Global Design Project - CASEing the Designer

12 November 2018

As I write this it's 8.54pm on Friday night, the 2nd November and I am completely packed ready to leave in the morning and head to the airport bound for the Stampin' Up! Onstage 30th Anniversary celebrations in Orlando Florida. I am so excited!

Because this post is scheduled to go live on the 12th November, if all goes well I should be currently with my best-friend Mehgan in Phoenix and sharing all my Onstage news and playing and snuggling with her baby boy.

Now, let's get started into the CASE the Designer project. This week over at the Global Design Project we are CASEing ME....which is exciting! As you may know I haven't played along to the GDP in quite a while and Brian King insisted that I should get my act together and at least play along to my own challenge. Yes, I hate it when he's right!
These are my Onstage Swap Cards which were created for an organised swap event with the Inking Royalty Team of Brian King's. It is a card front, however the square on the front is actually a little card of it's own. I am LOVING the Buffalo Check background stamp from the Holiday Catalogue and I had to make sure they were all cut to size perfectly of course! The sentiment and flowers are from Floral Frames on page 135 of the Annual Catalogue.


I had fun creating these, but I can't take all the credit because my dear friend Lisa Eaton helped me with all the cutting out and assembly - thanks Lisa. These literally would not have been finished without her help!

Now I am off to bed to try and get a good nights sleep before my flight. Or as this goes live I'm exhausted from screaming at Onstage and about to enjoy a week with Mehgan. 

I would love you to head over the Global Design Project and if you're feeling all inspired from Stampin' Up! Onstage, I'd love you to play along! 

Thanks for stopping by,
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Stamping By The Sea Retreat 2018

03 November 2018

Hello! Back in August (which I know seems an eternity ago!) I hosted my second Stamping By The Sea Retreat, in beautiful seaside Kiama on the NSW South Coast. The theme this year was blue and white nautical and everyone who attended loved being part of the weekend which was jam-packed full of crafting and laughs - thank goodness because I made a promise and felt the pressure to deliver! lol

I could write forever about how much fun the weekend was and it's taken me about 4 hours to go through the hundreds of photos I had on my camera and collate them all, so I'll just share the photos and you can see all the fun that was had! 

Thank you to our Guest Demonstrators who contributed to the learning and fun of the weekend:
Clare Langsford - Australian BDM from Stampin' Up! Head Office and cardmaker.
Brian King - US Demonstrator and wonderful friend.
Teneale Williams - Phenomenal crafter and alocohol marker extraordinaire and my fabulous Upline.
Narelle Macey - Aussie Demonstrator, team member and lovely friend. 

A HUGE thank you to my Mum/Phyl, Lisa Eaton, my Hubby/Daniel and my family for all the help and hardwork with the retreat.

Lastly (but certainly not least) my dear friend and partner in crime for the retreat, Tracey Tullier, who worked tirelessly nourishing our crafty bodies and making the most delicious food. (For some reason I missed a photo with Tracey...next year she will not escape me!) 

Next year is going to be even better - you won't want to miss it!

Today I'm jetting off to the US, bound for the Stampin' Up! Onstage 30th Anniversary in Orlando Florida with my lovely friend Kym Byrne from Brisbane. I am sooooo excited. I will share all the news when I return. (I thought I'd better share all the fun from the retreat and empty out my camera so I can fill it with more exciting Stampin' Up! adventures!). Happy crafting friends and thank you for following my blog.

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Be Inspired Design Team Hop

31 October 2018


Welcome to the Be Inspired Design Team Blog Hop. You may have just arrived here from my lovely friend Carolynn Sander from the Canada. If you are starting here please make sure you hit the next button at the bottom of this post and hop all the way around. 

The theme for this hop is 'Kids Theme Card or Project'. As you know I love to watercolour and when I saw these happy little critters from the Postcard Pals stamp set in the Annual Catalogue on page 49 they were on my wishlist!


I made this card for my US best-friend Mehgan who had a baby boy last August and little Reid celebrated his 1st birthday this year, so this is his very first birthday card from Aunty Lou....he won't know it's late right?! ;) 

EXCITING ANNOUNCEMENT.....I head to the US on Saturday to see so many of my amazing friends at the Stampin' Up! 30th Anniversary event in Florida and afterwards I head to Phoenix to see Mehgan and George and I will FINALLY get my first cuddles with Reid - I am so flippin' excited I can hardly contain myself!! 

Next up to 'Be Inspired' by is my lovely friend Janneke de Jong from the Netherlands. I just adore this girl and I know you will love her project today:

 
Thanks for hopping by!
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Be Inspired Design Team Hop

26 September 2018


Welcome to the Be Inspired Design Team Blog Hop. You may have just arrived here from my amazing friend Brian King from the US. If you are starting here please make sure you hit the next button at the bottom of this post and hop all the way around. 

