Giant End Of Year Sale Coming December 8th, 2020

IT’S THE GIANT YEAR-END CLOSEOUT EVENT!

If you love great deals, Stampin' Ups! Giant Year-End Closeout event is the perfect time to shop. You’ll get deep discounts on your favorite products from the August–December 2020 Mini Catalog—and as an extra bonus—you’ll get a peek at the list of items carrying over to the new annual catalog. The Year-End Closeout happens only once a year, so don’t delay.

Stampin' Up! is kicking off Christmas a little early this year with their Giant Year-End Closeout event.  From 8 December 2020–4 January 2021, you can grab your favorite retiring August–December 2020 Mini Catalog items at a deep discount. This offer is valid while supplies last only. 

To view a PDF Copy Click Here:

Details:

• No minimum purchase required.
• Retiring items are available only while supplies last.
• Items and discounts may vary by market (depending on inventory levels).
• Exclusions apply: Carryover items will not be discounted.
• Due to increased shipping times and possible shipping delays during the month of December, we can’t guarantee delivery before Christmas.

Carry Over List: 

Some items will carry over to the 2021/22 Annual Catalogue so Stampin' Up! has provided an Excel Spreadsheet Listing of all the products for sale. It's important to remember that all bundles in the Holiday catalogue are retiring, but some bundle items may carry over.  Carried over items are not discounted further as they are already reduced by 15% in the catalogue.

When they carry over to the next Annual Catalogue they're no longer offered as a bundle or for a discount price, you have to purchase them as separate items at full value.  So keep in mind, if there's something you have your heart set on and don't want to pay more for it when it's carried over, now is the time to take advantage of the savings at the bundle price.

Ordering Deadlines:

Phone: 4 January 2021; 6:50 PM (MT)

OEX/Online: 4 January 2021; 11:50 PM (MT)

Happy Stamping!

Penny Tokens Stampin' Spot

Penny Hanuszak Independent Stampin' Up Demonstrator 

DECEMBER HOSTESS CODE:  SRMEMX7IU

CLICK HERE to shop in my Online Shopping Store 247

Planning on placing an order in December?  If so, and your order is less than $200 before s&h/tax and you apply my December Hostess Code at the end of your order, you'll receive a special gift and a thank you card from me. 

If you're planning on placing an order over $200.00 you'll receive a thank you card from me and you'll receive Stampin' Up Rewards for free product, based on the total of your order. 

December Contest - Win a Stamperatus Platform

I'm having a draw for a brand new Stamperatus Platform during the month of December.  To be eligible to win just place a minimum $50.00(before s&h and tax) order and your name will be entered in my Christmas Day draw. Winner will be notified on Christmas Day!  What a great present!  Value $67.00.  Note:  Canadian orders only.  

Sending Out Some Christmas Cheer

I've been busy making Christmas cards and getting them ready to send off in the mail.  Although for some this may be a chore, I love it and when I'm finally ready to sit down and address the cards and write my notes, I try to make a fun time of it.  

When I have a lot of cards to make I like to come up with a few designs that are mail able. Cards with a lot of layers and embellishments need extra care when mailing and all the extra weight can make a difference in the postage stamp price.  For example I just sent some cards to the United Kingdom and they cost me $3.40 CDN for each card.  Something to consider if you're on a budget.  The same card mailed in Canada was $1.24 and to the US was $1.60.  Haven't got my Australian ones off yet, but I'm assuming they'll be the same as UK.  

Once I've decided on the stamp sets, colours and designs I'm making, I stamp, cut, colour, embellish and assemble all the bits and pieces. This might take me an entire evening dependent on how many cards I'm making, but having everything pre-prepped, is the difference between making 4 or 5 cards at one sitting as opposed to making 20 cards.  I like the 20 cards all at once.  

Once my cards are assembled I pair them up with an addressed and sometimes decorated envelope and then sit down and personalize each card with my own messaging.  This is the part I love the most, even though the card making itself is fun and special.  There's nothing like writing a note to my friends and relatives, to let them know how we've been and what we're up to for Christmas.   

