Big Shot Blog Hop featuring For Your Country

Wow, it’s been a loooong time since I blogged hasn’t it? Well I’m finally back and blogging! I figured that this would be a great way to get back into it, a Blog Hop! The August Blog Hop for Di’s Country Inkers is focused on the Big Shot because there is an AWESOME special from August 1^st – 31^st on the Big Shot! When you purchase a Big Shot you can get one of five exclusive bundles FREE! If you already have a Big Shot you can get those same bundles at a 15% discount! More info on that at the bottom, but now on to my card!

My oldest son left for Army BCT (Basic Combat Training) on July 8^th. When I decided to play along with this hop I knew exactly what set to use, “For Your Country”! I wanted it to have a real military feel, and show what respect I have for my son and the other soldiers in training with him, along with all those serving our country!

I used the Banners Framelits for the soldier and Bitty Banners Framelits for the sentiment. To give a little more balance on the sentiment (Godspeed) I wanted it to be straight on one end like the other banner so I just snipped it off where I wanted it to make it straight. Whenever I use Framelits I always stamp the image first, it’s so much easier that way. The Framelits die is an outline so you can see through it, so you just line it up around the image and tada, perfectly centered where you want it! My favorite thing to go along with that is the Magnetic Platform. When you use this your Framelits don’t move, where you put it is where it cuts!

This is a 5 ½” square card with a Crumb Cake base, layers of Mossy Meadow, Early Espresso and Whisper White. I stamped the “patterned paper” at the bottom using the helmet, combat boots, and dog tags from the set to make a camouflage pattern. I sponged randomly in the pattern and around the edges with Crumb Cake to help pull it all together. I love how that turned out, I really wanted to incorporate those elements and that small strip just makes it perfect! Not too busy but still shows up!

Super Stampin’ Tips!

* For the mat on the banner with the soldier I did not want it quite as big as the next Banners Framelits size, so I cut a rectangle ¼” larger than the die cut piece and simply trimmed a banner on the bottom. I did the same for the sentiment because the Bitty Banners Framelits do not have a larger piece to layer it with. Quick and easy solution!

* To give a grungy look I sponged the edges of the Mossy Meadow lightly with Early Espresso. I didn’t want it to be super dark though, and EE is a dark color so as I inked my sponge I would tap it off on my scrap paper before sponging the Cardstock. I can add more color but if it gets too dark you can’t take it away.

* Finally, once it was all together it still needed something for balance. I used three candy dots up in the right corner. Easy peasy, gives it just the right balance and that little sumthin’ sumthin’ it needed!

I can’t wait to get this card mailed to my son!

Back to the Big Shot! There are five bundles to choose from and yes, they are FREE when you buy your Big Shot so if you’ve been on the fence this is the BEST time to buy! If you already have your Big Shot but still want to snatch one of these bundles you can save 15%! These are the fabulous bundles to choose from!

Bundle	Item Number	Stamp Set	Framelits	Discounted Price
Sumthin’ with Bubbly Words Bundle WM	138923	Sumthin’ Sumthin’	Word Bubbles	$33.75
Sumthin’ with Bubbly Words Bundle CM	138920	Sumthin’ Sumthin’	Word Bubbles	$31.25
Decorative Goodies Bundle WM	138924	Oh My Goodies	Deco Labels Collection	$42.25
Decorative Goodies Bundle CM	138921	Oh My Goodies	Deco Labels Collection	$35.95
Celebrating Chalk Talk Bundle WM	138925	Day of Celebration	Chalk Talk	$43.25
Celebrating Chalk Talk Bundle CM	138922	Day of Celebration	Chalk Talk	$37.25
Flowery Daydream Bundle WM	138911	Daydream Medallions	Floral Collection	$54.25
Flowery Daydream Bundle CM	138910	Daydream Medallions	Floral Collection	$45.75
Bright & Beautiful Stars Bundle WM	138644	Bright & Beautiful	Star	$50.75
Bright & Beautiful Stars Bundle CM	138200	Bright & Beautiful	Star	$43.95

I know that a lot of you have talked to me about getting a Big Shot but have been on the fence, or waiting for the right time! Well, I think this could be that right time for you, have a peek at the flyer showing the bundles here! Shoot me an e-mail and let’s talk about getting your Big Shot, or getting one of these bundles in your hands!

Happy Stamping!

Trish

 

Now Hop on over to the next person on our tour, Diana Gibbs!

