Tea Party Extras

As I mentioned in this post, I arranged a tea party theme for this month's classes (you can see the cards we made by following the link). I had also made up some extra little treats for all my lovely ladies. Here are the goodies I had in store for them:

A gift card which I put to use as a placecard, a tea baggie and a couple of little Hershey's mini chocolates - all decorated with gorgeous Gina Jane Roses digital kit.

And I had asked the ladies to wear a hat or fascinator suitable for a garden party - here is a photo of them hamming it up for the camera. Unfortunately we had a lot of sickness this week - get well wishes speeding to Molly, Patsy and Jean - so there were only four of my lovely ladies there.

And here are some shots of the wonderful repast we had for our tea party. I doubt there was much cooking going on in everyone's homes after this feast!

Petite cucumber sandwiches

Mini custard tarts with strawberries

Smoked salmon and philly on bagel toasts

Cheese and dip with rice crackers

Vanilla cupcakes with rosewater buttercream icing

And a lovely tea set to use

It was a great afternoon and the ladies all agreed it had been fun to have a theme - so we'll have to do it again some time!

Meanwhile, my other class is coming up this weekend - watch out ladies, you've got a lot to live up to! lol

Thanks for stopping by.

Cheers

Kez

Crafty Mum Rides Again

You may remember a while back I was making all kinds of gift bows (this post here). When she saw them, DD15 asked if I could make one from ribbon or fabric to put on a headband. Out of polka dot something, naturally (you know my girls' obsession with polka dots by now!).

Anyways, I happened to have some red polka dot felt on hand so I gave it a try and here is the result:

Materials used:

• gift bow die, Tombow glue
• non SU - hairband, hot glue gun

I can see I may have opened a Pandora's box with this one - now I'm requested to make a green one too. And I'm sure that won't be the end of it! lol

Thanks for calling in.

Cheers
Kez

PUH-LEASE!!!

DD15 had a birthday party to attend today and she was rather disappointed that the gift she had bought came in a plain white bag. Needed to buy something nicer, she said.

PUH-LEASE!

Crafty mum can fix that, says I! (or words to that effect)

As the birthday girl apparently likes pastels and not bolds or brights (thank goodness for some sanity in the world), I got out some totally gorgeous paper from Graphic 45 and along with my trusty stamps, punches and dies from SU, gave that nasty ol' white bag a makeover!

Take a lookie:

Much prettier! I could have done more but as this operation took place at 6.00 am, I was pleased with what I got accomplished! lol

Materials used:

• stamps - Happiest Birthday Greetings (retired)
• card - very vanilla
• other - gift bow tie, two tags die, scallop circle punch, 1 3/8" circle punch, 1" circle punch, marina mist ribbon, calypso coral bakers twine, dimensionals, sticky strip
• non SU - Secret Garden dsp by Graphic 45

Yay! Crafty mum saves the day!

Thanks for stopping by.

Cheers

Kez

Tea Party Time!

With the advent of Spring (yay!) I thought it would be fun to have a Tea Party theme for our projects this month.

First on our menu is this card using the Tea Party stamp set, cased from Lee Conrey with only a couple of minor changes.

Materials used:

• stamps - Tea Party
• card - basic black, very vanilla, Modern Medley dsp
• other - oval dies, Big Shot, strawberry slush ruffled ribbon, beautifully baroque embossing folder, dimensionals, pearls. blender pen

Also on our tea party menu is a cupcake shop awning card. I love the gelato-shades of our new in colours - they go so well with this type of card!

Materials used:

• stamps - none
• card - pistachio pudding, crisp cantaloupe, strawberry slush, whisper white, Sahara sand
• other - word window punch, scallop border punch, dimensionals, Sahara sand marker, sponge dauber, scallop oval punch, large oval punch, Big Shot
• non SU - Cottage Cutz tiered cupcake die, brick wall embossing folder

And we'll be making this cute coffee card which was inspired by Linda Aarhus.

