Taylored Expressions November Sneaks - Day 1

Good morning and Happy Halloween! Not only is today my favorite holiday, but it's the start of sneak peeks for our November Release! What could be better than massive amounts of candy paired with new stamps!? It's gonna be a great day! *grin* The Baker's Dozen and I have some fun stuff to share with you today, but first make sure you read all of the details of the release below. You may just be one of the lucky prize winners if you know how to enter!  

November Release At a Glance

• We have sneak peeks to share Monday through Wednesday.  All of the new products will be available for purchase on Thursday, November 3rd at 8 am PST. You'll find it all in the Fresh out of the Oven Department at the Taylored Expressions Store.
• Join us as a fan on Facebook for an early peek at the stamp sets, as well as a SPECIAL Facebook GIVEAWAY, on Wednesday night beginning at approximately 6 pm PST.
• Mystery Baker's Dozen Blog Giveaway: Each day, one lucky blog commenter will be chosen by random draw to win a $10 TE Gift Certificate.  Winners will be chosen from a different Baker's Dozen blog each day and will be announced on Taylor's blog on Release Day!  Be sure to hop around to see all the sneak peeks and leave comments on each blog for more chances to win. Limit one comment per blog per day. Comments close Wednesday 11/2 at 7pm PST for the drawings.

Today I'm so excited to introduce the latest stamp set in our TE Giving Tree charitable program! The TE Giving Tree is designed to raise funds for a different charity each quarter through the sale of stamp sets. Today we're introducing a must-have for any stamp collection called Labels of Love II. And Taylored Expressions will be donating $5.00 for each stamp set sold during the months of November, December and January to benefit the Union Rescue Mission.

The Union Rescue Mission (URM) was founded in 1981 and is one of the largest missions of its kind in America - bringing help and hope to the homeless in Downtown Los Angeles. My husband Jon worked on staff at Union Rescue Mission during our time in California and we were able to see first hand the positive impact the mission has on the homeless community. This is such a wonderful way to contribute to those less fortunate during the holidays and throughout the year!

Labels of Love II adds to the options for our original Labels of Love stamp set and is a must-have for any stamp collection! The set is filled with 7 labels and 20 year-round holiday sentiments made from high-quality red rubber and pre-trimmed so they're ready for you to use as soon as they arrive on your doorstep. The labels in this set coordinate with the Spellbinders Ribbon Tags Trio 3 dies. I decided to pair the 'Boo' sentiment and label with Moka Tabitha to celebrate Halloween today. I stamped Tabitha in Memento Tuxedo Black ink, paper pieced her dress, and colored the rest of her with Copics. I added Crystal Stickles to her hat and cut her out with scissors. The patterned paper is from the Bella Blvd. Too Cute to Spook collection. I stamped the label in Colorbox Lime Pastel and cut it out with the Spellbinders Ribbon Tags Trio 3 die. To finish it off I added rhinestones in Orange, Lilac, and Split Pea along with Black Pearls.

Today we're also introducing the Mini Leaves Taylored Die set designed by Nancy McKinney. These four leaves include the impressed vein lines for even more detail! They didn't fit into my Halloween card today, but I've used them on a bunch of projects later this week and you'll definitely be seeing them on the Baker's Dozen blogs throughout the week too!

The rest of the Baker's Dozen is also highlighting Labels of Love II so you'll definitely want to hop along to check out their fabulous creations! And don't forget to leave comments along the way for a chance to win a TE gift certificate!

• Charmaine Ikach
• Danielle Lounds
• Jen Shults
• Jodi Collins
• Karen Giron
• Melissa Sauls
• Melody Rupple
• Regina Mangum
• Sankari Wegman
• Taylor VanBruggen
• Tori Wild
• Wanda Guess

Baker's Dozen Announcements

Good morning! I hope you're all having a fabulous weekend! We're gearing up for our November Release as the sneak peeks begin tomorrow! Can you believe it's almost November already!? But before we start the peeks I have a few Baker's Dozen announcements to share with you.

