HSS 185

Hi stampers and happy Tuesday!  It's time for a new challenge at Hand Stamped Sentiments!  I've been trying to make it into my stamp studio but it hasn't been happening!  I was all set Thursday and Friday then I had a little pregnancy blip which turned out to be nothing and everything checked out just fine (I'll post more on the baby bump later) but I took it easy and just rested on Friday.  And then my wonderful in-laws came to visit and paint over the weekend.  We seem to make our visitors work for their room and board :-)  I think both sets of our parents needed a vacation from their visits to rest up, lol!

So this week is a cute color challenge!

So what's a pregnant girl who is super comfy on her couch to do?  Well break out MDS of course!  It's awesome to be able to craft from anywhere including the couch :-)

And yeah, I know....a baby card...imagine that!  But, I actually am in need of one as we are meeting up with some friends of my hubby who had their little girl last month so I need to get his one printed out!

Make sure to check out all of the awesome samples over at HSS and play along!

Happy stamping!

Fab Friday 37 and It's A.....

Hi stampers, happy Friday!  Today is a VERY exciting day as we find out if Baby B is a boy or girl!

So, here's the fun sketch we have this week at Fab Friday:

And here's the card:

So, it's a boy!  Not sure what this girly girl is going to do but I'll figure it out :-)  He also wasn't very modest, ha!

It's not a very exciting card but MDS was the easiest option to create one of each so they'd be ready and all my stuff is still packed up.  Hopefully I can start creating early next week once we get settled in our temporary home...and then we'll move into the house and I'll probably take a hiatus again, ha!  I'm not doing well at the multi-tasking!

I'll do some pregnancy posts/updates some time once I get settled and organized as I've been trying to scrapbook my growing belly and this exciting time!  Overall I feel great and have been lucky to the whole time!  I have been able to continue to work out like I'm used to and teach classes although yesterday was my last day for that due to the move.   I will miss teaching, the Y and my members very much!  And I'm a bit worried what will happen to my motivation when I don't HAVE to go work out :-)  I've been able to feel kicks since around 18 weeks and a few lucky people have been able to feel them as well!  Everything looked good today and he is around the 60% percentile which makes momma happy, not to small and not too big!  Thanks to all my friends and readers who have supported us along the way with little Baby B!

Now, make sure to check out all of the other DT members creations and play along with us!  Baby Backes would love to see what you made :-)

Happy Stamping!

Fab Friday 35

Hi stampers and happy Friday!  Hard to believe another week has come and gone!  I always say that when my momma is here though, she keeps me busy, lol!  I'm looking forward to a low key day of working out then hopefully stamping some especially after my new goodies come!  What are the chances Mr. UPS will be early?  He doesn't usually come until 3 or after, bummer!  I may have to make a Valentine too for Mr. Bada-Bing :-)  Haven't made too many of those this year, oh well!

And happy Valentine's Day to all my friends and readers!  I hope you have a day filled with love and happiness!  Or chocolate!!!! ;-)  We aren't doing the traditional "romantic" thing as I thought we'd take my mother in law and future sister in law out for dinner since their guys are on a hunting trip.  And the place we used to go isn't very good any more so it will be nice to do something different!

So, of course it's time for a new challenge over at Fab Friday now that we're back!  This time it's a sketch:

And here's my Valentine to all of you!

Stampin' Supplies:
Stamps:  Dictionary (background)
Paper:  Coastal cabana, crisp cantaloupe, baked brown sugar
Ink:  Coastal cabana
Accessories:  Chevron ribbon, gold sequin trim, basic pearls, doilies, MDS, e-cutter

So I used some left over letters from a project I cut out a while back and I popped the O up on a dimensional.  I couldn't decide on a background and then I remembered the dictionary stamp.  How perfect since I was using letters!

Now, head on over and check out the other fabulousness from the DT and play along with us!

Happy stamping!

