Christmas in August Craft Day

This post will stay at the top of my blog until the end of July. Please scroll down for latest blog posts.

Christmas in August Craft Day

Saturday August 20th 10.30am-4pm

Spaces are limited so book early to secure your spot. Last date for booking is July 30th and I will need to receive payment (cash or cheque) by that date to ensure enough provisions are ordered for the day.

Further information:

•  Projects for the day include a Christmas Tri-Shutter mini album and a papercraft Christmas tree
• £15 to include all materials and light refreshments (tea/coffee/cake)
• On the day ordering specials including a free prize draw for the hostess benefits for the days orders, free P&P and the choice of a free pack of pearls/rhinestones/ink pad for orders over £30.

 Please bring along a packed lunch and your own glue/tape for the days crafting.

I am also running a special Christmas card class evening on Wednesday August 17th (7-9.45pm, £8).

Christmas Spinning Card

I recently saw this card over on Peg's blog. I'd never seen this spinning style of card before so thought I would have a go for this months card class. Its never too early to think Christmas you know ;0)

I created this spinning wheel card using the Scallop Circle Die for the Big Shot, the Ornament and 1 Inch Circle Punches, Jolly Holiday Designer Series Paper and Every Little Bit Stamp Set. I embellished with Basic Rhinestones, a brad & a silver pen from my crafting stash.

I was surprised by how much everyone loved the effect of this card and it could easily be adapted for any occasion. I thought it would make a lovely new baby card with the little images.

The photos below show each of the images in the ornament window.

The mini Penguin:

 Snowflake:

 Stocking:

 Present:

 Gold Star:

Cardstock: Crumb Cake
Designer Series Paper: Jolly Holiday
Stamp Sets: Season of Joy (Sentiment) and Every Little Bit
Ink: Cherry Cobber, Daffodil Delight, Rich Razzleberry, Basic Black, Real Red, Night of Navy
Embellishments: Brad, Basic Rhinestones
Other: 1" Circle Punch, Ornament Punch, Dimensionals

Explore Week One

So here we go. I finally got my act together to photograph and finalise weeks ones prompt creativity for Shimelle's class 'Explore'. This class has been brilliant so far and each prompt is pretty workable by how much time you have in the day. By creating your own little playbook on Day 1 you have a portable little notebook for jotting down things about the day or sticking prompt related photos in. I have been using images a lot more in this class than journalling. But I am creatively challenging myself to not be such a perfectionist.

Perfectionism in my scrapbooking (and crafting generally) is something I struggle with regularly and I can often lose my mojo for weeks on end over a perfectionist paddy I have thrown (its not always pretty!! My poor old craft room looks so sad and dejected after I've thrown one!!). But this class so far is making me challenge my own notions of the creative journey. And I think I might be growing as a crafter as todays LO (last photo) is one I'm really not happy with. But I am going to proudly place it in my album and not beat myself up that it didnt go quite to plan.....

My 'Explore' playbook.

I kept this super simple with 6x4 chipboard cover and back covered in favourite paper scraps. I embellished with a few stickers and my trusty dictionary.

Prompt 1: A self portrait.

I wasn't at all happy with this picture till I started playing around with effects. I much preferred it in black and white/tinted.

Prompt Two: Postcard & Adventure

I journalled on the back of this Australian postcard about my definition of adventure.

Prompt 3: Scraps of maps

This prompt was about making circle embellishments and using maps. I went to the local charity shops and looked for old city guides and maps. I found an old road map really cheap and an old New York guide so I played with making embellishments and circles out of places that I love (New York, Isle of Wight- obviously, and Hawaii). I was trying to represent my lifes adventures through maps.

Prompt Four: Perfection

Rather than journal about perfection I simply stuck in one of my favourite spring time photos from this year. I took this is my Mum's garden of the apple tree. I also wrote out the 'perfection' quote from the prompt at the top of the page as a reminder to not get too caught up in my own issues with perfection.

And finally, Friday's creative project prompt was about using 9 circular embellishments on a main LO. I chose two pictures from my year in New York and I tore lots of pages from the old guide book I found. I created this page using bits and bobs and scraps that I found. I have actually changed it a bit since i photographed it to give a blue skyline behind the chipboard buildings to make them stand out a bit more. I think it ended up too busy. But like I said before, it is part of the process, so it is staying in my album all the same. I made all the circular embellishments out of buttons, maps, a subway map, my old dictionary, brads and photos. I created a mini collage of NY images.  My favourite element is the subway map title cut using my Cricut.

Thank you for reading this rather long winded post. I'll try not to blog a weeks worth of prompts at a time from now on......

