It's the end of October and I just wanted to remind you that you have until 11.59pm this evening to take advantage of this month's fantastic joining offer:

Stampin' Up! wants to celebrate our 35^th anniversary in style! From 3 to 31 October, anyone who joins our fun crafting community as a new demonstrator can choose either 35% OFF the cost of their Starter Kit or get 35% MORE product with their Starter Kit! What a deal! 

New demonstrators can choose one of the following options for their Starter Kit:

Option 1: Get 35% OFF the normal cost of a Stampin’ Up! Starter Kit. Those who select this option will receive £130 worth of product for only £64.35!

Option 2: Get 35% MORE product with their Starter Kit. Those who select this option will receive £175.50 worth of product by spending £99!

No matter which option new demonstrators choose for your Starter Kit, both provide you with free business supplies and free shipping on your Starter Kit—not to mention all the fun that comes with being part of Stampin’ Up!

If that wasn't enough - it gets better! Those who sign up for a Starter Kit during this offer will also be automatically registered for FREE to our virtual OnStage@Home event on 11 November—an event that has a £72 value! At this virtual, one-day event, we’ll celebrate our 35^th Stampin’ Up! anniversary, watch lots of presentations, and view new products in action from the January–April 2024 Mini Catalogue and Sale-A-Bration Brochure. In fact, attendees will be able to order brand new products for the Craft Along Experience where they’ll follow along and create crafts from the comfort of their own homes!

Joining offers like this one don't come along often, so whether you're looking for friendship, a hobby, a business or lots more besides, there really is no better time to consider joining Stampin' Up! If you would like more information or help in deciding which option suits you best, do get in touch with me - I would love to chat to you about the benefits of being a part of our stamping community. If you've read this far and have already decided you want to be a part of it - click here to join my awesome Stampin' Up! team.

It's the start of October and there's lots of news to share with you! A fantastic joining offer and two new Christmas-themed kits launch today. First up:

Stampin' Up! wants to celebrate our 35^th anniversary in style! From 3 to 31 October, anyone who joins our fun crafting community as a new demonstrator can choose either 35% OFF the cost of their Starter Kit or get 35% MORE product with their Starter Kit! What a deal! 

New demonstrators can choose one of the following options for their Starter Kit:

Option 1: Get 35% OFF the normal cost of a Stampin’ Up! Starter Kit. Those who select this option will receive £130 worth of product for only £64.35!

Option 2: Get 35% MORE product with their Starter Kit. Those who select this option will receive £175.50 worth of product by spending £99!

No matter which option new demonstrators choose for your Starter Kit, both provide you with free business supplies and free shipping on your Starter Kit—not to mention all the fun that comes with being part of Stampin’ Up!

If that wasn't enough - it gets better! Those who sign up for a Starter Kit during this offer will also be automatically registered for FREE to our virtual OnStage@Home event on 11 November—an event that has a £72 value! At this virtual, one-day event, we’ll celebrate our 35^th Stampin’ Up! anniversary, watch lots of presentations, and view new products in action from the January–April 2024 Mini Catalogue and Sale-A-Bration Brochure. In fact, attendees will be able to order brand new products for the Craft Along Experience where they’ll follow along and create crafts from the comfort of their own homes!

Joining offers like this one don't come along often, so whether you're looking for friendship, a hobby, a business or lots more besides, there really is no better time to consider joining Stampin' Up! If you would like more information or help in deciding which option suits you best, do get in touch with me - I would love to chat to you about the benefits of being a part of our stamping community. If you've read this far and have already decided you want to be a part of it - click here to join my awesome Stampin' Up! team.

In addition to this month's joining offer, there are also two new kits that are available from today in the online store:

Celebrate Christmas with everyone, everywhere with the Christmas Everywhere Kit by Stampin’ Up! It comes with everything you need to create 9 Christmas cards in 3 festive designs featuring trees from around the world. Get an early start on your Christmas crafting and send some festive cheer to friends and loved ones wherever they are! Here's a couple of additional images of the kit in more detail:

Here'a a link to the unboxing video for this kit:

The second kit released today is the Rustic Christmas Countdown Kit. This kit has all you need to make a rustic, 25 day paper advent calendar. What a great way to bring a classic, cosy Christmas feeling to your home this season! 

