Thankful Thursday - Sweetie Pie Goes Hawaiian

Hello Friends

It's a Thankful Thursday and today I am thankful for all of you!  No.  Truly! 
 ALL of YOU!

Each year Stampin' Up! has a Grand Vacation that they offer as an incentive to demonstrators who perform well in personal sales and leadership.  And yesterday I found out that I have earned the Grand Vacation for next year.  So in May of 2015, myself and a guest (my hubby, of course) will be headed to Hawaii!!

And even better - we've got it all planned out so that we will be able to take the kids with us!!

We told them yesterday.  They had no idea.  Not an inkling - so you can imagine the whoops and screams of delight.  My 4 kids have never even seen the ocean, let alone swam in it.  I guess if their very first experience is Waikiki Beach, everything else might pale in comparison?!

But none of this, NONE of it, would have been possible without YOU.  My friends.  My customers.  My family.  My supporters.  My cheerleaders.  And to be quite honest, none of it would be worth doing if not for you.  More than anything else, what I get out of "this job" is a chance to spread smiles and laughter.  When we get together to craft, we have fun.  Correction....FUN.  And I love the time I get to spend with each and every one of you.

So today I have used Sweetie Pie to create a Hawaiian girl who thanks each and every one of you!  The Sweetie Pie faces are just a shade too small for the Dress-Up mannequin/body, but I think she does the trick anyhow, don't you?   And notice the Crisp Cantaloupe sponging on her cheeks?  I am hoping that reflects the "slight bit" of colour we will all get when we head to Hawaii (instead of the massive sunburns I am hoping we all manage to avoid).  We are still in the clutches of winter here in Ottawa right now, so thinking about being in that warm, tropical sun a year from now is awfully inviting!

Until then - and as always - I will remain thankful.  To all of you.  Each and every one of you who has made this possible.  From the bottom of my heart (and my hula skirt!) - THANK YOU!

God Bless you all,       ~Cynthia    <><

Product List
Stamp : Peaceful Petals [clear] [133107], Sweetie Pie [photopolymer] [136849]
Ink : Basic Black Classic Stampin' Pad [126980] , Strawberry Slush Classic Stampin' Pad [131178] , Crisp Cantaloupe Classic Stampin' Pad [131176] , Early Espresso Stampin Write Marker [119680] , Early Espresso Classic Stampin' Pad [126974]
Card Stock : Gumball Green 8-1/2" X 11" Card Stock [126840] , Sahara Sand 8-1/2X11 Card Stock [121043] , Whisper White 8-1/2X11 Card Stock [100730] , Pool Party 8-1/2 X 11 Card Stock [122924] , Crisp Cantaloupe 8-1/2" X 11" Cardstock [131298]
Tools & Adhesive : Fringe Scissors [133325] , Stamping Sponges [101610] , Blender Pens [102845]
Punch : Petite Petals Punch [133322] , Itty Bitty Shapes punch pack [118309] , Bird Punch [117191]
Ribbon & Trim : Calypso Coral 3/4" Chevron Ribbon [130018] , Calypso Coral Baker's Twine [125573]
Accessory : Sweet Sorbet Designer Series Paper [133521] , Basic Pearls Jewel Accents [119247]
Big Shot : Dress Up Framelits Dies [130101]

Thankful Thursday and So Many Deals.....

Hello Friends

First things first - another Thankful Thursday here for your card-making pleasure.  Many of my customers received this Thank You card this month and it certainly seemed to be a hit.  Tell me what you think?

I stamped the Gifts of Kindness image and sentiment with Wisteria Wonder ink then embossed the main panel with the square lattice embossing folder.  A Flower Shop bloom stamped separately and punched out with the Pansy Punch, affixed to the card with a dimensional (and a luscious large rhinestone) pretty much complete this card.  Oh yeah - and the Itty Bitty punched blossoms in the corner - they count too!

On this particular Thursday I want to reiterate my Thank You to all of our military men and women who we honoured on Remembrance Day.  Your sacrifice did not go unnoticed.  Thank You!!

And on a much lesser scale of gratitude....I am thankful that Stampin' Up! has continued to offer its weekly deals -- knocking 25% off the price of various items.  This week you can get the Gift Bow BigZ die for just $30.71!!  And I happen to really love the extra-large boxes and mini-muslin bags!

