Brian’s Week in Review: August 24, 2025

Welcome to my Week in Review! Each Sunday, I like to share a quick recap for those who don’t follow along every day—and a little extra behind-the-scenes for those who do. But first, here’s a peek at my week outside of stamping…

My summer has alternated between visits from Maya (the sweet labradoodle we sometimes babysit) and Mom (the wonderful lady who raised me). Yesterday was a BIG DAY—both Maya and Mom arrived for a week-long visit! I didn’t grab a picture of Mom (she had just driven 2-½ hours and would have swatted the phone out of my hand), but I successfully convinced Maya to pose:

It’s been a busy work week, too. On Tuesday, I spent time with Katie, the Managing Director of Dad’s Garage Theater, working through financial data in preparation for an upcoming board meeting. I’ve only been retired for five months, but it was rewarding to draw on my accounting experience in a meaningful way.

With catalogs mailed to customers and the latest Super-Awesome Fun Time Card Kits sent out, I’ve also been preparing for Product Shares and the big launch of new products.

If you haven’t yet checked out my Product Shares offering, click on the image below to sign up and pay today:

Enough about my electrifying week – let’s jump into the week in blog posts, along with some fun content that adds light to the projects you’ve seen …

Monday

Over the past several month, you might have noticed that I’m drawn to the rich pages of the Weekend Adventures Designer Series Paper, released in Stampin’ Up!’s 2025 Annual Catalog. The pages are perfect for scrapbooking your summer camping trips or making gorgeous cards that are not tied to camping. 🙂

On Monday, I took a closer look at the pages of the Weekend Adventures Designer Series Paper, shared a parade of cards I’ve made with the pages of this incredible pack of papers (including six projects) and shared six color combinations inspired by the pages of this paper.

Here’s my favorite color combination from Monday’s post (that pulls in Petal Pink, a color not found in this pack of papers):

This versatile color combination is perfect for a spooky Halloween card or a sophisticated wedding card. Love it!

If you’d like to read more about my closer look at the Weekend Adventures Designer Series Paper, CLICK HERE.

Tuesday

On Tuesday I shared a really fun card I made for a color challenge I posed to my InKing Royalty Team – Blackberry Bliss, Gorgeous Grape, Flirty Flamingo, Peach Pie and Basic Black. Here’s the card I shared:

My card was inspired by a project I made two years ago (link to that card is in Tuesday’s post), but what you didn’t know…

Bonus! This card went through several iterations while I was making it. For starters, the Blackberry Bliss was originally worked into the circle at the heart of the card – but it was covered up by the trees and sentiment that were added to my design. Here’s a look at the project on my work desk:

Do you see the Blackberry Bliss strips peeking through? 🙂 When the Blackberry Bliss stripes were covered up, I had to find another way to incorporate them – I’m grateful for that shift because I wouldn’t have arrived at the Blackberry Bliss panel without it.

Also…the card was originally made and photographed with a white base. I felt like it was missing the drama of a darker base, so I cut away and added layers. Here’s the card in its first version:

Which do you prefer? Did I do the right thing to remount this card on the darker card base?

If you want to read more about this card and see the products I used to make it, CLICK HERE.

Wednesday

Stampin’ Up! announced some big changes last week. Change is hard, but it can also be energizing and exciting. On Wednesday, I gave you a rundown of the three announcements: (1) the company’s transition to photopolymer stamps starting in November (2) the sleek new stamp and die packaging starting in November and (3) the phasing out of Stampin’ Write Markers effective immediately.

I wasn’t surprised by the phasing out of the Stampin’ Write Markers. Stampin’ Blends have become VERY popular over the past years (almost all colors are available in Stampin’ Blends). As such, my Stampin’ Write Markers (the water-based dye ink markers) have mostly sat lonely on the shelf.

To celebrate the role of Stampin’ Write Markers in our crafting joy, I shared a rundown of 6 incredible techniques we love with Stampin’ Write Markers, along with a parade of cards that showcase these techniques.

To see my parade and recap the 6 techniques, CLICK HERE.

To shop for Stampin’ Write Markers, which are now on a while-supplies-last basis, CLICK HERE.

Thursday

On Thursday I shared a sweet-and-simple card I made with the Charming Day stamp set. Not only does the simple project feature the beautiful flowers from the stamp set, but my card features two of the 2025-2027 In Colors – Cloud Cover and Secret Sea. Here’s the card I shared on Thursday:

I mounted the Cloud Cover and Secret Sea layers on a Basic Gray card base – what a combination!

If you’d like to read more about this sweet card, CLICK HERE.

Friday

On Friday I reminisced about back-to-school supplies shopping with the Just a Note Bundle. Here’s the card I shared with you on Friday:

Oh, how I love all of the elements in this super-sweet bundle! If you looked closely, then you saw that this bundle is only $37.75. What a deal! Someone told me I got a bit carried away with all of the pastel stars, but I couldn’t help myself and stand behind the peppering of stars.

To read more about my project, CLICK HERE.

Saturday

Yesterday, I shared a three-layered coneflower from the Coneflower Celebrations Bundle. Here’s the card I shared yesterday:

I blended Darling Duckling ink onto the Darling Duckling cutouts before layering them together on the card. I was happy with the flower, but it was the Everyday Skies Designer Series Paper and Perennial Postage Dies that really made me happy when this project came together.

To read more about this coneflower project, CLICK HERE.

I’m so happy to share these projects and ideas with you. I’ll have more to share next week – I hope you’ll come back every day to see what I’m sharing. ♥

Thanks for stopping by today!

Brian

On Wednesday I launched my Product Shares and Designer Series Paper Swatch Books from Stampin’ Up!’s 2025 Holiday Catalog and accompanying Online Exclusives. I’m really excited about these new goodies – and my shares are the best way for you to enjoy a sampling of all the new papers, ribbons and embellishments so you can test drive the new products. To learn more and sign up, CLICK HERE.

2025-2027 In Color Products Sale

Inks, papers, and embellishments in the 2025-2027 In Colors are 15% off all month long! Even better—all products featuring any of these five colors are included in the sale (with the exception of the Month by Month Album Retreat).

To shop the 2025–2027 In Color Sale, just click the image below:

New Last Chance Products

Stampin’ Up! has added a ton of great items to the Last Chance Products listing—many at incredible discounts!

Want to take a quick pass through all the deals and see what’s still available? Just click the image below to start shopping and saving:

Don’t miss out! These items are offered on a while-supplies-last basis – and some favorites are already selling out.