Stamping 101 - learning about the FUN!

So I held two sessions of Stamping 101 - learning the basics of stamping last week and had so much fun.  It was all people new to stamping, that just weren't sure what it was all about.  After introducing myself, doing a catalog tour, and getting to know them and their level of stamping - we made three cute little projects that let them get hands on with some of our products - 

1) Bookmark - used our twine, Idea Book and Catalog, two punches, clear stamp set and block, ink pads, snail and gems.

2) Gift bag - used our gift bags, Big Shot, Sale-a-bration catalog, embossing folders, snips, Designer Series Paper, clear stamps, blocks, clothespins, glue dots and ribbon.

3) Gift cards - used our heavy weight and light weight Whisper White card stock, Occasions catalog, photopolymer stamp set, blocks, several ink pads, two-step stamping, pearls and dimensionals. 

Will be doing two more of this type of classes this month.  In the future (maybe April) I will offer a Stamping 102 Class - Beyond the Basics.  Stop back soon to see more of what I'm up to.  ~Maureen

#imbringingbirthdaysback

So... you all know I'm committed to "bringing birthday's back" with a hand-stamped card to anyone who would like one.  If you have not let me know yet, but would like a card from me - well - what are you waiting for - let me know - lol!!!

Above is a cute stamp I purchased, to let you all know I'm on this mission.  This whole movement was actually started by a Stampin' Up! employees - Shannon West - and she designed her own stamp that will soon be available for purchase from Stampin' Up! - so watch for more on that.

In the meantime - I'm working on my first batch to go our for those March birthdays - my list is up to 147 now - so if you want to be added - just let me know!

Also, if you ever know of someone who could just use a card - maybe someone in the military, or going through a tough time, or whatever - just let me know.  I'll do my best to get them one!  Love in an envelope!  See you all soon - off to address some cards!! ~Maureen

Sunday morning (or afternoon) musings....

So - you've all heard of a coffee break (needed multiple times each day) - well this week I had a coffee pot break.  We had out of state company and I was brewing a pot of coffee for an afternoon break when we smelled this horrible hot wiring smell.  You know the one - it is awful - and after checking everywhere we narrowed it down to my coffee pot :(  So out it in the trash it went!

Fortunately I still had a back-up French Press - so out it came.  We ordered a new Melitta coffee maker yesterday - but it won't be here till Friday - so till then French Press it is.  I love the taste - it's just a little more work and for the amount of coffee I drink each day that equals a lot more work.  So this  afternoon I'm enjoying my coffee from this pretty mug that Heidi designed for me. She made it with Sharpie markers and my favorite color, yellow.

Yesterday I was so excited as my Orchid blossomed.  I actually thought I had killed it when all the blossoms dropped and it was just a stick.  But a little over a week ago buds began to appear - and yesterday I woke to this!

Here's a close-up - I think it is sooooo beautiful!

Finally for today, I don't think I ever shared the cute little Valentine I sent off to my mother-in-law.  It was made using the January Paper Pumpkin kit from Stampin' Up!  I love how it turned out -

and little miss Zamarah used the rest of my kit to make her Valentine's for her classmates.

Hope your weekend has been wonderful - enjoy the rest of your Sunday - and I'll see you soon! ~Maureen

Confirmation card and a birthday!!!

Somehow this week got totally away from me.  We had a long weekend, Valentine's Day, a birthday and out of state company - and here it is Thursday!  So today I'm going to catch up on a few things - first - am sending off this simple but sweet confirmation card to my great-nephew Logan today.  It is made with a retired Stampin' Up! set that I really love "All God's Grace".  Since it's for a young man, I didn't want to bling it out - just clean lines - but the dove and confirmation are popped up to give it a little dimension.

and here is the inside -

On Monday my youngest grand-daughter, Zamarah, turned six.  She is so precious - and we had a wonderful day celebrating with her.

Started the day at Denny's with her FREE birthday breakfast - and a cute little hat compliments of Gramma!

Later it was time for present - can you tell she is a SHOPKINS freak.  Almost everything she got was Shopkins and she was in heaven!!

Then we ended with her choice of dinner - pizza and a key lime pie! 

She said she liked it - but it was a bit sour - ha,ha!

Thanks for letting me catch up - see you all soon!  ~Maureen

Sunday Morning Musings - and LOVE on this Valentine's Day!

Started the day out great with a cup of rich French Roast (love) in my beautiful Valentine's mug (love).  Also exchanged some sweet little somethings with those I love (love). Do you get the theme here.  Then off to church - and it was very nice (love).

So just have to share with you today, that I Corinthians 13:6 - really says it all when it comes to what LOVE really is.  So for those you care for - I mean truly care for - you need to bear and endure all that comes with that - while always hoping and always believing in them - for that is TRUE LOVE.

