Northwest Stamper

Category: Cards

Pretty Project Accents with Stacked Die Cuts
I’m back today with a card to share with you that I’m going to admit, I’m a bit undecided about – I love the stacked die cuts trick I used but for the rest of the design… well I don’t know what I think about it. But that is more of the reason why I decided I had to share it. 🙂
I’m going to get a little bit personal here – You see, over the last year, I have managed to go through a bit of a crafting identity crisis. I was trying to figure out what direction I wanted to take my crafting and as I saw what others were doing, I let it get into my head that I wasn’t doing enough/doing the right things. I would feel bad and feel like I needed to do so much more. Which overwhelmed me and turned into me slowly putting off posting projects, classes, or updates as I was waiting to get them “perfect”. Does this resonate with anyone out there?
It took a number of months but I finally realized that I was never going to be perfect all the time and that is OK! I started out the year with my one little word being “imperfect” and said I wanted to strive to be perfectly imperfect.
In fact, I did a short talk for Stampin’ Up demonstrators last month on growing your business by allowing yourself to be imperfect. The funny thing? I was cheering them on to just go for it, just put it out there even if it isn’t perfect… and what was I doing? Sitting on my projects and ideas! So, today, I’m taking my own advice and sharing with you a project… with less than perfect photos, and maybe a less than perfect design. But fun non-the less!
The centerpiece for this card is the idea of creating a custom embellishment by stacking die cuts instead of using dimensionals. Check it out above! Its an easy and fun way to use your die cuts.
Tips for making this card:
- Stacked Die Cuts make great coordinated embellishments – so what do I mean by this? Well, I usually will die cut a shape or a sentiment and then pop it up on my card or project using Stampin’ dimensional foam dots. But you can get a cool effect if you replace the dimensionals with extra cardstock! Start with the shape you want to be on top – in this case, the So Saffron celebrate sentiment. Then start die cutting more of the same shape to be the supporting layers.
  You can make all the layers the same color to make it look like a fat puffy sentiment – or do like I did here and us a few different colors that coordinate with the rest of your card. I used 2 Early Espresso layers and 2 Berry Burst layers plus the 1 So Saffron layer. I used the Fine Tip Glue pen to hold my layers together; this gave me a little bit of wiggleroom to line up my words in each layer. When you are done, you get this need colored shadow effect that ties in perfectly to your card.
- Use ribbon as a pretty way to cover where two papers meet – I love mixing and matching cardstock and designer paper, like this pattern from the amazingly cute Picture Perfect Party stack. But add a bit of polish to your card by covering up the seam where the cardstock and pattern paper overlap with some ribbon. This metallic edge Berry Burst satiny ribbon is so pretty and a perfect accent for the card. I usually just add adhesive to the ends of the ribbon and use that to glue the ends to the back of the cardstock/pattern paper before gluing them down to the front of the card.
- Glitter Enamel Dots add a party to your paper! I’ve been hoarding these Glitter Enamel shapes. They are A-MAZ-ING! You get an ombre range of colors in the package and they are shiny and glittery and just make your card look so festive. I had put this card together and was struggling with the “whitespace” on the right side of the card. I knew I needed something but I couldn’t decide what. I tried some of the clear enamel shapes but it just didn’t look quite right. Thankfully my mom was nearby and she told me “it needs some color” and the lightbulb went off and I dug into my drawer and pulled these out. They have adhesive on the back, so they are ready to go. So, if you have an embellishment you are hoarding – I encourage you to dig it out and USE IT! 🙂
Just a reminder –
The Celebrate You die cuts are available for a limited time as a Sale-a-Bration exclusive. You can get them free with a $100+ order through the end of March or while supplies last. They will be back in the Stampin’ Up Annual Catalog in June, though I don’t know how much they will cost for the set. But if you love them, consider grabbing them now because why not get something free when you can? 🙂 Plus, once they are gone in March they won’t be back for a few months, so this is your last chance to get them early. See another cute card idea with the Celebrate You dies HERE.

Wanna make this at home? Here is what you need:
Painted Harvest Photopolymer Stamp Set
$21.00
Celebrate You Thinlit Dies
$0.00
Big Shot
$110.00
Berry Burst 3/8″ (1 Cm) Metallic-Edge Ribbon
$7.00
Picture Perfect Party 6″ X 6″ (15.2 X 15.2 Cm) Designer Series Paper
$10.00
Glitter Enamel Dots
$7.00
Crushed Curry Classic Stampin’ Pad
$6.50
Early Espresso Classic Stampin’ Pad
$6.50
Very Vanilla 8-1/2″ X 11″ Card Stock
$9.00
Early Espresso 8-1/2″ X 11″ Card Stock
$8.00
So Saffron 8-1/2″ X 11″ Card Stock
$8.00
Berry Burst 8-1/2″ X 11″ Cardstock
$8.00
Tranquil Tide 8-1/2″ X 11″ Cardstock
$8.00
Fine-Tip Glue Pen
$7.00
Paper Snips Scissors
$10.00
I hope you enjoyed this project and will try stacked die cuts to make your own custom embellishments for your projects soon!
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March 7, 2018
Congratulations or Birthday Card – You Decide!
I recently held my first Creative Cards class of the year with my local stampers. And, since it was right after the Stampin’ Up Occasions catalog launched, I HAD to play with all the new stuff I had gotten from that catalog! I am so glad I had this class on the books because I hadn’t taken much time to get my new stamps inky before then.
