Just a reminder....new blog address

I spent a little time doing some blog-keeping and realized I still have some subscribers to this blog---which is essentially retired since my ACTIVE blog is www.darthsunshine.blogspot.com

Just sayin' in case you were wondering what happened to me and didn't actually READ my last post! :D

XOXO
Dana

Streamlining my social media world

Most of you know me as @darthsunshine on Twitter.  Or know that Darth Sunshine is the best nickname ever bestowed on me by by amazing brother, @Skipster73

Well--while Fanstampulous has been a cute name for my stamping business--it doesn't really "fit" me. It "too cute" I think.  AND I won't JUST be stamping anymore--I have pulled out my amazing sewing machine and late last year got back into my crocheting. And....well....I just would like to keep ONE thing in my life simple.

SO, from now on my blog is www.darthsunshine.blogspot.com

This will be my last post here. So if you've come here looking for Dana at Fanstampulous...please click above :D See you over there!

SQUEEEEE!!! New Products!!!! And Leadership Conference!!! SQUEEE!

The Occasions Mini Catalog lauches tomorrow January 5th!

AND SALE-A-BRATION!!! If you're new to the Stampin' Up world--Sale-A-Bration (SAB) is an annual mini-catalog where with every $50 you spend in product you choose one free item from the SAB catalog! SO FUN! This year SAB has not just stamps, but paper and even PUNCHES!

Just scroll through the catalogs....giddiness abounds! I looove new toys to get my fingers inky with! The new clear block stamps are AWESOME...and storage in the DVD cases is just brilliant! LOVE IT!

Wednesday I fly out to Phoenix, AZ for Stampin' Up's Leadership Conference! Soooo excited! We'll have classes and info on new products and possibly sneak-peeks into what's coming up later this year...SO EXCITED!!! And even more exciting than that is girlfriend time! I'll get to meet up again with my friend Lydia--who only lives in not-so-far-away-Austin--but who I get to communicate with often via Twitter.

I also get to finally meet one of my Twitter friends in real life (IRL)-- @Moeneeke--Monique, from California!

I finally finished my New Year's Cards.  I'm mailing them out tomorrow to the rest of my friends and Twitter Friends (or...Tweeple hehe). Wow...

OH MY GOSH. I just realized I posted TWO BLOG POSTS IN TWO DAYS!!!!

Let me go take my temperature.

Peruse the catalogs--and if there's anything you want, need or just MUST HAVE please go to my website and SHOP AWAY!!! :D You can order online through my website and have your order shipped directly to your house! Fantastic!

http://www.danakeith.stampinup.net/ 

(and click on the "SHOP NOW" button in the top right corner)

I'll post an update or two while in Phoenix (shocker, I know!!!)

Have a great week!

Dana

Family photo and TWENTYTEN!!!

First of all--I promise to start my Christmas cards BEFORE THANKSGIVING next year.  Wait. THIS year! It's twentyten!  So I had to stamp HAPPY NEW YEAR inside my cards this year. Oy! I'll be posting the pic of the card this week...don't want to spoil it for my friends who haven't received theirs yet! HAHA.

We've started this tradition to include a family photo...and a letter...with our Christmas Cards.  This year I scrapped the letter--it's so hard to compile the lives of 5 people onto one page.  More than one page in a Christmas Card is a little much.  Really.  Who wants to read a novel with a card? Ahhh I digress...but here was our photo.  We decided to do something different and this version won because my hubby liked the expression on my face with Chibi licking my chin.  So cute!

That's me, with Chibi our adorable Bichon Frise, my hubby Dean, Delaney (11 yrs), Kayci (10 yrs) and Madison (15 yrs). We had a lot of fun trying to take this photo (my father in law is holding the camera).

So I don't really like to do resolutions every New Year, because I basically set myself up for failure. Seriously.  I've NEVER EVAH kept my resolutions. However, this year I'll be 40 and I promised myself years ago that I would be in the best shape of my life EVAH by 40...so I'm getting serious about that.  Now. Plus my favorite Triathlon is in June and I plan to be so ready for it!!

As for my stamping goals for 2010, I plan to:

Blog at least once a week.  I can do that.  I enjoy blogging and will most likely have new stampin' stuff to post each week...so I plan to share more!

Participate in more challenges--I love them.  I really loved KWernerDesign's challenge, so I hope she picks it back up. But I've also discovered many more that I want to participate in!

Both of the above mean I will set aside time to stamp at least once a week.  Life gets away from me usually and I have this fabulous crafty space to work in...I want to utilize it more.  So I will!

