SUPER FAST, LAST MINUTE cards (+ SAB and Summer Mini orders!!!)

With 2 school aged kids, there is often a birthday party for someone to attend,  so a quick and simple card is always a good option, especially when I've forgotten about it until the LAST MINUTE!  This one was made using the fabulous "Cupcake Builder Punch" (121807, $33.95).  It's not just for cupcakes, I've seen clouds, hot air balloons, flower pots and lots more around blog land.  I've punched the tops from some scraps of patterned paper, "Just Add Cake".  I drew from the colours in the DSP to make the base from Baja Breeze, and a panel of Whisper White to build the cupcakes onto.  The wrappers are Early Espresso cardstock.    I added some Basics Rhinestones and a squirt of DIY Shimmer Spray, and my favourite Happy Birthday greeting from Party This Way (121558 $26.95 in wood mount, $21.95, 120609 in clear mount).  Ta Da!  Done, and out the door.  Well, I could have been, but this time I was a little more organised and had made it the day before, and even took a picture, as you can see!

Speaking of ORGANISED, and LAST MINUTE, has everyone checked and double checked the Summer Mini for must-haves?  Both the Summer Mini and the Sale-a-bration (free stamps!) promotion end THIS SATURDAY, 31st March.  I've got my Stampin' Crop day on this day, so if you're local pop by to have a look, or email me your order before 8pm.

Here's a good example, based on the card above.  You could have everything you need to make this card about 40 times with the products below, and endless numbers more by just adding more cardstock:

Designer Series Paper pack 12 sheets 12x12"    $18.95
Getting Started A4 Cardstock 24 sheets             $13.95
Party This Way stamp set, clear mount                $21.95
Cupcake Builder Punch                                      $33.95
Inkpad (Espresso used here)                              $11.95

total                                                                   $100.75



PLUS, your choice of  a FREE Sale-a-bration item, shown below:     

          Just think how many MORE cards you could make with one of these?

Special Offer - for customers able to PICK UP from Cherrybrook, I am offering FREE POSTAGE on any qualifying Sale-a-bration order of $100 or more

Have a good Friday, getting close to Easter Holidays now!                     

Car Boot Sale - THIS SATURDAY 24th March

Oops! My Newsletter that just went out had a conflicting date for the upcoming Car Boot Sale. It's definitely THIS Saturday, 24th March!

No, my car is not an orange Kombi camper, but I have quite a bit of stuff, so it might have come in handy!

When and Where: Cherrybrook Public School, Saturday 24th March, 10am-3pm.

Location: Teacher's car park (or hall if wet), 131 New Line Road, Cherrybrook.

Parking is available on street, and in the Uniting Church carpark across the road.

What's on offer?

Car washes - raise funds for the OOSH centre

Food Stalls

Jumping Castle for the kids

Stalls of all shapes and sizes - who knows, maybe you'll see an orange Kombi!

I'll have lots of retired stamp sets for sale, scrapbooking papers, hand-crafted cards and gifts, catalogue bonuses and more - if you're local why not drop in to say hi!?

Wisteria Wonder and Forever Young with Happy Greetings

Another card I whipped up in the inspiring environment of Miss Clare's house:  I loved love love the tree stamp in the Forever Young set, and I am coming to like the clock and silhouette stamps too.  Check it out on page 45 of the main IBC, from $40.95 in clear mount (122572).  On this card, I have concentrated on using a 'dynamic duo' of Wisteria Wonder and Concord Crush (an In Color leaving us in September).  The background is wheeled with Very Vintage Jumbo wheel in Wisteria ink.  The top panel has a few layers, and I have used something a little different for the 'sky' layer - a piece of the delectable Flirtatious Specialty Paper, a delicate all-over doily pattern.  I used a scallop circle punchie to sponge over with Wisteria ink, moving the scallop around to sponge cloud-shapes, to create a thundery sky look.  The little 'hills' are made by tearing some lengths of cardstock and sticking them down over the DSP layer.  I stamped the tree last, in Concord Crush ink, and added the "Thanks for being a friend" greeting from the Summer Mini set, Happy Greetings -  125792, $35.95 in wood mount.  This set has a useful collection of greeting stamps in a selection of classic fonts.   The "Happiness Always" is my favourite wedding/engagement/anniversary stamp of all time, and it also includes a Congrats/Well done stamp, Take a look to see if it is a good addition to your collection before it's gone on March 31st - it would also make a good set for a beginning stamper because of the versatile sentiments.

