Q and A Time!

I've gotten quite a few e-mails in the past week or so about a few things, so I thought I'd try and answer them all here.

Many of you wanted to know if I will be offering a kit with instructions for my Breath of Spring Cards and Box class. Sadly, you don't all live close enough to stamp WITH me, so I guess I need to bring it to you. :)
I hadn't initially planned to do so, but since I've had so many requests, I've decided to give it a try and will have the info posted by the end of this week. How does that sound?

I've also heard from some of you wanting to know if I'm going to ever make another video. Wow, the first one wasn't enough to scare you away, so I guess I'm going to make more! Actually, my dear hubby and I were discussing this just last week and our plan is to create one new video a week starting next week. So now I need to know what you want to see! Lay it on me!

Lastly, someone asked me what to do when ribbon won't stay stuck to Sticky Strip adhesive. This card here was the example referenced.

That's a really good question and I wish I had a perfect answer for you. It's been my experience that even though Sticky Strip is probably one of our strongest adhesives, when my studio (which is in my basement) is damp or humid, even that adhesive will release. The drier the climate, the better it works. I typically keep my cards with ribbon adhered this way in a clear envelope to keep the ribbon pressed into the adhesive. 99.9% of the time that does the trick. BUT, I am open to other ideas or solutions if someone has one. I am most certainly not the end all, be all of knowledge in this area! :)

So, there you go. I think I hit all the questions for now. If you have more, just post a comment. I'll do my best to give you a good answer!

~~Robin

Tea'Rific' Weekend!

Well, what do you know, it's Monday already! Did you guys have a good weekend? Mine was really, really good - full of activity, but so fun!
Saturday was my downline team meeting - I LOVE meeting with my team of stampers each month! They are so fun to be around and inspire to me to be my best every day! We've had a lot to celebrate lately with my stampers adding new team members and promoting left and right! Just last week we added three new team members and experienced two promotions! I'm so proud of these ladies and all the effort they are putting into growing their businesses!

Have you ever thought about joining Stampin' Up!? Maybe, maybe not, but either way, I'd love to chat with you about it! My affiliation with this company has enhanced my life in so many ways but truly the best is the relationships I've been blessed to form. Some of my dearest friends ever are ones I've met through SU! and I wouldn't trade that for anything!

Right now is a good time to consider joining because of the Starter Kit Special through Sale-A-Bration. But really, there is NO bad time to join - it's simply a fabulous company! Let's talk, ok? E-mail me at stampwithrobin@yahoo.com with your contact info and I'll be in touch.

Now, how about a cute little project to start your week off right?

I had seen a Christmas tag design several months ago on our Demonstrator only Online resource, Stampin' Connection. Last week, when I was designing for my Stampin' Fools party group, I remembered it and thought how fun it would be to make in bright, springy colors!
So, I pulled out my Ice Cream Parlor Designer Series Paper, Buttons and Ribbon; plus my Morning Cup stamp set and got to work.

This is truly the easiest project ever!
Cut a piece of cardstock 3 1/4" x 8 1/2". (I used Pacific Point) Fold it in half and lay it on the large tag portion of the Two Tags Die for your Big Shot. When you lay it down, put the folded edge just inside the cut line for the bottom of the tag. This way, when you run the cardstock through, it leaves the fold intact so you have a little tag folder!

To decorate, I simply cut a piece of DSP to fit the front and used my Corner Rounder punch to trim the corners. I punched out a piece of Melon Mambo cardstock with my 2 3/8" Scallop Circle Punch. The little white polka-dots were drawn on with my White Gel Pen.
The cute teapot image was stamped with Black Staz-On onto Whisper White cardstock and then punched out with the 2 1/2" Circle Punch. (The Circles #2 Die for the Big Shot also has this size circle on it if you own that.) I simply colored it with Stampin' Write Markers and added some Dazzling Diamonds Glitter to the edge with my 2-Way Glue Pen. It's popped up on Stampin' Dimensionals and the entire element was adhered to the tag front with Tombow Adhesive.
I stamped the greeting and punched it out with the Modern Label Punch, curled it with my Bone Folder and attached it with Mini Glue Dots. The little button was added to make it pop!

To finish the piece, I punched a hole in the top of both sides with my Crop-A-Dile and added a 5" piece of ribbon to tie it off. The tea bag inside (not shown) is adhered with a little bit of Dotto which is temporary adhesive.

My Stampin' Fools loved it and I hope you will too! It's just a cool little project that is easy to share with anyone! It would make a 'tea'-rific gift tag too!

Be sure to visit my online store to purchase the supplies you need to make this and any of my other projects. This one is great because all of the Ice Cream Parlor items were FREE with Sale-A-Bration rewards! You know, for each $50 you spend, you get a FREE item from Stampin' Up! right now. But only until March 31st, so don't miss out!

