Snow Swirled in September

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Hey everyone! Just popping in to say Hey and do a new post.
It's a rainy and dreary Friday here in the Nation's Capital on the first day of Fall and already I am missing Summer and dreading Winter! They are calling for Flood Warnings and Watches here and it's so sad because so many here are still recovering from the last few weeks of storms. But of course, it could always be worse....it could be SNOWING!!!!!! AUGH!

Now, those of you that know me, know I don't believe in the cold. No Siree-Bob! If it's below 72 degrees, then it's just too darn cold, and since the production of SNOW (Yes, I believe there's a reason God made it a 4-Letter word) generally requires temperatures of significantly below 72 degrees, you can see why I am not a fan of it. Sure it's Pretty and Sparkly, when you're inside looking out and have hot chocolate or something/someone more substantial to warm you, but really it's cold and wet and it makes you cold and wet and let's face it those are two things that never go well together.

Besides if you're looking for Pretty and Sparkly look no further than this card. Feel free to get some hot chocolate or something/someone more substantial to share it with (I 'm ok with that, really). I promise you it won't leave you cold or wet! YEA!!!!!

I'm so excited the glitter showed up! I used a base of Tempting Turquoise, not a typical Holiday color but I swear my upline Robin did a Christmas card class with this set and color combination some years back (even though I can't find it and it seems like I have all of them, I can't bear to give them away...control issues, I know) and I thought I'd try it with a new card-style.
I used my Simply Scored Tool, seriously this thing is AMAZING, I even used it last night for marking card stock I was cutting for an upcoming swap-So Easy! I took a piece of 8.5 x 11 Tempting Turquoise and cut it in half at 4 1/4. I then scored it at 1 3/8, 2 1/2, 4 3/8, 6, and 8 1/4, folded it and reinforced it with my bone folder and the base was done. I then cut another base piece at 4 1/2 x 5 for the upright back piece. I used Whisper White cardstock cut at 4 x 4 7/8, 4 x 1 1/4, and 4 x 1 5/8 for the additional pieces.

I used my Trusty Stamp-a-ma-jig to get the tree in just the right spot and to get my greeting just right but all the snow flakes were stamped randomly (Don't get me started, and yes at one point I did have to turn over the paper over and FYI.com Tempting Turquoise is a very saturated color and shows through, Ask me how I know.) All images were stamped with Tempting Turquoise and then with Versamark except on the upright piece I stamped some snowflakes with just Versamark and then used Dazzling Diamonds to make everything shine.  I also traced the swirls and flakes on the tree with my Two-Way Glue Pen so the Dazzling Diamonds would stick to it as well. (You can never have too much Glitter... So Sayeth Shan, So sayeth us all!) I added a few Rhinestones to the tree for a little additional Bling and there you have it- All the Pretty and Sparkly of a Snow Swirled Winter  Day without the Cold and Wet (or the bad driving ... you have no idea how bad it is here in the DMV! SHEESH!)

Some items I used on this card -
Snow Swirled Stamp Set
Tempting Turquoise Cardstock
Whisper White Cardstock
Tempting Turquoise Ink Pad
Versamark Pad
Tombow Adhesive
Simply Scored Scoring Tool
Dazzling Diamonds Glitter

As always you can purchase these items and more 24 hours a day at my online store ShansDesignStudio.Stampinup.net

I hope you liked my card. If you liked it, I would love it if you left me a comment. It's great when I get to hear from you! Also, if you liked today's card, please feel free to +1 or Pin it. I've added the buttons to my side-bar for your convenience. Friends and Followers are also welcome. :)

