I'm back......

........and so is my son!

What a relief it is to have him back home again, he now has his appetite back and is managing to get around on his crutches!  Leg is still looking very swollen but off to the Doctors tomorrow so hopefully they will say that everything is looking normal for post op!! 

It has been a very tiring week and half and I have to say I am looking forward to getting back into the swing of things so with that in mind here is a card from one of the classes I held towards the end of last month.

This one uses one of the Sale-a-bration sets "Punch Bunch" which is unfortunately retired (boooo) but I know that most of you managed to get this one for free during the Sale-a-bration period and I couldn't not show it to you!  Our colour combination is Early Espresso, Wild Wasabi, Marina Mist and Whisper White, very manly colours don't you think?

The Happy Birthday greeting is also from the same set but the "4 You" is from the "Tiny Tags" set, punched out with the Medium Jewelery Tag punch, I love these, they are just so cute!  We tied 1/8" Taffeta Ribbon around in a knot and attached the tag to look as if it were hanging from it.

We used "Sanded" one of the background stamps to create the subtle textured look on the base of the card.

Remember that you will be able to purchase the "2 Step Owl Punch" from 1st April when the Mini Catalogue is released (yaaaay!)

Anyway, I have a busy day tomorrow so I really should think about getting myself organised!

Back tomorrow with some more samples and thank you to everyone for your get well wishes for my son.

Sale-a-bration is here!!!

THIS POST WILL REMAIN AT THE TOP OF MY BLOG UNTIL 28TH FEBRUARY SO PLEASE SCROLL DOWN FOR MORE RECENT POSTS

During January and February Stampin' Up! have a special promotion called "Sale-a-bration".  This is a fantastic opportunity to earn yourselves free exclusive stamp sets and there are four gorgeous sets to choose from.

Click on the flyer to the right of my blog for more information.

There are 3 different ways of earning yourself these free exclusive sets:

Spend £45 (product sales before shipping) and earn one FREE Sale-a-bration set of your choice

Host a workshop of at least £300 (product sales before shipping) and earn one FREE Sale-a-bration set of your choice

Join My Team and become a Stampin' Up! Demonstrator and choose a FREE stamp set from the current Idea Book & Catalogue (valued up to £44.95)

So here they are:
Top Left is "Bliss", Top Right is "Punch Bunch",
Bottom Left is "So Happy for You" and Bottom Right is "Sweet Summer"

 

If you sign up and join my team during January or February you will also receive the "Colour Coach", a fabulous tool that will compliment your Starter Kit, this is a gift from me and is not endorsed by Stampin' Up! in any way.

The Starter Kit now has a new lower price of just £119 and is valued at more than £230 worth of products.  If you are looking to supplement your income doing something you love or would like to join to earn yourself discounts on these fabulous products, give me a call today for more information about signing up and joining my team.  I have never had so much fun earning money before and I have met some wonderful people along the way!  What are you waiting for, share what you love!

********

Sale-a-bration runs from 30th December 2010 through to 28th February 2011 so you have every opportunity of earning yourself all 4 sets!!

If you would like a copy of the Sale-a-bration flyer and you are not on my mailing list, just email me at stampinkerry@aol.com and I will get a copy in the post to you.

Back shortly with some samples to share

"Bliss" Class

We all had a lovely time at my "Bliss" Class on Saturday at Whitminster, a whole morning of crafting, that is just Bliss in itself, thank you to all those ladies who came along!

So we created three beautiful 3D cards and a Box Envelope all using the lovely Sale-a-bration set "Bliss".  You have until 28th February to earn this stamp set for FREE with any £45 order placed with me.  I just love the butterfly stamp in this set, it is so pretty and easy to hand cut enabling you to give a 3D effect.

Our colour combination is River Rock, Riding Hood Red, Early Espresso and Very Vanilla.  The DSP is from "Love Letter" which is gorgeous.

Here are the cards in closer detail, sorry for the poor picture quality the sun was shining through the window when I took them!

We also used another one of the Sale-a-bration stamps called "So Happy for You" for our greetings.  We used the Early Espresso Marker Pen to ink up separate words on the greetings to enable them to be punched out.

The ribbon used is the 5/8" Satin which makes lovely bows and is perfect for creating the ruffle effect.

We added Basic Pearls to every card to add that bit of class!!

Here is the Box Envelope we created, perfect for holding any one of the above 3D cards to give to that special person:

I am re-running this class at the end of the week at Alveston so those of you booked in are up for a fab afternoon of crafting, fun and laughter.

