Rubber Stamping & Card Making with Yapha

Oh my goodness! Freshly Made Sketches is so fabulous this week! They are having a surprise Blog Hop for Rita, who is having a baby shortly! Of course I had to play along!

I have one last retiring stamp set to show you, before this catalog ends at midnight Mountain Time tonight. This cute hippo card is inspired by a similar card by Kelly Acheson. Some of my stamping kids saw it when we were looking on Pinterest, and wanted to make one. Here’s what I came up with.

Stamps: Look who’s Turning
Ink: Concord Crush, Wisteria Wonder
Paper: Wisteria Wonder, Concord Crush, Whisper White, In Color 2010-2012 Patterns Designer Series Paper Pack
Other: Scallop Border Punch, 1 3/4″ Circle Punch, 2 3/8″ Scallop Circle Punch

Congratulations, Rita! Best of luck with your new baby!!

Important Announcement: This is it. Thursday May 31st is the last day to order out of the big Stampin’ Up Catalog. If you want it, get it now, or you may find yourself in the very sad position of paying a ridiculous amount for retired items on eBay. Don’t let it happen to you! Check out all of the retired lists to be sure you get what you need!

Now, on to this week’s digital downloads from Stampin’ Up. These downloads work with My Digital Studio and any other digital scrapbooking program that allows you to import PNG and JPG files, which is most graphics programs, and even Microsoft Word! (Clicking on the pictures will take you right to the store to purchase these downloads.)

Don’t have My Digital Studio? You can download a free trial of My Digital Studio Express. Head over to my online store, add the free My Digital Studio Express trial (item 129600) to your online shopping cart. Once you check out, you will be able to download it and install it. You can see all of the artwork that is included with the Express version here. For more information about this free trial, click here.

130163 Creatively Yours Stamp Brush Set $7.95

Download includes:
* 13-piece stamp brush set

130164 Loved Ones Stamp Brush Set $7.95

Download includes:
* 12-piece stamp brush set

130065 Pride Framable Designer Template $3.95

Download includes:
* 1 décor template (8-1/2″ x 11″)
* 28-piece stamp brush set

Features:
* Digital-exclusive
* A perfect framable to display during patriotic times of the year
* Easy to create coordinating projects with all included elements

Coordinating colors:
Cherry Cobbler, Chocolate Chip

130076 Summer Happiness Digital Kit $9.95

Download includes:
* 17-piece stamp brush set
* 12 Designer Series Papers
* 26 embellishments

Features:
* Digital-exclusive
* An array of versatile floral and nature motifs to brighten your projects
* Easy to create coordinating projects with all included elements

Coordinating colors:
Basic Gray, Calypso Coral, Lucky Limeade, Melon Mambo, Pool Party, Sahara Sand, Whisper White

130068 Sweet and Sour II Digital Designer Series Paper $4.95

Download includes:
* 12 Designer Series Papers

Features:
* Colored with new, exclusive-to-digital color palette

Coordinating colors:
Basic Gray, Calypso Coral, Crushed Curry, Lucky Limeade, Pool Party, Poppy Parade

You can purchase these or any other digital downloads through my online store. (Clicking on the pictures above will take you there as well.) The great news is that they are available for immediate use, with no shipping charges! Just click on Digital Crafting, then Digital Downloads, then Newest Downloads to see all of the recent additions! If you registered your copy of My Digital Studio, you may also receive end-of-the month emails from Stampin’ Up featuring that month’s digital releases.

There is a My Digital Studio tab to the top right hand corner of this blog. It is a handy reference to a variety of My Digital Studio resources, including a list of all of the downloads and a break down of the printing costs. There is also a Resources page on MyDigitalStudio.net that includes an MDS Catalog. It shows all of the MDS software artwork (contained in the boxed-version) and downloads from the October 2009 launch through April 30, 2012! The catalog gives a snapshot of the entire product line with artwork thumbnails followed by product details, which includes the colors of the designer papers! Because MDS is regularly coming out with new artwork, the catalog will be updated every month.

It’s Tuesday, so it is time for another great ColourQ challenge! Aren’t these fun, bright colors?

Earlier this month, my mother was given this year’s Woman of Achievement Award from her synagogue. This year’s theme was “Hidur Mitzvah,” or the beautification of the commandments. With my mother’s dedication to creating amazing Judaic needlework, it is no wonder that she was this year’s recipient!  Since it was the middle of the week and across the country, I was not able to attend. Fortunately, my brother and his family, as well as some good friends, did manage to fly in for her ceremony. I hope to soon be putting a whole scrapbook of the event together for her. In the meantime, here is one page. It is based on the Stampin’ Addicts Scrapbook Sketch Challenge from May 4th.

