CHRISTMAS IS COMING EARLY

It's only November, but Stampin' Up! is giving you an early Christmas present: a FREE Festive Paper-Piercing Pack when you buy the Ornament Keepsakes Stamp Set and Candlelight Christmas Specialty Designer Series Paper Bundle*. 

Choose from the following options:

Item	Description	Retail Value	Special Price
132260	Christmas Gift Pack (wood-mount) Includes Ornament Keepsakes Set (wood-mount), Candlelight Christmas Specialty Designer Series Paper, Festive Paper-Piercing Pack	$96.85	$82.90
132261	Christmas Gift Pack (clear-mount) Includes Ornament Keepsakes Set (clear-mount), Candlelight Christmas Specialty Designer Series Paper, Festive Paper-Piercing Pack	$84.85	$70.90
132262	Christmas Gift Pack (wood-mount bundle) Includes Ornament Keepsakes Bundle (wood-mount), Candlelight Christmas Specialty Designer Series Paper, and Festive Paper-Piercing Pack	$123.85	$109.90
132263	Christmas Gift Pack (clear-mount bundle) Includes Ornament Keepsakes Bundle (clear-mount), Candlelight Christmas Specialty Designer Series Paper, and Festive Paper-Piercing Pack	$113.85	$99.90

* This special offer is valid till November 30th. 

GRANDAD'S 90TH BIRTHDAY CARD

Greg's Dad turned 90 last week, which is an amazing age to reach and I wanted to make a special card. We decided we didn't want to put 90 candles on a cake so I found this fabulous card where the creator had put 90 candles on the card, so our problem was solved.

Here's a closer look

and this is the box that I made for the card to go in.

 

Joe was very pleased with his card and even more grateful that he didn't have to blow out 90 candles :) Finally, here is a photo of him with his three boys.

 Happy Birthday Joe and Happy Stamping Everyone!

2012 RETIREMENT LIST IS HERE

It's time to say goodbye to some of your favourite Stampin' Up! products.

Check your wish lists and make sure that none of your must have items is on this year's Stamps Retirement List and access the retired accessories list here


Contact me to place your order now ... once these products are gone they will be gone forever.

SIMPLY SCORED DIAGONAL PLATE

Create perfect envelopes, boxes and more quickly and easily using the Stampin' Up! Simply Scored Diagonal Plate.

Features:

• Sits on top of the Simply Scored base*
• Held securely in place by rubber pads on the back of the plate
• Has etched grooves every 1/8" (3.2 mm)
• Can score any size card stock up to 12" x 12" (30.5 x 30.5 cm)
• Includes instructions for creating common envelope sizes

Item	Description	Price
125586	Simply Scored Diagonal Plate	$20.95

 127531   Simply Scored Metric Scoring Plate            $20.95

*Simply Scoring Tool $49.95

BTW did I mention that the Simply Scored Diagonal Plate and the Simply Scored Metric Scoring Plate both fit the Marta Stewart Scoring Tool. To order any of our Simply Scored Scoring Tools, contact me today.

MY CRAFT ROOM MAKEOVER

Hello Everyone

There's been a lot happening here over the last few months with unwell parents needing assistance, a 21st birthday party and Convention, a retreat and weekends away so consequently I haven't had much time to create. However even though I haven't been creating I have been updating my craft room. I needed more storage so I sold the futon that wasn't used all that much and here is how my craft space looks now.

The first photo shows how my work desk looks and this is the same space that I created back in 2010, so no changes here.The only new addition is the little ottoman beside the desk as I needed something to put my Paris cushion on :)

This wall is where the futon used to sit and it is now a work station for my Big Shot and Cricut. The wall was a hot pink colour it is now painted a lovely, soft gelato pink, so much prettier. The cupboards are Ikea Fakum kitchen cupboards with an Ikea Vika Amon tabletop and the bookcases are from the Ikea Billy range. They hold so many stamp sets and magazines and there are plenty of unsightly looking items in the cupboards :) The work station is higher than my desk, making it much easier to use my die cutting machines and a lot easier on my back.

This is my Ikea Expedite and it was also put together back in 2010 so not much difference here either apart from the fact that all my card is now sitting in one spot (way too much card sitting on these shelves) as are my punches, chipboard, ribbons and 12x12 papers plus a few other bits ... these are hidden as well.

Okay so my room looks fabulous and I love it; it's wonderful to have everything in one spot and I hope that I can remember where I have put it all .... now I just need my mojo back so that I can create again.

