Kelli Wolfel
Independent Stampin' Up! Demonstrator
kstwaffle@comcast.net (610) 323-3215

July 30, 2010

Christmas in July!

This past week, I held my annual Christmas in July classes!  These are the projects that the guests made!
This is a cute poinsettia isn't it!?  Do you recognize the punch that was used to create the petals and the leaves?  It is the ornament punch!  Quick and simple.  I think that these would make great ornaments for a wreath or a tree too!

This is card number 2!  Love this new set!  Another very quick and simple card!  The clear mount stamps make lining the ornaments for the tree much easier!

I really liked how this turned out as well!  This is the first time that I used the wood sheets!  They cut nicely and the punches were easy to use on it as well!


This was the featured project on SCS last week!  Just in time for me to use at my classes!  I used the new holiday paper and I modified it slightly.  We made divider cards for the inside of the box!
What a nice way to carry your projects home! 

It is never too early to start thinking about the holidays I guess! 

July 25, 2010

Happy Rudolph Day!

Can you believe that today is Christmas in July! Only six more months until Christmas in December! It's really hard to believe that today with the extreme hot weather that we've had this summer!  Before we know it, we'll all be complaining that it is too cold!!!  My friend Leann celebrates Rudolph Day on the 25th of each month so this project is for Leann!  This is a project that we did at my July hostess club for Christmas in July! 
The card base made with Cherry Cobbler cardstock might just be my new favorite Christmas red!  It is deeper than Real Red, but not as dark as Bravo Burgundy!  It is just right!  This is the first time that I used the wood sheets.....I like them!  They were easy to work with and I like the antique effect that the wood gives to the card!  This is one of the new holiday sets in the 2010 - 2011 Idea Book and Catalog.   It is called Welcome Christmas.  I think that the ladies enjoyed this one too!  What are you doing to celebrate Rudolph Day!?

July 24, 2010

Black and White Card

This is one of the cards that the ladies in my monthly hostess club made last night!  Artistic Etchings is the name of the stamp set that we used to create the background on the card base!  I love it!  The SU! clear stamps made this so easy to create! I mounted the circle and the longer stamp together on the clear blocks at the same time to make lining everything up  much easier!  After we stamped the background, we ran it through the Big Shot using the lattice embossing folder.  I like the effect that it gave the card, don't you? The half of the top note die was run through the  Big Shot too using the Finial Press embossing folder.  New 1/8" taffeta ribbon finishes off the die with the key attached!  Aren't the new adhesive pearls just great too!  I am really happy with how this project turned out!  The black and white design, the little bit of sparkle in the ribbon, and the pearls just make it classic looking!  Can't wait to try out some more customized background papers using this set!

July 23, 2010

Tye Dye Butterflies

 I was at my son's baseball game last week and a beautiful yellow swallowtail butterfly almost landed on me.  It was the first one that I seen in years.  I have lived in the same town my whole life.  When I was young, I collected moths and butterflies.  They were abundant!  When my husband and I purchased our home almost 13 years ago, I was thrilled when we found a purple butterfly bush right next to our patio!  I thought it would be great to sit and watch all of the different butterflies come and feed on the bush.  It would also be great to teach my young son ( and eventually his sister about all of the different species that came there).  Unfortunately, the bush attracted lots of stinging insects and we had to cut it down because of the kids.  We noticed over the years that there didn't seem too be many butterflies in our area anywhere.  Not at the pool we belong to ( the same one that I have belonged to my whole life and collected many butterflies there as a child), not at the parks, not in our yard, not in the school playground.  Not anywhere!  Thankfully, we have noticed more butterflies and moths this summer. And not just the common little white ones......swallowtails, monarchs and others.  It is so nice to see!  And the lightning bugs!  Wow!  They seem to be in the millions this summer! My kids have rediscovered the joy of seeing them at night and they loved helping their two year old cousins collect them on July 4th weekend! Here are two cards that have butterflies as the main attraction!
I CASED this card off of SCS, I don't remember from who though. Sorry.  This is the Sizzlits die that cuts and embosses the butterflies at the same time!  If you look closely, each butterfly has embossing on it!  I just really like how simple the card is too!

