So Long Summer Smooches & the Occasions Mini!

I got a reminder email last night that told me today was the last day to place orders from the Occasions Mini catalog and I had to pull out my calendar to check…. how in the heck did we hit the end of April already?!?

But I guess we did, which means today is your last chance to order from the Occasions Mini or anything from the Summer Smooches promotion!

Like these awesome items are going away, and while I have my fingers crossed that they will make it into the next major catalog, I have no way of knowing if they will or not.

Seriously, what will I do without the:

Mixed Bunch Stamp Set	Blossom Punch	Pleated Satin Ribbon

And then there is Summer Smooches.  The Fabric brads have already sold out, but the paper, stamp set, fabric, and digital designs are around for today only.  Then they get stored away until the new catalog comes out.

I thought I’d share with you a card I made recently as a thank you for an order.  I knew she liked bright colors so I thought I would play off the colors in the Summer Smooches designer paper.

 

I used the retiring Dot, Dot, Dot stamp to make the dotted background in Real Red ink and took a Real Red strip of cardstock and the Dotted Scallop Ribbon Border punch to punch out the edges (I just punched out the scallop ribbon and then cut it in half and used each half with the scallops pointing in-wards.)

 

I also played a bit with my corner rounder punch to curve the opposite corners of each piece of designer paper (and Daffodil Delight cardstock) to play into the pattern and shape of the flowers on the paper.  And then I just popped up each piece with some Stampin’ Dimensionals.

Oh, and I just realized I used the sentiment from the Thank You Kindly set, another stamp set that is retiring this year.  Sigh… so many great stamp sets headed for retirements.  I’m so sad they are going but am hoping that means even cooler stamps are headed our way with the new catalog!

So, if you haven’t gotten everything you wanted from the Occasions Mini or Summer Smooches, don’t delay!

Email me or pop on by my online store and grab them before they are gone tomorrow!

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Clarifications and Updates on the Retirement Lists

Good morning!  Its been a couple days since the Stampin’ Up! retiring accessory list was released and I’ve been seeing lots of confusion and misinformation out there and so I wanted to take a minute to try to clear some things up for you. Also, scroll down to see an update on what has sold out!

1.  The colors aren’t changing!  You may have noticed that all of the classic ink pads are on the retirement list.  This is because Stampin’ Up! is changing the physical pad to use a new “firm foam” pad to allow for better inking of your stamps.  They are also updating some of the printing on the pad cases and including labels for the ends of your ink pads so you can easily see what color you are grabbing.  So, the current pads are retiring but the ink will still be there in June, with the exception of the 2010-2012 In Colors.

2.  Use your current ink refills!  With the ink pad changes, some folks are wondering about ink refills.  With the exception of 5 colors that had to be reformulated for the new pads (Basic Black, Basic Grey, Marina Mist, Perfect Plum, and Tempting Turquoise), current ink refills will work with the new pads.  Similarly, the ink refills that will be sold in June will work with the current pads.  Its just those 5 colors that you need to use old refills with old pads and new refills with new pads.

3.  Yes, Craft ink is going away!  With the exception of Basic Black and Whisper White, all of the craft ink pads and refills will be retiring.  The ink refills are selling out quickly, so if this is something you are interested, I would grab yours right away.

4.  Textured cardstock is discountinued.  It is true that the 12×12 textured cardstock collections are all being retired and will only be available in smooth cardstock in the future.

5.  12×12 cardstock is mostly moving collection packs only.  25 of the 40 individual packs of 12×12 smooth cardstock is retiring and will only be available in family collection packs.  (So you can still get it, just not in single color packs.)

6.  Markers are mostly moving to collection packs only.  Like the 12×12 cardstock, most of the Stampin’ Write markers are changing to be sold in family collections and the large Many Marvelous Markers pack.  All of the colors will be available, but most won’t be available individually.

7.  Anything you see on the retiring accessory list with an asterisk ‘*’ means it will be available in some form in the new catalog, just in a different form factor or tool/packaging collection.  So, items like the paper piercing tool, scrub pad, etc aren’t going away for good but we aren’t sure what they will look like until we can see the new catalog.

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Also, if you haven’t placed your order for retiring accessories, I would recommend doing it sooner rather than later.  I’ve been surprised how fast some items are selling out!

