...and again!

I liked the colours so much...and had all the necessary inks and cardstock already strewn over my work table so hey, what was I supposed to do? Tidy up? I DON'T THINK SO! I made another one for Kristina's Colour Inspiration #7.

I've used the So Swirly Jumbo Wheel, Very Vanilla Craft Ink, Basic Brown Classic Ink, 5/8 inch Chocolate Chip Grosgrain ribbon, Textured Soft Sky cardstock, Close to Cocoa and Chocolate Chip cardstock, a chocolate chip rub-on from the SAB 2008 set (name escapes me), brass brads from Vintage collection, and the corner rounder punch.

Nightie night stampers ;-).
Sam.

Colour Inspiration #7

I thought I'd participate in Kristina Werner's Colour Inspiration #7 this week. I love the colour choice and had heaps of fun playing with them.

This is my creation...



All products used are from Stampin' Up! The Designer Series Paper is from the recently retired (in Australia) Au Chocolat collection. The HB is stamped in Chocolate Chip Classic ink and this stamp is from the 'It's Your Birthday' stamp set. The eyelets are Jumbo Pewter. The chipboard is from the 'On Board Blossoms and Basics' collection and has been covered in Au Chocolat DSP and then 'iced' with Crystal Effects. The button is Very Vanilla from the Earth Elements and Neutrals pack and the wispy string is Linen Thread which I separated out using my scissor tips.

Unfortunately I was working a bit too close to my drying Chipboard piece while I was doing the thread separation...and several strands got stuck in the Crystal FX....so it got a bit hairy...Eeeeeeew. Hopefully I'll be able to extract them once if dries fully...imagine getting a HAIRY Birthday Card!!

Thanks for looking!
Sam.

A Little Bit of Happiness

This is a card that I made for a friend, who I thought could use a Little Bit Of Happiness! I wish it had been a Whole Lot of Happiness...but I did the best I could.




The background cardstock is Groovy Guava, and I have stamped on it using Groovy Guava Classic Ink and a stamp from the 'A Little Bit of Happiness' set. The next layer is a piece of Purely Pomegranate. It has been ripped along the edge, and then I have doodled little flowers along it using the White Gel Pen. The next layer is Soft Sky, and I have used Textured Cardstock for this piece. The join between it and the Purely Pom layer is covered with a piece of Blue Bayou Double Stitched ribbon. I affixed two Jumbo Eyelets in Pewter at each end using the Crop-A-Dile...what a great tool! It cut through that ribbon like butter :-)...no hammering and cursing either.

There is another small layer in Blue Bayou, then there is the Watercolor Paper with the main image stamped in Stazon and coloured using an Aquapainter and Classic Ink picked up from the lid of the stamp pads. If you look closely you will see that I have gone around the edge of the image in Going Gray Classic Ink. This is a tip provided by the amazingly talented Alisa Tilsner during her Brisbane Convention WOW session. It really does make a difference to your image. Thanks Alisa.

I have stamped the back of a Stampin' Up! Whisper White envelope using Groovy Guava Classic Ink. This is an idea I saw on the blog of a wonderful stamper, Michele Force. Check her blog out for plenty of beautiful card ideas!!!

Have a great day!
Sam.

En Francais Carte Postale

I was tinkering around at the craft desk today and this is the card that I came up with.



It was fiddly, but fun to make, and I was pleased with the look in the end.

The colours are: Blue Bayou, So Saffron and Whisper White. The Designer Series Paper is also from the Palette O' Prints Designer Series range.....I will post about it soon I promise ;-). The background is En Francais...and it is BEAUTIFUL! I have layered Vellum Cardstock over the top and secured it with four silver bards (I would have preferred Pewter, but I have not bought any of the new Vintage Brad selection yet). I have then stamped the image and words from the Carte Postale set in Basic Gray over the top (does anyone know if that design on the top has a name? It reminds me of the guiding Trefoil...in fact I think the Scouts had something like it...might have to go consult Wikipedia!!).

That is all there is to it!
Have a wonderful day everyone.

Sam.

PS. The Palette O' Prints information will also be in my May Stamnpin' Up! Newsletter....which, unlike April, will eventually get to my customers (I am sorry about the lack of an April newsletter, with Nick away, then Convention, me getting sick, and a trip to Sydney, it has been kinda hectic here).

Colour Inspiration #6

I was feeling a little motivation-less last night, so I thought I'd take part in another Kristina Werner Color Inspiration challenge, Color Inspiration #6.

This is the challenge that she set:



I realised when I had finished with it that my card is VERY similar in style to the last one that I made...albeit with the new colours! Stuck in a rut as well as motivation-less! WOE is me ;-).



I still think it looks nice, and hope that you do too!

I've used some of Stampin' Up!'s, soon-to-be-available-in-Australia, 'Palette o' Prints' Designer Series Paper (stay tuned for more information on that promotion ;-). I've also used the crimper, some striped Grosgrain in Pumpkin Pie, the five-petal flower punch and a large Pewter brad (for which I had to use my recently acquired CROP-A-DILE. It is LOVE!). The 'ALL MY LOVE' sentiment is from the Level I Hostess Set, So Many Sayings, and it has been stamped in Basic Gray Classic Ink (a new favourite of mine).

Thanks for stopping by.
Sam.