You are Loved - Quick card with In Colors - have you ordered your reinkers etc?

I love Peach Parfait and Pear Pizzazz - and I am going to miss them terribly, along with Blushing Bride and Concord Crush.  I never quite came to like Poppy Parade, but I know others for whom it was their new favourite red!  There are a few short months left to purchase these colours, as they will rotate out of the In Color range as of August 31st.   That's right, after 2 years they leave us!  After then, you'll no longer be able to buy cardstock, markers, reinkers, inkpads or ribbon accessories for these colours.  I do like to give my lovely readers plenty of warning, so they can take inventory and stock up appropriately.  With a marker and reinker along with your inkpad and a pack or two of cardstock, you can create with these colours for years to come.  If you're thinking of an item or two from the current (but soon departing) Summer Mini, and need some ESSENTIAL filler items to make up a Sale-a-bration order of $100, these In Color products are just perfect.  

Anyway, this card was made during a visit to a playland during the summer hols, while my kids ran themselves ragged, not to mention hot and sweaty!  The base layer is Peach Parfait, and it has been stamped with the flower background from the SAB set "Fresh Vintage", free with your order of $100 before March 31st.  The band is Pear Pizzazz, punched with the Scallop Trim punch.    The greeting has been stamped using "You are Loved", $47.95 in clear mount, 123779, from the Summer Mini.  I used markers to ink the stamp, even including little bits of Poppy Parade and Blushing Bride, and stamped it onto the fabulous Glossy White cardstock.  This smooth coated white cardstock is a great choice for markers and solid stamps, as the surface absorbs ink beautifully, and leaves a crisp printed image.  And, it's a bargain at $9.50 for 25 sheets.  It's tucked up the back of the cardstock section with the other specialties, page 125, and the code for ordering is 106555.  This stamp set co-ordinates with both the Decorative Label (used here) and Large Oval punches.  The Decorative Label punch can be used with a neat trick to create a mat, simply by punching a second shape and cutting it neatly in half.  Spread it a smidge and trim off the tiny points, and you have a shadow layer that adds instant depth.  Twice the punch for the price, and it's a great size for larger greetings.  You can find it on page 150, #120907 ad $33.95.  The finishing touches for this card are some of the Pumpkin Pie narrow taffeta ribbon across the band, and I have used a handy technique with the wide stripe ribbon, taking advantage of the semi- twill weave of the ribbon to create a floral accent.  It is secured with a stitch or two and was attached with super dooper Sticky Strip tape. 

Enjoy your day everyone, I have 50 more words to finangle into a 500 word science teaching website critique, so best go, although I am pretty sure I'd rather be stamping!

The finished quilt unfurled - quite inspired to quilt with paper now...

 

A while back I posted about the quilt I have been making for some 12 years and finally finished in January...  One of my lovely blog visitors asked to see it spread out, and here it is on my bed.  No sooner had I finished, Kimmi the Quilt Blending cat decided it was a good spot to have a schmooge and ask for a tummy rub.  Wish granted, photo taken.  I hope the red/blue and tan colourway shows up better this way Sam!   You still can't really see the borders, but the first is the slate blue pinspot peeking out from behind the watermark, then the William Morris dark red Cherry Cobbler! print, and the outer border is a darker blue than the blue/white swaggy spot on the tan and blue triangle squares.  It's got woollen batting, and is quite pleasant to snuggle under.  I've even signed it now, since I've been nagged by every quilter who has seen it to date.  Who knows, maybe in 100 years time someone will wonder why on earth it took so long to make(snort!)

Thinking about joining? It's a great time NOW!

Until the end of Sale-a-bration (SAB) on March 31st, there are extra great reasons to join my StampInkPaper team:

