Hello everyone - I'm back! Following a longer than anticipated Christmas break (sometimes, family simply has to come first) the new year brings with it lots of Stampin' Up! goodness: it's time to shake off the January blues, today is THE day - yes, the highlight of the Stampin' Up! calendar, Sale-A-Bration is here! No more sneak peeks - the catalogue is available, the shop is live and from now until 31st March the benefits are yours for the taking. You can click on the catalogue on the right hand side of my blog page or below to access the Sale-A-Bration leaflet to download a copy or click on the icon above or on the right to go directly to my online shop to place an order - we are LIVE!

So what is Sale-A-Bration? For anyone who hasn't come across it before, it's Stampin' Up!'s annual promotion that is loaded with offers whether you shop, join or host:

Earn a free Sale-A-Bration product for every £45 you spend between 3 January and 31 March. There is also the opportunity to earn even bigger rewards with a £90 purchase. It's the perfect time to purchase those products you've had on your wish list and earn more products for free! 

It’s the best time of year to join Stampin’ Up! There are 2 fabulous joining options during this year's Sale-A-Bration promotion: Option 1, you can become a demonstrator for just £99 and choose £71 more of FREE products for your Starter Kit. That's an extra £40 worth of product in your starter kit when compared to the usual £130. Alternatively there is option 2: for £125, you can receive £170 worth of craft items and this exclusive Craft & Carry Tote to carry it all around in too! The tote bag is absolutely fabulous and a must have for all crafters - check it out in this video:

Isn't it just great?! Plus, the whole kit ships for free! There is plenty of choice and flexibility, whether you want to be a hobby demonstrator and just use your discount to enable you to purchase craft supplies more cheaply, or alternatively would like to build a flourishing direct sales business and sell supplies to others - it's entirely up to you. 

Earn an additional £20 in hostess credits when you host a party and have party sales of £200 or more (this also applies to individual orders). So for party sales of £200, that makes a whopping £40 of Stampin' Rewards - more freebies! What's more, you can even apply your Stampin' Rewards to a Starter Kit and become a demonstrator yourself - I would love to welcome you to my team!

If you would like to host a party, real or virtual, please do get in touch; my diary is filling up but there are still lots of slots available and I would love to share these great benefits with you. If you've ever thought about becoming an SU! demonstrator, now is a great time to do so - I would love to have a no-obligation chat with you about joining my team and the benefits.

As if that wasn't enough, today also sees the launch of the new Spring-Summer catalogue - full of gorgeous new products:

Just click on the image above or in the sidebar on the right to browse the catalogue online, or contact me on 07773 421446 if you would like a paper copy posted out to you and you don't already have a demonstrator. If you are as excited as me and just can't wait, here's the link to my online store - everything is available to purchase from today!

If you would like more information on any of the above, please don't hesitate to get in touch! 

Thanks so much for popping by - it's always nice to share good news! Back soon with lots of projects showcasing products from the new catalogue. Until then, happy shopping!

Happy Easter Sunday wishes everyone! It's time for this week's new challenge over at The Paper Players! It's the turn of the amazingly talented Laurie to host this week and she has a fun theme challenge for you to work with:

I don't have much in the way of music-themed supplies in my collection and usually end up resorting to my e-cutter to create music-themed cards and gifts (you can see some of my previous examples here and here), so I was thrilled to see the Epic Celebrations set in this year's Sale-A-Bration promotion. As the wife of a guitarist and the other mother of two almost-teens, one of whom is in a band and both of whom are into either listening to or playing music in a big way, this set was a must-have for me. So whilst Sale-A-Bration has now ended, this set is a keeper and I just had to use it on today's card. I also used this week's sketch at Freshly Made Sketches for my layout - take a look:

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

Epic Tone on Tone - I decided to use a simple tone-on-tone stamped background in Real Red using the guitar stamp to create some detail and to highlight my main focal image, which I stamped and heat embossed in black on watercolour paper, then coloured with my aqua painter. I added this to a collection of stars and bits and pieces to add a touch of 'glam rock' to my card. 

A LittleSheet Music - The border panel is a section of the background stamp 'Sheet Music', which I simply stamped onto Whisper White and cut out a section for added interest in keeping with the theme.

A Punny Sentiment - My punny sentiment is courtesy of the now-retired 'Crazy About You' set, which was perfect for this card. I also used the 'You're Awesome' sentiment from the Epic Celebrations set on the inside of my card:

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. 

