubs... we just have the BEST time! These are groups of ladies who commit to stamping with me once a month for six months. Each month we learn about a technique or a product - I come up with some fun ideas and prepare projects for us all to make... The ladies take turns being "hostess" (which means bringing the snack!) and on their month they get the hostess benefits, yippee!

What I love about stamp club is the opportunity to move away from basic techniques and into exploring new ways to use old things, or playing with new techniques and toys. I always think I'm going to run out of ideas but there is such a WEALTH of creativity out there I never have a problem finding amazing ideas and things to share!

Sometimes I'm prompted by club members to do something specific. This was one of those months-Terri told me she loves Vintage look projects - I am way out of my comfort zone here but I ended up LOVING the projects I discovered researching this... Here is one of the cards we made and I'll be sharing more with you later this week:
I have two stamp clubs in the process of forming right now and we are looking for just a couple more people, interested? Please let me know and I'll be happy to give you the scoop!

Have a great week, Brenda

Personalized JEWELRY!

2010-09-07T08:00:00.000-07:00

You know I bought this locket style Simply Adorned Charm a year ago and for some reason I haven't done anything with it... well, this week, when I was supposed to be working on my schedule and was procrastinating by PLAYING in my craft room! I was goofing around and made a little charm insert based on one I saw in our Stampin' Success magazine, it took me all of five minutes and then I was OFF! I made a second, and then I thought it would be fun to do some Halloween ones, and then some Christmassy ones, it was SO FUN!!! So I apologize that I still don't have my calendar updated but don't you just love these little necklaces? The front is beveled and the back is plain glass so you can decorate both sides. It is thick enough to use some teeny embellishments like the small or medium pearls or rhinestones (not the large) ribbon or fabric. LOVE IT!
So this gave me a wonderful idea for another class, order any Simply Adorned jewelry piece and you can come and make 3 inserts per piece for free! Trust me, then you'll be hooked and be rushing home to make lots more! Wouldn't this be a lovely gift, an ornament or charm that the recipient can mix and match according to their mood or outfit? AND (this is a great idea I think) howabout giving your kids a teeny insert to decorate "their" way and then attach it a picture of them on the back? What Mum or Grandma wouldn't LOVE that?
Here is the info:

Charms:
116799 1 1/2" x 2" $21.95 (this could be an ornament or large pendant)
116798 1 1/4" x 1" $18.95 (this is the size I used)
116797 1" square $17.95
118476 5/8" square $8.95 (these work nicely on the bracelet)
117349 5/8" circle $8.95

Chains:
117342 bracelet 8" $7.95
116800 chain 24" $10.95
116853 chain 30" 12.95
Or you can clip the pendants to any necklace or ribbon. I used a necklace I already own.

The Holiday Mini includes some baubles you can clip to your chains too:
121011 Black crystal 5/8" $3.95
121012 Clear crystal 5/8" $3.95
121013 Pink crystal 5/8" $3.95
121014 Vanilla Pearl 1/2" $3.95

The charms are tempered, beveled glass and nickel plated with a lobster clasp and the chains are stainless steel with a toggle clasp.

Order your Charms either on my website or via me before the end of September and I will hold the free insert class on Wednesday October the 6th at 1 p.m. or 7 p.m. How fun!

Out with the old & in with the new!

2010-08-30T20:41:00.001-07:00

Today is the last day to order from the Summer Mini and tomorrow is the first day to order from the Holiday mini! I've already pre-ordered several things and I've had fun making Halloween and Holiday cards already, too much fun! I love this time of year, collecting ideas for the Holidays - less than three months till Christmas! At stamp club this month we made the above card using the Tropical Oasis Designer Series Paper from the Summer mini, I've really enjoyed all the colors and designs in this pack. I stole the design of this card from one I received from Tara, here is her card, isn't it lovely? I loved how she used this unusual fold to make a fresh card. I copied the design and substituted different colors and stamp sets. I also made a new baby card using this design. I added the clear bitty buttons and punched shapes using the itty bitty punch pack too. Here is a close up of the detail from my finished card. I used the new Printed Petals set which co-ordinates with a few different punches. I liked how everybody's came out a little different. Here's a link to everything in the Summer Mini if you need a quick reminder. http://www.brendamarshall.stampinup.net Click on Shop Now>Summer Mini. It's the preferred price that you get if you order via me or my website of course.

Did you get your Holiday mini in the mail yet?? If you didn't PLEASE let me know and I'll be happy to pop one in the mail for you... I have to say there are lots of different sets you're going to love plus a whole host of wonderful new accessories I'm dying to learn to play with.

I hope you're having a great week! Brenda

What a Blast!

2010-08-17T06:37:00.000-07:00

I had so much fun yesterday making cards and hanging out with some really lovely stampers. For a lot of the daytime it was just Sherri and I, which was a good thing, because I was having trouble getting focused, it took me ages to get down to something productive. I'm blaming the 6-10 little boys that were in my yard/house even though they were really good - that's the thing about living in a neighborhood like mine, as soon as you send your kids out to play they seem to multiply! Sherri was a card making MACHINE - she was a good influence - she just put her head down and got working, amazing! The Lynn joined us, she's kind of a "reluctant" stamper but you should see the lovely photo card she made. Then in the evening the party began... Terri, Julie, Sherri (still!) the other Sherrie, Barbara, Caroline, Marissa and Rhonda. We were eating and playing and those girls came up with some absolutely GORGEOUS designs! We got through a ton of supplies and turned them into works of art :-) I forgot to get my camera out until really late so I'm afraid I don't have many to show you but here are a couple of samples to give you an idea. Aren't they lovely?

This blue card is a mix of old and new... some leftover Brilliant Blue card stock, embossed with the beautiful snowflake folder that will be in the Winter Mini. Sherri spritzed this with lots of Smooch Spray and in real life it is VERY sparkly!

These are Marissa's cards, aren't they so cute? She used the Holly Jolly Designer Paper, Cherry Cobbler and Old Olive with Sparkly & Bright stamp set - you can't really see but the reindeer has a diamond on his nose!
Sherrie used the Poinsettia embossing folder for the background of these cards which is picked up in the poinsettias beneath the dove, I love this stamp set. Then she glued teeny tiny pearls in the middle of each of the flowers. Simple but really effective.
We're going to be making more Holiday cards on Monday, September 27th, mark your calendars now, I guarantee you'll have fun, and you might even get a couple of your cards made!

Gone Fishing!

2010-08-15T19:48:00.000-07:00

Callum said I should put this on my blog after this weekend! So here's a pic of them fishing in their pajamas... we had a lovely weekend out at Vallecito, and NOW I'm getting ready to work on my Christmas cards tomorrow! If you're local and not out doing fun, summer, stuff, you are welcome to join me making cards tomorrow anytime from 9 a.m. until 10 p.m. Stay as long (or short!) as you like - bring your card stock and adhesive (or use what I have on hand and replace) and feel free to use any of my non-consumable supplies, stamp sets, inks, Big Shot, punches etc. No charge but you might want to bring a snack to share. Here's a picture of Rhonda with the lovely card she designed last week... Hope to see you soon! Brenda

Maybe you like to send a photo card?

