Sweetheart Frame

Hello,

I have had a busy day. Finally able to put up the project I made. The frame is from the new "Love You" paper line from Pinecone Press. The other images are also from the same die cut sheet as the frame. I inked the edges with brown ink. Added glitter glue and micro beads to the hearts. The frame itself is mounted on a folded piece of cardstock with the fold at along the top. Makes it easy to stand on a desk or table. The photo is a picture of my son Kevin and his girlfriend Jessica. They have known each other for a few months through mutual friends. they have been dating for about a month. I love to see Kevin's face light up when he sees Jessica and talks to her. Young love in bloom. Ahhhhh!

Blessings, Diane

Valentine Cards

Hello,

Feeling better the past couple of days I made some Valentine cards. I used the new "Love You" paper from Pinecone Press.

I decided to make a Gate fold card. For my base I used a piece from our Star Card blank. I used one piece with the cut out opening. No having to figure out the measurements to get the gate fold, the score lines are already done. I made a band for the card cutting a strip of the hearts from the Sweet Treats paper. The red heart and message are from the Love You die cuts. The heart is layered onto two different pieces of paper and attached to the band with a pop dot. The message is layered and attached with a pop dot. I use the Stampin' Up! scallop border punch was used for the edge of the red cardstock and the piece was swiss dotted with a Cuttlebug embossing folder. For the inside of card I used the borders from the I Love You from the Honey Bunny coupons. I covered the entire back of card with the backside of the Love You Plaid cardstock. This filled in the opening of the card. The message is from the Love You die cuts. I covered the edge the the message with a clear fine glitter. I attached with pop dots. The other papers are from the new Love You paper. I cut out several hearts and used pop dots to give dimension. I tied a few of the hearts with ribbon.

For this card I use my circle punch to punch out the cupcakes from the Love You die cut sheet. Used my Stampin' Up! scallop circle punch for a layer and two other circle punches for layers. I used a Sizzix embossing folder for the red band. The border punch is a Martha Stewart punch.

For this card I added stitching with my souffle gel pen to the die cut image. The hearts were cut out from the Love You die cut sheet and the other images are from the die cut sheet. I added glitter glue to the hearts for some sparkle.

I really like the combination of chocolate brown and pink colors. The words and heart our cut out from the Love You die cut sheet. The greetings on the die cut sheet are different on both sides, giving you several messages to put on your projects. The heart is covered with tiny micro beads applied with a small amount of glue. The border punch is from Stampin' Up!

Please feel free to leave comments.

Blessings, Diane

Tired of aching back

Hello,

I have been out of action for the past two weeks. Have had a really bad backache. I am still not back to my old self. I have been off work and sitting around resting and sleeping too much. With all the time I had to rest I knitted up Allan a beanie hat and started one for Loren. Good thing you can order gifts on-line and have them shipped to you. I couldn't get out much to Christmas shop. We didn't even bake cookies and make candy this year. I go back to work tomorrow. I am hoping my mind clears up and I get some class ideas planned. Check calendar in a few days. I did get some Valentine cards made the last two days. Sit at my desk for as long as I can and back to resting.

Have a great day!
Blessings, Diane

MERRY CHRISTMAS! JESUS CHRIST IS BORN!

Hello,
I wish everyone a Very Merry Christmas. May your day be filled with good times shared with family and friends.
Blessings, Diane

Last Minute gift card holder.

Hello,

I am finally feeling a bit better today. I have enough energy to get the presents wrapped and under the Christmas tree finally.
Hubby and I decided to give the two older boys a gift card along with a couple other gifts.
I didn't want to put them into a boring white envelope. With my Big shot and Top Note die I was able to put these two gift card holders together really quickly. Took me longer to scan, crop and upload the images. I cut the front and back pieces from the top Note die with different pieces of cardstock. I cut another 1 1/2" wide piece of cardstock from the bottom of the Top Note die. I usede glue around the edge of the smaller piece and then adhered it to the back inside piece.
I scored the front pieces about 1/2" in from the left edge. I aligned the top and bottom together and joined them with ribbon adding a tag. I added the sticker to the front to decorate. I found these stickers at Wal-Mart. You must admit these are pretty cute to fill with a gift card.
Hope you have a blessed Christmas.
Blessings, Diane

Have Yourself a Merry Christmas

Hello,
I have tried my hand at making another card using the My Digital Studio program from Stampin' Up! It is a really easy program to use. It isn't the same as stamping the images and cutting out all the papers. For someone that doesn't have the storage for alot of materials this is a nice alternative to creating cards. You could also create the images on a blank sheet and print out and then cut them and layer for a more handmade card.
Here is the card I made this morning.


