Growing Green - JAI Challenge

I saw a cool challenge this week over on the Just Add Ink website and thought I'd join in the fun! I am loving the water colour crayons being back in stock and have been playing with the gorgeous stamp set Growing Green of late so everything sort of got combined into this........the photography isn't the best as it's night time so no natural light and my husband normally watermarks stuff for me, but he's away so the creating side of this card was a lot of fun - the technical bits to get it onto the web are all a bit challenging!

You can't quite tell from the photo, but each flower is water coloured and cut as are all the leaves and then everything was repositioned and glued into place with Tombow or Dimensionals. The centre white circle is cut with the Circle Scissors Plus, sponged along the edges and layered onto the Baja Breeze scallop circle, before being added to the card using Dimensionals. The white backing piece has the tulip embossing folder frame added to it - irregular shape, but with a bit of patience and a Big Shot machine, it can be made to fit any rectangle or square shape - pretty versatile hey! 

The main sentiment came from the stamp set Afterthoughts which is a level one hostess set. I also had to embellish the envelope to match with a little masking just to make the postal workers day!

Stamps: Growing Green, Afterthoughts (hostess level 1)
Ink: Baja Breeze, Stazon Black,
Card Stock: Whisper White, Baja Breeze, Water Colour paper
Accessories: Aquapainter, Water Colour Crayons, paper snips, Dimensionals, Tombow, Big Shot, Circle Scissors, Scallop Circle Die, Tulip Textured Impressions Folder, stamping sponge.

Sew Suite Swap

Each month our group of Stampin' Up! demonstrators has a meeting featuring learning a technique and a swap theme, as well as a general chat and catch up on all things Stampin' Up! and paper crafting. This month our swap theme was anything made using items from the new mini catalogue - well it took me almost a month to narrow the choice down! Anyway I saw a card made by Jackie T. using the Sew Suite stamp set and matching designer papers ages ago and decided with a few changes to CASE the card............

Pretty cute hey? I love the brown paper flower - the brown paper is packaging material that comes with our orders (another idea was the paper bags in my last post here). I made the buttons using patterned paper and the button die and Big Shot. Lots of lovely new products on this card - I'll post some of the other team members swaps soon. Of course if you're interested in getting a permanent discount for your craft items as well as lots of fun and support contact me for further information to join my team now or go direct to the top right icon here and click "join now"!
  
Stamps: Sew Suite, You’re A Gem & Pattern Pieces

Ink: Basic Black, Early Expresso & Wild Wasabi

Card Stock: Sweet Stitches DSP, Wild Wasabi, Whisper White, Crumb Cake, Early Expresso & Daffodil Delight

Accessories: Gold metallic eyelets, Crystal Effects, ½” circle punch, Buttons #2 die, Big Shot, Paper Snips, Tangerine Tango pom pom trim, Itty Bitty buttons, Itty Bitty circle punch, Vintage trinkets safety pin (carry over item), linen thread, SNAIL, Dimensionals, Aquapainter, mat pack & paper piercer, Crop-o-dile, Sponges, black marker pen.
Non SU: brown paper packaging

Upcycled DIY Paper Bags

Okay so recycling, repurposing and upcycling things is a bit of a hobby for me - it reflects my conservation efforts in other aspects of my life. As a Stampin' Up! demonstrator whenever we get an order, it comes packaged with lots of brown paper to help protect the contents of the boxes........always important! I do use the paper as scrap paper to protect work surfaces, make paper flowers and my son makes massive collage pictures on reams of it.............but to be honest there is a limit to how much I can use so some ends up in our recycling bin. However this week I did a fun tutorial over on Crafters Anonymous and we made two different types of paper bags and the brown paper packaging is absolutely perfect for this purpose. Of course if you didn't have the brown paper packaging that I have access to - you could easily substitute it with old posters or large stiff sheets of newsprint. I used some old paper raffia for the bag handles, but you could just punch out handles using an oval die or use ribbon (I was just recycling again!).

I used a variety of items to dress up the bags including texture embossing with the Big Shot (it does take two passes to emboss the entire bag), stamping directly onto the paper before assembling them and embellishing with die cuts similar to how I have done other bags in the past.

The flower is also made using the brown packaging paper with the two different sized scallop circle punches. The bags were assembled using Sticky Strip as I find SNAIL not as good for making 3D items which will hold weight or be opened a lot, the SNAIL adhesive I used for decorating the bag once it was made though.

