My first attempt at the Blendabilities - a new product line coming in the 2014-15 catalogue.  I've dabbled very briefly with alcohol markers before, and have a few copics and kuretake markers, but because I didn't have 'enough' colours to blend with, it seemed more like standard colouring in!  And the colours didn't match the patterned papers, cardstock and embellishments I wanted to use them with.  So, like the forgotten scrapping photos, they have languished...
At the recent Inspire Create Share Convention in Melbourne,  a set of three Blendabilities markers and the Blended Bloom stamp were given away to every attendee.  I added Old Olive and Daffodil Delight marker trios to my Demonstrator Pre-order, and had a play.  I forgot to get the magical 'Color Lifter' though, so made do with another brand.  It gave a more 'rustic' look to the flower than I intended, or maybe it was the rusty applicator??  In any case, I simply built a rustic style card around it.  .  The colours are the new Mossy Meadow and Hello Honey, on a base of Naturals White.  The leaves and butterflies are from a new set called "Kinda Eclectic", which I think will be a new favourite.  As a finishing touch, I highlighted some leaves and stamens with Crystal Effects.

The greeting is from a set called "Gifts of Kindness"  Sorry about the tilta head requirement, I forgot to rotate the pic before uploading.

Mad Scientist Party Suite - and dry-ice icecream recipes!

I recently held a party for my 12 year old son - it took a couple of months for me to get organised, what with working and bushfires, and all I can say is "thank goodness for MDS!!"
I started out with a theme of sorts in mind, using the "Howlstooth and Scaringbone" DSP, as his favourite colour has always been orange.  The party was to be a "Mad Scientist" party, and it went from "Mum, no one will come!" to a hefty 24 kids.  Gulp.  Just as well I'm now a highschoool science teacher!  In the end it turned out to be quite a bit of fun, for me and them.  We did nine different activities in 3 jam-packed hours, and judging by the smiles on their faces and parental comments in the days afterwards, it was a big success! 

 

I printed invitations three to an A4 page on glossy photo paper, using one of my favourite pics of Einstein.

I made personalised white cotton aprons, with name labels printed onto T-shirt transfer.  I used a selection of labels and embellishments from the MDS program, and arranged them on an orange chevron background on A4 paper, to maximise the number I could print on each sheet of transfer.  I made one template in MDS, and added names in Word so I could save successive versions (and reuse the original!).  I also used more printouts of these tags for their goodie bags.

For the activities, I printed out instructions using a similar template, as the kids were going to be doing some of the activities themselves.  The icecream turned out to be spectacular, using just reasonably readily available dry ice.  The "recipe" was as follows - 600ml thickened cream, 500g carton custard, 1/4 cup milk, squirt of vanilla paste and 3 tablespoons icing mixture.  Blend in a stand mixer, and add flavourings of choice.  In a blender, crush about a cup worth of dry ice pellets into powder, and tip slowly into the stand mixer while it is running.  Keep running until the fog is mostly gone, scraping down at least once, the bottom of the bowl will be the coldest part.  Add more crushed dry ice if the consistency isn't firm enough, otherwise scoop into cones or store in a plastic tub and put in the freezer until you want it.   On party day I made a batch of vanilla and a batch of cookies and cream using crushed Oreos.  The next day I made subsequent batches using the left over dry ice with a tin of mango halves and a small tin of passionfruit pulp (seriously yum!), 2 tablespoons nutella spread and half a cup of choc chips (also yum), plain vanilla using vanilla bean paste and crushed oreos. The surprise was the fact that tiny bubbles of carbon dioxide trapped in the icecream give it a slightly fizzy taste.

Another activity the kids did was making sherbet, and I had prepared all the ingredients in labelled tubs. The funniest part was watching the faces of a couple of brave souls who dared to taste the tartaric and citric acid crystals, even after being told they would be sour.  The very best learning by doing!  It would also have highlighted the interesting chemical reaction between the sour and the sweet, and the bubbles from the acid and carbonate reaction.  Not to mention the importance of following instructions ;-p

 

And finally, there were the thankyou cards, that I printed four to an A4 page.  This one was a super quick production using a designer template from the Lemonade Stand MDS suite, and I switched out the pre-designed DSPs for the Howlstooth and Scaringbone patterns,  I changed the sentiment, and voila!

