There's no need to fear...

...Underdog is here!

So, here is the story of this little creation. I ordered a multitude of stamp sets with my Sale-a-Bration benefits after seeing which ones made the cut through the retiring list. Of course, these sets required cutting and setting, so I put myself to the task of cutting out the rubber and getting them onto their blocks. Now, Little Miss A has always been creative. She loves to draw and play with stickers, paint, color, stamp, you name it, she does it. She is keeping me and company while I am busy cutting all this rubber and she asks me if she can play with the rubber pieces I am putting in my stamp room garbage can. I don't see any harm in it so I tell her as long as she only sticks them to a piece of paper that is fine. I fetch her a big piece of her drawing paper and get back to work.

Now, a little inside information about the child. She gets on kicks about any number of topics. She has always had a thing for all topics aquatic, and will wax poetic for days on end about Shamu and SeaWorld and sharks until you want to rupture your own eardrums just to make it stop. The only CD I have heard in my vehicle for the past 2 months is the soundtrack to "Believe", which is the current Shamu show at SeaWorld. Luckily I enjoy it as well, and hearing her rendition of it is hilarious, but to the uninitiated it can sort of feel like indoctrination into some sort of sea-faring mammal cult. I'm just saying, don't drink the Kool-Aid.

Anyway, one of her current movie kicks is Underdog (the new version), thanks to the fact that her daddy gave me a $20 the other night and sent me to the movies and stayed home and watched Underdog with our child and fed her ice cream and maybe, and I can't confirm or deny this, maybe let her paint his toenails. I'm just saying, he's a pretty good daddy to her. (OK, so I'm just kidding about the toenails part. Or am I?)

OK, tangent is over. So, about 5 minutes after raiding my trash can of all the rubber scraps she could fit into her Handy Manny construction hat, she holds up her paper and says, "Hey Mommy, it's Underdog!" And you know what? I think it was pretty worthy for a kid who isn't even an entire hand old yet. So I decided to share with you. Because I'm a giver. And because she didn't even get melty once while she was making it, and that is always a good thing!

I hope everyone has a great day! Until next time, Happy Stamping!!

Kim

Some good news, and some bad...

It is with a tear in my eye and a caffeine deprived hand that I pass along the news that I found waiting for me this morning when I checked the web. Lydia, you may want to just look away and not read this. I'm not sure if this is even your favorite Starbucks to go to, but it had quickly become mine since it is the absolute closest to my house. What really upsets me is the darn thing has only been open for a few months and hasn't been given a chance. Stupid downsizing.

OK. It will all be ok. Especially since I got this in the mail yesterday:

Next to a visit from Mr. Brown (and I will be seeing you later today, Mr. Brown!), there is no happier moment than when my man in blue brings me a little box from Michigan with this label on it. Why, you may ask? Well, because inside the box, you see the cutest packaging in all of stamping history, equal only to the little blue box that comes from Tiffany's in my book. It looks something like this:

I keep telling myself that one day I am going to turn that cute tissue into a card, but I haven't done it quite yet.

Anyway, inside this sweet soft blue wrapped package I knew that I could look forward to some new stamps. More specifically, I great set of Hannas that I had been eyeing for some time as well as my ultimate favorites, Riley Moose. Multiple mooses. Meeses even. Well, here they are for your enjoyment:

I love all of my meeses to pieces! And I have quite a collection of them at this point. I am kicking myself for not ordering the vampire Riley, because he was about as adorable as you can imagine a moose with fangs being, but I will be content for now with the Pirate and Cowboy. So, my goal today is to bring you some stellar creations with the new stamps. And, because Lydia drags me kicking and screaming into the 21st century of bloggers, you can now know when I do update my blog by subscribing to my email updates. Because I know you hang on my every keystroke.

Wow. I'm absolutely intoxicated with my own power right now. That must mean that someone is about to show me exactly where I fall on the food chain....lol!

I hope everyone has a great day....and until next time (very soon!) Happy Stamping!

New stuff is fun...

...especially when it comes to new stamps and new colors!

If you haven't been looking at anyone's blogs lately or just don't know what time of year it is, we are at T-minus 27 days until the new Stampin' Up! catalog comes out. Otherwise known as "The Gauntlet" over at Mr. Brown headquarters. Every demonstrator I know has been one grabby moment short of assault charges as they stalk...er...wait for their respective UPS guys to show up with their preorders. Except me. I would never dream of that type of behavior. Oh, and if you are just finding my blog...please don't read my previous post about the UPS guy. I don't know who put that on my site. She has to be crazy!

So, back to the whole "new stuff" part. Here is a card that I made with the new In Colors and a brand new stamp set, "Dreams du Jour". This one starts with a long base of Tangerine Tango and mats done in Baja Breeze and Kiwi Kiss. The images were stamped on Shimmery White (the picture just can't do it justice) and then colored in with a blender pen and the new ink colors.

I wanted to really make the butterflies look like those gorgeous specimens you see on those "Animal Planet" specials, so I blended the Baja Breeze all the way through the wings and then added some Pacific Point highlights to the darker areas. I am sure I will be going through several dozen packs of paper in these new colors during the next few months.

This card was made with an older set that I finally bought for myself after quite the internal struggle. I am so glad I got it, because (don't tell anyone I told you this), my husband actually LIKES this one. Really, really likes it. The way the Academy liked Sally Field back in 1985. (You did see Norma Rae, right?)

