Welcome to April's Stamp 'n' Hop blog hop! We are a group of Stampin' Up! demonstrators from around the world, coming together to share our creativity with you. I am coming to you from Gilbert, Arizona, USA. This month we are featuring some of our favorite products from the 2017-2018 Annual Catalog.
If you are a fan of Stampin' Up!, you know that at this time of year, Stampin' Up! announces which products will not be returning in the new Annual Catalog that's coming in June. I decided to use a mixture of retiring and returning favorites. And really, I loved so much in this catalog that it was hard to pick a favorite! Here's what I came up with:
Now let me tell you, this card did not come about easily. Pregnancy hormones have been making me crazy this time around, and the last few weeks have been kind of rough. If you are a regular follower of my blog, you may have noticed an absence of posts this week. I just had to let something go, and this was it. But I really wanted to participate in the blog hop, and so I picked a favorite stamp set that I hadn't used yet: Message in a Bottle. I've had this set for almost a YEAR, and it has been sitting on my shelf. I do have a project in mind for it, but I've been procrastinating on that.
So first I tried notecards. I liked how they turned out, but they seemed too simple for a blog hop. I think this is a great stamp set for easy notecards, so I'll share them anyways. :)
Next, I think I colored that little mermaid 5 times before I found a color combination that I was ok with. I can't wait until we have more colors of Stampin' Blends to play with! (They're coming!!!)
Long story short, this card was a struggle. But in the end, I like how it turned out. I used one of my other favorite stamp sets, Happy Birthday, Gorgeous, for the greeting, along with Pool Party Shimmer Ribbon and Silver Mini Sequin Trim, plus the Stitched Shapes Framelits, which are all sticking around. The background for the mermaid is colored with the Light Pool Party Stampin' Blend Marker, and I used Stampin' Write Markers in Bermuda Bay, Calypso Coral, and So Saffron to color the mermaid herself. The greeting is punched with the Classic Label Punch (also returning), which is a staple to have in your craft room. A little sprinkling of Rhinestones, and the card is complete!
Please leave a comment and let me know what you think, and make sure to hop along to see what the rest of these talented demonstrators have to share with you!
Rachel Traudt - you are here!
Stamps: Message in a Bottle, Happy Birthday Gorgeous
Ink: Bermuda Bay, Calypso Coral, So Saffron, Night of Navy, Basic Black, Pool Party
Paper: Whisper White, Myths & Magic Specialty DSP, Whisper White Note Cards & Envelopes
Accessories & Tools: Pool Party Shimmer Ribbon, Silver Mini Sequin Trim, Classic Label Punch, Rhinestones, Stitched Shapes Framelits, Big Shot
Happy Stamping!
Rachel