2010-08-06T08:26:00.000-07:00

I love to send a card with a picture in - I love receiving those cards from my friends, I usually save the pictures and I love to see my loved ones' children and animals change over the years! Well, even if you want the photo's to be the focus you can still make it handmade. Here are a couple I have sent over the past few years, if you decide to do this the stamp sets will be different but they would be very easy to adapt, and you can use colors that go with your picture of course. Mine have been kind of funky but you can choose a more traditional design if you like. All these have been essentially quick and easy because I like to make lots of them! I've printed the pictures out on my computer and cut them down to the size I want by using my paper cutter or a punch. The boys' faces are really small here so I had to tuck a bigger picture inside.The card below has a window sheet in front of the photograph with snowflakes stamped on in White StayzOn ink - this was a really quick and easy card If you want you could bring a picture with you on Monday and we can design something around it! Have a great week-end, Brenda

More cards to give you ideas!

2010-08-05T16:33:00.000-07:00

I don't own this stamp set either, but I've borrowed it twice now, once from Penney and once from Stacy so I guess I should break down and buy it ;-) It's called Sparkly & Bright and I love it! Here I made two cards using the little reindeer, really I wanted an excuse to use the little stick on diamonds I was referring too yesterday, LOVE THEM! They don't show up very well on the photograph but in person they are super cute. I used one on his nose and one to dot the "i" of Bright. Remember that if you like any of these ideas you can always substitute color palletes, stamp sets, designer series paper or punch shapes.
Have a great week! Brenda

I'm doing it!

2010-08-04T15:56:00.000-07:00

I'm making Christmas cards in August! My lovely customer Brenda used this stamp set to make her cards last year and she let me borrow it to make some samples. It's not really my typical style but I had a great time playing with it today. Sometimes my favorite projects stem from being outside my usual way of doing things. Here I'm using one of our new colors, Cherry Cobbler, yum. I also used some of the embellishments from the new Idea Book & Catalog. I used the lace ribbon (I just LOVE this, it's so soft and easy to use) and the basic pearls. Tara sent me a sheet of these and the diamonds and I can tell I'm going to have to include them on every card for a while! They're my new favorite thing. Both of these card would be pretty quick to make once you have your design squared away. I hope you might join me next week to make YOUR Holiday cards. Come to my open house on Monday to choose your design OR call/email your order if you know what you want and then come back the following Monday (the 16th) for an extended open house to get them made, Yay!

Imagine getting your Holiday cards done in August?!

2010-08-03T06:46:00.001-07:00

Free card making day for my customers & friends!
First choose your design - look at the idea book & catalog (call me if you need a new one). Come by my house on Monday the 9th to browse my samples, look online, pull up a card you made or received last year you'd like to copy, whatever works for you!
Next - Order your supplies from me by Monday the 9th
Finally - come for an extended card making session on Monday, August 16th, anytime between 9 a.m. and 10 p.m. stay as long as you need, feel free to use any of my non-consumable toys and get all your cards made! Free - just bring a snack to share :-)
Wouldn't that just feel fantastic?!

Every day this week I will be posting inspirational ideas here for you to browse, some are my cards and some are other people's - remember we're just gathering ideas as a starting point, you can substitute colors, stamp sets, embellishments etc. Here's some to get you started!

Please don't hesitate to call me if you have any questions! Have a great day, Brenda

Summertime!

2010-07-27T11:27:00.000-07:00

Hello Everybody!

Life has been cra....zy lately, summertime fun, traveling, visiting, yard work, ferrying the kids around, you know how it is! Anyway, I just put together my calendar for August and will be posting LOTS of fun things so I hope we can get together and get our fingers inky again soon!

Here's a little peek at what I've been doing the past few weeks though, yesterday the ladies at our local LDS church were doing Christmas in July and I took some fabric flowers for us to make, too much fun! I enjoyed hanging out with old and new friends.
On Monday we had our BLISS demonstrator group meeting, Tammy and Teresa have just got back from convention and they had a BLAST. The rest of us were GREEN with envy, especially when they pulled out hundreds (literally HUNDREDS) of swaps and samples... oh my word! They made some really cool things, entered lots of the optional swaps, got free stamp sets and new toys that I hadn't seen - we had a great time rummaging through their boxes and bags and I took a couple of pictures of my favorites. I couldn't go to Convention this year :-( but I am planning on attending Leadership for the first time in January. It's in Nashville, Tennessee so that's what I'm working towards now... Here's a picture of Linda who is a returning demonstrator to our group, she needed a little sabbatical to make this little cutie! Adrian. Isn't he adorable?

Well, I be sending out my August schedule today, so watch out for my email and I hope to see you soon! Have a great week,

Brenda

Thank You!

2010-07-08T05:14:00.000-07:00

I had another amazing year with Stampin' Up! and I just got the official letter to tell me I'd earned another cruise (can you believe it?! I can't!) We're going to Alaska next May. I have never been there and so this is a real dream of ours. I am so grateful to my lovely customers and friends for helping me achieve this. Thank you! Thank you! Thank you!

Stamp club today. We learning all about wheels. I've been terrible at posting haven't I? I'm going to try and get a little more regular - we'll see how that goes! Here's a picture for you. I made these little "thank you's" for the customers who placed orders while I was away... I used the Pedaling Past set from the mini and made up little 3"x 3" note cards. Easy and quick. I used the new color Marina Mist on the front right set, I'm loving it!

Have a great week, Brenda

Having a lovely time in England!

2010-06-01T00:13:00.000-07:00

Well, I finally got here after after our delay from the volcano, and we've been having a lovely time with our family and friends. We've even had some sunny weather which is amazing! (Cloudy today but that's ok too!) I imagined that I would be posting all the time but it hasn't quite worked out that way, patchy access to the internet and just too busy. Anyway, I hope you are all doing well and enjoying the start of the summer. I wanted to give you links to the Stampin' Up! lists of retiring products that have been released today. There are three, the stamp sets, the accessories (including wheels) and decor elements. I have a HUGE list of things I need to grab before they're gone! If you're on my shopping site http://www.brendamarshall.stampinup.net/ don't miss the clearance rack too, you have to order online to access that but there are some great deals tucked away on there! I am doing a promotion of my own right now too, order via my website above or by email while I'm away (until June 13) and I will enter you into a drawing (One ticket for every $25 you spend) for 2 great stamp sets plus you'll get a free little something from me!

Here are the links for the retiring produts:

Decor Elements

Stamp Sets

Accessories

Don't forget the new catalog will come out July 1st! Email me to reserve your copy ;-) If you are in stamp club you will automatically get one. Have a great month and I look forward to seeing you soon! Brenda

Last day of school tomorrow!

2010-05-12T20:58:00.000-07:00

I just cannot believe that this school year is OVER already, how did that happen? It's just been a crazy couple of weeks since we got back from our trip, so many school events, plus trying to fit a month's worth of work into two weeks, I need a nap! Today I went to Finlay's field (sports) day and Callum's "Un-birthday" party that his teacher put on to celebrate all the summer birthday kids - it was a lot of fun! Above are the little party favors Callum made for his friends - he chose those "rolls" of gum that I never let him eat and I was happy to agree, anything to avoid having to make cup cakes or mince pies like Finlay always insists on.