Today it's time to say a fond farewell to a long-time member of the Baker's Dozen. I count myself blessed to have been able to get to know Karen Motz over the last several years! And Motz rhymes with 'boats'...not Motz (like the applesauce)! Karen is truly talented and her creations over the past several years always make my jaw drop. Not only has she contributed her beautiful creations, but she's also contributed her price gun skills at our trade shows! *wink* Karen, thank you for your contributions to Taylored Expressions and you will certainly be missed! But I know I speak for everyone when I say that you can't get too far away... we'll still be checking up on you on your blog!

While I'm sad to see Karen leave, I'm super excited to welcome Jen Shults as the newest member of the Baker's Dozen! You may recognize Jen as our September/October Guest Designer. She has done such an amazing job showcasing Taylored Expressions stamps and she'll be a perfect fit to join the team and continue providing all of you with fabulous inspiration each and every month. If by chance you're not familiar with Jen's work, you can find her fabulous creations on her blog: deconstructing Jen!Welcome welcome!!

As Jen steps down from her Guest Designer job, I'm thrilled to announce that Lori Craig will be joining us as our November/December Guest Designer! Lori wears a variety of hats from mom to marathoner in addition to gracing the pages of papercrafting magazines and creating for her fabulous blog: Make a Difference. I can hardly wait to see what she has in store for us with her sweet signature style! Please join me in welcoming Lori!

And I'm just so excited about our new release that I want to share a little snippet with you today! Hope to see you right back here tomorrow at 8am PST for the sneak peeks!

Taylored Expressions Sketch Challenge #149

Good morning and Happy Friday! So are you getting ready for a spooky weekend? We have a Halloween party for the kiddos this afternoon and Madelyn is ready to put on the costume that I made for her! Then we have trick or treating on Sunday evening. And the best part is that the weather is supposed to cooperate... no snow on Halloween this year! Hopefully you all have time to squeeze in the sketch challenge during the next couple weeks... it's a fun one:

Since TE is a proud sponsor of the Hope You Can Cling to card drive here on SCS, we're combining this week's sketch challenge with sketch crew member Jami's Hope You Can Cling to Challenge to create a holiday card incorporating the color pink.

We're also encouraging all of you to mail your cards to the UT MD Anderson Cancer Center. So if you're up for the extra challenge, then create a holiday card using the sketch that includes the color pink and send it along for the card drive. It's sure to brighten someone's day and that's what this hobby is all about, right!? You can find all of the details on Jami's challenge HERE and more about the card drive and where to send your cards HERE.

And now here are the regular sketch requirements:

Create a card using the above sketch as inspiration. You're not required to use TE stamps to play, but there's a bonus prize if you do! To be entered into the prize drawing you must upload your card to Splitcoaststampers using   keyword TESC149 by Thursday, November 10th. And here's the prize that's up for grabs:

1. I will randomly select one person from all of the challenge uploads to receive a $10 gift certificate to the TE Store!

2. If you used predominantly TE Stamps on your project you’ll receive an extra $10 bonus for a total $20 gift certificate!

Thanks to everyone who participated in the TESC148 sketch! There are so many fabulous entries! You can see all of the entries HERE. The winner of a $20 gift certificate to the TE Store is:

karylim! Check out the adorable Christmas card she created HERE! 

The fabulous sketch crew is here to inspire you with their *pink* holiday sketch cards!

 Created by Lori Craig: Make a Difference

 Created by Jami Sibley: More is More

 Created by Tracy Clemente: Eat, Sleep, Stamp

 Created by Rachel Sztonyk: Gingerbread Gal

 Created by Monika Davis: M.A.D. Stamper

 Created by Margie Cortina: Oh Bumble is Me

 Created by Taylor VanBruggen: Taylored Expressions

Created by Cassie Trask: A Day in the Life of a Homeschooling Mom

Holiday Hoopla Blog Hop

Good morning! Today I'm joining a group of fabulously talented stampers to bring you the Taylored Expressions Holiday Hoopla Blog Hop! There are 22 designers featuring Christmas and winter stamp sets from TE with projects ranging from cards to gifts and more. We want to inspire you to get your holiday crafting in gear and you won't want to miss one stop along the hop! I'm starting off the hop today and from here you'll want to head to Margie's blog to check out her amazing project. Of course, if you get lost along the hop you can head back here for the full list of participants. And be sure you stick with me to the end of the post where you'll find a coupon code for 25% off holiday stamps at TE!

