Whoa! Christmas is around the corner!

We probably say it every year, but this year really feels like the holidays really snuck up on us! I'm trying my darndest to get the decorations up with work, kids and baking I just can't finish.  Really, just my idea of finished.  I did managed to knock out a super awesome pinterest craft idea! I'm so excited I pulled it off! I might even make more.  Maybe.  I have a ridiculous amount of branches in my backyard from trimming our trees outside and we don't know what to do with them.  They're slowing going out with the green trash each week but I think that might take years. So why not make use of these beautiful branches!

Don't mind the Thanksgiving-esque flowers below, they haven't made their way out yet. 

Thanksgiving coffee cup. I love gold this year. That is all.

These tags are a kit! A kit! Oh so pretty and easy. love.

Oh What Fun Tag Project Kit!

  Anyone else make it out to an Stampin Up Onstage event?!?!  I love Stampin Up events! Make n Takes, grub and free gear!  Being a demo with Stampin Up has fab perks people.  

We took a trip down to San Diego and made it an overnighter.  This pic is from the rooftop Sky Lounge atop the Marriott.  It was amazing. Beautiful lounge too. 

And our awesome group at Onstage the next day! These chicks are the best! Can't wait for the next one!

Thinking about becoming a demo? Take a gander. No pressure. :-)

Demo time

Onward.....

I know what you're thinking, advent calendars! I made one this year. The boys get to share. 24 individual packages 3x! Not this year. So here's my solution and they're happy with it. The problem I encountered was the weight of it. I'm still looking for a place to hang it without bringing down a wall.  It's not that heavy, but I'm still deciding on a spot.  In the meantime, the boys love tearing each roll off the ribbon to open it and each one that opens one makes sure they each get one.  So stinkin sweet! I love those guys! 

I was stashing empty TP rolls for awhile. With 5 people in the house, it didn't take too long. Ha!

The paper I used it from the Merry Moments Designer Series Paper Stack. They are 6x6 sheets double sided super cute Christmas paper.  I trimmed them to be 4x6 and they fit perfectly.  I lined each short edge with Sticky Tape (my absolute fave adhesive).  Wrap the roll in tissue paper, fill with candy or advent prize of choice (I'm open to ideas without candy!), twist the ends and roll up with the DSP! I tied the ends with Whisper White Baker's Twine just to be sure candy doesn't fall out.  Last place I want to be is at the vet because my dogs at all the chocolate.  

Just an FYI, there's still time to order your Christamas goodies but do it now! No one likes the cool stuff delivered after Christmas! :-)   

Merry Christmas! Happy Hanukkah! Happy New Years! Happy Holiday Season! 

With Love,

Sabrina 

FriendsnStampin

Create with sweets!

Hello again friends!

I hope everyone has had a wonderful summer! Summer here in SoCal has very kind to us with rain days (weird), beautifully warm days and some hot ones that sent us to the beach!  We have nothing to complain about! 😊😊

Onward! Being a cake decorator on the side, I'm always on the lookout for new ideas in decorating. And whoa. Check this out! Stamping with food coloring on fondant AND using wafer paper with stampin Up punched. A whole new world. (Ya, you know you just sang that in your head like Jasmine) 😂

Anyway, I started experimenting. And here's what happened:

Not too shabby, right? I just finished a fairy cake with a ton of these butterflies so I had to sprinkle them on some fondant for cupcakes. Best idea ever.  To get these seriously delicate and fabulous butterflies you'll need some wafer paper. Amazon, Michael's, Joann's or any nearby craft or cake store should carry them.  They really are inexpensive. I used cosmetic sponges to brush the wafer paper with food coloring (I use coloring paste. It's thicker and the idea is to not wet the paper too much, it will crinkle) and let dry. Really only takes a few minutes. Than punch away! Your paper, not people.  

The stampin was quite the challenge. It takes some finagling(?) but it worked out. I'll probably nix that part from the workshop because it's a little more labor intensive than I expected and save it for orders. Maybe. Ultimately, I popped that bad boy into a cupcake holder, aka throne as I've seen it called, and viola!  Sweet little display of yum! 