Then he decorated them with animals from the fox and friends stamp set and these giant flowers we cut out with the new Island floral die. Easy peasy. Look at how trashed my craft room is now! I have just been running in there and pulling everything out and quickly closing the door... no wonder my kids' rooms are such a mess! We leave for England on Sunday so I am just running around like CRAZY! It's all good. Have a wonderful week! Brenda

Happy Mother's Day!

2010-05-10T09:52:00.000-07:00

Happy Mother's Day Everybody! I hope it was wonderful - mine was - until my youngest started throwing up, sigh, back to reality!

Look at the lovely card Callum made me - It has a letter in it - he says "you are the greatest mom because you give me food" That's my boy! Always thinking about his belly. Finlay made me a pair of Duct Tape slippers. Aren't they fun?!!

Then look at this amazing card - One of my lovely customers, Kim, was at stamp club on Thursday and sharing with us some of the cards she's been making. She handed me this beautiful Mother's Day card to look at and imagine my surprise when I opened it and saw MY picture inside! I had emailed her some pictures from my trip and she downloaded one of the photographs, "improved" it a little (thank you Kim!) and used it to make me a card. I was so touched!

Have a great week! Brenda

Back from the Southern Caribbean!

2010-05-06T10:05:00.000-07:00

Oh My!!! We had SUCH a brilliant vacation! Stampin' Up! just spoiled us rotten - it was fabulous! I was really looking forward to the trip (scroll down!) beforehand but it completely exceeded all my expectations! It would be hard to go wrong in the Caribbean of course but we loved being on the cruise ship, all the activities and the food (that's always a big hit with my family!) And I loved getting lots of ideas and inspiration and rubbing shoulders with some of the stampers I have admired (not stalked of course) from afar. The share night was fabulous with an overwhelming number of ideas and a chocolate buffet! Yikes! Then, every night when we got back to our cabin, there was a present waiting for me - isn't that amazing? I felt like a little kid at Christmas every day, plus there was a little "fishy" hanging from the gift that we would take to the hospitality suite the following day and spin a gameshow type wheel to win another gift. Here are just a few of the almost 600 pictures I took... You can see Fort Morro in San Juan, Puerto Rico, a pirate ship we took our little pirates out on, some beachy shots and some stamping shots! Our make and take was from Midnight till 2 a.m. one night, so I was a little spacey and even slower than usual (imagine that?!) I am so grateful to my lovely customers for helping me to earn that trip of a lifetime. Thank you so much! Brenda

I'm on the final stretch!

2010-04-19T15:42:00.001-07:00

We leave for the Stampin' Up! cruise this FRIDAY! Yippee! As Finlay says "it was so far away but now it's nearly here!" Exactly how I feel... So I have to share what I got: Last week the FedEx guy knocked at the door and left a box. My heart will always belong to the UPS guy who brings my stamping stuff of course but now it's straying a little because the FedEx man bought the cruise tickets! I tore the box open to find a Bermuda Bay shiny purse stuffed with lots of info. about our cruise, real plane tickets (it feels like a long time since I saw a real ticket rather than just a piece of paper with the details on!) cute luggage labels and our name tags. La La La! How fun. I see on the itinerary we have a "midnight madness" make and take session from midnight till 2 a.m. one night, I just hope I can stay awake! I love that I can spend the evening with my family and then go out to play once they're all asleep. I'm going to be "offline" while we're away but I am planning a special just for my customers so be sure to check back and find out more! Have a great week, Brenda

SPRING COLORS!

2010-04-08T13:20:00.001-07:00

Change is in the air! And I am welcoming it... I'm tired of winter and snow and being indoors, I'm ready for some fresh air, some warmth and some new color in my life! Here are the new Stampin' Up! colors - I am loving them. (Click on the picture to view it larger)

You can see we have several returning "In Colors" which I am REALLY excited about! Baja Breeze, Riding Hood Red, Pink Pirrouette, River Rock, Tangerine Tango, Wild Wasabi and (my favorite) Pacific Point. Plus we are keeping Rich Razzleberry and Soft Suede from this year's selection, yippee! So if you are a long time stamper and have been collecting the In Colors you already have a head start on the new collection.

We have a few new colors too which I am DYING to get my hands on: Cajun Craze, Early Espresso, Crumb Cake, Cherry Cobbler, Daffodil Delight & Marina Mist. They are mailing the demo's samples of these new colors so I'll be sure to share some pictures when I get them in my hands, can't wait!

The sad part, of course, is that some of my old fave's are retiring :-( There are a couple I'm frankly happy to wave goodbye to, but several that I will be keeping a stock of because I know I will want to continue using them. Be sure to order a refill and maybe a packet of card stock or ribbon for your favorite color before the end of May. Everything will be available through May and then during June they will be clearing their inventory so come June 1st they will be available on a first come, first served basis. The new colors, bundles and accessories will all go live July 1st with the new catalog, yippee! Here are the retiring colors:

As soon as I have more information I'll be posting it here. Have a wonderful day, please let me know if you have have any questions. Brenda

Spring is in the air!

2010-04-06T21:14:00.000-07:00

And I couldn't be happier! I was working in the yard this weekend and I decided I like it so much better when I can SEE the ground rather than just having to heave that white stuff around. And now (most of) the snow is gone I see little green shoots coming up, yay! Some of them appear to be grass and bind weed where it's not supposed to be but that's OK. I am loving it all. You can remind me of that in August when I'm sick of weeding!

Well, Stampin' Up! are talking about colors too... there are BIG CHANGES afoot, they are shaking up all the color families, retiring lots of colors, putting some of our favorite ex-In-colors into our core line and bringing out some new up-dated versions. I am going to be really sad to say goodbye to a couple of them but on the whole I LOVE the new collection. I'm going to be buying some refills and card stock so I can keep using a few of my fave's and a couple of them I'm going to be quite happy to see the back of.

Would you like to see a sneak peek of the new line??? Well... I would LOVE to show it to you but I can't figure out how to upload a .pdf file, I'm sorry! I'll do some research and try and get it up tomorrow. Doh.

Here is a different picture for you instead:

This is an emergency card kit we will be making at our class on Monday, April 19th at noon or 6:30 p.m. The noon class is almost full already so please let me know if you'd like to sign up! More info. here www.brendamarshall.stampinup.net/events

Happy Easter

2010-04-03T02:59:00.000-07:00

Robin made this card at our Easter Class - she changed it up from my original and I liked hers better than mine, I hate when that happens! Actually, that happens all the time - that's one of the things I love about stamping - everybody adds their own individual touches, either by mistake or on purpose, and each card is unique.

I have been having a lovely Spring Break - I haven't seemed to achieve anything significant - but I've sorted out lots of piles of junk that seem to accumulate by magic in my house, (by sorting them I mean I've moved them from A to B and back again) plus I've nearly finished my TAXES and we still have a whole week and a half to go. That's a first for me. The trouble with having my own business is I have so many bits and pieces to keep track of and anybody who knows me knows that kind of thing is really not my strength... Every year I resolve to be better organised but every April - here I am again - sigh.

I hope you have a wonderful weekend - Brenda

Easter Bunny & LAST DAY of Sale-a-bration!