This card is headed to my pile as a thank you for one of Rebecca's teachers; she will be performing the role of Brigitte in her whole school production of Rogers & Hammerstein's 'The Sound of Music' next term and there are an army of staff involved in making this happen, including her Maths teacher, who also plays electric guitar. The girls at school think he is super cool, so this card will be perfect for him!

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

I can't wait to see how you interpret this week's theme and look forward to visiting your blogs this week! Enjoy the rest of your weekend - enjoy your Easter egg hunts and eat as much chocolate as you can safely consume! I'll be back tomorrow with another project; until then, happy stampin'!

Stampin' Up! Supplies Used: 

Epic Celebrations Clear-Mount Stamp Set (£0.00)	Sheet Music Clear-Mount Stamp Set (£13.00)	Real Red A4 Cardstock (£7.25)	Real Red Classic Stampin' Pad (£6.00)	Watercolor Paper (£4.50)
Metallic Foil Doilies (£3.75)	Hearts & Stars Elements (£5.50)	Brights Enamel Shapes (£8.25)	Silver Foil Sheets (£3.75)	Tuxedo Black Memento Ink Pad (£5.50)

Today it's the last day to snap up a Sale-A-Bration freebie, whether that's free stamps with your starter kit when you join my team, extra hostess rewards when you place an order of £200 or more or a free gift with a purchase of £45 or more. You only have until 10.50pm this evening though, so don't leave it too late!

I'm sharing the last of my Sale-A-Bration makes with you today, a party banner featuring the Bubble Over stamp set and Bottles & Bubbles Framelits Dies, and the FREE Bubbles & Fizz Designer Series Paper - take a look:

My banner letters are courtesy of the Letters For You stamp set and co-ordinating Large Letters framelits, on some layered circles before adding to the pennants featuring all of the designer paper designs. Here's a picture of it hanging properly at last November's Onstage event:

This is a great set for making part banners for a birthday or summer BBQ celebration (if it stops raining for long enough here in the UK to light one, of course!) and the Bubbles and Fizz designer papers add great colour and pattern with a fun party vibe.

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. 

I'll be back tomorrow with this week's project for our new challenge over at The Paper Players. Until then, happy stampin'!

Stampin' Up! Supplies Used:

Bubble Over Photopolymer Bundle (£36.00)	Bubbles & Fizz Designer Series Paper (£0.00)	Letters For You Photopolymer Stamp Set (£44.00)	Large Letters Framelits Dies (£89.00)	Layering Circle Framelits Dies (£32.00)
Lemon Lime Twist 1/4" Ombre Ribbon (£6.25)

I hope you are all enjoying the start of a long bank holiday weekend. We have already enjoyed a morning of fresh air, followed by an afternoon of chocolate and a movie to avoid the return of the rain here in the UK. I am so done with winter now!

Today I thought I would share with you the first of the projects that I made with the ladies that attended my recent luxury craft weekend earlier this month. I won't be sharing any instructions on how they were made - these are reserved for those that attended - however I am sharing lots of photos of the projects that I designed as it is a great way for my readers to get a flavour of what a residential crafting retreat with me is like and the kinds of projects included. With 4 classes spread over 2 days, it's a great opportunity to tackle a variety of projects and also some that are a little more time-consuming than can be completed in a class that is of a shorter duration.

Today I'm sharing one of my favourite projects: a mini album I made featuring the Sweet Soiree Memories and More cards that are one of the current Sale-A-Bration gifts that can be yours free with a purchase of £45 or more, for just over another 24 hours:

Berry Burst cardstock forms the base of this expandable album and in addition to the Sweet Soiree Memories and More card pack, the Sweet Soiree Embellishment Kit has been used to decorate the cover and inside. 

This is what album looks when you first open it:

Fully extended, the album is four panels wide:

Each side then expands further to include additional flaps and pockets on both sides:

The album includes lots of areas to add photographs and capture memories, including this neat waterfall feature:

This album was certainly the most challenging of the projects we tackled during the retreat and was not for the fainthearted! The feedback was really positive though and everyone was so pleased with their creations; some ladies reported feeling truly amazed and thrilled to have tackled something like this, which they would not have ever contemplated on their own. I was personally thrilled with how positively this was received, as I've never led a class quite like this before. I'm already taking the learns from this project to create another version that is equally 'wow' yet a little easier to recreate.

