Perhaps you have some Stampin' Around wheels in your collection or are thinking of getting a free one in the current promotion.  (Details here.)

Here is what you can do with a wheel and the wheel guide to make a mitred border.  (What is a mitred edge??   Good old Google gave me this definition.  "It is a corner joint formed by cutting bevels of equal angles at the ends of each piece of material."  You know - like on a picture frame with those nice 45 degree joins at each corner.)

The Recipe

Stamps: My Leaves A La Carte Wheel.

Ink: Purely Pomegranate (I made my own cartridge with an uninked jumbo cartridge and refill bottle.)

Cardstock:  The white 12 x 12 page from my album, Purely Pomegranate, Basic Black and Basic Gray for matting.

Other: Rub ons from the Cherish set.  Post It Notes and my Wheel Guide to make the mitred edge. 

My free email tutorial this month gives step by step instructions and pics for how to do this.  Register in the box at the left there before the end of Sept if you'd like this one in your inbox along with my newsletter.  (You can also find instructions in your wheel guide insert.) 

The part that took me the longest - picking out which photo to use!  I love this shot I snapped of Hannah. It really captures her sparkle.  This pic is from a few months ago when she had all her teeth.  The Tooth Fairy has been visiting quite a bit at our place lately so she has quite a different smile today - Miss Gappy! 

Cheers, Sue

If you pop over to Aussie Scrapbooking today, I've posted an article about Gratitude Journals you might be interested in.  Here are the layouts that go with it ...

Back soon with some cards ...

Cheers, Sue

Hello,

Lately I think I have been learning as much from my class attendees as they have from me - isn't that the fun part of papercrafting with a friendly group.  I love seeing the variety of end results people come up with when they are all using similar bits and pieces.  A little tweak here and a little tweak there and you end up with a fresh look.

You might remember my very simple Always card I made a little while ago when I was playing with that gorgeous loveheart stamp.

Some of us had a try of this at the end of last month's spotlighting class.  Here is what my sister Lisa came up with.  I like how she tweaked the design.

And look at this great little card Kerry made using her Leaves A La Carte wheel and some retired stamp sets.  I just had to borrow it to take a pic.  This one is a small gift card.  She made regular card sized versions too and also did it in navy which looked super.  Think I will have to give that one a try.

Thanks for the great ideas ladies.  That is the part of stamping I think I like the most - sharing ideas and getting together with other craft enthusiasts. 

I've got a big group of Stampin' Up girls coming to my house for a lovely stamping together session tomorrow evening so if I get creating (as opposed to chatting, eating nibblies and staring at my ink pads!) I hope to have lots more to show you over the weekend.

Cheers, Sue

I must say I do enjoy making birthday cards for little girls.  I quite like pink and flowers and sparkle and all those girly things.  Here is Georgia's card and matching envelope. 

The Recipe

This card is an A4 folded in half, so twice as big as a standard card size. 

Stamps: One Of A Kind (Spring Mini) and Best Friends Alphabet - Upper.

Cardstock: Pretty In Pink, Pale Plum, Purely Pomegranate for the scallop and Whisper White

Inks: Pretty In Pink, Pale Plum, Purely Pomegranate

Other: Embossing gear - silver, Purely Pomegranate Double Stitched Ribbon, Circle Punches, Scallop Punch, Boho Flowers Punch (Spring Mini), some non SU rhinestones for that extra sparkle.

I stamped the flowers in the 3 colours, punched them with the flower punch then just layered them in a couple of strips. 

My Boho Flower punch has taken a while to grow on me but I am quite liking it now.  Tip: Remember with the punches to only punch one layer of cardstock at a time.

Family News and Pics - Or scroll past all these for more cards on previous posts!

While Hannah and I were having fun at Georgia's party, John manned the party preparation fort at home and took care of Jack's cake.  (With a bit of help from Hannah before she headed off. OK and the odd bit of butting in from me!)  I think they did a great job.

Jack was a bit under the weather for his little birthday celebration but enjoyed opening his presents.

And we even managed to get a snap of all four of us.  Do you find that seems to be a rare event at your place?? We take so many photos, but don't end up in too many of them.

And while I'm on the family pics - here is the youngest party guest, my nephew William.

Isn't he a cutie? 

Back soon with some more cards and layouts.   And stay tuned for some cards from some special blog guests!  I've been getting as many ideas off my class attendees as they have from me!  Isn't that the fun part of papercrafting.

Cheers, Sue

Last week it was my brother's birthday too.  He turned 29.  Happy birthday Brendan!  He is 10 years younger than me so we both have big birthdays ahead next year!   I think in my mind he is still 15 - can't quite get my head around having a younger brother not too far off turning 30!

Here is his card.  I seem to have lots of stamps with flowers and love hearts and all that girly stuff that is not too useful for masculine cards.  Had a flick through my stash and decided some patterned paper and my trusty Best Friends Alphabet set would do the trick.

The Recipe:

Stamp Sets:  Best Friends Alphabet Upper and Eat Cake

Ink: Whisper White Craft Ink     Tip: Don't forget to leave it a while to dry

Cardstock/Papers: Sage Shadow, Basic Gray and Wintergreen Patterned Paper

Other: Some brads from my tin of silver Hodgepodge (from the Spring Mini)

Happy birthday Brendan.

Cheers, Sue     Susan

(I'm Susan to my family and oldest friends.  Morphed into a Sue sometime in my 20s!) 

Oh, before I go - I'm putting the finishing touches on Madex Creations September newsletter and tutorial.  Here is a sneak peek at one of the cards from this month's edition.  There are also a heap of tips for using Stampin' Around Wheels, information about specials plus class details.   Hopefully something there that comes in handy for you.

Cheers, Sue