Just my Type

Peeky peeky, here is another stamp set that will be available in January. I love technology, but that doesn't mean that I didn't truly love the typewriters in my life. Mrs Brown was more effective than Mavis Beacon, and I can type 70+ words per minute til this day. My college newspaper had a newsroom with enough typewriters for every student to crank out articles, term papers and love letters. Mom had a portable typewriter she would allow me to use, only when I was desperate. Dad still works for IBM! Truly, typewriters are the foundation of my love for any device with a keyboard. So I didn't hesitate for a minute when the new catalog came out for demonstrators. And my card for the shoebox at Leadership is this darling composition, 48 cards featuring the typewriter. Love it!

Are you fostering a sweet spot for the typewriter? Have you been studying the new mini catalog? Maybe there are some hearts or flowers you prefer? Or a couple darling gnomes? Let's get together and stamp in January and find out what your favorites are!

Happy Stamping!
Dee Tollaksen

Sneaky peeks

Did you receive a new mini catalog? If you need one, just leave me a comment. The new die cutting sets are fabulous and a great reason to invest in a BigShot. This medallion and the matching stamp sets will be appearing on my cards, over and over again.  I love the vintage feel of the shape and the stamp images.

I am leaving for a Leadership meeting in a few weeks and need to bring cards to swap. I'm not sure this is a winner. For one thing, there is no sentiment. I am notorious for creating cards with no sentiment, but it is truly a mistake when swapping.

But I love the new ribbon, the color scheme and the general look. What do you think? I'll show you some other options in the coming days.

Happy Stamping,
Dee Tollaksen

Happy Anniversary

December 22 marked the one year anniversary for my son and his bride. She told me that, of the 365 days since they married, they had spent a total of 35 days together.

He is in Afghanistan, due home soon. And they are certainly excited to be together!

I wrote that if absence makes the heart grow fonder, they are certainly fond!

January should be very exciting for me. I am flying off to San Antonio for a few days to Leadership Conference with Stampin' Up. I am working on my swap cards and shoebox card. I love this card, but it is too hard to duplicate. So it is a "one of a kind" edition just for the anniversary celebrants. And it is back to the drawing board for me.

Happy Stamping!
Dee Tollaksen

Final fabric project

This lanyard style keychain is super simple to sew and can be a very useful item. I don't have many keys, just the car and house. But I like to be able to easily find them! So if I am using a larger purse, they tend to get lost in the deep dark recesses.

This lanyard helps add a little size to the keys and make them easier to locate. Also it works nicely on a peg in the kitchen for storage. Plus, I can wear it around my wrist when running errands or just running. Ha! Maybe walking, you won't find me running.

So here is the whole suite of sewing projects. None of these were difficult and they make a nice collection of useful items, beautiful in the Stampin' Up! fabric.

Happy Stamping!

Dee Tollaksen

Merry Christmas from the Brits returning home

Merry Christmas. Every news program makes me sniffle this week. I'm so glad the war in Iraq is over and I look forward to the end of our involvement in Afghanistan. My son should be ending his deployment in 3 weeks. These guys look like they couldn't be happier to be heading home. Grab the tissues and enjoy this hilarious video.

Happy Stamping!
Dee Tollaksen

Fabric Gifts #4

 This cute little wallet allows the owner to stash some change or crafting goodies then see them and avoid spilling or dumping them when ready to select from among the stash.

When you open the snap, the wallet opens up into a fabric box. Your brads, buttons, snaps, and coins are all visible but cannot fall out. Handy if you are trying to make a selection but you don't want to dump out all the goodies in your stash.

This one was probably the most difficult to sew. The sides are supposed to be hand sewn, which didn't happen. For some reason, it is easier to find a sewing machine in my house, than it is to find a needle. So I just kept going with the machine. I think it came out nicely!

One more project to share, then we will be on to new stamping projects!

Happy Stamping,
Dee Tollaksen

Fabric Gift #3

Santa came a little early and brought me a Smart Phone!  And am I ever enjoying it. But I'm a little nervous for it's safety. I know I have introduced you to my Boston Terrier, right? He loves all things that are mine. And he had a little fun with my last phone. Chewed off a couple numbers and took a nice bite out of the power switch. So I have to keep my phone safe from inquiring minds/jaws.

