Blue Skies Ahead

by Shannon Jaramillo // June 27, 2018 // No Comments

Hello again my crafty friends! It’s both the end of the FSJ catalog year (June 30th) and the lead up into the new catalog year (July 1st!) and the week after convention so I have SO much to share! In my efforts to create swaps for convention as well as reorganize my craft space I have not had a chance to play with many of products in the current Trends Mini Catalog, which is a shame as it has some absolutely darling products in it! One of my favorite stamp sets in the mini is called Blue Skies. It features the Blue Skies stamp set, the Blue Skies die set, and of course the Blue Skies Bundle which is both the stamp set and the die set at a savings of 10%! Yep, we love bundles!!

Measurements:

Card Base 4 1/2″ x 11″, scored at 5 1/2″
Stamped Image Layer 4″ x 5 1/4″

Details:

I wanted the focus of this card to be the gorgeous balloon stamp so I used a Whip Cream card base and then used the 5″ x 3 7/8″ Journey Rectangle Die to add a fun pierced edge to my stamped layer.
I stamped the balloon from the Blue Skies stamp set using Black Licorice True Color Fusion Ink Pad. The beauty of this ink pad, besides it’s nice vivid stamped color, is that it will work on any surface, including paper, wood, fabric, and acrylic, and becomes permanent when heat-set on non-paper materials. So no smearing or remembering which black ink pad to use with which coloring medium – you just need this one pad!
The coloring was done in a beautiful palette of colors from a challenge I was participating in, and colored with the Color Burst Colored Pencils. These colored pencils come in a metal tin, are numbered, and have all of the color combinations needed for matching all of the awesome FSJ colors! So cool!!

Now, I’m a novice colorer, but I am really pleased with how this turned out. I had some help from the Color Burst Blenders – they really did a great job of smoothly out those coloring lines!

If you will notice, I offset the balloon stamp a bit to the right on my card stock panel to leave room for a sentiment. At some point during the creation of this card, I decided this would be a wonderful graduation card for my niece, who was graduating from college (so proud of her) so I pulled out the Begin Adventure ATS stamp and inked up this darling sentiment. Isn’t it just perfect for a graduation card? I love it and can’t wait to see where her adventure takes her! I offset the sentiment image to the left to balance my card out. Can you tell that the word ‘adventure’ in the sentiment is a bit bolder than the other words? I LOVE that extra touch!!!
And Of course I needed to add sparkle to my card in the form of Journey Sequins Bloom Time. But once I added my traditional 3 sequins, I went crazy and added more to the balloon – so pretty!
DON’T WAIT if you love this bundle! It will only be available through THIS Saturday, June 30th!!
The Inking the Way Journey Coach challenge was the inspiration for my colors today – so beautiful! I needed to use at least three of the colors so I focused on Huckleberry Fusion, Beach Ball and Summer Days 🙂

REMEMBER, if you would like to receive the NEW and AWESOME 2018-19 Fun Stampers Journey catalog, please email me with your address information! If you contact me by June 30th, I will send the catalog to you AT NO COST TO YOU. On July 1st, I will still be sending the catalogs free, but will be collecting a shipping charge of just $7.00.

Thank you so much for visiting my little blog and I hope to see you back! Don’t forget to subscribe so you can get peeks of amazing FSJ product delivered right to your in box!

Supplies: (All Fun Stampers Journey products unless noted differently below)

Card Stock: Whip Cream

Printed Paper: None

Ink: Black Licorice

Stamps: Blue Skies Stamp Set, Blue Skies Bundle, Begin Adventure

Dies: Journey Rectangles Die Set

Tools: Journey Blooms Paper Trimmer

Embellishments: Journey Sequins Bloom Time

Other: None

FSJ Convention 2018 was the “Beary Best”!

by Shannon Jaramillo // June 25, 2018 // 4 Comments

Oh my goodness!! Isn’t this ‘beary’ little guy the cutest?!? I have SO much to share with you all after my long weekend at the FSJ (Fun Stampers Journey) convention, but first, I wanted to share my swap card for the ‘Inking the Way’ team card swap. This little guy is an ‘ATS’ stamp called ‘Beary Best’ and he is retiring June 30th so if you love him too, make sure to place an order right away as he is only available while supplies last!! And he is on SALE!!! ‘Beary Best‘, just the stamp, is only $5.37!! And ‘Beary Best‘, the bundle (stamp and coordinating die!) is only $10.47!! What amazing value!!

Are you interested in purchasing other stamps and dies at amazing prices? Who wouldn’t be, right?!? Then check out the FSJ Retirement Party (after you finish this post of course :))!!

