Isn't this the most gorgeous bunch of handcrafted flowers? It was a beautiful gift from one of my class friends - Cecile.
They're looking lovely on my craft desk. Thanks Cecile.
Thought I'd share a card I made with Hoop La La stamp set. Markers are handy for this one. I've used the Chevron embossing folder which I love too.
I hope you get to share some time with friends this week.
Happy stamping,
Cheers, Sue
Christmas is well and truly over for another year but I thought I'd share this gift idea anyway as it might be a handy one for some other occasion. I'd seen lots of 'Gift In A Jar' ideas on Pinterest so when these gorgeous jars popped up on Pack It In I decided to grab a bunch.
I filled them with nuts for some and hot chocolate mix for others. Here's some step by step pics.
Lids on and time to gather up some fabric. I've used a whole bunch of different Stampin' Up fabrics and coordinating ribbons. (Tip: It helps to secure the fabric with a rubber band, then it is much easier to tie the ribbon around.)
Bit of a milestone moment for me as that's the first thing I've actually MADE after pinning it on Pinterest. I thought they looked quite cute once we were finished. And I had a spare to try out at home. Tasted nice too!
Speaking of cuppas, some of the girls from my Think Ink team came over late last week to share a cuppa and have a play with some of the new products about to be released. Just got to take some pics then I'll have some sneak peeks to share.
DROP IN DAY: Thursday Jan 24th
If you'd like to come and see some samples in person and have a cuppa and chat stamping or holidays or weather - I'm holding a very casual, DROP IN DAY on Thursday 24th January. I'll be here between 10 and 5, and between 7 and 9 if any of my local ladies would like to call in, grab their new catalogues, see some samples and perhaps even make a quick and simple tag.
No charge of course and I'll have a lucky dip on the day for people placing Saleabration orders.
RSVP if you can make it or if you need more details.
Cheers, Sue
We had lots of fun making these easel card 2013 calendars at class this month (along with a couple of other projects I'll share another day.)
My class ladies didn't mind sharing their creations so I grabbed out the camera and took some snaps. (I think I missed a couple - sorry to those ladies.)
First up is Mel's calendar featuring Floral District DSP (patterned paper) and the bird builder punch.
The greeting many of us used is from Word Play (pg 135.)
Next up is Anne-Marie's calendar featuring Comfort Cafe DSP (pg 163) and the elegant butterfly punch (pg 184)
The antique brad finishes the butterfly beautifully doesn't it.
Next up a group shot. These ones were made by Claire, Denise, Maria, Julia and Michelle. I love how different they look depending on choice of paper, colour and finishing touches.
I spy Comfort Cafe, International Bazaar and Floral District DSP there.
Isn't that owl a cutie.
Next up is Ann's featuring World Spectacular DSP (pg 163.)
I love how she cut out some extra balloons from the gorgeous DSP and stuck them on with dimensionals for some added texture.
(Rest of the Wed night ladies - I missed your creations. Oops! Juggling my two jobs last week and my brain didn't quite keep up. Ha ha.)
OK, on to our last night for this class.
These two are from Judy and JoAnne and feature 2 other stamps from the Word Play set. (I think this is a great set for scrapbookers.) DSP Left: Summer Smooches Right: Storytime and Polka Dot Parade
This one is from Julie and features the bright and happy Floral District.
And last up we have Gail's with Comfort Cafe. The rhinestones add that lovely touch of sparkle.
I'll have some step by step pics in my December newsletter. Pop your email address in to the registration box up the top right there if you'd like to get a copy each month direct to your inbox. Keep up to date with the latest specials and class dates, and I try to include some projects and tips too.
A big thank you to Nikki Sadler for organising the bulk purchase of the cute little calendar pads for the team, and to all my class ladies for sharing their creativity here in blogland.
We got the little calendars from Edex. Website here. Do a search for calendar tabs and you'll find them. They come in pads of 25 or 50. Hint: Use a craft knife and cut them apart so the sticky stuff doesn't come off.
Want to see more?
My team member and friend Tina Gillespie made a gorgeous easel calendar with a little pull out drawer at her classes recently in Adelaide. Check out her terrific project (with very handy measurements if you'd like to give it a go) here: Tina's project and see some variations from her talented class ladies here: Tina's class ladies
December Classes: Avondale Heights in Melbourne's west
I've got just two class dates for December. We'll be drawing inspiration from the talented Nikki Sadler to make a gorgeous little Christmas house and some Christmas tags. The lists almost filled up at November classes but there are a couple of seats left on Wed 12th December, or pop your name down on the waiting list for Thurs 13th December. At this busy time of year we may get some cancellations. (Call early if you can't make it please and we might be able to fill your spot with someone else keen to catch a class.) $20 and class starts at 7.30pm.
Happy stamping everyone and hope you get some creating and relaxing time amongst all the hustle and bustle of this time of year.