HSS 174

Hi stampers!  Happy Tuesday!  I know, I know...it's been forever but I'm TELLING you life is super crazy right now!  We have a LOT going on!  We had the holiday of course where we hosted my mom and step-dad for a few days so they kept me busy.

Right now, I'm posting from a hotel room where we are looking for possible ideas of places to live.  If I haven't mentioned it my hubby has quit his job and is in the process of looking at some options for a new one so obviously you see that I've got a good excuse, right? :-)  So....I had to rely on MDS for this week's Hand Stamped Sentiment challenge!

I love MDS for this reason!  It's totally portable so you can do projects on the fly so to speak as well as scrapbook things pretty much wherever you are!  So I came up with a cute and quick little Christmas card!

It's super simple but super cute I think!  Now, make sure to check out the HSS site and play along!

I promise to get in my stamp room this week and share (unless something ELSE crazy comes up, lol)!

And please keep us in your thoughts and prayers during this stressful and crazy time!!!!!  There are lots of things going on and with the holidays it's just nuts!  ME, the Christmas freak hasn't even gotten the tree up yet!  Yeesh!  And I HATE moving with a passion so this should be fun!  I'd rather clean toilets with a toothbrush and that's saying something because I'm kind of freaked out of toilets too!  ;-)

Happy stamping!

HSS 170

Hi stampers!  Here it is, Tuesday again!  And that means it's time for another fun challenge over at Hand Stamped Sentiments!  This week brings a spooky color challenge!

Bold colors!  Since my hubby was gone ALL last week and I was either hanging out with my mom or at her house I didn't get much (any) actual stamping done.  I always try to stamp when she's here but we end up doing something or at least watching something on TV :-)  However, I made some fun things with MDS since I can (and do) pretty much take it anywhere AND I can do it on the couch ;-)

So, here is my card!

Make sure to go check out what all of the DT members did and play along!

Happy stamping!

HSS 167

Hi stampers!  Quick post today....being a housewife is a lot of work, lol!  Actually I'm still recovering from my BFF's beautiful wedding this weekend as well as trying to get the house/my life in order!  But more on all that later!

So, it's Tuesday which means it's time for a new challenge over at Hand Stamped Sentiments!  This week we have a fun sketch!

And you'll see I used MDS....again.   Well, it's just too easy and since I was busy, busy, busy this weekend it was easy to pull it out while we were traveling and come up with this super cute Halloween card for the sketch!

Spooky huh? :-)  Now head on over and see all the other great inspiration and play along!  We'd love to have you!

Happy stamping!

HSS 166

Hi stampers!  Quick post today as there's lots going on around here lately...I'll be back to fill you in in a few days.  But, in the meantime it's time for a new challenge at Hand Stamped Sentiments!

These were the perfect colors for a card in MDS using the cute little pear from perfectly preserved.  I have to say I really liked the way this one came out!

Now check out all the other inspiration and play along!

Happy stamping!

HSS 159

Hi stampers!  Happy Tuesday!  I think it might just be a good week.  I got an email yesterday that I'd won a $500 gift card from Birchbox after entering a sweepstake a while back on FaceBook!  OHMYGOSH!  Seriously?  $500?????  I never expected to win and when I got the email I figured it would be like $25 or something, lol!  Anyway, I'm taking it a good sign for the week.  And I could use some good luck.  I'm having some medical stuff done tomorrow so if you wouldn't mind sending me some good vibes and prayers they would be appreciated.

Anyway onto the new challenge at Hand Stamped Sentiments.  This week is a funky color challenge!

This color combo seemed very manly to me and I realized it coordinated so well with the pictures I'd taken of my new 12 week old cousin Karsen who we met this weekend.  So I used MDS to create this cute page!

See, cute right? :-)   I may be biased though.  He is such a happy baby.  He was fussing a little when we got to my aunt's while he was getting his diaper changed and my mom said it was the first time she's ever heard him cry, haha!  And I guess he doesn't nap too much but being the baby whisperer that I am he fell asleep...I could have held him all day by the way, lol....but I hope his mom and dad weren't too mad at me if he didn't sleep well that night.  He was too cute and cuddly to wake up :-)

Now, go check out all the bright and fun projects from the design team and play along!

