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I guess it was because I did not go to Leadership this year that my mind was often turned to the friendships that have played an important role in my life. I decided to start recording these and this page was where I started. Friends come in all different styles and fulfill different needs we have. Some are great listeners, others help you figure things out, and even others are there just to provide a good time and excape from everyday troubles. I want those of you who are my friends to know how much I appreciate even the little moments we share. Thanks for your friendships.
I used this layout idea for one of my scrap classes but did it with the orange and green sheets from the Designer Series paper Greenhouse Garden from last year's catalog. If you don't have that Designer paper you can copy this layout using the Paisley Petals Desginer Series paper in this year's Stampin' Up! catalog. The stamp set is Stampin' Up!'s Notably Ornate. I used plates to create the stitched circles on the white cardstock. The flowers are cut from Designer Series paper and attached with dimensionals.
To order the Notably Ornate stamp set go to my Stampin' Site: http://wendythestamper.stampinup.net
I would love for you to leave a comment and tell me about a friend who has touched your life.
Just before Christmas my husband had a business conference in Dubai, since I had never been there I decided to tag along and boy am I glad I did. I know Dubai is the middle east but it has a different feel than here in Saudi or even Bahrain. We really enjoyed our trip and I wanted to create a fun page to remember it by.
While I was shopping I ran across a laser cut card that had the major buildings of Dubai. As soon as I saw it the idea of using it on a scrapbook page took root in my brain and I had to purchase it. I loved the way it turned out on the page. I used the card and sponged around it which created the shadow border along the bottom half of my page. I used texture River Rock cardstock and added Stampin' Up!'s Well Worn Designer Series paper accents. A little ribbon and some stamped flower images finished off these pages. The stamp set is Stampin' Up!'s Fresh Vintage. It is one of my favorite new stamps and the best part is, it is a free sale-a-bration stamp set. You can earn it by being a hostess or for every $50.00 you spend.
To view or order during Sale-a-bration go to my stampin' site: http://wendythestamper.stampinup.net
Today is quilting Monday. Each Monday here in Dhahran the quilt guild has their weekly meeting. Each week it is something different. Because I was thinking about quilting I thought I would share the scrapbook pages I created for our Log Cabin quilt day.
The Dhahran quilt guild had a Log Cabin in a day quilt day and I attended. The idea was to take home a finished quilt top or almost finished. I must admit I did not get mine done. We started too early in the morning for me and those of you who know me know I don't really wake up until at least 10am even if I am up. So 2 hours after the class started I woke up and finally started to sew correctly. I enjoy attending guild activities because of the social aspects as well as the creative outlet. I must admit picking out and purchasing fabric that go together is my favorite part of quilting so I have lots of quilts waiting to be made in my closet.
At this class I loved how different the quilts turned out. I wanted mine to be more traditional colors since this was my first Log Cabin quilt. I helped Lyneth pick out her blue and gold fabrics and she wanted bold colors because she has two traditional log cabin quilts she has already done. Just like scrapbooking colors tell part of the story in your quilt.
This scrapbook page was created with the Sweet Stitches DSP paper by Stampin' Up! and Sew Suite stamp set. I also used Stampin' Up!'s Empire Alphabet Upper stamp set. I have this set in the clear mount so I could put all the letter on one acrylic block and stamp them together. This is especially nice when you are stamping the same words over and over again.
To order from the new Occasions mini catalog check out my Stampin' site: http://wendythestamper.stampinup.net
Pennant and pleating page, try saying that over and over really fast!!! This past fall I created this page for Halloween or whatever, since my girls are getting older and they don't trick or treat anymore (when did I become so old that I don't have little kids anymore!) I decided to use this page for the whatever. I also created it this way because of the culture I now live in there are several of the ladies that I scrapbook with don't even celebrate this holiday.
I wanted to use the new simply scored scoring tool and so we created these fan flowers. I did use jumbo glue dots to hold them together and would love suggestions on other ways you have glued these so they stay together long term. I added a 3/4" circle punch plus 1/2" punch and tiny flower punch and a rhinestone as the center of these blossoms. For the second page I created a pocket for extra pictures and balanced it with Stampin' Up! Perfect Pennants Bigz L Die and another blossom. The die works great for scrapbooking pages because of it's size. I added the scallop border by punching a strip of cardstock with the scallop punch and then glued it to the underside of the pennant clipping the tip so it matches. The gray paper was stamped with an stamp image to create the wallpaper look.
To order the pennant die and/or the simple scored scoring tool check out my Stampin' Site: http://wendythestamper.stampinup.net
I love Christmas! I think it is because my family (and/or friends who have become like family) gather together, we laugh, debate which movie to watch or sleep through if you are my parents, we do traditional activities like Christmas Eve dinner and program where we sing, read the Christmas story and play games together, we make Carol rolls to deliver to friends, make homemade chocolates and other treats. We spend weeks making or picking out gifts for each other and enjoy thinking about those we love as we create a gift we think they will love. I think I love Christmas because of the feeling it gives me to know my Savior and of the ultimate gift He has given me and everyone who lives.
