BIRTHDAY PHOTOS

I can now share with you some photos of a few things that helped make my birthday special.  I have been overwhelmed by my family and friends expressing their love for me - thank you all, special people!  Since my blog is devoted to crafty pursuits, I'll show you some of the handmade cards I received. 

First up is the card made by Ethan (the bird one, just in case you're not sure, ha ha) - a 'thank you' card, for all that I do.  What a little honey he is.  I photographed it alongside the card my sister Lynda made for me, which I just love (how gorgeous does that heart look?!). 

 

Next is a photo of the cards I received from some of my dear and talented stamping group friends, Kerry, Judy, and Claire.  Aren't they beautiful?

 

I also received two other handmade cards.  The gorgeous balloon card is from a fellow Stampin' Up! "Art With Heart" team member, Sheryll, who I've never met (thanks Sheryll!).  My sister-in-law, Janette, who is a very talented artist, made the bird card - cute, hey?

 

I was very spoilt with flowers, including a boxed arrangement and a colourful bunch from thoughtful employees.  This bunch was from Kerry (my stamping friend):

 

and these sweet flowers were from Claire:

Thanks again, girls, for spoiling me - it made for a very happy birthday.

Ethan was a little disheartened that I didn't have a birthday cake, so I made a point of bringing home some cake from work (I buy cake whenever it's anyone's birthday).  Ethan put candles in it (we had only 4 candles in the house, so that had to do!), and here is the result - special, don't you agree??

 

(I think only a mother of young children would be happy with that!  I was!)

Thanks for stopping by to share in my excitement.  My birthday will be strung out until the end of next week -the way it should be every year, don't you think?  I'll be back with more photos soon.  Really must get some stamping done. :)

HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO ME .... :)

I've had a super-happy day today, celebrating my *ahem* 41st birthday.  Despite the fact that I had to go to work, I still managed to enjoy my day!  I have been very spoilt, by dear friends hand-delivering flowers, cards and chocolates (which have been stashed away, out of hubby's reach!).  My darling little 8-year-old made me a gorgeous card (hijacked by his brother and father, so they wouldn't have to worry about getting me a separate one, bless them) and even made the bed for me this morning!  Ethan was so sweet, about wanting to do 'all my jobs', and couldn't get enough of singing 'happy birthday'.  His enthusiasm was infectious, and it truly made me feel special.  Jack (13) has (somewhat reluctantly, under duress from his pouting mother) made me cups of tea this evening, although I suspect he will now use that as 'ammunition' and expect something in return!  Kids - gotta love 'em!

Our house looks somewhat like a florist's, and the perfume of the flowers is divine.  It's so nice to have a 'girly' touch to our house, as with two sons and a husband I do often feel a little overwhelmed by the testosterone.  Unfortunately, my camera battery died just as I decided to document the evidence of the love my friends feel for me.  I will, in the light of day tomorrow, take some photos, and promise to share them on here soon!

My sister, Lynda, turned 40 yesterday, and we had a big family dinner last night to mark the special occasion.  I am so proud to be part of the family I have; I love my sister and brothers, parents, nieces and nephews to bits, and we always leave it too long between get-togethers.  I was so focussed on remembering to take all Lynda's presents along to the restaurant (I was co-ordinator of a HUGE stash of Stampin' Up! goodies that the family all gave her) that I totally forgot to take my camera!!! I'm relying on my siblings and parents to come up with some photos for me - hopefully I'll be able to share some of those with you too.  (Just don't hold your breath on that one!) 

I do, however, have a photo that I took earlier of the birthday card I made for Lynda, so this post won't be entirely picture-less!  I have used paper, stamps and accessories from the new Mini Catalogue, as well as some favourites from the Idea Book & Catalogue.  I'm just loving these colours, and hope you like it too! Here it is:



Stamps:  On Your Birthday, Great Friend

Ink: Baja Breeze stampin' pad; Basic Gray stampin' pad and marker; Cameo Coral stampin' pad and marker

Card: Baja Breeze, Whisper White, Basic Gray

DSP: Walk in the Park, Parisian Breeze

Other: Eyelet border punch, Basic Gray taffeta ribbon, clear rhinestone brads, Basic Gray and Baja Breeze corduroy brads, large white eyelet (WeRMemoryKeepers brand), crop-a-dile, dimensionals, sponge dauber

I'll be back with 'my' birthday photos over the weekend, as I prepare to continue celebrating turning a year older!  I am going out for a meal with friends tomorrow night (a girls' night out while the boys are at the football), and am also looking forward to stretching my birthday out to Tuesday, when my special 'stamp group' friends and I are going to 'do lunch'.  I am very blessed to have so many lovely friends; life is good!

