Merry Christmas Everyone!

Hi everyone,

Just a quick update - thank you all for your kind messages while I have been unwell and dealing with a family situation. Please forgive me if I don't get chance to write you all back personally, you've really been filling my inbox with love!

I will be spending the next few weeks with family and loved ones but hope to be back online early in the New Year with lots of fun projects.

I haven't even had chance to make Christmas cards this year, but I hope you've all enjoyed creating special keepsakes for family and friends! May you and yours have a wonderful Christmas and a very Happy New Year. Stay safe and I can't wait to share all kinds of creative things together in 2009!!!

Best wishes,

It's Verve Time!!!

Hi everyone!!! So sorry it's been foreverrrrrrr since my last update.....being sick isn't great for the creative mojo!

I have great news though.....this month Verve have some amazing new releases, and even better I get to play with them all as one of the guest designers for November! Stay tuned over the next few days as I share some of my sneak peaks and I hope you'll join us in the Verve forum at SCS for the release party on Sunday the 9th at 8pm (EST) that's Monday at 2pm here in New Zealand!

Also, don't forget to check out the Verve blog for the amazing sneak peaks by the Diva's and guest designers. As a special bonus Julee has created some amazing sketches for a Holiday Release challenge - be in to win the entire Verve release!

Here's one of the cards I've made with this month's Plain Janes. I'm still amazed, every single time, how beautifully Verve sentiments stamp. They're just gorgeous - I dare you to try and get a bad impression with one! The idea behind this card was to make the ATC sized layer removable so it can easily be popped in a purse, or on the fridge for inspiration on the go! Lots of shimmer and shine on this one in real life, I'm a true glimmermist convert lately!



Stampin Supplies:
Stamp Sets: Proverbs 3:5 Plain Jane
Ink: Brilliance Graphite Black
Card stock: Very Vanilla, Soft Sky, Blue Bayou
Paper: Offbeat by Basic Grey
Punches: Threading Water, 1/4" Circle
Accessories: Primas, Self adhesive Rhinestones from KaiserCraft, Glimmermist - Silver Bells, Satin Ribbon, Chipboard Bracket by American Crafts, Long Rectangle Nestabilities, Stampin’ Dimensionals, SNAIL adhesive.
Stamps by Verve. Some supplies available from Stampin' Up!

Where have I been? SENZ 2008!

'Nuff said!

Late Night Inspiration!

....Or maybe that should be early morning inspiration! It's almost 1am here after a very long day, but I knew there was no way I could sleep tonight if I didn't get this card down on paper and out of my head!
Aren't the colours for this weeks Colour Inspiration Challenge gorrrrrgeous? I've used Old Olive in place of Kiwi Kiss and I still love the combo! I was so inspired by the plate too, I had to use this similar image....
The images from Mostly Flowers were stamped then punched with the 1 1/4" Square. The hardest part was lining them up into the grid (this is a 4 1/4" Square card by the way) but once you get the center one ok, you're good to go.

There's a little piece of cardstock in between the ribbon layers keeping it supported, and the brad "butts" are hidden in between the ribbon layers too.

Ok, I think I can sleep now that this is made!


Stampin Supplies:
Stamp Sets: Mostly Flowers by Stampin' Up!, Beautiful You by Verve
Ink: Pumpkin Pie
Card stock: Very Vanilla, Old Olive
Punches: Threading water punch, 1 1/4" square punch.
Accessories: Styled Silver Hodgepodge, Chocolate Chip Satin Ribbon, SU! Markers, Stampin’ Dimensionals, SNAIL adhesive.
Some supplies available from Stampin' Up!

Blushing Gift Ensemble

This project originally started last night as a card. This project also originally started as my entry for Laura's Diva Challenge...to use tags. Obviously it became more than a card, and as a result, I missed the deadline! Not to worry, I used natural fibers - there's still time for the Verve September Project Parade!
I'm really happy with how this turned out. It's kinda shabby chic dontcha think? I love, love, love shabby chic....but the planets have to be aligned right for me to pull it off! Inside the box (designed by Heather Summers) is a jumbo paperclip bookmark and a covered post-it note pad. I would love to include a pen, but need to find a good source for RSVP pens in New Zealand!
I started with the paper - Admire from the Basic Grey Blush range. It's too gorgeous....but what on earth to pair it with? Ruby Red and Sage Shadow worked really well.....even if the Ruby Red has photographed a little orange!
I used lots of Verve sets while making this. Abundant Blessings for the silhouette image, Fairy Tales for the background swirls stamped in Versamark and the sentiment on the post-it and So Happy for the sentiment on the box.
All sponging was Close to Cocoa. I used my threading water punch....a lot! I knew I'd love that thing! Best of all, I still have more than half the sheet of paper left...yippee!