Materials used:

• stamps - Perfect Blend
• card - baked brown sugar, whisper white, in colours patterned paper, soft suede
• other - finishing touches edgelit, Big Shot, dimensionals, champagne glass glitter, Tombow multi glue, ticket duo punch, sponge dauber, soft suede marker, owl punch, champagne glitter card, ruler

I have some surprises in store for my ladies when they arrive in class and I asked them to wear something special, so I'll be back soon with photos of those.

Thanks for dropping by.

Cheers

Kez

Creative Crew September Challenges

It's time for my very first challenges as a member of the SU Creative Crew over at Splitcoaststampers. I have had TONS of fun creating my projects and truly hope many of you will find some inspiration to take part in a challenge or two (or four!) yourselves.

September is Self Improvement Month

"The best thing you can do is get good at being you." - Dennis the Menace

"My past has not defined me, destroyed me, deterred me, or defeated me; it has only strengthened me." - Steve Maraboli

CCREW0913DF - DSP/Color Focus: Our journey of self improvement begins with Eastern Elegance designer papers or the colors crushed curry, coastal cabana, smoky slate and whisper white. Make a project using these colors for someone you admire. Tell us why this person is significant to you.

I wanted to incorporate as many of the colours as I could but didn't want to overwhelm my project with too many busy patterns. The ideal answer was a small amount of each! So out came my mosaic ensemble and here is the result:

Materials used:

• stamps - Really Good Greetings (MDS)
• card - whisper white, smoky slate, Eastern Elegance dsp (MDS)
• other - mosaic embossing folder, Big Shot, mosaic punch, dimensionals, rhinestones

This was made with both of my girls in mind. I admire them both so much for working so diligently towards their dreams and goals in life.

CCREW0913CF - Catalog Focus: use any of the stampsets on pages 111-119 in the annual catalog. Make a project in a new way to you by using a technique you've never tried or a special fold never used by you before. Continue to use at least two of the colors from the color focus, crushed curry, coastal cabana, smoky slate or whisper white. 

This one was a real challenge and my first three or so attempts at a new technique ended up in the bin! So I changed focus and tried a different tack and was finally happy with the result. The technique new to me is collage stamping; my stamp set from p111-119 is My Friend; and I've used all four of the challenge colours. My sentiment stamp was picked to carry on the Self Improvement theme - to live optimistically and not focussing on the dark parts of life. Here's my project:

Materials used:

• stamps - My Friend, Collage Curios, Lovely Little Labels, Pursuit of Happiness, Medallion, En Francais
• card - coastal cabana, whisper white, basic black
• other - dimensionals, cloudy day embossing folder, Big Shot, 3/4" circle punch, 1" circle punch, 1 1/4" scallop circle punch, clear embossing powder, heat tool

You can check the Splitcoaststampers Resources forum for ideas for new techniques at this link: http://www.splitcoaststampers.com/resources/C88/

CCREW0913HF - Holiday Focus: 911 Remembrance. It's not a holiday, but it's a day that has been imprinted on our minds. Make a project with the Big Shot that allows you to remember a day from your past. If you wish to share the significance of this day, we'd love to read about it.

Well, this one posed so many possibilities - there's no shortage of significant days to remember. Then I read Steve Maraboli's quote (above) again and knew immediately that my project would be about DD15, who was diagnosed with Type 1 (insulin dependent) diabetes 7 1/2 years ago.  She most certainly lives up to that quote, refusing to let the disease define her or rule her life - she is determined to live life on her terms and her diabetes has to fit in with that, not the other way around. 

If you've been a regular reader over the years you may remember a jelly bean card I made for DD a while back (see here). Jelly beans are what she takes when she is having a hypo (hypoglycaemia) to bring her blood glucose levels back up to a safe number. So for this project I used my Big Shot to make her a little purse full of jelly beans!

