Being a demonstrator for Stampin’ Up! I make many sample cards to share at demonstrations or with my loyal blog readers like yourself.  I have quite a few more cards than I need so its nice to throw one in the mail and send to someone ‘just cos I can’ and its always lovely to get one back – how excited do we get when we see an envelope in our letter box that does NOT have a window??

I know I get very excited as do the girls – they want to know who its from and why they sent it to me.

Now being that I’ve been with Stampin’ Up! now for nearly 4 years – ooo its my Stampin Up! Anniversary next month! I’ve met many lovely people and many of them have become friends.  One of these ladies is the lovely Leonie Newman – who also happens to be in my awesome downline – well she’d have to be great with a name like Leonie wouldnt she??

To my surprise Leonie sent me a little gift last week – she had told me during one our online chats that I should keep an eye on my letter box.

This is what I received ….

Leonie did tell me that she saw this Coffee Sleeve and thought of me immediately — not sure where she gets the idea I’m powered by coffee?!?! I do appreciate the thought as how often have you bought a coffee from a take away and its too hot to hold??

Now the card ….

I love the colours and paper Leonie has used.

This type of card is called a ‘swing’ card as the top swings up to reveal the message or greeting as shown below.

If you would like to learn how to make one of these swing cards then contact me today to arrange your demonstration or class

To Leonie – thank you for blessing me with your friendship and your gorgeous gift!

Now if you’d like to become a demonstrator and join my awesome Stamp A Latte team then please contact me as soon as possible if you want to save $65 on the Starter Kit.  This promotion goes until 31st July which is this Saturday and I’d love for you to join my team and reap the rewards (and all the new friends you’ll make) just as I do!

Benefits of joining my team this week are ….

• Save 20% on the starter kit price – you pay only $259 (a saving of $65)
• Earn 30% commission on your first order within 45 days of joining (use this on items in the new catalogue or Big Shot!)
• Join my wonderful team of over 100 demonstrators
• Pre-order from the new catalogue before it goes ‘live’ on 1^st September
• Get a bonus gift from me when you join my team (to the value of $35)
• Gain access to my Stamp A Latte Team forum
• Gain access to the ESAD forum and network with over 500 demonstrators
• Gain access to the Stampin’’ Up Demonstrator website
• attend my team meetings

If you would like more information or have any questions please dont hesitate to contact me.

Thanks for stoppin by

Welcome to the ESAD Christmas in July Blog hop!!

I do hope you’ve come prepared for a wonderful ‘Christmas’ journey so if you havent got your cuppa and some biscuits you’d better go get some now … I’ll wait till you get back to continue.

What is ESAD?

ESAD stands for Extra Special Australasian Demonstrators and it is an online group just for Australian and New Zealand demonstrators for Stampin’ Up!®

We so love what we do and not only do we love to share it with our customers, friends, and wonderful blog visitors but we share our love for what we do with each other as Demonstrators. We run swaps, challenges, tutorials, product know how and cyberstamps and we are always there to help and support each other when its needed. There is also the online chat networking that is available whenever youre online.

So if you are a Stampin’ Up! Demonstrator located in Australia or New Zealand then please feel free to click here to join our wonderful group.

You should have come here from Clare’s blog but if you havent dont worry … just keep hopping until you get back to me.

Now, like all good bloggers, we all LOVE comments so please be sure to leave us a comment as we just thrive on them!

I have had one of these Simply Scrappin’ “I Wish” kits for eons – maybe even last Christmas and I hadnt pulled it out to use so I thought I’d better take this opportunity and use it before its retired.

Here is what I created ….

We have ….

• A Christmas planner
• A Gift box with toffees inside
• A Gift Bag
• 6 Christmas Cards with matching Envelopes
• 8 Christmas Tags

Now all of these things I made with just half of one of the kits – oh and I had quite a bit left over that I didnt use including adhesive die cuts, cardstock and patterned paper.

So I could still make a bundle more cards, tags and even a scrapbook layout if I wanted to – or I might even dress up a canvas for the Grannies for Christmas.  So just imagine how much you could make with a full kit!

The Christmas Planner

I love the idea of these planners so when I was making projects for this blog hop I thought I’d love to make one of these so I went looking online for ideas and maybe a tutorial.