Here's a couple of additional images of the kit in more detail:

Here'a a link to the unboxing video too:

Aren't they just great?! Both of these kits are available right now by placing an order with me or in my online store by clicking on either of the links below - remember to add the current host code (see the box on the right hand side of my blog) for a thank you from me:

RUSTIC CHRISTMAS COUNTDOWN KIT (18.00)

CHRISTMAS EVERYWHERE KIT (ENGLISH) (20.00)

Lots to think about in this post! Back later with today's creative project - until then, happy shopping - or maybe even joining! 

Everything is happening on the 6th of July! Tomorrow sees the start of a new BONUS DAYS promotion! When you shop between 6 and 31 July and spend £45 you will earn a £4.50 coupon! Make sure you save all your coupons because you can redeem them (and I mean ALL of them) between 1 and 31 August. There’s no limit to how many coupons you can earn!

The infographic below provides a great summary of how Bonus Days work:

Make sure to watch the video below if you're new to this promotion and would like to know more: 

 In addition to Bonus Days, there will be a new collection of Online Exclusive products launched tomorrow too:

You can see some of the new products in the graphic above - the full collection will be online from 11pm tonight in my online store here under 'Online Exclusives'. 

Finally, there is one more important thing happening tomorrow - there will be a Clearance Rack refresh too!

All of that is in addition to my Cheerful Daisies tutorial - if you missed the information about this you can read up on it here.

Lots of reasons to shop in July - remember to add the current hostess code 2A6EXGJ4 to your online orders too for a thank you from me.

The wait is over - it's May 2nd and the new 2023-24 Stampin' Up! Annual Catalogue is here! You will find a permanent link to the new catalogue on the right hand side of my blog but for today you need look no further than the picture below which will take you straight to the new catalogue: 

The new catalogue is fantastic, with so many great new products to choose from. I've sent paper copies to everyone who has shopped regularly with me in the last 12 months; if you live in the UK, don't have a paper copy of the catalogue but would like one, then do get in touch and I can arrange to send one to you. A digital copy of the new catalogue can be accessed via the image above and it will be permanently linked via my blog on the right hand side if you don’t have a paper copy and wish to browse. If you've already made your shopping list and just want to go straight to the shop to place your order, click here - ordering systems have now fully transitioned from the old stock items to the new so you are good to go! Also, remember to add the current hostess code for May 7DXKGX9G if your order is less than £150 and ensure your preferences are set to 'contactable' to receive a thank you in the post from me.

What will be first on your list - in colours? New or returning colour favourites? A new stamp set, dies or bundle maybe? I'll be sharing my favourites in the coming weeks.

There is also a new kit launched in the online store today: The Confetti Birthday Kit, the newest addition to the Kits Collection by Stampin’ Up!, comes with everything you need to quickly create confetti shaker cards—a total of 9 cards in 3 lively designs. Celebrate in style with bright, bold colours, confetti, and birthday greetings full of joy!

Here's a link to the unboxing video that shows the kit in more detail:

That's a lot of information for one post; if I were you I would put the kettle on, put your feet up and get comfy and settle down with your new catalogue for a browse and start creating that all-important wish list!

Back later this morning with today's creative post; until then, happy shopping!

Today I have my card for the new challenge over at Festive Friday Card Making and Paper Crafting Challenge. 

