International Bazaar Goodness!

I got this package of goodies from Melanie in the mail the other day and WOW, am I in love!  Some of the markers and a clear mount stamp set are retired and were gifted to me but the International Bazaar DSP and the in-colors of card stock were the real reason for the package.  Seeing is truly believing and Melanie was right, these colors and patterns are inspiring.  I can't wait to place my order as well and am eager to get crafting.  Mel really does know me...that peacock is a beauty!  With all the fun pieces Mel sent me, I have no excuse not to use the new DSP and some of the punched elements to easily create a few cards to mail out to friends...especially now that I've moved.  What a great (& super-duper easy) way to stay in touch and send something personal.  =)

Check out the card below, from Mel's earlier post...  The photo doesn't do it justice as the heat embossed melon mambo is really a great accent.

I hope this post gets your creative juices flowing and inspires you to make some easy cards with fun punched elements and the beautiful new International Bazaar DSP.  Seriously, some FANTASTIC color combinations and unique patterns/prints!  Why not send a package like this with pre-measured/pre-cut & punched elements to your friends and fellow crafters so they can easily create a few cards of their own to mail out?

Happy Card-Making!
~Kiran

Floral Fun

This fun and bright card is just right for summer, and I got my inspiration from Stampin' Success, a magazine full of great ideas for stamping and for your business that all demonstrators receive.  It's another great perk!

This card features Bright Blossoms front and center, with a few embellishments from the Designer Buttons, Hemp Twine, Adorning Accents dies, and Adorning Accents embossing folders.  The sentiment, which is from Fabulous Florets, perfectly tied things together for this happy anytime card.

Don't forget!  You have until this Friday, June 29 to enter our blog candy contest by leaving a post on last Friday's post.

Cheers!
~Melanie

Stamps: Bright Blossoms, Fabulous Florets
Ink: Gumball Green, Real Red, Tangerine Tango, Daffodil Delight, Tempting Turquoise, Rich Razzleberry
Paper: Crumb Cake, Whisper White, Real Red, Tempting Turquoise
Extras: Big Shot, Brights Designer Buttons, Hemp Twine, Adorning Accents die, Adorning Accents embossing folders

Bazaar Birthday

Happy Friday!  I hope you're excited for the weekend, and that maybe you'll fit in a little stamping fun. I hope to!

The inspiration for this card came from a sample on Stampin' Connection, a site for demonstrators to share ideas, questions, tips and--of course--their creations.  This constant font of inspiration is one of many perks of being a demonstrator, even if you're only in it for a discount on your hobby--let me know if you're interested.  The original was made by Maree Streeter of Inky Moose using Betsy's Blossoms and the Floral District DSP.  Of course, since I'm on an International Bazaar kick, I altered the stamps, colors and paper to fit my project.

The medallion in the back is from Daydream Medallions, and I think I could even have used the larger medallion to give it that happy, sunshine feel.  My paper strips, which are the PERFECT way to use up scraps, are .75x1.5 inches, and I just played around with where to lay them.  I think this is a great, fun and cheery birthday card and I think I'll return to this layout often.

And finally, some BLOG CANDY to celebrate 10,000 visitors and thank you for sticking around, even through our long hiatus.  Leave a comment on this post with your favorite card from our blog, and we'll enter your name in a drawing for all 3 of this week's cards, plus a few extra fun things.  We'll accept entries through next Friday, June 29, and announce the winner on July 2. Good luck!

Happy, happy Friday!
~Melanie

Stamps: Daydream Medallions, Curly Cute
Ink: Daffodil Delight
Paper: Whisper White, Lucky Limeade, International Bazaar DSP

Golden Peacock

This one's for Kiran!  She loves all things peacock, so I knew the instant that I saw the World Treasures stamp set, that it would be on the top of Kiran's list.  Guess what?  I was right.  :)  And this peacock is ever so lovely, with so many options...but, given my ongoing love of all things embossing, my first choice was to emboss in gold.  Look at that shine!

I chose my color palette--Pacific Point and Rich Razzleberry--from the colors in the International Bazaar DSP.  And then I used the DSP as background for this lovely bird.  Do you recognize that layout?  It's exactly the same as Monday's treasured friend card, minus the sentiment, and its one that I can use again and again.

