Fantastic Fall Workshop!

This Thursday, November 10th, I will be having a Fall Thanksgiving workshop here at my house at 7. We will be making 3 Fall/Thanksgiving cards for $5. Two of the cards are listed here. The other is still in the works! RSVP to this post or by e-mail to bethannhartley@hotmail.com if you are able to attend. Would love to have you and there is still space available.

10 % off All Stampin' Up Orders! Merry Christmas!!!

Also, I will be giving 10% off on any Stampin' Up! orders that come in through the end of November. This is my holiday gift to YOU and I hope you will take advantage of the discount. Please visit my website or Stampin' Up!'s site to see items. You must e-mail me at the above address and order through me vs. my SU website in order to get the discount. All orders will be shipped to me locally. Non local orders may accrue additional shipping fees.

Holiday Open House

Holiday Open House

Come and see 12 different vendors in one location! This includes: Stampin' Up, Hartley Handcrafted, Scentsy, Handmade Jewerly, Tastefully Simple, Hidden Fishers, Pampered Chef, Thirty One,Vault Denim, Discovery Toys, Hippie Holistic Creams and other handmade items.You will experience a one stop shopping event on Saturday, November 5th, from 4-7.

Call 317-258-6131 for directions.

Retirement Card

I love making personalized cards for people that I love! This is Jim and Nadine above. They ran our church camp for 30 years and retired a few weeks ago. Our family is connected to them in so many ways. First, we loved them because we loved church camp. I went every summer as a kid!! And once we got to know them, we loved them because they are amazing servants in His kingdom and took many kids under their wings over the years. My dad was a Dean for a week every summer at church camp. He's a minister so loved doing this. I worked at camp one or two summers along with several of my siblings. Jim and Nadine's 3 boys were our good buddies...one that I chummed around with in college at IU, cut his hair on occasion and still adore to this day. One son my sister married and I'm proud to be Auntie Beth to their boys!! My dad and Jim would take day trips to Cincinnati just to eat Skyline Chili before Skyline was big and branched out into Indiana. Nadine is such a dear lady. I don't think I've ever heard her say a negative word about anyone. She was my 'mom' of sorts when I was in college and my parents were overseas in Zimbabwe. Well, I could go on and on but...you get the idea how special these people are in my life.

I took the photos off the invitation flyer that was sent to us about their retirement party.

This is the inside of the card. That is their family photo taken years ago. I hope their boys don't kill me for this! LOL! I'm sure I owe them for some prank they played on me years back! Ha! I hope this special card will be a special rememberance to Jim and Nadine and will remind them of the impact they had on lots of peoples lives. Thanks, Jim and Nadine! Love you to pieces!!!

A BIG SHOT Deal!!!

Get a Free Big Shot when you sign up as a Stampin' Up! Demonstrator during the month of October. You won't want to miss this fantastic deal. The Big Shot is a $100 value, FREE to you when you sign up. You will also get many other fantastic perks as a demonstrator: 20% off your purchases, Free monthly magazine from Stampin' Up!, $345 worth of SU merchandise for $175 when you sign up.

Call me NOW at 317-258-6131 to set up an appointment to meet and discuss your options. Or e-mail me at bethannhartley@hotmail.com

Welcome Little One!

I'm starting to feel like I live in the Jungle! But, I love the wild life so that is fine by me! Ha! A friend and customer is helping with a baby shower and they ordered 35 of these wonderful little animal baby shower invites. I LOVE the Stampin Up set, Animal Stories, but they decided to discontinue the adorable little set. I can't part with it so it's still in my stash of stamps. The sentiments are from an old old set from Stampin Up too. Some sets are just too valuable to part with. The patterned paper and animal ribbon is from a local hobby store. What a find! They match perfectly with the theme of the baby shower. The brown bow is made with Stampin Up's Chocolate Chip ribbon and Baja Breeze is the lovely blue accent paper that matches the peacocks on the patterned paper. This card came together beautifully and I hope the parents to be will thoroughly enjoy these cards for the shower and will have a safe and wonderful delivery.

