I would like to welcome you to Blossom Designs blog.
I am a Stampin' Up!® Independent Demonstrator in Australia. Feel free to contact me if you are interested in hosting a workshop or wanting to join the Stampin' Up!® family.
I hope you will enjoy reading my blog as much as I have had creating it.
Happy Crafting,
........baby Harry!
Not my first choice in names I have to say but the other two kids named him that and well, it kinda stuck!! lol
Here are the very proud big brother and sister with their new brother! lol
Harry is the first one to want to come on his own - no eviction notice served here! lol Things happened VERY quickly. We arrived at the hospital an hour before Harry made his appearance. My waters broke and he came 9 minutes later! From start to finish, labor was 4 hours. Oh my!
Both Oliver and Emily are very excited to have their brother finally here. They love him to bits! I thought we might have some problems with Emily but she is great with him. She wants to see him all the time and if Harry is crying she runs up to him and says "OK Harry"! Bless her! Oliver asks for cuddles with Harry but doesn't like it when Harry smells!! lol
Third time lucky for me with feeding. I didn't have any luck with Oliver and Emily but things are going well with Harry. Third time lucky! lol
Harry is 4 weeks old now which is why things have been quiet on my blog. I'm sure you understand why. I will try and get some posts going as there are projects I would like to share with you.
Harry is sound asleep at the moment so I'd better get off here and get some things done around the house.
Happy Stamping,
Hello!
I know it has been far too long since my last post. I do so sincerely apologise. Things have not gone to plan here, especially with my pregnancy. So, I took a break from posting. I'm sure you understand. :-)
I am now 39 weeks and cannot wait for our little bundle to arrive. I did at one stage think that the dr's would be getting baby out but things settled down and we are travelling along nicely.
Anyway, I haven't really been up to much but have been away for a weekend stamping with a wonderful bunch of women and last Saturday, I attended Stampin' Up! Sydney Regional training in Darling Harbour.
I shall post some photos soon of the swap cards and some others I have managed to do!
I can't say I'll be back to regular postings, but I'll post when I can. Thank you to anyone who is still looking at my blog. Thanks again for your understanding.
Happy Stamping,
Hello,
Just wanted to pop in to say I am still around but have been ill with a virus for 3 weeks. I am now over the virus but this cough just doesn't want to leave me alone! LOL. Because of that, my ribs have been VERY sore so I have not been able to sit and stamp which means I have nothing to show you. Boo hoo.
It is school holidays here in Sydney so I'm not sure just how much stamping will get done, if any for the next two weeks.
I have less than 12 weeks to go before baby is due! Oh my goodness, where did that time go? Mr O is VERY excited to meet his sibling and likes to kiss my belly goodnight when he goes to bed - bless!! Miss M says 'baby' and pats my belly but she is only 21 months so I'm not sure exactly how much she understands.
Anyway, better get back to the kiddies.
Happy Stamping,
Here are some more cards from my previous classes.
This card is cased from Mary Fish, a USA demonstrator. I LOVE her cards. I didn't completely case Mary's card and used a different stamp set. I used my "circle scissor plus" to cut out both the black and white cardstock.
I also used my embossing folder to give a bit of texture. I'm not sure you can see the dazzling diamonds in the centre of the open flower, but it is there! Promise. lol
At a previous SAS class, my ladies saw a card my dear friend Kari sent to me. I wanted to show them it as it wasn't your usual standard card. Well, they loved it and asked to make it the following month - how could I refuse!
Here is a close up shot. I love the embossing folder.
Happy Stamping,
I forgot to photograph these cards but luckily I was able to photo a friend/customer's cards so I could show you. Thanks Sarah!
(sorry about the quality of the photo, I took it at night - not a good thing to do!)
This was a simple card to make - just using a few punches, embossing folder and ribbon! Oh and a couple of markers.
I used my markers to colour in the flowers and my blender pen for the vase. The stamp set is the Level 1 hostess set from the Idea Book & Catalogue, "A Slice Of Life". I seem to be favouring this set lately.
This is the other card my ladies made. This card was cased from my upline Jayne Mercer.
This is again a simple card. No layers - except for the sentiment!! lol. The stamp set used is "Just Believe" from the Idea Book & Catalogue.
Happy Stamping,
I haven't got any photos from Convention yet (Nicky & Amy are sending me a copy of their photos - they had really good camera's!), but as my roomy Nicky is such a lovely person, she made me this notebook.
It is soooooo nice, I didn't want to write in it! LOL
See the flower on the front? Well, it is a book mark - how cool is that!
Thank you Nicky for your wonderful gift.