Have a wonderful Monday friends, I'll be back later to answer a few questions that I've received from you over the past week or so - stay tuned!

Stamped blessings,
~~Robin

Bliss Meets Serendipity

No, Serendipity is NOT a new stamp set. Serendipity is what is considered a happy accident! As a stamper, I have a lot of those! LOL! When you sit down to create something, it doesn't always turn out the way you pictured it in your head, but most of the time, it turns out better!

And then there are times when you create something and it's just not fit to show your dog. I should know, Buster and Susie turn their noses up at my creations all the time. But that could have something to do with the fact that they don't smell like biscuits or hamburger!

So, the other day, I was casing a gorgeous card from the very talented Mary Brown (I'll be showing you my case one day next week) and I had my card all finished except for the greeting. Want to guess what happened next? Yeah, I kinda stamped the greeting crooked. Not just a little crooked so that I could adjust the ribbon a smidge to hide the slant, but really crooked. The kind that you just toss aside and start over again! Not wanting to waste the whole stamped cardfront, I decided to cut off the crooked greeting - that got tossed out - and use the leftover stamped piece for a new card.
THAT was the Serendipity because here is the card that resulted:

Whaddya think? Do you like? I sure hope so, because I like it VERY much!
This combo of Sahara Sand, Cherry Cobbler and Very Vanilla is just yummy! So soft and pretty, very soothing I think.
The main panel is stamped with the flourish image from the FREE Sale-A-Bration stamp set, Bliss. It's tone on tone with Sahara Sand ink. I trimmed it down and matted it on Cherry Cobbler then mounted it on a card base of Sahara Sand that I ran through the Big Shot with my Vintage Wallpaper folder. I trimmed the bottom off a little bit and added a piece of Cherry Cobbler that I'd punched with my Scallop Trim Border Punch. The Very Vanilla Satin Ribbon was simply knotted around the front to hide the seam. Pretty, huh?

I think my favorite thing on this card is the flower made with that First Edition Newsprint DSP. It was so easy! I punched out 4 pieces with the Scalloped Circle Punch, crumpled them up, sponged the edges with Cherry Cobbler ink and added the Vintage Brad in the center. Easy peasy! The greeting is from Teeny Tiny Wishes and is punched with the Modern Label Punch then curled to look like a banner. Both of those are adhered with Mini Glue Dots.

For a final touch, I used my Vanilla Smooch Spray and spritzed it all over. It added the perfect finish!

So, as always, if you NEED the supplies to create this or any of my other designs, you can simply visit my Stampin' Up! website and my Online Store to place an order. It's open 24/7 for your convenience and remember, for each $50 you spend, you earn a FREE Sale-A-Bration stamp set or reward item! What could be better than FREE?! Oh, well, you do get a pretty Thank You card in the mail from me - so that's almost as good, isn't it? :)

Have a wonderful day today! I'm off to get my hair cut and wisdom covered, so it will be fun to see if Mark notices when he gets home from work. Emma always notices, but Mark, not so much. Ah, well, at least he doesn't complain when he sees the checking account entry!

Stamped blessings,
~~Robin

A Breath of Spring - Boxed Card Set

I don't know what the weather has been like in your little corner of the world, but around here, it's been a bit schizophrenic! High temps and sunshine one day, freezing cold and blustery winds the next - it's enough to make your head spin! So last week, I was feeling the need for something warm and floral and I got out my long neglected package of Greenhouse Gala Designer Paper and got to work creating. By the time I was all finished, I'd created a fresh and fun box of Cards that put me perfectly in mind of warmer weather! Here, take a look:

This is just 3 of the 8 cards I created - 8 All-Occasion cards that I know will come in VERY handy. And I just love this card box that holds all 8 cards plus envelopes!

Don't you just love that flower? I used the new Fun flowers Die to make that one and I love how it turned out! The box is really fabulous and is sturdy enough to use long after the cards have been sent with love.
Here's a another picture of the set:

Now, you want to know the best part? I am offering this Boxed Card Set as a class in March! That's right, you'll get to come create with me in the studio and make your VERY OWN box and 8 coordinating cards!

There are 3 dates available:
Saturday, March 12th at 10 am
Tuesday, March 29th at 10 am
Tuesday, March 29th at 7 pm

Your class will include all the supplies to complete the project, PLUS a detailed instruction sheet for creating the entire boxed set. You'll be able to complete one set in the class and then take your instructions home and use them to make more!
The Class Fee is just $20 for everything (plus Chocolate!) but you must RSVP by Friday, March 4th with your $10 deposit. Each class is limited to 12 stampers ages 16 and up.

I can't wait to make these beautiful cards with you, so contact me ASAP to reserve your spot!

