The Autumn/Winter Catalogue has launched!

The new Autumn/Winter Catalogue has launched!!! Here it is online for you to browse through, just click the link below the picture of it here.

Autumn/Winter Catalogue 2013-2014

Just a quick peek this morning at some of the items I have been making with the new products.  The festive Flurry has definitely hit us here.  Snowflakes when there is sunshine outside it seems wrong somehow, but this year is THE year to get more organised for Christmas early.

To see more make sure you come along to one of my events or classes where you will be using the new products for yourself.

Now, not content with a new catalogue launch for today, Stampin' Up! are also offering a great bundle deal today for Customers too. It's a butterfly offer, who doesn't love a buttefly?!!  A saving of 15% off on the Papillion Potpourri and Bitty Butterfly Punch bought together.

 The bundle offer is running from Aug 29th to Sept 30th.  

If you'd like a copy of the catalogues, to place an order, book a workshop in your home or come to a class just get in touch via email at craftyinkbuds@sky.com

Making Waves By The Sea

We have been on lots of days out this summer holiday in lieu of flying off somewhere sunny and thankfully the weather here has been worth it.  There are lots of lovely photos of our adventures....I really should get scrap booking to record the fabulous times as I am sure my little one is going to grow up so much faster from here on in. One of our trips was to the lovely West Wittering for a day by the sea.  LO loved it!  He just wanted to wander up and down the sea edge dipping his feet in the wet sand for ages.  Gone are the days where I get sit back on a sun lounger with a good book!

It's a coastal theme too for my post today.  I hope today finds you in sunshine as it is here!  I just love the sea and the By The Tide stamp set from the annual catalogue, which you have seen here on my blog before, is one of my favourite sets.  Well, there are just so many gorgeous new shades of blue to play with in the new catalogue we need some seaside theme to use them all.

The first card is based on the Coastal Cabana colour with Baked Brown Sugar, both from the In Colours 2013-2015 collection.  The lovely embossed Honeycomb background on this card is achieved with the Big Shot emboss folder. I have simply created a multiple tag front with one of the tags from the new Chalk Talk die set.  A must set for Christmas and present tags all year through!  I stamped the images across the tags whilst they were line up together and then just set them off line from each other to give the card a more relaxed look.

Baked Brown Sugar was the colour for my next card - it just conjours up an image of yummy cooking smells doesn't it?  This card is made with stamped images and also the same colour spritzed onto Very Vanilla.  I am pleased with the way the spritzing came out - much better than my first attempts at using this tool!  A tip is to try it out on scrap paper first to get comfortable with your spray distance and make sure you are not going to get any wayward spray on anything else around your work area! I stamped inside this card too for a great finishing touch.

A little more seaside with the last card.  I saved the sparkle to last.  This card uses the same colour collection - In Colours 2013-2015 and has the Coastal Cabana as the background card again.  I stamped the images on the Whisper White Square sheet before cutting it into quarters and setting out on glimmer paper frames.  The label is from the Label Love set and punched with the Artisan Label punch.  See the lovely little strips of the designer stack papers in the matching colours popping out of the label.

For more details of all these products and more visit the www.stampinup.com site and look at the catalogues. To place an order, book a party or come to a workshop email me at craftyinkbuds@sky.com

Mad For Mosaic

A new post for you today.  Now you may well remember the Sneak Peek I gave you of the Mosaic Madness set, well it is back again today in the In Colours 2013-2014.

The punched mosaic is a lovely little shape and so versatile.  It can be tiled, layered or just stand out on it's own.  Take a closer look at the background to this card, it is the Mosaic emboss folder, it makes a great template to start with and matches perfectly. 

I have used a mixture of punched Small Hearts and Floral Fusion flowers cut with the Big Shot Sizzlit to layer onto the Mosaics. I have finished off the card with some extras - a Vintage Faceted Button - these are my absolute favourite buttons! - pearls and linen thread.

The 'Hello' is from the Four You set in the new annual catalogue.  The set has four fabulous phrases,  'Hello', 'Thank You', 'Birthday Wishes' and 'Thinking of You'.  I love the different fonts of these four stamps too.   At £9.95 for the clear set (£12.95 for the Wood-mount) they are a great starter set or even just a staple for your stamp collection.  I think they will be appearing a lot on my cards!

