Home >> Blog

Can you believe that there is only ten more days left of Sale-A-Bration? 

Don't you just love these pandas?  I've seen so many cards and projects done with these adorable creatures.  If you are interested you better hurry to grab them.  They are FREE with a $50 order.  

Don't forget if you are interested in joining Stampin' Up, the best time is now.  Your Starter Kit is $125 of ANY product you choose and pay only $99.  And there is also free shipping.  And you can pick any two additional stamp sets for FREE.  It's an awesome deal.  

My journey as a demonstrator has been really exciting. I've started my own bog, created a stamp club, and met an entire new group of demonstrators that are really awesome. I would love you to join me. There is a lot we can do together.  

Feel free to contct me if you have any questions.  

Until next time..Stampin' Always,

Cheryl, HomeStyle Stamper

Back to work today.  It was great having some time off last week.  I have a feeling that it's going to be a long week.

I was given a piece of this Foil Frenzy Specialty DSP and was challenged to incorporate it into a card or project. Since I don't have this paper pack, this was a challenge.   Instead of just using it as a background matte, I chose to break up the piece into smaller pieces.

I started with cutting the piece so it's 4 inches, the size of the Crumb Cake.  From there, I cut at 3/4, 1/2, and 1/4 inches.  It definately helped to break up a busy piece of paper . 

Compared to the bottom, the top was looking a little bland. By stamping tone on tone, the butterflies add some interest without taking away from the hanging basket.  Basically,  you just made your own patterned paper.  

Don't forget when using the Stampin' Blends, use the Tuxedo Memento Ink.  The Blends will blend in with the regular ink, but not the Memento.  I don't have all the Blends colors, so I chose the Pool Party set.  It's a nice contrast with the Berry Burst.  

For a challenge, I don't think it came out too bad.  I was kind of glad to get this since it was brand new to me.  It wouldn't have been much of a challenge if I had already worked with the paper.

As always, click on the above picture for dimensions and instructions.

Until next time..Stampin' Always,

Cheryl, HomeStyle Stamper

 

 

 

 

 

Another weekend gone too fast.  It was a nice weekend in Wisconsin.  The weather was warm enough to have the doors open for a little while.  Our cat went kind of nuts with the fresh air.  He was just acting really bizarre even for him.  Megan left to back to college as her spring break is done.  She won't be home until mid April.  I'll miss my Tech Support.

Alyssa, who is in Germany, spent the weekend in Berlin.  She and her flatmate had a good time. They did several museums, cathederals and of course, the Berlin Wall.  I've skyped two times with her so I am glad to see she is doing well and not ready to come home.  She is making additional travel plans with several people she has met over there.  We booked our airplane tickets to go and visit her.  I already can't wait to see her!  My husband has been to Germany, but for work, so he didn't get to do anything touristy . Megan and I have never been there so we are excited to go somewhere new.

I made this card for my demo swap this week.  It was actually the second card I made.  The first had a Mother's day sentiment on.  I had them completely done and then remembered the swap was supposed to be Birthday theme . Darn it!  Start all over.  Thinking positive, I have my thank you cards for my club people done already.  

I haven't used the daisy stamp in quite a while so it was time to be dusted off.  I typically stamp and punch two daisies out and adhere them together for a fuller looking daisy.  I think it's best to use the Tombo Liquid Multipurpose glue . Because it liquid, you can play a little bit until you get them positioned perfectly.  And it dries very quickly.  

Pretty soon Stampin' Up will be releasing their retirement list.  We never know for sure what wil be on the list, but the 2016-2018 In Colors will be retiring for sure.  Products in these colors will sell out very quickly.  If you need anything in these colors, don't wait too long.  Unless they are brought back in a color refresh, we won't see them anymore.  The color I wil miss the most will be Dapper Denim.  

Click on the card picture for dimensions and instructions.

Until next time...Stampin' Always,

Cheryl, HomeStyle Stamper

 

 

 

The week is done.  What a busy week.  I was ready for it to be over with, but that also means Megan goes back to school.  She leaves tomorrow and doesn't know when she will be home next.  It won't be for Easter.  That's ok.  My husband and I are planning on going up to see her on that Friday.  We will take her out for lunch so Megan is all over a free meal.  

My family bought me a new computer last weekend.  It's  MacBook Air and I'm so lost on how to do some things.  Like pictures.  I'm having trouble importing edited photos.  UUGGHH.  Megan finally got this picture last night, but not exactly sure how she did it.  I just wasted 15 minutes playing with another picture with absolutely no luck.  It says the  edited picture was imported, but I absolutely can't find it.  This is so frustrating.  This is another reason I haven't blogged much this week.  I'm not very tech savvy but mastered certain things on my other computer.  Now, I feel like a complete novice again.  Be patient with me.  I'll eventually get the hang of things.

