Cased card and News

So at our last StampInkPaper team meeting, I was making a bunch of birthday cards.  Kay, one of my sister team members showed me a card by Ruth Clarke and mentioned a friend would love this for her birthday.  I had loads of bits of the Spice Cake paper chopped up so I went to work.  Tea-bag fold on 8 circles which are then placed together to form a flower.  Brad in the middle and voilà!

Supplies are Spice Cake DSP, Antique brad, Bring On the Cake stamp set, Early Espresso card body, Pool Party layer, Very Vanilla layer.  Coloured "Birthday" with Pool Party marker and stamped sentiment in Early Espresso ink.

News is that I've accepted a position with the ACT Public Service in Canberra until the end of June.  I'll be travelling down on Sundays and returning home on Fridays.  Will be busy, but worth it for both mental and financial health.  Also hoping it will lead to other opportunities at higher levels in the future and allow the family to move in July.  But nothing is ever set in stone, so we'll see how it goes.  At the least it will give me very recent experience in work I very much enjoy (stuff I do voluntarily - being paid to do it is a bonus).

And last but not least, its my littlest man's birthday today.  Toby is 7 today!  I'd been in hospital for a few days with ruptured membranes (same thing happened with Ryan) and was anxiously awaiting induction for Toby.  This is an old scrapbook layout I did quite some time ago about how strong (read STUBBORN) he was at 2 weeks old.  Remember, this is one week before his due date: he was 3 and a half weeks early!  He was such a fighter from the very beginning, but I suppose that's how you might be against the world when you're evacuated from your nice warm place a bit early.

I'm in LERV!

So, the last Stampin' Up! mini catalogue really didn't rock my socks as much as I'd hoped. The Sale-a-bration sets had me humming and ha-ing about whether I really needed any of them. And along came the Autumn/Winter mini catalogue...

Oh. My. God! I'm in LERV again! I didn't think it was possible for Stampin' Up! to blow my socks clean off my feet again - but they did! Here's why I'm in love... The Clear Mount Blocks... Well, as you can see in this picture, the stamp sets themselves are foam mounted as usual - storage is in slim DVD style containers with not only an index of the stamp name, but teeny images of each stamp that's in the set! No more photocopying the sticker sheet for the wood mounted blocks, no more searching to see whether one of the stamps is missing! And storage? well, how many more sets can I hide from my husband in these skinny boxes! :) The acrylic blocks, well, I dived in and bought the lot. With a saving of just over $13 by purchasing the "set" of blocks, I felt it was well worth it. And when I received them, I was NOT disappointed. They are gorgeous to hold, smooth edges, weighted beautifully and very easy to see through (with a teeny bit of magnification for my tired eyes!).

BUT WAIT! There's MORE! New punches in a slimline design. And matching stamps to go with them. The cutest has got to be the little bird which can be pieced together. Again, a sleeker storage solution to one of my bulkiest crafting items. I love the little locking mechanism that keeps them closed. I love the reference image on the edge of the punch too - again, easy to store AND pick out the one you need quickly.

Lastly, but certainly not the least, is the Big Shot with exclusive Stampin' Up! dies and embossing. The other day I trawled through the Sizzix website searching for a small envelope die similar to the one available through Stampin' Up. Well, I couldn't find one! In my travels, I was distracted/attracted by a number of other dies and every time I clicked on them, I found they were Stampin' Up! exclusive!

So, all in all, the Autumn/Winter 2010 mini has proved an expensive exercise for me, but I am LOVING every inch of it. Two new hostess sets available, three of the US in colors (Rich Razzleberry, Melon Mambo and Soft Suede, YUM) and very cool new products! This is why I love Stampin' Up! And this is why I love being a demonstrator. Now, to nail those socks onto my feet for the next Idea Book Catalogue!

Oh, PS! I am intrigued by the ideas offered for punch-art, thanks everyone, and am currently working on some designs. I'll post my creations soon!

New projects!

Recently I updated my Stampin' Up site with a couple of new projects from the Summer Mini catalogue. I'd love for anyone reading my blog to stop by and let me know what you think!