More Class Projects - Hopeful Thoughts

The second project at February's card classes was this lovely birthday card using a colour combo of Rich Razzleberry, Tempting Turquoise and Pear Pizzazz which everyone loved.

We used a combination of stamps, the Leafy Floral Stamp is from "Hopeful Thoughts" which you can find on Page 73 of the IB&C priced at £25.95 for 5 stamps.  The set also includes a lovely Tree image and three thoughtful greetings too.

We used the marker pens to ink up the main floral image which worked beautifully and the Ornament Punch (see it's not just for Christmas!) to create our vase, we just trimmed off the bottom part of the punch out to create a flat bottom!  We stamped onto this with one of the flower stamps from "Sweet Summer" using Rich Razzleberry Ink and then daubed around the edge before adhering to the Whisper White Panel.  The butterfly is also from "Sweet Summer".

The Designer Series Paper is from Greenhouse Gala and this was adhered to the left panel followed by three punched flowers from the Boho Blossom Punch with Basic Pearls (these are adhesive!) attached to the centres.

We used the gorgeous Scallop Trim Corner punch to create our decorative corners, this is just such a pretty punch.

The greeting is another "Sale-a-bration" stamp set called "So Happy For You", I love the style of the font with these greetings and the set also includes some small shapes such as hearts and flowers too!

If you would like to earn yourself one of these "Sale-a-bration" sets for FREE, all you have to do is email/call me with a minimum order of £45.00 (plus s&h of £4.95 direct to your door) and I will do the rest.  Remember we only have a couple of weeks left until this fabulous promotion ends.

Email me at stampinkerry@aol.com or call/text me on 07717 068909 for more details.

Thanks for stopping by

Febrary Class Projects

The first of our class projects for February.  I just had to use the "Owl" stamp from the Sale-a-bration set "Punch Bunch" for one of our cards as he is just so gorgeous.  I really can't wait for the co-ordinating 2-step punch to be released in the Mini Catalogue in April.  If you are loving this Owl as much as I am then why not earn the set for FREE with a £45 order placed before 28th February! 

Just change the colours to subtle Pretty in Pinks teamed with Certainly Celery and you have yourself a very feminine version of this card, it could suit so many different occasions.

The foliage at the top of the card was created using one of the stamps from "Sweet Summer", another Sale-a-bration set that you can earn for FREE!!  We coloured in the image using the Stampin' Write Marker Pens.

My colour combo here is Old Olive, Not Quite Navy and Cherry Cobbler teamed with Very Vanilla, quite manly colours but it suits well and could easily pass for a Valentines Card!!  The "just for you" greeting is from "Just Believe" punched out using the Word Window Punch and layered onto a Modern Label punch out in Cherry Cobbler.  The ribbon is the 5/8" Satin in matching Old Olive.  The piece of Designer Series Paper is from "Jolly Holiday", a Christmas themed pack which can be used all year round!

If you would like to order any of the products we used at the Class or would like more information about Stampin' Up! products just email or call me.

"Bliss" Class

For those who haven't received flyers and emails!!!

As we are into our second month of Sale-a-bration I thought that I would hold another Class showing just how beautiful these stamps really are.

Bliss Card Making Class

Whitminster Village Hall

Saturday 19th February 2011 - 10am-1.00pm

Alveston Methodist Church

Friday 25th February 2011 - 1.30-4.00pm

£17.50 to include £12 worth of Stampin' Up! products plus your card kits, all you need to supply is your favourite adhesive!

We will be making 3 cards and a 3D project using "Bliss", one of the Sale-a-bration stamp sets that can be yours for free with any £45 order from the Idea Book & Catalogue.  Here is a sneaky peak:

Spaces are limited at both of these classes

Booking Closes Sunday 13th February for the Whitminster Class

and

Booking Closes Friday 18th February for the Alveston Class

If you would like a booking form please email me at stampinkerry@aol.com for more information, remember that your place is not secure until I have received your completed booking form along with your payment.

Making Gifts & Cards Class

This month I decided on a Valentine theme and designed the card to match in with the 3D project.

Our colour combo is Basic Black, Riding Hood Red and Very Vanilla.  We used "I {heart} hearts" for the main heart stamped images, the small heart with the "love" wording is from the Level 2 Hostess Set "Cute by the Inch".  We used "Bliss" (the Sale-a-bration" set which can be yours for FREE with any £45 order placed before 28th February) and also "En Francais", which is one of the Background stamps.