As of this morning, here are some of the items that have sold out already:

*  Blushing Bride 8.5×11 Cardstock
*  Classic Ink Refills – Peach Parfait, Concord Crush, Pear Pizzazz, Poppy Parade, Blushing Bride
*  Craft Ink Refills – Brights collection, Old Olive, Pumpkin Pie, Real Red, Regals collection, Tempting Turquoise, Certainly Celery, So Saffron, Cherry Cobbler, Always Artichoke, Bravo Burgundy, Elegant Eggplant, Garden Green, Night of Navy, Not Quite Navy, Chocolate Chip, Very Vanilla
*  Stampin’ Write Markers – Rose Red, Perfect Plum
*  River Rock 12×12 cardstock
*  Post 12”x12” Page Protectors
*  Gold brads
*  Silver brads
*  Wheels:  Standard Wheel Storage box, Jumbo Wheel Storage box, Jumbo Textured Wheel
*  Dotto adhesive runner
*  Stampin’ Scrub refill pads
*  Circle Scissor Plus Replacement Blades
*  Big Shot Dies: Pillow Box Bigz die, Snowflake Sizzlits, Flower Daisies #2

 

So, check out the lists and contact me via email at jennifer@nwstamper.com  or visit my online store to order your wishlist before more items sell out!

Retiring Stamps  |  Retiring Accessories  |  Retiring Décor Elements

 

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The Coolest Flower Stamp: The Triple Treat Flower

Sometimes when a stamp is slated to retire, it makes sense.  You can see that the set is looking outdated or there have been new stamps that look almost the same.  But then there are the stamps that I just don’t get…. this is one of them.

I mean, check out how cool this flower is!!  I love that the Triple Treat Flower is pretty as a flower stamped as it.  But then the fact that you can punch out 3 different shapes from one stamp is just too neat! And if you read my newsletter, you saw that this is one of my favorite configurations for the punches that come out of this flower.  I just love the dimension and contrast you can make.

 

This is another card I did a while back but I just love the colors and the way the flower just pops off the page!  But imagine if you used different designer paper and maybe some pinks and purples, or blues and yellows… you could have a great spring card too!

 

Just to give you an idea of what another color combination could be, check out this box that I shared in my newsletter (if you are on my mailing list, check your inbox because there was a link for the photo tutorial to make this in there! – if not, sign up here and let me know and I’ll send you the link too.)

So, do you agree?  Cool flower or what? 🙂

The Retiring Accessory List is Up!

Don’t forget that these items are while supplies last so check out the list and grab your favorites while they are still here.

You can order online or shoot me an email to make sure you get yours!

View the Retiring Accessory List Here
View the Retiring Stamp List Here

 

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Are you earning your Northwest Stamper Rewards? Every order gets you closer to your FREE stamp set! Click here to learn more!

Triple Treat Thinking of You Card Recipe:

Stamps: Triple Treat Flower, Curly Cute
Ink: Early Espresso Classic, More Mustard Classic, Pool Party Classic
Paper: Spice Cake designer paper (retired), More Mustard Cardstock, Whisper White CS, Pool Party CS
Accessories: Fancy Flower punch, 5-petal punch, 1/2” circle punch, Stampin’ Dimensionals, Sponge Daubers

It’s Posted! The Full Retiring Accessory List Is Here!

Oh man, this is always the hardest retirement list for me to read.  I LOVE my embellishments… I know, I know, I hoard them a little too much and don’t use them nearly as much as I should be cause I “don’t want to run out” but it always makes me sad to see some of my favorites won’t be available anymore.

By the way – when you read the list, you will see all of the ink pads are listed as retiring, that is because full sized craft pads will only be offered in black and white colors and the Classic ink pads will be changing to a new firm foam pad. So, don’t worry, there isn’t a big color change coming. 🙂

So, here it is… the full list… and it’s a DOOZY!  But at least many of the items are on sale for 25%-70% off!!

Click for the FULL retiring accessory list

Click for the full retiring Decor Elements list

Don’t Miss My Special One-Day Sale!

With so many great products on the list, I want to help you get all of your favorites before they are gone.  So, I’m offering a 1-Day Only Sale!

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Get 15% off your entire order

from now through 11:59pm on 4/25/2012
(pick from retiring accessories, retiring stamps, summer smooches, or anything in the catalog!)

