Last SAB project - Bliss

Well, today is the final day of the amazing Sale-A-Bration promotion. I hope you have enjoyed the free stamp sets. I will certainly miss them, especially Bliss.

So today I had a final play and made a card for my friend Hayley as a wedding RSVP.



I used the scrolly stamp to create the background tone on tone in Crumb Cake. I added some Organza Ribbon, which is very classy and great for weddings.



The squares are Rose Red and I used the Rock and Roll technique on the flowers using Rose Red and Regal Rose. I finished them off with some pearls.

Stay tuned for some more exciting Stampin' Up! news tomorrow.

Read more...

Sale-A-Bration is here! Earn FREE stamp sets!

Well my lovelies, today is a very exciting day because Sale-A-Bration is here! This is your chance to earn FREE Stampin' Up! stamp sets and there are loads of ways to get your hands on these four EXCLUSIVE products.
SAB runs until February 28th and you can earn free stamp sets in three ways.

1. With each order of £45 you can choose one free set. Spend £90 and you get two, £135 and you can have three. If you want all four, and who wouldn't - they're totally fab! - spend £180. This means your order alsoqualifies for a FREE Level 1 Hostess Set and a further £15 of free goodies from the catalogue! WOWSER! Take a look at the 2010-2011 Idea Book & Catalogue (link over there >>) and call or email me to place your order.

2. Host a workshop with £300 or more in orders and you will get a FREE SAB stamp set. You will also get a FREE Level 2 OR Level 1 Hostess Set and £35 of further FREE goodies from the catalogue. Not to mention have loads of fun and you and your guests will each have the chance to make a card to take away. Just get in touch to book your workshop and I will come round to demonstrate some of the amazing SU products.

3. Become a demonstrator during SAB and you can choose a FREE stamp set from the catalogue, up to £44.95. AMAZING! Being an Indpendent Stampin' Up! Demonstrator is a great way to get discount on awesome craft products, meet new friends and earn some extra cash. You also have the opportunity to attend the SU events throughoutthe year, such as training days and Convention (at Disneyland Paris next November!). If you want to find out more about joining my team just get in touch.

So, there you have it! Earn free stamp sets in loads of fun and easy ways!

I'll be back tomorrow with some cards using the new SAB sets, but for now, here are pictures of all the products. To read the full details please visit SAB.

Read more...

Fairground scrapping

Yesterday I had a bit of scrapping fun with an old pic of myself and a former housemate, Vanessa.



We used to live together in Stockport and would go for a long walk at the weekends. One time we went to Oulton Park and had a go on the carousel there!



So for this page I started with a white background and coloured in a paper doily by rubbing my SU ink pads over it and coating it in Shimmer Paint. This turned out fab and is a great match to the horses. I used lots of different bits, including some different ribbons, Pearls and Gold Brads.



Lots of flowers and stars, and tons of Pearls and Rhinestones!



I used the Rub Ons for the title and scrolled the paper to match the one on the horse. His name is Troy!



I also tried out some Grungeboard.



And this is the journaling! Basically, we got on our horse anbd the carousel started going REALLY slowly. After a minute the guy in charge came walking round, looked at us and said: "There's too much weight on one side"!! That was it! So we had to move to balance it out with all the kids!

Was good fun to do this page, although it took quite a while to stick everything down!

Read more...

The end?

The weekend is here again! Time really does fly at the moment.

So here's another scrapbook page. I now have quite a few done for my gorgeous Stampin' Up! scrapbooking album, and it looks amazing.

For this, I went black and white to complement the images. They were taken about 10 years ago while I was at uni in Cambridge. I did a photography module and was experimenting with processing the images in the dark room. I used to live next door to this graveyard during my first year, and would often walk through it for a bit of contemplation and me time.



The DSP is Love Letter, which features yummy black, white and red patterns in a lovely vintage style without being too OTT. I kept the whole thing quite simple with the aim of posing a question rather than making a statement.



For the title I used the chipboard letters from the On Board Alphabet Soup set. Instead of colouring them in or covering them, I simply distressed them a bit by daubing them with ink. I was very pleased with the result.

I really must start taking photographs again. My digital cameras were stolen when my house was broken into a couple of years ago, but luckily I still have my dad's old film camera (which these pics were taken with). That's much more fun anyway. If only I had my own dark room ...

Read more...

I'm an aunty again!

My big bro and his missus had their third child last Thursday - Tabitha Hannah. I've not met her yet but mum sent me a pic and she is adorable!

So here is the card I sent to say congratulations ...