2010-03-30T18:00:00.000-07:00

You probably know that tomorrow (the 31st) is the FINAL day of Sale-a-bration :-( I have loved this year's offerings with all the extra stamp sets we could choose from the big catty as well as all the lovely things in the SAB brochure. Click here to see the SAB brochure before it expires and click HERE to place an online order - or just email me before 8 p.m. Wednesday night. Remember, anytime you order $150 or more you will get hostess benefits TOO, in addition to at least THREE Sale-a-bration stamp sets, yay!

Can you believe how cute this bunny is? I got the design from Kimberley over at her http://www.procrastistamper.blogspot.com/ She has some really great ideas! If you scroll down to the fox box you can download a .pdf file with the inside box measurements on, thanks Kimberley! We made this bunny as one of the projects at our Easter class and then when our fabulous BLISS demo. group got together I took him along for everybody to make there too - he's been a big hit wherever he goes! Want to make one of your own? You need the Top Note die for the Big Shot, the wide oval punch, large oval punch, and the 1/2" circle punch. Not too bad huh? The finishing touches are made by daubing on some pink pastel chalks around the punched edges, using the white gel pen to highlight his "eyes" and a black marker for his whiskers.

Have a great week!

Brenda

Easter is coming!

2010-03-23T12:04:00.000-07:00

I can't tell you how happy I am to see the snow receding, I can see earth and grass in my yard and when I dug through the debris I can see green "life" under there... it's probably weeds but at this point I don't care, as long as it's green! This is a little trading card that Misty bought to stamp club last week... It's a simple design that really shows off the image. Misty chose Eggplant Envy as her key color and highlighted the daffodil with some dazzling diamonds glitter. I loved getting something to remind us of the upcoming season. This winter has felt pretty long! Finlay reminded me that we leave for our cruise one month today, now THAT'S something encouraging! Hope to see you at my Easter class tomorrow.
Have a great day!

Brenda

Masked Card

2010-03-22T16:18:00.000-07:00

These little cards were quick and easy, we punched out a flower from a post-it note and stuck it onto these cute 3"x3" cards. Then we simply brayered ink over the whole card front, when we peeled the post-it not off we had a great start to a card that we could decorate. These we finished off by stamping the flowers from the Happy Moments Free sale-a-bration stamp set which we colored in using blender pens and our classic inks. Quick and easy! Of course I couldn't quite stop there so we punched a scallop border and added a little flower with a gold brad.
This is the last stretch of Sale-a-bration so be sure to get your order in if you'd like to earn free stamp sets! Let me know if you'd like me to send you a list of all the available sets!
Have a great week, Brenda

Cash Card!

2010-03-18T04:04:00.000-07:00

This was another card for my Masculine card class. Customers had to provide their own $$ ;-) I thought this would be a great way to present a cash gift. Most grad's might not be too impressed by a single dollar but there is a recession on! (The shirt would work with any denomination obviously!) You could make it suitable for a different occasion just by changing the colors and background. It's fairly easy to fold the note -here is a link to a website with instructions: http://members.cox.net/crandall11/money/shirt/

Check back tomorrow for another Man card.

Next week (Wednesday the 24th) I'm offering an Easter class, we'll be making 2 special Easter cards and two treat holders. Check my events page for more info. http://www.stampinup.net/esuite/home/brendamarshall/events

Have a great week! Brenda

Masculine Card Class

2010-03-16T03:43:00.000-07:00

Yesterday was masculine card class. Sometimes it's a challenge to make cards that are suitable for men! Keep an eye on my blog for the next few days to see some more ideas for the men in your life. And remember, you can always order online on my SU website, http://www.brendamarshall.stampinup.net One of my customers asked me to do a class featuring men's cards and it was fun having a challenge to focus on. Please let me know if you have any special requests!

The card above was made by Barbara. We stamped the trees in Always Artichoke, used a post-it note to "mask" out the moon and sponged Brocade Blue over the rest. We used Chocolate Chip Craft ink to stamp the wolf. And Night of Navy Craft ink to stamp the greeting on the twill tape at the bottom.

My boys are busy getting ready for the Destination Imagination (DI) tournament this weekend. Finlay's on the Durango Dragons and Callum's on the Rising Snakes team. It's a lot of fun but I have to say I'll be glad when Saturday is over!

Have a great week. Brenda

Another Lovely Gift

2010-03-15T15:59:00.000-07:00

This one was from Teresa who was my BLISS secret Santa this year - isn't it lovely? It's really handy to just have a little stash of note paper right on my desk, plus it's exactly the right size to write an address on and slip inside a cellophane envelope when I'm ready to send a card.

Stamp Club week

2010-03-12T01:32:00.000-08:00

I have been crazy busy and having a blast this week with the March stamp clubs, I've had four so far this week and I'm getting together with a brand new group of ladies in Ignacio tonight, can't wait! This month we are playing with stencils, above is one of the projects we'll be doing. The great thing about stamp club is we can do projects that are a little more difficult and learn new techniques. This card is made by inking up a stencil and running it through the Big Shot, easy and really effective. We incorporated another couple of neat tricks into this card though - we hand dyed the white organza ribbon using a sponge dauber and the Cameo Coral ink, and we backed our modern label punch shape by punching it out of Night of Navy card stock, cutting it in half and gluing it behind the original shape. I love how it makes the greeting pop out.

You should see what wonderful snacks some of the club members bring when it's their turn to host! Jennifer is a new club member and she made these amazing snacks that were (almost) too pretty to eat! I'm so ready for Spring, I loved to see these little ladybugs. (I still find it hard to see them as ladybugs actually, in England we call the ladybirds but I guess "bug" is more accurate!)

Have a great day!

Brenda

Vintage Vogue Calendar

2010-03-09T11:42:00.000-08:00

Just a quickie today as I'm rushing around getting ready for the first of this month's stamp clubs tonight! Here's a little calendar we made during our January stamp club. The backing is a piece of leftover card from some packaging. I cut it to size and then using the Vintage wheel to decorate it. This month we are making some cool projects using the new Stampin' Up! stencils that are hiding away in our catalogs. Stenciling is new to me but I'm having fun! I'll post a sneak peek tomorrow ;-)

Have a great day!

Brenda

Simple Bird Card

2010-03-05T13:35:00.000-08:00

This is one of the easiest cards ever thanks to the XL bird punch from the Occasions Mini. I chose to emboss the whisper white using our polka dot embossing folder from the mini but I also made some without the embossed part and it still looked great (in my opinion!) The only stamped part is the greeting using the Thankful Wishes set from the main idea book & catalog which you can get free with a $50 order thanks to Sale-a-bration! This card is a great way to use up those scraps of Designer Series Paper that you can't quite throw away but have no real use for!

Have a great day, Brenda

Refrigerator Catch All

2010-03-03T18:03:00.000-08:00

Tammy mailed me this before Christmas - we had a secret Santa gift exchange between our little group of BLISS demonstrators. Tammy showed me one of these that she was sending to Shoni and I loved it - next thing I knew I was picking up my own one from the mailbox! She is just SO generous. She used the Vintage Vogue stamp set and some fun bright colors to go with my kitchen - and don't you love the sock monkey card my friend Krista sent me? My son is learning to read and he read it to say "It's Hiccups Being Me" (!) Sometimes that feels pretty true too.

Have a not too hectic (or hiccups) week!

