Stamping; With Love!

 

In December my husband was spending whole evenings being very secretive on the computer, but being the lead up to Christmas I guessed that I ought not ask too many questions!  As it happens he was trying to ask me questions about certain preferences I had so it became clear that he was trying to design a stamp for the back of my cards.  I had to trust that he knew my tastes well enough to make one I liked.

Christmas Day came and I was thrilled with it!  Well done Paul! He put together the fact that I love hearts and that I also love postage stamp stamps and here you can see the result of that combination! 

 

It just so happens that the stamp fits perfectly inside the 1 3/4 inch Scallop Circle Punch by Stampin'Up!  If you put the punched circle back into the punch and line it up in the centre of each scallop and punch again you get the effect as shown in the picture above.  A bit fiddly but worth the effort as you get a lovely natural looking sunflower effect.

 

The great thing about having a punch like this one is that you can colour the ink to suit the card.  Some of the personal stamp designs you can get are pre-inked so not as versatile!  This stamp was adapted from a design Paul found on Etsy with a lady called Simone from DesignKandy in the U.S.  Alternatively there are some good ideas at The English Stamp Company, where you can custom make what you need by experimenting from a range of designs!

Need More Space!

My husband made this for me, but I think it may need an extension soon though!

Baptism Cards

Three commissioned  Baptism cards!

I could have just made three cards the same, but where is the fun in that?  The great thing about making your own cards is that you can tailor them to suit!  Whilst all three have the dove stamp (not Stampin' Up) they are all very different as you can see!  Can you spot what I did with the 'Lattice Bigz' die? Combining the 'Itty Bitty Shapes' punch with the 'Madison Avenue' stamp set is very affective I thought, even if they were a little fiddly! The 'Oh, Whale' stamp set was perfect for a little splash too, especially ideal for a teenager!

All stamps, punches & embossing folders available from Stampin'Up! Please contact me or leave a comment if you would like to know more!

I've been busy making!

 

Having had a weekend away where I made 40 cards and had a total of 7.5 hours sleep, I've increased my sleep intake and reduced card making production significantly since my return.  However I've have managed a few cards and the pictures here show some of them! I'll show my weekend away makes soon!

Happy Birthday to my Step Dad.

It's my Step Dad's birthday tomorrow and he's the Maintenance Manager at a big hotel in Great Yarmouth, so when I saw the amazing stamp Tool Shed in the current Stampin Up catalogue I just had to get it to make his card! 

The actual design is cased from Pinterest but I'm not sure who originally designed it. I added a few of my own personal touches of course, including the charming little brads I happened across in Craft & Candlelight on Bramford Road, Ipswich. Do pop in there for a look. Diane is lovely and will always order something for you if she doesn't have it, so long as it is available! Of course, if you would like anything from the Stampin Up catalogue you can give me a call!

Sale-a-bration Starts Today!

Today sees the start of Stampin Up's annual Sale-a-bration. As it is the Company's 25th anniversary, there are lots of extra choices.

If you spend £45 from any of the catalogues, you can choose a free item from the Sale-a-bration Brochure. 

Spend £90, choose two items. No limit! If you would like a Brochure and a copy of the new Spring/Summer Catalogue, please email me your details and I will pop one in the post to you :-)

Happy 2013!

It is so scary how fast the years pass and so true that it seems to go faster the older you get. When you sit thinking over things and remember how old you thought your Dad was on his 40th birthday back in 1987 and how young 40 really is now that you yourself have passed that landmark!  Or when you speak to your 19 year old son and mention that you were married in the 80's which are seriously the olden days! And when your home phone has been out of order for 5 days and the internet isn't therefore working and you start too feel like the Mayans must have been right and the world has come to an end - yet no internet existed when I was 19 and my parents remember a time when there was no such thing as a home phone!

I have seen huge technological advancements in my lifetime which are nothing on those seen by my parents and grandparents generations yet life isn't quite what we expected when I was in high school and we imagined flying cars would be our norm as adults! 