If you get lost you can just click on any of the links below and you’ll get right back where you need to be!

Diana

Barb

Kathya

Leslie

Crystal

Tricia <— You are Here!

---

 

Card Ingredients:

Stamps:  For Your Country (134219 – Wood) or (134222 – Clear)

Ink: Mossy Meadow (133645), Early Espresso (126974), Crumb Cake (126975)

Paper: Mossy Meadow (133676), Early Espresso (119686), Crumb Cake (120953), Whisper White (100730)

Accessories: Banners Framelits (132173),Bitty Banners Framelits (129267), Early Espresso Seam Binding Ribbon (134582), Neutrals Candy Dots (130934), Big Shot (113439), Magnetic Platform (130658), Stamping Sponges (101610)

Miscellaneous: Snail, Stampin’ Dimensionals, Glue Dots

 

The Time Has Come

New catalog time that is!  Can you believe it?  So exciting!  Here it is in all its beautiful glory!

Isn’t it fabulous?  Did you see all the amazing new stamps, the new ribbons, the new In-Colors?  Aren’t they delicious?  With names like, “Strawberry Slush, Crisp Cantaloupe, Pistachio Pudding, etc.” doesn’t it make you want to just go eat some ice cream?  It sure does me!  There are so many wonderful new things that I can’t pick just one favorite!  Here’s a quick list of some of my must haves though:

• Candy Dots – These adorable little adhesive backed embellishments are to die for, and they’re so versatile!
• Simply Pressed Clay and Buttons & Blossoms Molds – Wow, this is so much fun!  You can dye the clay, you can use it white and paint it, you can do so much with it!  It’s the neatest texture too… it doesn’t get hard, it’s almost spongy, so it will mail wonderfully!
• Core’dinations Paper – Yes, the Core’dinations paper carried over and we have it in all the colors!  Whoop!  So exciting!!
• Bundles – There are bundles all throughout the catalog!  You can get amazing deals on Stamp Sets and coordinating Framelits, Punches, or Embossing Folders!  There are also bundles on the new Gift Bags or Gift Boxes and Tags!  Not to mention the existing Clear Block Bundle!
• Finally, the new Big Shot Magnetic Platform – This bad boy is amazing for using with your Framelits and Edgelits!  It holds them in place perfectly over your stamped images when you go to cut them out with your Big Shot!  Don’t believe me?  Here…

 Here’s another great deal today, Stampin’ Up! put 3 great sentiment sets on sale for 25% off today!  Not only did we get the new catalog but we got a great new sale!  Whoop!

Sale Price           Retail Price             Description                                                    Item#

$17.96                   $23.95                   Sassy Salutations Wood Mount                  132070

$13.46                   $17.95                   Sassy Salutations Clear Mount                    126707

$14.96                   $19.95                   Sweet Essentials Wood Mount                  132085

$11.21                    $14.95                  Sweet Essentials Clear Mount                    126457

$21.71                   $28.95                   Petite Pairs Wood Mount                         128706

$15.71                   $20.95                   Petite Pairs Clear Mount                           122497

Sassy Salutations

Sweet Essentials

Petite Pairs

There is also a new Transparent Photopolymer set, “Wanderlust” which is really cute!

You can also still purchase Retiring Stamp Sets through June 3rd and Retiring Accessories through June 3rd as long supplies last.

It’s not too late to get your hands on a new catalog!  There are three ways to get your 2013-2014 Annual Catalog or Celebrando Creatividad absolutely free!  First, host a workshop for you and your friends!  What a great way to get it, have some friends over, make a couple of cards, and when your workshop qualifies get free stuff too!  It’s a win-win situation!  Second you can place a $25.00 order with me, either online or direct with me and you get one too!  Third, and this is the most awesome way, sign up to be a Stampin’ Up! Independent Demonstrator and you’ll get a whole box!  The starter kit is only $99.00 and you get a completely customizable kit with $125.00 in product that you choose!

Whether you get a physical catalog, check out the .pdf, or browse online, here is a great little “tool” to help you as you peruse the new catalog.  I’ve created a wish list for you to download, print, and fill in with your dream products!  I’ve listed the bundles, the sections of the catalog, and the product suites for you on the side to make it easy to find what you’re looking for!  Remember, if you have any questions let me know!