If you would like to make projects like this one at a future retreat, please sign up to my newsletter by clicking on the icon in the right-hand column to ensure you receive the information for future retreats as soon as it is released or click here for more information - details for my next retreat will be announced in the coming weeks!

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 evening and I'll be back tomorrow with one last project featuring Sale-A-Bration item. Until then, happy stampin'!

Stampin' Up! Supplies Used:

Sweet Soirée Memories & More Card Pack (£0.00)

Sweet Soirée Embellishment Kit (£10.00)

Berry Burst A4 Cardstock (£7.25)

I've a quick post for you this evening to share a card I made a couple of months ago in my Sale-A-Bration class using one of the Sale-A-Bration sets that has been hugely popular with my customers - take a look:

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

Heartfelt Blooms - Heartfelt Blooms is one of Stampin' Up!'s new Distinktive stamps: they lay down ink at different opacities, giving the finished image more depth. When you look at the stamp itself, you almost wonder if it will stamp anything, yet lightly inking the stamp results in a perfect photographic finish. The set also has three useful, beautifully scripted sentiments too - I particularly like the wording of the one I used on this card.

A Touch Of Colour -  The Heartfelt Blooms image can either be stamped in a single colour to create a simple monochromatic card, or stamped in a neutral base that allows colour to be added. Today's card is based on one that appeared in our quarterly demonstrator magazine where the image is stamped in Archival Black on Shimmery White cardstock, then colour is subtly added over the image using inks and an aquapainter. 

Petal Passion Stripes - I paired the image with an angled panel of Petal Passion striped designer series paper; the brushstroke-style stripes compliment the image perfectly.

If you would like to add this set to your stamp collection, you only have another couple of days to do so before the end of this year's Sale-A-Bration promotion, after which it will be gone forever!

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. 

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

Stampin' Up! Supplies Used:

Heartfelt Blooms Clear-Mount Stamp Set (£0.00)	Aqua Painters (£15.50)	Old Olive Classic Stampin' Pad (£6.00)	Basic Black Archival Stampin’ Pad (£6.50)	Petal Passion Designer Series Paper (£10.00)
Shimmery White A4 Cardstock (£7.25)	Powder Pink A4 Cardstock (£7.25)	Powder Pink Classic Stampin' Pad (£6.00)	Crushed Curry Classic Stampin' Pad (£6.00)	Old Olive 3/8" Mini Chevron Ribbon (£6.25)
Old Olive Baker's Twine (£2.75)	Iridescent Sequin Assortment (£4.50)

I am a little behind in sharing this one (life seems to be getting in the way of blogging lately!) but I wanted to make sure that you were all aware that new products have been added to the Sale-A-Bration gift list for the final two weeks of this fabulous promotion. You all know that this year's Sale-A-Bration promotion will end on 31st March 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 and here.

Good news: from now until the 31st March, 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):

To make things easier for you, I've created a table linking each of the products directly to the promotional item in my online store - just click on the links below:

Color Me Happy Project Kit	Chocolate Chip & Tranquil Tide Stampin' Write Markers	Gold 1/8" (3.2 Mm) Ribbon	Pick A Pattern A4 Cardstock Pack
Birthday Memories Designer Series Paper	Myths & Magic Glimmer Paper 6" X 6" (15.2 X 15.2 Cm)	Just Add Color Specialty Designer Series Paper	6" X 17" (15.2 X 43.2 Cm) Gusseted Cellophane Bags
Scattered Sequins Dynamic Textured Impressions Embossing Folder	Simple Stripes Textured Impressions Embossing Folder	Petal Pair Textured Impressions Embossing Folders	Cable Knit Dynamic Textured Impressions Embossing Folder
Sweet Cake Framelits Dies	Petals & More Thinlits Dies

Remember, if you aren't placing your order via the above links, 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.

One of the new products available free with a £45 spend is the Color Me Happy Project Kit - designed to be used with the Color Me Happy stamp set and launched to celebrate the release of our new Stampin' Blends alcohol markers and as it isn't a set that you can see in either of the current catalogues, I though this would be a good day to share mine here with you so that you can get a closer look. As with so many of Stampin' Up!'s kits, the kit is choc-full of embellishments and high-quality pre-printed card bases, along with foiled envelopes, so that you can stamp and colour to complete 16 gorgeous cards, 4 each of 4 designs - take a look:

Here's the first one, along with its co-ordinating envelope:

Here's the second one - a fun little card to brighten someone's day:

The third design:

And finally the fourth design - some of my customers will be receiving this card this month as a token of my appreciation:

And finally here's a shot of all four card designs together:

Whether you use in conjunction with the Color Me Happy stamp set or substitute with other stamps from your collection, the kit is definitely worth getting your hands on - especially if you pick it up for FREE!

