Blue Angel Crafts

Happy Birthday Aunty Cath

2012-02-05T10:47:00.001Z

Tomorrow is my SIL Cath's birthday. So today we're popping over to their place to celebrate. Here's the card I made her with some Saleabration goodies:

Love how you get a punchable picture and Happy Birthday to stamp inside.

This week Munchkin and I ventured up to London with my Mum to visit munchkin other Aunty. We went to lunch at Yo! sushi in Selfridges:

She was quite good after a week of being off colour. You'd never believe the trouble this cute little face has caused in the wee small hours!:

Thaaaaanks

2012-02-04T10:27:00.001Z

Morning all. It's chilly outdoors so why not stay in and craft?

Today I have a card to share that my upline Natalie designed. It uses the Outlined Occasions set and the gorgeous Saleabration papers:

This is the card that's made me crazy about Poppy Parade!!

I'm off to do a Demonstration at Tongham Community centre today. Wish me luck!

Yipee for the park!

2012-01-31T10:13:00.001Z

You make my whole face smile

2012-01-30T21:10:00.001Z

Hooray for Monday. We had a lovely day playing today and having adventures which made my whole face smile! A bit like this card designed by Fiona:

Simple colour scheme and a really striking card!!

You did it!

2012-01-29T20:07:00.001Z

Here's another Sale-a-bration card featuring stars:

Love this bright colour combination and zingy stars.

The yellow part was clear embossed on White card and the Daffodil Delight yellow was sponged over the top. Simple and yet another fun technique to try.

We had a good go in the garden today and many areas have been cleared plus the space for the playhouse is patio tiled in preparation. Well, ok, we have my parents to thank for the majority of the work and DH dud brilliantly too.

Here are a couple of Munchkin photos dedicated to my lil sister.

Thanks Amy

2012-01-28T13:53:00.001Z

Today we had a busy start as we went to Heathrow at 8am to see one of my best friends pass through on her way to new Zealand. It was a bit bitter sweet as we had such a short time together but it was so worth it. Munchkin had a blast dashing about the terminals too!

Then it was on to my friend Amy's crafty coffee morning to make this card:

Originally designed by the super talented Jade, Amy had prepped this gorgeous creation for everyone to enjoy. As I haven't got the cupcake punch it was fun to play with it.

My friend Ruth was there and here she is with her creation:

Such fun and a great start to the weekend!

Elementary Elegance/decadence

2012-01-27T22:46:00.001Z

Hello all. It's been another long week with no posts. Apologies about that.
The good news is that there are lots of Sale-a-bration inspirational photos to come so that's at least something:

This one is featuring Elementary Elegance which is just fab, as well as this year's new In Colors.

To make the paper ribbon you simply take a strip of card, fold it under and then back out and cut a 'v' in each end. A cheap and easy way to make 'ribbon' for any card or project. Plus a great way to use up all those odds and ends you've got stashed in a box.

I used to think it was just me who couldn't chuck away scraps but it turns out most crafters are the same!

Hope you've got an exciting weekend coming up. I'm so excited to be seeing one of my best friends who lives in France as she stops over in Heathrow tomorrow morning for a couple of hours so I'm going there to hangout with her before she flies on to New Zealand!!

Mini artist at work

2012-01-21T10:29:00.001Z

Recently my artistic side has been on holiday. Fortunately the craft stash isn't being neglected:

Ch-ch-ch-cherish

2012-01-19T15:48:00.001Z

Recognise this card? It's based on the cards on pg100-101 in the main catalogue:

The colours are Soft Suede, River Rock and Melon Mambo. I used Baroque Motifs stamp set. This is my favourite fall-back stamp set.... What's your favourite stamp set???

It's been an irritating week as I lost my voice but thankfully, 3 days later, it's returning. Phew!

Hobbies page

2012-01-13T07:38:00.001Z

It's been a hectic week with everyone taking it in turns to be ill. So hectic that I haven't blogged!Not sure where I put my 2nd downline swap - somewhere among the debris of my craft room - instead I have this page to share with you:

It's based on one I saw at Convention 2011. The background card is Lucky Limeade stamped with Baroque Motifs (my 'go to' stamp set). I've mixed it with Melon Mambo and Elegant Eggplant and my trusty Big Shot made the embellishments.

Pip's swap

2012-01-08T20:59:00.001Z

Yesterday we had a great day as a team crafting! It was lovely to catch up with everyone after the festivities and there was lots of crafting and food too. Perfect!

A couple of the ladies brought swaps along and here is Pips:

It's official... Cupcakes are cool! The new cupcake set and build a Cupcake punch in the Spring Mini catalogue are SO cute!

Pip's swap is Island Indigo paired with Wisteria Wonder and a little White embossing! Scrummy. Even better, the sentiment comes from the set too!!

Check back tomorrow for another card I was given yesterday...

Charming

2012-01-06T08:36:00.001Z

It's Friiiiiiiday! Yipee!

Today I've a card made with the set Charming from the Spring mini catalogue.

The set was designed to help you make inserts for the jewellery collection that's been launched but the images are so sweet they make cute cards too!

This card was made with a Whisper White base with a Basic Black mat. I then added a piece of yummy brushed gold card, another piece of Black card and then the images stamped in black ink on White card.

I punched out the images using my square punch. These are new to my stash and I can't believe I've not had them before. They make creating a card like this super quick and simple AND there's no wonky angles!

Hope you have a good day preparing for the weekend.

Preview

2012-01-05T22:30:00.001Z

Not only is there excitement due to the new Mini catalogue (click image on top right to have a look) but Sale-a-bration is coming soon too!

Here is a preview I CASE'd from Convention with one of the amazing sets:

Cute, hey?

And for the Munchkin fans (aka John!!!) here is a picture snapped on Boxing Day:

Cherries!

2012-01-04T13:08:00.003Z

OK so it's not a preview! However the *NEW* Spring Mini catalogue 2012 is now LIVE!! Click here to see an electronic copy: http://204.228.150.61/catalogs/flash/en-GB/20111201_9d6d3773ac_mini/index.html

Email me if you want a paper copy or to order!

This is a card featuring cherries from the set Fruit & Flowers that I was actually given at Convention back in November! I used Real Red and Lucky Limeade markers to colour the cherries and then punched the images out with the 1" circle punch. Such a quick card to put together!

The sentiment is from another great set called Create A Cupcake which even has a co-ordinating cupcake punch available too!

Scrapbook class preview

2011-12-31T12:21:00.001Z

Hello blog readers! Yes, I'm back!!

I'm excited to announce that there is a new mini catalogue being released by Stampin Up! on 4th January 2012. If you'd like a copy please email me with your address to blueangelcrafts at gmail dot com.

So I have a preview for you... It's a copy of one of the gorgeous projects in the new mini:

Can't say much more right now but keep your eyes peeled for more previews! Oh, and if you're coming to scrapbook club on Tuesday 2nd January this is what we'll be creating!!!

Whatever you are doing for New Year have a great time. We are hosting a little family get together tonight and each couple is making one course of the dinner. Can't wait!

Ho ho ho

2011-12-24T19:50:00.001Z

Merry Christmas!

Please accept this as my festive greeting. What with a dip in my depression, endless illness in the family and taking on too much I've not sent too many cards this year. This will have to be in place of a card but is sent with love:

Munchkin decorating our gingerbread house!!!

P.S. There's a mini catalogue coming out at the start of January 2012 - email me with your address and I'll pop a copy in the post to you. Think of it as a post- Christmas pick-me-up.

Inky hugs xxx

And now for something a little different

2011-12-21T08:48:00.001Z

In all the excitement of Christmas I can forget the basics. Like remembering to wrap the gifts I took so long choosing. However this year I've been inspired to start a little earlier as I saw a great idea on Kirstie's Christmas show on C4.

You take Fimo modelling clay and use cookie cutters to make festive shapes then stamp messages on them.

The one above is for my Munchkin. I used the Broadsheet Alphabet set for the 'I', Just Perfect alphabet for the rest of her name and then the star image in Pennant Parade to decorate.

You then bake the clay according to the instructions on the packet. (Don't forget to pierce a hole at the top) When they cool I sponged over some Champagne paint for extra sparkle.

I'm going to add a bit of ribbon to attach it to a gift. The tag can then be used as a tree decoration so it's a double gift!

Here's another I made, this time for my Dad:

Speaking of gifts I was given a gift from a lovely friend, Lesley yesterday!

The bag itself is gorgeous, isn't it?

Inside was this:

Gingerbread cookie mix and a fab cutter! So thanks very much to Lesley. As soon as our house stops being full of sick people I'll be cooking them up!

Here's a little pic of Munchkin for my father-in-law. A momentary lapse of her illness. She's back to being a bit tired but hey, it's not like we've got much else to do, is it?! Poor lamb.

Super quick Christmas card

2011-12-20T06:28:00.000Z

This design was originally from Kristina Werner but I have adapted it quite a lot! It's a super fast card to put together in a batch and just uses one stamp set, Contempo Christmas. The sentiment and bauble image were stamped in Versamark and then embossed in Gold.

Have a corner rounder punch and a bauble punch makes cutting out the elements very quick.

The patterned paper could be any patterned paper that co-ordinates. This one is not a Christmas-sy design at all, but from the Hostess section of the current catalogue.