Off to check emails, I slept in and am so slack this morning!



Stampin Supplies:
Stamp Sets: Fairy Tales, Abundant Blessings and So Happy by Verve.
Ink: Close to Cocoa, Brilliance Graphite Black, Versamark
Card stock: Ruby Red, Sage Shadow
Paper: Admire - Blush by Basic Grey
Punches: Small and Large Tag punches, Scalloped Circle, 1 1/4" and 1 3/8" Circle Punches, Threading Water punch.
Accessories: Primas, Kaisercraft pearls in Blush, Oval Nestabilities, Sponge Daubers, Hemp, Cutter Kit, Stampin’ Dimensionals, SNAIL adhesive.
Some supplies available from Stampin' Up!

Some Bunny Loves You!

When Verve released their new sets at the start of the month, I of course fell in love with them all. But most of all, I loved this uber cute little set, Some Bunny! It's a little bit goofy, but over the 11 years we've been together, I've made Shanan lots of little cross stitch samplers - one of his favourites was a little bunny I stitched from a magazine, and I stitched this exact sentiment underneath it. I know...we're SO sappy! But that's what you get with high school sweethearts!
So of course, the first card I made with this set has to be for him. I don't think this is TOO girly, I did debate the "ear ribbons" with myself....but I figure, I'm the some bunny...and I'm a girl...so the ribbons work, right?

The ribbons are from another new Verve set, Black Tie Birdies. After cutting them out I polka-dotted them with my white gel pen. I've had those brads in my stash forrrrrrrrrrrrrrever, it made me so happy to finally use some of them.

The sketch is from Julee's Mojo Monday #54. I used Kraft cardstock for the Verve Project Parade Challenge this month. The colour combo is from an old SCS challenge. Lastly, this is my entry for the Spoon Full of Sugar challenge...to use a "charming character" I think this bunny is ultra charming!

Wooohooos for the week:

• Spring cleaning...getting everything in it's place.
• Keeping my stamp room tidy - yippee!
• Getting my SENZ ticket all sorted, so excited for this!
• Coming up with my swap pin for SENZ (I went all cutesy on this)
• Not spending any money on craft supplies so far, a la SOS challenge!

Stampin Supplies:
Stamp Sets: Some Bunny and Black Tie Birdies by Verve
Ink: Brilliance Graphite Black
Card stock: Kraft, Soft Sky, Basic Black
Paper: Notebook DP
Punches: Threading Water and 1/2" Circle punches
Accessories: Brads I've long forgotten the maker of!, Cuttlebug, Spots and Dots Embossing Folder, Black Grosgrain, Stampin’ Dimensionals, SNAIL adhesive.
Some supplies available from Stampin' Up!

So Thankful

I woke up nice and early this morning (8:30am is early on a Saturday!) and jumped right out of bed, because I knew I had the photos of the card I made yesterday morning all set and ready to go. So....here it is!
Can I just be not humble for a second and say.....I love this card! It's really outside of my comfort zone colour wise. I guess it's not THAT out there - but I think I usually tend towards using softer colours together. That said, I just scrolled back through my posts recently...and Verve must inspire me, most of my Verve cards are brighter than my usual work!

The sketch is from Julee's Mojo Monday 53. I've missed the last few weeks, so have a couple to catch up on (which is cool - it's nice to know they are there when I need a creative push!)

The papers are from the Basic Grey Sultry pack - as are the brads. Loooooooove this paper! The top piece is from Stampin' Up! in the Spring Break pack. It was fun to finally use some of the goodies I bought awhile ago, the paper, brads, Primas and Glimmermist (on the Primas) have all been sitting neglected!

