My first sneak peek from the new Stampin’ Up! catalog just had to be with the new Sprinkles of Life Stamp Set!  This set is the Ronald McDonald House Charities stamp set. With every purchase of this stamp set, Stampin’ Up! will donate $3 to the Ronald McDonald House Charities! This is such a perfect opportunity for all of us to buy something we love and will enjoy and know that we are helping an important cause.

I think this Sprinkles of Life Stamp Set is one of the best RMHC sets we’ve had. Not only that, but there is a new punch that coordinates with it to punch out some of the elements! On this card I made I punched out the frosting on the cupcakes! But could you also see the frosting as clouds?? Other similar stamps serve as leaves on a tree or a batch of flowers! But maybe they are fancy frosting designs! Lots of possibilities with this stamp set and punch!

The card base is the new In Color Watermelon Wonder.  It’s a very different red, not quite as bright or deep as I was expecting. I was determined to use the new matching 1″ Dotted Lace Trim. It is VERY soft and flexible, not stiff like you might imagine. I ran some Fast Fuse along the bottom edge of the paper on the back and just kind of gathered the lace trim and stuck it down as I went.  No fancy process, just stuck it down, trying to get it rather straight, but not perfect. The designer paper is the new Cherry on Top Designer Series Paper Stack. It’s full of bright, fun and pretty patterns, some clearly for birthday and others for any occasion whatsoever. There is also matching Washi Tape! And to decorate the cupcakes a little bit, I had to use a bit of Dazzling Diamonds Glitter, adhered with the 2-Way Glue Pen. One of my favorites!

The new catalog will be out soon, June 2nd is the big day!  But don’t forget about the outgoing stamps and accessories!  It is probably easiest to shop HERE at my Online Store where you can scroll through all the available products!  If you change the drop down box in the upper right to “Show:  ALL” you can just scroll continuously and not have to keep going to the next page and the next.

If you are one of my regular customers, local or out-of-town, I will be getting the new catalogs out as soon as they are ready. If you do not have a Demonstrator and are interested in Stampin’ Up! products, email me at Karen@KarenStamps.com and let me know you’d like a catalog. If you have been a “No Contact” customer of mine and would like a catalog, please get in touch. This means that when you placed an order with me you checked the boxes that said you did not want contact from a demonstrator. If you are interested in ordering again and want a catalog, just let me know. Otherwise, of course, the catalog will be available online on June 2nd.

Last day for these Weekly Deals, too!  Check them out if you are ordering today!

There’s a lot behind this foxy birthday card using the stamp set Life in the Forest. I got the idea from a couple of samples I found online and I was pleased when it all came together. I made it for my sister-in-law who had a little problem with several sightings of a fox on the playground last summer at the preschool where she works. She set a trap for it but never caught anything, and the fox must have wandered off into the woods from whence he came and was never seen again, at least not at preschool! So of course we’ve had to tease her a little bit about the fox!

I stamped the fox with Memento Black Ink and colored with Blendabilities Markers and cut out with my Paper Snips. The “grass” is made from torn Old Olive card stock with some grass cut with the Fringe Scissors. I stamped the trees on designer paper and cut them out so I could adhere them around on the card. Some cutting but no coloring involved! The quote from the fox is from the stamp set Just Sayin’. The saying at the top of the card I wrote on the computer and printed out. Too bad there wasn’t a stamp! The background of the card layer is Soft Sky with some clouds sponged in with White Craft Ink. Just punch out a scallop circle and use that to sponge the edges to get the puffy cloud look. And the fox has a little Rhinestone Jewel for his nose.

Here is the inside of the card:

Since the Blendabilities Markers would bleed through the Whisper White card stock I made a layer for inside the card and stamped and colored on that.  And sponged a little Soft Sky ink in the background for a sky.

It was a fun card to make! I love how we can make almost anything one way or another with Stampin’ Up! products!

To shop during Sale-A-Bration and earn a free product with EVERY $50 purchase, please visit my Stampin’ Up! Online Store.

I’ve said before one of my favorite things in the world, perhaps becoming obsolete, is a chalkboard, and this Chalkboard Paper Birthday Card gives me a chance to sort of play with a chalkboard again. Two new products in the Stampin’ Up! Occasions Catalog are the Chalkboard Paper and the ColorBox Chalk Ink Pads. The color of Chalk Ink I used is Rose Coral. I cut the Chalkboard Paper 2″ wide so that I could use the Tag Topper Scalloped Punch and the stamps fit just fine. Using the clear-mount stamps means you can place two stamps you want to use on one larger block and stamp them both at the same time. This stamp set, Big Day, is available as a FREE product earned during Sale-A-Bration with a $50 purchase of Stampin’ Up! merchandise! The background paper, layered on Coastal Cabana card stock as the card base, is also available FREE during Sale-A-Bration. It is called Best Year Ever Designer Series Paper #138633. For a little added glitz and to complement the “bokeh” design of the background paper, I punched various sizes of circles from the Silver Glimmer Paper and put a little bow on top of the tag with the new Painted Blooms Cotton Twine (3-pack) in the Occasions Catalog.

It is recommended that you purchase the refill for the Chalk Ink right away because your pad needs to be juicy for it to stamp well.

If you need any stamping supplies, please visit my Stampin’ Up! Store. And be sure to check the new deals below!

Here are the Stampin’ Up! Weekly Deals for January 13 – 19, 2015.  As usual, some good things I would recommend and would buy myself (if I didn’t already own them!). Small as they are, I use the Itty Bitty Accents Punch Pack a lot. One thing I don’t own is the Angled Tag Topper Punch, which I might have to consider now that it is on sale. I know the ribbon is beautiful.