Sneak Peek: Oh happy day!

It’s sad when favourite products retire and a catalogue expires, but the sadness soon turns to excitement for the brand new catalogue.

While there are still a few days left to order from the current catalogue (although be warned, some popular items have already sold out), I’m consigning it to history and making a fresh start.

And what could be fresher than this card? It’s clean, it’s bright, it’s zingy… it’s also not my original idea. I CASEd it from one created by one of my favourite bloggers, Oregon demonstrator Sandi MacIver.

I’m really into white cards at the moment and for the base of this card I used Shimmery White cardstock. Oops, hope it’s staying, I never checked! (Phew, it is.)

The Whisper White panel is popped up and decorated with something very exciting. Only brand new washi tape! This is called Gingham Garden and I absolutely love it. Yes it’s girlie and pink but it’s washi tape, which is the new crafting love of my life. All three tapes in the pack are shown here and how fab are they? Nearly everything in my house has washi tape on it right now.

The sentiment and the flourish come from the brand new Happy Day stamp set, which I earned free for recruiting during Sale-a-Bration. I love earning rewards that help me in my business! And it truly will be a happy day when the new catalogue goes live on 2^nd July because it’s gorgeous! I hope you love it as much as I do.

Stamps: Happy Day

Cardstock: Shimmery White, Whisper White

Ink: Melon Mambo

Accessories: Gingham Garden washi tape, Basic Rhinestones, Vintage Faceted Buttons

Nature Walk and Curly Cute - retiring!

I demonstrated at a party for a lovely group in Littleover on Friday evening. Sales were great, so the hostess was very happy!

Here are the projects I demoed. The first is a cool box that we were shown at Regionals in Telford last month. The top part is just a sleeve which slides on and off. This means you can make the box taller or shorter to suit. The top can be clipped, as I’ve done here, or folded over, sandwich bag-style.

We’ll be making one of these boxes with brand new products at my catalogue launch on Saturday 29^th June. I got the closing date wrong so have extended it to the end of today. Please click here to join us!

The box uses retiring Tea For Two Designer Series Papers, and the gorgeous Flower Trim. Get both of these while you can. I spritzed the doily with the Colour Spritzing Tool – this,  too, is retiring soon.  And both of these stamp sets are going, too, which is sad as they are two of my favourites.

For the card we used a technique involving Creped Filter Paper. We stamped the foliage and eggs on a piece of Very Vanilla, then crumpled up some Creped Filter Paper. We applied glue stick (it must be glue stick as it’s fairly dry) all over the image and then spread the filter paper over the top to create a crumpled tissue effect.

On top of that we stamped the bird in Early Espresso and topped it off with a flower from the Flower Trim. I’ve only just realized the potential of this trim which is sad as soon it will be gone forever. Always late to the party, me.

The card uses little notecards – these are down on the retiring list but are returning in a thicker cardstock which is quite exciting.

Stamps: Curly Cute, Nature Walk

Cardstock: Whisper White Notecards, Island Indigo, Very Vanilla, Lucky Limeade

Paper: Tea For Two

Ink: Island Indigo, Lucky Limeade, Early Espresso

Accessories: Cute Clips, Flower Trim, Paper Doilies

Caturday - cat shelter tea party coming soon

It's Caturday again and here's Cobweb sporting a rather fetching daisy chain. Daughter thought that Cobweb would feel left out if she couldn't wear one just like Mr Winky's, Cobweb didn't agree but played along long enough for a photo.

The good news is that Cobweb has been seizure-free (as far as we know) for nine days, but I always have one ear listening for the tell-tale signs. I suspect they'll be back.

In other news, the cat shelter is holding a tea party next weekend, so why not come along and see the lovely cats and kittens. The shelter really is worth seeing, as it's unlike any cat shelter you'll have seen before! We'll be there for part of the event but can't stay for the full three hours as daughter should be revising.