This background stamping with the flourish was done free hand so doesn't line up perfectly, but for the purpose I was happy enough with the result. The bird I stamped onto crumb cake and cut out and popped up on Dimensionals. To add longevity or bling to the handle part you could eyelet the holes after punching them with a Crop-a-dile.

This bag was decorated similar to I would plain store bought ones like I did here and here. I used sponged the edges of the die cuts & punchies and the textured crumb cake card stock to add more dimension to the bag. We also made some flat gusseted bags with the packaging paper.

Again I have texture embossed one and stamped the other. They would be perfect for packaging things like treats, popcorn, small fabric items like a scarf or similar. I would seal these bags using a stapler and cover the staple with the punched card stock closure tab and here's a side view.

Contact me if you want to learn how do make these bags as a friend is hosting an "upcycling" Stampin' Up! workshop and this will be one of the items that you will get to make and take for FREE!!

Stamps: You're A Gem, Friends 24-7, Tiny Tags

Ink: Chocolate Chip

Card stock: Crumb Cake & Early Expresso

Accessories: Big Shot, Square Lattice textured impressions folder, Vintage Wallpaper textured impressions folder, 1" circle punch, Birds & Blooms Sizzlits dies, Lots of Tags Sizzlis dies, Scallop circle punch & 2 3/8" scallop circle punch, Dimensionals, paper snips, SNAIL, Sticky Strip, Crop-o-dile, Jewelry Tag punch, Beautiful Wings embosslit die, Tombow glue, stamping sponge. 

Non SU: brown packaging paper & paper raffia string.

Cute By The Inch

So here was a quick card I made for a sketch challenge over on ESAD (Extra Special Australian Demonstrators - stampin' Up! - so if you are a demo come on over and join in the fun!). The colours were all from the Brights family and the centre tangerine flower was cut and popped up on Dimensionals. I really like this level 2 hostess set and don't use it nearly enough - makes quick and simple cards though - want to earn this set for FREE - contact me now to find out how - extra hostess incentive rewards from May 23-June 30th!!!

Stamps: Cute By The Inch (hostess level 2)
Ink: Basic Black
Card Stock: Daffodil Delight, Pacific Point, Tangerine Tango.
Accessories: Linen thread, paper snips, SNAIL, Tangerine Tango striped grosgrain ribbon (retired), jewelry tag punch, 1/16" handheld circle punch, Dimensionals.

Monochrome Green

I recently participated in a challenge to make a card using only one colour.........easer said than done as I was really stumped, then I started flicking through the Ideas Book & Catalogue and a card on page 9 caught my eye!  Here is my CASE of it done in nothing but greens (well except for the basic rhinestones and vanilla stripes on the ribbon!)

Stamps: On Your Birthday

Ink: Always Artichoke

Card Stock: Woodland Walk DSP, Wild Wasabi, Certainly Celery, Garden Green

Accessories: Curly label punch, 1 1/4" circle punch, 1 3/8" circle punch, Bitty punch, Scallop Trim Border  punch, Blossom Party Die, Big SHot, Basic Rhinestones, Dimensionals, Certainly Celery Striped Grosgrain Ribbon, Linen Thread, Subtles Designer Buttons. 

Deal of the Week - Week 4 - last one!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Week 4 and it's the final week for super special deals up to 40% off a selection of incredible products from the 2010-2011 Idea Book & Catalogue!

There are no limits to the number of Deals of the Week you can purchase and no minimum purchase is required. Contact me before 5pm on Tuesday 31st May to place your order for these super special deals as they won't be offered again at this price! 

This week’s deals:

Item	Page	Description	Regular Price	Sale Price
113838	62	Right On Track Stampin' Around Wheel	$11.95	$8.37
115619	62	Retro Remix Stampin' Around Wheel	$11.95	$8.37
119975	134	Vintage Type Rub-Ons	$15.95	$11.17
118760	134	Play Date Rub-Ons (see image below)	$16.95	$11.87

Awesome Hostess Rewards!

There us a wonderful, never seen in Australia before, opportunity to earn some awesome hostess rewards for hosting a party in the next few weeks. If you hold a workshop with sales of $450 (including GST and shipping) between 23rd May and 30th June 2011, instead of the normal level 1 hostess reward and $40 to spend in the catalogues - you will earn an EXTRA$70 in hostess rewards to spend on any catalogue merchandise - that's right for a workshop totaling $450 you would get a level 1 hostess reward and $110 in hostess dollars to spend in the current catalogues!

