Home >> Blog

Brrr.  The weather is quite chilly here in Wisconsin.  I actually had to turn the heat on for the first time today.  And I am one to hold off as long as possible.  But I do have our cat sleeping next to me and trying to keep me warm.  

This was my club thank you card this month.  I always put a card designed by me in with their orders.  They do appreciate the special treat.  And since I already had this stamp set out, I figured I just had to use this one again.  The sunflower is Daffodil Delight and Pumpkin Pie.  I really like how bright it is.  Definately an eye-catcher. 

Don't forget the paper is also on sale until October 31! Stampin' Up doesn't do this sale often so take advantage of it.  Buy 3 get one FREE.  

My color combo isn't too much today.  Pretty tame, but that's ok sometimes.

                                                                                      

Hope you enjoyed this.  Click on the picture for the dimensions and instructions.

Until next time...Stampin' Always

Cheryl, HomeStyle Stamper

 

The weather is cold and windy.  Gray skies all day.  Leaves falling on the wet grass. The best part?  I didn't leave my house all day long.  That's right.  Not even to get the mail.  The bills will keep until tomorrow.  My husband is traveling so I didn't even have to make dinner.  I love these days.  My time was spent in my craft room and was actually productive.  I crafted three Christmas cards.  And with using three different stamp sets.  

This sunflower card I created for my club last week.  Sunflowers always cheer people up.  Using bright colors does the same thing...makes everything more cherry.  And with our weather lately, we need all the cherry we can get.  I've seen so many variations of the flower on line, it's incredible.  I have seen a purple one.  Normally I am not a huge fan of purple, but it was gorgeous.  I should try it myself.  

I'll confess a secret about the strip of Lemon Lime Twist on the bottom.  I went to stamp the sentiment on the Whisper White and I didn't have enough room.  If the dsp would have been towards the edge more, it would have fit.  So in comes some improving since the paper was already adhered together.  Hence the strip.  I actually like how it did turn out.  This goes to show that there are no right or wrong in stamping.  Just creativity.  

                                                                  

What do you think about the color combo?  Interesting.  Did you ever think all those colors would work together?  But they do work together.   You never know what works together until you try it.  

Click on the picture for the dimensions and instructions.

Until next time...Stampin' Always

Cheryl, HomeStyle Stamper

I'm so glad today is over.  It was kind of crazy at work today.  Several times I've been trying to access my iCloud on my phone.  It keeps saying my iCloud storage is almost full and I want to go in and reorganize/delete photos.  After an hour, I now have a headache and calling it quits.  I'm beginning to think it wasn't meant for me to access.  

Two weeks ago, we had a potluck at work.  I wanted to bring something "fallish" and found this on one of my boards on Pinterest.  The Fall Pumpkin Dip was actually super easy to make and very flavorful.  I was surprised that my husband liked it so much.  Typically he is not a cool whip fan, but I guess pumpkin overrules that.  Definately make this ahead of time since the flavors need to blend together.

Fall Pumpkin Dip

15 oz can  pumpkin

5 oz box instant vanilla pudding, just the powder, 

16 oz container cool whip

1/2 tablespoon Pumpkin Pie Spice

1/2 tablespoon Cinnamon

Mix pumpkin, pudding mix, cool whip and pumpkin spice together by hand.  Chill several hours before serving.

Sprinkle with cinnamon and serve with fresh apple slices, vanilla wafers or ginger snaps.

Optional:  carve a small pumpkin and serve the dip right from there.

This does make a lot so it would be great for parties or potlucks.  Or even Thanksgiving.  Give it a try.  

Until next time...Stampin' Always

Cheryl, HomeStyle Stamper

 

Did you forget Stampin' Up has a designer series paper sale going on?  They don't do this sale very often, so I was excited that they brought this sale back again.  So take advantage of it.  There is paper in the Annual Catalog as well as the Holiday Catalog.  Once Christmas is over, we will have to come up with new projects to create and this is the perfect way to plan ahead.  They also make great Christmas presents.  

Only 2 weeks left!  Don't wait until the last minute to get your order in. 

Until next time...Stampin' Always,

Cheryl, HomeStyle Stamper

Now, I'm not into hedgehogs generally, but isn't he just adorable?  I saw this on Pinterest and had to case him.  Can you tell what he was stamped from?  Painted Harvest stamp set!   Yes, he's the sunflower stamp.  Now who originally came up with this idea is so clever.  Never would I have thought to turn a sunflower into a hedgehog.  I made 2 of these and sent them to my girls in college.  Now I'm just waiting to see what their reaction is.  If anything, I'm sure they will love the little spending money I tucked inside for them.  

Now, it did take several tries to get the hedgehog looking right, especially with the color combo.  The hedgehog (or sunflower) consists of 2 stamps.  After experimenting, I had finally figured it out.  Sahara Sand was the larger stamp and Soft Suede was the smaller one.  Try the colors out before you actually stamp the final image.  It'll save you frustration later on.  Because I didn't want the whole entire sunflower, I placed a post-it note where I wanted him to lay.  For the face, I saw that you could use the face from Foxy Friends stamp set.  I don't have that set, so I just used my Soft Suede marker for the eyes and nose.  