Sent with Love

Another special offer!  I think I’m loving this 25th Anniversary year!  Just today Stampin’ Up! announced this adorable new travel themed product suite, “Sent with Love”!  There’s a Clear Mount Stamp Set (131847), Designer Series Paper (132182), and a Digital Download Kit(132914)!  OR you can get the “Sent With Love Bundle” which includes the Stamp Set, Designer Series Paper, and Calypso Coral Baker’s Twine, that will save you 20% (132851)!  Here, take a peak!

                   

This Sent with Love Stamp Set and Designer Series Paper are only available through April 30th, then they’ll fly away!!  You can order these adorable new products with an individual order directly through me, at a workshop or online through my website!  There are no limits, so you can get as many sets, packs, bundles, or downloads as you want!  Remember that the Digital Kit is not available as part of the bundle and a Clear Block is not included with the Stamp Set, sorry.

Don’t forget though, the Sent with Love Stamp Set and Sent with Love Designer Series Paper are EXCLUSIVE to this special offer, you won’t be able to get them after April 30^th!  Click here to have a look at the flyer or just click here to go to the Sent with Love page!

131847	Sent with Love Stamp Set (clear-mount; English only)	$17.95
132182	Sent with Love Designer Series Paper	$10.95
132851	Pretty Bundle – Includes the Sent with Love Stamp Set, Sent with Love Designer Series Paper, and Calypso Coral Baker’s Twine	$25.50 – 20% off retail value!
132914	Sent with Love Kit – Digital Download	$9.95

You can get more info on my website or e-mail me!  Remember that you can get these items FREE as part of your hostess dollars when you host a workshop, that’s an even better deal!  Let me know if you have any questions, hope I hear from you soon or see you at an upcoming class!

Jar of Hearts

Yesterday I had a workshop with some lovely ladies!  So much fun, I love workshops!  I love classes too, I just love teaching people to stamp, helping them discover that they are creative and the joy of stamping!  I had one lady tell me how much she enjoyed stamping, and that she had never expected to enjoy it so much!  That is what makes me love what I do!

I wanted to show you one of the cards we made.  The hostess asked if we could do Valentine cards and I said of course, those are always so much fun to do!  Here’s what I came up with…

I will admit that I cased this card, I’ve seen several different cards with the hearts in the jar and I LOVE the idea!  I took that idea which I saw all over, then combined that with the Whisper White Card Stock embossed with the Perfect Polka Dots Folder and Real Red Card Stock with the Vintage Wallpaper Folder and used the Fashionable Hearts Embosslits in Real Red and Pink Pirouette Card Stock for my hearts.  The “Love You” sentiment is from the Bitty Banners Stamp Set and die cut using the Bitty Banners Framelits!  The jar itself is stamped in Jet Black StazOn and the coordinating lid in Real Red, they’re both from the Perfectly Preserved set and cut with the Cannery Set Framelits which carried over from the Holiday Catalog.  I tied up the lid with some White Baker’s Twine and of course the perfect touch, which makes the card in my opinion, is one of the Paper Doilies from the Spring Catalog!  Here’s a closer look…

In case you didn’t know it, Sale-a-Bration starts on Tuesday, it’s Stampin’ Up!’s biggest sale of the year, and I’m excited to tell you that one of the items you can get for free during Sale-a-Bration this year is the Bitty Banners Stamp Set!  It’s a great versatile sentiment set, and the joy of it is if you have a Big Shot it has the matching Bitty Banners framelits so you don’t have to cut them out by hand!  I’ll have more info on Sale-a-Bration tomorrow, and a sneak peek at a couple of the Sale-a-Bration items you can get for free!  In the meantime if you have any questions, want to know about upcoming classes, or to order any of the items for this card you can e-mail me or go to my website!

Have a great, relaxing Sunday afternoon!

Ingredients:

Stamps:  Perfectly Preserved (126690, Wood or 126692, Clear)

Ink:  Real Red (126949), Jet Black StazOn (101406)

Paper:  Real Red (102482), Pink Pirouette (111351), Whisper White (100730)

Accessories:  Tea Lace Paper Doilies (129399), Whisper White Baker’s Twine (124262), Fashionable Hearts Embosslits (125596), Perfect Polka Dots Embossing Folder (117335), Vintage Wallpaper Folder (120175), Cannery Set Framelits (127822), Bitty Banners Framelits (129267), Big Shot (113439)

