Sometimes it is hard to think of what to stamp for boys, but Lots of Bots stamp set (#115293) is a great set to use.  Certainly it can be used for girls too, but it seems there are always more choices for girls in crafting.

I started with Bordering Blue card stock for the base and embossed the little screws and such from Lots of Bots  with Silver Embossing Powder (109131) and my Heat Tool (#100005).  That makes a great background and it is always fun to emboss!  After stamping on Whisper White with Black Stazon ink, I layered that on Brushed Silver and Brilliant Blue and then Real Red.  I made the Real Red layer longer and used the Scallop Edge Punch (#112091) for the design at the bottom.  

For a last touch I used my Paper-Piercing Tool (#116631) and foam mat in the Mat Pack (#105826) to poke holes in the scallops and inserted Silver Brads (#104336).  Just leave the card stock on the mat after poking the hole and poke your brads into the holes…then pick up your paper and unfold the little brad legs on the back.  Very easy!

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I've owned this Jackpot Designer Series Paper (#113995) for awhile but used it very little. However, as I making come cards for a friend's birthday gift the other day I came across this paper and thought it was perfect for her and this was what I should use!  While I started off looking online for ideas, once I got stamping I started to come up with my own ideas.  And you will, too!

Here are a couple of the cards I made.

This Jackpot Designer Series would be good for a lot of your masculine cards….you know, the ones we usually have a little bit of trouble coming up with ideas for!

You can order this paper and other products any time, either directly through me or on your own at your own computer through my online store.  Click HERE for online shopping!  Remember, with a purchase of $50 in product, you get to choose a Sale-A-Bration product FREE.

It's been awhile since I have used this template…usually I think people put a tea bag or a chocolate candy in the little pocket.  But since I needed a quick birthday gift for a young teenage boy, I thought it would be fine to hold cash!  I thought of my Lots of Bots stamp set, a good one for boys, and stamped that image for the front.  After I had it all colored in and mounted on Brushed Silver card stock, I thought it needed a little more silver…..and since I am apparently into silver glitter these days, why not a little silver glitter, Chunky Essentials, for the robot!  I just applied a thin line of Tombow Multi Glue around the edge and sprinkled on the glitter.  I think it looks kind of jazzy now!  The Designer Paper I used is the retired Jersey Shore, a good set of colors for a boy.  You could also use any color of card stock and perhaps embellish it with some designer paper.  Lots of opportunity for creativity in this easy project!  Email me if you want more information or ideas!

I felt like I needed to get back to some simple, versatile stamping today and decided to pull out my Fun & Fast Notes stamp set.  This set covers about every occasion and is easy and fun to use.  Here is a birthday card I made, adding some brads on the side and a little Dazzling Diamonds on the cake (flames and middle layer of frosting!).  After that I decided to add a little something to the background so I used the Retro Remix wheel and Versamark ink.  I used our Stampin' Up! Watercolor Paper for the cake and colored in with In Color Markers and my Aquapainter.  If you don't own this set, you can go to my Online Store and order it!

Now that my son's birthday is over I will post the card I made for him.  Not that I really think he would be reading his mother's stamping blog, but it seemed better to wait!  When this stamp set first came out and Stampin' Up! demonstrators had a chance to preorder it at a discount, I was going to pass on it.  But then I remembered my son was going to be working on some robot project at college, so gee, it might come in handy!  I've seen lots of cute cards made with it so it is a great set to own!

Here is the card for his 21st birthday…..and he LIKED the card!  What more could a stamping mother want??!

I used the In Colors Crushed Curry and Soft Suede, plus some Basic Gray under the 021, only because I couldn't find my Brushed Silver at the moment.  That is one of the Sweet Treat Cups holding the screws, etc. from the Holiday Mini.….so the Sweet Treat Cups aren't just for candy!  The Sweet Treat Cup is actually mounted to the inside of the card so that the front opens and you can still see the robot in the cup.  You use the 1 3/4" Circle Punch to make the holes.  After I made the first one, I traced with a pencil where the next one would go so I would get the placement right with the punch and everything would line up.  The punches work best with one layer of card stock at a time.

Use some Mini Glue Dots to attach the front of the Treat Cup to the layer you see here, then when you attach the stamped robot layer you will peel away the adhesive strip on the actual Treat Cup to adhere that so it looks like the robot is inside the cup.

I left the right hand corner unstamped so we could sign the card there!  Be sure to stamp the images before adhering over the Treat Cup……otherwise it is difficult to stamp near the cup!  Duh!

