Fast and Fabulous - Old Meets New

Has it really been an entire week since I posted?  Sorry folks! Life has been moving at breakneck speed and things aren't going to get any better in the next little while.  But even with how busy it is, there is always time for a Fast and Fabulous Friday!  Especially since my shipment of new catalogues and a few sneak peaks of product arrived.  Let me tell you friends - there are some wonderful new stamps and accessories available June first.  And the new ink pads are phenomenal.  Gone are the days of 'partially' inked images.  The new pad formulation provides smooth and even coverage for even the most intricate of images.  So let's see what we have today:

This Fast and Fabulous Friday combines some oldies (stamps) with one of the new 2012-2014 In Colours (ink).  May I introduce to you....Midnight Muse.

I know it may not be apparent in the photo, but Midnight Muse is a deeply saturated "denim" type of blue and I think it will rapidly become one of my go-to colours.




Supply List
Stamps - Elements of Style, Thank You Kindly (retiring)
Paper - Whisper White, Midnight Muse
Ink - Midnight Muse
Accessories - XL Oval Punch, Decorative Label Punch, Dimensionals, Basic Rhinestones









These cards have just the right amount of understated elegance but I do apologize for the quality of these photos.  They absolutely do not do justice to this wonderful new colour which is quite stunning in real life.


And talk about Fast and Fabulous.  It took me longer to place the rhinestones than it did to stamp the card!!


If you are at all intrigued by the new colours, the idea of new stamp sets, or the catalogue being released next Friday then you definitely want to know about my New Catalogue Kick Off party on June 18th!  Cards to make, door prizes to win, but most exciting of all....the opportunity to purchase retired products with a Buy-One-Get-One deal towards purchases from the new catalogue.  I will have more details soon, but in the meantime, contact me to find out more or check out my schedule for details.


And on that note - life is not going to get any less busy unless I get to all my other tasks.  So I leave you with this thought....Have a wonderful weekend

God Bless,      ~Cynthia      <><

Fast and Fabulous Pocket Silhouettes

I can't believe how much time has gone by.  Sorry about that folks.  As you might expect - life has been busy.  And it never seems to fail that when life gets busy, I need a bunch of cards - quick!  So here is another Fast and Fabulous Friday for you.

My good friend, Gisele, was the one who got me interested in the Pocket Silhouettes stamp set a number of years ago.  I hadn't noticed it until she pointed it out to me, and since then it has been one of my favourite sets.  I was saddened to see it on the retiring list and I will surely miss it.  So I decided I better use it again one last time!

I also decided to use my In Colour Inks - many of which will also be retiring at the end of May.  And here is the set of cards I came up with. 

1)  Make a mask (a piece of cardstock with three squares cut out of it.  I used my 1 3/8" Square punch)

2)  Overlay the mask onto the card and sponge colour through the holes

3)   With the mask still in place, stamp the image onto the 2 outer squares (so the image is contained within the square)

4)  Remove the mask and stamp the image over the middle square so it extends above and below the sponged background. 

5)  Stamp your sentiment into the bottom right corner (I used one from the Thank You Kindly set.  Also due to retire at the end of May)

6)  Use a 2-way glue pen and Dazzling Diamonds to add glitter to your card

Yes - it really is that easy.  And that fast.


Once I had made a template mask for the sponging, each card took me less than 3 minutes to make!!  And half of that time is just adding the glitter!

These really are Fast and Fabulous in every sense of the word.

I used Concord Crush, Island Indigo, Peach Parfait and Pear Pizzazz for the larger images you see here.  The entire collection you see at the top of this post also has Poppy Parade, Blushing Bride, Wisteria Wonder and Pool Party thrown into the mix.   Some are on Whisper White cards while others use Very Vanilla as the card base.  These cards look great in any colour!



The Pocket Silhouettes stamp set, Thank You Kindly and the 2010-2012 In Colours will all be retiring at the end of May.  If you want them (and if I may be so bold as to suggest...yes, you do), then you had better get them quick.   Run, don't walk, to your nearest Stampin' Up! representative.  And if you don't have one, contact me and I can order them and have them sent to you (anywhere in Canada).

I have to get back to making more cards now.  And I have some lovely ladies showing up at my house for club tonight.  So I will bid you adieu and wish you all a wonderful weekend.
      God Bless,         ~Cynthia         <><

Fast and Fabulous Mixed Bunch

Another Fast and Fabulous Friday?  Already?  Where does the time go?
When the clock is ticking and you just don't have time for all the extras, this card is quick and easy.  The definition of fast and fabulous.

The swirl from Baroque Motifs was stamped several times in Lucky Limeade on a Whisper White card base.  One of the Mixed Bunch blossom images was stamped in Concord Crush ink on a scrap piece of white and punched out with the Blossom Punch.  The edges were sponged with Concord ink and a basic pearl was added to the centre, then the blossom was mounted using dimensionals, onto the card.  A Thank You (from Thank You Kindly) was stamped in Concord Crush onto the card front, then a 2-way Glue Pen and Dazzling Diamonds glitter were used to accent the flower and parts of the Baroque vines.

And that's it.
Doesn't get much simpler than that, does it?

So next time you are pressed for time but you need a card in a hurry - remember that clean and simple is often fast and fabulous.

Hope everyone is looking forward to a wonderful weekend.   I know I am !
                God Bless,              ~Cynthia       <><

Triple Treat Thank You - Another Fast & Fabulous Friday

I am so excited to share today's card with you.  Honest to goodness, it only took a few minutes to make.  And that's a good thing since I have 35 of them I am planning on making today!!

I used Concord Crush and stamped the Triple Treat Flower (one of the Sale-A-Bration freebies) on the white card base, and also onto a piece of scrap white card.  The 5-Petal Flower Punch was used to punch out the inner flower and it was mounted onto the card using a dimensional.

The Thank You (from Thank You Kindly) was stamped onto the bottom right of the card.  And here's the really "interesting" part....I used the new scalloped-edged embossing folder (Adorning Accents) to emboss a scalloped strip...but only 2/3 of the way across the card.  Doesn't that just set the whole Triple Treat Flower off and balance it marvelously?!

A few Itty Bitty punched blossoms and the addition of some Basic Rhinestones and my Thank You card is good to go.  It really took no time at all.  But let's face it ladies, we all know that the length of time it takes to create a card is NOT an indication of how much we admire or appreciate the recipient, right?  It really is the thought that counts.   So remember all my fine and wonderful friends - when you receive a hand-stamped card, it was created for you with heartfelt gratitude to say thank you for blessing my life so richly!

Hope everyone has a wonderful weekend!      God Bless,    ~Cynthia    <><