Making cards with the boys

I've always followed the Chinese calendar for mum's birthday and that of my Grandparent's birthdays.

I cannot read or write Chinese, so working out their birthdays required a little guess work. I know the symbol for moon (month) and the numbers which was just enough to get me through.

This year, mum didn't have a spare Chinese calendar for me. Knowing that most years mum's birthday is in May, I phoned my brother early last week to ask what day mum's birthday falls on this year. He said matter-of-factly "Yeah...she's already had it. It was on Anzac Day." Nobody bothered to tell me! I was disappointed, as this is the first time I've missed mum's birthday. 

Thankfully, mum's birthday based the Gregorian calendar was Friday so I could still do something for her. 

The boys and I got busy and each made her a birthday card.

Here's the card I made using the diamond stamp from the Shapes stamp set by Kellie Stamps. I stamped it to create a flower shape, cut around it, and added a gem to the centre. 

The boys woke up early on Friday morning and got their craft on before school.

They go a little nuts with my old Stampin' Up! punches. Here's my eldest creating "raining gumballs".

I had the day off work so I spent the morning baking muffins (after I burnt the sushi rice, but that's another story) to take to mum's house. It was nice to just sit and talk with her, and just catch up. We rarely have the opportunity when we have little people with us busily making their own noisy fun.

The boys didn't finish their cards before school so they added the finishing touches when they came home from school.

This is the result of their card making efforts. I helped with the stamping, and they did the rest themselves. 

Stamps: Birthday stamp set by Kellie Stamps

There's something really special about watching the boys create. Although they start off unsure, once they let go of their own expectations of themselves, they always create something unique and beautiful. 

My Christmas cards for 2013

I'm here with a quick post tonight to share the Christmas cards I made today.

I used the Christmas Tradition and Christmas 2013 stamp sets from Kellie Stamps.

My initial thought was to use Christmas patterned papers and a few stamps. Maybe even some embossing. Well...that didn't really happen. 

When I looked at Kellie's stamps, there were so many phrase stamps that I loved, and it was very hard to just use ONE greeting.

So this is what I came up with.

Here's a close up.

I am really happy with how quickly I could make these. I made these in under an hour which for me is fast in terms of my card making.

Don't you just love the JOY stamp? I love it so much. It makes me happy looking at it :-)

Hope your preparations for the festive season are coming together nicely and according to plan. 

As for my preparations... let's just say we are desperately trying to break the "tradition" of being up until 3am wrapping presents!

Be Mine, Valentine.

February 14th. Valentine's Day. The cynic in me says, "Total waste of time, just another ploy to make us spend more money." But then, the girly romantic in me says, "Oh, I hope i get showered with gorgeous flowers and pretty card where my man tells me I light up his life with my presence everyday". Ha! A girl can dream, eh? 

I have been making some Valentine's Day cards. Lots of fun with lots of red cardstock, red ink and Paris themed red washi tape! (thanks Dee, love love love the washi tape from NYC).

The first card uses the Stampin' Up! Core'dinations card stock in real red, which was embossed with the Lacy Brocade embossing folder. I then sanded the paper to reveal the inside layer of card stock. 

Card Stock: Core-dinations in Real Red, Whisper White, Real Red. Stamp Set: You are Loved.Inks: Real Red.
Accessories: Rhinestones, sponge dauber. 

The next card uses the You are Loved stamp set, where the heart image has been heat embossed using white emboss powder.  I really like how the stamped image turns out crisp and clean!   I used the same heart stamp randomly on the crumb cake card stock with crumb cake ink to create a subtle background. The polka dot paper was created by inking up the emboss folder with real red ink, inserting a piece of whisper white paper inside the folder, and then running the whole thing through the bigshot. Really love using this technique.  And lastly, my new love... I added some washi tape.