Let me give you a little back story – see, my family is FULL of December babies. My birthday is in mid-December, both of my kiddos are in December (one at the beginning of the month, one at the end of the month) plus there is my Sister in Law’s birthday and Christmas, not to mention my Mother-in-Law and niece who both have birthdays around Thanksgiving. So, you see… the end of the year is a busy time for me around here! 🙂 Add to that the fact that it looked like a tornado had thoroughly gone through most of the rooms in our house; well, lets just say that I spent most of the month cleaning up in preparation for parties or holiday get togethers, prepping for those events, and then cleaning up afterwards!
So, now things are getting back into a routine and I’m excited to start stamping more and sharing more here on my blog and over on my Facebook page. 🙂 Like this fun card using the Amazing You stamp set and Celebrate You thinlits from the Sale-a-Bration catalog! I love that these can be Congrats or Birthday… which do you think this card would be good for?
Mix & Match for a fun Celebration card
This card started out as the idea of having the half sunburst behind the sentiment on a plain white cardbase. But I got excited and stamped my images and then realized the idea that was in my head just was not working out in real life! So, I started grabbing bits and pieces from around my craft table to add a little bit of color, a little bit of pop, and some extra sequins for balance; and I ended up loving how it turned out!
So don’t be afraid to grab unrelated embellishments and papers and experiment with popping them onto your project!

Need some pieces to play with? Check out my 2018 Occasions Catalog product samplers to get a little bit of all the new papers, ribbons, and embellishments – so you can try them out and see which ones you like!
Tips for making this card:
- Neutral pattern papers are great! Take advantage of the Petal Passion designer paper being all black and white designs. Use them add some weight to your card without having to worry about conflicting colors. I added this 3/4″ x 5 1/2″ strip to the left side of my card to anchor all my different elements.
- Coordinate the stamps and dies – Coordinate the sentiments from the Amazing You stamp set with the die cut sentiments from Celebrate You thinlits. They are both free with a purchase during the Sale-a-Bration promotion (Jan-Mar 2018). The stamp set is free with a $50 purchase, the dies are free with a $100 purchase. *Or get them BOTH* with a $150 order, PLUS you’ll become the host of your own party and get an extra $15+ in free goodies to add on to your order. And who doesn’t love free?
- Pick your Pop of Color – If you stick to one or two light or neutral colors (in this card, I used Basic Black, Basic Grey, and Daffodil Delight), then add in one bright color to add a pop to brighten things up! I LOVE LOVE LOVE this Berry Burst metallic edge ribbon, and so used that behind my sentiment for that extra pop!
- Customize your stamps! I wanted to add the flower from the Amazing You stamp set but it turned out it was just too big for how the card was turning out. So just cut off the leaves! I colored in the flower using my Daffodil Delight Stampin’ Blends, trimmed out, and ready to pop on the card.
- Sequins made easy! Finally I needed just one more touch – and it was the Tutti Frutti adhesive back sequins! You get 5 pretty colors (Berry Burst, Daffodil Delight, Lemon Lime Twist, Pool Party, Pumpkin Pie). And they already have glue on the back so they are a snap to add on to your projects and they don’t fall off later! 🙂
Wanna make this at home? Here is what you need:
Amazing You Clear-Mount Stamp Set
$0.00
Celebrate You Thinlit Dies
$0.00
Petal Passion Designer Series Paper
$11.00
Berry Burst 3/8″ (1 Cm) Metallic-Edge Ribbon
$7.00
Tutti-Frutti Adhesive-Backed Sequins
$7.00
Daffodil Delight Stampin’ Blends Markers Combo Pack
$9.00
Daffodil Delight Classic Stampin’ Pad
$6.50
Basic Black Archival Stampin’ Pad
$7.00
Big Shot
$110.00
Whisper White 8-1/2″ X 11″ Card Stock
$9.00
Basic Gray 8-1/2″ X 11″ Card Stock
$8.00
Sponge Daubers
$5.00
Stampin’ Dimensionals
$4.00
Paper Snips Scissors
$10.00
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January 17, 2018
Meet the Stampin’ Up Stamparatus!
The Innovative Stamparatus stamp positioner is coming and you can be one of the first to get it!
It’s big news when something breaks the mold and changes everything. The Stamparatus will change the way you stamp, and before long, you’ll wonder how you crafted without it!
Why do YOU need one? You’ll fall in love with stamping all over again when you learn everything you can do with it!
- Make multiples with ease
- Consistently stamp crisp, clean images
- If you want a darker impression, apply more ink and restamp—no need to start over
- Make fewer mistakes, saving time and money
- Easily create 2-step, 3-step, and 4-step stamped images using removable and reversible plates
- Develop new and specialized stamping techniques with adjustable stamping plates and precision placement
Here is a video so you can see it in action!

Here is how you can get yours!
Stampin’ Up is doing something NEW with the release of this tool to help avoid long backorders. They are allowing folks to “pre-reserve” their Stamparatus and so will be opening up to reservations in 3 different shopping windows. When the window closes (or if they max out their available alotment), they will manufacture enought tools for everyone who has reserved one.
This acts like a true preorder: you reserve your spot and we guarantee shipment as soon as the product arrives in the warehouse.
- Reservation quantities are while supplies last.
- Limit is 3 tools per demonstrator and 1 tool per customer per reservation window. (So if you join my Fun n’ Crafty Stampers group, you’ll be able to order extra 😉 )
- You may participate in multiple reservation windows.
- In order to reserve your Stamparatus, you are required to provide your credit card information.
- Credit cards will not be charged until the Stamparatus ships from our facility. When you close your order, be sure to verify that your credit card and shipping information is correct.
