Now showing...

I thought I would share these pictures from my last ultra sound.

It's a girl!

Here is her profile. That big dot on the right is her hand.

And can you see 2 legs and a hand in this picture?
Her legs are crossed, and her fist is pointing straight at you!
I so want to get another 3D/4D ultra sound done when she is a little bigger so we can see her! This will most likely be our last child, so we won't have the opportunity again. Time to start saving my pennies for that photo shoot!

So Saffron, So Cute!

I came up with this quick project while cleaning up my craft room, soon to be nursery. I found a stack of these 4x6 acrylic photo frames that go on your fridge. So, I put one to use. Can you see the marker hanging from the ribbon? That's because it's a wipe off board!I love the way it turned out.

(Sorry the ribbon is a little wonky in the first photo)

I used So Saffron for my base. The DSP that you can see peeking through is from the FREE Sale A Bration pack of paper. Yummy stuff! I then used another piece of So Saffron followed by a piece of Whisper White.

I used my Crop-O-Dile to punch a hole into the first layer of the plastic frame. Yes, it cut right through - and it didn't crack the plastic! Woo hoo! I used the So Saffron Ribbon that you can get for FREE from the Sale A Bration catalog! I attached the wipe off marker to the ribbon using a piece of Sticky Tape.

The stamped images are from Just Buzzin' By. I used Basic Black to stamp them. A So Saffron marker, a Basic Black marker, a Blush Blossom marker, and my White Gel Pen to color in the bees.

So simple, and fun. These would be great door prizes, teacher gifts, or maybe a little housewarming gift.

Where is that recipe?

Here is a recipe box that will be featured at

an upcoming class at my church.

We will be using the Voila, and From the Kitchen of

stamp sets to create the project.

I punched the tabs using my circle punches and adhered them to the tops of my divider cards. I colored the Chef with my SU! markers, cut him out, and used dimensionals to pop him up on the recipe box.

If you are local, and would like to attend this FREE class - contact me by February 18th so I can prepare the stamped supplies for you!

Seeing Spots

I have been seeing spots every where! (And no, not just from my low blood sugar). Spots are so fun - when they are on paper or sheets! Here is a 6x6 page that will become a 12x12 page soon.

I used a Pink Pirouette base, Very Vanilla for the mat, Kiwi Kiss, Very Vanilla, and Elegant Eggplant for the circles. To create the circles, I used various Stampin' Up! circle punches. I also used a piece of Kiwi Kiss Satin Ribbon. Yummy stuff!

To make the circles with the centers punched out, I first punched the smaller circle into the card stock, and then used the larger punch for the larger circle. Clear as mud? If you go the other way... punch the large circle, then the small circle - you will have a hard time getting the card stock to come out clean or to come out of your punch at all.

Now, that being said... Stampin' Up! is now offering Circle Scissors and glass mat so you can create circles up to 6". You can do the same effect with the larger circles as I have done here with the new Circle Scissors. Or you can stock up on all the yummy new papers and stamps and get the Circle Scissors later - now that you know how to get a fun spot look!

Hostess Night

Blogger is finally letting me add photos!!

Here are the items that were made at my Monday night Hostess Club.

Our first project was a tag that could be used on a gift bag, a card, or scrapbook page.

We used Sahara Sand cardstock and the Top Note Big Shot Die. We used the soon to be retired Bronc Buster set with Chocolate Chip Classic Ink. We sponged the ink on top of the Die Cut to give it a leather look.

We added a Jumbo eyelet using the Crop-o-dile.

Then added a bit of Rope Twine to finish it off.

We made a gift bag using the Stampin' Up! white gift sacks. We used the Ahoy, Matey set - another set that is soon to be retired. We used Basic Black Classic ink on the bag and on the pocket tag. To create the tag, I used a Long Note with one side folded in half to create the pocket for the crayons. We used Sticky Strip to hold the sides of the pocket down.

A 1-3/8" circle punch in the top with a quick scissor snip to create the handle.
You can't have a gift bag without tissue paper. So we used the Matey's Map wheel - soon to retire - on white tissue paper. Super easy!

We also created a Valentine box using the Hostess Level 1 Prints pack, and the Big Shot Scallop Envelope Die. We added a cello bag of Dove chocolates to finish it off.

