Fabric Pillow Box

Thank you everyone for the lovely birthday wishes :o) I had a great day. I'm being taken out for lunch by some more lovely friends on Friday, so I haven't finished celebrating yet LOL

This was the other project we made using fabric. This time I've used Spice Cake and Timeless Portrait Fabric to make a fabric-covered Pillow Box. It takes the humble Pillow Box to the next level and makes it look really special. I used Multipurpose Adhesive Sheets to attach the fabric to cardstock, before running it through the Big Shot. I've embellished mine with a fabric flower made using the Blossom Party Die. The ribbon is joined by a piece of elastic, hidden behind the flower so that it can easily be slipped on and off.

Butterfly Magnet

In my Project Class last week we played with fabric. I used the pretty Flirtatious Fabric and lots of shades of pink on this project. This card is actually a card and present in one - the butterfly is made of chipboard, covered in fabric, with a magnet attached to the back. There is also a magnet on the card, so it just lifts off. That way the recipient has a reminder of their special day to pop on the fridge for years to come!

Speaking of special days, today is mine :o) It's my last year of being in my thirties. The celebrations started early this year. On Thursday my sister and Leo took me out to lunch. On Saturday Dave surprised me with a night in the city, and this morning I've been spoilt by my lovely family with brekky and pressies and then tonight we're going out to dinner with the rest of the family. I'm feeling very lucky to be so surrounded by such lovely people!

Iridescent Ice

In this month's Technique class, we had a play with some different embossing powders. This is the card we made using Iridescent Ice Embossing Powder. We made the heart what I called "White Sparkle" (by stamping in White Craft ink and then embossing) and made the 'Love' Sentiment "Clear Sparkle" (by inking the whole piece with Versamark ink and then embossing).
This is the You are Loved set from the Summer Mini. Wouldn't this make a gorgeous wedding or anniversary card?
The colours I've used are Perfect Plum and Elegant Eggplant, and the card is 13x13cm, the perfect size to fit in our square envelopes.

Incentive Trip Make-and-Take

Sorry for the lapse in transmission this past week. I've been busy with classes, but the main problem was that I didn't have any photos taken and edited to show you. Making cards is the fun bit, but I think I need a secretary for the not-so-fun stuff! Anyway, I'm all good now... for a few more posts at least!
Now that the products are current and available, I thought I would show you the make-and-take that we made on the Fiji Incentive Trip last year :

There are lots of fun little details on this card. It showcases the gorgeous Spiced Paisley stamp set and matching paper beautifully.

I've had lots of people ask me if I have qualified for this year's Incentive Trip to Broome. Sadly, the answer is no, and while I still have a little over a month to earn the trip, at this stage it is looking very out of reach. I'm trying not to feel too sad about it, because the truth is that, while Stampin' Up! means a lot to me, there are other things in my life that mean more. Over the past year I have been able to spend time with my sister throughout her pregnancy and then of course with my darling nephew Leo. I'm so grateful that because of the flexibility of my job with Stampin' Up! I have been able to do that, and I made the choice to cut back a little so that I could do that, and I don't regret that decision for a second.
Hopefully though, I'll be on another Incentive Trip in the not-too distant future!

Love Freebies? Join my Sale-a-Bration Sixers Share

I know it sounds like a mouthful, but what it means is lots of freebies for you! How is this for a Super Sale-a-Bration Deal... I need 6 people for this Sale-a-Bration Sixers Share to go ahead.

How does it work? You simply place an order with me for at least $100*, and look at what you get:

• A FREE Sale-a-Bration set of your choice
• $16 in Hostess Benefits to spend in any catalogue (you may spend this in the Hostess section or in the regular part of the catalogue or Mini Catalogue)
• an Everyday Enchantment Ribbon and Brad Share (5 brads and 3m Organdy Ribbon - 1.5m Calypso Coral and 1.5m Lucky Limeade)
• an Everyday Enchantment Paper Share (six 6"x6" pieces) 
• PLUS you'll go in the draw to win a bonus gift - choose one extra item at 50% off. You'll have a 1 in 6 chance of winning!

You may choose to take a double Share, and you will receive double the benefits!

Hurry...places are limited! To take part, simply email me with your $100 order and your choice of freebies, plus your payment method (credit card, direct deposit or cheque).