Happy crafting ;0)

A Friday Make

It has been a really slow crafting week this week. I have finally started work on my travel album from an Australian trip I took with my partner Sam in 2009. I have had a half completed album for 2 years now and I wasnt happy with the pages i had completed. So I bought myself some new neutral cardstock and I am starting from scratch. I also designed an Australian cross stitch sampler for the front cover of the scrapbook which has also been half completed. So I am now working on finishing that too. So while I havent had projects to share I have been working on things in the background.

This evening I wanted to create something but lacked inspiration. So I did a bit of blog hopping and came across a beautiful card over on my Stampin' Up! friend Vicky's blog. I decided to have a go and make my own version (which is very similar to her version in all honesty. I had to adapt certain elements to match the stamp sets I own). I am so pleased with this card. Such a beautiful idea and I have now learned a new technique (my first attempt at sponging the background).

For this card I used:
Cardstock: Whisper White
Ink: Pear Pizzazz and Baja Breeze for the sponged background & Rich Razzleberry for the flowers and greeting.
Stamp sets: Flight of the Butterfly (small flower), Simply Said (flower stems), Nature Walk (Bee)
Other elements: Vellum (for the bee), Post its for masking.

Happy Weekend all ;0)
-X-

New Baby Card for a Tuesday Morning

Morning all,

Sorry for the lack of blogging. I have been busy busy busy over the weekend. Although I dont seem to have a lot to show for it. I've just signed up for a new class over at Shimelle.com called Explore so I spent yesterday having some fun creating my Playbook and taking some self portraits (I will share more on my makings in a different post I think). I'm so far really enjoying being part of an online class again.



Right back to todays makings. My lovely friend Saberina had her first baby last week. I am so excited for her so sat down and made her a congratulatory 'New Baby' card.

I themed it all around shades of green. I used Wild Wasabi (card blank), Old Olive (Ink and punched circle), Garden Green (Scallop circle) and Pear Pizzazz (main colour run through the Big Shot with my polka dots embossing folder + poly ribbon) with a bit of Whisper White for highlighting.
I stamped the baby image using All in the Family and 'Kaiden' using the Jumble alphabet. Unfortunately Stampin' Up! couldn't help me with the miniature numbers for Kaiden's birthdate so I had to raid my scrapbooking stash for those little numbers. I accented the whole card with three Itty Bitty Heart Buttons glued onto Wild Wasabi Hearts and two little Basic Pearls between the date numbers.

Right, I'll be back asap with info on my 'Explore' makes. Happy crafting to you all.

-XXX-

Harry Potter Scrapbooking

I received a Snapfish bundle of photos in the post yesterday and thought I would sit down and have a go at a layout. I'd seen this sketch and love the idea of a slightly skewiff design.I find it very hard to  not have straight lines and equal distances on my scrapbook pages. So this was almost a compromise. It still has my straight lines but they are angled?! 

My sister and I were in London last week at the same time as the Harry Potter premiere. It was crazy. There were thousands of people all around the streets of Trafalgar Square and Leicester Square, all hoping to catch a glimpse of the cast. We couldnt believe what a phenomenon Harry Potter is and what attention this final premiere had brought. I guess when you sit at home reading the books or watching the DVDs it is shared just between you and your family. You know you love them but dont realise just how many other people are out there loving them too. There was a real energy and excitement about the event, and even though we couldnt see a dickie bird we still wanted to stay.

To create the titles for this page I cut up the photos I had taken of the cinema and signs. They made perfect title additions to the page. And then I used the circles to capture little details of the event from the huge character banners to the crowds to the media circus. I embellished with my Stampin' Up! chipboard stars covered with Pumpkin Pie, Rose Red and Tempting Turquoise (I also daubered the edges in darker coloured inks). The printed word DSP in the background is from the Newspaper DSP paper pack. The base cardstock is Crumb Cake. Everything else is made up of bits and bobs from my stash drawer (I was surprised by the amount of lovely stars I managed to find) and papers from my odds and sods box.

Nearly the weekend. Happy Thursday crafting ;0)
-XXXX-

Less is More 'With Legs'

I thought I would have a go at this weeks Less is More challenge, a one layer card 'With Legs'. The moment I saw the weeks theme I thought of this stamp set, Aviary (sadly, while this is Stampin' Up! it is not currently available in our catalogue.This was a gift from an American counterpart).  I was actually thinking of the bird cage leg as opposed to the birds' (do I get extra points for having double the legs?) I have had this set in my stamp cupboard for months and never gotten around to using it. So I decided I would 1) use a brand new set and 2) try a new technique. Now heat embossing is my favourite of all crafting techniques, but until this card I had never tried masking part of the image. So I stamped my fancy yellow bird first then created a mask from a post it. I then lined up my bird cage with my Stamp-a-ma-Jig and stamped with Versamark. I then heat embossed over the bird in gold embossing powder.