Both the stamp set and card kit are still available to purchase too, at a 10% discount if you buy together as a bundle, whilst stocks last - the links for these are included below. Better still, why not purchase the stamp set and markers that you need and pick up the kit as a Sale-A-Bration item for free? This would also make for a fun crafty evening with friends - please get in touch if you'd like to talk to me about hosting one of these in either April or May - my diary is booking up fast!

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 to late to place your order. 

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

Stampin' Up! Supplies Used:

Color Me Happy Clear-Mount Bundle	Color Me Happy Project Kit	Color Me Happy Clear-Mount Stamp Set	Pool Party Stampin' Blends Markers Combo Pack	Night Of Navy Stampin' Blends Markers Combo Pack
Pumpkin Pie Stampin' Blends Markers Combo Pack	Pink Pirouette Stampin' Blends Markers Combo Pack

It's Sunday and time for this week's new challenge over at The Paper Players! It's the turn of the delightful Jaydee to host this week and she has a rather timely theme challenge for you to work with:

My card was totally inspired by the lovely inspiration photo Nance chose for Jaydee's challenge badge this week: those red tulips are just lovely so I had to feature some on my card today. We have been experiencing sub-zero temperatures here in the UK for the past week, along with significant snowfall and I for one am ready for Spring, even if only with my card today - take a look:

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

Get Tranquil Tulips For Free - Tranquil Tulips is one of the hostess sets in the annual catalogue, that is available exclusive to those that host a Stampin’ Up! party or place a personal order of £150 or more. A gorgeous set with blooms that can be stamped directly or fussy cut and layered as I’ve done here. Sale-A-Bration is the best time of year to host a Stampin’ Up! party, as with qualifying sales you can earn an extra £20 in rewards on top of the usual levels. I’ve had lots of customers take advantage of this and earn this sets and lots of other free produc, whilst having a fun evening with friends into the bargain. If you would like to earn this set for free, then talk to me about hosting your own party - I still have a few slots left this month if you would like to squeeze one in before the end of the month, but you’ll have to be quick!

A Tutti Frutti Pattern - I paired my red tulips with some blue grape hyacinths and that inspired the colour scheme for the rest of my card. The background paper is from the Tutti Frutti paper stack - lots of bold fruit patterns here, but if these are not your thing there are some great patterns such as the one I’ve used today on the reverse of each sheet too.

A Spring Banner - I took the wording for my banner from the current ‘Hello Easter’ set and paired it with the banner from the Bunch of Banners set to fit my theme. Some navy crinkle seam binging ribbon finishes my card.

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:

I can't wait to see how you interpret this week's theme and look forward to visiting your blogs this week! Enjoy the rest of your weekend as it will be over all too quickly.

I am spending today with a bunch of lovely ladies who braved the British weather to join me for my first residential luxury crafting retreat. Yesterday was a craft-packed day and theres just as much fun in store today. Wish you were here to join in the fun too!

I'll be back tomorrow with another project; until then, happy stampin'!

Stampin' Up! Supplies Used: 

Tranquil Tulips Photopolymer Stamp Set	Tutti-Frutti 6" X 6" (15.2 X 15.2 Cm) Designer Series Paper	Hello Easter Photopolymer Stamp Set	Night Of Navy 5/8" Crinkled Seam Binding Ribbon	Lots Of Labels Framelits Dies
Whisper White A4 Thick Cardstock	Night Of Navy A4 Cardstock	Night Of Navy Classic Stampin' Pad	Crushed Curry Classic Stampin' Pad	Wild Wasabi Classic Stampin' Pad
Real Red Classic Stampin' Pad	Bunch Of Banners Framelits Dies	Banners For You Photopolymer Stamp Set	Glitter & Clear Epoxy Shapes

Today I'm sharing a 3D project with you that is the ultimate showcase of the Sale-A-Bration Bubbles & Fizz papers, so is perfect for this week's Global Design Project challenge:

Why is it the ultimate DSP showcase? Well there's not a single bit of stamping on today's project - take a look:

A multi-coloured and fully functional working clock - how fun is that?! Here's the low-down on today's project:

No Stamping Required - This is another of the projects that I showcased at Onstage back in November and is a real favourite of mine. You know how much I love those Bubbles and Fizz papers and this project showcases 3 of the designs (4 if you count the decorated pizza box I used to gift wrap it!): the multi-coloured bubble background, the bottle tops indicating where the numbers are and the bottles that form the clock hands. All three papers work really well together and leave no need for any stamping on this project.  