Here are the details:

Woodland Nook Cat Rescue, Delves Bank Road, Swanwick

Saturday, 22nd June, 11am-2pm

Tea, cake, cats and kittens. 

What more could you want?

Quick announcement - new craft classes

I only have a couple of samples left to show you from the existing catalogue, and they are for a party tomorrow night so I don't want to spoil the surprise.

So before I launch into my new catalogue samples next week, here's a quick announcement.

Starting in July, I will be holding monthly craft classes on a Friday morning. Yes, morning. Sorry to all those folks who work but I'm sure there are lots of people out there who would love to spend a weekday morning doing something they love, or trying something new.

Here are details:

Crafty Fridays

2nd Friday in the month

9.30am-11.30am

Venue - my house in Denby

£6, or free with a £30 order

Booking with payment one week in advance. 

Very limited places available, due to space restrictions 

More details from me - just click here!

NB: I've had a few questions about these events, so just to clarify... the £30 order cannot be part of an existing club or workshop order as these already carry perks of their own. The projects are intended to be simple - going back to basics really for beginner stampers. We will probably do two small projects during the session, but this will depend on the project. The number and simplicity of the projects is reflected in the price. The events are ideal for beginners - so feel free to bring a friend who has never stamped before!

More Amore pouch

This was another of the shoebox swaps we did in the hotel room at Telford the other week. This one was provided by Alison or Donna… or a combination of both, I never did work it out!

It uses the retiring Two Tags die. I was just about to type “get it while you can” but I thought I’d better check the up-to-date retiring accessories list and, sadly, it’s already out of stock. This is why you should absolutely not delay with your orders during retiring month. I’ve had to disappoint a few people this week, sadly.

So, assuming you already have the Two Tags die, you could make this with any Designer Series Paper – you just fold it over at its crease and you have a cute little pouch. I’ve had so much mileage out of this die and I’ll be sad to see it go.

Here we’ve used More Amore DSP from the Spring/Summer catty – this paper will no longer be available after 30^th June, so get that while you can! It’s wrapped up with Pool Party ruffled ribbon – this will be retiring, too.

Topping it all off is a cute (but now a little squashed) creped filter paper flower. This was made by punching several scallop circles in two different sizes, joining them with a brad, scrunching them up and dipping in a solution of alcohol coloured with a few drops of ink. Effective, eh?

Cardstock: Gumball Green textured (is that even possible?)

Paper: More Amore, Creped Filter Paper

Accessories: Pool Party ruffled ribbon, Two Tags Die, Scallop Circle Punches, that leaf die whose name I can’t remember

Caturday cool dude

So many cats deserve to be Caturday today but Mr Winky wins due to his inability to realise he was wearing a daisy chain for THREE hours yesterday. Daughter put it on him and then went out... he was next spotted prancing around the garden in it two hours later. As he seemed unperturbed by his adornment, we left him to it and an hour later he was STILL sporting his jewellery. He finally cast it off before bedtime. He's such a daft lad.

In other news, there are still a few places left on my Catalogue Launch Party. Please CLICK HERE to register.

And I also have a few places left on the next round of the Virtual Hostess Club, which I am hoping to start in July. Members get their new catalogue before anybody else - even before the Catalogue Launch Party! For other benefits, please click here, then drop me a line if you'd like to join. Don't forget that I lost all my data so if you have already told me you'd like to join, please remind me!

Hearts and hexagons

At the Regional Training event the other week, some of the team brought shoebox swaps for us to make in the evening, which was fun.

This beauty was provided by Alison Higley and I absolutely love it. It’s bang on trend, as I’m banned from saying at home, because it uses different shades of white and cream, features hearts, hexagons and printed text… and is very simple. So much for Generation Y – it’s a bit worrying when the trendiest member of your team is a grandma!

Stamps: Hearts A Flutter

Cardstock: Naturals Ivory, Whisper White, Very Vanilla

Paper: First Edition

Ink: Summer Starfruit, Midnight Muse

Accessories: Hexagon embossing folder, Hearts a Flutter Framelits