It is rare that Stampin' Up! gives discounts on My Digital Studio products so jump on these specials. There is only about 2 weeks left and I don't want you to miss out. Check them out and order what you want here. Remember too that all photobooks, pages, and cards you send to Stampin' Up!'s professional printer are 31% off during August. Make photobooks of your summer memories and send them off to be printed by the end of August. They will make wonderful Christmas presents.

Until next time…blessings,
Sue Erickson
sue@soggystamper.com

You can love your job too when you start your own Stampin' Up! business as a demonstrator. During August, you will receive the above darling Halloween project kit when you purchase your starter kit. Starting your business is easy and requires little outlay of money. The starter kit is only $99! Not only that, but you can choose the product you want to demonstrate for yourself. The kit comes with standard business forms and then you choose product up to $125 worth.

What do you benefit from being a demonstrator? Let me list some of the ways:

• You have the satisfaction of choosing when to work so you can meet family needs as well.
• You determine how much you earn depending on how much you work. It might be enough to make a car payment, or earn enough to pay cash for all your Christmas presents…imagine how that would feel, or perhaps you need money for music or dance lessons for your children.
• You have so much fun that it doesn't really feel like work when you teach a class or do a workshop.
• Remember how you feel when you make something really nice? You can share that feeling many times over when customers love something you have designed for them to make.

Contact me if you would like more information and click here to watch a video and for additional information on my website. I'd love to have you join me in sharing our love of rubber stamping.

Until next time…blessings,

Sue Erickson
sue@soggystamper.com  

Stamp sets: Everything Eleanor (w-124162, c-124164), Itty Bitty Banners (w-126255, c-126257); Card Stock: Cherry Cobbler, Early Espresso, Whisper White, Old Olive; Inks: Basic Gray, Early Espresso, Old Olive; Other: Basics Glimmer Brads (121003), Bitty Banners Framelits (129267) 

Welcome to The Soggy Stamper blog tonight. I must say…today the soggy stamper enjoyed crisp, sunny weather…and yesterday as well. What a welcome break from the cold, drizzly weather we have had since we got back to Craig. Now, onward to this card.

I rarely CASE (copy and share everything) another stamper but this card by Connie Babbert appealed to me so much that I did CASE it. I didn't have Basic Gray card stock so I substituted Early Espresso for it. When I saw this stamp set in the new catalog, I thought I could do without it as I have lots of flower stamps already. However, I have seen some beautiful cards like Connie's andthe stamp set magically appeared on an order blank…LOL!

I stamped the medium flower four times with Basic Gray ink on Cherry Cobbler card stock and the small flower once and cut them out. On two of the medium flowers, I cut part of the petals away. Then I layered them and put a black glimmer brad in the center of each flower. The tag shape was stamped on Whisper White card stock with Early Espresso ink. The florish was stamped with Old Olive ink. This layer was adhered to an Early Espresso layer and then to the Cherry Cobbler card base.  I stamped the greeting from Itty Bitty Banners on Old Olive card stock and cut it out with the matching Itty Bitty Banners Framelit. Having a framelit to do the cutting for me is soooo nice! Having framelits to match stamp sets is the up and coming thing. Just check out all the new ones in the Holiday catalog. Finally I adhered the flowers with Stampin' Dimensionals.

Thanks for coming by to visit today. Do come back again soon.

Until next time…blessings,
Sue Erickson
sue@soggystamper.com

Wonder how MDS2 or MDS2+ would fit into your life? Don't have much to scrapbook so can't imagine why you would enjoy creating with MDS2? Then check out this video from Stampin' Up!

Click on the 'more info' button on the video screen to learn more about MDS2. Then click here to order your 30-day Free trial from my online store. I love creating with MDS2 and am here to help you in any way I can.

While you are here, please take time to have a virtual glass of ice tea or lemonade, cool off, and browse my blog. If you like what you see, please feel free to share it with your friends and subscribe to my monthly newsletter by filling in the box on the right.

Until next time…blessings,
Sue Erickson
sue@soggystamper.com

Supplies: MDS2+ (130646), MDS2 (130644), MDS2 upgrade (130650), or 30-day FREE trial of MDS2 (130910), Frightening Feline stamp brush set (131229), Vintage Overlays stamp brush set – 6 (121061), Howlstooth and Scaringbone designer series paper – 7 digital download (129827)(came with MDS2+, or on Haunts and Harvest Digital Collection Disc 129835) , Lots of Tags  – shape 4 punch (124442)

It is another Terrific Tuesday here in My Digital Craft Corner! When I saw the cute Frightening Feline stamp in the Holiday mini catalog, I thought it would be wonderful to have it as a stamp brush set in My Digital Studio so it could be sized big enough to make framed art for Halloween. Guess what…it is one of the new downloads today. Yay!

Here is the framed art I created. One of the wonderful things about MDS2 is that you can color portions of stamps now. I had a lot of fun coloring some of the words in this cat. You can even color parts to be ombre color as I did with the word 'sneaky' on the cat's shoulders. It helps to enlarge your image while you are doing the coloring and if you accidentally color onto a different part of the image, all you have to do is click on the undo button.