I used clear window sheet so the lovely colours of the jelly beans would show through and embossed it with the fancy fan E/F for a bit of texture. The "jelly bean " brad at the front features tiny love hearts to show my love and support for her every step of the way.

Materials used:

• stamps - none
• card - window sheet
• other - petite purse die, Big Shot, jelly bean brads (retired), subtles brads (retired), fancy fan embossing folder, sticky strip

CCREW0913SF - Scrapbook and More Focus: Make a gift for a good neighbor as you celebrate National Good Neighbor Day (September 28th).

Although we don't have NGND here in Australia, I love the idea of it. We have a young neighbour who feeds our cats for us while we are away and so this was the perfect opportunity to make an extra special thank you for her. My project isn't so much the gift as the gift wrapping - hope that meets the challenge criteria!

This bag is made from one piece of 12"x12" designer paper plus a couple of pieces of cardstock. Very simple and quick. The instructions were from a U Stamp with Dawn and Friends project (Year End Blow Out 2010) and were designed by Danielle Daws.

Materials used:

• stamps - Chalk Talk
• card - pumpkin pie, very vanilla, basic black, Modern Medley dsp, Polka Dot  Parade dsp
• other - chalk talk framelits, Big Shot, gift bow die, pumpkin pie and basic black 1/8" taffeta ribbon, 1 1/4" circle punch, 1 3/8" circle punch, crop-o-dile, sticky strip, bone folder, corner rounder punch, dimensionals
• non SU - black button

If you do make a project for any of the challenges, use the Blue codes when you post your project on your blog or on SCS.

Phew! That was a post and a half, wasn't it?! Thanks for sticking with me to the end and do please visit SCS and take a look at the other projects made by my fellow design team members for your inspiration (click HERE). And check back there regularly during September to see what everyone who is taking part in the challenges comes up with! 

Thanks for stopping by.

Cheers

Kez

August Class Cards

I have finally gotten around to photographing the cards we made in class this month. They featured either new product or a new technique for my ladies - or maybe both!

Firstly we made this simple stand-up card which features new stamp set Chalk Talk and matching dies. Not quite sure why they are called a "stand up" card - don't all cards stand up? lol! (Layout cased from Julie Davison)

Materials used:

• stamps - Chalk Talk
• card - strawberry slush, basic black, whisper white, in colour patterned paper
• other - chalk talk dies, Big Shot, rhinestones, wide oval punch, square punch, dimensionals

We also made a masculine card which I cased from Christy Fulk with a couple of minor changes (this is the card I gave to DH for his birthday earlier this month).

Materials used:

• stamps - Wetlands
• card - soft suede, more mustard, watercolour, early espresso
• other - aquapainter, square punch, antique brad, dimensionals

And our last card was this embossed beauty you have seen before. The ladies loved the feel of the sanded core'dinations card just as much as I do!

Thanks for stopping by.

Cheers

Kez

50 And Fabulous

Tonight we are off to a Trivia Night to raise funds for the Quest for Life Foundation and also to celebrate the 50th birthday of the organiser of the event, who is a dear friend.

Naturally, a card had to be made. And, in fact, a second card also - for everyone at the event to sign too. That, of course. occasioned a rather large card, so I made one with extra paper inside for lots of signatures and birthday wishes. As the birthday girl just loves flowers and is known everywhere for always wearing a flower in her hair, naturally they needed to feature on the cards.

For my card I played again with sanding some core'dinations cardstock, this time in primrose petals and embossed with mosaic. I carried through the mosaic shape with stamping for one of my flag pieces (and on the inside), and teamed the primrose with summer starfruit and some watercoloured poppies. I love the aged look the sanding gives on the embossing!

Materials used:

• stamps - Pleasant Poppies, Four You, Summer Silhouettes
• card - primrose petals (plain and core'dinations), very vanilla, summer starfruit
• other - mosaic embossing folder, Big Shot, 1" square punch, aquapainter, sanding kit, dimensionals
• non SU - nestabilities circle and scallop circle dies

Black, vanilla and pink have been teamed up for the large card which is A4 folded in half. A bit of bling adds some glamour!

