Let's Swap Inspiration!!

During a Stampin' Up! event, one of the best things to do is to swap!!

We can swap cards or 3D items and the buzz is incredible when it happens!!

It's always lovely to introduce yourself while swapping - I just love when I make a connection with who I am swapping, to be someone that I have either followed or even chatted with on-line!

And the ideas, colour combinations & inspiration is so incredible!! Check out a few of these cards!

Margi's card uses 2 pieces of DSP, which we dont see very often & I LOVE IT!!

The Daisy Lane bundle, Butterfly Gala & Stamping Your Way To The Top work so well together.

The Pressed Petal DS & coloured vellum are simply stunning!!

Leonie's card is made just in time for this Christmas! And it is so clean & fresh!! Co-ordinating the Christmas Gleaming & Tidings All Around stamp sets with Sahara Sand & Cherry Cobbler cardstock is a great combination!!

I love it all!!

Monica's card has so many parts to it but it absolutely works!!

She has used the Perenial Essence DSP with Whisper White cardstock & given it height by using the Rectangle Stitched Dies & lifting them up on Dimensionals. Sponging the petals of the punched Perennial Flower gives it depth & makes it a focal point - just beautiful!

This card really does make me smile!!

If any of these cards make you want to create, contact me or my page, to order your own supplies.

Stay close, I'll share more swaps that I have received. They wont disappoint!!

Card 1:

Stamps: Daisy Lane, Butterfly Gala

Cardstock: Whisper White & Think Whisper White, Perennial Essence Vellum

DSP: Pressed Petals DSP

Ink: Merry Merlot, Mossy meadow, Soft Suede

Accessories:  Daisy Punch, Linen Thread, Shimmery Crystal Effect, Perennial Essence Floral Centres, Tear n Tape.

Card 2:

Stamps: Christmas Gleaming, Tiddings All Around

Cardstock: Whisper White, Sahara Sand, Cherry Cobbler

Ink: Sahara Sand, Cherry Cobbler

Big Shot items: Well Written

Accessories:   Linen Thread

Card 3:

Stamps: Tasteful Textures

Cardstock: Thick Whisper White, Whisper White, Daffodil Delight

DSP: Perennial Essence

Ink: Rich Razzleberry

Big Shot items: Tasteful Backgrounds, Rectangle Stiched

Punches: Perennial Flower, Leaf, 1/2' circle

Accessories: Perennial Essence Flower Centres, Dimensional, Tom Bow Glue

Socials:   https://linktr.ee/JoWeedonMelbourne

Suite, Christmas Time Is Here!!

Don't you love a play on words, hey?

This suite is simply stunning! It's called Christmas Time Is Here & it evokes such beautiful memories of when I was younger...

 Christmas Rose as a stamp set is beautiful in itself, but when you team it with the rest of the suite, it is drool worthy!

This suite or anything in it, as a separate item is available for current demonstrators now or if you are a customer, you can purchase it from November 1, via my On-Line Page, just follow the link :)

Thanks for dropping past... Jo x

Dress Up Your Craft Table!

I just love the idea of using a decorated piece of paper, rather than a boring bland one, for my 'place-mat' while crafting!!

How can this not get you in the mood!

This is the perfect one too, with the lead up to Christmas!!

You can follow this link to go straight to my on-line shop. Too easy, right?

Happy creating!!

Holiday Catalogue - Sneak Peak Blog Hop

Wow!! The year is moving so quickly & it wasn't until I signed up to this Blog Hop that I realised how neglected my Blog is...eeeek!!

So I'm super glad to be here & working on it & finding some inspiration from others.

ESAD is such a wealth of knowledge relating to SU!, as well as giggles, support & inspiration, (as mentioned above!). It is my go-to for SU! questions & beyond!!

That being said, let's get to why we are here: this Blog Hop!!

I've decided to work on a couple of cards that show-case items & techniques for the Beginner stamper, but it would also work for the time poor & those who may not have many supplies, for many reasons.