Way to go, Mom!! I am so proud of you!!

Well, it is that time of year. On Friday, I will be dressed in my gown & hood, sitting in the faculty section, and watching the little kids that I taught from kindergarten through sixth grade graduate from high school. It blows me away every year to watch the amazing people they have become. I am so honored to have been a part of their lives.

I saw a brilliant graduation card on Kay Kalthoff’s blog. It uses the whole negative piece from the Stars #2 die (which is retiring on May 31st, and appears to already be sold out). It was quick and easy, and came out great! Of course you can change the colors to suit your school. I should have done one in Red & Blue for Brentwood.

Stamps: Teeny Tiny Wishes
Ink: Basic Black, Daffodil Delight
Paper: Daffodil Delight, Basic Black, Whisper White, Silver Glimmer Paper
Other: Stars #2 Die, Word Window Punch, Modern Label Punch, Daffodil Delight Stitched 1/4″ Grosgrain Ribbon, Square Lattice Textured Impressions Embossing Folder

What do you think of that new ribbon? Isn’t it super fun with the stitching down the middle? I will be running a ribbon share for all of the colors of this ribbon as well as the new stitched satin ribbon at the beginning of June. Check back for more information!

Fun challenge over at the Friday Mashup this week. A great sketch with the added challenge of making a masculine card with it.

I had to use Loads of Love with this one. It is one of the very first stamp sets I ever bought, and it is retiring on Thursday!  Since Steve drives a blue pick-up, it’s a natural choice for a Father’s Day card. I didn’t realize it until I had finished, but I ended up pretty much using the same colors on my card that were in the sketch! It’s also a pretty patriotic color scheme for this Memorial Day weekend.

Stamps: Loads of Love
Ink: StazOn Jet Black, Island Indigo, Poppy Parade, Basic Grey, Crumb Cake
Paper: Crumb Cake, Island Indigo, Naturals White, 2010-2012 In Color Patterns Designer Series Paper Pack, 2011-2013 In Color Patterns Designer Series Paper Pack

Just a reminder that anything Poppy Parade (or any of the 2010-2012 In Colors) will no longer be available after Thursday, May 31st. In fact, a lot is sold out already. Get what you need while you still have a chance!

Another great big spot for some gorgeous designer series paper on this week’s Stamping 411 Sketch Challenge.

Since I loved how last week’s turned out, I used a couple of the same tricks. I again used a nice big piece of the Beyond the Garden Designer Series Paper (retiring on Thursday!!) and ran it through the Square Lattice Textured Impressions Embossing folder. Actually, my whole main piece was embossed. I just love how it looks!

Stamps: Perfectly Penned
Ink: Tangerine Tango
Paper: Tangerine Tango, Daffodil Delight, Whisper White, Beyond the Garden Designer Series Paper
Other: Daffodil Delight 1/4″ Stitched Grosgrain Ribbon, Square Lattice Textured Impressions Embossing Folder

I have to say that I am LOVING this new stitched grosgrain ribbon! It is fantastic, and will be available in 10 colors in the new catalog. I am going to be putting together a ribbon share for it, so check back next week if you are interested.

I am so excited about one of the hostess sets that will be in the new Stampin’ Up catalog, which starts a week from today!! I combined it with this week’s nice, clean sketch from Freshly Made Sketches.

The hostess set, Carry On, includes a variety of sayings to add after the “Keep Calm and” — Carry On, Eat a Cupcake, Shop On, and my favorite, Stamp On. I made this card to ship out with the May Stamp of the Month kits that are going out this weekend. It also features three of the five new In Colors!

Stamps: Carry On, Mixed Bunch
Ink: Raspberry Ripple, Primrose Petal, Gumball Green
Paper: Primrose Petal, Gumball Green, Raspberry Ripple, Whisper White
Other: Clear Scallop Square Bigz Die, Basic Rhinestones

If you missed out on the May Stamp of the Month Kit, don’t worry! I will be posting the June Kit the first week in June. Each kit contains a stamp set plus the pre-cut supplies to make six cards.

I learned an important lesson from the first woman who signed up under me for Stampin’ Up. She taught me that if you love the products sold by a direct sales business, and plan on purchasing a significant amount, it is almost always better to sign up as a consultant yourself. I took this lesson to heart last month when my neighbor invited me to her Scentsy launch party. Steve and I fell head over heels in love with the product, and knew that we would be purchasing a great deal of the amazing scents and warmers. We crunched the numbers, talked to our neighbor, and last night took the plunge and signed up as Scentsy consultants.