On the bottom layer of the card we stamped the "En Francais" image in Basic Black ink then stamped over the top with the large image from "Bliss" in Riding Hood Red ink, using the stampin' off technique to give a more soft and subtle image.  We also used the Spritzer Tool with the Basic Black Marker Pen on the same layer and daubed around the edge with black ink. 

The ribbon is the 1/8" Taffeta and I still have some shares of this if anyone is interested!  The share consists 1m of 12 different colours of the 1/8" Taffeta for just £6.85, postage to your door is just £1.00 extra.  Email me at stampinkerry@aol.com for more details.

The DSP is from "Love Letter" which I am loving at the moment.  The colours are very suited to Valentines Day but work really well with the vintage theme.  I have a class planned for the end of February and we will be using this paper, more to follow shortly!

Thank for stopping by, please do leave a comment so that I know that you visited, I would love to hear your thoughts!



Quarterly Team Training with Amanda

Yesterday I had a fabulous day at our Quarterly Team Training at Soberton, Fareham.  It was an early start and I had to leave the house at 6.40am as I needed to pick up Michaela before I met Jane and the others at 7.15am!!  We always stop off for a coffee on the way at the Golden Arches and boy are their Chocolate Brownies good (not at 9 in the morning though, I managed to resist until around 2pm before I had to break the seal!!). 

We were very lucky to have a special guest Michelle Last, who I am sure you know is #1 Demonstrator of the Year in the UK!!  The inspiration stations were fantastic, so inspiring and my SU daughter Caroline was showcasing "Sweet Summer" and demonstrated a gorgeous Pillow Box.  Catherine showed us a gorgeous box and fab technique using cling film and crystal effects (watch this space for more details) and Elaine used "Bliss" for her display and demonstrated a lovely card that encased tea lights!  Michelle demonstrated using the stamp set "Cottage Garden" and showed us some gorgeous 3D items that I know I will be creating very soon.  Well done ladies, thank you for all your efforts, you really gave us lots of inspiration and tips.

Of course, we couldn't all get together without a bit of swapping, here is mine:

I used "Bliss" with a colour combo of Rose Red, Wild Wasabi, So Saffron and Very Vanilla.  My greeting is from "So Happy for You", another Sale-a-bration Set which will be around for just one more month, I can't believe that we are half way through the Sale-a-bration Promotion already!  Where does the time go??

We had a fantastic day full of stamping, creating make and takes, laughing, eating cake and of course learning too!  Being a Stampin' Up! Demonstrator really is the best job in the world!

Sweet Summer Class

On Saturday I held my "Sweet Summer" Class at Whitminster Village Hall.  At this class we used one of the Sale-a-bration stamp sets "Sweet Summer" to create our cards.

You may have seen the projects on a previous post, but here is what we made in more detail:

We created 3 gorgeous cards

with a matching gift bag!

We used Pretty in Pink, So Saffron, Certainly Celery and Whisper White cardstock and teamed it with patterned papers from the Subtles Designer Paper Stack.  This stack is really good value at £15.50 for 48 sheets of 12x12 double sided patterned papers, you can create endless amounts of projects with this stack.

We used the Stampin' Write marker pens to colour in the stamped images and hand cut some of them, layering them with Dimensionals to make them 3D.

The greetings are from "So Happy for You" which is another Sale-a-bration set, remember you can earn these for FREE with a £45 order placed before 28th February.  We used the Early Espresso Marker Pen to split the wording on a couple of the stamps and I love that this is possible as it gives you more possibilities for punching out your greetings as often words can be too long!

Everyone received a packet of Basic Pearls included in their class price so were able to use as many or as little as they liked to complete their projects!

I would like to thank all those who came along for the class, we had a lovely time chatting, laughing and making new friends too.

Check back soon for details of an extra class I will be holding in February.

Birthday Friends

My daughter had a couple of friends with birthdays over the weekend so I decided to put my "Broadsheet" Alphabet stamps to good use!

I have used this sketch (an old Mojo Monday sketch) quite a few times recently and it is amazing how different a card can look just by changing the stamped images and colour combination.

My colour combination is Perfect Plum, Pear Pizzazz (In Colour) and Early Espresso, I just love these colours together.  The base of my card is Crumb Cake and I stamped a background using "Sanded" in Early Espresso ink.

I created the gorgeous co-ordinated flower using the Boho Blossom Punch adding a Clear Rhinestone Brad to the centre.

