THREE exciting pieces of news today to kick off a brand new month…

#1. Flash Sale on Now – Ends Oct 7

World Card Making Day is on the first Saturday in October, and we’re celebrating by having a Stampin’ Up! sale for ONE WEEK ONLY. Sale items are limited, but include some of our favourite card making essentials, stamps and kits!

Card Making Kits on Sale

This is an excellent time to stock up on gifts, and with some of our popular cardmaking kits on sale this week you will definitely want to check them out!

Do you have a birthday coming up? Will you be in a family Kris Kringle this year?

Send your friends to this page and let them know that you would love one of those kits too!

(Note: This sale has now expired)

I’ve already finished a couple of boxes of the Soft Sayings Card Kit, but I’ve had my eye on the Notes of Kindness kit for a while, so that one is jumping in to my shopping cart right about now. I think it will be great to take away camping.

#2. NEW Stamparatus Accessories

#3. NEW Starter Kit Option

And in more news, we have a BRAND NEW option for those who would like to join Stampin’ Up!. Now you have your choice of TWO Starter Kits. In addition to the regular kit, we are trialling another kit which might be more suited to those who keen to grow their own little (or big!) business. You’ll have everything you need to get your new business off to a great start. Learn more here.

Happy stamping,

SHOP THE SALE – ENDS OCTOBER 7

Welcome to the CASE-ing the Catty Blog Hop! We are up to CTC 197.

This week the CTC Crew are turning to pages 28-35 of the Holiday Catalogue for inspiration. We can use the layout, the colours, the stamps, or any other element as the basis for making another card.

I was drawn to this card on the bottom left corner of page 28 and chose to CASE (Copy And Selectively Edit) it this week.

I changed the size a little, to make it our standard 14.5cm x 10.5cm size. And I swapped the circle for an oval, and added a punched ‘sprig’ of green glitter courtesy of the aptly named Sprig Punch. 

I LOVE this layout.

In fact, this has been one of our class and workshop make & takes throughout September! 

This layout is such a winner, that I recreated it in a few different colour-ways using the Garden Impressions designer series paper.

Colouring Glimmer Paper

The little 1cm x 14.5cm strips of glitter paper above and below the featured panel (14.5cm x 6cm) were the most fun to make. 

We have a few core colours in the current annual Stampin’ Up! catalogue – including gold, rose, silver and ‘sparkle‘. We also have a pack of three gorgeous new colours in the Joyous Noel Glimmer Paper packs: copper, Merry Merlot and Tranquil Tide. 

But what if you want a different colour? 

What if you want, say… Daffodil Delight glimmer paper? 

Or Night of Navy glimmer paper? 

Well, my friends, it turns out that it’s pretty easy to make…

You can just colour the Sparkle Glimmer Paper with your Stampin’ Blends alcohol markers! Then just cut off the parts that you need. 

Pretty cool, isn’t it! 

Just make sure you use the side of the wide brush end, so you can keep the tip in pristine condition. 

I trimmed the 1cm coloured portion, and layered it above and below the Garden Impressions paper. 

Ready for more inspiration? 

Check out Sandra’s blog, which is the next ‘hop’ in the blog hop. 

And if you would you like to join us in this week’s CASEing The Catty challenge, just visit the CTC Sunday Challenge closed group on Facebook.

We can’t wait to see what you create.  

Happy stamping, 

—————–

It’s here! The gorgeous 2018 Holiday Catalogue… all 55 glorious pages of ideas, inspiration, innovative new products, Christmas and more. 

Check out this sweet little 1 minute stop-motion video, for a peek at what’s inside. 

Download Catalogue

I know you can’t wait to check it out so, without further ado, here it is:

(Click to download Australian/New Zealand 2018 Holiday catalogue)

Shop – Holiday Catalogue

You can also see ALL the products – with extra info like measurements etc – in a special section of my online store: Shop Holiday Catalogue.

To make it easier to find what you’re looking for, the products are broken up into categories: Stamps, Bundles, Kits and ‘Everything Else’. 

‘Everything Else’ includes all those gorgeous new embellishments, papers, Memories & More® products, Washi Tape, Stampin’ Blends alcohol markers in NEW colours and…. [last but definitely not least] four stunning new Shimmer Paints!

There are so many gorgeous new products, but I think my favourite suite (at the moment) is Joyous Noel. 

How-To Videos

For dozens of educational videos on how to use the products, check out Stampin’ Up!’s YouTube channel. 

Happy stamping!

It’s so great to be back again with the CASE-ing the Catty crew for this week’s challenge. This week we are turning to pages 142 – 153 of the annual Stampin’ Up! catalogue for inspiration.  

My card was loosely inspired by the Tranquil Tide card on page 142 of the 2018 annual Stampin’ Up! catalogue. You can see it above on the top left.

I moved things around a bit but the general layout was inspired by this card. 

Just to mix things up a bit, I added an unusual insert to make this card a fancy fold.

Well, it’s kind of a fancy fold. You’ll see what I mean…

Firstly, here’s the front: 

And here’s a top view that shows the accordion fold insert:

And opened up, standing: 

How to make an Accordion Insert Card

I had so much fun making this card, and ended up using this design for my 2018 Stampin’ Up! Incentive Trip card swap on the recent Alaska Cruise.

Want to have a go at making your own?

Here’s how:

1. Cut your A4 sheet of cardstock at 10cm wide. Leave the cardstock at the full length, which is 29.7cm. 

(I’m from Australia so I’ve started with our A4 standard size cardstock, but the same concept could easily be adapted for US Letter size cardstock). 
2. Score at 14cm, 18cm, 22cm and 26cm. Fold to create an accordion or concertina fold as shown above (ie valley, mountain, valley, mountain)

Optional: stamp to decorate. If you are stamping, it’s best to do that before you’ve stuck anything down. I actually prefer to do the stamping before I’ve even done the scoring, because when you stamp on the score lines the image doesn’t look as good. 

