Convention 2011 - Warning Sneak Peeks Ahead

Our Annual Stampin' Up! Convention was held just a few weeks ago.  I've been meaning to do an update but since there was a lot of stuff I was unable to share until June 1, I decided to wait until now.  This year Convention was 3 days, instead of just two, which meant we got to do some extra activities, such as the Pen, Pad, Marker - more on that a bit later *hint*.  Whilst I loved that it was 3 days, I still felt the time just whizzed by, there were a heap of people that I saw in passing but just never got around to speaking to because we just seemed to be continually moving from one thing to the next.

On Registration day we were very excited to find out what our Make & Take sets were going to be and they did not disappoint :).  We received the Creative Elements and It's Your Day sets and our Make & Takes were absolutely gorgeous.  I've only completed 3 out of the 4 and have only edited 2 of the 3 photos of them, so I will have to add the others in a later post.  Here is one of them - the No. 3 Card.

The floral image, the long frame (behind the floral piece) and the No. 3 are from the Creative Elements set.  This is a set of 8 and all of the samples I have show all of the stamps.  The floral image has been covered in Champagne Shimmer mist - the sample only had it on the flower but I didn't like how I went over the lines using the sponge dauber so I cover the whole lot!  As you can see, the M&T included SEAM BINDING so I am guessing that it will also be included in the new catalogue.  Just a head's up - start saving now ladies - all of the things we saw at Convention are absolutely gorgeous - you are going to want it all.

This is the second Make & Take I did - the Treat Yourself 6x6 Scrapbook page.  My friend Bron took a photo of me showing off the No. 3 card during our M&T session and I've cropped it down to finish off this page.  Convention is the ONLY time I ever complete scrapbook pages of myself, which is kind of funny, probably cause it's the only time I'm in the photos instead of taking them.

Again, all of the stamps are from Creative Elements, the big floral swirl, the long frame, the border and the sentiment which reads 'Treat Yourself Like You Own Best Company'.  Again, more SEAM BINDING (yay).  Also that Not Quite Navy scallop border hidden under the Old Olive flag was made using the RIBBON BORDER punch (yay - been waiting for that one).

Here are some more samples of the Creative Elements set from the display boards.

I really love the colour palette of this one.  The Butterfly is from Creative Elements.

The 'Create' is the 8th image in the Creative Elements set.  (And oops, I've cut the ribbon off from the side)

This one is pretty.  The flower has been popped up on dimensionals, but you could cut the flower into many layers to get a multi layer effect.

I really love this one, love the effect of the colouring of the flourish/swirl and the addition of the punched flowers.  Colour palette is very pretty too!

The M&T that I haven't finished yet uses the PETAL CONE DIE, another item I have been hanging out for. 

We were also told that our Demo pre-order will include more Christmas stamps so we can get a head start planning for workshops, making cards etc., so that was super cool. We were shown samples of 2 of the sets, but I'll have to do a separate post for those as I haven't edited the photos yet of the samples Shannon shared with us.  I can tell you that one of the sets will be Tags for Christmas, which was featured in the US Holiday mini which I won, along with the Tulips Embossing folder in the very first Prize Patrol - yay - that's 2 years in a row for me  - how lucky am I???
As I mentioned earlier, one of the activities we got to do was the Pen, Pad, Marker.  This is where you make samplers showing all the SU! colours of cardstock, marker and ink.  Kim & I didn't think we'd have enough time to complete it as we had a lunch date with the rest of the JAI girsl but when Nikki told us that it included the NEW 2011/2013 IN COLOURS we took one look at each other and hightailed it back upstairs.

So here it is, what you've all been waiting for - the 2011/2013 In Colours -

I LOVE them all and can't wait till our Demo pre-order in August.  As I've been typing this up, I've realised that my top in my M&T photo is very similar to Calypso Coral :)  I've also realised that we received a HEAP of information, so I apologise now as the blog posts will probably be all over the shop as I remember things.

