Blog Candy Canes

Well, you've heard of Blog Candy, but how about some Blog Candy Canes! These are the Candy Canes I made to give out at my "Out with the Old, In with the New" Mini Catalogue Party. I found these cool hot pink and red strawberry flavoured Candy Canes that were just begging to be decorated. And I've put together a tutorial so you can make some too! Here's what you need (all Stampin' Up!©):
18cm x 5cm Whisper White Cardstock; Double Rectangle Punch; Tag Punch; Red Gingham Ribbon; Bone Folder; Terrific Tags, Holiday Wishes, Hung Up on the Holidays Stamp sets ; Inkpads (I've used Real Red and Pink Passion); Paper snips

1. Score Whisper White cardstock at 8, 9 and 10cm. 2. Fold along score lines and burnish folds with the Bone Folder.

3. Stamp tag from 'Terrific Tags' in Pink Passion, and Rock'n'Roll in Real Red. Make sure you stamp above the score lines.

4. Stamp reverse side with your greeting (the tiny greeting from 'Holiday Wishes' fits perfectly) Again, make sure you stamp above the score lines

5. Accordion fold the score lines so they are folded up inside the tag

6. Punch out tag, punching through all the layers of cardstock, but being careful not to punch the bottom edge.7. Fold out the middle section and punch through the 2 layers with the Double Rectangle Punch.

8. Use Paper snips to cut out the middle section.

This is what it should look like now:

Use the Double Rectangle Punch to punch through 2 layers at the top of your tag. Slide it onto your Candy Cane and tie ribbon through the holes to secure. Voila! Aren't they cute?!

Out with the Old, In with the New!

That's the theme of my Mini Catalogue Party tonight. It's going to be a fun night with a glass of bubbly and some yummy food, Prizes, Fantastic Specials, a Special Guest Stamper and even a goody bag to take home. I've still got lots to do to get ready, but I just wanted to pop on here to say that I have a couple of spots free, due to a couple of last-minute cancellations (it's that time of year I think!) so if you live in Sydney and would like to come, send me an email It's going to be a fun night! And the cost? It's FREE!
If you can't make it, just a reminder about the All in the Family promotion, which finishes in a couple of days (I'm offering this set at $59.15), and also the Spring Mini Catalogue which will also be gone. Let me know by November 30 if you would like anything!
Tomorrow I'll be putting up that tutorial I promised you earlier this week, so stay tuned!

PINK!

I think I over-compensated for the masculine card in my last post.... Here is the absolute polar opposite of a masculine card! I actually made the Lovely lilac scalloped piece first, to get it the right size, and the rest of the card was worked around that. I used my Corner Rounder punch (guard removed) to make the scallops. I've pierced the centre of each scallop with the Paper piercer and dotted the hole with my gel pen.
The main flower has been inked with Versamark and white-embossed. Watercolouring is so easy when you emboss. It forces you to stay in the lines! The leaves are actually petals from the large Scribble flower.
The background has been stamped on Pixie Pink cardstock in Whisper White Craft ink, and coloured with Blender pens. I just used the Blender pen to pull the ink from the stamped image, and fill in the larger areas for a soft effect. The sentiment has also been embossed with white powder. I mounted it all on a Certainly Celery card.
Hope it brightens your day! (it's pouring rain here...)

Party, Party!

I've got a few last Spring Mini cards to show you, since this is the LAST WEEK of the Spring Mini, and then I'll be launching into full-on Christmas mode. I've even got a tutorial that I've been working on to show you later on this week, but it's a surprise!
I've had a busy couple of weeks, and this week I have my "Out with the Old, In with the New" Mini Catalogue Party on Wednesday night. It's going to be heaps of fun. There's a Special Guest stamper, free make-and-takes, prizes, Special offers and a goody bag to take home! I only have a couple of spots left though, so email me if you'd like to come! Then it's Jacob's 7th birthday on Thursday, so I think I'll be partied out by the end of the week.
This is one of those oh-so-difficult masculine cards, made easier with the help of the Round tab punch and the 'Tagger's Dozen' set. I used my trusty markers to ink the stripes individually and echoed the stripes by also inking the candles individually. Then I've echoed (lots of echoes here!)the asterisk candle flames with the 'twinkle' wheel, in Versamark ink, to give a tone-on-tone effect. I punched a window in the stripes with my square punch, and the "Birthdays are the Best" stamp fits perfectly in there.
cardstock: Not Quite Navy, Really Rust, Whisper White
Ink: Not Quite Navy, Really Rust, Mellow Moss, Brocade Blue
Stamps: Dream Come True (stripes), It's Your Birthday, Tagger's Dozen, 'twinkle' wheel
Other: Round Tab Punch, 1 3/8" square punch, Markers