What is very much the norm now and I must say a pleasurable norm is coffee shops whilst in town. And today I've managed Starbucks and Nero! If I popped to Costa I could make it a hat trick! And a coffee crawl to boot! 

I'd just like to wish you a happy happy year in 2013. If you're a crafting friend, I hope it's an inspiration filled one at that! And if you've never been there I am letting you know that Pinterest is seriously bad for your time management so avoid it at all costs! 

Bye for now! 

Karen x

Cupboard Trilogy Design

January's design on 'The Cupboard Trilogy' was 'Anything Goes'. The Design Team made a project of their own choice and the challenge was to do your own take on it whilst keeping the same layout. 

I did a card for my son's 18th as my DT entry.  I had planned on posting this whilst the challenge was still active but due to being unwell I've only just got to being able to sort it.  Of course that means I'm feeling a fair bit better now which makes me smile! 

I will hopefully be blogging a bit more often if my health allows. I have a crafting weekend coming up so should certainly have a lot to report from that! 

See you soon my lovelies.

Karen x

AWOL

If my husband had disappeared for as long as I have from my blog when he was in the Army, he'd be in jail! Luckily I'm not in such trouble although I apologise for my absence. 

Here's my DT card for December!

Since I last blogged I have had the privilege of being invited to join The Cupboard Trilogy Design Team, which runs a monthly challenge with a badge award for your blog for top DT pick and a random generator picks a winner for a small prize.

It's a fun challenge with some lovely examples by the talented DT ladies. 

This month the challenge is titled Frosty Winter. Take a look at the website to see what it's all about and join in the fun if you fancy.

http://thecupboardtrilogychallenges.blogspot.co.uk

Apparently Christmas is coming!

It seems that no matter how much you bury your head in the mistletoe, Christmas still arrives in December every year! If you make your own Christmas cards, you really need to start earlier than October but for me this is positively early and may even mean I manage to make more than just two cards this year! I've always been rather put out at the materialism of the festive season causing decorations to appear in the shops earlier every year. However, I have realised that you do need to acknowledge it earlier than December if you want some homemade elements!

I've seem some people in the crafting world make a point of creating 5 cards a month throughout the year and may even adopt this policy next year myself, but this year alas I've actually only just made my second card! I had better get a move on and make it at least 3 by the end of today!

My First Swaps

There was a Stampin' Up Demonstrator/New Demo Interest training evening in Ipswich last Wednesday, run by Marisa and Becki, which I unfortunately wasn't able to make.  Today I'm meeting Marisa for our own little meeting which will, I'm sure, be every bit as nice. And in Costa too!  So I'm putting a picture on here of the first ever swap that I've made.  It's very simple but, I think, quite sweet! However, at the moment, the picture just isn't looking very good on my blog.  I promise it looks much nicer in real life!!!!

I'll add pictures of the three swaps Marisa was able pick up for me when I get home.  I'll also be in possession of the little pack of papers they used for the makes they did on the evening, so I'm looking forward to having a little play!!!

See you later x x

Ladies that Craft!

Thirteen lovely ladies, lots of paper, lots of glue, lots of punches, stamps and ink but most of all, lots of fun!

 

Thursday saw my sixth month at Ransomes Sports & Social Club for crafting.  In reality I can't call it a card class as a few ladies spend their time Scrapbooking! The one thing we all do equally is have a lovely time together. I had 12 ladies this month, being the most in one night, plus a VIP guest. Saskia is 7 years old and very clearly takes after her Nanny Janice as she's very talented, very lovely and very well behaved. Ok, well 2 out of the 3 are like her Nanny but I'm not going to publicly announce which ones they are! I leave that to your imagination!!!

Karen, where are you?

Well yes, I admit I have been missing from this blog for far too long but I haven't been missing from my craft room! And rather pleasantly, my craft room is really quite cool, with the exception of the halogen lamp I have to use so I can see enough (does anyone know where I can get a reasonable priced daylight lamp that doesn't throw out enough heat to put the sun out of business?!).