Happy Birthday to My Hubby!!

Today is my hubby's birthday! The boys and I had a great time making a few cards this afternoon. They always enjoy getting into my stamps..but they sure do make a mess of them! LOL! It's worth it though.

I pulled out an old set, Pines, that I wish SU had not retired. I just can't give up my bear! I hope my hubby likes his bear and enjoys the pun inside: Happy Bearthday!" I know, I know...bad pun but I just couldn't resist. Do you think people would buy a card with a corny pun like that inside? I made 3 more! LOL! I hope someone else appreciates my dorkiness!

The boys used a Sweet N Sassy stamp set for their knights in shining armor. They are the 'protectors of the cake!'. I'm sure Doug will get a kick out of the card.

Happy Birthday, Doug!!! We love you!!

Water Color Fun

My stamping ladies and I had fun practicing our watercoloring this past week. We watercolored the floral image from Elements of Style (SU) and practiced on three different types of paper: water color paper, confetti vanilla and shimery white. We liked the three different looks the paper gave. We used SU's water color crayons and the aqua painters found in the Idea Book and Catalog.

If you'd like to order any of these items to give it a try yourself, just click on my store link or go to http://www.bethhartley.stampinup.net/

Here are the cards I made using the images we colored.

Stamp Club Workshop at My House!!!

It's hot, it's humid, it's yucky outside! So come inside with me to get inky! We will be making 4 HOT cards for $5...which is pretty COOL! Class is this Thursday, at 7:00. Please RSVP so I'll be sure to have enough cardstock cut and ready to go!!

These are 2 of the cards you will be making if you are able to attend. I'll also have lots of retired stamp sets available for purchase. Come, be cool, stay out of the heat, and make some really cool cards!!!

Join My Team!!!

If you ever wanted to join Stampin' Up! as a Demonstrator, now is the time. Stampin' Up! is running a 'sign up' special in which you can join Stampin' Up! for only $99. This is usually $185 dollars to join. It's a great opportunity to save money and receive Stampin' Up! benefits. If you enjoy stamping and want to share Stampin' Up! with your friends (by holding workshops, stamp camps or stamp clubs) or want to save on your own purchases, now is the time to sign up!!! Click the photo above for more details and contact me if you are interested!

Happy Father's Day

I love my dad! He is the best dad ever. I think I can only remember him raising his voice or showing anger 3 times in my entire life. Once was when we were camping as kids and we pulled into the camp site after midnight. He was trying to get the stuff off the of the top of the car so we could get the tent up and the box of pots and pans crashed out sounding like a big clap of thunder. Of coarse, he was then angry and started tossing the pots and pans in the back of the station wagon. We 4 kids and mom were sitting outside trying not to laugh very loudly. Anyway, we all chuckle about it now but Daddy-O was not a very happy camper the time that box of pots and pans crashed out in the middle of the night, likely waking up everyone at the campgrounds! LOL!

Well, I have so many fun memories of my daddy! So, here are a few cards I made in Honor of Father's Day. I gave dad the navy card and the boys and I will give Doug the other one tomorrow. Dad is a minister and wears lots of ties so this stamp set from Stampin Up, Best Dad Ever, fit my dad to a tie....er, uh, I mean tee! The boys and I thought Doug would like the pun on the other card. I printed the words off on the computer and we all think Doug is a pretty "tie"riffic daddy!!





Both of these cards use the Best Dad Ever stamp set that is found in the Summer Mini Catalog. You can access the catalog online by clicking over to the right of this blog shere you see the catalog cover. It will take you directly to the summer mini. I used Real Red, Tempting Torquiose and Tangerine Tango cardstock and Stampin Write markers. The 5 ties come on one larger stamp. I used the markers to color each tie individually, then huffed on the stamp, then pressed on my paper.