Find Joy in the Little Things

I think that really is the secret to happiness. There is so much joy to be found all around us, if only we learn how to see it.
This is another set I'm really going to miss when the Spring Mini disappears at the end of this month. This colour combination was inspired by this gorgeous card of Carol's. Make sure you check out her blog...she does lots of gorgeous stuff! This was an old Sketch challenge of Beate's that you can see here. The front of the card is just a half-flap, so it's a bit different to your everyday card!
I went a bit mad with the white gel pen on this one. I love that pen!!
Cardstock: Whisper White, Almost Amethyst, Pale Plum, Cool Caribbean
Ink: Pale Plum, Cool Caribbean, Certainly Celery
Stamps: Polka Dots and Paisley
Other: Large Oval punch, White gel pen (lots of!), Celery Ribbon, Paper Piercing tool and mat pack

Inspired by a Cushion!

Inspiration can come from the strangest places. My daughter Amy has a pretty cushion in her bedroom, and when I was vacuuming her room, I thought it would make a lovely card. So, that was the end of the vacuuming, and I sat down to make a card instead! Here's the cushion:And my challenge to you is go and be inspired by something unusual, and turn it into some Papercraft!

Cardstock: Cool Caribbean, Rose Red, Regal Rose, Old Olive, Whisper White
Stamps: Scribble This, Little Pieces
Other: Paper piercing mat pack, white gel pen

2,4,6,8 Box

I thought I should show you some more creations made using the gorgeous sets in the Spring Mini Catalogue before they disappear at the end of this month and I can't use them anymore *sob!* I'm really going to particularly miss Scribble This, Big Pieces and Polka Dots and Paisley.

Here's a little 2,4,6,8 Box that I made using Polka Dots and Paisley and the Petals Jumbo wheel. I demonstrate a lot of these at workshops and they always get a WOW. There's something magical about turning a flat sheet of cardstock into a 3D item. These little boxes get their name from the fact that you score your A5 cardstock at 2,4,6 and 8 inches. Amy Rysavy has a great tutorial on her blog.

I wheeled my Cool Caribbean cardstock in Tempting Turquoise ink first, then made my box, as per the tutorial. I always use Sticky Strip to assemble all my boxes. It's the only tape that holds them together securely. Then, I just added a quick Celery and White Grosgrain ribbon handle, attached with Tempting Turquoise brads. The Belly band (gotta love that name!) is just a piece of Tempting Turquoise cardstock wrapped around the box, and secured with Sticky Strip. Then I've popped a little embellishment on the front; I've stamped the dots from "Petals and Paisley" on a piece of Whisper White cardstock in Cool Caribbean ink. Then I've inked the flower using a Tempting Turquoise and Certainly Celery marker. I've also used my marker to ink only the word "joy" from "find joy in the little things". I mounted it on a piece of Certainly Celery, and then popped it up using Dimensionals.

It's a perfectly sized little box to pop a little stamp in for my Hostesses. Some little chockies in a Christmas-themed box would make a great gift!

What do you want for Christmas??

Wouldn't it be lovely to find one of these under the tree on Christmas morning? I've used Holiday Thyme papers to decorate a Gift Certificate wallet. There's also a sneak peak of some fabulous ribbon that you might be seeing more of very soon! Here's an inside view (you'll have to imagine it's filled out to the amount of say....ooooh $1000 should do it! ;0)

This is Christmas shopping made easy, and makes a perfect gift for anyone crafty (that's you!). The best thing about it is that you'll have some $$ to spend during Sale-a-Bration in January and February, when you can earn stamp sets for free for every $100 you spend!
Just get your loved ones to send me an email with Gift Certificate in the subject line, and I'll take care of the rest! Or do your own Christmas shopping right now, and get one for someone you love.

