Goldcats Stamping Heaven

Sale-a-Bration 2012 is here

2012-01-24T17:13:00.006Z

Stampin' Up's annual Sale-a-Bration event begins today. Here's how you can earn exclusive freebies for the next 2 months. These stamp sets and papers are not available for purchase but you can earn them in the following ways:

As a customer

Place an order with me between now and the 31st March and for each £45 you spend (before P&P) you can choose a free stamp set (there are 4 lovely sets to chose from) or a pack of Everyday Enchantment Designer papers. There's no limit to how many sets you can earn just spend £45 for each one required.

As a Hostess

If you host a home workshop/party and your party total reaches £300 you will earn a free set of your choice.

As a new Demonstrator

If you are considering joining Stampin' Up as a demonstrator and you decide to join up before 31st March 2012 you can choose a stamp set of ANY VALUE from the main Idea Book and Catalogue as an added bonus. The starter kit is already at a great discounted price but this Sale-a-Bration offer makes it a truly fantastic time to join the growing Stampin' Up family. If you would like more information about joining my Stampers with Style team please feel free to contact me for a no-obligation informal chat.

I will be back later with some samples made with the Sale-a-Bration exclusive stamps

2012 A new Start

2012-01-17T22:04:00.004Z

Hi there Peeps

I know I have been missing for such a long time, thanks to all of you who still visit in the hope that I will eventually get back into my blogging. I can only say I will be trying to update my blog at least once a week and start sharing my projects with you once again

Just before Christmas we lost our old Persian cat Zoe and it was devastating after having her share our lives for some 14 and half years. Our remaining Siamese cat Sapphire was also feeling the loss quite badly, so with that in mind we have been back to Sapphire's breeder. We really wanted a pair of kittens and are delighted that she was able to accomodate our needs. We are now the extremely proud owners of Mr Darcy and Lady Eleanor and they are settling in very nicely. Our Sapphire was horrified by these little whirlwinds to start with but the past few days has seen her allowing the smaller one, Darcy to curl up behind her in the conservatory (even though she still hisses and her language leaves a lot to be desired he just carries on in his determination to make her his friend) I think it will take longer for Eleanor and Sapphire to make friends as Eleanor is quite a feisty madam and swears back when Sapphire forgets her manners and Sapphire really doesn't quite know what to make of that ! ! !

For the first week I didn't even manage to get into my craftroom most days as there was just too much in there for them to be trusted and too many dangers (I had sooooooo forgotten that new kittens are just like having toddlers in the house and that they have no sense of danger) However I made a decision last week that I simply had to get back to work so I had to let them come in with me as I cannot leave them alone with Sapphire as yet. I have to say on the whole they have been brilliant and so long as I have my heaters on full blast and the sun is shining they are content to simply sunbath and sleep. I now have various pussy cat blankets across all my chairs and all three of them get up there and stay put for hours. Darcy has even taken to braving Sapphires wrath to go and curl up with her. She growls and swears at him but he carries on regardless and then she just turns her back on him and allows him to curl up behind her. They then stay there for an hour or so................peace reigns in my craft room.

I have actually spent the last few days preparing a few classes for the next 3 weeks or so and that is no mean feat with the added distraction of these cute little balls of love in here, especially when they do wake up and are into everything............I have so far avoided the inked little paw pads but I am sure it will happen soon and I will no doubt share their artwork with you lol
Anyway they will be needing feeding and then off to bed shortly so I will just leave you with a few images of them and Sapphire for now and be back tomorrow with some actual crafting with a bit of luck

Stampin' Up Convention 2011 Disneyland Paris

2011-11-22T17:55:00.004Z

Hi there

I am now back home from my 3rd Stampin' Up European Convention. As I told you in my previous post, this year's Convention venue was Disneyland, Paris and I have to say I am sooooo glad I went. I have never been to Disneyland and it was a lovely experience, well worth a visit. I will hopefully return there on a family trip in the future

Stampin' Up Convention is always an amazing experience and this year was made even more magical for me as I achieved placement in the top 25 of demonstrators from the UK. I had absolutely no idea that I was going to win an award until I collected my Convention bag at registration and received my Demonstrator of the Year pin which is awarded to all 25 demonstrators in the category. I was placed at no 20 and couldn't be more thrilled. As my regular ladies and my downline know this is really a massive achievement for me personally.

I don't think I came back down to earth thoughout our whole 4 days in Paris and Stampin' Up have told us about so many new things coming our way in 2011/2012 that I am still on cloud nine. I am going to be working on lots of new ideas over the coming months and cannot wait to share it all with you.

Right now would be a perfect time to join me and my team in this amazing Stampin' Up adventure. Sign up right now as a Stampin' Up demonstrator and learn all about the new and exciting things coming to our European markets ahead of everyone else. If you are interested please contact me for a no obligation chat.

I will leave you with a picture of the stage showing the theme of this year's event, one I hope I can be part of as I continue to "GROW" my little team.

Off toStampin' Up! Convention Disneyland, Paris

2011-11-16T06:27:00.004Z

Just a quickie post today to say I am on my way to this year's Stampin' Up! Convention. I am off to my lovely uplines today and then we fly to Disneyland tomorrow. Swaps are all done, roomie gifts completed and bags all packed.

Looking forward to this annual gathering of craft mad Stampin' Up demonstrators from Germany, France and UK. I will be back with lots of pictures next week.

For now here are piccies of my roomie gifts

Everything Eleanor

2011-11-09T20:37:00.006Z

Hi there

I cannot believe it is yet again over 2 weeks since I last posted. I have the best intentions in the world for updating my blog regularly but life seems to be making a habit of getting in the way lately and I don't manage to get on here as often as I would like. The card and gift bag that I am sharing with you today are from this week's Everything Eleanor class. Two of my ladies attended the class on Monday evening and hopefully another 6 ladies will be joining me tomorrow to make theirs. My card sample is stamped using Soft Suede ink but my class ladies will be gold embossing the swirls so the cards will be even more elegant looking.

This will be my last Thursday class for a fortnight as I will be away next week at our annual Stampin' Up Convention. This will be my 3rd Convention and the venue this year is Disneyland, Paris. I have always wanted to go to Disneyland and cannot believe that I will be there in just over a weeks time. I will travel to my lovely upline's next Wednesday and then onto Paris on Thursday to meet with others in our team and in time for Convention commencing on Friday morning bright and early. As we are flying I have had to limit the number of swaps due to baggage allowances but I have made all of my general swaps and also some small roomie gifts for the other girls in our team. I just need to print my recipe sheets for my swaps and my nephew is helping me bag them all and then package the roomie gifts and I am done. (of course that is so long as I do not decide to make more general swaps as I do really enjoy the swapping element to our Stampin' Up events)

Anyway I hope you like this week's class as much as I enjoyed creating it. I have to say the Everything Eleanor stamp set was my ultimate first choice in the 2011-2012 new catalogue and I adore using it.

Stampin' Up! Old and New Mum's 70th Birthday

2011-10-20T09:09:00.003+01:00

Hi there

I am back today as promised to share with you my Mum's 70th Birthday card. I did feel it needed a tiny tweek after I had taken the photograph so using my SU Timeless Type Alphabet I die cut a "70" in Pink Pirouette and added it to the top right-hand corner. The design layout is not my own, I will have seen it somewhere on the internet and made a little sketch of it in my ideas/ inspiration book that travels everywhere with me.

The "old" of the card is some retired Stampin Up paper that I have had for about 3 years and not brought myself to use until now (come on ladies you know you all have papers stashed away that are for stroking not using) and the "new" is the oooohhhh soooooo gorgeous Antique Brads, Victoria crochet trim and my favourite stamp set from the whole new catalogue Everything Eleanor. The minute I saw all of these items in the new catalogue I knew I would simply HAVE to have them ALL. The part that is really staggering is that I have had these things for less than a fortnight and I have USED some already. Mind you who can be more special than your Mum to use precious things from your stash on ?

Anyway my Mum loved the card, the surprise meal with all the family present and she was also thrilled with the Kindle we all got for her. I get my love of reading from my Mum and knowing how much I have become addicted to my own Kindle which was a present a few months ago, I just knew it would be the perfect present for her. We have put a few books on it to get her going and I cannot wait to see how she gets on with it. We also got her a gorgeous Hot Pink cover for it so she won't lose it hee hee

Anyway off now to prep for my afternoon class. Hopefully I will be back to tomorrow to share a couple of samples from my launch party display.

New Catalogue

2011-10-19T09:06:00.005+01:00

So sorry I have not been around and haven't updated my blog for such a long time. I am now back and hopefully will keep to my new resolution of updating at least twice a week from here on in. Whilst I have been away Stampin' Up have released the new catalogue and it is stuffed full of new stamp sets and new accessories including antique brads, mini brads, massive range of new ribbons oooh and last but not least FABRIC ! ! ! (how wonderful is it that we can now add fabric to our papercrafting creations) To view the New Catalogue on-line please click on the picture on the side bar

My launch party was a huge success and thank you to each and every one of you who made it that way. Special thanks to my downline Jean for travelling down from the lakes to stay over and for her's and Hilda's help with the refreshments. And I must not forget to say a big thank you to Jenny down the lane for providing beautiful cakes once again. Congratulations to winners of my main raffle and huge Congratulations to Barbara for winning on the Big Shot draw, hope you thoroughly enjoy your prize and it leads you on a new creative path.

I did make lots of new samples for the launch day so will try to find some time this week to take pictures and share those ideas with you.

It is my lovely Mum's 70th Birthday today so we are off out this evening and I'm really busy with bits and bobs for that. I also have a class this morning so feeling a little rushed although I will be far more settled once this evening has gone off successfully. I will share her birthday card with you tomorrow.

I currently have a couple of places free for my new Stampers 10 group so if you have a wish list as long as your arm and would like to spread the cost over 10 months and earn amazing freebies along the way then please do not hesitate to contact me for more information.

New Catalogue Launch Party

2011-09-23T09:35:00.005+01:00

Hi there

Sorry for the lack of blog posts. I have been away on holiday, back to my home tome of Poole in Dorset. We had a lovely relaxing break spending time with family and I also managed to attend Jenny's team training day and craft with other Stampin Up addicts from our team ( always so inspiring)

I am now back home and working on samples for my New Catalogue Launch Party which takes place on Friday 7th October. There will be free Make and Take projects for you to play with some of the new products from the 2011/2012 Catalogue and also the option for you to create your own ink colour sampler featuring all 48 Stampin Up colours. There will be heaps of all new samples for you to browse, light refreshments, gifts and a prize raffle (you will need to bring your raffle ticket that was enclosed your invitation to enter)

I am having 2 drop-in sessions 1pm-3pm OR 6pm-9pm. I have posted out the invitations for all of those currently in my Stampers 6 and 10 Groups or on my mailing list. If you do not receive your invite within the next few days and would like to attend please let me know which session you would like to attend. I need to know asap in order to set aside a raffle ticket for you and to create the make and take packs you will require for the projects.

Here are the invitations that are winging their way out to everyone. The flower image is one from a brand new 2-step stamping hostess set ( I love these type of stamps as you can use them for 2-step technique or you can simply colour the outline image in as I have done) This particular stamp set is stunning and I just know I will be using it a lot this year. The card also features the brand new Lace Ribbon Border punch which is beautiful. I have simply layered the punched strip onto a piece of matching cardstock but you can also thread ribbon through which looks amazing.

