Happy New Year 2026 - Stampin' Up!® Reason to Celebrate

   I usually don't wait until the new year to make a few New Years cards but I wasn't inspired until after Christmas this time around.  But the colors from Global Design Project from a few weeks back jumped out at me and I combined it with the layout challenge I recently gave to my stampers as well as the Time Out Challenge of "All that Glitters".  But I should have looked closer because I accidentally swapped some of the elements to the opposite sides from the sketch.  Oh well!

  The new Reason to Celebrate stamp set is a great one for covering some of the first half of the year occasions as well as birthday and anniversary.  The mix and match style is fun and really versatile and many of the stamps are big enough to work on a scrapbook page as well.

  I combined some old and new products to put this one together.  The background is retired Dandy Designs DSP in a Balmy Blue polka dot pattern.  Next is an Azure Afternoon Textured Notes die cut, a layer of Secret Sea and another Textured Notes die cut in Basic White.

  On the white die cut I stamped the "happy" in Secret Sea and "new year" in Azure Afternoon from the Reasons to Celebrate set.  I die cut the numbers out of Peaceful Garden Glimmer Paper using the retired Playful Alphabet dies.

  Now the stars in the corners should be in opposite corners if I was following the sketch as I should have been doing but they work where they ended up!  The stamped star is found in the Hope Love & Joy stamp set and I did the outline in Secret Sea then colored them in with Balmy Blue Blends.  I alternated with stamped and glimmer paper stars popping some on dimensionals. 

  The upper corner has a Night of Navy bakers twine bow for a final detail.

  Thanks for looking!  Did you stamp today?

All of the current supplies to make this card can be purchased in my ONLINE STORE.

Stamps: Reason to Celebrate, Hope Love & Joy

Ink: Secret Sea, Azure Afternoon

Blends: Balmy Blue light & dark

Paper: Basic White, Secret Sea, Azure Afternoon, Peaceful Garden Glimmer Paper, Dandy Designs DSP (retired)

Accessories: Textured Notes dies, dimensionals, Night of Navy baker's twine (retired), Playful Alphabet dies (retired)

New Year, New Calendar - Stampin' Up!® Simply Beautiful

   Happy New Year stamping friends!  I ended up taking more of a break from my stamp room than I intended to over the holidays but now I'm getting back into the swing of things and trying to get my stamp room back in shape now that we're about to transition to the new Stampin' Up!® Jan.-April 2026 mini catalog!  I've got different stacks and piles of supplies as well as a few projects completed in December that didn't get blogged yet!  So much already on my 'to-do' list for 2026!

  This is a fun stand up calendar that my stampers made at our end of the year holiday party.  I figure it's a good time to combine something useful for the new year with upcoming products!  Look for all of these products to be available on Tuesday Jan. 6!

I wanted to show off the gorgeous new Lovely & Beautiful Suite Collection.  The Lovely & Beautiful DSP is just a flower lovers dream with big bold blossoms and gold accents on one side and sweet smaller floral patterns on the opposites.

The design is accented with a stamped flower and leaf from the Simply Beautiful bundle as well as the White with Gold ribbon and Pearlized Faceted Circles for even more sparkle.

  The base is quite simple with just a 5 1/5" x 11 cardstock base, folded in half.  The stand is a 4" x 4" square of the same color, scored at 1/2", 2", and 3 1/2".  The scores on the ends are folded up and adhered to the inside of the base.

  The Old Olive layer is 4" x 5 1/4" and the DSP is 3 3/4" x 5".  The layer behind the calendar is 3 1/4" x 2 1/2".

  Thanks for looking!  Did you stamp today?

Stamps: Simply Beautiful

Ink: Fresh Freesia, Old Olive

Paper: Fresh Freesia, Old Olive, Lovely & Beautiful Specialty DSP

Accessories: Simply Beautiful dies, White with Gold ribbon, Pearlized Faceted Circles, dimensionals, 2026 Mini Tear-Off Calendars (Taylored Expressions)

Delightful Calendar - Stampin' Up! Delightful Wishes Dies

   Every year I see people making these adorable calendars to start off the new year and every year I tell myself I'm going to remember to order the little calendars and make the project for a class.  Well it finally happened!  I remembered to order the calendars in December so I was all ready for my first class of the year.  The Floral Delight DSP was a perfect set of papers to use to make this cheerful project.

  This is a really simple fun fold and can easily be changed up to display a photo for a Christmas card or even a mini scrapbook page. 

  The card base is 4 1/4" x 11" scored at 5 1/2".  Then layer the card stock and DSP as you wish.  I used Old Olive, Pool Party and Floral Delight DSP.  The calendar is backed with a layer of Old Olive also.