I found a tutorial by Erin Erickson on the web for this Easy iPhone Sleeve. Really simple to copy and works like a dream!

Happy Stamping!
Dee Tollaksen

Fabric Gift #2

Here we go with my second item in the fabric gift collection. This little wallet is perfect for holding business cards. Why is it that I am always caught with no business cards? Because they float around in my purse and get all bent up and messy. So this wallet will keep them neat and handy!

Come back to see what else I made from the Stampin' Up! fabric.

This pattern was published by Trillium Design.

Happy Stamping!
Dee Tollaksen

Fabric gifts #1

Stampin' Up! offers a few beautiful fabrics to coordinate perfectly with our colors and designer series paper. I recently went on a quest to find blog tutorials for small sewing projects to highlight this fabric.

The first I'm showing is the tissue packet holder. This time of year, everyone gets a case of the sniffles and having one of these holders makes that stash of tissues just a little nicer. There are a multitude of tutorials for this item and they are easy to copy. You will need a sewing machine, iron and some snazzy fabric, some interfacing helps, but isn't really necessary. When I have posted all the projects, I'll point you toward the tutorials.

Happy Stamping,
Dee Tollaksen

Holiday pup

I am not a big fan of punch art, but sometimes a darn cute little dog comes my way and I can't resist. This pup was on a holiday helper website and I absolutely LOVE him! He requires a bunch of different circle punches, but nothing too crazy. I have put him on a coffee cup cozy, the early espresso covers the brand name, but the actual cozy is there. I cut a couple slits in the card front to hold the cozy, and after I put a sentiment on the card and a gift card inside the cozy, it can come off the card and go straight to a coffee cup.

Hope you're off to a holiday party tonight!

Happy Stamping,
Dee Tollaksen

Flocked Christmas

I just love this card. Flocked black paper, seam binding in the rich color of Cherry Cobbler, and just a bit of Glimmer paper punched in the ornament shape.
Simple, gorgeous. Who would think to make their Christmas cards with black as the predominant color! But it works!

Happy Stamping,
Dee Tollaksen

From December 15, 2011, through January 5, 2012, nearly 200 products are being added to the Clearance Rack in the Stampin’ Up! Online Store--with some discounted up to 80 percent! Take advantage of these huge savings, sometimes items sell out very quickly. Visit the Online Store to take part in the savings! Click on SHOP NOW and select the Clearance Rack.

As of 7:30 am, the fun hasn’t started, but when it does, the supply will go quickly!

Enjoy,

Dee

Simple glimmer

Didja miss me? I have been a busy little Christmas elf. I missed you, and I hope to be actively posting again.

This Cherry Cobbler card was one from my last stamp camp. It is always important to keep Christmas cards simple and re-produceable. And everyone loves the glimmer paper, and the new Simply Scored tool makes the embossing simple.

This card is definitely CASEd from another blog, but I cannot find the source. If you recognize the card, just let me know!

Happy Stamping,
Dee Tollaksen

Laura left us an update: this card is from Artful Impressions Blog: http://artfeltimpressions.blogspot.com/2011/11/comfort-and-joy-sparkle.html

Joining SU is at an all-time fabulous deal!

For two days only, Stampin’ Up! is offering a special opportunity to you. If you have ever been to a workshop or stamp camp with me, I’m sure you can see how much I enjoy crafting, stamping, sharing and laughing. If you would like access to all the benefits of being a Stampin’ Up! demonstrator, now is the time. You can attend special events, locally and around the country, receive a monthly inspiration magazine and take advantage of the 20% discount. Whether you want to build a business or enjoy all these benefits just for your personal use, we welcome you!
On December 13-14 only, you will be eligible for this exclusive offer, including

• A $125  Starter Kit (standard or Digital+)—$50 off the regular price of $175!
• A FREE package of Designer Series Paper OR a FREE digital download every month in 2012 (excluding January)—a total value of up to $120!

Of course, you will still be welcome to stamp with me and I will be thrilled to help you build a business, if that is your goal. Just give me a call or reply to this email and I will help you get started. Don’t wait though, today and Wednesday ONLY!  Maybe Santa is looking for something special to put under your tree? If you take advantage of this offer your kit with over $300 of stamps, paper, ink and supplies will arrive before Christmas! And you get to personalize the kit, selecting your own colors and stamp sets. How fun!

Looking forward to hearing from you,

Dee