Blessings, Diane

JOY Banner

Hello,

I made this JOY banner to put upon my work blog and wanted to share it here with you also. This JOY banner could be made with full sheets of paper or with scraps. The size of the banner is 4" x 6" for each panel. A Ellison die was used to cut the letters. You can use any letters of your choice or even use your Cricut to cut out your letters.
Papers and Images used are from Pinecone Press .
Directions:
Cut 3 pieces of chipboard 4" x 6". Ink edges all around.
Cut cardstock base for each panel 4" x 6". Ink edges all around. Attach ribbon and borders to cardstock panels. Adhere to chipboard.
Cut out your letters from solid or printed cardstock. Attach ribbon to letters if you want.
Cut squares for matting letters slightly larger than letters. Use corner rounder to round edges of squares. Attach ribbon around squares if you want. Mount letters to squares with pop-dots. Adhere to cardstock panels using pop-dots for more dimension.
Cut out images from die sheet and adhere to panels.
Punch holes for ribbon to join panels together. Tie panels together.
Add embellishments such as buttons, glitter, stickles.


Please feel free to leave a comment.

Blessings, Diane

New Stampin' Up! Digital Program

Hello,

Stampin' Up! has come out with a new digital program that you can use to create your own greeting cards, scrapbook pages and books. It is filled with Stampin' Up! stamp images, designer papers and elements, all of the Stampin' Up! colored cardstock, pattern papers, punches, ribbons, hodgepodge hardware, brads and more embellishments. Here are the first two projects I made with the program.
You can also own the My Digital Studio program. Check here for more information.
If you would like I can show the program at my next Open House night.
Let me know what you think of my cards.





Blessings, Diane Beckman

Happy Thanksgiving!

Hello,

Happy Thanksgiving everyone! I am Thankful for so much this year. God is good!
I have had a busy morning. I baked two pumpkin pies, a apple crumb and cherry pie. I did make my crust from scratch. Tried a new recipe and followed some directions I found on-line. I am hoping for a flaky crust. I am sort of a pie crust snob. I LOVE flaky pie crust. A tough crust pie is not to be eaten. Now my Turkey is cooking. Looking forward for the aroma of the turkey to waft throughout the house soon. My dad came to join us today. We are all enjoying each others company.
Hope you all have a enjoyable day.
Blessings, Diane

Cookie Recipe Book Class & Cookie Exchange

Hello,

I have made an adorable Cookie Recipe Book. You can see it HERE. I will be having a class so you can make the project. We will also be having a Tea luncheon before the class. And, we will be having a cookie exchange. The cookie exchange means YOU will be baking at least 3 - 4 dozen of the same kind cookies to bring. NO store bought cookies. I promise it will be a day filled with fun. There is room for only 12 people to attend the event. Check the class calender for all the information. Notify me by e-mail if you want to register for the event. The first 12 to register for the event will be given more information about the cookie exchange.

Looking forward to you joining the fun.
Blessings, Diane

Christmas Card Class

Hello,

Sign-Up Today!

You won't want to miss my annual

Stamp-A-Stack Christmas card class.

Time is running out to reserve your spot.

Click on my calendar for details.

See all card projects a couple of posts below.

Blessings, Diane

Hello,

Stampin' Up! Special

HOLIDAY GIFT GIVING GUIDE

Make Stampin’ Up!® your one-stop shop for all the special people in your life!
Use our Holiday Extravaganza Gift-Giving Guide to
find gifts for kids, teens, neighbors, card makers,
scrapbookers, and more—or to find the supplies you
need to create special handcrafted gifts.
Plus, from November 1 to January 4, receive a free
Décor Elements™ piece (up to a $16.95 value) when
you spend $50 on products in this guide

Click Here to see your Holiday Gift Giving Guide!