I hope you have a great weekend (and a dry one).
Be Safe,
Shan Pin It

Serendipity

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Serendipity. It's been voted as one of the 10 hardest English words to translate. Simply put it means Happy Accident.
Some would say there's no such thing as accidents, happy or other wise. Some would say accidents are opportunities to see things a different way, to create change, to learn. I'd like to say I fall into the latter category and I try to most of the time, but when I'm stamping, boy it's hard to not just say I'm going to use this piece of paper for scrap! We laughingly joke that it's ok if you make a mistake, "Just flip it over and start again on the other side!".
I really got to test that theory this weekend at stamp-camp. I got there a few minutes late and missed the instructions on 4 out of 5 cards, but they looked pretty self explanatory so I just jumped in with my stamping buddy and team-mate April by my side. We are two Scaredy-Cats just learning as we go and having a Blast! (Well most of the time at least) Well the first card I get the greeting done and then ask "BTW- What's the Stamp-a-ma-jig out for?" Wouldn't you know, it was for the greeting? Couldn't believe it! You know me and my fear of non-perfect stamping and my love of Stamp-a-ma-jigs for that very reason. Well let me just tell you that I bravely (well I must confess my hand was a little shaky) stamped the 2nd card (we were doing 2 of each sample) without the Stamp-a-ma-jig and they both looked great! (And I didn't even have to flip the card over and stamp on the other side.) Serendipity. Next card we were supposed to spritz with the markers and the spritzing tool, on the outside. (Now, I don't even usually like to use that spritzer because with a lot of the colors I think it makes that paper look splotchy and moldy, so generally I stay away from it). What do I do?You guessed it. I spritzed the inside.Guess what? It ended up looking ok. Luckily, I used the spritzer so sparingly it just added background instead of mold and it made my card different from everyone else's. LOL.Serendipity. Card #3- I stamped the greeting on the inside where the card opens up top to bottom instead of right to left. This of course meant I had to change the layout on the front of the card. Once again it resulted in a card that was the same but my own. Serendipity Woo-Hoo! I was on a roll. Card # 4 came and I found out that you can't stamp your greeting after you put glitter on your card, if the greeting crosses the glitter. Ok so Not Serendipity, but definitely an opportunity to learn. And, yes I did flip the paper over. Card # 5 went just as planned, well just as Robin had planned for it to go. All in all 10 really nice cards and while I was there, I thought about this blog and knew the card I was going to post with it.

WOW- long lead up to today's card but life is about the journey right, and this blog is about having fun with stamping and crafting and learning to try new things.

For those of you that saw yesterday's post, it didn't start out with the sponged sky background or the Big Top Birthday balloons for that matter. I actually had the balloons from the original Holiday Ornament Punch Blog in muted pastels and thought I would have them floating in a soft scene with a sky and maybe some trees...sounds nice right? I had seen a tutorial on Frenchiestamps.com, Stamp and Scrap with Frenchie. You should check her out! She has some great cards and Amazing tutorial videos.So, after seeing one of her videos, I made this card front for my balloons to fly in.
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I used a base of River Rock and then a layer of Very Vanilla. I sponged River Rock along the bottom of the card for the ground layer. Then I took Garden Green and sponged it with the River Rock to create the trees layer. The sky I sponged with Soft Sky and Brilliant Blue. Do you like it? I thought it turned out so pretty! Are you wondering where the Serendipity comes in? Well I put the balloons on it and the dimensions were totally wrong. UGH!!!! They were too big! The perspective was all wrong! Now what was I going to do with the pretty card I just made? Well, I decided it was pretty enough to stand on it's own, but I would have never tried to do that background on it's own for a card front. That's Serendipity! I stamped it with the Perfect Words set, that's another must have for sure. I blocked part of the sentiment with a Post-It note so I only got the word Amazing on the front.I'm sure it will fit the person I give the card to perfectly.

 I stamped the inside with the rest of the sentiment and you have a card that started life with balloons, that probably would have been a birthday card that now is good for anytime I want to let someone know just how much they mean to me.

I hope it makes you want to get out your sponges and try something new and just remember, you can always turn the paper over if you need to, or use it for background or scrap (but only as a last resort because I'm sure it will be Amazing!). Just give yourself the chance to play and experiment and see what Serendipitous event might happen. You might just have your own "Happy Accident".

As always I hope you'll let me know what you think. It's great when I get to hear from you! Also, if you liked today's card, please feel free to +1 or Pin it. I've added the buttons to my side-bar for your convenience. Friends and Followers are also welcome. :)

Feel free to show me what you come up with too. Come back and see me later this week.

Be Safe,
Shan







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Big Top Balloons

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Hey everyone! Sorry I didn't get to post but once last week, it was a very busy week with a new job site, and class and what not, so I'll try to do an extra post this week to make up for it. I hope everyone has had a great weekend and is getting ready for a good week at work.