I've also decided I'm going back to my Franklin Covey planner.  My iphone calender is great for setting alarms for stuff--but I'm a tactile/hands-on person and need a central location to write my TO-DO and plans.

Wow. All this and I don't have a card to post!  Stay tuned! I'll be back!

Happy New Year!

Wanna see what I was yelling about....??!?

Stampin' Up clear mount stamps!!

Seriously, this is what I was yelling about a couple of weeks ago--and in 2 more weeks you can order them for yourself! I love love love the design!!! The clear blocks have a groove around the edge like our wood blocks do.  See the DVD cases that hold the stamps sets? There are images of the stamps on the binding and the front--soooo easy to see what you're looking for now! AWESOME!!

Now that I have my dream job (secular--the REAL DREAM JOB would involve me stamping all day!!) and have two weeks of vacation (school nurse is my full time gig, remember?) I'll have more time to play and post some pics of super cute stuff.  Right now I'm sweatin' it trying to get my Christmas cards finished.  Yeah, once again they'll be more like New Year's cards. Why do I always procrastinate.  I need to work on that...but I've been saying that for years now.  I should just embrace it!! HA! I'm not posting my Christmas card until after I've mailed them--would like it to be a little bit of a surprise for my friends. :)

Merry Christmas soon!!! :D

BIG NEWS! and other stuff

The new Occasions Mini Catalog is going out the mail today and you will LOVE what you see! (At least I LOVE IT).  In addition to the Wood Block stamps, Stampin' Up is now going to offer CLEAR BLOCK MOUNT STAMP SETS!!! Now, before you freak out about how much you *might* hate clear block stamps....Stampin' Up is going to use the SAME rubber!!! I love it.  My biggest issue with most "clear" stamps is the plastic, or acrylic, or whatever most other stamp companies call "rubber" does not hold ink like Stampin' Up's rubber.  I won't go into more detail (and I can't post pictures...yet)...because you'll get to see the pictures SOON in your Mini Catalog when it arrives in the mail.
The Occasions Mini Catalog sales period is January 5-April 30, 2010

OOOOOOooooo and SALE-A-BRATION is starting the same time!!! From January 5th through March 31st--with every $50 you spend in Stampin' Up you get to choose a FREE item from the Sale-A-Bration catalog! This year they've included a NEW STREAMLINED PUNCH! There is also a pack of Decorative Paper to choose from. WOW!!! You can also reap the benefits if you HOST a workshop that totals in $300 or more.

If you decide you'd like to benefit from the discount as a demonstrator and you sign up during Sale-A-Bration you get to choose a new stamp set from the Idea Book & Catalog (the BIG ONE) valued at up to $47.95.  FOR FREE!!! The most expensive stamp set we have is $47.95 so you get to choose ANY stamp set from the entire catalog for FREE on top of all the goodies you get in your starter kit at a huge discount! AAAAAMAZING!!!

Did you know Stampin' Up has maintained a DORMANT LIST OF STAMP SETS? I forgot they did! BWAHAHAHA!
Anyway, this is a list of stamp sets from earlier catalogs that are still available to order until January 4, 2010

 113407 Back Woods
114492 Beautiful Baby
114486 Birthday Wish
113200 Branch Out
114496 Celebrations
113732 Central Park
113206 Classic Sketches
113226 Classy & Fabulous
114498 Flowers in Silhouette
113405 Font of You
113216 For the Bride
114494 Forever
109425 Friend by Definition
114488 Fun Flowers
113716 Garden Greetings
114490 Glad Friends
111580 Grand Soiree
113242 Hit the Road
113710 Lexicon of Leaves
113236 Man's Best Friend
114423 Ocean Commotion
113728 Playful Petals
109276 Polka Dot
111544 Putt Putt
113240 Quilt Quips
113754 Really Retro
113403 Sip by Sip
113726 Sweet Stems
113250 That's Funny
113688 Wonderful Watercolors
114028 Para la novia
114032 Acuarelas Maravillosas

If you decide you gotta have one of those dormant stamp sets, please let me know before January 4th so I can order it for you.

I'm pretty much taking December "off" regarding classes.  I thought I would try to schedule something before the break but I'm soooo behind on my own Christmas Cards, I really need to get crackin'!!!

HAPPY DECEMBER!!

Stampin' Up! Excitement!!!

I'm sooooo excited!!!! Stampin' Up has BIG NEWS and I can't reveal just yet....must wait until Dec 1st to share with you--but YOU. WILL. LOVE. !!!!
I'm way way way excited!!!

I've had a busy month--with Stamp Club and Stamp-A-Stacks....and I just had surgery on Monday (a welcomed hysterectomy!!  YAY!!!) so now I'm in recovery mode.  I'm undecided right now if I'll offer another class before Christmas--but I'll post on here and at www.danakeith.stampinup.net if I do add anything to my calendar.