Stamped Blessings,
~~Robin

Casing Myself in Pink

I don't know about you guys, but I am loving the new Springtime Vintage collection of products that are in the Occasions Mini Catalog. The gorgeous fabric, the rosettes, the floral adornments and that GORGEOUS new designer paper! You may recognize today's card by style, I made a very similar card for some special friends at Leadership last month. (See this post here)

But recently, I wanted to use the designer paper in the pinker tones and decided to simply case myself for this card.
I started with a base of Crumb Cake cardstock that I ran through the Big Shot with the new Framed Tulips embossing folder. I sponged the edges with Crumb Cake ink. Then I pulled out my FREE Sale-A-Bration stamp set Bliss and stamped the flourish image with Always Artichoke ink on the card front.

Next, I cut my designer paper flowers with the Big Shot and the new Fun Flowers Die, then sponged them all with more Crumb Cake ink. The petals were all curled with my Bone Folder and I attached the flowers together with a brad in the center. The Very Vanilla Rosette was added with a Mini Glue Dot and I attached the flower to the card with Stampin' Dimensionals. The only SNAIL I used on this card was to attach the small piece of Rose Red Seam Binding under the flower.

The greeting is from the Notably Ornate stamp set and I just inked it with Early Espresso to stamp it. For a final touch, I used my Color Spritzer Tool to spritz on Crumb Cake ink. I'm not totally decided, but I think I may like this version better than the first one! What do you think?

As always, if you need to purchase the supplies to re-create this or any of my other projects, my Stampin' Up! Online Store is open 24/7. Just click the Shop Now button to get started! All my online orders this month will receive THIS card from me!

Stamped blessings,
~~Robin

Vintage Spring Flower Pin

New Class Announcement!

Springtime Vintage Flower Pin

Saturday, March 19th
10 am - Noon

Join me in the Studio and create this gorgeous Flower Pin with a matching card:

Class Fee - $15 - includes ALL supplies for both the pin and card.
RSVP with full class fee by March 7th to guarantee your seat and secure your supplies.

We had the unique opportunity to create this lovely brooch at our Leadership Conference in Nashville and I've received so many requests for a class that I decided to add it to my calendar.
This will make the perfect gift for a special someone in your life - OR, just treat yourself to this beautiful breath of Spring!

I'm looking forward to creating with you!
Stamped blessings,
~~Robin

Clean and Simple Birthday

Happy President's Day!
I am thoroughly enjoying my day - how about you? I got to sleep in, I took Emma with me to meet an old friend for lunch (Hi Lynn!) and we are about to go to the movies with Mark. Just a great way to spend the day - time with my family and friends!

So, I was a bit late getting this post up today - but better late than never, right?
I actually created this card last month and used it for my downline team swap and again for my Stampin' Fools Party group. I loved it and so did they!

Clean and simple cards are one of my favorite things to do - they don't take all day to create and are just the right thing for any occasion. And one of the best parts is that they usually don't take extra postate to mail! Yeah, that's a bonus!

This card was super simple, but packed with details. I used all Very Vanilla cardstock for the 4 1/4" square size. The front panel is 4" square and after I ran it through the Big Shot with the Perfect Polka Dots embossing folder, I wrapped the Pretty in Pink Satin Ribbon around it and added the smaller piece in a single knot.

The cute bakery images are from the Birthday Bakery Hostess stamp set and I simply used Stampin' Write Markers to color them after stamping with Black Staz-On ink. I colored with Wild Wasabi, Pretty in Pink, Pink Pirouette, Rose Red and Crumb Cake. Love the 'vintage' look that the Wild Wasabi added to a couple of the cake stands!
The greeting is from Occasional Greetings, another Hostess stamp set and is also stamped in Black Staz-On.

See, sweet and simple! Love it!

Enjoy your day stampin' friends! If you find that you need supplies to create this card, or any of my other project ideas, simply visit my Stampin' Up! website where you can shop 24/7! Be sure to add your FREE Sale-A-Bration product too when your order goes over $50! Isn't that cool! FREE stamps!

Stamped blessings!
~~Robin

"Thank You" makes the news!

Ok, so I know I promised you this card yesterday - but I forgot that I had the UDI card to share! Oops! :) Forgive me?!

Anyway, I've been loving the Engraved Greetings stamp set ever since I got it FREE as a Sale-A-Bration reward! And not just because it was FREE! It's an awesome stamp set. I love the font, the size, the style - it can be masculine or feminine, vintage or mixed, really, just a great stamp set!

So, the other day, I showed you the birthday card I'd made with it, now take a look at the Thank You cards!

If you've placed an online order with me this month, this is the card you've received or WILL receive in the mail from me - does that make you smile?

