Woo hoo! Launch time is here!

These were the lovely goodies I received! Lush or what?!

Anyhow, now the deadline has been reached so I have to put down scissors and get blogging. Sad really because I had got plans for so many more things, but I am just not the fastest crafter in the world and I got a bit carried away with one of the projects which cut down on the time available elsewhere.

I have to say I am a Stampin' Up Novice. But, wow! the quality of the products is just fabulous. I couldn't really pick one item out above all the others. Apart from anyone who knows me knows that my one true love is patterned paper. And these didn't disappoint. I loved that the patterns ranged from timeless to more modern and the brown and green really worked well with the red. I can't wait to get more time to play with everything.

I did three cards, two altered items and one scrapbook page.











The altered items - the chalkboard I stamped on the wood frame (no smudging, yeah!) and then simply added a little paper and stamped some images to embellish. I stapled the ribbon to the back of the board using a heavy duty staple gun (very useful!).





The wish lists item is packaging from some drawer liners. The inside has a pocket for containing letters to Santa.







For the scrapbook page, I stamped tone on tone on the red and green cardstocks, unfortunately the photos don't really show that detail too well. I love that the papers and inks co-ordinate so well to enable the tone on tone technique like that.







Remember to comment for blog candy, see the post below (or below that!). And also check out Lousette and Jenny for their fab creations too :)

BTW I will be creating more projects because there is so much stuff left over and I have enjoyed playing with them so much. So keep an eye out in the next day or two (I think I have to go to Sainsbury's tomorrow, which is a long job as I go with my mum, so hopefully Friday I will be able to play again).

So far ...

Three cards
Two altered thingies
and
one messy desk
LOL!

Blog Candy details

Well I'm back from jewellery making classes. Got a nice big box of goodies waiting to be played with so I need to get cracking for that midnight deadline!

Whilst I have been out, Lousette has blogged about the blog candy, so, hoping she doesn't mind, I am copying out what she has written on here too! I know, very cheeky of me, but Lousette is such a kind person I am sure she will be fine with it.

Blog Candy Blog Candy Blog Candy

There will be two prizes, each one consisting of a punch, a stamp set and an ink pad ... does that sound good or what!

The first prize will be an early bird prize. To qualify you need to visit this blog between midnight tonight and 1am - only one hour ladies, so this one has good odds indeed. Leave a comment, and if you are also a blogger we ask that you mention the challenge on your own blog, link through to here and then paste your blog link in your comment.

Don't worry if you are not a blogger, simply leaving a comment will still put you in the running for winning the prize.

Second prize will run from 1am until 12 midday on Thursday, so if you missed the early bird, or shall I say night owl draw, you still have a chance of winning a prize.

Same rules apply, leave a comment, bloggers leave a link ... and then I will choose the winners later tomorrow evening using a random number generator.

This is just getting better isn't it.

Remember, both Lousette and Jenny will also be giving away two prizes each, that is six in total, so be sure to come along and play.

Good luck everyone, I will talk to you later.

Drumming fingers ...

Nervously waiting ... for my box of goodies.

Luckily I have things to do today to take my mind off things a little.

I've hoovered, washed the pots, tidied around, fed all the animals (only 2 cats, 2 guinea pigs and 2 fish, but still).

I've tidied my craft desk (not the rest of the room mind, just a clear area at my desk to work on) and put out new clean messy mats to work on too.


I've had a scout around my 'odds and ends' cupboard and brought down an array of things that I may want to decorate with the Stampin' Up supplies.



And now I am out to a jewellery making class myself followed by school pick up and then taking the girls to a jewellery making class. So, like I said, plenty of things to keep me occupied during the wait.

Oh yes, more news on the blog candy later, got to go though just now.

pssst .....

Apparently the very kind and generous people at Stampin' Up are also going to be providing blog candy for the blog hop on Wednesday. More details tomorrow :)

I'm so excited ... and I just can't help it!

Deep breaths. Need to stop hyperventilating.

I am one of three lucky crafty bloggers who are going to be part of a blog hop for the new Stampin' Up releases being launched this Thursday (1st October!).

I can't believe it. Did I say I was excited?

Along with the talented Lousette Ashton and Jenny Cocks, I shall be sat at home on Wednesday afternoon eagerly waiting for a box of goodies from Stampin' Up. We get a few hours (eeek) to create some projects of our choosing and then upload them for a reveal at midnight Wednesday.

It's so exciting! Oh, yep, I already said that didn't I?!

I have to admit to being rather nervous too, being in the spotlight like that, and am hoping to do justice to whatever luscious goodies I get sent.

If you're not already familiar with Stampin' Up just follow the link to find out more about their products and how you can get hold of them yourself (click on the find a demonstrator tab).

More deep breaths. Almost felt calm there. For a minute. LOL!