For those of you that have been following my blog you'll remember the blog where I showed different things I had made with the Holiday Ornament Punch and I said I'd be showing the cards made with them. (If you;re new to my blog I hope you'll go back and look at it, there's oh so many to go back through :) all of 5 or 6 I'd say)
Here's a quick refresher- Here's what the punch looks like-

And here is the original picture of the balloons I made from the Ornament Punch that was the inspiration for today's card.

I simply turned the ornament on it's side and traced around it to create the oval shaped balloons keeping the neck of the ornament as the neck of the balloon and simply trimmed of the top for the wide balloon. How simple? I then tied some bakers twine around the necks for the strings and there you go!

So I wanted to have my balloons floating in a bright blue sky and of course balloons made me think of birthdays so I got out my Brand Spanking New Big Top Birthday DSP that I got when it was on special last month, buy 3 get 1 free. Did you get in on that deal? Wow, I hope so. Stampin' Up really took care of us on that one huh? Well anyways, It's one of those papers that I wasn't too sure about when I first saw it in the book, but I have to say the more I play with it the more I like it. It has lots of Tempting Turquoise in it, and let me just say, I have lots of that (I bought a pack when I first started and am so glad to be getting to use it) and what a nice color to have with your summer sky. Here's my card.

I used a base of Temping Turquoise and layered it with Whisper White. I sponged it with Tempting Turquoise and Brilliant Blue (which is retired but you could use another blue in it's place). I then punched out and trimmed the balloons, added the twine and knotted it (it's easier to hold on to that way, duh). I added my greeting which is from Petite Pairs. Seriously, if you don't have this set, it's a must have! It is soooo versatile.

I added another balloon punch to the inside of the card to finish it off along with the rest of the greeting and my card is finished. I really like it and one thing that I like is that I think not only would it be a good card for a kid but the kid in any of us. I always go by the "would I like to receive the card" standard. Well, I would definitely like to receive this one! How about you?

Some items I used for this card-
Tempting Turquoise Cardstock
Big Top Birthday DSP
Holiday Ornament Punch
Petite Pairs Greeting
All these items and more are available at my online store 24 hours a day @ ShansDesignStudio.Stampinup.net

I hope you liked the card. If you liked it, I would love it if you left me a comment. It's great when I get to hear from you! Also, if you liked today's card, please feel free to +1 or Pin it. I've added the buttons to my side-bar for your convenience. Friends and Followers are also welcome. :)

Come back soon to see what else I have for you.

Be Safe,
Shan





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9-11 Rememberance and Thanks

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10 years ago today, was a day that changed life as we know it for everyone living in in our amazing country.
Some say the day changed them, and for many it did. Our country saw an unprecedented surge of Patriotism that day and in the months and even years that followed. We saw an increase in the number of men and women volunteering to serve in our armed forces, to protect not only our lives and the country we love but all the freedoms that, let's face it, many had for too long taken for granted. Let us also not forget those that volunteer in their communities with their local Fire Departments as Firefighters, EMT's and the volunteer administrative persons in those departments too. The department I am proud to be a member of, O.W.L. in Woodbridge Va., had many brave men and women who responded not only to the Pentagon, but to NYC as well.
So on this the 10th Anniversary of 9-11 I would like to say Thanks, to not only those that choose to serve but to the families they leave behind. To the mothers, fathers, brothers, sisters, wives, children and yes even friends, Thanks for supporting those that have made the decision to serve so they can do so with one less thing to worry about.

I recently made this card, for my friend James' son Jonathan, for his graduation from Army Basic Training. I was so happy that James was able to take it to Jonathan's graduation and that they both really liked it. Today I post it as a Thank-You for anyone who has ever served and for those that support them and keep the home fires burning waiting on their return.



In case you can't read the sentiment it says "Courage is rightly esteemed the first of human qualities, because it is the quality that guarantees all others.", from Winston Churchill.