So if your wish list is LONG or you have been saving for a Big Shot machine there is no better time than NOW to host a party and earn those amazing hostess bonus $$$. Don't forget I do all sorts of workshops: it could be a traditional demo and free make & take item at a party with friends; a mini class where we would make 3 items and a fee is charged to cover the materials cost; a catalogue party between friends or work colleagues or of course you could just go super nuts and melt the plastic fantastic for some super retail therapy!

So stop hesitating, contact me now to schedule your party and earn yourself some fantastic rewards just in time to chase away the winter blues!

Scrapbook Photography

Okay so I'm not a veteran scrapbooker, I tend to only make pages for the classes I am teaching, consequently most rarely have photographs on the layouts - which is not to say I don't have a zillion photos waiting to be scrapbooked, it's just a case of time anemia and a phobia of cutting photos (I have the same phobia about ripping book pages!). Anyway my husband is the photographer in our house and I tend to be a bit of a point and shoot photographer and go on the basis that since digital cameras were invented I just take lots of pictures and figure one is bound to turn out okay!

However it is National Scrapbooking month so I wanted to share some good photography tips with you I found over on the Kodak website (if you click on the picture underneath each tip number an explanation and example will pop up - I'm a very visual learner so for me this was a good basic website for me to start to try and improve my photography).

Kodak's Top Ten Photo Tips are:

1. Get down on their level
2. Use a plain background
3. Use the flash outdoors
4. Move in close to the subject
5. Take some vertical pictures
6. Lock the focus
7. Move the subject away from the middle
8. Know your flash's range
9. Watch the light
10. Direct or rearrange your subjects

So I am going to do my best to incorporate at least a few of these tips into my photography in the next few months so fingers crossed you might even be seeing more layouts with photos in them! 

Nature Walk

My sense of colour is sometimes a bit off, but when in doubt I am learning more to trust the Color Coach #121620 (AUD$28.95) - fantastic investment for those who sometimes have mental blanks, want a challenge or some inspiration. I wanted to use Marina Mist as it's a colour I haven't used much, so I checked the Color Coach and chose the "getting started combination" which was Real Red, Old Olive & Marina Mist............

I used the gorgeous stamp set Nature Walk with it and a technique that involves wrapping a straight boarder piece around a curve (easy to do, just clip little "v" shapes out the flat side of the boarder and bend it around the curve). Both the oval pieces were popped up on Dimensionals to give it well more dimension and the edges of things were sponged with Sahara Sand to give the edges a softer look.

Stamps: Because I Care, Nature Walk

Card Stock: Real Red, Marina Mist, Old Olive, Elegant Soiree DSP, Very Vanilla

Ink: Marina Mist, Old Olive, Early Expresso, Sahara Sand

Accessories: 1/16" hole punch, Real Red brad, scallop oval punch, large oval punch, scallop boarder, Tombow glue, paper snips, Real Red Polka Dot grosgrain ribbon (retired, but you could use plain Real Red). Final Press Textured Impressions Embossing Folder, Birds & Blooms die, Ovals die, Aqua painter, stamping sponges.

So Many Thanks Notecard

Ever get stuck for ideas, especially when you just need a quick card? Check out the Catalogue and Ideas Book.........here's one from page 160 of the current Australasian IB&C that I made with a fellow downline last week. It uses one of the lovely a la carte stamps and the technique of makers direct to rubber.

Stamps: So Many Thanks

Card Stock: Old Olive, Chocolate Chip, Very Vanilla

Ink: Real Red, Old Olive, Chocolate Chip

Accessories: Scallop boarder punch, Dimensionals, Hemp Twine, Stamping sponge

Owl Treat Bag #2

Here's another of the cute Top Note gift bag made using the owl punch & some of this weeks on sale Daffodil Delight satin ribbon to embellish it (normally $16.95, now only $11.87). They are super quick to make and great for packaging all sorts of gifts inside.

Cardstock: Rich Razzleberry, Daffodil Delight, Old Olive, Whisper White, Real Red, Chocolate Chip

Ink: Daffodil Delight

Accessories: Stamping Sponges, Daffodil Delight Satin Ribbon, Owl Punch, Bird Punch, Tombow glue, Large Oval Punch, mini lunch sacks, SNAIL, Big Shot, Polka Dot textured impressions embossing folder.

Deal of the Week - Week 3

Week 3 and the deals for this week are yummy!!! There are new deals every Wednesday in May, check my website each week and get up to 40% off a selection of incredible products from the 2010-2011 Idea Book & Catalogue!

There are no limits to the number of Deals of the Week you can purchase and no minimum purchase is required. Contact me before 5pm on Tuesday 24th May to place your order for these super special deals as they won't be offered again at this price! 

