Summer Silhouettes part 3

Hello everyone I hope you are doing well. Things are good around here if a touch crazy and speedy.

Before I go on I need to let you know that TODAY is the LAST DAY to SIGN UP AS A DEMONSTRATOR and receive a fabulous supply of FREE PAPERS for the next SIX MONTHS> Signing up is easy all you have to do is click on my JOIN NOW link

And here’s my last Summer Silhouette card after this I will be moving onto showing you LOTS OF CHRISTMAS. I will be scheduling a post for every day of the week starting with Monday, yes you read it right and please don’t be so shocked :)

Here’s the pretty card

Rich Razzleberry, Baja Breeze and Crumb Cake. This set is so very pretty and so is the yummy polka dot papers. I have used a full pack of it already and I have another on order, you just can’t go wrong with spots can you?

I love the agapanthus like flower heads and stamped them a few times over the stemp to give the impression of a fuller flower, I cannot wait to use this flower on crumb cake card stamped in white craft ink to look like the pretty baby breath  or gypsophila.

And here’s a close up of the stamped pretties

Have you spotted the quirky sentiment on this card? It was cut with the adorable ticket punch, I LOVE that cute punch. And the pinking trim on the side YUM!!!

Products used :All Stampin’Up! unless otherwise stated.
Stamps: Summer Silhouettes
Ink: Rich Razzleberry, Old Olive, Baja Breeze
Card stock: Rich Razzleberry, Crumb Cake,Polka dot  dsp
Accessories: Crumb Cake ribbon, Ticket tag punch, edgelits

Thank you for stopping by see you again soon, hugs xx

 

 

 

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A little inspiration I found

The 45 Lessons Life Taught Me

I came across these inspiring quotes and I thought I would share them here for you all. I found them on Jo Austin’s blog and she recommends that we print them off and read at least once a month. Enjoy xx

Written  by Regina Brett, 90 years old, of the Plain Dealer,  Cleveland , Ohio .
"To celebrate growing older, I once wrote the 45 lessons life taught me. It is the most  requested column I've ever written.
My odometer  rolled over to 90 in August, so here is the column once  more:

1. Life isn't fair, but it's still  good.
2. When in doubt, just take the next small step.
3. Life is too short - enjoy it..
4.  Your job won't take care of you when you are sick. Your  friends and family  will.
5. Pay off your credit cards every month.
6. You don't have to win every argument. Stay true to yourself.
7. Cry with someone. It's more healing than crying alone.
8. It's OK to get angry with God. He can take it.
9. Save for retirement starting with your first paycheck.
10.  When it comes to chocolate, resistance is  futile.
11. Make peace with your past so it won't  screw up the present.
12. It's OK to let your children see you cry.
13. Don't compare your life to others. You have no idea what their journey is all  about.
14. If a relationship has to be a secret, you shouldn't be in it..
15. Everything can change in the blink of an eye But don't worry; God never  blinks.
16. Take a deep breath. It calms the mind.
17. Get rid of anything that isn't useful. Clutter weighs you down in  many ways.
18. Whatever doesn't kill you really  does make you stronger.
19. It's never too late to be happy. But it's all up to you and no one  else.
20. When it comes to going after what you love in life, don't take no for an answer.
21.  Burn the candles, use the nice sheets, wear the fancy  lingerie. Don't save  it for a special occasion. Today is special.
22.  Over prepare, then go with the flow.
23. Be  eccentric now. Don't wait for old age to wear  purple.
24. The most important sex organ is the brain.
25. No one is in charge of your happiness  but you.
26. Frame every so-called disaster with  these words 'In five years, will this  matter?'
27. Always choose life.
28.  Forgive but don't forget.
29. What other people think of you is none of your business.
30. Time heals almost everything. Give time time.
31.  However good or bad a situation is, it will  change.
32. Don't take yourself so seriously. No  one else does..
33. Believe in miracles.
34. God loves you because of who God  is, not because of anything you did or didn't  do.
35. Don't audit life. Show up and make the  most of it now.
36. Growing old beats the  alternative -- dying young.
37. Your children get only one childhood.
38. All that truly matters in the end is that you loved.
39. Get outside every day. Miracles are waiting everywhere.
40. If we all threw our problems in a pile and saw everyone  else's, we'd grab ours back.
41. Envy is a waste of time. Accept what you already have not what you need.
42. The best is yet to come...
43. No matter how you  feel, get up, dress up and show up.
44.  Yield.
45. Life isn't tied with a bow, but it's  still a gift."

