Easter is almost here!

I am decorating ukrainian easter eggs with my friend Emma on Friday, but I also found the motherlode of egg decorating techniques: 62 different ways from Martha. Here is another card sample using my favourite chocolate bunny stamp again, that I recieved in my last sideline swap. It also uses my favourite polka dot impressions folder for the background. Enjoy!

Your Shape

Your Shape from Ubisoft with Jenny McCarthy is another workout game hitting the market for the Wii. I was given a chance to test it out from BzzAgent... and its a good thing, since my "shape" is a bit on the round side these days. One thing I really like about this game, as opposed to Wii Fit, or any other Wii game ever, is that it utilises a webcam to track your movements. This frees you up to do more complex movements, rather than being stuck with the annoying balance board. The other bonus is that you are less likely to hurt yourself by doing a move incorrectly since Jenny on the screen tracks your movements and tells you when you are off track. So far all I have done is set up my fitness profile and the basic testing exercises, but I am excited to try out the actual workouts and see how it goes. They did a "body scan" with the webcam (eep!|) and set me up a custom schedule. I think it will be a good compliment to running. I'll let you know how it goes!

easter cupcakes!

I wanted to show off this ridiculously cute project from the Stampin' Up! homepage, because I love it so much, and I think it is just perfect for Spring or Easter parties. For all of the supplies you can check out the website here, but the main stamp set used is eggcoutrements, which I think is a super cute set, especially when used with the matching punches. Don't have this set? Contact me to order it! But don't forget that this project is totally adaptable to any occasion, and also works great with the scallop circle punch too.

Today I want to show you guys a beautiful card I made at last month's upline meeting, as a make-and-take. It uses a technique I had never thought of before, which is embossing twice with 2 difference folders. First we put the purple cardstock through the Perfect Polka Dots embossing folder, then put it through again with the Elegant Boquet embossing folder, which has the sideswept flower image. We lightly sanded the flowers and added some glitter to the middles to make them stand out. Then we added in the hodgepodge hardware, making sure to punch out the sentiment first with the matching modern label punch, so it goes together perfectly! This makes an easy card with lots of texture that could be adapted for any occasion!

Elegant Butterflies

At my latest upline meeting, Alison had 2 really beautiful make-and-takes for us. This one is my favourite! It uses the vintage vogue wheel in a whole new way. I really like a lot of the stampin' up wheels, but find it hard to roll them perfectly straight every time. This is completely fool proof, because all you have to do is punch out the nicest parts! Nobody would ever know if it wasn't straight or inked evenly. Then we layered the punches squares and added some die cut butterflies from the Mini Catalogue. By adding on the butterflies with glue dots and gently folding out the wings, the card has a beautiful 3d effect.

My Best Customer

My mom has been stamping since I was a kid, and there aren't many other crafts she doesn't do either. She has created some really beautiful projects over the years, especially cross-stitching, which I do NOT have the patience for. She really wanted to attend one of my upline meetings, to get in on the fun, and I was all set to bring her as a guest, but she had to attend a Blockwatch safety seminar instead. Must be tough hanging out at the fire hall with those sexy firemen! Luckily she still was able to participate in our Spring-themed swap. She did me proud with a really beautiful design, incorporating the new scallop edge and corner punches, vintage labels saleabration stamp set, and flight of the butterfly set. She punched out the larger butterfly with the co-ordinating punch, but had to hand cut the smaller ones. When the card is out of its clear plastic envelope, the wings are dimensional as well! The vintage label also perfectly matches the scallop circle punch! She used the rich razzleberry in-colour with the matching razzleberry lemonade designer paper. We both got some really beautiful swap cards in return, which I will be showing on my blog soon, so check back often!

Springtime Joy!

The second card that we made during my Springtime workshop was a joy fold card. I love cards that have a different twist to them, and this one has a unique opening. The ribbon holds it shut, so you untie the ribbon, then have 2 flaps to fold open. We used the Upsy Daisy stamp set, and sponged the edges directly onto the rubber before stamping on the paper. This gives the flowers such a nice two-toned effect. Our  layers are the Tea Party designer paper again, it matches so nice with the Soft Subtle pastels.

Easter Quilt Card

Here is a sample of a card I designed for my Springtime workshop, that was held last Saturday. The technique used is called a "quilt," because you punch out squares of designer paper ( a great scrap buster!), glue them onto a plain peice of cardstock, then run the whole thing through the big shot with the top note die. You can also use a marker to make faux stitch lines to make it look even more quilted. We added sponged edges in Pixie Pink instead. Then we added a Chocolate Bunny on chocolate chip paper with chocolate chip ink, raised up on dimensionals. Quick, easy, and cute! The hardest part of the whole card is figuring out what order you want to put your designer paper squares in. The Tea Party designer paper from the main catalogue is so pretty; I just love all of the designs, which is rare for an entire pack.