Measurements:

Card Base 4 1/2″ x 11″, scored at 5 1/2″
Stamped Image Layer 3″ x 5 1/2″
Printed Paper Layer 1″ x 5″

Details:

Would you like a way to use up those scraps of darling pattern paper that we all hoard…I mean have? This layout packs a TON of pattern paper punch and uses only two 1″ x 5 1/2″ pieces of pattern paper!!
Assembly is SO easy! I attached both the bear stamp and the sentiment stamp to the ‘F’ block. The grid lines on the block and indexing (stamp image) on the stamp, make getting things lined up straight a BREEZE!! Then I inked this both stamps up with Hazelnut Blend Fusion Ink and stamped him on Buttercream card stock!
I cut thin strips of color coordinating card stock, applied adhesive and attached them to both sides of my stamped image layer. One done, I adhered everything to the card base!
I added two Journey Sequins Bloom Time sequins in the lower right hand corner for a bit of pop and then balanced them out with a hand snipped banner of pattern paper and a teeny tiny bow of Journey Natural Thread!

I added a bit of the Through the Years pattern paper to my photo so you can get a better idea of the overall design…it’s gorgeous in Butter Cream, Banana Cream, Summer Days, Pool Play, Beach Breeze, Lemon Grass and Fresh Forest.

Now….CONVENTION. Oh my goodness! FSJ (Fun Stampers Journey) KNOCKED it out of the park at Convention!! Honestly, LOOK at ALL the goodies that were included in the price of Convention!

Just look at all the STUFF!!! The natural canvas tote in the upper left was the bag given to us at registration. It contained THREE full size stamp sets, 1 ATS size stamp set, the black and white checked planner you see to the left (complete with a full compliment of calendar pages in it) as well as the convention pin and a pin announcing this was my first convention. You can see those attached to my lanyard (also included in the bag). The REST: a $600 party host set for staying at the convention hotel, 2 ATS stamps, the mini envelope die, a full spool of Lemon Drop satin ribbon, a pen and stickers for our amaze machines with the new logo on them, a darling take out box, another fold away tote which came with the new annual catalog in it, the 2018-19 Annual Catalog (SPIRAL BOUND!!!!!) and a commenorative wood mounted Convention 2018 stamp set! OH! And the Holiday mini catalog!!! (eek!)

Whew!! That’s a TON of STUFF, right?? I’ve been to stamping conventions before but they pale in comparison to the way we were treated. And that’s just the stuff. We also were treated to THREE days of general session with SO many new products and tips and techniques and SIX breakout classes!! I learned SO MUCH!! And FOOD!!! I will share photos of the food in the posts to come, just let me say here that we did not go hungry! No boxed meals happening with FSJ!!

Oh! And the opportunity to shop in the Journey store and purchase SO many bundles and a la carte items from the new catalog!! And we got to take them home with us!! And we were able to purchase them with our coach discount and a 10% convention discount!!

Are you on overload yet? lol, I am. I am SO inspired by the wonderful FSJ crew and all of their hard work producing a GORGEOUS 334 page color catalog FULL of amazing projects to inspire!! Would you like one????? You’re like “You’re Kidding” right?? Of course you want one!! Just shoot me an email and as soon as I receive the catalogs, I will ship them out to you!

Thank you so much for visiting my little blog and I hope to see you back! Don’t forget to subscribe so you can get peeks of amazing FSJ product delivered right to your in box!

Supplies: (All Fun Stampers Journey products unless noted differently below)

Card Stock: Buttercream, Summer Days, Lemon Grass, and Fresh Forest

Printed Paper: Through the Year

Ink: Hazelnut Blend

Stamps: Beary Best

Dies: None

Tools: Journey Blooms Paper Trimmer

Embellishments: Journey Sequins Bloom Time and Journey Thread Natural

Other: None

Live Like You Mean It

by Shannon Jaramillo // March 17, 2018 // 2 Comments

Sharing a bit of stamping I did this morning! When I got up this Saturday morning, I had a mile long mental list of things to do and was full of ambition to get started on my tasks…and then I walked by my stamping space, which has the most gorgeous light in the morning…and I veered in there instead and got lost in paper and ink! Does that happen to you?

I love how cheerful this little card turned out and I know exactly who I’m going to give it to – she is indeed one of the loveliest people I know!

The DSP (Designer Series Paper) I used is called ‘Gingham Garden’ and is probably 5 years old now. But there is no expiration date on cuteness and this paper has that in spades. And the stamp? I have no idea how old it is (perhaps you can enlighten me), but it showed up in my mailbox this week and I couldn’t WAIT to ink it up!

The color combination is Melon Mambo and Cucumber Crush (retired), the flower is from the very retired ‘Live Like You Mean It’ stamp set, and the darling sentiment is from the ‘Hanging Garden’ stamp set. I used a few pierced dies from MFT Stamps to bring definition to all the white space.

And in the picture below you can see one of my most favorite new products, the ‘Glitter & Clear Epoxy Shapes‘. They are the teeniest little gems I have seen on the market and I am definitely going to be stocking up on them! You can find them on page 33 of the 2018 Occasions Catalog, on the lower left hand side. Because they are clear, they are hard to see, but are SO worth the investment!

Thanks for taking the time to stop by today and I hope your weekend is fabulous!