This year sending a personalized card was even more meaningful as there are so many of our friends and family that we haven't seen or won't be seeing for some time.  Snail mail may be time consuming and expensive, but when those cards start coming in it makes you feel remembered and loved.

Here are some of the cards I sent out this week:

  

I'll be providing some detail and pictures for these cards in upcoming posts. Hope you enjoyed my process for sending out my Christmas cards.  I still have a few more to do (there's always a few more) and then I'll be working on Christmas tags, and other treats for family and friends.  

In the meantime......

HAPPY STAMPING
PENNY TOKENS STAMPIN' SPOT
Penny Hanuszak, Independent Stampin' Up! Demonstrator

DECEMBER HOSTESS CODE:  SREMEMX7U

If you are placing an order for $200.00 or less before s&h and sales tax, and you apply the December Hostess Code you will receive a special gift from me.  If you're placing an order over $200.00 you'll receive a thank you card from me and you'll receive Stampin' Up Rewards for free product, based on the total of  your order.  

Click here to visit my Online Shop 24/7

December Contest - Win a Stamperatus Platform

I'm having a draw for a brand new Stamperatus Platform during the month of December.  To be eligible to win just place a minimum $50.00(before s&h and tax) order and your name will be entered in my Christmas Day draw. Winner will be notified on Christmas Day!  What a great present!  Value $67.00.  Note:  Canadian orders only.  

Toasty & Warm Wishes - Using Up Scraps

Happy December!  It's hard to believe December 1st has arrived and we're still under COVID restrictions.  For us that means no mixing and mingling, but I'm not letting that get my spirits down.  My house is now decorated from top to bottom, I'm playing Christmas tunes while I stamp and admiring my treasured Christmas ornaments and lights.  All my neighbors have hung their lights too so I'm definitely getting in the Christmas mood. 

Yesterday I posted a card for the Freshly Made Sketches challenge #463 featuring the Polar Bear from Toasty & Warm, and I promised to show you a second card I made using the same sketch.

Freshly Made Sketches - by Amy #463

Here is my card:

For this version I used the Snowflake Splendor Designer paper but I flipped it over and used Pool Party and Shaded Spruce as my main colours for card stock, inks and blends.   The snowflake design and softly muted colours of this paper are beautiful.  

Snowflake Splendor Designer Series Paper.

I dry embossed the Designer Series paper with the snowflakes from the Winter Snow Embossing Folder.  The strips were cut from scraps of Pool Party and Shaded Spruce card stock I had on hand.  All the measurements and details are in yesterday's post which you can see here. 

I changed up the platform that the bear is on from an oval to one of the medium sizes Stitched Nested Labels dies and cut it from a piece of Gold Glimmer paper I had in my stash.  

The Stitched Nested Shapes Dies are great for layering sentiments and images.   

I also changed up the inside of the card a bit by simply changing the side the paper strip was attached to.  I used the same sentiment "warm and toasty wishes to you" and stamped it in Shaded Spruce ink.  

I'm happy with both of the cards I made using the FMS design. But this card isn't only for Christmas, it could easily be rejigged by changing the sentiments for winter birthday or friendship cards. Either way, it's sure to put a smile on the receiver's face when they see their card. Love it!

Thanks for dropping by and viewing my projects.  I'd love to hear what you think of these cards.  Which is your favourite colour combination?  Would you use this layout?  

Happy Stamping!

Penny Tokens Stampin' Spot

Penny Hanuszak, Independent Stampin' Up! Demonstrator 

DECEMBER HOSTESS CODE:  SRMEMX7U

If you're planning on placing an order in December please apply my Hostess Code at the end of your order "SRMEMX7U" if your order is less than $200 before s/h& tax, and you will receive a special gift from me.  If your order is over $200 don't apply the code, because you'll receive Stampin' Rewards based on your order total.  Thank you.

December Contest - Win a Stamperatus Platform

I'm having a draw for a brand new Stamperatus Platform during the month of December.  To be eligible to win just place a minimum $50.00(before s&h and tax) order and your name will be entered in my Christmas Day draw. 

Winner will be notified on Christmas Day!  What a great present!  Value $67.00.  Note:  Canadian orders only.  