Stampin’ Up will let you know when the Stamparatus you reserved is ready to ship and they will put it in your shopping cart in the online store. At that point you can add other items to purchase at the same time…you will also be able to earn Sale-a-Bration items or Hostess benefits at the same time!
Be the First in Line!
Reservations will be taken starting TODAY 11/16 at 2pm MST.
1. FIRST – Make sure you have an online shopping account with me by visiting the online store and creating an account if you don’t already have one.
2. AT 2PM – Visit the online store and look for the Stamparatus images on the home page. If you are logged in, click one of the images and you’ll be taken to the reservation system.
Have questions? Let me know at jennifer@nwstamper.com. I CAN’T WAIT to reserve mine and hope you can snag yours too! 🙂
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November 16, 2017
All About Carols of Christmas – a blog hop
I’m back and sharing today another fun idea using the fabulous Carols of Christmas sneak peek bundle! If you have stopped by my blog recently, you saw my totally different Carols of Christmas card, and that is why I love this bundle – you can make such a wide variety of cards and styles of cards with the same stamps and dies!
*** Don’t forget, you have until Monday night (7/31) to get this stamp set & essentials pack FREE when you purchase the demonstrator starter kit or anyone can purchase the stamp set and dies as a bundle starting August 1st as part of the Holiday Catalog early release sneak peek! ***
Tips for making this Carols of Christmas forest scene card:
Last post I focused on the card front edge dies, so this time I wanted to play with the scenery dies instead. I came up with a fun forest scene for you to use as the highlight of your card. Its so easy to pull together with just a few pieces, so you could totally mass product the scene for multiple holiday cards.
- Stamp and die cut all the pieces you need first and then quickly assemble them with your basic tape runner and Stampin’ Dimensionals!
  Here are all the pieces you need to put together the forest scene:
  You’ll notice the wavy stitched circle on the right. That is just the same stitched circle die from the Stitched Shapes framelits (largest circle), only cut out from the edge of a piece of scrap paper. Then I took my paper snips and cut a wavy edge, similar in curve to the bottom of the double tree die cut. You’ll layer this over the full circle to create a snowy hill.
- Make it POP! Adhere the double trees directly to your large stitched circle, then add the wavy circle with Stampin’ Dimensionals. Then add in your single tree and deer, and any other elements you want to add.
- Don’t stop with the die cuts! I added Clear Wink of Stella to the wavy circle to make it like twinkling snow. I also used the Chalk Marker to add dusting of snow onto the tops of each of the branches on all the trees.
- Mini Stampin’ Dimensionals are perfect! They are exactly the right size for holding up the body of the deer and the top of the single tree. No needing to fuss with cutting up edges or larger standard dimensionals.
- How to easily adhere skinny ribbons – I really wanted to add a touch of color and a border to my patterned paper. I love this plaid pattern from the Merry Little Christmas designer paper in the Holiday Catalog but wanted more than just green and neutrals. I was looking at my ribbons and the Fresh Fig 1/8″ ribbon was perfect! The only problem? How to glue it down!
  Check out my solution:
  I tried liquid glue, but it would leak through the ribbon and make an ugly dark circle. So I knew I needed a tape. I reached for my Tear & Tape and it hit me! Just trim off a very skinny piece from the end of the tape spool and it fit perfectly onto the ribbon. I added 4 pieces of tape along the ribbon and it held great.
- Sentiment doesn’t fit? Cut it up! Finally, I wanted to use a sentiment from the stamp set, but the blocky sizing just didn’t fit my card. So what’s a stamper to do? Why cut it up, of course! I stamped the sentiment on scrap paper and then trimmed each piece out. Tape it down and it can now fit wherever you need!
Then I just added some pearls for snow and a bit of the burlap ribbon for the finishing touches.
Check out more great ideas on the Carols of Christmas Blog Hop
Thanks for checking out my project and taking part in our blog hop! If you want to try this at home – and I encourage you to do so – card dimensions and supplies are listed for you at the bottom of this post.
There are so many more amazing ideas and inspiration you don’t want to miss. Remember that currently you are at my blog – Jennifer Blomquist – Northwest Stamper, so check the blog hop line up list to see who is next in the list.

Don’t forget! If you’ve been thinking of giving Stampin’ Up a try, I’d love to help you order your kit and get in on this awesome Starter Kit BONUS deal!
Join my Fun n’ Crafty Stampers group by Monday night (7/31) and you’ll not only get the regular kit but also $72 in bonus items including this Carols of Christmas stamp set! Plus you’ll be all set to get in on the Holiday Catalog preorder that kicks off for demonstrators on Tuesday. 🙂
Get the scoop here
Make this project at home! Here is what you’ll need:
- Whisper White cardbase – 4 1/4″ x 11″
- Merry Little Christmas designer paper (plaid) – 1 1/2″ x 5 1/2″
- Whisper White cardstock – scraps to cut out your large circle (3 1/2″x3 1/2″), 1/3 of a large circle, and sentiment (3″x3″)
- Old Olive cardstock – scraps for as many trees as desired
- Soft Suede cardstock – scraps for as many deer as desired
- Fresh Fig 1/8″ ribbon – 6″
- Burlap ribbon – two 2″ pieces
Product List
Big Shot
$110.00
Stitched Shapes Framelits Dies
$30.00
Fresh Fig 1/8″ Sheer Ribbon
$6.00
Tear & Tape Adhesive
$7.00
5/8″ (1.6 Cm) Burlap Ribbon
$7.00
Pearl Basic Jewels
$5.00
White Stampin Chalk Marker
$3.50
Clear Wink Of Stella Glitter Brush
$8.00
Whisper White 8-1/2″ X 11″ Card Stock
$9.00
Old Olive 8-1/2″ X 11″ Card Stock
$8.00
Soft Suede 8-1/2″ X 11″ Card Stock
$8.00
Fresh Fig Classic Stampin’ Pad
$6.50
Soft Suede Classic Stampin’ Pad
$6.50
Stampin’ Dimensionals
$4.00
Mini Stampin’ Dimensionals
$4.00
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July 30, 2017
SNEAK PEEK! Carol of Christmas and a Blog Hop! [VIDEO TUTORIAL]
Woo hoo! I’m back from the Stampin’ Up Incentive trip to Thailand – feeling refreshed (once the jet lag wore off! 😉 ) and excited for the upcoming Holiday catalog! Winter is my favorite season, filled with twinkly lights, beautiful scenes, and an extra bit of kindness to go around. Before I left for Thailand, Stampin’ Up announced an amazing starter kit promotion that gives you an extra $72 in bonus goodies when you join in July! One of those items was the sneak peek stamp set “Carols of Christmas”. So, when it was time for our Fun n’ Crafty Stampers group blog hop – and the theme was Christmas in July, I knew what I wanted to play with!
