Hoping For The Best...

The past couple of weeks have been difficult for my family - I don't spend a lot of time sharing really personal information on my Blog but the few times I have, friends & frequent visitors (who are by association friends) have responded by emailing me with encouragement and kind words. I have truly appreciated that and so I share a project Evan & I made for my Step-Dad yesterday to help him cope (even if it is in just a little way) with a barrage of tests he'll endure today. When I asked Evan what he thought would help Grandpa stay positive & hopeful over the next little while, Evan replied "I think pictures would help him Mommy!" From the mouths of babes eh!!

So, we made Grandpa the Brag Book shown above and filled it with pics of him with his Grandkids, and silly pictures of Evan - and trust me...there were tons of silly pics to choose from!! We had my Mom & step Dad over for dinner last night and Evan gave him the book along with a big hug & kiss. Then promptly followed that up by saying "Now don't you have anything you'd like to say to me Grandpa ??" OMGosh, he's starting to repeat (motherly) sayings I use on him now!!! Too cute!

It is times like this when I remember what a handmade gesture can really do... and how much those precious little 'projects' really mean to those we give them to. Our handmade efforts will be combined with many prayers & good thoughts for a positive outlook for Marty!

Thanks for listening friends - have a great day today!

* Inspiration credit to Michelle Force - I used a card she made, with a similar layout to create this brag book - making a few small tweaks with the Designer Paper Used & some personalized info.

July Class Schedule

Wanna know what classes I'm offering in July? Email me to be added to my customer list to recieve monthly notifications with all of this information!

Here's a preview of one of my classes...

A 'Pun Fun' Preorder Class. There will be several possible packages to choose from including the stamp set, Designer Paper & Ribbon so that you'll be able to create these cards long after the class has ended! If you've ever wanted to leave more about Watercoloring...this is the class for you!

Have a great day everyone - Happy Canada Day Weekend!

The first card is where I drew my inspiration in terms of a fun & simple class layout. It is a creation by Heather Summers! I then changed the following cards in terms of colour and Pun Fun stamp used, leaving the same layout intact! I love how all of the cards look different, yet they all follow the same basic layout. Great for sitting down & creating a bunch of different cards quickly for those 'last-minute' occasions!

Email me for more details on this class - lisaburns@rogers.com.

Last Chance To Get Fresh!

The Fresh Cuts Promo that is!!

Until June 30th you can order this awesome stamp set & coordinating Fresh Notes! These items are not part of our normal product line up but will be available in the upcoming debut of the Fall/Winter Idea Book & Catalogue!

Why order them now? Because you'll save $$$ silly!

When you order the stamp set (which is die-cut by the way) for $25.95, you'll get a discount on the coordinating Fresh Notes - just $5.95 for a package of 15 notes & 15 envelopes! The Notes will actually appear in the Fall/Winter IB&C for $10.95. This combo has been super fun to play around with this month so as a special bonus - when you contact me to order your combo I will include 2 handmade cards with your order (using the Fresh Notes of course)! ***

In addition to the end of the Fresh Cuts Promotion, there are also a few other things coming to an end June 30th... the eScape Bundle will end, and the awesomely fabulous Occasions Mini will come to a close. SU! gave us an extra month with this mini catalogue by extending the end date from May 31st to June 30th but it will still be sad to see it go! There are many fresh summer supplies within this mini so be sure to get your orders in before they are gone!

Check out my business website for all promotions &/or to view the awesomely fabulous Occasions Mini catalogue! http://www.lisaburns.stampinup.net/. Or email directly with questions lisaburns@rogers.com

Have a great day everyone! Hopefully we'll have one full day without rain this weekend! At least our lawns & gardens are looking fantastic!!

*While supplies last

**Canadian orders only please

***Additional shipping charges apply

June Classes!

Good Morning Everyone! I hope you are enjoying the cooler temps this week! It is suppose to warm up for the weekend! Yey!

I've now added 2 more new classes to my June schedule - looking forward to seeing you:

1) A Summer Theme Card Stamp A Stack - Wednesday June 25th (630-800pm)

Guests will get to make 8 cards with a warm summer theme! There are just a few spots left for this one! Here are just 2 of the cards inspired by projects we made at our demo Spring Fling event. I modified each slightly as I wanted guests to be able to use the fabulous summer Rub Ons!


and

2) A Fresh Cuts Preorder Class - Monday June 30th (630-800pm)

Showcasing the new Fresh Cuts stamp set & Notes. As this is a preorder class, you will need your order to arrive in time for the class. Be sure to ask about the RSVP date as it is quickly approaching. If you've ever wanted to try 'Flower Fusion' - this class is for you!