Mosaic Madness Birthday

Here is a card I made for a special orange-loving friend using the new "Mosaic Madness" stamp set, matching folder and punch.  I had made a few different colour and pattern combos, and was playing around with the layout when I discovered I could make a heart shape.  Some of the tiles are popped up with Stampin' Dimensionals, and the littlest stamps are placed directly onto the Whisper White of the embossed background.  The greeting is from Itty Bitty Banners, and the colours are Daffodil Delight, Tangerine Tango, Pumpkin Pie and Calypso Coral.    The versatility of this set is incredible, I can't wait to have more of a play!

Lots of fun with My Digital Studio - come and learn with me!

 

Gosh!  You can't help but tell that I am loving Island Indigo at the moment!  I've also been enjoying playing with My Digital Studio in an 'official' capacity, and being able to show off the finished projects as something my dear readers could make themselves!

This is a card I made for a team member, who had a major birthday yesterday (waves to Donna!).  I've also been working on projects and class notes for my upcoming My Digital Studio class.   The blog header I made a while ago, before I knew we were getting MDS so soon!  Tonight I whipped up a button to link to my Online Ordering site - you can see it at the top of the right sidebar.  So, between the header, cards and  buttons, using a variety of the techniques and effects available, I'm sure you can see the possibilities with this great, easy to use software!  Email me to express interest in attending a "Getting started with MDS class" - coming soon!

Owl punch, Pennants and Calypso Coral

This was a bit of fun, I hadn't played with the Owl Builder punch since late last year (maybe the 60 Santa Owls I did for the kid's classmates turned me away for a while??).  I also wanted to use "Calypso Coral", an In Color for 2012-13.  I was pleasantly surprised when I saw it for the first time, as I was not a fan of "Cameo Coral" that retired with the Colour Renovation project.  Combined with "Pool Party" and "Daffodil Delight" it makes a bright yet sophisticated combination that is very on-trend at the moment.  This colour combination was inspired by the "Attic Boutique" Designer Series Paper in the Autumn/Winter Mini.  At first glance you'd never think this paper would work for a fun card, but the patterns are remarkably versatile. Here I have simply hand-cut small triangles and strung them along a piece of "Calypso Coral" bakers twine with Stampin' Dimensionals to make them appear to float in front of the card.
Mr Owl is punched from scraps of Calypso Coral, Daffodil Delight, Baja Breeze and Soft Suede and glued together with 2-way glue pen (ideal for fiddly little bits like eyeballs!)
The top layer is Whisper White, and the backing layers are a piece of retired specialty cardstock "Parisian Breeze" and a scrap of fabric that was a good match for Daffodil Delight. The sentiment is from "Curly Cute", a versatile font that fills a card nicely, stamped in Soft Suede.   So quick, so easy, I went on to make a few more. (But not 60!)

Here's a list of some of the items I used here:
118074 Owl Builder Punch - $33.95
100425 2-Way glue pen - $6.50
125573 Calypso Coral bakers twine  - $4.95  (Autumn Winter Mini - one month to go!)
121500 Curly Cute (wood) - $34.95
125407 Attic Boutique Designer Series paper pack (12 sheets 12x12, double sided) - $18.95 (A/W Mini!)

Off to finish prepping for a workshop PARTY! tomorrow, looking forward to it!

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!                     

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...

Some Elebration Fun for Miss Em

I do recall my only older cousin having a very cute stuffed elephant toy when I was little.  I think he may have been a pale blue, possibly pink? - He was a talking Elephant by the name of Horton, for those of you who know the Dr Seuss story.  Anyway, when I saw the A La Carte stamp "Elebration" in the new catty, you can probably guess where abouts it sat on my wish list!!