Hope your Valentine's day is wonderful in every way.  If you don't have a Valentine - how about getting out there and doing a RAK for someone - show the love in some way to a stranger - you just never know what your kindness might do for them!  Love you all!   ~Maureen

Bloomin' Love!

Lovin' this Stampin' Up! set from the Occasions catalog - so nice for Valentine's Day - but with a variety of sentiments it could be used all year long.  For this card I used versamark to create the floral background - then layered all the pretty layers - including the floral strip from the Birthday Bouquet Designer Series Paper.

Finishing touches - we stamped a little flower in Pool Party, cut it out, popped it up on a dimensional and added the pretty little pearls.  Very lovely and very feminine.  Hope you liked it! ~Maureen
Some products used to make this card are listed below - click on any image to go right to my website where you can browse and shop all Stampin' Up! products -

Birthday Bouquet Designer Series Paper

$11.00

Bloomin' Love Photopolymer Stamp Set

$17.00

Pearl Basic Jewels

$5.00

Versamark Pad

$7.50

Pool Party Classic Stampin' Pad

$6.50

Pool Party 8-1/2" X 11" Cardstock

$7.00

Calypso Coral Classic Stampin' Pad

$6.50

Stampin' Dimensionals

$4.00

Ronald McDonald House Charities - your opportunity to support a great cause!

As many of you know Stampin' Up! supports Ronald McDonald House Charities* every year.  I devoted my January Cards for a Cause to raise money to send to this charity.  I have a nice little donation from my events, but would like to be able to donate more to them.  If you don't know what this charity is all about - please click on the link at the bottom of this page.* They do so much good for families with children that have critical injuries or diseases.  I was shocked to hear from several people who responded to my events of how RMHC had personally touched them or their family members.  So during this Valentine's Week I want to share the LOVE even more by offering to donate all of my profits for any online orders placed now through Sunday, February 14, directly to RMHC.  In addition, if you purchase the set below, besides my profits, SU! will donate an additional $3.00 to RMHC.  It is a great set - see a few samples made with it later in this post.  You can place your order directly through my website by clicking on the "SHOP NOW" button on the side of this post.  Your order will be shipped directly to your home.

Featured set of the month:

Sprinkles of Life #139971 (22 Photopolymer images) $21.00 
(also available in wood)

If you order the photoplymer set you will need the following clear blocks also -
Suggested blocks A, C and G
 what's even better is that you can order this coordinating Tree Builder punch to go with it.  Makes using all those cute elements so much easier.
 

Here are a few cute samples made with this set - 
     
*For more information on this charity - please check out their website at - http://www.rmhc.org
Hope you never have to use Ronald McDonald Charities - but let's see what we can do together to support this wonderful cause!  Have a great happy and healthy day.  ~Maureen 

Sunday Morning Musings from a former sickie! and a Happy Birthday Wish!

Happy Sunday - praising God for this day of feeling good as the last 24 hours were miserable!  This is my first cup of coffee since dinner Friday night - I was so, so sick.  Woke up in the middle of the night with such a bad headache - felt like my head was going to explode.  Then around 9:30 AM - the stomach stuff hit - I threw up about every 1/2 hour all day till 10:30 PM - could not eat a thing.  A little sip of water sent me running to the bathroom.  But around 11PM I could tell I was doing better.  By this morning, I was able to eat and have coffee again!!!!  My only after affect is a pulled muscle in my back from all the heaving.  Sorry for the graphic account - but these are my musings :)

Love this set up coffee mugs I received for Christmas last year from my friend, Septembra.  It is a set of four in different colors, and every time I drink from them they remind me of my Mom.  We must have had a set that was similar to these.  And she was also a coffee LOVER.  She is especially on my mind today, as it would have been her 96th birthday if she was still alive - miss her every day!

~*~*~*~*~

I also wanted to share a great Sale-a-bration set that you can earn free by placing an order with me for $50 or more - but you have to act fast, as this set is only available through Feb. 15, 2016.  You can order through my website by clicking the SHOP NOW button on the right of this page to view the catalogs, order and have it shipped right to your home.  You don't want to miss out on getting this set.  Below is a masculine version that I made for cards for my brothers' birthdays this year - all seven of them.  If they are reading my blog - they will need to close their eyes so they don't see it - lol! 

I recently started a growth group with my downline - and wanted to get a journal just to use for those exercises - so I used the same set to decorate the front of my journal.

And using almost the same layout - made a bunch of these more feminine versions of the card to send out for encouragement to my downline.

~*~*~*~*~

Last, but certainly not least - I want to wish a very happy birthday to this beautiful young woman, my youngest daughter, Heidi.  She shares this birth date with my Mom - which is so cool to me.  I am so very proud of her and all she has done as an entrepreneur, a daughter, a sister, a Mom, a wife and the list goes on.  She is amazing and I'm wishing her a life where truly - the Sky is the limit!!! Love you kiddo!