Anyway, the Stampin Up new Autumn Winter catalogue is in my hands along with a couple of the pre-release items available to us Stampin Up Demonstrators. Well there has to be a perk or two doesn't there?! So having had a play with 'one' of my favourites, I've produced a pretty little card that I thought I'd post for you to see!

The stamp set is called Perfectly Preserved but I've only used 2 of the 14 stamps in it! The papers are from a discontinued set of dsp called Pocketful of Posies. Rich Razzleberry and Bashful Blue are the colours I've pulled in along with Whisper White.

Pop Up Wedding Card

I delivered my first wedding card order last night. I used the beautiful Love & Laughter stamp with the Craft Whisper White ink pad on velum and Pear Pizzazz card stock. As you can see I also made use of the Confetti and Tiny Tags stamps.  I was very pleased with the results and hope my lovely customer, Jo was as well! (Please excuse the picture quality, the envelope seems to be obscuring the view of the base of the card, was taken in haste as we left to deliver on our way to an excellent Shakespeare play at Woodbridge High School) 

June 2012 Card Class

"Please Miss!" "Janice there really is no need to put your hand up!"

 Apparently, according to my husband, its impossible to get a picture of me with my mouth closed! I Have no idea what he means, I'm sure!  Last evenings card class was lots of fun and the ladies seemed to be very pleased with the outcome of all their hard work; there were lots of happy smiling faces as you can see below!

Nice layouts Bex!

My Layout!

Bex came up with some great layouts with the scrapping kit; very imaginative! I'm looking forward to seeing what they look like with photos on them!   I like to bring a nice selection of stamps and punches so that the scrappers can get even more creative, Bex was very excited about the Cupcake and Owl Punches!  Here you can see my take on the kit to help with inspiration.  Sarah did a similar layout to mine and it looked fab!  When I look at the picture on my layout it always makes me wonder where all the time has gone to!  Scrapping gives me so much pleasure and I always enjoy my escapes to Create and Co to do my own! 

If you would like to see the cards we made at this card class please visit my facebook page on the link on the left side of the blog! (If you look carefully you can see them below with Janice's and Nicola's beautiful makes!) Left is a close up of some of the stamp work using stamps from various sets (see labels below) to create this wonderful collage which I was really pleased with! 

Janice and Nicola

I can't wait 'til the next Card Class; I do love seeing all the lovely ladies, and we do have such a good laugh too! 

Rachel, Bex and Lizzie

The Country Celebrates my Brothers '40th'

A Picture from the TV

Baby Bearded Dragon

See what happens when your birthday coincides with the Queen; everyone else celebrates your birthday too!!!  I couldn't resist staying in theme with this Union Jack card, although I'm not convinced that the Queen will have been given any dragons for her birthday! Here is a picture of the little baby Bearded Dragon lizard we gave my brother as his birthday present.  My mum was very relieved that he doesn't live at home any more and that the lizard will not be staying at hers as they used to when he was younger!

(Did you spot the 'Parlour Prints' stamp embossed onto the 'Not Quite Navy' card stock?)

A Special Friend's Birthday Card.

My wonderful friend Emily had her birthday on Saturday and I had a lovely time on Friday afternoon making a special card for her.  She loves dots, as you would easily work out if you saw the accessories in her beautiful home - lots of red dots, or multicoloured dots everywhere.  Perhaps that's why we get on as I have been known to be called Dotty myself!  Anyway, I thought I'd put a picture of the card up now that Emily has received it.

'Cool' @ 42 Birthday!

Making the most of the football being on, I've grabbed the opportunity to get some extra crafting time in! Here is a layout of pictures from my birthday earlier this month using a mixture of my Scrapagogo kits (plus my own black doilie). I created a film strip with the June kits stamp and thought the letter set blended in nicely with the colour of the paper which also matched perfectly with the orange from the Ice Cream logo.

I felt very decadent drinking a glass of wine at lunchtime at The Waterfront Bistro & Bar (centre picture)!  After a wonderful meal with Paul we met the boys and headed off to one of my favourite places, The Little Ice Cream Company on Felixstowe Sea Front, for dessert. 

