Pattern paper can really make a card interesting and fun… but don’t think you have to stick to rectangles and mats! Play with your patterns and use them to create different shapes in your backgrounds. Like this Carousels & Cupcakes designer paper, it makes the perfect backdrop for the pretty and vintage Carousel Birthday stamp set. Especially when you start coloring and sponging your pieces.
Way back at Stampin’ Up OnStage in April, I was given the Moroccan Nights stamp set (love the perks of getting free stamps when you go to demonstrator events! 
). But the problem was, it wasn’t a stamp set I had really looked at before or thought was my style. Which meant it sat on my shelf for a loooong time. But sometimes we all need a challenge to grab that stamp set that is collecting dust and see what we can create with it. You may be surprised, like I was, at what cool things can result.
![Moroccan Nights Thank You card w title_thumb[2]](https://i0.wp.com/www.nwstamper.com/wp-content/uploads/52033578238e_76BA/Moroccan-Nights-Thank-You-card-w-title_thumb2.jpg "Moroccan Nights Thank You card w title_thumb[2]")
Turns out, this stamp set makes AWESOME backgrounds for your cards. I kept it really simple for this card and used the large image from the set for my central image in Crushed Curry and then turned it and stamped the corners using the SAME IMAGE only this time with Cajun Craze. Turns out pretty cool, huh? I just eyeballed it because I have the sticker on the back of my cling mount stamps, but if you wanted to get really precise, I would grab the Stamp-a-ma-jig and use that for exact placement.
![Moroccan Nights Thank You card close up_thumb[1]](https://i0.wp.com/www.nwstamper.com/wp-content/uploads/52033578238e_76BA/Moroccan-Nights-Thank-You-card-close-up_thumb1.jpg "Moroccan Nights Thank You card close up_thumb[1]")
Tips and Tricks for this project:
Finally, I just sponged the edges of the stamped cardstock with Soft Suede to help distress it just enough to all come together. Well, and the fact that you know me and you know I can’t do a card without reaching for my Stampin’ Dimensionals OR my sponge daubers!
![Moroccan Nights Thank You card 2_thumb[1]](https://i0.wp.com/www.nwstamper.com/wp-content/uploads/52033578238e_76BA/Moroccan-Nights-Thank-You-card-2_thumb1.jpg "Moroccan Nights Thank You card 2_thumb[1]")
![NWstamper signature_thumb[9]](https://i0.wp.com/www.nwstamper.com/wp-content/uploads/ad87b4046c1e_C9F6/NWstamper-signature_thumb9_thumb.png?resize=322%2C118 "NWstamper signature_thumb[9]")
![order online button for sig 3_thumb[4]](https://i0.wp.com/www.nwstamper.com/wp-content/uploads/ad87b4046c1e_C9F6/order-online-button-for-sig-3_thumb4_thumb.png?resize=307%2C45 "order online button for sig 3_thumb[4]"){kind=small}
October Online Stamp Club Hostess Code – YG62GG6C
Get free exclusive tutorials each month and even get the supplies in a Make & Take kit with your order over $40 when you use the monthly hostess code!
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So, I dream of the day that I’m going to be so organized and pulled together that I have a long list of my upcoming Walkthrough Wednesday topics when I sit down to do my video… I’m going to know all my class projects for the following few months… and my blog posts – oh they will be written prior to 11pm the night before. 
But that is not my life these days! Good thing I love what I do, right?!
Well, the card I have for you is one of those “moments of inspiration” cards where I knew I wanted to have something to share for today, but I had no idea what to do. I sat and stared at my desk…my stamps… my punches until finally an inkling of inspiration struck and suddenly this card came flowing from my brain.
I love how it turned out and I hope you enjoy it too! In fact, I’ve decided I’m going to use this as one of my group swap cards for convention next week! I’ll have some extras as well for general swapping so if you are going to be in SLC, say hello and maybe we can swap!
Tips for making this card:
See all these tips in action and more with the video:
Note – if you are reading this blog post from email, click here to view the video.
As I mentioned, I’m getting ready to head to Salt Lake City next week for the Stampin’ Up convention. It is always an amazing time and I’m grateful to be going with a group of my Fun n’ Crafty Stampers group and will have the chance to say hi to many of my fabulous friends from across the US and Canada!