All the stamps are by Verve. I used a mix of older, newer and newest sets on this one! I think that's why I love Verve so much, everything mixes and matches so well. Chloe had a question about Verve shipping to NZ - and I'm happy to report it's a really good deal Chloe! It's only $13 US for a flat rate priority envelope (you can fit lots of sets in the envie) and I usually get my order a week after it's posted (can I just say, that I've ordered from somewhere in NZ the day after a Verve order...and got my Verve order first - so it's not a long wait at all!) They now have online shopping for lots of countries including NZ too - love it!

I used a gorgeous Verve sentiment on the inside of this card too, so thought I'd show you - even if the Chocolate Chip has photographed black!

I also wanted to share one of the things I was so grateful for this week....this RAK from Mrs Frizz!

Aren't they prettttttty? She was so sweet to send me some Primas - I think she might be the queen of Primas! Mrs Frizz is also the queen of Basic Grey right now, head on over to see her gorgeous layout that made the Basic Grey gallery yesterday! Wooohooo!

Now, I'm obviously a bit head over heels for Primas at the moment. I bought my first pack, received a RAK and did a share with Kelly and Beverley all in the same week pretty much.....and I think Google Reader knows it!!! Here's the link that it recommended me yesterday....http://prima.typepad.com/prima/2008/09/the-sidewalk--1.html Primas! in kit form! on THE day Janine and I start our SOS challenge! Cruel right? I thought so!

Although I might be going mad all ready (I think Janine might blog on this lol) I have so far refrained from purchasing anything! I seem to be doing more window shopping than usual though...I guess the unavailable is always sweeter!

Have a wonderful weekend,


Stampin Supplies:
Stamp Sets: Beautiful You, Fluttering By and So Happy by Verve
Ink: Chocolate Chip
Card stock: Soft Sky, Chocolate Chip, Whisper White
Paper: Sultry by Basic Grey, Spring Break by SU!
Punches: Photo Corner punch
Accessories: Silver Bells Glimmermist, Essentials 4 Primas, Sultry Brads, Chocolate Chip Satin ribbon, Circle and Square Nestabilities, Stampin’ Dimensionals, SNAIL adhesive.
Stamps by Verve. Some supplies available from Stampin' Up!

Therapy....and a Challenge!

Yesterday was a great day....retail therapy and "coffee with the girls" therapy! Janine, Kelly, Beverley and I went to the coolest wee shop, S'Wonderful in Brooklyn (they're moving soon though!) Filled to the brim with cool, retro stuff - I spotted this.....
and just had to have it! I'd read about these posters a few weeks ago, I think I blog hopped starting from Kristina's site - and I was really intrigued by the story behind them. They are all over the design world at the moment (so much so I think it might now be UNCOOL to have one - I'm always too late to make the cool stage!)

The basic story is, during WWII there were a bunch of posters made to convey messages to the public. They used an entirely new font, one designed to be "special and handsome" - making it hard to counterfeit the posters! The first two posters ('Your Courage, Your Cheerfulness, Your Resolution will Bring Us Victory' and 'Freedom is in Peril') were used but the third ('Keep Calm and Carry On') which was to be used in the event of an invasion, was never distributed (despite over 2 million copies being printed) You can find more info here.

Fast forward a bit, the poster was found in an attic....hung in a secondhand bookstore in London, and eventually drew so many comments that the owners started reproducing the poster. A quick Google search shows you can now buy it on everything from mugs to t-shirts - in every colour under the sun. My version is screen printed by hand, I love the way it's framed....showing the raw edge of the paper rather than covering it with a mat.

I love it. I love the back story, I love the typeface, I love the juxtaposition of a bold, modern design....that was created in 1939! Most of all, I love the message. As someone prone to anxiety and moments of terrified paralysis (yup, I have a flair for the dramatic!) the message is really important to me.

So here it hangs....above my computer workstation to remind me everyday - Keep Calm and Carry On! (taking this photo was weird....my camera has that auto focus on a face feature....it loved that mask!)

Now, one of the most fun things about going out is.....every time Kelly drops me home, I have a parcel waiting! Yesterday I had two - some Basic Grey (Eva - yum!) paper and Glimmer mist...and my new Verve! Wooohoo! Even better, Kelly got her first Verve parcel too - yippee!

Now, it's just as well I got some new goodies...cos it'll be the last time for awhile!

