Just a quick post from me today! Before I move on to the last stamp in this set, today I thought I would share with you another ferris wheel stamped using the rock and roll ink technique; this time an easel birthday card I made recently for a friend of mine, whihc also includes the 'Celebrate' stamp from the same set.

As you can see, this time I've used a trio of ink colours; I think it makes a lovely female birthday card and the easel card design just makes it a little bit different.

Remember, the 'Feeling Sentimental' stamp set is just one of the 17 items you can receive free with a £45 spend during Sale-A-Bration, so if it appeals to you just contact me to host a party or place an order before 22nd March and this set could be yours.

Until next time, happy stampin'!

Stampin' Up Supplies:

Stamps: Feeling Sentimental

Cardstock: Whisper White, Primrose Petals

Ink: Primrose Petals, Perfect Plum, Regal Rose

With only two days to go, I thought I would share another Valentine's Day card with you today. I actually took this card to the wedding fair I exhibited at last weekend, as I thought it would also make a lovely invitation and it could be adapted to a variety of different colour combinations.  

I took my inspiration from the current Stampin' Up! catalogue on page 179 and the card that demonstrates the new Stampin' Spritzer. It is a 5" square card with a base of Melon Mambo and mat of Basic Grey, with a sharp white typeset LOVE which is inset with a small punched heart and a little diamante for just the right amount of 'bling'. Simple, but oh so effective and if you're a crafter who likes to leave things until the very last minute, really quick to execute with no stamping required! I'll be back with another Valentines idea tomorrow, but meanwhile - happy stampin'!

Stampin' Up Supplies:

Paper: Whisper White, Melon Mambo, Basic Grey

Tools: Typeset Alphabet dies, Small Heart Punch, Basic Rhinestones Jewels, Big Shot

We are back to the LOVE theme today, with a cute set of four notelets with a coordinating box. I have designed them with Valentine's Day in mind, but these little 3" notelets are perfect for tucking into a lunchbox or loved one's pocket for a surprise love note.

I've used a selection of stamp sets to create this set:

From the left, do you recognise the stamp used on the first card? I created the patchwork heart design by using my marker pens to colour the central section of the 'recover rapidly' Band-Aid stamp from the Sale-A-Bration Patterned Occasions stamp set, aligning each one with my trusty stamp-a-ma-jig to align them into a neat patchwork pattern. The second stamp is from a now retired set called 'Sprinkled Expressions' and the third uses the cross stitch heart from the Hoop La La set in the main catalogue. Lastly, the heart/flower stamp is one of 24 available in the set 'Spring Sampler' available in the new Spring Summer seasonal catalogue that goes live TODAY! There are lots and lots of lovely new items, some of which I've already featured and many of which you will see on my blog during the coming weeks and months. There is a link to the catalogue on the right hand side of my page; if you would like your own copy of the catalogue or would like to place an order, do get in touch with me at joanne@thecraftyowl and I will be happy to help.

I also whipped up a lovely two-tone box to keep them all in out of melon mambo cardstock with a co-ordinating regal rose flap shaped using one of the small Labels Collection framelits. To finish off, I stamped and cut a pair of hearts using the Hearts a Flutter set to tuck the box flap into and hold it in place.

My little girl has had her eye on these ever since she saw me putting them together, so I'm thinking I might slip the first one of mine into her school bag for a little surprise. The second might go into my husband's lunch box - assuming I stop crafting for long enough to make him a sandwich of course! I hope you are inspired to have a go and make something similar - do leave me a comment and let me know who you are sending yours to. Off to create now - until next time, happy stampin'!

Stampin' Up Supplies:

Stamps: Patterned Occasions, Sprinkled Expressions (retired), Hearts A Flutter, Hoop La La, Spring Sampler, Tiny Tags, Hearts a Flutter

Paper: Whisper White, Melon Mambo, Regal Rose

Stampin' Write Markers: Real Red, Melon Mambo, Regal Rose

Tools: Stamp-a-ma-jig, Hearts a Flutter Framelits, Labels Collection Framelits, Simply Scored

At last - the best party of the year has begun, and will last right through until the 22nd March 2013! Stampin' Up's Sale-a-bration is here and has to be one of the best times in the Stampin' Up calendar to get involved: whether you're an avid crafter or a newbie who fancies some free gifts to get you started, then read on for ways in which you can join the party!