To create this, I used Very Vanilla cardstock for the base and layered it with the First Edition Designer Paper from the Occasions Mini catalog. The greeting was stamped with Staz-On ink on a piece of Very Vanilla then punched out with the 2 1/2" Circle punch.

I placed a 1 1/2" piece of Sticky Strip on the designer paper - where I wanted the ribbon to go - and then just scrunched up a 4 1/2" piece of the Basic Black 1 1/4" Striped Grosgrain ribbon along it. The end of the ribbon is hidden under the greeting, which I popped up with Stampin' Dimensionals.
Lastly, I used my Silver Smooch Spray and gave it a spritz or two for a little antiquing and Voila! She is done!

Now, doesn't that sound like an easy card? Yes, it was and is! Love it when Clean and Simple makes the news!

If you need - and you know what I mean when I say NEED - the supplies for this or any other project I've shown you, please check out my Stampin' Up! online store where you can order 24/7! Remember, all orders of $50 or more will earn you FREE Stampin' Up! products right now - it's Sale-A-Bration! You could even be like me and earn the Engraved Greetings stamp set free, that's a winner!

Stamped blessings,
~~Robin

Bright Spots - A UDI Blog Inspiration Challenge!

Happy Thursday Stampin' Peeps!
Are you having a good week so far? Mine has been pretty good - just strangely busy in ways that I didn't expect. Ever have that happen? I am normally "off" on Wednesdays (watch it, those of you who just said "Only on Wednesdays?"!), but yesterday got trapped at the computer doing a whole lot of admin stuff and clean up. Guess that means I'm not keeping up with it very well normally, eh? Anyway, before I knew it, my day was shot! No stampin'! No cleanin'! Nothin'!

But at least I have my card ready for this week's UDI Blog Inspiration Challenge. Wanna see it?
Ok, here you go, but I do have to comment on the poor photograph first. I'm still working with an old camera since my good one is out of commission. I just can't get the colors to show up true in the photos from this camera, not even the white! It's darned frustrating and a good reminder of why that camera is in a drawer. But, until we have the dollars in the budget for a new one, I'll just have to be frustrated - hope you aren't!

Anyway, here's my card:

Isn't that fun?! I love those bright colors in the Ice Cream Parlor DSP from Sale-A-Bration! This card was so simple, it takes literally no time at all!
Here's the inspiration piece from UDI that I followed:

So cute! I'd love to have those lamps in my studio! Wonder where they came from? Never mind, just remembered that I need to buy a new camera first. Better save up my commission money this month! :)

Ok, so back to the card. I used Whisper White for the card base and the layer. The DSP circles were all punched out with the 1 1/4" Circle Punch and layered on to cardstock circles punched out with the 1 3/8" Circle Punch. I mixed up the patterns and colors so they would be random like on the lamp shades. Each circle is popped up with a Stampin' Dimensional. The cardstock colors I used are Pacific Point, Daffodil Delight, Melon Mambo, Peach Parfait and Old Olive, matching the colors in the DSP.

I left a bigger space after the 2nd row of circles to accomodate the Ice Cream Parlor Ribbon that's wrapped around the Whisper White layer. The cute little double bow is added with a Mini-Glue Dot and the Ice Cream Parlor Button as well.

The greeting is stamped with Pacific Point ink onto Whisper White using the So Happy For You stamp set also FREE from Sale-A-Bration! In fact, half of the supplies on this card were FREE! WooHoo! Gotta love that!
To make the banner, I simply curled the stamped cardstock strip with my Bone Folder and punched off the ends with my 1 1/4" Square Punch. It's attached with Mini-Glue Dots and that's just about that! Clean, simple and FUN!

Be sure to visit the UDI Blog to see what the other design team members created this week! I'm sure they will be awesome!

And check out my online store for all the supplies you need to make this card and more! I'm open 24/7 so you can shop in your jammies!

Stamped blessings,
~~Robin

The Trouble with Men.....

Is that it's hard to make a card for them!

Don't ya' think so? I don't know about you guys, but I have a very difficult time creating masculine cards. I think I'm always concerned that it's going to end up too frou-frou or something. Or that the embellishments I use won't be 'manly' enough. Whatever! My regular stampers have been requesting some more masculine designs, so you know, when they ask - I deliver!

Here's a card I created for this month's card classes:

I started with no plan, just the piece of Marina Mist cardstock in my hand asking "What can I do with this?" Well, the answer was fold it and stamp on it! I took out my Define Your Life stamp set and pulled the definition for 'Original'. Using my Stamp-A-Ma-Jig, I stamped it 3 times with Marina Mist on the right side of the card front.
The next layer is the Early Espresso 3 1/2" Circle cut with my Big Shot, I adhered it to the card front with Tombow Adhesive then trimmed it with my Paper Snips to be even with the card edge.