The "birthday wishes" greeting is from the Sale-a-bration set "So Happy For You", don't forget you can choose this set for free if you place an order for £45 (plus s&h) before the end of February.  "So Happy for You" contains a whopping 10 stamps, 5 of which are greeetings which you can see below:

A "Crush" on the sweet side!

I am really loving the Sale-a-bration sets (if you hadn't noticed!!) and will be using them at my classes and workshops throughout January and February, you will of course see some other stamps making appearances too!!

So this was the second card created at the card class earlier this week.  We used "Sweet Summer" to create those gorgeous flower images which we coloured using the Marker Pens.  The colour combination is Concord Crush, Peach Parfait and Pear Pizzazz which are all "In Colours".  The greeting "friends" is from "Tiny Tags" which was punched out with the Small Oval Punch, this was layered on top of the "thanks" image from "Perfect Punches". 

The Ribbon is the Stitched Poly in "Concord Crush" and the Designer Series Paper is from "Lap of Luxury" which is stunning, you really need to see these papers in real life to appreciate just how gorgeous they are! We added a couple of the Basic Pearls (these are self adhesive) to the bottom right corner of the card to finish!

Card Making Class projects

As Sale-a-bration is here, we just had to use some of the wonderful stamps at our monthly card making class earlier this week.

The first card was created using "Bliss".  This is similar to a recent post but I loved the design so much I decided to tweak it for my class!

The colour combination is Soft Suede, So Saffron and Regal Rose teamed with Very Vanilla.

"Bliss" comes complete with 5 stamps which are all have a vintage feel to them, will be great to use with the distressing kit.  The 3D flower was created using the Boho Blossoms flower punch and a Clear Rhinestone was added to the centre.  We used the stamping off technique on the Very Vanilla layer with the Flower image and So Saffron Ink, this gives us a more subtle image, to see this closer click on the picture to enlarge the image.  The "bliss" greeting was punched out using the Curly Label Punch and we tied linen thread around the Very Vanilla layer which co-ordinated perfectly and added some texture.

If you would like to own this stamp set for FREE, just place an order for £45 (s&h not included) before 28th February 2011.  Call or email, payment by Card (Visa/Maestro) now accepted.

Thanks for stopping by and Happy Friday stampers!!

"Sweet Summer" Class

This post will remain at the top of my blog until 16th January 2011, please scroll down for more recent posts.

You are invited to join me in kickstarting your creativity for 2011 at my

"Sweet Summer" Class

at Whitminster Village Hall

Saturday 22nd January 2011

10.00am - 1.00pm

£15.00

All materials will be included to create these three beautiful cards complete with a matching Gift Bag, materials are pre-cut ready for you to stamp and assemble.  All you need to bring is your favourite adhesive!

The cost of this class is £15 (product included) and we will be using the lovely "Sweet Summer" stamp set which can be yours for FREE with any £45 order placed with me during January and February.

Click on the picture to view an enlarged image.

Spaces are limited so book your place early to avoid disappointment.  Booking closes Sunday 16th January 2011.

There will be light refreshments throughout the morning and a raffle too!

You can contact me by phone or email at

email: stampinkerry@aol.com

tel: 07717 068909 / 01452 740532

Sweet as can be!

I am really loving the Sale-a-bration sets, they are just so sweet and so very  usable and remember you can earn a FREE set with each £45 order you place with me until the end of February!

Onto my card, colour combo of Crumb Cake, Pear Pizzazz and Perfect Plum teamed with Whisper White to make it nice and crisp!

I have used "Sweet Summer", one of the Sale-a-bration sets for the flower images, this is a 2 Step Stampin' set and requires the use of the Stamp-a-ma-jig but I am sure that it wouldn't be quite as necessary if you chose the Clear Mount option.  The greeting is of course from "Bliss" which is lovely.  I have coloured in each flower using a blender pen with ink from the lid of my ink pads but when you can also use your marker pens and the results are great.

I punched out my greeting with the Oval and Scallop Oval punches and adhered some of the "Concord Crush" Poly Ribbon which blends nicely with these colours.  Concord Crush is one of the "In Colours", there are  5 "In Colours" which have a life span of 2 years and you can of course buy co-ordinating products to go with these colours.

If you like this set, why not come along to my "Sweet Summer" Class this month, details to follow shortly.

Thanks for stopping by and Happy Friday stampers!

Pure "Bliss"

Here is the card that Caroline designed for me to make at our Shoe Box Swap in December.  It uses the Sale-a-bration set "Bliss" which is just so gorgeous and so versatile.