I made this for everyone. I used the Pillow Box Die with Pacific Point cardstock. I stamped the Thank You sentiment from the new single stamp - Elegant Thank You - that will be in the Spring-Summer Idea Book & Catalog. Each box contained an incentive stamp.

Here's another treat that I gave the girls. I made the "belly band" using Riding Hood Red and the birthday hat and present from the soon to be retired Crab & Co. Then stamped the birthday sentiment from the Family Phrases set on Pink Pirouette.

In-Law gifts

Here are the 2 gifts that I made for my husband's parents.

The first was a canvas that I painted and applied a Decor Element to. I want the large version of this scripture to put in my kitchen! I love it! I added a strip of satin ribbon (non-Stampin' Up!) to the top and bottom of the canvas to finish it up.

The second gift was a large jar filled with those Christmas nugget candies. They are my husband's and his Mom's favorite Christmas candy. I added a Decor Element letter M to the jar to personalize it. Super easy, and they can use it year round!

Snow Swirrled Christmas

Here are the last minute Christmas cards that I made this year. I actually sent all that I made this time! I have a very bad habit of making Christmas cards, but never actually mailing or handing them out! This year, they made it into the mail - later than I wanted - but they made it none the less!

I used a Real Red base with an Old Olive mat behind the Very Vanilla front. The tree was stamped in Old Olive Craft ink and embossed with Iridescent Ice for a little shimmer. The sentiment was stamped in Classic Old Olive ink. I used my stamp-a-ma-jig to get the trees and sentiments straight on all the cards! To finish the card off, I added a Real Red 1/4" Grosgrain Ribbon.

Twas the night before Christmas...

I received this poem from my friend Jenn, and thought it was too cute not to share with all my crafting buddies...

Twas the night before Christmas,

I'm glued to the tree.

I'm wondering what Santa brought just for me.

Could it be cardstock or chipboard or lace?

Or a Cricut, I said, with a smile on my face.

And that's when I heard him,"Hi Santa, " I said

"You know....good little girls

should be in their beds."

"I know I should Santa,and now I've got caught.

But I was just so excited

To see what you brought."

"Well, let's take a look in this room

where you work."

He shook his head quickly,

And left with a jerk.

I heard him exclaim as he put it in gear.

"You've got enough crap, I'll see you next year!"

Retiring January 18th!

Here is the Fall-Winter Retired Stamp Set list. It is in catalog page order - so you can easily mark your catalog!

http://www.stampinup.com/us/documents/Retired_Lists_US2.pdf

Those marked "dormant" rather than a page number are coming from our dormant list. These were available during the current catalog - they just weren't in the actual catalog. Hint: if the sets on the dormant list are not retiring - there is a VERY good chance they will be in the new catalog!

http://www.stampinup.com/us/documents/Dormant_List_US.pdf

Oh baby!

Here's what's been keeping me from blogging! I have been so sick the last few weeks and have had no energy to do much of anything!

The little one, named "Peanut" by my doctor, myself, and my sister-in-law is measuring 9 weeks. I think it looks more like a cashew - but peanut works. So Baby Mason number 3 will be here around July 17! My oldest son's birthday is July 2 - he's actually excited to have a sibling with a birthday near his! I think it has more to do with someone else in the family not getting to celebrate their birthday at school than anything else! :)

Stampin' Up! has announced the Fall-Winter Retired List. Head on over to my web site (www.andreamason.stampinup.net) and check it out, if you haven't seen it already. A few of my favorites are on that list! They are also retiring one of the baby sets that I wanted. Hmmm... do I get it now, or wait to see what comes in the new catalog? Ack! Decisions!!

By the way... all sets on the retired list are 10% off! Sweet! Even sweeter... FREE shipping on orders of $70 or more! If you don't have a $70 order, I will combine orders to save you the shipping! Just let me know! I'm all about saving some green this year!

And don't forget... you can get any set in the sampler for 20% off when you spend $20!

Christmas Shadow Box

I originally made this shadow box using a Decor Element for fall. However, with a little Real Red cardstock, a strip of DSP from the I Wish Simply Scrappin' Kit, and some shiny foam presents... it's ready for Christmas now!