Hope that this card gives you some inspiration if you are still hunting!

Meeting baby Eva

2011-12-19T11:07:00.006Z

Yesterday we had the pleasure of meeting our friend's new baby, Eva. She is one month old today! She was such a cutie but I didn't get any good photos unfortunately.

Anyway I made her this card. It's based on a design I saw on Kristina Werner's blog only changed quite a bit!

The base is Pirouette Pink cardstock that has been stamped with the small background stamp, Dot Dot Dot in Pretty in Pink ink. I then layered a strip of Rose Red DSP and a strip of Elegant Eggplant cardstock. The circles were made with a 1" circle punch and the hearts were stamped separately.

The hearts came from the set Tiny Tags and were stamped in Rose Red, Wild Wasabi, Pumpkin Pie and Elegant Eggplant. I then cut them out close to the stamped image and then raised them up on Dimensionals.

To make Eva's name letters I used my Big Shot. It's just great to have the Big Shot. Before that I used to use those sticky letters but found I always ran out of certain letters (E and A usually went first!) and also they were not necessarily the right colour. The Big Shot allows me to cut letters in the colour I want and I could then dip them in Dazzling Diamonds glitter. Love LOVE LOVE them!!

Scrap-lift

2011-12-18T10:39:00.001Z

A break from Christmas! Today I've got a scrapbook page to share with you with that we made in my December scrapbook class:

I struggle to add more than one photo per page so I managed to get THREE on here and was ver proud. Where are the other two photos?

Hidden!

The page features papers from the hostess section of the catalogue. Just love these colours: Concord crush, Bashful blue, Melon Mambo, Pirouette Pink and Lucky Limeade.

The flowers were made using the large flower punch, 5-petal punch and boho blossoms all layered with Rhinestone centres.

The layout was lifted from a page I did natalie and Zoe's scrappers paradise class:

Featuring my cat! Isn't he handsome?

If you'd like to join us to do some scrapbooking the class is held on the first Tuesday evening each month.

The next one is Tuesday 2nd january 2012 at 7.30pm at my house (GU12). Let me know if you'd like to join us!

Snowflake card

2011-12-17T09:21:00.001Z

Good morning! Today I have a card that features a technique I read about in the monthly magazine all UK demonstrators are sent, Impressions.

To make the snowflake you punch a piece of Whisper White using the lace border punch. I used the width of A4. That is then covered in Dazzling Diamonds and scored every 5mm. The card is folded along the score lines in a zigzag fashion and the short ends stuck together.

When this is pushed down you get a circle! This was layered on a scalloped circle with an antique brad and a piece of Candy Cane fabric cut into a flag.

The base is Baja breeze with a layer of Real Red cardstock. The sentiment is from Teeny Tiny Wishes and was punched with the Word Window punch.

Hope you like the card and if you'd like to know more about becoming a Demonstrator I'd love to hear from you!

Munchkin appears to be back on full form today. She's still taking advantage of the fizzy pop that was made available yesterday when she was sick and she even found a chocolate somewhere and guzzled that too! Fingers crossed she keeps on this way and we manage to avoid catching it ourselves!!

Penguin card

2011-12-16T14:48:00.001Z

This is a card we made at my recent Christmas Stack class:

It features Candy Cane fabric made into a ruffle around the central penguin image from Polar Party.

I'm loving the Blushing Bride pink in this fabric as I've never used pink on Christmas cards before!

Check back tomorrow for another stamp a stack favourite.

P.S. Some of you may have heard munchkin has been in hospital with a stomach virus. She's out now but still very poorly. Sorry if I'm a bit slower to reply to emails etc! Fingers crossed she'll get better soon.

More Christmas candles

2011-12-15T07:37:00.001Z

After my enthusiasm at decorating candles last week I decided to make a batch for friends and neighbours!

This time I stamped the snowflake from Winter Post in Cherry Cobbler ink. Very Scandi-style!

The tag was made using a stamp from Tags til Christmas. The bags were finished off with some scalloped dotted ribbon in Cherry Cobbler.

Here's a table of them all finished!!!

Tractor Card

2011-12-14T07:26:00.002Z

Sunday was my Father-in-law's birthday and I wanted to make him a special card. I originally thought I would make one with a train but wasn't happy with the result - it looked a little like a child's card!

Instead I tried something totally new and sponged a background. I cut a scalloped circle in half and sponged around it to leave cloud shapes.

Then I punched out different shapes and layered them to create a tractor. The colours are Garden Green, Basic Black, Basic Grey and Whisper White puffs of smoke.

The sentiment came from Teeny Tiny Wishes and finished off the card nicely, I think.

Hope you had a good birthday FIL!

Welcome Harry

2011-12-13T07:32:00.002Z

On Friday 2nd December my dear friend gave birth to her second son. This is the card I made her. It's a Bashful Blue base and I free-hand stamped Harry's name repeatedly in Bashful Blue ink using Just Perfect Alphabet stamps.

The central image is from Button Buddies and was stamped in Bashful Blue and Versamark ink. I then added Heat & Stick powder and finished it off (after heating the glue) with some Dazzling Diamonds. This panel was layered onto Night of Navy card to bring the eye straight to the centre of the card.

We were lucky enough to visit Harry when he was just 6 days old and he is a total cutie!

12 Days of Christmas - Day 12

2011-12-12T06:51:00.001Z

So it's the final day of my 12 Days of Christmas festive posts. I hope you've found them useful bf inspirational. My final project is this mini handbag:

Just the right size for some slim choccies! It was based on this swap I received from a French Demonstrator (sadly I didn't catch her name):

You'll have to use your imagination to turn the bag round!

It's a very sweet project that needs Minimal supplies:

(I missed off the Window punch!)

Cut 2 envelopes out of Lucky Limeade card on the big shot and trim enough off the bottom flap so that the remaining is equal to the side flaps. Add red tape.

Punch the handles using the Window Punch and add a piece of patterned paper 5cm x 7cm. I used Real Red paper from the Brights Paper Stack.

Next make a sentiment. I used Tags Til Christmas with Lucky Limeade, Real Red & Early Espresso markers. It's stamped onto Very Vanilla card and then punched out with the Scalloped Square punch.

Next prepare your embellishments. Use the 5-petal flower punch and cut 1x Lucky Limeade and 3x Real Red.

Cut off a pair of green petals to make the leaves.

Layer the red flowers to make a poinsettia and finish with Rhinestones.

Voilà!

Fill with thin chocs/money and put on the table or in the tree!!

I'll be back tomorrow with some (not necessarily Christmas) projects.

Don't forget you get 10% off all products in bold during these last 13 posts. I'll be placing an order on Tuesday 13th December. Let me know if you'd like to add something!

12 Days of Christmas - Day 11

2011-12-11T12:30:00.001Z

Can you believe we're nearly at the end of the 12 Days of Christmas series!

Today I have a fab tree decoration idea, although you could hang it around your home too:

It's a decorative Petal Cone die. The main part is in cherry Cobbler card and stamped with the snowflake from Winter Post.

The green flaps were cut from Always Artichoke and embossed with the Vintage Wallpaper folder.

It's hung with satin ribbon. This was secures with gold brads that were concealed by the green flaps. The front is decorated with 'merry Christmas' from contempo Christmas. This was punched out with the scalloped oval punch and then sponged and layered onto a decorative label punch. A quick vintage brad and some Victoriana lace and voilà!

These petal cones are surprisingly big and can hold a lot of sweets or other gifts.

I'd be happy to order some Stampin Up! Goodies from the UK Catalogue and they can even be delivered to your door. I'm even offering 10% off any of the items in this 12 Days of Christmas series until 13th December!

Come back tomorrow for my festive finale!

12 Days of Christmas - Day 10

2011-12-10T08:46:00.006Z

Hello and welcome to Day 10. Aren't the days leading up to Christmas always on fastforward?!

Today I have a banner to share with you. It's base is Candy Cane fabric which has been cut into triangles on the Perfect Pennants Big Shot die. This makes cutting them out really quick and easy. I then ran them through my sewing machine and attched them to satin ribbon using zigzag stitch.Each letter was embossed in white using the Broadsheet alphabet stamp set on Real Red textured cardstock. These were cut out with the 1 3/8" circle punch and layered onto the 1 3/4" circle punch circles in Whisper White card.

You can just about see the Daffodil Delight yellow star here. That was made by punching out the 5-petal flower punch and then cutting off the curves. Makes creating stars very easy if you don't have a star punch! The scalloped circles in Garden Green card were cut on the Pennant die. Here is a close-up:

The original idea was on one of the inspiration boards at Convention in Paris. I'm therefore not sure who made them so I can't give full credit, but here is a photo:

There is a 10% discount being offered by me if you'd like to order any of the products used during the 12 Days of Christmas (these are in bold) or any other products from the UK catalogue. Just let me know and I can even have it sent to your home!

This morning by DH and I slept in. Munchkin did not.

This is some of the chaos we woke up to: My basket of crafting goodies all over the place. All the glue dots and ribbons had been totally unravelled.

Unfortunately there was worse to come when I discovered my embossing powder stash:

So now I have no clear or black embossing powders. She also decided to put ALL the margarine onto one piece of bread, put my credit card into the CD player and take all the sauces out of the fridge.