Did that day change you? It changed the way I often look at the world, but I don't think it changed me as a person. I'm still the same country girl that loves God, family, and the good 'ole USA. I may be a little more vigilant, I may be a little bit crankier at the restrictions imposed upon me while traveling, especially living where I do, but I am still so thankful to live here and thankful to those who serve.

I hope you liked my card and I hope you take the time to say Thanks to the next service member you see. They rarely get the thanks they deserve. Let them know how much you appreciate all they are doing for us all.

If you liked today's card, please feel free to +1 or Pin it. I've added the buttons to my side-bar for your convenience. Friends and Followers are also welcome. :)

Thanks for stopping by.
Be Safe and God Bless America!
Shan Pin It

I Grabbed the Cat by the Tail and Shook Him. Hard!

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For those of you that don't know me (or haven't read many of my posts), some of my favorite things are...
Chocolate, the Ocean/Beach, Stamping (DUH!), spending time with my friends and family, cooking/baking, sports (especially football), and chocolate (you can never have too much chocolate, Double DUH!!!!), oh and don't forget Dave Matthews Band!
(Wow this sounds like an on-line dating ad LOL!)
Now if you could combine spending time with friends & family, at the beach while stamping and watching football with DMB for a live Pre-Game and Half-Time show and somewhere for me to cook/bake and eat lots of Chocolate well, I'd have to say that was darn near Nirvana....SIGH...but I digress...

Now some things I don't like...
Mean People (they suck), mayonnaise (my one true OCD long story sad but true), cold weather (temps below 72, I'm a Florida girl what can I say).
With regards to stamping my top dislikes would be- A DESPERATE Dislike for Poor Stamp Placement which has created a an almost OCD-type need for my Stamp-A-Ma-Jig. Pure Anxiety over the phrase in stamp camp "Just Randomly Stamp" AUGH!!!!!! Random is NEVER Random! I can't do it! It stresses me out. Is there too much here, is there too little there, does it look random enough, does it look like a pattern? I'm getting palpitations just thinking about it! Breathe... and then there's the whole tearing the paper- tear it?!? Oh LAWDY! It's hard enough for me to sponge the edge and make it look old never mind flick it with color specks and make it look old and spotty. But do you know what my upline Robin had me do once in stamp camp? Crumple up our beautiful Designer Series Paper! I mean WAD It Up in a little ball like I was mad at it and gonna throw it away! I know! It hurt my feelings too!

I tell you these things, because they are definitely things that I need to not be a Scaredy Cat about (the stamping at least 'cuz the mayo that's just never gonna happen). And isn't that the point of this blog? Trying new things, experimenting, having fun?

Well, I had a card all planned out for today's post and this one isn't it. However, after I made this card I knew I couldn't wait to share it.

I came home from work yesterday and was so excited to see that Mr. UPS had come by and had left me a big box of Stampin' Up goodies. Don't you just love when he stops by!?! So, I unpacked everything, went to class, got home after 10 and knew I had to make a card. I knew exactly what I wanted, which is unusual for me, even down to the colors.
I call this a Q&E card Quick and Easy. Kind of like a Clean and Simple, maybe one step up. Here it is.

I used Island Indigo from the New In-Colors for the Card base. I took the stamp Sail Away and stamped it on Very Vanilla Card Stock and then, wait for it..., I tore it diagonally from the upper corner. GASP!!!! I KNOW! Then I took a sponge a sponged Crumb Cake along all the edges to antique it and to really show the edge that I had just torn. I then used my Tombow glue to adhere it to a piece of River Rock Cardstock. It was the only Khaki/Sandy colored paper I had. At first I was really wishing I had Crumb Cake or something else, but I really ended up liking the combination. You've seen the picture, so you know what I did next. Yep, I tore the River Rock layer too! Holy Cow! I tore two pieces of perfectly good cardstock! Goodness! I used the first piece as a guide, didn't think about it and just tore and then before I knew what had happened I had sponged that layer too. Well goodness if I didn't like the look. :) (TIP- Snail is fabulous but in humid weather or if you really want to make sure it sticks for a long time use Tombow) I Tombowed those
two pieces onto the base and then stamped my greeting which is from Petite Pairs. Do you have this set yet? It's a Must Have! Mix and Match Sentiments for most occasions. It's going to be a go to for sure!


