Quick and Easy Lolly Tubes

I'm loving these skinny cello bags for quick and easy little gifts. They are perfect for Christmas, or any time of year, really. All it takes is a cute punched embellishment for the top:

I've filled one with m&ms and one with mints. My kids will be making some of these to give to their friends this Christmas, and I think I'll be making a few too!
Edited to Add: You can find the Cello bags on page 161 of the Stampin' Up! Catalogue. They are $4.50 for a pack of 50 (2.5 x 20cm)

Cathy's ShoeBox Swap

One of the highlights of my Team Stamp Camp Weekend is the Shoebox Swaps. We usually have 10 boxes with all the ingredients to make a card inside each one. One of my lovely team members, Cathy, was unable to attend Stamp Camp but still kindly offered to make a ShoeBox Swap (because that's the kind of lady she is :). She used the stamp set Postage Due which she won during a Prize Patrol at Convention. So we were all lucky enough to play with what was at the time a brand new set. Here's her gorgeous design:

I can't link to her blog because she doesn't have one, but I'm sure she'd love to read some comments here complimenting her!

Happy Birthday to Boooo!

I know I'm a bit late for Halloween, but I actually made this card as a birthday card, using the Ghoulish Googlies stamp set:

This little witchy-gal is too cute to only come out once a year! I love that this Howlstooth and Scaringbone Designer Series Paper can be used all year too :o)

Papillon Potpourri In Color Notecards Set

I have had a BIG weekend...Saturday was Stampin' Up!s Sydney Heartfelt Event, and I had the honour of doing a presentation on Heartfelt Christmas Cards. It's always a bit nerve-wracking to present in front of your peers, but I managed to get through it! My good friend Teresa (aka "Trees-A") Dabrowski came to stay for the weekend, which is always lots of laughs. The Heartfelt Event was amazing...there's so much talent in the Stampin' Up! world and so many women who are so willing to share their ideas. I came away feeling awed and inspired :o)

I'm loving the Clear Mount stamp cases for quick and simple gifts. Here's a quick and simple Decorated Case and set of cards that I've been doing a lot lately as "Meet the In Color" Workshops. It makes a great gift:

A close-up of the vellum butterfly on the front:

and inside:

The notecards and envelopes are very simple, one of each In Color, using the Papillon Potpourri stamp set and matching punch.
These little notecards come in so handy - you get 20 cards and envelopes for $9.95. They are slightly smaller than regular cards, so they are really cute (page 162 of the Catalogue)

Blue Ribbon Stamp-a-Stack

This is the other set of cards we are making this week in my Stamp-a-Stack class. We're using the Blue Ribbon stamp set. It's a great one for masculine cards, which aren't always the easiest cards to make! I've also used World Spectacular DSP, and taken my colour scheme from there - Island Indigo, Daffodil Delight and Cherry Cobbler.

Everything Eleanor Stamp-a-Stack

This week I am running my last General Stamp-a-Stack Classes for the year. Wednesday morning and evening class is full, but I have a couple of places on Tuesday night. Email me if you'd like to come along and make these cards:

I've used Everything Eleanor in the colours Wisteria Wonder, So Saffron, Elegant Eggplant, Crumb Cake and Naturals White. We'll also be making a bright set of cards using the Blue Ribbon stamp set....I'll show you those soon!

Pencil Case

Here's a cute little idea (if I do say so myself!) that I came up with for a Teacher Gift this year. It's a "Pencil Case" with m&m pencils inside:

It was really easy to make...the hardest part was not eating all the m&ms as I was making it! I've used "Crispy" m&ms, but the plain would work well too. I had to eat all the brown ones because I only had room for 5 pencils.... What a shame! ;o)
I used a framelit to cut a window in my DSP, so that the pencils are visible from the outside. And here are my pencils, all lined up. The m&ms are in our skinny cello bags (trimmed down as they were too long to fit inside the DVD case). You can find them on page 161 of the Annual Catalogue ($4.50 for 50). And the DVD case is on page 7 (Clear Mount Case $9.95 for 4). I've used Summer Smooches DSP.