Cheers, Sue
I'm looking forward to classes over the next couple of weeks. We're adding a technique card to our books - emboss resist technique. And we'll be making a gorgeous snowflake Christmas card and matching gift box. Here's a peek at the box. I've got one other little teeny surprise project too for our October classes.
Check available spaces here and contact me to book your spot if you'd like to join us for some October craft time.
Happy stamping!
Cheers, Sue
Here's another of the 3D flowers we did last month at our flowers class. They're quite quick and easy to make - even for 3D challenged people like me!
We made good use of the lace ribbon border punch. That punch along with the triple layer punches retired recently in the US so I am quietly expecting them to be on our Last Chance List of retiring products. This list will be released on August 1st and products on the list will be available in August while stocks last.
Colours: Riding Hood Red, Island Indigo, Baja Breeze and the card base is Confetti White.
The flower above was my first go - I got a little better with my second try with the addition of some sponging and a little more time arranging the petals.
Colours: Sahara Sand, Blushing Bride, Rich Razzleberry. Card base is Shimmery White.
Thanks to Miriam Spiess - one of my fellow demonstrators - who showed us how to make these flowers from scallop circles at last year's Melbourne stamping day at the Convention Centre.
If you'd like to come along this year to be inspired by some talented papercrafters and get a sneak peek at lots of yummy holiday themed goodies coming soon in our Holiday Catalogue, registration closes tomorrow for the Heartfelt Stampin' Up event on Saturday August 4th. More details at the end of this post or phone/email if you've got questions or would like to book in. I've got 5 guests coming along so far - would love to add a few more.
We're almost at the end of Christmas in July week at my place so I'll have some sparkly Christmas projects to share with you soon, plus for those of you always on the lookout for projects for the guys in your lives - we've got a masculine themed project blog hop coming Saturday morning so be sure to grab a weekend cuppa and have fun browsing through those posts.
Cheers, Sue
My lovely team member Lyn showed us how to make these pretty little flowers at our last team gathering. I'm a bit of a 3D beginner but thought I'd give them a whirl and really liked them. (Thanks Lyn.)
They're made from Twitterpated DSP (buy 3 DSP, get one pack free this month) and I've punched circles from the coordinating colours - Blushing Bride, Island Indigo, Baja Breeze and Riding Hood Red. The leaves are a sizzlit die. Some teeny pearls tucked in to the centre of each flower to finish.
Have to share a story that made me smile this morning. The tooth fairy was a day late at our place (forgetful thing that she is!) Seems that she had a flash of inspiration though and sprinkled something extra last night along with leaving a coin.
Hannah excitedly told me this morning that it was fairy dust - it did bear a striking resemblance to Dazzling Diamonds.
She also added that when she woke up and saw it she thought maybe the tooth fairy had heard her wish, so she sprinkled a bit on herself and said, "I wish to be a fairy." Didn't work apparently.
But what a sweet story for the scrapbook.
Have a sparkly day won't you.
Cheers, Sue
It is that time of year again - the annual Think Ink Team Awards where my team celebrates another Stampin' Up year of fun and craft and creating. Thought I'd share some pics.
I've been enjoying making these cards - saw this idea here for the lovely background. I've used Shimmery White cardstock and glued 2 strips punched with the lace ribbon border punch. Creates a nice embossed look. Some score lines with the Simply Scored. Apothecary Art for the floral panel on watercolour paper. Regal Rose, So Saffron and Old Olive for my watercolouring.
Here's some of our 2012 Think Ink Team Awards prizes and certificates.
(The role of Tina's die box is being played by Sue's die box for the pic - ha ha!)
Congratulations to Kylie, Tina and Rachel for their sales awards, and again to Kylie for her recruiting award, and to Judy - this year's Think Ink rising star award recipient. Well done ladies! And congrats to everyone in the crew for another fun year of getting inky.
I CASEd this Constantly Stamping card to make this one using Bordering On Romance stamp set .....
That test tube used to hold jelly beans. I washed and kept the tubes after we polished off the jelly beans as they looked so cute. Actually I bought them especially to repurpose. Have you ever bought something just for the cute container?
Have a fabulous weekend.
Cheers, Sue
There's a 'back to school' buzz in the air so thought it'd be a good time to share my 'jazzing up the reader cover' effort for this year. Jack is about to start Prep and is completely obsessed with anything Mario Kart related so I thought we'd go with that.
I've used the gorgeous, bright and happy papers from the Big Top Birthday pack (pg 130.) Love the reds and blues.
We hit Google Images and found some Mario and Sonic pics and printed them on Whisper White. I added some Night of Navy matting and a divider strip.
Here's the back cover with another of the designs from the Big Top Birthday pack.
And some scraps for the inside.
I took the pics before I added the clear contact as I had a sneaking thought I might flunk contacting and end up with wrinkles everywhere. Happy to say it didn't go too badly so just the odd wrinkle. All ready for a terrific year of reading. Jack is counting down the days til he heads off to school. I'm counting down to starting a mega much needed fitness/decluttering/scrapbooking kick! I think my family are getting worried I'll declutter all their stuff while they're at school/work! Hee hee.
