Sunday, September 14, 2025

Gingerbread Man FMS#703

It's time once again for the latest Freshly Made Sketch by Karren. The Design team has done a fabulous take on this sketch, so make sure you go and check out


Here is my Card:

Since I'm still into making Christmas cards, I decided to incorporate Karren's arches into another Gingerbread Man card.  

I realized after I finished this card, that I had only used one arch instead of two.  Oh well that's part of the creative expression.  

Supplies: 

Stamps and Dies: 

  • Gingerbread Man Bundle Stamps and Dies 
  • Arch Dies 
Cardstock and Paper: 
  • Pecan Pie 4 x 5 1/4" piece for Gingerbread Man 
  • 4 x 5 1/4" Real Red for mat and scrap for the toque 
  • Garden Green scraps for scarf and toque 
  • Basic White 8 1/2 x 5 1/2 for card base 
  • 4" by 5 1/4 inch Basic White for Arch 
  • Christmas Greetings Mix and Match Specialty cards and envelopes #165908.  One side of a card front cut down to 5" x 3 3/4" for mat on card front. 
Ink:
  • Real Red
  • Versamark for Embossing Image 
Accessories:  
  • Delightful Decorative Dots # 165915
  • Embossing Powder White 
  • Heat Gun
  • Starform Red and Gold Sticker embellishments non Stampin' Up 
  • Mini Corrugated Embossing Folder 
  • Greetings for You Mix and Match Ephemera #166208


Well that's it for today's card.  Hope you like it and will leave a comment.  

HAPPY STAMPING!
PENNY TOKENS STAMPIN' SPOT 
Penny Hanuszak, CDN Stampin' Up Demo since 2006 






North Pole Delivery Strip Card Challenge AHSC #646

Welcome and thanks for dropping by.  I'm continuing my quest to complete 50 Christmas cards before the end of September, and can happily say the end is very close indeed. I began two weeks ago and have been using a mix of products from the Mini Catalogue - September to December 2025.  

So after making these many cards you could speculate I'd have a lot of bit's and pieces of cardstock and paper left over, and you'd be 100 percent correct. 

One of the papers that I used a lot was the North Pole Delivery 12 x 12 designer series paper and ephemera.  I thought this would be a perfect design mix to use for this week's sketch by Atlantic Hearts.    

Here's this week's sketch challenge from Atlantic Hearts #646

This card design utilizes strips of paper in a variety of sizes from 1/4", 1/2", 3/4" and 1" in width.  The paper strips can go in any direction as long as the  whole sheet is filled, right down to the most fiddle corners.  The strips are glued on and overlap the edges of the mat, and then are cut off as sections of the card are completed.  The strips can be laid down in any direction, but they must but up against one another and there can't be any gaps.  The end product usually looks like a quilt design.  

Here's My Card: 


Supplies: 

Stamps & Dies:

  • Traditional Labels Die and Stamp Bundle  #165865

Cardstock and DSP:

  • Garden Green mat 5 3/8" x 4 1/8" for front mat.  The decorative mat was cut from the center of this layer using the Colourful Contour dies.
  • Petal Pink 4" x 5 1/4" mat for front layer and 2" x 3 3/8" mat for sentiment layer 
  • Strips of Poppy Parade and Petal Pink for quilted pattern 1/2" and 3/4" bands
  • North Pole Delivery  #165837 12 x 12 DSP cut into 1/2", 3/4" strips 
Ink and Blends: 

  • Poppy Parade 

Accessories: 

  • Delightful Decorative Dots #165915 


I hope you enjoyed today's stamping challenge card.  If you've never tried one of these cards before they are a lot of fun and a great way to use up those paper scraps that are always left over.  

HAPPY STAMPING!

PENNY TOKENS STAMPIN' SPOT 

Penny Hanuszak, CDN Stampin' Up! Demo Since 2006

Click here to visit my 24/7 online shop



Gingerbread Men - so cute!

