My Stampin' Up! Story

Hey crafters,

Today I'm going to share with you my Stampin' Up! story, and a floral tri-fold birthday card I made with a certain fellow demonstrator in mind.

I was nineteen years old, newly married, and expecting our first child when a good friend of mine introduced me to Stampin' Up!.

She was a new demonstrator herself, and we were like giddy school girls pouring over the fantastic products together. I placed my order and was so happy when it came in the mail. It was one stamp set, one ink pad, and one package of paper. My second order was the starter kit. 

I was a hobby demo, just enjoying the discount on products, for a couple years. We had to move from Texas to Illinois because Jimmy, my husband, joined the Navy. After he completed boot camp and A School they assigned him to the John C. Stennis, which was in WA state. 

While we lived in WA, Jimmy was deployed quite often. We also had our second child there. I started making stamping into a business for myself to occupy my down time as a stay-at-home mom. My new upline was Meg Daves. She was my friend's upline before, and I knew she would be a fantastic resource for my business.

Now the Tedder family is back in Austin, Texas, the city where Jimmy and I first met. I am loving being back, and am really excited to run my Stampin' Up! business here. 

A Very Very Excited Me, with my new Starter Kit

So, that's my story so far. Now, I'll share with you a pretty card I made for my upline's birthday coming up. She is an inspiration to me and I'm so grateful for her friendship!

First I cut the base of my card with the Adorning Accents Edgelits. Then I used the Brights Paper Stack, the daffodil delight page, to decorate the outside of my card. I just love that fun edge. 

I used the Flower Shop Stamp Set and coordinating Pansy Punch to make the flowers, taking scraps of Old Olive cardstock for stems and leaves. Then I added some Ridinghood Red cardstock to the inside, with a matching pansy, and stamped the bottom edge with pansies as well. And of course I couldn't resist adding some basic pearls to the centers of the flowers. To purchase any of these products for yourself, just visit my store!

Thank you for reading this blog post, and if you would like to start your own Stampin' Up! story and become a demonstrator, feel free to contact me! I'd LOVE to be your upline! 

-TNT, your dynamite Stampin' Up! demonstrator

A Little Mosaic Love- Paper Craft Crew Sketch #84

Hey ya'll!
Today I'm going to share with you my card for the Paper Craft Crew Challenge #84. Here's the layout:

I made this card for my Granny and PawPaw in Jacksonville, Texas. They sent a sweet card for Christmas and one for Audrey's birthday as well. I never did send them a thank you note for that, and I've been kickin' myself about it for a few weeks now. 

I used the Mosaic Madness and So Sorry stamp sets, oval framelits, and neutrals buttons, and blue jean ribbon. I just love the Strawberry Slush and Baked Brown Sugar color combination.

Can you tell that those Mosaic images are a little darker in certain areas, and less in others? That's because I used the Wet Wipe Technique. What's that, you might wonder? Well, you won't have to wonder much longer, because I'm going to show you in a youtube video! :) Stay tuned! Thanks for reading!

-TNT, your dynamite Stampin' Up! demonstrator

Fishin' Around Birthday Card (**& CONTEST**)

Hey Stampers,

What a whirlwind of a week it has been! In addition to working a lot more than usual, in order to save for a second car, I've also been squeezing in some craft time. 

I got the adorable Fishin' Around stamp in the mail with my totally customizable starter kit, and I immediately started working on this project. I came up with this cute card, and made a video showing you how to make it! It actually took me so many tries that I now have three of these cards! :)

So, what does that mean for you? It means it's contest time! Like and share my video, comment and share this blog post, and for each like or share or comment you'll receive an entry into the Fishin' Around Contest. After one week I'll pick two winners at random, and I'll be mailing them their very own Fishin' Around Card. 

I'm giving the third to my almost THREE-YEAR-OLD son for his birthday. Gosh, I can hardly believe he's nearly three! Where does the time go!

Charles Jacob, 1 week old

Products used on my Fishin' Around Card:

Fishin' Around Stamp- Item #131118

Jet Black Stazon Pad- Item #101406

Word Window Punch- Item #119857

Mondern Label Punch- Item #119849

Simply Serif Alphabet- Item #126360

Blender Pens- Item #102845

Simply Scored- Item #122334

Borders Scoring Plate- Item #126192

Island Indigo Cardstock- Item #122923

Visit my store to purchase any of these great products for yourself!