The challenge that we are celebrating this week is 'Global Pay It Forward Day' which is on April 28th. Remember the fun thing is that at Festive Friday you do not need to actually celebrate the occasion; your goal is to simply use three or more items from the inspiration list on your project. This week my card works perfectly for our theme: I used kindness sentiment, hearts and hands along with the trio of retiring colours being showcased over at Inspire.Create and this is what I came up with:

Here's the low-down on today's card:

Begin With A Dream - The 'Begin With A Dream' stamp set is a host set, exclusively available to those who earn Stampin' rewards when they host a Stampin' Up! get-together with friends or place a single order of £150 or more. All about love and kindness, this set is perfect for the theme of 'paying it forward'. I used the row of people to create a custom DSP panel and layered my sentiment over a stamped pink heart for a pop of extra colour:  

You can still get this stamp set with a qualifying order before the end of the month, so if it's on your list don't delay - get to my online store!

Bye Bye Brights - All three of the colours on today's card are retiring as part of the upcoming colour refresh. Polished Pink is a departing 2021-23 in-colour (I will miss this pink!) and Mango Melody and Bermuda Bay are retiring from the Brights family. I love all three of these colours, but wasn't sure I could make a project that featured all three on one card. I decided simple was best, so used Bermuda Bay as my main colour, with Mango Melody for my base and a pop of Polished Pink for accent colour. I think it works - what do you think? Will you miss any or all of these colours? 

All Heart - As I looked at my almost finished card, I decided it needed a touch more pink than just the heart stamped behind my sentiment. I decided to add in a trio of cascading punched hearts for a little extra colour and the small heart on the Country Heart Punch was the perfect size and shape for the job. Love it when that happens!

This card took way more thought than it did execution time, but I really like the cheery result and will be perfect to pair with a treat for someone who is least expecting it. How will you 'pay it forward' later this month?

Here is the visual summary of the key products used on today's project for you to pin for easy reference:

You can see all of my 'How To' summaries on my 'How To - Tips and Techniques' Pinterest board in case you've missed any. 

How does our board inspire you? I can’t wait to see what YOU create! For more inspiration, be sure to visit the rest of the Festive Friday Card Making and Paper Crafting Challenge Design team:

Enjoy your day and I'll be back tomorrow with another project for my GD spot over at Just Us Girls. Until then, happy stampin'!

Stampin' Up! Supplies Used:

BEGIN WITH A DREAM HOST CLING STAMP SET (ENGLISH) (12.00)	MANGO MELODY A4 CARDSTOCK (6.12)	BERMUDA BAY A4 CARDSTOCK (6.12)	BERMUDA BAY CLASSIC STAMPIN' PAD (6.00)	POLISHED PINK A4 CARDSTOCK (8.75)	POLISHED PINK CLASSIC STAMPIN' PAD (6.00)
COUNTRY BOUQUET PUNCH (18.00)	STYLISH SHAPES DIES (28.00)

Today I'm sharing my design team card for our new challenge over at As you See It where our leader and chief organiser, the lovely Heather C, has a recipe challenge for us with a distinctly feminine feel:

Recipe challenges usually send me into a bit of a spin, but this one actually worked out surprisingly well for me! I was inspired to have a go at a fancy fold card layout that was recently shared by Stampin' Up's CEO, Sara Douglas and decided to take the opportunity to make my Mother's Day card and use a new floral stamp set that will be available for just a few more days - take a look:

This is a photo-heavy post, so time to get comfy! Here's the low-down on today's card:

Beautifully Happy - The flower at the centrepiece of today's card is from the 'Beautifully Happy' stamp set - one of the items that can be yours FREE with a £90 purchase during the current Sale-A-Bration promotion. Can you believe I've had this set for almost 2 months and this is the first time I've used it?! So many stamp sets, so little time! Anyway, I digress - this is a two-step stamp set, with an outline that can be used along and coloured freehand, or alternatively used with the infill stamps. I wanted to heat-emboss my flower, so my Stamparatus was key here: I stamped the flower outline in Sahara Sand, then added the infills without removing from my Stamparatus, then stamped the outline again in Versamark and heat-embossed in gold. I fussy cut the main stem and added a gold pearl for the stamen and used this flower  as the centrepiece of my card:

I also added a stemless version inside and a single bloom to my envelope label, and I used the outline for some tone-on-tone stamping on the first inside layer of my card - you can see below how the card opens:

The sentiment in the heart on the front of my card is also from this stamp set. If 'Beautifully Happy' is on your Sale-A-Bration wishlist, you have just 4 days to place your £90 order and receive this stamp set for free. Time to get shopping!