Now for a lovely mosaic layout in Pistachio Pudding and Crisp Cantaloupe.  I have a simple background of whisper white for this one and have just used the designs from the Mosaic Madness stamps and a 'Happy Birthday' from the hostess set Express Yourself.

The Butterflies are from the Embosslits Beautiful Wings, but the butterfly punches in the catalogue will work just as well for this layout.  This card, for me, works so well as it is a nice crisp clean and simple card and it is the rhinestones which then just add that extra pizzazz.

Remember, to get the Hostess sets from the catalogue, host a party and if the sales reach just a minimum of £150 you are then entitled to hostess pounds you can spend on hostess products only available to hostesses (or other product in the catalogue if you wish).  This set has 12 sentiments in a lovely handwriting style. 

If you choose to spend on Hostess products you get more for your money, purchased with hostess pounds the Express Yourself set of stamps is only £14!!  You don't fancy a party?  Updating your crafting collection?  If you spend the £150 yourself, you can still get the same benefits!

 

This last card, my favourite, I have to admit is based on a card I had seen by another demonstrator, Terri Antoniw.  I switched a few things around and used the Mosaic emboss folder for the background, but this card is a fantastic layout.  It uses the Mosaic Madness and Label Love stamps and the new Mosaic and Artisan Label punches.  

 

I am loving the co-ordinating stamps and punches this cattie and how quickly and easily I can put cards together with them. I hope you love these too.  Come back soon as I have lots more to show you in the coming days! 

Don't forget also to check out my Events and Classes pages for classes using these products.  If you are a customer already, look out for the August Newsletter in your email inbox for my event on Saturday 31st August too!

To place an order, book your own party or come to a workshop email me at craftyinkbuds@sky.com

It's a Paper Party!!

It has been a while since I blogged here, but there has just been so much excitement with the new catalogue launching and lots of new things that I have been using every little spare moment to have a play with all my new catalogue goodies - obviously to test them all out for you first! 

So back at SU head office they just cannot resist giving us great offers to take advantage of and not only do we have the bundle offers throughout the new catalogue to help save you up to 15% on combined items, they are offering a buy 3 and get 1 FREE on selected designer papers.

The offer is running 1-31 August, 2013 and you can buy three packs of select Designer Series Paper and get one for free! The offer is for the DSP papers in the new annual catalogue only which can be found on pages 151, 153, and 154.  It excludes the DSP stacks and any of the speciality papers, but there are so many other packs to choose from you just won't care!  Make sure you take another look at the catalogue now for the great inspirational ideas for how to use papers and what a difference they can make to your cards/projects.

Another month has passed, I cannot believe it either, but with August now with us it means only one thing, another 'Best of 25 Years' celebration stamp set has been released!  Chosen by Shelli herself, the founder of Stampin' Up!, it includes my favourite bird from the recent retired set 'Elements of Style' - amazing!

Remember, all the sets are in clear-mount only, but are available until March 2014.  Take a look back through the older posts to see the June/July sets which are still available too.

Ok, that's enough offers for today.  I am off to draft up a lovely newsletter for all my customers to let you know about all the exciting events I am planning some time soon, so don't forget to check you emails too.......................

To place an order, book a party or come to a workshop email me at craftyinkbuds@sky.com

Fabulous You

Good morning, I hope you are all enjoying the new catalogue as much as I am!  I have just had a UPS delivery and I am so excited, but I am trying to contain my excitement long enough for a quick blog update for you all. 

It is another birthday month this month with lots of birthdays and other occasions to celebrate for.  It's also my birthday month for a big special birthday, but let's not mention that just yet as I am trying to put it off for a bit longer!

Today's cards are all products from the yummy new catalogue.  The two cards here are the Fabulous You stamp set.  No matter how many times you look through the catalogue (and I do lots!) there is always stamps that you miss, but this is a stamp set a customer bought and after that it just kept popping out at me from the catalogue.  What a great girlie set for wedding/engagement congratulations, friendship or birthdays.  It is a small set of 3 stamps so a great little purchase without too much guilt!  I just love the shoe in the embossed silver as I have done for these two cards. 

