Missouri Sales Tax Holiday!

Good news! Several states' legislatures have passed a special sales tax holiday during specific dates in August. During this period, sales tax does not apply to school supplies. The participating states typically define school supplies as any item normally used by students in a standard classroom for educational purposes.

Missouri: August 3-5

By placing your orders during these dates, you can take advantage of this tax holiday and make purchases without sales tax. What a wonderful opportunity to save some money on stamping and paper crafting supplies!

Based on state statutes, we've identified the items that will be exempt from sales tax in these states during the period. Stampin' Up! will not charge sales tax for these items ordered during this sales tax holiday.

Adhesives

• 2-Way Glue Pen
• Liquid Glue
• SNAIL Adhesive
• SNAIL Refill
• Dotto
• Dotto refill
• Anywhere Glue Stick
• Sticky Strip
• Stampin' Dimensionals
• Mini Glue Dots
• Pop-Up Glue Dots
• Greeting Glue
  

Scissors

• Paper Snips
• Craft & Rubber Scissors
• Craft & Paper Scissors

Brushes

• Stipple Brushes
• Flat brush
• Medium brush
• Small brush

Pens and Pencils

• Metallic Art pencils
• Pure color pencils
• Watercolor pencils
• Pencil sharpener
• Uni-ball Signo Gel Pen
• ZIG PaintyBlender pen

Water Color Wonder Crayons

• Bold Brights
• Earth Elements
• Rich Regals
• Soft Subtles
• Neutrals

Markers and Jorunalers

• Stampin' Kids markers
• Stampin' Write markers - You can purchase these individually, but not as the set.
• Basic Black Stampin' Write journaler
• Basic Brown Stampin' Write journaler

Call or email me today to place your order and I will hold that order until the tax holiday!

A POEM FOR MY WIFE...

She learned to stamp on Monday.
Her work was so very fine,
she forgot to thaw out dinner,
so we went out to dine.
She stamped cards on Tuesday.
She says they are a must.
They really were quite lovely,
but she forgot to dust.
On Wednesday it was a scrapbook,
she says the cropping's fun.
What hi-lites! What shadows!...
But the laundry wasn't done.
Her embellishments were on Thursday,
green, yellow, blue and red.
I guess she really was engrossed,
she forgot to make the bed.
It was journalling on Friday,
with words that she adores.
It never bothered her at all,
the crumbs on all the floors.
I found a maid on Saturday,
my week was now replete.
My wife can scrap the hours away.
The house will still be neat.
Well, it's already Sunday,
I think I have the cramp.
I’ve cursed and raved and ranted,
The MAID has learned to STAMP!!!!

Author – unknown

Preparations Have Begun

Wow, we're having one of those weeks! It seems like all of a sudden we've got twenty irons in the fire and ten more waiting to go in!

Last night we went to WalMart and bought school supplies for two boys. Yes, this year my little guy Davy will finally be starting school! He is SO excited to go, and I'm SO excited for him to be going! We had bought his Superman backpack on ebay over the summer, along with the Superman lunchbox. So this morning we filled up his little pencil box, and piled it all into his backpack, and he wore his backpack around the house all morning. Too stinkin' cute!

In addition to school prep we're also gearing up for Tyler's 10th UnBirthday!! Yay! Ty's birthday is actually in April, but since we only have him in the summers and every other Christmas we like to celebrate his birthday when he comes home! Oh, and what a birthday it's going to be! He's chosen Transformers for the theme, and has invited all his friends from the neighborhood. The really exciting part (for him, I'm not looking forward to it!) is that the boys are invited to stay over for a back yard camp out! YIKES!! I will be over run with 10 year olds in PJ's with S'Mores all over their faces!! See what we put ourselves through for our children?!?!

So somewhere in this madness I've had the opportunity to run over to Gwen's house and play!! Yay!! I made one card and assisted in the building of another.

