Upcoming Classes

Thursday 9th June: 10.00-12.30: Cardmaking.. cards for men using the Plane & Simple stamp set.
Thursday 23rd June: 9.30-12.30: Scrapbooking.. we'll be continuing with our 8"x8" mini book, theme: Book of Me!

Sunday 28 November 2010

A Christmas Planner with Jolly Holiday DSP

Yesterday at Scrapbook Club we made Christmas Planners.. and appropriately enough, within half an hour the snowflakes had started to fall! Undaunted we carried on..

 (L-R: Becky, Teresa and Janette)

...work in progress..

..and here's one I made earlier!



Here's what we used:
2 pieces of thin chipboard
6 small square envelopes (113 x 113mm)
Jolly Holiday Designer Series Papers
Cherry Cobbler, Old Olive and Very Vanilla cardstock

Stamps:
Just Perfect alphabet
Contempo Christmas
Serene Snowflakes
Just Believe
Basic Phrases
Dasher
Punch Potpourri


The planner was bound together using the Bind-it-All and 5/8" white O-wires.

Next Classes:
Saturday 11th December: Card-making with Notably Ornate stamps and Love Letter/Newsprint Designer Series Papers (non-Christmassy cards!).
As this is the rescheduled class from Friday 10th Dec, I'm holding the price at £5.

Saturday 18th December: Scrapbook Club - Making a Birthday Planner - get organised for 2011 with this handy birthday book and never forget anyone's special day again!
Price £10 - includes full kit and instructions (sneak preview of project and kit coming soon - it's in progress!).

I'm taking bookings for both of these classes now.
If you'd like to come, please let me know by 5th December.
I will need payment in advance please, so that I can purchase and prepare resources for your project kit.
 You can pay by Paypal (email address: slpiggott73@gmail.com - mark it as a 'Personal Payment Owed') or cheque (payable to Sarah Piggott - email me for my address).

Many thanks.. I hope to see you soon!

Sarah x

Sunday 21 November 2010

Just Believe... cards from Saturday's class

Here's a very quick post to share the cards we made in yesterday's class using Stampin' Up's 'Just Believe' stamp set.


The watercolour effect was achieved by inking up the stamp with Old Olive and Not Quite Navy ink pads, then lightly spraying the stamp with water, before stamping on to watercolour paper. I was a bit anxious about demonstrating this card - the technique can be rather hit-and-miss, depending on how much water lands on your stamp from the spray bottle! The results are also very subjective - some might prefer a less watery look but I rather liked this one!

The background was created with the same flower stamp using Baja Breeze ink on matching cardstock for a tone-on-tone effect. The Old Olive ribbon was pleated and laid down on a line of Sticky Strip tape, with tiny pieces of tape holding down the pleats.

In the second card, the two flower stamps were stamped using VersaMark ink, then embossed with black embossing powder. We then used the Stamp-a-ma-jig to align the flowery frame (stamped in Baja Breeze ink) and the sentiment inside it.

Thank you ladies for coming - I really enjoyed the class and it was a pleasure to see how you interpreted the projects!

Next Classes: 
Saturday 27th Nov - Scrapbook Club (Bookings now closed)
Either Friday 10th or Saturday 11th December - Card-making Class (see previous post for details)
Saturday 18th December - Scrapbook Club (kit and project details coming soon!)

Important: Changes to Class Times and Dates!

Hello ladies!

Just a quick post to let you know of some important changes to forthcoming class timings and dates.

Saturday 27th November - Scrapbook Club: 
Will start at 9.30am so that anyone who wants to visit the Art Exhibition at Community Wise (on until 1pm) will have time to go after the session. I can be flexible on the finish time - we'll say 12 to 12.30pm.

Friday 10th December - Card-making Class:
Unfortunately this is going to clash with my son's Nativity play.. so I'm offering two alternatives:
Friday 10th December - 1pm to 3pm
or
Saturday 11th December - 10am to 12noon.

Please let me know as soon as you can if you would like to attend either of the above sessions... if there's enough demand I'm happy to run the class on both days.

I anticipate the class will involve making a set of Thank You cards using the Notably Ornate stamp set and a play with the new Colour Spritzer Tool!

Apologies for these changes.. and I hope you can join me soon.

