It's Still My Birthday!!

Happy birthday celebrations continue for me!!

I was lucky enough to receive these two cards, during the week, so even though it is almost 3 weeks after my 10th SU! birthday, Im still receiving cards!!

Im happy with that!! LOL!!

This first card is from Mandy, a fellow demo in Sydney. We became strong friends recently when we attended a SU! event & have chatted since.

Mandy has used the gorgeous Beauty Abounds stamp set, markers and a touch of Wink of Stella, (this adds so much sparkle to a project!!) Ive always loved green & purple together, so the matching of Granny Apple Green with Highland Heather is just perfect, to me!!

This next card is from Kelly, who I met again in November, at OnStage last year!! Her smile is infectious and her work is always stunning!

Using the Mosaic Mood Specialty paper, Kelly simple used the matching dies to cut out the image from another sheet of DSP, propping it up on Dimensionals!! And using the Stitched Nested Labels to create the tag, coming down from the top of the page, is a great additiion!!

The sheen on this Specialty paper is just stunning - you dont need to add much more, it speaks for itself!! The embossing on the paper is beautiful.


So thankyou Mandy and Kelly, your cards and thoughtfulness put a smile on my face for days!!

I'm very grateful for all the support, love, laughs & creativity I receive from you both,

Jo x

ESAD So Long Old Favourites Blog Hop

Old friends are always hard to say goodbye to, arent they? And by old, I mean longtime friends, like one of our Mother's Group mums who lives in Hobart, Tasmania.
 It's always hard to say goodbye to her.. *sigh*

Thankfully, being a Stampin' Up! demonstrator means that while we are saying goodbye to some much loved products, we know that new ones are coming!! Just one of the many perks of being a demo!!

Another perk is being a member of the inspiring group we lovingly call ESAD. The details are below & you really cant put into words the warm n fuzzy feeling you get from being with such a wonderful group of like minded people!!

With the house-keeping stuff out of the way, let's get onto the reason we are here: what we have created to share with you... & you would have come from Siobhan's  blog. I must say that I've spent a bit of time looking at her work & it's stunning!!

I'm so glad you took part in the blog hop Siobhan, I love what you do :) Now, onto my work...

I loved this Bubble Over stamp set when I saw it & yet, I havent used it much at all?? And then this blog hop comes along & I drag it out & dust it off AND I"M LOVING IT AGAIN, go figure?

The fun of this set makes me smile. And weddings are meant to be fun, right, so this card had to be also...

Ive used Bubble Over, as mentioned, the Bottle & Bubbles dies, the Polka Dot Basics embossing folder with Lemon Lime Twist & Berry Burst cardstock.

Both of the main colours haven't grabbed me for 2 years & now I'm loving them too! Crazy, hey?

The only current items are the Whisper White & Basic Black cardstock, StazOn ink & Vellum, so I was pretty happy with how this worked out.

My next project came about because I participated in my first challenge over the weekend. The challenge presented was to make a card using Basic Black, Whisper White & a pop of colour.

It had me thinking, but after making the previous card, I had it worked out.

Here I teamed up Swirly Bird stamp set with the matching dies, Swirly Scribbles & Follow Your Dreams. I believe this technique is called "Inset", where you make a puzzle essentially with the various pieces...


My last creation I'm sharing is using the So Santa stamp set teamed with Botanical Butterfly DSP. I so want it to be summer again, as we begin to approach winter, I just yearn for the sun on my face, but maybe not as much as poor Santa, he could do with a hat for protection!!

And learning how to do the Reflective technique was simple & fun too - I'll share that this week, in another post, so be sure to come back :)

Of course, us demos wouldn't usually show off the light bouncing off the embossing powder, but I just had to show you how it looks like water, right!!

I've used more current items on this card: Balmy Blue ink & cardstock, Watercolor Pencils with the Aqua Paint Brush, StazOn Ink, Balmy Blue, Whisper White & Basic Black cardstock.

I do always enjoy using DSP differently to how it was intended, ie: butterflies on a card or scrap page...

