Inkin With Dink

More retiring stamp sets

Hello Stampers!  I hope that you all are enjoying your New Year's Eve and that you are all staying safe.  I'm just taking a break from our Wii tournaments and our chocolate fondue snacking to write this post!  In our old age (LOL!) we prefer to stay at home on New Year's Eve and spend time with the kids.  It works for now until they get older and won't want to spend it with us anymore!

This adorable card uses the retiring SU! stamp set Ahoy, Matey.  I received this as a SWAP from Linda Rickard.  Here's the recipe:

Stamp set - Ahoy, Matey, Matey's Map wheel

Cardstock - Real Red, Black, white, Kraft

Stamp pad - Black

Accessories - Markers, Stampin' Around handle, Stampin' Around cartridge, dimensional

This card is one that I made for a swap at convention a year ago.  Here's the recipe:

Stamp set - Wonderful Words

Cardstock - Certainly Celery, White

Stamp pad - Mellow Moss

Accessories - Snow Blossom punch,1/4" circle punch, designer series paper

Have a wonderful New Year's Eve!  Happy Stampin' and TTFN!

Retiring stamp sets

Hello Stampers!  Don't you think this cute little tub of goodies that I received as a Christmas present

is the cutest thing that you have ever seen?  I even had candies in the tin and a bag of cookies in there!  This is a gift from one of my preschoolers.  Drew is the sweetest little boy (and has the vocabulary of an adult)!  Thank you Angela!

Today I wanted to show you some cards made from some of the stamp sets that SU! is getting ready to retire.  You can see the list of retiring stamp sets by clicking on the picture at the very bottom of my sidebar on the left hand side.  Click on the picture of a bunch of stamp sets stacked up.  You can also go on to my website and look under promotions.  These retiring stamp sets are only available through

January 18th, then they will go away, never to be seen again!

This card uses two of the retiring sets.  I received this card as a swap from Missi Hackman.  Here's the recipe:

Stamp set - Pretty Peony, Wonderful Words

Cardstock - Ruby Red, Cameo Coral, White

Stamp pad - Ruby Red, Cameo Coral, Apricot Appeal, Versamark

Accessories - Gold embossing powder, heat gun, Very Vanilla grosgrain ribbon

This card is one that I made from a retired Simply Scrappin' Kit.  I like to use them to make cards also because everything coordinates so beautifully!  In the Simply Scrappin' Kits you get patterned paper, coordinating cardstock, and coordinating cardstock stickers.  They are great!

Here's the recipe for this card:

Stamp set - Wonderful Words

Cardstock - Sage Shadow, Barely Banana

Stamp pad - Black

Accessories - In Full Bloom (retired) Simply Scrappin' Kit

I'll show you more cards using the retiring stamp sets tomorrow.  If you haven't gone to see the list, do so!!!  You'll find tons that you have to have!!!

Happy Stampin' and TTFN!

Fall Border exchange

Hello Stampers!  I think I'm finally on the road to recovery now!  I had to have a colonoscopy done today, and yesturday was my prep day.  I was ready to post yesturday, but you can imagine why I didn't get it done!  It is just so not right for a body to have to drink 2 quarts of fluid within two hours time!  WOW!  Anyway.....

I worked on my borders for my border exchange today.  If you don't remember, some friends and I decided to start a border-a-month club together.  Every month we each come up with a border.  We make a set for every person and we all exchange.  It is really neat to see other peoples ideas and styles.  This is the border

that I came up with for November.  Yeah, I know.  I'm a little bit behind.  I'm going to go scrapbook tomorrow at a friend's house so I should get caught up with my borders and a little bit more with my scrapbooks!

Here's the recipe:

Stamp Set - With Gratitude (it's getting ready to retire, so if you are interested you better grab it now!)

Cardstock - Ruby Red, Pumpkin Pie, Summer Sun, Vanilla

Stamp pad - Ruby Red, Garden Green, Pumpkin Pie, More Mustard

Accessories - Scallop edge punch, Hemp twine

Happy Stampin' and TTFN!

Blog Goodies Winner!

Hello Stampers!  Sorry I didn't post the winner of my blog goodies yesturday, but I was a little busy!  Read my next post from today to find out why!!!

The winner of my goodies is:  Gina Jones!  Congrats Gina!  I will get your set in the mail to you soon!  Thanks for all of your comments about your family traditions!  They were fun to read!