OK so its quite a simple card. But I think I am getting my head around CAS slowly but surely. I couldnt resist the one little rhinestone to embellish the bird cage though. I love these challenges set by Mandi and Chrissie and I love challenging myself to go against the grain crafting wise (I still want to glitter and embellish everything).

So thats me 'LIM'd' for the week. Onwards to Saturday and a new challenge.....

Happy Crafting ;0)
-X-

Stampin' Scrapping for July

Here is this months scrapbooking double layout inspired by this blog. This uses the Love Letter Designer Series paper as its core inspiration. The colour scheme is Riding Hood Red, Basic Black and Very Vanilla. I have themed the pages around love but would work equally well for weddings, anniversaries, valentines (all love related events I suppose). Although the pages look quite simple there are a lot of elements that make up these layouts.

If you'd like to come along to this months scrapbooking class there are still a few spaces left. Please get in touch on 609249 or poulton_sarah@yahoo.co.uk.

Thursday July 21st 7-10pm £8.50 inc kit and refreshments


Made using:

Papers: Love Letter
Cardstock: Riding Hood Red, Very Vanilla and Basic Black
Stamp sets: Simply Said, Paisley Prints, Love You Much, Just Perfect & Schoolbook Serif Alphabets.
Punches: Heart to Heart, Scallop Circle, Scallop Trim Border
Big Shot: Top Note, Scalloped Heart
Ribbon: Real Red Taffeta Ribbon
Embellishments: Basic Rhinestones

Christmas Workshop Makes Mark 2

Better late than never. I finally had the time to post these pictures of our workshop makes from Friday. We had a fantastic Christmas crafting workshop with some lovely ladies. I themed the makes around 'Quick and Easy Christmas'. I wanted to show that stamping can take the fear out of making your own Christmas items and you can actually make things in a quick and easy way. So no need to worry about making 50 Christmas cards. With the right design you can make all your Christmas cards in one afternoon.

Here is the mini Christmas card we made using Every Little Bit (this design would also be workable with any of the 30 mini images in the set). I themed all our projects on colour schemes with Crumb Cake as the base colour. This was then embellished with Real Red and Pear Pizzazz and finished with two basic rhinestones.

 We also each made one of these mini nappy pouches using a 6"x6" square of Jolly Holiday Designer Series Paper. We also made a mini 2" square note card to fit inside (stamped in Whisper White onto Cherry Cobler using the background stamp from Season Of Joy).

 A quick and simple gift tag cut using the Top Note Die folded in half. The Dasher image was stamped in Cherry Cobler with a matching Merry Christmas sentiment stamped inside.

 Our final project was a mini window Pillow Box. I created two different versions to show how quick and easy these little treat boxes can be. The first has the oval punched and the Gifted image stamped inside. Then to embellish I wrapped a length of Jolly Holiday DSP around the Crumb Cake Pillow Box. I cut a window sheet into smaller sections which was used to create the acetate window into the box.

 The second version (and the one we all made) was stamped with images from the Season of Joy stamp set in Pear Pizzazz and Cherry Cobbler. This is a perfect little treat box. It could be filled with seasonal treats and then once the sweets have been eaten the greeting is revealed.

Stamp Sets Used: Every Little Bit, Season of Joy, Gifted, Dasher
Designer Series Paper: Jolly Holiday
Ink: Pear Pizzazz, Cherry Cobbler, Whisper White
Card stock: Crumb Cake, Real Red, Whisper White
Embellishments: Buttons, Basic Rhinestones

Any questions or to book your own Christmas workshop, please get in touch on poulton_sarah@yahoo.co.uk or 01983 609249.

Happy crafting ;0)
-XXXX-

Christmas in July Workshop

It is my first July in Christmas workshop tonight. I thought as my hostess gift I would create a lovely little card and gift box set that, while a little Christmasy, could also be used for other events through the year. I wanted to show that the stamps in the Stampin' Up! Christmas stamp sets are versatile and can be used for more than the festive season.

For this card (inspired by a Christmas card I recently saw on the lovely Bekka Prideaux's blog) and Gable box I used Season Of Joy stamped in Pear Pizzazz and Poppy Parade. I also used a bit of Champagne Mist Shimmer Paint to create the flourish on the red front panel of the box. I also used  a 'Thank You' sentiment from Thank You Kindly. I embellished the box with 3 brads and a small length of Poppy Parade Poly Ribbon.

I have 4 lovely little quick and easy Christmas projects for the Make and Takes for the workshop tonight. Check back tomorrow to see what we'll be making. And if you'd like to book your own early Christmas crafting workshop, just get in touch on poulton_sarah@yahoo.co.uk or 01983 609249.

Happy Friday Crafting ;0)

-XXX-



WOYWW- July 6th

Why is my desk always so messy on a Wednesday? I usually work in a much more organised state. But it must just be something about Wednesdays. If you'd like to see lots of other fab creative craft desks hop on over to Julia's blog.