Brenda

My Funny Valentines

2010-03-01T19:24:00.000-08:00

These were my Valentines this year - they were easy and I just loved them. As you know I'm kind of a sucker for anything with a monkey on - they really are my favorites. These little guys are from the Fox and Friends set in the Occasions Mini as is the owl. They are standing on/swinging from the branch which I punched out using the XL bird punch that's also in the mini. The stripy paper is from the Sale-a-bration free Welcome Neighbor pack - I always gravitate towards the stripes ;-) I copied this design almost exactly from one I saw on line but I didn't make a note of the poster, so I apologize if it was you! Imitation is the sincerest form of flattery - right?

Have a great day! Brenda

Vintage Vogue Day Four

2010-02-28T07:51:00.000-08:00

I tore myself away from the Going Gray card stock and used Creamy Caramel for this card. I used the new (free with a $50 purchase!) Scallop Trim Border punch along with the Scallop Corner punch to decorate the edge of the Whisper White cardstock. We will be learning some fun ways to use these cool new punches in March's stamp clubs.

Vintage Vogue Day Three

2010-02-27T21:17:00.000-08:00

This card also features the jumbo wheel and the Basic Gray Satin Ribbon. Quick and easy, gotta love that ;-) I stamped the "Friend" stamp on a scrap of whisper white card stock and then cut it out and popped it off the card with a puffy (Stampin' Dimensional) Easy Peasy.

Vintage Vogue Day Two

2010-02-26T08:00:00.000-08:00

This is one of my workshop cards for February - it's easy and fun! And the best part is I copied it :-) Every month demonstrators get a free magazine from Stampin' Up! It is packed with ideas for classes and clubs. I loved this as soon as I saw it so I've been sharing it with the brand new stampers I've met this month. It's teeny, just 3" square and has a rhinestone brad in the heart of the flower. I love it!

Vintage Vogue Day One

2010-02-25T21:02:00.000-08:00

Oh I just LOVE this stamp set! The other day I spent an evening just playing around with it. This is my first sample. The neutral packs of 12" x 12" cardstock have Going Gray card stock still which is now the only way to get this color now, this is textured which doesn't show too well in the picture but makes it "feel" lovely. I really miss this color from our range so I was excited to find it in here. It's a great background to this bold Rich Razzleberry. And I LOVE the new Basic gray satin ribbon that I found hiding in the Occasions mini. Yummy. Check back tomorrow for my next sample...

Callum's Calendar

2010-02-17T18:17:00.000-08:00

Check out this cute calendar that Callum customized for his Dad. He loves the All in the family stamp set and quickly figured out how to use the Stamp-a-ma-jig so he can line up the body parts correctly. He gave me this when he was done stamping and I asked him who he'd forgotten? He said "Oh Mum, you can put yourself in there if you want" (!) I left it as it was. I can take it - my shoulders are broad! We put some sticky strip on the back so Marsh can put it in the truck. He's the one in the orange (no surprise there) with the guitar. Don't you love it?

Have a great week,

Brenda

Beautiful Valentine

2010-02-10T08:00:00.000-08:00

Tammy is a really talented demo in our BLISS group of demonstrators, at our last group meeting she gave me this lovely Valentine's card, isn't it lovely? She used the heart to heart punch to quickly make lots of hearts to surround the greeting which is from a new set, Well Scripted, in the Occasions Mini. It came out great. Thanks Tammy!

I "Heart" my Hostesses!

2010-02-08T19:50:00.001-08:00

Today was my annual hostess appreciation event. To get an invite to this you have to have hosted a workshop or been a member of stamp club with me in 2009. We have had quite a bit of snow in the past 24 hours or so but that didn't put off the faithful few who made it today! Here is one of the free projects I had ready for them - we used the raw vinyl chalkboard sheets to make little message boards! Then we decorated them with other colors of vinyl cut with dies and the Big Shot. Cute little Emma (above) chose to put hers on a card stock backing so she could attach it to the refrigerator - she put magnets on the back and wrote a special message for her Daddy (don't you just wish she had made this for you! I know I do!)

Then Emma's Grandma, Brenda (not me! another Brenda) made her message board on a tile, isn't this so cool?! I was planning to buy tiles but my husband found these plain white ones for me in the shed, yay! Sometimes I'm glad he's such a hoarder. Check back tomorrow to see the other project we made.

Brenda

Love Bandit treat holder

2010-02-06T14:43:00.000-08:00

I used the two tags die to punch out two of the short fat tags and then I ran them through the new polka dot texture folder. They already have a fold in them so I folded them under and stuck the two together which created a little opening for the candy bag. Then it was easy enough to tuck a few candy's in the bag and attach it inside. Then I stamped the adorable raccoon from the Love Bandit stamp set and punched him out using the scallop punch. I colored him in using a Sahara Sand and Melon Mambo marker and used a teeny bit of crystal effects to varnish the heart. This was one of the projects in January's stamp club. We have a new season starting up this month and I have a couple of spots open still, please ask me for more info!
Have a great day! Brenda

Sale-a-bration Time!

2010-02-01T05:50:00.000-08:00

Check out the boxes all my new toys have been arriving in ;-) I love the warning! And it's true! Want to see what was inside? Come to one of my events - card class tomorrow morning or evening, stamp clubs starting this month, hostess appreciation next week, or host a workshop and I'll bring my toys to your house! Hope to see you soon!

And I Shall Love Because Of You

2010-01-17T04:31:00.000-08:00

My lovely friend Pam commissioned me to make a Memory book for friends of theirs who married in the fall. Her husband officiated at the wedding and the couple had left their rough drafts of their wedding vows with him. Pam & Josh couldn't bear to throw them away and asked if I could find a way to preserve them? Pam and I had no photographs but a wealth of words to work with. Apparently the couple had created a wonderful wedding with non-traditional colors and components so it was fun to use that as a starting point. Here are some images of our finished piece. Each of the "pages" pull out to reveal the whole ceremony. Can I have an Amen!

Brenda

Stampin' Up! - Dormant Stamp Sets Discontinued on January 4, 2010

2010-01-03T07:58:00.000-08:00

The following stamp sets from the Dormant list are retiring tomorrow (Monday 4th) You can view them in last season's catalog or on my website www.brendamarshall.stampinup.net click Shop Now and enter the item number in the search box. Tomorrow is also the last day to order from the Holiday Mini. Please let me know ASAP if you'd like anything or order online :-) Have a great Sunday! Brenda

Stampin' Up! - Dormant Stamp Sets Discontinued on January 4, 2010: "Item Number Stamp Set
113407 Back Woods
114492 Beautiful Baby
114486 Birthday Wish
113200 Branch Out
114496 Celebrations
113732 Central Park
113206 Classic Sketches
113226 Classy & Fabulous
114498 Flowers in Silhouette
113405 Font of You
113216 For the Bride
114494 Forever
109425 Friend by Definition
114488 Fun Flowers
113716 Garden Greetings
114490 Glad Friends
111580 Grand Soiree
113242 Hit the Road
113710 Lexicon of Leaves
113236 Man's Best Friend
114423 Ocean Commotion
113728 Playful Petals
109276 Polka Dot
111544 Putt Putt
113240 Quilt Quips
113754 Really Retro
113403 Sip by Sip
113726 Sweet Stems
113250 That's Funny
113688 Wonderful Watercolors
114028 Para la novia
114032 Acuarelas Maravillosas"

PHEW! I survived Christmas!