Bottles and Tops - Well, Bottles and Bubbles actually - well framelits that is, that fit the Bottles and Fizz paper perfectly. On each of these sheet designs every bottle and top can be cut out perfectly with the co-ordinating framelits, so there is no wastage. 

A Touch of Gloss - I added a layer of fine tip glue to my bottles and tops before attaching the to my clock face, to give a layer of shine and protection. That's all there is to it!

This project uses a simple clock kit that you can buy at any craft store and is great if you have customers who like home decor projects but are not big stampers (I have a group of those!) The clock is also fun - great for decorating the bedroom of a discerning teenager or maybe a student away from home. It really doesn't use much in the way of supplies and whilst you only need the framelits for this project, you are definitely going to want to buy the bundle to benefit from the stampset too and explore further creative opportunities.

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 weekend; I will be hosting my first two day residential Stampin' Sanctuary luxury craft retreat so will not be blogging tomorrow. I'll be back on Sunday with another project for this week's new challenge over at The Paper Players though so be sure to tune in then. Until then, happy stampin'!

Stampin' Up! Supplies Used:

Bubbles & Fizz Designer Series Paper

Bottles & Bubbles Framelits Dies

Fine-Tip Glue Pen

Having a busy few days putting the final touches to my craft retreat this weekend, so a quick post from me to share a card that is perfect for the challenge over at Just Add Ink this week:

For my 'h' I had to go with 'h for happy' as in the 'Happy Wishes' Sale-A-Bration set - take a look:

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

Happy Birthday Wishes - The 'Happy Wishes' stamp set is one of three items available with a £90 purchase during the current Sale-A-Bration promotion - a great sentiment set with so many possibilities. Two large floral words and 14 additional stamps with words and phrases that can be combined to create a wide variety of sentiments. Useful and pretty too!

Easy Ombre - I made a version of this card in my recent Sale-A-Bration class and wanted to teach those present how to create an easy ombre effect by inking a stamp in a single, light colour (here I inked my 'happy' in Powder Pink) and then add ink in a complimentary darker colour, such as Berry Burst, with my sponger dauber to the lower portion of the stamp. A fun technique that is easy to achieve - always a winner. Once stamped, I added a little more Powder Pink to the florals on the stamped image with my blender pen for a little added detail. 

Love The In-Colours - My card features a little Powder Pink but is otherwise all about the Berry Burst - ink, some in-colour patterned designer series paper and a bow in that lovely, soft Berry Burst crinkle ribbon. In case you couldn't tell, I just love this in-colour - I think it might be my current favourite! 

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. 

That's all from me today; I'll be back tomorrow with another project. Until then, happy stampin'!

Stampin' Up! Supplies Used:

Happy Wishes Clear-Mount Stamp Set	Berry Burst Classic Stampin' Pad	Powder Pink Classic Stampin' Pad	Fresh Florals Designer Series Paper Stack	Berry Burst 5/8" Crinkled Seam Binding Ribbon
Whisper White A4 Thick Cardstock	Lots Of Labels Framelits Dies	Pearl Basic Jewels

Yay it's Friday! Another fun beer bottle to end the week, this time the make and take card from our Onstage event:

This card design is great for showcasing those fabulous bold and bright patterns in the Bubble Over Designer Series Paper Pack - it's also a good way to use up scraps of paper that you may have lying around from other projects. Paired with a mat stamped with bubbles, a bottle and some of those lovely sparkly Glitter and Clear Epoxy Shapes, this thank you card is sure to brighten anyone's day!

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. 

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

Stampin' Up! Supplies Used:

Bubbles & Fizz Designer Series Paper	Bubble Over Photopolymer Bundle	Lemon Lime Twist Classic Stampin' Pad	Calypso Coral Classic Stampin' Pad	Whisper White A4 Cardstock
Bermuda Bay A4 Cardstock	Lemon Lime Twist A4 Cardstock	Glitter & Clear Epoxy Shapes