 To make the stand to keep the calendar upright all you need is a piece of 4"x4" cardstock.  Score it at 1/2", 2" and 3 1/2". Fold on the 2 inch mark then fold the 2 smaller flaps up.  Add tear and tape to the flaps and adhere them to the inside of the base.  So easy!

  We embellished this version with a die cut flower using the Delight Wishes dies, Daffodil Delight 1/8" satin ribbon and a teeny tiny bee trinket!

  Such a cute project and an easy way to brighten up any working space!

  Thanks for looking!  Did you stamp today?

All of the supplies (except the calendar) used to make this project can be purchased in my ONLINE STORE.

 Stamps: none

Ink: none

Paper: Old Olive, Pool Party, Daffodil Delight, Peach Pie, Pecan Pie

Accessories: Delightful Wishes dies, Tiny Bee Trinkets, 1/8" Daffodil Delight satin ribbon, tear and tape, dimensionals, calendar (Taylored Expressions)

Happy 2025 - Stampin' Up! Birthday Celebration

   I still have a few more happy new year cards to send out so I've been trying to work on a fun design that I could make multiples of and then get them in the mail.  This design is not that one.  It will go out in the mail soon but it is for sure a one of kind.  I fussed over this one so much that I don't think I can bring myself to do it again even though the design part is the time consuming part and it's not the actual stamping!  Anyway, I love the colors and using a piece of the Beautiful Skies DSP just seems like a perfect choice for a new years card.  The layout is inspired by the Stampin' Up! Only Challenge layout.

  I started with a Blueberry Bushel card base, then a layer of the Online Exclusive Beautiful Skies DSP edged with a wavy strip of Pretty in Pink cut with the Ocean Friends dies.

 Using the Birthday Celebrations dies I cut the banner shape from Azure Afternoon and then the numbers from 2024-2026 In Color Glimmer Paper.  I stamped the 'happy' in Versamark then embossed it in white.  The banner is popped on dimensionals.

  I adhered the shimmery numbers to a piece of Basic White then fussy cut around them making a border to help the number pop a bit more.

  I cut a few tassels from Pretty in Pink and Azure Afternoon cardstock and added them to the corners and highlighted them with a 2024-2026 In Color Shimmer Gem.

  After I had gotten this far in the design after A LOT of time it was still missing something so I pulled out yet more supplies and stamped three stars from the With You In Mind stamp set, fussy cut them and added them around the banner.  A few retired Pastel-backed sequins were the right colors so one went on each of the stars to finish the design.

  Thanks for looking!  Did you stamp today?

All of the current supplies used to make this card can be purchased in my ONLINE STORE.

Stamps: Birthday Celebrations, With You In Mind

Ink: Pretty in Pink, Azure Afternoon, Blueberry Bushel

Paper: Blueberry Bushel, Pretty in Pink, Everyday Skies DSP (Online Exclusives), Basic White, Azure Afternoon, 2024-2026 In Color Glimmer Paper

Accessories: white embossing powder, Ocean Friends dies, Birthday Celebrations dies, dimensionals, 2024-2026 In Color Shimmer Gems, Pastel-backed sequins (retired)

New Year Nests - Nests of Winter Designer Series Paper

   Recently I made a set of 10 cards to go with a community service out reach gift that my church was involved in.  We weren't sure when the gifts were being distributed so I went with a general Happy New Year/winter theme using the Nests of Winter DSP.  Fussy cutting some of the birds right from the paper a great way to show off how cute they were.

  All of the cards are the same with just the fussy cut birds changing.  Some of the birds didn't have much of an attached branch so I also cut out some of the separate branches and berries to fill them out a bit.  Each one has a Basic White thick card base.

  I used the Snowflake Sky embossing folder to emboss a Basic White panel for one side of the card front and then used a piece of the DSP in a nice birch wood pattern for the other side.

  The Spotlight on Nature dies were used to cut the the sentiment circles.  The sentiment is from a retired set from a few years ago called Joyful Flurry and seemed perfect for this project.  I stamped it in Garden Green and then popped the circle on dimensionals.

  Finally the different fussy cut birds were added using glue and dimensionals.  I added a Cherry Cobbler bakers twine bow as well as some small red gems that I found in my stash.  The Nests of Winter DSP is currently out of stock but Stampin' Up! hopes to have it restocked in the next few weeks so if you're looking for a great paper for some winter projects or cards for bird lovers definitely add this one to your list!

  Thanks for looking!  Did you stamp today?

All off the current supplies used to make these cards can be purchased in my ONLINE STORE.

Stamps: Joyful Flurry (retired)

Ink: Garden Green

Paper: Basic White thick, Basic White, Nests of Winter DSP

Accessories: Spotlight on Nature dies, Snowflake Sky embossing folder, dimensionals, Cherry Cobbler baker's twine (retired), red faceted gems (retired)

New Years Celebration - Stampin' Up! Birthday Celebration

 I always need a few Happy New Year cards and I haven't made any until now!  I decided to see what I could make with some of my new Jan.-April mini catalog products.  Turns out having some new number dies makes it pretty easy!  I used the new Birthday Celebration bundle to make this fun pink and green New Years design.