Sorry the picture isn't the best. These boxes are hard to photograph! :)

Travel Mugs

Not much crafting going on here for the past few days. So, I'm digging up some photos and stories from my craft fairs that I haven't shared yet! I tell you, you meet some interesting people at these craft fairs! If you have the opportunity to participate in one - you should! You won't get rich, or make a ton of money, but you will have some stories to tell!

These are travel mugs that I stamped the inserts for. The two that aren't colored in can be colored by the kids and given as a gift. I think I will make a few more of these for my last craft fair of the year! The 3 below have found a home (Thanks Trina!).

I had a beautiful one using the dragon fly from the Bugs & Kisses set. They were stamped in different colors, and I added Dazzling Diamonds to the wings. It was so pretty. Well, it was the first one that sold! Great! Well, not so much. The lady that bought it wanted it because she's been looking all over for these type of cups because her son had made her one of these a long time ago and the cup got ruined. She just wanted the cup! I thought it was funny, but at the same time wanted to give her one of the other ones that I had.

Mark your calendars!

You won't want to miss this!

November 26 - December 1

What is the Holiday Extravaganza sale?
The sale is a limited-time, 20 to 50 percent discount on select product bundles from November 26 through December 1, 2008.
Quantities of discounted bundles are limited, so place orders online early.

You can call or email me too - but know that bundles may be sold out quickly!

Coming in July!

I Wish

We did a 6x6 scrapbook page at our Hostess Club using the I Wish Simply Scrappin' Kit, and the coordinating Snow Swirled stamp set. I love the colors in this kit- some of my favorites! Brown, Olive, and Red! Yum!
We stamped the Snow Swirled tree image in Old Olive Craft Ink. Then sprinkled Dazzling Diamonds mixed with Clear Embossing Powder over the image and heat set it. You can use Iridescent Ice Embossing Powder too - but I like getting more bang for my buck by mixing my own when I need it! That way I have Dazzling Diamonds, and Clear Embossing Powder for all my other projects!

Here's what the tree looks like when the light catches it. It's awesome!

My Christmas list book!

I made 4 of these cute Christmas list books for the craft fairs. I came home with all 4 too! LOL!
I found these books at the Dollar Tree. They have plastic covers so they won't tear apart in your purse. They have tabs too, so you could make a section for gifts, food, dates of parties, or maybe a tab for each family member.

I used the Snow Swirled images. I first stamped in Silver Encore ink and then embossed the images with clear embossing powder. I layered them on Silver Cardstock and added a little Basic Gray Taffeta bow to finish them off.

Countdown to Christmas

Don't panic! There's more like 40 days until Christmas, but 25 is the biggest number that this Decor Elements piece comes with. So fun! I used an 11"x 14" frame for the SMALL Decor Element! The paper backround is Ski Slope, and is under the glass. So when we get more fabulous Christmas paper next year - I can change it out! Yippee! I put the numbers on squares of cardstock and then taped a metal washer to the back. I used a dot of Crystal Effects to adhere a magnet to the glass! Done!

Snowman Soup in a bag!

Here are some photos of the Snowman Soup that I made for my Monday Hostess group. I used the Ski Slope Designer Series Paper. So pretty! You can do these for any season! They are fairly simple to mass produce too!

The side:

The inside:

The goodies:

The tag from Nicole Heady's blog:

I've seen these box/bags on many sites, but was afraid to try them. Oh my goodness! They are so easy!! Here are some super instructions for how to construct your box. I didn't add the extra strip around the bottom of mine.

The tag is from Nicole Heady. You can download your tags own here.

Craft fair sighting...

Here is a picture of me at the Thursday craft fair. We were worried about the chocolate melting, but as you can see from my jacket - it turned out to be a rather cool day!

A quick list of what we had:

Stamped Canvas bags

Kids Color Me cards

Husband's 6-Pack

Stamped Candles

Hershey's Nuggets Tins

Reeses Peanut Butter Cups in Tall Tins

Power of M&M's poem with box of M&M's

Whisk you a Merry Christmas/Happy Thanksgiving

Stamped Coasters

Stamped Glass Ornaments

Birthday Bowls

Post-it Note Keychains

Water Bottle Tags

Various Scrapbooks/Bragbooks

Christmas list notebooks (I'll post these later on)

Christmas Fudge

Coffee Mugs

Stamped Travel Mugs

Stamped Glass Jars

Dog bone gifts

Reindeer Food

Thanksgiving Nuts

and of course Retired Stampin' Up! sets and ink.

