This is the gorgeous project I hinted at in my last post. LOVE HIM!!!

It's a fabric-covered Pillow Box (Spice Cake fabric), and embellished with punched paper from the coordinating Spice Cake designer series paper.

Mr Owl was created by team member Sherridan, using the same methods described last time (ie. adhering the fabric to the cardstock then running it all through the Big Shot). She was inspired by similar versions she'd seen in person and online, and knew how much I'd love him. Yes, I put my hand up and admit I have an addiction to all things 'owl'! Thank you Sherridan!

And to finish off for today, here's his back view (just click on any of these pics to bring them up to full size)…

Happy stamping,

NOTE: Don't miss out. The Spice Cake designer series paper is available only until 31st March 2012. If you'd like to order any of the items in this range, please contact me before then.

Happy Labour Day long weekend!

What a gorgeous few days we've had in this part of the world. I think we've spent most it outside enjoying the sunshine (and watching U14s cricket semi-finals), although the girls and I have just cooked up a storm in the kitchen. They love playing 'Junior Masterchef' and experimenting with all kinds of different ingredients. Akk – what a mess, but HEAPS of fun. I hope you're having a special weekend in your part of the world too! 

Now, I have to share these fabric pillow boxes with you. Oh my goodness, I LOVE these! They feel so good! lol.

This was one of the projects we made at Stamp Club this week.

Pillow Boxes made with Candy Cane fabric, embellished with Real Red satin ribbon, Pretty In Pink scallop dots and narrow grosgrain ribbons (above) and plain & dyed Fleurettes crocheted flowers with red Glimmer Brad. Click to enlarge.

This project was recently shared as a video on our demonstrator forum (demos: check out the Stampin' Connection videos for all the deets), but we changed it slightly.

To make these, simply adhere the fabric to cardstock using the Multipurpose Adhesive Sheets (p155 Idea Book & Catalogue) before running it through the Big Shot with the Pillow Box Die.

The cardstock gives the box its shape, while the fabric adds great texture and it really feels fab to touch. Mmmmm.

Note: In the pillow boxes above we used Pretty In Pink cardstock, and it's interesting how the colour shows through the fabric to change the look a little bit. It really looked quite different with White cardstock, and I'd love to have a go with another colour under it like the matching Garden Green or Baja Breeze. Yum.

The evening club used the lovely Spice Cake fabric.

The Spice Cake suite of goodies (including the matching 12×12 paper, stamp set and jumbo buttons) are all finishing up at the end of this month when the Summer Mini Catalogue expires. Sob.

One of the super talented demonstrators in our group, Sherridan, made all these gems with fabric. Oh WOW. How cute?!

I just adore the huge satin ribbon rosette in the middle there with the red spotted fabric (also from Candy Cane Christmas). Oh My.

There's one more project which is nothing short of spectacular… I haven't taken a photo of it yet but will do that tomorrow and will upload it here. I'll give you 3 hints: owl, fabric, paper. Yep, 3 of my favourite fun things in the world! 🙂  Woohoo. Stay tuned.  Edited: Here's that link.

Happy stamping,

Soft furnishings, hat embellishments, polar fleece blanket embellishments and even paper strawberries. What do these have in common?

Paper Strawberries. Click here for a tutorial.

Ok, so the title of this post gave it away. lol.

They were all made or embellished with the Flower Folds die!

At our recent EurekaStampers team day, Lorinda deRegt-Penn from Bacchus Marsh, Vic. did a very cool presentation that was right up my alley. She reminded us that the fabulous steel ruled Sizzix dies, from Stampin' Up!, are not just for paper and cardmaking/scrapbooking! I love the brooches and hat embellishments and the polar fleece blanket that were also decorated with the help of the Big Shot.

A big hello to all the lovely people who stopped by our stand at the Craft & Quilt Show this weekend in Melbourne. It's been great to see so many familiar faces and of course meet new crafters too. If you've got a spare minute I'd love you to  drop me a line or leave a comment below to say hello.

Happy stamping,

The ribbon & button giveaway this month is proving to be popular. Such fun bright colours, the perfect antidote for these cold and bleak wintry days.

Don't need quite enough supplies this month for a $100 order?
Why not collect some orders from friends.
With nearly 14 METRES of ribbon and 48 buttons,
there's plenty to share around. 

We're into the final week of the winter school holidays here, and have enjoyed the leisurely days and sleep-ins.