To make the pencils, I used the Pennant Punch to punch out a coloured Triangle (Tangerine Tango, Daffodil Delight, Real Red, Pacific Point and Gumball Green) and a Crumb Cake Triangle. I hand-cut the tip off the Crumb Cake triangle so my "lead" would show. I re-inserted the other end of the Crumb Cake Triangle into the punch to get the inverted scalloped edge. I used Pretty in Pink and the Petal Card Punch for the eraser, and just a small rectangle of Brushed Silver cardstock, scored at regular intervals for the "metal" piece.

INK-redible Hostess Promotion

Who wants 10 free inkpads?? What a silly question - everyone does, of course!
From November 1st until December 16th, host a minimum $650 Stampin' Up! Party and get a FREE collection of ink pads - $79.95 value-in addition to our other fantastic benefits!

You can choose your favourite colour family - Brights, Subtles or Regals.

Click on the flyer to find out more

Merry Christmas from Stampin' Up!

Stampin' Up! has an early Christmas present for you!
It's only November, but Stampin' Claus is giving you an early Christmas present: a FREE Festive Paper-Piercing Pack when you buy the Ornament Keepsakes Stamp Set and Candlelight Christmas Specialty Designer Series Paper Bundle.

Choose from the following options:

Item	Description	Retail Value	Special Price
132260	Christmas Gift Pack (wood-mount) Includes Ornament Keepsakes Set (wood-mount), Candlelight Christmas Specialty Designer Series Paper, Festive Paper-Piercing Pack	$96.85	$82.90
132261	Christmas Gift Pack (clear-mount) Includes Ornament Keepsakes Set (clear-mount), Candlelight Christmas Specialty Designer Series Paper, Festive Paper-Piercing Pack	$84.85	$70.90
132262	Christmas Gift Pack (wood-mount bundle) Includes Ornament Keepsakes Bundle (wood-mount), Candlelight Christmas Specialty Designer Series Paper, and Festive Paper-Piercing Pack	$123.85	$109.90
132263	Christmas Gift Pack (clear-mount bundle) Includes Ornament Keepsakes Bundle (clear-mount), Candlelight Christmas Specialty Designer Series Paper, and Festive Paper-Piercing Pack	$113.85	$99.90

Click on the flyer to learn more.

This special offer is valid until 30 November 2012, so contact me to place your order today!

Broome Swap

The lead-up to the Incentive Trip was insanely busy this year, so I knew that i had to keep my swaps simple if I was to have any chance of getting them done. No procrastination allowed! I decided on a favourite stamp set (Summer Silhouettes) and some favourite colours (Midnight Muse, Sahara Sand and Baja Breeze), and the rest was easy. This is what I came up with:

I also used my favourite ribbon (Seam Binding) and a cute little ribbon slide. The background is the Daydream Jumbo Wheel in Versamark ink.

I also promised I would show you the card we received from Shelli. Here it is, in all it's shimmery, shabby-chic gorgeousness:

Isn't it divine?? There's even some sewing on there! This is definitely one I'll treasure forever. She's also written a lovely message inside in her fabulous hand-writing.

Final Broome Adventures

It's always a bit sad when our final day arrives, but at the same time I miss the kids and can't wait to see them again. We spent the morning wandering around the local markets, and picked up a few gifts and souvenirs. And then when the heat got too much we retreated to an indoor mall for a while. The afternoon was spent doing all our "lasts" - last walk on the beach, last swim in the pool, last cocktail... Here I am having my last (and actually my first) hug of a Boab Tree:

Every day the door of the Hospitality Suite is updated with these cool signs, letting us know what's on:

For our Final Night Dinner we had to meet in the lobby at 5:15pm. As usual, all the details were very hush-hush, so none of us had any idea what was in store. This is what pulled up in front of the Resort:

And here we are, a self-portrait on the top deck, complete with double chins LOL:

And this was our destination:

When we walked through the gates, this is the sight that greeted us:

It's a Pearl Lugger, with a sail that doubled as a movie screen! And on the grass were our own personalised picnic blankets, made from Orchard Harvest Stampin' Up! fabric.

How cute are the little wicker picnic baskets, with matching nametags and serviettes?!

This is what was inside - yummy treats for the movie!