The card she was attempting was supposed to be for a swap but eventually became complicated enough that she had to move on to something else. But that's OK! It's a cute card, with a circle peek a boo. In other words, you see the vampire image through a hole in the front of the card. Too cute.

We used: Very Vanilla, Basic Black, Only Orange and More Mustard card stock; Basic Black and Going Grey ink; Creepy Crawly paper; Linen background, Weathered background, Booglie Eyes, and the Batty Jumbo Wheel; lastly, we used the following accessories: 1-3/8" and 1-1/4" circle punches, and the paper crimper. It turned out really well. I contributed the part of making it a peek-a-boo card and using the linen background on our Vamp friend because Gwen dislikes having to color things in. I think the linen gives him a comic book look!

The other card I made was using the Baroque Motifs new out in the catalog this year! It's a great set, and so much fun to work with - but then I say that about all my stamp sets!! LOL. I used Purely Pomegranate Cardstock; Blue Bayou double sided designer paper; Soft Sky, Purely Pomegranate and Blue Bayou ink; white taffeta ribbon; and a rhinestone brad for the center of the medallion. Easy peasy, too cute, and ready to go.

Alright, friends, so it's time for me to get back to cleaning house. I've got a garage sale going on this weekend and I don't have ANYTHING priced. But, as my best friend Cheryl would tell you, I'm the queen of procrastination!! I do my best work under pressure!! Off I go! Have a great weekend!!

As Promised...

OK, so last night I got a later start than I had anticipated. That's OK, because I was still able to get a few cards done.

If this Bud Basics card looks familiar it's because I had all the card stock cut and the wheeling done at one of my workshops and this was left over. I changed it a tad by adding some of our chipboard covered with some self adhesive die cuts from Stampin' Up!'s "Build a Flower" Accents and Elements. For the center of the chipboard flower I used our Cropadile to punch a hole for a rhinestone brad. Cute cute cute. Add to that the double stitched grosgrain ribbon in Purely Pomegranate and you're set to go!

My second card here is using the Oh, So Lovely hostess stamp set. I have a few friends who are gaga for it, and sure enough it's a treat to use! I was a little worried when I was cutting it apart that I would hate it, but honestly it's great! I used River Rock, Elegant Eggplant and Pale Plum card stock and ink. Stamp sets: Oh, So Lovely, Canvas, and Hugs & Wishes; Paper: River Rock double sided designer paper. Accessories: Metallic Art Pencils and sponge daubers.

So I'm SUPPOSED to be visiting with Gwen today to play some more with our new stuff, but we'll see if the children let me. They seem pretty intent on us staying home today. But, as Tyler will remind everyone he comes across, Mom has VETO power - the greatest super hero power of them all!!

Home Again

Sorry friends! I didn't get any stamping done this week! We were gone to Washington DC.

First we went to Arlington where we buried my Grandmother beside her husband in the National Cemetery. Grandma lost her battle with Renal Failure on June 26 of this year. The sun was shining and birds were singing as we laid her to rest. I know for certain that she would have loved the day and that her family had gathered from all across the nation to celebrate her life.

After the funeral we took the children (my two kids, along with my niece and three nephews,) on a tour of Arlington. It was very interesting and especially exciting for a history nut like me. We were pooped by the end of the day and so went back to the hotel and swam in the pool - isn't that what everyone does when they're tired out?!

The next two days we spent touring Washington DC. Some of the places we visited: Lincoln Memorial, Jefferson Memorial, Washington Memorial, the WWII Memorial, the Viet Nam Memorial, the Korean War Memorial, the National Air and Space Museum, and the Natural History Museum. Oh, and we walked to the CVS pharmacy about ten times because we had forgotten this or that! UGH!! This is a picture (self portrait) of my boys and I taken just before the showing of "Space Station 3D" at the Air and Spaces Museum. Totally great show about the building of the International Space Station!

The highlight for my boys seemed to be the Metro. Oh what fun it is to be a boy - though they were a little put out that we made them sit down for the rides. The other "bestest part of all of it" (according to David Grant) was the Dinosaur and Fossil exhibit at the Natural History Museum. The hands on "How Things Fly" area of the Air and Space Museum was a close runner up however!

