Posts Tagged ‘ribbon’

Ribbon Spools ?

Well empty ones at least!

You can pull the spools apart and remove the circle pieces of cardboard. Now you could keep one of each size and use these as circle templates – that is until you’ve saved the money to buy the Circle Scissor Plus!

These can also be used to create curves and rounded corners larger than the punch does or theres always the templates for making pom poms! Do kids still do that these days?? I know I always used to make them as a kid – ahh childhood memories – gotta love them!

But what about the plastic spools???

Well this is what you can do with the spools ……………

You can make them any height and you can pop in so many different things …

• ribbons
• smarties
• buttons
• m&m’s
• brads
• chocolate bars – well long skinny ones like this White Knight or Curly Wurlys
• roll up money and pop inside
• keys to the new car (I wish)
• a map with directions to the new iPad (now that would make an awesome birthday gift!)
• coloured pencils
• watercolour crayons
• a lovely pen

So many different ideas!  All you need to do is to measure around your spool and thats how wide you cut your piece of acetate and the height is up to you! Use sticky strip to hold it all together and your done – soooo easy!  If you wanted to jazz up your tubes then you could always use the lovely printed window sheets in the Autumn-Winter Mini Catalogue.

Dont forget to keep an eye on the Last Chance List and the availability list and make sure you put your order in before the items you want are gone for good.

Also, I should have my delivery of new 2010-2011 Idea Book & Catalogues over the next few days so if you havent pre-ordered yours you’d better do so soon!

Today’s post will be a short and sweet as today I have the first of three days of Stamp A Stacks!

I love my job and to be able to share my passion for card making and ‘giving’ to others its just a bonus I earn an income from doing this!

One of today’s cards is a remake of one that I did a little while ago which is a case from the Autumn-Winter Mini Catalogue and its one the girls will be making today.

Recipe:
Stamps: Occasional Quotes (new Level 3 Hostess set)
Paper: Certainly Celery, Whisper White, Rich Razzleberry
Ink: Rich Razzleberry
Accessories: Big Shot, Manhatten Flower Textured Impressions Embossing Folder, Large Oval Punch, Scalloped Oval Punch, Rich Razzleberry Polka Dot ribbon.

This card is so very easy to do and can be used to suit any occasion by simply changing the sentiment. How easy is that??

The sentiment comes from the new Occasional Quotes stamp set which is a new Level 3 Hostess set in the upcoming 2010-2011 Idea Book & Catalogue. Email me today to ensure you have your copy pre-ordered!

Time to double check I’ve packed all I need in my Workshop Wheelie

I’ve had a few birthdays the last few weeks and wanted to use my Tote-ally Tess stamp set.

After deliberating for what seemed like hours (which was really about 20 minutes or so) on what papers to use I finally gave in and went with the gorgeous Cottage Wall Designer Series Papers.

As much as I love the Tote-ally Tess set and ‘had’ to have her I’ve struggled to use her in cards.  So I’m challenging myself  to use Tess more so I hope you will see a few different “Tess” cards over the next few weeks.

Why dont you make a card with Tess too and pop a comment with the link to your blog post or online gallery?

This one is simply a “Birthday Tess” carrying a little cupcake. Looking at the card now I could have added a little gift bag as well – I might even still do that and send through a photo once its done.

Recipe:

Stamps: Tote-ally Tess, Short and Sweet
Paper: Rich Razzleberry, Orchid Opulence, Whisper White, Cottage Wall DSP
Inks: Basic Black, Rich Razzleberry, So Saffron, More Mustard, Certainly Celery, Pretty in Pink, Regal Rose, Ridinghood Red, Going Gray.
Accessories: Big Shot, Lots of Tags sizzlits, White Taffeta Ribbon, Aqua Painter, Stampin Dimensionals, Snail Adhesive, Mini Glue dots.

One of my favourite ways to colour is to use my Aqua Painter and the ink pads to water colour and I was pleasantly surprised at how well the Certainly Celery top went with the Rich Razzleberry pants. 

So who’s for a cupcake?