Are you thinking we must have the devil's child? Well look how sweet and innocent she looked 10 minutes later:

Onwards to more adventures! See you tomorrow for Day 11!!

12 Days of Christmas - Day 9

2011-12-09T18:37:00.001Z

Whoops a bit late today! Today's project shows a cute alternative way of using the Milk carton die on the big Shot. It's an idea Zoe Tant taught us at one of the UK sessions of Convention in Paris:

You simply cut the box part and not the milk carton top. This gives you a box that needs a lid. To make a lid simply cut a square 8.2cm x 8.2cm, scorn each side at 2cm and then fold and decorate.

As you can see you can fit a Ferraro Roche or alternatively (if you are a demonstrator) you could put an ink spot and small stamp in as a hostess gift. Book a party with me and you could get your own!

The papers I've used a ones you can earn as a hostess but the colour combinations are endless and you could use very creative choices! These are ideal as table favours or for very small gifts like jewellery.

I finished mine with some flowers cut on the big Shot using Bashful blue card and a centre of a vintage brad. The edges were inked for extra depth.

I'd love to order any of the items in bold at 10% discount or anything else from the UK Stampin Up! Catalogue. It can be delivered to your UK address in time for Christmas so long as you order before 16th December!

Stop by tomorrow for Day 10 tomorrow!

12 Days of Christmas - Day 8

2011-12-08T08:06:00.001Z

One of the fun things about the Festive Season is BAKING! I love making edible treats for friends & family but it's important to make them look irresistible too.

So I like to decorate jars and fill them with treats:

This jar was filled with mincemeat a few days ago! Now it has Butterballs made from the Gwyneth Paltrow cookbook. Yum!

To make the lid I cut some Candy Cane fabric with the Scalloped circle big shot die and used red tape to fix it around the edge. I then tied a length of satin ribbon around the neck of the jar in a big bow and it was almost done.

The label was made with a stamp from Four Frames stamped in Real Red ink and punched out with the decorative label Punch. The words were handwritten with a marker and a couple of Rhinestones finished it off!

How is the label stuck on so well? It's those fantastic Big Shot Multipurpose Adhesive Sheets (pg122). They are like giant 12x12" sheets of Snail adhesive. I am addicted to these great value sheets. They are just £13.50 for 12 sheets and don't have to be used exclusively with the big shot. You can open the sheet and rub punched shapes on there to make them super sticky. As the sheets are permanent the pieces then stick very well!

Don't forget that I'm offering a 10% discount on all items in my posts marked in bold during this series of Festive posts.

See you tomorrow for Day 9.

12 Days of Christmas - Day 7

2011-12-07T08:37:00.001Z

Morning all! Thanks to those who responded to my One Day Contest. I got lots of bookings and am eagerly waiting to see if we hit our worldwide target! If you wanted to book a private class but didn't make the deadline I still have some dates free, particularly in March.

Onto today's festive idea: Reindeer Food. A fantastic gift for younger children as they can get excited about that on Christmas Eve.

This is similar to the Snowman poo but the bag contains oats & glitter. Obviously it's probably best not to sprinkle regular glitter outdoors, but you could always sprinkle the mixture on a fireplace instead.

The reindeer image is from Winter Post and is finished with a rhinestone, which is tricky to see in the photo.

The Top Note was cut from Real Red card and stamped on White craft ink with snowflakes from serene snowflakes.

Don't they look sweet all lined up? On the back I added a note saying the contents are not edible and a little poem:

"Sprinkle on the lawn at night
The moon will make it sparkle bright
As Santa's reindeer fly and roam
This will guide them to your home."

You can find the poem all over the Internet so I don't know who came up with it but it's really cute.

All products in bold are 10% off until 13th December if you order through me.

Also, check out my new class schedule here.

See you tomorrow for Day 8.

One Day Contest!

2011-12-06T08:48:00.001Z

****PLEASE NOTE THIS IS MY SECOND POST TODAY. FOR 12 Days of Christmas - Day 6 SCROLL DOWN****

It's that time of year when Christmas is looming and, even more excitingly, Sale-a-bration is just around the corner!

For those of you who haven't experienced Sale-a-bration before it's a fantastic time when Stampin' Up! offer one of four exclusive stamp sets (this year there is also a patterned paper pack too) and you can choose ONE FREE with EVERY £45 ordered. So if you ordered £90 you get TWO choices!

As a hostess you get an extra FREE set/paper if your host a party that reaches £300 in sales. So it's a great time to host a party/private class.

Back to the main reason for this email....

Stampin' Up! have challenged us demonstrators worldwide to a contest today (Tuesday 6th December) where we have to get 8635 bookings! I hope you'll help me meet our goal!!

I'm offering private card classes for a fun night in during January and February. Each person makes 4 cards using the Sale-a-bration sets for £10 but they get the class free if they place an order of £25.

If you have experienced crafty friends you can double it up and make 8 cards each for just £15 or free with a £35 order.

Contact me before 10pm today (6th December) to tell me when you'd like your private card class and I'll give you a FREE £5 voucher to spend in the catalogue at your card class!

Blueangelcrafts at gmail dot com

12 Days of Christmas - Day 6

2011-12-06T07:49:00.001Z

Today I have another calendar-based idea. This time it's one to hang on the wall:

I saw a version of this on Pinterest and decided to make my own using Mocha Morning speciality papers. They are lush!

It's very simple to make. Just cute three Top Notes and decorate with patterned paper etc. These can then be stuck using Red Tape to some lovely satin ribbon. To finish simply glue a mini calendar (from a stationary shop) and half a pack of Post-It notes - a whole pack is a bit heavy. Voilà!

Remember all items in bold are 10% off until the 13th December!

Yesterday we got festive and iced some biscuits for our Christmas tree! Munchkin really enjoyed herself!!

But it took a lot of concentration!!!

The result was worth it...

12 Days of Christmas - Day 5

2011-12-05T08:38:00.002Z

Happy Monday! Today I'm excited to share not just a super quick and simple gift idea but also a preview!

Did you hear the exciting news that we're getting a spring mini catalogue that launches in January?! Its very exciting as there are lots of new co-ordinating stamps, papers, punches and embellishments.

With that in mind I'll show you today's gift idea: a decorated candle. All you need on addriin to basics such as stamps ad ink are a candle and some tissue paper.

I used white tissue paper and stamped with Lucky Limeade ink using the swirl from Baroque Motifs. I then used the Rock'n'Roll technique to make the large flower image two-toned. For this I used a set from the forthcoming mini catalogue called Fruit & Flowers. Are they cute?

I used Pool party for the lighter blue and then Island indigo for contrast. The smaller flowers are also the Fruit & Flowers set.

You then need to trim the tissue paper to a size that will fit around the candle.

Now for the fun part! Get your heat gun and gently heat the surface of the candle with the tissue paper laying on top. You can see how the tissue paper just sticks here:

Once your worked your way around the whole candle it should look like this:

If you heat the candle too much the wax runs and the surface loses it's smoothness so be cautious!

Once it was cooled I popped it Ito a large cello bag, tied a piece of ruffled ribbon (in Pool party) to close it and made a tag using the set, Perfect punches.

If you're short on time but want to make handmade gifts this is ideal. You could easily produce a whole batch in less than an hour.

Don't forget I'm offering a 10% discount off all products used in the 12 Days of Christmas series until the 13th December. I'm sending an order on the 14th so you have some thinking time.

See you tomorrow for more festive inspiration.

12 Days of Christmas - Day 4

2011-12-04T07:38:00.001Z

Here's a more sophisticated handmade gift idea for you. The idea is totally case'd from Teresa, The Crafty Cook, who made these as her swap at Convention:

It's a simple project that's easy to mass-produce and can also easily be posted which is handy.

It's made from two Top Notes cut from plain card, mounted with patterned paper and then the top layer is folded:

You can decorate them for different ages/tastes which is handy. You can buy the mini calendars at many stationary shops and post offices.

Here is a bunch of different designs I made:

They are decorated with the scalloped oval and large oval punches and the set, Oval All. Hope you like!

As mentioned previously, all items in the catalogue listed on this series of posts in bold are 10% off until the 13th December so grab some bargains while you can!

12 Days of Christmas - Day 3

2011-12-03T07:48:00.001Z

It's Saturday!!!! A chance for finishing off putting up the decorations and making some mince pies!

With food on my mind here is a edible quick Christmas make: These are super quick and simple. I used Real Red card and Garden Green card along with Whisper White card with the stamping on. I picked out the snowflake image from Season of Joy stamp set. The brilliant thing is that there are punches that co-ordinate so I used the 1 1/4" circle, 1 3/8" circle and the scallop circle punches. To finish a cute little Rhinestone was added in the centre of each. Voila!

These take no time at all to make. I even made 40 in an hour with my two year old helping! Sandwiched in the middle is an Elizabeth Shaw Mint Crisp. As these are quite flat you could use them on the dinner place settings for Christmas meals and get togethers or just in a dish on the coffee table.

You can also pierce a hole at the top, add a little linen thread or similar and hang them on your tree! Feel free to experiment with colours that you like or suit your colour scheme.