Materials used:

• stamps - none
• card - basic black, pretty in pink, very vanilla, Modern Medley dsp, silver glitter, garden green
• other - Big Shot, Timeless Type number dies, dimensionals
• non SU - nestabilities die, pink rhinestones, purchased paper roses, Martha Stewart rose leaf punch and matching embossing punch, hot glue gun, computer and printer

We are looking forward to a fun night and hopefully will raise heaps of money for Quest. 

Thanks for stopping by.

Cheers

Kez

Edited to add: We had a great night, the birthday girl loved both her cards and we raised over $14,000 for Quest. Yay! Also, our team won the Trivia! double yay! (lol)

Christmas Aussie Style

This month there's an Aussie theme to our Christmas stamp-a-stack cards and as you know we celebrate Christmas in the middle of summer. Schools have a break of about 6-8 weeks and the most popular holiday destination is the beach (hence the picture above!).

My first card was inspired by a Kathy Tanner creation and features an iconic Aussie item seen everywhere over the long, hot Christmas holiday season - thongs (jandals/flip flops). I thought it would be lots of fun if there were thongs hanging on the tree instead of baubles! Lol! 

Materials used:

• stamps - Sunny Fun (retired), Four the Holidays (retired)
• card - island indigo, cherry cobbler, whisper white
• other - blender pen, Sahara sand marker, Big Shot, stylish stripes embossing folder, ruler

Our second card features a carolling kookaburra. The wording on the background is "have a dinky di, true blue, beaut Christmas".

Materials used:

• stamps - Short & Sweet (retired)
• card - real red, very vanilla, soft suede, watercolour
• other - window framelits, Big Shot, sponge daubers, dimensionals
• non SU - kookaburra stamp, red satin ribbon, true blue stamp

Thanks for popping by.

Cheers
Kez

A Bevy of Bows

One of the things I just could not resist putting on my Holiday catalogue pre-order was the Gift Bow Bigz die. And I'm so glad I did, because I just cannot stop making these things! They are so quick and easy and so darned CUTE that I keep looking for more papers to make another!

Here's some samples of what I've made so far - firstly some Christmas bows:

The two on the bottom row are made from new Christmas papers coming up in the Holiday catalogue and the island indigo one on the right also has a new embellishment in the centre.

Then some cute polka dots, floral and sweet baby bows:

And a couple of elegant bows using retired papers - Halloween papers that to me look like Burberry and the gorgeous Mocha Morning papers:

So of course now I am wanting there to be birthdays, weddings, births, Christmas, anniversaries and more so I can make a whole new bevy of matching bows! Lol.

Thanks for stopping by.

Cheers
Kez

SUM - Wipe Your Drool ...

My good mate Robyn had her birthday recently but we only managed to catch up today, so I am now able to show you the card and gift I made for her.

Here's her card - I used the Modern Medley papers cos she loves black and vanilla.

Materials used:

• stamps - Chalk Talk
• card - basic black, very vanilla, Bermuda bay, Modern Medley dsp
• other - chalk talk framelits, Big Shot, dimensionals

And for her gift I made something that will appeal to her base instincts - ie chocolate craving. It's a star book with quotes about chocolate and it was such fun to put together!

No actual stamping in this - it was all digital. The chocolate graphics are so realistic that I am sure she will be wiping the drool away whenever she looks at it! LOL. 