And the finished card again………..

I hope these photos make the assembly process somewhat clear, but if not, email me with any questions!

PS:  Since I don't own any number stamps, I used My Digital Studio to print out the numbers I wanted and then adhered them to this card!

If you don't already own the stamp set "Lovely As a Tree" you should really add it to your collection right away! We all held our breath when Stampin' Up! retired stamp sets this last time because "Lovely As a Tree" has been around for awhile!  But it just is the most versatile, necessary stamp set to have on hand!  It is perfect for making cards for men, which is often a bit of challenge, but it can also be made into a beautiful Christmas card or a sympathy card or used on scrapbook pages and gifts.  Since my husband and I are planning a fall foliage trip to New England, it seemed perfect to make yet another "Lovely As a Tree" card for his birthday yesterday, this time with colored leaves and the new Autumn Traditions Designer Series Paper in the catalog.

I got the best surprise yesterday for my birthday when my brother called from Kansas and said he might be flying to Houston that evening on business.  We haven't seen each other  in a couple of years and he rarely gets to fly to Houston, so that he was coming to Houston, much less on my birthday, was a pretty big treat!  He did just barely make it in by evening, and then we went out to his and my favorite restaurant for him to have dinner and me to have a second dinner I guess!  He even brought along handmade birthday cards from my nieces and nephews!  I was so impressed with how "fancy" they made the cards!  Their mom said on the phone that they love the stamped cards I send them so now they make fancy cards also!  They used decorative scissors and had belly bands around them or around the envelopes, glued on borders, and lovely little notes! Here's a photo of the cards and handmade envelopes!

So never underestimate the power of a handmade card, whether you are giving or receiving!

If you enjoy a good ESP story….this was weird!  At dinner my husband, brother and I were talking about amusement parks and roller coasters.  I asked my brother if he liked roller coasters.  He said yes, he loved them (crazy fool!).  As soon as he said that, I remembered that one time as teenagers in St. Louis, I went with him, his best friend next door Ronnie, and Ronnie's girlfriend (and later wife) Patty to Six Flags.  They wanted to ride the new wooden roller coaster, the Screamin' Eagle I think, and I DID NOT but I stood in line with them for 45 minutes just to wait with them.  By the time we finally got to the head of the line, I decided I should go ahead and ride it and I did.  As soon as we got off, they wanted to ride it again and we stood in the long line again……and again.  Now last night I literally barely had those words out of my mouth when my brother's cell phone rang…..it was his friend Ronnie!!  How weird is that?!  Ronnie calls him now and then but not real often so for him to call like one minute after I was talking about him was really unbelievable!

So this morning I have just taken my brother back to the airport and gotten to board some rich person's private jet that he is going to fly back to Montana after maintenance here.  It's nice to see how the "other half" lives!  And I came home to a beautiful bouquet of birthday flowers on the porch from my upline/best friend!

I'll get back to Stampin' Up! Convention news and photos later!

It's spring and that means it is time for butterflies……or "fooflies" as our daughter used to say!  Stampin' Up! offers several stamp sets with butterflies right now and they certainly are the "in" thing!  This butterfly is from the stamp set "Simple Friendship" on page 92 of the Idea Book & Catalog .  I got the idea for this card on SCS and it was from a sketch challenge, a diagram of a layout.  I used Baja Breeze for the card base since it coordinates with the beautiful new Designer Paper in the Occasions Mini called "Walk in the Park" on page 9.  I almost hated to cover up the design of the paper on the bottom layer, but I can always make another card showcasing that paper!  This card is 6×6 since the person I was making it for wanted a large card that a group of people could sign (therefore you would cut your cardbase 12×6 and fold in half).  The ribbon is a new one in the Idea Book & Catalog, on page 179, the Whisper White Organza Ribbon.  It is so beautiful to use!  But if you wanted a new ribbon from the Occasions Mini, you could use the Whisper White Satin Ribbon in there on page 17!  The words stamped under the butterfly are from another butterfly set called "Flight of the Butterfly" (page 98).  My butterfly is stamped and cut out and the little half pearl is from the Pretties Kit, adhered with a mini glue dot.

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There are beautiful products in the new Occasions Mini AND a special "Get Connected"offer!

From April 1-30, spend $40 on products in the Occasions Mini Catalog or host a $150 workshop and get a FREE item from the “Under $10” page in the Spring-Summer 2009 Idea Book & Catalog (p. 208).

*In Celebrando Creatividad, p. 28

Contact me if you want to "Get Connected"!