Yes it's arrived - Sale-A-Bration, the best time of the Stampin' Up! year begins today!

Sale--Bration runs from today, 28th January until 31 March 2014 and there is so much to celebrate - you can read all about it by clicking on the brochure in the side bar of my blog, but the key things to know are:

FREE GIFTS: For every £45 you spend during Sale-A-Bration, you get a free exclusive Sale-A-Bration gift - and there are 13 to choose from!

MORE FREE GIFTS: Get £25 more to spend on any Stampin' Up! products with a qualifying party*

EVEN MORE FREE GIFTS: If you decide to join Stampin' Up! during Sale-A-Bration, you can choose £150 worth of products for only £99 (instead of the usual £130). All this in addition to a 20% discount on future product purchases, the ability to order new items in advance of everyone else, along with the wider benefits that joining a company such as Stampin' Up! has to offer. Also, if you join my growing team of Stampin' Up! demonstrators, you will receive additional benefits, including a FREE copy of my Product Table Builder software to help you make the most of your online sales opportunities - this is an exclusive benefit to those who sign up to be a part of my team (worth £35). My team is a mix of those who are hobby demonstrators and those who use Stampin' Up! as a business to earn them additional income and are a great bunch - everyone is welcome and I would love you to join us.

The best way to see these products is to attend my February classes, which will feature Sale-A-Bration products, or give me a call on 07773 421446 and arrange to host your very own Stampin' Up! party. To whet your appetite, I made a short video showcasing lots of the Sale-A-Bration products - they look even better close up than in the brochure, so why not click on the link below and take a look:

I hope that got you all excited - don't forget, please get in touch via [email protected] or call me on 07773 421446 if you would like to get your hands on some yourself or click on the links below to hop on over to my online shop! 

Today also sees the launch of the Spring-Summer catalogue, featuring some lovely new products - please check out today's other post for more information on my favourite things!

Lots going on today so back soon with more creative delights; until then, happy stampin'!

Stampin' Up! Sale-A-Bration Products available free with a £45 spend:

Petal Parade Clear-Mount Stamp Set	Sweet Sorbet Designer Series Paper	Decorative Dots Textured Impressions Embossing Folder	Sweet Sorbet Accessory Pack	Good As Gold Card Kit
Banner Blast Wood-Mount Stamp Set	Banner Punch	You're Lovely Clear-Mount Stamp Set	Twisty Treats Kit	Heartfelt Banner Kit
See Ya Later Wood-Mount Stamp Set	Hooray For Parties Digital Ensemble	One Big Sale-A-Bration 2014 Digital Ensemble

*An extra £25 of hostess credits will be earned for all qualifying party sales of £250 or more.

No post yesterday, but two today to make up for it! Here's the first one. Great news - the Big Shot Magnetic Platform is back and now available to order again!

This is one of the 'unsung heroes' of this year's annual catalogue, although clearly I am not the only one to think so - some 13 weeks worth of stock sold out in about 3 weeks! I'm happy to report that supplies have now been restored, so if you've been eagerly awaiting yours, now's the time to order!

The magnetic platform makes light work of cutting cardstock with framelits; no longer do you need to rely on post-it notes and hope that they hold everything in place. If you would like to see the magnetic platform in action, here's a great video from Stampin' Up that shows you how it works:

If you would like to order a magnetic platform, either contact me or pop over to my online store now to purchase.

Back shortly with another post; until then, happy stampin'!

Another product update post for you: as some of you may be aware, there are a number of catalogue errors in the current catalogue (contact me if you would like a full list!), most notably the pricing of the new colour ink and cardstock bundles. This item was temporarily withdrawn from sale, but I can now announce that the following items are now once again available to order:

In addition, for a limited time only (until 3 January 2014) single markers in the new colours are also available to order individually at a cost of £2.95 each.

This is the last of the SU product update posts for the time being I promise! Back tomorrow with a craft creation (or two!) Until then, happy stampin'!

Good evening devoted blog followers! I've returned from my two week family holiday in the USA and am back with you. You might not have noticed my absence, as I managed to schedule quite a few blog posts for you all to read whilst I was holidaying with Mickey Mouse (and my family too, but clearly The Mouse takes centre stage - I am his No.1 Fan!) More on my holiday shortly, but meanwhile I have lots of Stampin' Up! news to share with you, so the next few blog posts will be information-related whilst we catch up on the latest offers that are available.

So the first, and most important of these: the Autumn-Winter Seasonal Catalogue is now live! This is what it looks like:

I have updated the link on the right-hand side of my blog page to the electronic version of the catalogue - please feel free to browse at your leisure and enjoy the fabulous new kits and products that are available to make your festive season easy and beautiful at the same time. I will be sharing my favourite items with you later this week and once the James Juniors are back at school in  few days time, I will be making and sharing Christmas cards and projects in earnest, but for now, click on the link below to start browsing and creating your festive wishlist:

There is also a carryover list of popular items from last year's catalogue that are still available - these can be seen below:

If you would like a paper catalogue, to place an order or are thinking about hosting a party, please give me a call or drop me a line and I will be happy to help. I can honestly say there are some fabulous items in the second of this year's seasonal catalogues; it was quite tortuous to have my pre-order arrive just before a two-week vacation, that meant I didn't get the opportunity to try out some of my wonderful new goodies. That said, my vacation more than made up for it: this year it was a special one to Orlando, Florida. At 6 and 8 years old, my children are at a great age to enjoy everything that Disney World and beyond has to offer. Today, I'm going to share not a project, but one of my most special holiday photos with you:

This is me swimming with a dolphin at Discovery Cove, Orlando. See that big grin? This was a 'bucket list' moment for me, as I've always wanted to swim with a dolphin and I just couldn't keep that smile from my face.