I used the Baby Tees Wheel on Whisper White cardstock, then coloured the jumpsuits in using the Stampin' Write Markers.



I cut them out and hung them over a piece of Linen Thread, held in place with brads, using some Silver Elastic Cord. To make the clouds I just used the Sponge Daubers and Whisper White Craft ink.

Pretty straightforward really. I stuck the tees down with Dimensionals so they stand out.



And I added a bit of decoration to the inside.

Now I have to get started on a cross stitch samplerfor the new addition, just like the ones I made for Samuel and Ziva!

Read more...

SAB finale and a special birthday

Only four days left to get some FREE Stampin' Up! stamp sets with the Sale-A-Bration promotion! After Feb 28th they'll be gone forever, so don't miss out - contact me now to order!

And just for one last bit of inspiration, here are cards I have made with Bliss, which is my favourite of the FREE SAB sets you can earn when you buy Stampin' Up! products.



I teamed it with the Just Believe set and the Sweet and Sour DSP. Plus some bling with the Rhinestones!

One of these went out to my SU sister Sarah-Jane for her birthday today. Hope you have a fab time!

Read more...

Last few days to get FREE Stampin' Up! goodies

Well it's nearly the end of February and that means not only am I wiser and the days are going too quickly, but also that you don't have long left to get some FREE Stampin' Up! goodies.

Hopefully you have been inspired by the beautiful Sale-A-Bration sets this year and have enjoyed my projects. I have a couple more cards to show you with these stamps, and here's the first.



I CASEd this design from my good friend Vicky. The stems are from the Sweet Summer set. I added little punched hearts with Pearls on and "cut" the grass using the Scallop Trim Border Punch and layering Certainly Celery and Old Olive grosgrain ribbon.



Pretty cute I think!

So, you have until Feb 28th to get free Stampin' Up! products here in the UK. Just order £45 of goodies and you get to choose one free set. And if you sign up to become a demonstrator before the end of the month, as well as getting amazing goodies at a very good price and sharing the fun of creativity, you will get an EXTRA FREE stamp set of any value from the catalogue. Just drop me a line to order, sign up or find out more.

Amazing!

Read more...

Get well soon Chris

My SU sister Chris goes into hospital for a knee operation today so I sent her this little card to wish her well and brighten her day.



The DSP is the yummy Sweet & Sour Specialty, and I covered a chipboard heart with it to add a little dimension.

All the best Chris, hope to see you up and about very soon!

Read more...

Some new pursuits - jewellery making

I have been branching out recently and trying some new things - jewellery making.

Here are a couple of my new pieces. As you can see, I'm sticking with the vintage look!



A necklace made with some DSP and plastic window charm things!



And a bracelet with my name in faux typewriter keys!

Read more...

Fun times

Last night was my birthday party with several of my WI friends. There were six of us celebratingand we had lots of cake and wine and played some Blackjack and pass the parcel! Then a few of us headed on to a bar and I eventually got home at 4.30am! Thought I would be too old for that now! So this morning I had a bit of a lie-in then nipped out to a local craft shop and picked up a few bits, including some cute little wooden boxes to decorate.

I'm very into my vintage looks and distressing at the moment, and I created this tag using a few different effects.



There's a bit of embossing-type stuff and some crackly paint then lots of tea-staining and lace!




Having partied and got some fresh air and exercise I will be taking it easy the rest of the weekend!

Read more...

My many names

I had a brilliant time at our Buns & Roses WI meeting last night. My good friend Helen led the way, with the help of member Liz and a lovely lady called Sarah who is deaf.

They told us what it was like to be deaf and how we can all communicate with those who cannot hear. We learnt the alphabet, numbers, colours, some fun words and two songs!

It was a real eye-opener and very touching to get to know Sarah and commiunicate with her in a way that suits HER, not us.

We all came up with a sign that would reperesnt our name too. Mine looks a bit like doing needlework!

And here is a scrapbook page with another name for me - Curly Sue!



Tonight I'm off to my joint birthday party with Tessa, Helen, Ellie, Georgie and Brendan. Best start getting ready!

Read more...

Tessa's birthday

Today is my housemate Tessa's birthday so I made her a card and little gift.



I decided to go a bit cutesy with Bliss and combine this awesome FREE stampset with the stunning Lap of Luxury DSP and some grosgrain and taffeta ribbon. The colours are Pretty In Pink and Perfect Plum and I have slightly distressed the squares and inked with Crumb Cake.