Owl Thank you

Hello Stampers!  Another busy day today!  How many of you still clean your kids rooms?  I have to admit that once a year I "deep clean" my kids rooms with them.  Today we did Amie's room.  She is 12.  She is also a pack rat who hates to throw ANYTHING away!  It took us about 5 hours to clean her room!  We moved furniture around, cleaned off shelves, cleaned out baskets, and cleaned out the toy box.  She has decided this year that she is too old for some of her toys too, so she got rid of three trash bags full of stuff!  She has this horrible problem too though that she keeps things because she feels sorry for them, or she is afraid that she will miss them too much when they are gone.  Here's a good example, we were going through some books on her shelves and we came to a set and she said "I guess you can get rid of those, I don't ever read them.  In fact I never even liked them."  So I dared to ask her why she had kept them this long and she replied, "Because I felt sorry for them for not wanting to be kept, so I kept them!"  LOL!

Here is the card that I made today after all of our cleaning!  Isn't he so cute!!!  I had seen this owl made as a bag topper, but I wanted to turn him into a card instead!  I love him!!!  I think the preschool kids will love him too!  Here's the recipe:

Stamp set - Thank You Kindly, Baroque Motifs

Cardstock - Creamy Caramel, Pumpkin Pie, Black, White

Stamp pad - Pumpkin Pie, Black

Accessories - Big Shot, Top Note die cut, 5 petal flower punch (beak), 1 1/4" circle punch, 1" circle punch, 1/2" circle punch, corner rounder punch

Happy Stampin' and TTFN!

Blog Goodies Continued

Hello Stampers!  I know that today was supposed to be the deadline to enter to win the free stamp set, Small Sayings.  However, I have decided to extend the deadline for a couple of days.  I have not had time to even get on to see who has left comments, and what they have had to say!  So, I'm extending the deadline until Sunday, Dec. 28th, at the end of the day.  Remember, I'd love to hear about some of your family traditions for the holidays!  Good luck!

Happy Stampin' and TTFN!

Snowflake thank you

Hello Stampers!  Wow what a great holiday this has been!  And busy, busy, busy it was!  Sorry I haven't post in a while.  I have been really enjoying my time off of work with my family.  We enjoyed a few days in Kansas City with my family.  Then, we spent Christmas Eve with Bob's family, and Christmas Day was spent here at home just enjoying each other and all of the Christmas gifts that we got! 

Now it's back to reality!  I finally got to stamp today, which I was beginning to miss dearly!  I also went to a local scrapbooking store and took a How To Use Your Cricut Machine today too!  I'll show you soon some of the things I learned how to do with it too!  Now for the card that I made today.  As a preschool

teacher I am always needing thank you cards.  This is one that I created today using my Big Shot.  I just love this snowflake die cut!  Here's the recipe:

Stamp Set - Thank You Kindly

Cardstock - Brilliant Blue, Ballet Blue, Barely Banana, White

Stamp pad - Black

Accessories - Big Shot, Snowflake die

Happy Stampin' and TTFN!

Last Chance for 10% off and free shipping

Hello Stampers!  I just wanted to post a reminder that I'm going to be placing one last order on Monday, December 22nd, in the evening, for you to take advantage of the 10% off retiring sets and free shipping.  If you would like to have an order placed for you, please let me know by then!

No stamping today because I'm out of town and enjoying my family for the holidays!  I hope that you too are taking some much needed time off and spending time and enjoying your families!

Happy Stampin' and TTFN!

Blog Goodies!

Hello Stampers!  This is going to be a short post tonight.  I took my daughter Casie to see the Radio City Rockettes and out to dinner as an early Christmas present, and I'm tired!  She loved the show though!  She said she would absolutely recommend it to anyone!!

I didn't stamp at all today, but I promised Blog Goodies, so here goes!  I'm giving away the retired SU! stamp set, Small Sayings.

 This is a 12 piece stamp set, unused and unmounted.  All you have to do is leave me a comment about some of your favorite holiday traditions!  I can't wait to read some of them!  You have until December 26th.  I will choose the winner by random generator that evening.

Happy Stampin' and TTFN!

Secret Angel

Good morning stampers!  Last night was my work Christmas party.  It is always so much fun because we all bring a dish to share and we just eat and have a great time chatting and relaxing!  We have a Secret Angel exchange every year and we always reveal at the party who we have been a Secret Angel to for the last couple of weeks.  I love to try to guess mine and question people about the things I got!  I wasn't right again this year about who my angel was!  I guess I should just admit that  I'm easily fooled!  I never seem to guess right!  Dawn was my Secret Angel this year, thank you Dawn for all of my wonderful goodies! 

This picture is of one of my gifts.  This adorable snowman is made from a large coffee can.  The twine around his hat unties and I had a cute snowman candle holder down inside!  I just love the holidays, don't you? 

Family traditions are so important and wonderful too.  On both sides of our family we play a white elephant game.  We include the kids in on our exchanges too.  They get a kick out of it and they love to do the shopping for their exchange gifts.  I would love to hear about family traditions that you have too!  Be thinking about it and I will give away Blog Goodies again for those of you who share. 