Summer Silhouettes part 2

Hello everyone how was your Monday after the weekend? I had 2 classes yesterday and it was lovely to see everyone again.

I am sharing another of my Summer Silhouettes cards today

Pretty colours and I just love how the embossing folder matches the stamped images from this pretty set.

I used the 2 1/2” circle punch for my mat and stamped the pretty vine in crumb cake with the flowers in Baja Breeze. I love this timeless colour combination. And here’s a little close up

That fancy fan embossing folder is so pretty !!! I hope you like it to. The friend sentiment belongs to the Affection Collection set.

Right will dash now as I still have things on my to do list today before I can finish off. But before I go I need to ask you this? Have you chosen your Christmas present yet? Nearly 5 years ago my husband bought my Stampin’Up! starter kit as my Christmas present and I became a demonstrator. All these years later and I can safely say that it was the best present I EVER received!!! What Stampin’Up! had brought to my life since then is so much more than things you can put a price on, I am so fortunate to experience how truly special being part of this amazing company is, your life will be richer and better as a SU demo and I can truly promise you that. And your £99 gets you £135 worth of yummy products plus if you sign up before the end of this month you will be eligible for SIX packs of Designer Paper FREE of charge. Read more about it HERE then contact me and let me help you receive the best Christmas gift ever..

See you again very soon, thank you for joining me, big hugs xx

 

 

 

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Silhouettes Cards part 1

Hello there I hope you are ok, I am quickly posting before I am out the door for a few appointments so I am sorry for the lack of chat.

Today I am sharing a card we made at our card club last Sunday.

Summer Silhouette is the stamp set and the colours used are Baja Breeze, Rose red, Crumb Cake and Very Vanilla.

The main panel was stamped using  Old Olive ink and I achieved the variation in colour by inking once and stamping a few times without re inking again. The pretty edge is done using the new framelits edges.

Here’s a closer look at the hand cut flowers. I topped each one with a sparkly rhinestone. Have you tried our blingy stones yet?

Products used :All Stampin’Up! unless otherwise stated.
Stamps: Summer Silhouettes
Ink: Rose Red, Old Olive, Basic Black
Card stock: Rose Red, Baja Breeze, Crumb Cake, Newsprint  dsp
Accessories: Modern label punch, rhinestones.

 

Is Lorraine’s Happy Birthday today so I will share her card with you tomorrow. Till then Big hugs xxx

 

 

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New App and Ink redible club draw

Hello there yipeeee its Friday!!! Hope you are looking forward to your weekend as much as I am. 
I have some news for you, do you love Stampin’Up? Do you love sending cards to your friends and family?and do you have a Iphone, Ipad or an Ipod touch? If the answer is yes than get giddy as Stampin’Up! have released a new FREE yes you read that right FREE app titled Simply Sent.

A card-making application that allows you send Cards for any occasion by creating your own design or use the ready made templates, they allow you to send a greeting in a snap.  Add Photos, chose your font, pick the backgrounds you love then send to all your loved ones to keep connected. I have been so busy playing and I had sooo much fun, I now know I need the MDS program they have in the US.  Here’s a little page I sent to my sister this morning using a photo of my sweet Luca Sambuca, oh how I love Thee

Then I made one for my friend Vanou, I love this picture from our holiday earlier in the year.

And then I indulged in a bit of bling well a LOT of bling as it was FREE, I don’t Think I could ever use so much bling on one card IRL, so it was nice to indulge :)

Get me with this Tecchie stuff. I have to tell you I learned something having a go at these quick projects. I learned that I Loved playing with it just as much as I love my real paper and glue creating  and I also didn’t find it to hard to figure out. Only trouble is I want to play more but have stuff to do LOL

I did make one more for my hubby but I will spare you the gags as it is a bit mushy, perfect for him as he loves Mushy Peas (bleurgh).

So don’t wait any longer  give it a go and make someone’s day with a bit of pretty. I would love to hear how you got on :) Click on the logo to download the app

Next I want to share the live draw for my ink redible club, thank you everyone for taking part, our INK redible winner is Lynn B but of course they are all winners as everyone got a little something on top of their ordered goodies. There’s a new club started if you would like to take part, as soon as we have 7 orders ready we can draw again. Read more HERE then please contact me.