  So cute right?  I used a Soft Sea Foam base then added some pizzazz with this pink and green striped pattern from the Wildflower Birthday Specialty DSP.

  I cut the banner in Basic White and then Crumb Cake for the "string" to hang it on.  I stamped the 'hooray' in Pretty in Pink and the 'for' in Soft Sea Foam on the banner.

  The numbers are die cut out of Pretty in Pink Glimmer paper and adhered to the banner.  The whole banner is then popped on dimensionals.

  I cut 4 tassels in Soft Sea Foam and layered 2 on each side of the banner with a little flower bud accent.  Another flower is added to the edge of the 5.

  The Birthday Celebration bundle clearly isn't just for birthdays!

  Thanks for looking!  Did you stamp today?

Items marked with a * will be available beginning Jan. 7, 2025.  All of the current supplies used to make this card can be purchased in my ONLINE STORE.

Stamps: Birthday Celebration*

Ink: Pretty in Pink, Soft Sea Foam

Paper: Soft Sea Foam, Wildflower Birthday Specialty DSP*, Pretty in Pink, 2024-2026 In Color Glimmer Paper, Crumb Cake

Accessories: Birthday Celebration dies, dimensionals

Uplifting New Year - Stampin' Up! Hot Air Balloon

   I wanted to send a few happy New Year cards out and thought that the Hot Air Balloon bundle would be a fun set to use.  There are so many mix and match possibilities with these balloon and the matching dies.  I pulled my colors right from the coordinating Lighter Than Air DSP.  I used Flirty Flamingo, Pool Party, Lemon Lolly and Azure Afternoon.  Time Out Challenges is having a "New" challenge so I'll be sharing this one over there.

  The base is Pool Party then I backed a piece of the Lighter Than Air DSP with a piece of Basic White.  The large balloon is stamped in Azure Afternoon and Lemon Lolly.  The small balloon is Lemon Lolly and Flirty Flamingo.  Both baskets are stamped in Pecan Pie.  After everything was die cut I popped them on dimensionals on the card front.  I added a flag banner to the large balloon and a scallop one for the small balloon.

  The sentiment is stamped with the More Wishes stamp set in Azure Afternoon and then popped on dimensionals.

 The last touches are the Lemon Lolly baker's twine bow on the small balloon and a few Rainbow Adhesive-backed dots on the sentiment strip.

  All of the products used to make this card can be purchased in my ONLINE STORE.

  Thanks for looking!  Did you stamp today?

Stamps: Hot Air Balloon, More Wishes

Ink: Azure Afternoon, Lemon Lolly, Flirty Flamingo, Pecan Pie

Paper: Pool Party, Basic White, Lighter Than Air DSP, Flirty Flamingo, Azure Afternoon

Accessories: Hot Air Balloon dies, dimensionals, Rainbow Adhesive-backed dots, Baker's twine three pack

New Year Starry Sky - Stampin' Up! More Wishes

   At a certain point in the Christmas season I am just done with making Christmas cards but then I find myself needing to send out "just a few more".  So instead of dragging the Christmas card making on endlessly I give myself permission to do New Years cards instead.  And that also lets me off the hook a bit during the very busy few weeks leading up to Christmas.  I can make them when I have a few minutes but don't have to rush to get them in the mail!  It's a win win!

  The color combo over at Color Throwdown caught my eye and I thought it would make for a fun New Years card. Cobalt Blue, Aqua and gold which I translated into Stampin' Up! colors of Starry Sky and Coastal Cabana. 

  My card base is Coastal Cabana, then I took a piece of Starry Sky card stock and blended Starry Sky ink all around the edges giving it a darker look while leaving the middle un-inked.  I then stamped and embossed the sentiment from More Wishes and Biggest Wish (these 2 stamp sets work together to make a great mix-and-match set of sentiments) in the center.

  Using the starburst die from the Stars at Night die set I cut bursts in Coastal Cabana and the retired Gold Fine Shimmer paper (please bring this one back Stampin' Up!!) and adhered them around the the sentiment. Using the very smallest star dies in the Stars at Night die set I cut more itty bitty stars and adhered them, filling in the open spaces.

  And that's all there is to this star inspired New Years card.

  All of the current products used to make this card can be purchased in my ONLINE STORE.

  Thanks for looking!  Did you stamp today?

Stamps: More Wishes, Biggest Wish

Ink: Versamark, Starry Sky

Paper: Coastal Cabana, Starry Sky, Gold Fine Shimmer (retired)

Accessories: gold embossing powder, Stars at Night dies, blending brush