Here is it's maiden outing, to make a 2nd birthday card for a sweet little girl Miss Em.  It was easy to colour with a few swipes of Watercolor Wonder crayons, and I teamed it with the very pretty "Cheerful Treat" DSP from the Hostess Gallery section of the catalogue - it's probably my fave of all the patterned papers this year!  The colours are Marina Mist, Melon Mambo, Lucky Limeade, Pink Pirouette, Concord Crush and Bashful Blue with crisp Whisper White and there is a great assortment of playful patterns to choose from, including this stripe.  I sponged the edges with Melon Mambo, and added a border using the lovely new Dotted Scallop Ribbon border punch $30.95, half tucked behind the left side edge.  A few Basics Pearls and a banner greeting using a stamp from another great Hostess Gallery set,  "Happiest Birthday Wishes" and it was all done.    I'm looking forward to making a little boy version soon, this card was so much fun!

My sweet boy is.... TEN! (and a little bit)

Another card I made at INKlings team weekend, this one for my firstborn, who turned 10 during September. Yep, he was born September 2001 - a few days after "9/11" and 2 weeks early quite possibly due to the emotionally overwhelming nature of those events - this anniversary is going to follow his every milestone birthday for the rest of his life.  Certainly his birthday newspapers aren't filled with anything much else!  Hard to believe it has been 10 years, but there you have it...

He simply loves orange, always has - and it is a colour I have slowly adapted to using.  Peach Parfait is one of the In Colors that will be leaving us at the end of the current catalogue, so don't forget to add it to your collection if you're a fan.  As oranges go, it's a good one - quite easy to work with.  It's not pastel, or too earthy, or too bright.  Here it's paired with the 'Just add Cake'  DSPs, and the other colours that feature in it  - Poppy Parade, Baja Breeze, Wild Wasabi (and there's even a smidge of Blushing Bride if you are looking for it).

One of the things he was most looking forward to about turning 10, was getting his very own motorcycle helmet (instead of pinching mine!) and being taught to ride my old Honda XR80 trailbike at Grandma and Grandpa's farm.  Hence the card feature stamp!  It's actually one that I borrowed, and was  never released here.  It belonged to the "Extreme" series - we had the surfboard and guitarist, and I'd hoped we'd get the dirtbike and skateboarder this year, but all were unfortunately retired.  I've also used a Spritzing tool and the splodge stamp from French Foliage for some authentic looking mud spray, and a crimper and torn Confetti cardstock to try and give it an edgy look.  The numbers are from the "On Board Merry Medley" set, and I sponged them with ink and coated them with Crystal Effects.  The circles are punched from the Just Add Cake paper to ground the design.  Or make it too fussy.  Whatever you decide, he liked it very much!

Here he is:

Looking pleased as punch with his very trendy trilby, courtesy of his clever Auntie Cherie, and his favourite wombat cake made by daddy.  Happy Birthday mate!

(Plenty of) Elements of Style - Happy Birthday Ryn!

First, let me say that assignments are IN.  I was very good and refrained from procrastinating further until today.  Always plenty to do on the ole' to do list, but I do enjoy slipping in a cosy blog chat amongst the more mundane :)

My downline team member and good friend Carolyn, known as Ryn to many shares her birthday with me, along with lots of other things in common!  It wasn't possible to meet up on the day, as our schedules have become busier than ever lately with work, uni and other commitments.  But, we met for lunch yesterday at a T2 tea shop and enjoyed a yummo selection of high tea goodies with steaming pots of Earl Grey  (yet another taste we have in common!)  It was lots of fun, and I wished we got a chance to be decadent like that a little more often!

Anyway, here's the card I made for Ryn, using the Elements of Style set.  Again, this card started out as a rescue project, so I can thank Barbara (yes, the same Barbara who provided the beautiful rescued watercolouring in the post just before this) for her exacting standards.  This time it wasn't a wayward punch chomp, but a slightly wonky greeting.  Four words Barb, Stamp A Ma Jig.  But!  Never mind, it created material that I was keen to put to good use.  It involved a lot of fussy cutting, but I was very pleased with the result.  I chose colours from the crayon watercolouring used, Old Olive and Blushing Bride, and recycled a distressed piece of Confetti Cream cardstock from a previous stamping session. Ryn would be proud of me - she's big on minimising waste.  I stamped the same flower sprig onto the scrunched Confetti panel in Early Espresso ink, and mounted the cut out watercolour paper image over it with Stampin' Dimensionals.  I curled and distressed the edges of the other layers, and used my new punch, Pinking Hearts along the right hand side

(be quick for this punch - it's in the current mini, ending March 31st, and I'm not sure about it being available again until at least September)

The base of the card was stamped with the Bella Toile background in Old Olive ink, and I used an offcut made into a pennant shape to stamp the Birthday Wishes greeting from the Level 3 Hostess set Occasional Quotes.  I used an Antique brad to attach a scrap of Blusing Bride twill ribbon to the pennant, and slipped it behind the Confetti layer.