Thank you for joining me today see you again real soon, till then BIG HUGS

 

 

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Birthday Passionette

Hello again how are you today? I am sharing a card and gift I made for Val one of my dear friends and downline for her Birthday. Val loves red and and I love this sweet stamp set called Elements of Style it was a set i admired for a long time in the US catalogue oh how grateful I’m I that we have finally caught up with them and we get the same offering.

I have used a combo of Soft Suede, Cherry Cobbler and Very vanilla. A bit of Crumb Cake tulle, some pearls as well as one faceted clear button added a bit of glamour to the whole ensemble.  The En Francaise background was also used to create the layered background, I even sponged some Shimmer paint over it but of course you cannot see that in the photo.Here’s a little close view for you

I love the layered sentiment, I used the new ticket punch and the extra large oval punch and the words are from the new sentiment set called Fabulous Phrases, both sets used in this card were FREE, I earned them through special promotions and incentives. I very rarely pay for my stamps now a days, you could do the same by joining my team :)

Val  always sends me a sweet gift so I returned the favour  and made a box for her little treat.

I made the box using my Simply Scored board and after I finished it I realised that I would have liked to add some stamping to the plain box, by then it was to late. I made a tag using the fabulously large 2 1/2” circle punch and layered the decoupaged sentiment over a diddy scallop circle punch available in the Seasonal Catalogue. Here’s a closer view

Have you noticed my swish photographs?  Linda’s (one of my dear downline)  husband Stewart has processed them for me and we struck a deal that as long as I can pay him in cakes he will happily to do some work for my blog. You can see Linda’s amazing website HERE , all Stewart designed of course. I just love the clean look THANK YOU Stewart :)

The good news is my 1st INK redible club is full but I am keeping it open see if we can fill another one. It really is a good deal and if you think you would like to take a place email me you can find out more details HERE.

Thank you for stopping by hope to see you again soon till next time hugs xxx

 

 

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INK-redible Club !!! ONE PLACE AVAILABLE

Hello there I am driving at full speed again, life is so very busy this time of the year and it will only get busier for us all I know it. Lots happening right now at Stampin’Up! we have some GREAT offers on this month and hostesses with workshops totalling £325 can earn 10 FREE ink pads. And it got me thinking why don’t I offer you the chance to win 10 of these FREE ink pads without spending £325 yourself? It will be like having a party but without you having to invite anyone although the quicker we find 7 members the quicker we can place the order so please share this with all your friends. 1 PLACE LEFT
I decided I will be calling it the INK-redible Club and in this club anyone taking part is a WINNER. Here’s how it works
I need 7 people to each place an order of £50 plus £3.50 postage.
Everyone taking part is guaranteed to win a prize as follows
There are 5 Prizes worth £10  each for FREE merchandise to spend as you wish in any of the current catalogues including hostess only stamp sets.
One prize that will allow the winner to purchase an item at a 50% discount ( you could get a big alphabet set of dies or indeed the Big Shot die cutting machine for half price).
And one winner gets  to choose an entire collection of 10 Ink Pads, big and juicy ink pads :).
It’s a WIN WIN for everyone participating, what do you think? all you have to do to take part is email me your order by the end of this week and on Saturday I will draw the winners via a video recording, this recording will not be edited you will see your names go in a bowl and one by one the winners pulled out.  Email me your choice at telemech01@aol.com
UK only please and sorry this offer cannot be combined with any other offers I might have on. Look forward to hearing from you and good luck :)

Team Training and Pam’s card

Hello everyone have you all had a good weekend? Our class went well yesterday it was good to see everyone and the cake went down a treat. I had a few emails for the recipe so I am sharing it with you all . I used a Thermomix recipe but I am sure you can adapt it and use with a regular mixer it will just take you a little longer that’s all. You can find the recipe HERE.

The card I am sharing with you today features a a technique showcased at Convention by the gorgeous Pam Morgan. Pam is the VP of Demonstrator Services working at the Home Office in Utah but at the same time she is also an active demonstrator.  A lady with a great sense of humour and a big heart much loved by every demonstrator that has the pleasure of meeting  her including yours truly. I count  myself as one of her biggest fans and I know she reads many of the demonstrators blogs so Pam if you are reading this I’ll collect my payment for the glowing reviews next year in Utah *wink*

Back to the card, I copied Pam’s card almost entirely

Aren’t those butterflies cute? They were punched out from silver glimmer paper. Sorry what was that? they are not silver? oh sorry no, no they are not!! you are quite right Pam showed us how to colour glimmer paper to ensure you have sparkle in every colour you can possibly wish for. And I have the quickest mini tutorial ever for you.