Hi everyone, thanks for stopping by.  Have you  checked out the Mini Catalogue September - December 2025 released last week by Stampin' Up!  If not, you can click here to see a PDF copy.  If you live in the Abbotsford/Fraser Valley area, let me know if you would like a catalogue by dropping me an email.  


As a demonstrator we get early access to all the catalogues and products, so I was able to order enough supplies to make all my Christmas cards, tags and decor for this holiday season, and it didn't break the bank.  Here's what I bought:
    • Greetings For You Mix & Match Ephemera Pack #166208 pg 15
    • Christmas Greetings Mix & Match Specialty cards & envelopes #165908
    • Christmas Tags & More 6"x 6" Speciality DSP #165907 pg 15
    • Traditional Labels Bundle #165865 pg 23
    • Traditional Sparkling Sequins #165875 pg 23 
    • North Pole Delivery 12 x 12 Specialty DSP pg 29
    • Gingerbread Man Bundle #165785 pg 54
    • Delightful Decorative Dots #165915 pg 55

I currently have made 40 of my 50 card goal for September using a mish mash of all of these products and I'll proudly be sharing samples with you over the next few weeks.  So I hope you'll continue to come back to check out my posts and provide me with feedback as to what you like.  

One of the first stamp and die bundles I chose is on page 54 of the catalogue and is called the "Gingerbread Man" #165784.  

Here are some cards I made and some tips for using this fantastic combo of stamps and dies.  


While I love most of the stamps and dies in the Gingerbread Man stamp bundle, the toque is what captured my heart and gave me reason to buy it. Here is a card featuring three of the toques.  Adorable! 

Here's a view of the inside and back of this card. 



My next cards feature the Gingerbread Man.  What fun these were to make.  I began stamping and due cutting all of the images before I started to assemble and make these cards.  When you're making batches of cards this is the way to go, and it's fun to do all the gluing and fiddly stuff while I'm watching my favourite Prime or Netflix series.  

I used Pecan Pie cardstock for all of my gingerbread men because it seems to be the closest colour to an actual gingerbread cookie.  It's a very warm and rich shade of brown.   I cut several pieces of Pecan Pie cardstock to 4" x 5 1/4".  


Tips for Cutting Out, Stamping and Embossing the Ging
erbread Man:  

If you want to have a gingerbread man (GBM) that's joined at the hands, you'll need a larger size of cardstock than what I use.  I found I could cut two GBM at a time by stacking two 4 x 5 1/4" sheets of cardstock and placing only one of the GBM on the die on top of the cardstock.  There will be a little overlap on the arm, but that's good.  

Your image will have a small piece of the arm from the second GBM left in tact.  Just imagine there's a line there and cut around it to keep the arm rounded.   


Or you can stamp your GBM image onto the cut out first and then trim around the white outline.  Whatever works best for you.  

There are four different facial expression stamps and coordinating dies in the kit, so you can choose which expression you want as well as what color you want these features to be. 

Because I don't have a basic white ink pad I chose to stamp the GBM's image in Versa Mark Ink and then layer on some Basic White Embossing powder to create the white image.  Remember to use your anti static pad on the GBM before you stamp and emboss on it, so you can remove any additional little white specs.  

Here's how my cards turned out: 

For most of my Christmas cards I started with a Basic White 8 1/2" x 5 1/2" card base that was scored at 4 1/4".  The mat layer was either in Shaded Spruce or Real Red cardstock and measured 4" x 5 1/4".  

For the gingerbread image I cut 1/4 sheets of Pecan Pie ( 4" x 5 1/4").  The beige plaid dsp layers on all the cards measure  3 3/4" x 5" and were cut from the Christmas Greetings cardstock on page 15 of the catalogue. 

I like my cards to have a real finished look inside and out  and I often add ephemera or a stamped image to the insides and back of the card that matches the theme.  

Prior to sitting down to make a batch of cards I prepare my card base layer by cutting and scoring it and then I stamp my Logo on the back of each card base.  I generally cut and prepare ten card bases at a time.  