 

The colour for the card is  Rose Red which has moved from the Subtles collection and is now in the Regals, I am so glad this colour did not retire as I do like it a lot.  The background is the Ex Libris background stamp, it provides an instant card front design in just one inking and stamping, such a time-saver!  The butterfly is so delicate too in this set and with the sentiment it is a really lovely set to have in your collection. 

 

I have dressed the shoe with a little Boho Blossom and a Vintage Button with some pearls and sparkles.  The large pearls we now have are perfect for the centre of the Boho Blossom small flower and they also fit perfectly in the centre of the larger vintage button (not used here). 

 

After my Rose Red card, I thought I would use a different colour scheme for another card.  This time I have used Daffodil Delight.  The image is still embossed silver here, but I have made little daisy flowers with the smallest Boho Blossom flower and just a standard hole punch for the centre.  The 'Happy Birthday' for this one is from the Create a cupcake stamp set.  This one was a postal friendly card so I used a rolled ribbon instead of a tied bow and secured the ends inside the middle loop with a brad.

 

I used some vellum cardstock overlay on the card which was embossed with the Polka Dot emboss folder.  Just a little warning if you do this, you might want to be a bit careful with your glue as I found after when mine was a little visible on the top edge.  You could create a little decorative strip to cover it here.

 



Look at these new colours on the last card I have made, these are the new In Colours 2013-2015 again.  This is also the Mosaic Madness stamp set and co-ordinating punch from the new catalogue.  I have added some embossed pieces too and layered it over a background made up of white punched pieces.  The 'Happy Birthday' you will recognise is again from the Create a cupcake set.  I am loving the Strawberry Slush colour.

 

I even added a little extra saying inside the card from the same stamp set.

 

If you are excited about all the new products or you just need something topping up, to place an order, book a party or come to a workshop held by me email me at craftyinkbuds@sky.com

New Catalogue - It's here to share!

2013-2014 Annual Catalogue

The new catalogue has arrived!  I'm so excited to be able to finally share it all with you........Just click on the link under the catalogue picture take a look inside....and see for yourself.  





 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Not content with giving a whole new annual catalogue, Stampin' Up! are also running some great offers alongside the new release today. 

 

Grab a Greeting Offer - 25% off selected greeting sets!

Everyone needs a stamp set to grab with birthday greetings, celebrations or thank you messages in them.  A fantastic saving on these selected sets to cover just about any occasion you may need to for all you project creations.

 

 
 

Single Stamps Offer

Just need a single stamp for a card in between deciding on your next must-have set from the catalogues?  Stampin' Up! are responding to customer's wishes and have put together a small selection of single stamps which can be purchased from now until 31st August 2013.  Click on the image here for a larger view and order numbers.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Best of 25 Years Stamps Sets

As a celebration of 25 years of business, each month until October 2013 an additional set of stamps will be released to bring back old favourites and to introduce one new image.  Just click on the images here for larger view of the June and July sets.  What a great way to get a flower or butterfly collection!

If you see anything you would like to buy then just send me an email and we can collate an order.  If you prefer, you can order and have items sent direct to you for just £4.95 P&P. 

 

Suzanne

  

Somethings Have To Be Believed To Be Seen - Last Retiring and Sneek Peek

I think possibly today's flurry of crafting is going to be some of the last of the retiring products you will see from me.  One of the first stamp sets I bought from Stampin' Up! was the Just Believe set.  It has simple 'Thank You', 'Friends' and 'Just for You' sentiments, but also has the great saying 'Somethings have to be believed to be seen'.  I have been inspired for the cards here by so many designs I have seen with the  larger stamp and how this can be framed on the front of the cards.

This first card is a combination of the In Colours 2013-2014 Raspberry Ripple and Primrose Petals. There is also some Regal Rose for the Boho Blossoms flowers which is a retiring colour with the new colour refresh.  The green on the card is Always Artichoke which has a darker shade which I think works really well in contrast with the other colours.