My Favorite Cookie Cookbook

Hello,
We are working up some fun projects at work. I had Monday off work and decided to play with some stuff and come up with an idea that I think will fit an upcoming book. I started with one piece of the Flap Book from Pinecone Press. I also used 6 envelopes for my project. To decorate my project I used the Christmas Jingle Simply Scrappin kit from Stampin' Up! The kit is filled with a ton of really nice accents and beautiful decorative paper. I hardly used any for my project so I have lots left for more projects.
The scallop punch is a SU punch. The die cut letters are from CuttleBug. I typed the wording for the tabs on my computer and punched out useing my Round tab punch from Stampin' Up!

Would you like to have a Cookie Exchange and make this project? Let me know what you think.

Blessings, Diane

Merry Little Christmas

Hello,

My annual Stamp-A-Stack Christmas card class is coming soon. I am starting to work on my Christmas card designs. I have my first two finished.

I combined my Perfect Presentation and Christmas Punch sets by Stampin' Up! to make my card. I used my snowflake Cuttlebug embossing folder also. Papers by Provo Craft and Me & My Big Ideas paper slabs.

The second card I used my new SU set Delightful Decorations. You can also get a matching ornament punch to make it ever so easy to punch out the ornament after you stamp it. I also used my new Petals A Plenty embossing folder available in the current SU mini catalog till January 4th.

I have finally finished the remainder of the card projects for the Christmas card class.

The adorable snowmen are from the Santa and Friends set from SU and the greeting is a Inkadinkado stamp. I like the paper cut at a diagonal for a variation.

The sweetly trimmed Christmas tree is a stamp from the Greetings Galore set. The greeting is Hampton Art stamp I purchased last year at Michaels. You will have a choice of a varitey of greetings for your card.

On the last card, I really like how the stamped image matches with the paper so well. The Merry Christmas greeting is from SU, the punch is a SU punch and the embossing folder used on the red cardstock is from Cuttlebug.

You too can make these cards and more. Sign-Up today for the class. Check the calendar for details.

Let me know what four cards are your favorite.

Blessings, Diane

All Occasion 6 x 6 Card class

Hello,

It has been a long summer. The heat wave still isn't over. I do have a cool class planned for you though. I am excited to share what I have planned.
I have designed some beautiful Tri-fold cards. They are 6" x 15" that fold into 6" x 6" cards. They are for all occasions. What you will really love is that they all have unique folds to them. The cards are decorated on the outside as well as the inside. I designed a sheet of paper that has all the greetings for the cards with many more you can use on other projects. Along with the 6 cards you will make a tote purse to keep the cards in. This also makes a wonderful gift giving item. Envelopes are also included.
I will be starting this class eariler than normal. I want to give you time to complete them.
These cards really are beautiful. You won't want to miss out.
See calendar for more information.

Blessings, Diane

Winner of vacation contest.

Hello,

Thanks to everyone that sent in their guesses for the vacation album.
The winner is Brad Evans. Brad guessed the correct location of both pictures.
For answers see photos below.
If you have never been to the North Rim of the Grand Canyon or to Bryce Canyon, I would highly recommend you plan a vacation and visit both places. They are beautiful. Each place is very different from each other. Since they are at higher elevations they are also cooler. We also visited Zion canyon while on vacation. Zion can get much hotter in the summer.
We did a lot of hiking. The kids were quick to notice lizards, frogs, bugs, birds, squirrels, deer, fish, butterflies, berries, flowers. When you take the time to look around you see so many beautiful things that you miss when you just walk quickly.
The family really enjoyed our vacation. I am already trying to think of where we want to go next year.

Blessings, Diane

Vacation Prize Give Away

Hello,

I am hosting a Prize Give Away. I will be giving away an Outdoor Photo album kit. Like the one shown HERE. The rules are: Guess the two different locations of the pictures below. Do Not leave your answer in the comments. Send me an e-mail with your answers here: dianebeckman@yahoo.com Be sure to give me your name. Everyone that guesses the correct answers will have their name put into a drawing and I will contact the winner. Only one entry per person. The contest will end on Sept. 18th at midnight. Please feel free to leave comments if you like my photos. Good Luck!
Location one! Bryce Canyon

Location two! Grand Canyon
Blessings, Diane

Hello,

Stampin' Up! just announced today that they are offering a "Sweet Rewards" special.
From September 1-November 30, host a $250 Stampin' Up! workshop, and choose any one item* from the Holiday 2009 Mini Catalog for just $10. Choose from award-winning stamps, beautiful new Simply Adorned jewelry, exclusive Build-A-Bear Workshop products, or latest dies for the Sizzix Big Shot. With so much to choose from, you'll feel like a kid in a candy shop. Best of all, this amazing offer is in addition to the already fantastic benefits offered. Call me today to host your own Stampin' Up! workshop and enjoy this sweet reward.

