Ideas for the new Tree builder punch - Stampin' Up artisan blog hop

What a fantastic blog hop the Stampin' Up Artisan Design Team has for you today! We're hoping to inspire you with some of the new punches and the new Gift Bag punch board from the brand new catalogue!

THE PUNCH THAT CAN MAKE THE TEA!
My own project is made with the new Tree Builder punch which I coveted the instant I saw it. Perhaps it can't quite make the tea but, oh my goodness, it certainly is versatile! Come and see what I've made:

There are a few ideas for using the punch on this fun thank you card - the background clouds, the different shape of the tree and those temptingly rosy apples! With this brilliant punch, you can make a simple tree using just one of the foliage punchings but, if you use several of them, as I've done here, you can produce different styles of tree :)

The little apples are the cutest thing ever - and wouldn't a 'bowl' of these be perfect to thank a teacher?! To give my apples that delicious rosy look, I punched them out of Pear Pizzazz card stock, daubed them lightly with the new Watermelon Wonder ink and added a shadow to the stalk with a Tip Top Taupe marker. And if you're wondering about the bowl, it's made with the Note Tag punch and given a wooden texture with the Hardwood background stamp.

My apple tree is growing in a meadow of grass cut with the Fringe Scissors, and of course in Apple Tree Land, the sky is always blue with gorgeous, fluffy white clouds! I made those by inking through a stencil made with that fabulous Tree builder punch - would you like to see how I did it?

MAKE A CLOUD STENCIL WITH THE TREE BUILDER PUNCH

1. Punch everything out of some scrap card stock so that it looks like this:

2. Glue some paper to the back of the card, leaving the cloud bit uncovered:

3.Turn it back over and glue the little bits back in their places, onto the paper backing.

4. Trim off the excess paper and use a sponge dauber to apply Whisper White craft ink into the stencil to make a fluffy cloud background!

I have so many more ideas for this wonderful punch and I haven't quite given up on getting it to make the tea ;) And if you need any more reasons to buy it, there's also a brilliantly designed coordinating stamp set called Sprinkles of Life (see it on page 189 of the new catalogue) which has the added benefit of raising money for the wonderful Ronald McDonald House Charity so PLEASE don't forget to add it to your order!

Now it's time to carry on with the hop and enjoy all the fabulous ideas from the rest of the team! Next up is the fab Allison Okamitsu - just click on the button below :)

BUY THE SUPPLIES TO MAKE THIS CARD NOW!
Click on any item to be transported to my online shop!

Tree Builder Punch £16.00	Fringe Scissors £8.95	Card Stock A4 Soft Sky £6.50	Whisper White Craft Stampin' Pad £6.95
Always Artichoke A4 Card Stock £6.50	Tip Top Taupe A4 Cardstock £6.50	Card Stock A4 Pear Pizzazz £6.50	Watermelon Wonder Classic Stampin' Pad £6.00
2015-2017 In Color Stampin' Write Markers £13.50	Note Tag Punch £15.50	Hardwood Clear-Mount Stamp Set £12.95	Another Thank You Photopolymer Stamp Set £14.00

My shop is open 24/7 so you can buy Stampin' Up products from me any time, day or night.

If you have any queries, or prefer to speak to me, I'm happy to help.

You can contact me by email or phone on 01280 820593.

My daughter has been home over the last week and has been sharing the dog walking with me. On one of our walks across a field one evening we were astonished to see a badger come snuffling out of the crops and cross the path in front of us. If we were surprised, Eva pup was rigid with excitement! She was about to give chase when another badger popped out and followed the first and Eva pulled up, confused. Her expression was quite comical but when a third badger appeared and went scuttling after the others she turned to us as if she suspected us of playing a trick on  her! We were just as amazed to see the badger train as my daughter described it.

See you next Tuesday when I'll have more inspiration from the new catalogue for you :)

Get ready for the new Stampin' Up catalogue 2015-16!

Are you ready to see all this year's fabulous new Stampin' Up products? Today the brand new annual catalogue 2015-16 goes live and you can browse all the fabulous new stamps, punches and tools, papers and accessories by clicking on the catalogue below!

• New catalogue products are are NOW AVAILABLE from my online shop by clicking on the image below.

Click above to place an order any time, day or night,

but if you have any queries, or prefer to speak to me, I'm always happy to help.

You can contact me by email or phone on 01280 820593.

TUESDAY 2ND JUNE IS OVERLAP DAY - BUT WHAT DOES THAT MEAN?!