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Orders must be placed through me to get this discount but you can do so using one of the following ways:

– email – jennifer@nwstamper.com
– phone – 425-765-6197
– using the online store

note – online orders will be mailed a check to reimburse you for the discounted amount as I am not able to apply discounts prior to purchase when shopping online.

Shop online now to grab your favorites before they are gone!

To Order Stampin’ Up! Products Anytime, click here!

Are you earning your Northwest Stamper Rewards? Every order gets you closer to your FREE stamp set! Click here to learn more!

Simply Charming

One of the stamp sets on the 2012 Retiring Stamps List is the set Charming.

This is a cute little set that when it came out was promoted as being the perfect size to use with the Simply Adorned charms.  I was slow to try out Simply Adorned and so my set has sadly, not seen much ink.  But when I was putting together a quick thank you card, it ended up being just perfect.

I stamped the frame and then used my Fabulous Phrases stamp set to place my “thanks” in the middle.

This layout is a perfect way to use up scraps of your ribbon and designer paper.  Just mix and match patterns and ribbons and you are just about done!  Now to enjoy this stamp some more before it heads to retirement!

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Are you earning your Northwest Stamper Rewards? Every order gets you closer to your FREE stamp set! Click here to learn more!

Birthday Build-a-Blossom Card

Does anyone else have a pile of scraps lying around?  Images stamped and even punched but then discarded as not right for your project?

Well, I have a HUGE pile of those types of scraps lying around and so I decided it was time to either use them up or find a new home.  So, after a little digging, I came up with these Melon Mambo flower pieces from the Build-a-Blossom stamp set, the birthday sentiment already punched out, and the Whisper White scallop strip.  So, I started mixing and matching and suddenly the following card appeared!

 

I know it is simple but I love how the simplicity lets the flower really stand out!  Oh and pearls, the flower was just begging me to give it some bling and so I just had to comply. 🙂

 

Now, to just find more treasures in my scrap pile!  What can you find in yours?

 

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Are you earning your Northwest Stamper Rewards? Every order gets you closer to your FREE stamp set! Click here to learn more!

Build-a-Blossom Birthday Card Recipe:

Stamps: Build a Blossom, Create a Cupcake
Ink: Melon Mambo Classic, Early Espresso Classic
Paper: River Rock Cardstock, Old Olive CS, Whisper White CS
Accessories: Blossom Petals Builder punch, Wide Oval punch, Basic Pearls, Basic Rhinestones, Scallop Edge punch, 1” circle punch, 1 1/4” circle punch, Stampin’ Dimensionals

Convention 2012 Here I Come!

 

Alright, I’m going to warn you right now that today’s post is going to be a total photo bomb!  Some folks have asked where I get my ideas or have said I am so excited about what I do – so I wanted to share with you where some of that comes from and how you can get in on it too!

The annual Stampin’ Up! convention!

I was so excited when registration for the Stampin’ Up! convention 2012 opened up earlier this week that I registered in the first 15 minutes!  This will be my 4th convention in a row and my 2nd where I’ll have a baby with me.  I get so many ideas, learn so much, and have a ton of fun that I can’t imagine not going each year.

If you can see yourself getting excited about a sneak peek announcement with 3,000 of your stamping friends…

If you LOVE seeing the most A-MAZING project ideas with things you probably have in your home already…

If you want new ideas for how to share your love of crafting with others…

This is the place to be. 🙂  Here are some photos from my trip last year so you can see what I mean.

If you are interested in learning more about coming, shoot me an email and I’d love to give you the full scoop!  Already registered?  Leave me a comment, I’d love to see who all my stamping buddies are that are coming with me to Salt Lake!

 

Free prizes! (Including products before you can buy them!)	Swapping! I get so many amazing ideas each year from fellow demos
Business and Stamping Tips from Stampin’ Up! and other successful demonstrators	Achievement walks! That is me in the purple. 🙂 I got to walk across the stage for growing my team.

 

If that wasn’t enough, here are even more awesome snapshots from my time in Utah:

Cupcake Birthday Card and Another Video

I had a customer recently order some wheel stamps and then ask me for more information about how to use them.  So, I thought this would be a perfect opportunity to practice creating more videos for my new YouTube channel.  Its amazing to me that I’ve been intimidated by the idea of creating videos but now that I’ve started it is a lot of fun and so much easier than I imagined! Yay!