After spending half a day (I kid you not!) of looking and not really finding what I wanted I sat down and decided to design one myself!  So I did and I love how it turned out!

The Planner takes one sheet of 12×12 cardstock to create then I’ve just added pieces of the Designer Series Paper and adhesive die cuts from the kit to decorate it.  Easy!

Here are a couple of shots inside the planner ….

Then we have the cards ….

These cards were actually made using the Stampin’ Up!® Notecards.  Using the Notecards made them so quick and easy to put together and they come with envelopes so I just stamped some snowflakes from the Snow Swirled Stamp Set and I was done! Easy!

A Box for the special someone with the sweet tooth!

How cute is this box?  These Acetate boxes are so easy to make and you can put anything in them from toffees to candles!  Oh if you are buying someone a gift card you could pop that inside and then fill it up with toffees or Werther’s Caramel Chocolates – now I did buy a bag of those but they umm disappeared … well one does have to do quality control do they not?? I do know that hubby took two of them – the hide of some people!

A Gift bag …..

How nice is this little bag?  Now you could put just about anything in here too … a CD, stamp set, punch, set of car keys, toy car even (being a replica of the new one in the drive-way maybe? please Santa???)

Not forgetting … the gift tags ….

Now these were fun to make and I will probably make a few more – but how cute is that Penguin??  I do so love Penguins   I’ve been eyeing off this Punch Pals set for a couple of years now and thought why not?? My customers need new stamps for their Christmas Stamp A Stacks!

Wow .. .I apologise this post is so long!  I didnt mean for it to be so if you’ve got this far I thank you from the bottom of my Christmas heart!  It does happen to be my favourite holiday and its a shame its all over so quickly.

Now before I go I do have to tell you that if you do happen to see those Werther’s Caramels to grab one bag for you and one bag for me cos they are D-I-V-I-N-E!

Now that you have got this far its time to hop onto the next ESAD Blogger in the Blog hop being the gorgeous Gardenia Pepworth

Now dont forget to leave everyone a comment

How nice is this card??

Rich Razzleberry, Autumn Days and the Top Note so what’s not to love??

Recipe
Stamps : Autumn Days, Occasional Greetings
Paper:  Rich Razzelberry, Old Olive, Very Vanilla
Inks:  Rich Razzleberry, Soft Suede
Accessories:  Chocolate Chip Stampin’ Write Marker, Bravo Burgundy Stampin’ Write Marker, Old Olive Stampin’ Write Marker, Big Shot, Top Note die, Lots of Tags Sizzlits, Stampin Sponges, Stampin Dimensionals

This card was inspired by a card I found last week while blurfing (blog surfing) the other day I came across the blog of Judy May who graciously permitted me to case her card.

I do hope you like this card as much as I do and thanks to Judy for letting me case her card.

Now dont forget to pop back on Saturday for the ESAD Christmas in July Blog hop – I’ve seen one of the other creations for this and they are just stunning and you wont want to miss out!

Last week my lovely Stampin’ Up! Demonstrator friend Sonia Garbut announced she was a guest designer for a new online class called Inkspirations4U and was offering a free pass … well…. Sonia’s 2yo daughter pulled out my name so I won a free pass!

How exciting is that?  I never win anything!

Before the projects started rolling in Madeline gave us a colour challenge to get us started.

Now those colours happen to be some of my favourites but boy did I have a hard time putting them together!

Here is what I came up with ….

I love this flower image from Asian Artistry. Its just gorgeous … and so is that dragonfly!

I used my Stampin Write Markers to colour the image however I wanted it to have a soft feel to it so I coloured the leaves and stems with the Basic Grey marker and then stamped it off once. I then inked the flowers with the Pretty in Pink marker, huffed and then stamped onto Naturals Ivory cardstock.  I also sponged around the edge of the naturals ivory piece but again after dabbing the sponge on the Basic Gray Ink pad I dabbed it off first to give a softer edge – it tends to blend into the Basic Gray piece behind it this way.

Using the Rich Razzleberry as the base card fulfilled the ‘colour challenge’ although I wasnt totally sold on the card. I thought the Rich Razzleberry was too dark for this sympathy card so here are a couple of variations …

with ribbon

changed base card to Pink Pirouette

Now as much as I love Rich Razzleberry I think the softness of Pink Pirouette on this last card fits the ‘soft sympathy’ feel I was after.

