WOW PaperKRafter's Team Training

We had our WOW PaperKRafters team training this afternoon ~ which was heaps of fun and very busy. We played with the heat n' stick powder and made a cute card which I'll post at a later date, we had a lovely demonstration of the bride and groom treat boxes by Janine and we all made a cute cocktail drink/card that Julia had shown Karen. We also did swaps using sets from the Summer mini catalogue, due to be released on 1 December.  I'm certain we were in training for Christmas too coz we and ate (too much), drank (Moet) and had lots of laughs!!  What a lovely way to spend an afternoon ~ thanks ladies and especially Karen my wonderful upline, for being a great hostess and sharing your special bubbles with us.

Here's the swap that I made using the new Butterfly Prints stamp set, co-ordinating punch and large grommet (the metal thing that the ribbon is poking out of).  I've also used Bella Rose designer series paper both on the top and bottom part of the card (unfortunately my camera doesn't take too kindly to night time photography) and for the first time ever, I used the distressing tool around the message. 


                                     

Brownie Gift Box

I made this gorgeous gift box at the Extravaganza earlier in the month with Rachael and Denise. Thanks ladies ~ I know that I'll be making some more in the not too distant future. There use to be a slice of chocolate brownie inside but that's long gone... (yum, yum in my tum). 

We used the Spotlight on Christmas and Oval All stamp set and the Ski Slope Designer series paper. This paper and Oval All set won't be available after 30 November, so if you want to order one or both or you want to learn how to make this lovely gift box, contact me here.

Christmas Cracker

I had a very successful class today where there was lots of fun had by all!!  Here's one of the projects that we made ~ a Christmas cracker. There were lots of oooohhs and aaarhhs when I bought the sample out which is a good indicator, that I'm doing something right.  Another demonstrator ~ the very talented Rachael made some of these crackers at the recent Dunkleys craft show, so you may have seen them there. We made ours slightly bigger, so you can fit more goodies inside. They are very easy to make, so if you want me to show you how, contact me and we'll get together.  

Chocolate Pull Pouch

This is a cute little stocking filler which takes minutes to make.  You can't actually see the chocolate bar but it is tucked away inside the pouch.  How long the chocolate stays there, is anyones guess....lol.  The stamp set I used is Punch Pals rrp $66.95 for a set of 12 stamps, which I think is great value for money.  I've coloured in the images with watercolour wonder crayons and a blender pen.

A Christmas/Thank you card

My daughter asked me to make her a Christmas/Thank You card to give to Mrs Ferguson who is the canteen lady Nicole has been working with at school during lunch times, for the last 3 years. Normally I would encourage Nicole to make the card herself, but she's been busy studying and getting ready for her exams next week, so I was happy to have an excuse to play. Thanks Mrs F for being a great support person and giving Nicole a wonderful experience in food handling and customer service. You've also been a awesome role model and she's thoroughly enjoyed her time spent with you!  The free lunch on Fridays had nothing to do with it either... And, a big thank you from me too!!  Are you sure you won't part with that delicious muesli slice recipe??  The colours I used for the card are a replica from the gift card holder I made at the Extravaganza last weekend. They work very well together especially with the hint of brushed metallic silver cardstock for the scallop edge and scallop circle.

More birthdays...

I've had a fun time lately ~ creating (and casing) birthday cards for friends and family!!

Here are three more birthday cards that I sent off earlier in the week...  My favourite one is the card on the left using the Fifth Avenue Floral stamp set.  I've made this card a few times, but this is the first time I've stamped it using chocolate chip, baja breeze and kiwi kiss.  I think I need a new camera because the photo doesn't do it justice, but trust me ~ it looks very elegant and these colours go wonderfully together.  The brads are old olive from the Earth Elements set and although they're not a perfect match, they're close enough to work.  

 

Christmas Card Class Part II

I held my second Christmas card class last weekend and these were the cards we made (2 each of the 3 designs). The card on the right used the Tree Trimming stamp set from the Spring Mini Catalogue and is very reasonably priced at $28.95.  Items in this catalogue are only available until the end of the month. I cased the card from my very talented upline, Karen. You can view her blog here.  There are so many great designs using these baubles, so if you are interested let me know and I'll email you some of them.  It's quite hard to see from the photo, but the little bows have been tied using the linen thread. A very cute idea!

 

The card on the left was cased from Patrice Halliday-Larsen which was the swap I received at our last big team training. I think it's soooooo adorable and just love it!  I'm sorry that I couldn't do the card justice and tried several times to use my brayer but got a disastrous result, so I resorted to Rudolph being mounted on Going Grey CS which gives a similar effect of Rudolph's nose glowing in the dark. 
 
The middle card I created myself (which I think is amazing, that I have found the time to do so ~ admittedly, it was somewhere between midnight and 2am one night) although the layout is quite common. The Christmas tree is from the Snow Swirled stamp set ($53.95 for 6 stamps) and is stamped in silver and clear embossed.  I've used a green Rhinestone Brad from the Circle Ice set ($23.95 for 84 brads) on top of the tree which is quite effective.

Christmas Gift Giving Guide with FREE shopping!!

You’ll love the convenience of our Christmas Gift-Giving Guide! With gift ideas for kids, teens, neighbours, and more, it’s your one-stop shop for all your Christmas needs.

Plus, when you spend $105 on products in the guide, you’ll get a FREE scallop square punch a $35.95 value!

Click HERE download the Gift Giving Guide, so it's readable...

I know what I'll be ordering a few of ~ the On Board 5" x 5" Art Journal ($16.25) for my teenage daughters, a few of their friends and my neices.  They're into decorating, embellishing and signing each others school diaries at the moment ~ so I think this will go down a treat.  A bit like the old "autograph book" I had when I was younger.

Don't forget that it might be a good idea for you to start leaving wishlists scattered around the house for your spouse to 'stumble' upon!

I can also organise Gift Certificates in a gorgeous Christmas themed gift holder, if that is more his style. I can make them out to any denomination, and they are valid for 6 months. You may have a crafty friend or two yourself, who would appreciate one! 

Just contact me HERE if you'd like to make your gift-giving really easy. I can also organise to have their gift shipped straight to them if they don't live locally.

Or, if your birthday is coming up, why not tell that special someone in your life what you really want!

Birthday Season is upon me!!

I'm in the middle of the birthday season at the moment. Between 15 October and 10 November I have 14 people either in my family or close friends to make cards for. Then, I have a bit of a break (a week) for another friend, then my oldest daughter Nicole turns sweet 16th birthday on 17th December. She shares her day with my SIL Lyn in Australia.

This is one of the cards I cased from the very talented Michelle Cave from Hastings. She had made hers using Urban Garden which looked stunning, but I've used Raspberry Tart DSP. Flight of the Butterfly stamp set sells for $63.95 for 10 stamps ~ 4 message stamps and 6 cute images which use the two step stamping method or can be stamped alone as done here.