Today officially ends the first week of Summer Vacation! Usually the first week of Summer is spent getting the kids used to spending all day with each other…lots of arguments and crying. Actually this week went quite well with the kids, it was my husband that tired me out. And not in the way you are thinking!!!

After taking my son out of the tub last night, he stubbed his toe and broke it! At first he didn’t want to go to the hospital, and I wasn’t going to push it…until I saw that his toe was now at a 90° angle from the rest of his foot! So he whined for a few minutes that he didn’t want to go to the hospital because there was nothing they could do. But, obviously, the toe needed to be reset so he gave in. My husband is one of those men that “don’t feel pain” and is a “man’s man”. So he drove himself to the hospital in his car, which is a standard shift, even though I told him to take my car which is automatic.

After he left I started to laugh…Right before he left I told him he needed ice on the toe. The only soft ice pack I could find was a “boo, boo, bear” from the kids. It fit perfectly in his sock. SO hear he was the tough man that didn’t need anyone to drive him to the hospital and the first thing the nurse/doctor was going to see was the “boo, boo, bear” in his sock!!! LOL! He said they got a kick out of that too!

Due to recent events, I haven’t had much time to stamp or blog! So, here is a card that I made back in March at a demo meeting. I absolutely love this card! It was my introduction to Sticky Cut Letters and Cosmo Glitter. I am waiting to see what colors are in the next catty, because Cosmo glitter is definitely on my wish list.

The Sparkly letter “h” is placed on Soft Sky card stock. “Happy Everything” is from the Fundamental Phrases stamp set, an is stamped in Blue Bayou Classic Ink. The Sky Blue Card stock layer is matted onto Blue Bayou Card stock and finally adhered to the Whisper White Card Base. Lastly, Blue Bayou Double-Stitched Ribbon is tied around the card front. Nice quick and simple card with a lot of bling! Trust me, pictures do not do this card justice, the glitter is gorgeous.

A few tips:The Sticky cut letters are just like Sticky Strip, and it can be hard to take off the backing at first. A bone folder can help pull back the backing. Also, I suggest adhering the letter to the card stock before adding the glitter. Once the letter is adhered to the card stock, take off the top layer and add glitter. Even though it may take a minute or two to take the backing off the letter, it is so worth it!

There are some very pretty colors of glitter in the Spring-Summer Collection check them out here. Place your orders now in case they are gone forever when the new catalog comes out. Email me at jenfoley@inkspiredcreations.com to place your order.

Have a great weekend!

Last Friday night a few people came over for the “Family Treasures” mini scrapbook class. I had such a wonderful time, I forgot to take pictures again!! I even took the camera out early and placed it on the hutch next to the dining room table (where we were stamping) so I wouldn’t forget to take pictures…LOL!

SO I can’t show pics of the great time we had, but I can show you pics of my album! This is definitely a class I plan to repeat with different scrapping kits in the future…so let me know if you are interested and I might just let you pick the kit we use! Love this scrapbook…

If you are interested in taking this class in the future…email me and let me know I will add you to the waiting list. I can’t wait to see the new Simply Scrappin’ Kits in the new catalog!! How about you?

Happy Stamping!

Recently Stampin’ Up! Announced the Spring-Summer 2008 Retiring Stamp Sets. As I was looking through my samples to take out the ones that are retiring, to feature them in my workshops, I thought of featuring them here for all of you to see them one last time before they are gone. Soon I will be using these card fronts to create Full Cards for Ronald McDonald House families (See my events Calendar for my eScape Event at the End of  June) and the samples will be gone forever too. Now at least we will have a picture of each of these great ideas! Maybe there is a set here for you!!

I will post them according to the section they are in, in the catalog. Many of the samples I will be posting in the Retiring Stamp Set posts are created by other demonstrators, so for those I will post as much of a recipe as I can along with that person’s name. I will not have as detailed instructions as you see with my project posts, but most of the information will be there. If you have any questions about a particular sample please contact me at jenfoley@inkspiredcreations.com

“Peaceful Wishes” is a favorite to many! I never thought this stamp set would retire, but it is. This sample was created by Sue Renner for a Christmas Swap.

RECIPE:

• Stamp Sets: Peaceful Wishes
• Stamp Pads: Old Olive, Versamark
• Paper: Hunter Green, Very Vanilla
• Accessories: Gold Embossing Powder,Bravo Burgundy Grosgrain Ribbon, Stamp-a-MA-Jig
• Technique: 2-step stampin’, Embossing

Here is another sample created for the same Christmas Swap. This one was created by Jean Warren.

RECIPE:

• Stamp Sets: Peaceful Wishes
• Stamp Pads: VersaMark, Close to Cocoa craft, and So Saffron Classic
• Paper: River Rock, Purely Pomegranate, Wild Wasabi, and Confetti Cream
• Accessories: Wasabi Double-Stitched Ribbon, Iridescent Ice and Gold Embossing Powder mixed, White Signo Gel Pen.

The Valentine Set “Forever In My Heart” is going to retire as well. Here is a sample last year during Convention from Crystal Erzen. This is a quick and easy card and SO CUTE!!

RECIPE:

• Stamp Sets: Forever in My Heart, Holidays & Wishes, Polka Dot Background
• Ink: Purely Pomegranate, Wild Wasabi
• Paper: Purely Pomegranate, Wild Wasabi, Pretty in Pink, Whisper White
• Accessories: Pretty in Pink Grosgrain Ribbon, Scalloped Circle Punch, Paper Snips, Stampin’ Dimensionals

“Give Thanks” was a MUST HAVE for Thanksgiving! Last year I stamped on tiles with this set and made Thanksgiving Coasters for Craft Fairs and Gifts.

I stamped each image with StazOn. Then I used the Poppin’ Pastels Technique, believe it or not. I would start with the lightest colors first. Using the VersaMarker color in a section of your image. Pick the Pastel color of your choice and dab the pastel color into the VersaMark using a Sponge Dauber, Q-tip, or even a cotton ball. Finish coloring the entire image one color at a time. When you are done spray entire surface with an Acrylic Sealer (several coats).

Here is the last sample I have for this section. It was created by Barb Williams using the Give Thanks stamp set.

I hope you enjoy my featured Retiring Stamp Sets over the next few weeks. If you see any sets you would like to order, you can contact me 24/7 at jenfoley@inkspiredcreations.com to place your order.

Happy Stamping!