North Star Stamper

 Yikes!  Where do these months go!?  Sorry, I'm a day late. Do you recognize the Designer Series Paper I used to create my fat Christmas tree?  They are various green patterns in the soon-to-be-retired annual catalog.  I literally used scraps and trimmed them to various widths.  I thought using the Banners Pick a Punch and the Tailored Tag punch to would add to the look of an evergreen tree. Happy Stampin'!

 I appreciate every one of my customers!  Instead of sending thank you cards for an order, I send a card kit and let them make a card with products they own.  I can't send stamped images, so I often include die cut pieces as I did this month. I figure that a card with Here for You on the front will include a meaningful note inside, so I kept the front simple.  I left one card black and white.  On the second card I used the new 2022-2024 In Color Orchid Oasis and a Blending Brush to add some color to the Crinkled Seam Binding Ribbon and the Black and White DSP, from All Together 6" X 6" Designer Series Paper.   Another idea would be to color the die cut.  Have fun and be sure to send you card! Happy Stampin'!

To make up for being a day late with this month's Christmas card ideas, I've included 2 cards!  Using the positive and negative when die cutting helped.  I used washi tape to hold down my J, O, and Y dies so they would be lined up for the second card. Normally I try to conserve cardstock and place my dies close together when die cutting. For this first card I masked off a triangle using Post-It Notes.  Using my grid paper helped with alignment.  I started by using Soft Sea Foam ink and a Blending Brush for the entire triangle without a decorative mask, so that the whole triangle would be a soft green.  Then using a variety of decorative masks and various green inks with my Blending Brush, I just layered shapes over each other.  I honestly wasn't sure about the 'Christmas tree' when I was done----until I removed all the masks.   The gold edge is just a 1" piece of the metallic specialty paper die cut with the Stitched So Sweetly large rectangle, so the 6" X

The Abstract Beauty Designer Series Paper is so bright and cheery and uses 9 different colors so it gives us lots of options.  Let the pretty paper (and me) do the work for you! This card kit contains: -1/4 pack of Abstract Beauty DSP (12 4"X6" sheets) -22 cards bases in coordinating colors -Extra Basic White pieces for you to stamp/punch/die cut -10 embossed accent pieces -2 yards of 1/4" Gold Shimmer ribbon -36 adhesive-backed hexagons -10+ dies in Basic White Cost :  $25 (plus shipping--I will deliver within the Twin Cities.  Only available in the US--sorry.) Please request your kit by April 8th!  Email me at NorthStarStamper@gmail.com We'll meet in the North Star Stamper Classroom (in Facebook) to share ideas for using the kit.  This will be later in April and I'll record then post it on YouTube for everyone who purchases the kit to watch at their convenience. Other products you might want to use: The Abstract Beauty suite on pages 48-50 of the January-June

 I noticed that my February card kit was so similar to November's that I added a second card this month.  Let's stamp on our Designer Series Paper!  Here's my idea.  You could use most any dark yellow and green ink you have with flower stamps.  I used So Saffron and Just Jade cardstock, but Bumblebee, Garden Green and Shaded Spruce ink.  The tags are from the Tailor Made Tags dies ( 155563)  and the gold cord is part of the Simply Elegant Trim pack ( 155766). I'd love to see what you create with your kit!  Feel free to post in our Facebook group, Sue's Stampin' Chat here:   Facebook Group .   Happy Stampin'!

I promised a monthly Christmas card, here is this month's inspiration.  I used Freshly Made Sketches #522. I focused on annual catalog products, including the Banner Year stamp set (95), the Tidings of Christmas DSP (133), Gold & Rose Gold Metallic Specialty Paper (135), Expressions in Ink Ephemera Pack (141), and Tasteful Labels dies (166).  The numbers are the pages you'll find these products in the 2021-2022 annual catalog. Banner Year Photopolymer Stamp Set (English) [ 153464 ] Cherry Cobbler Classic Stampin' Pad [ 147083 ] Tidings Of Christmas 6" X 6" (15.2 X 15.2 Cm) Designer Series Paper [ 155718 ] Gold & Rose Gold 6" X 6" (15.2 X 15.2 Cm) Metallic Specialty Paper [ 156844 ] Expressions In Ink Ephemera Pack [ 155465 ] Tasteful Labels Dies [ 152886 ] Evening Evergreen 8 1/2" X 11" Cardstock [ 155574 ] Sahara Sand 8-1/2" X 11" Cardsto

In my live video recorded on February 21st, I talked about using Stampin' Up!'s white specialty papers for an alcohol technique.  I was disappointed that some of the papers didn't react as I expect.  Here is what I discovered. I had expected and hoped that the Mother of Pearl Specialty paper in the January-June 2022 mini catalog would react to the Polished Stone technique like the now retired Glossy paper did.  Sadly, the re-inker mixed with 91% isopropyl alcohol did not dry on the Mother of Pearl paper.  It stayed wet so long that after my video, I added clear embossing powder and used my heat tool on it.  It muted the colors and I'd hope for a bright, vibrant background.  Lesson learned. Another paper I used was the Pearlescent Specialty paper in the 2021-2022 annual catalog.  This was the paper I used for the card I made during my video.  It did result in a beautiful piece for my card. The last specialty paper I used was the Shimmery White Cardstock.  This one kept t