Special Delivery

Hey there! Welcome!

I am so excited about this card! My friend and upline, LeAnne Pugliese, made a bridge card a few weeks ago and I've been wanting to try one ever since. I've known LeAnne since 2005 when I joined Stampin' Up! the first time. We've been friends ever since! Check out the card that inspired me here. LeAnne is a beautiful stamper! Her vintage style cards are my favorite!!

This is called a bridge card and it was my first time making one. Just like many things, the first time is a little challenging and then it's easy peasy! I am LOVING this little Trucking' Along bundle. It's worth the hype it's been getting. This is an online exclusive, which means it's not in any catalog. You can only find it online. The online exclusives are first come first serve. In many cases, when they're gone ...they're gone! I suggest scooping them up right away so you don't miss out.

I got my measurements from LeAnne. I took a piece of cardstock 5 1/2" x 7"', and on the 7" side scored it at 1",1 3/4", 5 1/4", and 6". Fold in the two sides so that it forms a sort of box shape, and that's it! The horizontal piece is 3 1/2" across. You can make it as high as you'd like to accommodate whatever you're putting on that piece. When you fold it flat, it still fits in a standard A2 envelope (4 3/8" x 5 3/4").

I recommend doing as much of the work as possible while the card is flat. Once you have it in the box shape, it's not as easy to decorate, in my opinion.

Here's a bit of a side view:

The truck is stamped with Real Red ink and the outline in Memento Tuxedo Black. I find that stamping the solid, color portion first makes it easier to line up the outline. The tires and road are stamped in Pebbled Path, which is quickly becoming a favorite of mine! The image was then punched with the Trucking' Along punch. This item is on back-order until sometime in October, but the stamp set is still available. I stamped the tree in Garden Green, stamped-off once to lessen the intensity of the color. The outline was stamped in Memento Tuxedo Black and then fussy cut and attached to the back of the truck. The truck is popped up on Stampin' Dimensionals. I LOVE Dimensionals and use them on just about every card I make. They add so much ....well, dimension. haha!! 
This card has was a bit time-consuming, but well worth the outcome! 

We will be making it at my August Stamp Class on Saturday. Hoping my ladies love it as much as I do!! If you live in the Southern Lancaster County area and are interested in joining us for Stamp Class, please email me at smostamps@gmail.com. I hold classes on the first Saturday of each month, minus January and December. February through June we make all occasion cards. July through November we make mostly Christmas cards. It's a great time!

Here's to a great week ahead! Hard to believe August is just a couple days away. 

Thanks for popping by!

~Shawn

FMS596 All Kinds of Wonderful!

 Hello there! My name is Shawn Marie O'Connell and I'm an Independent Stampin' Up! Demonstrator in Southeastern PA. Welcome!

My card today is for yet another fabulous Freshly Made Sketches sketch challenge. When I first looked at this I thought, "Yikes!". 

Then I looked at the cards made by the team and was inspired by Linda Callahan's adorable card using the Bird's Eye View stamp set. Go check it out. Sooo cute!! Here's my take on the sketch:

I am really happy with this card! I just wish I would've stamped the sentiment up a bit higher to allow more space above the leaves. Oh well, live and learn. haha! 

I really love coloring with Stampin' Blends so much. I have a set of Ohuhu alcohol markers and a good bit of Copics. I've been very hesitant to jump on the Stampin' Blends wagon. You just can not beat the color consistency that Stampin' Up! has across all the things ...card stock, ink, markers, ribbon, embellishments. What a difference it makes in your finished projects! Not to mention eliminating the hassle of figuring out which marker from another company matches a certain Stampin' Up! color. It really makes coloring so much more fun!!

This card will go to a woman who has filled in for my friend and colleague who had her knee replaced. Deborah has been a God-send in Kim's absence. We were all worried because Kim keeps the office running like no other!! But Deborah has done an outstanding job and has been a huge help to me. I will miss her and her cheerful spirit. I will also be thrilled to have Kim back!!! 

Thanks for stopping by! Wishing you a fantabulous weekend!

~Shawn

FMS507 Good Luck!

 Hello there! My name is Shawn Marie O'Connell and I'm an Independent Stampin' Up! Demonstrator in Southeastern Pennsylvania. Welcome!