The theme for this hop is 'Sympathy/Get Well' - and if you know me at all you will know I very rarely share sympathy or get well cards. I do make them, they generally just don't make my blog. I think this is because I like to keep the cards a little more personal. With today's card I am sharing, I went with the sentiment 'just a note' as I didn't feel 'get well' felt right.....you know when it's hard to find the right words...'just a note' is perfect for so many reasons. I made this for a beautiful friend going through treatment and I just want her to know that I am thinking of her. 


Have you seen the new Holiday Catalogue yet? It's amazing and I have been a little busy the past month to even have a play with anything. Thankfully I managed to get to my craft stash and have a play this week! The gingham background stamp (omg...swooning) is the new Buffalo Check on page 38. I missed it at first glance of the catalogue and was so excited when my friend Lisa pointed it out to me! The sprig of flowers and the sentiment are from the lovely Wishing You Well stamp set on page 35 and I turned the sprig of flowers into what looks a little like wheat because this friend once said to me "don't judge each day by the harvest you reap but by the seeds that you plant" and it's sound advice that has stayed with me for a long time.
Next up to 'Be Inspired' by is my lovely friend Janneke de Jong from the Netherlands. I just adore this girl and I know you will love her project today:

 

Thanks for hopping by!
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Be Inspired Design Team Hop

29 August 2018


Welcome to the Be Inspired Design Team Blog Hop. You may have just arrived here from my wonderful, talented friend Brian King from the US. If you are starting here please make sure you hit the next button at the bottom of this post and hop all the way around. 

The theme for this hop is 'Anything but a Card'. 

 I am sharing a small project today from my Stamping By The Sea Retreat I had a couple of weeks ago. Everyone had the opportunity to make this project as a make and take gift and from all the feedback they thought it was a really fun project! (I promise I am going to share more with you very soon about the retreat - when I can get all the pictures to load from my camera - there's a LOT!)


Next up to 'Be Inspired' by is my lovely friend Janneke de Jong from the Netherlands. I just adore this girl and I know you will love her project today:

 

Thanks for hopping by!
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Be Inspired Design Team Hop

27 June 2018


Welcome to the Be Inspired Design Team Blog Hop. You may have just arrived here from my fabulous friend Brian King from the US. If you are starting here please make sure you hit the next button at the bottom of this post and hop all the way around. 

The theme for this hop is 'Be Inspired by Fashion'. I came across this photo a couple of weeks ago when searching for 'polka dot skirt' and I saved it to my computer - isn't it just darling?! I saved it because I knew that I wanted the colour the skirt of the new Hand Delivered Hostess Stamp Set just like this one!

I used Shimmery White Cardstock with Stazon Ink and water coloured the balloons with the new In Color called Lovely Lipstick using an Aqua Painter. I created the polks dots myself using a Basic Black Stampin' Write Marker. 

The Hand Delivered stamp set can only be purchased if you host a qualifying party or spend $250AU  in one transaction. As you can see, it is a fun and versatile set with other great stamps in the collection. 
Hand Delivered - Hostess Set

Next up to 'Be Inspired' by is my super sweet stampin' friend Janneke de Jong from the Netherlands. I just adore this girl and I know you will love her project today:

 

Thanks for hopping by!
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Be Inspired Design Team Hop

30 May 2018


Welcome to the Be Inspired Design Team Blog Hop. You may have just arrived here from my wonderful friend and amazingly talented friend Brian King from the US. If you are starting here please make sure you hit the next button at the bottom of this post and hop all the way around. 

The theme for this hop is 'Create a Masculine Project '. 

I have been playing with some products from the new 2018-19 Annual Catalogue and the Lined Alphabet stamp set is so incredibly fun and versatile. It's a 'must' for any crafter!!

I created the watercolour background using the new In-Color called Call Me Clover (green) and Pacific Point (blue) and the large Aqua Painter brush on Shimmery White Cardstock. I wet the cardstock before starting and layer up the watercoloring using the ink from the lids of the ink pads. I always let it dry before adding another layer and I mix the colours together to create a washed look. I suggest paying with different colours until you get the desired effect - it's also a lot of fun!

The new stamp set Lined Alphabet is photopolymer so it is easy to line up the letters or overlap them. I wanted to use my White Stampin' Chalk Marker to highlight the letters however is has gone missing (I'm blaming Miss 15) - so I improvised with a white pencil.

I made this card for a lovely young dude, Harrison Smee who turned 10 this week. I know he will love it as he appreciates the effort of a handmade card - his Mum is my close stampin' friend Denita!