As a final touch, I got out the Crystal Effects dimensional lacquer, and dabbed glossy accents onto the flowers.  It takes a while to set, but gives a beautiful raised shiny finish to a special card for a special someone.  Happy Birthday Ryn!

Grungy Boy Birthday Card with Extreme Elements

I had masses of fun with this one!!  Some people say they struggle with boy cards, but I find them quite refreshing to do.  Must be channelling my inner tomboy... :P

Here is a card I made for a little school friend of my daughter, turning just 6, but past the teddies and trains stage for sure.  I love the "Extreme Elements" set, with the co-ordinating single stamps available, here I have used "Extreme Guitar".  The messy background style stamps make it easy to create a masculine look.

I started with a base of Early Espresso cardstock, and used the new "Wonderfully Worn" background stamp with matching ink.  After that, I have stamped the smaller backgrounds from the set onto a piece of Marina Mist, again with matching ink.  Then I scrunched and distressed it.  Just think of a scrap of paper that has been kicking around the base of a kid's school bag for a few weeks.  I'm familiar with that look, I have a boy turning TEN this year!!!!  This layer was deliberately stuck down skew-whiff.  Think pasted in homework sheets there. 

To brighten it up, I used the yummy new "Daffodil Delight" yellow - so much of an improvement in the useability stakes than the old bright Yoyo Yellow!!  Again, this is stamped with background stamps and torn and distressed.

For the stamped image panel, there is first a layer of Very Vanilla, stamped win Marina Mist ink with the splodgy background stamp, and stamped again with the "Extreme Guitar" bloke in Early Espresso ink.  I deliberately smudged the stamp sideways to get an impression of movement - to do this you need to ink the stamp really well, and make a sharp deliberate movement to one side as soon as the stamp hits the cardstock.  It helps to practice first on a scrap, as it may be easier to slide in one direction than another.  Over this, I inked up the bloke stamp again, this time with daubers to get a patchy tie-dye look.  I carefully trimmed around this second image and mounted it over the base smudged image.

To finish and personalise, I used a large star punchie with  the distressed crown from the "Extreme Elements" set, with an alphabet monogram from "Just Perfect Alpha" Embellishments can sometimes be tricky for boy cards, but these mini library clips are fabbo!

Hope you like, the recipient did, perhaps not as much as the contents of his parcel though, a Nerf Super Soaker water gun :D

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

Pretty Pink Pony Party

There's been a bit of a rush of birthdays in Lillian's kindergarten class, and the other weekend she attended two parties on the same day!  Luckily, through arrangement by the mums involved, there was a neat half hour between them to allow for the shuttling between process.  This card is the one I made for Isabella, who likes pink and horses (according to Lillian! )

The card base is Pink Passion, stamped with Polka Dot background with Pink Passion ink.  I sponged the edges too.  I do this with most cards if I have time, since it adds depth and interest quickly and easily.

The colour scheme for the rest of the card was inspired by a piece of Kaleidoscope Designer Series Paper (from the Summer Mini, now retired)  There's a piece of Gable Green behind the DSP panel, and the circle behind the stamped image is textured Apricot Appeal, again sponged with matching ink.

The circles were cut on the Circle Scissor, at 2 3/4" for the inner and 3" for the outer.  I used my Dotto to stop the watercolour paper circle from wandering about while I stamped the pony in Stazon Black ink using the Stamp a ma jig to position it carefully.

To colour, I used Watercolor Wonder Crayons from the Bold Brights set, and applied them around the inside edges of the image, and along the internal lines in light strokes.  Using a Blender Pen in a small circular motion, I blended and drew the colour in to complete the image.  For the really detailed areas, here is a little trick for you:
Scribble a small patch of crayon on the inside of the lid, and use the Blender Pen to pick up just a smidge.  Then you can use the fine detailed point on your Blender Pen to get carefully into the nooks and crannies of the mane and tail for example.