MAKING MERRY WEDNESDAY

Hi friends

My post title today is a little laugh, in reference to my friend Anita's "Making Merry Monday" challenge.  Anita posts a new Christmas card on her blog every Monday, and has invited anyone and everyone to join in - this has been going for WEEKS now, and I haven't managed to get organised enough to participate.  So, here is my little contribution, posted way late!  I have been busy making Christmas cards, but haven't been busy taking photos of them - I will try to share some more with you in coming days.

Another of my lovely friends, Nikki, inspired me to make a card with colours I wouldn't have normally chosen.  I have CASEd her card that you can see here.  In Stampin' Up!'s new mini catalogue, there is a beautiful range of designer series papers called Ski Slope - that is what I have used on my card, below.



Stamps: Season of Joy

Card: Old Olive, Whisper White textured, Chocolate Chip

Ink: Old Olive stampin' pad, Chocolate Chip stampin' write marker, Whisper White craft stampin' pad

Other: Chocolate Chip taffeta ribbon, Ski Slope DSP, 1 1/4" circle punch, 1 3/8" circle punch, dimensionals, filigree brad, corner rounder punch, sponge dauber

That's it for today, folks - I'm off to have a girls' day with my baby sister (well, she's the baby of our family, which must make Mum and Dad feel their age), who turns 40 tomorrow.  It is my birthday the day after (and, incidentally, my brother-in-law's today), so this is always a very busy, but lovely, week of the year.

I hope your day is as happy as I'm sure mine will be!

Christine x

CHRISTMAS CARDS (yes, already)... and a sneak peek..

On Saturday I held a "Christmas in July" card-making class .... for once, I am making an early start so that I don't get too overwhelmed come December 20th!  The class went for 3 hours, and I'd like to thank Lynda, Dannika, Rachel, Cynthia, Marissa and Kerry for helping to make it a great afternoon.  I really enjoyed it, and think everyone else did too.  I had grand plans for us to make 3 cards, then continue on with a 'free time' session, so everyone could use my supplies to create a stash of cards.  Time flew, and we managed 3 cards and a candle - then it was time to wind it up.  I think we need another session, girls!  I was too excited about having my friends over, to remember to take photos of the day 'in action', but I thought I'd share with you all a shot of the cards we made on the day.

I showed the girls how a variety of Stampin' Up!'s stamp sets can be used to make Christmas cards.  You don't have to use traditional Christmas colours or Christmas-only stamps to make lovely festive cards.  One card we made was a traditional style, using Always Artichoke and Bravo Burgundy - love these colours together, even though it was a little out of my comfort zone at first! The main image is from "Lovely as a Tree"; not a Christmas set, but don't you think the tree looks "Christmassy"?  Next we made a "Season of Joy" (fantastic, versatile stamp set) card, using Riding Hood Red and Very Vanilla, with Kiwi Kiss ribbon.  The third card, that had very little stamping on, and made good use of the large star punch, was made with Baja Breeze and Whisper White, with a little Basic Gray.  Take a look below:



It's now only a matter of days until Stampin' Up!'s Spring Mini catalogue 'goes live'.  In conjunction with the fabulous 2009/2010 Idea Book & Catalogue, we will have some new stamps, papers and accessories available for 4 months only.  If you'd like a copy of 'the mini', please email me and I'll be happy to send one out to you!

I am in love with the Parisian Breeze specialty designer series paper that will be available in Australia and New Zealand from August 1st.  This is a gorgeous, heavyweight, paper that contains some of my  favourite colours.  I have used it to make a card for my friend who is celebrating her 40th birthday tomorrow, and thought I'd share with you a sample of a couple new yummy products.  My card uses a great, versatile, new stamp set (called Oval All) and co-ordinating scallop oval punch. 



Stamps: Oval All

Card: Whisper White, Kraft

DSP: Parisian Breeze

Ink: Baja Breeze and Sahara Sand stampin' pads, Timber Brown Staz-on

Other: Large oval punch, scallop oval punch, aquapainter, Baja Breeze ribbon from Valet ribbon originals, kraft taffeta ribbon, sponge dauber, dimensionals, Martha Stewart butterfly punch, Kaiser rhinestones

OH, BABY BABY....

Hi friends,

I'M BACK!!  We had a wonderful 2 weeks away (4 days in L.A., then a 7-day cruise down the west coast of Mexico, plus 2 days of flying added on!), and a week later I am still recovering.  It was a great, if busy, holiday - seems I may have an inner-ear virus that is affecting my balance, and I am still feeling very tired.  Awaiting blood test results, but it's not all bad; I don't feel too unwell.