There is something organic & magical about blowing the seeds of a dandelion & watching them float away - I still do it, ad an adult & when I watch them drift away with the breeze, the world stops its ugliness, just for a minute... *sigh*

I've used the Hammered Metal 3D embossing folder, Sweet Silhouettes dies and NO STAMPING as such, only some dragging of the Soft Suede cardstock across the ink pad to give the 'dirt' some texture.

Using the negative part of the dandelion for the wispy parts floating away, it gave my card the sense of movement...& adding a bit of bling, is always necessary, right?

I've cared for turtles for many years & this little stamp image made me smile!!

I cased the first card & then made the second card to give to a turtle professional who helped me when my current little friend was ill. 

In this example, the Hammered Metal embossing folder looks exactly like a turtle's shell, so this card didn't need much else to dress it up.

Did you notice the difference between which way I've used the embossed cardstock?

When I stamped the turtle again, for the inside of the card, I used a baby wipe to wipe away his sadness & used the Basic Black marker to lift his smile the right way!!

During my preparing for this Blog Hop, my order wasn't going to arrive in time, so I raced to my fellow demo's house, Alison & she had purchased the Memories of Home stamp set. While I love the tree & its details, I wanted to team it up with something else, so that it didn't take up the whole card. 

The Dashing Deer stamp looks gorgeous on Cherry Cobbler & then clear embossed, (just like the snow falling, behind the tree).

Adding a simple Red Rhinestone to make this deer the very popular Rudolph, was a given!!

I decided to step up my stamping for the next card. It could encourage the Beginner or Casual stamper to learn new techniques.

 Using our Difference Maker stamp set, Nature's Beauty, (when you purchase this set, a portion of the money is given to various charities), I coloured the gentle doe with our Watercolour Pencils, ran the Crumb Cake ink pad over the Woodlands embossing folder before putting it through the Big Shot. 

I teamed these items with Sweet Silhouettes & Stitched Rectangle Dies with the gorgeous Wink of Stella for a little touch of shimmer.

I do love the dimension that the leaves give & her soft face peeking through the branches! I used this as a swap that I participated in also but I just had to share it with you also!!

Well considering I only had 2 of the items & a stamped image from the incredible Holiday Catalogue, (available from 4 Sep to 2 Jan), I'm pretty happy with how they can be added to various items from the Annual Catalogue.
Increasing the use of each item means that they are more affordable, gets the creative juices flowing & therefore makes even more creations, obviously!!

Thanks for looking at my cards, I's love to hear which product grabbed your attention...& don't forget to subscribe so you don't miss any of my posts.

Happy hopping to the next Blog! Cheryl's work is gorgeous!!

Blog hop participant list:

1. Sharon Dalton

2. Cathy Pinchbeck

3. Tanya Rees

4. Sandra Mastello

5. Shannon Kissane

6. Rochelle Blok

7. Lou Kitzelman

8. Nicole Wilson

9. Bronwyn Eastley

10. Peta Stephen

11. Siobhan Fitzsimmons

12. Libby Dyson

13. Jo Weedon              (This is me :)

14. Cheryl Algie

15. Rochelle Laird-Smith

16. Denise Buetler

17. Rebecca Scurr

18. Kelly Kent

19. Monique Fielder

20. Maree McIntosh

21. MelissaGifford

22. Barbara Williams

23. Angela Meiritz-Reid

24. Jackie Aitken
25. Lauren Meiklejohn

Card #1:

Cardstock: Daffodil Delight, Old Olive, Basic Black, Soft Suede

Ink: Soft Suede.

Big Shot items: Hammered Metal Embossing Folder, Sweet Silhouette dies.

Accessories:  Red Rhinestones, Fine Tip Glue, Tear n Tape adhesive, Stampin' blocks.

Card #2:

Cardstock: Mossy Meadow, Crumb Cake, Very Vanilla.

Ink: Momento, Mossy Meadow & Old Olive markers.

Big Shot items: Hammered Metal Embossing Folder, Little Alphabet.