The stamp set I'm showcasing is Moka Betty from our most recent October release. This is the perfect stamp for all of the Betty Baker's out there. I certainly don't profess to be a Betty Crocker, but I have been wanting to host a holiday cookie exchange for years and Moka Betty gave me just the push I needed to make it happen this year!

I started by printing the details of the invitation on the computer. Then I stamped in the images and sentiments from the Moka Betty set and colored them with Copics. I needed to include the rules for the Sweets Swap which made me re-think the design of my invitation. I started with a regular A2 size card and then cut off a portion of the front of the card leaving enough of the card front remaining in order to stamp Moka Betty on the left. As you can see below, the left Betty panel flips up and reveals the rules for the Sweet Swap.

As I was creating for this hop I started thinking back to all of the fun holiday projects I've done in the past and I thought I'd share one of my favorites with you too. I love creating my own gift tags for Christmas presents. It's that special touch that I like to add and it always receives a "You made these tags!?" from my gift recipients. Last year I designed the stamp set Tag You're It with my own gift giving in mind. I wanted something quick and something cute. Here are the tags I made last year along with the little container that still holds my leftover tags to use this year:

So.... are you feeling inspired to stamp!? You might also want to check out the 12 Days of Christmas video series that I recorded last year. I shared lots of fun gift ideas like calendar stands, canvas totes, card sets, recipe boxes, gift card holders, journals, display art, pins, barettes, magnets, and much more! Click the link below to watch the series!

12 Days of Christmas with Taylored Expressions

Now who loves a SALE!? Ummm... I do! Use the coupon code HOOPLA2011 to get 25% off the following holiday stamp sets (released in 2009 & 2010) now through November 2nd:

Christmas Blessings, Enjoy!, From the Heart, Hangin' Out - At the North Pole, Holiday Wonder, Home Sweet Home, Keeping Tabs, Merry Little Cocktail, Penguin Pals, Season's Sweetings, Sparkle & Cheer, Tag Treats, Tag You're It, Take Note - Holidays, Wings of Joy, and Winter Wonderland.

The coupon code is case sensitive. Follow these instructions to apply the discount to your order:

1. Add the desired items to your shopping cart.

2. Insert the coupon code into the Promotion Code box. 

3. Click the Update Cart button. Your discount should now be applied to the appropriate items. 

4. Proceed to checkout to finalize and submit your order. 

October Key Ingredients Blog Hop

Good morning! Today the Key Ingredients Design Team and I are having our own little blog hop to share more projects that we made using the October Key Ingredients kit. This month's kit has been super popular! We still have a few kits left so if you want to jump in and join us as a subscriber now's a great time! Here's a pic of this month's kit:

My favorite part of this kit is the embellishments. I love the pumpkin mum trim and the fabric covered brads that go along with the pretty paper from the Crate Farmhouse collection. For my card I pulled out the In the Park set. I usually think of this set as a summertime set, but as I looked at the tree stamp I wanted to create a fall tree inspired by the beautiful changing leaves right outside my stamp room window! I started by stamping the images in Memento Rich Cocoa and coloring them with Copics. I stamped and colored some of the leaves twice so that I could cut them out and pop them up with foam tape. Then I covered all of the leaves with Glossy Accents. The rest of the card is pretty self-explanatory and I think it'll make a fabulous birthday card for a fabulous friend of mine with an upcoming birthday!

Thanks so much for stopping by today! I hope you'll hop along to the rest of the Key Ingredients design team blogs to see what they've made using the October kit! And as always, you can find inspiration for our past and present kits in the Key Ingredients Gallery! Hope you all have a wonderful day!