I just love the frame shape for this card.  This was cut using the Framelits Label Collection for the Big Shot.  I just imagined this card layout in my head and built it up from cutting and framing the stamped image.  The Boho Blossoms and Embosslits Beautiful Wings on the card are just the right size to go with the background image to dress it. 

The stamp set also contains two stamps which can be used to create instant label.  There is the decorative label I have added to this card and another larger label which can be used.  These are great for layering on cards or tags and are sized for the sentiments to fit with ease. 

You cannot see it too well on the photo, but there are embossing designs on the middle section and also on the edges of the white insert piece.  I used a product I have not mentioned too much up until now, the Simply Borders plate for the Simply Scored Tool, which is in the Spring/Summer mini.  This is fabulous for a subtle embossed design to your cards and co-ordinates with other products such as the Framelits dies. 

Tip:  The Simply Borders plate comes with a top template for easy alignment with your project when embossing.  To keep everything in place when embossing use some low tack masking tape to keep placement and to stop any slips.

The second card in neutral tones of Crumb Cake and Soft Suede is another use of the framelits die.  This card is created by first stamping in Crumb Cake and then using the Stamp-a-ma-jig to line up and create a shadow image, stamping with Versamark and then embossing with white.  The embossing was then sponged over with Crumb Cake.

This first photo is the initial version with the Flower Trim from the Spring/Summer catalogue and the Crumb Cake Seam Binding ribbon.  I then decided to step-up the card a little and added a few pearls.  I think the pearls lift it and make for a much better looking card.   Just a simple change can make such a difference!

The Flower Trim, as it is in the Spring/Summer catalogue will no longer be available after June 30th.  The other retiring products on the cards are, the Just Believe stamps and also the First Edition designer papers.  The papers are such a staple for any craft room; they work so well for a background, for vintage looks, or for masculine cards.

Lastly, all these retiring products posts have meant I have had to keep my twitching hands off my new catalogue products, but as we are now in the last few days of the current catalogues I thought it only right to give you a little tease of what is coming.  We have been talking about all the colour changes and retiring colours, well here are the yummy new In Colours 2013-2014 for the new catalogue (well 4 of them anyway!). 

 

Still with a retiring products, this card has monochrome Just Believe flower circles and I have then decorated them with the Floral Fusion Sizzlits in the new colours.  The photo does not show it, but I have also used the 'Friends' saying from the stamps down the right hand side strip.  The white card is also embossed with the Simply Borders plate as once I had played with it once I got carried away and wanted to play some more - as often the way with all the products!

To place your order, order your new catalogue, book a party or come to a workshop email me at craftyinkbuds@sky.com

It's a Countdown....5....4.....3.....2....1 !

Only 5 more days to order from the retired products and the Spring/Summer catalogue!  Here are some cards I have been making for all the little one's birthdays lately.  My little one turned 3 last month and we had a blast with the Blast Off stamp set.  I knew as soon as I saw it in the catalogue I would need to buy it for birthday celebrations for him.  I even made a rocket shaped cake based on the design, but that is a whole other story!

 

This card layout was hard to photograph for you to see all of the design and the card layout.  The middle section folds separately from the top and the bottom of the card.  The idea I had for this card was to use the Outter Space Jumbo Wheel with shimmer paint to create a planetary background with some galactic glitter. It was a bit tricky at first and I think I could have taken a bit longer to get a more even coating on the wheel probably using the brayer. 

 

The thing I love about this stamp set is the spaceship which looks great in the embossed silver.  My little alien friends are in Lucky Limeade which was a great choice of green for them to stand out - this is a colour also retiring.  I added some left over googly eyes from the Aut/Wint catalogue and there are some Brights Brads on the spaceship too. 

 

Now of course, as every mum does, I think my Son is the greatest so the top sentiment here is the single stamp from the current catalogue World's Greatest which is retiring also.  I combined it with a stamp from the For My Family set, also retiring - how will you make family cards without this set?  It's a must from the retiring sets surely!

 

Here's another layout for the card I made for one of the friends with the same set of stamps.  For the Outter Space background for this one I stamped using Versamark for the watermark look.

For all the 'Thank-You's that follow a birthday celebration, here were the little thank you cards we sent to thank everyone for the great presents received and for coming to our party.  The coloured dots on the spaceships are postal friendly for these cards - just simple punched coloured card this time.