• You'll be able to order from the spring summer catalogue and the retiring list as well as from the new catalogue.

• Selected items from the 2014-15 catalogue and the spring summer catalogue will carry over to the new 2015-16 catalogue. On 2nd June you will be able to buy these at the 2014-15 prices.

• You'll be able to select hostess items from the spring summer catalogue and the retiring list as well as from the new catalogue.

• You'll benefit from the existing, extra-generous hostess credit programme on 2nd June. The new hostess credit programme will start from 3rd June.

Here's a card I made with A Whole Lot of Lovely, one of the new hostess sets in the new catalogue. I think it describes my customers rather well!

I'll be busy with my family over the next few days as they seem keen to celebrate me getting older ;) See you on Thursday when I'll be back with the rest of the Stampin' Up Artisan Design Team to inspire you with some of the fabulous new punches from the new catalogue! Don't miss that!

More sneak peeks of brand new Stampin' Up products!

I bet you're dying to see more sneaky peeks from the upcoming Stampin' Up annual catalogue! Well, it was my niece's birthday last week and I couldn't resist using some of my brand new goodies for her gift set! Come and see:

Here's the card which I made with a set called Build a Birthday. This is such a fun set - you get to build your cake with the washi tape style stamps provided and add flags, bunting or candles! I added real washi to mine instead for a nice bit of texture :)

And, because I used the gorgeous new Bohemian washi, the card coordinated perfectly with the present which I'd wrapped in a sheet of the new Bohemian designer paper. Aren't these rich colours just LUSH?!

These sneaky peek items aren't available until 2nd June 2015, but there are plenty of gorgeous goodies in my online store - including bargains from the Clearance Rack, Retiring Products and Weekly Deals sections of my online shop! Just click the link below and enjoy having a browse :)

GO SHOPPING FOR STAMPIN' UP GOODIES NOW!

My shop is open 24/7 so you can buy Stampin' Up products from me any time, day or night.

If you have any queries, or prefer to speak to me, I'm happy to help.

You can contact me by email or phone on 01280 820593.

My eldest son works so hard these days and seems so serious that I feel it's my duty to make him laugh. It's not easy though and I'm reduced to surprise tactics. "What on earth are you doing in this bowl?" I exclaimed yesterday, pulling out some leftovers from the fridge. "Oh! It's not you, it's a sausage!" You will be happy (but surprised perhaps!) to know that his pale, strained face relaxed into a grin at this :)

See you tomorrow!

NEW PRODUCTS for 2015! Stampin' Up annual catalogue sneak peek!

Oh, I'm SO excited about today's card! I'm using a brand, spanking new stamp set from Stampin' Up that will be available when the new annual catalogue goes live on 2nd June. It's called Layered Letters and is an alphabet set with a difference... Come and see what I've made with it:

Squeeee! How cute is this?! The set comes with a choice of rectangular or circular 'backgrounds' to stamp the letters on - I've used the rectangles on this card.

Check out the retro colour combination - the fabulous new in colour Mint Macaron (also available from 2nd June) teams happily with So Saffron and Blushing Bride. These colours remind me of those fab formica kitchens they had in the '50s!

And what about this tiny flower embellishment? It's made from part of an amazing new punch, the Tree Builder Punch. If you are a fan of the Bird Builder or Owl punches, you are sure to love this new punch!

The items I've been using today are not available until 2nd June 2015, but there are plenty of bargains to be had from the Clearance Rack, Retiring Products and Weekly Deals sections of my online shop! Just click the link below and enjoy having a browse :)

GO SHOPPING FOR STAMPIN' UP GOODIES NOW!

My shop is open 24/7 so you can buy Stampin' Up products from me any time, day or night.

If you have any queries, or prefer to speak to me, I'm happy to help.

You can contact me by email or phone on 01280 820593.

There's another bank holiday weekend coming up across the UK - don't you just love May?! The gardening gloves and secateurs will be coming out here much to Eva's great excitement - we all know what a great gardener she is! How will you be spending your weekend?

See you on Tuesday when I may well have more sneaky peeks for you!

New Stampin' Up products! A sneak peek from the upcoming annual catalogue!

Today I'm teasing you with a snippet of a gorgeous new designer paper, called Bohemian, that will be available on 2nd June when the new Stampin' Up annual catalogue 2015-16 is launched! Come and see:

I'm always on the look out for dynamic papers! Often you only need a pinch of them to make an impact on your cards. This particular design has a trendy woven-look chevron in the most gorgeous colours and I simply cut a bit of it out with my sharp paper snips. Straight lines = easy peasy cutting!