• The starter kit contains over $610 worth of products, and many of them can be selected by you to suit your personal tastes or mesh with what you might already own - ink and cardstock colours, stamp set, type of ribbon or adhesive, punch.
• The kit is usually priced at $289, a great deal in itself, but during SAB it costs just $249 - that's a very small investment for a no-risk business opportunity, or a bargain deal on supplies, no matter what you plan to do with your demo'ship.
• On top of that, during SAB, you get to select an additional stamp set of any value from any current catalogue (main or Summer Mini), FREE - so you can add up to another $77.95 to your $610 worth of goodies depending on which set you choose (mmm, $687.95 for $249? That's a whopping 64% discount!).
• The kit includes a great range of products that allow you to start creating right away, and includes business supplies such as a box of catalogues (and a pack of current minis) and order forms so you can start making an income the day you receive your kit.  There is no postage charge on the Starter Kit.
• You can even sign up online here , and you no longer need an ABN to start.  It's a good idea to have a printed set of forms so you can have everything ready, so just email me for a set to look at, no obligation. Or you can get more information and download them here.   I'm also happy to meet with you if you are local, or chat via Skype or phone if you're not - my small and friendly team extends from Sydney to South Australia and we have a private discussion forum to chat and support each other on.
• Not sure?  Like the products, but don't know if you want to sell to others?  You are free to run your business however you like within the terms of the Independent Demonstrator Agreement.  If you decide not to continue, you will simply drop as a demonstrator, there are no penalties, no charges, and nothing to return.  The image below shows the default kit contents - mmm, yum!

Have a think, and please feel free to contact me if you want more info, there is also quite a bit more listed under the "become a demonstrator" page tab under the header.

Off now to prepare for the Car Boot Sale I am participating in at Cherrybrook Public School, Saturday 24th March, 10am-3pm.  I'll have lots of retired stamp sets for sale, scrapbooking papers, hand-crafted cards and gifts, catalogue bonuses and more - if you're local why not drop in to say hi!?

Birthday card with "Established Elegance"

 

I made this card one day at the home of my lovely team member Clare, AKA "Crafty Cow".  She invited a group of us over during the last weeks of the summer school holidays.   Now, Clare is absolutely 'teh awesome' when it comes to creative and funky stuff, and I think you can practically bottle the stuff in her house!  I always seem to get more done there than usual.  Clare is participating in the new craft markets in the Campbelltown area, Hummingbird Craft Markets, so if you're nearby or feel like a Sunday Drive on March 11th, why not check it out?

Back to the card, it uses the "Established Elegance" stamp set, (124966 $53.95 in woodmount, 122532 $42.95 in cling mount). I picked Bravo Burgundy as a colour I haven't used in a while, and added some layers of Soft Suede and Confetti Cream.  I used the 'Stampin Off' technique to get a selection of shades of Soft Suede on the main stamped panel layer, and I also used some Versamark and embossed with Clear powder to give a bit of a resist effect, creating a background image for the dressmakers models.  Before I forget, there's some scrunching and some misting with the lovely grungy "Log Cabin" smooch spray, (119921, $7.95) for the other layers.  And, some of my totally favourite ribbon of the moment, Crumb Cake Seam binding - 122332 $12.95 a roll behind, loosely pleated using the super sticky "Sticky Strip" tape.

The mannequins were stamped once onto the front layer, and restamped onto scraps of Confetti Cream, Soft Suede and Bravo Burgundy, so I could cut out the main sections, and give them some lift with Stampin' Dimensionals (104430 and just $7.50 for 300 plus the useful edge bits!).  Lookin pretty good...

Then, I dropped an inkpad on the card, leaving a splodge mark of ink on the cream mannequin shape. You can see a bit also on the Miss Soft Suede also, but much less obvious!  Bummer!  But, no matter, maybe that's why I love the vintage and distressed look so much, because occasions like this cease to be 'bin it' moments, and become opportunities for embellishments.  So, I decided that Cream Mannequin needed..... a scarf!   A tiny snippet of Bravo Burgundy Grosgrain, with the ends frayed, and tied off with a snip of linen thread, and she was all fixed.  In fact, dressed, and probably better than before - what do you think?

Looking at this card now, I think I could have added some of the Champagne Stampin' Glass Glitter, 120997, $7.95, but I've already given it to my dressmaking mum for her birthday!  She keeps my cards, so maybe I can sneak it on sometime?  LOL :)

Masculine birthday card with 'Nature Walk'

I made this vintagey-looking card for my dad for his birthday last year, and had thought I'd posted about it already, but no?
It uses the beautiful "Nature Walk" stamp set, which has a great selection of images for layering and collage work, although I think it is versatile enough to make a clean and simple style card as well.  It's priced from $41.95 in clear (121997) or $51.95 in woodmount (123559) for a set of 7 stamps, which I think is pretty good value.
OK - card layers"
The base is Crumb Cake, stamped with Woodgrain background, $33.95 (121588)
Next layer is First Edition Specialty Designer series paper $24.95 for 24 double sided sheets  - extra big pack, slightly lighter weigh paper (121878)
Next layer is crumpled Early Espresso cardstock, sprayed with Shimmer Paint DIY glimmer spray in Champagne mist.  You can visit the tutorial on making the spray here, the paint is $11.50 (116806)
Next layer - must have been channelling the amazing Teneale Williams here) - um, where are we up to? Old Olive!
Image layer - Confetti Cream - I love this cardstock ($17.25 for 40 sheets, 106558) because of it's heavy weight, antique style fleck, and handmade paper surface.  It suits watercolouring and vintage style very well.