Colour Inspiration #5

I was browsing some blogs today and stumbled across Kristina Werner's Colour Inspiration #5 challenge. She has taken inspiration from this photo:



Which translates into the following Stampin' Up! colours:


(Certainly Celery, So Saffron, Bashful Blue, Close to Cocoa)

This is my creation using these colours:



Aside from the colours, I've used the Swiss Dots Cuttlebug Folder, some Vellum Cardstock, Stampin' Up!'s Love and Happiness Rub-Ons in Chocolate Chip (US SAB08), some Petals & Paisleys DSP, the crimper, the paper piercing tool, dimensionals, the Scallop, 3/4" Circle and 5-Petal Flower Punches and an Antique Brass Jumbo Eyelet.

I was pleased with the results.
Thanks for the inspiration Kristina!
Sam.

My Convention 2008 Swap card...

...ok, as promised, here is the recipe for my swap card. As it turns out, I had help from some Stampin' Friends up in Brissy and we got the remaining 18 cards made on Friday night...THANK YOU DIANE AND JANINE. You guys are the BEST!

I did have to fire them both a few times, for various appalling card-making infractions (e.g. a dimensional with its cover still on...and one, where the recipe was upside down!!!...well that was almost the last straw ;-), but in the end they put up with me (everyone should have friends like them) and we got the cards put together in about an hour!



The cardstock colours are Elegant Eggplant, Real Red and Whisper White. The background cardstock has Faux Stitching around the edge. The Real Red layer is mounted up on Dimensionals and has been crimped.

I stamped the flower petals from Pick A Petal on Whisper White cardstock using Ballet Blue, Summer Sun, Real Red and Elegant Eggplant Classic Ink. Each petal has been stamped off once, and I used the Stamp-A-Ma-Jig to align them. I then did the Two-Step Stamping, using the loopy overlay stamp in Elegant Eggplant and the Stamp-A-Ma-Jig. Each flower therefore involved 15 stamps! I then cut it out using the paper snips and mounted it up on Dimensionals, on another piece of Whisper White cardstock.

I traced the flower using the paper piercer (these holes are just eyeballed in). The 'Thank You' sentiment is from Cheery Chat and is in Elegant Eggplant Classic Ink. I ran the Two-Way Glue pen over each petal and then sprinkled on Dazzling Diamonds. Last, but not least I affixed a Green Galore (or Real Red) Button from the Bold Brights Buttons selection, to the flower centre using a Mini Glue Dot.

By Land Birthday

My daughter has a party to go to this weekend, so I've just whipped up a card for the Birthday Boy!



The cardstock colours are: Blue Bayou (new Stampin' Up! In Colour), Basic Black, Real Red and Whisper White.

I have doodled around the edge of the background Blue Bayou cardstock, using the White Gel Pen. The Basic Black layer is mounted up on Dimensionals. The Real Red layer has been run through the Cuttlebug with the Traffic Jam Embossing Folder (I buy my Cuttlebug Folders and Dies from Bizzy Bec's...you get GREAT service :-).

The Road is a strip of Basic Black cardstock, stamped with the centre line marker stamp in Whisper White Craft Ink. The 'Happy Birthday' sentiment is from the Birthday Whimsy Sale-A-Bration set and has also been stamped in Whisper White Craft Ink.

The truck is from the By Land stamp set and has been stamped in Blue Bayou Classic Ink on Whisper White cardstock and cut out. The wheels where stamped again in Real Red ink and punched out using the 3/4" Circle Punch and mounted up using Dimensionals. The driver is from the All in The Family stamp set, and is cut out and mounted behind the truck so he is looking through the window. The truck's load is a torn piece of River Rock cardstock.

The Traffic Light is stamped in Basic Black on Whipser White cardstock. I have used Real Red, Only Orange and Glorious Green Stampin' Write Markers to colour a small circle from a stamp in the 'A Good Egg' stamp set (although there are others you can use), and aligned using the Stamp-A-Ma-Jig (DON'T leave home without it ;-). The whole piece is cut out using the paper snips and mounted up on Dimensionals.

And that is it!

Stampin' Up! Convention - 2009, Australia

I am just home from the beautiful Awards dinner at the Stampin' Up! 2008 Annual Convention, held in Brisbane, and wanted to let you know that next year's Stampin' Up! Convention will be held in my home town.......CANBERRA! Wooooooo Hooooooooo!!!!! How exciting is that?

It has been a fabulous two days, full of fun and information. I wish I could have shown/told you more here, but the internet connection was 1/ difficult, then 2/ EXPENSIVE!

Gotta go to bed now...I am SO tired.

Sam.

PS. HUGE congratulations to all the Stampin' Up! Award winners. I'll let them tell you who they are....... :-)

Stampin' Up! Convention - Brisbane, Australia

I just thought I’d drop you a quick line and say Hi, from sunny Bris-Vegas!! Well, actually it is overcast, and did sprinkle for a bit (RAIN...what a novelty), but who cares?

I am here for the second Stampin’ Up! Convention to be held in Australia. It starts tomorrow, runs for two days, and is being held in the Convention Centre here in Southbank, Brisbane.

These photos show the view from the room. FABULOUS!!! :-).




This is my swap card. I’ve made 22 of these (they took FOREVER), and I have the materials here for another 18, but the chances of them getting down before tomorrow a.m. are small.



I'll have to post the recipe another time. My hand hurts from all the stamping yesterday ;-). I don't know how people do hundreds of swap cards...probably not the day before convention starts, that's how!

I’ll let you know how it goes!
All the best,
Sam.

Our new Idea Book and Catalogue...

...is here, and open for business!

Check it out online, or purchase a copy from me for $10 (not incl. postage).

The new 'In Colours' are simply beautiful, and the stamp sets and range of accessories fabulous!

If you'd like to book a workshop, now is a great time to do it. Please give me a call or send me an email.

Talk to you all soon,
Sam.