Using Up Paper Scraps - What About Those Strips?

For this week's sketch challenge at Freshly Made Sketches I'm going to be looking at using up some of the scrap strips I have been hanging on to.  You know the ones you didn't get around to using on the inside of a card, or for other projects.  

Here's the sketch:

What do you do with all your left over strips of card stock when you finish making cards for the day?  I don't throw mine out, I simple store them in a tall glass by my trimmer.  My scrap strips vary in length and width, and usually range anywhere from a 1/4" to 1" wide.  Most of these strips are a minimum of 6" long sometimes a bit shorter.  I use these strips for decorating the inside of my cards and or stamping sentiments on. Having them out on my table where I can see them means they get used up and I'm not always cutting strips from my larger papers.  

For today's card I needed three short narrow strips of card stock in Highland Heather, Gorgeous Grape and Pool Party. It turns out I had all three colours in 1/2" x 5 1/2" strips and I only had to trim them down on the ends.  Made my day!  

Here's My Card Using The Strips & the Warm & Toasty Stamp Set:

I'm so happy with the way this design turned out.  It's a great sketch and came together very quickly.  

I started with an 8 12" x 5 1/2" piece of Highland Heather card stock and scored it at 4 1/4" for the card base. Next I added a 4" x 5 1/4" piece of Gorgeous Grape card stock, followed by a 5" x 3 3/4" piece of the beautiful Snowflake Splendor Designer Series Paper(dsp).  

I embossed the dsp with the Winter Snow Embossing Folder and sponged the edges with Highland Heather ink and a sponge dauber, before adhering it to the first layer.  Love it!  

The snowflakes in the Winter Snow EF are beautifully designed to give a soft background yet dense enough that you can see each beautiful design.   This embossing folder is featured in the Holiday Catalogue until January 4th, 2021. 

I can't say enough about the Snowflake Splendor dsp, it pairs beautifully with Balmy Blue, Coastal Cabana, Highland Heather, Misty Moonlight, Night of Navy, Pacific Point, Pool Party and Whisper White.   The piece I chose for my background coordinated really well with the Highland Heather, Gorgeous Grape and Pool Party card stocks I chose.  

I was able to shape the tops of these strips with my Lovely Labels Pick a Punch #152883. I used a sponge dauber and the corresponding inks to give each strip some definition and for fun I stamped the "just for you" sentiment from Warmy & Toasty on the ends of the strips. 

Create six unique labels using the Lovely Labels Pick a Punch. You get two designs in three widths--1" (2.5 cm), 3/4" (1.9 cm), and 1/2" (1.2 cm). Just cut a strip of paper to the desired width (any length), then slide it in, punch, and get a perfect label.  Item # 152883 in the Annual Catalogue.

I stamped the Polar Bear on a scrap of Whisper White and fussy cut out his image. Isn't he cute?  I really love his sweet little face and his cute little tush.

I coloured his scarf and toque with Highland Heather Light and Dark Stampin' Blends.  I drew a very thin line around the inside of the bear's image with a Light Smokey Slate Stampin' Blend.  His skates and nose were first coloured with a Dark Black Stampin' Blend and then I added some shine with Crystal Clear Nuvo Drops.

To provide a base for the polar bear, I cut out an oval using the Stitched Shapes dies from some old silver glimmer paper.   "Here's to a Cool Yule" was stamped in Gorgeous Grape ink on a scrap of Whisper White and then cut out using the tab die from the Tasteful Labels Die cuts. Some Basic Rhinestones were added to the tab and the three strips to give a little interest.  

For the inside of the card I cut a 4" x 5 14" layer of Gorgeous Grape followed by a 5" x 3 3/4" piece of Whisper White.  I added a small 1/4" strip of the DSP to the right of the Whisper White layer and stamped the sentiment "warm & toasty wishes to you" and a small snowflake in Gorgeous Grape.  

And that is my card for today.  I hope you liked it.  I'm working on a second one that will be in Coastal Cabana, Pool Party and Shaded Spruce, so come back tomorrow to see that version.  

HAPPY STAMPING!