                                                                                                

It's been a rainy week here in Wisconsin.  Here's to hoping we will see the sun tomorrow.  

Click on the card picture for dimensins and instructions.

Until next time...Stampin' Always

Cheryl, HomeStyle Stamper

 

 

Ready for another recipe?  I just made this one about 3 weeks ago and of course I didn't take any pictures.  I've got to get better at that.  Anyway, it's Old-World Manicotti.  It's kind of putzy but worth it.  I make my own spaghetti sauce but the recipe actually calls for jarred.  My family gives me no mercy if I used jarred sauce.  They claim I've spoiled them for any other.  I'll share that at another time, but in the meantime, use a good jarred sauce, not a cheap one.  

Old-World Manicotti

12 large manicotti shells

4 cups shredded mozzarella cheese, divided

2 cups ricotta cheese

2 tablespoons dried basil, or 6 tablespoons fresh, chopped

1 jar spaghetti sauce, divided

1/2 cup grated Parmesan or Romano cheese 

Preheat oven to 350.  Spray 13 x 9 baking dish with nonstick cooking spray.  

Cook pasta according to package directioins.  Drain, rinse with cool water.  Let pasta dry on paper towels.

For filling, in large bowl, stir together 3 cups mozzarella with ricotta, and basil.  Using a teaspoon carefully stuff pasta shells with cheese mixture.  

Spoon 2 cups spaghetti sauce into prepared baking dish.  Arrange stuffed pasta over sauce.  Pour remaining sauce over top of pasta.  Sprinkle with remaining mozzarella.

Bake manicotti for 15 minutes.  Sprinkle with the Parmesan.  Bake for 10 minutes longer.  Serve immediately.

Optional:  I typically add 1 pound Italian sausage in with the cheese mixture, while decreasing the mozzarella cheese from 3 cups to 2 cups.  Sprinkle the remaining mozzarella over the top of the shells.  By adding the Italian sausage, it will make more than 12 manicotti shells.  

These are great if you have company and need to make them ahead of time.  Just heat in the oven for a longer time, until they are hot in the middle.  They also freeze well.  My girls brought them back to college with them.  All I did was wrap 1-2 in a piece of foil and place them in the freezer.  Now all they have to do is take out of the freezer in the morning and that night they have a home-cooked meal, made with love from their mom.  

Hope you try it.  They are worth the time.

Until next time...Stampin' Always

Cheryl, HomeStyle Stamper

Happy Wednesday.  I can't believe that it's already Wednesday.  It's hard to believe but we have to start thinking Christmas cards.  Yay?  I look forward to Christmas itself, just the hoopla ahead makes me crazy.  Not to mention how crazy Christmas shoppers can be.  

I was playing around with this new bundle.  It's called Ready for Christmas.  Doesn't it look like a bundle of fun?  I have several ideas I can't wait to see how they actually look on paper.  My Christmas tree is just stamped in Old Olive, but look how alive it looks down below.  Same tree but doesn't it look completely different?  I think the dog is my favorite stamp of the whole set. Since I have a Sheltie, I wish it would have been an image of her.  Doesn't every dog owner wish that?  

I decided to keep my card simple.  Christmas tree and presents.  Every kids dream.  You can see the pearls on each of the present bows.  What you can't see on the picture is that I used Wink of Stella on the bow so they also shimmer.  Adds a lot of shimmer for just a swipe of a brush.  

  

On my card, the black background paper is retired.  I used it because I wanted to keep the colors at a minimum.  You can use any dsp  you have in your paper stash.  Just remember to change the colors of the bows to match. 

Here is the color combination I used for this card.

                                                                             

 Give me time.  I promise you will be seeing more of this stamp set.   Click on the picture for dimensions and instructions.

Until next time...Stampin' Always,

Cheryl, HomeStyle Stamper

 

Who doesn't love coffee?  That is, besides my daughter and husband.  Anyway, this could be a cup of hot chocolate, Chai tea, herbal tea.  Or how about hot apple cider?  All are sounding pretty good at this time of year.  Soon it will be out with the iced drinks and in with the hot drinks. 

The leaves are starting to turn here in Wisconsin.  We went to La Crosse to visit our daughter at college yesterday.  The further west we got, we did notice the leaves were much more colorful than at home.  We walked around the campus and then it rained.  It was a good time to duck into the campus bookstore.  We had lunch downtown and went down to the Mississippi River.  Except for the rain, it was a great day.  

We are making this card in club this Tuesday.  The large cut-out leaf is from the Copper Foil Sheets.  It's hard to photograph, but it's beautiful.  Underneath is some of the Copper Trim.  You can it wider by spreading it out with your fingers.  I did this and underestimated  how much I should have used.  I cut off about 5 inches, but should have done more like 7-8 to see more of the edges.  I like it because it adds another layer to the card.  The only pieces I used dimensionals on are the cup lid and the "Perk Up" mini cup.  For fun, I stamped the mini cups on the inside.  But thinking about it, either kind of leaf would be cute too.  

                                                               

Click on the card picture for the dimensins and instructions.  Hope you enjoyed my card.  Have a good week everyone!

Until next time...Stampin' Always

Cheryl, HomeStyle Stamper