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This card uses the Top Note Diecut found on page 207 of the current catalog. Stamin Write maker colors used were Garden Green, More Mustard and Night of Navy. The same color of cardstock was used.

I hope you all have a wonderful day with your Father's or the father of your children! :) I know we will have a great day with Doug tomorrow and we had dinner last night with my dad!!

I do have extra copies of each of these cars for sale if anyone would like to purchase them. They are $2.50 each.

Finish Well!

This weekend I had the opportunity to complete a task off my 'bucket list'. For the past 8 months, I have been training for the Indy 500 Mini Marathon. This race is 13.1 miles long. I have never been a runner in my past. In fact, I dropped out of track in high school because I was so awful and came in last at the first track meet. Hated it! But, this weekend...I FINISHED something that I NEVER thought I could do.

This medal is a symbol of great things accomplished! I was able to run (and walk some) this race in 3 hours which for this 46 year old....is good!!! When I crossed the finish line, my mom and dad were yelling "That's my baby...gooooo, Beth!!!" It reminded me of what Jesus might say to me when I cross the finish line of life. I think he will be waiting for me in heaven saying the same thing "Goooo Beth, Come on!!! You are my child!!" And, my reward in heaven will be on such a greater level than the 'bling' of this life. I can't wait!!!

During the coarse of this life, we all need good friends to walk along side us. This is my long time friend, Elizabeth. She shared her gift of playing the harp at our wedding almost 14 years ago. We live right across the street from each other and I count her as one of my dearest friends. What a privilege it was to start this race with her. We walked the first 3 miles together, then I took off running.

I ran miles 4,5,6,7, and 8. In the middle of mile 8, I found a teacher friend from school and we were able to run the last of mile 8 and walk a little of mile 9 together. It is amazing how God puts people in your life at just the right time when you need a little support and encouragement. It was great to see her smiling face and run/walk the race with her for a few minutes. I needed to get running again so took off somewhere in mile 9 and ran to mile 10 and into 11. About that time I was feeling really bad. How much further to the end?? And, How can I finish this race?? I walked some/ran some then ran into my trainer friend, Mark, who has helped me train these last 8 months. This man is an amazing athlete and ran the 13.1 miles in 1 hour and 35 minutes. He had the energy to go back and find another friend about 1 1/2 miles from the end and helped her get to the finish line, then he came back somewhere in mile 10/11 (those last fainting miles are such a blur to me) to help me get to the finish line.

His encouragement was amazing but I was DONE at that a point and am afraid I wasn't a very good student! I tried to do what he said but my body heaved out NO very loudly. He even came carrying a bottle of Gatorade for me. Well, we ran and walked till we got to about 1/2 mile from the finish line!! I could see it!!! The end was in sight!!!! One day I will lay on my death bed between here and there and will be able to see the finish line of life. I wonder who will be with me at the end of this life. I hope it's my husband and dear boys! But, for this race, it was my friend Mark.

As we got closer, we could see my husband, son Ben and Mark's son. Doug was able to take these pictures as I jogged by. We were about 1/4 mile from the finish line. We kept going as best as we could....well, as best as I could!!! I'm sure Mark could have sprinted to the end. At the end of the day, he figured he ran nearly 20 miles. Amazing!

When we got this close, I could really see my husband and our oldest son, Ben. It brought joy to my eyes to see them at the sidelines cheering me on. I could have just cried. It was all I could do to not heave big tears. Ben and Mark's son asked if they could jump the barriers and run the last 1/4 mile with us. Wow.....what a comfort that was for this mama to have her son come and run along side her to the end. Honestly, I'm not sure I could have done it with out Ben!!!

As we got even closer, I could then see my parents and my mom shouting and waving her arms. The crowds of people lining both sides of the street were amazing. What a great reunion it was and it will be when we cross the finish line of this life. I'm sure those that have gone on before in this life will be cheering me on into those pearly gates. I think of my grandma shouting "Beth Ann Dear!!! Gooo" as I cross the finish line. And, if my parents pass before me...I'm sure my mama will be shouting the same words she did yesterday, "That's my Baby! Gooo Beth!!!"

