Thank you all so much for the fabulous tips about New York.  As each day passes I’m getting more and more excited!  Of course I’m also kind of stressed because there is so much to think about and so much to get ready.  Being self-employed of course, there is also the stress of making sure that everything that needs to get done ahead of time is ready to go.  Apparently the “boutique” hotel we are staying at has terrible internet connection – I guess that’s what happens when you book last minute (as in last week) – all the really good places are gone LOL.  That means that to stay connected we’ll need to either find an internet cafe or a Starbucks – I’d prefer the Starbucks!

Today’s card is one that was created by Tracy – one of the fabulous girls on my Sunny Stampin’ Team !  This is another project that was featured in the Paper Crafter’s Library within the last few weeks.  It’s probably one of my favourite cards that Tracy’s made because it features some of my favorite elements: newsprint paper, machine-stitching and rhinestones, and of course one of my favourite punches – Stampin’ Up!’s Blossom Bouquet Triple Layer punch.

If you haven’t already, don’t forget to enter into our draw for the 2012 Calendar and Note Pad tins – and if you’re interested, don’t forget to pre-order your bundles.  All the information is in this post.

At this point in time, I’m only planning on continuing the pre-order until Sept. 12th and they are due to ship out starting the week of Sept. 19th.  When I place my order with the printer, I’ll probably order a few extra but not huge amounts since they are time sensitive (given that they are dated).  Once they are gone, they’ll be gone until 2013.

I had thought that I had had enough of Valentine’s colors, but apparently not! LOL  When I put in my order from Stampin’ Up!’s 2010 Occasions Mini Catalogue, I went a little gung ho on the red glitter paper – after all it was the first time Stampin’ Up! had ever released glitter paper, and I do love glitter – at least that’s what I told myself.  Unfortunately, being a bit of a hoarder I didn’t use as much as I thought I would.  So when I sat down to create today’s card, in my mind I started with the thought of wanting a glittery butterfly.  Since I only had red glitter paper, that’s what I went with – the rest of the card sort of evolved from there.

To make the card:

1. Die cut two Top Notes out of Whisper White CS and Real Red CS using the Big Shot and the Stampin’ Up! Top Note die.  Trim the Whisper White CS Top Note so that it is slightly smaller than the Real Red Top Note.
2. Stamp the greeting onto the white Top Note and then center and stick it onto the Real Red Top Note.
3. Center and stick the Real Red Polka dot DP onto a 4 1/4″ x 5 1/2″ Real Red card front, and then center and stick the matted Top Note die to the DP.
4. With a Big Shot, die cut the larger of the full butterflies on the Beautiful Butterflies out of Red glimmer paper and the smaller butterfly out of Real Red DP. Center and stick the small butterfly on the large butterfly with dimensionals and then stick the large butterfly to the white Top Note. Embellish the center of the butterfly and the white Top Note with clear rhinestones.  You’re done!

Supplies:

Stamps: Word Play (Stampin’ Up!)
Ink: Memento Tuxedo Black (Tsukineko)
Paper: Real Red CS, Whisper White CS, red glimmer paper, Real Red DP from Brights DP Stack (Stampin’ Up!)
Accessories: Stampin’ Dimensionals, Top Note die, Beautiful Butterflies die, Big Shot, Basic rhinestones (Stampin’ Up!)

Win a 2-week Membership to Paper Crafter’s Library! 

With the successful launch of Paper Crafter’s Library and the many positive responses we’ve received about the value of what we offer on that site – we have decided to “share the love” with you all and give each and every one of you an opportunity to win a 2 week membership to Paper Crafter’s Library (PCL).    

How?  All you have to do is leave us a comment on any one of our posts.  Every time you leave a comment – your name will be put into a draw. It gets even better though – you have even more chances to win because Paper Crafter’s World blog is also offering the same opportunity.  When you visit the Paper Crafter’s World blog, leave us a comment and for every comment you leave there, you will also be entered to win a 2 week membership to PCL.  

On the 1st and 3rd Monday of the month we will announce 2 lucky winners of a 2-week FREE membership to PCL here at the Sunny Stampin’ Blog.  On the 2nd and 4th Monday of the month we will announce 2 lucky winners of a 2-week membership to PCL on the Paper Crafter’s World Blog.  So every week there will be two lucky winners to a 2 week membership to Paper Crafter’s Library! If you are already a member of PCL then you can choose a tutorial or planner of your choice instead.

I can’t believe it’s Friday already! I don’t know about you, but to me it feels as though the summer is flying by.  It’s already the end of July!  One more month and the kids will be back to school!  In fact, I’m thinking that when I get back home I’m probably going to have to start my Back to School shopping.  I always find that early August is the perfect time to shop because there is such a great selection and not a lot of crowds to deal with.

The card I have to share with you today is one I created using the Word Play stamp set and Nursery Suite DP.  While great for making baby cards and scrapbook pages for both boys and girls, it works great for other themes as well.

Here’s how I made this card:

1. Cut a 4 1/4″ x 11″ piece of Pink Pirouette DP, and fold it in half with your bone folder to create a 4 1/4″ x 5 1/2″ card.
2. Take a 2 3/4″ x 4″ piece of Pink Pirouette CS and stamp your greeting from the Word Play stamp set in Early Espresso Classic ink, at the top.
3. Center and stick the Pink Pirouette CS piece onto a 3 3/4″ x 5″ piece of Nursery Suite DP – make sure that the top edges are aligned.
4. Center and stick the Nursery Suite DP onto a 4″ x 5 1/4″ piece of Early Espresso CS.
5. Lay the matted DP piece onto a foam mat and pierce three holes, all in a row in the top right corner of the Pink Pirouette CS piece. Insert three Early Espresso brads.
6. Die cut two of the smallest flowers from the Flower Folds Bigz XL die out of pink wool felt (purchased off of ETSY).  Punch a hole in the center of each flower with the smallest hole on the Crop-a-Dile.  Set aside for a moment.
7. Die cut 1 flower out of Pink Pirouette CS using the Big Shot and the Birds and Blooms die.
8. Spritz the CS flower with a bit of water and gently crumple and uncrumple.  Repeating until you see the CS layers start to separate. 
9. Gently pull the petal CS layers apart, leaving the center portion of the flower attached.  Punch a hole through the center of the flower with the Crop-a-Dile.
10. Layer the two felt flowers and the CS flower one on top of the other.  Insert a vintage brad through the center of the flowers.  Set aside for a moment.
11. Die cut two swirls out of Old Olive CS using the Big Shot and the Swirls Scribbles die.
12. Stick the swirls to the bottom left corner of the stamped Pink Pirouette CS piece.  Stick the flower over the ends of the swirls with mini glue dots. You’re done!

Well I hope you enjoyed today’s card.  We’ll be back on Sunday with the release of the August class and workshop planners and a give-away, so be sure to stop by!

Click Here to Order your Stampin’ Up! Products Online 24/7! (Canada Only)

All products are Stampin’ Up! unless otherwise noted.

Stamps: Word Play
Ink: Early Espresso Classic ink
Paper: Pink Pirouette CS, Early Espresso CS, Old Olive CS, Nursery Suite DP
Accessories: mini glue dots, SNAIL adhesive, Vintage Brads, Swirls Scribbles die, Flower Folds Bigz XL, Birds and Blooms die, Crop-a-Dile, light pink wool felt (bought off of Etsy)