And here's how to make your own!

1. Cut your A4 sheet to 21 x 25.5 cm
2. In Landscape orientation, score at 8.5 and 18.5 cm
3. Fold along score lines and burnish the creases with a Bone Folder
4. Add Sticky Strip to the sides of the bottom flap
5. Adhere bottom flap and slip gift certificate inside
6. Decorate outside with stamps/patterned paper of your choice
7. Tie closed with ribbon or belly band

Christmas Baubles

I have to confess I'm a bit in love with making these baubles at the moment! They're so easy, and really quick.
I've made mine using the new "Holiday Thyme" Double-sided Paper, which is only available until the 15th December, and for a special price too! Only $14.50 for a pack of 12 double-sided sheets! You can see the Promotion here. They also look gorgeous in vellum, with Silver or Gold Embossing on them.
We demonstrated and displayed these at the Penrith Papercrafts Expo, and they WOW'ed everybody. The lovely and talented Petronela was at the Show with us, and she has put together a fantastic tutorial to show you how to make these. Check it out here.
While you're at it, check out her blog http://www.keepstamping.com/ She also has a Paper Bow Tutorial on there (if you were at Penrith, you might have seen her demonstrating these) and a Two Pocket Tote Bag Tutorial. What a clever cookie!

All in the Family Baby

This is the last sample card I did for the Papercrafts Show. I made all of these projects (3 cards and 1 frame) in the space of a couple of hours. It's such a fun set to play with that I didn't want to stop! More Petals and Paisleys DS Paper here. Don't forget that the Spring Mini finishes at the end of this month, so you only have until November 30 to get some!
I did some more paper piecing here. The baby's face is actually that pale pink spotty paper I used in the background (I chose a bit without spots ;-) and her little suit is the other pink paper. I love the "Welcome Little One" message from Riveting...it seems to make it on to all my baby cards. A piece of pink gingham ribbon fishes it off.... Easy!
Cardstock Colours: Regal Rose, Cool Caribbean, Whisper White

A Happy Hello

This card actually started it's life as a scrap of paper. I wanted to see how difficult it was to stamp this set without the Stamp-a-ma-jig. What surprised me was how easy it was. I stamped this little lady just by eye-balling it, and it turned out so well that I had to turn her into a card!
Her dress has been Paper-pieced using Petals and Paisleys DS Paper. I stamped the dress on a scrap of the DS paper, cut around it, and stuck it over the dress that I'd already stamped on Whisper White. The background papers are also Petals and Paisleys, and I stamped the greeting from All Year Cheer I and punched it out with the Word Window punch, and used a Turquoise brad for an accent. I love how you can make the people do what you like; I've raised one of her arms in a friendly wave. I've used Whisper White as my card base for as fresh, crisp look. I coloured the girl and her cat using a Blender Pen and Inkpad lids. Colours are Certainly Celery, Apricot Appeal, Blush Blossom (for her rosy cheeks) and Tempting Turquoise.
In case you don't want to risk "eye-balling" it, here's a link to a tutorial on how to stamp this set using the Satmp-a-ma-jig:
http://kwernerdesign.com/blog/tutorials/

All in the Family Christmas

A personalised Christmas Card! I think this must be someone else's family though...or maybe our dog is very dirty, and I've dyed my hair!
For the background, I've used various stamps from "Many Merry Messages" and "Peaceful Wishes", stamped in Mellow Moss ink on Mellow Moss cardstock. I've used Watercolour Paper for the main image, and the main greeting, matted on Buckaroo Blue cardstock. The word 'from' is actually the "From the Heart" message in All Year Cheer I, and I've just inked the word 'from' with a Basic Black marker. 'US!' is Classic Alphabet, and I've used the Stamp-a-ma-jig to add some shadows for depth. I've nipped the edges of the Mellow Moss cardstock with the Slit Punch (I've drawn a dot on the underside of my punch so I can line it up evenly each time), and then some "Vintage" brads in the corners.
Now, I don't think I'll be whipping up 100 of these for my Christmas cards this year, but I'll be doing a few for some special family members!