While I was cutting, I cut another Early Espresso Circle, this time with the 3" Circle Die and used that under my focal image. That was stamped with the Engraved Greetings stamp set using Stampin' Write Markers to color the image. I used Early Espresso and Marina Mist. Once stamped, it's punched out with the 2 1/2" Circle Punch. It's kind of hard to see in the photo, but I sponged all the cardstock and DSP with Crumb Cake ink to distress it a bit.

Here's a close up of the focal image and embellishments:

The Crumb Cake layer was run through the Big Shot with the Texturz plates and I sponged over the words to make them pop out a bit. I love the new First Edition DSP for crumpling! It has a different feel to it than regular DSP and is Perfect for distressing! Here I crumpled it then sponged over it as well. It's attached to the Crumb Cake layer with Stampin' Dimensionals as are the circles.
The button was from the Neutrals collection and I added a piece of Hemp Twine through it and fluffed up the ends. Maybe I shouldn't say 'fluffed up' on a masculine card. Let's say I ROUGHED it up instead. Yep, sounds better!

Here is the inside view:

See the bottom left corner? Yep, after I stamped my focal image, I huffed on the stamp and added just a peek of it on the Crumb Cake cardstock. The greeting is from the On Your Birthday stamp set and I simply inked it with Marina Mist.

So, there's one of my attempts at a masculine card. Wanna tell me what you think? I'd love to know since I was flying by the seat of my pants!

Have a great day stampin' peeps!
Remember, if you need to order supplies for this or any other project, my website is just a click away: www.robinstamps4u.stampinup.net
Use the SHOP NOW Button at the top right to enter the store. Tomorrow I'll be showing you the Thank You cards I'm making for everyone who makes a purchase from my website this month so be sure to check back! And don't forget, when you do place your order, be sure to choose your FREE Sale-A-Bration items! You get one for each $50 you spend!

Stamped blessings,
~~Robin

Just the Cutest Little Notebooks!

Happy Tuesday peeps!
Just a quick little post today - I have my Just Cards class this morning and a full day after that ahead of me, but I wanted to still share something cute with you!

I'm loving the Ice Cream Parlor Designer Paper from Sale-A-Bration this year! In fact, I have another card with it that we are making today in card class. I'll show you that one later this week, ok? You know the BEST part of that paper? It's FREE! You can't buy it, you can only get it FREE! I don't know about you, but I {heart} FREE! Wanna know the next best part of that paper? It comes with a 12 x 12 sheet of super cute Die Cut Cardstock stickers that totally coordinate with the paper. Yep, that's pretty sweet! If you need to see the designs, just hop over to my Stampin' Up! website and click on the Sale-A-Bration link on the home page. From there you can click the "View Free Products" link on the Promotions page and it downloads a copy of the entire Sale-A-Bration Brochure. Pretty cool, eh?

Anyway, let me show you what the Stampin' Fools (that's one of my party groups) made last month:

Such cute little covered notebooks - perfect for your pocket or purse! I love these! We stamped the little medallion with an image from Punch Bunch - another FREE product - and used the Designer Paper to cover the mini notebooks that I'd picked up at a discount store. A little Marina Mist Grosgrain Ribbon and a few punches and cardstock scraps and we had this cute little booger!

Thanks for stopping by today! I'd love to stamp with you sometime, check out my class schedule to find out when you can come over, ok?

Stamped blessings,
~~Robin

Clean and Simple Flower

Good morning stamping friends!
Happy Valentine's Day! I hope that for all of you this day gives you the chance to love and be loved in return!

My card today is yet another clean and simple design -

I've really loved the new Framed Tulip Embossing Folder and this time I used it with Whisper White cardstock and embossed the card front. It had been a while since I used the Awash with Flowers stamp set, so I pulled that one out and stamped just the single flower in Real Red ink. I then used my Aqua Painter and more Real Red ink to color it in. The little flower centers are colored with a Pink Pirouette Stampin' Write Marker.
My stem is stamped with Old Olive ink and I added a simple knot of Old Olive 5/8" Satin Ribbon. Last but not least, the greeting, from All Holidays, was stamped below the flower in Real Red.

Just a sweet little notecard that truly took me all of about 5 minutes to complete. I really encourage all of you who haven't stamped in a while to give the Clean and Simple look a try. Sometimes it's just what you need to get out of a rut, keep from feeling overwhelmed with choices or just get your mojo flowing again. And as you can see, the results can be lovely!

I hope you have a wonderful day, and I LOVE that you stopped by to visit!