As you go through the race of life, who is running beside you? Who are you turning to for help and support? What will your final prize be at the end of this life....eternity with Jesus or something else that is so painful it hurts me to even type it. I hope you know where you will spend eternity. There are only 2 possible choices: heaven or hell. Where will you be and how will you finish this race of life? I know I gave it my all yesterday. I have run more miles on another day of training but on the day of the race...I know I gave it my all. Do you give your all every day??

Overall, this was a wonderful experience for me. I did hurt and even cried at the finish line....mostly due to exhaustion, and the emotional experience of holding fast to a set goal, and seeing those alongside the road cheering me on to the end. Will I do this again? I'm not sure. The training was intense and long. But my sister told me yesterday that she thought she might want to get back into running and maybe next year she would do it with me. So, now I'm having second thoughts....maybe I will be out there again running the race for the prize with all my heart and soul.

Run well! Live well! Finish well!!

A Few New Cards

It's been ages since I've had a chance to update my blog. We are on Spring Break so I have a little time to get a few extra things completed.

Here are a few cards from March's Stamp Club. We had a great time. We meet on the 2nd Thursday of each month. Hope you can make it some month.

This card utilizes the chalk emboss technique. I used SU!'s white embossing powder to emboss the image on marina mist cardstock. After letting it cool off, I used chalk and a Blender Pen to paint on color over the white embossed area. I used Spray Clear Acrylic to spay over the image several times to lock the chalk into the embossed image. Cardstock colors are Marina Mist, Rose Red and Perfect Plub. Iused the Elegant Lines embossing folder to dry emboss the Perfect Plub cardstock. The main image is from the SU stamp set Just Believe.

Who??Who??Who?? is the wise old owl that is graduating this spring? I used the SU owl punch to make this wise old owl. The branch is from SU's bird punch. The cap in the background is from the Sock Monkey set. I used the tag punch and folded the top part of the tag down to make the cap for the owl. The folded part makes a great tab to attach the cap on to the card. The 'congratulations' comes from the set Perfect Punches. Cardstock colors are Crumb Cake, Riding Hood Red, Black and So Saffron.

This card uses the Poppin' Pastels technique. The floral image from the Water Color Trio set is stamped using Versamark. I used sponge daubers to pat on chalk across the versamarked images. Cardstock colors are Very Vanilla, Crumb Cake, Pink Pirouette, Certain Celery. Chalk colors are Certainly Celery, Pretty In Pink, and Close to Cocoa

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These two cards were made by using the chalkboard technique. I stamped the image on black cardstock using white craft ink. Then, used the sponge daubers to pat on the chalk color across the image. Stamp sets are Extreme Skateboard, Extreme Elements and Extreme Guitar. Cardstock colors are Basic Gray, Basic Black, Elegant Eggplant. The 1 1/4 and 1 3/8's and 1 3/4's circle punches were used.

Happy St. Patty's Day

Happy St. Patty's Day in a few days to all my Irish Friends!!!

This Stamp is in the new Occasions Mini that runs until the end of April. I have a very Irish neighbor and she is going to be getting this card in a few days with hopefully a set of tile coasters to match. She's walk/running in the St. Patty's 5K walk/run so I hope this will encourage her along on her journey.

Here are the details for the card:

Autumn Spice SU designer paper, Certainly Celery cardstock and ink.

Lucky Shamrock stamp out of the Occasions Mini and a retired set of SU St. Patty's Day words for the background.

Stampin' Up! Circle and scalloped punches

You can order any of these supplies by clicking the catalog to the right of my blog.

Hope you have a very LUCKY week and find lots of GOLD lining in your days.

Sweet Little Baby Girl!