I could go one right about now!  Why not treat yourself to one today and why not grab a Latte at the same time to wash it all down! In honour of all the birthdays we’ve had lately of course

Well its another very (very) chilly day here in Sydney.  I really do not like winter although spending the day in bed is rather nice but it doesnt get things done.

It was nice to receive a phone call this morning from the lovely Lisa to advise me that it actually just got to 10C!!  She is such a sweetie and so thoughtful!

Today’s card is one that I cased however now I cant find where it was that I cased it from – I’ve changed computers so if you do recognise this as your design please let me know so I can give credit where it is due.

How nice is this card?

Recipe:
Stamps: En Francais, Baroque Motifs
Paper: Mellow Moss, Very Vanilla, Basic Gray
Inks: Sahara Sand, Always Artichoke
Accessories: Extra Large 2 step bird punch, Polka Dot Textured Impressions Embossing Folder, sponge daubers, Mellow Moss Taffeta Ribbon, Stampin Dimensionals.

Now when I made this card I wanted the dots from the  Textured Impressions Folder to stand out so I just used my sponge dauber with the sahara sand and gently rubbed over the top just to make them ‘pop’ a little – it doesnt need much just a light touch.

Although it looks involved it is surprisingly simple. Its been a very popular card in my Stamp A Stack classes too.  Its also another good card to show that everyone really needs to have that Extra Large 2 step bird punch in their supply.

Now for my special offer ….

As its the end of the financial year here in Australia and I’m just shy of a sales target I am offering free postage on all orders received today and tomorrow!  So until the end of June (tomorrow) any orders placed will be processed with free shipping.

Dont forget about the Deal of the Week as it also finishes tomorrow. Selected rhinestone brads and ribbons on sale ….

So contact me now with your order – you can email, ring or send that courier pigeon – but make sure he has some Red Bull first so he gets here in time!

With my business I like to have a Financial year diary each year so its easier to file with my Taxation records. Now being a crafter I like my ‘tools’  to be nice and bright and cheery.

If you have ever looked for a Financial Year diary have you ever noticed just how drab and boring they are? Well I suppose there is such a big choice – you can have black, black or umm black!

I always go to Big W and look there first as they are just so affordable and looking at the ones they had last week we worked out (yes I was shopping with hubby) that we could remove the insert and I could then undo the binding, make a new cover and then re-do the binding.

Once I pulled the diary out it I wondered if our spiral punch would fit the binding.

Lo and behold it did!!

So now instead of having to undo the binding, make a new cover and then redoing the binding all I have done is cut a piece of Designer Series Paper the size of the pages in the diary and use the spiral punch down one side.

To give it a little more protection I added a sheet of Acetate over the piece of Designer Series Paper again by cutting it to the size of the pages of the diary and using the Spiral punch and slotting it into the binding.

Now since uploading this post I’ve found out about the latest Challenge over at Just Add Ink. Just Add Ink is a blog run by a couple of fellow Aussie demonstrators with a new challenge each week and this week’s challenge is to ‘Just Add Patterned Paper’ and think my diary fits the challenge.

Now when I need a change or the Designer Series paper becomes a little tatty or retired I can just slot in a new piece of DSP and its just like having a new diary!

Its Saturday so its time for another Utah Diva’s Sketch Challenge from the lovely Carol.

Today’s is a little different as I’ve combined another challenge in the same card – a colour challenge from Inkspirations4U!

So I thought the title for today’s post is fitting as not only am I sharing two challenges in one card but I’m also using the very cute ‘Share A Cup’ a la carte stamp from the Autumn-Winter Mini Catalogue.

Here’s the colour challenge from Inkspirations4U …

My card was inspired by some gorgeous little cards that the lovely Bonnie Thurber (the Stamp Whisperer herself!) demonstrated.

Here is my card ….

I wasnt sure about the colours at first but then when I put them together I really like them!  I think they’d be great for boy birthdays too

I love this little stamp – it was so nice of Stampin Up! to make a stamp just for me dont you think? and then to make an actual mug with the image on it just so I could get one at the Manager’s Reception before Convention this year. So very thoughtful!

I hope you like this card as I did enjoy making it – well after I got those cups to sit right!

One definitely needs the Stamp-a-majig and a post it note for this card!