The greeting was stamped in Stazon Black onto a scrap of watercolour paper, and trimmed to a banner shape before fixing at one end with a Flower Designer Brad and shaping with a Stampin' Dimensional for a bit of lift.

It's a (Pony) Party! THIS SATURDAY 24th April

Cute hey! Excuse the little girl colour palette, but this was the card I made for my daughter Lillian's 5th birthday a week and a bit ago. It uses the adorable new stamp set "Pony Party" in the Autumn/Winter Mini catalogue. I've stamped in Stazon black onto watercolour paper and then coloured in using Stampin' Write markers and a blender pen. The pony is a rough approximation of one of Lillian's faves, Rainbow Dash - hence the slightly curious colour combo! The stamp set has wings, a unicorn horn, and lots of little stamps for their hindquarters (called 'cutie marks' in My Little Pony speak!) It's just the ticket for little girl cards, from babes to, dunno, Lillian's 5 and counting, with no sign of the horse obsession fading anytime soon!

Speaking of PARTIES - there's one coming up THIS WEEKEND, SATURDAY 24TH APRIL at my home in Cherrybrook. We're having a launch for the new Autumn Winter Mini. There's the amazing Big Shot and exclusive dies to see, the wonderful clear mount stamp option, new punches, and of course new stamp sets! It's a bumper catty, designed to keep our creative juices flowing until the new Idea Book and Catalogue arrives in September. So, come along, make some cards with the new stuff, have a glass of bubbly, win some prizes, and enjoy some time out from the mundane. Cost is just $5, and this is fully redeemable against a purchase of $50 or more on the day.

When: Open House - come any time between 2pm and 5pm

Where: At my home in Cherrybrook, North West Sydney - address provided on booking

Bring an interested friend for an extra gift in your goody bag!

RSVP to Michelle on 0403 175 790, 9484 9447 or email me

See you there!

Window Dressing and watercolouring

This is a card I made for a special birthday boy recently. The set I have used is called "Window Dressing" which is a stamp set available exclusively to hostesses. I have also used one of the cute little characters from the "All in the Family" stamp set to fill the window, although the set does come with several choices to put in the window including a kitty cat, flowers and a sweet little girl. The background layer is Real Red, and I have stamped it with the retired "Linen" background, in Real Red ink, and the next Night of Navy layer is also stamped in Night of Navy ink with "Linen". The window image has been stamped in Stazon black ink on Watercolour paper, and I used Watercolour pencils and blender pens to add colour. The soccer ball is from the Family Favourites accessories set, and I stamped it separately and popped it up on some Stampin' Dimensionals. The entire window is also raised up on Dimensionals. The ribbon is Real Red Polka Dot ribbon from the Summer Mini, but tied upside down so just the stitching edge can be seen. The greeting is stamped in Whisper White Craft ink using a stamp from the "On your Birthday" stamp set, and some coloured brads added to frame it. Lots of fun, contact me if you would like to find out how you could earn the "Window Dressing" Hostess set for free!

Hoot Hoot Hooray! Birthday cards with Owl Together Now

Here are a couple of cards I made for two little boy birthdays recently. I started with the same layout and colours, but finished them separately, and changed around the final details just a little, for variety (or, more precisely, because I thought of something a little different AFTER I finished the first one!)

They use the set "Owl Together Now" and boy is it a cute one! Owls have been a bit of a trend for quite a while now, and not just in the stamping and scrapbooking world either - a visit to your local homewares store will be proof of that! Maybe it has something to do with the on-going Harry Potter phenomenon, who knows!

OK, on to the cards...

The card bases are Kiwi Kiss, stamped with the little hearts image from the Owl Together Now set, using Versamark ink, just for a little texture,

Next, there is a large mat of Not Quite Navy, sponged around the edges with NQN ink.

Next, we have a thin mat of distressed Summer Sun cardstock, under the image band of Whisper White.

I stamped the branch and owls with Stazon, my preferred ink for watercolouring, using my indispensible Stamp-a-ma-jig. Do you own one yet? I sense a tutorial about it's merits coming soon...