By the way, to celebrate this series of posts I'm offering FREE postage to your door on all orders over £50 and 10% off any products used in the projects over the next 12 days (until the 13th December 2011). These discounted items are in bold throughout the posts.

12 Days of Christmas - Day 2

2011-12-02T07:42:00.002Z

Happy Friday and welcome to Day 2 of my 12 Days of Christmas series of posts! If you missed the first post just scroll down to see what treat was created.

Today I have another cute stocking filler idea. I have to admit that I found these ideas originally on various websites when I was Googling Stampin' Up! punch art but I have adapted them all slightly. As you can see these are pretty simple and could be adapted to be magnets, badges or on the front of notebooks. I won't list EVERY punch used for each animal but if you would like to ask questions do email me!
As you can see they were mounted onto large lollipop sticks and finished with googly eyes, both of which I picked up at my local craft store.

I hope that you found these a useful idea for those little gifts needed at this time of year!

Finally, to celebrate this series of posts I'm offering FREE postage to your door on all orders over £50 and 10% off any products used in the projects over the next 12 days. These discounted items are in bold throughout the posts.

See you tomorrow for a more grown-up mini gift idea!

12 Days of Christmas - Day 1

2011-12-01T21:32:00.004Z

It's very exciting to share these projects with you over the next 12 days. I've been working away for a long while with the projects that I have already given to people and seen there smile to make sure they will be useful to you!

To celebrate this series of posts I'm offering FREE postage to your door on all orders over £50 and 10% off any products used in the projects over the next 12 days. These discounted items are in bold throughout the posts.

The first project is a cute stocking filler: Snowman Poo!
These are medium cello bags filled with mini marshmallows (aka snowman poo!). The bag topper is super simple. It is a Top Note die cut in Night of Navy cardstock stamped in White Craft Ink using Serene Snowflakes. I then used markers to stamp the snowman image so that the "To" and "from" were not used. You can then personalise your snowman by colouring the scarf and hat how you'd like. The sentiment was written by hand and punched out with the 1 3/4" circle punch and mounted on a Baja Breeze card scalloped circle cut using the Pennant Parade die.

As you can see I have many quite a few of these! On the back you can write a message or rhyme (there are loads if you Google 'snowman poo')

Hope you enjoyed this project. I'll be back tomorrow with more festive inspiration!

Convention copy!

2011-11-28T22:23:00.001Z

Today is my gorgeous husbands birthday! I decided to make him a card based on this sample I received as a swap at the Paris Convention:

It originally contained a delicious lebkuchen (German gingerbread). Yum-o! I had to man-up the design for my man:

It's Baja Breeze, Early Espresso and a little Crumb Cake. It uses French Foliage which is a fantastic versatile set. The magic thing is that my engineer husband got an engineered card! Just pull the string and....

A little message is revealed! This card came out just as I'd hoped so I'm pleased to share it with him and you!!!

Colour variation

2011-11-27T20:58:00.001Z

Well, it's Sunday already and my little sister's birthday. Here is the card I made her:

As you can see it's a variation on the one I made for my Aunt in Cherry Cobbler. This one has a Pool Party base, some Pear Pizzazz seam binding ribbon, Perfect Plum mat and Peach Parfait sentiment and flower embellishment.

You can kind of see the glimmer paint I used on the main image on the card and envelope. I'd been neglecting my shimmer paint but I'm back in love. The paint is just ideal when you want a subtle shimmer but not in your face glitterama.

Tomorrow, in the birthday marathon long weekend, it's my gorgeous hubby's birthday. Do check back to see what I've made home as I case'd an idea I saw at convention and I'm pretty pleased with the result!

Saturday update

2011-11-26T22:22:00.001Z

It's been another busy week but it's time to spend time with family. We had lunch with my husband's family to celebrate his birthday on Monday, then tonight we had dinner with my parents, sister and aunt.

It's also my Aunts birthday on Monday so I made her to above card. It's a variation on the one we made at Convention using the set Creative Elements. Check back tomorrow to see another colour variation of this card.

Finally here's a glimpse at out stall on Thursday night. Diane and I had fun fundraising for Sophia's Fund on Thursday and the fundraiser on Friday for Phyllis Tuckwell was very festive!

Get well wishes

2011-11-24T10:08:00.001Z

Morning! Our kind neighbour is recovering from a shoulder operation so I made this card for him:

It features the papers called Well Worn and the sentiment is from Teeny Tiny Wishes and finished with some Antique Brads.

Really quick and simple! It was very hard to resist layering on ribbons and other embellishments but I didn't think he'd appreciate that!

I'm gearing up for a charity do tonight so I should have photos of it to share tomorrow.

More convention projects

2011-11-22T11:56:00.001Z

Here are a couple more inspirational projects I saw at Disneyland Paris:

This was made by Jennin Pauli, the top demo in Germany. Isn't it gorgeous? The lighting is poor but close-up you can see everything is held on with a couple of rows of sewing!

Next up is a project we saw being demonstrated:

It was shared by Moira McIlroy. The green parts are embossed with coloured embossing powder and the effect is stunning.

Hope you enjoy. I'm just finalising my new class schedule so keep your eyes open for it in my blog in the coming days.

Convention 2011!

2011-11-21T22:39:00.001Z

Yes I'm back. It was a whirlwind weekend full of surprises and giggles!!

There was plenty of inspiration. Here are a couple of my favourite projects:

We even got FREE stamps. Brought a grin to our tired faces:

There were cocktails and over-priced burgers:

Momento Mall where you could buy all things Stampin Up! branded. I'll take piccies of what I bought soon!

Amazingly Disneyland Paris was sunny!!

And as we walked from our hotel to the Convention this was our view:

Here are my lively roomies, Teresa & Kim. Thanks ladies as you really made the trip great. I didn't know them very well at the start but now we know each other much better!

This was the view as we entered the Sequoia Lodge hotel:

On my way home I stopped at Lille for 1.5hrs so I went for a walk. The sun was starting to sink down:

I couldn't resist capturing those colourful leaves.

All in all a fabulous experience. Plus, and I'm being big-headed now, but I got a couple of awards and had to walk across the stage in my very long dress. Sadly I've no photos of that but perhaps you'd like to join me at the next Convention in Mainz, Germany? Why not join my team of Blue Angels? Contact me for more details! Blueangelcrafts at gmail dot com

Convention swaps

2011-11-17T07:56:00.000Z

Howdy! I'm on my way to a stinkin good weekend at Disneyland Paris for the 2011 Stampin Up! Europe Convention. Can't wait.

One of the fun parts of the weekend is swapping ideas with other demonstrators. I've been short of time so I had to whizz up something simple. This is what I came up with:

It's featuring Forever Young as the main image with the swirls from Vintage Vogue on Crumb Cake. To make it pop the Basic Black mat was punched with the cute corner punch and a little 1/8" taffeta ribbon finished it off.

Sadly I can't claim cretins genius for this cute little number as it was heavily influenced by my downline, Diane.

Isn't this adorable? I couldn't resist having a go myself as it's so stylish yet simple! Hope the ladies at the event like their swap.

Hopefully (Internet allowing) I'll be back with pictures of convention over the weekend. Keep your eyes peeled!

Sparkly giftcard holder

2011-11-14T22:47:00.001Z

Happy Monday! It's been a great day for getting things done!!

I have another project that we shared at our Craft Day on Saturday. We had such a great day!

This is a giftcard holder. It's based on one I received as a swap from fellow demo, Vicky. This one has a Chocolate Chip base with some delicious Mocha Morning creating a pocket.

A quick row of glass glitter and a little stamp plus a 3D bauble embellishment. Voilà!

Craft Day Pennants

2011-11-14T06:59:00.002Z

As promised, here are the rest of the cards we made at the Craft Day on Saturday. One thing I MUST point out is that they are NOT my designs. All of them were inspired by cards I found on the wonderful site, Splitcoast Stampers. This first design is by Annie Lee. I love how this card highlights the versatility of the Pennant Parade stamp set.

This spinner has a different sentiment from the one I found on Splitcoast. I used a hostess sentiment that is just gorgeous. Oh and I added some Brushed Gold card for the main Top Note that you can see. Adore this card more with every project I make with it!

This birthday hat card shows just how wonderfully the new In Colors go together. They are just fabulous and the best thing is that you can buy the pens as a set of 5 so you can get all the colours to match in one go!

Now I have shown you this card but we did use it as part of the stack so I thought I would add it in and this time I should also add that it was based on an original design by Amy Celona. Gorgeous card and everyone seemed to enjoy the stamp set as much as I did when I was putting the stack together.

P.S. The star card I showed you the other day was designed by Monica Hornof.

P.P.S. The stamp set is now available for you Amy although the punch is elsewhere.

Craft day preview

2011-11-11T11:36:00.001Z

Hello all! It's been a hectic week preparing for the big craft day Diane & I tomorrow. So in light of that I've got a preview to share:

I have to be honest it's case'd from Splitcoast Stampers. However I do love this card and the fact that it's made with Pennant Parade just makes it even better. We can't wait to share all the fabulous projects we've planned!

For my other non-crafting blog readers I've a couple of Munchkin photos:

This was yesterday at Maison Blanc in Farnham. She did a great job stuffing meringue into her little mouth!

And here's a second. Have you ever noticed how many pictures are of Munchkin eating?! It's clearly a big part of her day!