I needed a card for one of our interns. His last day is Friday. He's such a sweet guy and we will miss him very much! His Mom works in our office, too, so we'll get updates on how he's doing in college.

I used an old Freshly Made Sketches sketch, shown here:

Aden is a football player, so I printed out the school's mascot. I die cut the image (and some retired DSP) with the retired Stitched Shapes circle dies. The sentiment is from the retired Custom Tee stamp set. I know we all want new, fresh things ...but it can be very frustrating when solid, classic things are retired. Who doesn't "need" Stitched Shapes in their crafting arsenal?!?

This is currently being passed around the office for everyone to sign. I work with a bunch of Design Engineers, mostly men. I think after two years they are finally used to me making cards and asking for their signatures. haha! 

Hope your week is off to a great start! Thanks for stopping by!

~Shawn

PP650 Sending Warmth

 Hello there! My name is Shawn Marie O'Connell and I'm an Independent Stampin' Up! Demonstrator in Southeastern Pennsylvania. Welcome!

How are we at Monday again already!?! Boy, the weekends sure do fly by. My card today was inspired by The Paper Players. I love a good sketch to kick-start the creative juices!

The only stamping I did on this card was the sentiment, which I embossed with white embossing powder. The One Horse Open Sleigh DSP, an online exclusive, is ahhhh-mazing!!! The photos don't do it justice, truly! They are stunning! I ordered two more packs so I can use them in a class in September. Get your hands on some of this paper before it's all gone!

Loving this clean and simple layout and card! 

Thanks so much for visiting today. Have a great week!

~Shawn

FMS595 Peace and Joy

Hello there! My name is Shawn Marie O'Connell and I'm an Independent Stampin' Up! Demonstrator in Southeastern PA. Welcome!

I spent some time in my stamp room this afternoon working on the Freshly Made Challenges Challenge #595. 

I flipped the sketch to accommodate the curved Peace and Joy sentiment. I'm loving this Online Exclusive stamp set, So Very Merry, from Stampin' Up! 

I embossed the angel image on vellum with gold embossing powder, which was inspired by Erica Cerwin. She talked about doing this in her most recent Facebook Friday. I colored the backside of the image with Stampin' Blends. I used some retired circle dies to cut it out and mounted it onto some white card stock. I used those retired circle dies to make a frame from Azure Afternoon card stock. This allowed me to glue down the image without the card background showing through the vellum. I embossed the panel on the left with the Exposed Brick 3D embossing folder. Some gold Simply Elegant Trim tied in a double bow and some adhesive-backed sequins added the finishing touch!

I hope you've all had a wonderful weekend! My daughter, Jackie, and I visited my niece and her family yesterday. She has two adorable little ones, Cade and Avery. I'm so mad that we didn't take a single picture. UGH!! At least we made some fun memories and got to meet sweet miss Avery, who is now six months old. Time sure does fly!!

Wishing you all a fabulous week! Thanks for visiting!

~Shawn

BIG SALE!!!!

Hey there! My name is Shawn Marie O'Connell and I'm an Independent Stampin' Up! Demonstrator in Southeastern Pennsylvania. Welcome!

BIG NEWS!! Stampin' Up! is have a huge sale on almost all of their stamp sets tomorrow, 07/19.  With the exception of the Hostess stamp sets, all stamp sets are 15% off! You do not want to miss this!! Act fast because this awesome deal only lasts for ONE DAY.

Shop with me at this link: https://stampinwithshawn.stampinup.net/ Click on Shop Now in the upper left corner to see all the incredible stamp sets.

Another great promotion happening in July is Bonus Days! Shop from July 6-21 to earn a $5 coupon for every $50 you spend! Then redeem your coupons in August!

Thanks for stopping by! Please don't hesitate to reach out if you have any questions. 

~Shawn

FMS 594 Take Two...

 Hello there! My name is Shawn O'Connell and I'm an Independent Stampin' Up! Demonstrator in Southeastern Pennsylvania. Welcome!

I love the Freshly Made Sketches challenges. Yesterday I posted a card I made for the latest challenge, #594. Looking at the card afterwards, I was not happy with the flower. It felt flat. I messed around with the outline image in the same stamp set, Delightful Dahlias ...a Sale-A-Bration set from a few years ago. Adding the outline image really makes the image pop! Using the (now retired) Stamparatus made this easy work. I stamped two different color flowers. I'm especially loving the Melon Mambo flower with the Granny Apple Green leaves.