Remember to bookmark this blog and those of Lousette and Jenny and come back Wednesday night for the big reveal.

Oh, I forgot to say, I am pretty new to stamping myself but have been scrapbooking for a few years now (if you don't know who I am, I go by the online name of fruitysuet). I love creating and have started to use stamps in my scrapbooking a lot more recently. I love that you can make your own customised embellishments to fit whatever colour or theme of page, as demonstrated on the two pages below which I did at crop last week.







See you Wednesday!

Happy Anniversary us :)

I dragged myself out of my sick bed to go to the Hobby Horse crop this week. It must be a year since I have been, things have just constantly conspired against me getting there. Me being ill, kids being ill, parties, visits, Len working and so on. But this month I was determined to be there! I'm so glad I made the effort. It wasn't too busy so was nice and relaxing, had lots of space to spread around in (anyone who has seen me scrap in real life knows that I like to spread!) And, of course, great to meet up with people again. The one for October is early, so I'm hoping to make it two in a row and get to that one too!

I did four layouts (all except final finishing touches and journaling) which is pretty good for me seeing as I don't normally get started scrapping until lunch time. I will try to find the energy to finish them and get them photographed and shared this week.

Have discovered Facebook. Serious problem. Addictive games. Enough said lol! Josh thinks I am seriously sad for going on there. A bit rich for someone who lives for Runescape I think.

Oh and it is our 23rd wedding anniversary today. Mum reminded me Friday night, no worries I thought, we haven't acknowledged it really for a while, so it wouldn't matter that I hadn't bought anything. Girls told Len and took him shopping yesterday whilst I was at crop. I got some beautiful flowers and a couple of dvd's. I was warned, thankfully. So I sneaked out to Tesco last night to go and buy something. Only to find that 24 hour opening doesn't actually mean that. Drove around and found a 24 hour petrol station (where 24 hours obviously means 24 hours) and got him a big pack of Guinness and a big bar of Cadbuury's whole nut. Okay not overly inspiring, but well received and will be enjoyed for a while to come (the kids don't like whole nut choc so he can enjoy it all himself). Oh and, of course, a hand made anniversary card.

Every time I figure I am going to start being more committed to blogging, life gets in the way!

I have been scrapping, done quite a lot over the Summer actually. Just I haven't been bothered photographing much of it yet. Now that the kids are all back at school it might be something I get around to soon.

The pages I have taken photos for have been for DT work. I played with yummy 7Gypsies papers for A Trip Down Memory Lane (September Gallery) and also was honoured to be chosen to be the Guest Designer for Creative Scrappers this week. I was introduced to the site by Debbie Nicholas and love the work by the creative team over there. A great selection of sketches to inspire too (again part of the not yet photographed pile!). As well as the page I did for the reveal, I changed the sketch around a little bit for this page.



Products used:
Patterned papers - Creative Imaginations, Jenni Bowlin, Making Memories, Fancy Pants
Cardstock - Bazzill
Die cuts - My Minds Eye, KI Memories
Chipboard - American Crafts, Die Cuts with a View
Not sure what the stamps are as I bought them secondhand and they came without packaging.

Tomorrow is another hospital appointment with Mia. Clinical Physchology this time. Not sure who needs it more, Mia or me! Hopefully they will be able to help us both on the road to coming to terms with Mia's condition. Not something I have mentioned on here before. I am finding it really hard to cope with the diagnosis we have been given for her. On the positive side, the Education Authority have accepted out appeal and awarded Mia a Statement of Special Needs giving her 20 hours individual teaching time a week. I truly am thankful to the doctors and teachers who have worked so hard on getting to this stage.

Chiara has moved into Year 6. Final year at the village school. On Friday we received the notification from the Education Authority of which secondary school she is earmarked for. Alfreton. Sigh. Our garden is in catchment for the 'local' school which the children from the village go to (and which is still over 3 miles away) but our house is in catchment for this other school which is over 7 miles away and which I do not want my children to attend AT ALL. Hopefully when the final letter comes through Chiara will have been allocated a space at our preferred school without having to go to appeal. The fact that she has a brother there will help a little. Unfortunately it's a six month stressful wait to find out.

Both girls had a lovely time shopping for school clothes before term started. The school has a dress code (okay it has a uniform but it is very loosely enforced, so as long as you stick to the traditional school colours you're pretty well okay).


Chiara was very keen on a more fashionable look!



Oh and I have joined Facebook (which I had been resisting, but I googled Mia's condition again and there was a group for it on FB so I had to join to check it out). It all looks rather confusing so not sure how involved I will get with that. Especially given as there seems to be some game on there which I just know I would get obsessed with given half a chance! I signed up to Twitter too, really again just to check out what other people are doing - I really do need to do something interesting with my days just so I have something interesting to say on these places.