• Corinna McGregor
• Jessica Diedrich
• Lea Lawson
• Monika Davis
• Rachel Sztonyk
• Stephanie Kraft

October Blast from the Past Blog Hop

Good morning & Happy Wednesday! Today I'm super excited to join our fabulous customers on our Blast from the Past Blog Hop. The creative Sankari has designed another fun sketch for us to use to make a project with the Trick or Sweet theme! That means all of our hop participants created either a Halloween themed project or something sweet to share today. I just love these hops because I always come away inspired to bust out my 'older' TE sets to create! That's why we call it a Blast from the Past... because everyone is also using TE sets released more than three months ago. We'd love to have you join us next month (everyone is welcome!) and you can find all of the hop details on this page.

But before you head off to sign up for the hop next month, check out all of the projects by clicking on the links below!

I decided to use the Punchy Potions set to make a Halloween card and a treat. It's been a while since I pulled out this set and now I remember why I like it so much! The images are super cute and easy to color and I love that they work for both cards and potion bottle treats. I stamped the images in Memento Tuxedo Black and colored them with Copics. Then I added a bit of glitter to the spider webs with a Quickie Glue Pen. The ovals were cut out with Spellbinders oval dies. The patterned paper is from the Too Cute to Spook collection by Bella Blvd. To finish off the card I added a bow using orange and black polka dot ribbon along with some orange glittered brads. Yes, I know I switched up the sketch, but sketches are for inspiration, right!? And this one is certainly inspiring!

Thanks so much for stopping by today! Don't miss the rest of the projects along the hop... I'm sure they're super clever and creative!

Be Strong - I'm Here for You

Happy Monday! I hope you all had a fabulous weekend! I made this card for the TE Sketch Challenge on Friday and thought I'd share a little bit more about it today. I combined the sketch challenge with Lori's Hope You Can Cling To challenge on SCS to use pink bling on a card. The Hope You Can Cling To challenges are going on all month at Splitcoast (there's a new one posted every day!). It's a great opportunity to try a challenge and get involved in the fight against breast cancer by creating a card to send to the UT MD Anderson Cancer Center. I'll be sending this card along with a few others that I hope to create before the end of the month. It makes me happy to know that something I made might bring joy to someone fighting breast cancer. You can find out more about the challenges and the card drive HERE!

For my card I used the beautiful Moka Hope. And in case you missed our latest release, Moka Hope is one of our new October stamps and we'll be donating $1 for each set that is purchased to Susan G. Komen for the Cure! I started by stamping Hope in Memento Rich Cocoa and coloring her with Copics. I cut her out using Spellbinders Labels 17 and then added soft pink rhinestones and plum pearls to her scarf. I added more pearls and rhinestones along the side and stamped the 'Be Strong' sentiment randomly on the left. The patterned paper is from the My Mind's Eye Vanity Fair 6x6 pad.

Thanks so much for stopping by today! I hope you all have a wonderful day!

Taylored Expressions Sketch Challenge #148

Good morning and Happy Friday! It's almost time for another weekend! I'm not sure why that's so exciting for me because all of the days just seem to run together into one. Half the time I'm not even sure if it's one in the morning or one in the afternoon! *grin* But I did get a chance to create a card for this week's sketch challenge and I hope you'll play along too. Here it is:

We have a special challenge for you this week! Since TE is a proud sponsor of the Hope You Can Cling to card drive at Splitcoast, we thought we'd include an extra challenge with this week's sketch and encourage you to mail your cards to the UT MD Anderson Cancer Center. So if you're up for the extra challenge, then create a card that includes the color pink and send it along for the card drive. It's sure to brighten someone's day and that's what this hobby is all about, right!? You can find details for participating in the HYCCT challenges and sending your cards to the cancer center HERE.

And now here are the regular sketch requirements:

Create a card using the above sketch as inspiration. You're not required to use TE stamps to play, but there's a bonus prize if you do! To be entered into the prize drawing you must upload your card to Splitcoaststampers using   keyword TESC148 by Thursday, October 27th. And here's the prize that's up for grabs:

1. I will randomly select one person from all of the challenge uploads to receive a $10 gift certificate to the TE Store!

2. If you used predominantly TE Stamps on your project you’ll receive an extra $10 bonus for a total $20 gift certificate!

Thanks to everyone who participated in the TESC146 sketch! Once again there are lots of pretty entries! You can see all of the entries HERE. The winner of a $10 gift certificate to the TE Store is:

Sara Snoddy! Check out the fun Halloween card she created HERE!