Later that evening I blew out candles on a cake that Joshua had bought me.  Not having the right numbers for the candles he turned the '5' back to front which apparently is the same as a '2'!  I'm not so sure but was very touched by the thoughtfulness, fun and kindness!

Below are the little 4x4 thank you cards I made for the lovely gifts I received! I absolutely love the Stampin' Up! 'Pedal Presents' bike and the 'Up Up and Away' balloons stamps; hopefully the card recipients will too!  As usual the quality of the stamps and inks are outstanding!

Card Class at Ransomes Sports and Social Club 31st May 2012

A display of all the kits and personalised sweetie boxes!

Sorry this is a bit late in coming but here we are with last months Card Class pictures.  I thought this time I would show you the prepared kits all ready and willing to go!  As you can see I decided to go along with the rest of the nation and do it in 'Jubilee' style!  The Union Jack was made up with so many strips I thought it might get confusing but as you can see below there were no such problems!  I gave my ladies some creative freedom so that they could use the same kit but vary their results; again below shows how good that can turn out!

I used mostly materials from the summer mini but had to adapt to get all I needed together for the Celebrate card.  On the blue background to the flag I used the Parlour Prints stamp in craft white and heat embossed using the cherry scented embossing powder from the summer mini; very effective I thought!  

I love to mess about with my punches and it is amazing how versatile they can be.  Using the Blossom punch and cutting off two of the petals you get a cool little butterfly!  I used a brad from the antiques pack to hold it in place!  The Blossom punch was also used to create the layered flower on the pop up card.  Again using different colours and papers the results were all unique!

The ladies loved having some sweets to nibble at to get the creative juice flowing!  Starburst will do that for you!!!  I'm really loving the Dotted Scallop Ribbon Border Punch.  It is very effective as an alternative to actual ribbon and looks great wrapped around the little personnalised (using the Timeless Type Junior Alphabet) boxes (made with the Bigz Scallop Square Clear die and scored on the Simply Scored Scoring Tool) made for the sweeties.  Try saying that after a glass or two of wine!!!!!

These two lovelies were created by Nicola as variations using the same kits!  It is always a delight to see what people come up with using their own imagination!

First Card Class at Ransomes Sports & Social Club - Summer Mini

These lovelies are Nicola's creations from the evening!

Lorraine, very pleased!

 

Bex, Rachael, Maggie and Jo

This Class was going to be a trial run held in the bar at Ransomes Sports and Social Club but in the event I had 10 lovely ladies come along so it was a good thing that we were given a great side room instead as it was polling day and the bar was a little busy!

The Scrappers!

We arrived and started to set up and before we knew it all the ladies had arrived and it was all go! Tracey and Dawn prefer to scrapbook so I prepared a little package each for them with papers, ribbons and embellishments and they were thrilled!  I was amazed at what they had come up with, Tracey having completed almost 4 layouts in the two hours with Dawn not far behind! Not so for Mike, who had bought them along, and Paul who took all that time enjoy a pint of beer in the bar, escaping from all us crazy ladies!

It looks chaotic, but creativeness is like that!

Jo Hard at Work

We had a wide range  of experience levels at the class from absolute beginners to expert and all made fantastic cards to take home with them.  It is very rewarding to see someone who has never made a card before to go away with

Lorraine, Sandra, Janice, Tracey and Dawn

something good enough to send to someone!

Everyone seemed to have a good time and some have already booked their places on the next one on 31st May.  If you would like to come along please contact me by email on karencurd@hotmail.co.uk or at Facebook via the link.  

Check out Nicola's Blog entries of the event by following links below!

The Cards :)

As promised here's a peek of the cards we made last night ...

A (Card) Class Act !

Last night was Stampin' Up! Card Class with the lovely Karen Curd, Janice, Lorraine, Sandra and I spent a couple of hours making cards and thoroughly enjoying ourselves , I was especially pleased to be out on a school night !!!