If you aren’t going to be joining me at this event, they just opened registration for the next NEW demonstrator event called On Stage. They have a 3 day event (in Brussels this time) with local 1 day events the last day so we can all hear all the announcements and product and catalog reveals! It is coming up in November, and I’d love to have you join me!
Not a demonstrator yet? 
There is still plenty of time and I’d love to have you be a part of the Fun n’ Crafty stampers and join us at one of the events! Email me for more details at jennifer@nwstamper.com.
And in the meantime, watch for more fun Convention updates next week!
![NWstamper signature_thumb[9]](https://i0.wp.com/www.nwstamper.com/wp-content/uploads/ad87b4046c1e_C9F6/NWstamper-signature_thumb9.png "NWstamper signature_thumb[9]")
Project Supplies Used:
Built for Free Using: My Stampin Blog
Well, another Christmas is past and it was a good one this year for our family. We had a great day relaxing at home on Christmas and then a noisy day on the 26th with family and cousins. 
But isn’t that the best kind of day, at least for kids?
I had two more Christmas projects I wanted to share and today is a gift card holder I made for a friend. It started out with a fun punch art snowman gift tag that I converted to a belly band for the holder.
Punches used for the snowman:
It is really easy to put him together too! The hat is 2 wide ovals punched out in black (you just trim down one to make the top hat part), his head is the 1-3/4’ circle punch in white, then the body is a wide oval punch in white. Glue those pieces to a strip of patterned paper for the scarf so he looks about how you like (I used the Trim the Tree designer paper stack – also on discount right now). Punch out a second piece of designer paper using the banner punch and glue at an angle to create the other tail of the scarf. His nose is just a freehand cut scrap of Pumpkin Pie cardstock and then I drew on his eyes, mouth, and buttons with a black marker.
Add accents like the All is Calm snowflake embellishment (another discount item) to cover up where you adhered the banner punch and a little pearl in the middle for flair. I also used the Chalk Pen to make dashes around my Starburst framelit die cut for the background and to make the white trim on his hat.
Pretty cute, huh?
He was made onto a belly band as the gift card hold was a trifold card. On the front and inner flap, I decorated with the Trim the Tree designer paper.
Then you flip it open to reveal a space for your message and the gift card. I actually added a second pocket to the top flap so they could have 2 gift cards inside. And the pocket had a little space cut out for easier grabbing using the small oval punch.
It was easy and fun to make and I hope my friend liked it!
I also know that those instructions for the snowman may have been a bit tough to follow, so I’ll try to put together a video to help show what I was talking about.
And like I mentioned, both the Trim the Tree paper and the All is Calm snowflake embellishments are part of the Year End Blowout Sale! They are only available for about another week, so grab then now so you can get started on your Holiday scrapbook pages or projects for next year!
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Project Supplies Used:
(if you are reading this in email, click here to see the list of supplies)
Just popping in for a quick blog post because I wanted to share with you another bright and fun project. How about a celebration card with lots of cheery colors?
See that bright pattern I used for the big banner? I was getting tricky and instead of using designer paper, I used a card from the Project Life Everyday Adventure set! I die cut it using my Banner framelits and matted it with a Black banner.
Then grab some coordinating Cardstock and punch some little banners using the Banner punch. I topped it off with some twine and then it was time to get some sparkle on! Courtesy of the 2013 In Color sequins.
I even had to add a sequin to the sentiment from the Yippee Skippee Stamp set. Can’t leave any part unblinged. 🙂
All this week, get DOUBLE PUNCHES on your Northwest Stamper Reward card! Yep! All orders through Sunday are giving you a way to earn a free stamp set from me even faster!
For every $40 you spend (before tax and shipping) earn 2 punches on your punch card. At 10 you’ll get to pick a free stamp set to receive totally free!
And just a reminder of the newest Weekly Deals:
Have a wonderful week and I’ll be back with more projects for you soon!
Project Supplies Used:
(if you are reading this in email, click here to see the list of supplies)
How about something a little different today – a fun gift bag that is WAY QUICKER to make than you might expect using the Seasonally Scattered stamp set and those great chevron printed bags from Stampin’ Up.
I created this for the Convention Display boards this last summer (yes, I’m still working on finishing up sharing all the projects for that! 
) and I was asked to make some 3D projects for each the stamp sets I was given. I started adding a little bit here and there and finally it all came together in a fun festive bag.
Tips for making this project:
The only part that takes any time with these bags is the cutting out of the Merry sentiment, but you could use a framelit and die cut it to make it even faster!