Adventure vacation almost over

Hello,

Our adventure vacation is almost over. We will be home tomorrow. We have had a great time. Have done alot of hiking. Too bad my thighs don't look as firm as I would like from all the hiking. LOL
I will be having two opportunities for you to enter a drawing for prizes when I get home. Will post details later.

Hope to see you all soon.

Blessings, Diane

Halloween Interactive Photo Album

Hi,
Here is Halloween Interactive Photo Album I made at work. Each page is unique. This album is using the brand new Halloween paper designed by Pinecone Press . The paper can also be used for Fall and Manly projects. My photos don't do justice to the colors of the paper. You can get the interactive book as a blank. It is very easy to put together and decorate. Let me know what you think.

Blessings, Diane

Halloween Circle Explosion Album

Hi,
This is a project I made for work. It is the Circle Explosion Album using the brand new Halloween paper designed by Pinecone Press . This is a fun album to make. I really like that the album comes as a blank so you get to start decorating your project and not have to make the base first. This project will also soon be made into a kit. My pictures don't even do justice to the colors of the paper.
Let me know what you think.

Blessings, Diane

Home from CHA

Hello,

WOW! What a trip I had. I arrived at the wholesale CHA show on the last day. I didn't get much chance to see the booths. The wholesale show was slower than we had hoped for. We did have a wonderful make and take for the people to make. We were hooked up with Zutter. We used their Dreamcuts and Bind It All machines to make some cute books for the make and take. Donna Salazar has joined us at Pinecone Press and designed a paper line that works wonderful with the Zutter machines. You can see her new paper line called Vintage Nostalgia and Winter Wishes at Pinecone Press. After the wholesale we took down our booth and relocated to another area of the convention center and set up our booth for the retail show. We were not expecting much of a turn out. We were in for such a surprise. The doors opened and the place was filled with excited ladies to see all of what was there. There were several classes offered, new product on display, lots of booths offering make and takes and of course tons of product to be purchased.
Within three hours of the first day of the retail show, most of our merchandise had been bought. By the end of the show we were sold out.
I taught three classes and they were all a great hit with those in attendance. Everyone loved the bracelets. I will have to teach a class here. We were coming up with several other ideas the same concept could be used for. My card class was the only class to sell out. I had 50 ladies sign-up. These ladies reved me up with their excitement over the cards they made.
I did get to meet Paulette Jarvey from Paper Wishes and Maggie whom works with Provo Craft using the Cuttlebug. She has a wonderful site here that she and designers post awesome projects using the Cuttlebug.
I am so happy to be home again with my family. I sure did miss everyone. I am looking forward to planning some new projects and classes. Hope to see you soon.

Blessings, Diane

Die cut Felt, Buttons & Ribbon Bracelets

Hello,

I have finished a couple of the bracelets I have been working on this weekend.
This is what I will be teaching at CHA next weekend.


These can really become addictive. Using a Die like one made by Sizzix you can cut out felt shapes. It sure beats using scissors. Get out your jar of mixed match buttons. I know you have one somewhere. If you don't have a jar around, start cutting off buttons from clothing before throwing it away and saving the buttons. Some day you will be so glad you did. In the mean time Joann's has a great assortment of buttons you can purchase. Get some ribbon, about 1/2 yard of three different designs about 3/8" wide and a length longer than your wrist about 5/8" wide. I use embroidery floss to stitch my felt for design. You can glue all the pieces together or sew them together.

If enough of you would like a class I would be happy to teach one. Just leave a comment at the bottom of this post.
Enjoy!!

Blessings, Diane

Heading to CHA (Craft and Hobby Convention)

Hello,

I will be soon off to Florida to attend the Summer Craft and Hobby Association Convention. I will be teaching a few classes. If I get my bracelet sample finished tomorrow I will photograph and share with you. It is a little stressful having your boss give you a project to teach a few days before teaching it. I am a little excited to be able to attend the convention. I am just hoping the weather will not be too bad. Checking the weather forecast, it should be 90 with thunderstorms. I melt in the heat and humidity.
I hope to have something to share that is new from the convention.
See you in a few days.