Just like always, the fabulous sketch crew is back at it again with beautiful samples to inspire you!

 Created by Cassie Trask: A Day in the Life of a Homeschooling Mom

  Created by Lisa Hjulberg: The Craft's Meow

 Created by Margie Cortina: Oh Bumble is Me

 Created by Monika Davis: M.A.D. Stamper

 Created by Rachel Sztonyk: Gingerbread Gal

 Created by Tracy Clemente: Eat, Sleep, Stamp

Created by Taylor VanBruggen: Taylored Expressions

Created by Lori Craig: Make a Difference

October Key Ingredients Now Available!

Good morning & Happy Monday! I hope you all had a great weekend! We enjoyed the beautiful October weather by heading out to the World Food Festival in downtown Des Moines. YUM!

I wanted to give you all a heads up that our October Key Ingredients kit is now available and it's a must-have! Here's a picture of this month's kit featuring the gorgeous Crate Paper Farmhouse collection. You can find out more about how you can join us as a kit subscriber HERE.

Also, I'm kicking off a week of inspirational projects from the Key Ingredients Design Team using the supplies from the October kit. Head on over to the KI Blog to see what I created using this "equation". *grin*

Taylored Expressions October Release!

Thanks for joining us for the October Release at TE! I hope you've been enjoying our sneak peeks! All of the new products are now available at the TE Store! Did you join us for the big reveal party on Facebook last night? If so, you might be one of our lucky winners. We've announced the winners on our Facebook page so make sure you check it out! And the three winners from the Mystery Baker's Dozen blog hop giveaway are:

Monday (Karen G.'s blog): sharon g
Tuesday (Sankari's blog): JessicaK
Wednesday (Charmaine's blog): Carol Scheevel

If you're one of the lucky winners of a gift certificate, just email me to claim your prize!

REMINDER ABOUT OUR SHIPPING POLICY: Orders over $75.00 receive free shipping (within the U.S.)! For orders that do not qualify for free shipping, we will refund you for the difference between actual shipping and the shipping charged upon checkout once your order is weighed for shipment. It's a win-win! 

STAMP SETS

Woodland Winter - Set of 21 - $21.95
Woodland Winter Inspiration Gallery

Peaceful Poinsettia - Set of 16 - $21.95
Peaceful Poinsettia Inspiration Gallery

Totally Tags Holiday - Set of 9 - $21.95
Totally Tags Inspiration Gallery

MINI STAMP SETS

Banner Holidays - Set of 15 - $12.95

Banner Holidays Inspiration Gallery

Glad Tidings - Set of 10 - $12.95
Glad Tidings Inspiration Gallery

Wreaths of Joy - Set of 13 - $12.95
Wreaths of Joy Inspiration Gallery

PETITE STAMP SETS

 Moka Hope - Set of 7 - $7.95
Moka Hope Inspiration Gallery

Moka Betty - Set of 6 - $7.95
Moka Betty Inspiration Gallery

A LA CARTE STAMPS

Snow A la Carte - $5.95
Snow A la Carte Inspiration Gallery

TAYLORED DIES

 

Poinsettia (set of 5) - $15.95

Trim the Tree (set of 8) - $15.95

Totally Tags (set of 3) - $15.95

BASIC RECIPE PROJECT PANTRY KITS

 12 Days of Christmas Basic Recipe Kit - $11.95

Holiday Wonder Basic Recipe Kit - $11.95

So there you have it... all of our October release products! You can follow the individual links above, but make sure you also check out the Fresh Out of the Oven category for all the latest additions!

And our talented Baker's Dozen team and friends have more fabulous projects to share with you today so make sure you hop over to their blogs too!

• Charmaine Ikach
• Danielle Lounds
• Jami Sibley
• Jen Shults
• Jodi Collins
• Karen Giron
• Karen Motz
• Melissa Sauls
• Melody Rupple
• Nancy McKinney
• Regina Mangum
• Sankari Wegman
• Taylor VanBruggen
• Tori Wild
• Wanda Guess