Anyway must dash as I have 101 things to do this morning and need to clock off by lunchtime today as I need to go out with hubby this afternoon.

Stampin Up Baby Blossoms and Buttons

2011-08-31T10:56:00.004+01:00

Hi there

The picture today is my Baby Blossoms and Buttons class. My ladies made three cards using the ooh so lovely Baby Blossoms stamp set and Vintage Suite buttons from the current Stampin' Up Mini catalogue. I used Not Quite Navy, Rose Red and Pear Pizzazz for all of the flower displays and these cards showcase how you can use repeat stamping to achieve a whole array of shades from each single ink pad. Just stamp off the first image onto scrap paper and then onto your project without re-inking for a beautiful pale effect. In the class we also ruffled the Seam Binding and everyone loved the look of the finished ribbons.

The mini catalogue expires on 30th September so you have one more month in which to order from it. There is no guarantee that items from this mini catalogue will have made it through to the new main catalogue which goes live on 1st October so if there are stamp sets or accessories that are "must haves" then you need to order them within the next month.

In addition tomorrow heralds the day that Stampin' Up releases our 2011 Retirement List so all items on this list will only be available "whilst stocks last" so you will need to order any of those items as briskly as possible too. I do still have a few items on my personal wish list from the current catalogue so I will be anxiously checking the Retirement List myself. Even though I am sure a few of my favourite stamp sets will be retiring and that will be sad, we need to make room for lots of new goodies so I cannot wait to see what Stampin' Up! will bring us this year.

I will be ordering my boxes of the new Idea Book and Catalogue tonight so please email me if you wish to reserve your copy . (If you are in my Stampers 6 or Stampers 10 Clubs your catalogue is a complimentary one) Check back tomorrow for a link to the Retirement List

Last 2 Classes

2011-08-22T14:02:00.005+01:00

Hi there

For today I am sharing pictures of my last two classes with you. The Circle Circus set was such a lovely relaxed class and every one of my ladies has now looked at this stamp set in a different light. The colours I chose for the actual class were Baja Breeze, River Rock and Basic Black but I did make an additional sample set using Pink Pirouette and Sahara Sand with the Basic Black and it looked so different in those colours. There is hardly any cutting out with this stamp set as it matches lots of our circle punches perfectly and the card wallet uses just one sheet of A4 cardstock.

The other class was far more intense as I gave my ladies 4 cards to make and a couple of them were more intricate. This was a totally non-traditional Christmas Class as I used Melon Mambo, Crumb Cake and Soft Suede as the colour combination. My ladies loved the use of very different colours and a few of them will be making some of their own cards in the same colours this year as a result. I used a mix of stamps including Dasher, Tree Trimmings, Medallion and Season Of Joy

If you are a group of ladies who like the look of this class then please do not hesitate to contact me to arrange a convenient date for your individual class

Stampin' Up Christmas Day Event

2011-08-12T09:05:00.004+01:00

Today I am sharing with you the projects from my August All Day Christmas event.

I have a second group of ladies joining me for this event today and I know they will love these projects. Sadly two of my ladies are unable to come today as planned due to unforseen circumstances and they will be sorely missed. So Sandra and Vanessa I wanted you both to know am thinking of you today and I hope you both enjoy your project packs and gifts that are on their way to you

For this event I chose to use one set of colours and Designer paper throughout for that totally co-ordinated look that showcases Stampin' Up! at it's very best. The colours are Cherry Cobbler, Old Olive and Very Vanilla and this has been teamed up with Jolly Holiday Designer series papers. I have even matched the table gifts and spot prizes to this colour combination and Christmas theme so hopefully my ladies will be happy bunnies.

If you like the look of this event and would like to join me for a repeat of these projects please get in touch as I do have other ladies who would like to make this set. In addition, if you are a group of ladies who would like me to bring this event to your group venue then please also contact me for more details and to arrange a suitable date.

Vintage Vogue August Class

2011-08-05T01:19:00.003+01:00

Hi there

I thought I would share this Thursday class with you even though it is soooooooo late and I should really be in bed. Occasionally my regular Thursday ladies do like to do a nice and simple class which gives them a chance to have a bit of a chat as well as the crafting and today was one such class. We used one of my favorite sets Vintage Vogue and although it has been around for quite a while it is still ALWAYS popular when I give it an airing (and the majority of my ladies do own this set) I decided to go with quite an unusual colour choice for me and that was Daffodil Delight and Pumpkin Pie for the flowers with Old Olive for the leaves. We used the Rock and Roll technique to colour the flowers and everyone loved this way of making every stamped flower look so different. As always we had a fun class both this afternoon and this evening and I cannot wait until next week when I am having my first Christmas All Day sessions with my regulars.

If you like the look of this Vintage Vogue class and would like to make it for yourself please do not hesitate to give me a call to see if we can organise a repeat class for you and your friends. I am currently looking at the possibility of holding an additional sessions of my regular weekly class and this would take place on either a Monday morning or Monday evening. Please contact me if you would like to be part of this new group of ladies or if you would like to join my existing Thursday afternoon class (sorry no spaces on the Thursday evening class at present)

August Offer from Stampin' Up!

2011-08-01T08:50:00.003+01:00

Today is the day we start our new special offer from Stampin' Up.

For the month of August every customer placing a £75 order and every hostess with sales over £250 will earn a gorgeous free products pack from Stampin' Up! This selection will include wide striped ribbon in Rich Razzleberry, a 24 piece clips selection and an exclusive Stampin' Up cosmetic bag (and this item only available with this offer and not in the catalogue)

If you have been planning on placing an order with me why not see if you can qualify for these extra freebies and if you are considering a home workshop why not get it booked with me for this month and reap the reward of this offer in addition to the already generous hostess benefits.

Email or call me today !

Latest Classes

2011-07-16T22:10:00.003+01:00

Hi there

The pictures I am sharing with you today are from my latest 2 classes. This month I moved away from the blues and brights colours and went with very feminine Pinks, Purples and Green.

The first class was using the ever lovely Fast and Fabulous Level 2 Hostess set and we made three cards. I coloured our Stampin' Up Basic Pearls using Frost White Shimmer paint and Regal Rose re-inker and this created pearls to match the cardstock and ink in the card designs.The 2nd class was using the Nature Walk and Fresh Cuts stamp sets. In this class we made a card, gift bag and bookmark. If you would like to have a go at either of these classes please email me for details of a repeat class.

I am currently working on my next All Day event which is with a Christmas Theme. I have already filled two dates and there will be two Saturday over-flow dates in August available. Please email me asap if you wish to take part as I need to place an order this week for the correct amount of supplies. There will be a minimum of 5 projects, a raffle, table gifts and lunch is provided.

Earl's Birthday

2011-07-03T12:42:00.002+01:00

As you all know I usually am 100% Stampin' Up! in my crafting supplies. However today I am sharing something different with you as I needed to make this birthday card and gift-wallet for a 60th Birthday gift for one of my friends husbands. I wanted to use my little Border Terrier stamp as Earl and Glynis have a pair of these lovely dogs and I know Earl will love it.

I made the card first and then made a large wallet to hold a brochure and gift card for our local gym which is a joint present from my family. Well must dash now I have completed these and now need to get ready to go to the actual party.

3-D Christmas Frame

2011-06-29T20:21:00.003+01:00

Hi there

Today I am sharing with you my latest Christmas Class project. This class is not my own design, it comes as a complete copy of the frame I received as a gift from my lovely upline Jenny at last years Stampin' Up! Convention in London.

Jenny kindly agreed for me to case her idea and use it as my Christmas class for this month as all my ladies loved the original which was done in various shades of green. I wanted to show how different it could look just by changing the colour so I went with various shades of blue for this sample. Every one of my regular class ladies have signed up for this class so if you too would like to join them please get in touch.

New Craftroom helper

2011-06-21T18:57:00.003+01:00

Introducing my new craft room assistant...............Sapphire

I set my table up this afternoon to take pictures for my Cottage Garden class notes and once I had done the first lot I moved over to my computer area to upload them and check they were okay. I was busy typing up the notes when I looked back over to the photo set there was Sapphire sat on the white cloth along with the cards and wallet. She had flicked a scrunched up piece of card onto the cloth and was sat there looking at me as though she expected me to take more pictures. Needless to say I couldn't resist as she did look very lovely so here is my little class addition

Father's Day

2011-06-19T10:54:00.004+01:00

Today I am sharing with you the card I made for Father's Day for both of the very special men whom Gordon and I are proud to call Dad.

I decided that I wanted to use a nature style images for this year as my Father in Law works hard in his garden and it always looks amazing and my own Mum and Dad are currently having their garden landscaped and I just know their garden will soon mean a lot to them too.

I have always loved the Lovely as a Tree stamp set (in fact it is one of those sets that I bought before I was even a demonstrator) and I tend to use it a lot for male themed cards. I do have to admit that I tended to only use the row of trees image or the Christmas Tree one but this past few months I have begun to use the oak tree and leaves images too. I think I avoided those images in the past because I wasn't confident about my colouring abilities, however once I discovered the blender pen and ink pad technique I realised that even I can create a nice colouring effect with a bit of practice.

Well I hope they both enjoy their cards, I am now off to work on some ideas for my July classes

Afternoon Tea anyone ?

2011-06-07T08:36:00.004+01:00

On Sunday afternoon I attended a wonderful craft event over in Hebden Bridge, thank you Sue for the invite. I met some lovely people so thanks to all of you who stopped by for a chat. (If you are reading this Elaine I will be in touch early next week)

I made this cake to take with me and I have to say that most of the ladies agreed with me that it was the best sort....no calories but still pretty ! My cake may not have the calories but it does have some hidden extras. Inside each slice is a ticket with details of an extra special free gift if you book a party with me during the months of June or July. This is a gift from me and is in addition to the already generous freebies you can achieve from Stampin' Up! As detailed in my previous post, during June and July you can earn a massive £20 of extra benefits if your party total reached £250 or more.

If you would like to host a fun workshop/party with your friends then please do not hesitate to contact me and make the most of the offers currently available.

Fantastic Stampin' Up offer for June

2011-06-01T23:56:00.003+01:00

What a fantastic offer from Stampin' Up. See the flier HERE
Book a workshop anytime this month and if your sales total reaches £250 you will get to chose a free Level One stamp set and £45 of free product of your choice (this is a massive £20 extra for each qualifying workshop through June) Don't have time for a workshop evening ? you can always host your own virtual party, just put together an order for yourself and /or friends and send it to me. So long as you reach the qualifying figure, you too will earn the extra £20 of freebies.

Vintage Christmas

2011-05-28T11:36:00.003+01:00

Hi there

Happy Bank Holiday weekend to you all.

Today I am sharing with you my Vintage Christmas gift box and card which was my class on Thursday. My ladies really liked this one and even those who don't usually like sponging/distressing liked the effect it created on this particular project and they also loved the Early Expresso and Cherry Cobbler combination. At my suggestion some ladies just added the sticky strip to the areas needed for putting the box and lid together but didn't actually remove the backing so the whole thing can be easily stored flat until Christmas when they will be ready to use it. This will work really well if you want to make a few of them and don't have an enormous storage area in your craft space.

The next Christmas class is a wooden shadow box picture and the class is on Thur 30th June. If you are interested in taking part in this class on that date or an alternative date please do get in touch as you will need to book your place in order for me to get your frame.