The other thing I loved about this whole process was that I needed my 16 year old son to take the photos for me, as the camera on my Iphone is broken. So Kyle organised the way the light should be, how the card should be standing etc & took the photos for me - he did okay, didn't he!!
Thanks mate.

I hope you have enjoyed my items, I absolutely enjoyed the challenge of making them for you, be sure to come back for more inspiration sometime.

Click on the green sign here, to go to Peta's blog, tell her I said 'hi'...

Blog hop participant list, from here onward:

14. Jo Weedon - https://joweedon.blogspot.com/…/esad-so-long-old-favourites…
15. Peta Stephen - https://www.stampincat.com.au/esad-so-long-old-favourites-…/
16. Lisa Whitehead - https://stampwithlisa.co/esad-so-long-old-favourites-blog-…/
17. Rochelle Laird-Smith - https://stampingflair.com/esad-so-long-old-favourites-blog-…
18. Rebecca Scurr - https://thepaperandstampaddict.com.au/…/so-long-old-friends/
19. Mandy Depiazzi - https://mypapertrailblog.wordpress.com/…/esad-so-long-old-f…
20. Denise Buetler - http://www.stampinup.net/esuite/home/denisebuetler/blog…
21. Monique Fielder - https://stamping-with-moni-q.blogspot.com/…/esad-so-long-ol…
22. Kelly Kent - http://mypapercraftjourney.com/…/esad-blog-hop-so-long-old…/
23. Sharon Dalton - https://studioshabazcreativeme68.blogspot.com/…/esad-so-lon…
24. Rebekah Crisp - https://bcreativewithberyl.wordpress.com/…/so-long-old-favo…
25. Maree McIntosh - https://stampwithmareescards.blogspot.com/…/esad-april-2019…
1. Bronwyn Eastley - http://addinktivedesigns.com/…/esad-so-long-favourites-blo…/
2. Libby Dyson - http://libbystampz.com/so-long-old-favourites-blog-hop/
3. Katrina Duffell - https://inkpapergirl.com/?p=13579
4. Lou Kitzelman - https://withabowontopbylou.blogspot.com/…/esad-april-2019-s…
5. Shannon Kissane - http://shannonkissane.com/?p=3064
6. Nicole Wilson - https://nicolejuliewilson.blogspot.com/…/so-long-old-favour…
7. Delys Cram - https://delyscram.com/…/esad-so-long-old-favourites-blog-h…/
8. Lauren Meiklejohn - https://laurenmeiklejohn.wordpress.com/?p=5792
9. Cathy Pinchbeck - https://wp.me/p3zFY4-rV
10. Sandra Mastello - https://www.violetvspurplepapercrafts.com/?p=25912
11. Richelle Fletcher - https://stampingwithrichelle.blogspot.com/…/esad-so-long-ol…
12. Rose Packer - https://wp.me/p6g0iC-1k9
13. Siobhan Fitzsimmons - https://hightreeshouseofcards.com/…/so-long-to-old-favourit…

Kelly's Stamping Friends - Birthday Blog Hop.

Welcome to Kelly's Blog Hop - a celebration of her birthday, friendship & creativity!!

You have just come from seeing the wonderful Rachael's creations, weren't they great!! Im always in awe of people's interpretaion of the theme for a Blog Hop & this one doesnt disappoint!!

So onto my projects!! I have always loved creating something different to what I ususally see products being used for... I gain a lot of inspiration from those who make cards & even produce scrap pages to document their life, but I seem to see less of 3D or Off The Page items...

And so this brings me to my project... Ive had this 'Notice-Board/ Stationary Holder' for well over a few years and simply havent wanted to decorate it. Until the Wood Textures Designer Series Paper came along!! My youngest teen son started the job & I helped him to finish it...we make a great pair, dont we!!

 By keeping the sheets in similar tones, as they ran along the length of the project, it allowed the joins of the paper to not be so obvious. And also, when it is full of the odd peice of Lego, pens, school notes & bills, they wont be so easy to see either, hey?

 And the white paint for the edges, matches with the 'white wash' of the internal dividers also..win, win!!