I am happy to be back amongst my beloved craft supplies, and I have been quite busy creating these last couple of nights.  I decided I need to make some baby cards.  I don't actually know anyone who is expecting, but I don't have any in my vast collection - time to rectify that situation, don't you think?   For these few cards I have used cute creatures from the Pun Fun stamp set.  Hope you like them!



Stamps: Pun Fun, Short & Sweet

Ink: Staz-On Jet Black, Baja Breeze stampin' pad

Card: Whisper White, Baja Breeze

DSP: Sweet Slumber

Other: Circle nestabilities, word window punch, dimensionals, buttons from Button Bouquet, baja breeze ribbon from Valet Ribbon Originals, mini glue dots, sponge dauber





Stamps: Pun Fun, Say it with Scallops

Ink: Jet Black Staz-On, Baja Breeze stampin' pad

Card: Kraft, Whisper White, Baja Breeze

DSP: Sweet Slumber

Other: Kraft taffeta ribbon, circle and scalloped circle nestabilities, dimensionals, sponge dauber, scallop square punch, scallop edge punch





Stamps: Pun Fun, ABC Alphabet Lower, Cheep Talk (tiny heart)

Ink: Close to Cocoa, Riding Hood Red stampin' pads, Close to Cocoa marker

Card: Very Vanilla, Pink Pirouette, Close to Cocoa

DSP: Candy Lane

Other: Riding Hood Red and Very Vanilla taffeta ribbons, Pink Pirouette striped grosgrain ribbon, sponge dauber, stamp-a-ma-jig



I had a lot of fun making these cards; a good start to my baby collection.  I am loving the Sweet Slumber and Candy Lane designer series papers; how cute are they??!

Now, I have a little sneak peek for you, of some GORGEOUS new products that will be available from 1st August.  Stampin' Up! has a mini-catalogue coming out, and it is full of the most beautiful stamps, papers, and accessories - as if we didn't already have too many to choose from!!

Here is a card I put together with some of my favourites.  Let me know if you, too, would like to order some!



I can't wait until the mini-catalogue launches in a couple of weeks; you'll see lots more creations then. 

If you live in the outer-eastern suburbs of Melbourne, and would like to come to my place in Mt Evelyn, I'd love to show you different ways of using Stampin' Up!'s products.  Send me an email if you and some friends would like to attend one of my classes - I'd love to hear from you.

Christine :)

Introducing "PUN FUN"

Hi friends

I'm happy to be able to squeeze in one more post before jetting off into the sunset.  Over the weekend I have had the chance to play with Stampin' Up!'s very cute stamp set called Pun Fun.  I have used a couple of the images, but none of the matching sentiments, on my cards.  It's a great set, with a million different uses; unfortunately I was a little limited in the amount of time I had in which to create, so I'll give you just a small sample.

My favourite image from this set is the cup - it really tickles my fancy.  I have unashamedly 'CASE'd (copied and selectively edited) this first card from some gorgeous creations I found on Splitcoaststampers - a really inspirational online community.  The stand-out features on this card are the yummy papers from the Sweet Slumber collection; heavy weight double-sided papers, with gorgeous co-ordinating and complementary designs.  I simply stamped the cup onto 3 different papers, cut them out and mounted them on another piece of paper - so easy, but a cute, cute result.  Here it is:



Stamps: Pun Fun, Short & Sweet

Card: So Saffron

DSP: Sweet Slumber

Ink: Jet Black Staz-On, Baja Breeze stampin' pad

Other: Sponge dauber, Very Vanilla 5/8" grosgrain, Riding Hood Red taffeta ribbon, scallop edge punch, craft knife, mini glue dots

I could happily have just made dozens of 'cup' cards whilst I have this set on loan, but branched out and used my next-favourite image, which is the rocket.  This is such a great stamp for boys' cards in particular.  I was inspired by my friend Claire to use Riding Hood Red and Pacific Point together - these are two of this year's "in colours", and whilst I LOVE the red, I am taking a little longer to warm to the blue.  I think I just need to use it more.  I've used a little, little bit of paper piecing, and used some of my fab-o star brads from Stampin' Up!  After I'd photographed the card, I actually raised up the scalloped sentiment on dimensionals (I made this card while we were away at our cabin on the weekend, and I took only double-sided tape with me), so just use your imagination a little with that!



Stamps: Pun Fun, Starring You

Card: Whisper White, Riding Hood Red, Pacific Point

DSP: Washington Apple

Ink: Riding Hood Red, Pacific Point stampin' pads

Other: 1 3/8" circle punch, scallop circle punch, star brads, Riding Hood Red striped grosgrain, dimensionals (added later!)