Thanks for reading guys, and good luck with the contest!

-TNT, your dynamite Stampin' Up! demo

Easter Watercolor Card

Hey Readers,

Today I'm going to share with you a fun Easter card that I made. Easter is just around the corner, and my two munchkins are already excited about it. When I was a kid there was always a special golden egg, hidden well, and usually containing twenty bucks! I only remember getting the golden egg once. I found it on top of the doorway outside my grandmother's house. I couldn't reach it, and my tall older brother decided he'd get it for himself. I was ready to throw a big fit about that, but an adult stepped in and made him give it to me. Ha ha. My brother and I didn't always get along (what siblings do, right?). I love him, though. Wish I could spend this Easter with him and my other four siblings. 

Anyway, on to the card. I started with a piece of my watercolor paper, aquapainters, and a few ink pads (rich razzleberry, marina mist, and coral calypso).

I just colored a striped pattern, adding more ink until I liked the way it looked.

Then I took a piece of coral calypso cardstock and cut an oval out of the middle.

I stamped "happy easter" from the Delightful Dozen stamp set in Stazon Ink.

After that, I embossed the coral calypso cardstock with the Polka Dot EF and used dimensionals to stick it to my card.

Nobody wants a blank boring envelope, so I made an "egg" stencil with my small oval die, and I drew two eggs on the back of the envelope.

I colored them in with my markers and blender pens, and then added a basic rhinestone to the card. 

Voila! There's a quick and easy- and super fun- easter card. 

Hope you've enjoyed this post, leave some love, and come back tomorrow to see another project! 

Want to shop? Go to my SU! website to purchase any of these, or other, fantastic SU! products. Don't forget to look at the weekly deals.

Happy Stampin! TNT, your dynamite SU! demo

PCCCS #82

Here's my sketch challenge for Paper Craft Crew # 82!

I had such a blast making it. Wanted to go with something a little different, not a card. So, I've had this This & That Epic Day Journal just hanging out, waiting for me to start working on it.

Thanks for looking! Happy Stamping!

-TNT, your dynamite Stampin' Up! demonstrator

Coffee, Quiet, Contemplating...

Hey readers,

Today is a chilly rainy day here in South Texas. But I've got my coffee, and I've got some quiet time to think, since my Mother-In-Law took the kids to her house for two weeks. I'm so grateful for a break, but I miss my babies already. They are so precious. Here are a few pictures that I found on my phone this morning.

ROAR!

Jacob, "a half and a two" as he'll tell you, with his farmer & Elmo.

There's always time for coloring. <3

Making Red Velvet Hello Kitty Cake pops to celebrate her promotion in Jiu Jitsu

Cuties cheesin' after Audrey's 5th birthday party

This house is so different without them running and playing and making messes. I'm enjoying the time to get things in order around here though, especially with my Stampin' Up! business. Check out my new Stampin' Storage System, as I've dubbed it (can you tell I like alliteration?).

I love it, even though it's simple. I have lots of ideas in mind for my future dream craft room. :) Of course.

One of my main, and most immediate, goals that I'd like to share with you is parties!

“When life gives you lemons, you make lemonade. Then find someone who's life is givin' them vodka and have a party!” 

I love that quote! So, yes, my goal is to have parties, and I need YOU to host one! Just let me know a day and time, invite all your friends over, and I'll come with all my fabulous SU! products and we'll make a card or two, visit, and generally have a blast! At the end, we'll hand out out order forms, and if your friends help you get to one of the sales goals listed, you'll receive FREE PRODUCT! (Free product is the best kind!)

Plus, right now you have another reason to host a party, besides the whole it will be super fun reason, and that is it's Sale A Bration! Here's the details:

If you haven't seen the Sale A Bration brochure, check it out here! So much fun stuff!

Well, even though the kids are gone, I should probably do some laundry or somethin'. :) Then I'm going to continue working on the next ah-ma-zing project I want to show ya'll. 

Thanks for reading! & Happy Stamping! Let me know when you'd like your party to be!

-TNT, your dynamite SU Demonstrator