Holiday Catalog Sneak Peek – Carols of Christmas
Our team also did a fun swap using this stamp set this month (since we were able to preorder it), and so this was my swap card.
It was easy to put together thanks to the Carols of Christmas stamp set and Card Front Builders framelits (yes, they will be available as a bundle as part of an early release starting August 1!). In fact, I created a video tutorial at the end of this post to show you how to put it all together!
But in the meantime, let me show you some of the fun parts of this card –
It all started because I really wanted to play with these border dies that come in the Cart Front Builders framelits. I was thinking they would look cool, but I really wanted them to POP! So I got the idea of layering them with a dark color behind the holes. Thankfully, the die is sized to fit perfectly in a 4″x5 1/4″ layer on your card front, so I could make my matting just a smidgen larger to get that extra border of Old Olive.
Once I had that in place, I focused on my sentiment. In this case, the ‘Deck the Hall” from the Carols of Christmas stamp set. It was a cool bold sentiment, so I didn’t want to mess with it too much, so instead I looked for ways to highlight it from behind.
First I knew I wanted to add some designer paper behind. I loved the new specialty paper from the Holiday Catalog that is all music sheets and music notes, and the contrast of the black with so much white in the card was perfect! (This paper is thinner like the newsprint specialty paper, and so you get half a pack with a black background and white print, and half a pack of white background with black print – for a total of 24 sheets in the pack!). But it still needed something, and gold was the perfect touch with the new Metallic Edge ribbon from the annual catalog. It is satin with that metallic stitching on the edge… soooo pretty!
But I couldn’t stop there… seriously, sometimes I think I have a problem calling a card done! ha ha ha!
So, to get a little more gold without overwhelming the card, I added a small mat behind the sentiment using the Fabulous Foil designer acetate. Each pattern can be used either as gold (on one side) or silver (the other side). Of course, I used gold here, but I love the versatility. Then for a little pop of color, I stamped the holly from the same stamp set and cut it out and popped it up on a mini-dimensional.
So, lots of little pieces, but nothing hard to do! Don’t believe me? Check out the video tutorial below!
Get more holiday ideas on the Fun n’ Crafty Blog Hop!
We have more amazing holiday cards lined up for you, so I invite you to hop along and check them all out! We all would love to hear what you think too. Next up is Stacey, and she never disappoints!
*** Please leave a comment at the end of this post and on the blog hop stops, and let us know what you think!***
1. Christine – Artful Musings
2. Kathy – Stampablog
3. Merit – MB Squared Designs
4. Susan – Stampin’ By the SF Bay
5. Jennifer – NW Stamper<—YOU ARE HERE
6. Stacey – A Work of Carte
VIDEO TUTORIAL – Carols of Christmas Classy Card
As promised, check out this video to learn a little more about the starter kit promotion in July and how to make this card! (Hop to 1min 40sec to get to the start of the card tutorial).

Card Measurements
- Whisper White cardbase – 4 1/4″ x 11″
- Old Olive cardstock – 4 1/8″ x 5 3/8″
- Whisper White cardstock – 4″ x 5 1/4″, 2 3/4″ x 2 3/4″
- Fancy Foil Acetate – 3″ x 3″
- Music designer paper – 1 1/2″ x 4″
- Metallic Edge Ribbon – 5″
Card supplies you will need:
Fabulous Foil Designer Acetate
$12.00
Gold 3/8″ (1 Cm) Metallic-Edge Ribbon
$7.00
Banner Triple Punch
$23.00
Whisper White 8-1/2″ X 11″ Card Stock
$9.00
Old Olive 8-1/2″ X 11″ Card Stock
$8.00
Basic Black Archival Stampin’ Pad
$7.00
Brights Stampin’ Write Markers
$29.00
Mini Stampin’ Dimensionals
$4.00
Stampin’ Dimensionals
$4.00
SNAIL Permanent Adhesive
$7.00
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July 27, 2017
Crafting Forever Using the New 2017-2019 In Colors!
It’s time for another great Blog Hop with my Fun n’ Crafty Stampers group! This month we are playing with the new 2017-2019 In Colors!
I hope you take a chance to hop through our projects today because these new In Colors are ones that have some surprisingly great colors in the set! For example, while my far and away favorite new in color is the Berry Burst… I first saw Lemon Lime Twist and thought,”Ack! How can anyone do anything with this neon yellow/green color?”
