These cards use the stamp set Always.  I began with them because this set is one I'm going to miss a lot!  Love the images in the whole set.

Here's a 3-D treat box I made also using Always.

Next up is Fresh Cuts stamp set paired with the Fresh-Cut Notes, both of which are retiring!  You'll want to order your Fresh-Cut Notes as soon as possible — accessories are disappearing quickly!

I loved using these coordinating products to create elegant 4"x4" gift cards. 

CLICK HERE to view the Retiring Stamp Set List.

CLICK HERE to view the Retiring Accessory List.  

CLICK HERE to view the Retiring Decor Element List.

Don't Forget!
To sign up for June's Stamp Shoppe – click HERE!
To order Stampin' Up! retiring products at a discount and online 24/7 — click HERE!

A good friend lost her Daisy Dog last week and this is the card I made for her.  I know how painful it is when we have to say goodbye to a beloved pet, and I'm hoping that sending her a handmade card might let her know how much I'm thinking of her.  I started out by choosing the Build-A-Bear Workshop Pawsitively Prints II Designer Series Paper and building my color scheme around its pretty little flower print – So Saffron, Real Red and Tempting Turquoise.  I used a small piece of both sides of one of the papers, then a piece of Tempting Turquoise card stock to back the main image which is punched from an additional piece of the designer paper using the Two-Step Bird Punch.  The Whisper White card stock circle behind the bird is cut with the Circle Scissors Plus.  A piece of Real Red 1/4" Grosgrain Ribbon is wrapped around the image and tied with some white crochet thread.  I used a Real Red Button from the Brights Designer Buttons pack to add a little pizzazz and tied with some Real Red 1/8" Taffeta Ribbon through the center.   Don't forget to purchase some Mini Glue Dots - they're the perfect thing to permanently secure your buttons!  The stamping is done tone-on-tone with So Saffron Classic Ink and two different stamp sets – Always for the branches and Word Play for the sentiment.

THINGS YOU'LL NEED:
Item No. 120308 Word Play wood mount $41.95 OR
Item No. 120651 Word Play clear mount $28.95
Item No. 113620 Always $28.95
Item No. 117396 Pawsitively Prints II Designer Series Paper $9.95
Item No. 117191 Two-Step Bird Punch $16.95
Item No. 112530 Circle Scissors Plus $29.95
Item No. 112531 Glass Mat $19.95
Item No. 109034 Real Red 1/4" Grosgrain Ribbon $4.95
Item No. 119747 Brights Designer Buttons $8.95
Item No. 119251 Real Red 1/8" Taffeta Ribbon $5.95
Item No. 103683 Mini Glue Dots $4.95

Don't Forget!

To sign up for the Stamp Shoppes on Sept. 10th and 11th!  Click HERE for details.

Team member April Waite and her husband just welcomed their second daughter into the world!  I'm sorely without baby stamps so I created this sweet card using the Big Shot almost exclusively (just one bit of stamping!)  I began with a base of Perfect Plum card stock, then ran Whisper White card stock through the Big Shot with the Perfect Polka-Dots Textured Impressions Embossing Folder.  The letters are cut with Alphabet Simple Letters Bigz Die in Regal Rose, So Saffron, Certainly Celery and Perfect Plum card stocks.  Flowers are cut from Birds & Blooms Sizzlits 4-Pack Dies.  To create the Certainly Celery center, I stamped the image from the heart in Always stamp set using Certainly Celery Classic Ink then punched it out with the 1" Circle Punch.  For the center of the So Saffron flower, I punched a piece of Perfect Plum card stock with the flower punch from Itty Bitty Shapes Punch Pack.  I threaded some white crochet thread through an flower-shaped Bitty Button, tied it in a bow, then adhered the card stock flower to the back of the button with a Mini Glue Dot.  A piece of 5/8" White Organza Ribbon completes this soft, sweet card for baby.

