Whilst we’ve been back a week it’s been a busy one unpacking, washing and repacking to go away yet again at the end of this week for more camping, fishing, reading, swimming and fantastic company but this time with a great bunch of families from school.  It will be our first trip together but something tells me, not the last!

I’ve hardly had a chance to touch the stamps since Christmas so I don’t have a lot of new things to show you but I thought I would share with you this little token gift I gave some of my very special girlfriends for Christmas.  The weekend before Christmas I had the absolute pleasure of having a great night out with some of my bestest stamping girls.  It was a stinker of a hot night but a most enjoyable one with good friends with lots of laughter and fun!

Here we are enjoying our desserts!  Me, Vick, Charmaine, Keesh and Mon. 

and here is my little gift to each of them….

Here I have embossed the large solid image from Organic Outlines using White Craft Ink and white embossing powder onto Kraft cardstock, layered it onto Whisper White and then onto Real Red.  The sentiment is from Warm Words and I’ve used Jumbo White Brads and the GORGEOUS  Polka Dot Real Red grosgrain ribbon from the new Summer Mini to wrap around the card and tied it off with some silver cord. 

The little box is made using the same products however I’ve also added the flower image from Organic Outline and punched a half  1″ circle to help open the box. I’ve also lined it with some Ski Slope DSP just to finish it off.  As you can see it is just a little gift of some Apple Tea-lights. 

Don’t forget the Inventory Clearance Sale is still on until 24 January so hop in quick for some fantastic bargains! Check out this post below for more details.

and here is a pic of my gorgeous friend Makeesha and myself at our dinner. 

Tomorrow Keesh leaves the West to head for a new adventure in Cairns and whilst I will miss her terribly I know we will always be dear friends forever more.  Keesh and I met at a team meeting at our upline Ngaire’s almost four years ago and from the minute we were introduced just hit it off and have built a special and strong friendship that goes beyond our love of stamping!  I know there will be long chats and online antics so whilst my heart is sad tonight, I know we will be the best of long distance friends and I’ll just have to chalk up some visits to Cairns!  I’ve always wanted to go there anyway!!  Best of luck to you Keesh.

We had a lovely day yesterday with my family, firstly with my own little family and then with my extended family at my sister Jule’s for lunch.  It was a really nice day and I think a highlight was when mum asked us all to go around the table and tell what good things had happened to us in 2009.  We all had lots of claps and cheers and laughs and it was a fun moment.  Something we’ve not ever done before and more than likely a spur of the moment idea but something I’d like to continue with each year.  We all have a lot to be grateful for!

I had hoped to share with you some little card and gift sets I made for some very special friends the other night but unfortunately time has gotten away with me (again) and I haven’t had time to take and edit a pic.  It is almost midnight and we are leaving early tomorrow morning to go down south for two weeks.  I’m still fussing around with various odd jobs before we go and am a little torn at the thought of leaving my craft, blog and facebook behind!  Oh well, it will do me good and no doubt I’ll soon be in the full swing of relaxing, reading and fishing!  I got a couple of fantastic books for Christmas so look forward to getting stuck into those.

Anyway, I promise to upload my little goodies when I get back and wish you all a lovely break with your families.  See you in the New Year.  Stay safe. 

Lou
xo

Tuesday I had a super quick but lovely catch up with Keesh and her little monkey Jayana (who is always a charmer) then managed to squeeze in my first touch of Christmas shopping and get my hair done!  It’s amazing how good you feel when those greys are chased away!

The past few days I have been busy prepping for a class, a workshop and getting ready for our long weekend in Margaret River.  No, you can’t have a long weekend – we are making our own!  Throw in a bunch of other families in caravans, a bit of off-roading, some camp fire cooking, toasted marshmallows, lunch at a winery and the odd bakery visit and you get the idea of what lies ahead.  Such is life! I may even have to sneak in a visit to the chocolate factory!

I haven’t had much time to create this week at all so I decided to show you one of the cards I made for a recent Christmas card class.