Oh, silly me!
I soon saw people pairing it with black and white… seriously an amazing combination. Along with using it in other accent color combinations and now I have to say I think it is my second favorite color in the bunch! So, lets check out these colors:
I was inspired by a card by Jenn Tinline and wanted to show off all the new In Colors in one go… and they were a perfect compliment to the pens stamp in the Crafting Forever stamp set! I used my In Color Markers to color in the pens (you just have to stamp it twice, but I tried stamping it using no special tools and it lined up really easily!) Then I used the pens again to color directly on the rubber for the sentiment. A little Berry Burst for the “creative” and Fresh Fig for everything else.Fun tip for this card front. I wanted my sentiment to look like a tag, but didn’t want to have to do a lot of work to get that look. So I did it the cheater way!
1. Stamp your sentiment onto scrap paper and then punch out with a circle punch.
2. Run a piece of baker’s twine around your cardstock that you want the tag to “hang” from. Make sure to only tape down the ENDS of the baker’s twine behind the cardstock.
3. Adhere your circle to the card so that the top of the circle is just underneath your baker’s twine.
4. Take a second piece of baker’s twine and tie a bow onto the first piece of baker’s twine. Then position the bow so it looks like it is in the top of the “tag”
5. Easy peasy done!
Make this project at home! Here is what you’ll need:
Crafting Forever Wood-Mount Stamp Set
$28.00
Crafting Forever Clear-Mount Stamp Set
$20.00
2017-2019 In Color 8-1/2″ X 11″ Cardstock
$8.00
2017-2019 In Color Stampin’ Write Markers
$15.00
Basic Black Archival Stampin’ Pad
$7.00
Whisper White 8-1/2″ X 11″ Card Stock
$9.00
Sahara Sand 8-1/2″ X 11″ Card Stock
$8.00
Basic Black Baker’s Twine
$3.00
1-1/2″ Circle Punch
$16.00
Stampin’ Dimensionals
$4.00
Check out more great ideas on the Fun n’ Crafty Blog Hop!
So this was my idea using the New In Colors! I showed you how fun they can be all together in one project, but keep checking out the projects on the hop and you’ll see more color combinations and fun ideas using different colors. 🙂 So, keep the inspiration going by checking out Christine’s projects next!
1. Christine Szekeres–Artful Musings
2. Pamela Wu –Stinky Tofu
3. Kathy Thisted–Stampablog
4. Merit Brown–MB Squared Designs
5. Susan Schultz –Stampin’ by the SF Bay
6. Jennifer Blomquist –Northwest Stamper <– YOU ARE HERE
In the Bellevue area? Join me for my Annual Craft Garage Sale!
I’ve been doing some deep purging of both my house in general and my crafting space. And just in time for this weekend’s Annual Craft Garage Sale! This is my big sale where I bring together multiple sellers and many of my retired Stampin’ Up stamps/paper/tools out at a discount for you. This year we have about a dozen people putting their crafting goodies in the sale so it should be a great sale!
Friday June 23rd & Saturday June 24th from 9am-3pm at my house in Bellevue, WA. Get all the details HERE
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June 22, 2017
Clean and Simple Elegance Eastern Palace Card
Woo hoo! This week is hopping – blog hopping that is! This time, its my Fun n’ Crafty Stampers team who are here to share with you some fresh ideas using the newest products – our preorder goodies!
Now, I’ll admit, technically, I might be bending the rules a bit because the goodies I have to show you – you yourself can actually order them TODAY! Say, what?! I’m featuring the Eastern Palace suite that is new in the upcoming 2017-2018 Stampin’ Up Annual Catalog. I’m not going to lie, this was a suite I wouldn’t have really thought twice about if I was just flipping through the catalog. But Stampin’ Up was smart and they decided to offer it early as part of two Sneak Peek bundles (the starter bundle & the premier bundle). So, of course, I ordered it. 🙂 And turns out, I love it!
My favorite piece in the suite is the Eastern Gold Vinyl Stickers. That is what makes the shiny gold flower and little circles in the background of my card. They are so EASY to do and because the stickers are clear and fairly close cut to the images, they blend in and look great!
Tips for making this Eastern Palace Clean & Simple card:
- Sometimes the perfect Gold ink is Yellow! As I was creating this card, I wanted to have the stamped ring around my sentiment fit with the gold accents of the card since I didn’t really want to introduce another color to the mix. And right as I was lamenting the retirement of gold ink, I looked at my Color Caddy ink spinner and saw the Delightful Dijon ink pad! I realized that the dark yellow was a great hue to compliment gold. Too bad it is retiring on May 31st, or I’d be using it with this suite all year!
- Scissors is all you need to pop-out this diecut flower – I saw this flower on a card by Louise Sharp and it in fact inspired this card – but when I went to use my die to cut it out, I realized that the die actually just die cuts the petals so they curl up from the cardstock… it doesn’t cut the whole thing out of the paper! However, it is an easy 30 second fix to just grab your snips and snip the one spot in between each petal that keeps it connected to the cardstock. A few quick snips and you have a fun new die shape!
- Think outside the suite for coordinating accents – I had the card coming together using the cardstock, stamps, stickers, and even designer paper from the Eastern Palace suite. But it still needed that elusive something. Thankfully I remembered the Fabulous Foil Acetate from the current Annual Catalog. It is super easy to miss and in fact, I often forgot I even had some from my part of last year’s product sampler I ran. But if you look at that mosaic gold piece above the purple paper, it is a printed window sheet that coordinates PERFECTLY with this suite! I’m so glad it is carrying over, because now that I realized how fab it actually is; I plan to use the heck out of it. 🙂
(thank goodness for samplers saving the day with this card! and yes, I have just released new product samplers for the upcoming catalog for when a year from now we discover that item that we never thought twice about, but now 11 months later is exactly perfect for a project!)