Texture Chic - The recipe ingredient of 'distressed paper' sent me immediately reaching for my Distressed Gold Specialty Paper and Texture Chic Specialty Designer Series Papers - both add a distressed look without any tearing or self-made grunge, neither of which are my style! The Texture Chic papers also include various shades of pink to compliment my Petal Pink stamped flower and lots of faux-texture. I also added actual texture with my Painted Texture Embossing Folder on the panel behind my fussy cut flower stem. 

The Distressed Gold paper is just beautiful; I used it to add some hatched diecut details on both the front and left inside panels:

Here's a close-up of that detail on the left (the diecut sentiment uses the now retired Word Wishes Dies):

I also used the Distressed Gold Paper to create a pocket using the Split Textures Dies:

I handwrote my Mother's Day message, along with a poem, on a separate card that I tucked in here after photographing.

Fancy Inside and Out - A fancy card with a little bulk requires a fancy envelope too, so I created a simple file folder style, adding some retired ribbon and a scalloped address label. You can see in properly below:

Here is the visual summary of the key products used on today's project for you to pin for easy reference:

You can see all of my 'How To' summaries on my 'How To - Tips and Techniques' Pinterest board in case you've missed any. 

It's not Mother's Day here in the UK until next month (March 19th) but it pays to be organised! Equally, if you don't make or send Mother's Day cards, this could be easily adapted and used as a fancy birthday card for someone special. These kinds of card do take a long time to make, however for someone special it's totally worth it. I'm linking up today's card over at The Flower Challenge where they are asking us to use our newest flower stamps and dies - it looks like I'm getting there just in time!

Here's a summary of our challenge rules:

• Create any card, scrapbooking page, 3D project or packaging project that fits the challenge.
• Please include the challenge graphic and link back to the challenge in your blog post. Turn off word verification so we can leave you lots of lovely comments. Make sure you link the post not the whole blog to the Linky. Use #AYSIXXX when uploading to a public gallery.
• If you’re unsure about ‘the rules’, check the details under the Challenge Guidelines tab on the As You See It Challenge homepage.

Enjoy your day. I'm off to the hairdressers first thing then am collecting the eldest of the James Juniors and a friend for a trip up north to Newcastle for a university offer day tomorrow, so that should be fun. I'll be back Sunday with my project for this week's Paper Players challenge so do join me then. Until then, happy stampin'!

Stampin' Up! Supplies Used:

CHIC DIES (35.00)	PAINTED TEXTURE 3D EMBOSSING FOLDER (8.50)	SPLIT CARD TEXTURES DIES (27.00)	BRUSHED BRASS BUTTERFLIES (9.50)	DISTRESSED GOLD 12" X 12" (30.5 X 30.5 CM) SPECIALTY PAPER (4.75)	TEXTURE CHIC 12" X 12" (30.5 X 30.5 CM) SPECIALTY DESIGNER SERIES PAPER (14.00)
SUBTLES 12" X 12" (30.5 X 30.5 CM) CARDSTOCK (13.00)	PETAL PINK CLASSIC STAMPIN' PAD (7.50)	MANGO MELODY CLASSIC STAMPIN' PAD (7.50)	FLIRTY FLAMINGO CLASSIC STAMPIN' PAD (7.50)	SOFT SUCCULENT CLASSIC STAMPIN' PAD (7.50)	BASIC WHITE A4 CARDSTOCK (9.75)
VERSAMARK PAD (9.00)	METALLICS EMBOSSING POWDERS (17.00)	SIMPLY ELEGANT TRIM (7.00)	STYLISH SHAPES DIES (28.00)	STITCHED RECTANGLE DIES (33.00)

Today I'm sharing a quick card that I made with the Favored Flowers designer series paper that is currently available free with a £45 purchase during Stampin' Up!'s Sale-A-Bration promotion:

Here's the low-down on today's card:

I used up a few more of my fussy cut flowers and this time I paired with a sentiment from the 'Peaceful Moments' stamp set and some co-ordinating banners using papers from the same pack.