This is a great stamp set if you like fussy cutting! In case you aren't sure what that means, fussy cutting is when you use scissors to cut out an image. Some people hate it. I think it's relaxing and soothing! This set doesn't have dies, so fussy cutting it is!! Woohoo!

Wishing you all a fabulous week! Thanks for visiting!

 

FMS594 Heartfelt Sympathy

 Hello there! My name is Shawn Marie O'Connell and I'm an independent Stampin' Up! Demonstrator in Southeaster, PA. Welcome!

I haven't had much time to stamp the past couple of weeks, as the owner of the company I work for was here from Taipei. Work took over most of my time to prepare for and help execute the visit. It's always such an adrenaline rush ...and then a huge crash! haha! While I thoroughly enjoy event and meeting planning, it's always really nice when it's all over and we can collectively exhale!!

The card is a CASE of Narelle Farrugia's card, and is my submission for Freshly Made Sketches #594.

A very dear friend of ours passed away suddenly a few weeks ago. His name was Gary and he was only 72 years old! So tragic. He was living in Oklahoma for the past several years to help his parents who are in their late 90's. The services being held here will be next weekend. This card will go to his parents.

This sketch was a great place to start for a sympathy card, and I fell in love with Narelle's card. I love the colors she chose and that chubby little bird is adorable!! I have three more sympathy cards to make for his daughters.

Wishing you all a fabulous weekend! It's still super hot and humid here in Lancaster County, PA. GROSS!! I love the vibes of Summer ...but Spring and Fall are my favorites. 

Thanks for stopping by!

~Shawn

FMS593 & TTTC215 Thank You

 Hello there! My name is Shawn Marie O'Connell and I'm an Independent Stampin' Up! Demonstrator in Southeastern PA. Welcome!

In the paper crafting community there's a popular acronym: CASE. This means Copy And Share Everything. The majority of the cards I've made have been CASEd from someone else. I started this blog to push myself out of my comfort zone. I am determined to participate in at least two challenges each week. Some weeks that will be one card that combines two challenges. Some weeks it might be three or four cards. All depends on how much crafting time I can squeeze in!

After work today, I popped into my stamp room and got to work on the Freshly Made Sketches #593 and Tic Tac Toe #215 challenges. I chose the far right column on the Tic Tac Toe challenge.

This isn't one of my favorite cards, but I'm posting it anyway. Here I go ....out of my comfort zone! haha! I really like these colors, but I LOVE the Just My Type stamp set. It is sooo flippin' cute!

Thanks so much for stopping by! Hope you're having a great week!

~Shawn

FMS592 Sending Love & Christmas Cheer

 Hey there! Happy Saturday!!

I have Stamp Class at my house tonight. It's always a fun night making cards, and enjoying some wine and chocolate!! Tonight we are getting a head start on our Christmas cards. From February through June we make regular cards: birthday, sympathy, thank you, anniversary, congrats, thinking of you, etc. From July through November we make mostly Christmas cards and gift card holders.

The card below is one of the cards we'll be making tonight! The sketch is from Freshly Made Sketches. I've CASEd this card from Amy O'Neill.

Since this is a Christmas card, I chose to leave the leaves off. If you zoom in you can see that I didn't start blending the Azure Afternoon ink on scrap paper before moving onto the card. When you don't do this, you get heavy splotches of ink. My Azure Afternoon ink pad is especially juicy, which makes the splotches even more noticeable. I'm leaving it this way as a word of caution to the ladies tonight. A "learn from my mistakes" moment. haha! I used Masking Paper and a circle punch to mask the area for the sun while blending the Azure Afternoon sky. Then I used that same circle punch to create a mask for the Daffodil Delight sun.

I am slowly building up my Stampin' Blends collection, but didn't have what I needed for this card. The branch and bird were colored with Ohuhu alcohol ink markers purchased in a set of 120 from Amazon. Now that I'm looking at the photograph, I think I change the color of the bird. There's not enough contrast from the color of the sky.

Wishing you all a fabulous Fourth of July weekend! I'm so excited to have a four-day weekend!! Planning on getting lots of stamping done.

Thanks for visiting! Happy Birthday to this flawed, but still AMAZING, country of ours!! God Bless America!!

~Shawn