Now its time for you to skip along to the next Diva in the Saturday Sketch Design Team being the very lovely Maxine Conrad and see what she’s done with Carol’s sketch.

Have a great ‘rest’ of the Weekend!

By now I’m sure you are aware of how much I love my job and how much I love Stampin’ Up!® and their products.

I had a Workshop on Saturday night and I wanted to show these ladies how you can make lovely cards quickly and easily. These ladies are all young mums so I know how precious their time is and how the budget doesnt always extend to paying $7 or $8 for one greeting card when purchasing them from a shop.

Last year at Sydney Regional Training for Stampin’ Up! we had a lovely lady visit from the home office in Utah, USA and she was telling us how good the Stampin’ Up! notecards are and you’ve seen me share projects using the Notecards since then.  Well here are three very quick and easy cards using the notecards, Thoughts and Prayers stamp set and 2 punches.

How sweet are these cards?

They are so easy – it was just a matter of stamping the tree from Thoughts and Prayers onto the notecard and then using the trio flower punch to punch out the flowers. I then inserted the brads and attached them to the card using glue dots.  The sentiment is stamped onto a scrap piece of whisper white and then punched out using the large over punch.  I’ve then popped that onto a scalloped oval punch out and stuck it on my card with Stampin Dimensionals. Add the ribbon and its done!  How easy?  Now with these lovely cards you could pop on any sentiment you wanted to as they’d suit birthdays or anything.

The beauty of these Notecards is that you get 20 cards and envelopes in a pack for just $9.50 – thats less than 50 cents a card!

Now dont forget that today is the last day for the Punch Deal of the Week where you can purchase any of the following punches at 30% off!

So ring or email me now so you don’t miss out on this great bargain – this deal finishes at 11pm tonight and I’ll have a brand new deal for you tomorrow!

One of the joys and highlights of Convention is swapping.  Its amazing to watch – and the chatter … wow! There’s nothing quite like making a swap and then realising that you’ve been talking to this person online for the last 12 months or so!

Here are the cards I made for my Convention Swaps …

This is one of my favourite cards and its been a hit with my customers too!

I actually made this card for my ESAD-SU Secret Sister back in March so havent been able to show it until now and the tulips are made using the very lovely Extra Large 2-step Bird punch available in the Autumn-Winter Mini Catalogue.

Recipe
Stamps: Cottage Garden
Paper: Cottage Wall DSP, Rich Razzleberry, Whisper White, Old Olive, Lavender Lace, Pretty in Pink, Apricot Appeal
Ink: Rich Razzleberry, Perfect Plum, Lavender Lace, Pretty in Pink, Apricot Appeal
Accessories: Big Shot, Top Note die, Little Leaves sizzlits die, Polka Dot Impressions folder, Scalloped Oval Punch, Extra Large 2-step bird punch

This is my second card and its done using Pocket Silhouettes stamp set. This has to be one of the best value stamp sets and can literally be used for anything!

Recipe
Stamps: Pocket Silhouettes
Paper: Not Quite Navy, More Mustard, Whisper White
Inks: Sahara Sand, Tangerine Tango, Not Quite Navy, Old Olive
Accessories: Stampin Write Markers, Always Artichoke Grosgrain Ribbon

I’ve used the masking & sponging techniques on this card. I cut a rectangle out of a scrap piece of paper to create the ‘window’ then sponged it in Sahara Sand. I then stamped the leafy image in the same Sahara sand ink. It gives a dimensional look dont you think?

Here is my last swap card ….

Dont you just love the Tote-ally Tess set ??  For this card I’ve renamed it Totally Onie as it has all of my favourites on this card – Rich Razzleberry cardstock & ribbon, Cottage Wall DSP, Stamps and of course – coffee!

Recipe
Stamps: Tote-ally Onie Tess , Sip by Sip
Paper: Rich Razzleberry, Cottage Wall DSP, Whisper White
Inks: Rich Razzleberry, Jet Black Stazon, Orchid Opulence, Chocolate chip reinker, Going Gray
Accessories: Rich Razzleberry Polka Dot Grosgrain ribbon, Aqua Painter, Stamp-a-majig, Stampin Dimensionals

I’ve used the Paper Piecing technique for the Tote and used my Ink pads to watercolour with the aqua painter. I must say Tess was rather popular with the swappers.