On to the card.  My friend "convinced" me to do a make and take at our demo meeting.  Gail was determined to get me out of my box, and she did.  I normally stick to my comfort zone, like baking homemade desserts.  I chose the stamp set A Mother's Flair for something different.  I haven't seen too many people use it yet, but I'm sure that will change closer to Mother's Day and after Easter has passed.

When I stamped the image and saying, I put both stamps on one acryllic block so I just stamped once.  By doing this, I could do a sample stamp to make sure the stamps were alighed right.  Remarker and stamp for the finished product.  I did use my markers on the shoe.  Because I wanted the shoe a nice solid black, I markered that image last.  Also, huffing on the stamp helped.  Adding the rhinestone jewel just added a little bit of bling.

The Fresh Florals DSP was my background.  I cut the Powdered Pink the usual size, 5 x 3 3/4, but also cut at 3 inches.  When adhering onto the Berry Burst, just turn one paper over to you can use the other pattern.  It was the easiest thing do to if you want two patterned papers on one card.  I hid the cut line with the Organza Ribbon and topped it with the Whisper White Bakers Twine.   

Great color combo isn't it?  A little girly, but the Always Artichoke and Basic Black make it not so over the top.  My club people also really liked this card and its colors.  

I finally finished this post. It has taken me all day, walking away several times to get this done.  It's been a huge learning curve going from Windows to Apple.  I'm hoping it will get easier.  Much easier.  Thanks to my Tech Support, Megan. Wouldn't be doing this without your help!

As always, click on the picture for dimensions and instructions.

Until next time...Stampin' Always,

Cheryl, HomeStyle Stamper

 

I know it's been a while since I've posted, but it's a crazy week.  Megan is home from Spring Break and that added to the craziness.  Yesterday we took the train and spent the day in Chicago.  We saw the Bean, visited Navy Pier and "shopped" on Michigan Avenue.  That was more like window shopping.  We went by Tiffany's.  I wanted to go in,  but not when the employees outnumbered the customers.  It was great spending the day with Megan.  

My husband made dinner last weekend and he made Pork Carnitas.  They are basically shredded pork tacos.  We made these because we needed the leftover pork.  Megan wanted Cuban Sandwiches.  I posted that recipe a little while ago.  

These carnitas have a lot of seasonings so they are very flavorful.  The carnitas are not spicy hot, just flavorful spicy...that's my favorite kind.  I think the flavors are actually better the longer the pork sits.  

Pork Carnitas

1 Tablespoon olive oil

1/2 Tablespoon oregano

1 Tablespoon cumin

1 Tablespoon kosher salt

1 teaspoon black pepper

1 Tablespoon Chipolte Pepper in Adobo Sauce, chopped

2 pounds pork tenderloin, cut into small chunks

2 Bay Leaves

1/2 medium onion, chopped

3 garlic cloves

3/4 cup orange juice

Corn tortillas, avocado, pineapple salsa, cheese, tomatoes

Coat slow cooker with cooking spray.  In small bowl, mix olive oil, oregano, cumin, salt, pepper, chipolte pepper.  Add pork.  Mix well.  Add to slow cooker.

Add bay leaves, onions, garlic, and orange juice.

Cook 3-4 hours on high or 5-6 hours on low.

Shred pork.  Place shredded pork on a cookie sheet and broil just until the meat gets a little crispy.  Watch closely so meat doesn't burn.

Spread some pork on a tortilla and top with your choice of toppings.

We choose to add the toppings very similar to those similar for tacos.  I happen to really like guacamole with mine.  Spread some on the tortilla before the pork, and it's wonderful.  

Until next time...Stampin' Always

Cheryl, HomeStyle Stamper

Another weekend has come and gone.  My birthday is coming up so my family bought me a new Apple laptop computer!  Isn't that great!  The sad thing part is that I was so busy in my stamp room that I couldn't play with it at all.  A part of me just wanted to cry.  I couldn't even do this blog post on it because I wouldn't have access to the pictures yet.  The next couple days are extremely busy, but I'll try my hardest to get it running.  I have to... my tech support is home for spring break!  I bought the same computer that Megan has so there is no way she can't say...I don't know how to do that.  