Stamped blessings,
~~Robin

Stamping 411 Sketch Challenge - Bright Butterfly

Good evening folks! I know I'm a wee bit late getting my 411 card posted for you, but will you forgive me if I have a good reason? Ok, good. Oh, you want to know what that reason is, eh? Well, my hubby came home early from work today and decided to come to the skating rink with me and Emma. Which in itself is great! But, we then headed to one of our favorite restaurants for dinner - Famous Dave's! We LOVE their bar-be-que and deep fried pickles! Yummy! Check out these pics here from Emma's birthday in December. Yep, she chose Famous Dave's for her 13th birthday dinner!

So thanks for being patient with me in my lateness. I knew you'd understand!
Here's my operator card for this week's 411 Sketch Challenge -

I got my issue of a popular stamping magazine in the mail earlier this week and this was a color combination that really caught my eye. I thought it was so cool that the Sale-A-Bration Ice Cream DSP from Stampin' Up! had all those same colors in it. Nothing like being on trend! It was so refreshing to make something really bright, fun and summery. The weather has been so cold everywhere lately that I knew this color combination would warm us all up!
I used Pacific Point, Melon Mambo, Whisper White and Daffodil Delight. The DSP also has Peach Parfait and Old Olive in it, so in person, this card really has a light, fun and airy feel.

Here's the sketch we had to work with:

I stayed pretty true to the sketch this week, my biggest deviation was not wrapping my ribbon all around. But I liked having the ends loose, kind of reminded me of ribbons on a big straw hat. Here's a close up of my focal image, it's hard to see, but I've put Dazzling Diamonds on the little cut out butterfly - we all need a little bling!

The color spatters are actually two different colors. I used my Color Spritzer tool with a Pacific Point Stampin' Write Marker on the background and Melon Mambo on the focal image. And I know you can't see this in the photo, but that beautiful swirl image from the Bliss Sale-A-Bration stamp set is Heat Embossed with Pacific Point Craft Ink and Clear EP. So pretty in person!
I used a gift from my friend Lee Conrey to make the sweet double satin bow, isn't it lovely? The whole focal point is popped up on Stampin' Dimensionals.

All the attention to detail on the front meant that I had to jazz up the inside too. Here's a little peek at the inside:

Nothing fancy, just a few stamped images and some more spritzing, but it sure does make a difference when you add a little extra!

So now that you've stopped by, please take a minute to visit the Stamping 411 Blog and see the other Operators take on the sketch, I know they will inspire you - maybe you'll even want to join the challenge and make your own card. That would be great!

Have a great weekend everyone, see you soon!
~~Robin

iHeart - Clean and Simple (UDI Blog Inspiration Challenge)

Some days, nothing will do for me but a completely Clean and Simple card design. I love the elegance, I love the simplicity, I love how the "white space" allows you to focus on the most important element on the card. This week's UDI Blog Inspiration Challenge piece just screamed Clean and Simple to me. It's very serene to me and that's the direction I took my project.

Here's the Inspiration piece:
And here is my card:

Yes, I know. There's that little cupcake stand again - isn't it cute? I'll let you in on a little secret - I bought 4 of them! In beautiful, soft sherbet colors. You'll be seeing a lot of them over the coming months! :)

My card started with one of the Fresh Cut Notes. I punched out the petals of the flower and cut off the inside pieces so they wouldn't show behind the heart element. After adhering a piece of Pretty in Pink DSP to the inside of the card front, I attached the heart to the front with a Stampin' Dimensional. It was stamped with the Filled with Love stamp set and punched out with the Full Heart Punch. I added a Bitty Button with a little Linen Thread as a final accent to the front.

Here's a look at the inside:

Yes, nice and clean and simple.

Thanks so much for stopping by today - I'm glad you did! Be sure to visit the UDI Blog to see what the other design team members created. I'll bet you'll love their creations!

Stamped blessings,
~~Robin

Are you on Facebook? Well, so am I! Search for "Trinity Design Studios - Paper Crafting and Fun" and click the "Like" button to follow me! You'll get sneak peeks at upcoming projects, class information, special tutorials and lots more. I have fun things planned for my fans, so be sure to pay a visit today!

Heart Full of Love - and Chocolate!

I know, I know, I just showed you a cute Valentine's heart yesterday made with the Petal Cone Die. And really, I struggled as to whether I should show you ANOTHER one today. But, I figured two things - One, that Valentine's Day is fast approaching and you probably want those ideas now instead of later; and Two, that cute is cute and this one has an entirely different look than the delicate pink one yesterday. So, now that's settled, would you like to see it? Ok, here you go:

Yes, I am aware that the Hershey Chocolate Hearts are the BEST looking thing in this photo, but you can console yourself about not having them by knowing that they no longer exist - they were delicious! :) But, now I'm back on my WW plan so if you stop by, any stray chocolate will be offered with no hesitation!