Happy stamping!

HSS 155

Hi stampers!  It's time for another fun challenge at Hand Stamped Sentiments!  This week is a fun and springy color challenge!

It was springy for about one day here on Sunday.  I even got to run outside and it was awesome...and then it was back to snow flurries yesterday, yuck!  At least this color challenge reminds me of spring.

I made an MDS page with one of my favorite pictures of my little cousin Kyleigh who just turned ONE!  I forgot just how teeny she was!

Now, don't forget to check out all the other design team samples and play along!

Happy stamping!

Fab Fri 12

Hi stampers!  This might be a short one...V-day dinner didn't go so well (the place has changed and the food was kind of icky) and now I'm not feeling well.  Guess that should teach me to pre-post my blog posts, ha!    But it's Friday at least and time for a new challenge at Fab Friday!

Not sure about you but I'm ready for some spring and this challenge is perfect!

I actually made my card in MDS as I wanted to play around with the doily download the other day.  I simply recolored it to be baja breeze.  I'm on a CAS kick in case you hadn't noticed, ha!  I really like the pop of the wasabi with the softer purple and blue....Oh, and I also cropped the doily off so it looks like it's peeking out behind the ribbon.  Love all the features on MDS2!!!!

Now make sure to check out all the other great samples from the DT!  And make sure to play along!

Hopefully I'll get some time to stamp and blog with the house cleanup and listing prep this weekend!  We are kind of getting cold feet about putting an offer in on the house we like (that's normal, right? lol) but it's time we get ours ready to put on the market!

Happy stamping!

HSS148

Hi stampers!  Another Tuesday is here and another day closer to Christmas!  Ack!  I'm usually pretty ready but not this year!  I still have a ton of cards that I need (or at least want) to make, I didn't get all my decorations out/up this year and I'm still not done shopping!  I think we need a new month right in the middle of November and December!   We were talking about that at work yesterday....what would we call it?  :-)

Anyway it's time for a new challenge at Hand Stamped Sentiments today.  This week's theme is thank you....how perfect for this time of year right?  We'll need lots of thank you's for all the gifts we get:-)  I actually like using my holiday stamps to make thank you's after the holidays....makes me feel a little better about extending their "shelf life", know what I mean?

Now, with it being a busy time of year I went ahead and cheated a little bit and used MDS for my card....actually it's not cheating at all...it's just being smart! :-)  Time management!  What's GREAT about MDS is that you can take one of the pre made templates which are amazing on their own of course, but you can take it and add your own twist like I did on this card (which I just realized kind of coordinated with the inspiration photo, ha)!

Stampin' Supplies:

My Digital Studio

So, I should have saved a version of the basic template...but I didn't think that far ahead I guess:-)  Basically I made these changes:

1.  Swapped out the Christmas greeting to a thank you sentiment (which was TOTALLY easy to find with the search feature (I just typed in "thank you" and BAM...tons of options).

2.  Added the fun chevron background which was just plain before.  I really think it adds a lot of depth and texture to what was otherwise a bit boring!  And in case you are wondering it's very vanilla in color but I dialed the opacity way down for a subtle look.

3.  I added the gold brad to the center of the big snowflake.  I wanted to add a glimmer brad but it looks like I haven't downloaded all of my old downloads from when I got my new computer.  Oops, I keep forgetting to finish that.  Someone remind me in a few weeks, ok? :-)

So, with those three QUICK and simple changes I took a cute card to a fabulous card!  It's that easy! And even if you think you aren't creative with MDS you can be!  You just experiment AAAAANNNDDD if you don't like something then you just hit undo!  I wish real paper and stamps had an undo button sometimes, hehe!

Ok, now head on over to HSS and get inspired to make a thank you!