Card Stock: Crumb Cake, Real Red, Whisper White. Stamp Set: You are Loved, So Many Sayings (retired).
Inks: Read Red, Crumb Cake, VersaMark. Accessories: White Emboss Powder, Polka Dot emboss folder, Washi Tape. 

This next card was inspired by a little paper envelope I made for one of my scrapbook layouts (will post in next few days!). I cut out the envelope in real red card stock and then stamped only the front panel with the "Valentine's Day" stamp from the You are Loved stamp set. 

The little pink and red hearts were punched out with the Owl Builder Punch, and the larger heart that's tucked partially into the envelope is the from the alphabet dies (retired). I wanted to create something to symbolise being overflowing with love.

Card Stock: Real Red, Pink Pirouette, Very Vanilla.  Stamp Set: You are Loved, So Many Sayings (retired).
Inks: Read Red.  Accessories: Owl Builder punch.

The last card i made also uses the real red card stock which has been stamped with the Very Vintage Jumbo Wheel stamp in real red ink. I like the subtle effect that comes with using the same colour ink as the card stock. The word VALENTINE uses Amy Tangerine's Thickers with a Stampin' Up! pearl to dot the letter "I". 

Card Stock: Real Red, Crumb Cake, Whisper White.  Stamp Set: Very Vintage Wheel stamp,
So Many Sayings (retired).  Inks: Read Red.  Accessories: Amy Tangerine Thickers, Pearl. 

I had a lot of fun making these cards, and I hope they inspire you to make something too.

Who says you need to wait until Valentine's Day to give someone a card, why not make one today and tell someone how special they are to you!?

Birthday Mini Album/CD Case

Fancy that, 2013 already!?! It's funny how a new year has the ability to give us a boost and help us refocus our attention on what we want to achieve professionally, personally, and creatively. Although I'm not one to make new year's resolutions, I do know I want to make time to get stuck into some more layouts for my boys' memory books. 

In December last year, I was crafting my little butt off! One of the big projects I was determined to finish was our wedding album. I am proud to say it was completed before Christmas, just in time for our 10 year wedding anniversary in March this year. I am almost embarrassed to admit it took me this long to get around to doing it!

And then just before Christmas, I went to a super cute Very Hungry Caterpillar 1st birthday party for gorgeous little Isla! 

Here's the card I made for Isla. I am in love with embossing and glitter at the moment. Not to mention Patio Party DSP and the Summer Starfruit stitched satin ribbon! I'm really happy with the colour combination too, it reminds me of all things summery and fun!

All supplies from Stampin' Up!

I took my camera to Isla's party - just incase there was a photo opportunity. As it turned out, I ended up with quite a few photos and decided to have a go at making a photo movie with my favourite images as a gift for Isla's mum and dad. It is amazing how adding music to imagery lifts the photos to another emotional dimension.

Of course, I couldn't just give Janette (Isla's mum) the photo movie CD in just any old cd case, this called for...you guessed it... a CD CASE MINI ALBUM!!

I wanted to make something special for Janette and Daniel (Isla's dad) they could look at in 20 years time and remember Isla's very first birthday.  Something to treasure forever. Look at her, isn't she just beautiful!?!

All supplies from Stampin' Up except date stamp (Amy Tangerine)

The white polka dots on red was created by inking up the Perfect Polka Dots embossing folder with Real Red ink, placing a piece of Whisper White card stock inside the embossing folder, and then running it through the Big Shot. A really fun technique to experiment with! Try it with different inks and other embossing folders :-)

I also want to mention Isla's very talented cousins painted the caterpillars onto each of the party bags which were given to each of the kiddies. I cut the image straight from one of the bags we received. 

And lastly, I am still eating grain free. Fresh rocket this time of year is awesome as it is quick and easy, and a good alternative to lettuce! You can change it up by adding either pumpkin, pear, roasted beets. The possibilities are endless. I recently made a "cheese" with macadamia nuts and it is so yum with the rocket salad. To be honest, I put it on everything because it is so delicious. Heaps of macadamia nut cheese recipes on the web, look for one that suits you!