First you punch out a flutter using the Butterfly punch from Silver Glimmer Paper, fill an aquapainter with some Isopropyl alcohol (I keep a brush just for this).

Add a little drop of reinker in your chosen colour to the centre of the flutter then using your aquapainter move the ink all over the surface, the result? A perfect looking sweet flutter with coloured wings :)

I get asked a lot about where can they buy Isopropyl Alcohol known in the US as rubbing alcohol, I buy mine from that well known auction site but some chemists will stock it too especially private ones. Mixed with our Shimmer Paint it makes the most gorgeous Shimmer Spray as well, watch this video HERE where I explain how to make your own.

Here’s a closer look of my little sweet flutters, don’t they look cute on the chevron background? I love this embossing folder

Thank you so much for stopping by hope you liked my Pam inspired card,  till next time BIG HUGS XXX

 

Products used :All Stampin’Up! unless otherwise stated.
Stamps: Affection Collection
Ink: Primrose Petals, Baja Breeze, Soft Saffron
Card stock:  Primrose Petals, Baja Breeze, Soft Saffron, Whisper White, silver glimmer paper
Accessories: Butterfly Punch, Chevron Embossing Folder, bakers twine, itty bitty buttons, basic rhinestones

 

 

 

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Team Training

Hello there I hope you are enjoying the weekend, I have been busy preparing for my class tomorrow and I am so excited to see everyone again. I have scrummy apple and coconut tea cake baking in the oven and 3 very cute projects. However today I am sharing some cards I designed for our team training last Thursday. The first training after Convention is always such an easy session to prepare for as I always show projects and ideas that were shared with us on stage by fellow demonstrators and our Stampin’Up! staff.

And today’s project was demonstrated by lovely Charlotte our demonstrator trainer. I changed it up a bit as I couldn’t exactly remember the card Chrlotte did as I didn’t take a picture of it. Here’s an example of a simple party make n take

I LOVE this tiered tree what  a brilliant idea, and do you know how quick and easy this is? VERY, which is perfect right now if you are a bit late with your cards. It uses the pennant parade punch and scraps of designer paper. This particular papers are from our fabulous Festival of Prints stack a bargain £6.25 for 48 sheets (they measure 11.4 cm x 16.5 cm). The tag was inked with some Soft Suede ink the whole thing was spritzed with some very vanilla smooch spray. Have you seen this yet? fabulous glitz with only a few sprays, love it !!

And here’s a slightly more elaborate example, still quick and easy but with a bit more flare.

I added the woodgrain embossing folder to add some texture to the tag and also a little glimmer paper for extra sparkle. I love these cards hope you do as well,  thank you Charlotte for your inspiration.

Have you seen my INK-redible Club offer? I still need two more people to join us, please have a look here and if you decide that you would like to take part email me.

Products used :All Stampin’Up! unless otherwise stated.
Stamps: Tiny Tags
Ink: Soft Suede
Card stock: Island Indigo, Crumb Cake, Cherry Cobbler, Festival of Prints designer paper stack
Accessories: Modern Label punch, Handheld circle punch, Pennant Punch, Duo Ticket punch, rhinestones and cherry cobbler bakers twine, Vanilla smooch spray

Have a fabulous weekend see you again soon. Till then BIG HUGS xx

 

 

 

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European Convention Mainz- Part 2

This Convention post is all about the gifts. I love getting ready for Convention and I love to spoil my girls attending with a little something made by me for them.  And here’s the bag complete with a bag tag to match our Convention Bags

I added some wet wipes (always good to have with you) and a few Ferrero Rocher chocs not in the photo as I usually buy them in the duty free shop so I don’t have to check in extra weight I never travel light no matter how hard I try to :(

Here’s a picture of the bag tag

The boxes are our fabby Crumb Cake ones and they come naked ready for you to spruce them up. They are fabulously sturdy and roomy. I used the comfort cafe papers to decorate the sides and the lid part. Then I topped the box with a tulle brooch. I bought the vinatge brooch findings with clear domes on Fleabay months ago. The 1 “ circle punch paper fitted perfectly inside

And inside

I covered some bangles in our Comfort Cafe fabric and added the faceted buttons to them, however they were a bad choice as I used hot glue gun to secure them and they all dropped off soon after :(. I should have used my 2 parts epoxy I will know next time. And I made the sweet notes to go in the bottom of the boxes but i forget to pack them :( so I know have some ready made notes to use for some other friends :).