So, this one features the new Pink Pirouette and Riding Hood Red, with some Chocolate Chip thrown in for balance. I stamped the main image using Chocolate Chip ink, then just kept on moving the stamp up and to the left in small increments without reinking it to get the running shadow. The "Wanted" was stamped using versamark and then embossed with white EP. After setting that I took some Tim Holz distress ink directly to the red piece of cardstock and swiped it all over, then rubbed it off of the embossed area. The stars on the side were stamped using Riding Hood Red and Close to Cocoa. I wanted to add a little something extra and figured that this would be the perfect place to add some hemp twine. Overall it got a thumbs up from Little Miss A and the DH, so I guess it is a keeper.

I hope that you all are having a great week, and getting excited about the new release coming up. Remember to check my schedule over at my Stampin' UP! site for my open house and other classes this month as well.

Until next time, Happy Stamping!

Kim

Mr. UPS....

....will you marry me?








OK, OK, so things aren't that serious between me and Mr. Brown, but I could have kissed him for the incredible box of goodies that he brought to my door yesterday. I did not manage to take any pictures of me opening said box, because well, this is more of a "family" oriented sight and I did not want the carnage to traumatize anyone. I am pretty sure that I blacked out for a couple of seconds there, because one minute all my pretty new paper was in its packaging and the next it was opened, sorted, and in my paper files waiting to be cut and stamped.


So, this morning I found some quiet time to do this:






Honestly, the picture does not do the colors justice here. I used the new Kiwi Kiss for the main piece, and the image is stamped and matted with Baja Breeze and Pacific Point. I also swiped a little Kiwi Kiss ink on the edges of the white cardstock to give them a little more depth. The butterflies and flowers on the main card are from the new Level 3 Hostess Set "Happiness Always", and the sentiment is from the new catalog and is called "Heard from the Heart".

This will be one of the cards I have on display during my open house/catalog release party on August 22nd. I will also have a couple of Make and Takes for everyone who comes out to the party. I hope that everyone has a great weekend, and pop over to Lydia's blog for a chance at some great blog candy! She is giving away "Infinite Goodness", and trust me, if I didn't have that one already I would be trying to win it!

Until next time, Happy Stamping!

Kim

I think...

...my UPS man is onto me. Let's face it, he is no fool, he's been around the Stampin' Up block a time or two. He knows that there is a new release right about now...you can see the tension in his eyes. I know I am not the only demo in my area, so I can only assume that this scenario plays itself out more than a few times a day for Mr. Brown. Tell me if any of the following sound familiar to you girls:

I have been (not very patiently) waiting for my pre-order goodies to arrive. I have been commiserating with other demos around me (Lydia, I promise if I see your sock monkey I will personally assault Mr. Brown and grab it for you!) and they all feel the same way. But my Mr. Brown, well, let's just put it this way.

Do you ever watch Discovery Channel? Or how about Animal Planet? You know that plaintive look the little gazelle gets when he is approaching the watering hole full of hungry crocodiles, or how all the little penguins just line up nervously waiting to see who is going to be first to jump into the killer whale infested waters? That is the exact same look on Mr. Brown's face these days when he pulls up in front of my house.

First of all, he either is running a hybrid engine or he shuts the thing off and coasts in to my place because you never hear the engine running. Oh no, that might tip you off that he is actually here. I have gotten smarter and make sure to put my dogs outside on UPS day to get an early warning, but with the summer heat they mostly just nap in the breezeway instead of stand guard like they are supposed to. (Oh sure, they can hear me open the very cabinet that the doggy cookies are in and come barking, but they can't hear that giant truck? Not a coincidence, folks!)


So, after stealthily approaching my house, I have noticed the following behavior. First, he will go hide in the back of his truck for a few minutes. I can only assume that he is steeling his nerve, perhaps scrawling a hasty "I love you honey, remember I tried my best" goodbye note on a packing slip or something. Then, he comes to the door of the truck. He looks furtively at my door like I have land mines planted in my yard or something, then decides to take a small "test step" outside of the van. Trust me, not since the great Neil Armstrong set foot on the moon did one man do so much with one step. Why do I say this? Well, in Kim's world once his foot hits my yard, it's on.


The man wears the cute little brown shorts and running shoes. This isn't his first rodeo. He knows that he is likely to be attacked by me at any second (well, my package could be attacked by me, he will just be collateral damage) and so he does not waste any time. He sprints to my door, and if the coast is clear, he tries to quietly put my package(s) down and make a run for it. However, I can attest to the fact that if he senses I am behind the door, if I make the slightest peep of a sound at all, he will raise his head up like one of those cute little meerkats looking for a hyenna and then throw my package and bolt. Once he is about halfway to the truck you see him relax and even smile a little bit, because he has once again ran the gauntlet and survived with nary a scratch.


I usually let him get a good 10 feet from the door before I fling it open and shout "Thank you!" then grab my box and head inside. But sometimes, well, sometimes I just feel like making the poor guy suffer. Take yesterday for instance. I had ordered some things for a customer and they were going to be delivered on Tuesday. Now, thanks to modern technology, I know that I am getting my SAB order on Thursday and my pre-order on Friday. So, when I opened the door yesterday instead of yelling my usual to Mr. Brown I said, "Thank you...see you on Thursday! Oh, and Friday too!" I promise, you could see the smile just melt off his face. He looked like a little boy who just dropped his ice cream in the dirt. Poor, poor Mr. Brown. Now he knows he has to come back here two more times this week and face me down.


Maybe this week he will decide to take a personal day and I will have a (cue dramatic music here) Substitute Driver. Poor sap, it will probably be some fresh-out-of-UPS school kid that hasn't yet learned the power of the Stampin' Up box. Don't you just love that kind? There so cute when they are young! Such easy pickings...


Well, excuse me, I have to see if I have any makeup that will double for mottled brick camo and get my game face on. After all, there are new stamps coming this week, and possibly a new driver to train up in the ways of the demonstrator who is waiting for her order. So much to teach, so little time grasshopper.


Until next time...Happy Stamping!

Kim