I came home with a lot of stuff on Thursday, did a little better on Saturday. Sold some more stuff at Hostess group on Monday. And now Suz has some stuff at her school to sell for Secret Santa items. I have one more fair on December 7th. I don't think I am going to make anything new for that one. I don't know where I'm going to put all the stuff I currently have!

I think that next year, I need to prepare some reminder signs. One's to jog their memory about who the might need a simple gift for - Need a quick gift? Teacher? Co-worker? Don't forget your Secret Santa. Stocking Stuffers!

My Dad loaned me a tent for Thursday because we were outside. Well, he gave me his business tent! So here we were with all of our Stampin' Up! goods under a giant blue tent that says "Golf Channel Tour". We had many male visitors, but as soon as they realized it was a trap - they took off!

The highlight of Saturday is when 2 ladies visited our table. They were admiring our goodies, but then realized what some of the goods were in. Longaberger baskets! Not just any Longaberger baskets though. These were like gold! Oh, my dear friend Suz listened to these 2 ladies go on an on about how much they were worth because they were two toned, had the stamp on the bottom, and had the metal labels! My friend Staci and I giggled. It felt like we were being filmed on the Antique Roadshow! 1986 authentic Longaberger baskets! Oh my word, why is this out in the open? It was rather amusing. So Suz, did you check out how much they are worth? :)

Cute as a Bug!

Here are few pictures from one of my scrapbook albums that I made for the craft fairs. I found the albums at the Dollar Tree! The paper inside is mulberry paper! Very cute stuff. I stamped a few of the pages with some bugs. The paper is thin enough to see the bugs from either side of the paper.

Craft Fair #1

Craft fair #1 is tomorrow! Wish Suz and I luck. We have a lot to sell! You've got to see the cute Christmas Fudge, and Reindeer Food that Suz made. You can see them on her blog www.waitingforcaroline.blogspot.com

Husband took my camera with him on his business trip - so I'll have to remember to borrow my sons. How sad is that?! :)

Our next fair is on Saturday. There will be over 100 vendors on Saturday! I can't wait!!

Nuts!

I was going through some old cards (does anyone else keep their old greeting cards?) and came across one with this Thanksgiving saying...

Thanksgiving always reminds me of my family...

A turkey, A ham, and a whole bunch of nuts!

I loved it!

So... with a few craft fairs coming up, I thought I'd see if anyone else liked it. I added the saying to the top of a bag of trail mix!

Because I don't have any Thanksgiving stamps, I created a fall pumpkin using my small oval punch and my word window punch! I love Stampin' Up! punches! They are so easy to use and you can create just about anything with them!

Leave a message

So my crafty friend Suz asked me if you could stamp on a wipe-off board. Uh... I know you can do glossy tiles, but I dunno about wipe-off boards. So... I had to try!

Here are my results!

So yes, you can stamp on wipe-off boards. I used the Inspired by Nature set and used craft ink. I then heat set it with my heat gun.

However, you cannot write over the images with your wipe-off marker and expect the ink to come off of the image! Grr... There's got to be a way to get the marker off but I've tried everything... Crystal Effects, Clear Gloss, Thick Enamel, I even tried embossing it! No luck. So I guess if I make these for the fair or to give away, I will have to put a little disclaimer saying, "to preserve the beautiful image, please don't write over the image" I don't like to do that - but what other options are there? Hmm... maybe not to make them?! Ha ha

Give a dog a bone!

Super quick. Super easy. Super cute!

I had fun making doggy treats for one of my craft fairs.

Everyone loves to get the pal something to put under the Christmas tree!

I used the little dog from All in the Family.

Hi all! My new computer monitor will be here on Thursday! Woo hoo! Then I promise to post some of the fabulous projects that I've been working on for 2 upcoming craft fairs! You're going to LOVE them! In the mean time, I encourage you to check out the Splitcoast Stampers blog links on the right side of my blog (towards the bottom).