Stamp sets:  Snow Swirled, Best Yet (Level 1 hostess)
Cardstock:  Whisper White, Real Red, Baja Breeze
Inks:  Baja Breeze
Accessories:  Scallop square punch, lge square punch, silver brads, wide grosgrain Real Red ribbon.

Don’t forget you can earn the Scallop Square Punch for FREE when you spend $85 or more on items on the Christmas Extravaganza Gift Giving Guide.  See here for more details.

Well, I’m off to finish the packing.  See you next week. 

Cheers

My stamp club met on Wednesday and I thought I’d share with you this gorgeous little gift box/drawer we made.  I just love it and the girls all did too. This is the one I made to start with.

This box uses Choc Chip, Real Red and Whisper White card stock together with Ski Slope DSP and the Tree Trimmings and Best Yet stamp sets. I have used Crystal Effects with glitter on the baubles and the Crop-a-dile and jumbo eyelets with a rhinestone brad and ribbons to make the drawer pull.

It also has the added bonus of a gift card attached to the top which is kept closed with the silver hodgpodge brad.

 and here is the one we made as a group. 

Here I have used Real Red, Baja Breeze and Whisper White cardstock and Ski Slope DSP .  I’ve made a bauble with the Red Gingham ribbon, Scallop Circle punch, 1 3/8″ circle punch and the Snow Swirled image with a Fire Rhinestone brad.  I’ve also used  Warm Words and a  Baja Corduroy Button for the drawer pull which works extremely well. 

Don’t forget the Spring Mini catalogue finishes at the end of this month and a lot of these items will go with it.  I don’t know how I’m going to survive the lead up to Christmas without my much loved Ski Slope designer papers!

Thanks for looking!

Cheers

Here is the sketch again:

and here is my card:

Stamp set:  Snow Swirled, Spotlight on Christmas
Cardstock:  Baja Breeze, Real Red
Inks:  Old Olive, Real Red
Accessories:  Ski Slope Designer Paper, Old Olive wide grosgrain, Bouquet Buttons, silver thread (retired), large star punch. sponge

Just between you and me I think this is a stunner!  Simple and stylish…. bit like me really!

Have a great weekend.

These gorgeous little Tucked Away boxes are just soooo cute in real life and I have since made a few in other colour combos and designer paper which look just fab!  We made these at my Stamp Club meeting last month and all the girls just loved them.  There are two sizes here although it’s a bit hard to tell from this pic but the one in the front with the Baja Breeze ribbon is a tad smaller. 

My Club members also made cute little candy cane holders which are just so cute and I think I’ll be doing them for the kids friends’ this year.  It just adds that personal touch. 

Finally, the container at the back is a small Pringles container which I have covered in Ski Slope DSP.

Here is a close up of the box with a view from the side.  You can see why they are called Tucked Away boxes as the back section of the box wraps over the top and tucks into a slot in the front. 

Items used in top picture: Stamp sets:  Spotlight on Christmas, Punches Three (Level 1 hostess set),
Cardstock:  Baja Breeze, Real Red, Whisper White, Kiwi Kiss
Accessories:  Scallop Square punch, Scallop Circle punch, 1 3/8″ square punch, 1 3/8″ circle punch, 1 1/4″ circle punch, slit punch, corner rounder, Baja Breeze striped grosgrain ribbon, Real Red wide grosgrain ribbon, silver brads

I still have 2 places available in my monthly Stamp Club if you’d lilke to come along, join in the fun and make some lovely 3D items like these.  Alternatively if you’d like to book a workshop with me, I’d be happy to come and show you how to make some of these gorgeous Christmas crafts.

Have a good week.

Saturday morning I was first up teaching the ladies this beautiful Christmas Album.  I purchased the class tutorial from Andrea Walford and just fell in love with it.  I can’t wait to have some lovely Christmas pics to put in it!

The front cover

Inside front cover

Another fold

This pic shows the album fully unfolded however it doesn’t do the album justice as you can’t see all the backs of the pages.

It really is pretty spectacular and the colours and papers are just beautiful.  To make this album I have used the I Wish Simply Scrappin’ kit.  It uses only a half a kit so  you can make this whole album plus have enough papers and die cuts left over to make loads of Christmas cards or a second album for a gift. 