I've used every stamp in the set, along with the small script background  and water splash from French Foliage, (a set that co-ordinates perfectly with Nature Walk - $39.95 in wood, 123557).  Colours used included several browns, olive, mustard, and a touch of Cajun Craze for a bit of autumnal brightness.  The birdy is stamped twice, once onto the base layer and again onto a scrap, where I could cut him out and pop him up on Stampin' Dimensionals.  I did the same with the little bee behind the Bevelled Window Pane ($16.95 for 12 assorted sizes, 121881), and I've attached that with Old Olive narrow taffeta ribbon and some linen thread.  Before attaching birdy layer #2, I sponged the area around him with some Early Espresso ink, to make him pop even more.

What do you think?  Really, really going to work on that assignment now...

My Stamping Space

As promised, my re-jigged stamping space.  It's still quite obviously jam-packed and cluttered looking, but everything is pretty well organised and located for ease of access and use.  Both these factors are much more important than how much space you actually have!  When I rearrange, my first thoughts are these:

How often do I use this?
Would I use it more if I could reach it easier?
What do I use so infrequently that I don't mind getting the step stool to access?
How can I group like items together to make it easy to remember where stuff is?
Is there enough space in the designated spot to cater for the inevitable growth in my stash?

This room is not especially big,  3.5 x 2.7 metres, and has no built ins. We added some "as is" Ikea shelves (black and red) and wall cupboards (beech) back when it was the home office, and they are quite functional for storing stamping gear.  Along the wall you can't see in these pics is my Expedit 4x4 cube bookcase, where all my cardstock and uni paperwork is stored.

The top pic shows just the corner of the trolley in a post down below a bit.  It essentially gives me a work surface on all four sides of the room, and that's a good thing, as I have a habit of covering every possible horizontal surface when I am working.  My tables, from my gorgeous antique Singer Sewing Machine stand with marble top (restored by my clever dad), glass top Ikea desk with trestle legs, expensive but so worth it Best Craft Organiser desk, cheapy officeworks glass top desks and another as-is Ikea office cabinet form a continuous surface around the 3 remaining walls of the room.  There's even enough space on the floor for an inflatable bed, imagine the crafty dreams you could have!

An assignment assessing the relative merits of science websites for teaching calls, but first I'm going to post a card made recently...

Super Dooper Circus-themed Wedding Cake

Absolutely no stamping involved, although it's funny how many of the techniques and tools are common to both cake decorating and papercrafting!  However, I've had quite a few requests to post a picture of the finished masterpiece, so here it is!

This was a total joint effort, with my mum and sister, working from a original design sketch by the creative bride, my sister's best friend. Gleeful Cake Design is what we decided to call ourselves, based on our family name, although I don't think we'll be setting up shop anytime soon!

We had lots of help from my talented friend Maridy for the mechanics of covering the cakes and also providing her tins and recipes to play with!  There was a dummy cake layer at the base, so SO glad I didn't have to try and cook a 16" round cake!!  Then  a 12" chocolate mud, a 9" white choc mud, and a baby 5" chocolate mud for the top.  I also made a couple of extra 9" cakes for cutting in the kitchen, but they ended up looking almost as smashing as this one, because we sort of got on a roll with decorating!!  The cake must have tasted pretty good, as there wasn't much left over in the end, just the top layer I think as a keepsake for the happy couple.

The gum paste flowers were made over a period of about 6 weeks, and for a while there we were worried about the awful humidity and wet weather making them soft, and there was some very creative thinking to create a dry box to store them in.  It was also a well-travelled cake, and my dad got quite handy making beautiful padded crates to transport the layers in.

All in all, a total labor of love, the bride was thrilled that her drawing had come to life, and we had a lot of fun putting together our first ever wedding cake.  Miss 6 nearly 7 has put in her order for a spectacular birthday cake in April, should be easy-peasy after this one!!

If you would like to pin this, or repost, PLEASE link back to this blog and attribute the design to Gleeful Cake Design.  The design is a completely original concept by the bride, and it's only fair to credit the inspiration you might take from it.  Many thanks for your courtesy!