Anyway, so I created a video going over the basics of wheel stamps and then decided to create a second video where I used the Cupcake Wheel stamp and showed a few different ways to use the stamped images from the wheel on the same card.  Since I was trying to keep it simple, I created an almost complete card and then showed a few samples of what you could do to it with the wheeled images.  And then after I was done filming, I picked one configuration and came up with this:

 

I kept it simple in the end and just colored in the images with my markers and then used a cut and colored image from some scrap paper to make an extra embellishment.  I even popped it up on a dimensional to help make it stand out.  Isn’t it just the cutest cupcake?!

Though now that I’m looking at the cupcakes, I’m thinking I really need to pull out my Dazzling Details glitter and add some sparkle to the card.  What do you think?

In the end, it was a great re-learning experience with my wheel stamps and I will definitely have to pull them out more often.  I forgot how nice they can be, especially if you have a Stampin’ Around Wheel Guide!

Here is the video I put together… I’d love to get your feedback on what new videos I should create next and how I can make them even better!  Leave me a comment and let me know!  I’m ready to get started on my next one. 🙂

 

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Happiest Wishes Birthday Card Recipe:

Stamps: Happiest Birthday Wishes, Cupcakes wheel
Ink: Calypso Coral Classic, Pink Pirouette marker, Calypso Coral marker, Pool Party marker, Crumb Cake marker, Chocolate Chip Stampin’ Around cartridge
Paper: Sweet Shop specialty designer paper, Pool Party cardstock, Calypso Coral CS, Soft Suede CS, Very Vanilla CS
Accessories: Regular Wheel Stampin’ Around handle, 2 1/2” Circle Punch, Stampin’ Dimensionals

Bright and Cheery Birthday Card

As you can tell, I’ve been getting into my Summer Smooches designer paper and today is my favorite card so far with this paper!  I have been completely falling in love with Island Indigo recently and I just love the bright yellow and deep blue in this card.  What do you think?

 

I was inspired by a card by a fellow demo name Jen Tumiko who used these colors and a similar layout.  But once I got going, like usual, the card kept changing and evolving.

This is also my last card that I designed prior to receiving my Smooches paper, so here is another version using Beyond The Garden dsp.

 

I love how a slightly different paper even when it is the same color scheme, can make the card have a very different feel!  Which card do you like best?

 

Check out all of the Summer Smooches Suite

available as a sneak peek in April only!

To Order Stampin’ Up! Products Anytime, click here!

Are you earning your Northwest Stamper Rewards? Every order gets you closer to your FREE stamp set! Click here to learn more!

Happiest Wishes Birthday Card Recipe:

Stamps: Happiest Birthday Wishes
Ink: Early Espresso Classic
Paper: Summer Smooches designer paper, Daffodil Delight cardstock, Island Indigo cardstock, Whisper White cardstock
Accessories: Big Shot, Perfect Polka Dots embossing folder, Island Indigo ruffled ribbon, Stampin’ Dimensionals

The 2012 Retiring Stamp List is Here

Its that time of year again where Stampin’ Up! is getting ready for a new catalog to come out (coming June 1st!) and with the new catalog means retiring some of the current stamp sets to make room for the new.  The list is big this year but I’m excited to see what that means for the new sets in June.

These are the top 3 stamp sets that I’ll be sad to see go:

1.  Sincere Salutations  –  This is my go-to stamp set and I am so sad to see it retiring!

2.  Triple Treat Flower  –  Such a cool stamp and inexpensive too!  Watch for my newsletter coming out in the next few days for some fun ideas with this set!  Not on my mailing list yet?  Sign up here to get tips and project ideas each month.

3.  Baroque Motifs  – Perfect for backgrounds, elegant occasions, or great neutral designs

 

Click here to see the full list of retiring stamps

Stamps will be available until May 31st and then they are gone for good!

The list of retiring accessories and wheel stamps comes out April 25th!  I’ll post it as soon as I see it and unlike the stamps, accessories are only available while supplies last.

Retirement Special Offer:

Earn double punches on your Northwest Stamper Rewards Card for every $40 you spend on retiring stamps or accessories between now and April 30th!  You can be earning your free stamp set faster then ever and even use your reward to get your favorite set when the new catalog comes out!

To Order Stampin’ Up! Products Anytime, click here!

Are you earning your Northwest Stamper Rewards? Every order gets you closer to your FREE stamp set! Click here to learn more!