Accessories:  Googly eyes, Fine Tip Glue, Tear n Tape adhesive, Stampin' blocks, baby wipes.

Card #3:

Cardstock: Cherry Cobbler, Crumb Cake, Old Olive

Ink: Crumb Cake, Versamark.

Big Shot items: Dashing Deer dies.

Accessories:  Clear Embossing Powder, Embossing Buddy, Embossing Tray & Brush, Fine Tip Glue, Tear n Tape adhesive, Stampin' blocks.

Card #4:

Cardstock: Mossy Meadow, Early Espresso, Crumb Cake, Very Vanilla.

Ink: Soft Suede, Mometo Black, Mossy Meadow.

Big Shot items: Stitched Rectangle dies, Sweet Silhouettes dies, Woodlands Embossing Folder

Accessories:  Paper Snips, Watercolor Pencils, Fine Tip Glue, Tear n Tape adhesive, Stampin' blocks.

Challenge... 1, 2 & 3...

I don't often take part in challenges, (although they are a great way to get the creative juices flowing!), but I saw one on the Stampin' Up! demonstrator web-site a couple of weeks ago.
(One of the many perks of sighing up to be a Stampin' Up! Demonstrator)

And I decided to commit to it!!

This challenge is what I would call a "3,2,1" challenge.
I needed to make 3 x cards, 2 x 3D items & a scrap page of any sort - my mind immediately exploded...suffered a little...and then, slowly but surely, I began to have ideas forming in my head!!

And I was off....

3 Cards:

While I was attending OnStage 2017 in November, I was lucky enough to receive this stamp set: Bird Banter. So I teamed up Bella the puppy, (from Bella & Friends), for this fun card. Using the masking technique & a couple of Blends, I was able to give Bella a lift to see her friends!!

I then stamped Bella a couple of times so that I could fussy-cut her little limbs, to add a bit more dimension to her

My second card saw me using the Get Well Soup, but I changed it by using the masking technique again. This time I removed the Get Well Soon sentiments & added the So Very Much, so that it seems to be apart of the warm bowl of soup....

Im loving the Blends, can't you tell already :)

They make colouring in an image so quick and easy, I just love the shadowing effect of them!

To finish this card, I dusted off my container of Silver Embossing Powder, the spoon was screaming to be that colour, right??

Here's an insight into my childhood: I was always around the kitchen, trying Mum's cooking & especially available when the spoon needed to be licked after a batch of biscuits or a cake was happening!!
So making my third card made me think of mum & all the skills she taught us, in life in general, but especially in the kitchen.

I particularly loved how the mixer is relative to the size of the bowl, so of course they had to be together!! This DSP is Domestic Godess & just reminds me of a table cloth!!

I think would make a great card for someone's partner or even a close friend...

2 3D items:

For those of you who have been visiting my blog, you may have noticed that I JUST LOVE 3D ITEMS!!

I had been talking with a close friend about the wooden type kits I have that I just havent had the time to put together somehow...and then this challenge jumped at me!!

So, given that it was only a month or so away from Christmas, (back then...), I decided to find one of wreaths I had been meaning to work on and actually do it!!

Ive used a current & gorgeous DSP called Christmas Around The World (Candy Cane paper in this image) & a retired DSP called Be of Good Cheer. Ive now got this hanging on the front door at the Child Care Centre that I work at...

 Using the Glimmer Paper from a previous kit, I used the mini Dimensionals to give them some height. I strung a peice of Window Sheet across from one side of wreath to the other & hunted out the Alphabet dies for Merry Christmas, also.

 And can you see my holly? These wooden circles, initially, were sponged with Cherry Cobbler and then left to dry overnight with a big blob of wet adhesive from my Fine Tip Glue Pen - dont you love the effect??

 To keep up with the 3D Christmas theme, I was asked to make boxes for 2 of these Glitter Baubles, by a customer. What struck me was how similar the colours of the bauble & our stunning Glimmer Paper is - just beautiful!