Gratitude Month Week 1 Free Tutorial – Kinda Eclectic Thank You Card 
Shop online & use hostess code UCJDBQH4
See the Catalogs online – Annual Catalog | Holiday Catalog | Holiday Supplement
Save more when shopping – Weekly Deals | Clearance Rack
Project Supplies Used:
(if you are reading this in email, click here to see the list of supplies)
By now, You’ve probably heard of Project Life and know the cards in each kit are great for quick and easy scrapbooking (if you want to learn more about project life, I have a video about it here). But when they gave a set to us to use for the 2014 Stampin’ Up Convention display boards and use in other ways, I found myself looking at them in a different light. And thus, this altered picture frame came to be!
I loved this project and even my non-crafty hubby liked it and said he wanted one for his desk at work! Thankfully the frame is only $1 at Michaels and another set of Everyday Adventure Project Life by Stampin’ up is easy to come by! So, I’ll be creating another one soon for him.
See all the cards in the kit here.
The idea was to take this chunky frame and then start layering the cards around the edges to create a tiled design. It all started with the Best Day Every card that is found in the Everyday Adventure Accessory Kit. I thought it was cool because it is die cut so that you see through the card to whatever is behind it, so I thought it would look neat showing the wood of the frame through the letters.
From there I started laying out other cards that I thought had cool complimentary colors and patterns to fill up the frame. Once I had the plan, I could flip over the frame and trace the edges of the frame on the back of the Project Life card for any given spot.
Then just trim off the extra paper and glue to your frame. In my case, I ended up using the Tombow Liquid Glue. And then finish up the seams by adding some embellishements from the Accessory kit (like those clear hearts) and other items in my craft room (like the rhinestones on the honeycomb card and the wooden accents such as the arrow and banner piece).
It actually came together really quickly and easily. And did you realize, that the Banner Punch actually is the same width and just a smidge shorter than the banners in the Wooden Accents? Cool huh?
Finally, I didn’t use it a lot, but I love the Remember This Project Life stamp set and it turned out to be perfect for stamping one of the stickers from the Accessory kit and balancing out everything on my frame!
Its an easy and inexpensive idea for a great gift!
I’m running a Project Life Night class next Monday and RSVPs are closing first thing tomorrow morning! We will be making lots of fun projects including:
You will get everything you need to make the projects plus have lots of extra Project Life cards to take home and keep! All for only $25
RSVP now to participate in this fun class! RSVP here to join me in person at the Redmond Panera at 7pm on 7/28
~OR~
Get the To-Go Kit! You will get all the supplies you need to create the projects including basic adhesive for your picture frame, PDF pictures of all the projects, and instructions for how to make the projects. Only $35 shipped anywhere in the US!
Project Supplies Used
So, think outside the Scrapbooking box and enjoy your Project Life cards in all kinds of new ways. 
July Online Stamp Club Hostess Code – 7RDHVEKR
Use this code to get free exclusive tutorials & project kit! Learn more
Ok, after spending almost an hour fighting with my computer on formatting of this blog post, I’m just giving up and I hope you don’t mind if it scrolls a little long! 🙂 I’m starting the Sale-a-Bration countdown today and so I’ll be spending the next 4 days sharing Sale-a-Bration projects, and I just know I will have a bunch to share, so I figured I’ll post a few each day to fill you up with ideas! 
Last weekend was my first ever Stamp & Share for my group of Fun n’ Crafty demonstrators. I am so grateful for these ladies and I wanted to make sure I was helping created events and opportunities for everyone to get to know each other, stamp together, and share ideas. So, I put together an afternoon of stamping fun and business tips. It was a huge success and I can’t wait to start planning the next one as I’d love to hold these each quarter! This time, I had some great presenters who shared some tips and tricks for some of our tools – specifically the Scallop Tag punch and the Thinlit flip dies. Kathy Thisted (below) shared on the Scallop Tag punch. 
She had a TON of good ideas and tips but I’ll share the one that was new and exciting to me! The idea that you can punch paper that is larger than 2”! I know, that shouldn’t be as mind blowing to me as it is, but I thought you could only punch paper that was 2” or less; but she showed how you can make borders, cut box flaps, and more with larger paper. The big trick though to making sure you have the scallop edge where you want is to mark the front of your punch with a piece of paper or post-it showing where the edges of the tag opening are. That way, you can align your score lines or markings on your paper so that the scallop tag end is exactly where you want it! 
