December Guest Designer: Laurie Willison

We have an amazing guest designer for the month of December - her style is clean, simple, and fantastic!

Please join us in welcoming Laurie Willison!

And read a bit about her, in her own words:

"Hi! My name is Laurie Willison.  I am a part time SAHM and part time RN.  I have 2 kiddos at home and an amazing husband who puts up with my hobby! 

I started scrapbooking in 1997 and was taken over by card making in 2007!   I absolutely love this hobby! It has given me such an amazing creative outlet and I have met so many wonderful friends because of it! 

You can find me over at my blog, Soapbox Creations!  I currently design for Clear and Simple Stamps. I am also on the DT over at CAS-ual Fridays, Retro Sketches and CAS(E) that Sketch!  I am really excited to be using these i heart paper goodies! I am thrilled for this invitation! :)"

We're looking forward to what Laurie has to share with us all month long!

We also need to announce the winners of our Gourmet Rubber Stamps giveaway.  Congratulations to Laura Hammersly-Frisch and Danderella.  Plesae use the contact form to send us your mailing address. any prizes not claimed 72 hours after the announcement will be re-drawn and awarded to someone else.

Design Team Thursday: Judy Rozema

Judy has been creating some gorgeous cards with her Flourishes stamps! Pictured above is a card using Snow Day.  She stamped on X-Press Copic Blending cardstock using Memento Tuxedo Black ink, and then colored with Copic markers C1, C3, C5.

The background is embossed with Lifestyle Craft's Zig Zag embossing folder. Everything is held together with i {stick} papers red line tape and Zva Creative Adhesives.

The sentiment is from Flourishes' Cowboy Christmas set; Judy scored each section of her folded Christmas tree with her Scor-Buddy.  The layers are held together using i {stick} papers red-line tape. She added Kaisercraft Pearls along the bottom of the trunk and at each design change.

The images from Flourishes' With Gratitude stamp set are stamped on X-Press Copic Blending CS in Memento Tuxedo Black ink and then colored in using Copic Markers C1. C3, Y15 and Y17.  She added some beautiful Zva Creative pearl flourishes and Oyster Baker's Twine.

Be sure to stop by and see all of the Flourishes stamps we have in stock!

Design Team Tuesday: Gretchen Belknap

Gretchen has been making some absolutely beautiful Thank You cards, with fun circles on them.  Here's one she shared this past weekend, using Word Up (Paper Smooches), Memento rich cocoa ink (Tsukineko), Autumn Spice DP (LilyBee Designs),  brown twine (Lawn Fawn), banner trio die (WPlus9), and chick yellow felt (True Felt).

This one is fabulous too - so simple and easy to recreate!  On this card she used Word Up (Paper Smooches), Memento rich cocoa (Tsukineko), Take A Hike DP (Simple Stories), Banner Trio Die (WPlus9), and brown thread (Creative Impressions) .

How sweet is this little guy? This card features Skateboard Kiddo (Stampendous), Memento tuxedo black ink (Tsukineko), For the Record 2 Documented (Echo Park), black gems (Kaiser Craft), and Copic Sketch Markers.

Have you made anything with circles lately?  Don't forget to share your projects (using supplies from i {heart} papers, of course!) over on our Facebook page for a chance to be our WOW Wednesday winner!  You can also share on twitter - just be sure to mention us (@iheartpapers) so we see it!

Also, don't forget to comment on yesterday's blog post, for your chance to win some Gourmet Rubber Stamps!

Cyber Monday Giveaway!

Today is the last day to take advantage of our weekend sale!  I {heart} papers has been celebrating Black Friday all month long, with sales each Friday.  For our official Black Friday sale we shared a 20% store-wide coupon!  Use the code BLACK20IHP through today (Monday, November 26).

If you're making an effort to purchase crafty goodies that were Made in the USA, we put together a list of what is available in the store.  You can check it out here.

Authentique is on that list, and their new Lovely collection is now in stock!  Aren't those sweet patterns for Valentine's Day, or to make a gift for someone special?

Also now in stock is this fabulous collection from Kaisercraft, Pickled Pear. 

If holiday paper is what you're shopping for, make sure you take a peek at the new 8x8 pad from October Afternoon, Make it Merry!  It has a great coordinating washi tape!

And how about a few giveaways, to celebrate Cyber Monday? 

Two lucky winners will receive all three of these fabulous Gourmet Rubber Stamps holiday singles!  All you have to do to win is leave a comment here with your favorite holiday tradition, no later than Wednesday, November 28 at 9:00 PM PST.  Winners will be announced on Friday, November 30. Subscribe to our blog so you don't miss the announcement; any prizes not claimed 72 hours after the announcement will be re-drawn and awarded to someone else.