 I have made boxes for the customer previously, so I knew that she wanted to fill the bauble with the children's name of the finishing year & present this to each of her children's teacher.

I started with the first box here & was feeling pretty chuffed with myself & then maybe either got a bit tired or a little lazy, causing me to get glue on the front of the box...

As we know, this is simply an opportunity for embellishing, right? So then I made a 'belly' type band to go around the lid of the box, punched a bow & ta-day, I've saved the box!!

2 different boxes for 2 different teachers!!

When each teacher opened their gift, the lid picked up the bauble, presenting her with everyone's name over the year.

During the time that I was making these boxes, I was also going to work during the day. The children in the centre that I work at, thought I was very Chrismassy with the amount of sparkle I had all over me, it just added to the festiveness!!

1 Scrap Page...

Before I was a card or 3D item maker, I was a scrapbooker!! I must admit that I havent spent a lot of time recently 'scrappin' at all, so it was lovely to be 'forced' to create a page!!

My 16 year old daughter, Rachelle recently completed her Year 10 year & they celebrated by having a formal. Rach was originally not going to go, deeming it 'too over the top' &being a basketball couch & player, she didnt think it would be something she would enjoy.

Roll on a couple of weeks & her friends talked her into wanting to go - and boy are we all glad she did!! She had a great leadup with shopping for 'the dress', shoes & a little bit of make-up & was blessed with a couple of her friends helping her to prepare on the day...

 Rachelle's dress was a 'nude' colour, so this posed a bit of a colour challenge for me, so I decided to go with 'Blushing Bride' - working the any type of pink is hard for me, but I think it works!!

The latest craze in the Stampin' world is this 'Eclipse' technique, so after stamping Versamark & heating the white Embossing Powder, I used my Big Shot to spell out the heading, (& an additional 3 layers of each letter, *gasp*) & then adhered them together.

 The Bloomin' Love set lent itself nicely to lace on Rachelle's dress, Im so pleased with how it all came together! And combining this with the dies, sponging it slighty & adding a splash of class with our Pearls, it finished off the page!

This had certainly been a long post of many creations & I thank you for sticking with me!!

Im incredibly grateful to be able to be able to make various items that I can share with loved ones & possibly even inspire someone else to get creative too!!

Im super glad that I followed through with achieving this challenge - I may even go looking for another 3, 2, 1 Challenge, perhaps?

I'd love for you to leave a comment on any of the projects that you like...

See you next time :)

Christmas Boxes...

Coming up to Christmas, I was asked to make quite a few Card In a Box(es), so it was refreshing to be asked to make something different. I have a friend who had made Ornaments with her children's class & teacher's name in them & needed a special box for them.

When Melissa asked for a red box & a green box, I wasnt so surprised... Then the last box was going to be Mustard... Mustard?, I asked, thats an unusual colour to request, isnt it?

It turns out that they are the favourite colours of the 3 teachers. So off to create I went!!

I began by measuring the ornaments and then making a standard box for them. Due to the dimensions, I needed to make 2 halves, as the A4 cardstock wasnt wide enough. Once I was sure the dimensions were correct, by using Rule #101: Measure twice, cut once, I began to assemble my boxes.

I then worked out if I could have a window in the box, to display the ornament - it was gorgeous and Melissa had worked hard for it to work...

(Gotta love my scrawl on the bottom of the page, dont ya? LOL!!)

So once I was happy with the box and the lid, that needed to slightly larger than the box, I began to grin like a Cheshire Cat!

In the end, they came together really well. 

The final colours were Old Olive, Elegant Eggplant and More Mustard, (retired) and I think they all complimented each other, even though they werent for the same person. And the Glimmer Paper just gives it the Christmas feel!!

When I was done, I knew I wanted to show off the ornament as the lid was removed. So I constructed a little tab that held the ribbon of the ornament. This is how it worked :))

As you can see, the papers with the children's names can be seen through the windows. I love how what Melissa made & my contribution made this work so well!!

Until next time, stay safe and keep crafting!