Punch Art Book Pg 2

Woo Hoo another page done! This is a shameless case of Julia Bettencourts cow & barn. http://www.juliabettencourt.com/blog/?p=776 It was just too cute not to make one for myself. Thanks Julia!
Hope everyone is having a fun weekend!
Smiles & Blessings,
Mercedes

Fun Valentine Punch Art!

These are my entries for Shelli's blog contest this month. I had a few penguins left over from Christmas so I decided to give him a make over. LOL! The butterfly was made with the new heart to heart punch & the slot punch. Love bug uses the 1 1/4 circle & the large star for body cut out, brads for antennas. Hope you have a great weekend!

Blessings,

Mercedes

Same but Different

Card #1 is made with the urban garden color scheme.

Card #2 is made with the raspberry tart color scheme.

Its always fun to see how different the same card can look just by changing the color scheme. I love how all the designer papers now have a list of coordinating colors listed in the catalog! Thanks for stopping by today!

Blessings,

Mercedes

Girly Fun on Super Bowl Sunday!

Why should the guys have all the fun?
Let's Party Stampin Style! Feb 1st 2-5pm Super Stampers Bowl Party & Stamp a Stack!! Stamp some fun cards, eat, drink, & win prizes!
Stamp a Full Stack of 15 for $25 or Short Stack of 5 for $10. Choose from 5 great designs! *Bring your own adhesive*

Blessings,

Mercedes

Punch Art Book

I have finally decided to start putting my punch art in the book I bought months ago. But after just one page my ADD kicks in & I get distracted doing something else. LOL! So I guess for today this is all I have to share with you. I saw a cute punch flamingo idea by Danee Hoang & I just had to make one. I made a couple changes to make it more my style & I think it is my favorite punch art piece so far. What do you think? I also made a palm tree using the 5 petal punch.
Flamingo uses:
Large Oval
Small Oval
Scallop Circle
3/4" Circle
Boho Blossoms
Word Window
Double Circle

Now on a personal note...
I shared a couple weeks back about some personal stuff I was going through & I wanted to give you all an update. As the days past & I continued to pray about the situation God revealed some very cool stuff to me...I was at church that Sunday & we were singing the song Mighty to Save by Hillsong, an AMAZING song by the way, and God really started to speak to me through that song. I was singing these lyrics: "Everyone needs Compassion, a Love thats never failing, let Mercy fall on me, everyone needs Forgiveness, the Kindness of the Saviour" & God revealed to me a crazy thing. What I had gone through had nothing to do with the other person or what had happened it was all about me. How would I react, would I choose to be more like Christ or revert back to my old ways. Would I lash out in hurt or would I choose to extend compassion, love, mercy, forgiveness, & kindness as Christ would & has poured on me. I knew at that moment I had chose the right way to respond & I felt God really speak to my spirit & say "Well Done". I have been going around the same stupid mountain for so long it was amazing to finally get it right! I am so glad that God is so faithful & patient with us. He will give us "second chances" a millon times over until we finally get it right. I know we all have those "mountains" or areas where we really struggle to become more like Christ. I really struggle with keeping my mouth shut & listening for the Holy Sprit to speak to me so I can say what He would want me to say instead of something that is rooted in my hurt or anger. In this sitaution I didn't hear anything so I just stayed quiet & silently prayed. Kind of like the old saying "If you don't have something nice to say, don't say anything". I know God will continue to work with me on this area but it was nice to see that I am making progress. Praise the Lord!
Hope you have a fabulous weekend!
Smiles & Blessings,
Mercedes


p.s. I have been praying for all who left comments so if you could send me an update I would appreciate it.
Hillary M.~ I pray Romans 1:16 over you!
Sue~ I have been praying God's protection, strength, healing, & joy for Ellen & her precious baby.
Ellie~I have been praying for Garrett & his family. Ellie has updated me that Garrett has went home to be with Jesus & I continue to pray for his family. Please include them in your prayers also.
Chris in Calgary~ Praying that you will trust in the Lord as He brings you through. He always has a plan. I pray that you continue to walk in love & be rooted in Christ.

They Published My Card!

I was so excited when I got my Paper Crafts magazine & saw right there on page 85 my card!! This is the first time I have ever had anything published so it was very cool! Since I didn't take a picture of the card before I sent it off a picture of the magazine page will have to do.

My card is the big snowflake one on the bottom left.

Thanks for stopping by!

Blessings,

Mercedes

New Catalog Goes Live!!

The new catalog goes live today!! I have already made a wish list about a mile long! My top 5 favorite things are the Eyelet Border Punch (pg 184), Beautiful Butterflies Die (pg 196), Mini Note Kits (pg 208), Bird on a Branch (pg 95), & Three Little Words (pg 136).
If you haven't received your new catalog yet you can check it out on-line through my web site http://www.mercedesweber.stampinup.net/ under Stampin Up Products.
I used 2 brand new sets for this card, A Little Somethin Hostess Level 2 & the Yummy Sale-a-Bration set! I am putting in my Sale-a-Bration order Feb 1. So if you want to get yours in too please let me know by Jan 31. This card will be one of the options for my upcoming "Thank You" Stamp-a-Stack. Thanks for stopping by. Hope you have a wonderful day!
Blessings,
Mercedes

New Catalog Swap Sign Ups & Guidelines

Please email me to sign up & I will give you my address.
Webers4Jesus@sbcglobal.net

You will make 10+1

All swaps must include a minimum use of:
1 new stamp set
3 or more layers
1 or more embellishment/technique
Only current SU products may be used.
Please include your name & contact info on the back.
Recipes are not required but are always appreciated.