Made this baby card for a friend who wanted to welcome her friend's new daugher into the world. Isn't she a cutie pie?? I love her name, too. What a sweetheart.

I used Pretty in Pink SU cardstock and some retired Valentine's day paper from SU. I hope Madison's mommy and daddy love her card and gift from my friend Dawn.

Love Birds

I think I'm getting punch happy from 2 snow days and not leaving my house at all. I love my bird punch from Stampin Up and thought it would make the cutest Valentine's Day cards. My Stamp Club is having a little card swap this month and we are to each bring Valentine cards to share with each other. Here are a few of my creations.

Speaking of Stamp Club, we meet on the 2nd Thursday of each month. You are welcome to come and visit and pay the weekly fee of $5 (or there abouts) or join the club. There are lots of perks if you join!! You will get a SU catalog for FREE (worth $10), and can reap the hostess benefits 1 time over the coarse of our club year. This means free Stampin Up items for you!!! Each month you will learn how to make new card designs and try out the latest Stampin' Up! items before you purchase them. You will need to commit to purchasing $25 worth of SU items every other month. The opposite months, you pay the class fee of $5 or there abouts. Let me know if you are interested.

Sale*A*Bration is in full swing! If you purchase $50 worth of SU items from the catalog, you will get to choose a free stamp set (or qualifying set) from the SAB catalog. To see the catalog, click the catalog and link to the right of this post.

Hope these Love Birds warm your heart on such cold winter days!

~beth~

From the Heart

It's that time of year again to be thinking about all the people we love in our lives. February 14th is quickly approaching. Some people we might want to give special cards or gifts to on Valentine's Day. Others just need a big hug or comforting words to get them through a tough day. Either way, I hope that you will be showering people with love all around you this Valentine's Day. Actually, we are called to love others every day, not just on Valentine's. Our small group Bible study is going through a book called One Month to Live by Kerry and Chris Shook. This book is built on the premise of....what if you found out you only had one month to life. How would you live differently? What would you say to your neighbor today if you knew you were going to die tomorrow? Why wait till you know you are are going to die to say it or do it? And, quite frankly, most of us will never know when we are going to die...so we should live as if this will be our last day. Live to the fullest. Love those around you. Say what is in your heart of hearts to say to people that might change their lives! Love, love, love.......

A friend of mine ordered a few Valentine's Day cards for some special friends and sweet little girls in her life. These are the cards I made for her. I hope she likes them and I hope the recipients will feel her arms around them as they open their cards. No card details in today's note....I mostly just wanted to share from the heart.

" There's so much of life that is completely out of our control, but there is one thing that we do get to control. There is one thing that we do get to choose. We get to choose how to spend the dash between the two dates on our tombstones."--Kerry Shook

Choose to show love and kindness to those around you!

A HUGE Thank You.....

A customer and friend of mine needed several Thank You cards for a dear friend who collects elephants. These cards are full of HUGE Thank You wishes! It didn't really take me a TON of time but it was pretty WILD finding soft pretty papers to match the JUNGLE theme of the ELEPHANT. I hope this card TRUMPETS "Thank You" to the person receiving it. Now, if I just had a nice crispy ELEPHANT EAR to munch on, I'd be all set!!!

All papers are from Stampin' Up!. The Elephant image is from an older The Angel Company stamp set. The sentiments on the first card are from the SU set, I Believe.

Occasions Mini is LIVE and Happening Now.....

You won't want to miss the Stampin' Up! New Occasions Mini Catalog. There is so much neat stuff in this one...can I just say "I want ONE of everything!!!" My next class will be the 2nd Thursday of January at 7 at my home. We will be making several cards using items from the Mini. The cost will be $5 for 4 cards. Sale*A*Bration is also happening soon....you won't want to miss the many free sets available to you if you purchase $50 worth of Stampin' Up! items.

Post here are e-mail me if you'd like more information. You can always go to my online store by clicking on the links here.

Click Mini Catalog on right column to see items from the catalog.