A Very Special Stamp Set

Click on the picture to see more detail

Stampin' Up! is running a very special promotion this month.

As many of you know, the Australian General Manager, Dave Abbott, recently passed away from a rare blood disease, at the age of 41, leaving behind his wife and 3 young children. Stampin' Up! being the incredible company they are have just released the stamp set called 'All In The Family' in Australia in order to raise money for Dave's family. 100% of the proceeds of the sale of this stamp set worldwide will be donated to Dave's young family - not just the profits but 100% of the sale price worldwide…. now that's a company with heart!
I would like as many of you as possible to be able to buy this set, so I will be passing my Demonstrator discount on to you. I won't make any money from it, but hopefully I can help raise some money for Dave's family.
You can see the stamp set, and a picture of Dave and his family here. The All in the Family stamp set will appear in the Idea Book & Catalogue 2008-2009 (which will be released in April), but has been pre-released to raise money for the Abbott family. The set will not be available again after 30 November until 1 April.

This Promotion runs from

1st - 30th November.
I am offering it to you at 20% off!

So, instead of $73.95, you'll pay only $59.15

(plus shipping and handling)

Email me if you'd like to buy a very versatile stamp set, and help out a family in need at the same time. I can ship anywhere in Australia for just $5.95.

Another way to help is to contribute directly to the fund. You may make a deposit into the following bank account:
Westpac Kent Street (branch) 283-285 Kent Street Sydney 2000

BSB: 032134 Acc. No: 132523 Contact name: Brano Plesko
As soon as I got this set, I couldn't wait to make my own Family Portrait.
I've stamped my family on watercolour paper in Chocolate Chip ink, and coloured with my blender pen and ink from the Inkpad lids (Buckaroo Blue, Cranberry Crisp and Mellow Moss, and a little Blush Blossom for our cheeks and Marigold Morning for my hair!). The Chocolate Chip ink bled a little (brown Stazon would be better, but I don't have any), so I'm claiming that it all adds to the artistic effect of watercolouring!

The lettering and embellishment come from the "At Home" Simply Scrappin' Kit. These kits make it so easy to make quick cards and scrapbook pages. I love the fact that the self-adhesive die cuts are cardstock, not just stickers, so they look really classy. Here's a closer look:
I've actually been a bit tricky and used the outside "frame" of the die-cut (the bit you usually throw out) and stuck it on vellum, and then trimmed around it. Waste not, want not!

I have 3 more projects using this set, which I'll show you over the next couple of days, so stay tuned!

Finding Joy

A really quick post from me, just to say I'm here, but busy, busy, busy! It was lovely to meet so many of you at the Papercrafts Show at Penrith!

I'll pop back here and tell you how I made this card later on tonight, but hopefully in the meantime it will brighten your day! Have a great weekend!

EDITED TO ADD:

Well, I'm back, not quite on time though, sorry! The weekend somehow got away from me.

Anyway, here's how I made this card (better late than never!).

I took Pixie Pink cardstock, and inked my Petals wheel on my Versamark inkpad. I actually tried using an un-inked cartridge and inking it up with Versamark, but didn't have much success with that, so now I prefer to use my inkpad. I then used a white gel pen to highlight some of the dots and flowers.

For the main image, I've used the flower from Scribble This and stamped in Versamark on Whisper white cardstock, and then embossed with white embossing powder. I've given it some "out of the box" treatment, and drawn a square around the flower, and trimmed it carefully with my papersnips. I watercoloured using an Aquapianter and ink taken straight from Pixie Pink and Lovely Lilac inkpad lids. I LOVE watercolouring embossed images...the raised edges make it really easy to stay in the lines! I used some gorgeous ribbon from "Sweet Shop" Ribbon Originals, adhered it with my teeny "Bambi" stapler. You can pick up a Bambi from K-mart for a measly $5 or so, and the staples look soooo much cuter on a card than the big office ones. A silver brad in the flower centre and a sentiment from "Polka Dots and Paisley" stamped in Pixie Pink, and you're done!