This year I saw a scrap page that I used to create this two page spread we made at a class I taught in December. The title caught my eye because of all reasons I listed above but I also love the Big Shot tags that are photo frames. I think Stampin' Up!'s Letter to Santa paper made this page look like a combination between modern and traditional in just the right way. I also loved the Quick Accents sheet Letter to Santa that I used for borders. I cut a sheet into 3" pieces and used the different strips on some of the squares. I have never thought of Blushing Bride as a Holiday color but it is a beautiful background color that allows the traditional holiday colors to pop. I used Stampin' Up!'s 25 & Counting stamp set and the postage and 1" square punches to add the final accents.
You can order these products to create this and other Christmas pages from my Stampin' Site: http://wendythestamper.stampinup.net and while you are there check out all the new product in the Occasions Mini catalog.
My daughter Tysha asked me to create a calendar for her for this next year. My Digital Studio seemed like the best choice of products to use. I would be able to add photos without having to develop any, i would be able to ship it directly to her without having to use international shipping companies and Stampin' Up! has developed new calendar options that make it easier than ever to create a personal calendar.
I used the December desk calendar that was already desgined for me from the Frosty Day II 10x5 calendar kit. I then changed the colors and images and created the other 12 months for the 2012 year. It was fun to add the photos and know that my daughter will enjoy remember good times each month of this next year.
I used Stampin' Up! digital stamp sets Calendar Basic Kit, Year in Review and Torn Edges for most of my images. For the rest I looked through the digital images on my Stampin' Web site and downloaded the ones I wanted to use. The greatest thing about purchasing downloads are no delivery time, you can get them right away and start using them. Yea!
To purchase My Digital Studio software and downloads you can go to my Stampin' Site: http://wendythestamper.stampinup.net You can purchased the downloadable MDS or order the disc that will be shipped to you, either option is great it just depends on you and how fast you want to start creating. Order today and you can create a photo calendar for your loves one for this next year!
I thought I would share a couple more Birthday cards that I create for a women's group here in Arabia. I wanted them to look great but not take forever creating them. Even though I would enjoy the creative process, with my Black and white classes going on and the fact that they needed some of these cards right away I decided to copy ideas from other things to make the process faster.
This card was created by copying my scrapbook page from my last scrapbook class shown here. I just used the concept of the circles and accent image and duplicated in to fit onto a card. I marker-ed the Just Believe stamp image with Soft Suede, Lucky Limeade, Pool Party and More Mustard. I did not use any of the Designer papers like I did on the scrapbook page but the colors still blend together well. I added a bow from the crochet trim and hung a birthday greeting that was punched using the word window punch.
To order the Just Believe stamp set and/or markers you can go to my Stampin' Up! web site: http://wendythestamper.stampinup.net
Life here in Arabia is just different, it is hard to schedule a year long Album class like I did in the states because everyone comes from some place different, they go back home at different times of the year depending on when their summer is and when their family vacation time is. Committing to a certain weekend once a quarter just would not work so I tried something new. I packed a full year, 24 scrapbooking pages, into 4 classes and two weeks. Two days each week, they came and created 3 two-page spreads.
It was a great success. We did my Black and White Album plus one color class. Everyone got to pick a different accent color. When they arrived they got a packet with all their supplies, an ink pad in their color and a clean up pad so they could make sure the stamps were clean before using them.
We used Stampin' Up! papers, inks and stamps and each page had it's own look yet blended with the other pages because the colors were the same. Some of the accents colors were Elegant Eggplant, Lucky Limeade, Cherry Cobbler, Pool Party, Basic Gray, Real Red, and Bashful Blue.
Here are a couple samples of the different colors. These are the ones I remembered to take photos of. Every color turned out beautiful.
I used Stampin' Up!'s retired Night and Day Designer Papers and a variety of retired and current Stampin' Up! supplies and accessories.
It was a great class and I think I will do it again in January and make a Year in Review Album.
The past spring I took a trip to Italy with my older girls. I love everything about Italy. The sights, sounds, smells, food. Walking the streets, seeing the art, riding the trains. Feeling the feel of walled cities and acres of grape fields and of course spending time with my girls before Shanae's marriage and Tysha's church mission.
After looking at the Just Believe scrapbook page I made a couple weeks ago at a class I decided my Italy pictures would look great on Stampin' Up!'s spice cake designer papers. The hardest part for me is always deciding on which pictures to use.