Blessings, Diane

Join Stampn' Up! - Special Offer

Hello,

While anytime is a great time to join the Stampin' Up! family as a demonstrator, joining during July and August is especially sweet!
Starting your own Stampin' Up! business means free and discounted products, plus a little extra cash--and who couldn't use that? Plus, from July 15 - August 31, you can become a Stampin' Up! demonstrator for only $85!
The special, limited-time Mini Starter Kit contains many of the items you need to get started in your new business including.

•For All You Do stamp set
•In Color Classic Stampin' Pads (6)
•Whisper White card stock (8-1/2" x 11")
•In Color assorted card stock (8-1/2" x 11")
•Business forms and tools
Or if you want to buy the standard $199 Starter Kit, in addition to the supplies listed below, you'll get all six of the new In Color Classic Stampin' Pads and one pack of In Color assorted card stock (8-1/2" x 11")--a $43 value! The standard Starter Kit includes

•Five stamp sets
•A Stampin' Around wheel, handle, and ink cartridge
•Stampin' Pastels
•Card stock
•Eastern Blooms Décor Elements and applicator tool
•Five Classic Stampin' Pads
•VersaMark Pad
•Stampin' Scrub and Mist
•Blender pens
•SNAIL
•Business forms and tools
These special offers--the Mini Starter Kit and the In Color add-on to the standard Starter Kit--are only available for a limited time, so you must act fast!

So what are you waiting for? Contact your me TODAY to join the Stampin' Up! family!
dianebeckman@yahoo.com
I can provide all the necesaary documents you need to complete.

Blessings, Diane

Fusing Plastic Projects

Hello,

My friend Lena, showed me some cards she had made using plastic bags. They were so cool. I was very interested in how she made the plastic backgrounds for her cards. I searched around for some plastic bags around my house. We do all save some of them. I tried several ways of cutting the bags and layering the different colors on top of each other to create different looks.
The image on the top left I cut different colors of bags at different angles and layered on top of a plain white bag. I stamped with Staz On ink some text and flowers and layered a piece of orange bag on top and melted them together.
The image on the top right I layered 6 white bags, layered some flowers I cut out of a plastic bag using my Big Shot, then layered 2 more white bags and melted them together. The bottom left image I layered 6 white bags, then cut strips of different colored bags and layed on top and then layered 2 more white bags and melted them together. The last image I used a target bag and layered 6 white bags, the target image and then a yellow bag on top and melted them together. The process does take some practice. If you do a search on-line for Plastic Fusing you will find some directions and even videos.

Here are a couple of cards I made using a couple of the fused plastic pieces I made.









This technique I will be teaching on July 7th. See calendar for more details.
Let me know what you think.

Blessings, Diane

Class schedule change!

Hello,

Please see calendar for class schedule change. No class June 30th, rescheduled for July 7th.

Have a safe 4th of July!

Blessings, Diane

Stampin" Up! new IN colors meet Heidi Grace Designs

Hello,
I found some beautiful Heidi Grace paper, Paper Pizazz paper and some fun Coredinations Whitewash paper and had to play with them. I needed some plain cardstock for my card. I took out my NEW Stampin' Up! IN colors and found that the new Rich Razzleberry and Soft Suede colors match my other paper so well you would think they were created to go together. My pictures DO NOT do justice to the colors at all.
I am playing with my new paper to create some designs for a future class.
I also used the Sincere Salutations stamp set, Cuttlebug embossing folders and the "Lots of Tags" Sizzlits die from SU.
Enjoy!
Blessings, Diane

Versatial Scallop Envelope Die

Hello,

All these projects were made using the Stampin' Up! Scallop Envelope Die in my Big Shot. I am so excited at how many different projects I was able to make using this one die. You can learn how to make these projects also. I will be having my first Big Shot class on Tuesday June 23rd. If you don't have this die you are still encouraged to attend. All my dies are available for use on my Open House nights, so this will give you a great opportunity to use the die, make several projects so that on the next Open House night you can make more of your projects.
Check my class calendar for more details.
Blessings, Diane