The projects coming through the Inkspirations4U classes are so nice and its not too late to join and well worth the US$20 it costs so why not pop over to Inkspirations4U and join up – would love to see you there!

I first met Cheryl when I first joined Stampin’ Up! at the first Australian Stampin Up! Convention. A little while later she recruited the very lovely Melissa and she too become a dear friend.

Now there is a saying that there is a no greater friend than one that comes with chocolate … well at this past convention I was presented with this lovely gift and no there wasnt chocolate inside but ground Toffee Nut Coffee from Gloria Jeans – so now I’ve amended the saying to … there is no greater friend than the one that comes with coffee!!

Mel and Chez gave me this awesome little gift for helping them with some computer/blog bits a few weeks back.  I had a lovely time having them here but who can say no to coffee and especially when its packaged so nicely

Thanks girls for spending the day with me and for the awesome coffee!

While on my way to Memento Mall at Convention I ran into the lovely Jane Norrish who after giving me a hug said “Oh I have something for you!” I prayed it wasnt a bill Lol!!  I recently set up a blog for Jane and she brought me a thank you gift. I was overwhelmed as Jane has paid me to set up her blog but look at this ….

How awesome is this gift??

Jane bought a special insulated mug which she could decorate inside and used my favourite DSP – Cottage Wall. She’s also used the same DSP to create my card. Dont you love the quilted effect used on the Top Note Die?

But wait …. there’s more!

This was inside the mug – mind you I didnt realise this till I’d gotten home after convention!

How cool … and sorry Jane I didnt look inside at convention I was sorta sidetracked by Memento Mall and trying to hand out swaps as we got there later than planned.

So as you can see being with a company like Stampin’ Up! changes everything! They have the best demonstrators and customers.  I’ve been with other craft party plan and the other consultants never treated you like this – they wouldnt share anything in case you took business from them – rather scary really!

If you would like more information about becoming a demonstrator and joining my Stamp A Latte Team please dont hesitate to ring or email me.

You can join at the moment for just $259 and where else can you get your own business for that price?

You dont have to do demonstrations or classes – you can sign just to get your products at a discount if you wish. A couple of other bonuses with joining Stampin’ Up! is there are no annual costs to remain a demonstrator and you can swap between hobby and business demonstrator at any time.

So now I not only have an awesome coffee cup but I have coffee to make and chocolates to eat – gotta luv that!!

So a very huge thank you to Linda Craven, Nikki Stalker and Mae Collins for this honour

Thanks again to the lovely ladies who awarded me this award – I am very touched

You may notice my blog is looking a little different this morning. I have been playing with a new program to design blog templates and this is what I came up with last night and I do hope you like what I’ve done. I was up until the wee hours tweaking it and would appreciate your thoughts and comments on the new look.

Speaking of thoughts …..

Here’s a new card I made recently which is a case of a card from the Idea Book & Catalogue using the lovely Thoughts and Prayers stamp set.

This card is a very soft elegant card and really could be used for any occasion – not just a sympathy or caring card.  Just change the sentiment and you’re set.

Recipe:

Stamps: Thoughts and Prayers, Frames with a Flourish
Inks: Versamark, Whisper White Craft Ink, So Saffron, Close to Cocoa
Paper: Kraft, So Saffron, Pretty in Pink, Sage Shadow, Very Vanilla
Accessories: Stamp a majig, Stampin Pastels, Very Vanilla Taffeta Ribbon, Stampin Dimensionals

I do hope you like this card as much as I do and this just shows that our Stampin’ Up! Idea Book & Catalogue really is more than ‘just a catalogue’ as it has over 300 samples, tips and ideas throughout the book – so much more value than buying a stamping magazine which is full of advertisements!

If you dont have your own copy then contact me today to get your copy for just $10.00.

Now dont forget to pop back tomorrow for the ESAD-SU blog hop – this is the second blog hop to introduce you to the gorgeous new stamps and products included in the Autumn-Winter Mini Catalogue.

Its the new Autumn-Winter Mini Catalogue!

just click on the catalogue above to view online

How beautiful is it??