Fun! I found some holders on Pinterest but decided they were too much work for a workshop so I reworked the design and managed to use one sheet of 8 1/2 x 11 cardstock. I used Cherry on Top DSP with matching color coordinated cardstock. Love that they put together packs to match the DSP for those of us that are color coordinating challenged. I said I would.

As I said, start with an 8 1/2 x 11 sheet of Cherry on Top cardstock, choose your coordinating Cherry on Top DSP for the background, one for your bow, and Cherry on Top cardstock for the oval cutouts. Now get started! 

Cut you 8 1/2 x 11 sheet on the short side at 5 1/4. This larger piece will be your base.  The remaining sheet will be the background piece you'll attach later.  FYI, decorate this first.  I got a little overexcited, attached it, then carefully peeled it back off.  Don't do that. 

 Score your smaller piece (background piece) at 5 1/2. Set that sucker aside.

 Score the larger sheet on the long side at 1", 5", 6", and 10". On the short side score at 1" and 4 1/4". In the end, you should have a score 1" inside each side of the sheet. 

I. Love. My. Simply Scored tool. 

That is all.  Next step----

 Cut the score lines on the long sides (both sides) to the 1" score line.  See that top part on the opposite side of the circle that you used your circle framelits on your Big Shot to cutout to later be filled with a cupcake? Get rid of those tabs on either side.  They just get in the way.  Start Sticky Taping! The pic below shows the inside of your box.  

 This pic below is the outside of your box. Keep it neat. 

 Time to put together your background any way you choose! These colors are so eye popping and fun to use especially with desserts which are usually associated with parties and that is what we're talking about, right? 

 Flip open your background piece. Sticky Tape the bottom. You'll need this at the very bottom, on the inside to adhere to the box. Then randomly Sticky Tape the inside. 

 Alrighty. Start stickin your box together BUT the back flap of your box will be sandwiched between the front and back of background piece. As you bring up this piece after your sandwiching (crafting, food or whatever. We do need to sustain our energy) pull it up to mesh with your box.  There should be a strip of Sticky to help is stand up against your box. 

 See it? Stuck to the box? Easy peasy. 

That's it! The base of you project from one sheet of 8 1/2 x 11 cardstock.  I'm happy. I hate having a ton of scraps that I can't bring myself to toss and hang on to in hopes of using someday. Somehow. 

Here's a list of the products used.  Remember, most of these products are one time purchases to use over and over again.  I do my best to make the most out of the consumables such as paper, adhesives and accents and certainly love to share my adventures in paper crafting with all you lovelies! 

It gets better! I used the Sprinkles of Life photopolymer stamp set for this project.  Stampin Up donates a portion of the proceeds to Ronald McDonald House from each sale.  Isn't that fantastic!  Donating time and/or money makes such a difference in the lives of those struggling in one form or another, whether through Stampin Up or directly to any other reputable organization. As a cake decorator, I feel privilege to be a part of Icing Smiles and to have donated time and cakes to those families and children impacted by critical illnesses. Purchasing this stamp set and donating seemed like a perfect compliment.  

Thank you for visiting!  

lots of love

Sabrina

Shop online 24/7. And I do. Doesn't everybody who crafts?

Cherry On Top Designer Series Paper Stack

$8.00

Cherry On Top 8-1/2" X 11" Cardstock Assortment Pack

$7.00

Rhinestone Basic Jewels

$5.00

Whisper White Craft Stampin' Pad

$8.00

Bow Builder Punch

$18.00

Elegant Butterfly Punch

$16.00

Bitty Butterfly Punch

$16.00

Whisper White Baker's Twine

$3.00

Extra-Large Oval Punch

$18.00

Stampin' Trimmer

$30.00

Simply Scored

$30.00

Big Shot

$110.00

Magnetic Platform

$40.00

Circles Collection Framelits Dies

$27.00

Tear & Tape Adhesive

$7.00

Snail Permanent Adhesive

$7.00

Sprinkles Of Life Photopolymer Stamp Set

$21.00

Table by StampinBuddy. Try it FREE.