Our dinner was a buffet of gourmet picnic food - salads, chicken skewers, roast vegetables and corn on the cob. We watched "Just Go With It", a romantic comedy, and had yummy desserts afterwards. Then it was back to the resort for a group photo and goodbye hugs

And as if we hadn't already been spoiled enough, another gift awaited us in our rooms!

It's a gorgeous handmade card from Shelli (I'll take a pic when I have better light), and inside the package is a beautiful 'Statement of the Heart' stamp.

Sunday was a travel day - 12 hours from resort to home, via Melbourne. Lovely to hug the kids, and be back in my own bed. I hope you've enjoyed hearing about my Broome Adventures. Now I'll get back to showing you some stamping!

Even More Broome Adventures

The time is just flying by here in Broome (why do holidays always go by so fast?)
On Friday morning we decided to do the Willie Creek Pearl Farm Tour. The guides were awesome, so funny and very informative. At the end of the tour, guess who got chosen to model a $20,000 pearl necklace?

I think it suits me, don't you?? I don't know why Dave didn't want to buy it for me!

After the tour we cooled off in the Resort pool, and had some lunch and a cocktail (I'm determined to try them all before I leave, to see if there's one that I don't like - I haven't found one yet!!)
We decided to hire a car for the next 24 hours, so that we could see a few of the sights. Simon and Ness shared it with us. Here we are with our little Broome Broome (perfect name for a hire car company!)

We had a drive and a wander through the town centre (known as China Town). We made an essential port of call to Matso's Brewery. Dave had a Mango and Lime Cider (I had a sip and it was amazing), but I couldn't decide on one beer, so I had three - in taster size!

I had a Alcoholic Ginger Beer, a Lychee Beer and a Mango Beer. I'm not normally a beer drinker, but I enjoyed them all, and they are so refreshing in this 35 degree heat and high humidity. It's like being in a sauna all day long, and it doesn't even ease up much at night!
One of the spots we wanted to see was Gantheaume Point. There's a lighthouse, fabulous views and some dinosaur footprints. We were there to see another spectacular sunset.

We found a seafood restaurant to dine in, on the pier overlooking Roebuck Bay and then returned to the resort to find another pillow gift. This one was tagged "Remember" and look what was inside:

It's a print of our camel group on Cable Beach by the official photographer. How special is that?? I 'm going to get it framed when I get home.

More Broome Adventures

Our Group Activity on Thursday night (which was a secret, but I think we all guessed) was a sunset camel ride along Cable Beach. I was a little apprehensive - last time I was on a horse, it felt very high, and camels are bigger than horses! But it turned out to be lots of fun, and very relaxing, once you get past the camel-standing-up bit! Here's Dave and I on our camel, Raja:

Raja turned out to have quite the personalty. He was the oldest camel of the group, at the ripe old age of 27. It was magical watching the sun going down over the Indian Ocean.

 

Look at the gorgeous colours...it was just breath-taking. The camera really doesn't do it justice:

 

Afterwards, I gave Raja a carrot, and he posed for the camera. Who has the best camera smile???

After that it was time to head to the Hospitality Suite for "Swaps and Snacks". This is how Stampin' up! does 'snacks':

So much yummy food! Antipasto, breads, dips and cheeses, as well as fruit kebabs profiteroles and brownies. The idea was that you could have some pre-dinner nibbles, or dessert, or both, and we swapped in the middle! Here we are, waiting in the Swap Line (holding our new Swap Bags!):

I received some absolutely amazing swaps. I'll be showing them off at my classes next month. I'll also take a pic of my swap when I get home, and post it on here.
The Hospitality Suite is also where we spin the wheel each day and win a prize. Here I am, being the Wheel of Fortune prize girl (there's a sneak peak of new DSP on the wheel, but you'll have to look really closely!):

Even though we didn't actually need more food, a group of us went for some Thai for dinner. We just got a few dishes and shared them. Yummo.
It's always exciting going back to our room at the end of the day, to see if the Stampin' Up! gift fairies have been... And they had!!

 This one had a tag saying "Enjoy". And inside was....

A gorgeous bag to match our travel wallets. We are so spoiled!