I also ask that you put in your very best effort when creating your swaps.

Postmark date will be Feb 16.
All swaps must include $4.95 postage stamp for the flat rate return packaging.
Please no meter strips.

There will be a 2 set per group maximum to ensure we get a mixture of sets showcased. Once you sign up for a spot please update me with what set you will be using once your catalogs have arrived. Please check this blog post to see if the set you want to use is already "maxed" out. I will update the list frequently.

1. Annie H. (Game Night)
2. Kristina V. (Fifth Ave Floral)
3. Carol H. (Thoughts & Prayers)
4. Lisa H.
5. Karen F. (Just Buzzin By)
6.
7.
8.
9.
10.

Sometimes It's Not OK....

I made this card for a gal that has been diagnosed with cancer for a second time. A friend of hers posted a card request for her on splitcoast & I wanted to send her an encouraging word of hope & comfort. So I was asking God to give me His words that may bring her His peace & comfort & He lead me to Romans 15:13 "May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing, that you may abound in hope by the power of the Holy Spirit." This was the first time I had ever really read this scripture & it was like my spirit just knew that was what God wanted to say to her. So I sent her card out & went about my day as usual, little did I know God would be speaking to me that same scripture in just a few short hours...

With out getting in to much detail, since what happened isn't important, its what happens next thats important. Lets just say I found out some emotionally heart breaking news & here is an excerpt from my journal about an hour after, with tears streaming down I wrote, "Wow...so now what. I am so shocked & hurt. I have no idea what to do. I am just so grateful that God has reminded me that He is bigger than this situation & He has already prepared a way to reconcile this relationship. I have to trust Him even though I want to run & hide. I know that God has a plan & He is GOOD & He is FAITHFUL. Romans 8:28 says He will work ALL things together for my good. So even though I can't see it now God is already working on it. I am so thankful that God has promised He will never put more on us than we can bear. I know I can do all thing through Christ who strengthens me (Phil 4:13). After this is over it will stand as a testimony of God's goodness & faithfulness. Then Romans 15:13 came back to me. After I wrote this I immediately felt that "physical" pain of heartbreak subside. I no longer felt like I had been kicked in the chest or like I was going to throw up & if you have ever had a broken heart you know what I am talking about. My heart knew that as long as I put my faith, hope, & trust in Christ He would NEVER fail me. It has taken me many years to come to this place of not just a head understanding of how much God loves me but finally letting it get down deep in my heart. People will disappoint me, satan will try to destroy me but God Loves Me & is always Faithful! He can always use what the enemy means for harm for His good. "For I know the plans I have for you" declares the Lord "Plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you a future & a hope." Jeremiah 29:11 & one of my most favorite scriptures John 10:10 Jesus says, "The thief comes only to steal ,kill, & destroy. I came that they may have and enjoy life, and have it in abundance to the full, till it overflows." Hallelujah! So with that I pray that you are encouraged today now matter what you're going through if you trust in God He will carry you through. If you need prayer or someone to talk with please feel free to contact me anytime. You can even post your prayer requests as a comment here if you'd like.

Resting & Hoping in God's Abundant Love,

Mercedes

Love You Much Bundle Project!

I created this project a few weeks back for a Stampin Up contest & it didn't win but it was posted on the demo web site for demonstrators to download. So that was fun! I already saw one gal duplicated the projects & posted them on splitcoast stampers. =) I will be offering this class for just $5 to anyone that purchases the Love You Much Bundle! Contact me for more details.
Have a wonderful day!
Mercedes

Gingerbread House Contest Winner!

So here are the 2 fabulous entries I received for my very 1st blog challenge!

This one was beautifully created by Cher Kosakura! You can visit her at http://www.stampingwithcher.blogspot.com/ .

This one was wonderfully created by Lynda Lee. You can visit her at http://www.stampingdoc.blogspot.com/ .

I am absolutely LOVING both of them so how can I choose. I aksed my hubby to help me decide & he decided.... that I should send prizes to both of these amazingly creative gals! So Congrats ladies! I just need your addresses to send out your prizes. I hope these adorable cards have inspired you to create your own little gingerbread house card. Template here http://mercedesweber.blogspot.com/2008/12/gingerbread-house-contest.html Hope you'll share it with us by leaving a comment here!

Big Smiles & Blessings,
Mercedes

EDIT: My buddy Lynda gave me her amazing card!!! It is now hanging on my wall next to my Gingerbread man card. It is even more adorable in person! Thanks Lynda you Rock!

Happy Birthday Annette!

My friend Annette's birthday is coming up & I wanted to make her a little something. When I went to convention I noticed alot of gals had really cute tags on there convention bags & she is going to leadership soon so I thought I would make her a tag for her bag. I used one of the plastic scallop ovals I got in my prize box. Not quite sure what they are really supposed to be for but it worked well for this. I traced it on the DP & cut it out. Added my stamped images then lightly sprayed a couple coats of Krylon glaze for extra durability then I covered the plastic oval with a thin coat of tombo multi glue & stuck it to my DP. Thanks for stopping by & Happy New Year!


p.s. Forgot to mention this set will be in the upcoming 2009 Idea Book & Catalog. Isn't it adorable!! I am having a New Catalog Kick Off Party on January 16, hope to see you there!