Then she shared a bunch of great boxes including this one – all using some great Sale-a-Bration items including the Sweet Sorbet paper, See Ya Later stamp set, Banner punch, Sweet Sorbet accessories, and the Heartfelt Banner kit :
It is a simple 2” strip of cardstock that has been folded in half to make your basic bag shape. Then add small strips of cardstock to the sides (adhering to the inside of your tag) to make the walls to keep your goodies from falling out the sides! (side note – aren’t those little banners stinkin’ cute sticking out from behind the label framelit cut out?) Next was another box she made, only this time she took two of the flaps and cut the ends using the scallop tag punch. The opposite flaps were trimmed and decorated. But the scallop top makes for a cute decorative touch and a great place for a ribbon to tie your box closed.
Oh! I totally forgot to point out the coolest part! See that canvas banner on the side of the box? Guess where it is from? And no, she did not hand cut it! Give up? It is from the Heartfelt Banner kit!! How clever to cut up the banner kit into cute pieces to use in other projects. Love that multi-purpose functionality. I just LOVED this third box though.
Another tall box with the scallop tag punch… but my favorite touches?
So, hopefully you saw some fun ideas and inspiration here. Have a question about one of the boxes? Leave me a comment or shoot me an email at jennifer@nwstamper.com and I’ll see if I can get the details for you!
Don’t forget, everything you see here that is from Sale-a-Bration is going away after Monday March 31st! So take advantage of the last 4 days of Sale-a-Bration
(Yes! There is still time for a last minute facebook or online party!)
So, have fun and I’ll be back with more ideas for you soon!
March Online Stamp Club Hostess Code – XEWP4DFD
Use this code to get free exclusive tutorials & project kit! Learn more
Supplies Used (click any picture for descriptions or to add to your shopping cart)
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Happy Tuesday!
We are down to our LAST WEEK of Sale-a-bration, and so if you have been thinking of stocking up on supplies, picking up some wish list items, or just getting started on that project you’ve been thinking about for a while; you have one week left to get the stuff you need and get BONUS stuff you want for free. 
Stampin’ Up has also posted the weekly deals for this last week in March as well. So, here is what is up on special this week:
See all the details and shop the sale here
Love that core’dinations paper! Its like cardstock, textured cardstock, and a cool sanding medium in one! One of the color families that is on sale this week is the Subtles collection…wanna see it in action? Check out this cute card by Breelin Renwick (she shared it with Annie Lee, who shared with me)!
Those pretty colors are: Pool Party, Wisteria Wonder, and Calypso Coral. And when you emboss the Pool Party core’dinations cardstock with the Decorative Dots embossing folder, you can sand the bumps to show the lighter blue core instead.
Also, love how she combined the Banner Blast stamp set (and Banner punch) with the Hearts a Flutter stamp set and framelits! Don’t they layer so well together?
And if you are trying to remember what all your options were for free stuff this month… here is the full list again!
This week, I’ll be sharing lots of projects using my favorites from the Sale-a-Bration flyer! So, come on back throughout the week to help get more ideas for how you can use your fabulous freebies!
March Online Stamp Club Hostess Code – XEWP4DFD
Use this code to get free exclusive tutorials & project kit! Learn more
Stampin’ Up! Supplies Used
Stamps – Hearts a Flutter, Banner Blast**
Ink – Pool Party, Wisteria Wonder, Calypso Coral
Paper –Pool Party, Wisteria Wonder, Calypso Coral, Whisper White
Accessories – Big Shot, Hearts a Flutter framelits, white baker’s twine, rhinestones, Itty Bitty Punch pack, small Heart punch, Decorative Dots embossing folder**
** item available as a free gift with a $50 order
Favorite Products:
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I just realized this morning that I hadn’t shared this card yet and I love it so much that I figured I needed to fix that!
This is my favorite card yet that I’ve made with the Sale-a-Bration set Banner Blast and I know a lot of it is the color… and the bling… and the sentiment. Ahhh, don’t you just love it when a card comes together for you?! 
Isn’t Bermuda Bay and Basic Black a GORGEOUS color combination?? I just loved the colors and so I wanted to keep the whole card to those tones.
From the sentiment that I love from the See Ya Later stamp set – “I don’t believe it’s your birthday. You don’t look any older than you did last year.” to the clean white background to show off the banners.