REASON TO SMILE

Hello Everyone


Well I'm just back from Stampin' Up! convention and at the moment without my PC so I'm typing this on my little netbook which is not quite as fast as I am used to.


Convention was just fabulous and I had a ball catching up with friends and getting lots of sneak peaks at what's ahead in the world of Stampin' Up! and doing a bit of swapping. Just a great few days with the girls. 


Stampin' Up! have a new special for the month of June and here it is:

Need a reason to smile? Stampin' Up!'s got it during June with a brand-new stamp set!

You'll smile during June with the exclusive Reason to Smile set-only available during this special offer! Get it in two different ways:

1. Get it for FREE with a $125 purchase!*
2. Purchase it at the regular retail price-no additional purchase necessary!

Description	Wood-Mount Item	Wood-Mount Price	Clear-Mount Item	Clear-Mount Price
Reason to Smile Set	130826	$35.95	130828	$28.95

*Only one free set per customer

For those of you who love flower stamps sets, this is one you will want to add to your collection. All you have to do is place an order to the value of $125.00 with me during June to earn your free stamp set of this fabulous stamp set.

Cheers and Happy Stampin'

WEDDING CARD FOR KRIS'S DAD

Last Saturday, Kris's Dad got married to the lovely Trish ... hahaha ... not me, different Trish. Kristii asked me to make a card for them and here's the finished product.

I wanted a white on white theme and I have to say it's not a Trish Original but lovingly cased from Michelle at The Card Grotto, I love the simplicity of Michelle's card and it is exactly what I had in mind. Mine is ever so slightly different as I wanted to add a touch of gold to go with the wedding theme. Unfortunately I'm not a heart person but luckily my good friend Sue came to my rescue with the Concentric Hearts from Cuttlebug as that was the main focus of the card.

There is some Stampin' Up! product on this card ... firstly the Gold Cord which retired some years ago and I wish I had bought more ... I loved those metallic threads ... and lastly the bling in the centre of the rolled rose which is a little hard to see!  Don't you just love white on white embossed card .... sooooo gorgeous!

Congratulations to Paul (Kris's Dad ... not her hubby :) ) and to Trish, I hope you have a long and happy marriage.

IT'S A PAPER PARTY

It's a Paper Party during the month of May! All you have to do is to purchase three packs of Designer Series Paper and you can then choose a fourth pack for FREE  (this offer does not include the Designer Series 'Specialty' Paper).

Contact me to place your order to day.

But wait that's not all!

Join Stampin' Up! in your way . . . with our completely customizable Starter Kit for just $169!

Build your own personal kit by picking $235 worth of any of our high-quality products. We'll add in a business supplies pack valued at $80 (to help you get your business up and running) and you've got a customisable kit valued at up to $315! It's that easy.

But wait there's still more ...

Get a FREE package of Designer Series Paper (excluding Specialty Designer Series Paper) every month from June 1st through until 31st December 2012 when you join Stampin' Up! as a demonstrator during May!

It's easy to join online .... just click HERE and click on the JOIN NOW button.

PHOTO'S OF CHELSEA'S 21ST PARTY

Hello Everyone

Here are some photos from Chelsea's Party. Enjoy.

Decorations that Sue, Kerrie, Chelsea and I made ... 45 Pom Poms.

Looking gorgeous at night.

The Lolly Bar

My fabulous cake I made!

Cutting the Cake.

 

Our Family

STAMP CLUB THANK YOU GIFT

Over the last 6-7 months I have been running a Stamp/Hostess Club. March was the last month of the club and I wanted to share a photo of the Thank You gifts that I made for all the girls who participated.

I found these cute little photo frames in Ikea and wanted to turn into a special keepsake gift for the girls. The rest of the product is all Stampin' Up!

Papers are from the DSP range Mocha Morning. Card stock is Early Espresso, Soft Suede and Whisper White. I used Wild Wasabi card and the Little Leaves and Swirls Scribbles Sizzlits  to cut the leaves and swirls. The flowers were cut from First Edition DSP and I used the Fun Flowers Bigz Die to cut them out. I also sponged the flowers with Early Espresso ink and spritzed them with Gold Glow Smooch Spritz.

I then typed my own greeting ( Life is nothing without friendship ... found somewhere over the net) using RGB colours to create it in Stampin' Up! Soft Suede and then embossed it with the Designer Frames Embossing Folder and cut it out using an Oval Nestability set. I have also used the new Labels Collection Framelits Die to cut out the Early Espresso card behind the greeting and then embossed it with the Square Latice Embossing Folder. The border was punched using the Lace Ribbon Border Punch and Soft Suede Card.