I love the shape of this Lots of Tags shape 4 punch. It is one of the items I got when I downloaded MDS2+. The Howlstooth and Scaringbone designer series paper also came with MDS2+. Now, I must admit that I have purchased lots of downloads since MDS first came out, but even so, I purchased the full MDS2+. Many of the stamp brush sets I already had downloaded are now svg files so they were also upgraded. (Having the stamp brush set be a svg file means you can enlarge it without distortion as I did with the cat.)

Finally I added the Vintage Overlays stamp brush set to the designer series paper to give it an aged look and to give the suggestion of spider webs.

For those of you who prefer traditional stamping with stamps, paper, and ink; this would make a great Halloween card or small piece of framed art. Frightening Feline is a single wood-mount stamp (128105) and you can order the Howlstooth and Scaringbone designer series paper here. Unfortunately, the Lots of Tags shape 4 is a My Digital Studio exclusive punch but you could use one of the Big Shot dies or framelits to achieve the same effect.

I hope you like this project. I am not much of a Halloween person but I am going to print out this one and hang it on my wall. Be sure to click on the item name in the supplies list if you don't have all the necessary supplies to create this project and want to order them from me.

Until next time…blessings,
Sue Erickson
sue@soggystamper.com

Welcome to the third and final post on convention sample board favorites. If you want to see more, let me know. I have lots more pictures. :o)

Since I have two doxie pups who are our babies now that the kids are all out of the house, I loved this scrapbook page. See…even if you don't have children to use as subjects for your photos, you can take darling pictures of your pets. Or…you could have a scrapbook featuring favorite views. I actually have a small one that I call 'The View'. The view from our home in Haines, AK, was ever changing and always stunning. I took a lot of pictures and put them in a small photo album.

This is a cool way to have a family birthday calendar! It is functional as well as highly decorative. I am sure the calendar pages were created with My Digital Studio. This is part of one of the Artisan contestant winner's displays. Notice also the fabric wreath. I'm guessing the fabric was cut with the Flower Folds die, then folded into fourths and pinned to a styrofoam base. That is a lot of work! However, our Bigz dies can cut 8 layers of fabric at a time so that part of the project would go fairly quickly.

I like this card for the colors used, the greeting, and the sponging done behind the stamped images at the bottom. If bow-tying challenges you, here is a way to use ribbon on your card without having to tie a bow. Just make a overhand knot in the middle of your length of ribbon and tape the ends to the back of the layer.

This is just a smattering of all the samples we saw at convention to boost our creative juices. We also had great classes to help us build our businesses and we got FREE stamps! That is always a good thing.

You could be going to convention with me next year. Stampin' Up! makes it so easy to be a demonstrator. The starter kit is only $99, you get to choose the supplies that come in your kit, and you can choose how you want to run your business. You can work the business a minimal amount of time or you can make it your full-time job having fun sharing your love of stamping. Contact me so we can discuss how joining my team of demonstrators can help meet your needs or click here to learn more about the opportunity. The process of joining is easy and quick and I am here to help you along the way!

Thanks for coming to visit today. Do take time to have a virtual cup of coffee or tea with me (or glass of ice tea if you are still having hot temperatures) while you browse my blog. If you like the work I do and would like to receive exclusive tips and projects, sign up for my newsletter in the upper right-hand corner of this blog.

Until next time…blessings,
Sue Erickson
sue@soggystamper.com

I don't know exactly how many samples were posted on the sample boards at convention this year. I just know there were tons of samples. These samples come from cards entered in contests throughout the year or were given to Stampin' Up! at regionals. Here are 3 more projects for you:

Each year Stampin' Up! holds an artisan contest prior to convention. Demonstrators are invited to enter a prescribed number and type of projects. The top 10 have their work displayed at convention. This is one of the displays. Wonder what you can do with Stampin' Up! fabric? Check out the darling dachshunds and the little girl's dress. Click here to see the wide variety of Stampin' Up! fabrics that coordinate with our designer series papers.

Daydream Medallions is a stamp set in the 2012-2013 catalog that has coordinating framelit dies. Here the stamps are used to lead the eye to the photo. I love the lacy design of these stamps. The artist also added basic pearls as embellishments. Click here to order wood mount Daydream Medallions stamp set or here for the clear mount.

Corporate Stampin' Up! artists also made up sample boards featuring various items and ensembles in the catalogs. This board features the  Ornament Keepsakes stamp set and its coordinating Holiday Ornaments framelits. Click here to order the wood mount bundle of the stamp set and the framelits or here for the clear mount bundle. Isn't it wonderful of Stampin' Up! to bundle the stamp set and coordinating framelit set at a nice saving?

Thanks for coming to visit today. I am planning on sharing some of my favorite ideas from the convention sample boards for a couple more days so come back again and again.