These are the Tye Dye Butterflies!  My daughter named them that because she said they looked like they were Tye Dyed!  So simple huh?   Baby wipes and reinkers!  Take one baby wipe, fold it in half and then fold in half again so that you end up with a square.  Then choose 3 reinkers that you like.  I chose Baja Breeze, Melon Mambo and Tangerine Tango!  Start with the darkest color (Baja Breeze for me) and spread out a few drops.  Fill in some of the white spots between those colors with the next darkest color (Melon Mambo for me).  Then, finish with the last color, using it to fill in any white spots left.  You only need to spread your inks out in a space a little larger than the size of your stamp.  The baby wipe just became your custom made tye dye ink pad!  The best part is that you can get pretty many images out of it before the color dulls.  And, if you move the stamp around within the ink, you'll get a color variation each time too.  We dressed our butterflies up with self adhesive rhinestones to finish it off!  I know that this is a pretty simple card, but I wanted the butterfly to be the star!  I think we accomplished that!  Enjoy the butterflies inside and outside this summer!

July 18, 2010

Happy Graduation!

Today, we are heading off to a special graduation party!  It is special because it is a dual graduation for brothers Anthony and Michael.  Anthony graduated from college and Michael from high school!  Our families have become very close over the past 3 years and today will be a big celebration! In honor of Anthony and Michael's graduations, here is a graduation card! We also did this at one of my Stampin' Up! team events!  I am lucky to get the chance to spend time with all of these talented people that share their ideas!  I hope that you find inspiration in their talents as well!

July 16, 2010

Recycle, Reuse, Reduce!

It is that time of year in Stampin' Up! World!  The new catalog came out on July 1st!!!  If you haven't seen it yet, you really need to take some time to look at it or contact me to get a catalog!  Anyway, it is a perfect time to recycle (my faves that are still in the catalog), reuse (find new ways to use old paper) and reduce (my stash of retiring products)!!!  So, this card is a little bit of eveything.....love the Top Note Die!  New way to use it as just a flap over the card front!  Still love the 5 Petal Flower Punch.....paired with some pretty old DSP it gives those flowers a tropical look!  Can you tell what the leaves of the flowers are made from?  Look closely, do recognize the shape?  Yes, it is the smallest heart from the Three Heart Punch!  Those punches are the best!  Then, the card base is a retiring color too!  So, that's my contribution to saving the Earth (ok, that's dramatic)!  But, I am freeing up lots of space in the craft room to make way for purchases from the new catalog!! Enjoy!

July 14, 2010

Scrunchie Flower Card

Isn't the Scrunchie Flower adorable!?  I learned this technique at my upline meeting in March.  The flower is made from some retired Designer Series Paper and the Scallop Circle Punch!  I have included the directions to make them.  Thanks to my teammate Michele Reynolds who did the demonstration at our meeting and gave all of us the very specific and easy-to-follow directions!  Here they are:

Scrunchie Flowers

                                                        Demonstrated by Michele Reynolds
1) Punch out 11 Scallop Circles from coordinating pieces of Designer Series Paper.

2) Crumple all 11 circles. The more you crumple them, the more scrunched your flower will be. Tip: If you spray them lightly with water first, they can be a little easier to crumple.

3) Set 1 crumpled circle aside to use as a base.

4) Fold the other 10 circles in half. They don’t have to be precisely folded in half, just roughly.

5) Fold them in half again. Again, you don’t have to be precise. You should have 10 triangles.

6) Put a Pop-Up Glue Dot in the center of the unfolded circle you are using as a base.

7) Press the pointed tip of one triangle lightly into the Glue Dot.

8) Add a second triangle in the same way but make sure the open edges are facing the open edges of the first triangle.

9) Add a third and fourth triangle in the same way making sure that the open edges are facing each other and closed edges are facing each other.

10) Put another Pop-Up Glue Dot in the center.

11) Adhere 4 more triangles in the same way as in steps 7 through 9 but have them cover the seams made by the first layer.

12) Put another Pop-Up Glue Dot in the center.

13) Cut the pointed tips off the last two triangles and discard the tips.

14) Press the flat edge you just made of one triangle into the top of the Glue Dot.

15) Press the flat edge of the second triangle into the top of the Glue Dot so the open edge is facing the opposite direction.

16) Scrunch the entire flower up in your fist repeatedly.

17) Keep scrunching and gently pulling apart the folds until you get the look you want.

18) Adhere your scrunchie flower to your project using Glue Dots or Stampin’ Dimensionals.

- If desired, you can spritz your scrunchie flowers with a mix of Shimmer Paint and alcohol. Or, try spraying them with the new Smooch Spritz we’ll be able to order soon!