This cute little treat holder was really easy to make and so much fun. I started with a 3" square of Wild Wasabi card stock and scored each edge 1/2" in then folded up. Added some more green card at the front and some Bashful Blue for the sky, all with scallop punched edges. I also did clouds using the Sponge Daubers and Whisper White Craft ink.



I added flowers in Daffodil Delight, which were covered in the Champagne Glimmer Paint and finished off with Rhinestones. The little Lindt bunny didn't have his usual ribbon so I added Read Red taffeta and a name tag. You will notice this one is actually for my mum ...hope she doesn't read this! These would be awesome for Easter too!

Tonight is our WI meeting so I'll be off to do some crafting with the girls. Think I will make some new clothes for the Dead Dolls I got the other day!

Read more...

Two weeks left of SAB - FREE Stampin' Up! products

Last night I had a mega craft session. I was feeling rather crafty and had lots of cards to make for my friends as well as a huge order from my mum. She goes through her calendar and tells me what she needs!

However, I can't show you any of those just yet, so here is another Sale-A-Bration idea!

Remember, these sets are only available until the end of February and you get one FREE with each £45 order. Or if you host a workshop with sales over £300.

This is the yummy Sweet Summer.



It's a slight variation of others you have seen because I adore the Sweet & Sour DSP! It is so bright and cheery.



To order or book a workshop just get in touch by phone or email!

Read more...

Cards for little monsters

I've been doing so much the last few months that I have a big stack of pictures to show you, so today I thought I would do a few at once!



The Make A Monster set is my favourite one for kids. It's just so much fun and you get to create and colour!



Thereare three different bodies in the set and several eyes, mouths and head-things, so you can go mad and make some very strange-looking beings!



And they're not just for kids - many of us have difficulty doing a card for men, so why not appeal to the child inside them and use Make A Monster?! They never grow out of being terrors!



I have combined the set with the Celebrations DSP, Party This Way set, some ribbon and buttons, and used lots of bright colours.

Right, lots to do this week so I must crack on!

Read more...

A day in Leeds as a home tourist

Inspired by Twitter to spend some time as a home tourist in Leeds, I have been out today with my eyes open a little wider than usual. I was heading to town anyway and decided to use it as an excuse to shop and chill out.

I started off at the Town Hall for the vintage fair, which was fantastic. There were lots of beautiful things and shiny trinkets. I purchased a funky top and also some gorgeous old photo postcards and a magazine page, which took my eye straightaway.



Then I spotted a little Oriental box, for a bargain price.



I opened it up to find four dead dolls! Sooo awesome. I will be making them some new clothes. One has her name written on the back - Jodie.



After shopping I headed to the Tiled Hall Cafe for the Buns & Roses book club meeting. We had read The Dice Man by Luke Rhinehart. I scoffed a yummy beef sandwich while we discussed the book.

Then I had a wander round the art gallery and purchased two bargain exhibition catalogies.



Finally, I decided to call in at Harvey Nichols for a coffee and listen to my housemate Tessa Smith singing.

Back to reality now though and must get some work done this evening!

Read more...

A cheeky scrapbook page

I've been scrapping a few old photos recently, and although this one is a bit embarassing, and rude, I think it's awesome so I decided to share!

No idea what's going on here, but it obviously amused my parents!



Sweet ass! I went a bit 70s (even though I'm not that old!) with the funky patterned paper.



The chipboard letters are the very fun Stampin' Up! On Board Alphabet Soup, which I coloured using the Sponge Daubers with Chocolate Chip and More Mustard, and I remembered the Fleurettes - crochet flowers - that are perfect!



I've just got a Crop-A-Dile so I had to have some eyelets somewhere! And my fave embellishment - buttons with Linen Thread.

So yeah, that's my butt!

Read more...

Happy birthday to me!

I had an amazing birthday yesterday, thanks to all my lovely freinds. I received a lot of gorgeous cards from, my family and my Stampin' Up! family as well as tonnes of cake and some super presents.

These are the cards from mummy Jules and my sisters/nieces! I am so proud to know such talented and thoughtful ladies.





And here are the cards from my "real" family. The general theme is cake, shayshos (hedgehogs) and cats.



Here are my presents from Hayley and Helen. A crocheted toilet roll cover, a funky padded picture and some cross stitch pattersn for tissue boxes.



And then there were these .... JLS condoms!



And this is the cake that Tessa made for breakfast!



Along with that, Chinese takeaway, Cava and more cake (Hayley's peanut butter delights) I felt rather sick by bedtime!

I had a great day though. Thanks again to everyone who sent a card or message - they mean a lot to me.

Read more...