I used blender pen and marker to colour the owls in shades of Creamy Caramel, Close to Cocoa, Chocolate Chip, Old Olive, Summer Sun, a smidge of Pumpkin Pie and Not Quite Navy.

The sentiment "Hoot Hoot Hooray" stamp was inked up line by line using my trusty markers.

Here's where the cards diverge...

One card uses the Curly Label Punch and co-ordinating Cute n Curly Stamp set. I inked up the border with Not Quite Navy ink, omitting the 'thankyou' before stamping on Whisper White. I cut around the edge of the frame, as this allows me to punch a mat using the Curly label punch. I popped it up on dimensionals for depth. There is a tie of Kiwi Kiss striped grosgrain ribbon at the right to finish , and three Vintage metallic brads.

The other card uses the Scallop circle punch layered onto 1 3/8 and 1 1/4" circles, and to embellish I have used two of the gorgeous "Build a brad" pieces. What is a Build a brad??? It consists of a brad base, available in Antique Brass and Pewter finishes, and a clear epoxy disc that self-adheres to the top. What makes them so great is that you can customise the middle layer any way you like. Here I have simply punched out 1/2" circles from Good Morning Sunshine paper scraps, but you can stamp a co-ordinating image and punch that out instead. Or, make a large glitter brad by filling the centre with Crystal Effects dimensional adhesive mixed with Supernova coloured glitter! A wee scrap of Kiwi Kiss striped grosgrain, left over from trimming the first card I suspect, finishes it off. Ta da! Variations on a theme!

Summer Mini has landed!!

The Stampin' Up! Summer Mini Catalogue has officially begun. Just when you thought there couldn't be any MORE "must-haves" to add to your collection, a whole new bright collection has arrived. Click on the pretty cover in the image directly above to be taken to a downloadable/printable PDF version, and drop me a line at michelle.dyson@bigpond.com and I'll get a paper copy in the post to you in a jiffy! Or, click on the sidebar picture at the right to be taken to the Stampin' Up! Online Catalogue version where you can flick through the pages.

So, what's inside that takes MY fancy??

* More new individual stamps, in the "a la carte" section. These are great to add to your collection, as they are an economical way of making your existing image and sentiment stamps more versatile, and they also make a great, well-priced gift for a teacher or someone new to stamping.

* A new punch - those of you who are regular readers will probably have noticed that I have somewhat of a passion (or should that be obsession?) with punches. Stay tuned for an upcoming post which will showcase my new, improved (larger!) punch rack! This punch is an extra large 1 3/4" circle, that nests nicely with our existing circle and circle scallop punches, and gives you even more layering options. And, even more of our images and sentiment stamps from the main catalogue will fit inside it! As with all our large punches, the price is a very competitive $30.95, and the item code is 112004.

But, that's not all...

This punch happens to be the perfect size for another new item in the Mini, Sweet Treat Cups. These are a little plastic bubble that makes shaker cards and edible nibbles a snap to incorporate in your cardmaking, and are just so perfect for special Christmas cards. You can see one in action in the top image above, where I have filled it with 'gumballs' stamped with the age of the child who was receiving it. I've also seen Santa tummies, Flowers, snow scenes and even liquid-gel filled creations. The cups have a self-adhesive rim, so inserting them is easy, and what you put in the cup will stay put.

The stamp set I used to create this card is called "Something Sweet" and is packed with great images you can use, with or without the Sweet Treat Cups. You can make a fish bowl, a babies rattle, a flower and more, and the sentiments cover all these occasions and more. It's code number is 117699 and the price is $44.95. I have also used the Calendar Alphabet and Numbers set (115766, $35.95) to stamp the '5's, a 1/4" circle punch to pop them out of some scraps. I have used my Bold Bright Markers to ink up the stamps direct to rubber. The greeting is from the On Your Birthday set. The accessories are also NEW! in the summer mini, and I can see myself using a lot of these beauties - 3/4" double sided Real Red Polka dot grosgrain, and Basic Jumbo Grommets.

* SPECIAL PACKAGE DEAL *

Contact me to order the Something Sweet stamp set and the matching 1 3/4" punch and I'll include a FREE package of 12 Sweet Treat cups, valued at $6.50!

