Autumn Winter Mini Catalogue Launch

This is the event you have been waiting for. In fact I am so excited about the new products in the upcoming Autumn Winter Catalogue, I can't wait to share them with you. In the true spirit of Stampin' Up!, the best way to share these new products and techniques is to invite you to use them. I know you will love the 2 make & take cards we have planned, where you will use the new Stampin' Up! Big Shot with dies & embossing folders, a new punch style as well as the Clear Mount Stamp Option. Probably the biggest news we have is the introduction of 3 new exclusive colours and you will get to use my favourite new colour in one of the Make & Takes.

There are 2 dates and venues to choose from

Sunday 28th March 2-5pm
Wynnum Manly Leagues Club
92 Wondall Rd, Manly West

Wednesday 31st March 6-9pm
Pendirup Community Centre
365 Samsonvale Rd, Warner

The $10 entry fee for the launch includes a Mini Catalogue, 2 Deluxe Make & Takes, Fantastic Demonstrations, Door Prize Entry and Displays of Papercraft & New Product. RSVP is absolutely essential as we have a lot of preparation and ordering to do and payment would be appreciated either by cash, credit card over the phone 0448 896 001 or alternately you can use this neat Pay Pal Payment Button below. Pay Pal is a secure way to pay and will help me keep track of numbers and names, so if you can use this option, I would really appreciate you giving this payment method a go. If none of these options suit you, please email me your RSVP and we can make other arrangements.

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Venue

Wynnum Manly Leagues Club Pendirup Community Centre

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February Hostess Winner

To be honest I really wanted all my February Hostesses to win the Hostess Bundle for February, however, there can only be one winner drawn. Christian again did the honors and to be honest I'm thinking of getting a new model! Honestly, Christian is going through that stage that any attempt to smile for the camera, looks super fake. I tried getting him to close his eyes and opening them when I took the photo - a technique that usually works a treat but guess what, not with Christian! Never mind, at least he was keen to help and he drew out the lovely Keren Ham's name. Keren has been a hostess with me since I started Stampin' Up!, so she might have some of the things in the bundle - still, I'm pretty positive that some of the items will be new to Keren and perhaps she'll have some really grateful friends!

'Double Duty' Kitchen Tools - Well Maybe!

I actively encourage my children to use my Stampin' Up! tools and materials, however, sometimes the line in the sand moves a little too far! My 10 year old daughter, Nicole, loves to bake and believe me, this is great help with 4 children constantly looking for lunchbox treats! I was very impressed when she created these bumblebee cakes, using the wide oval punch to create bee wings from acetate. Thankfully she did have the foresight to put the wings in after baking! Can you just imagine the alternative....Anyway, you may notice in the background of the photo I had to steel myself not to explode when my felt flowers were used to decorate cake tops! Argggh. Luckily for Nicole, these were all salvageable after the event - of course Nicole would have us believing that that was the plan all along! Hmmmm.

November Hostess Draw

Taking a leaf out of my friend Leonie's book, I thought I would photograph the drawing of my November Hostess Draw. Each of my lovely hostesses in November received a little pink box containing 2 rolls of Stampin Up ribbon as well as a stamp. As an added bonus, these hostesses then went in the draw for a paper rack, cardstock pack and gorgeous Rose Red Ribbon Roll!

As it happened, I had 2 scouts on hand to assist me. Nicole and Christian (my two middle children) were getting ready for their Scout Christmas Concert tonight! You can see that Christian was looking very upright to begin with, but this deteriorated into uncontrolled hysterics when I asked Nicole to lift her chin as she looked as if she had 6 chins. This, as you can see, was pretty funny for a 9 year old boy. But I digress - the winner of the major prize is the lovely Janette Taylor!

Our Piano Christmas Tree

I thought I would share my first fully decorated tree this year. Our main tree, whilst assembled, is still waiting to be decorated. I really enjoy having a couple of different trees because I can decorate each to a particular theme. In the case of the piano tree (it sits on our piano!) I can decorate it in gold with an antique old world Christmas theme. I made the 8 cross stitch ornaments when life was not quite so busy (before I had 4 children) and I can't really imagine adding to it anytime soon. The book I took the designs from was called '101 Christmas Quickies' - such a poor choice of book title on so many levels, not least of all that there was nothing quick about making them! So isn't it handy that I have a smaller tree to put them on as on the bigger tree they are lost.

Clean & Simple Ski Slope DSP

This is one of my favourite photographs from my skating archive. Whilst studying at university in Melbourne one of my part time jobs was that of an Artistic Skating Coach. The highlight of each year was the Christmas Show, where we all had the chance to create routines to entertain family and friends as well as give all skaters the opportunity to participate and have fun. In 1990 I created a routine based on the story of the 'Fantastic Toy Shop', where toys came alive at night. Jenny and Daniel Nisi played the lead characters, Tina and Pepe, along with some other gorgeous children and one adult who played the Toy Shop Owner.

Now I have the pleasure of pulling that photo out of my skating box to preserve and present it as one of my Christmas Memories. Certainly not a complicated page, I really like the bright colours and clean lines, created with the addition of Ski Slope Designer Series Paper (DSP). The Double Striped Baja Breeze Grosgrain Ribbon and Corduroy Button add a touch of whimsy. Both the 'Ski Slope' DSP and the Cordoroy Buttons are in the Spring Mini Catalogue, which ends on November 30th.

Bravo Burgundy Christmas

With school holidays fast approaching and most of my Christmas Card Workshops completed, it's time to get some of my own projects done. The good news is that I hope to have a stream of great ideas that will inspire you to join me in making this one of the most creative and meaningful Christmas's yet. I have made a pact to hand make many of my presents and I also look forward to sharing those.

I have an 8x8 album which I am using just to scrapbook Christmas Photos taken over the years. The first page I have made is very simple and features a lovely photograph taken way back in 1995 during our Christmas Honeymoon, which included a visit to Disneyland. The Christmas Parade was nothing short of spectacular and I am so pleased that we went during this time. It was easy to choose the Bravo Burgundy background as this colour features prominently in the photograph as well as having a 'ye olde world' feeling. Of course I couldn't help using my 'So Swirly' Stampin Around Wheel which is definitely my most frequently used stamp by far! The Basic Grey Taffeta Ribbon looks really classic with the burgundy, whilst the 'Ski Slope' Designer Series Paper adds a bit of colour and fun to lift the page. I also made a little favour box, which I have been demonstrating in my workshops using the same colour combination of Bravo Burgundy, Basic Grey and Whisper White. This little box is easily embellished using the 'Curly Label Punch Bundle' which includes a matching stamp set and hand held punch.