PARTY ON YOUR OWN - During Sale-a-bration, you can earn a free gift for every £45 you spend. There are 17 different items to choose from and best of all you can order as many times as you like! The full set of sale-a-bration items can be seen below:

Better still, get together or host a PARTY WITH FRIENDS who share your love of crafting and you can get even more for your money:

WITH ORDERS OF £150 OR MORE, you will receive:

• A free sale-a-bration gift for every £45 spent
• A free pack of silver glimmer paper
• At least £25 of free products from any current catalogue too!

WITH ORDERS OF £300 OR MORE, you will receive:

• A free sale-a-bration gift for every £45 spent
• A free pack of silver glimmer paper
• At least £50 of free products from any current catalogue
• A great free sale-a-bration product bundle (Sycamore Street designer paper, Madison Avenue stamp set and Sycamore Street ribbon & button embellishment pack)
• At least one item at 50% DISCOUNT as well!!

PARTY ALL THE TIME - As if that wasn't enough, there are also great benefits to joining Stampin' Up as a demonstrator during sale-a-bration: you'll get 25% more in your starter kit than usual, that's £162.50 worth of products for £99 and you can choose what you'd like - your kit, your way. I'm quite new to Stampin' Up but I love being a demonstrator and sharing my ideas; if you'd would like to share my enthusiasm and become a member of my team, please email me at [email protected] or call me for a chat - I would be happy to talk about the possibilities and where I can add value.

I've already shown you a couple of card sets made with the Bloomin' Marvelous stamp set and today I would like to share with you some of the swaps I made for a recent team training that showcase a number of additional free products: 

So what are you waiting for? All this and more could be yours! Drop me a line at [email protected] and arrange to book a party or place an order today.

Keep watching my blog for lots of other great ideas and ways in which you can use the great free sale-a-bration gifts.

Stampin' Up Supplies:

Stamps: Madison Avenue, Vintage Verses

Paper: Whisper White, Rich Razzleberry, Pool Party, Summer Starfruit, Tangerine Tango, Sycamore Street (DSP)

Ink: Rich Razzleberry, Pool Party, Summer Starfruit

Tools: Scoreboard, 11/4" circle punch

Finishing Touches: Sycamore Street Ribbon and Button Pack

Having spent most of the day outdoors today buidling snowmen and sledging with my children and generally making the most of the snow and an unexpected day off school, it's nice to sit all cosy and warm and share another card set with you.

So here is the second trio of cards I made with the Bloomin' Marvelous stamp set, this time introducing the butterfly too:

A slightly more feminine colour palette I think, with the latest in-colour inks of Primrose Petals and Raspberry Ripple for the randomly stamped flowers and butterflies and some Gumball Green for the stems which I think just adds a bit of 'zing'.

I also hand cut one of the butterflies on the central card and popped it on a dimensional for added interest:

It was easy enough with my Paper Snips, but if you're not great with fiddly cutting out it can be punched in seconds with the Bitty Butterfly Punch, a new product in this year's Spring-Summer Seasonal Catalogue and available from the first of February. I have also used a mat of Raspberry Ripple, Primrose Petals or Gumball Green cardstock respectively and a little ribbon accent just to finish off. I really love this stamp set - and the sentiments are generic enough that they suit lots of occasions.

If you would like to recreate these cards yourself, the Bloomin' Marvelous stamp set is one of 17 items that you can obtain for free for every £45 spent during the promotional period, starting tomorrow! Please drop me a line or give me a call if you would like more information.

Stampin' Up Supplies:

Stamps: *Bloomin' Marvelous (Wood 129651, clear 129654)

Paper: Whisper White, Raspberry Ripple, Primrose Petals, Gumball Green

Ink: Gumball Green, Raspberry Ripple, Primrose Petals

Punches: *Bitty Butterfly Punch

Finishing Touches: Stitched Satin Ribbon Raspberry Ripple, Stitched Satin Ribbon Gumball Green

*Available to purchase from 22nd January.