Gift Boxes

2011-05-24T19:37:00.003+01:00

Hi there

Today I thought I would share one of the items I made for my recent church fete.

I had these papier mache boxes left over when I did the Clock and Gift Box class last year and have been meaning to do something with them ever since. When I decided that I WAS doing the fete I spent a day making up a couple of clocks and the rest of the time decorating these gift boxes. I used a different decorative paper and cardstock on each and did the stamped tag and flowers to match. Thanks must go to my downline Sheila who worked with me to get them all done in time.

I have had a couple of my ladies express an interest in my repeating the clock class as they didn't get to attend the class last time around so who knows if I do get enough interested parties for a full day class it may well convince me to offer it out. If you are interested please get in touch.

Challenge for May

2011-05-19T10:58:00.005+01:00

As you know my upline Jenny offers up a challenge each month to all of us in her team. We don't have any pressure to play along but a growing number of us ARE joining in each month and I think it is a brilliant way to get us thinking creatively.

Some months Jenny's challenges have us all scratching our heads to come up with a card that fits the bill and other months it comes to me immediately. This month Jenny set us the task of doing a card with a different fold than a usual run of the mill opening. I had no hesitation in the fold I chose to do and it was lovely to re-visit one that I haven't even thought about for a year or so. I also wanted to use my new Wedding Wheels stamp ( I love the quirkiness of this image) I decided to keep the actual card design fairly simple so as to not distract from the unusual explosion card fold. I therefore used Vanilla and Crumb Cake papers from the Elegant Soiree set and Crumb Cake ink and I think it pulls the card together in a nice understated way.

Please let me know if you like this little card

Thank You cards for April and May

2011-05-16T09:30:00.005+01:00

Hi Everyone

Yet again I find myself apologising for a lack of posts, sorry there has been nothing new to look at for a little while.

I had a stall at the church Summer Fete on Saturday and I have spent the last couple of weeks preparing goodies for that in addition to my usual weekly classes so I have not had a moment to spare for my blog. The fete went well, I had a lovely sociable day and a big thank you to those of my class ladies who called by to support the event. Hopefully I may have some pictures to show you later in the week if my nephew's photo's come out okay ( guess who forgot to take her camera with her)

The cards I am sharing with you today are the simple thank you cards that I make for any of my ladies who place an order with me each month. The tiny Baby Blossoms card was for April orders and the Stength and Hope Butterfly card is my card for those who order during May ( my Stampers 6 and 10 ladies have already received theirs) Rather than writing on the inside of the actual card I write on a post it note inside and this has proved popular with all my ladies as it gives them a little "usable" thank you card to pop away as a stand-by card in case they need one in a hurry.

Anyway I have Thursday's Greenhouse Garden class to prepare today so I had better get my finger out and get to work. I do still have a couple of places left for the afternoon session this week so if you are interested please give me a call or email me to prepare a class pack for you.

Last weeks Christmas Class

2011-05-04T22:50:00.003+01:00

Here is a picture of my Christmas Card class from last Thursday.

My ladies wanted to use the gorgeous Stampin' Up set "Lovely as a Tree" and I decided to go for a fairly modern look using Basic Grey, Real Red and Whisper White. The Whisper White against the grey cards looked very crisp and with just a hint of Dazzling Diamonds glitter it finished off the frosty look perfectly.

The most important thing is that my ladies loved them, they thoroughly enjoyed this class and we have now already completed our first 4 months of Christmas Card classes this year and therefore have 4 very different sets of Christmas cards done ready for December.

The next Christmas class at the end of this month is in the Vintage Style so will be very different to last weeks. If you would like to take part in this class or any of my other weekly classes please contact me asap to book your place.

Springtime Vintage Suite with Baby Blossoms

2011-04-26T11:57:00.006+01:00

As you know from previous posts, my lovely upline Jenny sets us a team challenge each month and this months challenge was to make something using products from one of the new "suites" in the Stampin' Up Mini Catalogue.
Well my absolute favourite has to be the "Springtime Vintage" so I knew I would be using the Baby Blossoms stamp set but I had none of the matching items from the suite.............. well that was until late last week when the lovely vintage papers arrived. They are gorgeous and the only difficulty I had was in deciding which ones to use first.
I decided to make a slider box containing 4 very simple cards which I have left blank so they can be used for any purpose. You would be able to make three of these sets using just one sheet of Designer Paper and I think they would make a lovely little gift set to give to a non-crafter.

Hope you like my simple offering for today.

New Classes on offer

2011-04-18T21:15:00.003+01:00

Hi there Apologies for the lack of posts over the past couple of weeks or so. I have been beavering away on a heap of new classes and they have taken all my attention. For such a long time my regular ladies have been asking for more classes and I have finally worked out a timetable that will allow me to do a regular Thursday class. I will be doing the class at 12.30pm and then again at 6.30pm for those ladies who cannot make the daytime class. The new timetable of classes commences on Thursday 28th April with my "Lovely as a Tree" class ( this is our regular Christmas Cards class which will now be set as the last Thursday of each month) Please book your places in good time as space is limited and places will be allocated on a first come first served basis. Please also advise if you would like to be at the afternoon or evening session.

The next 5 Classes are as follows;

28th April Lovely as a Tree Christmas Class

5th May Clearly for You Wallet and Cards

12th May Baby Blossoms Box and Cards

19th May Greenhouse Garden Fancy Folds

26th May Vintage Style Christmas Class

For those of you who have expressed an interest in classes for you and your own group of friends please contact me for further available dates. I am happy to discuss your individual requirements with you and I will seek to provide alternative dates where possible.

Spring All Day Event 2011

2011-04-05T23:55:00.003+01:00

I have just realised tonight that owing to the excitement over the new mini catalogue I only showed you the card box from my recent Spring All Day event and not the contents. So I thought I would share a picture of the box AND the 6 cards that all my ladies had to create to go inside. I loved these flowers and most especially as I water-coloured them with "In Colours" markers and they just speak "spring" colours to me. Mind you here in Lancashire we have had awful gale force winds and rain and on top of that it is really cold tonight so it doesn't feel at all Spring -like.

(I have to say that my ladies were worn out with not only all the stamping and water-colouring but all the cutting out so perhaps a little less cutting out will be the order of the day for my next Event "Christmas in July")

I will hopefully be back soon with a few creations using the new goodies from the mini catalogue

Stampin' Up! 2011 Mini Catalogue

2011-04-01T21:37:00.000+01:00

Well what can I say ???????

The new Mini Catalogue from Stampin'Up! goes live today and it is simply the best yet. The most exciting NEWS of all is that we now have the Big Shot die cutting machine and an amazing collection of dies which feature Stampin' Up! EXCLUSIVES including the best selling SU die of all time the "Top Note" In addition to the cutting dies we also have a range of textured impressions embossing folders, sizzlets, medium sizzlets and Embosslits dies. I have been waiting for the day when we could lay our hands on the wonderful Stampin Up Big Shot machine and accessories and I just know that it is going to open up a whole new world of creativity for all of us. I have not yet taken up ownership of my new machine but rest assured it will be with me shortly and then there will be no holding me back.

In addition to all the excitement surrounding the Stampin Up Bigshot launch here in the UK I have to say that the new mini catalogue is, in my opinion, the best we have ever been given. We have gorgeous new stamp sets, designer papers, ribbons, buttons and many other accessories. We also now have the oooohhhhhh sooooooooooo cute 2-step Owl Punch, a fantastic Blossoms Petal Punch with matching stamp set and a stunning Decorative Label frame punch with a set of 4 matching stamps too.

To sum it all up we now have a Mini Catalogue with 32 pages of goodies that are begging to find their way onto your wish lists as they have found their way onto mine.

I have not yet had time to play with my new goodies as I have just got back from a mini family break to Amsterdam but I shall endeavour to create a few samples over the weekend to show you next week. If you wish to place an order or have not received your catalogue from me then please do not hesitate to contact me. I am also gathering people for the start of another Stampers 6 group this month so if you are interested in joining in with one of my monthly groups then please get it touch asap.

Those Little Extras

2011-03-21T09:19:00.003Z

As promised here is a picture of the little extras I made for my ladies who joined me for my Day Event on Saturday. The bag is simply what holds their packed lunch ( most ladies do keep these lol) the Bunny is their table place marker and the little notepad, ruler and pen is their door gift as they come in.

I also make sets of spot prizes that I dish out during the day and there is one gift for each attendee ( this ensures that everyone goes home with a prize even if they do not win in the main raffle)

Spring All Day Event

2011-03-20T20:36:00.004Z

Well here I am, back at last and sharing with you pictures of my projects from my first Day Event of 2011 which took place yesterday. I had 20 wonderful ladies join me for the day and we made the two projects shown. "Spring" was my overall theme for this first event of the year so I decided to use only our current Stampin' Up! In Colours as they just speak of spring to me.

The morning was dedicated to creating a 12 month Card Organiser and we used the often overlooked "Cottage Garden" stamp set to decorate the covers. We then used the matching Sunny Garden papers for the inserts and again used the Cottage Garden stamp set to decorate the month cards on each page. The designer papers contain Poppy Parade, Pear Pizzazz and Peach Parfait so worked perfectly with the In Colours I had chosen to use throughout the day.

The project I designed for the afternoon was decorated cards storage box with 6 cards ( the box could easily fit 12 cards) I chose to use the very beautiful Growing Green stamp set along with Curly Cute for the card sentiments. For the colouring we used In Colour Markers and aqua brushes. My ladies were horrified when I told them they had to stamp, watercolour AND cut out almost 45 flowers, ferns and leaves for the box and all the cards but all agreed that it was worth the effort to create the finished project. It was so nice to see how unique everyone's creations looked just because each person water-colours differently.

Come back tomorrow when I will show you the little table gifts I made for each attendee along with their other little surprises.

Team Challenge for March

2011-03-15T22:39:00.004Z

Once a month my fabulous upline Jenny challenges our team to create something using a particular Stampin' Up! product. This month her challenge is to use glitter somewhere in our creation.

I decided I would use my favourite of all our existing glitters and this meant I immediately reached for Dazzling Diamonds. I teamed the glitter with Heat and Stick powder and a Versamark Inkpad and this is the gorgeous effect I achieved. Although this does look sparkly in the picture nothing can really do justice to how fantastic this looks in real life, diamonds is exactly the word you need to use.

Please bear with me this week for a lack of posts. I am busy preparing for my Day Event for this coming Saturday and still have a few finishing touches to complete.

Happy Birthday card for my downline

2011-03-14T10:01:00.002Z

Today one of my downline team celebrates her birthday so I need to say Happy Birthday Jill, hope it's a good one.

Here is the card I created for her birthday card. I have used one of the stamp sets that I know Jill loves and made sure I used her favourite colour blue in my design. I was very tempted to go totally mad and make her a real "girlie" card in every shade of pink I could imagine but she wouldn't have been at all impressed so I thought she would much prefer this one.

Stampin Up Artistic Etchings

2011-03-07T09:29:00.004Z

I am sharing three cards with you today that I have made with my brand new SU set "Artistic Etchings" This was one of those stamp sets that you know you like but take a while before you succumb to buying it for yourself. I saw this one and had it on my wish list from October when our new cataloue came out but there were other sets that were just that bit higher on the (very long) list so I have only just aquired it. Now I know I should have bought it sooner as it is so lovely to use and so versatile. These three cards were all made within a couple of hours of opening the stamp set and that shows it is one of those sets I will love to work with. Some stamp sets just do not always work easily for me so I am always excited by those that inspire me immediately.