Contact me today by email for class details and to reserve your spot! lisaburns@rogers.com

When Vacation Time DOESN'T = Stamping Time

Do you ever find that you have really high hopes for extra stamping time when vacation times roll around... only to realize you are more busy with odds & ends than when you are actually working???

I had a 'TO DO' list a mile long for this week and I've barely put a dent in it! Some of my friends would say that I set my expectations too high. This might be true. The upside to this week has been that without a hectic 'work' schedule, I have slept more, shopped more and enjoyed our day-to-day house/school/sports ... family stuff more! All-in-all, not a bad week then :o)

So, one of the things I had wanted to do this week was re-organize my Craft Room. I had painted it last summer but have really struggled with finding the perfect way to store my supplies and organize the room to be as functional as possible - do I go the pantry way, or shelving, or bins? So hard to decide! One thing I did actually decide on (today) was this:

An over-the-door shoe storage system that I'm using for my punches! I LOVE IT! It was a great find at Canadian Tire, on sale for just under $10! This particular holder is part of the Debbie Travis line so there are lots of coordinating storage bins etc. should I go in that direction. I'm a bit of a punch addict (as I'm sure you've already noted) but this holder can be used for much more than just punches...

Check these pics out where I substituted some punches with ink pads, tools & markers. I think it would work well with rolls of ribbon too if you needed it for that! I'm so happy that I finally made a storage decision (granted a small one) for my room! With this find, I now have a free/empty drawer & countertop where these punches used to call home!!

Be back tomorrow with some 'teaser' pictures for some upcoming classes! Have a great night!

Retiring Stamp Set List IS HERE!

And here it is!

All of the sets listed here will NOT be available after August 10, 2008! I'm going to work on some samples using stamp sets from this list over the next month so that you have lots of inspiration to make your choices :o)

Feel free to contact me at lisaburns@rogers.com if you have any questions or wish to order any of these retiring stamp sets!

http://www.stampinup.com/ca/documents/Retired_Lists_0608_CA_N.pdf

Pick A Petal Class Samples

Thank you to all the ladies that came out to my Pick A Petal preorder class this week! What a FUN night we had... a little stamping... a little wine (or coolers :o) - a great night! A special hello & welcome to my 2 new stamping friends!

As promised, here are all of the cards from the class. Guests that came to this class got to preorder the Pick A Petal stamp set, and then use that set to create 4 different & FUN cards -taking everything home with them. I think it is safe to say that all guests are going to find many, many uses for their new Pick A Petal stamp set!!! Did you know that there are just under 1,800 samples on Splitcoaststampers.com with this set alone!! WOW!

I was thinking it would be fun to show you one of the techniques we used on one of the cards below so I'll work on that tutorial for later this weekend!

A BIG announcement is scheduled for this Sunday! It is that Retiring Stamp Set List from the Spring/Summer Collection catalogue. I'll post that list as soon as I see it published! Have a great weekend everyone - thanks for popping by today!

Credits & Recipe:

Happy Birthday Flower Card - inspired by StampOwl
Stamps: Pick A Petal, Stem Sayings
Cardstock: So Saffron, Wild Wasabi, Purely Pom, Very Vanilla
Ink: Same as cardstock
Accessories: Purely Pom Double-Stitch Ribbon

Thanks DragonFly Card - inspired by deniseinpa
Stamps: Pick A Petal, Make It Count (Hostess Set), See You Around Jumbo Wheel
Cardstock: Groovy Guava, Going Grey, Confetti White
Ink: Same as cardstock plus Soft Sky & Black SW Marker,
Accessories: Paper Snips, 3/4 inch circle punch, 1/4 inch circle punch, glue dots (for the little circles).
Notes - the design around the edges of the dragonfly square are free hand. Dot - squiggly line - dot - squiggly line - dot ...etc etc

Happy Birthday Candle Card - inspired by CMUGrad
Stamps: Pick A Petal, All Holidays
Cardstock: Certainly Celery, Going Grey, Whisper White, Designer Series Paper (So Saffron & Certainly Celery)
Ink: Going Grey, Barely Banana, SU Marker Basic Black to create the candle wick
Accessories: Stamp-A-Ma-Jig, Going Grey Tafetta Ribbon

Friends LadyBug Card - inspired by Kristina Werner
Stamps: Pick A Petal, Make It Count (Hostess Set)
Cardstock: Basic Black, River Rock, Whisper White, Designer Series Paper (Rose Red)
Ink: Purely Pome
Accessories: Paper Snips, 1 inch & 1 3/8 inch circle punches to make the lady bug body, Purely Pome Double-Stitched Ribbon

More Father's Day Samples!