I hope you have enjoyed all of these sneak peeks - honestly we saw SO many beautiful, beautiful things, I CANNOT wait for this new catalogue.  I've got a feeling it's going to be the best yet!  Hopefully I'll be able to update with some more convention info over the next few weeks (being honest here, lol)

Cheers

JAI #68 - Colour Challenge

This week it's a colour challenge at Just Add Ink, and very pretty ones at that! (Can you read the names?, they look a bit blurry to me - Pear Pizazz, Baja Breeze, Perfect Plum & Whisper White)

Having just returned from Convention (more on that in a later post), my mind was overflowing with inspiration.  One of  the projects that stood out to me was a book mark demonstrated by Shelli using the Clearly for You set, from the Autumn/Winter mini.  Here is a picture from the big screen, so it's not fantastic quality - sorry about that - the video guy seemed to have a bit of trouble focusing at times.

Another technique that I saw on a few swaps was the use of the clear block as a background stamp, so I decided to combine the two to come up with this

I love to read and purchased this bookmark die a little while ago as I am FOREVER losing my bookmarks.  It's cut from Whisper White textured cardstock.  I then grabbed one of my clear blocks that I've had forever and inked it up with Baja Breeze ink and stamped it directly to the cardstock.  The other images are from Nature Walk, also from the Autumn/Winter mini.  I used my Pear Pizzaz and Perfect Plum markers to ink up the floral image and the ink pad for the No. 147 sentiment.  A bit of linen thread through the top, finished off with a clear bauble from the now retired Pretties Kit added a little bit of extra something.  Oh, and the book I'm reading at the moment is 'The Burning Wire' by Jeffrey Deaver - author of 'The Bone Collector', this is another in the Lincoln Rhyme series.

I will be back over the weekend with my Convention round up post - lots of interesting information to share :)

Supplies Used:  All Stampin' Up! unless otherwise noted
Stamps:  Nature Walk
Ink:  Baja Breeze, Perfect Plum, Pear Pizazz and Perfect Plum Markers
Cardstock:  Whisper White textured, Baja Breeze
Accessories:  Big Shot, Clear block, Linen Thread, Bauble from Pretties Kit (retired), Bookmark Die - Papertrey Ink

JAI #66 - Just Add Flowers

Hello, wow Friday has come around quickly this week!  The challenge at JAI this week is to Add a Flower.  The inspiration for my first item came from my umbrella which I got a couple of years ago at the Stampin' Up! convention held in Canberra.  Surprise, surprise that it was raining in Melbourne last week and when I put my umbrella up, it reminded me that I had meant to make something based on it.  So here we are, nearly 2 years later

Another Petal Cone box, however this one I hand cut by tracing around another my friend had sent me.  I did change the colours up a bit, though.  Here I've used Pink Pirouette, Going Gray and Baja Breeze cause I needed to use the pre-cut scallop 1/2 circles I was given to help disguise the slightly dodgy cutting.  I also wanted to add a flower to the top but I couldn't work out how it would close so I dug out my Crop-O-Dile, that I have used just twice to add some eyelets and used a piece of Pretty In Pink tafetta ribbon to close it.

And then, instead of keeping my spare to use as a pattern, I decided to make that one up too!

This one was cut from Melon Mambo and also has Pink Pirouette scallop circles.  The edging is from the Ice Cream Parlour DSP & Quick Accents SAB pack (US/CAN only) and the ribbon is from the Ice Cream Parlour Ribbon & Buttons SAB pack (US/CAN only).  My friend looks after me so well, sending me extras she had earnt.  The Pom Pom Trim is from the current Australian Autumn/Winter mini catalogue.  Boy, the Crop-O-Dile had its biggest work out of its life, adding more eyelets for the ribbon closure.  It's the most it's been used since I got it 3 or so years ago *blush*.

Cute, hey?  I think I'll fill them with some choccies for the Nana's for Mother's Day!