Back with a few more information-related posts today, then full on with the creating towards the end of the week.

Until next time, happy stampin'!

Well, today's the day you've all been waiting for: the new Stampin' Up! annual catalogue has arrived!

It is full of great new products, ranging from stamp sets, to designer papers, to embellishments and more besides - but don't just take my word for it; make yourself a cup of tea, then get comfy, check out the link in the bar on the right hand side of my page and browse for yourself!

As a demonstrator I've had the opportunity to browse the catalogue in advance and even order a selected number of new products that I've already had the opportunity to play with. That said, I have a VERY long shopping list of things I want (no, NEED!) from the new catalogue. I thought it would be fun to shoot a short video to give you a quick whistle-stop tour of the new catalogue and share with you my top 'wish list' items, so if you'd like to know what I think will be 'hot' this year, it's time to tune in:

As you can see, there's so much to choose from! If you have a long wish list of must-have items too, why not invite your friends round for an evening of crafty fun and host a Stampin' Up! party? You'll get the opportunity to create a great project, receive lots of crafty inspiration and earn free products that are beyond amazing; you can earn anything from £25 to £120 worth of free products and with party sales of £300 or more you will also be able to purchase one or more items at half price; this is a great way to reduce the cost of an investment purchase such as a Big Shot or a full marker set. So what are you waiting for? Contact me to book your Stampin' Up! party today!

Back tomorrow with a project; until then, enjoy browsing the new catalogue  !

There are a small number of catalogue corrections and initial supply issues that you need to be aware of, as follows:

Catalogue Corrections:

Two items were mistakenly given the same item number. Beautiful Butterflies Bigz and Lattice Bigz dies are both listed as 114507. The correct item numbers are: 
Beautiful Butterflies Bigz Die - 114507
Lattice Bigz Die - 115958

The Ordering section incorrectly states that a customer has 10 days to cancel their order. Customers have 14 days to cancel their order.

Due to supply issues, the following items are currently unavailable; there will be an announcement to follow when they become available:

World Map Stamp (item 130342 for wood, 130345 for clear).

Label Pop ‘n Cuts (item 130160): Item will be available for order as of 12 July.

Wood-Mount Cases (item 127551 for full, 127552 for half).

Stampin’ Trimmer Rotary Addition (item 132986).

New Colour Cardstock and Pad Kit (item 132281).

My first day free of domestic chores this week and I was fully intending to begin madly creating with my new pre-order goodies that have been sitting in my craft room for over a week calling 'play with me' but alas, it was not to be - instead I've spent most of the day caring for my poorly boy who has (yet another!) tummy bug for the second time in as many months! He was feeling brighter this afternoon, so after an hour or so of sitting in the garden playing 'catch', I managed to get an hour or so to create a quick card set showcasing the new 2013-15 'In Colours'. For the uninitiated, 'In Colours' are introduced every year and remain current for 2 years before retiring. They compliment the standard colour families and I think I'm in love with this year's colours, which are quite different to the 2012-14 set. Without further ado, let me introduce to you:

 Firstly, Crisp Cantaloupe - a lovely peachy, pink shade:

Secondly, Pistachio Pudding - a pale green with a lemony hue:

Thirdly, Baked Brown Sugar - a lovely shade of cinnamon brown:

Fourthly, Strawberry Slush, a rich pink with red undertones:

And last but not least, Coastal Cabana - a lovely shade of watery blue-green:

What do you think? These colours are so fresh I am already brimming with ideas and I can't wait to start using them in earnest. I kept these cards simple so that the colours take centre stage, with only a mat in the same colour and a few pearls. The eagle-eyed SU devotees amongst you might be wondering what the stamp is that I've used; this is a sneak-peek of a new stamp called 'Wildflower Meadow', which also has a matching embossing folder. You can see it in more detail on this close up shot:

Only another six days to go until you can own this stamp and matching embossing folder too; it's one of a number of great bundles on offer in the new Stampin' Up! Annual Catalogue, due to be released next Tuesday 2nd July. If you would like a copy of the new catalogue, they are available for £4.95 each including P&P; contact me to order yours today! Start writing your wish lists stampers - there are lots more great new items that I'm looking forward to sharing in the coming weeks and months.

One last picture of the whole in-colour card set, then I'm done for today; hopefully back tomorrow with another project, all being well. Until then, happy stampin'!

Stampin' Up Supplies:

Stamps: Wildflower Meadow

Cardstock: Crisp Cantaloupe, Pistachio Pudding, Baked Brown Sugar, Strawberry Crush, Coastal Cabana

Ink/Stampin' Write Markers: Crisp Cantaloupe, Pistachio Pudding, Baked Brown Sugar, Strawberry Crush, Coastal Cabana

Tools: Wildflower Meadow Embossing Folder

Finishing Touches: Basics Pearls

A change of blog plan today: Stampin' Up! has been very busy and has today announced it's first full colour refresh in 5 years. The overall colour families will stay the same, but there will be 10 new colours included and 10 colours discontinued. The new colour family colours include 6 colours that have previously been 'in colours' (highlighted in red - 4 of these are from the 2011-12 set that would otherwise have been discontinued at the end of June) and 4 are brand new Stampin' Up! colours (highlighted in grey):

These new colour families will be introduced along with the new 2013-14 Annual Catalogue on 1st July. Meanwhile, the important thing to note is that the following colours are retiring and will only be available while stocks last:

Once current ink, cardstock, etc. of these 10 colours is gone, Stampin' Up! will not be replenishing stock levels. So if you're a fan of Regal Rose, can't live without Not So Navy or any of the other crossed out colours above, I would advise you to place an order as soon as possible to avoid disappointment - contact me at [email protected] to stock up before it's too late!

Back tomorrow with another exciting blog post - it's all happening here! Until then, happy stampin'!