Happy stamping!

HSS 139

Hi stampers!  It's Tuesday...which means I have four straight days of late nights at work and a game on Saturday.....sigh....this working thing is really getting in the way of stamping, geez!  :-)  At least it also means it's time for a new challenge at Hand Stamped Sentiments!  This week is a theme challenge and what else could we do but PUMPKINS!

Which is quite perfect since the hubby and I went to a BIG pumpkin patch this past weekend.  We actually went with my brother in law and his fiancé and her kids!  It was fun to go to a patch with kids and not just the two of us:-)

Stampin' Supplies:  MDS2

So, I came up with this quick scrapbook page with a cute picture that Jon snapped on his phone.  I just downloaded the fancy frames and this was the perfect time to use them!

And what's awesome is that with MDS2 you can re-color things.  This frame started out hot pink (I think) and I was able to change it to summer starfruit with just two clicks!  All you do is click recolor and pick the color you want!  You can also recolor DSP!  Awesome!  AND also, one of the new features that was just released (make sure to update your software if you haven't) was to be able to crop punches.  My pumpkins are a punch that I filled with DSP.  I then used another pumpkin punch in soft suede and cropped off all but the stem and lined them up....well tried...I see now that I did a bad job so please excuse that and I'll have to go back and fix it before I get this page printed:-)

Now head on over and see what the rest of the team came up with and play along with us!

Happy stamping!

2012 Artisan Finalist Blog Tour - Day 8

Hi stampers!  It's day eight already of our blog hop!  You probably just came from Tara's blog where you saw her fabulous creation!  If not, don't fret...we make a big loop so you can see everything!

I've got my final scrapbook page to show you today.  Now, the scrapbook pages were probably the hardest thing for me and not because I have a hard time scrapping (I just don't do it as often as I should) but because we couldn't use any pictures of ourselves to make the judging objective.  Well, without kids who/what the heck was I supposed to use? LOL!  But, my cousin had just had a baby and I had the cutest pictures of her so the timing could not have been better!  Maybe if I'm lucky I'll have my own baby to use when I enter next year!!!! :-)

This is my hybrid page where I combined MDS with traditional scrapping.  I added some wisteria wonder polka dot brads to the title and a very vanilla button with baker's twine to the journaling.  I wanted to keep it simple for obvious reasons...who would want to overwhelm that sweet face:-)  I pulled my colors from the photo, both the tone of the photo and then her cute hat...who cousin Mindy just happened to get her, hehe.  I used some overlays over the whole page to make it kind of soft/vintage although I can't remember all the exact downloads I used.  As for the photo I edited it on my phone using instagram.  I just love that app and it's GREAT for scrapping and making your photos look cool!   Ok, so now I want to go visit my cousin and hold little (or not so little anymore) Kyleigh:-)

And I have to laugh as I think about the last two projects I have for you....they are both baby themed...think I have something on my mind???  LOL!

Now head on over to Connie's blog to see what awesome creation she's got for you today! And here's the list in case you missed anything!  Come back tomorrow ok!

1:  Connie Collins 
2:  Holly VanDyne
3:  Melissa Stout
4:  Amy O'Neill
5:  Sandie Conner
6:  Amy Rogers
7:  Mercedes Weber
8:  Tara (Murphy) Bougroin
9:  Mindy Bingamon (You are here)

Happy stamping!

2012 Artisan Finalist Blog Tour - Day 5

Hi stampers!  It's day 5 of our Artisan Finalist blog hop!  Halfway there!  This is sure taking a lot less time than it did to actually come up with and make the projects, ha!  You have probably just come from Tara's blog where you got to see her fabulous project!  Don't worry if you didn't though, because we make a big loop and you can find the whole list at the bottom of this post!