I stamped the inside with a second part of a phrase from the Petite Pairs set and then stamped the anchor from the Open Seas in the bottom corner. I'm so excited they decided to keep this set. Not only is it beautiful but it's great for those masculine cards, which are often so hard to do.


I really surprised myself with this card, from concept to colors to finished product and am so happy with it. This Scaredy cat "Grabbed the Cat by the Tail and Shook Him. Hard" In fact, he was still so dizzy, I did even more today ... but that's another post for another day.

I hope you liked my card and my attempt at something new. I hope if you're a Scaredy Cat like me, you'll be inspired to try something new. Feel free to let me know what you thought. It's great when I get to hear from you! Also, if you liked today's card, please feel free to +1 or Pin it. I've added the buttons to my side-bar for your convenience. Friends and Followers are also welcome. :)
Till next time,
Be Safe,
Shan Pin It

A Whopper of a Birthday

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I hope everyone had a safe Holiday weekend and enjoyed their extra day off. I was able to spend some time with friends, get some stamping done, and bake...3 of my favorite things.

For those of you that know me, you know I'm moving to a new work site. Well, the nurse that's replacing me, Karen, had a birthday on Saturday. Like me she's 29, again. :) That of course meant I had an excuse to stamp and bake, two of my favorite things for one occasion. You know what that made me? That's right, A Happy Girl!

So I got out my new Designer Series Paper, Just Add Cake and knew it would be just right. Have you seen this paper? So Cute and versatile too (but that's another post). Well I sat down to work on Karen's card and Duece, my studio helper, sat down to help hold my cardstock for me. Wasn't that sweet? Here's a pic of him helping.


I finally convinced him I could handle the cardstock by myself and got down to business. We did a z-fold card in my upline Robin's Firehouse stamp night last month and I knew I wanted to use that for this card. Thanks for the inspiration again Robin!

I used Poppy Parade, one of Stampin' Up's "In Color's" as my cardstock base. I used my Simply Scored Scoring Tool to score the card. It makes it so easy. It has little placeholders so you can score multiple cards without having to go back and re-measure each time. How handy is that? I took the striped cardstock from the Just Add Cake DSP, and put that on the outside panel. The actual stamp set is an old, retired one but I love it. I stamped the greeting on white cardstock and punched it out with my Decorative Label punch. I then used coordinating paper to make the frame for the label. I also took a tab of Poppy Parade and put it on the right side of the card as a pull tab.



I used a piece of White Cardstock for the inside panel and stamped my image there. When you open the card you see the Happy Birthday Sentiment I stamped there as well. I used Stampin Pastels to color in my image, it comes with a handy dandy eraser just in case you're coloring in tiny lines and stray (ask me how I figured that one out).



Here's a close up of the inside panel. This was actually the second attempt at this card. The first one turned into scratch paper when the black ink pad jumped out of my hand while I was trying to open it and it fell on top of the card. Somehow, though I managed to get what appeared to either be Poppy Parade or Peach Parfait on the lower edge of the card. How that happened, I have no idea, but I decided to make the best of it. So I stamped some flowers in the lower corner with those two colors and Blushing Bride and then topped them with Dazzling Diamonds for a little Bling. I love how a mistake turned into a pretty bonus. I think you can see the glitter in the picture.



Now, onto the baking part. It was a two-fer, Karen's birthday and a special something for the Doctor I work with. He loves Whoppers and when I saw this on one of my favorite blogs last week, I knew I had to make them for him and it lucky for Karen, it coincided with her birthday. :)

If you haven't been to CookiesandCups.com it's a great site. I check it daily. Shelly is amazing! She never fails to make me laugh and her recipies are Unbelievable, right down to the little Marshmallow Snowmen she made. Check her out.

I got all the ingredients and made these and they are sooooo good! I can't wait for my doc and Karen and the rest of the staff to try them tomorrow. Here's a peek.

Yes, those are chopped up Whoppers on top. Mmmmmmm! And guess what? There are more chopped up Whoppers in the brownies! YUM! Well, of course I had to check to make sure they tasted as good as they looked (I made two trays since it was my first time) so I took a little piece.