Oh, and don't forget you have until October 31 to purchase select birthday themed sets at 20% off!

Table decor with your Big Shot!

Here is another video featuring Shelli! You will LOVE the ideas she has to create holiday table decor using your Big Shot!

Supply List

Stamp Sets
Cute & Curly Punch Label bundle
Everyday Flexible Phrases
Holiday Blitz
Simple Serif Mini Alphabet & Numbers
Wild West Alphabet

Stampin' Pads
Baja Breeze Classic
Chocolate Chip Classic
Old Olive Classic
Real Red Classic

Card Stock/Paper
Ski Slope Designer Series paper
Baja Breeze card stock
Chocolate Chip card stock
Naturals White card stock
Old Olive card stock
Real Red card stock

Accessories
Dies:
Big Shot die cutting machine
Pillow Box die
Scallop Circle #2 die
Top Note Bigz die

Accents:
Pretties Kit
Styled Silver Hodgepodge Hardware

Adhesives:
Anywhere Glue Stick
Stampin' Dimensionals
Two-Way Glue Pen

Punches:
1/16 Circle punch
3/4 Circle punch
Horizontal Slot punch

Ribbon/Cord/Thread:
vAlpine Ribbon Originals
Baja Breeze 5/8 striped grosgrain ribbon
Linen thread
Silver elastic cord

Miscellaneous:
Acetate (from office supply store; thick)
Bone folder
Dazzling Diamonds Stampin' Glitter

If you have any questions, please let me know!

Jingle all the way!

Visit my web site, email me, or call me to order your Decor Elements today!

www.andreamason.stampinup.net

Go Go Boots Tag

My husband was so excited when I told him that I ordered Go Go Boots! Hee hee. Little did he know... Go Go Boots is an alphabet die to use in my Big Shot! Sorry honey!

Here is what my Hostess group made at our make up session. My friend Suz took this photo and put it on her blog. I swiped it - cause now I can't find my tag in the sea of crafts that is growing in my office! These craft fairs will be here soon, or so I hope!

It is a name tag that you can wear, add to a bag, lunch box, purse, anything you can think of! I found the badge holders at the Dollar Tree! I used Chocolate Chip, Pink Pirouette, and a piece of scrap DSP. The ribbon is from my scrap bin too!

Apply Spooky Spiders!

Here is a video of Shelli Gardner, CEO of Stampin’ Up!, on a show called “Good Things Utah”. She demonstrated how to apply the new Spooky Spider Decor Elements which is now available just in time for Halloween! The exclusive Spooky Spider comes in three sizes and in both black and white starting at just $5.95. You’ll want to order yours today so you can enjoy it before Halloween! Visit my website http://www.andreamason.stampinup.net/ to order yours online!

Working on some tiles

Here are a few tumbled tiles that I'm working on...

This set uses the Inspired by Nature set. I used Chocolate Chip, More Mustard, and Old Olive for the flowers.

This one uses the Nature Silhouettes set with Basic Grey for the tree, deer, and edges. I used More Mustard and Brocade Blue for the background. Sorry for the dark picture too! I couldn't get it to come out right. The boys liked the tile though. I thought it was a little dark but wanted to give it a shadowy look. Do you think it's too dark?

Candle experiment

I have had several questions regarding stamped candles and whether or not they are safe to burn. To be honest, I've never lit one. So I decided to find out for you...

I placed the candle on a glass plate to protect my table, and then lit the candle.

After a few minutes, I could see that the candle burns inward. Meaning that the wax pooled in the center rather than running down the sides.

Then I got impatient waiting for it to burn! So I took the flame to the spot that we wanted to test - the tissue paper.

No fire! It did discolor the tissue a little bit - but I would have no worries about burning these stamped candles.

Hope this helps you and your decision about burning your pretty stamped candles! Especially the candles that burn inward.

New links!

I have uploaded the Stampin' Up! specials in the side bar for you to see! Click the picture to the right for more information!

World Card Making Day Specials

Decor Elements Phase 2

Stampin' Up! Birthday Stamps Sale

Aqua Painter Special

Holiday Mini

You can take advantage of all of these great specials on my website! www.andreamason.stampinup.net