I have another scrapbook page today!  I wanted to share this one today because it features my awesome hubby....who let me buy a macbook yesterday:-)  I shouldn't say let me but actually encouraged me to, lol!  And he graciously said that if for some reason I don't like it, he'll take it off my hands, lol!  Big of him, no?  He's been talking about it for a while now and I finally said I'd consider it this week after playing around with MDS2 (which, OMG is SOOOO much faster on a mac, holy cow) and dealing with my old laptop being slow and locking up and what not.  So this page has a couple of pictures of him on our trip to Vegas last year.  He's so photogenic....hehe!  Too bad you can't see how HUGE that margarita is in the one picture!  He's about six feet tall and it was down past his knees!  Silly boy!

This is my one completely digital page.  There are no traditional elements on it.  I wanted to use the hexagons since they are very "in" right now and wanted to keep it simple too so I could focus on his cute smile!  I also love those candid fames and downloaded them (and I can't even tell you how many other downloads, lol) just for this project and the Artisan contest!    But I think making them look like polaroids is totally cute!  I miss polaroids!  They remind me of all the old pictures my granny used to take:-)  It's hard to see in the picture but the background paper is actually DSP, it's tiny dots.

Now it's time to head on over to Connie's blog if you already haven't been there since we're back to the start!  And just in case you get lost or started in the middle, here is the whole list.  Make sure you check them all out and come back again for the remaining 5 days!

1:  Connie Collins 
2:  Holly VanDyne
3:  Melissa Stout
4:  Amy O'Neill
5:  Sandie Conner
6:  Amy Rogers
7:  Mercedes Weber
8:  Tara (Murphy) Bougroin
9:  Mindy Bingamon (You are here)

Happy stamping!

HSS 128

Hi stampers!  Oy!  It's been a day here so this post will be short!  Long story short my car is now the milk mobile....I got in it this morning only to find that a gallon of milk got left in it while I was gone over the weekend.  And it's been over 100 degrees....and it exploded so you can imagine how wonderful my car smells!  So my evening was spent dealing with that....but....

It's time for a new challenge over at HSS and it's perfect for the HOT weather we have been having!

And here's something fun from our honeymoon!

Supplies:  My digital studio

I love MDS and totally need to use it more!  AAAANNNNDDD....MDS2 should be released on August 1st!  I got to preview it at convention and it's AWESOME!  It's so much better and easier to see and use!  You can see double spreads and it's all sleek looking with a black background!  There's a splatter tool too AND you can recolor parts of stamps with a marker tool!!!!! Oh and change the color of DSP's...and that's just a few things!  A bunch of the SU employee's had on shirts with numbers and each with a different feature of MDS2, it was so fun!  I should have tried to take a pic of each one, ha!

Anyway, go check out the rest of the team's projects and play along with us....this is very fitting for my life right now...life's a beach;-)

Happy stamping!

Subway Art

Hi stampers!  I don't have a card to share today.....I have a 3-D item!  A gift for my awesome friend Rita and her baby Leila...who is due to arrive TODAY!  Yay!  I can't wait to "meet" her.  I know she'll be a sweetie just like her mommy!

Leila's nursery is gray and yellow and I couldn't wait to make her something since those are some of my favorite colors!  While surfing the interwebz (ie....wasting too much time on pintrest) I came across a lot of subway art.  It's VERY popular right now and I thought, "hey, I can do that!"  So, I booted up my My Digital Studio and started to play!

I used a LOT of different downloads....so I won't have the supplies listed as I honestly can't remember what I used, ha!  Sorry!  Basically I just added a whole bunch of stamps and moved them around and re-sized them and colored them until they were the way I liked.  The one mistake I made was to size my project to 8.5 x 11.  Once I got it from the printers I realized I should have left a margin for the edges of the frame.  I'll do that next time but it still turned out cute I think!  I put a little flower on the foxy-fox because Rita always does that:-)  And the bow is simply hot glued!  It was super easy and super cute!  I love MDS!!!