In case you're wondering, they do taste as good as they look. Now aren't you glad I taste-tested them for all of us? That's the kind of thing I do for my friends...You're Welcome.

I hope you liked my card and decide to try one like this for yourself.  If you liked it, I would love it if you left me a comment. It's great when I get to hear from you! Also, if you liked today's card, please feel free to +1 or Pin it. I've added the buttons to my side-bar for your convenience. Friends and Followers are also welcome. :)

I hope you decide to try the brownies too. They're from scratch but so worth the time, just like making cards. I hope you'll let me know what you thought about both. Take a chance and try something new.

Supplies I used on this card,
2010-2013 In-Color Cardstock 119797 $6.95
Just Add Cake DSP 124339 $10.95
Simply Scored Scoring Tool 122334 $29.95
Basic Black Ink Pad 101179 $ 5.95
Dazzling Diamonds Glitter 102023 $4.50
2-Way Glue Pen 100425 $3.50
Stampin Pastels 120962 $24.95

You can order these supplies and more 24-7 at my online store www.ShansDesignStudio.stampinup.net

Till next time,
Be Safe,
Shan Pin It

Christmas in September?

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Can you believe it's September already? Where has the summer gone? For that matter, where has the year gone?

Well, even though I am sad to see the summer go, I am excited to tell you that the Holiday Mini Catalog is out. Oh yes, it's Happy Dance time! It's really AMAZING! It has the new Simply Scored Scoring Tool I used on my gift card holder last week, it has beautiful new Designer Series Papers (I previewed the glitter one Monday on the ornament, did you see it?), it has a new Pewter Embossing Powder (so pretty), new quilted ribbons, new punches, new dies for your Big Shot and of course Fabulous new stamp sets in classic wood or my favorite the new Clear Block Option. WOW! I'm excited just reading about it all and I've had the preview and been playing with my stuff for nearly a month now.

Since this is the first day the catalog is available, I thought I'd show you something from it. I was so excited the day I came home and saw Mr. UPS had brought my Holiday supplies I sat right down and made this!



How Stinking Cute is this? Wouldn't you love to make a bunch of these for the folks in your office? So quick and easy and I can't help but say it again, so stinking cute!
I used Cherry Cobbler Cardstock scored and folded and ran it through my Big Shot using my new Holiday Stocking Die. I then took the front piece and ran it through my Big Shot using my Vintage Wallpaper Embossing Folder. After that I took my bone folder and curved the center out just a little so there was some dimension to my stocking and it wasn't just flat. I took some of the Red Glitter Dot Paper from the Holly Berry Bouquet DSP and ran it through on the Stocking Die to get the accent pieces. It's hard to see in the picture but the accent pieces even have "stitching" details on them, WOW! (Can I just say I love that the Glitter doesn't rub off!) I adhered them with Tombo to make sure they would really stay put and then I used Tombo to put the front and back pieces together. (You can use your Bone Folder inside from the top and gently press out and turn a little to make sure you keep any dimension you may have lost while you were putting your pieces together.)
Scaredy Cat Tip- Tombo is great to use in Humid areas. However, for those Scaredy Cats among us, (myself included) you really have to commit with Tombo because it sets up and it STICKS!!!!!

So I hope you liked my first Christmas post. I know I had fun making it and it was hard waiting to post it. It's just the right size for a candy cane, or would make a great GiftCard holder. There are so many other options for this too, cards and using fabric. I know this was just a first effort. What are you going to do with yours?

Supplies used for this post

124098 Bigz L Die Holiday Stocking
124004 Holly Berry Bouquet Designer Series Paper
119685 Cherry Cobbler Card Stock
120175 Vintage Wallpaper Embossing Folder

You can get all the supplies to make this project and more at my online store at ShansDesignStudio.stampinup.net You can also see the new catalog there.

I hope you liked today's card. If you liked it, I would love it if you left me a comment. It's great when I get to hear from you! Also, if you liked today's card, please feel free to +1 or Pin it. I've added the buttons to my side-bar for your convenience. Friends and Followers are also welcome. :)

I hope you all have a safe Holiday weekend and get a chance to spend at least some of it stamping. See you next time.

Be Safe,
Shan


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