So, what do you think of this card and this suite?
I’d love to hear your thoughts… please leave me a comment below and let me know what YOU think of the Eastern Palace Suite!
Make this project at home! Here is what you’ll need:
Eastern Palace Premier Bundle
$103.50
Layering Circle Framelits Dies
$35.00
Fabulous Foil Designer Acetate
$12.00
Big Shot
$110.00
Whisper White 8-1/2″ X 11″ Card Stock
$9.00
Delightful Dijon Classic Stampin’ Pad
$6.50
Check out more great ideas on the Fun n’ Crafty Blog Hop!
So, that was my idea using something new from the upcoming catalog. While you can order the discounted bundle this month, you will be able to order individual pieces from this Eastern Palace suite starting June 1st! And if you just can’t wait, we’d love to have you join our Fun n’ Crafty team! Order your starter kit and you can get this bundle, plus $21.50 in product more for less than the price of the bundle alone! You’ll be able to order it today and then consider joining us on our blog hop next month. 🙂
In the meantime, keep the inspiration going by checking out Christine’s projects next!
1. Christine Szekeres – Artful Musings
2. Merit Brown – MB Squared Designs
3. Pamela Wu – Stinky Tofu
4. Susan Schultz – Stampin’ by the SF Bay
5. Stacey Lane – A Work of Carte
6. Jennifer Blomquist – Northwest Stamper <– YOU ARE HERE
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May 25, 2017
The 2017 Stampin’ Up Annual Catalog Product Samplers are Here!
I have had folks asking me about if they could sign up for my Product Samplers again for this new catalog – and I’m happy to announce that you can do that! There are a TON of new ribbons, embellishments, and papers in the 2017 Stampin’ Up Annual Catalog and it would cost you over $750 to get them all if you bought them all separately. Eek! But instead of having to make the decision which ribbons and papers are your favorite based on snippits in the catalog, I offer the Product Samplers to give you a chance to try a little bit of them all.at a fraction of the price.
>>> Click Here to Reserve Your Sampler! <<<
Because of how many new items there are, I’ve broken it up into a few options for you, so you can select from the following:
- Paper Sampler – a 6×6 piece of all the new designer papers, plus try out the new Glossy White cardstock and some of the large Adhesive sheets (great for those intricate die cuts or thin pieces)!
- Ribbon Sampler (mini or regular) – try out some of all of the 56 new ribbons in the catalog! Because there are so many, I’m offering this time a mini sampler (with 18″ of each ribbon) or my regular sampler (a full yard of each ribbon, so you can easily have enough of any ribbon for at least a couple cards or projects.)
- Embellishment Sampler – at least one of each new embellishment by color and design. So, you will be able to recreate that card you loved from Pinterest!
- I WANT IT ALL! Sampler w/ FREE BONUS! – as always, I offer the option to get it all plus I add in a few extra goodies free for those of you who want to try it all! This time I’ll be giving you a half pack of the Eastern Palace Vinyl stickers and the new Gold Striped treat bags.
I only offer these for a limited time and plan to order the supplies for the first round of samplers on June 2nd. I will be mailing out those first round of samplers by the end of the following week. They are all so cute, even I guess wrong which were going to be my favorite until I saw them in person at the demonstrator OnStage Event! So, order some fun and get happy mailed right to your door!
>>> Go Here to Reserve Your Sampler! <<<
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May 24, 2017
Daisy Delight Sneak Peek Thank You Card
I’m excited to finally be getting off my duff and participating in this fun Thailand Incentive Trip Achievers Blog Hop. Each month, a collection of the folks who have earned the trip and will be joining me in Thailand this July, choose a theme and share some amazing projects! This month our theme is the “2017/2018 Annual Catalog Sneak Peek”. We want to show you some of the AMAZING products that are available for demonstrators to order right now! So check out all the cute projects and amazing inspiration!
I have been having a blast using the new Daisy Delight Bundle. It includes the new Daisy Delight stamp set and the Daisy punch. And while I love my dies, I’m always a sucker for great punches. They make projects quick and easy, and you don’t need a lot of space to get your work done.

Tips for making this Daisy Delight Thank You card:
- Double Up! I kept it sweet and simple. I stamped my daisy in Crushed Curry twice and punched both flowers out. The punch creates a sparse daisy, but once you start layering the punches, they really build up into beautiful flowers!
- Perfect Complementary Punch! You can stamp the center of the flower and it punches out perfectly with the 1/2″ circle punch!
- Add some shimmer! I’m hoping you can tell in the picture above, the middle of my flower was stamped in Early Espresso, but to get that coordinating golden glow and shimmer, I used my retiring Gold Wink of Stella brush. It adds just the right hint of yellow to match the flower and adds lots of gold shimmer!
I love the fonts and sentiments that go with this stamp set as well. You can mix and match to fit exactly what you need your card to say. And when I get the chance to mix and match my sentiment stamps, especially when there are different fonts, I love to mix and match my colors too! I just picked two colors I used elsewhere in the card (Dapper Denim and Early Espresso) to tie everything together.

Such a fun stamp set and punch, to help make such pretty spring and summery cards! And YES! It will be released as a discounted bundle, so you can get them both and save too!