2009-12-29T18:26:00.000-08:00

It was a lot of fun but I have to say I'm glad it's over! Can you believe I am re-entering my blog with EVEN MORE NAME FRAMES! You would think I would be sick of them now but my kid's friends came over today and announced that they would like to do "some Stampin' Up!" they had seen the frames I've been making and wanted to do one of their own. Of course I have tons of supplies over so I pulled them out and let them play and just take a look at the great job they did!

They got out the Big Shot and cut out their letters and then they chose the images and colors they wanted to use. Quite often they'll look at what I'm doing and ask if they can make one and I'm ashamed to say I usually say "not today" because I'm busy working or prepping. It was fun today to be able to say "sure!" for once and we all had such a good time I'm determined to make time to do it again (we'll see how long that resolution lasts!)

Well, one of my other resolutions is to post more often, I haven't done very well with that lately either! Happy New Year to you and I hope to see you soon. Have a lovely week,

Brenda

Shop from the new Gift Giving Guide and get Free Decor Elements!

2009-11-08T18:28:00.000-08:00

Click the picture above to go to the new Stampin' Up! Holiday Gift-Giving Guide. You'll find some great ideas for gifts to buy or make... If you spend $50 on anything pictured in the guide you can get any Decor Element valued $16.95 or less! Too much fun. Shop now through my online store: www.brendamarshall.stampinup.com

To assist you in shopping from the Holiday Gift Giving Guide, here is a link to a Product List for Download, which lists all the items, their prices, where you can find them in catalogs, and some helpful notes on each product including coordinating colors.

I am super busy getting ideas from all over the place that I can copy with cards, favors and gifts, I am more than happy to share what I find so please let me know if you'd like some suggestions for your cards or presents. I'm happy to help your loved ones pick out presents for you too - let me know if you'd like me to whisper some suggestions to them ;-) If they buy from me I'll wrap the gift for them too...

Have a great week, Brenda

What a Winner!

2009-10-31T04:09:00.000-07:00

I had an open house play date last week where we got together to work on our Holiday cards. Our friend Theresa, (who has recently moved to Phoenix) stopped in with her daughter, Brittany, her Mom, and her Grandson, Bronson. Brittany made her first card ever and was the winner of the stamp set I gave away, The More The Merrier, which is a level 3 hostess set! Here is Brittany's first card, didn't she do great? Theresa is holding her card.

Several people dropped by during the day to design their cards, it feels great getting this far when it's still October! Definitely a first for me, usually it's mid December when I'm working on these!

I am doing another open house this Monday (November 2nd) This is a free open house play date, bring along your Holiday ideas/projects and feel free to use any of my stamp sets or non-consumables. We'll just be playing and having fun. Let me know if you'd like more info!

Happy Halloween, Brenda

Field Trip to Arboles

2009-10-13T20:34:00.000-07:00

I have been invited to Arboles to introduce a group of ladies to stamping. Many of them are quilters so I tried to incorporate some materials they may already have on hand into the designs. Here are a couple of the cards they'll be making: This one is pretty simple, the skaters are from the Stampin' Up! stamp set Winter Post and I cut a scrap of fabric using the Top Note die and my Big Shot. My lovely neighbor Tiffany gave me this cute polka dot fabric. I ran over there to beg from her, I knew she'd have something adorable, which she did, and she's so nice she just gave it to me! Thank you Tiff! You should all go check out her blog to say thank you: http://www.thechildrensnest.blogspot.com/

This card uses the Autumn designer series paper from the Holiday mini, I LOVE this paper, it's actually a bit painful to me to cut it up and use it I'm really tempted to hoard it. We will be using a sewing machine to stitch the paper to the card, easy peasy but looks hard, my favorite kind of card!

I'll let you know how we get on, have a great week, Brenda

Are you sick of seeing frames yet?!

2009-10-07T04:22:00.000-07:00

Last night Susanne, Cayli & Wendy came over and made frames. This is Susanne with her finished picture, Sooz is the person who introduced me to Stamping - she was my babysitter (10 years ago now!) and a Stampin' Up! demonstrator. She used to invite me to her events and try to get me into stamping with her but I was adamant I didn't want to. I told her that I liked scrapbooking and had no time for a new hobby. Also, I didn't even like the look of stamping, it just wasn't my cup of tea. Ha ha, little did I know! As time went by she kept GIVING me things, an adorable birthday card, a tea-towel with my baby's handprints on (a dirty trick you have to admit, what mum could resist that?!), more super cute cards. a "watch me grow" wall hanging. Then I would see all the cute things her kids were making for their classmates and the gifts Sooz was making for her kid's teachers. I kept hearing myself say: "I don't like stamping but I LOVE this ONE thing..." Eventually I agreed to host a workshop for her and I was like Paul on the road to Damascus - I LOVED everything, was totally blown away by all the lovely stuff and wanted just about everything in the catalog (that hasn't changed). Eventually Susanne left Stampin' Up! to work at central dispatch and I signed up to be a demonstrator - she kindly had me sign up under Tara instead of her which was really generous of her - being a direct of Tara's has been a total blessing to me. So I am forever grateful to Susanne in lots of ways. Cayli is one of her daughters and when I met her I believe she was five, look at her now! Can you believe how cute she is? And if you were one of her grandparents wouldn't you just love to get this picture made by her? Here's a close up:

Cayli's on the Bayfield High School cheer leading team so she made little glittery purple pom poms for her person, they don't really show on the picture but they were SO CUTE!

I promise I'll start posting other things instead of frames, I'm just loving how everybody's are coming out so different and how lovely! Here's one final image for you, Wendy made 4 frames and they're all different, this one is for her parents, isn't it so lovely?

Have a wonderful day, Brenda

Finlay's Name Picture

2009-10-05T08:42:00.000-07:00

Now I've started making these I can't stop! Here's one I made for Finlay, I'm saving it for his birthday though so don't tell... Poor kid is completely obsessed with surfing, which would be great, if only we lived a teeny bit closer to the ocean! Finlay loves the whole surfer dude scene, the clothing, the music, the movies, you name it... but he's never surfed in his life, shame! Still, I'm confident that when he DOES get the chance, he'll know exactly what to do! Have a wonderful week, Brenda

Look What We Made!

2009-09-30T20:41:00.001-07:00

This week I started our personalized name frame class, OH MY! This was SO much fun and everybody came up with SUCH cool pictures! Two ladies made three pictures! And I stayed up until 1 a.m. last night making my own I got so inspired... So here are a few examples for you to peek at. I am doing this class again next Tuesday at 10am or 6pm, both sessions are close to full already so please let me know ASAP if you'd like to come along and how many pictures you'd like to do... The cost is $20 for one or $17.50 for two or more, including frames.

Some are framed already and the bottom couple aren't mounted or colored yet. I did the bottom picture as a Christmas gift for my 2nd grader's teacher, it took ages to do all the little people but I love how it came out!

Please let me know if you have any questions, have a wonderful week, Brenda

Two Similar Cards

2009-09-24T03:56:00.000-07:00

I've had this stamp set for a while and haven't really played with it much, this month I pulled it out for a couple of specific cards I needed, a get well card for a man, and a congratulations card - I love these old fashioned images! They're not my usual style but I the little pun expressions that go with them lighten them up. They come with the words right below the image but I cut the words off and mount them on the end of the wooden block so I can stamp the picture separately from the words when I wish.