Miscellaneous:  Snail, Dimensionals, Glue Dots

25 Years of Stamping and a Pumpkin to Boot!

Wow!  Stampin’ Up! is 25 years old this year, isn’t that awesome!  The year’s getting off to a bang too with some awesome stuff!  First, to celebrate the Silver Anniversary Stampin’ Up! will be releasing a “Best Of” set each month!  The sets will include 3 – 5 favorite images from stamp sets from the past, AND one new image created just for that set!  Each “new” set will be $14.95 and although only one will be released a month they will all be available for purchase through March 31, 2014!  Additionally, each set will come with a special 25-year Proof of Purchase sticker that you will want to keep with the collector’s card that will be included starting in February!  When you collect six sets you can send it in for a FREE set of your choice valued up to $14.95!!!!!  You have to redeem your free set by April 30 2014.  Here’s January’s set…

Best of Birthdays! (132929)  It’s a clear mount set, all the “Best of” sets are clear mount.  Do you know what sets the stamps are from?  I can tell you that the oval, Happy Birthday to You, is the new stamp and it coordinates with the Extra Large Oval punch (119859).  Don’t forget that the clear mount sets don’t come with blocks, so you’ll want to make sure you have blocks for your new/old stamps!

I also want to tell you about something fabulously fun that was announced at Leadership over the weekend… are you ready?

Paper Pumpkin!  It’s like your “paper fairy godmother, without the white hair,” lol!  It’s a great way to get your creativity on simply, like a magical paper escape…  Each month you receive your Paper Pumpkin package (hah, say that three times fast) all ready to go.  Whatever the projects are that month it’s all prepped… cards, journals, great 3-D projects, everything is cut, measured, etc.  You just create it, pin it (if you’re a pinterest junky like me) and it’s ready to be given to that special person, or given that place of honor in your home if you can’t bear to part with it!

How does it work?  Well, Paper Pumpkin is a monthly kit subscription program, each month you will receive a unique, surprise kit with a project – perhaps it will be cards, journals, décor, who knows, it’s a surprise!  The thing is that it’s all cut, measured, color coordinated and ready!  It will included the stamps, ink, paper and accessories, all you supply is the adhesive and yourself!  Your kit will ship on or around the 15^th of the month, provided that you have signed up by the 10^th.  The Paper Pumpkin memberships are $19.95 per month and that includes shipping!  It is an auto-renew membership but you can cancel at any time or even skip a month if you want.  Starting in early March there will be a Try-It kit if you want to just check it out for one month!  Here’s a peek at the Try-It kit that will be available in March…

Cute right?  Those little journals are too cute!   Now, when you go sign up make sure that you choose me as your demonstrator, “Tricia Sachs” in Queen Creek, AZ.  At this point we aren’t getting notifications when customers sign up, I’d love to know if you do… maybe when our first kits come in we can have a Paper Pumpkin Party!  Wouldn’t that be fun?

Still not sure?  Have more questions?  You can look at the faq or get more info on the Paper Pumpkin site.  Or you can always e-mail me!

A couple more things… Stampin’ Up! released ten new Single Stamps, yay!  Here’s just one…

Cute right?  I LOVE this little heart, the swirly flowers just make me smile!  This guy and nine others are new and available only through March 31st so grab them quick!  You can look at the Single Stamps page or the Assortment 3 and Assortment 4 flyers to see all ten designs.

One last thing and then I’ll stop… I wanted to give you an update and a bit more info on the “Dude, You’re Welcome” kit…

The kit is $24.95 and includes four wood-mount stamps (they’re double-mounted) and have sentiments that cover pretty much every occasion, twelve 4”x6” postcards in four different “manly” colors, twelve gray envelopes, a Basic Gray Classic Stampin’ Pad, and an instructional guide.  The kit basically includes anything a “dude” could need to create a perfect manly card that the women in his life would love, and it comes in a very manly box!

One last thing… I know, I know!  I just wanted to remind you that new downloads are available for MDS2 every Tuesday!  There are some adorable ones this week!  Check this cutie out…

I think I’ll be reorganizing my pantry… it definitely needs it!  There are some other cutie-patootie downloads out there too!  Have a peek and if you have any questions about MDS or any of the other stuff I’ve posted (and I know, it was a LOT) then shoot me an e-mail or contact me on my Stampin’ Up! website!  As always don’t forget to check out my events page to see what’s coming up… if you can’t make a class in person then most likely you can do the class by mail!  Talk to you soon!