I was obviously having a snippety moment as I cut out part of my favourite sentiment from Butterfly Basics too - again surprisingly easy as it's a nice open font. (TIP: If you like this style but don't fancy the snipping, you'll get a similar look with the Hello You thinlits dies on page 30-31 of the Stampin' Up spring/summer catalogue.) I stamped the sentiment again and used the Decorative Label punch to cut out the 'happy' tab, added a sprinkling of (bargain!) sequins layered with gems and the card was done!

GO SHOPPING FOR STAMPIN' UP GOODIES NOW!
Click on any item to be transported to my online shop!

Butterfly Basics Photopolymer Stamp Set £21.95

2013-2015 In Color Sequin Assortment £4.50 now only £2.25!

Rhinestone Basic Jewels Embellishments £4.50

Decorative Label Punch £15.50

My shop is open 24/7 so you can buy Stampin' Up products from me any time, day or night.

If you have any queries, or prefer to speak to me, I'm happy to help.

You can contact me by email or phone on 01280 820593.

My youngest son, the pup and I were having a group hug yesterday evening. "Look at her whiskers!" said my son lovingly. "And she has them above her eyes." He paused. "Do all animals have those? Wait - do rabbits?!" Always a joy to be with my son!

See you tomorrow when I'll be playing tag!

News update: Stampin' Up Blendabilities no longer available

I'm sad to say that the Stampin' Up Blendabilities markers have been discontinued due to manufacturing issues.

Stampin' Up says: "The manufacturer is unable to correct the problem in a manner that we are certain would meet our high quality standards and provide us with a stable, long-term solution. Therefore, after a great deal of deliberation and in order to prevent further disappointment, the Blendabilities product line has been discontinued."

I am a huge fan of Stampin' Up products and am proud to be associated with this quality brand so, while I'm disappointed to lose this product line, I'm also pleased that Stampin' Up is keeping its standards high. 

Most of the markers that have already been sold have been absolutely fine but there have been some packs with problems. If you have bought these pens from me and have any concerns about them, please click here to let me know.

Luckily there are other ways of colouring images with colours that match Stampin' Up card stock, designer paper and accessories and I'll be back tomorrow with an example! Hope to see you then,

PS. If you're looking for today's card inspiration click here!

New Sale-a-bration releases - FREE from Stampin' Up!

I love it when I can give my customers more for their money and during Sale-a-bration there have been some very smiley faces indeed! And now, get ready to do a happy dance because I'm delighted to announce that on Sunday 1st March, Stampin' Up will be releasing some brand new products that you can get free as part of Sale-a-bration! Come and see:

Just look at the gorgeous flowing fonts in this set and that amazing 'thanks'! I can't wait to try out all the different ways of colouring that! I love the little heart stamp too, perfect for borders :)

I nearly fell over when I saw this sensational vellum! I'll be using it as overlays and colouring it with blendabilities markers and I have lots more ideas up my sleeve too... watch this space!

This beautiful set coordinates with the vellum but I think it's stunning in its own right. I'll be happily coming up with summery birthday and thank you cards using these beautiful images :)

Oh my goodness, don't these colours make your heart sing?! These are the perfect embellishments to give your projects a zing this summer!

These fabulous freebies aren't available until Sunday but, while you're making your shopping list, you may just want to look at this week's products at special prices (available until Tuesday):

WEEKLY DEALS!
Click on any item to be transported to my online shop!
Don't forget you'll get a free Sale-a-bration item for every £45 you spend

2013-2015 In Color Sequin Assortment £4.50 £3.38	Basic Gray Baker's Twine £2.50 £1.88	Simply Created Banner ... £6.71	Celebrate Easter Ensemble - Digital Download £8.95 £5.37
Crisp Cantaloupe Thick Baker's Twine £3.25 £2.44	Melon Mambo 1/4" Cotton Ribbon £5.50 £4.13	Night Of Navy 1/2" Seam Binding Ribbon £6.25 £4.69	Whisper White 5/8" Satin Ribbon £6.25 £4.69

My shop is open 24/7 so you can buy Stampin' Up products from me any time, day or night.

If you have any queries, or prefer to speak to me, I'm happy to help.

You can contact me by email or phone on 01280 820593.

Thank you for joining me for the news today. Have a lovely weekend won't you! I shall be back with Mothers' Day inspiration on Tuesday so do come back and visit me then!

Hugs,