Be sure to check out what the rest of the Design Team have come up with, there's some gorgeous inspiration for you.

Have a great day and thanks for visiting!

Supplies Used:  All SU! unless otherwise noted

Stamps:  Fifth Avenue Floral
Ink:  Pink Pirouette, Baja Breeze, Going Grey (retired - why, SU! this is such a pretty colour)
Cardstock:  Whisper White, Pink Pirouette, Melon Mambo
Accessories:  Petal Cone Die (US/CAN only), Big Shot, Scoring Board, Sticky Strip, Tombo Mono Multi, Crop-O-Dile, Pretty In Pink Tafetta ribbon (possibly retired), Melon Mambo Pom Pom Trim, Ice Cream Parlour DSP & Quick Accents, Ice Cream Parlour Ribbon (US/CAN SAB), eyelets from stash of stuff

JAI #64 - Inspiration by Chocolate

Sorry this post is a bit late.  I really didn't like the card that went up on the JAI blog so I made something else :)

Anyway, the challenge this week was to create something inspired by your favourite chocolate wrapper.  What to choose, what to choose - you see I don't like to play favourites when it comes to chocolate - white, milk, dark - they're all welcome at our house!!!  So here's my original card

Can you guess what my inspiration was????  Maltesers!  Yummo!  Anyway, this didn't really turn out like it looked in my head and the more I looked at it the more I needed to  make something else.  This is the something else:

Same colour combo, same cardbase colour and same DSP.  Based of a sketch from Clean & Simple.  Which one is your favourite????

Well, it's going to be short & sweet - almost time to get dinner started so I can tackle the massive piles of ironing that await me.

Hope your weekend has been good to you!  Thanks for visiting

Supplies Used:  All Stampin' Up! unless otherwise noted:

CARD 1
Stamps:  Cupcake Collection (PTI)
Ink:  Early Espresso
Cardstock:  Early Espresso, Naturals Ivory, Poppy Parade DSP
Accessories:  1-1/8 RD" punch, 3/4" RD punch

CARD 2
Stamps:  Take Three - Spring (PTI)
Ink: Early Espresso

Cardstock: Early Espresso, Naturals Ivory, Poppy Parade DSP
Accessories: Big Shot, Heat Tool, Take Three Die (PTI), Rustic Twine (PTI), American Crafts Embossing Powder (sorry can't remember what the colour is called)

JAI #62 - Just Add a Bag or Box

This week the challenge at Just Add Ink was to create a bag or a box.  Those of you who know me, know that I'm not a 3D type of girl so I was a bit worried about what I was going to do for this challenge.  Then a friend of mine sent me some diecuts from the Petal Cone die so I could see what it looked like.  That got me to thinking as I was sussing it out, how cool would it be if it done in acetate?????   Well, this is what it looks like

Pretty cool, hey?  My original idea was to have them as party favours for my son's birthday, which isn't until September, but hey, I'm trying to be more organised.  I'm rethinking that idea because let me tell you, this cone holds a HEAP.  There is a whole bag of Easter Eggs in this one.  I also filled it with Skittles and it took nearly a whole bag of those too (I'll add photos of those later, probably tomorrow now). I think if I want to use it as a party favour, I'm going to have to stuff it with some shredded cellophane otherwise I'll be spending a fortune on lollies to fill them, and giving 5 year old boys a larger sugar rush than they really need, lol!

Anyway, I thought acetate was a really good material to use for the first time putting this die together.  It just allowed me a little extra wiggle room for lining up as the sticky strip came away from the acetate without destroying it like it does with cardstock.  The DSP is East Coast Prep from about 2 years ago.  I made the rosette by cutting a strip that was 12" x 2" (I think) and then scoring every 1/4" using my scoring board.  I stuck the edges together with sticky strip and then added the 1-1/4 RD circle to hold it all together.  The hardest part of the project was getting the rosette to stick to the acetate.  The H was die cut using the Timeless Type Jnr Alphabet.