The Black Friday Sale!

It's finally here!  I {heart} papers has been celebrating Black Friday all month long, with sales each Friday.  This weekend is our official Black Friday sale, with a 20% store-wide coupon!  Use the code BLACK20IHP through Monday, November 26.

Shop today to stock up on all of your favorites!

For those consumers who prefer to shop for products proudly made in the USA, we’ve compiled a list from our inventory, so you can be an educated shopper:

Authentique 

Basic Grey 

Bella Blvd. (paper only) 

Carta Bella 

Chicken Girl Designs 

Divine Twine 

Doodlebug Designs (paper only) 

Echo Park Paper 

Fancy Pants 

Flourishes 

Gourmet Rubber Stamps 

Graphic 45 

Hero Arts 

Jillibean Soup (paper only) 

Lawn Fawn 

LilyBee Design 

Market Street Stamps 

Memory Box 

Mint Motif 

Our Craft Lounge 

Paper Smooches 

Petal Press 

Poppy Stamps 

Ranger/Tim Holtz 

Simple Stories 

Stampendous (stamps only) 

StampavieSRM (stickers and tubes) 

Technique Tuesday 

Teresa Collins 

Webster’s Pages (paper only) 

WPlus9

Happy Thanksgiving!

Hello and Happy Thanksgiving (to my US friends!)  I wanted to take just a brief moment to say thank you. 

As most of you know, the last few weeks with Hurricane Sandy and the aftermath were challenging for so many.  Although we were damaged, our damage was minimal compared to those who lost everything.  It’s really helped put things in perspective for me a bit.  Even with our damage, we were really very fortunate.  And for that, I am extremely grateful. 

I am also so grateful that this little dream of mine, of owning i {heart} papers, continues to thrive 4 years after its inception.  But, I know that is not without a lot of people helping make that happen.  Here’s my short list of thanks. 

First and foremost, thank you to each and every one of my loyal customers, many of which have been with me since day one.  You are the reason IHP thrives and continues to grow and be successful and I never forget that without you, my little store wouldn’t exist.  (Extra thanks to the customers who waited so patiently during the aftermath of Hurricane Sandy for packages to arrive that were held up by the USPS in postal limbo.)

Thank you to my amazing design team, both past and present.  You are my friends, my trusted advisors and my crafty inspiration.  I’ve loved watching you grow over these past 4 years and look forward to many more together!

Thank you to Taylor, my amazing social media coordinator.  She helps keep me organized and sane and I honestly don’t know how I survived the first 4 years without her. 

Thank you to my love and partner, John.  He’s patient and willing to help whenever I need him to.  He’s my backup order packer/shipper and my Copic organizer.  And he’s just generally pretty awesome.

And thank you to all of the volunteers who help those less fortunate than all of us to have a little something special this holiday.  The food bank workers, the soup kitchen servers, the township volunteers who serve hot meals to those in need, the people who have donated to Hurricane Sandy relief efforts, the police/fire/hospital workers who give up their day to help those who need it and our military, who sacrifice so much for all of us. 

Thank you to all of you.   And Happy Thanksgiving.

~Kate

Black Friday Sale

It's finally here!  I {heart} papers has been celebrating Black Friday all month long, with sales each Friday.  Today we kick off our official Black Friday sale, with a 20% store-wide coupon!  Use the code BLACK20IHP through Monday, November 26.

Shop today to stock up on all of your favorites!

For those consumers who prefer to shop for products proudly made in the USA, we’ve compiled a list from our inventory, so you can be an educated shopper:

Authentique 

Basic Grey 

Bella Blvd. (paper only) 

Carta Bella 

Chicken Girl Designs 

Divine Twine 

Doodlebug Designs (paper only) 

Echo Park Paper 

Fancy Pants 

Flourishes 

Gourmet Rubber Stamps 

Graphic 45 

Hero Arts 

Jillibean Soup (paper only) 

Lawn Fawn 

LilyBee Design 

Market Street Stamps 

Memory Box 

Mint Motif 

Our Craft Lounge 

Paper Smooches 

Petal Press 

Poppy Stamps 

Ranger/Tim Holtz 

Simple Stories 

Stampendous (stamps only) 

StampavieSRM (stickers and tubes) 

Technique Tuesday 

Teresa Collins 

Webster’s Pages (paper only) 

WPlus9

On behalf of everyone here at i {heart} papers - have a wonderful, safe, and Happy Thanksgiving!

DT Challenge: Hopping with Technique Tuesday

Welcome to i heart papers' November design team challenge! This month, we're teaming up with some of the girls from the Technique Tuesday team for a combined hop featuring Technique Tuesday's stamps and i {heart} papers' products.  You can browse the Technique Tuesday category of the ihp store here.