THINGS YOU'LL NEED:
Item No. 113439 Big Shot Die-Cutting Machine $99.95
Item No. 115960 Alphabet Simple Letters $89.95
Item No. 113485 Birds & Blooms Sizzlits 4-Pack Dies $21.95
Item No. 117335 Perfect Polka Dots Textured Impressions Embossing Folder $7.95
Item No. 118309 Itty Bitty Shapes Punch Pack $16.95
Item No. 113620 Always stamp set $28.95
Item No. 119868 1" Circle Medium $10.95
Item No. 118761 Bitty Buttons $4.95
Item No. 114319 Whisper White 5/8" Organza Ribbon $5.95

Don't Forget!

• To sign up for the Ribbon Share!  Click HERE for more info!

The first card is from Jen Rios-Raner of Penn Yan, NY.  Jen always has such detail in her cards!  Notice the paper piercing in the top corner, the multiple layers of circled around the "E" and textured background on the red card stock.  I love her use of the 1-1/4"Wide Striped Grosgrain Ribbon in Basic Black.  The sentiment comes from Always stamp set and the "E" is from Lovely Letters Alphabet stamp set.  Colors are Barely Banana, Real Red and Basic Black.

This next card is from Debbie Rought of Middlesex, NY.  This picture doesn't do Debbie's beautiful card justice — I had a hard time photographing the great texture that she got using the Elegant Bouquet Textured Embossing Folder with the Big Shot.  Debbie kept it simple with a red and white palette with a hint of bling using a red rhinestone brad from the Circle Fire Rhinestone Brad package.  The hearts were quick and easy using the Stampin' Up! heart punches, and the saying is from Teeny Tiny Wishes stamp set.  I love that Debbie used a Stampin' Write Marker in Real Red to color in the centers of the embossed flowers.  Wonderful touch!  Stay tuned for more great cards from the Team!

Don't Forget!   

Last day to order from the Holiday Mini Catalog is January 4th!  You'll want to check out some of the great items for Valentine's Day.  Some of the top sellers from the catalog are listed below.  Remember, these items might not be available again!

• Sweet Centers Stamp Set (116521, pp. 6 – 7).  Don't forget the coordinating 1 3/4" Circle Punch (112004, p. 7) and Sweet Treat Cups (116802, p. 7)
• Autumn Splendor Stamp Set (116503, pp. 12 – 13) and coordinating Autumn Meadows Designer Series Paper (116769, p. 13)
• Cold and Cuddly Stamp Set (116523, p. 18)
• Petals-A-Plenty Textured Impressions Folder (116820, p. 21)
• Delightful Decorations Stamp Set (116517, pp. 24 – 25) and coordinating Ornament Punch (116794, p. 25)
• Serene Snowflakes Stamp Set (115438, pp. 26 – 27).

To order your retiring stamp sets before they're gone forever on January 4th – click HERE for the listing!

To register for the Winter Scrapbooking Class  – click HERE!  Registration is due by January 4th.

To register for the More than Valentines Class — click HERE!  Registration is due by January 22nd.

The first card I CASED from my 3rd level upline Missy Shipman, our Glad Heart team leader.  She created this card for our team swap, and I love the simplicity yet interest. 

I got the idea for the card below from one shown on the Stampin' Up! website.  I changed it a bit to make it my own.  The girls loved seeing that you could use the stamp set Always to create a Christmas Card.

I created the card below because I needed a swap and didn't have much time.  It went together so easily with the help of the Big Shot and the Top Note Die.

The card below is a combination of two separate ideas from the Stampin' Up! home office.  I loved the idea of using our Ornament Punch and Clear Window Sheets to create a stencil, then sponge inside to make this darling ornament.  I wanted the scallop on the edge of the main image to have a finer scallop than the Scallop Edge Punch, so I punched Ruby Red card stock with the Square Scallop Punch, cut that square in half, then overlapped the last scallop on one piece with the first scallop of the second piece.  You can't even tell where I seamed them together! 

This card was lovingly CASED from Heartfelt Stamper team member Jen Rios-Raner who did this beauty for a team swap.  Jen's designs are always a big hit!  After seeing this card the Snowflake Punch was a must-have!