Stampin' Up!'s spice cake designer series papers are found in the Holiday Mini catalog and coordinate with the Gently Falling stamp set but I don't think they are just for fall. They colors go so well together and can be used for all season pages as well. You can order Stampin' Up! supplies at my stampin' web site: http://wendythestamper.stampinup.net
I am excited to get back into the swing of things and create new pages for a upcoming scrapbooking class.
It has been a while since I was free to just sit down and create and it took me a little while to get those creative juices going again but once they did I had so much fun and had to share the results with all of you.
The first two-page spread is Marina Mist and Cherry Cobbler cardstocks and I used the Stampin' Up! Designer Series Paper Frostwood Lodge. I really like this paper. I used Stampin' Up!'s builder wheels, Elementary Alphabet and For Teacher. The apple is cut Designer Papers that were crumbled up and layered on top of each other. The seeds are the leftovers from the Blossom layering punch.
The second pages is using Stampin' Up!'s Spice Cake Designer Series Paper. I wish this paper was available all year instead of just during the Holiday Mini Catalog period.
I used Stampin' Up!'s Just Believe stamp set and a little crochet ribbon and an antique brad for accents.
I can't wait to choose some special photos and put them on these pages. The classes I hold are not Stampin' Up! classes just get togethers with friends. If you want to purchase these products you can find them on my Stampin' Up! web site: http://wendythestamper.stampinup.net
Convention was a great time to see my downline and catch up on what is going on in their lives and businesses. To do that each year I host a meeting the first night of convention. This year it was even more precious to me because it had been months since I last spend time with any of my girls.
At the meeting this year Cindy Schuster taught us how to create beautiful cards and scrapbook pages in Stampin' Up!'s My Digital Studio and then print them on cardstock and cut out the images and use those images on your page to give it a 3-d effect. Whenever you combine digital imagery with regular cardstock and accents you have created a hybrid project.
The page above was printed on Very Vanilla cardstock, hint: check out your printer settings and see if you can select edge to edge printing, this is found in the advanced printing section. We also printed the images of the butterfly, flower and stem on Very Vanilla separately. We added the 2 colors of cardstock and these cutout images and the antique brads and bow with dimensionals and glue dots.
Cindy showed us how to create a card using the same technique. This time we printed the background and stem on Whisper White cardstock and added the ribbon punched Wild Wasabi cardstock and a cut out flower to the card to create the hybrid project. The printed "postcard" piece was attached to a half of sheet of Melon Mambo cardstock to finish the layered look.
My Digital Studio is available on my web site: http://wendythestamper.stampinup.net and can be purchased in a physical format or downline format. There are also hundreds of additional downloads available to meet your scrapbooking or card making needs. Order today and start creating beautiful hybrid projects for you to give your family and friends.
I have been on the run since coming back to the states for the summer. Not only is one of my daughters getting married this summer but another one will be serving a church mission and on top of it all we decided to purchase a home in Utah that we can use as a summer home when we come back for a couple months each summer.
Purchasing a home via the internet, flying in to furnish it from scratch by myself on top of everything else has not been easy but at least making this cute scrapbook page to celebrate our new purchase was easy using Stampin' Up!'s My Digital Studio software.
MDS is easy to use especially when you choose a template that has been designed for you. I added the picture and it was done but I did not want just one page and using MDS it is easy to add another page like the first, take off what you don't want repeated and add what you want more of and you have a second page that works great with the first.
If you have not tried Stampin' Up! My Digital Studio I would recommend you go to my Stampin' Web site and order you a copy today, and while you are there check out all the new digital images that are available. Stampin' Up! adds new images several times a month so there is always something new to work with. See it all at my Stampin' Site: http://wendythestamper.stampinup.net
I did a llittle scrapbooking before leaving Arabia and this is a page I did not show you all yet so I thought I would share it today.
These are some of my favorite pictures of Chaylee that we took when she chopped off her hair and she looked so cute so I put them on a page to help me remember the moments.
One of the things we have learned to love since moving to Saudi Arabia are the object that come from other cultures like the scarfs. We never used them in the US before moving and yet we love them now. They are perfect to keep in your purse or bag when you get cold and I think I can guess what you are thinking, " when do you get cold in Arabia", but even when we left and it was 100+ degrees I kept one or two handy because you are hot outside but cold when you go into air conditioning buildings. We just pull out these scarfs and they warm you right up.
The products on these pages are discontinued products and just a reminder that Stampin' Up! has their last chance list that is available only until the end of today, June 30th. So check out my Stampin' Site and don't miss out on great products that won't be seen in a catalog again at http://wendythestamper.stampinup.net
I decide since I showed the Father's Day book I made this week I would also show the Mother page I created from the page I did at one of my classes.