Until next time…blessings,
Sue
sue@soggystamper.com

I still haven't received my swap cards from convention. (I forgot and left them in my hotel room when I checked out. Fortunately one of my roomies saw them and is sending them to me.) So today I am going to share a couple of ideas from the numerous projects on the sample boards. This first one is a piece of framed art using the bird from Betsey's Blossoms.

Next I want to share this beautiful 12 x 12 scrapbook page.The pink flowers were punched out with the Itty Bitty Punch Shape Pack, then adhered to the branches. I love, love, love the photos on this page! Someone is an excellent photographer.

Finally, I love this card. The lattice in the heart opening is such a nice touch.The Hearts Collection framelits was used to cut the heart. Notice the Scallop Trim Border punched edge as well.

I hope you enjoy these projects. Come back tomorrow for more samples from convention. If you have any questions about the projects, just ask and I will try to help you figure out how to make them. If you are the creator of any of these projects, let me know and I will post your credits with the photos.

Until next time…blessings,
Sue
sue@soggystamper.com

Supplies: MDS 2+ (130646), MDS 2 upgrade (130650), MDS 2 (130644), or 30-day Free Trial of MDS 2 (130910); Downtown Grunge Photobook Template Designer Series Paper – 4 (126056); Sweet Details Designer Series Paper (125744); Vintage Overlays stamp brush set (121061); Send Me Soaring stamp brush set (129589); Autumn Elements stamp brush set (127172); Creatively Yours stamp brush set (130163); Square punch from Punch Shapes (118853); Tasteful Trim Shape-1 punch (123996)

Whoosh…that is a lot of different items used on this card! The great thing is that all of it is included in the MDS 2+ download. The theme for today's creation is beach or swimming pool. Not having a beach stamp brush set included in MDS 2+ and not having access yet to my other downloaded files, I created this beach card using punches and the Send Me Soaring stamp brush set. I used the Tasteful Trim – 1 punch and stretched it out to make the waves. I filled it with one of the Sweet Details designer series papers for the color and slight texture. The sand effect was created using the wrinkled Downtown Grunge designer series paper and one of the Vintage Overlays stamp brushes. Finally, I used the Creatively Yours stamp brush set for the copyright symbol and added my name. If you need any of the elements I used for this card, just click on the name and you'll be taken to my online store to order it. However, you can get all the above files plus much, much more if you order MDS 2+. :o)

Let me explain the differences between the options for MDS 2. If you already have MDS, you can purchase the MDS 2 upgrade for just $19.95. This will give you the new software and all its wonderful functionality. It won't upgrade your existing stamp brush sets to svg files nor will it add new content. If you purchased MDS between April 16 and Aug 1, you should get an email giving instructions on how to upgrade the program to MDS 2 for FREE!

If you don't already have MDS, purchase MDS 2 for $39.95. This gives you the basic software program and limited content files. OR…you can order MDS 2+ for $79.95 and get it all. Even though I already had MDS, I went ahead and ordered MDS 2+ for $79.95 so my existing stamp brush sets in MDS that are duplicated in MDS 2+ would be upgraded to svg files.

Still on the fence? Then order the FREE 30-day trial of MDS 2. Play with all the wonderful new features for 30-days for free. Then I know you will want to order the whole MDS 2+. You will be hooked! As always, I am here to help you and I am developing a series of videos to show you how to use the program.

Thanks for coming by to visit today. Do come back tomorrow to see what other new digital downloads Stampin' Up! has for us.

Until the next time…blessings,
Sue
sue@soggystamper.com

I don't have a card for you today, just a link to the new downloads released today. So click here to check them out in my online store and then place your order. One of the downloads is a series of chevron punches and a 1-page 12" x 12" template. There is a Bandstand Digital kit with an 8-piece brush set; 4 DSP patterns and 76 embellishments. The candid frames were popular, so now we have More Candid Frames and a 1-page 11" x 8 1/2" template. Included in today's download are also a Tag-it and a Christmas Collection Greeting Card Template.

Tomorrow's the DAY! We will be able to order MDS 2 and MDS 2+ in the download format only. The DVDs will be available later in the year once all the beta testing is completed and the files are perfected. Downloading the program rather than purchasing the DVD can be an advantage. No matter what happens to the program or your computer, you can download it again from your online Stampiin' Up! Download Manager. 30-day Free trials of MDS 2 and MDS 2+ will also be available if you aren't sure you will like the upgrades. Are you crazy??? The new features are awesome! I told you about my top 5 favorite new features in this post. Here are the next 5 things I am excited about:

    1. Mirror Text – great for use on iron-on transfers

    2. Font Search – Find a font by typing the first few letters

    3. Text Tracking – be able to adjust the horizontal space between the letters

    4. Crop Stamps and Embellishments

    5. Vector Stamp Images – this means you can increase the size of a stamp image and keep the image sharp.

I am so lucky because Stampin' Up! gives their demonstrators an additional 15% off the first item they order in their birth month. Guess what…I have a August birthday. You know what will be my first item on my order in the morning…hehehe!

Until next time…blessings,
Sue Erickson
sue@soggystamper.com