I hope you love the peacock as much as we do, and that you'll check in for more uses of International Bazaar on Friday.

Cheers!
~Melanie

Stamps: World Treasures
Ink: VersaMark
Paper: Pacific Point, Rich Razzleberry, Whisper White, International Bazaar DSP
Extras: Gold embossing powder, Postage Stamp punch

Treasured Friend

I am IN LOVE with this designer series paper!  The bright colors and groovy patterns are nothing short of fantastic, so be sure that you check out International Bazaar DSP and get some for your own use.

When I was creating this card, which also features the flowers and sentiment from World Treasures stamp set, I though for sure that the colors were Pool Party and Calypso Coral.  Turns out I was right about Pool Party, but the "coral" turns out to be Tangerine Tango, which is a really bright and rich orange.  I was shocked!!  This just goes to show that you should play around with color pairings, because putting two colors together can make them look different than usual.

Wowzers!  Over the weekend, we passed 10,000 blog visitors.  Thanks for checking us out, and stay tuned for more colors and more patterns from International Bazaar this week.  I won't be able to hold back, and I might even have something extra fun to add into the mix.

Cheers!
~Melanie

Stamps: World Treasures
Ink: Pool Party, Tangerine Tango, Pacific Point
Paper: Whisper White, International Bazaar DSP
Extras: Postage Stamp punch, Big Shot, Apothecary Accents framelits, Corner Rounder punch

Medallion Fun

Ah, with my new box of goodies from the 2012-13 Stampin' Up! catalog, the biggest question is what to play with next...because I want to play with everything, of course.  This card marries many new items, and I'm really happy both with how it turned out and all the ideas I have for my next projects.  But most of all, I love all that embossing--heat embossing with color, and textured embossing courtesy of the Big Shot.

I'm also a fan of the many shapes at my disposal--no scissors required.  The bird and branch popped out easily with a punch, and the large flower and banner were oh-so-easy with SU's ever growing collection of Framelits.  Who am I kidding, it's my ever-growing collection of Framelits now!

I'm about to put this card in the mail to Kiran, which brings me to the next part of our BIG NEWS--we're on the move!  Kiran has already relocated to the DC-Metro area, and I'll be packing up my creative corner very soon to head to the New River Valley of VA.  Will you be our new neighbors?  Leave a comment to let us know; we'd love to stamp with you.

Cheers!
~Melanie

Stamps: Language of Friendship, Daydream Medallions, Betsy's Blossoms, Itty Bitty Banners, Teeny Tiny Wishes
Ink: Versamark, Basic Gray, Melon Mambo, Gumball Green
Paper: Pool Party, Basic Gray, Whisper White, Regal Rose, Gumball Green
Extras: Big Shot, Floral Framelits, Chevron embossing folder, Two-Step Bird punch, Bitty Banner Framelits, Circle Scissors Plus, Melon Mambo embossing powder, Many Marvelous Markers

Bright Beautiful Birthday!

My first order from the new catalog is here, and isn't it fun?  Here's a great birthday homage to Kiran's and my favorite colors--green and purple in shades of Lucky Limeade and Rich Razzleberry.  For this card, I used some of my favorite things from the new catalog--the Summer Smooches DSP and the Fancy Fan embossing folder.  Before I got a closer look at them both, I had no idea that the pattern in the Summer Smooches paper is the fancy fan shape.

This card features the Blossom Punch, which I've had but not used enough, and the finishing touch was cutting out the sentiment using my Paper Snips.  It takes a few minutes, but packs the perfect punch with Perfectly Penned.

Stay tuned--I have big plans for this box of goodies!
~Melanie

Stamps: Perfectly Penned
Ink: Rich Razzleberry
Paper: Whisper White, Rich Razzleberry, Lucky Limeade, Summer Smooches DSP
Extras: Blossom Punch, Wide Oval Punch, 1" Circle Punch, Brights Designer Buttons, Big Shot, Fancy Fan embossing folder, Paper Snips, Little Leaves sizzlit