I am going to run a class in my home to make this album in mid November so watch this space to find out more details. 

After lunch we were treated to some more classes from the lovely Charmaine and Jan.  Charmaine showed a technique called smooshing which so simple and so effective and makes a terrific background.  It’s also a little bit of fun and so easy to do with just ink and water!  Char had asked us to bring in an old style photo to go with the page she planned and I’m pleased to say my page turned out beautifully.  For this page we used Creamy Caramel, Really Rust, Close to Cocoa and Choc Chip ink and the stamp set is Sense of Time from the Summer Mini Catalogue.

I really love how this page turned out!

Next up was a Fantasy Keepsake Box presented by Jan White.  We could choose our own papers and colours for this and it was wonderful to see all the different creations around the room.  This came together really easily once we got the hang of the box making and as I just love the Parisian Breeze DSP in the Summer Mini so am really pleased with it.  I have embellished the top some more of the DSP punched out and topped off with a button from the Button Boquet collection.

Last but not least, here is a pic of the Stamparoos!  What a fine looking bunch and what a great group of women.  Thanks ladies for another unforgettable stamping event!

Have a great week!

Anway back to reality today with loads and loads of washing and unpacking but it was worth it.  I thought I’d share with you a couple of Christmas cards I made recently.  They are quite simple but effective and easy to reproduce if you need a lot! 

This is one I made for a Christmas theme swap a little while back.  As I am missing my Snowflake Spot which is now retired I think Snow Swirled has taken its place.  I just love it and it’s quite versatile with the number of stamps in the set.  

Stamp set:  Snow Swirled
Cardstock:  Old Olive, Whisper White
Inks:  Old Olive, Real Red
Accessories:  Circle Scallop punch, circle punches, wide Real Red grosgrain ribbon

This one is using the gorgeous Ski Slope designer papers, Tree Trimmings stamp set and Scallop Oval punch all new in the Spring Mini Catalogue.  I just love this card!   

Stamp set:  Tree Trimmings, Warm Words
Cardstock:  Chocolate Chip, Old Olive, Baja Breeze, Whisper White
Inks:  Real Red, Baja Breeze
Accessories:  Ski Slope DSP, Oval scallop punch, Large oval punch, silver brads, glue pen, dazzling diamonds, wide Choc Chip grosgrain ribbon

Time is getting away from us and before we know it, it will be time to post those Christmas cards so I had better get cracking and get stamping my Christmas goodies!

The gift certificate above is made with Real Red cardstock stamped with the So Swirly wheel in Real Red ink.  I have then made a belly band of Old Olive and stamped it in the swirl from Season of Joy and embellished with the tree, flower and words from Season of Joy.  Once you remove the belly band it opens up to reveal the gift certificate inside. 

Here is another I have made with the Holiday Harmony papers and Pomegranate satin ribbon which opens out the same way.

My gift certificates are available all year round and I can of course adapt them for birthdays too!

Here is another Pringle tin covered in the beautiful Holiday Harmony papers and dressed up with the gorgous Pomegranate wide satin ribbon.  I have also added a large flower from the Pretties kit that I coloured with my aquapainter and popped in a half pearl also from the Pretties kit.  Now all I have to do is make that Rocky Road to put in it and there’s one gift done.  Aaarrgh don’t get me started on Christmas shopping!

This card also uses the Holiday Harmony papers and Pomegranate wide satin ribbon together with the Peaceful Wishes stamp set.   I have used the markers to colour directly onto the stamp with the feature image.  Don’t forget our marker special, (single markers are available for $4.95, scroll down to see more details) which has now been extended to 14 December. 

The fantastically versatile Christmas stamp set Season of Joy (scroll down to my last entry) is also in the Mini, along with the Die Cut Blooms, Summer Picnic and Apple Cidar designer papers and lots of other goodies.  These will not be available afer tomorrow.  Click here to view the Spring Mini online.

I will be placing my last Spring Mini orders TOMORROW (30 Nov) night so please email or phone me with your order prior to 7pm.

Have a great weekend!