These papers are bold and beautiful! The team over at TGIF Challenges are featuring Sale-A-Bration products this week so I'm linking today's card there - and remember, if you'd like to snap up these Favored Flowers papers you have just 6 more days to do so, so head on over to my online store now!

Here is the visual summary of the key products used on today's project for you to pin for easy reference:

You can see all of my 'How To' summaries on my 'How To - Tips and Techniques' Pinterest board in case you've missed any. 

Enjoy your day and I'll be back tomorrow with another project. Until then, happy stampin'!

Stampin' Up! Supplies Used:

PEACEFUL MOMENTS CLING STAMP SET (ENGLISH) (20.00)

STYLISH SHAPES DIES (28.00)

BLACKBERRY BLISS A4 CARDSTOCK (8.75)

FRESH FREESIA A4 CARDSTOCK (8.75)

BLACKBERRY BLISS CLASSIC STAMPIN' PAD (7.50)

BASIC WHITE A4 CARDSTOCK (9.75)

Today it's Sunday and time for this week's new challenge over at The Paper Players! It's the turn of the fabulous Ann to host this week and she has a fresh colour challenge for us to work with:

I thought these colours were perfect for a card to welcome a new baby so I grabbed Linda's layout over at Freshly Made Sketches and my 'Adorable Owls' stamp set and set to work. I This is what I came up with:

Here's the low-down on today's card:

I added a piece of Balmy Blue Country Gingham to the lower portion of my cardfront, then added a horizontal panel of clouds cut using the Basic Borders Dies. I stamped and coloured two owls in the challenge colours with my Stampin' Blends, then fussy cut them out. I sat my baby owl on her own cloud, courtesy of the Give It A Whirl Dies, popped up on dimensionals, then added my second owl. My baby owl has a pink bow since Rebecca's piano teacher has just become a father to a beautiful daughter named Harriet, so this card will be winging its way to him to congratulate the family on their new arrival. My heat-embossed sentiment is from the 'Charming Sentiments' bundle, which I diecut with the co-ordinating dies: 

These sentiments come in two halves - I used the second one on the inside of my card:

'Adorable Owls' is such a cute stamp set and even better because it's free with a £45 order during Sale-A-Bration which runs until the end of the month - got to love a free stamp set, right?!

Here is the visual summary of the key products used on today's project for you to pin for easy reference:

You can see all of my Product and 'How To' summaries on my 'How To - Tips and Techniques' Pinterest board in case you've missed any. 

Before you reach for your ink and papers, check out what our amazing team has created to inspire you this week:

Enjoy your day; the James Juniors are on half term this week, so this will be a week of exam revision mixed with a little R&R before getting back to it. I'll be back tomorrow with another project. Until then, happy stampin'!

Stampin' Up! Supplies Used: 

BASIC BORDERS DIES (27.00)	CHARMING SENTIMENTS BUNDLE (ENGLISH) (49.50)	GIVE IT A WHIRL DIES (37.00)	COUNTRY GINGHAM 6" X 6" (15.2 X 15.2 CM) DESIGNER SERIES PAPER (11.25)	BALMY BLUE A4 CARDSTOCK (8.75)	BASIC WHITE A4 CARDSTOCK (9.75)
TUXEDO BLACK MEMENTO INK PAD (5.75)	CRUMB CAKE STAMPIN' BLENDS COMBO PACK (8.50)	BALMY BLUE STAMPIN' BLENDS COMBO PACK (8.50)	PETAL PINK STAMPIN' BLENDS COMBO PACK (8.50)	SO SAFFRON STAMPIN' BLENDS COMBO PACK (8.50)	STAMPIN' BLENDS COLOR LIFTER (4.25)
VERSAMARK PAD (9.00)	BASICS EMBOSSING POWDERS (17.00)	BASIC BLACK A4 CARDSTOCK (8.75)

We are in our second and final month of this year's Sale-A-Bration promotion: you all know that this year's Sale-A-Bration promotion will end on 28th February and in addition to hosting and joining benefits (you can read about those here) you also earn a free product for every £45/90 spend - you can see the existing items here.