My gifts for my lower level downline and friends we these little packets containing a brooch and 2 pretty hair slider using our in colour Dahlias.

And this was my roomie gift.

   I always share a room with Zoe my good friend and fellow Stampin’Up! demo. The neck piece is easy to wear and I plan to make more for the craft fairs I have this season. Close up of the brooch

And here are the gifts I received from Stampin’Up! Firstly the Convention bag, love this bag trendy with the Chevron pattern and the shape of it is great, I owuld use it a lot in summer.

On Thursday I attended a special reception reserved for those demonstrators who achieved a specific title within their career. It was a night of business sharing, swapping for ideas catching up and enjoying a delicious finger buffet, I had about 12 yummy meatballs in a yummy tomato sauce served very poshly in a tiny glass YUM :)

And we each got a lovely gift

A fabby book and a set of pen and fountain pen. I haven't used a fountain pen since my school days, we did calligraphy and I remember having to carry my ink bottle in my school bag. I have lost count how many times my own bottle leaked over everything including myself. Poor mum must have worked so hard to get the stains out.

Details :)

and the beautiful tag

I need to buy this alphabet now :)

I was lucky to walk the stage a few times and collect some very special prizes, look at the stunning packaging.

And do you see those stamp sets? every single person attending received the same amount  of sets. Nearly £100 value. I love how spoilt we are !!! You can attend next one by becoming a demonstrator today, is easy just click the link atb the top of my blog choose your kit of £130 and pay only £99 for it then you are in business its’ that easy!!!

I received tons more beautiful gifts from my  fabulous team members, my friends and fellow demos even from kind strangers that read my blog. I want to thank you all for your kindness I really appreciate it.

I am sorry for the long post hope you enjoyed looking at all my makes and I will see you again soon with more. Till then big hugs xxx

 

 

 

 

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I AM …. HERE

Helloooooooooooooooooooooooooo, Oh my Goodness I bet you’ve been wondering where I was? Suffice to say I am back with tons to share, but let’s just start with a fabulous weekend spent in wonderful Mainz Germany at our Stampin’Up! European Annual Convention. It was the most fabulous Convention ever, nearly 850 demonstrators from 3 countries got together to celebrate, share ideas, inspire and get inspired. It was truly special and I loved catching up with my fabulous team members, make new friends and catch up with old ones.

The theme this year was I AM, and here I am in front of the trendy chalkboard art display.

And no rope has been established since 2007 :) it actually read Europe and yes it was 2007 when SU opened up for business in Europe, amazing to think its been 5 years already I remember the day so clearly like it was only yesterday.

This year there were more members of my team attending than ever before and I really loved being there with them all.

We had winners within the group Dawn was lucky enough to win one of the Prize Patrols

We had gigglers, Vicky and Beth sharing a moment here. I just love this picture of them

We had flying goofs, this is the very effervescent Issy LOL

In short we had a jolly good time I haven’t laughed so hard in ages. And because there were so many of us there at no point did we manage to gather together in one place at the same time for a photo op but here’s a portion of the group

At the back in the middle we have Dawn, Netty and Alison, at the front from left to right Beth, Vicky, Issy, Linda, myself, Lorraine, Jill, Val and Kim.

Being part of our team is fun for sure, we are all from different walks of life united by our passion for Stampin’Up! and I loved every minute spent in the company of these great ladies I just wish i could do it all over again next weekend. Unfortunately we will all have to wait another year but the good news is the location for 2013 Convention is in…

…and if you want to be there please consider joining my team today. There is a fabulous offer on and you can read all about it HERE, it’s as easy as abc and you can even ask for the starter kit as your Christmas present.

There were lots of amazing displays

The cutie on this gorgeous layout reminded me of Luca my little nephew, it must be the curls :)

I want to make this right now

and if this was your wedding bouquet you could keep it FOREVER

Beautifully decorated tea box

I have lots more to show you so please pop back soon, till then BIG HUGS xxx

 

 

 

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