Mixin it up!

Well hello stampin friends! It's been ages!

 
  As you know, I'm a caker as well as a stamper in my free time between kids, work, summer vacay,..... Sometimes I go between and can't swing both.  This was the case these past few months but it's time to get back in the game! What better way to do so than mixin up the two! So here's a pic of my most recent cake project.  I used the Elegant Butterfly punch on wafer paper and it worked perfectly!  I was very happy with the outcome and I believe the birthday girl and family were too.

For those able to attend, I'll be hosting a workshop combining both baking and stamping on wafer paper and fondant for cupcakes and cookies! I'm very excited! If interested, shoot me an email to RSVP or if you'd like to have one at your home or favorite venue, that can be set up too whether its Stampin Up paper crafting or a combo baking and stampin.  So much fun!

My Stampin Site

   Stay tuned! There will be more to come! Stamping words and phrases is a little bit trickier than punching butterflies.  Tutorial coming soon!  

   Thank you for visiting!!!  

P.S.  The new holiday catalog will be posted soon also! I've had a sneak peek and let me just say, it gets better every year and I think this may be my absolute favorite one yet!! 

Stampin Up weekly deals!

  Lots of love,

Sabrina

Where does the time go??????

One minute I'm on top of my posts like a crazy person, next months have gone by and no posts!  Sorry to take such a long hiatus but......-sigh-....life.  Gets a little crazy sometimes.

Anyway!! Let's do this!

I finally put together that photo tutorial I promised. Man, taking pics and making notes=easy! Trying to get it done between "mom, can I.....?"; mom will you....?'; "mom where's the.....?" not so much.  Luckily, I give my little one some paper, adhesive, stamps at our craft table he can ink all over and magic happens.  Quiet, peaceful little worker bee.  So it came to be....

I must give credit where credit is due.  I found my guide on South Shore Stamping and tweeked it just a smidge. Thank you South Shore!


First, cut your cardstock 11in x 5in.

Score on the short side at 1 1/2in and 3 1/2in.

Score on the long side at 1/2in, 2 1/2in, 4 1/2in, 6 1/2in.

Next, one of the tweeks, score at 8 1/2in BUT not all the way across.  Stop at the first score line, turn to the other side and stop at that score line.  The middle section should be free of a score line at the 8 1/2in mark. I hope that makes sense.  If you're like me and have to make 2 or 3 more to go Oh! then you'll understand at the end. :-)

Cut off the 1/2in. tabs on the sides leaving the middle section as in the pic.

(notice I cut the tabs off then remembered to take a pic)

Cut off the longer tabs at the other end leaving the middle uncut.  Cut along the other score lines on the sides up to the middle section.  Don't cut all the way across! 

Don't forget your hole!! ;-)  To line up the hole better, I punched some white paper with my 1 3/4in. punch and adhered to the spot I wanted to punch out.  Then I was able to line up my punch around the white paper perfectly without punching through any score lines. Cool, right? No, I didn't make this discovery one the first one, nor the second....we'll just leave it at that.  

  

Now get to the sticky parts! I used sticky tape, it's my absolute favorite adhesive. I just can't keep enough on hand! Flip the paper to the back side and place your adhesive on the one remaining 1/2in. tab. 

Flip that bad boy back over and place more as shown in the pic below. I really should have used lighter paper. My apologies.  Let's see if I can explain.  The two tabs at end of the longest tab, skip the middle ones, then the next two get adhesive and leave it at that.  Leave it.   I'm trying to help you conserve sticky tape. Now start folding. The tabs on either side of the hole will be tucked into the box which I think adds some support.  Don't forget, that little tab has adhesive on it.  Carefully fold that one in to adhere to the longer tab. 

Viola! Easy right? I thought so. Eventually.  Really, I over thought it at first. Once it's all together, let your creativity take over! 

Here's how I finished off mine. :-) 

I don't know how I got weird lighting, but there it is.   I cut out a strip of DSP 8 3/8in. x 2in.  That 3/8in give you that tiny extra room to curve around those corners.   I scored the first line at 2 1/8in. and then at every two inches after that.  Then wrap it up!