This particular heart pouch was one I designed for my Downline Team meeting last month. We all love the Petal Cone Die - it's just so stinkin' cute and makes a ton of cool projects! For this one, I used the Love Impressions Designer Paper that's in the Occasions Mini catalog. The DSP is the front piece, Real Red cardstock was used for the back side and scallops. It almost looks like a bustier doesn't it?

I created the stamped images for the front with the XOXO stamp set and added Real Red 5/8" Grosgrain and Real Red 1/8" Taffeta Ribbons to complete the look.

If you don't own this Big Shot die yet, it's a must have for your list. I think we are just scratching the surface of all the creative projects we can make with it. I'm looking forward to exploring them all! Let me know if you NEED it - I'm happy to order it for you, or you can visit my Stampin' Up! Website and place your order now.
While you're on my website, be sure to check out my events calendar - I have some very fun classes and stamping events coming up. I'd love to have you as my guest here!

Happy Stampin' today!
~~Robin

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Very Valentine's Class Projects - Part 2

Hi there! Thanks for stopping by my blog to visit today! I have a few more projects from my Very Valentine's class in January to share with you. Simple ideas really, but definitely something that would make a cute gift or remembrance for your friends and loved ones.

The first project is a heart shaped pouch made with the new Petal Cone Die. I've heard so many people say that they didn't think they needed this die for the Big Shot, but after seeing the PLETHORA of projects that can be made with it, they changed their minds.
My pouch was made with Pretty in Pink Patterns DSP, Pretty in Pink cardstock and Shimmer White cardstock.

I love how sweet and delicate this one looks with the light colors combined. We used 1/8" Very Vanilla Taffeta Ribbon and 5/8" Pretty in Pink Grosgrain Ribbon and a little Linen Thread to tie on the punched heart element.

Our next project was a blast from the past - decorated Altoids tins! I found a large box of tins in my stash of "alterables" in my stamp room closet and thought it was time to bring them out again. We decorated the outside of the tins:

And decorated the chocolate inside too!

The best part of this project for my stampers that attended was learning to take the long piece of ribbon and wrap it around the mini-glue dot roll, following the dots with the ribbon. That way the glue dots are perfectly spaced out and aren't messy! They said that tip was worth the price of admission! :)

Our last project was again, so simple, just a small covered notebook for their "Love Notes"!

We used Tombow Multi Adhesive to cover the notebook and simply tied the Real Red Grosgrain ribbon around the cover and attached the embellishments. All the stamping on all the projects was done with the Filled with Love stamp set and we used Real Red and Pretty in Pink ink.

There is still time to get all your valentine's projects created, so I hope you've found some great ideas here to use. Have fun creating!

Stamped blessings,
~~Robin

Very Valentine's Class Projects - Part 1

Happy Monday everyone!
I'm pre-posting this on Sunday because I have a SUPER BUSY Monday and didn't want to forget to share these Valentine's projects with you.
I hope you enjoyed the Super Bowl yesterday - and that your team won! How's that for diplomacy?! I didn't have a horse in that race, so we just watched the game and enjoyed it for the football and the commercials! They are always the BEST aren't they?

So how about a couple of Valentine's cards?
Here's the first one I designed for my Very Valentine's Class at the end of January. I used the Letterpress Plate with my Big Shot once again for the background, this time with Versamark ink.

Don't you love how it sparkles? After I ran the Pretty in Pink Patterns DSP through the Big Shot, I heat embossed it with Iridescent Ice embossing powder. Love the result! The rest is so simple - Real Red and Whisper White cardstock, White Organza ribbon, a cute Bitty Button and that dazzling Real Red Glimmer Paper - love it! Do you have any yet? You MUST order some - you will NOT be disappointed! Promise!

All the projects from this class used the Filled With Love stamp set - it's such a cute set! For this card, we stamped the heart in Pretty in Pink and punched it out with the Full Heart Punch.
Here's a look at the inside:

Very simple - just a cute little stamped heart with a punched glimmer flower accent. What's not to love?!

Here's the 2nd card we made at class:

This one I cased from somewhere on line and I was going to reference the source here for you, but for the life of me, I can't find it now!! If you recognize this general design, please let me know -I like to give credit for a great idea!

Anyway, I put my own spin on it and we made this in class as well.
I love the little punched hearts border the best I think - so sweet! The key to the beauty of this card is the layering - just one simple layer on another. And it's so easy!

Here's a peek at the inside:

Again, keeping it simple, but perfect for your loved one!

I hope you enjoyed these two cards - I have the 3D projects to share with you tomorrow, so be sure to check to see a few super cute things!

Stamped blessings!
~~Robin

Lake Placid Adventure - Game Day!