See you all soon - have a great Sunday!  ~Maureen
Here's the full picture of what is included in this FREE SAB set with your $50 order.  Clicking on it will take you to my website also.

Sky Is The Limit Clear-Mount Stamp Set

$0.00

Upcoming Stamping Opportunities in the Prescott/Chino Valley, AZ area

It's time to STAMP those Winter Blues away!!

STAMPING EVENTS with the CRAZY STAMPING LADY

Crazy Stamping Lady’s Coffee and Cards!!* 

Starbucks Conference Room -  1861 E State Route 69 Prescott****

Choose Tuesday, February 9, 2016

6:30 - 8:30 PM

or

Thursday, February 11, 2016

9:00 - 11:00 AM

 Cost: $20 to make four beautiful handcrafted greeting cards and envelopes.**

Two each of two different designs and sentiments.  

  Price includes your choice of beverage from Starbucks up to a $5.00 value; and all materials prepped and ready to complete your cards.  Plus a little treat and a doorprize drawing.  No additional purchase necessary.

There is nothing better than coffee and crafting with friends - lets get-together and have some fun!

  Limit 8 due to space limitation in conference room.  Must email me at crazystampinglady@gmail.com to RSVP and hold your spot, I will always confirm your place in the class by email or facebook messenger. 

Class must be ½ full to avoid cancellation – so grab a friend (or 2 or 3) and come make something wonderful!

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Crazy Stamping Lady’s Coffee and Christmas Cards!!* 

Starbucks Conference Room -  1861 E State Route 69 Prescott****

Saturday, February 20, 2016

1:00 - 3:00 PM

 Cost: $20 to make four beautiful handcrafted Christmas cards and envelops.**

YES, Christmas cards - I'll be holding this event each month through November, and if you attend each session you can have 40 handmade cards ready to send to friends and relatives.  Each month there are new designs.  This is always a really popular class - so plan to join us.

Price includes your choice of beverage from Starbucks up to a $5.00 value; and all materials prepped and ready to complete your cards.  Plus a little treat and a doorprize drawing.  No additional purchase necessary.

Be ahead of the game for the holidays this year - lets get-together and have some fun!

  Limit 8 due to space limitation in conference room.  Must email me at crazystampinglady@gmail.com to RSVP and hold your spot, I will always confirm your place in the class by email or facebook messenger. 

Class must be ½ full to avoid cancellation – so grab a friend (or 2 or 3) and come make something wonderful!

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Crazy Stamping Lady’s Coffee and Cards 101 Classes!!* 

Starbucks Conference Room -  1861 E State Route 69 Prescott****

 Choose Monday, February 22, 2016

6:30 - 8:30 PM

or

Thursday, February 25, 2016

9:00 - 11:00 AM

 Cost: $20 to learn the basics of rubber stamping and make some cute little projects while you learn.**

This class is really for beginners or t hose who have not stamped in a while.  You don't need to know a thing - just plan to come and have some creative fun!  The Monday and the Thursday Classes will teach identical things - so sign up for one or the other.

  Price includes your choice of beverage from Starbucks up to a $5.00 value; and all materials prepped and ready to complete your projects.  Plus a little treat and a doorprize drawing.  No additional purchase necessary.

There is nothing better than coffee, learning and crafting with friends!!

  Limit 8 due to space limitation in conference room.  Must email me at crazystampinglady@gmail.com to RSVP and hold your spot, I will always confirm your place in the class by email or facebook messenger. 

Class must be ½ full to avoid cancellation – so grab a friend (or 2 or 3) and come make something wonderful!

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Crazy Stamping Lady’s Coffee and Cards!!* 

Starbucks table area of the Chino Valley Safeway Store****

 Monday, February 29, 2016

6:30 - 8:30 PM

NOTE: THAT THIS IS A DIFFERENT LOCATION THAN THE REST OF MY CARD CLASSES.

 Cost: $20 to make four beautiful handcrafted greeting cards and envelopes.**

Two each of two different designs and sentiments.  

  Price includes your choice of beverage from Starbucks up to a $5.00 value; and all materials prepped and ready to complete your cards.  Plus a little treat and a doorprize drawing.  No additional purchase necessary.

There is nothing better than coffee and crafting with friends - lets get-together and have some fun!

  Limit 8 due to space limitation in conference room.  Must email me at crazystampinglady@gmail.com to RSVP and hold your spot, I will always confirm your place in the class by email or facebook messenger. 

Class must be ½ full to avoid cancellation – so grab a friend (or 2 or 3) and come make something wonderful!

