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I am not one who colors. I don't consider myself someone who does watercoloring well. Because of this, I'm delighted with the way this card turned out! I used Stampin' Up!'s watercolor paper, an Aquapainter, and ink pads. I decided to emboss the image with black embossing powder, because I'm an instant gratification kind of girl. I was impatient with the black inks smudging (because I didn't wait long enough or because I didn't think to heat set them). It was the perfect solution. After stamping & heat embossing the images, I ran the paper through the Big Shot with the Softly Falling embossing folder. It gives some texture and the suggestion of falling rain. Perfect!

I took a couple weeks off here for some minor, outpatient surgery. I'm happy to say I'm back to my stamp room again, and here to share the invitation to my daughter's baby shower! This is our first grandchild (a boy) who's due to join us in April. This will be a hot air balloon themed shower, and I will share with you later the decor for the day. A little tip I picked up from Connie Stewart on adhering intricate die cuts - I put the balloon die face down on the Silicone Craft Sheet, squeezed out some Liquid Multipurpose Glue on the sheet, then dipped my Sponge Dauber into the glue & dabbed it onto the die cut. Then just place the die cut where you need it. Once the glue is dry on the silicone, you can either peel it off, wash it off, or (in case it's stubborn) whisk it off with some packing tape.

This is the first time I've inked up this stamp set. I won it in a prize drawing last April at Stampin' Up's OnStage event, and it's not a set I would normally use. I wanted to make some thank you cards for co-workers who'd given me gifts at Christmas. Looking through my sets, this greeting from Grateful Bunch really caught my eye. In the end, it really worked best with images from the same set (guess Stampin' Up! designers know what they're doing, huh?). At that point, this card came together pretty quickly. I looked in my craft room and saw that I still had a stash of the retired 3x6 envelopes and decided to make cards to fit in them. I used Basic Gray archival ink to stamp everything, and Soft Sky and Calypso Coral ink with blender pens to color the butterflies. I was pretty happy with the end result.

I was lucky enough to get the new Beautiful You stamp set for free at Stampin' Up's OnStage event last November. I've become obsessed with paper piecing the dress on this stamp with Designer Series Papers. I must have made a dozen different cards with this stamp and various paper patterns. And this card is one we'll be making at my Bringing Birthdays Back card class on January 24. If you're local to the McHenry County Illinois area, I'd love to have you join us. Getting a hand-stamped card in the mail always feels wonderful. Imagine giving that feeling to your friends and family this year. That's the goal with the Bringing Birthdays Back movement.

This card started when I wanted to play with this set and watercolor paper. I stamped the solid dragonfly wings & body on watercolor paper, then I spritzed it with water so the ink would bleed. A quick shot of the heat tool, and it was ready for the detailed dragonfly to be embossed in copper. When I started to add the strip of copper foil paper, I realized it needed something. A quick trip through the Big Shot with the Woodlands embossing folder did the trick.

I CASEd this card from one by Claire Daly that I found on Pinterest. I used a different sentiment/banner and no twine, but otherwise it's identical. I love it because it looks so intricate, but it's really quite easy to make - just many steps.

Why wait for black Friday when you can shop great deals online with Stampin' Up! starting Monday, November 21? I'm so excited to tell you about our Holiday Extravaganza. Here's what will be on sale for 10-40% off from November 21 - November 28. DON'T WAIT to shop, since many products will be retiring and are only available while supplies last!

24-Hour Flash Sale - Monday, November 21st Only:

• Bundle of ALL Color Families of Enamel Shapes: $27.95 (instead of $43.00)
• Bundle of ALL Ombre Ink Pads: $31.50 (instead of $45.00)
• Bundle of Embellished Ornaments stamp set and Delicate Ornament framelit dies: wood mount $45.60 (instead of $57.00), clear mount $39.20 (instead of $49.00)
• Gift Bag punch board: $14.00 (instead of $20.00)
• Gift Box punch board: $14.00 (instead of $20.00

Click here on November 21st to get the sale prices.

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And there's more! These great deals are available all week from November 21 - November 28!

10% OFF Items

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20% OFF Items

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30% OFF Items

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40% OFF Items