This was her this morning eating her FOURTH, yes 4th, bowl of cereal this morning! Hee hee. Where does it all go?!!!

Christening celebration

2011-11-06T20:17:00.001Z

Some lovely friends of ours christened their little girl today. I made them this card:

I drew the shape freehand on shimmery White card to make the skirt. The skirt part was then embossed and the edge punched with the eyelet border punch. The sleeves were added after and the joints hidden with pearls. Such a simple design but I was thrilled with the final outcome.

The christening was held at this pretty church:

And here us gorgeous baby Ellie:

She was good as gold throughout the ceremony and then had some yummy milk with her Daddy:

We were even treated to sone lunch, including thus fabulous cake:

Such a fun family day out and great up catch up with our friends too.

Cherry-licious

2011-11-05T16:25:00.001Z

Today I held a Button themed class and we used the Button Buddies stamp set and some gorgeous Brights buttons.

Having moaned that I didn't like Lucky Limeade in the new In Colors I've had to retract that as I LOVE IT now!

This cherry card is very quick and easy to make. Layers of Rich Razzleberry, Early Espresso and Lucky Limeade. Yum!

Team training swaps

2011-11-04T11:53:00.001Z

Tomorrow I'm hosting team training at my house. One of the fun things we do at team training is swap cards. This morning I whipped up my swap card:

It features Pool Party and Island Indigo from the new In Colors plus some Pumpkin Pie for contrast.

Can you tell which DSP I have used? It's Flirtacious! Most cards made with these papers are sugar sweet pink but I thought I'd mix it up and give the card a more cool feel.

Hope my team like them!

If you'd like to join my tram of Blue Angels and become a Stampin Up! demonstrator why not have a chat? Email me your phone number and I'll give you a call for a no pressure chat! Blueangelcrafts at gmail dot com

Happy birthday Mum!

2011-11-02T20:55:00.001Z

Today is my lovely Mum's birthday. I just got some delicious Mocha Morning Specialty papers and the colours are so her!

Here is the card I made:

There is also my new border punch on display and some Victoriana lace!

To match the card I made this box:

Love my Big Shot alphabet sets! More brushed gold card was used and Mocha Morning papers. What did the box contain?.....

Some CDs!

Happy birthday Mum! Xx

Bright and springy

2011-10-28T11:20:00.001+01:00

A strange colour choice for this time of year but I needed to cheer up!

The base is Daffodil Delight that has been pierced using the mat pack template.

The White layer was embossed with the dotted embossing folder and then layers of pennants are on top in In Colors Lucky Limeade, Pool Party and Wisteria Wonder. Yum.

The line was made from linen thread, secured with some of those amazing new mini brads. Delish. The little flowers were made with the leftovers from the lace punch - I'm all for using leftovers.

Today I've been busy making goodies to sell at a forthcoming charity event. Busy busy busy!

Kids' craft time

2011-10-27T14:09:00.001+01:00

Today we went to Birdworld in Farnham and had a fab time seeing the birds, visiting the farm and making some Halloween crafts!

The children made brown paper bag owls and bats and the Mummies etc had fun assisting too!

Here is my friend Hannah with her 5 year old boy Jack's creation:

Here am I with Munchkin's masterpiece:

We mummies were really very proud of the handiwork! Shame the littlies lost interest before they were complete. Still, something for everyone in the end.

Finally here is the darling girl
Herself "helping" this morning! Such a sweetheart.

My supplies have just arrived for some super duper crafting this weekend. I'll do my best to keep you in the loop! Xx

Sweet bunting

2011-10-25T21:18:00.001+01:00

As many of you know I am no seamstress. However the new Pennant Parade Bigz die that Stampin Up! have launched makes bunting easy peasey! The die can cut through layers of fabric at once so the triangles are always perfectly formed.

It's then just a case of Whizzing them through my sewing machine on straight stitch onto ribbon and voilà! All made in 40 minutes!!

Am busy making samples for our next retreat day on Saturday 12th November! Very exciting and there's still time to book your place! The day includes all materials (except basic tool kit), instructions, raffle, inspiration station and a light lunch PLUS Petite Pennants stamp set for just £40. Contact me to book ASAP.

2011-10-24T11:35:00.007+01:00

You may recall back in July I mentioned I was taking part in Ali Edward's Week in the Life project. Well finally it is finished! You can see the pages although the photos I have taken of them don't do them justice. (If you come to my classes you're welcome to see the album in real life!)

I hope Munchkin enjoys looking at the album when she's bigger. It's well worth doing as a project. There are now two years of Week in the Life projects in the album and I can't wait to add to it again next year!!

Peppa pig & George

2011-10-23T09:35:00.001+01:00

Today I'm sharing the card I made for my little Munchkin's 2nd birthday:

It is based on the fact she was two. Plus, there are pigs because Munchkin is mad about Peppa Pig and particularly her brother George. Therefore it was a no-brainer to have pigs on the front.

The pig stamp is from the set Button Buddies. As a huge fan of buttons on projects I was excited to get this set and I've not been disappointed! It also features the new In Colors Calypso Coral and Wisteria Wonder. Yum-o!! The sentiments cane from my new sentiment set Teeny Tiny Wishes. Love how cute they are!!!!

If you'd like some button inspiration featuring this set, why not attend my Button Magic class on Saturday 5th November 10-12? It's only £8 and we're making 5 gorgeous projects and you get a packet of buttons thrown in too! Email me to book your place.

Coffee cup

2011-10-19T23:01:00.001+01:00

Ok, so the guilt has got too much... I need to blog. If I leave it any longer I might forget how to post!

It's been a mad time. Munchkin turned 2, DH had tonsilitis, parties, Peppa Pig World and major infected finger took over. But I'm back with you now.

Here is a coffee cup I customised:

You can buy them in a famous Seattle originated coffee shop and they come apart to allow you to decorate them. I used strips of patterned paper and then glued and sewed them together to make a sleeve that can be slipped in. The great thing is I can make one for all different days/outfits/drinks!!!

Now for a Munchkin update. As I mentioned our little angel has turned TWO!

This is her at the park yesterday:

Here she is playing with her lil friend:

Aren't they adorable together? Surprisingly they get along quite well and it is hilarious when they chat to each other!

Hairbands!

2011-10-08T15:34:00.001+01:00

Hooray for Saturday! Today's project is another fabric based one, but is ideal if you don't sew:

The hairband was a cheap one from the local Market (3 for 50p!) which I've covered using fabric. I used a hot glue gun, although a friend has shown that sticky strip (red tape) works just as well.

The flowers were die cut on my big shot with a cute crochet flower and a clear crystal brad. It's really comfy to wear and has started many conversations!

This morning we had team training and it was such fun! There was stamping, chatting and laughs all round! If you'd like to join my team, there's never been a better time as Stampin' Up! have a fab promotion if you sign up in October: 5 new In Color ink pads plus a pack of co-ordinating cardstock. RRP £27.95 on top of the usual starter kit for FREE!

Contact me to find out more.

The decorators have been storming along and the landing, stairs, living room and bathroom are pretty much done. Phew! They only began on Wednesday!!

Scrapbook club

2011-10-07T21:50:00.001+01:00

Hello! Scrapbook club last Tuesday has been postponed til next Tuesday (11th) at 7.30pm at my house, so if you thought you'd missed it, you haven't!

Here is a peek of the layout we're making:

It has real sewing on it, as well as gorgeous papers, lace ribbon made by one of the new border punches and some pretty butterflies.

If you'd like to come just contact me so I can ensure I have enough materials for the class!

Today we've been shivering with cold as it's suddenly chilly. The perfect excuse for wandering around the lovely festive displays at the garden centre!

Flirtatious Fun

2011-10-05T20:31:00.001+01:00

More fabric inspiration today!

This card features a strip of Wisteria Wonder fabric along with the new Lacey punch and a fantastic die-cut doilie from the matching papers.

Today was an exciting day as the decorators began doing our house. The livingroom/stairs/landing was stripped to reveal DISGUSTING claret Walls. It's like living in a cave. I'm looking forward to White covering up the oppressive dimness!

NEW designer fabrics!

2011-10-04T15:13:00.001+01:00

One if the exciting new additions to the Stampin' Up! range is the designer fabrics! These are lush fat quarters (3 different designs per pack) which co-ordinate with stamps, papers and inks to add extra texture to your work.

This is a bag I made in less than an hour. It uses just over one fat quarter and was VERY simple to make. This was the first sewing project I'd attempted since GCSE textiles at school!

You can see two of the three designs from this Flirtatious fabric pack. The other is featuring Wisteria Wonder!!

Hope you are enjoying the new catalogue as much as I am. Come back tomorrow for another project.

Timeless Portrait

2011-10-03T11:19:00.001+01:00

Happy Monday! It's been a hectic
Weekend but I'm back this week with a project Natalie CASE'd and shared at her team training a week or so ago:

It features Timeless Portrait stamp set along with the coordinating papers. This is also the card that guests at my party this evening will be creating.

The party starts at 7.30pm and there will be a chance to buy my retired stash and get an equal value to spend from the new catalogue!