It was Nicky's birthday the following week so while in Melbourne we went shopping (as you do!) and I found the perfect gift for her - an orange handbag. Yes, Nicky loves orange. Unfortunately, I don't have a photo to show you. Obviously I wanted her gift to be a surprise so fellow demonstrator and friend, Michelle and I snuck back to the bag shop while Nicky, Amy & Ryn were in another shop. We were back before she knew we were gone with the handbag tucked neatly away. Michelle drove to Melbourne so she was kind enough to take the bag home with her so Nicky didn't see it and well, there was no way it was going to fit in my suitcase! LOL. BTW - Nicky loved her bag!
The sun is out today and the washing is in the machine so I'm hoping it will dry and there is no rain today. The weather is certainly strange. The night's are cold but some of the days aren't so cold - yet they should be! What is the weather like where you are?
That's it from me today. Hope you are having a fab weekend.
Happy Stamping,
Ha ha ha.....and I bet you thought I was talking about MY baby didn't you!? A bit early for my little one. No, I am talking about one of the mum's at Mr O's previous school who had a baby boy last Monday. Congratulations Natalie & Lou.
I got my inspiration from Splitcoast Stampers.
I don't use buttons very often and I have no good reason why! LOL. I really should. Do you use buttons on your projects?
The stamp set I've used is "A Slice Of Life", the level 1 hostess set from the Autumn/Winter Mini Catalogue. The sentiment is the level 1 hostess set from the IB&C.
Happy Stamping,
Internet connection is still not good :-( Let's soldier on! LOL
I wanted to show you my swap card for Convention.
So, what do you think?
I am very pleased how it turned out. I made 50 this year and all of them were swapped! Phew..lol.
I really, really love the ribbon. It is great to work with. It is the 5/8" Organza Ribbon - it only come in Whisper White.
I am now counting down! LOL Oh yes, I am over the half way mark in the pregnancy! This kid is VERY active. Mr O is excited while Miss M, well, she has no idea! LOL.
It is 10pm Sunday night......Mr O's bag is packed ready for school tomorrow, clothes are out ready so I am going to log off, relax and watch some television before heading to bed. Night all!
Happy Stamping,
As my title suggests, our internet connection isn't very good at the moment so I won't be posting until it is back up and running properly. It is taking me twice as long to do things.
A quick catch up though.......
Last week saw me fly to Melbourne for Stampin' Up! Convention 2011. For the first time it was over 3 days, not the usual 2 days. I roomed with my usual roomie, Nicky and we had a ball. I've got lots of swaps and I will show you some of them (once connetion is back to normal). Lots of news and lots of sneak peaks at upcoming sets for the 2011-2012 Idea Book & Cataogue. Can't say anything just yet so I'm afraid you will have to wait and see.
One important bit of news from convention is that if you want to sign up to be a demonstrator, you no longer need to apply for an ABN (Australian Business Number). You can sign up online within minutes. However, once you start earing an income from Stampin' Up!, you will then need an ABN.
How would you like to earn an extra $70 in hostess benefits???
If you host a workshop or place an order from the 23rd May until the end of June, you will qualify for the extra benefits. Your order needs to reach $450 in sales. Share your catalogue with your friends and gather orders from them to help reach $450. It works out to be $110 worth of products for free, just for you! You will get your usual $40 hostess benefits plus a level 1 hostess stamp set - then you get an extra $70 on top. Woo hoo!
Are you ready for some weekly surprises? You may have seen our ad in the May issue of your favourite crafting magazine letting you know that throughout the month of May, we are bringing you a new deal on our exclusive products every week! Check our website every Wednesday in May, and get up to 40 percent off a selection of incredible products from the 2010-2011 Idea Book & Catalogue!
There are no limits to the number of Deals of the Week you can purchase and no minimum purchase is required. Now is your time to stock up on your favourite products!
Be sure to hurry and purchase each week's deals early on so you don't miss out! When the new week's deals start up each Wednesday at midnight, the last week's deals are over . . . forever!
This week's deals:
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So that is it from me today. I hope the rest of your week is good.
Happy Stamping,
Last month, I joined in with a number of other INKlings at the quarterly training day which is held at Jayne's house. We made 4 projects. All the projects use items from the Autumn.Winter Mini.
This card is using the "Create A Cupcake" stamp set with the matching "Build A Cupcake" punch.
It also uses the "Tasteful Trim" Bigz XL Die (blue {tempting turquoise} & yellow {so saffron}).
I had planned on giving this card to Mr O for his birthday which is why I cut out the number "7" in blue but I didn't realise that the base cardstock was PINK!! LOL. I will have to wait a few years to give it to Miss M!!
We always do a scrapbook page which is good for me as I don't have many of them.
We used the "French Foliage" stamp set for this page.