I think it is wonderful that Stampin' Up! is continuing to offer these sweet deals to us.  Don't you?

I hope you continue to have many things to be thankful for in your own lives.  Just don't forget to remain thankful to all those men and women who served and sacrificed so we could enjoy things as mundane as crafts and cards!

God Bless you all,       ~Cynthia     <><

Thankful Thursday - I'm Back!

Hello Again there friends!
Began to think I was never coming back, didn't you?  I could tell you about how busy the end of the school year was and how busy I've been ...but then again, most of you are too, aren't you?!  So instead of an apology for my absence (which I do feel!), I will treat you to a beautiful bouquet of Thank You cards that I made for the customers who made a purchase at my BOGO event at the end of June.  I had to make a lot of cards and deliver a lot of orders before I could set off for southern Ontario to visit with my family for a few weeks.  But I got most of it done.  And I must say, the Thank You card that I included is one of my favourites so far.  I tried a variety of colours and decided they are all beautiful so I am showing you an entire assortment.  You decide what your favourite colour is and let me kow!

Supply List     
Stamps - Simply Sketched - Hostess Only (w129669, c129672) 
Paper - Whisper White (100730), Basic Black (121045), Coastal Cabana (131297), Pool Party (122924), Real Red (102482), Strawberry Slush (131295), Rich Razzleberry (115316), Wisteria Wonder (122922), Calypso Coral (122925), Crisp Cantaloupe (131298)
Ink - Basic Black (126980), Pear Pizzazz (131180), Coastal Cabana (131175), Pool Party (126982), Real Red (126949), Strawberry Slush (131178), Rich Razzleberry (126950), Wisteria Wonder (126985), Calypso Coral (126983), Crisp Cantaloupe (131176), Versamark (102283)
Big Shot -  Modern Mosaic Embossing Folder (129984), 3 1/2" Circle Die (121811), Circles Collection Framelit (130911)
Tools and Accessories - Black Embossing Powder (109133),  Heat Tool (129053), Aquapainter (103954), Itty Bitty Punch (118309), Basic Pearls (119247), MultiPurpose Liquid Glue (110755), Dimensionals (104430)

Did you see how long that Supplies list is?  Makes the card seem deceptively difficult, when in reality it was a piece of cake!  I tried many embossing folders but decided I liked the effect of the Modern Mosaic folder best.  The beautiful poppy image from the hostess set was stamped with versamark on a white 31/2" circle and heat embossed (black powder).  An aquapainter was used to quickly watercolour the image with the appropriate colour.  The sentiment was stamped on a scrap piece of white and one end was flagged - a bone folder was used to provide some curl and a black blossom with pearl center finishes it off.  After gluing a series of layers together, it really isn't all that difficult.  But man oh man does this card ever pack a punch!

And have you seen the Hostess Sets available this year?  They are gorgeous.  Simply beautiful.  You WANT to host a party - trust me!

If there is any way I am going to post again tomorrow (my intention!) then I will have to cut this short now.  I hope everyone is keeping cool!  Southern Ontario is in the midst of a heat wave right now and my computer has been 'unhappy' on more than one occasion.  Let's hope I can keep it happy for the rest of my visit with my family!  In the meantime, I hope everyone has been enjoying their summer so far!                    God Bless,       ~Cynthia       <><

Fast & Fabulous Good Friday Cross

Good Morning.  And Happy Good Friday

Today we celebrate and commemorate the ultimate gift of Love given to us almost 2000 years ago.  And nothing is more appropriate for today than a ross.   So allow me to show you my Good Friday Cross.  No stamps.  No ink.  Just fast.  And "fabulous".  (Although for today I'd really rather call it "good" since that adjective is so much more appropriate on Good Friday.....)