For the cards for the girls I used the Create a Cupcake stamp set and the co-ordinating Cupcake Builder punch. I just love the stamp set where there is a matching punch it is so easy to make a card!  Of course the colour Pink features on the cards and the cakes just look good enough to eat!

Another retiring stamp set is the little trio of stamps used for the 'Happy Birthday' sentiments on the cards.  This set is called Made For You and I thought it was a fantastic value set as it has 'Thank You' and 'Especially for You' as the other sentiments in it. They are in a really lovely clear font for all occasions.  Don't forget too, the scalloped dots ribbon shown on the card is also retiring.  This ribbon comes in some lovely shades, especially those ready for Christmas (yipes! A mention so early in the year) as there is Old Olive and Cherry Cobbler versions!







The next card is possibly one of my favourites.  You will have to excuse the photography of the last few pictures as, in my haste, I used my camera phone to take quick snaps before sending them off in the post so the quality is not so good and this one is particularly blurred.

This is a CASE of a design I saw online by a US demonstrator Lisa Young   I loved the idea of cutting the castle template for a fairy princess themed birthday to celebrate.  I altered a few bits by making my turrets from the Pennants Builder Punch and I also added the Boho Blossoms to the tops of these (well a girl needs some flowers on her birthday) and some sparkles too with rhinestones.  The designer papers here are the Standard Subtles papers and the Floral District (for the turrets and scallop borders).

 

The sentiment is the Curly Cute stamp set, yes another one leaving the catalogue so get it whilst you can. There is still time to order!  The little designer brad on this card is also retiring.  It is one of the pool party dotty Designer Brads we have in the In Colours 2012-2014.

 

Did you spot those Cupcakes hiding again on this card?  There they are, the cupcake tops are white clouds on this card.

 

Last one for today is this Two By Two card for my Nephew who is turning one.  I cannot believe a year has passed already!  This stamp is gorgeous for birth congratulations (it has the sentiment 'congratulations' as part of the stamp), or as I have used it here, for a younger card theme.  Lots of lovely blues for the card with Marina Mist and Tempting Turquouise and I have teamed it up with some Real Red for the scallop circle and stitched ribbon bow.  The sentiment again here is the Made For You happy birtday.

The stamp is an outline stamp so I stamped in Staz On Black ink and then have used a blender pen with my colours to colour in the animals and the ark.  You can add as little (to make your picture more watercolour) or more if you want it a little brighter.  I love being able to create the shading on the picture with the blender pen. 

 

Tip: If you have the ink pads in the colours, just give the ink pads a little squeeze before opening to get a little ink on the underside of the lid to pick up the colour with your blender pen.  If you don't have an ink pad in the colour, don't worry, just use the inside of a lid of another colour ink pad, a paint palette or even just some plastic or perspex and colour a patch with your marker pen to get some ink to pick up with your belnder pen.

Retiring items from this post:

Curly Cute stamps
Made for You stamps
World's Greatest stamp
Two-By-Two stamp
For My Family stamps

Designer Brads
Shimmer Paint
Floral District DSP
Lucky Limeade products
Regal Rose/Pretty in Pink products
Scallop Dots ribbons

To place an order, book a party or come to a workshop email me at craftyinkbuds@sky.com

It's Mini, Magnificant and Memorable!

Wow, I cannot believe it is only a few more days left of the Annual and Spring/Summer catalogues.  To follow on from the gift ideas from my last post, here is another fantastic idea too for gifting and another use for those beautiful designer papers. 

It's a mini scrapbook album I made to share with a group of scrapbook ladies.  Easily made from 12"x12" cardstock and designer papers.  This one here is made from the Afternoon Daydream scrapbook kit which you may remember from my post for the Notes holder I made with it too. 

The scrapbook kits for SU really are very versatile in use and contain so much product, enough to make several projects - I still have some of it left even after making this and the notes holder! The accents are all co-ordinated and sticky for instant decoration to your projects.

On here are some of my other favourite products - that lovely Pool Party ruffled ribbon again and the Antique Brads to create the clasp.