PENNY TOKENS STAMPIN' SPOT 

Penny Hanuszak, Independent Stampin' Up! Demonstrator 

LAST DAY FOR NOVEMBER 

HOSTESS CODE: ZZ49FQKS

If you are placing an order today and it is under $200 CDN before S&H, apply my November Hostess Code and you'll be eligible to receive a gift from me.  If you're placing an order valued at over $200 CDN you will automatically receive Stampin' Rewards based on the total value of your order before S&H.  

Click here to shop in my 24/7 Online Shop

WARM & TOASTY WISHES FOR YOU

Freshly Made Sketch challenge this week is by Narelle, who did a pretty good job of "throwing" this sketch together based on her computer icon.  Love the inspiration!  

Here's My Card:

My card features the tiny polar bear from the Warm & Toasty Stamp Set.  He is such an adorable little character I just couldn't resist.  But don't just think of this image as being a Christmas/winter image it can be usable all year round.  At the end of the post I'll show you a cute card I made to welcome baby using this sweet and versatile image.  

My card started with an 8 1/2" x 5 1/2" piece of Whisper White card stock that was scored at 4 1/4".  The first layer is a 5 1/4" x 4" piece of Night of Navy followed by a 5" x 3 3/4" piece of designer paper from the Feels Like Frost designer series pack. Stampin' Up! thankfully brought this beautiful winter themed 6 x 6 paper pack forward from last year's Holiday Catalogue.  The designs are so much fun to work with and I absolutely love the metallic designs on the reverse side.    

This is the exact paper I chose for my card background today.  I started off matching my Night of Navy card stock to the beautiful image but when I turned it over to add my glue, I stopped, stared and in that aha moment chose to showcase the metallic side of the paper.  So beautiful!

The bears were stamped in Momento Black ink on Whisper White card stock and then punched out with my 1 1/4" square punch. I coloured the bears with Stampin' Blends. Don't you think the little blush cheeks and toe pads are cute? I used the light powdered pink blend for those. The bear is outlined with the light smokey slate blend and it adds just enough of a shadowy light colour to bring him to life.

The Night of Navy squares that the bears are mounted on were cut with the 2nd smallest die cut in the Stitched Shapes squares.   The two background squares were just adhered with Tom Bow adhesive, but I added a double layer of Dimensionals to the lower part of the front square so it would pop it up enough to provide some dimension.  That seemed to work.  

And that's it for this fun FMS today.  Once I decided on my theme this card literally came together in minutes, which is what I want.  Another pro is that the card is flat and mail able, which is great at this time of year if mailing a lot of cards.  I also think this sketch would be usable for any theme and or season.  I like that so I'll be keeping this sketch in my "Using Up Scraps" idea bin.    

Before I go here is my Welcome Baby card using the Warm & Toasty stamp set.  What do you think?  Isn't she adorable?   I added a little bow at her neck with a baby pearl... so feminine.

For this baby card I began with an 8 1/2 x 5 1/2" base of Sahara Sand, scored at 4 1/4".  The first layer is a piece of designer paper from the Peony  Garden Designer Paper Series.  It features a nubby Petal Pink texture.  The second piece of designer series paper is from the In Good Taste packet and has a soft wool like appearance, so made me think of a super soft baby blanket. 

The sweet little sentiment "Hello Baby" is from the So Sentimental Stamp set.  I used the Tasteful Labels Dies to cut out the labels that I mounted the bears and sentiment on.  These small labels are perfect for grounding small images so they don't get lost in the background of a card.  

Thanks for dropping by today.  Hope you liked my cards.  Leave a comment and tell me which one is your favourite.  Appreciated.  

Happy Stamping!
Penny Tokens Stampin' Spot 

Penny Hanuszak, Independent Stampin' Up! Demonstrator 

NOVEMBER HOSTESS CODE:  ZZ49FQKS

If you're thinking of putting in an order this month, and it is under $200.00 before shipping and handling, add my November Hostess code at the end of your order, and you'll receive a free gift from me.  If you're planning in putting in a larger order, no worries if you spend over $200.00 you'll be earning your very own Stampin' Rewards to choose products you want.  

  

Click here to shop in my 24/7 Online Store