So before the family realise that they can write on the "Over-head Projector' sheet that is on the 'window' part of the board, I will enjoy the clean lines & organised appearance of my, our, little weekend project... *sigh*

When I finished the Notice Board, I realised that I had another item gathering dust - it needed to be used!!

As you may know, I am friend's with many Stampin' UP! demonstrators & am often encouraged & inspired by them. This time is no different - I recently saw an "Off The Page' project using SU! products, so I hunted around & decided that I would use this frame to show off the gorgeous Statement of The Heart from Stampin' Up! 

Our Statement of The Heart is the core belief that we all hold & it encompases everything that all demos hold true. It is now in a stamp that can be shared & loved by everyone who passes by in my stamp room!!

"To love what we do and

Share what we love

As we help others enjoy creativity and

Worthwhile accomplishments.

In this we make a difference"

Firstly, I painted the wood with white paint, as I often do &I sat very impatiently, waiting for it to dry...

 I then paired the now retired Urban Garden Designer Series Paper, (DSP), with Not Quite Navy ink & Whisper White cardstock. These flowers were apart of a 12 x 12 sheet of DSP & they were screaming to be cut out & slightly re-arranged.

This flower was made by fussy cutting out the image about 6 times, from a sheet of DSP, popped up on Dimensionals & burnished to give the petals shape.

And of course, there needed to be some bling, my Up-line had taught me well!! With just a couple of peals carefully placed, it balances the piece nicely, I believe :)

Thanks for stopping by and seeing my creations for Kelly. I hope she has an amazing year ahead travelling around our incredible earth again - she certainly inspires me to keep doing what we love doing - using Stampin' Up! products, of course!!

And once again: Happy birthday Kelly!!

If you have lost your way, follow these names to find your way again :)

1.   Kelly Kent

2. Angela Meiritz-Reid

3. Sue Vine

4. Sharon Dalton

5. Rebecca Scurr

6. Julia Quinn

7. Danielle Bennenk

8. Cathy Pinchebeck

9. Richelle Fletcher

10.Sara Levin

11. Sandra Roberts

12. Catherin Creer

13. Cheryl Taylor

14. Rochelle Blok

15. Ine van den Eijnden

16. Rachael Lewsley

17. Jo Weedon You are here....

18. Courtney Heuston

19. Mandy Depiazzi

20. Marian Fleming

2018 Retirement List Blog Hop

Here we go with another amazing Blog Hop!! You have possibly come from Nicole's incredible page & designs. How gorgeous is her work? Thanks for playing along also, Nicole :)

When names were requested for this Blog Hop, I jumped at the chance!! I love to see people's ideas & interpretation of the theme of each hop... This theme, of course, is to use items from the Retiring List...

I decided to pull out all the retiring colours, the stamp sets, embossing folders & punches to see what sparked my interest. This is what I came up with...

 A close friend & co-worker had a baby a year ago, so Yusuf is now turning 1!! Our excitement for him almost matches how super cute he is!! So of course, he needs a special 1st birthday card...

Ive used the Myths & Magic Special DSP, Large Numbers Die & already retired Elegant Label Punch, on a base of Dapper Denim & Whisper White cardstock.

And can you see that Ive sponged the Silver Glimmer Paper for the #1? How super cool, errr, magical is that!!

It's another first for me that I use 2 designs of the DSP on one card, the wizards AND the brave knight fighting his dragon!! The Number of Years stamp set is wonderful that it includes the 'ST' so that our cards can be grammatically correct, isn't it?

 I always love to do projects that aren't only a card, so I went hunting in my stash of 'things that I've bought & will get back to one day', dont you have a pile like that too?

I found this card box & also remembered that my work have been asking for a supply of cards of mine. This is so that the staff members can flick through when they need a cards & it is immediately there for them... How perfect will this box be?

Whenever I choose an item like this, I always paint the edges, I just dont like the wooden finish. And I almost always paint them white... Then the many layers of Tear 'n Tape ensures the DSP will last on the project for a long time & shoul withstand a little bit of wear & tear, better than only using the tape around the edges, for example.


