The black and vanilla card uses just that one image stamp but have you noticed that it is virtually the same image as one of the patterns on the Designer Paper Stacks so it would be a perfect stamp set to use with any of the colour families. I love simple don't you ?

On the Baja Breeze card I have used crystal effects on the tower image and this has made it look like a glazed sticker which really lifts this card.

Finally on the Cherry Cobbler and Early Expresso card I have used my new favourite tool from Stampin Up and that's the Spritzer tool. It is amazing and I am totally addicted to it already. I love how it softens the look of every single card you make with it. I will be using this lots lol

What creative ladies I have in my classes

2011-03-04T22:15:00.003Z

I am sharing something totally different with you this evening.

A couple of weeks ago I did a class here which featured, amongst others a twisted easel card. One of my very talented ladies went home from that class and decided she wanted to go that little bit further with the twisted easel concept. So here is Vanessa's very, very clever adaptation of that card design. She has made a simple easel into a two winged version and I LOVE IT ! ! ! I was so thrilled when she brought it to show me and the other class ladies loved it too and want to copy her idea. I will hold my hands up and say that I would never have thought of adding another easel section to the other side of the card but I will be trying this now for sure.

I was so pleased with Vanessa's creativity and just had to take a photograph today to share it with you all. I hope you can find time to leave a comment if you like her card design too.

Team Swaps for Fareham Stampin' Up Training Day

2011-03-02T14:49:00.005Z

Last Friday I travelled down to Bournemouth to join my upline Jenny and a few other ladies in our Bloomin' Buds team ready for our Stampin' Up Training Day event at Fareham.

As always swaps play a big part of any Stampin' Up event and in addition to our general swaps to share with other demonstrators at the event we also made several other swaps for our team meeting which took place afterwards. We all had a wonderful day in Fareham and I will endeavour to share some of the swaps I received with you later in the week. After the training finished we all flocked back to Jenny's for our team gathering which was a riot. Needless to say a somewhat late night followed but boy did we all have a lovely time together. Thank you Jen for making sure I got to Poole for my 8.30am train on Sunday morning to come home.

These are my three team swaps. (I added 3 clear rhinestone brads just under the sentiment on the little box but must have taken the photo beforehand)

March Frenzy is here

2011-03-01T08:15:00.003Z

Stampin' Up have today announced a special offer for this month (but only while stocks last) There is a huge discount of up to 30% on selected items from the main Catalogue and Idea Book. If you would like to know more then please email me.

Sale-a-Bration 2011 is here ! ! ! !

2011-02-28T19:47:00.001Z

This post will stay at the top until 28th February. Please scroll down for more recent posts

Bliss

Punch Bunch

So Happy for You

Sweet Summer

WOOOHOOO

I am so pleased to be able to tell you that the amazing Sale-a-Bration is here again which means you can earn any of the 4 stamp sets shown above completely for free. This is my own personal favourite of all the promotions that Stampin' Up! has to offer as it offers three different ways to earn rewards.

This promotion runs from now until the 28th February and the benefits are as follows:

Customers
For each £45 order you place ( before p&p) you may choose one free set and there are 4 different sets to choose from and all sets are available in either Wood or Clear Mount.

Hostesses
Host a £300 workshop ( before shipping and handling) and earn one free sale-a-bration set of your choice in addition to already generous hostess benefits.

Join Stampin'Up! as a demonstrator
If you join Stampin' Up! during the Sale-a-Bration promotion you may choose a free stamp set of your choice (excluding hostess sets) from the current Idea Book and Catalogue and that stamp set can be any value up to a whopping £44.95. There really is no better time to join so if you have any questions or if you are interested in joining my team then please do not hesitate to give me a call.

Stampin' Up! Training Event Fareham

2011-02-28T14:19:00.003Z

Last Friday I travelled down to Poole in Dorset to join my Stampin' Up! upline and other members of our team for the weekend. We all attended an SU regional training day at Fareham along with 60+ other demonstrators. We all joined in the general swapping that takes place at these events and in addition we also did our own team swaps. I will try and share pictures of those throughout the rest of this week.

The picture I want to shae with you first is my gorgeous covered notebook that I received from my wonderful upline Jenny Moors. She works really hard to inspire us as a team and somehow she found time to make each one of us attending, our own unique book. These books are amazing and we will not doubt all treasure them.

When we attended Convention last November she made each of us a larger version of this and I actually use mine all the time to store project ideas, measurements etc. I have no idea yet what to use this one for but it will have to also be for something quite special. I must also try my hand at covering one myself. The second picture shows how Jenny also stamped on each one of the pages inside ( this lady's attention to detail is second to none lol)

Birthday Card for my Downline

2011-02-22T11:30:00.004Z

As you all know I recently recruited new members to my Stampin' Up! team. Well today one of those new ladies, Jennifer celebrates her birthday so here is the card I made for her yesterday. I hand delivered it this morning and know she has already opened it so I am safe to pop it on here to share with you all. Although this card uses retired SU stamps, I know that Jennifer loves this stamp set as we were talking about it last week at class so that is why I chose to use these particular flowers. I cannot imagine ever parting with this set as I love it too much, it was just a shame it retired.

The colours I used were Pink Pirouette and Rich Razzleberry, Jennifer is so the type of lady who suits those colours.

Anyway I am showing two views of this card which is known as a twisted easel card. I have changed it up slightly as I wanted a larger card so I have added it to an A5 card base which also opens to show the greeting inside. The first shows it open and stood up and the second shows it closed to fit in a standard A5 card envelope.

Male Theme Card Class

2011-02-18T00:49:00.004Z

Here is my latest class which features cards suitable for men. I had my first group of ladies doing this class tonight but due to popular demand I am having a second session for this one on Thursday 3rd March so if you are interested please contact me to check if there are any remaining spaces.

Stampin Up Valentines Special

2011-02-14T11:29:00.004Z

As we all know today is Valentines Day and whilst I do not usually bother this year I decided to actually make something for a change.

I chose to create another of the boxes I made last week and use the gorgeous " Love Letter" papers from Stampin' Up! I didn't take a lot of notice of these papers when our new catalogue came out in October as they looked a wee bit bold for my tastes. However I caved in, went ahead and ordered them and they arrived last week. I have to tell you what a mistake I had made in dismissing these papers, they are all in the distressed style and therefore although the designs may be striking they are softened considerably by the sponged edges etc. The colours in this pack are Basic Black, Very Vanilla and Riding Hood Red (how subtle is this red ? I will definitely be using more of this one in the future)

The box is a good size at 4" x 4" and 2" tall which means you could use it to house a nice set of mini cards and envelopes, or a small gift or even like I will be doing when I fill mine with chocolates.

Get Well Soon

2011-02-11T00:29:00.002Z

Just thought I would share with you a little Get Well gift box I made this week for a lovely young lady, Stephanie. I filled the box at the bottom with chocs and also went armed with a small bunch of flowers in case she didn't want to be naughty and eat the chocolates.

I made the box top into an easel card and was very pleased with the overall effect.

My Jaunty Ladies are now making this box tomorrow ( or should I say later on today lol) I am not planning on filling their creations with chocolates but I am sure they will still enjoy making the box and card.

Welcome to my two new team members

2011-01-25T13:59:00.005Z

Yes, yes I know 2 POSTS in one day...........what is the world coming to ?

The reason I am posting again today is to welcome my 2 new demonstrators to my downline. I am utterly thrilled and delighted to welcome both Karen and Jennifer to my modest little Stampin' Up team.

Both of these ladies have been members of one of my Stampers 6/10 groups and both have been considering signing up as a Demonstrator for a while . Well last week I had a phone call from each of them to say they have decided to take advantage of the current Stampin' Up! Sale-a-Bration promotion. This is a very special current offer which meant not only did they get the Starter Kit for a bargain price of £119 (Valued at more than £230) but in addition they also got to choose an additional stamp set to the value of £44.95 absolutely FREE

This amazing Sale-a-Bration recruit offer is valid until 28th February so if you are considering becoming a demonstrator then I urge you to take full advantage and bag yourself an EXTRA stamp set of your choice.

Although I cannot match the extra freebies that each will receive from the Sale-a-Bration free stamp set offer, I do make up a little welcome pack of pressies from me and these are shown above. Whilst my supply lasts each new team member that signs up with me will receive this gorgeous collectable Stampin' Up! bag and Ruler( these were limited availabilty to purchase at our SU Convention 2010 in London) . I also provide each new recruit with a full set of colour sheets which show all the cardstock, markers and inkpad colours for our current colour range and a punch ring sampler which has a sheet punched out with each of our current punches. Both of these are created individually by me along with their welcome card. If you have any questions please do not hesitate to contact me and pretty soon you too could take advantage of this amazing offer from Stampin'Up!

Short break in Wales

2011-01-25T07:26:00.003Z

Hi there

Sorry there have been no posts over the weekend. Gordon and I have been away for a quiet retreat to North Wales. We have been on a battery re-charge in a tiny log cabin in an idyllic setting and only a short drive from Barmouth where the beach is amazing.

Anyone who knows me will know that the beach/sea shore is my most favourite place to be and I have always loved to be on the beach in the middle of winter when no-one else is out. It was a beautiful sunny day on Saturday and although it was cold, the skies were blue and there wasn't a breath of wind so it was just perfect. I have to say I think this weekend was the first time I have ever seen ice drifts in the sand dunes and it seemed a bizarre mix to me although it did look lovely.

The other silhouette pictures were taken on Friday afternoon on our way to the cabin. We simply had to stop and capture this sunset as it disappeared behind the mountains it was so stunning and I just loved the black silhouette of the grasses by the bank.

So I am now back home and ready to prepare for my next set of classes this week. I also have the dreaded tax return to do, new cards to create for my next craft club, and lots of preparation for my day event in March. All in all I am going to be really busy for the remainder of January I think ? ? ?

Happy Birthday Vikki

2011-01-19T22:48:00.003Z

I can finally share with you the card and matching gift box I have made for my friend Vikki's birthday which is tomorrow ( she will already be in bed so I should be quite safe to post this tonight)

I have used Cherry Cobbler, Basic Black and Whisper White as I know Vikki loves the stark contrast effect of this colour combination. Lets hope she likes my little offering.

All Day Spring Event Saturday 19th March

2011-01-18T12:24:00.002Z

Hi there
I am pleased to announce that I now have my next All Day Event planned and booked for Saturday 19th March. The theme for this event is "Spring" as I am determined to think positively towards warmer weather and SUNSHINE ! ! ! At my last event I worked everyone a wee bit too hard so this time I am doing just two projects one from 10am to 12 and the afternoon one from 1pm to 4pm. There will of course be little gifts for everyone, spot prizes, raffle, packed lunch provided and an endless supply of homemade cakes and drinks. For those of you who have attended before you will know that my nephew Matt and my Mum will look after all of your refreshment needs throughout the day.

I am strictly limiting the numbers to 24 for this event and already have quite a few ladies who have booked immediately. There are currently places left available but I expect those to fill very fast so please be quick if you do not wish to be disappointed. The fee for this event is £25 per person and is payable please by the end of this month. I operate my list on a strictly first come first served basis so please contact me asap if you do wish to attend. (I may offer a second date for this event but only if there is enough demand)

I look forward to hearing from you soon

Fast and Fabulous Jaunty Ladies ! ! !