I love the National Blades. I love being a team Mom and I love watching these girls skate their hearts out.
But I just want to go on record as NOT being a fan of a 5 am wake-up call for a 6 am rink show up! Nope, not now, not ever! Just sayin'!

Now, you'd never know from this picture of the team doing their warm up that they were just as sleepy as the adults were - the strains of Taio Cruz singing "Dynomite" should be enough to get anyone going - today, not so much!

I just have to say here that we were in THE 1980 Miracle on Ice arena and locker rooms - I'm so geeked out - it's so cool!!!

Anyway, here is the team doing a visualization of the perfect performance while their music is played for them. I promise they are NOT sleeping!

And you can see by this amazing Triangle Pass Through, that the girls were on their game today - even at that early hour - they were so ready for this competition.

And Yes, that's THE Olympic ICE!!!

So, after practice, breakfast and video breakdowns, the girls all got their hair and glittery make up done. Here's my beautiful skater:

And that gorgeous hairstyle!

They were ready to make their own history on this historic ice.
This sign gave me goosebumps - I got to stand right under it, right by the ice!

So, lemme tell ya, the girls went out and skated one of their best programs ever - they were truly amazing and so beautiful! But today, there were 8 teams that were better than they were in the judges eyes, so they proudly took 9th out of 13 - knowing they had skated their absolute best! I'd walk you back through the moments right after in the dressing room, but I'm a little tired as I write this and actually a lot emotionally drained.
Let's just say that this team Mom couldn't be prouder of these girls!

Here's a great photo of the team and coaches just after they came off the ice.

Their smiles and the light in their eyes says it all!
Thanks Lake Placid for some fabulous memories - we'll be back to skate on your ice again!

Blessings,
~~Robin

PS. We will hopefully have a video of the girls skate posted on my Facebook page after we get home on Monday evening. Mark forgot to bring the patch cord for the video camera!

Stamping 411 Saturday Sketch - Funky Love Flower!

***Pre-posted since we are in Lake Placid, NY right now!

Ok, I'll admit it! I really struggled with this week's Stamping 411 Sketch! I tried 3 times to make this card what I had in my head and nothing was working out! That may have had something to do with all the distraction of having to leave a day early for our trip, but STILL! You'd think I could keep it simple!
Oh, well, I've said it before, Some days you're the windshield, some days you're the bug!

Here's my card - you be the judge!

Now, don't be distracted by the cute little cupcake stand - even though it is adorable! I did that on purpose to make you think the card is cuter than it is! :) I actually DO love the flower on the card, so there, that is something!
Here's the sketch we had to work with:

Seems simple enough, right?!

Anyway, I kept it pretty simple, just using Basic Black, Whisper White and the valentine's dsp from the Occasions Mini. I made the flower with the new Fun Flowers die - love that thing! and crumpled up the flowers and sponged them with Pink Pirouette ink before putting them all together with a Jumbo Brad.

The center was stamped with the XOXO stamp set with Real Red Craft Ink and embossed in clear ep. I punched it out and added it to a circle of Red Glimmer Paper, adding a Rhinestone Jewel to the "o".
More Rhinestones are on the Blushing Bride Twill Ribbon that runs alongside the Polka Dot embossing that I did with my Big Shot.

Ok, the more I write about it, the more I like it. But I'd still love to hear what you think!
Be sure to leave me a comment and then go visit the Stamping 411 Blog and see what the other Operators came up with! I know they will inspire you!

Stamped blessings,
~~Robin

Lake Placid Adventure - Day 2!

Well, hello there! It's been a glorious day here in Lake Placid. The snow stopped, the sun came out and it looks like a painting outside! Here take a look:

Isn't that gorgeous?! I took this photo out of the front windshield of our van on the way back from Tupper Lake on Rt. 3. The team had an afternoon practice ice there and it was a stunning drive both going and coming. Simply breathtaking!

While we were up there, we needed to stop by our winter house and make sure the work was coming along nicely. Here's a picture of the front entrance:

Ok, not really, this is the Ice Castle in Saranac Lake that has been built especially for the Winter Festival that begins tomorrow! It's a magnificent structure!
I love this shot of the front with the afternoon sun shining through:

Can you imagine how many hours it must have taken to build this castle? It's amazing!
Here I am with the family next to one of the portcullis guards. He's an icy fellow!

I found my throne to be a bit wet and cold,

But you can see that clearly, Mark is the king of his castle!

We really need to get a fire going - it's a bit chilly in here for my taste.

Apparently, Coaches Laurie and Teresa didn't care for the temperature of the thrones either! Not exactly the hot seat - is that a good thing?!

Here's the BEST photo of the day, in my opinion!
These girls are ready to ROCK the house tomorrow when they compete at the Olympic Center!

GO NATIONAL BLADES!!!

~~Robin