On the road to SENZ (kinda like CHA - the NZ version) I NEED to save some money. It'll be a huge shopping weekend, but not if my credit card is maxed out! lol

So in moments of pure genius or utter madness, Janine and I hatched what she has dubbed the Spend or Save (SOS) Challenge! The rules are pretty simple....no more craft spending, at all, until SENZ weekend - 10th-12th of October.

There are some exceptions - we both have some pre-ordered goodies coming, so they are allowed. Janine has her exemptions here, mine are:

Some trademe primas and paper arriving soon

A Stampin' Up! parcel which just arrived as I was typing this, yay! (if I'd known I would have done more than stock up on envies, dimensionals and card stock! Oh well, there are two new sets in there at least lol)

and I was allowed to buy my SENZ ticket, which I did this morning.

Janine has set herself the extra challenge of not using some of the goodies she has coming - which is just masochistic! lol

So that's the challenge, and I have to say, I'm kinda excited! I have a TON of unplayed with stuff at the moment, I've been so busy reorganising that I just haven't had time to get inky. I also found a bunch of stuff I forgot I had - so it'll be great to use what I have! and hopefully, come SENZ - I will have saved enough to go hogwild shopping!

Fly Bunny, Fly!

Another yummy Kristina challenge! Feels good to be creating - I took a break from stamping and the computer over the weekend...apparently my weekend was five days long! lol Now to tackle the long list of blogs I need to check and emails I need to answer!
I thought this combo was soooooooooo gorgeous. Looked kinda christmassy to me, so I ran with it.
The bunny was stamped on watercolour paper and watercoloured with markers. Love this technique, and it turned out pretty well for me today - yippee! Those wings are Chocolate, I just used a teeny bit of ink to get the pale shade.

Wow - Wednesday already - time for WhooHooing Janine style!

~Loving the sun - makes everything so much brighter!
~Great date night last night with Shan, Whoohooo for deciding to do our "cheap dates" more often and working them into our budget (hate that word! lol)
~Coffee tomorrow with the gals, can't wait.
~Whooohooo for...starting...the reorganising process in my stamp room. BIG job! It seems every few weeks I was hitting a "space crunch" so buckling down and getting rid of some stuff and reorganising the rest. Can't wait to be done!
~Yay for spending last Saturday at Eastbourne, sitting by the "beach" (still miss Brighton Beach like crazy) eating the requisite chips with Watties sauce and reading. It's become glaringly obvious I NEED that time by the water to recharge - gonna make this one a Saturday tradition.

Hope it's sunny where you are!


Stampin Supplies:
Stamps: Inky Antics
Ink: Stazon, SU! Markers
Card stock: Chocolate Chip, Bravo Burgundy, Watercolour Paper
Paper: Old Olive Prints
Accessories: Cuttlebug, Snow Dots embossing Folder, Earth Elements Buttons, Linen Thread, Chocolate Chip wide grosgrain, Aquapainter, Stampin’ Dimensionals, SNAIL adhesive.
Some supplies available from Stampin' Up!

Happy Bird-day!

When I got up this morning, I had every intention of sitting down, quickly blog hopping then breakfast. That all fell by the wayside when I saw Kristina's colour challenge for this week! The colours are gorgeous, so of course I was tempted to pull the colours from my stash "just to have a look". You guessed it...as I type blogs are still uncommented and my tummy is grumbling for breakfast!
As soon as I saw the inspiration piece I thought of this set from Inkadinkado I picked up a couple of weekends ago - it was still uninked! The horror!
Apologies for the chocolate looking burgundy, I couldn't get it to come right without washing out all the other colours. Had to use my new Threading Water punch - been hanging out for this baby for awhile now. The white Taffeta is new too, my taffeta collection is sadly lacking...need to get onto that!

Used lots of dimensionals on this one, the bird is the third popped up layer. This is going to my brother's girlfriend (my "hopefully one day sister-in-law") for her birthday tomorrow so fortunately I can protect all those layers in a box with her present! I've used Diamond stickles on this one too, on the flower centers, the swirls on the bird and the word "wishes". Love that hint of sparkle!

Thought I'd show you a quick shot of the inside (because I actually finished it off as I made the card for once!) I always keep the inside of the card pretty simple - I think the gorgeous sentiment from Verve does all the work for me!

Happy Stamping!