This week’s deals:

Item	Page	Description	Regular Price	Sale Price
119750	137	Daffodil Delight 5/8" Satin Ribbon	$16.95	$11.87
119963	137	Certainly Celery 3/8" Taffeta Ribbon	$12.95	$9.07
109112	139	Square Fire Rhinestone Brads	$19.95	$13.97
109113	139	Square Ice Rhinestone Brads	$19.95	$13.97

Fancy Flower Thank You

I recently saw a lovely bright and happy card on a US demonstrators blog, but it used a stamp set and DSP that we just don't have available here (yet!) so I remade it with what I did have...........and made my own DSP using the stamp set Fancy Flower which was also the main flower - do you like the result?

Stamps: Fancy Flower, Taking Care of Business
Ink: Riding Hood Red, Old Olive, Baja Breeze & Daffodil Delight
Card Stock: Whisper White, Old Olive, Riding Hood Red, Daffodil Delight
Accessories: Dimensionals, paper snips, SNAIL, scallop oval punch, large oval punch, stamping sponges, Dazzling Diamonds glitter & Crystal Effects.

Ostrich Punch Art

I finally got to finish another of the zoo animal punch animals from the tutorial I bought nearly a year ago from Kim I punched out lots of pieces and took them all away with me at Easter, so I should be able to post the finished products of all of them soon! 

Stamps: On Your Birthday

Ink: Basic Black, Basic Gray, Pretty in Pink, 

Card Stock: Whisper White, Basic Black, Basic Gray, Blush Blossom (retired, but you could use Blushing Bride), Pumpkin Pie, Elegant Soiree DSP

Accessories: more punches than I care to remember using - check Kim's tutorial for directions, White gel pen, basic black Stampin' write marker, paper snips.

Rag Bag

Opps so here’s yet another item I made last year and forgot to blog............mainly because it was put into use before I had time to photograph it! I saw a tutorial on Angie K’s blog eons ago here and was (im)patiently waiting for the scallop square die to be released in Australia until I could make one myself.  Well the die came, I found some appropriate fabric in my stash and over a period of a few days (my 4yo likes to “help” me when I sew so things tend to take a bit longer than normal!!) I made myself a rag bag……………. 

Pretty cool hey! I totally love it and use it a lot………can’t wait for the Stampin’ Up! fabrics to come to Australia so I can make a super colour coordinated one!

Accessories: Scallop Square die, Cherry Cobbler button, Big Shot.

Non SU: Fabric, thread, sewing machine, bamboo batting, scissors & stiffener. 

Deal of the Week - Week 2!

Yes May is speeding away and after a lovely scrapbook class yesterday it's time for the Deals of the Week 2! There are new deals every Wednesday in May, check my website each week and get up to 40% off a selection of incredible products from the 2010-2011 Idea Book & Catalogue! There are no limits to the number of Deals of the Week you can purchase and no minimum purchase is required. Contact me before 5pm on Tuesday 17th May to place your order for these super special deals as they won't be offered again at this price!  This week’s deals:

Item	Page	Description	Regular Price	Sale Price
120963	142	Stampin Pastels New Color Kit (19)	$28.50	$22.80
115957	151	Thanks Embosslits Die	$21.95	$17.56
114513	151	Sweetest Stem Embosslits Die	$21.95	$17.56
113483	155	Pennant Bigz XL Die	$74.95	$59.96

Happy Mothers Day - Voucher Cards

Happy Mothers Day!!!! I saw this awesome card on the Inkspirations website a few weeks ago by Carrie and I just had to make one for myself...........but I didn't have a reason to until I was asked to make some gift vouchers up for Mothers Day presents! So here was my CASE of it...........

Done in blues with the Love you a Latte stamp from Pun Fun as per the request - the centre panel lifts out 

and the voucher is on the back of it. I had a custom voucher on the back for Stampin' Up! products (was that a spoilt Mum or what??), but you could easily use SNAIL and adhere a commercially bought plastic voucher card to the back of the panel. How awesome is that layout design - thanks Carrie!!! Depending upon  the sentiment you could make this up for any occasion. I also made up a couple couple more up in different colours - here's one in pink & purple - pretty cute hey!!!

  

Stamps: Teeny Tiny Sentiments, Pun Fun, Tiny Tags

Ink:  Not Quite Navy, Real Red, Pretty in Pink, Concord Crush, Basic Black, Whisper White, Very Vanilla.

Card Stock: Pale Plum, Not Quite Navy, Pretty in Pink, Concord Crush, Pumpkin Pie, Baja Breeze, Bella Bleu DSP (retired), In Color DSP Pack - hostess level 1.