Check out more great ideas on the Thailand Achievers Blog Hop
Thanks for checking out my project and taking part in our blog hop! There are so many amazing ideas and inspiration you don’t want to miss. Remember that currently you are at my blog – Jennifer Blomquist – Northwest Stamper, so check the blog hop line up list to see who is next in the list.
Make this project at home! Here is what you’ll need:
Daisy Delight Photopolymer Bundle
$31.50
Gold Wink Of Stella Glitter Brush
$8.00
1/2″ Circle Punch
$6.00
Very Vanilla 8-1/2″ X 11″ Card Stock
$9.00
Old Olive 8-1/2″ X 11″ Card Stock
$8.00
Dapper Denim Classic Stampin’ Pad
$6.50
Old Olive Classic Stampin’ Pad
$6.50
Early Espresso Classic Stampin’ Pad
$6.50
Crushed Curry Classic Stampin’ Pad
$6.50
Stampin’ Dimensionals
$4.00
Eastern Palace Starter Bundle
$60.50
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May 23, 2017
Color Blocking Card Using High Tide
When is the last time you got a handmade card in the mail?
Do you remember how it made you feel?
The other day, I went to the mailbox and was flipping through my mail when I saw a smaller envelope – a card envelope. And handwritten on the front was my name with a return address label from my friend Julie Davison. I literally stood there on the sidewalk thinking… why is Julie sending me a card? I wonder what her card looks like! It wasn’t my birthday and it wasn’t for a swap. So I eagerly opened the envelope and found this card with a sweet note from Julie along with something she had promised to send me and I had totally forgotten about.
I absolutely adore this card and it was a good reminder why sending the cards we make is such a meaningful thing to do. Especially when you can send a card at times of the year for no other reason than to say “Hi! I’m thinking of you!”.
I’m getting ready to gear up a card mailing blitz for myself (and I’ll be sharing it with you here and on my Facebook page too!) So, I invite you to remember the smile it brought to your face to get a card when you didn’t expect it and consider sending that smile to someone you know could use it!
Tips for making this color blocked High Tide card:
So, you heard the story behind this card, but how about we take a minute to talk about some of the cuteness of the card itself?!
- Give this color combination a try! I remember struggling with the (retiring) Delightful Dijon In Color when it first came out. But it has turned out to be a great accent color – especially for fall cards and masculine cards. In this case, it is the great combo of Sahara Sand, Early Espresso, Cherry Cobbler, and Delightful Dijon.
- Color Blocking is a great and simple way to mix colors – with color blocking, you want large, bold areas of a single color. I love how Julie did that in this card. The dark base allows you to really show off the other colors with wide bands that go all the way from side to side. To make the most of this technique, you will want to stamp your main image first, and then base the sizing of your color bands based off of the sizing of your main image. You want your color bands to be just a bit smaller than your main image (such as 1 1/2″ smaller across than your main image). Then just layer.
- Get matching layered colors with two-step stamping – one of the great things about this set is that it is MADE to have the colors be layered. So you can use the same color inks as you used for the cardstock to create a great seaside scene. The images are designed so that it is easy to layer and even if you are not a perfect stamper, they almost always look great even if you are off just a little bit!
Want to make this card at home? Here are the project supplies:
High Tide Photopolymer Stamp Set
$26.00
Linen Thread
$4.50
Banner Triple Punch
$23.00
Early Espresso 8-1/2″ X 11″ Card Stock
$8.00
Early Espresso Classic Stampin’ Pad
$6.50
Cherry Cobbler 8-1/2″ X 11″ Card Stock
$8.00
Cherry Cobbler Classic Stampin’ Pad
$6.50
Sahara Sand 8-1/2″ X 11″ Card Stock
$8.00
Sahara Sand Classic Stampin’ Pad
$6.50
Delightful Dijon 8-1/2″ X 11″ Cardstock
$8.00
Delightful Dijon Classic Stampin’ Pad
$6.50
Whisper White 8-1/2″ X 11″ Card Stock
$9.00
SNAIL Permanent Adhesive
$7.00
Stampin’ Dimensionals
$4.00
Get more project ideas and newsletter-exclusive tutorials sent directly to you email inbox!
To help you get inspired to create cards to send to folks any time of the year, I often include free PDF tutorials for cute projects to my newsletter email list. You can download and save the tutorials to try when you are ready, and these projects are exclusive to my newsletter subscribers! I’m working on sending out the next one shortly, so be sure you are signed up!
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May 16, 2017
Cute Collage Stamping using Kinda Eclectic
Today I wanted to share a card I created to send out as part of my customer thank yous. I had gotten embarrassingly far behind on sending out thank you cards for orders over the last few months and so I wanted to make up some cards and make sure everyone knew how much I appreciated them and their support. It took a while but it was great to sit and write a little note to each person. Plus it was fun to take a big stack to the post office… say HAPPY MAIL! 🙂
So what is inside many of those cards? This fun Kinda Eclectic collaged thank you card! I have always loved the Kinda Eclectic stamp set because it is one of those sets that you can just randomly stamp a bunch of the images onto a piece of cardstock and it almost always looks great. Gotta love stamp sets that make it hard for you to mess things up!
Now this card was also a last hurrah for me for many of the retiring items from the Stampin’ Up 2016-2017 retirement list (You can see everything that is still available and being discontinued here). Including:
- the Kinda Eclectic stamp set
- Cucumber Crush Thick Baker’s Twine
- Cucumber Crush cardstock
- Cucumber Crush ink
- Tip Top Taupe ink
- Bitty Butterfly punch
- Elegant Butterfly punch
Yes… I’m still in a bit of shock that Stampin’ Up is retiring the butterfly punches! They are so cute and look so great layered together!