Materials used:

• card - chocolate chip, creamy caramel, whisper white, regal rose
• other - chocolate chip satin ribbon, sticky strip, designer frames embossing folder, oval dies, Big Shot, window framelits, deco label framelit, apothecary accents die, chalk talk framelit
• non SU - Gina Jane chocolate craving kit digital graphics from Daisie Company, computer and printer, nestabilities dies

The chocolate quotes, in case you'd like them, are:

• Exercise is a dirty word. Every time I hear it I wash my mouth out with chocolate.
• A chocolate in the mouth is worth two on the plate.
• Chocolate doesn't make the world go around ... but it sure makes the ride worthwhile!
• God sends no stress that prayer and chocolate cannot handle.
• The 12-step chocoholics program: never be more than 12 steps away from chocolate.
• I have this theory that chocolate slows down the ageing process ... It may not be true, but do I dare take the chance?
• Put "eat chocolate" at the top of your list of things to do today. That way, at least you will get one thing done.
• Stress wouldn't be so hard to take if it were chocolate coated.
• Chocolate is the food group they don't tell you about.
• I'd stop eating chocolate but I'm no quitter.
• In the cookies of life, friends are the chocolate chips.
• Eat a chocolate before each meal. It will take the edge off your appetite and you will eat less.
• I never met a chocolate I didn't like.
• Forget love! I'd rather be in chocolate.

Thanks for calling in.

Cheers

Kez

Tutorial Review

A few weeks ago I was approached by the online media coordinator for Daily Craft TV and asked if I would be happy to watch one of their video tutorials and write a review. Daily Craft TV has a huge range of videos on their site that teach you hundreds of techniques for quilting, sewing, knitting, crocheting, scrapbooking and papercrafting.

I picked a video from the papercrafting section called, "Inspiring Ideas for Fun and Fabulous Projects". The video was an hour long and it covered 7 topics:

1. Techniques Revealed: Dressing Up Chipboard with Scrap Paper
2. Creative Shortcuts: Creating Rolled Flowers
3. Designer Hints: Preserving Scrapbook Memorabilia
4. Everyday Inspiration: Adding Bling to Your Projects!
5. Going Green: Getting More Out of Your Scrapbooking Products
6. Design Workshop: Using Fabric Paper on Layouts and Cards
7. Techniques Revealed: Building Boxed Flowers

The people presenting the video gave clear, concise explanations that were easy to follow and it was at all times easy to see the projects coming together and match the visual to the audio instructions. As an experienced papercrafter of some years, I had come across all of these techniques before - but it would be ideal for someone just starting their crafting journey or someone who has covered the basics and now wants to learn a few extra "Wow" elements for their projects. Having said that, it did inspire me to use some of those techniques that I hadn't incorporated in my work for some time (see my card below).

I know you can find free videos on many crafting topics over the internet, but if you don't want to have to do a grand search everywhere to find what you are after, or if you don't know exactly what you want to see and just want to get some new ideas, then this site may be perfect for you. At US$5 for 7 techniques, it was pretty good value.

So why not pop on over and have a look. With the huge range of crafts covered, you are sure to find something of interest. Here's the link again - Daily Craft TV.

And here's a card I made using two techniques from the video - creating rolled flowers and adding bling:

Materials used:

• stamps - Four You
• card - pool party (plain and core'dinations), whisper white, baked brown sugar, crisp cantaloupe
• other - beautifully baroque embossing folder, Big Shot, sanding block, bird punch, rhinestones, deco label die, sponge dauber, dimensionals, embossing stylus
• non SU - flower die, hot glue gun

Thanks for dropping in.

Cheers

Kez

Guess What?

Well, I've been sitting on some exciting news for a couple of weeks but I think it's OK to share it with you now ....

.... I'm going to be on the Stampin' Up! Creative Crew Design Team over at Splitcoast Stampers!!!! 

The CC organisers set four challenges per month for anyone to play along with and the design team will have projects made to inspire you.

My term on the design team will run from September to December so as from next month you can expect to see my projects both here and in the Creative Crew Challenges gallery. I would love you to come back and take a look - and, of course, to feel inspired to join in the challenges. 