The colour combo is Soft Suede, So Saffron and Regal Rose which is one of the suggestions in the Colour Coach.

The background stamp is a favourite of mine called "Sanded" which we stamped in Soft Suede ink onto the base card to give a tone on tone effect.

We used the Scallop Trim Corner punch for the decorative edges on the Regal Rose Panel and stamped the large image from "Bliss" in the centre.

The greeting was stamped in Soft Suede onto Very Vanilla cardstock and punched out using the 2" x 1 3/8" Oval Punch. A couple of strips of So Saffron were adhered to the bottom of the card base then to finish we stamped the beautiful Butterfly image using the Rock & Roll technique, then hand cut it out.

More from "Sale-a-bration"

Over the next few posts I will be showing you some samples I have created using the "Sale-a-bration" sets to kick start your inspiration for 2011!

For this card I used "Bliss" and "Sweet Summer" with a colour combination of Crumb Cake, Pear Pizzazz and Perfect Plum.  The Butterfly (I adore this by the way!!) and greeting are both from "Bliss" and the other images from "Sweet Summer".  I used the Scallop Trim corner punch to add some interest and also a piece of "Concord Crush" 1/2" Stitched Poly Ribbon across the middle of the card for some texture.

I stamped the foliage stamp in Perfect Plum ink onto the Perfect Plum cardstock layer and used a dauber to ink around the edge in the same colour.  The butterfly image was stamped then hand cut and I used a dimensional to give a 3D effect.

Click on the picture for a larger image of the card and do stop by again soon to see some more "Sale-a-bration" samples.

Sale-a-bration samples

Before I went away at Christmas I met up with Caroline for a "Shoebox Swap" using a couple of the "Sale-a-bration" sets "Bliss" and "Sweet Summer".  As a Stampin' Up! Demonstrator I was able to pre-order stamps before they are released to the general public and at Convention this year we had a special surprise at the end of the weekend where we were given "Sweet Summer" to take away with us.  Of course it has been kept under lock and key until now so here is one of the cards I made for Caroline to put together!  I liked this design and colour combo so much that I also made a couple of duplicate cards for Birthdays too!

I used the SAB set "Bliss" with a colour combo of Soft Suede, Rich Razzleberry and So Saffron, teamed with Very Vanilla.  This set is gorgeous and it has a vintage feel to it and is crying out to be distressed too!  The 3D flower was created using the "Boho Blossoms" punch with a Clear Rhinestone pushed through the centre to hold it all together.

Remember, this set can be yours for FREE with any order placed for £45 (plus s&h), I can accept orders by email or phone and payment can be made by cash, cheque or card, email me at stampinkerry@aol.com for more information on placing an order.

Something Old ....

Yet another sweet but simple wedding card, this time using a couple of the Sale-a-bration sets "Happy Moments" and "Whimsical" Words. 

I love using the Mat Pack with the Paper Piercing Tool to create rows and corners of pierced holes, such a simple yet effective way to embellish your cards.

On this card I stamped the cake on a separate piece of Very Vanilla cardstock and cut out just the cake, leaving the stand behind and then used a Dimensional to raise it on top of the stamped image on the card base.  I added flat back pearls to finish.

A bit more manly??

If you read yesterday's post, this is the second "man" card that I made, and I am still not 100% convinced that its manly enough but I liked the finished product and as it was for a young man I decided it would be suitable.  The stamp is from "Happy Moments" which was one of the Sale-a-bration sets which sadly is no longer available.  The greeting is from "Wow Flowers" which I tend to use frequently as it fits perfectly inside the Word Window Punch.  My colour combination was Whisper White, Basic Black, Old Olive and Ruby Red and my greeting was stamped using the Kraft Whisper White ink.

I have been making lots of use of this set "Love you Much" recently, what with Valentine's Day and Mother's Day coming up.  I love how the "Heart to Heart" Punch co-ordinates with this set as you will see from the punched out hearts to the right of the card.  I used the trio hearts stamp to create a versamark background then stamped it onto Regal Rose and Rose Red to create the 3 hearts on the right.  The "Love you Much" image was coloured using the blender pens and I attached a brad and a spotty heart.

Recipe:
Stamps: Love you Much
Inks: Chocolate Chip, Rose Red, Versamark
Cardstock: Chocolate Chip, Rose Red, Regal Rose, Very Vanilla, Rose Red DSP
Accessories: Brad
Tools: Heart to Heart Punch, Paper Piercer & Mat Pack