I forgot to explain the new hostess benefits too. If you're considering holding a party the benefits are better than ever before. You now can get Hostess Pounds. These give you the opportunity to buy discounted exclusive sets OR spend the money anywhere you like in the catalogue! PLUS, if the total party reaches £300 in sales you can buy ANY item in the catalogue for half price.

YES, that does include the Big Shot! Already got a Big Shot? You could treat yourself to new dues, markers or anything else that takes your fancy!!!

So much to share!!!!

2011-10-01T08:41:00.002+01:00

It is so exciting that the 1st October has arrived AT LAST! I can finally share all the wonderful new craft products Stampin' Up! have released. Just look at the front cover of the catalogue, you can tell there is going to be lush-ness inside!You can click on the images to be taken to the Stampin' Up! website pages to see the catalogue. I'll leave you to savour the new catalogue, but rest assured I have LOTS and LOTS of samples to share with you!

To add to my giddy excitement there is a fantastic promotion running by Stampin' Up! if you join as a demonstrator!! Click on the image below for more information.

Here is a little eye-candy for you:
This is one of the Make & Takes at Diane and my Catalogue Kick-Off Party today! Hope you will make it!!

It features the Flirtatious Speciality papers, Pennant Parade Big Shot die and Delicate Doilies stamp set. All of which I have fallen in love with. I'll be back soon to share more delights.

2011-09-30T23:20:00.000+01:00

Click the image above to see the full retiring list!

French Foliage notebook

2011-09-26T11:07:00.001+01:00

Hi there! Bet you wondered where I'd disappeared to... I'm still here but working myself hard in preparation for Diane and my Catalogue Kickoff party next Saturday.

On Saturday I went to team training. It was SO fun although I did get a bit scared when I had to present some projects I'd made!

This is one of the swaps I received made by one of my friends, Steph:

It's soooo sweet and features French Foliage which is just gorgeous. The orange colour is called Tangerine Tango - perfect for this season.

Do you like the ribbon along the top? It's hand-made using a strip of card. The stitching was drawn by hand. You simply draw dots and then join them in a line. Easy peasey and great when you need a particular colour ribbon that's not to hand.

Snowman

2011-09-19T21:40:00.002+01:00

Happy Monday! Such a great day today and another sneak peek to share!!!

This is the send card I made to swap last Saturday. These turned out to be quite time-consuming what with the Big Shot letters being cut out individually but hey, they look fab don't they? It's always lovely to get the glitter out!!!!

Munchkin is on the mend and appears to be eating for Britain at present. Love her!!!

Christmas already?

2011-09-18T08:01:00.001+01:00

Morning! Yesterday I went to Leadership training provided by Stampin Up. It was fabulous to spend time with fellow crafters, see sneak peaks from the forthcoming catalogue (OMG!!!!) and learn useful tips.

Traditionally at a gathering if crafters you make Swaps. This was one of my swaps that I made:

It's a cute little envelope (cut on the Big Shot) made from patterned paper in the colour family stacks. These are packs of 40 12"x12" double-sided patterned paper that are gorgeous plus amazing value.

TIP: currently these stacks of paper are just £15.50 - that's just under 39p per sheet. BUT they're rising in price with the new catalogue to almost 49p a sheet. Still a bargain but even more so if you order them before the end if September!

Here are all the envelopes laid out ready to go:

This is also a sneak peek for you as they feature a stamp from one of the new Christmas stamp sets, Tags Til Christmas! Gorgeous isn't it?!!!!!

I made a second swap that I'll share with you soon. Have a great Sunday!

P.S. Thanks to the ladies that attended my Clearly for You class this Thursday. Your diagnosis of Munchkin was spot on and she's starting to get better so the understairs cupboard is just a distant memory!

Mini make & take

2011-09-16T13:59:00.001+01:00

Hello and thank goodness it's Friday!

I've been cutting, sticking and hot glue gun-ing like mad!! Today I've got a little make and take that I made with my team at my training earlier this month:

It's actually based on a card in the NEW catalogue! It's a small 3x3" card with a Pear Pizzazz base. To make the spotty circle I used the background stamp Dot, Dot, Dot. Love this as polka dots are super cute!

The sentiment is from the set Party This Way. To make the banner you simply stamp the greeting on a scrap of card and then cut a 'V' into each end. Really simple but effective AND you can use up scraps of card.

The butterflies are in Regal Rose, Pear Pizzazz and Pumpkin Pie. They were cut with the Big Shot Beautiful Butterflies die/embossing folder. Such elegant little butterflies! Just a couple of Rhinestones to finish. Easy and cute!

Today I've been privileged enough to be given a Craft Pass from my Mum who is looking after Munchkin (whose still not well - boo) so I can work hard for various events that are coming up. Hope you get a chance to do something you love today.

French Foliage

2011-09-13T19:09:00.002+01:00

Hooray hooray it's Tuesday. Today's card was made for my by my downline, Diane. Isn't she clever? It features French Foliage from the Spring Mini catalogue. She made a One Sheet Wonder using many stamps from the set and then cut it up into squares to create the central panel.

Munchkin's been under the weather again today. Meant we couldn't really go anywhere or do anything as she needed me stationary and by her side! Fortunately I started crafting at about 7.30am before her illness had reared its ugly head. I cracked open my SEWING MACHINE!!! Is this a hint about the contents of the new catalogue... you'll just have to wait and see....

Cats & dogs

2011-09-12T17:06:00.001+01:00

Just like the weather this morning!

This is another swap card, this time made by Jade. She's used a cute little stamp set that's often overlooked called Every Little Bit. Love the way she's coloured the images and the sentiment cones from Clearly For You.

Apologies for my blogging absence. It's been a hectic weekend with two parties, deliveries and planning my Catalogue Kick Off party on the 1st October (only a few places left if you've not booked already!). I've also just begun experimenting with my new catalogue pre-order. I'll share projects I've made with these later in the week!

Greenhouse Garden

2011-09-08T10:07:00.001+01:00

Morning all. Today I have a card made by one of my downlines, Fiona:

Such a stylish card featuring Greenhouse Garden in Black, Very Vanilla and Regal Rose. The central sentiment is retiring, So Many Thanks. A useful little stamp as you can stamp it in one colour as Fiona or you could use markers to colour with a variety of colours at once.

Hope you are having a good day. My pre-order from the new catalogue has arrived already so I'll be posting some projects made with them soon!

Family scrapbooking

2011-09-07T08:34:00.001+01:00

I've had a photo on my craft bench for well over a year. It is the kind of picture that is quite bittersweet to look at but I felt it should be scrapped. It is of my Dad and his siblings at their mothers funeral. Possibly the last time they will all be together.

Last night we had the first of my monthly scrapbooking evenings. They'll be held on the first Tuesday evening of each month. It was a slow start so I managed to make this page while Lesley created hers.

The papers are called Love letter with a small amount of Newsprint thrown in for good measure! Both sets of paper are on the retired list and not available after the end of the month. I used the swirl from Baroque Motifs (NOT retiring!) stamped in Basic Black and some Vintage Rub-Ons - these are also retiring. To finish there were pearls all over and voilà la!

Its would be great if you could join us for scrapbook club next month!!

Clearly for You Class

2011-09-05T20:10:00.005+01:00

Hello All! Thought I'd share a class that I've designed and there's still room to book your place!! it features the set Clearly For You (in the Spring Mini Catalogue) and as part of the class you will receive the stamps sets too! (RRP £17.95)

The class will be run on:

Thursday 15th September, 7.30pm-9.30pm
Saturday 25th September, 10am-12noon (NOT 1-3pm as it said on my postal class list if you received one of those!)

Places are £20 per person and need to be paid in advance. Hope you can make it!!!
A full list of forthcoming classes can be seen here.

Yipee for Mondays. It is so nice to be back in our "normal" routine. Munchkin and I had a great DVD afternoon, although Mummy fell asleep instead of Munchkin!!!

For Julie

2011-09-04T21:03:00.001+01:00

This is the card I made for my Stampin' Up! grand-daughter who has had a breavement:

The basic card is River Rock and I used my 1/2" circle punch to cut out the corners.

I then ran a piece of Whisper White through the Top Note die and then the Square Lattice embossing folder on the Big Shot. This gave a great base for layering leaves (also cut on the Big Shot) in Always Artichoke and flowers cut with Boho Blossoms punch. Each flower was sponged with Not Quite Navy ink to add depth. The centre of the flowers are basic pearls.

The sentiment is retired already (shhh!) and was stamped on the punched out piece of Very Vanilla card.

It's really hard to make a card for someone about something so personal but I was quite pleased with the result.

This weekend has been hectic as we got back from holiday, had a team meeting (which was fab - thanks ladies!), did some shopping and my lovely husband cleaned our house. Unfortunately I've hurt my knee so I'll just have to sit and do lots and lots of crafting!!!!

Simply Vintage

2011-09-02T07:32:00.001+01:00

Morning! Today I have another card made by one of my team, this time it's Amy. She managed to make her swaps with only 1.5hrs before we met up on Tuesday!

As you can see she did a great job. The base is Crumb Cake with some of the gorgeous Springtime Vintage papers and Very Vanilla layered on top. Am SO sad that these papers are retiring at the end of the month as they are my absolute favourites!

Anyway the card is finished with a sentiment in Baja Breeze from a Level 2 Hostess Set and an elegant knot of Baja Breeze seam binding ribbon.