*before Shipping and Handling. Regular 5% Shipping and Handling charge applies. The entire order will be shipped to me. If you need your portion shipped to you, extra postage will apply (I will source the cheapest price possible)

Beautiful Butterflies meets Fresh Vintage

Here's the other, more girly design from last week's Stamp-a-Stack. I love this colour combo - Baja Breeze, Rose Red and Basic Grey. It's pretty, but still has some 'oomph'. I've cut out 4 butterflies using the Beautiful Butterflies Die. I've used the gorgeous Fresh Vintage Sale-a-Bration set to decorate the butterflies as well as the banner strips and background pieces. The centres of my butterflies have been decorated with the Doily Triple Layer Punch. The large circle is also a punch- the very handy 2-1/2" Circle.

Back to Classes

It was lovely to be back into classes this week. As much as I enjoyed the break, I missed everyone so much....and it was nice to hear that they missed me too :o) We always have lots of laughs during classes (and not always at my expense! LOL)

We kicked off the year with a Stamp-a-Stack. I know that everyone needs to replenish their stash of cards at this time of year, so I figured this would be a good class to start off with. I also know that everyone always struggles to make masculine cards, so I thought a 'blokey' design might be appreciated. I've used the Spiced Paisley stamp set in River Rock, Soft Suede, Not Quite Navy and Crumb Cake. It's quick and easy to get a nice background going with this set. I stamped an A5 sheet and then cut it into 4.
It can often be tricky to add some embellishment to masculine designs, but often they can look very plain without it. I used the Sweet Buttons Embosslit to cut out buttons in exactly the colours I needed, and I've also used Taffeta Ribbon in Not Quite Navy and Soft Suede. It adds a nice bit of texture without being too girly. I've added a bit more texture by roughing up some of the edges with the Cutter Kit, and I also tore some edges and used the Pinking Hearts border Punch on others - lots of options!
The sentiment set that I've used is called Friendly Phrases. I stamped some straight on the card, and others inside circles.
I'll show you the other (much girlier) design next time.

Cover CaSE

If this card looks a bit familiar, check out the front cover of the Summer Mini. I took the card featured there as inspiration, but put my own spin on it.
I used the gorgeous new Flower Garden Embossing Folder on Wisteria Wonder cardstock and used a dauber to add a touch of Frost White Shimmer Paint to it, just to make it stand out a little bit more. The sentiment is from one of my most-used greeting set Petite Pairs. These little stamps always seem to say just what I need to say, in just the right size. I've also used a few other favourites on this card - a mini library clip (so cute!), Seam Binding Ribbon, and the Stripes Embossing Folder.
I whipped up a couple of these for some recent Special Birthdays, and sent them on their way.

 

Clean and Green

I was going for clean, simple and elegant with this one, but I'm not sure I managed to pull it off ....

I kept to shades of green - Pear Pizazz, Always Artichoke and a dash of Lucky Limeade. I've used the Fresh Vintage Sale-a-Bration set AGAIN, along with the free ribbon that's included in the Sale-a-Bration Ribbon and Brad Bundle. Gotta love free stuff!

Fiery Florets

I am always drawn to blues and greens but every so often I pull out some warmer colours and challenge myself to use them - in this case Poppy Parade, Tangerine Tango and Peach Parfait. I have some cards using this set Fabulous Florets in Better Homes and Gardens Magazine this month (yay!). For those, they requested a nautical colour palate. This card here is more 'fire' than water! I rock 'n' rolled the flowers in Peach Parfait, then Tangerine Tango, then Poppy Parade ink. I have balanced out all that 'heat' with a large amount of white space.
And then, after all that I looked at this card and thought...it would look pretty in blue!

Happy Birthday Yvette

It was my lovely sister's birthday on the weekend and the whole family gathered at her place to celebrate. I was feeling a wee bit under the weather (kidney infection, resistant to first dose of antibiotics, so I was drugged out on pain meds and much stronger second antibiotic) but since I wasn't contagious I went along rather than sit in misery by myself at home. And I couldn't go along without a handmade card, made especially for her. In my brain-addled state, I decided the best option was to CASE myself (why does that always sound a bit rude??). So I took THIS card and made it this:

I just used the reverse side of the paper and it became a completely different card! I also added some Sahara Sand shadows to the stamped Poppy Parade flowers to make them 'pop' a little bit more, and the greeting is from another Sale-a-Bration set, Elementary Elegance. My sister has always been a fan of the colour red, so this version was much more 'her' than my original. We had a lovely birthday lunch!
...and the kidney infection is now on the mend, so it's all good :o)