The best part of the weekend was that we finally Skyped with Alyssa who is doing a semester abroad in Germany.  I've SnapChatted with her, but doens't take the place of actual talking.  It was great to hear that she was finding her way around and meeting people.  She took me on a "tour" of her place.  Nothing fancy, but she's in a house, it's clean, safe and she likes her roommate and landlady.  Can't ask for much more than that.

My friend's birthday was this week and this was the card I made for her. Fresh Fig is a color that I haven't used much, but I started to really like it.  The Lemon Lime Twist really brightens up the card.  The patterned cardstock is from the Fresh Florals  DSP pack.  The colors are the 2017-2019 In-Colors.  There are four patterns in each of the 5 colors.  I like this because they all work so well together.  

When the sentiment was stamped, it need something else.  I wasn't up to fussy coloring so I opted to use the aqua painters and ink pads and very lightly color the flowers in.  I like how it turned out because it definately looks more pink than Fresh Fig.  Perfect to go with the Powder Pink paper that it is on.  Everything worked out perfectly, even though somethings weren't planned.  I've been using a lot from this DSP pack so you will be seeing more.  

My color combo ended up being from all the 2017-2019 In-Colors.  That's just how it turned out.

                                      

I honestly don't know how much I will actually have time to post this week, but I'll try my hardest.  It's going to be a crazy week.  I'm already looking forward to Friday when there is nothing on the calendar!  Isn't that sad?

Click on the above picture for dimensions and instructions.

Until next time...Stampin' Always,

Cheryl, HomeStyle Stamper

 

Friday night in Wisconsin means only one thing.  Friday Fish Fry.  Yum.  We went to the Fireside tonight.  It's a local dinner theater here in Fort Atkinson.  They have the BEST broiled cod with a sauce that goes over that is to die for.  We don't go all that often, so it's a treat when we do.  

Can you tell I love the Tutti Frutti cards and envelopes?  They make carding creating easy.  I dug out the Label Me Pretty stamp set and punch.  It was time to use something different again.  The sentiment was stamped in Crumb Cake on Whisper White.  It was looking bland, so out came the Aqua Painters.  I used very little water with Lemon Lime Twist ink.  It really pops against the Fresh Fig.  

When adhering embossed cardstock, I typically don't use the Snail adhesive.  Because it doesn't have a flat surface, the Snail doesn't work very well.  Instead, the Tear and Tape works great!  I highly recommend it.  

 

Have a great weekend everyone!

As always, click on the above picture for dimensions and instructions.

Until next time...Stampin' Always,

Cheryl, HomeStyle Stamper

 

 

 

 

My husband is travelling so I am home alone.  I was looking forward to some time in my stamp room this evening.  After about 1 1/2 hours of not liking anything I stamped, I threw in the towel and gave up.  Waterfront stamp set just wasn't cooperating tonight.  Maybe tomorrow.

I made this recipe this week for dinner.  Do you like Rae Drummond, aka The Pioneer Woman?  Some of her recipe are pretty good.  I like the fact that she uses pretty basic ingredients.  A pet peeve is when a recipe calls for a specific ingredient that I won't ever use any other time.  Those recipes I tend to avoid.  

This is a good and quick recipe.  My husband likes this one.  The basic ingredients are butter, cube steak, Worcestershire sauce and onions.  And a roll.  With this amount of ingredients, how hard can it be?  It's not.  

The Marlboro Man Sandwich

1 whole large (or 2 small) onions

2 sticks butter (lots and lots of butter)

2 -3 pounds cube steak

Lawry's Seasoned Salt, or similar seasoned salt

about 1/2 cup Worcestershire Sauce

Tabasco Sauce, to taste

4 whole French/deli Rolls

Slice onions and cook in 1/4 stick butter until soft and light brown.  Remove and set aside.

Slice cube steak against the grain.  Season with Lawry's.

Heat 2 Tablespoon butter over high heat until melted and beginning to brown.  Add meat.  Cook until brown, several minutes.

Add 1/2 cup (or more to taste) Worcestershire sauce, 5 - 6 shakes Tabasco and 2 Tablespoons butter.  Add cooked onions.  Stir to combine.

Butter halved French rolls and brown in skillet.

To assemble, lay bottom half of French roll on plate.  Place meat mixture, followed by some juice from the pan.  Top with the other half of foll, cut in half, and devour.

The original recipe from her blog is: the pioneerwomen.com/cooking/marlboro_mans_f/

We highly recommend this recipe if you need a quick and easy recipe.  The leftovers are great too.

Until next time...Stampin' Always,

Cheryl, HomeStyle Stamper