Hope you've had a chance to look at the retired list. Can't believe the amazing discounts on some products, particularly if you want sentiment stamps which are usually quite pricey.

As for me... I'm back on holiday (again). I had to go back to College for a couple of days thus week bur I've been reunited with my family. Last night my lovely husband took me to watch the film version of One Day in the cinema. I've not yet read the book but I was a weeping wreck by the end of the film. Anyone who knows me well knows this is most unusual but the story really affected me! I'd definitely recommend it - even hubby didn't mind it!!

Here's a photo my husband sent me while away. I think she was missing me!!

Christmas in August

2011-08-31T14:13:00.001+01:00

Hello all! Today I have a card to show you that my lovely downline Pip made:

She's done brayering at the top with Dasher stamped on top. Simple but oh so effective!!!

She was a bit nervous as she hadn't made swaps before but I don't think she needed to worry, do you? Well done Pip!

Owl for you!

2011-08-30T22:55:00.001+01:00

Hello Crafters! Hope you are well. Just got back from a downline social and thought I'd show you the swaps I made for my team:

Cute, hey?

They're pillow boxes with 3/4" circles for the stomach 'feathers', hearts for feet and beaks, ovals for wings and 1.25" circles plus 3/4" circles for eyes.

Here is a close-up of the yellow guy:

As you can see the rhinestones added that little extra. These are perfect for filling with little treats.

For those Munchkin fans, here's the photo I was sent today as I've had to be away from my angel girl today:

Cuuuuuuuute!

Smile for the Camera!

2011-08-28T12:57:00.003+01:00

Happy Sunday! This is a pre-scheduled post that I have wanted to share with you for a while. Ruth created this fun camera based on one she had seen on the internet. We didn't have the punches the one on the website had though so she free-styled to create her own unique camera.

The camera is layered on Blueberry Crisp and Subtles Designer Series Paper Stack papers with a small piece of Night of Navy ribbon to finish. Do you recognise the sentiment? It's from the Level 2 hostess set in the current Mini catalogue. I'm such a fan of this set and it's just SO versatile. I've punched it out with the Word Window punch and then layered it on the Modern Label punch, which instantly makes it *pop* off the front.

Hope this gives you some inspiration for playing with your punches this weekend!

One Great Year

2011-08-27T12:49:00.002+01:00

Morning all! It's a bright sunny day here so I have a happy card to share with you. I have to admit that it is not made by me but by my upline, Natalie. She makes gorgeous contemporary cards and this one is just gorgeous.

She's used the super-versatile Simple Scrappin' kit called One Great Year. It's a fab kit that helps you make scrapbook pages really easily as well as being perfect for cards as you get cardstock, patterned paper plus self-adhesive die-cuts that match. the colours on this card are Wild Wasabi, Concorde Crush, Whisper White and Pear Pizzazz.

My favourite parts are the Pear Pizzazz ribbon (just lush!) and the Basic Rhinestones. Both of these really add some zing to the card.

She very kindly sent this card to celebrate the growth of my team of Blue Angels! We're growing fast and if you'd like to be a part of it why not sign up as a demonstrator and join in the fun? Contact me for more information: blueangelcrafts@gmail.com

Right, we're off on holiday shortly. We've not left yet as my husband is currently next door watching the rugby with our neighbours (he's still pining for Sky TV!). I will have projects to share with you over the next week, plus the Last Chance List will be released on here on the 1st September so plenty to look out for!

Birdcages in progress

2011-08-26T21:12:00.004+01:00

Hello and Happy Friday! I've been organising my diary ready to run a fun night in for you and your friends and whilst I was at it I've planned my classes for the rest of 2011 - you can see the full list here.

Now, today's project was based on one I saw on Pinterest, originally from here. These are my first two attempts and they do look a little....shabby. And not in a cute way! The cage base is an old jar lid which I covered with circles of card and then the strips of paper cover the sides and the joins where the cages were stuck.

The birds were made with my trusty two-step bird punch. Gosh I love that punch. I hadn't used it in a little while and I'm back in love with it!!!

Today has been a busy day achieving....nothing. However, I am really excited about our little family holiday tomorrow so it'll be worth all organising today. I'll also be able to indulge in some fabby Pinterest surfing. I am still 100% addicted to this site! Hope you are looking forward to a fun weekend!!

For Munchkin

2011-08-25T20:29:00.001+01:00

As Munchkin has grown she's begun to develop a new hobby - playing with hairclips! As her hair is so fine the clips are tiny so I've made her this:

It's a cheap canvas (4 for 99p!) which I've stuck ribbons across and decorated. Munchkin can then store her clips on here and we can hang them up tidily!

I added a Rich Razzleberry flower out of designer paper which has been sponged. There's a double layer of the flowers and then there's a small circle of Pumpkin pie and an even smaller circle of Pirouette Pink and a Filigree brad in the centre. The make sure the brad didn't fall off I used a thick layer of Crystal Effects glue which is nice and shiny too.

Handmade flower

2011-08-23T20:16:00.005+01:00

Greetings all! Hope you are having a good evening. Today I have a card for you that was inspired by the monthly magazine, Impression, all Stampin' Up! Demonstrators are posted each month. There is always tonnes of eye-craft-candy in each installment and this month's was no exception.

The flower is made using the large scallop circle die in the Big Shot. I cut mine with Peach Parfait cardstock and then inked the edge in the same colour ink. I then used scissors to cut my circle into a spiral which I rolled up to create a really 3D flower. This is not an ideal card to post! The centre of the flower is Rich Razzleberry satin ribbon which has been twisted and glued into the centre and then had a few pearls added for extra glam!

Have you seen the green leafy tendrils? These are super-simple to make using Pear Pizzazz seam binding ribbon which has been spritzed with water and then scrunched to give them a vintage look. Definately a technique that's worth giving a try on your next project.

The card base is layers of Peach Parfait, Old Olive and Rich Razzleberry cardstock and then the centre panel is Crumb Cake stamped with Bella Toile background stamp.

If you'd like to get your hands on the Stampin' Up! Demonstrator publication each month, why not sign up to be a demonstrator and join my team? Contact me: blueangelcrafts@gmail.com for more information.

All stitched up! Theme

2011-08-21T22:08:00.003+01:00

Challenge #80 from Hand Stamped Sentiments was a stitching theme. This is a card I created with my new stitching tool which spaces the holes so stitching onto card is super-easy.

Can't quite remember where the inspiration for this card came from but I love the layout. I think the stitching adds the final touch!!

The sentiment is from the set, Just Believe; the papers are Elegant Soiree - such a classy set of papers. The butterfly was cut from the same set of papers on my beloved Big Shot (oh how I missed you these last few weeks!)

Hope you are enjoying the cards from this challenge if you found me from the HSS page - maybe you'd like to follow my blog to see all my other creations?

As for being back in the UK. Well, it's nice not to be sticky with sweat, especially for Munchkin but it was rather nice to be living an alfresco life! Back to reality and tomorrow I'm babysitting a nearly two-year-old along with my own.... any ideas to entertain them both?!

Punch art car

2011-08-20T19:55:00.002+01:00

Another team-work card that Ruth & I concocted:
It's a punch-art car - perfect for giving someone who's just passed their driving test!

The base is Melon Mambo with Tempting Turquoise trim and Daffodil Delight patterned paper from the Greenhouse Gala pack. The sentiment is from the Level 2 Hostess Set in the Mini catalogue; it's stamped with Staz On as I wanted it to stand out against the background.

On another note....This is what woke me the other morning:

Wednesday was another gloriously hot day here in France and the kiddies made the most of it with swimming and waterplay in the garden:

SO cute!

Variations on a theme

2011-08-16T06:29:00.002+01:00

Salut all! Today i have a card that is a variation on a theme from the one in my last post:

(edit: see, now it's the right way up!)
This time it's using Woodland Walk papers and a sweet little stamp (the name of the set is currently eluding me - do you know what it's called?). There's a touch of Early Espresso taffeta ribbon and some Dot, Dot, Dot background stamp on the Crumb cake base - voilà!!

As for our holiday, its great. The weathers been testing our patience by being "challenging" first thing but it's so hot and sunny later on that you barely remember a short time later!

Yesterday it was a Bank holiday in France so we had an extra day with my Aunt & Uncle who are our hosts so we went carbooting. This is Munchkin eating her hotdog in a baguette:

Here are our hosts:

Here are our travelling companions:

Anyhoooo see you again soon!!

Pink delight

2011-08-14T18:29:00.004+01:00

Bonjour from France! We're having a lovely time in the warm surrounded by mountains, although we're missing dear hubby!!

Today I have a card I made to show off the papers from Lap of Luxury collection. There are shades of pink, Concorde Crush and Very Vanilla - delish!

The punch adds interest and allowed many designs to be shown at once - perfect of you have one of my papershares! The sentiment is from Tiny Tags punched with the Jewelry Punch and attached to a yum-o piece of Concorde Crush ribbon.

Just for those missing us in the UK here is Munchkin with her Boyfriend!

Farewell gifts

2011-08-13T07:24:00.001+01:00

The gym I go to has an amazing crèche with some fantastic ladies which makes my trips to the gym with Munchkin a pleasure. Sadly the management of said gym have decided to close the crèche. The fools!