Using the tape makes this projet so quick to complete, as you can use a craft knife to cut around the edges precisely for a smart finish & it is almost done.
(Ps, dont look at how I still need to paint over the exposed wooden edges, ok....)

 Now with the dividers also completed, the various cards can go in & lots of people will be happy to purchase & send or give a card to a loved one.

And now for my final item to show you...

Im a bit sad that the Magical Day stamp set is retiring, so Im not quite sure that I will be willing to part with it...& I've also used the Birthday Wit Set AND Sunshine & Rainbows on the one card!!!!

This card has a base of Whisper White with a mat of Sweet Sugarplum.

My rainbow is Elegant Eggplant, Dapper Denim, Marina Mist, Wild Wasabi, Peekaboo Peach, Tangerine Tango & Rose Red - my (retiring) interpretation of the V.I.B.G.Y.O.R. rainbow acronym :)

Ive made this card for another close friend & co-worker who is celebrating her birthday with 'our' baby that is turning 1, yes, on the same day!!

Melissa is such an incredibly driven woman, always is aware of her food intake, cooks incredible food, achieves greatness in her fitness & just loves unicorns - what a balance, hey?
 You never can tell how a card will come together, do you? 3 sets on the one card - Im still smiling about that one...

Thanks for dropping to see what Ive prepared for you all. Id love to hear what you thought of my projects...

So get up, put the kettle on, on your way to the loo, come back with a fresh cuppa & be prepared for Libby's stunning work.

Her creations will mirror the gorgeous woman she is, bright, colourful with a touch of sparkle!!





And if you get lost in all this craftiness, here is the list of everyone participating:

Blog Hop Participant List

Blog Hop Participant List

1. Lou Kitzelman

2. Kelly Kent

3. Bronwyn Eastley

4. Jackie Aitken

5. Jo Stubbings

6. Peta Stephen

7. Sharon Dalton

8. Lauren Meiklejohn

9. Courtenay Heuston

10. Nicole Wilson

11. Jo Weeden  You are here, Jo Weedon :)

12. Libby Dyson

13. Cheryl Algie

14. Megan Lenske

15. Beryl Crisp

16. Fi Cobbin

17. Rose Packer

18. Cathy Pinchbeck

19. Carolina Evans

20. Renee Lynch  

21. Sandra Mastello

22. Katrina Duffell

23. Rachael Lewsley

24. Leonie Schroder

25. Emily Campbell

26. Monique Fielder

27. Michelle Strazds

28. Jessie Holton

Thanks again x

A White Clock...How boring!!

The child care centre that I work in, has had that same clock since it's opening over 10 years ago...

And it decided to stop working after all this time...

So one of my partners in crime bought this clock so that we could still record the children's sleep, time of pick-up & of course, medication times, if we needed to.

But we couldnt just have  a boring white clock now, could we?  NO - YUCK!!

So using the Mythical Creatures Designer Paper & co-ordinating cardstock, punches & dies, I was able to create something that works sooooo much better & is so much more appealing for the little people in our care!!

 I learnt, by damaging 2 other clocks, that the hands are not supposed to be pulled out & so I had to cut the top layer of the Whisper White cardstock. This allowed the cardstock to sit flat & yet allow the hands to rotate properly, as they should, right??

And of course, the numbers had to be an addition to this clock - it is a learning tool, after-all!!

I do love how this turned out, sooo much better than the white, plain clock, dont you agree?

Thanks for stopping by, come back soon to see what else Ive been working on :)

My brother's Tropical 30th card...

 With my brother's 30th celebration, of course, I had to make a card that matched his tropical theme...

I found this Designer Paper from a few years ago, it was a Sale-a-bration one, I think & blinged it up with the Glimmer Paper & a couple of pearls.

 Then I decided to challenge myself with fussy cutting 30 of the tropical birds, from Bird Banter, a current stamp set - this is exactly what I needed immediately before going out the door to his party, right?

 I cannot, for the life of me, work out how to rotate this photo, before or after loading it, so you will just have to stretch your neck, to count them...but there are 30 of them, trust me!!

 Happy birthday Cameron, thanks for a great night!!

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 :)