In 1969 on this date, a television show called "Sesame Street" made its broadcast debut.  It was created by Joan Ganz Cooney to provide an educational and entertaining show for preschoolers, particularly to help underprivileged 3- to 5-year olds prepare for kindergarten. A puppeteer named Jim Henson was hired to create the characters for Sesame Street who, of course, became institutions.  

The Sesame Street characters are so fun to make with "punch art". Get out your punches and your card stock scraps and go to town!  This is a great way to make party invitations, favors, cards, etc. for little children!

Stamping and papercrafting, I think, is the perfect hobby for moms of young children.  So many birthday parties, school parties, school events, sports…you name it….and with stamping you can make all the things you need with little cost and little time….or ON little time, as you discover it's time for the birthday party and you haven't bought a card yet.  You can make one in minutes, right before you go out the door!

If you are interested in learning this easy, easy craft, just contact me at Karen@Karenstamps.com!

Birthday card, anniversary card, sympathy card, thinking of you card…..I think you could use this little card for any occasion just by changing the sentiment.  The Baja Breeze card base is 4 1/4" x 4 1/4" and layered with Cherry Cobbler and Tangerine Tango.  I was a little concerned how those colors would look together, but I like them with this paper!  The paper, of course, is the new sneak peek Paisley Petals Designer Series Paper available now during the Spring Is Blossoming Promotion.  The Four Frames stamp set and the Paisley Petals DSP will be available in the new Stampin' Up! catalog in July, but you can purchase it now, only during April….or you'll have to wait until July!  This paper is too pretty to wait THAT long!

The Baja Breeze card is actually photographed on top of another sheet of the Paisley Petals paper so you can see more.

Shop my Online Store today to take advantage of this offer!  And be sure to check out the Clearance Rack for some great deals!

Robots make a great birthday card….at least these robots do in the stamp set Lots of Bots #115293!  There they are, ready with their gifts, balloons and party hats!  Although I no longer had little boys in the house when this stamp set came out, my big boy was working on a robotics project at college so I had to purchase this set!  I'm glad I did because it has always been fun to make a card with it!  I also added some "metal" pieces, punched with the Cog Punch #118873 out of Brushed Silver and Basic Black card stock.  I'm sure some of those pieces were used to make the robots!!  The metal Hodgepodge Hardware adds a nice metallic touch to the card as well.  And the fun Spiral Border Punch #119872 adds some interest.  Perhaps it was laziness or lack of time, but after I stamped the robots, I decided to leave them blank with the thought that whatever child received this might like to color them in himself!

I got the idea for this card from another demonstrator named Taunya on our Stampin' Up! website called "Stampin' Connection".  It's a place for demonstrators to share samples and have discussions in forums and exchange ideas.  So if you would like to be a Stampin' Up! demonstrator, don't think you have to have natural-born creativity! Stampin' Up! provides plenty of ideas and resources for projects and running your business!  If you are interested in finding out about the business opportunity with Stampin' Up!, please click HERE to get some information.  And then email me if you want additional information or have questions.  You can sign up online in minutes to start your business and all the fun you will have as a Stampin' Up! demonstrator!

Since I had so much fun making a 4 1/4" square card last week with strips of designer series paper in THIS post, I thought I would make something similar today. This is the Sale-a-Bration designer paper, Ice Cream Parlor #122242 on page 7.  You can get this paper free with a $50 purchase from Stampin' Up! until March 31st….and with another $50 purchase, you can also get the Ribbon & Button Pack #123529 for added embellishment!

The cupcake is of course punched with the Build a Cupcake Punch #121807 in the Occasions 2011 Mini Catalog.  Really a fun card to make!

Let me know if you need any supplies!  Sale-a-Bration only lasts one more month!!!  Go to my website to place an order anytime!

Our new son-in-law's birthday came upon us pretty quickly, along with the realization that he is now a member of the family and should get a card and gift!  Since he is a big movie-lover, I came up with this card, even though I had to dig around in some retired sets to find "Treat Yourself".  

For the "filmstrip technique" I just took a strip of black card stock and punched along the edges with the Spiral Border Punch #119872.  Then you stamp on some squares that fit on the strip to make it look like a movie!  I have always loved that idea!

Sometimes it is harder to come up with a "male birthday card" but with a little thought it's really not that difficult.  Stampin' Up! provides so many kinds of stamp sets that you can find something appropriate for everyone!