Accessories: Designer buttons (Pretty in Pink & Pumpkin Pie), 1/4" Pretty in Pink grosgrain ribbon, 2 3/8" scallop circle punch, 1 3/4" circle punch, scallop border punch, jewelry tag punch, Very Vanilla 3/8" taffeta ribbon, round tab punch, hemp twine,  SNAIL, Aqua painter,  water colour pencils, 1/16" hole punch, crimper, stamping sponge.

Monkey Business Scrapbook Pages!

Scrapbook pages are always a lot of fun to make, some are simple, some are fun, some take a while to evolve and of course when children are involved in your life you have a vast array of material waiting to be preserved at your fingertips! One of the gorgeous things about children is some of their words or phrases, especially when they are explaining things to each other - so this months scrapbook class is dedicated to "classic kids quotes" which I have combined with some punch art monkeys from the super talented Kim Score. Our scrapbook class is approximately 2 hours and is a double layout with all materials provided - for my class schedule you can check my website or sign up to my newsletter, of course if the time doesn't suit, I would be happy to bring the class to you at a different time if you get a few friends together.

Pretty cute hey! The pages are designed to fit a 5"x7" photo on the left page and a 3"x4" photo on the right. Journaling for the pages can either be done around the pages, the piece next to the right hand monkey was designed for adding a name and date and further space is hidden under each tag - they flip up.......see I hadn't glued them down wonky - they move!!

Just in case you were adding things which might embarrass your children when they get older!!! These pages were done for a boy, but for a girl I would do the photo mats, small stamped circles & hearts on the monkeys in Pretty in Pink instead of Bashful Blue and add a pink butterfly bow in the monkeys hair as well to "girly" it up a bit - although glitter might also work!

All of the edges of the pages are sponged to add dimension and give the pages a softer look.

So if you would like to join us for some fun, please contact me or check out my website for other classes that are coming up.

Stamps: You're a Gem

Card Stock: Chocolate Chip, Crumb Cake, Early Expresso, Bashful Blue, Real Red

Ink: Chocolate Chip

Accessories Crop-o-dile, Jumbo eyelets, metallic brads, paper piercer, mat pack, Tombow Glue, SNAIL, 1/4" chocolate chip ribbon (retired but you could use Early Expresso), paper snips, LOTS of punches, stamping sponge, black stamp 'n write marker and white gel pen, dimensionals.

Growing Green Basket

Here's a project that got forgotten in my "to blog" folder, it was the last one from the projects at the World Card Making Day that we ran last year. It uses the ever versatile Fancy Favor box made up with a handle and decorated using the in-colours blushing bride and pear pizzazz and the stamp sets Growing Green and the To & From Tag. 

We used the box to highlight how easy and effective it was to make your own background designer papers using the stamp sets. The Boho Blossom punch flower accents on the handles were pretty cute too - the largest white flower at the back was stamped and cut with a small border.

Stamps: Growing Green, To & From Tag.

Ink: Pear Pizzazz & Blushing Bride.

Card Stock: Whisper White, Crumb Cake, Pear Pizzazz & Blushing Bride.

Accessories: Crop-a-dile, clear rhinestone brads, Boho Blossom punch, paper snips, small tag punch, large tag punch, 1/8" pretty in pink taffeta ribbon, Big Shot, Fancy Favor die, SNAIL, Sticky Strip, Dimensionals.

Week One - Deal of the Week!

Love a Bargain - want to get some awesome Stampin' Up! products at up to 40% off - then keep an eye out either here or on my Facebook page during May for updates. There will be four different lots of products on sale each week from Wednesday until Tuesday - I'll be placed orders on the Tuesday evening so if you want anything contact me BEFORE 5pm on the Tuesday. 

Small print: items still attract normal postage charges and if demand for an item is very high, they may revert to their regular price before the end of the week - so place orders early to ensure you don't miss out on the great deal!

This Week’s Deals (1-10 May 2011)

Item	Page	Description	Regular Price	Sale Price
121578	37	Tag Alongs Wood-Mount Set	$31.95	$19.17
120468	59	More Monkey Accessories Clear-Mount Set	$23.95	$14.37
121550	59	More Monkey Accessories Wood-Mount Set	$29.95	$17.97
120003	75	Cottage Garden Clear-Mount Set	$24.95	$14.97
119163	75	Cottage Garden Wood-Mount Set	$32.95	$19.77
121494	98	Compliments to the Chef Wood-Mount Set	$35.95	$21.57