Anyway today is the last day of the crèche so yesterday I popped along with some little chocolate thank-yous:

I'm majorly into rainbows at the moment so that was my inspiration. I cut the Crumb Cake flaps with the Top Note die on my beloved Big Shot. It's projects like this where you're making multiples that the Big Shot comes into it's own.

Then I stamped in the same colour ink using the swirly stamp in Baroque Motifs and used Early Espresso for the Thanks sentiment.

The flowers were punched out from mainly the DSP colour stacks. These are fantastic value as each double-sided 12x12 sheet works out at just 36p each!!! If you haven't got a stack or two in your life you really should!

For the flower centres I punched a 1" circle in a co-ordinating colour and pushed a clear rhinestone brad through. Oh yes, to make the petals antique-y I sprayed them with water and crunched them in my hand. When they dry they keep their shape.

These bag toppers fit the medium cello bags PERFECTLY and with a little sticky strip they're super secure. I filled mine with Revels but they are a good size for all sorts of things, edible or not!

The ladies really liked them and I hope it let them know how much I appreciated how wonderfully they looked after Munchkin.

If you'd like to order any if the products I've used or from the UK Stampin Up! catalogue why not drop me an email: blueangelcrafts@gmail.com

Today Munchkin and I are off on holiday to visit relatives in France. Poor hubby and lodger had to stay behind but I'm sure they'll have a great time eating junk and watching violent films and sports non-stop!

Hopefully I'll still be blogging this week so stay tuned!

An Apple for the Teacher

2011-08-11T22:07:00.003+01:00

This week on Hand Stamped Sentiments there is a theme of back to school, and what do you know, Ruth & I made this card!!

Ruth made the apples using a tab punch and Very Vanilla & Riding Hood Red cardstock. The tops were punched with a 1/2" circle punch. The cores were drawn with a Early Espresso marker which matches the freehand-cut stalks.

I made the base of the card out of Old Olive cardstock with a Very Vanilla trim that I punched. Then a small piece of Woodland Walk paper was added.

Such fun to create with a friend. I'd highly recommend it!

For a friend

2011-08-10T08:22:00.001+01:00

Hello! Hope your week is going well. Today I have a card to share with you I made inspired by a pin on Pinterest.

I used markers to colour different parts of the stamp. The colours are Basic Black, Basic Grey and Real Red. Then I punched out a heart from Real Red and edged it with DaZzling Diamonds glitter.

To add interest to the Sahara Sand base I crimped it either side of the stamped words. Simple but effective. S simple knot of Real Red satin ribbon finished the look.

Today we're meeting my cousin and her little ones at BirdWorld in Farnham. I'm nit sure our new French Friend will join us as she got lost on the trains last night and travelled quite a few counties before finally making it home after 5 hours of travelling the short 1.5 hour journey!! Oh dear...

Monkey business

2011-08-09T22:55:00.001+01:00

Today I spent a lovely day with my good friend Ruth and we squeezed in LOTS of crafting!!

Here is a card Ruth made:

She got the tutorial from a Google search - isn't it cute?

There's lots of punches used and the sentiment is from the Spring Mini hostess set.

Very cute!!!!

Sorry for the lack of posts lately - having a couple if different people staying at once is hard work!!!

Welcome and congratulations

2011-08-04T14:50:00.001+01:00

Hello and happy Thursday! It's been quite a week and I have a pair of cards to show you:

These cards are CASE'd from one sent by my upline, Natalie (I believe she got the idea elsewhere!).

My trusty Color Coach came into play and helped with these striking combos! The top one is: So Saffron, Wild Wasabi and Rose Red. The lower one is: Melon Mambo, Old Olive and Elegant Eggplant. Mmmm the names are making me hungry!

The sentiment is from Curly Cute and was stamped in Early Espresso to match the ring. Love the stars and the punch made them fun to make.

If you'd like to order any of the materials or tools I've used, why not drop me an email: blueangelcrafts@gmail.com

Phew what a week! We've had a busy tine welcoming a French student and also a friend who've both come to stay. Lots of cooking, ferrying and chatting, so not much time for crafting (noooooo!)

See you again soon!

Stampin Up!'s Gift to You

2011-08-01T22:05:00.003+01:00

As if getting your Stampin' Up! order was fun enough, when you place a £75 order or host a £250 workshop during August, you'll also get a FREE gift from Stampin' Up!

Your gift includes a beautiful, exclusively-designed cosmetics bag, along with Rich Razzleberry 1 1/4" striped grosgrain ribbon and a 24-piece clip assortment.

This offer from Stampin' Up! is only available during August, and I'll be placing regular orders each week throughout the month so you won't miss out on this exclusive offer!

Thank you notes

2011-07-30T12:37:00.001+01:00

Hello and what a glorious Saturday! Today I've some cute little thank you notes I made for a customer and her friends who put together an order.

The card bases are Crumb Cake and then I used a variety of colours as the card fronts. These were punched with the large flower punch. I then ran Tombow glue around the edge and stuck small strips of co-ordinating ribbon across the hole.

To finish I stuck a button on with a mini glue dot and a basic rhinestone in the centre. So quick with Stampin Up!'s range of co-ordinating products!!!

I stamped the sentiment in Basic Black and popped them into some teeny tiny envelopes I had already.

What are you doing to enjoy the sun? We've been pottering and preparing for our guests who are visiting this week.

See you soon.

Birthday boy

2011-07-29T07:34:00.001+01:00

Hello all! Can you believe it's Friday? I swear time speeds up in the summer!!

Today I have a sunny card to share with you. It was for a young guy called Jack who was celebrating his fifth birthday with a bowling party.

I used Play Date DSP and cut out the number 5 from one sheet. I made a frame for the number by punching the 1" circle outbid Chocolate Chip card and then centering that hole and cutting with the 1.25" circle punch.

I added a Real Red star to make it a bit more interesting and a little button in the centre. I'm so obsessed with matching that I managed to find a wrapping paper that was almost Tempting turquoise and ribbon to match the star!

Munchkin enjoyed the bowling and was keen to pick up a bowling ball wherever possible!!

Thanks for reading my blog today. I love reading your comments - they make my day!

New Class Schedule

2011-07-28T22:35:00.001+01:00

Check out new classes add to my schedule for the coming months here.

Swirly wedding card

2011-07-28T12:21:00.001+01:00

Hello! As I mentioned last week I've been asked by my bro to make some wedding cards and here is the third one:

I LOVE this swirly stamp from Baroque Motifs and then I punched some hearts from Ridinghood Red DSP. A few pearls and voilà!

The inside was decorated too as the base card was black so it's easier to write the desired message.

As this card features a swirl I'm entering it into this weeks Hand Stamped Sentiments challenge, which asked to feature swirls.

It's a beautiful day here in Surrey ad we're off to see a few friends later - hopefully lots of photo opportunities for my Week in The Life project!! See you again soon.

Crafty Summer

2011-07-27T08:57:00.003+01:00

One of my customers enjoyed using the Big Shot on Saturday and asked if to bring her young daughter over to learn how to use it too. Well, Anna (the daughter) was a complete natural! You can see her hard at work here:Here is a photo of Fiona and Anna with their finished handiwork!

You can see the cards are variations on the ones we made on Saturday but in really funky colour combinations - Anna was great at picking out unusual colour combos that really "pop!"

If you'd like to have a one-on-one craft class, why not contact me? blueangelcrafts@gmail.com

Sail away with me

2011-07-26T07:35:00.001+01:00

Ok so I have to admit I've never actually been sailing.... But when the challenge on Daring Cardmakers this week was to make a card with the theme "wish you were here" this boat stamp came straight to mind:

The boat stamp fills the main part of the card and then I sponged the sea in Baja Breeze (to match the handwritten sentiment and mat) and used So Saffron to sponge a sun.

Gold brads bring the whole thing together. How did I do the cut-out corners? Using my 1/2" circle punch! The punch has a cross design on the inside and you line up the corner of the card with one quarter of the punch - simple!

Today I've got my lovely friend Ruth popping over for some crafty fun - with her doggy Jessie! Should be interesting to mix a dog with a toddler!!!

Thanks for reading my blog - I read and appreciate every comment.

Summer Fun

2011-07-25T08:32:00.002+01:00

Hello and happy Monday! Today I'm beginning my Week in the Life journey 2011!! I'll show you my progress as I go.

Anyway today I have a card to share with you that I'm entering into the Hand Stamped Sentiments challenge this week. The theme was summer fun and there's nothing more summery than a nice big ice-cream!!

The base was cut from Melon Mambo using the scallop circle die on the big Shot. I then cut a circle to fit inside out of Whisper White.

The ice-cream scoops were stamped using the Big Bold Birthday stamp set. The scoops are actually meant to be the top of a cupcake but I thought they looked good as ice-cream!

My trusty Color Coach came in useful when choosing colours so the scoops are in Melon Mambo and Tempting Turquoise. The cone is a scrap of Daffodil Delight that's been run through the Square lattice embossing folder on the Big Shot. To finish I hand wrote a sentiment in Daffodil Delight. Easy!

Today munchkin has put her foot down and insisted starting potty training. Lots of accidents to come, I expect, but exciting nonetheless!!