Next up to 'Be Inspired' by is my ever so lovely and talented friend Janneke de Jong from the Netherlands. I just adore this girl and I know you will love her project today:

 

I was inspired by my lovely friend Susan Wong for this project and a name tag she made. She's such a talent and I'm blaming her for me buying this stamp set! (I totally threw you under the bus Susan! Hahaha #sorrynotsorry!)


Thanks for hopping by!
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Global Design Project - CASEing a King!

29 May 2018

This week at the Global Design Project we have TWO very exciting things happening.....
  1. If you play along this week and you could have the chance to be a Guest Designer. One winner will be selected to be part of the design team for six months!! Entries close next Monday 4th June at 4pm AEST...I suggest you get your thinking cap on and get creating!



  2. What could be more exciting than CASE-ing my good friend Brian King from the US?! I have always enjoyed Brian's clean and classy style. And if it were possible to also add a dry sense of humor to all of his cards you would defiantly see his personality shine on his projects too! If you don't already, I suggest following his blog because it always gives me a good laugh - as well as creative inspiration of course! ;) 

The definition of CASE: Copy And Share Everything or Copy and Selectively Edit! Put simply, we take inspiration from the project and make it our own. 

I was completely smitten with this card when Brian first created it and I have taken my inspiration from many of its aspects - clean layout, the colours, the flowers and friendship theme. 


I used a new stamp set called Love What You Do from the upcoming 2018-2019 Annual Catalogue which will be released on Friday the 1st June. Another exciting thing happening this week!

Now head over to the Global Design Project and see what the amazing Design Team have in store for you this week.

Thanks for stopping by,
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Be Inspired Design Team

25 April 2018


Welcome to the Be Inspired Design Team Blog Hop. You may have just arrived here from my fabulous, talented stampin' friend Cathy Caines from Canada. If you are starting here please make sure you hit the next button at the bottom of this post and hop all the way around. 

The theme for this hop is 'Your Favourite Stamp Set'. This was a hard one because choosing a favoutite stamp set was like picking my favoutite child - they are all my favourites for different reasons!

If I really had to choose it would have to be Birthday Blooms on page 70 and for sentiments Teeny Tiny Sentiments on page 36, both in the Annual Catalogue. (Yes, I chose two stamp sets as 'favourites' because use Teeny Tiny Sentiments all.the.time and I would feel like it would be upset with me if I didn't use it! lol.) I love both these stamp set and I will be sad to see it retire on the 30th May. Tip: Be sure you get in and buy them before they are gone for good!
I stamped the flower onto Watercolor Paper using VersaMark and embossed with White Embossing Powder. I watercoloured the flower using ink from the lids of Powder Pink, Melon Mambo, Soft Sky, Marina Mist, Pear Pizzazz, Old Olive and Early Espresso. I then carefully cut the flower with Paper Snips.  

I wanted to keep this card clean and simple, something I often struggle with! This card was originally layered twice with an extra layer of Marina Mist and Very Vanilla, however I felt it took the focus off the beautiful flower which was of course the heart of this card. Sometimes simple is best. I decided to use Watercolor Paper as the top layer to give the card a little extra texture. 

Birthday Blooms


Next up to 'Be Inspired' by is my ever so lovely and talented friend Janneke de Jong from the Netherlands. I just adore this girl and I know you will love her project today:

 

My inspiration for this card come from the gorgeous Cath Kidston brand, which celebrates 25 years this year. The brand was established in London in 1993 and is best known for their hand drawn signature florals. I've always swooned over the companies beautiful vintage style - it's so very 'me' don't you think! For the company's 25th Birthday they have created a 25th Birthday Rose and I think the Stampin' Up! Birthday Bloom is the perfect flower to make a card for a friend who loves Cath Kidston as much as I do!


Seriously though...I want to moved to the London just to get tea delivered!!
"To celebrate our 25th Birthday, we wanted to bring Britain’s most-loved beverage to all of our fans and friends! We are of course talking about tea, and what better way to raise a cuppa to our British brand than with a fleet of vintage milk floats? In true Cath Kidston style, the milk floats have been decorated with four classic prints from our expansive print archive." - From the Cath Kidston Blog

On as note - do you think Daniel would mind if I got our car wrapped in vintage florals? Naaah...he won't mind at all. ;)

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Stamping By The Sea II
Preparations are underway for our second Stamping By The Sea Retreat. It will be held at East Beach Holiday Park, Kiama on the beautiful NSW South Coast. Last year was a huge success and so much fun and this one is set to be bigger and better!
Click Here for more information.


Thanks for hopping by!
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