Little Miss 7 has been begging me to learn to sew with the machine for ages, so this seemed like as good a time as any. I honestly thought she'd sew a few lines and that would be it, but she filled up her practice panel in no time and wanted more!

By the afternoon she'd already made a cushion and even slip stitched it shut after pushing in the soft stuff.

And then went back and made another one for Little Miss 4, who of course thinks her big sister is now a hero.

Gotta love the school holidays. Have a great week, and….

Happy stamping,

Rubber stamps are not just for cardstock!

Try stamping on some of these surfaces, and you'll quickly see just how versatile rubber stamping is!

Clockwise from top left: molten embossing powder, chipboard, royal icing,
Designer Series Paper, paper gift bags, balsawood, candles

40+ surfaces to stamp on:

1. canvas
2. tissue paper
3. cello bags
4. fabric/calico
5. ribbon
6. envelopes (front and/or flap)
7. serviettes/napkins
8. Royal icing (cake decorating)
9. shrink plastic
10. acetate
11. vellum
12. candles (tissue paper method)
13. skin (kids' 'tattoos')
14. DSP (patterned paper)
15. tiles (trivets)
16. twill tape
17. metal
18. wood/balsa
19. printed invitations
20. stationery/writing paper
21. printable CDs and DVDs
22. slip (for stamping on pottery)
23. polymer clay
24. stampbord clay finish
25. molten art wax
26. chipboard
27. soap
28. molten embossing powder (faux metal)
29. paper flowers
30. foam
31. paper gift bags
32. Address labels
33. Aluminium foil
34. calendar entries
35. walls
36. chocolate (seriously! It's been done…)
37. vinyl tiles
38. clothing (think.. silk scarves, etc)
39. furniture
40. fingernails
41. paper mache

Any others? Add them in the comments section below.

Not all of these surfaces can be stamped on with our fast-drying, dye-based Classic Stampin' Pads. Some may require a solvent ink (like StazOn), pigment ink (like our Whisper White craft ink), chalks (like Stampin' Pastels), embossing inks (like Versamark), paint or even a special treatment technique. Some surfaces even need to be heated slightly first (yep, the chocolate again!). You'll need to choose the correct medium for your choice of stamping surface, which of course is half the fun.

Check back soon for exciting info about our next team stamping day. Or be extra clever and subscribe so you'll always know when I update this blog!

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Happy stamping,

I mentioned in my last post that I love the new Sew Suite range of products in the Autumn-Winter Mini Catalogue. The range includes stamps, 12×12 papers (Designer Series Paper), embosslits and even a Stampin' Around jumbo wheel. I love sewing so it's not unexpected that I'd love these goodies I guess 🙂 But hey, wouldn't it be great for making cards and gifts for the sewing go-to girls in your life?

I made this embellishment holder for a few special people, and it was a lot of fun. Here's the inside:

How to make it:

This holder is based on a matchbook fold, and is created using a 6×3 inch piece of the Sweet Stitches DSP paper. You can actually make 8 of these from one sheet of 12×12 paper.

Start by cutting your 12×12 paper in half lengthwise, then score both pieces at 7cm in from the top, and 1cm up from the bottom. Once they are scored you can slice each sheet into 4 pieces, with each piece being 3 inches wide. It's a lot easier to do it this way, instead of cutting first and then scoring each piece individually.

Am I the only crazy one out there who creates projects with a mix of cm and inches? LOL. I tend to use cm when scoring but stick to inches when cutting the 12×12 papers evenly.  Oh well, hopefully you can follow along.

Insert one of the small flat Cellophane bags from Stampin' Up! (p122 IB&C) into the bottom flap, and adhere with staples or eyelets. I used Metallic Eyelets (p139 IBC&) that were set with the awesome Crop-a-dile (p149), and added some Pumpkin Pie narrow taffetta ribbon.

The top flap will fit neatly into the bottom flap to stay closed!

Embellish the front as desired. I coloured my sewing machines with Pumpkin Pie and Daffodil Delight Stampin' Write Markers, then covered it in Crystal Effects. I left it to dry well overnight before trimming out the sewing machines.

I had some more news to share with you today but will have to keep that for another day. In the meantime, I just want to say how fantastic it was to meet so many creative ladies and men at Paperific craft expo this weekend.

I enjoyed sharing some fun projects using the new cupcake punch which I'll be sharing in the next post. And I know from everyone's reaction that it's going to be a popular punch! Thanks for stopping by our stand and I look forward to catching up with some of you again in the future.

Happy stamping,