We've been given the themes for the September challenges and I am busy designing already - can't wait to share them with you all! Meanwhile, why not browse this month's challenges. Be sure to use Stampin' Up! Only (SUO) or Stampin' Up! Mostly (SUM) products for your projects.

Cheers

Kez

Putting On The Hex

I've been having a play with the hexagon punch, kindly loaned to me by my mate Rob. My two cards are the same design but the colours and embellishments create a whole different look.

Firstly a card for DD21, who returned to uni in Melbourne last week after a visit that was way too short for her mama! She loves polka dots.

Materials used:

• stamps - Really Good Greetings (MDS)
• card - basic black, very vanilla, raspberry ripple, Modern Medley dsp
• other - hexagon punch, dimensionals, scallop ribbon border punch, owl punch

And DD always, always looks inside my cards to see if I've decorated in there too, so of course I had to for her card!

And my second card has a touch of Spring with some bright florals and ginghams.

Materials used:

• stamps - Really Good Greetings (MDS)
• card - island indigo, whisper white, daffodil delight, melon mambo, Gingham Garden dsp (MDS)
• other - hexagon punch, dimensionals, itty bitty punch, rhinestones, embossing stylus, shaping mat (non SU)

Now that I have had a play with it, I think this punch will get bumped up higher on my wish list!

Thanks for stopping by.

Cheers

Kez

Keep Calm

We had a Christmas in July dinner at our place last night and it was really lovely having a festive time in front of a roaring fire. We even had crackers and Secret Santa and candy canes on the tree! Experiencing a white Christmas is on my bucket list, so hopefully one of these days ...

Here's a pic of the table all set and lit by candles, and you can see our fledgling tree in the background:

And today is the first of our Christmas stamp-a-stack classes - cos we all know that once July hits, it's only downhill until Dec 25th!!! 

In a stamp-a-stack I design two cards and my lovely ladies make five of each design, including stamping on inserts and envelopes. By the end of October they will have 40 handmade Christmas cards all ready to send to family and friends.

Here is what I have concocted for this month:

There's a little bit of silver ink sponged over the embossed frame to highlight it and the silver glitter and ribbon look gorgeous against the dark blue.

Materials used:

• stamps - Ornamental Keepsakes, More Merry Messages
• card - midnight muse, whisper white, silver glitter
• other - holiday frame embossing folder, holiday ornaments dies, Big Shot, dimensionals
• non SU - silver ink, silver ribbon

For this one I created the sentiment panel on MDS, replacing the original snowflakes with some mistletoe and colouring it all up. In the background are mice kissing under some mistletoe - ka-yute!

Materials used:

• stamps - MDS
• card - cherry cobbler, very vanilla, early espresso
• other - sponge daubers, dimensionals, Big Shot
• non SU - nestabilities die, House Mouse stamp

I am looking forward to the release of the Holiday Catalogue and some gorgeous new papers, stamps and embellishments to play with for future classes. 

Thanks for stopping by.

Cheers

Kez

NSU - A Wedding Card Challenge

With DD21 at home from uni, my craft room has been taken over and consequently not much creating has been done in the last few days.

However, DD did ask me to make a card for a wedding she will be attending in a couple of weeks which posed a challenge for my stamp collection; it's a same-sex wedding, so I can't use my favourite bride and groom image, nor 'Mr and Mrs' type sentiment stamps. 

The colours for the wedding are red and purple, so I wanted to incorporate those into the card somehow and to make it romantic and elegant. In the end I didn't use any stamps at all, but typed my sentiment on the computer.

This is what I came up with:

Materials used:

• card - perfect plum, gumball green
• other - dotted scallop ribbon border punch, Big Shot
• non SU - white linen cardstock, purchased paper roses, rose petal punch and embossing punch, Tied Together embossing folder, glue gun, pearls, computer and printer

DD is very happy with it, so hopefully the happy couple will be too. I think I'll have to make a special gusseted envelope for it though - that's the next challenge!

Thanks for stopping by.

Cheers

Kez