So this week we're back to the craft room and I have a lot going on this week. Firstly you can see my new art print on the right. I love this artist. Her name is Marja Leena and she is based in Australia. Her prints are displayed in my local Doctors surgery and they are so bright and cheery that I almost look forward to a trip to the surgery ;0) I recently bought a print to hang in my craft room and here it is awaiting a frame.

Also on my desk is a little hostess set I have been working on for an upcoming Christmas themed workshop. I have used the Season Of Joy set to make this little thank you card and gable box for my hostess and I've filled the box with lots of crafty loveliness. The cardboard box contains all the make and take bags for my ladies to make a matching Christmas set of a card, gift tag (the sample is on my green craft mat), pouch and pillow box*.

Here is hoping it stops raining today so I can get out for a long walk with my dog (although my garden looks thoroughly refreshed for all the downpours we have been having). Hoping its a lovely day wherever you are.
Happy Wednesday Crafting all ;0)


*If you're reading this and you're based on the Isle of Wight, please get in touch (poulton_sarah@yahoo.co.uk or 609249) if you fancy booking a Christmas Stampin' Up! workshop. Always happy to meet new crafters ;0) And Christmas crafting is my favourite of all seasonal crafting (which explains why I am starting my card making in July!).

Shades of Blue Mark 2

So I had another go at a Clean and Simple card last night. I used the Shades of Blue theme for this weeks Less is More challenge as my inspiration. I used three stamps from the Stampin' Up! For Everything stamp set. I stamped the outline images with Pacific Point then coloured using the fine end of my Stampin' Write markers to colour the images in (Tempting Turquoise, Bashful Blue and Baja Breeze). I finished with basic rhinestones to embellish the flowers.

You will notice however that I still have not located my Stamp-A-Ma-Jig as I couldnt quite line the bird up perfectly. I'll have another go with another colour scheme when I find my SAMJ. I'm really pleased with this card and I'm surprised by how much I enjoy just stamping without overcomplicating things.

Happy Crafting ;0)
-XXX-

Shades of Blue

Well I was browsing blogs for inspiration this afternoon when I came across the Less is More Clean and Simple challenge again. I haven't participated in any challenges for a while so I sat down and had a go. I think there are a few too many elements for this to be truly CAS. But I am getting better at learning to leave white space and simplify my designs. I also think this would have been simpler by a mile had I been able to find my Stamp-A-Ma-Jig and could've lined up the little elements without having to punch them first. Oh how I love having an untidy craft room (I think I know what i'll be doing tomorrow).

I decided to have a go at using my Itty Bitty Bits stamp set and matching buttons as they've been sat in my cupboard unused for ages. I quite like the effect. And the Stampin' Up! blues are my favourites so I took this opportunity to use them all: Night of Navy, Not Quite Navy, Pacific Point, Tempting Turquoise, Marina Mist, Baja Breeze and Bashful Blue.I embellished with Basic Rhinestones and a greeting from Curly Cute coloured with my Stampin' Writes.

I have another idea brewing. Might have a go at that tomorrow and enter again.

Happy Crafting all ;0)
-XXX-



Colour Coach Blog Hop- July 1st

Happy July 1st and welcome to my little part of the In Love With Stamping Stampin' Up! Colour Coach Blog Hop. You should have hopped here from Sara and her project made with Sahara Sand, Bravo Bergundy and Pink Pirouette.

I had a couple of projects planned for todays hop but my life seems to have run away with me. So I am just including the one Pear Pizzazz Colour Coach combo . This card is inspired by the Creative Combination on the Pear Pizzazz card which combines Rich Razzleberry and Tempting Turquoise. I recently saw a similar pennant style card in the US Stampin' Up! catalogue so I thought I'd give it a whirl with my own take on it. Plus it gave me an excuse to dig out a stamp set I haven't used in a while, Flight of the Butterfly.

For this card I used a Pear Pizzazz base with a pennant cut from the In Colour DSP stack. I then used a strip of Pear Pizzazz Poly Ribbon to create an edging and then finished with a Rich Razzleberry edge punched from the Scallop Trim Border Punch. The butterflies are stamped with Rich Razzleberry ink and then punched with the Butterfly Punch. The centres of each butterfly are punched using one of the Itty Bitty Shapes Punches and then finished with a basic rhinestone. The sentiment is from the Level 2 hostess set in the Mini Catalogue, Something to Celebrate and punched with the Modern Label punch,

I'm sure other Demos on the hop have already explained the Colour Coach, but it such a great tool for inspiring your colour combinations. It is a handy colour swatch full of Stampin' Up! combinations to mix up your creations and make choosing colours for your projects fun and easy. Hopefully along the blog hop you'll have seen many different colour combinations to get your creativity started. And now to continue with your journey, hop on over to Claire to see what colour combination creation she has made.

-xxx-