Now, I don’t know why it took this long for me to think of stamping one of the Banner Blast pennants onto colored cardstock… for some reason I kept only stamping a colored ink onto white cardstock. But look at how great the black ink looks on the Smoky Slate cardstock:
I also connected the banner by adding rhinestones instead of bakers twine or some other line. Just the right amount of glitz.
Yes, both of these stamps sets are only available during Sale-a-Bration, so don’t forget there is only 1 week left to get them free with a $50 order! Shop online and then pick out your favorite free item(s) and they will appear in your box!
March Online Stamp Club Hostess Code – XEWP4DFD
Use this code to get free exclusive tutorials & project kit! Learn more
This week I’m sharing some of the great cards I got from my team’s Occasion Catalog card swap. They came up with such fabulous cards that I wanted to share the inspiration with everyone!
Today’s cards show some cute ways to use the patterns in the Fresh Prints designer paper stack to add a touch of pattern to your cards…plus I just realized they use the exact same color combination too! Winning combo I think.
This first card was created by the talented Angela McCormack and is a great clean and simple card that uses the pattern of the designer paper to compliment the shape of the sentiment. (I REALLY need to get out my pennant framelits and start using them… love how this looks layered like this).
Plus, if you look, those red spots in the corners are actually rhinestones that she colored with a sharpie to fit in perfectly!
Next up was this fun Birthday card created by Sara Grafton that is another clean and simple card but has so many fun touches that it packs a lot of punch! 
The Happy Birthday to You image is from one stamp and she did an awesome job coloring it in before stamping. Then the touches of the popped up cupcake and the set of banners using the new Banner punch from the Sale-a-Bration catalog is a great addition.
Aren’t they so talented? I love that both cards as so fun to look at, yet are something I could do at home easily enough. Thanks, Ladies, for sharing your wonderful ideas and inspiration!
Virtual Stamp Club Hostess Code – BNDDMDVU
Use this code to get free exclusive tutorials & project kit! Learn more
Right now, everyone is LOVING the Banner Blast stamp set and punch from the Sale-a-Bration catalog and so I wanted to sit down and play around with my supplies to see what I could come up with. Turns out, it is really quick to come up with something cute and fun – this is what I came up with:
Apparently, I had the University of Washington Huskies on the brain as I was inspired by Elegant Eggplant and had to pair it with Gold! (Which just so happens to be the school colors.) So, I picked out a few complimentary colors and started stamping and punching.
For the banners I ended up using:
Pretty combo, right?
Each banner piece was popped up on a dimensional and then I tucked some of the Gold baker’s twine behind each one and then just tied a knot at the end for my banner string. I love the subtle shine of the gold – for a girl who has always been about silver, I think gold is growing on me!
Finally, I wanted to use the banner punch in a different way and so I used it to create the sentiment piece as well. I cut a strip of cardstock that was the same width as the punch shape of the banner. Then I could tuck in the ends to the punch…. yes, I realize I should have taken a picture to better explain this, so watch for a photo or video to come soon! – so that I could make the sentiment as long as I needed and have a banner point at each end.
Oh, last note… isn’t this sentiment great? I wanted to mention it because you may be like me and once Stampin’ Up switched the way they do hostess benefits and now they make it so that you can use your freebies on anything in the catalog…. I stopped paying much attention to the hostess stamp sets! So, it is easy to overlook some of the great stamps in the back of the catalog! This was one of the first stamps I got with hostess benefits and thought it deserved a little spotlight. 
Express Yourself – Hostess Stamp set
Virtual Stamp Club Hostess Code – BNDDMDVU
Use this code to get free exclusive tutorials & project kit! Learn more
Stampin’ Up! Supplies Used
Stamps – Express Yourself (hostess), Banner Blast (FREE with a $50 order)
Ink – Smoky Slate, Elegant Eggplant, Soft Suede, Wisteria Wonder, Crushed Curry
Paper – Whisper White, Elegant Eggplant
Accessories – Big Shot, Decorative Dots embossing folder (FREE with a $50 order), Banner punch (FREE with a $50 order), Gold baker’s twine, corner rounder punch
![Moroccan Nights Thank You card side view_thumb[1]](https://i0.wp.com/www.nwstamper.com/wp-content/uploads/52033578238e_76BA/Moroccan-Nights-Thank-You-card-side-view_thumb1.jpg "Moroccan Nights Thank You card side view_thumb[1]")