I cut at least ten of each colour of mat that I am using and extend the use of my cardstock and lighten the weight by cutting out the centers of the cards with a variety of shape dies. For these cards I cut touques, candy and bow ties, so there was no waste and I had a variety of circle, square, banner dies on hand as well.  

I've  stamped the sentiment "May your holidays be wrapped in happiness and trimmed with the love of family and friends" in Real Red ink.  I love this christmas message from the retired "More Merry Messages" stamp set by Stampin' Up!  Once I've cut ten of these mats 3 3/4" x 5" I stamp each one with a sentiment and apply the ephemera.  Then adhere the mats to the inside of the card.  



I hope you enjoyed today's cards and will let me know which Gingerbread Man won over your heart.  I love them all 

My goal is to make fifty Christmas cards by the end of September, so I will be having lots of samples to show you over the coming weeks.  I hope you'll come back again and when you're here be sure to leave me a comment, I love to get feedback.  

HAPPY STAMPING!
PENNY TOKENS STAMPIN' SPOT
Penny Hanuszak, CDN Stampin' Up! Demo since 2006

Click here to visit my 24/7 Online Shop 



Thursday, September 11, 2025

Cozy Christmas - October Paper Pumpkin Kit


October Paper Pumpkin Kit: Cozy Christmas

Subscribe between September 11–October 10 

Step into the warmth of the season with Cozy Christmas, the October Paper Pumpkin kit that gives your holiday cards a classic charm with a cozy twist. Perfect for giving—or keeping for your own holiday stash!
Click here to subscribe to Paper Pumpkin

What’s in this kit?

  • Create 9 beautiful cards (3 each of 3 designs) with 9 coordinating envelopes
  • Pre-cut paper pieces featuring soft, stitched-look flocking that add rich texture and a tactile feel
  • Shiny red sequin embellishments for sparkle
  • A complimentary Classic Stampin’ Spot in Real Red so you’re ready to stamp right away
  • Coordinating colors: Basic Beige, Cherry Cobbler, Garden Green, Pecan Pie

These materials make it easy to craft heartfelt, festive greetings that stand out—whether you’re a beginner or stamping veteran.

Coordinate with a Matching Die Set:
Abundant Joy #167855 $16.50

These Add On dies are designed to work with the October (Cozy Christmas), November( Wrapped in Cheer) and the December (Watercolor in Bloom) 2025 kits. These dies can also be used with other Stampin’ Up! products for even more creative options!

What's Included: 

  • 6 dies
  • Largest die: 2-7/8" x 1-1/2" (7.3 x 3.8 cm)
  • Use with a Stampin’ Cut & Emboss Machine (sold separately)

Note: You must be a current Paper Pumpkin subscriber to purchase this item. To become a subscriber, visit www.pennyhanuszak.stampinup.net/paperpumpkin or for past kit add-ons click here.

HAPPY STAMPING!

PENNY TOKENS STAMPIN' SPOT
Penny Hanuszak, CDN Stampin' Up Demo since 2017
Click here to visit my 24/7 Online Store


Thursday, September 4, 2025

Welcome September and New Holiday Mini Catalogue

Happy September everyone.  Hope you all had an enjoyable Labour Day long weekend.  Here's some news from Stampin' Up! to get this month started! 

Holiday Mini Catalogue is now Live! 

Today is the big day, and the new holiday mini has now gone live. To order on my site click here, this link will take you directly to the Shop Now portion of my online store.  You can view the PDF catalogue here.  There's also a quick link on the side panel of my blog.  Once you've clicked on it just scroll to the bottom of the page and click on  Catalogue link for PDF version.  

If you are one of my regular customers and have placed at least one order of $50 during the past calendar year, you should have automatically received the mini holiday catalogue in your mail.  If you're not a regular customer but would like to receive a catalogue you can add one to your order for $2.00 and it will be sent with your order.  But remember anytime you place an order valued at $50 or more you will be added to my mailing list and receive all active catalogues within the calendar year.  If you need a catalogue and live in the Abbotsford, Langley, Aldergrove area just drop me a note and I can arrange to provide you with a  catalogue. 