Have a great weekend.
Before I duck off: Don't forget to check out the class page if you'd like to catch a Feb or March class in Avondale Heights. The lists are changing and rearranging almost daily as people get back into the year and juggle the diaries. The booked out and spaces available lists are changing regularly so pop by for the latest update, and let me know if you'd like to go on the waiting list for a booked out class.
Cheers, Sue
Hello, time for another blog hop with some of my stamping buddies. This weekend the theme is 'Summer Mini.' Hello if you arrived from Kathryn's beautiful project and waving a big hi if you're starting the hop from here. There are 7 stops in the hop today (if I've counted right!)
When my team was over for a bit of a stamping afternoon last weekend, I stamped off a couple of the images from Pretty Postage stamp set on page 20 of the mini. (Thanks Rachel, much appreciated!) I had fun putting together a project to make use of my Rich Razzleberry postage image.
Project materials: Pillow Box Die, Vintage Wallpaper Embossing Folder, Curly Label and Postage Stamp Punch, Beau Chateau Fabric backed with cardstock using the adhesive sheets, Crumb Cake Seam Binding Ribbon, Antique Brad, White Bakers Twine, Rich Razzleberry Cardstock and a dab of Crystal Effects.
I thought I'd make a card to match. It needs a greeting I think but I might wait until I know who I want to post it to.
Materials: As above plus Vellum, Fun Flowers Die, Deck The Halls Fabric, the Summer Mini Velvet Ribbon, Crumb Cake Cardstock and if you look very closely you'll spot another Summer Mini stamp set hiding there.
Did you spot Fabulous Florets there? It looked a little loud for my fabric flower so I borrowed an idea from two of my class gals (thanks Anne-Marie and Michelle) and added the vellum layer to soften it. Tried a bit of fabric fringing too by pulling some threads out til I had the amount of 'fringe' I wanted. Not sure I'm in love with that Razzleberry sponging on the vellum but alas, there's no 'undo' button in cardmaking! (Now wouldn't that be handy sometimes!)
OK time to hop to the next stop for some more Summer Mini Ideas. Hop, hop, hop on over to the lovely Alisha's blog for a look at her project.
Happy Hopping. Hope you get all inspired to get out some inks and cardstock and have a creative play.
Cheers, Sue
At class this month we've been using my brand new Box #2 die and the lovely Jolly Holiday DSP paper to make some festive boxes. They all looked different as we had a range of designs to choose from. Here's two of mine.
We've used the Big Shot Multipurpose Adhesive Sheets to stick the glitter on to the punched out shapes. They make it quick and easy to add some sparkle.
Some ribbon trim. We used the Real Red taffeta which works quite well, even though the red in the paper is Cherry Cobbler. Love the wide striped ribbons. Next month we get that in Cherry Cobbler - yum!
This little star punch has retired but we used it anyway as it was perfect for this project.
The gold embossed greeting is from Short and Sweet stamp set, punched using the Modern Label punch.
SEPTEMBER 1st CLASS - A FEW SPOTS LEFT
We've got one more class left this month - well actually we had to reschedule it because of a school concert so it is Thursday September 1st, 7.30pm. There's a few spots left if you'd like to make this box, plus a couple of Christmas cards. Techniques: Faux Silk and Reverse Masking. Last chance for a little while to catch a class.
RETIRED LIST
Lots of my customers have been ordering the Jolly Holiday DSP this month that features in these boxes. It is reduced to $10.17 so quite a bargain. I keep expecting to log on to find it sold out, but so far so good.
Update on the sold out list: Stamp Sets - Sanded, Afterthoughts, Cheers To You, Christ Is Born, Friends 24-7, Full Calendar, Garden Whimsy, Scribble This, Sense Of Time, Choo Choo, 12" Cardstock - Bashful Blue, Marina Mist, Rich Razzleberry, Baja Breeze, Perfect Plum, Wild Wasabi, Night Of Navy, Not Quite Navy, Basic Black, Chocolate Chip, Crumb Cake, Early Espresso, Sahara Sand, Very Vanilla, Brushed Metallic cardstock, all the eyelets and all the retiring punches.
You can find the retired list here: RETIRED LIST. Get in touch before 31st August if there's anything you'd like before it disappears for good.
My lovely stamping friends are having a blog hop today with some retired list products. I did a lap around this morning with a cuppa in hand. What gorgeous projects. If you're looking for some card making inspiration today you can catch the hop here: Judy's blog then follow the links to do a lap. Must get myself organised to join in one of these months!
NEW CATALOGUE LAUNCH
Don't forget to book your spot for my new catalogue launch - 2 dates to choose from. Details here.
Not long to go now - getting exciting!
Have a super weekend.
Cheers, Sue
I'm off to play with Jack's birthday present. It was his birthday yesterday and we gave him a marble run. It is keeping the whole family entertained!