3. Adhere the larger panel to a 14.5cm x 10.5cm panel of cardstock.

Make sure it’s centred so there’s an even 5mm border showing all the way around. 

4. Fold up the panels and adhere another 14.5cm x 10.5cm panel to the top folded panel.

Decorate as desired. I find it easier to embellish the top layer of cardstock before you attach it to the accordion fold insert. 

Nature’s Poem Card front

The front of my card features the Nature’s Poem designer series paper, Velvet Ribbon, Leaves Trinkets, and copper trim. I just love the way the copper trim holds its shape when you stretch it out and pull it. Amazing stuff! It’s a ‘must have’ for your copper embellishment collection. 

(Click image to enlarge)

I hope you like this card and that it inspires you to make one too.  

Next on the blog hop is Judy. You can find her post here. 

Thanks for joining us this week.

For more ideas and inspiration, join me over on Facebook. And to see some of the other Alaska Incentive Trip swaps I made, just scroll back to July 2018 and you’ll see loads of photos from the trip. 

Happy stamping, 

Our amazing adventure with the 2018 Stampin’ Up! Incentive Trip is now over (so sad!). The Alaska cruise was an incredible trip. Honestly, one of our all-time favourites. I find myself pausing in mid-sentence having flashbacks of the morning we cruised up to a glacier, with floating icebergs going past the ship. Amazing! And to share this adventure with my hubby and our Stampin’ Up! friends from around the world was just the icing on the cake. 

Thanks to all those who came with me on the trip via Facebook. It was the first time I’ve posted regularly while away on an Incentive Trip and it was so much fun to read your comments and answer your questions while it was all happening.  

Now it’s time to get crafting again! I’ve missed my craft room and can’t wait to get back to it. 

I also have some news to coincide with the start of a new month and new specials from Stampin’ Up!. 

Colour Your Season 

This month a brand new, limited edition stamp set and framelit bundle is available! You can buy the Blended Season stamps on their own, or the Stitched Seasons framelits. But if you buy them together you save 10%. All the prices are shown below. 

There are 12 stamps in this set, but some of them are very big so they had to be split over two stamp cases as you can see above.

Those three large framelits are my favourite of all… they have stitching on the inside and outside of the cut lines, so you can use both the negative and positive part of the die cuts. So clever! They are fabulous for making windows in the front of cards.  

Check them out in the online store

Watercolour Pencils – New Colours! 

Do you love colouring with watercolour pencils?

Well you’re in for a treat, because this month we have a new assortment of gorgeous colours. 

The 10 acid free and lignin free pencils come in the following colours: 

• Balmy Blue
• Cajun Craze
• Cherry Cobbler
• Coastal Cabana
• Crushed Curry
• Flirty Flamingo
• Garden Green
• Gorgeous Grape
• Granny Apple Green
• Night of Navy

Have you tried my favourite watercolour pencil blending technique?

Lay down some colour by scribbling the pencils, then blend with the Wink of Stella brush. Not only does it blend the pencil lines beautifully, but you also get some subtle shimmer from the Wink of Stella. Love it! 

Prices and More Information

Click the image below to enlarge. All the information you need is here, including prices, quantities and item codes. 

BONUS DAYS

If you’ve shopped with me for a while, you might remember the Bonus Days we did back in July 2016 and July 2017. Yippee, we’re doing it again!

How it works: 

1. When you shop this month you’ll earn a $9 voucher for every $90 you spend (before shipping). Spend $180 and you’ll get TWO $9 vouchers. In fact, you can earn as many as you like and you can even give them away as gifts if you want! Pretty cool, huh?
2. You’ll be emailed the voucher codes after placing the order, so just hang on to them in a safe place.
3. In September, redeem your vouchers when shopping in the online store. It’s that easy! 

Also, just letting you know we have a Host Special next month, so get in quick if you’d like to book a cardmaking class. I do workshops pretty much all over Victoria!

Dates are limited, so contact me soon if you’d like to host your own party in September. 

Ordering online? Use Host Code RSHT7A2B if the order is under $250. For orders over $250, you’ll automatically earn $25 in free products so no need to use a host code! 

Happy stamping, 

We are in Seattle at the moment, getting ready for the 2018 Stampin’ Up Incentive Trip. So grateful to be attending our 9th trip – this time a week-long Alaskan Cruise! What a dream come true.

Just letting you know that I’ll be posting on my Stamping with Simone Facebook page while I’m away, so feel free to like and follow that page if you want to see photos of the trip as they happen.

I’ve also got a special Host Code for you to use while I’m away: 9M23XNQM. My shop is open as normal, so if you want to grab some Stampin’ Up! goodies just jump over to my online store and enter host code 9M23XNQM and you could get $25 in Stampin’ Up! shopping vouchers. If your order is over $250 then you won’t need to use the code because you will automatically get $25 in host benefits to spend all by yourself! It’s a great deal.

Also just a quick reminder that we have two great specials on at the moment:

• Buy 3 Get 1 Free papers
• Join now and get 10 free ink pads as a bonus in your Starter Kit

The choice is yours when you join Stampin’ Up! – you can join to make money or join to save money. Or maybe a bit of both! Either way, a special bonus like this one is the perfect time to test the waters and see if being part of Stampin’ Up! is for you. If you decide not to continue, then you’ll stop getting the discount but the kit is still yours to keep. I’ve loved my 10+ years with this wonderful company and still count my blessings that I took the plunge all those years ago.

Happy stamping!

Simone xxx