2011-01-14T22:41:00.003Z

Back as promised to show you the two cards that my Jaunty Ladies created in class this afternoon. Both cards were made using the very lovely "Fast and Fabulous" Level 2 Hostess set from Stampin' Up. The first offering is a very delicate coloured card using Pretty in Pink, Pink Pirouette and Soft Suede. The second card uses the far more vibrant Rich Razzleberry and Early Expresso and I know my ladies liked the two very different effects even though the same stamp set was used. We also used my brand new Spritzer Tool this afternoon and it is already now on a couple of the ladies wish lists.

Remember the post earlier today with the card for Jayden, well he is my friend Vikki's little boy and she also celebrates her birthday next week so I've been busy this evening creating a special card for her too. I cannot actually believe I have made all 3 special cards this week.....a week before they are due instead of the night before as I usually do. Perhaps now that I am on a roll I should try and make the 3 I need for next month too.......or is that just pushing my luck maybe lol.

Jayden Birthday

2011-01-14T10:10:00.003Z

Hi there

Here is the cute card I promised to share. It is for my friend's little boy Jayden who will celebrate his 4th birthday next week.

I am not particularly that good at creating cards for children but I think he will like the bright colours and the little owls from the Stampin' Up! Sale-a-Bration set "Punch Bunch" . The tiny shooting star stamp from the "So Happy for You" set is also from Sale-a-Bration. You just have to love these sets for their versatility.

I will be back later to show you the cards my Jaunty Ladies will be creating in class this afternoon.

Sale-a-Bration 2011 "Bliss" Stamp Set

2011-01-11T10:06:00.004Z

Just a quickie post as I have a million and one things I HAVE to get finished which include:

Class packs to cut and make up for my Sweet Summer Class (please see previous post)

Class photo's and instructions to do

Thank you cards to put together (thankfully all the elements are stamped and ready)

Ironing ( how does that pile grow so big and so quick ?)

Prepare my first 2011 Christmas Class for the end of the month

Start preparation for my next All Day Event which should be in March (awaiting confirmation on the hall) Please contact me ASAP if you are interested in this as I have a strict maximum of 24 places for this event.

So back to today's card. The stamp set I have used is another of the Sale-a-Bration stamp sets that you can earn completely for free when you place an order for £45 from the current catalogue. Because I simply adore the vintage style this has to be my personal favourite of all of this year's sets. I have teamed Very Vanilla, Baja Breeze and Soft Suede cardstock and inks for this creation and have simply added a few adhesive pearls to finish. The sentiment is from the Curly Cute stamps set and this is fast becoming my favourite sentiment set. My card is a wee bit "clean" to be a true vintage style offering but I will be back with more cards to show you using this set once I have taken delivery of my "spritzer" tool from Stampin' Up! (Woohoo my parcel is on it's way, now will just need the time to play once it gets here lol)

Anyway hope you too like my card using the "Bliss" set

Back tomorrow with something cute to share.

Sweet Summer Class

2011-01-08T14:48:00.002Z

At last ! ! ! ! After days of distraction I have finally been able to create my first class for 2011

In this class we will be making this box and card set, using the very beautiful Sweet Summer Sale-a-Bration stamp set. I love it's simplicity and it makes me think of warmer days which has to be a bonus when the weather is dismal outside. Today we have had a beautiful sunshine to start with followed by snow, horrendous wind and lashing rain so roll on Spring, or even better roll on Summer.

I have two dates planned for this class the first being Monday 17th January as a day class and I will be repeating the class as an evening one on Thursday 20th January. Please contact me asap if you wish to book your place on either of these dates as I always allocate spaces on a first come first served basis.

Punch Bunch Owl

2011-01-08T09:14:00.006Z

Hi Everyone

I have been really busy preparing my classes for January but thought I would take time out today just to share this card with you. I used the oh so lovely Punch Bunch Sale-a-Bration set and am already totally in love with this little owl. He is so cute and come April we are getting the punch that co-ordinates with him so you won't have to cut him out by hand, just stamp and punch.

A gentle reminder that these Sale-a-Bration sets are limited edition and won't ever be offered in the main catalogue. As they are unique to this promotion only, they will NOT be available after 28th February so if you want this little owl and the other gorgeous images in this set you need to place your £45 order asap. All 5 of the stamps in this set have a matching punch which makes them so easy to work with.

I will be back later with the first of my classes for January.

New Year Crafting

2011-01-03T21:48:00.003Z

Hi there and Happy New Year to you all.

I spent an unusually lazy New Year's Day crafting with my downline and we both had a lovely time. We have both had this flu bug over the Christmas period so had not felt creative which was a bit of a problem as we each had 15 cards to make for our downline team swap. I am thrilled to say we both managed to complete our cards and they will be in the post tomorrow. Unfortunately I cannot show you my card design for the swap until after the team members have received them so I am sharing a card I've made using the oh so gorgeous "Growing Green" stamp set. I stamped the images onto Watercolour paper using black stazon ink and then used my markers and aqua painter to colour them in. I am not particularly good at colouring but I am pleased with the effects even I can achieve using this method and this stamp set just looks stunning watercoloured.I then matted and layered my stamped piece in order to create a larger A5 card and finished it off by also decorating the inside panel. I started paying more attention to my card inners in the latter pat of 2010 and I try to go that bit extra on every card I make nowadays.

I must get going as I need to get a few more things done before bedtime. I will try and do another upload tomorrow

Christmas Bundle Offer

2010-12-29T14:36:00.001Z

This post will stay at the top until 29th December. Please scroll down to view new posts.

Yet another fantastic offer from Stampin' Up!

Receive one of four exclusive packages of ribbon when you purchase one of the "Christmas gift-giving bundles" on offer. There are four gift bundles to choose from and four different ribbons available.

The offer runs from 1st November through 'til 29th December 2010 whilst stocks last and as the ribbon packs are not available for purchase contact me today to place your orders asap to ensure you are not disappointed.

For more information see HERE

Family Christmas Cards

2010-12-20T11:22:00.004Z

After battling with a flu type cold all week I was finally able to get my family cards made yesterday which was a big relief. I don't have that many to do but it certainly took me a while to decide what I wanted for this year's card. I used to make all totally different cards but last year I decided that I would stick with a common theme for all cards and just change something oneach one slightly so it is still quite unique. So as Dasher is my family's favourite all rounder stamp this year he had to figure on my family cards. I do still have 2 more "special" cards to make and he will likely feature on those too but they will have to wait until after tomorrow as I have my last two classes tonight and tomorrow and I have not prepped the photos OR the notes even for those as yet.

In addition to the family cards I also managed to decorate a gift bag and make a matching card for my lovely UPS delivery man . He always manages to get my SU parcels to me and even goes out of his way to go to my Mum's to drop them off on those odd times when I am not in or if they arrive when we are away. He is great and I like to make an effort to say thank you for all you do. Hope he appreciates the packaging as much as the contents lol

Craft Club Christmas Party Meeting

2010-12-14T11:50:00.005Z

Hi there

Last Monday was the final Craft Club meeting for 2010 so I held a Christmas party rather than our usual format. I created tent cards for everyone and a little gift box containing 3 Ferrero Rocher chocolates (I think they went down well but then who doesn't love those little choccies? )I love the Cherry Cobbler, Early Expresso and Old Olive combination in the Holiday papers and have used it a lot for my Christmas cards (well the odd few I have managed to get done this year)
Instead of my usual Card Buffet cards I decided to treat everyone to a couple of free Make and Takes. I decided to use the gorgeous Welcome Christmas stamp set and I cased a card from the lovely Jenny at Stamping Moments HERE I changed the card colours to Baja Breeze and Soft Suede and simplified it a wee bit as there were quite a few ladies sharing my one stamp set. I also added a little matching gift box for everyone to make and all who attended made a great job with theirs. For those of you who know I don't "do" glitter very often please note that there were Dazzling Diamonds in abundance that night.........what a lift this glitter brings to a project, note to myself I WILL use it more often hee hee

I soooooooooooo wish I had got this Welcome Christmas as soon as we got the new Catalogue in October instead of only purchasing it a couple of weeks ago!!!!!! I absolutely adore it and feel like I just haven't given myself enough time to thoroughly explore the potential this set has.

However next year, beginning in January I am going to be starting a monthly "Christmas Theme" class whereby I make solely Christmas items, ie cards, gifts, boxes etc. My reasoning behind this is that I will no longer be chasing my tail come December as I will already have at least 11 sets of Christmas items made before then. If anyone is interested please get in touch and I will work on some dates for each month.

So here are the pictures of my little gifts and the make and take projects, hope you like them as much as my Craft Club ladies did on Monday

Post in Note Holder Take 2

2010-12-05T08:35:00.004Z

Whilst doing my post it note class packs up earlier in the week I decided to do a couple in black and grey and although that may seem a bit of a weird colour choice to some of you it worked really well and they looked stunning when they were made up. Two ladies chose to do that colour combo on the night and two other ordered extra packs to take home in that colour. The one I am sharing with you today is my very plain version and most amazingly for me there isn't a sign of any stamping (that must be a first) but stamping aside I love how clean cut and simple it looks.

I have to say our Basic Black cardstock looks totally amazing when punched into flowers, scrunched and seperated into two layers, the suede effect you get from splitting the cardstock is lovely in all our colour range but these black ones actually look that rich, they are more like crushed velvet in texture.

I can see me making more of these little gifts as they are quick and simple to make but look so pretty.

Post it Note Holder

2010-12-02T15:47:00.004Z

Just a very quick post for today as my nephew has just arrived and is taking me shopping as I am not willing to attempt the drive myself in these weather conditions. Oh for the confidence that young people have ! ! ! !

The project I am sharing with you today was the 3-D item I made for our team swap at Convention. Once my class ladies saw this they wanted to make one too so I had a small class on Monday and they chose their own colour scheme and decorated 2 each of these. We used the designer paper stacks and I have to say they are fantastic value at just £15.50 ( per colour family) and brilliant for my type of classes when I give my regular ladies a choice of colour to make their project individual.
Hope you like this little Post it Note Holder.

Ummm Anyone for a little Snow ??????

2010-12-01T14:18:00.003Z

Well no cards to share with you today as nothing I can create could possibly compete with the pictures I AM sharing . How gorgeous is this beautiful valley today ? I am so glad I can now enjoy this view everyday when I am working in my new craft space. Admittedly it is a wee bit distracting but I am so lucky to be able to see all of this in the middle of winter whilst being as snug as a bug in my conservatory.

I am busy today making some little gifts and a make and take project for my Craft Club ladies for our last 2010 meeting on Monday night. I have planned a mini Christmas party and looking outside today I am hoping they will be able to get there on Monday. I am staying positive and need to get them finished. I will try to remember to take photos when I have them all done.

Clocks with a difference

2010-11-23T09:05:00.006Z

Hi there

I thought I would share something a little different with you again today. This time I am featuring cute little clocks and matching gift boxes that my class created on Saturday. This was my first all day event in my new classroom and along with the crafting we also had cake on demand ( thank you Jenny and Sheila for your gorgeous contributions) and we did stop for lunch too.