As with any business these days, it is important to have a presence on Facebook. One of the first things I did was to make a Facebook Business Page for our new business. Of course there is that great big spot at the top for a photo, so I made a header for it in My Digital Studio. Jen Fong had a great article about these a few months back, and I tried to implement what she suggested. I wanted to include pictures of the products as well as easy to read contact information. This is what I came up with:

There is a great tutorial on MyDigitalStudio.net as to how to make your own. Don’t have My Digital Studio yet? You can download a free trial. It’s great for scrapbooking and so much more!

One of the teachers here at school asked if I could put together some personalized note cards for her. After talking with her about colors and images, I put this card together. She wants 50  of them, so it also needed to be something I could make a lot of easily!

Stamps: Fifth Avenue Floral, Jayne’s Type Alphabet
Ink: Blushing Bride, Pear Pizzazz, Baja Breeze
Paper: Blushing Bride, Pear Pizzazz, Baja Breeze, Whisper White
Other: Blushing Bride Pleated Satin Ribbon, 1″ Circle Punch, 1 1/4″ Circle Punch, 1 3/4″ Scallop Circle Punch

As you know, that Pleated Satin Ribbon is already retired. (I hope you got some while you could. It is yummy!) Fifth Avenue Floral and Jayne’s Type Alphabet are both retiring next week, as is everything Blushing Bride and Pear Pizzazz. Get them while you can!

Oh my goodness, the digital version of Button Buddies is too cute! You can use it with digital buttons, or print it out and attach real buttons! And did you see those gorgeous soft blooms? Wow! These downloads work with My Digital Studio and any other digital scrapbooking program that allows you to import PNG and JPG files, which is most graphics programs, and even Microsoft Word! (Clicking on the pictures will take you right to the store to purchase these downloads.)

Don’t have My Digital Studio? You can download a free trial of My Digital Studio Express. Head over to my online store, add the free My Digital Studio Express trial (item 129600) to your online shopping cart. Once you check out, you will be able to download it and install it. You can see all of the artwork that is included with the Express version here. For more information about this free trial, click here.

130057 Button Buddies Stamp Brush Set $7.95

Download includes:
* 26-piece stamp brush set
* 1 greeting card designer template (5″ x 3-1/2″)

129884 Curvy Verses Stamp Brush Set $3.95

Download includes:
* 8-piece stamp brush set

130062 File It Fun Digital Kit $7.95

Download includes:
* 15-piece stamp brush set
* 15 embellishments
* 9 punches
* 1 page designer template (8-1/2″ x 11″)

Features:
* Digital-exclusive
* Full of fun-shaped tabs to add spunk to your scrapbook pages, notebooks, or other projects that need a little organization

Coordinating colors:
Basic Gray, Bermuda Bay, Calypso Coral, Crumb Cake, Daffodil Delight, Island Indigo, More Mustard, Pool Party, Sahara Sand, Whisper White

130080 Soft Blooms Digital Embellishments $3.95

Download includes:
* 30 embellishments

Features:
* Digital-exclusive
* A collection of lifelike digital paper flowers with a handcrafted look

Coordinating colors:
Blushing Bride, Crumb Cake, So Saffron, Very Vanilla, Wisteria Wonder

130066 World Traveler Photobook Template $17.95

Download includes:
* 1 26-page photobook template (11″ x 8-1/2″)
* 28-piece stamp brush set
* 8 Designer Series Papers
* 24 embellishments

Features:
* Digital-exclusive
* A versatile, sophisticated photobook to document your travels or to make a fantastic gift
* Easy to create coordinating projects with all included elements

Coordinating colors:
Baja Breeze, Certainly Celery, Cherry Cobbler, Early Espresso, Garden Green, So Saffron, Soft Suede

You can purchase these or any other digital downloads through my online store. (Clicking on the pictures above will take you there as well.) The great news is that they are available for immediate use, with no shipping charges! Just click on Digital Crafting, then Digital Downloads, then Newest Downloads to see all of the recent additions! If you registered your copy of My Digital Studio, you may also receive end-of-the month emails from Stampin’ Up featuring that month’s digital releases.

There is a My Digital Studio tab to the top right hand corner of this blog. It is a handy reference to a variety of My Digital Studio resources, including a list of all of the downloads and a break down of the printing costs. There is also a Resources page on MyDigitalStudio.net that includes an MDS Catalog. It shows all of the MDS software artwork (contained in the boxed-version) and downloads from the October 2009 launch through April 30, 2012! The catalog gives a snapshot of the entire product line with artwork thumbnails followed by product details, which includes the colors of the designer papers! Because MDS is regularly coming out with new artwork, the catalog will be updated every month.