Tips for making this Kinda Eclectic collage card:
This card is a lot easier to make than it may seem, so here are a few quick tips for making it.
- Have fun with the leaves to fill in the corners! I stamped the leaves in Cucumber Crush ink on the corners of the card base. Then I used Memento Black to stamp ONCE full strength in the corner of the white cardstock and then I stamped AGAIN without REINKING just offset from the first black image so you get the faded layered look.
- The two butterfly images come from the Kinda Eclectic stamp set. Stamp the large butterfly full strength and punch out. Stamp the smaller butterfly once on scrap paper and then again without reinking the stamp onto your cardstock scrap and punch it out with the Bitty Butterfly stamp. Both of the butterfly images below were stamped using Tip Top Taupe ink.
- Use glue dots to hold your butterflies together – I love using glue dots to adhere my butterflies. I use one dot in the center of each butterfly. This holds my punch out down firmly, but still lets me fold up the wings so it looks like it is trying to fly away.
- Make a tiny matting border for a crisp way to break up your layers – I love using this type of small mat. It is 1/8″ larger in each direction than the Whisper White cardstock. Now, I mailed off all my copies of this card without measuring, but I think it is approximately 3 3/4″ x 5″ for the Whisper White cardstock and then 3 7/8″ x 5 1/8″ for the Basic Black cardstock.
Want to make this card at home? Here are the project supplies:
Kinda Eclectic Wood-Mount Stamp Set
$28.00
Kinda Eclectic Clear-Mount Stamp Set
$20.00
Bitty Butterfly Punch
$16.00
Elegant Butterfly Punch
$16.00
Cucumber Crush Thick Baker’s Twine
~~$3.50~~ $2.45
Cucumber Crush 8-1/2″ X 11″ Cardstock
$8.00
Whisper White 8-1/2″ X 11″ Card Stock
$9.00
Basic Black 8-1/2″ X 11″ Card Stock
$8.00
Cucumber Crush Classic Stampin’ Pad
$6.50
Tip Top Taupe Classic Stampin’ Pad
$6.50
Tuxedo Black Memento Ink Pad
$6.00
Glue Dots
$5.25
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May 11, 2017
Spring Birthday Card Idea with Affectionately Yours Designer Paper
It’s May and I am back hopping with the Inspire, Create, & Share gals to bring you some inspiration for the girls this month! The theme is “It’s A Girl Thing!” and so we are each sharing a project that we think is perfect for the girls in our lives. The card I have for you is a fun Spring Birthday Card that with all the flowers and Flirty Flamingo ink and paper colors, makes me think of some of my good gal friends.
Mix & Match Your Craft Supplies to Bring the Spring!
I’m so grateful that Stampin’ Up makes such a big deal about color coordination and exact color matching in their products. It means that going outside the box and mixing & matching supplies from your craft room is WAAAAY easier! I’ll admit, I am a kit girl. I love to stick to coordinated suites and project kits because it means I don’t have to think. I can just dump everything out on my table and know that whatever I grab will work together. But, today’s card goes a bit off the rails in that department!
What did I use and how do they match?
- I wanted to get some more crafting time in with my Affectionately Yours designer paper now that is retiring and coming to the end of it’s availability. I love, love, love the copper foil accents in two of the patterned sheets (including the Night of Navy piece in this card). So, I coordinated the Cucumber Crush striped ribbon with the Cucumber Crush leaves in that pattern.
- And while the official color in the Affectionately Yours paper is Watermelon Wonder, the lighter pink sides are a perfect complement to the Flirty Flamingo cardstock I used to mat the sentiment.
- Speaking of Flirty Flamingo, I coordinated the cardstock mat with the ink colors when I stamped some of the flowers from the Swirly Bird stamp set. And since I knew that Peekaboo Peach was an In Color in the same family at the Flirty Flamingo, I knew I could use it for a contrasting flower color and the tones would go together.
  TIP – when in doubt, stick to colors in the same color family!
I also finished it off with the super fun birthday sentiment from the retiring Balloon Adventures stamp set. I am crushed this set is retiring… but I think it is going to just work it’s way over to my permanent personal stash. It coordinates with the Balloon Bouquet punch and has such great birthday sentiments!
Want to make this card at home? Here are the project supplies:
Product List
Balloon Adventures Photopolymer Stamp Set
$26.00
Swirly Bird Photopolymer Stamp Set
$25.00
Affectionately Yours Specialty Designer Series Paper
~~$13.00~~ $9.10
Cucumber Crush 5/8″ (1.6 Cm) Mini Striped Ribbon
~~$8.00~~ $5.60
Rhinestone Basic Jewels Embellishments
~~$5.00~~ SOLD OUT until 6/1
Tip Top Taupe 8-1/2″ X 11″ Cardstock
$8.00
Flirty Flamingo 8-1/2″ X 11″ Cardstock
$8.00
Whisper White 8-1/2″ X 11″ Card Stock
$9.00
Flirty Flamingo Classic Stampin’ Pad
$6.50
Peekaboo Peach Classic Stampin’ Pad
$6.50
Early Espresso Classic Stampin’ Pad
$6.50
Stampin’ Dimensionals
$4.00
Get more great ideas for the girls in your life!
So, please keep on hopping and check out what other great ideas the Inspire, Create, & Share gals have for you on this “It’s A Girl Thing” blog hop! Next up is Audra on our hoppy tour.

So enjoy and please take a minute and leave a comment to let me know what you think! 🙂
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May 3, 2017