This weekend I had the pleasure of having two moms come over to make class valentines for their three children’s classes. One daughter came along to help make the valentines for her class and her brother’s and the other mom brought her teenage goddaughter along to help out. We all had so much fun! That’s what happens when you stamp with nice people!

I designed the superhero valentine in the photo above using the Calling All Heroes Photopolymer Stamp Set, and we made fifty of these for the boys to give out to their classes. You can easily make female superheroes as well with this set if you want. I found some retired small notecards to use that were just the right size so that saved time cutting and scoring paper. There were quite a few steps involved but we didn’t mind the time because it’s what we enjoy doing.

We made quicker work of cutting out the faces by punching them out with the Stampin’ Up! Owl Punch. Just trim off the owl feet from the top of the superhero’s head and round off the chin area which was the top of the owl! You can do it before or after stamping, depending on what works for you. With the photopolymer stamps, you might be able to combine the hair and the mouth on one block and stamp once and then add in the mask.

Tomorrow I will show you the “girl” valentine! So pretty!

Don’t forget, today is the last day for the current Stampin’ Up! Weekly Deals!  Order before midnight MT tonight if you want any of these products.  Remember, with a $50 purchase you also choose a FREE Sale-A-Bration product. Note the Skin Tone Blendabilities Markers on sale!  

Just shop at my Stampin’ Up! Online Store!

Make a pretty love card or Valentine or whatever nice occasion card you want to call it with a simple heart and embellishment on some pretty background paper.  This paper, layered on Coastal Cabana on a Sahara Sand card base, is one that you can earn FREE during Sale-A-Bration going on now through the end of March.  The paper is called Best Year Ever Designer Series Paper #138633 and you can find it on page 4 of the Sale-A-Bration Brochure HERE. With just a $50 purchase of any current Stampin’ Up! merchandise you can choose any of the free items in the brochure. No limits! You can choose from ribbon and buttons to paper to stamp sets to Project Life by Stampin’ Up! to EVEN Blendabilties Markers on page 20!

As I was cutting and working with this pattern from the Best Year Ever DSP I really noticed how pretty it was! Such soft pretty colors designed into tulip or flower shapes! I didn’t want to detract too much from the paper so I kept the hearts simple and stamped a small size greeting from the Something To Say Stamp Set in the Annual Catalog, page 104.

Of course I had to add some kind of embellishment, so I decided to get out the Artisan Embellishment Kit in the Occasions Catalog. I decided to use one of the doilies in the kit and one of the soft flowers. The ribbons and other embellishments in the kit are really pretty. Just a special touch to add to any card or project!

The back of every package of designer series paper has a listing of the colors that coordinate with that paper.  You can use that list as inspiration to help you design your project by choosing coordinating colors. I used to write the names of the colors on the back of the package after someone else figured it out! Now it is nice that Stampin’ Up! just adds the list to the package!

To shop and earn your free Sale-A-Bration gift, just go to my Stampin’ Up! Online Store!  Be sure to check all the categories in the left sidebar of the store, such as the Clearance Rack and the Weekly Deals, so you don’t miss a thing!

Email me at Karen@KarenStamps.com  if you want any of the Stampin’ Up! Catalogs!

As I paged through the Stacked with Love Designer Series Paper Stack this black and white pattern caught my eye, and that was the start of this card.  And just because I wanted to use the Stacked with Love Designer Washi Tape I put a strip of it across the bottom of the card and I think it looks okay! The sentiment is from the You Plus Me Stamp Set in the Stampin’ Up! Occasions Catalog. It is punched out with the 1 3/4″ Circle Punch, layered on Gold Foil die cut from the Starburst Framelits Die and then layered again on the 2″ Circle Punch.

I suppose I was influenced by the star confetti in the shaker cards I was making with my December Paper Pumpkin Kit, so I punched a few hearts from Real Red and Gold Foil with the heart punch in the Itty Bitty Accents Punch Pack.  I dosubt you can have too many hearts on a Valentine!

If you need any Valentine supplies, remember with every $50 purchase you get to choose a FREE item from the Sale-A-Bration Brochure!

Shop for everything right HERE at my Stampin’ Up! Online Store!

This Banner Blast Valentine card is made with a stamp set and punch you can get FREE during the Stampin’ Up! Sale-A-Bration Promotion!  And even though it has a heart and the word “love” on it doesn’t mean it is only for Valentine’s Day. You could make a little banner like this on a card for many occasions – birthday, anniversary, think of you, wedding, and more. Banners are really popular right now so why not use them on your cards and scrapbook pages?! This card also uses the Scallops Textured Impressions Embossing Folder in the Occasions Catalog for the background. You could change the greeting to any sentiment you wanted. The banner pieces are all stamped with the Banner Blast Stamp Set and then punched out with the Banner Punch, both available in the Sale-A-Bration Brochure. They are then just adhered to the card in line with the Baker’s Twine with Stampin’ Dimensionals.  You could also just use the Banner Punch to punch out any designer paper rather than stamping. So versatile and so easy!

Sale-A-Bration is the biggest promotion during the Stampin’ Up! year so don’t miss it! With every $50 purchase you get to choose a FREE product from the Sale-A-Bration brochure! You can purchase any current Stampin’ Up! products to qualify. The Bundles shown in the Sale-A-Bration Brochure are there as suggestions if people need ideas for $50 worth of product, but you are not limited to those choices. Sale-A-Bration runs until March 31.

Are you ready to have a Banner Blast in your card-making and scrapbooking? Use Sale-A-Bration to get a free stamp set and/or Banner Punch! Purchase anything you need from Stampin’ Up! in my Online Store HERE.