- For a larger flower with a slightly different look, try using the Extra Large Fancy Flower Punch instead.

- For a small flower, use the largest flower in the Boho Blossoms Punch. Use Mini Glue Dots to adhere this one together instead of the Pop-Up Glue Dots.

July 12, 2010

Decor Stencil Cards

These are some cards that I made using the Decor Stencils from Stampin' Up!  I used textured paint to get the dimension!  The stencils can be used for so many projects, I really like them a lot!  Enjoy!                                              

July 10, 2010

Mother's Day Gift!

I know it is a little late......I wanted to share the card and gift that my sister gave to me for Mother's Day.  She is so creative and loves to give handmade cards and gifts!  The jar is a repurposed Yankee Candle jar spiced up with Stampin' Up! rub ons and ribbon!  The card is made from a Stampin' Up' Simply Scrappin Kit!  Aren't they great?  Thanks Sis!!

July 8, 2010

Relay for Life

I have been actively involved in our local Relay for Life for the past 11 years.  Relay for Life is a 24 hour event that raises awareness and funds for the American Cancer Society.  The Pottstown Relay for Life has consistently been one of the top Relays in Pennsylvania and in the world!  This year we had some real excitement at the Relay.  Geoff and Mary Alice from the Ace of Cakes came to Relay to judge our cake contest!!!  What fun that was!

Here are some of the cakes that Relay participants made for the cake contest!  Aren't they awesome!?
Then the exciting news came......Ace of Cakes was using all of the footage that they shot that day for an upcoming episode!  So, Pottstown Relay for Life and the town will be featured!!!  How cool is that!?  Geoff is from our town, so they filmed all around the area in addition to the time that they spent at Relay!











Then Geoff and Mary Alice unveiled this cake.......they made it just for the Relay! It is made in the likeness of a luminaria bag.  Our Luminaria Ceremony is one of the most awe inspiring parts of the Relay!  When the sun goes down, the entire track and the visitors stands are filled with lit luminaria bags! It is truly amazing!  Anyway, here is the cake!  It lit up too!  I got to taste a piece of the cake on Sunday morning after the Closing Ceremonies! It was delicious!  I can't wait to see the show!  If you get a chance go to http://www.pottstownrelayforlife.com/  and check out our awesome Relay!

July 6, 2010

4th of July Happenings!

I promised some pictures of 4th of July cards and here they are!   I used the same set on all 3 cards, but changed each one a little bit!  The first one has a bit of glitter on the fireworks.  On the second card,  I embossed some of the fireworks with gold and silver.  Then I punched them out and attached them to the card with dimensionals.  The third card is my favorite!  I love the polka dot ribbon!  It just seems to jump off of the card.  I am very fond of the color combo too!  Which card do you like the best?

This is my 8 year old daughter batting and pitching in her 4th of July All Star baseball game!  We were all excited that she was able to represent her team since she is the only girl in her Little League Division!

This is my 13 year old son batting and playing second base for his 4th of July All Star Game!  We are so proud of his accomplishments too!  It was extra special since the game was held at our home field!

July 5, 2010

I Wasn't Lost!

Hello Everyone!
I am sorry that it has been so long since my last post!  Life has been really hectic here at my house!  My kids are both active in sports and their schedules have been keeping us very busy!  Since I am a school teacher in the same district that my kids attend, we were all finished school on June 16th!  Since then, my kids have been playing tons of baseball with a little soccer thrown in!  My 8 year old daughter made the All Star team for her Little League baseball team! Their game was played during the 4th of July celebration that our town had on Saturday, July 3!  It is a traditional July 4th celebration....parade, festivals, food, fireworks and baseball!  We had family and friends there supporting her.  She got to pitch one inning, which she absolutely loves to do!  She had two strikeouts!  We were all excited!  My 13 year old son just finished up his regular season with a game on Saturday morning, which they won 9 to 0!  We were very excited for him also because his team qualified for the playoffs which start tomorrow.  He was also selected to represent his team in their league All Star game which was held on July 4.  We were thrilled that our team hosted the game at our home field!  Again, we had friends and family there to support him.  He made good plays in field.  He did not have any hits unfortunately.  We are so proud of both of our kids and absolutely love going to watch them play their sports!  So, now that things are settling down a bit, I am looking forward to getting back to posting here at My Stampin' Pad!  I hope that you enjoyed your 4th of July holiday with family and friends! Look for a post tomorrow of my 4th of July card!