In addition to the many exciting new stamp sets and accessories found in the Autumn-Winter Mini Catalogue, I am very excited to introduce three new innovative products:

• The Sizzix Big Shot
• Clear-mount repositionable rubber stamps
• A new style of Punch

You are just going to love it all and the new product lines also open up a whole new world to add to your scrapbooking and cardmaking!

Now is a wonderful time to join STampin’ Up! because not only do you get such great value in your kit but you can now select stamp sets from the new Autumn-Winter Mini Catalogue as part of your kit! How cool is that?? So if you would like to get more information on becoming a Stampin’ Up! Independent Demonstrator and joining my “Stamp A Latte” team then please feel free to email or ring me.  There is no obligation to join – I am just happy to answer any questions you might have.

Do you want to see and touch all the new products but dont want to join? That’s not a problem – I can bring the goodies to you so you and your friends can see them up close and personal. You can have a play and we will even make some projects for you and your friends to take home – just ring or email me to arrange your demonstration.

If you would like your very own copy of the Autumn-Winter Mini Catalogue please contact me and I will deliver or post one to you.

You may remember last week and the Technique Challenge I did for the Soul Scrappers forum well here is the second layout I created.

I’ve created this layout using Washington Apple Designer Series Paper and the cute little Fox and Friends stamp set which is now available in the Autumn-Winter Mini Catalogue.

This set is so much fun to create with as those little critters are just so darned cute! I can see it being used for baby cards and gifts, birthdays, baby announcements and of course layouts remembering trips to Wildlife Parks and Zoo’s as I’ve done here.

Now that you can purchase this set in the regular wood mount (as we’ve always had) or you can now purchase it in Clear Mount which comes in a gorgeous DVD style cover for easy storage and now you’ll be able to fit so many more stamp sets in a small space so hubby will think you’re not spending as much – well I wont tell him if you don’t

Now in celebration of the new Autumn-Winter Mini Catalogue we’ve arranged a couple of blog hops again with the Extra Special Australian Demonstrators group and you can start by visiting Andrea Buckland’s blog. Now when you’ve done the blog hop and visited and commented on each blog you then need to email Sharlene to advise her your contact details just in case you happen to be the lucky winner of the blog candy!  Now dont fret that I’m not involved in the hop this time as we will have another on 7th April which I will have something very purty to share with you!

Just a quick note to apologise for not having anything to share for a couple of days – I’ve been busy, busy, busy making samples and make n take kits for the Sale A Bration Spectacular this Saturday.  Its going to be an awesome day full of make n takes, demonstrations and lots of fun – we’ll be showing you stamping, scrapbooking and boxes – we will also be demonstrating techniques and Stampin’ Up! tools and products.

How cool is that flyer??

This is what we delivered to approximately 200 letterboxes last month.

We have more people coming than I anticipated so if you still want to come you’d better contact me today or tomorrow. The first 50 to put their name down will receive a wonderful show bag (or loot bag as I call them)! They are full of all sorts of goodies.

So if you’re not doing anything this Saturday why don’t you come along?

We are raising funds for the Macarthur Dementia Care & Support group oh and I still have raffle tickets for purchase if you want to be in the running for some awesome prizes! We have 7 raffle prizes all up so a good chance to win a prize!

Firstly …. for the ESAD Sale A Bration Blog Hop

Thank you to each and everyone of the girls who were in the Blog Hop – we all managed to get our posts and links working with just a couple of minor hitches. So thank you so much and your projects were just awesome (insert applause)

Now another huge thank you to all who visited each blog and left a comment! It was a huge blog hop with 41 blogs involved so I thank you for your patience and making it all the way through! I had 43 ladies email me to confirm they completed the rounds so its my pleasure to announce the following as winners of our blog candy ….

1. Donna Zammitt

2. Keegan Rigby

3. Charmaine Black

So ladies I’ve sent you an email tonite so please send me your mailing address so we can get your candy in the mail!

Also, last week I announced a colour challenge I put to the girls at my ESAD-SU Yahoogroup and shared the card I made.  The cards made were all awesome! and I thank you all for playing and am happy to announce the winner of the card challenge is the lovely Cathy Clarke from Queensland.

So congrats Cathy youre card is now on the home page for the ESAD-SU Yahoogroup and I’ll have a little something in the mail for you this week. This is Cathy’s gorgeous card

I will be back tomorrow with a card and a mini tutorial so make sure you pop back for that!