Have fun! I'll be using this set up again for a Mother's Day workshop.  Can't wait!

Moving on folks! 

If you haven't heard yet, Sale a Bration ends soon!  I wish it was extended another month at least!  For every $50 spent before S&H, taxes, you choose a free item! These freebies are great.  No silly or throw away items at all. In fact, most of us went a little crazy and got almost all of them. Then restocked.  Don't judge.

Shop Occasions Catalog here!

******Important note:  Our beloved Blendabilities have been discontinued.  :-(  They weren't able to perfect the product and rather than offer a subpar item, they pulled them.  The amazing part is they added more items and they are fabulous!  Printed vellum (beautiful), accessory pack (can't get enough of these), and a few super cute stamps.  I told you, nothing but the best! 

So there it is, cool stuff and new stuff.   

Don't be shy, take a stroll around the site. Plan your projects before you order and most importantly, have fun!  I know I do. 

Weekly Deals!  Oh how I love weekly deals.  

If you'd like more info on becoming a Demonstrator, visit my site Here

Aaaand goodnight!!

Thank you friends!!

~~~~Sabrina~~~

Busy Busy!

Good Morning friends!!  It's a beautiful Southern California morning and I am up way earlier than normal.  It's a cake makin day but a crafter's night tonight! I want to have all the little goodies ready for my youngest son for Valentine's Day. Too earlier? No way. I've barely been able to get those suckers out the door morning of in the past. So, this year, I'm on it! My older two can decide anymore whether they want to participate or not.  We'll see. It's alway last minute.   :-)

Also, if you're local to Riverside or San Bernardino and were trying to decide what to do Saturday, March 28th come on out to....

Buy tickets here!

I'm a Cupcake Competitor!  I participated last year and we all had so much fun! So many goodies with your ticket purchase.  Best of which is a 12 count cupcake container! What's this mean for you? Stroll around the event and snatch up any 12 cupcakes from any booth to fill your container! It's fabulous! Cupcakes galore last year!  Correction: fill up with cupcakes, cookies and cake pops! This will be the first year to have cakes as a category, which I chose not to compete in, so I can't wait to see the entries!  So save the date! You may end up having to eat salads for a week just to make up for the overload of sweets but it'll be worth it!

And we move on....

I had a couple of friends come over for a little Valentine's Day crafting and there ended up being more kids than adults! What made it great was that some of the kids joined in to make a couple of the projects.  I love when they jump in with excitement!  You can see the light bulb click on and they get lost in their own creative world.  I love it. They couldn't wait to share their accomplishments with teachers and parents.  So sweet! 

We made two cards and Kcup holders.  I love 3D projects. They really are my favorite thing to craft. So here's a pic of that...

Cute, right? Tonight I will post the instructions with a pic tutorial.  I've got some caking to do in the meantime.  :-)  We dropped some Hot Chocolate Kcups in these holders and BAM! cuteness. 

This one features one of my absolute favorite stamp sets! The Kinda Eclectic stamp set. Oh and my favorite color with Stampin Up, Blackberry Bliss. I don't know what it is but this color is amazing on everything!  They new butterflies thinlits? Don't even get me started. They are beautiful!

Upcoming workshop project! This card uses the new Lotus Blossom stamp set.  It's a free item in the Sale a Brations catalog with a $50 purchase! This is really a great time to nab all those Stampin Up goodies you've been eyeballin! AND you get to choose a free item from Sale a Brations! It's a win-win.  Oh, just to let you know, some of the Blendabilites sets are in the book of freebies. Just saying.  (Maybe with my tutorial post later I could get a little better pic of this card. This just isn't doing it justice)

Occasions 2015! Shop here :-)

Again, if you're in the area (Corona, Riverside) visit my Facebook page to stay in the know on upcoming workshops.  It's pizza, crafting and chit chatting with friends! 

Friends n Stampin FB

Thanks for visiting and come back soon!!

*****Sabrina