Sarah x

Saturday 13 November 2010

Scrapbook Club Sneaky Peek

I'm back, as promised, with some information on the kit we'll be using in the next Scrapbook Club (on Saturday 27th November).. and a little peek at the sort of Christmas planner you'll be able to make if you come along (full kit details are at the end of this post)!


You will also have access to a variety of stamps and punches to help you embellish your planner... and you will have plenty of papers left over for another project!

 So here's a look at a planner I made earlier (based on a project by Bekka at Feeling Crafty)...
As you can see, it has a loop to hold your pen, spaces to keep gift wish-lists for each member of your family, pockets for receipts and spaces for Christmas card lists or whatever you fancy.

I have another version of the planner in progress, which we'll probably use in class - similar to this one but a little bigger and spiral bound - but I'll show this one after the class on 27th November!

Please note: I'm ordering product for this class on Monday 15th November - so if you would like to come along on Saturday 27th November, please let me know by Monday morning - and don't forget to say which ink pad you would prefer! (Also, if you'd like to take advantage of the Bundle Up for Christmas promotion, now would be a great time to put in your order, too!)

If you are unable to come on the day but would still like to order a Christmas Planner kit, please get in touch and I'll happily make one up for you. The price for this will be £10 (if collected from me) or £12 (including postage to you).

Kit Details:
Jolly Holiday Designer Series Papers: 6 half-sheets of double-sided paper (6x12 inches)
A4 cardstock: 3 sheets - one each of Cherry Cobbler, Old Olive, Very Vanilla
Stampin' Pad: Cherry Chobbler or Old Olive (please specify which you want)
4-1/2 inch square envelopes: 6 envelopes
4-3/4 inch square chipboard pieces: 2 pieces
Old Olive 5/8 inch Grosgrain Ribbon: 60cm length
O-wire binding (for use in Bind-it-All machine in class) or 2 book rings (if purchasing kit separately from class)
Set of printed instructions.

Friday 12 November 2010

Bundle Up with Delightful Decorations!

In a change to the advertised programme, I decided to use the gorgeous Delightful Decorations stamp set, along with its coordinating Ornament punch, in my class today. Why? Well for two reasons... first, it's a fun and versatile set - and the punch makes it SO easy to create fabulous cards in minutes... and second, it's part of the Bundle Up for Christmas promotion - on now and until the end of December.

So here are the first three cards we made today:



Recipe:
Stamps: Delightful Decorations, So Swirly Wheel, Basic Phrases, Contempo Christmas
Cardstock: Old Olive,Whisper White,Crumb Cake
Ink: Old Olive, Cherry Cobbler, Platinum Shimmer Paint
Punches: Ornament, Word Window
Other: Sponge Daubers, Silver Elastic Thread, Crystal Effects, Diamond Stickles (non-SU!)

And here are the last two cards we made:


Recipe:
Stamps: Delightful Decorations, Contempo Christmas (for the greeting)
Cardstock: Very Vanilla, Old Olive, Cherry Cobbler
Designer Series Paper: Jolly Holiday
Ink: Old Olive, Cherry Cobbler
Punches: Ornament, Eyelet Border, Scallop Edge, Boho Blossoms
Other: Linen Thread, Pretty In Pink 3mm Taffeta Ribbon, Old Olive 1.6cm Grosgrain Ribbon, Basic Rhinestones

In case you're wondering about the Bundle Up for Christmas promotion.. you can get your hands on an exclusive package of ribbon for FREE when you purchase a Christmas gift-giving bundle. For example, you could buy the Delightful Decorations stamp set and Ornament punch for £37.45 and choose a ribbon package with a value of up to £11.50 for free!

If you're interested, please check out my previous post for further details.. and remember the bundles and ribbons are only available while supplies last. Do let me know if you'd like to take advantage of this deal and I'll be only too happy to help you!

By the way... stay tuned for information on the kit I'm putting together for Scrapbook Club on 27th November.. and a sneak peek at the project we'll be making!

Monday 8 November 2010

Pre-Convention Stampin' Stars Party

Festivities kicked off on Thursday evening with a Pre-Convention party at the Croydon Hilton Hotel, hosted by two fantastic Demonstrators, Natalie O'Shea (my Stampin' Up! 'great-grandma') and Monica Gale. Here's the goodie bag we received (how exciting!):

The triangular box containined a cute little black rubber watch, the organza bag held a silver key-ring charm.. and we also had a fab set of fluffy star deely-boppers to wear (remember them?!).. sadly, I don't seem to have a photo of me in them ;o)!