I used Pink Pirouette, Pear Pizzazz and Whisper White cardstock. I die cut the flowers using the Flower Daisies # 2 die and the Big Shot. I also cut the scallop circle using a Big Shot Die and tucked it under the cardstock piece. I stamped the words Mother using the M from Stampin' Up! Jumble Alphabet and the lower case letter are from the Just Perfect Alphabet stamp set. Using the Big Shot and the circle dies I punch circle from chipboard and the designer Pretty in Pink papers added a pearl and glued them to the centers of the page.
I stamped a flower border using Stampin' Up!'s Bold Blossom stamp set, Pear Pizzazz and White craft inks. Pinking Heart border punch by Stampin' Up. Add a cardstock accent and I placed that above the stamp images. It was fun to journal my thoughts on Motherhood. It is always a good thing to think about once it a while, It made me grateful for the challenges, and the sweet moments that have come into my life because of my daughters.
It is always fun to pull out pictures and get them into my scrapbooks and that is what I did with Brynli Birthday pictures. I loved the pictures of her girlfriends all standing against the bamboo wall at the swimming pool. Ted and I laughed about developing it in black and white and it would look like it was from a different era. (We decided that is because you can not swim here in camp unless you have modest swim wear on and it is not too often you get a group of girl's together back home that someone was not wearing a bikini)
This time of year when Stampin' Up! puts out their last chance lists always makes me look back on those stamp set and accessories I loved from past years and this page features a couple of items I still love even if they are not current.
Remember to check out the last chance list on my Stampin' Up! so you can make sure you have those stamps and accessories you love in your stash for future use. http://wendythestamper.stampinup.net
I am writing this on Father's Day while I am packing to come to the states. Ted is traveling for business and has spent the last week in China and this week he will be in Hong Kong so he is not here for Father's Day. Since we have our Sunday on Friday here in Saudi Arabia, it has made for a really strange day.
The girls and I wanted Ted to come home to some Father's Day surprises, (I hope he does not keep up with my blog or it won't be a surprise for him when he gets home). Chaylee make him his favorite cake, Bryn made him a card and all of them helped me journal this little Father's Day scrapbook.
I used the Big Shot and the scallop square die. I cut 2 chipboard squares for the front and back and several cardstock squares for the pages. I decorated the chipboard covers with the Nautical Expedition Desginer Series paper found in Stampin' Up!'s Summer Mini catalog. I stamped the ship from Stampin' Up!'s The Open Sea stamp set and oval cut it with the Oval Big Shot die. I punched the holes with the Crop-a-dial and used rings to hold it together.
I took the journaling idea from Stacy Julian. She asked her boys three questions: 1. How are you like Dad?
2. What do you want to know about Dad, when he was your age -- what would you ask him, if you could?
3. What has Dad taught you that you are grateful for? I used these questions for my girls and loved the answers I got. You could use these same questions over the years and note the changes.
I added some group pictures and a page for each child with their journaling and some other Father's Day quotes. I think Ted will really like this little Father's Day Scrapbook.
To order the supplies to make this book go to my Stampin' Web site: http://wendythestamper.stampinup.net
Yesterday, I told you I would share some of the inside pages we created for the guest book we created in Stampin' Up!'s My Digital Studio. The pages have lots of white space so there is room for guests to sign. We added love/wedding quotes and some of Shanae and Steven's engagement photos to each page.
I really enjoyed creating with My Digital Studio's Vintage Overlays and the other new overlays you can download. They give you a great look that can be laid over photos and other page elements.
Shanae's wedding colors are Black and White plus Bashful Blue accents. She loves hearts and butterflies so we used those elements as accents. The Night and Day Designer papers are available as a digital download and worked perfect for the black and white in this album.
When creating with My Digital Studio punches become your best friend. I used the scallop square punch and expanded it to page size and then filled the punch with the Night and Day designer Series paper. You can add a frame around any punch and choose the size of it. I used a narrow border with black for these two pages.
To order My Digital Studio products and downloads you can go to my Stampin' web site: http://wendythestamper.stampinup.net Happy Creating!
We have spent the last few days creating a guest book for my daughter's Shanae's wedding. Some of you have most likely seen the engagement photo matts that they have the guests who come to the wedding reception sign and other people use regular guest books for the guests to sign but Shanae thought a lot about both of those options. She did not like the regular books because she wondered who looks at those later. Her friends have done the photo matt frames and they never hung them on the wall.
So she asked if we could create a My Digital Studio scrapbook with her engagments photos (I wish I could have taken those photos for her but we could not wait until Steven, Shanae and I were in the same country). The guest book has her photos and fun wedding/love quotes and then white space for the guests to either sign their names or write a note to the couple.
This is the cover, we used the new Vintage Overlays. I love how great these look laid over the backgroud color but also you can overlay these over any image or picture and they are see through. You can order new uploads and/or Stampin' Up!'s My Digital Studio software at my Stampin' Up! site: http://wendythestamper.stampinup.net Also note that you can purchase the software in a downloadable file. I will share more of the guest book later this week.