Well, that's it from me for tonight.  Feeling a little tired after spending this evening at Harry's first Auskick session.

Don't forget to check out what the DT and our two guest designers have done - all their creations are amazing.

Thanks for visiting. Hope you have a great weekend

Supplies Used:  All Stampin' Up!

Cardstock:  Bashful Blue, Acetate, Brilliant Blue & East Coast Prep DSP (retired)

Accessories:  Petal Cone Die, Bigshot, Timeless Type Jnr Alphabet, Scallop Edge punch, 1-1/4" RD punch, Sticky Strip, Tombo Mono Multi, Dimensionals.

JAI #60 - Colour Challenge

There's a new challenge at JAI today - this week it's a colour challenge.  Colours that I like on their own and which look really good together also.  They are Rich Razzleberry, Old Olive, Whisper White and Crumb Cake

I based my card on this sketch I found over at Clean & Simple.  This is what I ended up with.

The oval panel was white, however I got a little excited when using the Tea Stain distressing ink and ended up covering more than I intended.  Never mind, I'm happy with the way it turned out.  I did find adding a sentiment a little hard.  I tried a few differnt things before settling on the 3 tiny tags.  I was also going to use the Very Vintage wheel on the base except I forgot and I stuck the DSP down before I remembered.  Ooops.

Well, I'd best be off - we're heading off to Loch Sport today for our friends 'Shinding' and I have to finish packing.

Have a great weekend and thanks for visiting.

Supplies Used - All Stampin' Up! unless specified otherwise
Stamps:  Tiny Tags, Life (PTI)
Ink:  Crumb Cake, Rich Razzleberry, Old Olive - Markers & Ink, Tea Stain, Mahogany (from Distressing Kit)
Cardstock:  Whisper White textured, Crumb Cake, Old Olive, Rich Razzleberry DSP (from Brights collection)
Accessories:  Linen Thread, Jewelry Tag punch, Scallop Trim Border, Oval die, BigShot

JAI #58 - Tribute to Amanda and Danielle

This week at JAI we are having a tribute to Amanda and Danielle - we have all CASED one of their cards.   I owe a great deal of gratitude to Amanda and Danielle for chosing me to be a part of the JAI Design Team.  Never in my wildest dreams did I ever think I would be chosen - THANK YOU BOTH for taking a chance on me.  I have totally enjoyed every minute and I wish you both every happiness and success in your future endeavours.

The first one is one I CASED of Amanda's.  The elements I changed up are the flower and brad, the stamped leaf image and the sentiment, which in hindsight should have been a bit bigger as it gets a little lost.

And this is one I CASED of Danielle's.  The only things I have changed up are the colours, I've used Melon Mambo and Basic Black, and I've added rhinestones instead of pearls.  Why mess with such great original creations!

This was a super fun challenge - the hardest thing was deciding on which cards to CASE.

Hopefully you can all play along this week - I'd love to see which cards of Amanda's and Danielle's you choose to CASE.

Thanks for visiting

Supplies Used:  All SU! unless noted otherwise

AMANDA'S:

Stamps:  Teeny Tiny Sentiments, Turning a New Leaf (PaperTrey Ink)

Ink:  Early Espresso, Old Olive

Cardstock:  Crumb Cake, Very Vanilla Textured, Early Espresso, Daffodil Delight, Newsprint DSP

Accessories:  Antique Brads, Big Shot, Birds & Blooms Sizzlet, Scallop Trim Border Punch

DANIELLE'S

Stamps:  Apple Blossoms (L2 Hostess)

Ink:  Melon Mambo, Memento Tuxedo Black (Tsuienko)

Cardstock:  Whisper White, Melon Mambo, Basic Black

Accessories:  Basic Rhinestones, Basic Black Satin Ribbon, Big Shot, Large Scallop Die (PaperTrey Ink)