Gold Medal for exemplary customer service awarded to " Pink Poppy "

I am very much a believer in excellent customer service, and it is something I try hard to provide myself.  However, every now and again, I come across service that goes so far above and beyond the norm that I feel proud to bestow my thanks in as public a way as possible - hence this unusual blog post:

The back-story - On Christmas afternoon my 9yo son unwrapped a gift from his auntie, which included a cool animal shaped "Balloon Ball Buddy"  Miss Soon To Be 6 also received one.  Of the assorted treasures they received, these toys were the most captivating, and were quickly extricated from their packaging and inflated.  For a short few minutes, there was much amusement and pleasure, but then Master 9's tore apart under very moderate inflation.  There were tears, quite a few of them, wrapped in much disappointment.  Miss STB6 very graciously offered to stem the flow by telling Master 9 that she would share hers with him, although she was now anxious that her toy would suffer the same fate.  I offered that I would try and find him a replacement as soon as possible, and so as not to forget, and before the packaging could be binned, I sent off an email explaining the story above to the distributor address on the packaging,  Yipose Trading Company P/L, who are most commonly known as "Pink Poppy" , purveyor of all things pink and girly.  You've almost certainly seen their stands of hair clips and bows and similar goodies on your shopping adventures, but I'd never seen the balloon toys before.

Scroll forward to 9am Boxing Day morning, when the doorbell sounds.  Expecting to find neigbouring children keen to play, imagine my stunned amazement to find a representative from Pink Poppy, with not one, but TWO replacement "Ball Buddies", and an additional gift for both Master 9 and Miss STB6 of a cool 'projector' pen, and a sturdy kid-sized shopping bag to boot.  There were a few more tears, of happiness this time, along with profuse thanks.  Mere hours after sending the enquiry, on a traditional family day, where no one would be expected to read work-related emails, let alone act upon them.  Quite simply amazing!

I am so very impressed at the speed and thoughtfullness with which the drama was resolved, and would like to congratulate the people responsible for their excellent service.  You certainly made our day, and restored a little faith in the commercial world as well.  A very well deserved "StampInkPaper Gold Medal of Service " is hereby bestowed upon you!  If you're reading this and have an outlet that suits their range, perhaps you should check them out as a supplier!!

Christmas Wishes

Merry Christmas everyone!
I thought I had succeeded in doing something new with my Demonstrator Business website, making an e-card in a different program and inserting it into the e-card editor in DBWS.  It looked fine in preview, and I was quite proud of my efforts!!  However, something is not quite right..... Apologies to everyone who receives an email with a little red x square....  I'll try again, perhaps another day though!

Santa is nearly here, hope you've been good enough to get what you most would like :)

Happy Birthday cards for kids with Printed Petals

Miss L has attended a rash of kindergarten birthday parties of late, about 5 in the last month.   Some were actual/close enough birthdays, others were kids who have birthdays during the upcoming holidays, so their wise parents moved the date up to ensure school mates would be around to attend.

I made a couple of  this card, using "Printed Petals"  I modelled it after this card, originally designed by Jayne Mercer as one of our team charity cards.  I made heaps with "Eastern Blooms" but I wanted to see if the larger flower from "Printed Petals" would work, and I quite like the effect.  Any stamp set with a largeish bold shape would work, and it's a great design for mass production.  Mmm, I feel inspired to go look in the cupboard to see what other stamps I might be able to use with this technique.  Simply, choose three or four monochromatic colours in varying shades.  Start with the lightest shade to avoid needing to clean in between, and stamp across the card, and off the sides.  Then switch to the next lightest shade, and so on, slightly overlapping the images.  Finish with a cut out of the darkest shade, popped up and glittered, with some leaves behind it to make it stand out.    This time I used the branch from the two step bird punch, but in the previous link I used the 5 petal flower through the crimper.  You could hand-cut them if you don't own the punch.  Standing by to take your order if you want one though!

The other great thing about this design is that it leaves a space for a greeting, that can be added at a later date to suit the occasion. Since the design is versatile, it could be pressed into service for anything from a birthday card, thank you, get well or note card.

The colours I used for this card are:  Melon Mambo base, Whisper White panel for stamping (essential for crisp images!), and the stamping is done in Pretty in Pink, Regal Rose, Melon Mambo and Rich Razzleberry.  The sentiment is from "Curly Cute", stamped in Melon Mambo and mounted on Rose Red.  The branches were punched in Old Olive.  Done!  I think I'll try it again without the mounted base, to see if no border gives the stamped panel more 'breathing space' What do you think??

All products are  Stampin' Up!, and all are available to order through me, just call (02) 9484 9447 or email me to place your order or join my mailing list here

Let's get organised - Inkpad labels and Cardstock Colour Labels

With the Colour Renovation now complete, you've probably had a chance to sort your supplies.  Why not start off your New Year all organised, with labels for your inkpads and colour labels for your cardstock files.

Inkpad colour names are laser printed on clear plastic labels, in navy text.  They are sized to fit across the end of the pad, so that if you have them stacked or in your Color Caddy, you'll be able to see the colour at a glance.  The colours are printed two per label, and there is an easy peel system for removing the backing.

 

They are printed in colour collections, so you'll be able to find the label you need quickly, and pre-snipped so they are ready to apply by peeling from the split backing.  The laser printed ink is resistant to isopropyl alcohol and Stampin' Mist, so you can clean your smudgy pads if you like, without damaging the label. 

The set includes all standard colours in the four Colour Collections - Brights, Subtles, Regals and Neutrals, current 2010-11 In Colors, specialty inks including Versamark, Stazon Black, Stazon White, and (now retired) Encore metallics and Very Vanilla (in anticipation of it's return maybe?!)  I've also included all the cardstock colours that don't come as inkpads -  Shimmery White, Naturals Ivory, Glossy White, vellums, metallics etc.  So if you like, you can use a second set to label a colour swatch book.