I mentioned above that I'd used Washington Apple DSP on my card.  This paper is really lovely, and inspires me to combine colours that I wouldn't have thought to put together.  A very simple card, jazzed up with my favourite Build-A-Brads, that I created by punching out 1/2" circles of Washington Apple DSP.  I really like how well the Starring You stamps go with this rocket image.



Stamps: Pun Fun, Starring You

Card: Bashful Blue, Pumpkin Pie, Whisper White

DSP: Washington Apple

Ink: Riding Hood Red, Pumpkin Pie, Bashful Blue stampin' pads

Other: 1 3/8" circle punch, scallop circle punch, sponge dauber, Build-A-Brad, scissors to 'rough up' card edge (since I forgot to take my edge distresser away with me!)

Now I'm off to finalise washing and other bits and pieces before we finish packing for our big trip.  Please come back to visit after mid-July - I'll be back!

Christine :)

I have a couple of new favourites ......

Hello my friends!  I've been a bit absent from the blogging world lately, as we are attempting to prepare for being away for a couple of weeks.  There is so much to think about in advance of a holiday, with having our own business; it becomes rather stressful, trying to envisage anything that may eventuate in our absence, and putting into place contingency plans!!  We are SOOOO looking forward to the wonderful trip we are about to go on - just busy, busy, busy in the lead-up.  So, if you think I've dropped off the face of the earth in the next few weeks, I assure you we are just languishing in warmer climes, and I will be back!

But for now, I'd like to share with you a couple of cards that I've made in 'stolen moments' in my craft room in recent evenings.  I am LOVING the En Francais background stamp from Stampin' Up! This is the first 'favourite' I refer to in my post title.  It never fails to impress me, how a single stamp can turn a plain ole' piece of card into a panel that looks intricately detailed.  I love that it can be stamped off, and used as a subtle background, or it can be stamped boldly to be a feature.  Super-versatile, and I don't think I will tire of this stamp.

On my first card, I tried out a new (for me) colour combination, of Very Vanilla (yummo), Creamy Caramel and Baja Breeze.  The centre of the flower was stamped in Baja Breeze onto vanilla card, then punched out with a 1/2" circle punch, so I could custom-make a brad.  I am a bit disappointed with the result, as the resin in the Build-A-Brad has a real yellow tinge to it - I had read on others' blogs that they had found the same thing, but so far all my other brad 'tops' have been lovely and clear.  Anyhoo, I think this card is rather pretty, and hope you think so too!

 

Stamps: En Francais, On Your Birthday, Polka Dot Punches, Organic Grace

Card: Creamy Caramel, Very Vanilla, Baja Breeze

Ink: Creamy Caramel stampin' pad and marker, Baja Breeze stampin' pad

Other: Sponge Daubers, rectangle nestabilities, 5-petal flower punch, Build-A-Brad, small brads from my own extensive stash!

Now, the next product that has worked its way into my heart, and I must say comes a close second to kraft card, is Stampin' Up!'s Naturals Ivory card.   It has a coarser 'tooth' than the super-smooth Very Vanilla, and is just a bit more 'rustic' looking.  For my next card, I combined Naturals Ivory with Kraft and Purely Pomegranate (one of last years 'in' colours, the demise of which  thousands of us are still lamenting!).  I had some pomegranate textured card, which is just beautiful on its own, but which I decided to alter a bit by repeatedly stamping one of the Pocket Silhouettes images on, to create a subtle background.  I've used Sahara Sand ink to complement the kraft (these colours are a great match - I'm a mad fan), and in adding ribbon I decided I could get away with including a strip of River Rock (another retired 'in colour'), as the yellow tones go well with the ivory card, don't you think?  Here is my creation:



Stamps: En Francais, Pocket Silhouettes, Occasional Greetings

Card: Kraft, Purely Pomegranate textured (retired), Naturals Ivory

Ink: Purely Pomegranate (retired), Sahara Sand

Other: Labels One Nestabilities, sponge daubers, kraft taffeta ribbon, mini glue dots, double-stitched ribbon in Purely Pomegranate & River Rock (retired)

I'm now off to have a coffee with my dear friend Claire. I took the day off work to run errands and attend Claire's Stampin' Up! new demonstrator training session, but everyone else has bailed out on us!  Oh well, don't want to miss the opportunity for a chat before I go away as I will miss our first-Thursday-of-the-month stamping night .  If you're reading this, Kerry, Judy and Leanne, I love you all and I'll see you at the August one!!  Will miss you, girls.

Christine x