I sized these cards to fit in the open end envelopes, it's fun to use a different shape sometimes. I added felt flowers and the new wide stripy ribbon, I like it so much I keep hoarding it so I'm proud of myself for opening the roll :-)

Have a wonderful day!

Brenda

My Digital Studio

2009-09-15T21:25:00.000-07:00

As demo's we were able to order this a little early and I've been playing with mine this week. It's my Dad's 70th birthday next month, he's in England so I won't be there and I wanted to send a special present - I decided to make him an album about his life so far... it's a secret so don't tell...

Here is a sneak peek ;-) I don't think I'm done with this page yet - I think I'll grow the picture a bit bigger and I need to add the date - I am having so much fun with the program! The hardest part has been gathering the pictures and a lot of them are old so I've had to scan them but my Mum scanned and sent me some and I have a big batch of originals my Uncle Ian sent me so I have plenty to play with. I love how you don't have to get all your stuff out, it's so convenient! And they've made it super easy to change the size of your pictures and crop them etc. That's the kind of thing that usually takes me AGES to figure out on the computer - this seems very user friendly to me so far...

You can purchase the program for 1/2 price during October or November if you host a qualifying workshop - please let me know if you are interested...

Have a great week, Brenda

Framed Name Class

2009-09-12T06:19:00.000-07:00

I'm starting a new series of classes called "Make a Gift Monday".

Every year I say I'm going to make more home made gifts and then, around December 9th, I start, get in a panic and have to rush out and buy something expensive instead!

So, this year, I'm starting early, and I'm inviting you to join me!

I'm going to do a different class every two weeks offering a variety of different gift ideas.

I'm starting on Monday, September 28, with a name frame class. Above is a sample.

You have lots of choices when it comes to making these frames, some suggestions might be:

Baby's Name
Child's Name
Family Name
Brothers
Family
Cousins
Sisters
Friends
etc. etc.

The word can't be longer than 12 letters or you'll run out of space.

You have your choice of background paper, colors, people, accessories and embellishments.

Make one picture for $20 or 2 or more for $17.50 each, frames included.

This class will be held Monday, September 28 at 10 a.m. or 6:30 p.m. Please RSVP right away so I know how many frames to buy!

Have a GREAT weekend, Brenda

Just Mail It!

2009-09-11T20:57:00.000-07:00

One of my new resolutions is to actually SEND some of the cards I make, I'm TERRIBLE at just hoarding them. Case in point is the adorable framed baby name I made for my friend Becki - the baby in question is now a toddler and they have never even SEEN the picture! My bad. It's got to the point now where I'm too embarrassed to give it to them... now I'm writing it down I feel REALLY bad - I'm going to face up to my faults and deliver it! You can check back and see if I did...

OK - so I made this lovely card for my Sister In Law, Janet, who turns 40 tomorrow! She's in England so I probably should have mailed it already but I figure if it's postmarked on the big day that should still count, what do you think? At this rate if it actually hits the mailbox it will be a major achievement! I'm so sad I won't be there to hang out with my nieces and play on the bouncy castle with the rest of my family :-(

Shame

Yay! Convention!

2009-08-19T04:56:00.000-07:00

We had SO MUCH FUN! This was the first time I went without the kids (they went camping with Marsh instead) and I had a lot of fun, here are a few pictures of us BLISS girls at convention (L to R - Linda, me, Shoni, Carrie & Tammy)

Tara (my lovely upline) and I - Tara has had a GREAT year, she earned Founder's Circle and we just found out she's going to serve on the Senior Advisory Board this year, she has really earned this so well done Tara.

A sneak peek of the customizable jewelry we'll be carrying, can't wait to get my hands on that!

These were my swaps, easy Halloween treats on glossy card stock - it was fun trading with other 3D items, I got some wonderful things in return (some even had candy, they were my favorites OBVIOUSLY!

All the BLISS attendees together (Julie, Paula, Linda, Carrie, Shoni, Tammy and I - we missed you Julie, Sharon, Caron and Teresa)

Well, the last couple of weeks have been CRAZY! Trying to fit everything in before the boys went back to school, groan. Now I'm trying to get up to speed so I plan to be posting more regularly, ha! Let's see how that resolution goes :-) A new season of stamp club starts this week - it's fun to have lots of new stuff to share!

Have a great week! Brenda

Welcome to the Royal Blog Tour!

2009-07-25T17:00:00.000-07:00

Hello and welcome to the Royal Blog Tour, I'm so glad you made time to stop by and see me! I am offering the chance to win BLOG CANDY to anybody!!! (including fellow demo's) Please leave a comment and be sure to include an email address or way for me to contact you so I can let you know if you win! I will draw a winner on Wednesday.

I have had fun playing with the new Beware Pirates stamp set. After 6 straight years of Thomas the Tank Engine birthday parties I'm now on my 4th consecutive Pirate birthday party so I was happy to see a new pirate stamp set! This is a cool one, I love the images and the feel of it. I can't wait to get the Extreme Elements stamp set to pair it with...

Above is my son, Callum's, birthday party invitation. I stamped the ship in Versamark and embossed in black. Then I gave Callum a sponge and a Crushed Curry ink pad and his big brother two sponges and Night of Navy and Bermuda Bay ink pads, then let them at it! Didn't they do a great job?
We printed the insides on the computer and stamped on a couple of pirate images.

Then we used the stamp set again for the cupcakes, Callum stamped lots of images and then we cut them to make little flags and used Sticky Strip to attach them to toothpicks, they were a big hit with the pirates!

Deal Of The Week!

2009-07-22T18:14:00.000-07:00

Check this out! The SU! deal of the week is the Vanilla Styled Hodgepodge hardware for only $18.99 instead of $29.99! This special ends on Monday at 9:00 a.m. - I'll be away over the weekend so if you're interested please email me or leave a message on my voicemail and I'll place an order Sunday night - of course you can always order direct via my website at: http://www.brendamarshall.stampinup.net/ Have a great week-end! Brenda

I got the cruise!

2009-06-26T05:21:00.000-07:00

You can only imagine how excited I am! And it's thanks to my lovely customers and friends who come, play and shop, THANK YOU!

This card is made using the sneak peek in colors and my new Razzle Dazzle stamp set from the upcoming catty! Scroll down for another sneak peek card!

Here are a selection of cards made with stamp sets that are retiring on Tuesday - waah! I'll be out of town until June 5th so if you need anything please go to my SU website: http://www.brendamarshall.stampinup.net/ and click on the Shop Now button in the top right hand corner. There are still some sale priced retiring accessories available, click on the Specials button once your in the shopping section.

Love this lady, and it's so true!

I'll miss this varnished Rockabilly paper - we stamped the greeting onto glossy white card stock to match.

Don't you love how this cat's eyes are bugging out to see all those birds! Good Morning Sunshine DSP and Zoofari stamp set, I'll miss the monkey the most!

This is a new level 3 hostess set, Kind and Caring thoughts. I used the Rock and Roll technique on the flowers. I inked to whole stamp in Melon Mamba and then rolled the edges in the Rich Razzleberry. I always wonder who gets paid to think up the names of the colors at SU?! What a great job!

