HOW TO STEP IT UP! :-)

Happy Friday all!! WOW! This week really went by fast and I have so much still to get done, LOL!  As we head into the long weekend, I wanted to share one of the workshop cards I did last weekend.  The first pic is the card that they actually did in the workshop using one of my total new favorite stamp sets from this catalog called Notably Ornate! It is such a gorgeous stamp set - I mean, could you make an ugly card with this if you tried?? I think not, LOL! The base of the card is Crumb Cake (loooove it!!) and we stamped it with the En Francais background stamp using Crumb Cake ink so the background was subtle but still added some texture.  The main image is stamped on a Very Vanilla Top Note die(cut with the Big Shot) in Early Espesso and can I just say, I love love love this combo??!! Total YUM in my book, heehee! The swallow is stamped in Cherry Cobbler (anyone else notice all of the new colors are food related? Always makes me hungry, LOL!) and then cut out and snailed down.  Along the bottom is some of the beautiful Victoria lace ribbon, to which we added some 3/4 inch circles with the center one sporting one of our fabulous pearl embellies!  Simple but beautiful, right?? Well, I will tell you this - they loved it!  But, I decided to take it one step further and demonstrate how to take this already beautiful card and "step it up"! Or, as Emeril would say - "kick it up a notch", heehee!!! So, here is what that card looks like!

As you can see, there are definitely some differences, although the bones of the original design are still there! What I did was show them how to make this card a little more vintage by using our fabulous new distressing kit.  As you can see, the Top Note Die has been distressed with the Tea Stain Ink after spritzing with water and adding some wrinkles to the paper - the only kind of wrinkles I like *wink*.  The card base has been sponged with Soft Suede, and the Top Note die has been inked with Early Espresso, adding to that vintage look and feel. Lastly, I showed them how to tea stain their ribbon, then added one of our gorgeous vintage brads in place of the circles.  A couple more mini pearls added to the sentiment and voila! a step-up card with lots of texture and dimension.  I gave this card to my hostess and I feel safe in saying that all the ladies enjoyed the demonstration of how to distress using our new kit! I hope you like these two cards, they sure were fun to make! I will leave you with the recipe and if you have any questions, please feel free to send me an email, I am happy to answer any and all questions you may have! So, now that we are headed into a long weekend, I have decided that the first order of business will be to spend time with my kiddos hanging out back around our fabulous new pool and enjoy one more weekend before summer is officially over!  I have to say, I am really enjoying the new pool and the backyard - it is soooo nice to just go out and sit for awhile and listen to the windchimes and the waterfall.  It is really peaceful and it makes me happy!

Here are some pics of my new little piece of paradise! Sorry for the glare, the sun was really bright when I took these but you get the idea! Isn't that slide fun?? We have a great time racing down it.  And, the waterfall is wonderful - there is a bench seat underneath that is kind of cool to sit on and let the water wash over you! The pool is salt water and I love that I don't smell like chlorine when I get out of the water - just feels great!  Here are a couple more pictures, one with Tyler hanging out underneath the waterfall....I think it is safe to say that the kids are loving the fact that we have a pool in the back yard again and have been in the water every chance they get!

I don't blame them, I am loving it myself! Have a wonderful weekend all - thanks so much for stopping by, it really is great to read all your comments! I will be back on Monday with another fun workshop project to share! Until then, Happy Stampin'!