Pan-fried coriander chicken patties, with fresh rocket in a lemon and
olive oil dressing,topped with pan-fried pumpkin
and  roasted macadamia nuts.

That's it from me today! Thanks for stopping by, and I look forward to sharing more of my crafting projects this year!

Christmas Holidays 2012

I hope you all had a wonderful Christmas with your friends and family! For me, the joy of Christmas is in watching the growing excitement of our boys as the big day draws near. And I love how generous they become as they save the last two of their favourite cookies for Santa - I'm hoping Santa likes stale cookies!

Despite all my good intentions to be super organised with buying gifts, present wrapping, Christmas light viewing, food preparation and the like, I always manage to get to bed at some insane hour of the morning. Usually an hour or two before the littlies get up wanting to open their presents! 

This Christmas Eve, I was making chocolate crackles and mango and coconut ice cream for the kids. That was in addition to making a card for each of my two boys and hubby. As they had already seen the card i made for friends and family, Isaac had requested something a little different so he would be a surprised on the day. My creative abilities were under pressure, given it was 3am in the morning! 

Here's the card i made for family and a few close friends.  This is a variation of one of the card designs for the stamp-a-stack I had in November. Instead of using the stitched ribbon for bows on the gift boxes, I used the heart from the Owl Builder punch and added some Dazzling Diamonds glitter for sparkle.  

Cardstock: Cherry Cobbler, Very Vanilla.  Designer Series Paper: Be of Good Cheer.

Stamp Set: Short and Sweet (retired). Inks: Cherry Cobbler.

Accessories: 1cm Stitched Satin Ribbon in Gumball Green, Dazzling Diamonds Glitter.

After the three card designs for the stamp-a-stack, and the one for family and friends, I wasn't sure how i was going to come up with another design! I really love the tree in the Snow Swirled stamp set and had been thinking of heat embossing with the white embossing powder. This was the perfect time to test it out. Here's the design I came up with for my little munchkins and hubby. The stripes in the background also add a masculine feel to the design.

Cardstock: Old Olive, Real Red, Very Vanilla.  Stamp Set: Short and Sweet (retired), Snow Swirled. 

Inks: Real Red, VersaMark.  Accessories: White Embossing Powder, 

Old Olive Grosgrain Ribbon (retired), Stripes Embossing Folder (retired).

Hope you are all enjoying your holidays! Thanks again for visiting, come back soon as I will be sharing some photos of a mini album I made recently for a friend of mine.

Mailbox vs Inbox.

Do you think sending handwritten cards is fast becoming a thing of the past? Is it becoming virtually extinct like letter writing? I had a pen pal when I was in primary school and i was always excited to receive a letter in our mailbox (vs inbox!).  And my boys still love getting letters and birthday cards in the mail from their Grandparents. Thankfully, the boys are still too young to have an "inbox".

In this e-age of ours, we post messages on our friends' walls to wish them a happy birthday. Or we send text messages to say hello. Don't get me wrong, I do it too! But I love receiving cards from friends who write just to say hello. 

What's even more special is when you receive a handmade card. Call me sentimental, but if someone gives me a handmade card, I find it hard to discard it because I know they have taken the time to make it with their hands and their heart. 

I have been a busy bee doing some cardmaking of my own. Here are some cards that i have made recently.

This Best Wishes card features the Comfort Cafe designer series paper and the 1cm stitched satin ribbon in Summer Starfruit (p172) from Stampin' Up! All of the Designer Series Papers in the Stampin' Up! catalogue is listed with the colours combinations used so you can easily coordinate your card stock when making your cards.  

Cardstock: Midnight Muse, Very Vanilla, Soft Suede.  Designer Series Paper: Comfort Cafe.
Stamp Set: Short and Sweet (retired). Inks: Soft Suede.
Accessories: 1cm Stitched Satin Ribbon in Summer Starfruit, dimensionals.