The cost per set is $5.00 and includes postage anywhere within Australia. 

There are also a limited number of sets that include all the current colours as above, as well as the old retired colours and old In Colors back to 2007 - these are available at $7 per set while stocks last, including postage within Australia.

Cardstock labels are laser printed onto matching cardstock, in black bold font.  They are pre-cut and sorted into mini ziplock bags per colour collection - Neutrals, Brights, Regals,Subtles, In Color and Specialties (Confetti, watercolor, vellums, metallics etc)  They are sized for use in suspension file tabs, and are ideal for labelling the multi-drawer stacking stationery units from Officeworks etc.

The cost per set is $5.00 and includes postage anywhere within Australia.

To order, please email me at michelle.dyson@bigpond.com with your name, address, number of sets of each type you require, and I will contact you to confirm and provide you with direct deposit banking details. 

Happy organising!

Farewell Fudge and Welcome Kimba, aka "new and improved Fudge"

A few weeks ago we said a considered and sad farewell to our second fur-child, Fudge.  Fudge was 11years old, young for a burmese, but had been battling a rare (in cats) digestive condition for almost 2 years. She was suffering from a pancreatic enzyme insufficiency, which meant that she was unable to extract enough nutrition from her food.  She was perpetually hungry, and lost a great deal of weight, from a healthy 4.5kg in the top photo down as low as 2.3kg. 

Once she was diagnosed, and started on her treatment, she regained quite a bit of her body mass to 3kg, and was happy and active, if still ravenous!  However, she had some setbacks recently, and while she recovered from the first with a course of Flagyl, she was unable to bounce back a second time.  A week or so before her euthanasia, she stopped purring, and lay around not doing much, and the expression on her little face just said 'tired and sad'.  My children have grown up with Fudge, and were understandably upset at the prospect.  We discussed at length the fact that it was not fair to keep dragging her along as she was, and they could see that it was the right time to make the decision.

 We'd also heard that there was a large number of special cats in urgent need of re-homing after their breeder and owner had been forced to move interstate, and thought that if we could offer a kind and loving home to another animal in desperate need, it would both fill the void and make it easier (for us) to part with Fudge.
Unfortunately for us, the burmese cat we had hoped to adopt had been rehomed via the PetRescue site,  but we were told there was another cat, a little unwell, who may or may not be adoptable.  In a strange co-incidence, the foster carer called the same afternoon as Fudge's departure to say that she was improving and that we could adopt her.  In another uncanny co-incidence, the new cat was the same (quite uncommon) Chocolate Tortoiseshell colour burmese as our adored Fudge.  It was certainly meant to be.  And so, we have welcomed Kimba to our family, and she has made herself more than at home with her super affectionate nature, athletic exploits and kittenish curiousity - hence the "new and improved Fudge" tag.   That's Miss Kimba, also known as "Kimasarby Dream Catcher", in the lower photo, looking suitably adorable.

So, if you're looking at getting a family pet for Christmas, I do urge you to contact any of the several rescue organisations, such as Pet Rescue  to see if you can offer a happy home to an animal in need, instead of purchasing from a breeder or pet shop.  Many breeds of dogs and cats have their own Rescue organisations, and there are delightful bitzers and moggies as well, all waiting to lavish their love on you.

Soon, back to something more like craft, thanks for reading :)

SUMMER MINI is here! Enter the Virtual Launch to win a great prize!

Woo hoo!  It's here!  And, it contains a number of the most requested items that didn't make it into our main Idea Book and Catalogue back in September.   Well, I guess Stampin' Up! had to keep something back to fill our mini with!

There's just too much else happening in everyone's lives this close to Christmas, so I won't be holding a formal launch like I usually do.    However, I'm having a Virtual Launch instead!  If you'd like me to send you a copy of the Mini catalogue, please use the "Contact Me" form on my Demonstrator Business Website to drop me a line.  Everyone who places an order of $20 or more from either the main IBC, December Frenzy promo or the Summer Mini  before December 29th will go into the draw to win a fabulous 'door prize' including stamps and accessories  (stay tuned for a pic of the prize goodies).  You'll get an entry ticket for each $20 you spend (excl p/h), so you could be getting an extra gift when you spend your Christmas money on some delicious Stampin' Goodies!  (yes, I changed it to a ticket per $20 spent in recognition of the expensive time of year - more chances to win!)

Bargain Stamping Goodies with December Frenzy - order today!

Roll up, Roll up!  It's December Frenzy time!

There are a great range of products to choose from, and some are as much as 50% off.  Click HERE or on the image above to visit the PDF flyer to print.  It shows the picture, price and catalogue page details for each item in the sale.  I do recommend that you are quick to place your order to avoid disappointment - if stock runs out it may be backordered until after Christmas.  I know I'm adding a few things from this great promotion to my Christmas Shopping list!

My picks:

* Teeny Tiny Sentiments set in Wood mount - Save a whopping 50% - there's absolutely NO excuse to put off owning this fabulous set in the best format.  Even if you already have it in clear mount, I'd be jumping at the chance!  Now just $31.48

* Autumn Days set in Wood Mount - a great set for Masculine cards, but versatile for Christmas even!  Now just $19.48,  that's 50% off.

*Pendant Park in Clear Mount  - what a bargain at $13.98!

* A Kind Heart Angel Policy stamp - another half-price deal, this stamp is all you need when you are creating items for sale using Stampin' Up! products, now just $5.98

*There's a selection of Stampin' Write marker colours, from $3.45 each and lots more.

This promo runs from now (1st Dec) till Dec 29th,  why not browse it alongside the new Summer Mini and call today to organise your Christmas Present to yourself :)