OK, so enough about our trip. I'm going to go grab a soda pop, a thing of chocolate and my stamping supplies that came in the mail while I was gone and get to work making a kick-butt series of cards!! Look for them on line later today!!

New Cards

So, I had a workshop recently. Thought I'd go ahead and share the cards we made. I was so excited to share the new Fall and Winter Collection for the first time at a workshop! We had quite a few ladies in attendance and I enjoyed them so much! I'm looking forward to stamping with them in the future at various workshops and stamping events!

The first cards we made we used the All Occasions set, which is a Level 3 hostess set. This set includes two Jumbo Wheels and a four piece stamp set. When it arrived at the house I kinda looked at it not sure what in the world I was going to do with it but have since found it to be quiet easy to play with and actually a lot of fun!

We used Soft Sky, Purely Pomegranate, and Regal Rose card stock; Regal Rose and Purely Pomegranate stamp pads; white grosgrain ribbon dyed with the Purely Pomegranate ink pad, and both the tag punches. The ribbon dying was a huge hit and is one of my favorite tricks!

We made our second card using the Bud Basics stamp set, Basic Outline jumbo wheel, and the Hugs and Wishes stamp set. Ink colors: Soft Sky, Purely Pomegranate, Blue Bayou, and Wild Wasabi. Cardstock: Whisper White, Blue Bayou, Soft Sky, and Purely Pomegranate. We used circle clips from the Pewter Hodge Podge Hardware, and Ice Circle Rhinestone Brads.

I love the look of the new In Colors together! The only two I have yet to use are the River Rock and Groovy Guava though I'm sure it won't be long before I use them as well!

Now I need to get back to laundry duty in preparation for our trip this week. I'll be sure to tell you all about it when I get back!! Oh, and don't forget to check the list below for retired stamp sets for sale!

Cleaning Out!

All sets are mounted and used unless otherwise indicated. I only have one of each set (except the SAB sets, and I’ve indicated there how many I have of each.) This list is first come first serve. If you're interested in any of these go ahead and email me: stampinmerr@email.com

To get a better view of the stamp sets click on the image!

Hostess Sets
All-Around Argyle $20
Basket Full of Fun $20
Blooming with Happiness – Unmounted $10
Both Way Blossoms $15
Love It – Unmounted $15
Measure of Life $15 - PENDING
Reason to Smile $10
Tags So Much $10
The World Over $10
Warmest Regards $10

Holidays
Merry – Cut Unmounted $18

Occasions
First in Fashion – Unmounted $14
Swell News $14

Sentiments
Bubble Queen $14
Espressoly for You $16 - PENDING
Olive You $12
Stampin’ Fun for Everyone $16
Under the Weather $12
What’s for Dinner $21

Growing Up

Birthday Beauty $12
Power Up $14 - PENDING

Flowers
Roses in Winter $20 - PENDING

Nature
Bold Butterfly $22
Ruff Day $14
Sparkling Summer $20
Winged Things $17

Vintage
Mostly Flowers $9
World Tour $16

Borders & Backgrounds
Crosshatch $13
French Script $13

Say it With Stamps
All Year Cheer II - $20 - PENDING

Sell-A-Bration Sets $10 Each
Big Blossom – 2 Unmounted, 1 Used
Delight in Life – 2 Unmounted, 1 Used
Very Punny – 1 Used
So Very – 1 Unmounted, 1 Used
Just Delightful Simply Scrappin’ Kit – 3 Unopened

Mini Catalog Sets
Small Sayings $9
Like it a Latte $18
Cowboy Kid $20
Sassy and Seasonal $12
Fancy Flexable Phrases $15

Misc. Sets
Haute Couture (05/06 Hostess Set) $12
Pocket Full of Posies (05/06 SAB) $7
Send a Celebration (05/06 SAB) $7