These are totally OTT and very quirky but everyone loves them, they remind all of us of the little character clock in one of the Disney films. I wanted them to have the real vintage feel and they certainly have that along with heaps of character lol

The original clock idea came from a tutorial (still available) I bought from an amazing US demo, Sandi MacIver. I love her work and was totally smitten when I first saw her creations. You can go and view her work HERE so go and be inspired

I gave my ladies a small selection of colours to choose from and it was really amusing that I had two ladies do each of the four colours I offered. The colour mixes were a) Pink and Brown b) Purple and Vanilla c) Green and Brown d) Neutrals ( crumb cake, expresso and soft suede)I was a wee bit apprehensive about this class as my ladies have not really been exposed to paint, sanding, distressing, drilling etc before but I was thrilled to see each and every one of them thoroughly enjoy making their own individual creation from scratch.

Every clock and every box was different and they looked amazing. Unfortunately the light was fading a bit by the time we had all finished so the photos are not fantastic but I did promise my ladies I would pop them all on my blog for you to see. I have just noticed that here is one of the Green ones missing and that one is Vanessa's so apologies to her....she must have put hers away before the photo shoot.She is making others as presents so I will photograph one of those at a later date to show you.

Every person enjoyed what they made and a few of them are already planning their next clock to give as presents. So do you like them or are they just that bit too quirky and OTT ?

Love 'em or hate 'em..........I hope you enjoy looking at them.

Christmas Colour change

2010-11-21T12:10:00.003Z

I thought I would share my newest Christmas card designs with you today.

I personally love traditional Red and green for Christmas cards and MOST ESPECIALLY our brand new Cherry Cobbler red with Old Olive but as I have used Cherry Cobbler to death lately I decided that I needed to move away from that combination and try something completely different.

One of my other new "favourite" colours from the colour renovation is Baja Breeze and I have gone through packs of this cardstock since the new catalogue launch on October 1st. I have been teaming it mainly with browns ie Soft Suede and Early Expresson but I decided I needed to do something different with it. have now fallen in love with the refreshing combination of Baja Breeze, Real Red and Whisper White and these are the cards I came up with for my Jaunty Ladies to make as part of their Christmas Card stack we have been working on over the past couple of weeks. I love the totally different look I have achieved with this combo and they seem crisp and fresh to me, almost frosty if that makes sense. I now just need to add some Dazzling Diamonds to add to that icy feel I think.

So what do you think, do you like them or have I lost the plot with this combo ?

First Christmas Cards

2010-11-17T23:57:00.005Z

I have had a manic time since I got back from Convention as I have had a backlog of classes I simply had to prepare for so I apologise for the delay in posting.

The four cards I am sharing with you today were the cards my Jaunty Ladies made on Friday afternoon. I used the beautiful Welcome Christmas stamp set along with the ever popular "Dasher" stamp ( I love both of these) and went with traditional green and red with a touch of Early Expresso ( how gorgeous is this new brown? )

Hope you like this selection and I will try and post some of the others tomorrow or Friday.

Convention 2010

2010-11-08T08:21:00.004Z

I am finally back from our 2010 Stampin' Up! Convention. I did get back yesterday afternoon but was simply too tired to do anything much than veg out on the sofa........boy did our team have a wonderful (but exhausting) time. I think it may have been something to do with the very late nights and even earlier mornings. This was the first time that many of us had met as a team and we wanted to make the most of every moment. Our team leader is the amazing Jenny Moors and although we are one of the smaller UK teams I know I speak for each and every one of us when I say we are so proud to be part of her team. She is one of the kindest and loveliest people you could ever wish to meet and is an inspiration to us all with her amazing creative talent. We love you Jenny and thank you for making Convention 2010 a place of special memories for all of us to cherish.

Hand on heart I have to say that although I was proud to be part of the first ever European Convention last year the 2010 Convention here in London was made even more special with so many more of our team members present. When they announced that next year's Convention will take place in Disneyland Paris there was pandemonium. I am sure the venue will mean that even more people will want to go.............I see decorated savings tins appearing in every demo's craft space over the next week or so.

If you would like to be part of that unique Stampin' Up! experience in Disneyland, Paris next November contact me today to learn more about coming a Stampin' Up Demonstrator and becoming part of my team.

For now I will leave you with a photo of our team on the main stage

2nd Anniversary card

2010-10-19T08:29:00.003+01:00

Here is the 2nd Anniversary card I had to make for yesterday. This one was for my nephew Daniel and his wife Barbara, who were celebrating their 7th Anniversary and they both loved the card so I was very pleased.

I also managed to get my Mum's birthday card made but I cannot show that one until after today when I give it to her.

At last a card to share

2010-10-18T10:53:00.004+01:00

Well at last.......................... my new craft room is now at that stage where I can actually sit in here and craft so here is my first creation.

This is a Wedding Anniversary card that I have made this morning and it is for my Sister and Brother in Law for tomorrow. I have used the gorgeous Wedding Sweet set of stamps and teamed it with Baja Breeze, Soft Suede and Very Vanilla inks and cardstock. I have also used our brand new border punch which is beautiful. Can you tell I am TOTALLY in love with the products in our new catalogue lol.

I must dash now as I have still to make another anniversary card for later on today for my nephew and his wife and also a Birthday card for my Mum for her birthday tomorrow..............can you tell that my family like to try and fit all the events into one week ha ha ha

New Craft Space

2010-10-14T23:55:00.003+01:00

Just a quick apology for the lack of posts again.

I have had a really busy fortnight making samples etc for my New Catalogue Launch party and I have also been trying to get my new craft space organised. As you can see from these pictures it is coming along nicely but there is still quite a way to go before I can say it is a finished project. So far I have only moved in the basic furniture and a few essentials needed for this weeks classes so I have an awful lot of sorting out to do before I move the rest of my craft stash in there.

I am 100% determined that every single box in my existing craft room will be inspected and sorted before it comes anywhere near my wonderful new space. Anything I haven't used in ages or things I look at and have to think about how I can use it will be rehomed to another crafter who WILL make good use of it.

My new craft room may be a lovely big room but there is going to be no place in there for clutter of any form. I am spending this weekend trying to get the move completed so I will hopefully be back early next week to show you all a beautiful new TIDY room.

NEW Catalogue, NEW stamps AND NEW Colours

2010-10-02T12:23:00.004+01:00

Hi there I am back as promised to show you the first card I have made with items from the New Catalogue.

This card uses one of our gorgeous new colours "Cherry Cobbler" which is the most stunning deep rich red that you can imagine. It goes perfectly with so many of the old colours as well as the new ones. It is a brilliant backdrop for the gold embossing I have used on this card and I can see me using it lots, especially for my Christmas cards as it gives a beautiful expensive feel to a card.

The card also uses one of the brand new stamp sets on offer in the new catalogue. The set is called Contempo Christmas and the really exciting news is that we now also have the matching punch for the bauble , so simply stamp your baubles in all the colours you want and punch them out....so easy and just perfect for those people who do struggle with cutting out with scissors.

I am still getting samples ready for my Catalogue Launch party on Thurs and also trying desperately to get my new craft room finished in time................who needs sleep anyway hee hee

I will try and get back again tomorrow to show off a couple more samples.

New Catalogue is here

2010-10-01T09:00:00.004+01:00

So what is the date today ?

Of course .......it's 1st October so that means just one thing.

New

Stampin' Up! Idea Book & Catalogue goes live

TODAY

I have to say that I believe that the 2010/2011 Catalogue is our best yet. As you will know from the huge Last Chance list a huge amount of old sets have been retired so this meant just one thing........it made room for lots of new and exciting stamp sets.

In addition to a fantastic new selection of stamps we also have the total Colour Renovation. So there are now 40 new core colours for you to work with and for the first time ever we now have "In Colours" in cardstock, inks, accessories and papers.

I am delighted with the new catalogue and very excited about all the new things I will be able to play with over the coming 12 months. If you are free on Thursday next week please feel free to join me at my catalogue launch party to see samples made with some of the new products. If you cannot make that date but would like your own copy of the Idea Book and Catalogue please either purchase it via my tool bar or contact me to arrange collection.

Don't forget to pop back tomorrow to see my first examples.

Dorset and Father in Law's Birthday

2010-09-30T10:51:00.003+01:00

I am finally back from my holiday in my home county Dorset and thought you might like to share one of the gorgeous sunsets I saw one evening. We were blessed with fantastic weather whilst we were down there and I even managed to catch a very slight tan. This was a family holiday as we took my parents and mainly a nostalgia trip for my Mum as she has been homesick for Dorset just lately.

Whilst we were there I also managed to meet up with my lovely upline Jenny and two other members of her team Val and Jane. We had a crafting morning which flew by far too quickly but we did have fun and it was a lovely taster of the riot we are going to have at Convention in November ( when even more of the team will be gathered) Thanks girls for a brilliant morning.

In addition it was my Father in Law's birthday on the 26th so here is the card I made for him, I hope he liked it as much as I enjoyed making it.

Well I have to say there may be a lack of posts for this next week as we are frantically trying to get my new craft space finished in time for my New Catalogue Launch Party which is on Thursday afternoon and evening. I have all the furniture arriving tomorrow and the blinds on Tuesday so it is going to be a really close shave to get it all done in time.......I am so glad my hubby is a STAR for working so hard since we got back from our hols. In addition to the actually room design jobs, I have also been frantically working on all new samples for my display boards etc so hopefully my ladies will enjoy seeing some of the new designs from the BRAND NEW CATALOGUE that goes live tomorrow.

All of my existing customers should have received their personal invitation by now so if you have not had a card from me then please get in touch asap. If you are not yet a customer but would like to join in the fun on Thursday then please email me to arrange this.

New classes added to the sidebar

2010-09-14T15:26:00.002+01:00

New Classes

Hi there

Just to let you know I have prepared my next three classes and am taking place bookings now.

The first class is for Thur 30th September and the other two are 14th and 28th October.

All classes will take place here and start at 10am prompt. Please don't hesitate to contact me if you require more information.

I am considering offering an evening class once a month (subject to enough interest) so please let me know if this is something that you would be interested in.

Lots of Scallops

2010-09-12T10:19:00.004+01:00

At last I actually do have a card I can share with you. (I have been working on a number of samples in this past week but I will not be able to share those with you until after 1st October when our new SU Catalogue goes live)

My upline Jenny sets her team a mini challenge each month and this is my entry for her September challenge. It is so quick to re-create as it is simply 6 strips of cardstock decorateded with the scallop border punch and 3 tiny flowers made with the Boho Blossoms punch. Add a sentiment, tiny bit of ribbon and a silver clip. Voila it's done !

I will be back tomorrow when I hope to be able to show you a sneak peak of my next class for October

Developing new Craft Space

2010-09-09T21:19:00.006+01:00

Hi there
I am sooooo sorry that yet again I find myself apologising for lack of blog posts.

I have not had the best 6 weeks of the year and all my creative thoughts sort of flew out the window and I wasn't able to come up with anything worth sharing with you...

Although I do not have a card to show you today I do have something amazingly creative to share with you. This is my whole new craft space in the making and by that I mean it is going to be my new classroom AND my office, all in the same spot. I needed to bring all my craft areas together and also have it separate to our actual living area and the conservatory will deliver exactly that. My regular class ladies have been watching the progress each week and I think some of them are as excited as I am about the new space, especially as it looks huge at the moment until I start moving in my new cupboards etc and I am sure that it will feel 100% smaller once my Stamping Up stash moves in too.