I made this Wedding Wishes card for my friends Katie and Nick who recently had an absolute dream wedding in Bora Bora. A beautiful location to celebrate the beginning of their marriage. 

For this card, I used the Melon Mambo cardstock which is the same colour as what I used when I made their wedding invitations.  I stamped the image with the Easy Events stamp set (p34) using VersaMark, sprinkled the white embossing powder on top, and then used my heat tool to set it. I punched out the image with the decorative label punch (p182) and added some glitter to the love birds' wings.

Cardstock: Crumb Cake, Melon Mambo, Very Vanilla.  Stamp Set: Easy Events, Parlor Prints background stamp.
Inks: VersaMark. Accessories: White Embossing Powder, Pearl Basic Jewels, Dazzling Diamonds Glitter.

In my last post, I used the Patio Party Designer Series Paper to makeover a scrapbook layout.  Here I used it to make birthday cards. 

I really love the new Midnight Muse and Summer Starfruit in-colours, which go well together for those more masculine cards. I think most of the Patio Party prints could be substituted into this card design and still work with the Summer Starfruit stitched satin ribbon. The greeting was stamped with the Sincere Salutations stamp set (retired) with VersaMark and then heat embossed with white embossing powder.

Cardstock: Midnight Muse, Raspberry Ripple, Baja Breeze.  Designer Series Paper: Patio Party.

Stamp Set: Sincere Salutations (retired). Inks: VersaMark.

Accessories: 1cm Stitched Satin Ribbon in Summer Starfruit, White Embossing Powder.

I made this For Baby card (right) earlier this year for beautiful baby Isla. A good friend of mine who I went to uni with had been working in San Francisco and was returning with her hubby and new baby! I had seen photos of Isla and she was one cute baby so I was super excited to meet her (and catch up with my friend too!).

I used the Perfect Polka Dots embossing folder (p189) with the Big Shot to create the dots on the top half of the card, and then used the Subtles Collection Designer Series Paper Stack (p162) for the bottom half of the card. You can see how easily you can create a personalised card simply by cutting out the baby's name with alphabet dies through the Big Shot.

Cardstock: Pink Pirouette, Pretty in Pink, Rose Red, Soft Suede.  Designer Series Paper Stack: Subtles Collection.
Stamp Set: Easy Events (p34). Inks: Rose Red.  Accessories: Perfect Polka Dots embossing folder (p189) 

This Thank You card uses the Reason to Smile stamp set which I received as part of an awesome promotion Stampin' Up! was running earlier this year (so lucky!). I love cherry blossoms and they were my inspiration when creating this card.

The stamp set came with the outline of the flowers, and another stamp for shading the inside of the flowers.  I used the Two-Step Stampin' technique to create this card.  I left a few of the flowers with just the outline to allow for some variation. This card is very simple to make and I like the simplicity of it.

Cardstock:Whisper White, Soft Suede.  Stamp Set: Reason to Smile (retired), Short and Sweet (retired).
Inks: Melon Mambo. Accessories: Sponge Daubers.

My youngest is off to school next year, so i have been feeling a little sentimental and clingy on his days off from kindy! We made this card together for one of his kindy friends. 

He chose the stamp from the Easy Events Stamp Set, and even stamped it himself. The card stock he chose was Baja Breeze and as you can see, he drew in the lines on the side to give that "stapled" look. I helped him stick the papers and he finished it off by colouring it in with his felt pens. 

Just goes to show how easy it is to make a cute card with some nice card stock and a few versatile stamps.

Cardstock:Whisper White, Soft Suede, Baja Breeze.  Stamp Set: Easy Events (p34) Inks: Soft Suede 

All materials used for making the cards in this post are from Stampin' Up! so if you would like to recreate any of these cards, you can place an order for the materials with me.  

Thanks for stopping by, and I hope you have been inspired to make a card, or send a card to a friend or loved one today. Feel free to leave a message, would love to hear from you.