 

Take a further look inside..........

 

You really can get creative with your designs and create a mini album with lots of lovely decorated pages to add your photo memories and journalling.

 

It's perfect for a gift for a friend, parent or grandparents to add all those memorable moments in your very own style.

Another album I made with the designer papers is this Storytime version.  My little one has been sharing memories of his nursery activities and is just at the age where he is learning his alphabet and numbers.  The school/learning theme in the Storytime papers was just the ticket to keep a little journal for us to save his special memories.

All the designer papers are changing with the new catalogue, so just 5 more days to order the current paper choices with many of them reduced by 40-50%.  The Storytime papers I used here are now only £4.98!

You too could easily put together one of these albums. Just choose your favourite designer papers and card to make one in your own style.
 
Why not get in touch to arrange to host a evening workshop or coffee morning for friends to see just how easy it is to make these lovely albums?  Great to gift, or even keep yourself. 

Just drop me a line at my email address craftyinkbuds@sky.com.

Floral District Celebrations

Today's post is of a lovely gift idea to show off the beautiful designer papers from Stampin' Up!  It is the last week of the retirment list items being available and in my next few posts I am going to be showing you as many as I can of the great products which are only available now until the end of the catalogue to make sure you don't miss anything!

 

This project is a notebook I picked up in a supermarket which was reduced as a clearance line. It had a sturdy hardback cover and spiral binding, but a not very inspiring cover design, so perfect candidate for some DSP love.  I loved covered pencils idea too ever since I saw it online - just purchase some round wooden pencils and wrap your DSP round them - easy, and they look something special all dressed up!

The papers I have used for my gifts are from the Floral District pack.  Lovely bright designs (not that my photography shows it too well with the poor lighting conditions today!) which are bolder than my usual choices, but I was drawn to the colours used in these papers and the flower blooms on them.

One of the colours in the palette for these papers is Baja Breeze which is a colour leaving us in the refresh.  It's sad, but there are some lovely new colours coming, including some new blues to keep us all happy.  Now, I have used the Pool Party ruffled ribbon on my notepad, not a true colour co-ordination, but I just love this ribbon (this too is retiring) with the end of the catalogue.

A lovely layered Big Shot Fun Flower on the notepad shows off the rest of the designs in the pack as do the Boho Blossom smaller flowers. I finished off the flower with a button from the artisan kit and a large pearl.  For the 'Notes' heading I have used the Broadsheet Alphabet stamp set which is retiring.  This a fantastic alphabet set and each letter is a beautiful unique design. It has been great for initials on cards and projects whilst it has been in my collection as the letters work so well just on their own as stamps. 

The label and sentiment for the pencil box were from the Just Believe stamp set, yes yet another one on the retirement list. 

The second project to show you today, using the same papers, but with an alternative palette is this lovely birthday card I made recently.  I love the colours on this.  The green is the Lucky Limeade which is also leaving us in the refresh.  I really wasn't sure about this one in the In Colours 2012-2013 set, but it really did grow on me and I think I will miss it's vibrance.  Here I have teamed it up with Rose Red for my birthday card.  This card was made on a not-too-sunny day I remember feeling lifted by the colour combination.

The stamps for the 'tweeties' are from the Aviary stamp set,  also retiring at the end of the catalogue period next week.  I think there will be some tweet love still in my house as I don't think I am ready to part with this set just yet.  The banner is made from simple Pennants from the Pennants Builder Punch and the flowers are from the Big Shot Floral Fusion sizzlits.  This card was a really quick win for a birthday celebration and I was really pleased with the results and how easy it was to put together.

That's quite a list of items which I have used for these projects which are retiring, but to list them all in one place, they are:

Notebook
Floral District DSP Papers
Baja Breeze Colour items
Ruffled Ribbon - Pool Party
Broadsheet Alphabet stamp set
Just Believe stamp set

Aviary Card
Aviary stamp set
Lucky Limeade colour items
Floral District DSP
Made for You stamp set


Remember, the retiring items are only available whilst stocks last and until 30th June.  Don't miss out if there is something here you have loved and have not realised is going.

To place an order, book a party or come to a workshop just email me at craftyinkbuds@sky.com