Good news: from now until the 28th February, there are more reasons to celebrate! You will also be able to choose from the catalogue items below (you must use the special code as detailed as opposed to the usual item code to get one of these items free with a £45/90 spend):

Remember, you need to use the special Sale-A-Bration item code for each product - these are different to the standard product codes for these items, which are still available to purchase in the annual catalogue. 

If you have your eye on any of the other Sale-A-Bration items, do bear in mind that they will only be available whilst stocks last - it is possible that they could run out before the end of the promotion, so don't leave it to0 late to place your order. 

I'll be back soon with another project. Until then, happy shopping!

Today I have my card for the new challenge over at Festive Friday Card Making and Paper Crafting Challenge. 

The challenge that we are celebrating this week is 'Galentine's Day' which is on 13th February. This celebration, falling the day before Valentine's Day, is all about celebrating female friendships. Remember the fun thing is that at Festive Friday you do not need to actually celebrate the occasion; your goal is to simply use three or more items from the inspiration list on your project. This week I really went to town and used a friendship sentiment, hearts, pink, purple, twine and something shiny and this is what I came up with:

Here's the low-down on today's card:

I wanted to use another of the comical felines in the 'Love Cats' stamp set for today's card and chose the one that paired best with the sentiment I wanted to use. I think 'I love hanging out with you' is the perfect sentiment to share some female love and let your bestie know how much you enjoy their company, don't you? 

I had a whole other layout originally planned for this card, until I saw the Try Stamping on Tuesday sketch layout - I rotated it through 90 degrees and thought the curve would be perfect for my acrobatic cat. In order to tuck the banner underneath the front of the cat to preserve the sense of perspective, I stamped the cat twice and carefully fussy cut the top half of one, so that I could adhere the banner and then add the upper portion of the cat over the top If you look closely you can see how I did this below:

I aligned the banner with the wire and stamped the sentiment in one straight line rather than as it is laid out on the original stamp as I wanted a long slim banner. It does make for a long banner, but I love the effect - and the long twine bow that ties my heart trinket follows the same contours, so I think it works. I found this little shiny heart in my retired embellishment stash and it was the exact same size as the stamped one, so was a perfect fit - serendipity indeed!

My colour scheme was inspired by the Dandy Designs designer paper I used on my car base - one of my favourite Sale-A-Bration free items this year - have you earned yours yet? You still have one more month to take advantage of the current Sale-A-Bration promotion. so don't miss out.

Finally, I'm also linking today's card up for a second entry over at Global Design Project #GDP379 where their theme this week is 'love'.

Here is the visual summary of the key products used on today's project for you to pin for easy reference:

You can see all of my 'How To' summaries on my 'How To - Tips and Techniques' Pinterest board in case you've missed any. 

How does our board inspire you? I can’t wait to see what YOU create! For more inspiration, be sure to visit the rest of the Festive Friday Card Making and Paper Crafting Challenge Design team:

 Enjoy your day and I'll be back tomorrow with another project. Until then, happy stampin'!

Stampin' Up! Supplies Used:

LOVE CATS CLING STAMP SET (ENGLISH) (20.00)

SCALLOPED CONTOURS DIES (33.00)

TUXEDO BLACK MEMENTO INK PAD (5.75)

FRESH FREESIA A4 CARDSTOCK (8.75)

BASIC WHITE A4 THICK CARDSTOCK (8.25)