Now here is a picture of all the swaps I received …

Now I did come home with some swaps of mine so if you would like one of my swaps then send me an email with your address and I’ll pop one in the post to you.

Hello and I do hope youre having a great week!

Its a busy one here so I wanted to get this post in before I get stuck into the kits and demonstration preparations for the two demonstrations I have this weekend.

A few weeks back in my Technique Challenge over at Soul Scrappers I ran a challenge for the ladies to create their own Designer Papers using their stamps and inks. Sometimes we spend hours or even days looking for that perfect patterned paper for our layouts when we have all the tools we need to make our own original papers. This layout – yes I did do some scrapping – was inspired by the sample in our current Autumn-Winter mini catalogue and as my sister and I both love purple well I just had to change the colours!

Due to me creating this layout on a 12×12 piece of whisper white it became very hard to photograph so if you’d like a closer view just click on the photo and it will enlarge in a separate window for you. This photo was taken in December when we had the whole family together – and this only happens every 20 years or so – it takes us all that long to recover!  Just kidding – its hard to get everyone together these days as some of us have grown up children and we are all busy in what we do – it doesnt help that we are spread across three states of Australia.

Here is a close up of the layered flower on the main photo/layer.

I’ve just stamped the two sized flowers in different inks – Rich Razzleberry (love this colour!) and Pale Plum.  I’ve then layered them and popped a half pearl from the pretties kit in the centre.

You may notice the ribbon is also ‘gathered’ which is a neat trick using sticky strip and I’d be happy to show you if you’d like to know how.

I did add a couple of extra flowers to my layout and the sentiment as well which was done using Wonderful favourites.

Its funny how close you become to your sister when you move out of home and get married yet while you were in the same house you hated each other so there is hope for my girls yet!!

I do hope you like this layout. It is very plain but I think too that it is enough

Good Morning!

I thought today I’d share with you my ‘re-vamped’ craft nook which is where I create and work and do my blog posts

Its not a new area but I do have a very new Ink Pad Storage unit that my lovely Brother In Law made for me!  I’ve seen these online for a few years and have often wished I had one and now I do!

Here is the unit empty & sitting on my sofa waiting for me to clear the space on my desk to fit it in.

How cool is it?? It will hold 60 ink pads, ink refills and Stampin Write Markers. So now I have all my colours in the one place!

Mind you getting this wonderful new unit it meant I had to remove the shelf I already had there and rearrange where I kept things. Now if you are a crafter you will know just what havoc all this rearranging does to ones ‘neatness’  and if you know me at all you’ll know I dont have that gene – my sister got my share (and some) of that!

Now here is my lovely unit all filled – well except for one spot and after transferring all my goodies over I’ve realised two things ….

1. I dont really need 3 Chocolate Chip reinkers!
2. I need reinkers for all my ink pads!

It looks pretty sweet hey??  If you would like to purchase one of these units then please email me for price and postage details – Australia only (sorry) Dimensions are 805mm W, 125mm D and 330mm H.

Hubby did suggest it needs to be painted and when I suggested he was welcome to do that any time he then decided the ink pad shelves wouldnt then slide in and out easily! Typical!!

Now as for my work area I have a corner (nook) of the living room and have an L shaped desk with a hutch. So this is my area to the right…

You can see here that my computer is there and I have my Ribbons,  Designer Series Papers and cardstock on the shelf above.

They are stored in the Cropper Hopper Vertical Storage. I do have those lying on their sides though so its easy to just stretch and grab whatever cardstock I need and it also comes in handy when I am ordering so I know at a glance what cardstock I’m low on.

I also have my drawers to the right of my computer which house all my scraps and off cuts. I have a drawer for each colour family and then if I need a smaller piece its easy to find.  When I get to a stage when the drawers are so full they wont close I just make up ‘collage’ bags and give them to customers with their orders and they love it!

Now here’s the view on the left of my table featuring my new storage unit

I now have all my inks and markers right in front of me and I love it!

My desk sure does look good when its this tidy!!

I am thinkin its time to do some more creating