Must get these in the mail today... must get these in the mail today... must get these...

I really (really) needed to get a masculine stamp set so I decided to go with 'On The Fly' (109320). My DH loves to fish and each year Evan becomes just a bit more interested in it too so that hopefully this year, Rod can take him on a fishing trip! Next challenge - get him to sit long enough to get some pictures to scrapbooking... I do have a couple of pics from last summer that I might be able to fill a page with - that's what I'll work on during my upcoming Scrappers Crop in June!! These were some really simple cards I created in a pinch yesterday when I realized that Father's Day is THIS COMING WEEKEND!! Card recipe will follow at the end of this post.

I spent most of last night getting ready for my Pick-A-Petal preorder class tomorrow night! I'm very, VERY excited about it as I came up with 2 NEW cards to have the girls work on in addition to 2 that I've already posted to my blog. I'll keep the new card samples a secret until after the class...

DAD and Father's Day Cards
Stamps: On The Fly, Retired Type Set Alpha & All Year Cheer 111 (can't part with these)
Cardstock: Always Artichoke, Mellow Moss (love this color combo), Choc Chip
Ink: Always Artichoke, Mellow Moss, Choc Chip

Have a great day and thank you for stopping by!

June BIRTHDAYs !!

This week I celebrated my 36th birthday... *sigh* Where does the time go? It was a quiet birthday with my DH on the afternoon shift and my Mom still not feeling 100%, we kept everything really low key, which is just fine by me!

Rod did surprise me with some flowers & a chocolate cake (my absolute fav) for when I returned home Tuesday night! Even though he wasn't here to enjoy it with us, Evan and I managed to make do :o)

Today, Evan is going to one of his little friend's birthday parties so he is very, very excited! Brett is this adorable, super talented little guy in Evan's class and plays on his soccer team. They also play T-Ball against one another so when I asked Evan whether he wanted to give Brett a soccer card or a baseball card - he chose baseball! Here's what Evan & I created together:

Brett's Birthday Card & Coordinating Envelope

Fresh Cut Sneak Peek Promotion
Dates: June 1-30, 2008

Promotional Details:

From June 1-30, Stampin' Up! is providing an advance purchase opportunity for the Fresh Cut Stamp Set (#111634) and coordinating Fresh-Cut Notes (#111882). These two products will be included in the Fall-Winter Idea Book & Catalogue 2008.

Customers: Purchase the sneak peek Fresh Cut stamp set and add on the coordinating Fresh-Cut Notes for just $5.95.

Customers may purchase these two products the following ways:
* Buy the Fresh Cut stamp set and get the Fresh-Cut Notes for just $5.95 (limit 1 Fresh-Cut Notes at $5.95)
* Buy just the stamp set for: $25.95.
* Buy just the Fresh-Cut Notes for $10.75 each.

Hostesses: Hold a $525 workshop, and receive the Fresh Cut stamp set and coordinating Fresh-Cut Notes FREE.

My Fresh Cut set & notes are scheduled to arrive on Monday so I hope to have some samples to show you very, very soon! In the meantime, if you wish to see the flyer, please go to my Business Website - www.lisaburns.stampinup.net

Have a great night everyone!

Two More Samples For HIM !

Hi There! Hope you had a fabulous week and are enjoying some relaxation time this weekend! I had a wonderful day of shopping yesterday while the boys played around at home! Finally, I have some Spring/Summer clothes!!

After a 'hard day of shopping' yesterday, I was ready for some stamping time last night and once again - I lucked out with the hockey game being on, so I was able to sneak away! I made these two male-type cards - which I had originally demo'd at my friend Jenn's home party in May but I had given her my samples so I wanted to make up some more to show all of you! I can't get enough of the designer paper! I'll be sad to see some of it go when the Spring/Summer Collection catalogue retires but the good news is that there will be more NEW designs to drool over with the release of the Fall/Winter Idea Book & Catalogue (mid-Aug)!!

I hope you have a great Sunday - off to do some planting today!