That's all for now! Have a great 4th of July and I'll be in touch when I get back! Brenda

2009-06-19T11:00:00.000-07:00

Happy Father's Day!

Here is a card we made at Brenda H's Father's Day workshop this week, we also decorated candles which was so easy and SO FUN! I'll try and get some pictures and instruction up over the weekend. We used the, soon to be retired, Parisian Breeze DSP, punched with the spiral punch. Then we stamped the image from the Tools of the Trade stamp set and colored it with pastels. Quick and easy, just my kind of card!

Then we made this wallet, isn't it great? Inside there are places to tuck money, gift cards, messages or pictures...

Have a great Father's Day! I'll put the candles on soon :-)

Brenda

Mommy & Me Scrapbook Class

2009-05-27T18:50:00.001-07:00

Today the boys and I worked on prepping a couple of albums for my upcoming Mommy & Me scrapbook classes. Callum chose this cute scrapbook kit and we made this album in just a couple of hours. I am offering two types of class, one for you and your child/grandchild and another for you and your older or adult family member. You get to choose one of many different scrapbook kits ahead of time and can use my stamps etc. to embellish. You will leave with a finished, decorated 10 page chipboard album for only $40! Sign up ASAP to reserve your spot. Click here for available dates. If you can get enough friends together I'd be happy to bring this class to your home if you prefer. Callum let me do the girly Sunshine Garden album which came out pretty cute too but I don't have the toothless grin to show it to it's full advantage!
Brenda

Blog Candy Winner!

2009-05-20T06:08:00.000-07:00

I'm running out the door to go to my Farmington Stamp Club this morning but before I go I wanted to post the winner for my blog candy! I used a random number generator and it picked comment # 4 - Michele Redding! Congratulations Michele! Have a great day everybody, thanks for playing, Brenda

Happy Monday! It's Blog Candy Day ;-)

2009-05-18T09:35:00.000-07:00

This is the first week my boys are out of school so we're trying to settle into a new routine - the sun is shining and we got back from our first weekend camping, la la la!

I have a fun thank you card to share with you plus I have a little package of blog candy to give away so put a comment with a way to contact you and I'll add you into the drawing! I will draw Tuesday night.

I had to make a couple of cards that lots of people could sign so I made this one out of a sheet of 12" x 12" card stock folded in half. This one was for Finlay's teacher and I used the school colors, purple and gold, yuck. I feel badly that they're going to have these ugly colors follow them through their school lives but what can you do?! I did the same card using Blue and Gold for the Cub Scout leaders, much nicer colors, but my picture didn't turn out well so I'm stuck with this one! I used the cute bear and raccoon from the Great Outdoors set and our new Jumble Alphabet (that's on special this month only!) to stamp the words.

I can't post my stamp club projects until after Wednesday (which is the final stamp club day) so check back then!

Have a great week, Brenda

Welcome to the May 15th & 16th Blog Tour!

2009-05-13T20:04:00.000-07:00

The tour is over now but you can still see my projects below... I will be doing another tour in July...

Featured stamp set: Owl Together Now from Stampin' Up!

Don’t forget to bookmark your favorite blogs as the links that make up this tour will disappear at midnight on May 16th. Please come back after the weekend, I really have some fun things to show you next week! I am holding them until after my final stamp club group this Wednesday, I don't want to spoil the surprise! Plus you can enter for Blog Candy on Monday!

I chose the stamp set Owl Together Now from Stampin' Up! This set appealed to me the first time I saw it and it has grown on me even more now I've had chance to play with it. This is a gatefold card, the message inside reads "something for you from owl of us". We made this card at one of my stamp clubs when we were learning about water color crayons and the aquapainter. You need to become "one" with your Stamp-a-ma-jig to get the owls on the branch and line up their party accessories!

Whoo la la! I created a mini (3" x 3") card using the Pink Pirouette textured card stock (on sale!) and punched out an opening in the front using my scallop punch. Then I centred the peeking owl on a Basic Gray Scallop Circle and colored him in using the ink pads and a blender pen. Super easy!

I colored this little owl using markers. Then I placed him in front of a little forest stamped with the Forest Friends tree. The greeting is from the Great Friends set. The strip at the bottom is punched from a piece of Walk in the Park Designer Series Paper (also on sale!)
This final card is a Valentine's card, I used the Curly Label punch and layered 2 pieces, one horizontally and one vertically to make the border.

Beer Can Gift Box

2009-05-09T07:41:00.000-07:00

Oops, is it really a whole week since I said I'd post this?!

This is another sample I made for the Spring Stamposium. My friend Lynn's husband kindly donated me an empty Bud can (he's so generous!)

I tried making the base of the box with the tin can but it didn't do well with all that folding so I made the inside just using regular card stock and made the outer sleeve with the can. The Matchbox Die cut and scored the can easily but when I made sharp folds the can tore so before I folded it I covered the reverse side of the can with packing tape, that way when I made the sharp folds it didn't break apart.

We'll be using our little box to put a Father's Day gift in, maybe some beer money!

Have a great weekend!
Brenda

Become a Demonstrator for only $75 plus other specials!

2009-05-03T12:11:00.000-07:00

Only $75 gets you the Scrapbooking supplies plus all the business stuff you need to get going!!! Woo Hoo! How fun! And that means you could REGISTER TO COME TO CONVENTION! That's worth it right there in my book ;-)

May 2009 Specials from Stampin' Up!
There are THREE specials being offered during the Month of May - NATIONAL SCRAPBOOKING MONTH:
Scrapbooking Promotion - Dates: May 1-31, 2009
Promotion Details
1. Buy three packs of Designer Series paper (including our Specialty Designer Series paper) or 12" x 12" textured card stock, and get one FREE!
2. Buy a sneak peek stamp set from the 2009-2010 Idea Book & Catalog- Jumble Alphabet (set of 52; double-mounted)--at a 20 percent discount.
Will be: $43.95 Sale price: $35.16
3. In celebration of National Scrapbooking Month, join Stampin' Up! and my BLISS stamp group as a demonstrator for only $75 with our limited-time Scrapbooking Starter Kit.
Sign up NOW on my website HERE, when asked for the PASSWORD, enter: bbmarsh
The Scrapbooking Starter Kit for only $75 contains the following:
Schoolbook Serif Alphabet stamp set*
$42.95
Simply Scrappin' Petal Party
$19.95
Earth Elements Assorted textured card stock (12" x 12")
$11.95
Whisper White Craft Stampin' Pad
$7.50
*Substitutable for any stamp set up to $43.95 value.
Please note: Each of the products listed above may be substituted for like items. Please see the Scrapbooking Starter Kit Order Form for details.The Scrapbooking Starter Kit also contains all the business supplies contained in the standard Starter Kit:
Getting Started DVD
Getting Started Guide
Guest Invitation Postcard (100)
Idea Book & Catalog (8)
Occasions Mini Catalog (8)
To My Hostess Envelope (10)
Recruit Folders (5)
Recruit Brochures (20)
Hostess Brochure (20)
Hostess Benefits Form (10)
Customer Order Form (50)
Sign up NOW on my website HERE, when asked for the PASSWORD, enter: bbmarsh.
Please email me if you have any questions! BrendaStamps@Q,com