Supply List
Stamps - none
Ink - none 
Paper - Whisper White (100730), Early Espresso (119686), So Saffron (105118), Pink Pirouette (111351), Baja Breeze (111352), Embossed Tag from Pop-Up Posies Designer Kit (131395) 
Big Shot - Lattice BigZ Die (115958), Square Lattice Embossing Folder (119976)
Tools/Accessories - Itty Bitty Shapes Punch Pack (118309), Basic Pearls (119247), Dimensionals (104430). Multipurpose Liquid Glue (to adhere flowers - 110755), Simply Scored Stylus (to shape flowers 125624), Stampin' Pierce Mat (to shape flowers 126199)

I hope you all have a wonderful day.  It is sunny here in Ottawa --->  My favourite childhood memories of Good Friday involve being in church in the middle of the afternoon and having dark clouds roll in and the heavens open up and a massive storm rage outside...it all seemed so appropriate somehow.  But that was then and this is now and I can certainly handle the bright sunshine of today and the glorious promise of what is to come....Easter, quite literally, is right around the corner!

Until tomorrow.........God Bless you all,      ~Cynthia     <><

Thankful Thursday With Fun Flowers

Hello Dear Friends

Once again it is Thankful Thursday.  And since we are heading into our Thanksgiving weekend here in Canada, I am both thankful...and very busy! So this post will be short.  But thankful, nonetheless!

Supply List
Stamps - Perfectly Penned
Paper - Cajun Craze, Very Vanilla, Soft Suede, Comfort Cafe DSP
Ink - Soft Suede
Big Shot -  Fun Flowers Die
Tools and Accessories -  1 3/8" Square Punch, Corner Rounder Punch, Itty Bitty (Flower) Punch, dimensionals, Basic Pearls

Short, sweet and to the point.  But you get the idea.  I am Thankful for so very many things in life.  The chance to enjoy a long weekend with my family is just one of them.  I am going to go pack now so that when the kids get home from school we can immediately hop in the car and drive to visit my parents, who live almost 6 hrs away.  Thank goodness tomorrow is a PD Day and my husband could get the day off work!

I hope everyone has a blessed weekend, whether it is Thanksgiving for you or not.
God Bless,     ~Cynthia     <><

Happy Birthday Sarah!

Hi Friends

With today's card, I want to honour my friend, Sarah, who celebrated her birthday yesterday.   Sarah is extremely busy with 2 very young children, a loving husband, a job and an active home life, but she still manages to read my blog every once in a while....and I didn't want her to see this until after she had received the card.  Hence the day-after posting!

This birthday card uses a stamp set that I received at Founder's Circle a few weeks back.  I loved it the instant I saw it, but it won't be available to purchase until January so I cannot show you the actual set.  Still, I am allowed to show you any samples I create using it.  So here is the first one.  I just had to use it for Sarah's card since it says exactly what I wanted to express.

Sarah is one of those people who brings warmth and sunshine into so many other people's lives!  And for me last week, she was an answer to prayer.  No.  Seriously.  I mean it.  She was an answer to prayer.  I had something weighing on my mind and I brought it to God in Prayer and asked Him what I should do about it.  In fact, I was so conflicted that I boldly asked God for an answer that would be quite clear and easy for me to recognize when I heard it.  Honest to goodness, I made this prayer for over a week and then last week Sarah sat in my kitchen and made a few statements that jolted me because they were an unequivocal answer to the question I had asked.  And you know what - it really shouldn't surprise me that Sarah was the messenger!  She's just the sort of person that I would have chosen.

Okay - On with the actual card then....

Supply List
Stamps - Betsy's Blossoms, Feels Good (not available yet)
Paper - Whisper White, Tempting Turquoise, Daffodil Delight
Ink - Daffodil Delight, Melon Mambo
Big Shot -  Perfect Polka Dots EF, Floral Frames Framelits, Labels Framelits
Tools and Accessories -  1 1/4" Scallop Circle Punch, Boho Blossoms Punch, Itty Bitty (Flower) Punch, sponges, Brights Brads, dimensionals

I love stamping the gorgeous flower image from Betsy's Blossoms then punching out a flower shape using any of the scallop circle punches.  And layering them with some smaller Boho Blossom pieces as I did here just adds so much depth, don't you think?  And I wanted bright and cheery colours - the combination of Daffodil Delight, Melon Mambo and Tempting Turquoise always make me feel happy and bright!

I'm hoping Sarah had a wonderful birthday!  And I'm hoping she realizes this sentiment was hand-picked for her.  Because she really does bring sunshine into the lives of others.  She certainly did in mine!

Hope the rest of you have sunshine in your lives.  Better yet - I hope you are bringing sunshine into the lives of those around you! 
               God Bless,        ~Cynthia      <><