I'll upload the cards I've been making, too---way cute stuff!!!

Christmas Cards and Portfolio Class November 7th!

It's NOVEMBER!!!! My favorite Holiday is in this month--Thanksgiving!  And Christmas is just around the corner!  YAY!!!

Sorry I haven't posted this class sooner--it's been on my Stampin' Up! Website for a month www.danakeith.stampinup.net Silly me for maintaining TWO websites :)

Anywho--here's the awesome stuff we're making THIS SATURDAY November 7th from 1-4 pm.

Gorgeous, right?!?! We'll make our own Designer Series Paper by stamping snowflakes with ink mixed with the new shimmer paint offered in the Holiday Mini Catalog!

You will make all you see pictured above--the 6 cards and the Matchbook Portfolio for $18.00

If you'd like to make another set of 6 cards it will be an additional $10.00

You must RSVP by Wednesday, Nov. 4th

Call me to make this cute set!!!

210-216-4301

Get Ill Blog Hop!

Welcome to the GET ILL BLOG HOP! I'm the last stop on this fun play on the Get Well bandwagon! If you haven't already had the flu, maybe you'll get it soon.  I mean that in the BEST possible way! Or...if you're like ME, when you get your flu shot, you will for sure get sick!  I just spent the last week getting over a mini-flu (that's not a medical term for real)....I got my flu shot and about 24 hours later I wasn't sick enough to NOT WORK, but sick enough to take Theraflu and DayQuil.  ANYWAY...I digress!!!
Some of my Stampin' Sistas (from Twitter and real life) and I decided to have a little fun with a Blog Hop in the Flu Season....so here are the cards I made for the occasion.  In retrospect I wish I'd had a Pig Stamp, I'd have had a lot of fun with some little swine-y on my cards.  But--here's what I got:

This card (above) has the Medallion stamp embossed in white on Elegant Eggplant cardstock. The greeting is inked with a marker and comes from the Grateful Greetings set in the Holiday Mini catalog. The ribbon is Ribbon Originals-Mistletoe, also from the Holiday Mini catalog.

I am SOOOOO loving the sentiment from the Full of Life set...my hubby and I got a good laugh about how "perfect" this went with the Get Ill theme....don't you think? BWAHAHAHA

With this card I inked up a couple of the flowers from the Pretties Kit (Stampin' Up!) with Elegant Eggplant classic ink and attached them with silver brads. The rick-rack (can you even see it? it's in the middle of the card LOL) is from the Ribbon Originals-ORCHARD.

All papers are from Stampin' Up: Elegant Eggplant, Old Olive and Night & Day Decorative Series Paper (DSP), all inks are Stampin' Up as well: White Craft, Elegant Eggplant, Old Olive, Basic Black.

I used the Stampin' Up Jumble Alphabet for "flu" and Gina K Designs "Nurse Feelgood" for my syringe. The sentiments come from Stampin' Up's Full of Life or Grateful Greetings.

My friend Auntie Princess of Etsy fame is going to be judging our cards--all in good fun.  (I'm my own worst critic EVAH.)  But in tribute to my friend, please visit her awesome Etsy Shop for all things awesome and vintage.  She is amazingly talented!!!

Now...if you happened by my blog and this whole blog hop thing has you a bit confused, PUHLEEZ start at the beginning with my friend Leslie Hanna's site aka The Crooked Stamper and see how this GET ILL got started!!! SO FUN!!!

If you'd like more information of some of the great products featured above, please contact me through my Stampin' Up website

My new HEADER!!!

One of my newest besties EVAH is Lydia Fiedler, you may also know her as Understandblue. She is a brilliant stampin' sista and crafter. Super creative!  You must click on the linky above to go to her Blog.  She is HILARIOUS (my brother's favorite word, but that's another story) and also hosts these great WEBINARS for Google Reader (which I have get to do), and BLOGS.  The other neat thing Lydia does is design blog headers....she won a contest and designed MARTHA STEWART'S craft blog header....um yes, MARTHA STEWART!!!! Ok, I'll stop yelling.

ANYwhoooo...I gave Lydia some parameters...what my likes/dislikes are and she gave me a first draft which was super cute but I started to think "what about....??? or...???" oh boy. I'm so glad she's still my friend because I woulda been OMG girl STOP.  She gave me another couple of revisions and when it came down to it guess which won the most votes? THE FIRST ONE! BWAHAHAHAHAHA  Poor Lydia, all that extra work for nuttin!

But me likey my new banner!!! THANK YOU LYDIA!!!!