I'm so excited to get STAMPING here in Prescott - and I'm hoping you'll come join me.  Since I'm trying to re-establish my business here in my new hometown - I need your help.  *****Please spread the word and invite friends to join us - I'll have a gift for you and your friend at the event!!

*Stamp Camp/Class/Club Cancellation Policies - PLEASE READ TILL END OF POLICY!! If you cancel your reservation at least 48 hours in advance of the event there will be no cost to you. If you cancel within that 48 hours I will try and place someone from the waiting and if that works there will be no charge to you; otherwise you will be responsible for the class fee (If a stamp camp - you will receive the material packet with pictures of the finished projects  (by email or on my blog) to make your projects.  Stamping may not be done for you, so you may need to adjust the project slightly using what stamps you have available. Or you can choose to purchase the purchase requirement for the event in merchandise from Maureen.)   If no purchase requirement is listed for the specific event, you must purchase 2 1/2 times the cost of the class/stamp camp/event or pay for the event. If event is cancelled by me - full refund will be given of any pre-payment. All events must be half-full to avoid possible cancellation. Check your emails before coming  for confirmation and to be sure events have not been cancelled.

**Products: Expired products may be used for these events - discuss with your demonstrator if you'd like suggestions on current product substitutions.  Must be 16 years or older to attend this event, unless other accommodations have been pre-arranged.

***Cards for a Cause: All profits will be donated to the charity designated for the event.  A minimum of $5 of the entry fee and $1 per card made plus 20% of any purchases made at the event will be donated.  More if expenses are less for the day.  There will also be a chance drawing basket where you can donate for tickets $1.00 each or 6 for $5.00 - 100% of this money goes to the charity.  Contact me if you have a charity you'd like have an event for.

****Events at Starbucks: Please check in with me in the conference room, pay for event, and pick up the Starbucks card I have, to go puchase your beverage of choice.

*****Current Referral Program: Refer someone who purchases or attends a class, that is not currently a customer or on my email list - and you'll receive a $5.00 credit toward a purchase of merchandise or your class fee. 

Maureen Rauchfuss ~ the Crazy Stamping Lady says "come join the FUN!"

#imbringingbirthdaysback

So everyone - I've jumped on this bandwagon - as I think there is nothing better then receiving HAPPY mail! ~
I love to make cards, send cards and receive cards. So for 2016 - I am joining Shannon West in sending a REAL, hand stamped birthday card to everyone that requests one. You can email me your birthdate, and mailing address if you don't think I have it, by clicking the email link on the right side of this blog. Shannon West, a Training Manager at Stampin' Up!, had a wonderful idea to send a birthday card to everyone who responded to her post. She thinks (and I agree) that Facebook has ruined birthday cards, so she wants to change that. She is inspiring MANY people to send REAL cards in the mail and using the hashtag. ‪#‎imbringingbirthdaysback‬. If your birthday was already this year - still send it please - I can always send a late card! 
I've had a great response to this offer with 72 people so far added to my birthday list - below is the pile that went out in yesterday's mail - so much HAPPY being sent out.

Right after these went out - I received yesterday's mail with my new "#imbringingbirthdaysback" stamp.  It's gonna help a lot -won't have to write it each time - lol!

So - it's not too late for you to request a card from me - just follow the instructions in the first paragraph.  And even though this is about birthdays - if you know of anyone that getting a hand made card would make their day - please feel free to pass their info on to me too!  Let's make a brighter world - one handstamped card at a time. See you soon~ Maureen

Personal Post Monday - Gramma Day with Kamili!

So - being in Arizona - it has been a bit of a challenge getting Gramma Days in - but I'm doing it.  Last trip I had a day with this little beauty - Miss Kamili.  Drove to So. Cal. and got there just at the end of the school day.  Picked up Kamili and took her to her dance class.  Then we headed to the Mall - here she is doing a couple of her dance moves for me on the planter at the mall :)

This girl wanted to shop, so off we headed to Claire's for a cell phone cover and some earrings, then we went to Justice and she picked out this cute top.  So we had to do a quick change after purchasing it, as she wanted to wear it.  Kamili is a little fashionista - all about the clothes, hair, etc.  So glad we had this time to shop together.

She is also my foodie - and she wanted to have Clam Chowder - so we headed off to Panera Bread where she could get it in a bread bowl.  She loved it and ate every drop as well as part of the bowl. 

I hated to even post the picture below as it shows just how exhausted I was after driving all day long.  But it was a picture with Kamili and a memory of the day - so I'll put my vanity aside.  Besides - look how adorable Kamili looks - no one is going to be looking at me.

After dinner, we went and got Ice Cream for the family at Coldstone -with a side of gummy bears and headed home.  What a delightful evening with an even more delightful girl.  Three Gramma days with three more kiddos, before I start the cycle again.  So blessed to have these special times with them.  Love you sweetie!  ~Gramma