Technique Tuesday is committed to offering the most beautiful, high-quality, affordable clear stamps and paper crafting products and to sharing the art of stamping and our enthusiasm for paper crafting. Whether you prefer a simple style or an embellished look, are a beginner or have been crafting for years, our made-in-the-USA products will help you create beautiful scrapbook pages, personalized handmade cards, unique gifts, and one-of-a-kind home décor items.

i {heart} papers retails the industry's best paper crafting supplies from your favorite manufacturers while offering stellar customer service and super fast and FREE US shipping with any $60 order. (We also ship internationally.) We offer a 6 month Studio AE membership where members receive automatic delivery each month of their AE set, (free in the US, a $4 savings each month) plus a 15% coupon valid for all other IHP store orders during the subscription and occasional gifts or exclusive special offers. We also provide a publication incentive for our three private stamp lines, Mint Motif, The Petal Press and Chicken Girl. Visit our website and follow us on Facebook, Twitter and our blog for news, sales, coupons and more!

Celebrate Black Friday at i {heart} papers with a 20% store-wide coupon (excluding gift certificates and Studio AE memberships) using code: black20ihp through Cyber Monday 11/26. And of course, always free US shipping with your $60 order! Happy Holidays from all of us at IHP!

For my project I used one of my favorite (and underused) tools, the Flexi-Ruler from BoBunny. some paper from North Pole pack, Candy Cane Stickles, Circle Nesties and Dainty Embossing folder.  I made the badge ribbon tails from some white twill ribbon and popped it up on my favorite dimensional dots. 

Our designers are sharing lots of inspiration using Technique Tuesday stamps and ihp products!

our Technique Tuesday guests:

• Kris Chirhart
• Tobi Crawford
• Laura O'Donnell
• Sharyn Tormanen
• Daniela Dobson
• Teri Anderson 

the ihp design team:

• November's guest designer, Jen del Muro
• brand new team member, Stephanie Washburn
• Carolyn
• Deb
• Gretchen
• Judy
• Lori
• Taylor
• Tracy
• Kate

Thanks for stopping by today!  Have a very happy Thanksgiving!

New From Technique Tuesday & Studio AE

We've got new stamps in stock from Technique Tuesday and Studio AE!

Each year, Ali Edwards creates an album that documents the 25 days leading up to Christmas.  She makes the base pages for the album in November so that she can just add photos each day in December.

Whether you follow Ali's lead and make an entire album or you are just making your own holiday projects, you are going to want this limited edition December Daily stamp set.  It contains 21 clear stamps on a 4" by 6" storage sheet.

The Studio AE November 2012 Memories of Home set is also now in stock!

You can purchase the set on its own, or you can sign up for our Studio AE membership program.  Each month, Ali Edwards and the Technique Tuesday team release a new 4"x6" stamp set.  The stamp sets feature Ali's handwriting or fonts that she picked to fit the words and phrases in the stamp set.  There are only a limited number of each of these sets - just enough for the people who are members of Studio AE are made.

This is a 6 month commitment; all six months are billed when you initially order and there are no refunds or partial refunds.  The monthly set is shipped as soon as IHP receives it, usually around the 17th of each month.  Sets are shipped first class mail to you.

Studio AE members receive automatic delivery each month of their AE set, FREE US shipping on their AE set (a $4 savings each month) plus occasionally gifts or exclusive special offers.  In addition to receiving the exclusive Studio AE set shipped to you free each month, members will also receive a 15% coupon valid for all other IHP store orders during your subscription.

$100 for a six month membership...that's only $16.67 per stamp set, a 17% discount off the suggested retail price PLUS you're getting free shipping - a $24 savings!  PLUS you save with your 15% off IHP coupon on all your other orders! What are you waiting for?  Sign up today!

Black Friday All Month Long: Spellbinders Sale

i {heart} papers is celebrating Black Friday all month long, with new specials each weekend!  Today we kick off a new sale.  All Spellbinders dies 30% off (not including the co-branded dies, like Flourishes)!

Be sure to stop by the store and check out our whole selection of Spellbinders dies!

It's Release Day

It's Release Day for Flourishes, Gourmet Rubber Stamps, and Paper Smooches.  We've got so many new lovelies to share with you today!

Flourishes has four new sets, starting with Dreaming of Florence.  From the rich Italian landscape host to Cypress trees and sunflowers to a table set with wine and figs, this set of vignettes is sure to add a dreamy feel to your cards or creations.

Next they've got Stitched for You - Whether it's sewing, quilting, knitting or cross stitch - this stitched for you stamp set is sure to share that whimsical charm in your cards or creations.  Use this set to send warm well wishes or for tags on your handmade stitched creations.