We can't forget though the real reason for the season.  This is such a holy and wonderful time of year.  I think it is important to teach my children how good it is to give to those less fortunate.  My daughter Amie was so excited this year when she got to help Grandpa ring the bell at one of the Salvation Army Red Kettles.  Now she is always sure to make certain we put money into a kettle every time we see one!

Be thinking about those traditions that you want to share and I will post the Blog Goodies and rules later today.

Happy Stampin' and TTFN!

Monogramed Note Cards

Hello Stampers!  I wanted to show you a Christmas gift that I finished making up tonight!  I have this really good friend, Alene, that I work with, and I'm meeting her for breakfast in the morning.

I put this jar of goodies together for her!  This jar is like some that I made for my craft fairs this year.  I just love this reindeer from the SU! stamp set Deer Friends!  Don't you???

I filled it with some chocolate because who doesn't love chocolate!  I also put in two of the mini Hershey bar covers that I showed on my blog on Oct. 16th.  I just think that they are adorable!  The last thing I put in was some monogrammed note cards that I made for her.

I made six each of two different color combinations.  They are the little 3 X 3 note cards with envelopes.  You gotta love them!  I stamped the monogram with the stamp set Taffy Alphabet.  I punched the initial out with the 1 1/4" circle punch and then put it on top of a scallop circle punch.  The ribbon on both of them is the new in color 5/8" striped grosgrain ribbon.  The darker one is Riding Hood Red, and the lighter pink is Pink Pirouette.

I hope Alene like her jar of Christmas goodies!

Happy Stampin' and TTFN!

 

Snow Day

Hello Stampers!  I got an unexpected day off today!  And so did my kids!  Now who couldn't use an unexpected day off the week before Christmas!!  It really didn't seem that bad outside.  There was a little bit of ice, with a trace of snow on top, but it was enough to cancel school.  We definately took advantage of it.  We made fudge, cookies, Christmas bark, decorated a gingerbread house, and finished our Christmas shopping!

Here are my girls getting into the Christmas spirit with their newly assembled and decorated gingerbread house.  Every year we make one, and have for the past 6 years.  This year was a little better for me though.  I usually have to pipe on the icing while they stick on the candy.  My poor old hands are always cramping up and aching by the time we are finished.  This year after I assembled the house, I let them do the rest on their own.  At first they said "This isn't so hard mom", but after a few more minutes they too were complaining about their hands hurting!  They did a great job though, don't you think???

My card for today was one that I had offered in one of my Christmas card classes this year.  I totally CASE'd this from Angie's blog at chicnscratch.typepad.com.  I just love the colors and the layers on the snowflake.  I have several customers who just can't seem to get enough of the punches, so this card made them happy!  Here's the recipe:

Stamp set - Punch Pals, Holidays & Wishes

Cardstock - Rose Red, Regal Rose, White

Stamp pad - Rose Red

Accessories - Scallop circle punch, 1 1/4" circle punch, 3/4" circle punch, 1/2" circle punch, White grosgrain ribbon, dimensional

Happy Stampin' and TTFN!

Thumping and Polka Dot Ribbon

Hello Stampers!  I want to show you a couple of new techniques.  First the thumping.

I like to use this technique to make Fall trees. 

1.  Ink up your stamp with a background color.  I used Close to Cocoa.  With your markers, just tap up and down on your stamp with the side of the brush side of the marker.  Be sure to move all around on the stamp.  I used several different fall colors of markers, repeating this process with each one.

2.  When you are all finished with your markers, be sure to huff all over your stamp to remoisten the colors.  Then stamp.

Another NEATO thing I like to do is make my own polka dot ribbon!  I got this great idea from Patty at pattystamps.typepad.com.  You need to start with a dark colored ribbon.  I used the stamp from the SU! set, Itty Bitty Backgrounds.  Stamp your ribbon with a white craft pad.  Allow it to dry and turn it over and stamp the other side!  And Voila!  Your own polka dotted ribbon!  Thanks Patty!

Here is my finished card with the fall trees that have been thumped, and my polka dotted ribbon!  You may need to click on the picture to enlarge it to see the details on the ribbon.

Happy Stampin' and TTFN!

Christmas Open House

Hello Stampers!  Yesturday was my Christmas Open House.  I had 144 retired stamp sets for sale at 50% off catalog price, old catalogs, retired accessories, and items left over from my two craft fairs!

 I even had a make n' take for everyone to make!  They made this Christmas tag using the Snowflake #2 die on the Big Shot.  The words are from the Punch Pals set, stamped on Almost Amythyst cardstock and then punched out using the 1 3/8" circle punch.  That is adhered onto a scallop circle punched out of Bashful Blue cardstock.  Everyone seemed to like it and it gave them a chance to try out the Big Shot!

Happy Stampin' and TTFN!