How cute is this Easter card! Simple and very easy to make.
This is the envelope box using the "top note" die along with a white envelope. Also using the "Decorative Label Punch" and the "Eat Chocolate" stamp set.
Normally I make swap cards for this event but I wasn't in the creative mood this time. Next training day!
That is all from me today.
Happy Stamping,
These are my cards from my Stamp-a-Stack in February. My first SAS for 2011. It was nice to see the girls again after a 2 month break. As a welcome to 2011 SAS, I gave each lady a stamp set for being such wonderful customers.
For the card below, I used the "On A Pedestal" stamp set. I have liked this set since the catalogue came out last September.
Here is the other card the girls made. This one is using the "Party Hearty" stamp set. As you can see, I've used the party hats and just cut off the top to make the banner. You can also use them as Christmas Trees as I did HERE.
(the inside of the card)
Both of these cards came straight from the Idea Book & Catalogue. It is such a great source of inspiration. You don't have to use the current catalogue for inspiration, why not use past catalogues or even past Mini catalogues!
The Autumn/Winter Mini catalogue is now available. There are some great stamp sets along with lots of accessories. More Big Shot dies to drool over too! LOL.
Please contact me to place your order. The catalogue will run until the 31st July 2011.
Happy Stamping,
Firstly, there is a good reason why I haven't posted in a while - promise! There is also some good news too!
The good news is, I/we are expecting baby #3, due in September! We are all very excited at welcoming the new addition to our family. I am currently 18 weeks, so nearly half way and ready to start counting down! Lol. We did however have a scare when I had the Nucal scan (at 10 weeks), well it was the blood results that put me at 'high' risk. I had to schedule in an Amnio which cannot be done until 16 weeks. So I had weeks of waiting, waiting and more waiting. Results from the Amnio can take up to 14 days. So some more nail biting days were had. Late Thursday afternoon I received a phone call saying the results were in - ALL CLEAR! The specialist thought the baby's growth might be an issue. The answer would be to get baby out early. I need to speak to my doctor after Easter now to see what she says but you can imagine we are all very relieved.
As you can imagine, my head has not been in the creating frame of mind and I have barely sat down at my desk. I lost my mojo too. I can only thank you for sticking with me. Convention is only a matter of weeks away so I will have to get started on making my swaps. Better get my butt into gear!
We went to New Zealand for our friend's wedding at the beginning of March. This was my very first time in NZ. Unfortunately, hubby and Miss M were both unwell from the day after we arrived! Miss M was vomiting so she didn't eat for 2 days. Poor thing.
The INKlings had a training day so I have some things to show you from that. It was good to get out and see the other girl's which kept my mind busy for a few hours.
So that it what has been happening over the past few months. I do sincerely apologise for not posting. I hope you understand why and I appreciate that you are still checking my blog as my counter keeps going up!
Also wishing you all a very happy Easter. I hope you are spending it with family and/or friends and have a lovely day.
Take care,
[I have finally been able to fix the formatting on this post. I ended up emailing Typepad and they very promptly came back to me with a solution. Thanks Typepad!]
Obviously the title is not the name of one stamp set but two......LOL
As this was a swap from the Summer Mini, I used Aviary and Love Defined. Can you see my mistake? Somehow I got ink on my finger which ended up on my card. To fix my "happy accident", I will add a sentiment but obviously haven't done so - yet!
If you have one item in your stash, what would it be? Good question right! Well, mine would be my Color Coach! Truly! This colour combo is thanks to the color coach. It is not something I would have put together myself (orange + red) but it really works.
This little fella is making his home more comfortable! LOL
I love how the cages look like they are hanging from the heart strings.
Happy Stamping,
Hello there!
I have not sat at my desk for weeks, hence no posts. The weather here in Sydney has been awful. Waaaaay too hot for stamping. 40+ degrees celcius with no air conditioning is not good to do anything. We bought a portable air con unit but it really struggled with that kind of temperature.
Before the hot weather hit us, I did make a few things. One of them being a swap card.
Whenever a new catalogue come out be that a mini or new IB&C, the INKlings do a 'swap' for it. It is great fun. This swap is from Sale-a-Bration. I used Sweet Summer stamp set.
I used dimensionals to raise the image.
As I don't have dsp to match the colours, I made my own. Quite easy to do really. I used another stamp for the Sweet Summer set and randomly stamped onto the Baja Breeze card stock.
I have just realised that I haven't posted my other swap card from the Summer Mini catalogue. Must get onto that post. :-)
Other news......Mr O is doing great at school this year (she says wiping her forehead in relief). Obviously the school holidays did him the world of good. His teacher encourages him all the time (from what I have seen in his books). I am so pleased he has now settled in and is working well in class. It should be easier to gauge exactly what level he is at.
