Our Letterboxing Journal

Using the same process used for the Good to Dream Journal, I made a second journal for our family to use for our new family hobby, letter boxing. What is letter boxing? Letter boxing is a unique hobby that combines old fashioned treasure hunting with ... rubber stamps! A great hobby for a stamping enthusiast. Gets me out in the sunshine instead of being hunched over a desk with ink on my fingers. :0) More information about our letter boxing trip will follow, but first, a few details about the journal and a sneak peek of things to come from Stampin' Up!™

I used some retired paper, Good Morning Sunshine designer series paper, as well as current card stocks, Chocolate Chip and Very Vanilla. I know, I know, don't tempt you with beautiful designer series papers that you can no longer have, especially ones featuring a retired in-color. The nerve of me! :0) There's a method to my madness. I wanted to share our letter boxing adventure, but I also wanted to let you know about a great new product coming soon from Stampin' Up! Available to you beginning TODAY! Many of you will have the latest holiday mini and on the last page, you will find My Digital Studio. This is a digital scrap booking software. It will have images from current stamp sets and you'll be allowed to expand the package as more stamp sets and colors are introduced. One of the more exciting features is that the software will also include some of your favorite retired in-colors, including Kiwi Kiss, Baja Breeze, Tangerine Tango... YEA! It's a fun software for those who like the look of a scrapbook page/album but aren't into all the work. And like any other scrapbook page, once you have it printed, you can add custom touches and embellishments to your heart's desire. So, don't be discouraged if you are missing the recently retired in-colors, there is a way to have them again! I just received my copy last night and I've already decided a cute book for Liam.

Now, back to letterboxing, I'll give an overview of the hobby here, but for more detailed explanations visit: http://www.atlasquest.com/ and http://www.letterboxing.org/index.php. Basically, a person hides a small plastic waterproof box along a trail. The box is well hidden such that if you are not looking for it, you won't find it. In order to find it, you must log into a site similar to those noted and find the clues for the box. Each box contains a log book and a unique stamp, often one carved by the person planting the box.

Once you have your clues, you head out to the trail with your own log book and personal rubber stamp in hand. You follow the clues until you find the box. Once you find the box, you carefully remove it from it's hiding spot. In the box's log book, you stamp your own stamp, date it and add any personal comment. Then, using the stamp in the box, you stamp your own log book. You can also register your find on one or more of the websites noted. Then, you carefully put the contents back in the box and return it to its original hiding place.

We discovered letter boxing after a friend of mine showed me an article in a local newspaper. It's such an affordable hobby for a family and it gets us out in the great outdoors. And you don't need much to get started, just a rubber stamp and a "trail name." You can have one stamp for the entire family or one for each member of the family.

Our first adventure was over Labor Day weekend. We made our book that morning and picked our destination, Bothell Bunnies here in Bothell. The trail is nearby and easy to find. The box was named for the colony of tame bunnies you'll see along the trail (cared for my employees in the nearby business park). The kids had a great time and I got 30-40 minutes of exercise. The trail is also a nice place for a walk or bike ride so I'm sure we'll go back again. Here we are on our first adventure.

The kids had so much fun, we planned our next two hunts. One near our church and another near the Space Needle.

Check out letter boxing, you might find a hobby you'll be surprised you enjoy. Plus, it'll give you an excuse to buy some stamps if you ever decide to start planting your own letter boxes.

God Bless & Happy Stamping!

And the winner is...

Our summer attendance challenge is officially over. My daugthers Phoebe and Tessa have randomly drawn two names from all the entries. Thank you to everyone who made purchases and attended workshops and open studios over the summer months. It was great to share Stampin' Up!™ projects and products with each of you.

Now, without further ado, our winners. Our lucky winners are Diana K. and Shannon M.! Congratulations ladies, you have won a $25 gift certificate which can be used toward your next Stampin' Up! purchase through me. You can also apply your gift certificate to your next class fee. Winners will be notified by me. Your gift certificate can only be redeemed with me and can not be used through my demonstrator website.

Congratulations to our winners and thanks to all of our participants. Check this blog frequently for news of more promotions.

God Bless and Happy Stamping!

Good to Dream Journals

Here is yet another wonderful project straight from Stampin' Success (the monthly magazine provided to demonstrators). I loved this idea the minute I saw it and knew that I would make this project.

This is a very simple project and can be completed quickly. The secret ingredient is the Tom Bow Multipurpose Adhesive (Item # 110755). Remember the white glue you used as a child? Think of Tom Bow as the new and improved version. The bottle has two applications, a fine tip and a broad tip. This is a very strong adhesive, good for chipboard, heavier embellishments, and even applying beads or glitter to a project. And as with all adhesives sold by Stampin' Up!™, the Tom Bow is acid free so perfectly safe for all your scrap booking projects.

This notebook features Designer Series Punches, the Big Shot, and the Scallop Edge Punch. I also used some of our polka dot Bermuda Bay ribbon (don't see dots? that's because I reversed the ribbon). For Designer Series paper, I chose Thoroughly Modern and our Patterns Designer Series Paper in Rose Red and Bermuda Bay. I first cut the designer series paper to size and adhered it to the front and back of the notebook. In this sample, the base paper is from the Thoroughly Modern package. I then cut a piece of Rose Red card stock to approximately 4 1/4 inches wide and punched both long edges with my Scallop Edge punch. If you use a Rose Red patterned paper on the base of notebook, you would select a contrasting color for the binding. Before adhering to the notebook, I used Snail to adhere the ribbon to the front of the Rose Red. Then I used the Tom Bow to glue the binding onto the notebook, gently wrapping it around.

I then selected some pattern paper as well as some solid card stock (Whisper White is shown) and cut a number of butterflies out using the Stampin' Up!™ Beautiful Butterflies die. For the ones cut with Whisper White, I stamped a swirl from the Wings of Friendship hostess set before assembling my butterflies. The butterflies are assembled by stacking the butterflies by size and then I tied some crocheting thread around the center to make the antennae. You could also use ribbon or hemp twine if desired. Then, attach the butterflies to your notebook. To finish off my notebook, I added a sentiment from the Full of Life stamp set. Stamped in Rose Red and Bermuda Bay on Whisper White card stock.

Some tips for this project, when cutting your designer series paper, do not worry about cutting it to fit the entire width, just cut it 6 inches wide and then the length to fit the height of your notebook. Your binding edge will make up the difference and you can get more out of each sheet of paper (cover one normal size notebook, front and back). Glue your paper to the notebook first and then round the corners to fit the profile of your notebook. Feel free to embellish the inside pages as well.

I held a class for these notebooks in August. However, I still have supplies available and can sell additional kits for $10 each or 2 for $15, plus shipping cost. Paper selection will be as available and may not match the photo, so you will need to indicate to me if you have if you want the base print to be predominantly Bermuda Bay or Rose Red. You will also have supply your own stamps as I can not provide pre-stamped images. I can now accept paypal! Email me for more details on purchasing a Good to Dream Kit

Also, this is a great back to school project. Why not consider hosting a show with your fellow PTA members and their daughters where you each make a notebook for the same prices noted above? Email me for more details on hosting a show.

God Bless and Happy Stamping!