Blessings,

What’s Old is New Again – Honey Bear circa 2000

by Shannon Jaramillo // March 5, 2018 // 3 Comments

Lately I’ve become obsessed with vintage Stampin’ Up! stamps. I adore the images and have been trying my hand at coloring them.

Do you know what I found when I goggled ‘Honey Bear’? Nothing. Not one image of this stamp stamped and colored. So sad 🙁

Here he is a bit closer up. I used Stampin’ Blends for all of the colors:

Light Crumb Cake for the Bear with touches of Dark Crumb Cake and Bronze. Ivory was used for the pads of his feet.
Several coats of Light Daffodil Delight were used for the flowers as well as some Dark Daffodil Delight and a touch of Light Pumpkin Pie.
The bee hive was colored with Light and Dark Daffodil Delight
Bear’s bandana and the patch on his foot were colored with Light and Dark Pumpkin Pie
The grass was colored with Light and Dark Old Olive with a touch of Light Crumb Cake on the grass clumps
I wanted the leaves to be green, but not the same as the grass so I colored all of the leaves with Light Daffodil Delight before going over them again with Light Old Olive. I shaded with a bit of Dark Old Olive.

The Fence is Light Smoky Slate. I used my Smoky Slate Stampin’ Marker to color along the grain of the wood to bring just a bit of detail to them.
The birdhouse is Light and Dark Crumb Caked the bird is Light and Dark Pool Party with a smudge of Light Bermuda Bay.
All of the bees are colored with Dark Daffodil Delight and their wings touched by a bit of Light Smoky Slate. I dabbed a bit of the color in the center of the wings and then used the color blender to spread it, giving the wings ever so slight color to them.
I colored the sentiment with my Crumb Cake Stampin’ Marker as that was the only tip fine enough not to bleed.
I’m not sure if you can see it, but all of the flowers, the bees, and the bird have been touched with Wink of Stella so they sparkle 🙂
A triple loop linen thread bow adds to the country charm.

I used a non-SU die to cut out Mr. Bear, backed him with some fresh and fun Tutti Frutti DSP and popped everything on a card base of Crushed Curry.

I masked the sentiment stamp to add a few bees to the interior of the card…they are SO cute!

So what do you think of this 17 year old stamp set? I would love to hear your thoughts! As I have purchased a number of vintage Stampin’ Up! stamp sets, I think this will be a regular feature on my blog. So pull out some of your old favorites and stamp along!

Thank you for ‘buzzing’ by!!!

Sending a Hanging Garden-ful of Good Wishes!

by Shannon Jaramillo // February 27, 2018 // 2 Comments

Hello Friends! I have a quick post tonight as I am sneaking it in between work and chores! Every catalog has a few stamp sets that I fall instantly in love with, and this was one of them. It has the prettiest collection of hanging baskets…appropriate for just about every occasion!

Measurements:

Card Base 4 1/2″ x 11″, scored at 5 1/2″
1st Layer 4″ x 5 1/4″
DSP Layer 3 1/4″ x 5 1/4″

Details:

The mechanics of today’s card are pretty simple. I stamped the hanging basket image onto white card stock with Tuxedo Black Memento ink and colored it in with a combination of Stampin’ Blends and Stampin’ Markers.
The bars that form the basket are colored with the light Smoky Slate Stampin’ Blends and the basket filler are colored with the light Crumb Cake Stampin’ Blends. I filled the color in with dabs of Old Olive Stampin’ Marker to add a mixture of color.

The different flowers are colored with Daffodil Delight and Crushed Curry; Pool Party and Bermuda Bay; Blushing Bide and Flirty Flamingo while the leaves are colored with a combination of Lemon Lime Twist and Pear Pizzazz.
I used my stamp positioning tool to add this super sweet sentiment and finished the design off with those uber-yummy Glitter Enamel Dots. They just brighten everything up!
What about the ribbon you say? Well, it’s a darling, sparkly bit of Bermuda Bay ribbon, one of a three color ribbon pack that you get for FREE when you place a $50 order with me. Isn’t Sale-A-Bration wonderful??
And the DSP?? Yep, you guessed it! Another item you can get for FREE with a $50 order!

Contact me if you would like more information on how you can earn free goodies!

The Paper Players inspired my card today with their fun sketch challenge this week:

Thank you for stopping by!

Supplies:

Card Stock: Stamper’s Select White by Papertrey Ink

Pattern Paper: Bubbles & Fizz Designer Series Paper Stack by Stampin’ Up! (free with $50 purchase!)

Ink: Memento Tuxedo Black; Stampin’ Blends and Stampin’ Markers by Stampin’ Up!

Stamps: Hanging Garden by Stampin’ Up!

Dies: Stitched Mini Scallop Rectangle STAX by MFT Stamps

Tools: Big Shot and Stampin’ Trimmer by Stampin’ Up!

Embellishments: Shimmer Ribbon Pack (free with $50 purchase1) and Glitter Enamel Dots by Stampin’ Up!

Other: Medium Whisper White Envelope by Stampin’ Up!