Well, that is it from me for today. It is currently raining outside and lovely and cool. I wish I could bottle this weather and let it out when it gets hot again. LOL.
NOTE: Don't forget that you can order from the Summer Mini and earn Sale-a-Bration stamp sets until the 31st March 2011.
Happy Stamping,
Our biggest sales event of the year, Sale-A-Bration is here! This year we've got four great Sale-A-Bration sets for you to choose from.
There are three ways for your customers to earn FREE stamp sets:
Contact me to place your order.
Happy Stamping,
I forgot to post this the other day............
As flood waters continue to inundate Australia in what has been described as the worst flooding in 37 years, we express our deepest sympathies to those who have lost loved ones and homes and to those whose lives have been changed forever. We, like so many of you, feel a compelling need to lend support to all those who have been affected.
Stampin' Up! demonstrators have a long history of making a difference in the lives of others--especially when disaster strikes and the need is greatest. Nearly two years ago, we watched another tragedy unfold in Australia. Our hearts were touched as demonstrators, customers and friends joined together in support of the Bushfire Appeal. We've done it before and we can certainly do it again!
Please join with us by supporting the Australia Flood Appeal - a cause in which Stampin' Up! will donate $2 AUD of the retail value of sales from any stamp set (with a retail value of $30 or more) sold in Australia and New Zealand from 15 January through 15 February to the State Emergency Services in Queensland.
Now onto the Christmas cards I made.
You may remember THIS card and I loved it so much I decided to CASE it and use it as my Christmas card.
I decided to use 3 different colours as I had a number of cards to make, I knew I would get bored using just 1 colour. LOL
I also used Delightful Decorations & Contempo Christmas stamp sets.
That's all for tonight. The kiddies are in bed and I'm going to make myself a coffee and maybe make a card (or two). I've had left over kits from my classes last year and found them the other day. I thought why not make them up for myself. That way, I have a stash of cards for birthdays and other occasions this year.
On a sad note......my aunty passed away on Saturday. :-( The funeral will be on Thursday but I also attended a funeral last Thursday for my SIL. Her mother sadly passed away. 2 funerals in 2 weeks - not a good start to 2011. I do have other news but more on that later.
Happy Stamping,
I wanted to give my ladies who attend my classes something nice for Christmas to say "Thank You" for making my first year of classes such a success. This is what I came up with.
(this is how the tin started out)
(this is the end result!)
I am really please with how they all turned out. I used the Greenhouse Gala DSP with coordinating cardstock (pear pizzaz, daffodil delight, chocolate chip, real red, pumpkin pie & baja breeze).
Here are some of the goodies found inside the tins. Watercolour Crayons and acessories.....plus lots of cholocate too! LOL
The other tins......
So, that is all the tins. What do you think? The girls liked them so that's good! LOL
Happy Stamping,
Get a FREE package of Heart Treat Cups when you purchase the Sweetheart Stamp Set or the Full Heart punch! You can read all about it HERE!
Happy Stamping,
Merry Christmas and a Happy new Year to you all......that is if anyone is still reading my blog after my absence.
I certainly didn't mean to take a break and then for it to be for soooooo long. I wanted to share some projects with you and fill you in on what has been happening around here.
First thing to tell you about is Mr O's 6th birthday. We had a brilliant time in QLD and Oliver absolutely loved having his birthday at Movie World. The ONEride he wanted to go on was the Scooby Doo Rollercoaster! So, while I stayed with Miss M, daddy took Oliver on the ride. M and I waited at the exit and inside the shop there were monitors showing the photos that were taken during the ride. I kept watching and watching and watching and thought maybe Oliver changed his mind about going on the ride! I was about to leave when I saw Oliver's face! Oh my.....he was not impressed at all. LOL. I couldn't help laugh because I knew what was coming. He did not want to go on THAT ride again - it freaked him out!!!!
The rest of December was taken up with school activities and his Christmas concert.
My in laws arrived from the UK on the 18th December and were here for 3 weeks. I knew in that time I probably wouldn't be posting. They were lucky to leave the UK as the airports opened for a few days which was when their flight was.
We spent Christmas at my parent's house and had a beautiful lunch. It was a very warm day too and luckily "Santa" bought a small pool for the kids. A couple of inches of water was all that was needed and Miss M in her bikini (LOL). They splashed about and had a ball.
We spent 3 days in Lake Macquarie for New Year's. A nice few days away to somewhere we haven't been before.
Well, that is it for now. I will set up some posts to show you my projects. Thank you for reading my blog and please, do leave comments - I love to read them.
Happy Stamping,
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