my convention trades #1

Hi all,
By the time you see this I will be on my way to Salt Lake City, leaving my family behind to man the fort while I'm off "working" (tee hee). This will be my twelfth Stampin Up! convention - I have only missed one (2005) in all the years since I became a demo. It is a fabulous experience where the energy around you fills you up and you know you would not want to miss it ever!!
Does this card look like a repeat post? Well it is not exactly like the one posted on 8-1-09. I just love the look of this "thumped" card and so I reworked the bottom half to be a bit more cheerful and casual in comparison to the more somber mood of the 8-1 version. I wanted to share this with you because of the paper-saving and postage-saving strategy I used to make this card.
Here are the materials used: Thoughts and Prayers (113252, 25.95, p 52), Sincere Saluations (115068, 23.95, p 143), Very Vanilla C/s (101650, 7.50/40 sheets, p 159), Confetti Cream (102835, 9.50/40, p 159), Bashful Blue (105120, 5.50/24, p 157), Not Quite Navy c/s (101722, 5.50/24, p 156), Not Quite Navy pad (103008, 5.95, p 156), Bashful Blue pad (105209, 5.95, p 157), Not quite Navy marker (100059, 3.25, p 156), Bashful Blue striped grosgrain ribbon (110717, 7.95/10 yds, p 182), Big Shot (113439, 99.95, p 194), Lots of Tags sizzlit set (114508, 21.95/4 dies, P 197), and Wide Oval Punch (112082, 15.95, P 186 ), Sticky Strip tape (104294, 6.95, p 192) Dimensionals (104430, 3.95, p192).
Fold the 8 1/2 x 5 1/2 confetti cream c/s in half. Ink the tree with bashful blue ink. Take the Not Quite Navy marker and gently tap the brush marker end randomly on the surface of the stamp. Actually, I made a point of drawing the edge of the brush marker down the edge of one side of the trunk to shade it and then I tapped my marker along the branch lines and a bit more at the bottom of the leaves than at the top of the tree. Give the stamp a huff of breath and then stamp it on a piece of 3 1/2 x 2 1/2 very vanilla c/s. Ink up the word stamp with Not Quite Navy ink and stamp the words in the middle of the 3 3/4 x 2 3/4 piece of bashful blue c/s. Use the wide oval punch upside down so you can see the image and position the words in the opening, punch out the stamped words BUT save the outer piece of Bashful Blue c/s as it is the layer that goes under the stamped tree. Take the 3 x 4 piece of Not Quite Navy c/s and lay the Lots of Tags sizzlit right in the center of the c/s. Run it through the Big Shot. Again, save the outer piece of c/s as this is the bottom layer of the tree set. By cutting out the unseen centers of these two layers, you are being economical with your cardstock and are saving a bit of weight when the postage is calculated. Attach the layered set (tree, bashful blue, not quite navy) about 1/4" from the top of the card front. Use Sticky strip tape across the card base about 1 1/4" from the bottom of the card front edge. Attach a piece of Bashful blue striped grosgrain ribbon on the sticky strip. Layer the stamped words oval onto the Lots of Tags medallion. Attach that set to the card front using dimensionsals - be sure to place the dimensionals at the top and bottom of the back of the medallion so that they stick the medallion set to the card front - not to the ribbon. Viola'!! Hope you love it. Remember, your posted comment gets you entered into a drawing for my blog candy.
Peggy