The builder finished the plastering this week and it is now ready for painting so we need to get a move on with that. DH also then has 22 boxes of tiles to fit and I need to get on and get the window blinds sorted.......and then just a few more finishing touches and it will be ready.

Realistically speaking it is now going to be October when I shall be ready for my first classes in this beautiful new craft room. What better time to move in and increase my classes when the SU new catty also goes live on the 1st October. I am planning lots of new and fresh classes and will now have room to fit up to 10 ladies at a time. If you are interested in my up and coming classes for October and November please get in contact and get your name on my mailing list. I will then let you know as soon as I am posting details of the new classes on a regular basis.

Anyway hope you like the look of my new crafting space and don't forget to pop back to see how it is coming on. I cannot wait until I can show you the completed project and hopefully it will not be too long .

Retirement Last Chance List

2010-09-01T13:58:00.006+01:00

Today sees the launch of the Stampin' Up! Last Chance List. This is a list of ALL the items that are NOT going to be in the new 2010-2011 Idea Book and Catalogue. Many items are reduced by 25% or 50% so there are fantastic bargains to be had BUT YOU WILL NEED TO BE QUICK as they are only available whilst stocks last.
Have you been thinking about a particular stamp set for a while ? Check to see if it is on the list and contact me today to place your order................. Don't take a chance on it going out of stock whilst you are making up your mind.

You can view the Last Chance List HERE

August Promotion

2010-09-01T10:16:00.000+01:00

This post will remain at the top of my blog until 31st August.

Please scroll down to view more recent posts.

Fantastic August Offer from Stampin' Up!

From 1st - 31st August Stampin'Up are giving you the chance to save a fantastic 20% off of the following "Two- Step Stamping" stamp sets

104606 Loads of Love was £18.95 NOW ONLY £15.16
109439 Big Bold Birthday was £23.95 NOW ONLY £19.16
113258 Trendy Trees was £12.95 NOW ONLY £10.36
113824 Greenhouse Garden was £22.95 NOW ONLY £18.36
117688 Something Sweet was £23.95 NOW ONLY £19.16
118091 Tiny Tags was £18.98 NOW ONLY £15.16
113266 Bird on a Branch was £14.95 NOW ONLY £11.96

Please note that this very special offer is for the month of August only so if you have been thinking about purchasing any of these sets don't miss out on this great discount. Contact me today to place your order.

More Cupcakes

2010-08-25T07:35:00.003+01:00

Hi there

Today I am hosting a Cupcakes class by specific request.

Two of my ladies Lynn and Karen wanted to do something a little different with their children and grandchild as a summer holidays activity. I have therefore come up with a class designed especially for the 5 of them using the Big Bold Birthday stamp-set and Cupcake Wheel. The children are all girls and all love pink so we are using the gorgeous bright Melon Mambo and I have teamed this with Chocolate Chip, Creamy Caramel and Pretty in Pink.

We are making these 4 mini cards and the little bag to pop them in so I do hope everyone will enjoy themselves.

Big Bold Birthday Jessica's cards

2010-08-16T09:58:00.004+01:00

Hi there

Today I am sharing something a little different with you as these cards are not my creations. We have had my Great Niece Jessica( who is 6 yrs old) staying with us this weekend whilst Mummy and Daddy had a well deserved mini break to Paris.

Jessica asked if we could make cards and do some baking amongst other things so here is the card set she made and the box we made to pop the cards in. Jessica did the stamping, glittering and card designs and I just helped out with the cutting out and making the base cards for her. She loves making cards, is a very neat crafter and I think she has a great eye for design already......what do you all think ?

We also made a card for her Mummy's birthday but we cannot show that one until after next weekend.

These cards were all made using the Big Bold Birthday stamp set which is one of those on special offer this month. This set is reduced to £19.15 instead of the usual £23.95 for August only. This amounts to a huge 20% reduction and this set actually has 13 stamps in it so if you would like to grab yourself a bargain contact me to order.

Special Thanks again

2010-08-14T22:59:00.004+01:00

I am sharing two cards with you today (the first I have been able to create for almost a month). They are not necessarily my best card creations but the sentiments were very sincere and both of these cards were needed to say special thanks to two lovely ladies who helped me out on my Christmas in July Event day.

The first lady is Jenny (down the lane) and she worked her socks off to make ALL of the homemade cakes this time for this event. Jenny did me an excellent selection and every one of my ladies enjoyed their little bit of naughtiness that day.

The second thank you goes to the lovely Stephanie. She is the daughter of one of my regular class ladies and she kindly stepped in at the last minute to help my Mum with the serving of all the teas, coffees and juices throughout the day.

Both of these ladies were stars, as was my Mum, and I was so glad of all their help.

AWOL

2010-08-11T23:07:00.006+01:00

Apologies for being AWOL for such an extended period. I can only say that family matters have meant I have had no time or inclination for blogging in the past three weeks.

I have wanted to share with you the projects from my Christmas in July event and will do so now. I had six projects for my ladies to make at this event and with hindsight I think I could have possibly done one or two projects less as my poor guests had to work their fingers to the bone to complete all of them.

Thank you to all the ladies who attended and I look forward to having you at my next event. Please let me know if you wish to be on my mailing list in order that details of the next one will be automatically posted out / emailed to you

SPECIAL THANKS to every one of my regular ladies who helped me make this day possible in extreme circumstances (YOU ALL KNOW WHO YOU ARE) ...... I couldn't have gone ahead without each and every one of you and I am so grateful to you all for the love and support.

Not quite good enough

2010-06-27T08:32:00.003+01:00

Hi there

I have been really busy this week with classes and playing around with ideas for projects for my Christmas in July event.

Although I have already made a decision on a number of the projects we will be doing, I am still working on the rest. In the selection process I play around with ideas, make the samples and then decide if I like them enough for them to go through as definites.

SO..............todays card is one of those samples I made, using the gorgeous Serene Snowflakes stamp set and the oh so lovely Dasher stamp. The card is "ok" I suppose but it just doesn't have enough wow factor to make it through for my ladies to create on 31st July. So back to the drawing board for me to come up with something better lol

At this moment in time there are only 4 places left for my Christmas in July event and I will need to allocate those last 4 places on a strictly first come first served basis.

The event takes place at the AB & D Centre in Bacup on Saturday 31st July 10am -4pm (Registration at 9.45am) The cost is £25 to include packed lunch, refreshments and all materials needed to create the 6 projects. There will also be spot prizes throughout the day and a grand raffle before we finish.

More Rich Razzleberry

2010-06-21T13:20:00.003+01:00

Hi there

Today I am sharing the last couple of cards I've made with the all new Cottage Wall papers and Rich Razzleberry cardstock and inks. I kept with the same colour scheme as the box set I am making with my class ladies tomorrow so these cards will fit in the box with the three from the class, therefore making 6 in total.

Well must dash today as I have STILL not done my class notes and photos and as class is at 10am I do not have a massive lot of time left.

I will be back tomorrow to show you a pretty little card I have made using the baby wipe and re-inkers technique.

At Last ! ! ! !

2010-06-20T09:11:00.003+01:00

AT LAST !!!!!!!!I have finally managed to get something made that I am able to share with you. This combination of gift bag and card are using the brand new "Rich Razzleberry" cardstock and the Cottage Wall paper which is gorgeous. This project came about whilst I was making up the class packs for my box and card class for Tuesday. I was tidying away the offcuts and could not resist just having a little play......................an hour later and I had made this set and 3 other cards too but it was very naughty of me as I still have to do the photo's and class notes now.

I have not been idle whilst I have been away I have actually been ridiculously busy with the process of creating projects for my All Day Christmas in July. I have thought of nothing else but Christmas creations for the past couple of weeks and now have quite a nice collection of projects from which I will make my final selection. Obviously I cannot show any of those items as yet but I may show the ones that don't make it as projects for the day event once I have made my decision. I am planning to have 6 mini projects for the day so look out ladies you are going to be worked hard on 31st July.

I have just 4 places remaining for this event so if you are interested please contact me by the end of this month.

3x3 Love Notes and holder

2010-06-05T05:33:00.003+01:00

Hi there

Just a quick post today as I am heading off up to Harrogate to help my downline with her first Stampin' Up! All Day Event. So Bournemouth last Saturday with my upline and Harrogate this Saturday with my downline....................it certainly keeps you busy but it's great to be part of this team.

Anyway my project today is a set of 3x3 LoveNotes and a cute little tote to house them. I have seen a few of these on the internet and never got round to trying one..........that was until Jenny challenged us this week to make a quick 3x3 set that could be used as a hostess gift. I made this one using the brand new Soft Suede cardstock and matching Ink Pad (this brown is so different to Close to Cocoa and Chocolate Chip but it's gorgeous) I added some Bridesmaid Speciality Paper and the Flutterby Butterfly Stamp. So there you have it. . .simple, quick, fun to make but a lovely end result.

My Upline and My Friend

2010-06-01T09:44:00.005+01:00

Jenny and I

Jane, Val and myself

Jenny and Jo

Sorry I have not been around for a few days, I have been away to Bournemouth for a mini holiday. I travelled down to Dorset to help my SU Upline Jenny with her All Day Extravaganza Event.
Jenny held this event jointly with a fellow Stampin' Up Demonstrator Jo, who had her downline Helen to help out too. The 3 projects were all stunning and everyone seemed to have a lovely time.
I have been part of Jenny's team for 2 years and she has become my very good friend. She constantly inspires me with her work and strengthens me with her support. Making the special effort to travel down and help has enabled me to give something back and say "thanks for everything Jen"

I had an extra wonderful time as I also got to spend some time with two other members of our Stampin' Up team Jane and Val (like myself, they are Jenny's downline) This morning we have all just booked for the Stampin Up Convention event for November so will now be counting down the days til we are all together again. We may not be the biggest Stampin' Up team out there but we sure know how to have a ball when we get together and we are a "little" loud hee hee. It was lovely to see you girls and can't wait for our Hilton High Jinks hee hee

Class for June

2010-05-24T18:11:00.003+01:00

Hi there

Do you like the look of these new designer papers teamed with Old Olive and the gorgeous new colour Rich Razzleberry ? Would you like to make this card box and matching cards ?

If the answer is yes then would you like to join me and my regular ladies for this morning class on Tuesday 22nd June. Please phone or email me asap to book your place. I have a limited number of extra places available on a first come first served basis but they will not be available for long. The class will start at 10am and a light lunch is included.

Stampin' Up! Convention 2010

2010-05-22T11:53:00.003+01:00

Stampin' Up! have just announced that the 2010 European Convention is going to take place here in the UK at the stunning Addington Palace in Surrey on the 5th and 6th November.

Needless to say I will be booking my place asap when registration opens on 1st June. I cannot risk missing out as I had a totally amazing time at last year's event in Germany.
Convention is only open to Stampin' Up demonstrators so if you would like to be part of this event and are thinking of signing up as a demonstrator please contact me for more information on how you can join my team.

1st ever Class re-visited

2010-05-15T12:31:00.002+01:00

As you know from previous posts I have had somewhat a busy couple of weeks and admit I have been quite weary this week. I did need a class idea in a hurry so I decided to look back over my old classes and lo and behold there was my first ever class that these new ladies had not done. It was actually quite nostalgic to go back to my first ever class, especially following on from my latest "first" with my all day event last weekend. It made me realise what a journey I have been on in the past 16months and how far I have come from that very first terrifying class.