To view the Holiday Mini Catalogue online click here.

September Kit Release: 

Two new kits just joined our Kits Collection: Handmade & Heartfelt and Road to Christmas, and they’re available for you and your customers to order now! And don’t forget to remind your customers to shop all the new products in the September–December catalog and September Online Exclusives.

Handmade and Heartfelt Kit:  Make 10 cards - 2 each of 5 designs.  Card storage box included in kit.  $44.00 


and Road to Christmas  make 8 cards 4  each of 2 designs.  Great value at $20.00



September Paper Pumpkin. 

Don't miss out, only available until September 10th to ensure availability and delivery.


Coordinates with Circle of Seasons die set:  


Great value die set for just $16.00.  
These additional dies are designed to work with THREE Paper Pumpkin Kits: the Sweeter with You Paper Pumpkin Kit, the Farmhouse Florals Paper Pumpkin Kit, and the Fall for Toile Paper Pumpkin Kit.

HAPPY STAMPING!

PENNY TOKENS STAMPIN' SPOT

Penny Hanuszak, CDN Stampin' Up! Demo since 2006


Click here to visit my online shop 24/7
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Saturday, August 23, 2025

Christmas Cards in August AHSC #642

Hi and welcome to my blog.  Have you been out to the stores this past week?  We went to the Seven Oaks mall this morning and I was surprised to see that the summer clothing and decor are gone and Autumn displays are in every window.  I haven't even really had time to enjoy summer yet, and we're already being pushed towards Fall.  I even saw Halloween decorations which gave me pause for thought ....... way too early! Worse than that Christmas Trees and gifts are on sale in  Costco!  

The Atlantic Hearts Sketch Challenge celebrates the3rd Monday of the month challenge and provides a look back to their beginnings. Current Design Team and past members have contributed not only their sketch for this challenge, but have also provided pictures and links to their original challenge.  

Original AHSC Sketch 


Here's My Card: 




This was a very clean and simple card to make.  I decided to use the beautiful Soft Seafoam and Garden Green mix of designer papers from the soon to be released  Christmas Tags and More 6x6 paper pa

The Merry Christmas sentiment is also from a new product release called Greetings for you Mix and Match Ephemera Pack, which will be available in September following the Holiday Mini Catalogue release. These beautiful gold embossed sentiments are perfect for holiday cards and gift tags or cards.  These are such great sentiments  already am in love with them! 



Supplies:

Stamps and Dies:

  • More Merry Messages (R) Stampin' Up!  Stamp Set 

Cardstock and Designer Paper:

  • Whisper White  
    • 8 1/2"  x 5 1/2" scored at 4 1/4" for card base
    • 5" x 3 3/4" for inside layer 
  • Soft Seafoam - 4 x 5 1/4" for front matte
  • Garden Green 
    • 5 3/8" x 4 1/8" for front matte 
    • 4 x 5 1/4" matte for inside layer
  • Christmas Tags & More DSP #165907
    • Cut 4 strips 3 3/4" x 1 1/2" for front adhere to Soft Seafoam matte.
    • Cut 1 strip 3/4" x 5" for the inside WW matte.

Ink and Blends:

  • Garden Green Ink Pad

Accessories:

  • Greetings for You Mix and Match Ephemera Pack (English)
  • Starform #1004 Gold and Silver Self-adhesive glimmer lines (gold)
  • 1 three bead Pearl from Cherry Cobbler & Pearl Adhesive Backed Berries #164119
  • Dimensionals

I hope you enjoyed my interpretation of sketch #643 and will leave a comment.
If you decided to follow along with the sketch challenge make sure you send me a picture so I can look at your creation. What fun! Until next time.......