Stampin Supplies:
Stamp Sets: Wonderful Wishes Remixed by Verve, Birds Galore by Inkadinkado
Ink: SU! Markers
Card stock: Rose Red, Whisper White, Soft Sky textured, Bravo Burgundy
Paper: Rose Red Prints Designer Paper
Punches: Small and large oval punches, Threading water punch
Accessories: Diamond Stickles, White Taffeta Ribbon, Stampin’ Dimensionals, SNAIL adhesive.
Some supplies available from Stampin' Up!

One Sheet Wonder - Verve Style

I was so excited to find this One Sheet Wonder and accompanying sketches by Julee on Saturday - what a cool challenge! I used a piece of Designer Paper by SU! from the Petals and Paisleys pack. It was such a great excuse to break out my new Verve sets, I used lots of them on these cards.






Stampin Supplies:
Stamp Sets: Petals and Stems, Anniversary Birds, Fluttering By and lots of others all by Verve!
Ink: SU! Markers
Card stock: Pretty in Pink, Cool Caribbean, Old Olive, So Saffron, Whisper White
Paper: Petals and Paisleys DP
Accessories: Cuttlebug, Swiss Dots Embossing folder, Nestabilities, Dew Drops - Water, Kaisercraft Rhinestones, Stampin’ Dimensionals, SNAIL adhesive.
Stamps by Verve. Some supplies available from Stampin' Up!

The Joy of Flowers

There's nothing like new goodies to get the mojo going! I finally got to open my HUGE Verve package yesterday, after a month of being super patient! Was more than time to get them inky tonight!
Kristina's rockin' colour challenge this week was Tempting Turquoise, Old Olive, Rose Red, Regal Rose and Whisper White (for those of us without those wonderful new SU! In Colours - can't wait till April!) I knew right away I wanted to create a paper and ink garden!
I love the Floral Whimsy set from Verve, all the images come in a couple of sizes, so it was super easy to layer all the flowers and stagger the images. I used my markers to ink them up (yup - clear stamps that work with markers....heaven!) The scallops are from my super duper new long rectangle nestabilities, I thought I'd get away with not buying these, but nope, I had to have them! The gorgeous butterflies feature in a few Verve sets, this size is in Petals and Stems.
Well, that's 2 of my new Verve sets inky.....only 11 to go!!!



Stampin Supplies:
Stamp Sets: Floral Whimsy, Petals and Stems
Ink: SU! Markers
Card stock: Old Olive, Rose Red, Whisper White, Regal Rose
Paper: Old Olive Prints DP
Accessories: Long Rectangle Nestabilities, Kaisercraft Rhinestones, Old Olive Grosgrain ribbon, Paper Snips, Stampin’ Dimensionals, SNAIL adhesive.
Stamps by Verve. Some supplies available from Stampin' Up!

Woooohoooot Wednesday....but..on a Thursday!

Yup, so I'm being a little bit of a diva and cheating by doing Janine's WoooHooot Wednesday a day late, but I figure a little slack during my birthday week is called for! lol

My WooooHooooots for the week:

• The lovely weather we had earlier this week. Was so nice to see the sun!
• Going to Greytown on Saturday (Thanks Hannah....read about it on your blog!) Doing a little shopping and visiting the yummmmmmmmy chocolate shop there.
• Finding some books I wanted actually on the shelf at the library!
• My long rectangle nestabilities, some dew drops and cuttlebug folders arriving from Cut @ Home today....one week since I ordered...speedy shipping!
• All my birthday presents and cards, lots of parcels from family back home.
• The beautiful flowers my parents and brother sent.
• Spending my entire birthday out and about with Shanan - I love that he takes the day off!
• A wonderful day today shopping and lunching with Janine, Kelly and Beverley - a great group of friends!

This gorgeous card and candle set Janine made me. Sooo gorgeous, shimmery in real life too!
This beautiful card and flowers from Kelly, if I ever won lotto (we don't play, so that would be a miracle) I'd have fresh flowers alllll the time, they brighten my day so much.

This gorgeous purse Beverley made me. Filled with lots of little goodies, I bet you'll see some of these on my cards soon!Shoooooooooooopping! Gorgeous papers and ribbon, and especially that Stazon White pad I've been after, thanks for finding it Beverley!
The beautiful bouquet Shan gave me yesterday morning.....what a hubby!

Hope you had a week filled with woooohooots too!