I can't wait for the news that little Laila is here!  Please take a moment to send some positive thoughts her way:-)

Happy stamping!  And happy birthday Laila! ;-)

HSS 107

Hi stampers!  Happy Tuesday!  It's time for a new challenge over at Hand Stamped Sentiments!  Join us this week for a BANNER BASH!!!

This week is all about banners!  Personally, I LOVE banners and they are sure popular right now!  And I LOVE our pennant punch, it makes banner making so simple! I'd been working on some scrapbook pages using MDS in the past few weeks and came up with this fun page!

Stampin' Supplies:
My Digital Studio

Aside from taking some time to line up all the banners and letters it really came together quick and I love that we have two banner punches in MDS!

Now, head on over to the HSS challenge site and check out what else the DT came up with and play along in our banner bash!

Happy stamping!

MDS - FREE trial!

Hi stampers!  Boy, do I have exciting news!!!!  Starting NOW (actually February 1st, I'm a little slow) you can download My Digital Studio for FREE!  MDS is Stampin' Up's digital scrapbooking and card making software and it's totally awesome!  Now you can make those awesome photo Christmas cards (or cute cute cute birth announcements) from the comfort of your home!  No need to get out in the cold to the store to make them or pick them up!  Have them delivered right to your door!  It's great if you've always wanted to scrapbook or make cards but just didn't think you had the time, space, or talent!

Starting this month you can download the express pack for a free month long trial!  If you like it then you can purchase it once your month is up.  If not, no big deal...you don't have to do ANYTHING except uninstall it!

MDS is great for MANY reasons!  Here are a few of my favorites:

• Space saving!  Everything is on your computer so if you're short on space it's the perfect way to craft!
• Portable!  If you've got a laptop then you can scrap and craft anywhere!  Just imagine if you could scrapbook your vacation in the airport before you even get home!  Or how about making your birth announcements before you and baby even leave the hospital!  Designer templates make crafting a no-brainer!
• No waste!  Always worried about messing up your projects and wasting supplies?  Not with MDS...don't like it, just hit the undo or delete button!  You can also use the program to see if you like a project before you do a traditional one on paper!
• Coordination!  All of the MDS contents coordinate seamlessly with our traditional crafting products.  This makes hybrid projects (MDS projects that you embellish with traditional elements after printing) a breeze!
• It's quick!  With many designer templates it makes creating gorgeous projects easy!  Just drag and drop your photos!
• The possibilities are endless!  You can make scrapbooks, cute little swatch books (GREAT gifts right there), baby shower invitations, birth announcements,  wedding invitations, birthday cards and party invitations, tags, home decor and much, much more (my blog backgrounds are even made with MDS)!!!!

And those are just a few of the great reasons why you NEED MDS!  It's so fun and it's easy for beginners and more advanced crafters as well!  And each Tuesday, SU releases new downloads so it's easy to stay on trend with what's current in your crafting!

Here are some examples of projects that can be made with MDS:

Scrapbook pages:

Cards:

And this card would make a GREAT hybrid card!  Simply add the REAL traditional buttons and brads and ribbons after printing. How cute would that be???  And this card literally took minutes!  It's one of the many pre-made templates so I all I had to do was put on my finishing touches!

If you'd like to download the FREE trial software please visit my store HERE and remember to select me as your demonstrator if you'd like to purchase it after the trial and/or purchase downloads!  You can also click on the SHOP 24/7 link up on the right!  And please don't hesitate to contact me if you have any questions!!!  I'm here to help!

I have a LOT of projects made using MDS, I just forget to post them!  I'll try to come back soon with some more projects to share!

Happy stamping....or MDSing:-)

Merry Christmas!

Hoping everyone has a very merry Christmas!  Thanks so much for following my blog!  Your kind comments are just like Christmas presents...all year long!  Thank you for taking the time to leave me nice words, I read each and every one of them and you all make my day!  And thank you for letting me share my passion for paper with you:-)  Here's a Christmas card for you (click on it to get the full effect)!

Love ~ Mindy (and Jon:-)