Now you really can't see it in the photo but the Soft Suede card to the right of the frame was also embossed with Stripes Embossing Folder. Finally to finish it off, I tied a bow with the Soft Suede 1.1/4" Striped Grosgrain Ribbon attached the flower with glue dots and placed a few Basic Jewel Pearls here and there.

Thank you again to all the ladies who joined in over all those months, I hope that you had lots of fun along the way and that maybe you will be happy to join in again later in the year when the new catty is released.

APOTHECARY ART

Here's another card that I made using the Apothecary Art stamp set.

This is such an elegant stamp set and I love the Labels Collection Framelits that cut the images out so perfectly. I've used some of the new Blushing Bride Satin Pleated Ribbon under the greeting and also a strip of the Basic Black Striped Grosgrain. The completed image has been mounted on to a piece of Whisper White card which I embossed using the Framed Tulips Embossing Folder. This was then layered onto a piece of Basic Black card and then finally Blushing Bride Cardstock.


If you like the above sample and would love to create something similar, then email me to place your order.

Happy Stamping

21st Card and Album

Hi Everyone

I have been busy these last few months creating a scrapbook album for my daughter Chelsea's 21st birthday. Yesterday was the big day so now I can share what I made for her.

Firstly here is the album cover:

and here is the 21st card I made for her:

 

and here is a photo of her presents waiting for her to wake up ... can you notice the theme happening here:

and here she is after the grand opening was over:

and here Chelsea is all dressed up:

and here is Chel and her bonfire birthday cake with 21 candles on it :)

and finally savouring her glass of Chandon at The Thai Orchid Restaurant for her birthday dinner.

Happy Birthday Chella Bella ... all grown up now.

WELCOME TO THE NEW AUTUMN/WINTER MINI CATALOGUE

Well Sale-a-bration has come to an end and even tho that is a little sad, we have a brand new mini to kick start April and it will run through until the end of July. You can view the mini online by clicking here.

As a demonstrator, we have the privilege of being able to order products before they are released which has given me a little time to make a couple of samples which I will share with you now and which I also shared at my Mini Launch yesterday; thank you to all the ladies who came along for the fun filled afternoon.

This first one is a delicate and feminine Happy Birthday card. I have used the Twitterpated Designer Series Paper together with the Apothecary Art stamp set and the greeting is from the Hostess Set Happiest Birthday Wishes. The ribbon is Baja Breeze Seam Binding ribbon and the flowers were made used the Boho Blossom and Itty Bitty Shapes Punch Pack. The leaf is from the Bird Builder punch. The stamped image from Apothecary Art was framed using the Labels Collection Framelits and the cute little button is from the Twitterpated Designer buttons. I think you are all going to love the Twitterpated Product Suite.

Now this next card was created using the  Mixed Bunch stamp set and the new Blossom Punch.

This card is a clean and simple thank you card. The colours I used were Whisper White, Pool Party and Island Indigo. The Seam Binding Ribbon is Pool Party, a brand new colour in the seam binding range and the embossed hearts strip is from the new Adorning Accents, Textured Impressions Embossing Folders. I have also used the Modern Label punch to punch out the Thank You which is from the Curly Cute stamp set.

BTW there are several items that will be carrying over from the Summer Mini and you can view them by clicking HERE.

If you love anything that you have seen above and would like to purchase, please email me.

Happy Stampin!

PUNCH PIZAZZ

Hello Everyone

I've been having a play with my punches and here's a nice soft feminine card that I have created. 

The frame was created using the using the Scallop Trim Border and Corner punches. You can find a great tutorial on how to use the SU Corner and Border punches HERE by Gretchen Barron, a demonstrator in the US. You can create both rectangles and squares using these punches. After I created the frame, I then used a Spellbinders Die to cut away the centre. You could easily do this with a craft knife and a metal ruler also.

The Five Petal Flower, ¾” and ½” Circle punches were used to create the two toned pink flower and then each layer was run through the Square Lattice embossing folder. I used the Perfect Polka Dots embossing folder on the white card behind the frame.

The leaves were created with the Swirls and Scribbles Sizzlet die and also the leaf from the Bird Builder punch. Colours used were Certainly Celery and Old Olive. The greeting is from Oval All and I used the large Oval and Scallop Oval punches.

Cardstock and inks used were Blushing Bride and Pink Pirouette and also I sprayed the flower with some Frost White Shimmer Paint which was mixed with Isocol to give it that lovely shimmery look. Finally the ribbon … a double bow using Whisper White Organza!

Enjoy and if you have any questions, then just email me.

Happy Creating!