We also had two Make & Take projects to do - here are mine, a Christmas card and a 6"x6" scrapbook page:


Stamps: Welcome Christmas (this set is in the current Bundle Up promotion if you're interested!)
Colours: Early Espresso, Real Red, Whisper White
Other: Old Olive Satin Ribbon, Curly Label Punch


Stamps: Beware Pirates
Colours: Early Espresso, Real Red, Crumb Cake, Very Vanilla
Other: Gold Brads, Twill Tape

I should add, the photo was added later.. I didn't 'happen' to have this on me at Convention!

And finally.. here are a couple of lovely Christmas card samples I received at the party... first, here's one by Kim Fee (my Stampin' Up! granny):


Stamps: Four the Holidays (the greeting); Punch Potpourri (a level 1 Hostess Set which you can earn when you host a qualifying workshop).
Colours: Chocolate Chip, Real Red, Old Olive
Punch: Two-Step Bird

This one is by Elizabeth Probst from Germany:




Stamps: Delightful Decorations (in the Bundle Up promotion); So Swirly wheel
Punch: Ornament (also in the Bundle Up promotion!)
Colours: Early Espresso, Pumpkin Pie

Look out... lots more inspiring card ideas to come!

Sarah x

Sunday 7 November 2010

Ooops.. prize draw result.. and exciting promo news!

I hadn't forgotten, honest! Life just got a bit hectic last week with the Stampin' Up! Convention this weekend (more on this to follow) so I held over the prize draw til today.

As I explained in my earlier post, each month I'll be holding a little prize draw for all my customers. To be in with a chance of winning, all you need to do is attend one of my classes or purchase some delicious goodies from the Idea Book & Catalogue (more on this further down... keep reading!!).


The winner, chosen using www.random.org, is...

...with receipt number 21 - Janette Summers! Well done Janette - and thank you for being such a wonderful customer. Your prize will be ready for you at Friday's card class!

Now I have some more exciting news to share.. Stampin' Up! have a truly awesome promotion running RIGHT NOW and all the way through til the end of December! If you're thinking about making a proper start on your Christmas cards, gift-wrapping or even gift-making.. or perhaps you want to get ready for some festive scrapbooking.. you are going to love this!

 This Christmas season you can get an exclusive package of ribbon for FREE when you purchase a Christmas gift-giving bundle!

Choose from these bundles:
Description Wood-Mount Item Wood-Mount Price Clear-Mount Item Clear-Mount Price
Gifted Bundle
'Gifted' Set and Jolly Holiday Designer Series Paper
124051 £35.70 124052 £30.70
Welcome Christmas Bundle
'Welcome Christmas' Set and Christmas Cocoa Specialty Designer Series Paper
124063 £36.90 124064 £31.90
Season of Joy Bundle
'Season of Joy' Set and So Swirly Stampin’ Around Wheel
124055 £36.45 --- ---
Delightful Decorations Bundle
'Delightful Decorations' Set and Ornament Punch
124058 £37.45 --- ---

You can choose from these gorgeous ribbons (FOR FREE!!):
Picture Description Item Retail Value
Mistletoe Ribbon Originals 116792 £11.50
Sleigh Bells Ribbon 116795 £8.50
Riding Hood Red 1-1/4” Striped Grosgrain Ribbon 113099 £10.25
Real Red 3/4” Polka-Dot Grosgrain Ribbon 115608 £10.25

These ribbons - and the Christmas Cocoa Speciality Designer Series Paper - are exclusively available as part of this special promotion - they are not in the Idea Book & Catalogue and are not available for purchase separately.

Check out the stamp sets available in this deal by clicking the link on the left to view the Idea Book & Catalogue. Or, even better, why not order a real-life copy from me? For the super-value price of just £5 I will get one in the post to you so that you can browse.. and gain masses of inspirational project ideas.. at your leisure!

{Just one thing to note: in the photo above, the red stitched ribbon shown on the right doesn't seem to be part of the promotion (I think it probably was in the US but not over here). However, the Riding Hood Red Striped Grosgrain ribbon that we do get looks absolutely STUNNING.. and I really want some!}

OK, so these wonderful Christmas bundles are only available which stocks last! So if you'd like to get your hands on one (or two!), please get in touch with me as soon as possible.. they are sure to be VERY popular!

I look forward to hearing from you.. or seeing you soon!


Sarah x