HAPPY STAMPING!
PENNY TOKENS STAMPIN' SPOT 
Penny Hanuszak, CDN Stampin' Up Demo since 2006 





Freshly Made Sketches #700

Summertime Catching Up: 

Summer weather is so unpredictable these days. For example if it's hot on the west coast then it's cold in the East and vice-versa. In the Fraser Valley where I live, we expect hotter than average temperatures starting around the 15th of July, and this year has been no exception.  We had days of really hot weather in the high  30's C, but then just when you've had enough it miraculously cools down and rains for a couple of days before the next heatwave.  Our City moved to stage two water restrictions in lieu of drought predictions in early July and so far it's been a good balance, but we've cut down on our consumption and are doing our part where we can.  

I'm not a fan of high temperatures and I don't handle heat well.  Our house unfortunately doesn't have air conditioning so some days are just bearable.  Thankfully we use our basement for most of our entertainment and living and it's about 10 degrees cooler than the upstairs. I've been taking advantage of the heat difference and escaping to my happy "cool" craft room during the hot spells.  Not only is it cooler, but I'm far more productive and finding time to catch up on my kits and begin work on Christmas cards.  

Before I share this week's card challenge I wanted to share some excitement we had in late July when our lovely "big plant" bloomed. This plant has only bloomed twice in the twenty-five or more years we've had it and this was the second time!  

We moved it from it's normal northern exposure in the kitchen to the living room when we were painting this Spring and it's really "rawking" the change.  If anyone knows the botanical name for this plant let me know.  

AHSC Sketch Challenge #700  
I really liked this week's card sketch hosted by the design team. This is a fun and easy sketch great for coordinating designer series papers. This sketch has a clean and simple design, featuring blocks of colour and the focal can be any shape you want, keep it simple or add lots of layers.
I hope you'll play along with this week's sketch challenge. Don't worry about posting your card online if you don't have Facebook or a blog page it doesn't matter, just be proud of what you've made and share it if you want. It's always a happy feeling!

HERE'S MY CARD:  
I'm finally motivated to make Christmas cards again. I was inspired to use this brand new designer paper called Christmas Tags & More. It'll be released on September 4th when the new Mini Catalogue goes live.



I really love the traditional colours in this 48 page 6 x 6 paper pack which includes some ephemera pages, which make decorating easy. The paper will coordinate beautifully with garden green, poppy parade, real red, basic beige, soft seafoam and white cardstocks. I shouldn't have any difficulty using this paper pack up as it's so easy to work with and I love the designs.


The gold lines that I've added to separate the color blocks are a non-Stampin' Up! product that I love. They manufactured by Starform and are called Sticker Strips. I love the Glitter Gold/Silver Strips for seasonal cards as they add just a bit of glam without overdoing it.

Supplies:

Stamps and Dies:

  • More Merry Wishes (R) #126402
  • Stitched Shapes Dies (R)

Cardstock and DSP:

  • Whisper White 
    • Card Base 5" x 10" scored at 5"
    • Inside Panel Whisper White 4 1/2" x 4 1/2"
    • 2 1/2" x 2 1/2" for label sentiment 
  • Garden Green 
    • Cut two  4 3/4" x 4 3/4" for front and inside layers 
    • 2 1/2" x 2 1/2" scrap for sentiment layer 
  •  DSP Christmas Tags & More #16509
    • Plaid strip for inside card 1" x 4 1/2"
    • One piece DSP 4 1/2" x 4 1/2" cut into quarters

Ink:

  • Real Red

Accessories:

  • Poinsettia  Ephemera from Christmas Tags & More 
  • Gold Mini Ball Beads
  • Starform Glitter Gold/Silver Strips Stickers 

Well that's it for this week's challenge and I appreciate your dropping by.  If you have any questions regarding this designer series pack or how the card was assembled, just drop me a note or comment.  Let me know if you like this card design, and whether you were inspired to play along with this challenge.  Happy weekend and I hope you'll come back again.

HAPPY STAMPING!
PENNY TOKENS STAMPIN' SPOT

Penny Hanuszak, CDN Stampin' Up! Demo since 2006

Click here to visit my 24/7 online shop 









Gingerbread Man FMS#703

It's time once again for the latest Freshly Made Sketch by Karren. The Design team has done a fabulous take on this sketch, so make su...