Glittery cards for Christmas.

The magic of Christmas is something i look forward to every year, especially now that I have two little boys who's excitement about Christmas is extremely contagious. 

I know that it is only November, but i am already in Christmas card making mode. It was time to start thinking about my designs for this year's cards! After flicking through the new catalogue, I was inspired and couldn't wait to get started.
     

Here are my three designs for Christmas 2012! I used these designs in a recent Christmas stamp-a-stack where everyone made 3 cards in each of the 3 designs, which meant they walked away with 9 lovely handmade cards in total! Not too shabby for a few hours crafting.

This first card was inspired by a 2010 card design by Wendy Todd, a Stampin' Up Demonstrator in Sydney. I wanted to make a card with baubles but without the necessary stamps or punches, I decided to improvise by using the large snowflake stamp (Snow Swirled stamp set) and the 4.4cm circle punch. The top of the bauble was made with the 1.3cm circle punch which i glued half way behind the large baubles.  I also used the Dazzling Diamonds Stampin' Glitter to add a little bit of sparkle. I like sparkle, i mean, who doesn't?  

Cardstock: Cherry Cobbler, Old Olive, Very Vanilla.  Stamp Set: Snow Swirled. Inks: Old Olive, Cherry Cobbler. Accessories: Dazzling Diamonds glitter, string (retired), dimensionals.

The second design features a row of three cute little gift boxes. This was a very quick and easy card to make. 

I used the 3.2cm square punch to create the inside squares from the "Be of Good Cheer" designer series paper, and then using the 3.5cm square punch in Cherry Cobbler card stock to frame the present boxes. For the bows, I used the 1cm Stitched Satin Ribbon in Gumball Green and glued them on with glue dots.

I wanted this card to show the fun and festive designs in the "Be of Good Cheer" designer series paper pack.  There were so many great designs that it was not easy choosing just three!

Cardstock: Crumb Cake, Cherry Cobbler, Very Vanilla.  Designer Series Paper: Be of Good Cheer.
Stamp Set: Accessories: Stitched Satin Ribbon in Gumball Green, glue dots.

The third design uses the very elegant Christmas tree from the Snow Swirled stamp set. I fell in love with this gorgeous tree last year and have had my eye on it since. I stamped the tree with Old Olive ink and added the Rhinestone Basic Jewels and Stampin' Glitter to make it really sparkle. 

I used a strip of the "Be of Good Cheer" designer series paper on top of a strip of Old Olive card stock which has added another element to the card.  So there you have it, a simple design with a glitzy tree.

Card Stock: Very Vanilla, Old Olive.  Designer Series Paper: Be of Good Cheer.
Stamp Set: Snow Swirled. Accessories: Jewel Rhinesones, Stampin Glitter.

These simple card designs show how you can create three distinctly different cards with just one set of Designer Series Paper, and one stamp set.  The Season's Greeting stamp from Snow Swirled could have easily been used in the triple gift box card too :)

Thanks for visiting, and I hope you have been inspired to get cracking on your Christmas card making!

I love weddings.

My beautiful and very dear friend Katie is getting married to her lovely fiance Nick in Tahiti in November.  I was so excited when i heard the news on New Year's Day this year!

Katie and Nick had been searching around for wedding invitations for a little while.  I told Katie that I would love to do something up for them to have a look at.  I didn't want her to feel like she had to go with my little design, and that I would just enjoy going through the process of coming up with ideas and making something for them to look at.

I sent Katie and Nick the mock ups and they decided to go with it.  I'd like to share with you the final product.  I'm really pleased with how it turned out and very honoured that Katie and Nick have allowed me to make their wedding invitations.

Stampin' Up!® supplies: Stamp Set (Sincere Salutations). Classic Stampin' Pad (Melon Mambo). Card Stock (Melon Mambo, Very Vanilla). Embossing Folder (Finial Press). Bigz L Dies (Fun Flowers). Accessories (Antique Brads).