This offer is valid until December 31st, 2009, and the total price including postage and handling to your door is $81.85

That will do for now, back later to show you some more goodies!

Tangerine Tango with a bit of Curly Label

Here is a card I made a while ago, duly photographed, and then didn't post for some reason!

It's a card I made for my son's birthday, when he turned 8 in September. His all-time-fave colour is orange, so I broke out the brighter In Colors for this year's catalogue to see what I could come up with.

The card base is Tangerine Tango, stamped with Tangerine Tango ink using the Polka Dot background stamp. Then I have a vertical band of Pacific Point striped grosgrain ribbon. Over this I placed a grunged up piece of Kiwi Kiss cardstock, punched with the Spiral Punch, and distressed with the Cutter Kit distressing tool.

The image is from Fun and Fast Notes, and I have custom mounted this set so the Happy Birthday greeting and image can be used separately id desired. I coloured the image using my blender pens and markers, and inkpads for the In Colors. I have used Stampin' Up!'s lovely watercolor paper to stamp on, in Stazon ink, as it really makes it so easy to achieve a pleasing result.

I matted it onto a piece of Pacific Point cardstock, using staples to give it a masculine touch. The sentiment panel is stamped in Pacific Point using the Fun and Fast Notes set, and the frame is from the Cute n Curly stamp set that comes with the Curly Label Punch Bundle.

What?? You don't recall seeing a plain frame in that set? Well, there's not, but by the magic of marker omission, I often leave out the (useful but not what I wanted this time) "thank you" and ink up just the border. That means I can take my punch template book and peruse my sentiment stamp collection to see what fits in the cute n curly box. Ta da!! Gotta love the flexibility that Stampin' Up! offer with their products!

I used my trusty Paper Snips to cut around the framed image, which then meant I could use the Curly Label punch to mat the sentiment.

All done! He thought it was cool, so that's the whole point really.

So, what's all the Bold and Green stuff about? Well, this card uses several of the items listed on the Christmas Extravaganza flyer, more than enough to score a FREE punch, either the Scallop Square or the Boho Blossoms punch, each worth $30.95.

In fact, add a pack of Whisper White cardstock to those items, and some co-ordinating ribbon Pigtails Ribbon originals and you can choose BOTH of the punches, free, worth almost $62 .

This promotion is detailed a bit further down, so make sure to check it for must-have items, and get your order in before December 14th!

Masculine and Feminine Birthday cards

September is a big month in our house for birthdays, and it seems to be a popular month amongst our friends and their children too!

For the weekend just gone, there were two cards to make, one for a preschool friend of my daughter, the gorgeous Charlotte, and one for my own dad, who turned the BIG 70 yesterday! Happy Birthday Dad!

Dad's card uses Lovely As A Tree (please, please Stampin' Up, don't retire this set, ever!) I have coloured the image using markers in Mellow Moss and Always Artichoke for the leaves and Chocolate Chip for the trunks and ground. It is stamped on a piece of Very Vanilla.

I used the same colours for the card base (Mellow Moss) and matting (Very Vanilla, Chocolate Chip , Mellow Moss and Always Artichoke (textured), and added some brass Jumbo Eyelets and hemp twine, through a tag made from large and small tag punches. The greeting is from On Your Birthday.

The card for Charlotte uses the Window Dressing hostess set, and Candy Lane Designer Series papers. I have stamped the image in Stazon onto Watercolor paper, and used the ink pad puddle technique and blender pens to colour in. Colours used are Riding Hood Red, Close to Cocoa, Chocolate Chip, Blush Blossom, So Saffron and Pretty in Pink. I cut around the stamped image and then matted it onto a piece of Riding Hood Red cardstock, before cutting out again. Because of the hand-drawn style of the stamp, this was pretty easy to do (ie, perfection not required!!)

The card base is Close to Cocoa, then there is a thin mat of Pink Pirouette. Over this is a piece of Candy Lane DSP. It is so easy to choose colours when the paper is there, already decided for you! I have inked the edges for definition.

To finish, I made a scallop oval punch out of Riding Hood Red cardstock, and used the co-ordinating large oval punch to punch out "Happy Birthday" from the Family Phrases set. I popped it up on Stampin Dimensionals and then added a tie of Vanilla tafetta ribbon.