Be sure to head over and see the other two new releases from Flourishes - the flowers in Bloomin' Aussie Florals are just waiting to be colored!  And In & Out Just Because  will give the inside and outside of your cards a bit of pizzazz with the mix and match sentiments for all occasions!

Gourmet Rubber Stamps has two new Appetizers sets to share; Peace and Love Flowers is a wonderful set for friendship, encouragement, or even sympathy.

And if you're already thinking about Valentine's Day, the Happy Heart Day set is perfect for you!  It's fun and whimsical, and sure to bring a smile to someone's face.

Paper Smooches is adding to their Kismet Collection with the release of the adorable Winter Groves.  Don't you just want to hug that snowman?  And all the little baubles to coordinate with the trees are adorable, too.

Don't forget about out Rewards from the Heart program!  Do you love IHP and need another reason to share your love with your friends?  Now you’ll be rewarded with our new referral rewards!  Refer a new customer and earn 10% of their first order placed in the form of a gift certificate.  Just have them list you in referral section at checkout and 10% of their order will be given back to you, in the form of an IHP gift certifcate, as a thank you.

Have a crafty day!

Children's Books for a Cause

A little personal post today, from Kate:

Many of you will remember a little over three years ago when my dear friend and former design team member, Sarah Anderson and her husband Darrin suddenly and tragically lost their precious son Henry to an undiagnosed immune deficiency disorder.  He passed away at the tender age of 3 years and 4 months.

Little Henry was a huge animal lover and if boys three times his age were being mean to the animals, Henry had no problem telling them so. "Be good to the 'aminals'!"

One of Henry's bedtime activities each night was to Henry describe the animals he saw that day and their antics, and he and Darrin would conjure up bedtime stories about the animals, always interjecting Henry into the stories to remind others to treat them with kindness and respect.  Henry always saved the day.

After Henry's passing, Sarah and Darrin decided to publish these bedtime stories in memory of him, and created the Adventures of Henry book series.  Not only do these books honor Henry and help raise awareness for rare diseases but they raise money for the organizations that help the children who are afflicted by them.  Profits from the sales of these books will be donated to organizations like Children's Hospital of Wisconsin, and the Crohn's and Colitis Foundation of America, who work persistently every day to find cures and treatments for these kids and so many other children like them.

Can you please help us find homes for these books this Christmas? If you don't have a child in your life to buy for, consider purchasing one or more books to donate.

 More details can be found in Sarah's post. Thanks for reading and sharing!

Bright & Beautiful Christmas

Judy Rozema shared a beautiful card over on her blog yesterday! Here's what she had to say about it:

"I scored each section with my Scor-Buddy.  The layers are held together using i {stick} papers red-line tape. I added Kaiser Pearls along the bottom of the trunk and at each design change. The sentiment is from Flourishes' Cowboy Christmas."

How is the holiday card-making going at your house?  We've got everything you need to get going on them!  Head over to the store to see what's in stock!

New From Market Street Stamps

We've got brand new stamps from Market Street Stamps in stock today!  Our newest team member, Stephanie Washburn, has made a couple of fabulous samples with them.  Pictured above is a CAS sample with Shine On.  And guess what?  Stephanie illustrated this set, too! Well done!

This fun card showcases the new Friendly Penguin set.  How cute is he?  Stephanie illustrated him, too - wow!

Take a peek at these and all of the Market Street Stamps we've got in stock!  Have a crafty Monday!

Black Friday Special: 12x12 Paper

i {heart} papers is celebrating Black Friday all month long, with new specials each weekend!  Today we kick off a new sale.  All 12x12 paper is 30% off, including the new Dear Santa Photo Freedom collection from Echo Park, as well as the SN@P collections!

Make sure you check out everything that's on sale.  We've got more from My Mind's Eye, Lawn Fawn,  Jillibean Soup, Carta Bella, and Doodlebug Design.  It's a great time to stock up!

Photo Freedom from Echo Park

Now in stock from Echo Park: new items for the Photo Freedom collection!  Today's Story, shown above, includes six - 12x12 double sided papers, a 12x12 elements sticker sheet and five Designer Photo Sleeves.  It's everything you need to document your memories!

Be sure to also take a peek at the Happy Little Moments collection, as well as the Dear Santa collection (perfect for the upcoming holidays!).  And we've got extra refill pages in stock, too.

STORM UPDATE:  Kate lost power again last night around 7:30 PM EST.  Her area is expecting up to 6" of snow, and she does not know when power will be restored.  This is especially difficult for an area still struggling to recover from Hurricane Sandy.  You may still place orders in the i {heart} papers store, but please be patient if you submit comments or questions and do not receive immediate feedback.  Also, there will be shipping delays that are beyond Kate's control.  We will keep the blog and our Facebook page updated as we know more!