So here is my samples of the class projects and you can see I have used some of the brand new Cottage Wall papers for the body of the box. I am totally and utterly in love with this set of papers and they will be featuring heavily in my class for June along with the gorgeous new Melon Mambo and Rich Razzleberry.

More images from my All Day Event

2010-05-13T15:46:00.005+01:00

Much as I rarely show pictures of myself I had to share these with you. The first shows me with the beautiful bouquet and card that my ladies presented to me as their way of thanking me for their crafting day. You cannot see the true beauty of some of the flowers which were deep burgundy red roses with diamond crystals stuck in them, they are stunning. And the reason I am showing the 2nd pic is to give credit to Jill one of my downline team who looked after half of my ladies for me. She was a star and worked really hard so Thank You Jill.

These last two piccys are to show the TWO real stars of the day, namely my Mum and my nephew Matt who looked after ALL of the catering for the whole day. They served teas, coffees, juices throughout the day and ensured that my ladies wanted for nothing. I have received amazing praise from all my guests for both of them. You were both amazing ........huge thanks.

Better late than never

2010-05-13T15:04:00.006+01:00

As promised here are a few pictures of my lovely ladies at my craft event last Saturday. As you can see they were all working hard. Back in a mo with a few more pictures.

I survived my first ever All Day Event !!!!!!!!

2010-05-08T23:16:00.004+01:00

Well I am delighted to say that I have survived my first ever All Day Stamping Event.

I had 20 very special guests attend the event, namely my lovely ladies from my classes and craft club. I also had 4 ladies who are brand new to me and it was so nice to see my regular ladies welcome them and make them feel at home today.

We made three complete projects and although we worked hard from 10am to 4pm to fit them all in, every lady was very happy with their creations by the time we finished. We started with a decorative gift box with beautiful carnation style flowers, then on to a decorated card box containing 6 cards ( made from a One Sheet Wonder using Vintage Vogue) and finally onto a gift bag and matching card using the quirky and cute Sweet Pea stamp set and accessories.

There was a buzz about the room all day today and I think I can honestly say everyone thoroughly enjoyed themselves. I was asked when I am doing the next "event" and majority were in favour when I tentatively suggested that my next event could be a Christmas projects party in July. If this is something that you may be interested in then please register your interest and email me so that I can contact you once I have worked out the finer details.

For now I will leave you with pictures of our 3 projects and come back tomorrow with photos from the day.

Card Buffet card

2010-05-03T08:11:00.003+01:00

Hi there

I have decided not to show the other card my Jaunty ladies made on Friday as I want to use the design for someone who may visit my blog. Instead I will share one of my card buffet cards with you.

The card buffet is what I call my selection of card kits I have available for the members of my new craft club to make if they do not have a project of their own to work on. I had a starting number of 10 card designs for them to choose from and regularly add 5 brand new designs each month, so there is always going to be something new each time we meet. All the materials are provided in a pack and I bring all the stamps, tools, punches etc they need to complete their given cards. So far it has proved a great success and I am really glad I went along with this idea especially for those ladies new to crafting who as yet do not have a massive collection of stamps.

So this is just one of the designs and it has proved quite popular already ( my ladies are "pink" ladies like myself lol)

Wow Ladies........No need to wait until October ! ! !

2010-05-01T12:16:00.003+01:00

Oh my goodness.................... Stampin' Up has made an incredible announcement today.

We do not have to wait until October 1st to lay our hands on three of the brand new colours. As of today 1st May, it is possible to order cardstock and inkpads in Rich Razzleberry, Melon Mambo and Soft Suede.

In addition there are Polka Dot Grosgrain ribbons to match all three colours (these are simply wonderful) and a brand new set of Designer Series Paper "Cottage Wall" to compliment the new colours perfectly. There is also a set of Printed Window sheets to match.

Needless to say my own order has gone in this morning as I cannot wait to get my hands on these new colours. If you too wish to order and play with these gorgeous new items please contact me and I will get yours ordered asap.

Cards for Men

2010-04-30T18:36:00.005+01:00

Hi there
I have had a brief break from my event preparations today as I had my " Jaunty" Ladies for their class today.
They wanted to make a couple of cards for men this week and this is the first design I came up with. It uses one of my favourite colour combinations of Chocolate Chip and Sage Shadow and also a small amount of "Nouveau Chic designer paper. All four ladies enjoyed making this card and loved the colour combination as much as I do. I will be back tomorrow to show you the other card they made.

Papercrafting Event

2010-04-20T21:37:00.004+01:00

Sorry for the lack of posts, I have been busy getting all the materials packs ready for my All Day Event. There are now only a couple of remaining places available so if you are interested in joining us please contact me as soon as possible.

Champagne Mist Shimmer Paint

2010-04-12T11:23:00.003+01:00

Well what can I say about the brand new product from Stampin'Up that is part of our new Mini Catalogue collection. I am talking about the new Shimmer Paint which is wonderful. I have had a very brief play with the Champagne Mist one ( it also comes Frost White and Platinum) and I am already in love with this product. Imagine being able to turn any colour of cardstock into a pearlescent finish cardstock as well as being able to use it as an ink by using a sponge dauber directly onto your rubber stamps. You can also add any of the 48 SU re-inkers to it and create a whole new colour palette. Priced at just £4.25 for each pot it is incredibly good value for money and trust me when I say just a few drops goes an awful long way.

This card is my first attempt and although you can see a hint of a sheen it does not allow you to really see just how intense the glimmer effect is in real life. Believe me this is going to be a definite addition to my Christmas cards this year and is guaranteed to give them the WOW factor.

If you would like to try them for yourself please email me for ordering details.

Oh my goodness do I have exciting news

2010-04-08T11:16:00.009+01:00

Oh my goodness do I have some exciting news for you all today.

Stampin'Up! have decided they are renovating their whole colour structure. This means we are set to lose quite a number of our current colours but boy are they giving us some gorgeous ones to compensate. For the first time ever we will see USA colours here in the UK, like Rich Razzleberry, Melon Mambo, Pink Pirouette, Baja Breeze and they will be part of the new 40 Core Colours so will be here to stay.

In addition, just like in the States we will also be getting 5 NEW "In Colours" each year and they will stay for 2 years at a time. So after this first year( when we will just get the first 5 in colours) we will always have 40 core colours plus 10 In Colours at any one time.

Some of you will no doubt see colours on the retiring list that you absolutely love so I would encourage you to gradually build up your own little stockpile. The new colours collections will be available from the 2010/2011 new catalogue which doesn't come out until October so you all have a good 6 months to collect your retiring colours.

As much as there are a couple of colours that I will miss, I am really excited about the changeand I will be first in the queue for getting all those delicious colours we have only dreamedabout until now. How many of you have looked at the USA "In Colours" over the years and wished we had even one set ? Just imagine....from October we will have 15 NEW BASIC / CORE COLOURS which will include those colours we have drooled over AND a brand new set of 5 "In Colours". I think I will be in heaven with all the new colours to choose from.

Pretties Flower and Bride Papers

2010-04-03T10:36:00.003+01:00

Happy Easter weekend to everyone.

I am sharing this card with you today to showcase how easy it is to alter the colours of SU goodies. This card uses the gorgeous Bride Speciality papers and one of the Pretties Kit flowers and both have been coloured with SU inks. I used the brayer and the Chocolate Chip ink pad for the striped paper and Close to Cocoa for the swirly top section. I then used sponge daubers and the Close to Cocoa inkpad to lightly ink the large flower and then stamped onto it with the En Francais background stamp using the same inkpad. I then simply added a button from the Latte set and some of the beautiful new Chocolate Chip satin ribbon from the mini catalogue. All in all I like this card and I know I could reproduce it in any one of the 48 Stampin'Up! colours which is fantastic.

I hope you like it too.

2010-04-01T12:52:00.004+01:00

Woooohhhhhhhoooooooooooooooooooooo

The Stampin'Up! 2010 Mini Catalogue went live today so you can now order your goodies from me. Please email me if you require your own copy of this catalogue or view the online version HERE

I am totally in love with all the new products that Stampin'Up have given us, believe me I want ALL of it and I guarantee there is something for all tastes this year.

I will endeavour to make samples to share with you next week to showcase some of those gorgeous new items. Bear in mind though that there is an awful lot to choose from so it may take me a little while.

Team Challenge

2010-03-25T18:30:00.004Z

This box set of cards uses Stampin' Up! tiny 3" x 3" Love Notes and envelopes. A fellow SU demonstrator (Amanda) showcased the box at the recent training day held in Reading. My upline challenged her team members to give it a try and this is my take on that box.

I have used a fabulous brand new Stampin' Up! stamp set which will be available in the mini catalogue which goes live on 1st April. The second I knew this set was coming I HAD to have it as it is such a striking set of images and so versatile. The set is called "Bird on a Branch" and if you NEED to have this set then just email me with your order asap ready to be added to the order I am placing on the 1st April.

I hope you like this teeny tiny cards as much as I do.

Whiteboard class

2010-03-24T21:58:00.004Z

I have been really busy this past 2 weeks and have therefore been very behind with my blogging so big apologies for the lack of posts again. The reason I have been missing in action is because I have been busy setting up my new craft club and it has been a lot of hard work. I first had the idea about 6 months ago but I finally took the plunge and booked a venue and my very first meeting was on Monday evening. I am only holding the club once a month but I am hoping it will be a success as we have nothing like this in our area and crafter's like nothing better than to craft together and natter as they do it.

I have to say that my regular class ladies supported me fully and without them I would never have been able to give it a go. You know who you are ladies so THANK YOU.

I was thrilled to welcome 5 brand new ladies and even more pleased when they said they enjoyed themselves and will be back next month when we meet again.

I also have a class tomorrow and my ladies will be making this whiteboard. I made this as an experiment after a little chat with my upline Jenny and was thrilled when it turned out so well. I showed it to my class ladies and they all decided they would like to have a go and before I knew it I was planning the class for tomorrow. I hope they enjoy making them and also using them in all of their own craft rooms/ offices.

Well I had better fly again as I am still getting the materials ready for class and it will NOT look good if the teacher is late will it ? lol

Friday class

2010-03-17T17:08:00.004Z

Hi there

I have recently started a new class by request of 3 of my ladies. They wanted a regular class whereby we do a variety of more basic cards and projects that they choose each week and which we then do the following week.The ideas for these classes come from either my demonstrator display boards or from stamp sets featured in the Stampin' Up! current catalogue that they fancy. This gives me time to plan a project and them the chance to play with certain products or stamp sets before they buy and so far it is going to plan.

This week I was asked by Jennifer to come up with an idea using the ever beautiful "Rose is a Rose" stamp set. I haven't used this set in ages and I am soooooooooo pleased she requested this as I have been reminded again just how gorgeous this one is to use. I decided that we will make a large A5 card as I haven't made enough of these lately. DH also reminded me that we need a Wedding Anniversary card for his brother and sister in law for the end of the week so the Red and Yellow combination is for them. I will probably come up with another little project for my class girls to go with the card but for now I am just going to share the cards with you.

Tomorrow I will share with you a picture of my Whiteboard Class for my regular monthly class. This class will take place next Thursday 25th March.

If you would like the opportunity to join any of my classes please email me to check if I have any places left available. The link is on the side toolbar.