Putting in the Last Order before Christmas

I will be putting in my last order before Christmas this coming Monday. If you wish to order anything from the Inventory Clearance Sale now on (click to view the list of items on sale) then let me know by Sunday night or Monday morning (21st December) to make sure that I include what you want. You can place your order either via Email (lindastamps@bigpond.com) or on my mobile which is 0412 375 552.

I also thought you would like to see this cute card that I made with some of our Summer Mini Supplies. In particular I ADORE the cute red dotty ribbon, and if you look close, I have threaded it through one of our Jumbo Grommets.. dont they look awesome!? Love them!

Hope you like it too. :-)

Fantastic Clearance Sale... some sets up to half price!!!

Wow.. just when we thought that things were winding down for Christmas... Stampin'Up have just announced their "Inventory Clearance Sale". Some of the accessories and stamp sets on this list have been heavily reduced. The sale will run from today until the 24th January, and items are available whilst stocks last. There is no minimum purchase, nor any limit on how many you can purchase. The items will only be available at these discounted prices whilst stocks last. To see the list of what is going out the door, click here

Some of these items I may even have to grab myself as I have long admired them and at these prices they will be hard to resist. Hmmmm, better go check the list again myself....

Here's another one for you...

Here's another card made with some of our lovely new Mini stamps.. this one is the "Butterfly Prints" set (rrp $25.95) and I love any set that has a matching punch to punch out the images. No more cutting out butterflies! Hooray! Just punch, punch, punch and they are done. I also used the new 1&3/4" circle punch on this one. SO simple and quick to do. I also used Baroque Motifs as a background. Hope you enjoy it.

A quick offer for you: Order the Butterfly Prints set and matching butterfly punch for a total rrp of $56.90 and you will receive the "Sweet Birthday" stamp on page 3 of the Mini Catalogue for $7. Postage is $5.95 to anywhere in Australia. Click here to see the Summer Mini catalogue. Contact me at lindastamps@bigpond.com to place your order.

See you soon.

Framed with Love

This is a card made with one of our new Mini Catalogue stamp sets. I gave a presentation at our Regional Training day in Sydney a couple of weeks ago. As a thank you from Stampin'Up I was able to choose a free stamp set of my choice. And this is the one I chose. Just because I liked it - no other reason at all. I wanted a stamp set just for me. Not because it would sell well, or make good business sense. Just because I liked it. It's called "Framed with Love" and its so cute. I especially like that the heart frame fits perfectly in the Full heart punch.

This is the first card I made with it, so I wanted to show it to you. I also used the circle scissors to make the circles on the card.. I will be demonstrating how to use the Circle Scissors at my launch this week.

Enjoy the card (close up below to show off the textured cardstock) and I'll be back with more soon. :-)

Welcome to Summer and our Brand New Summer Mini Catalogue

Well, here it is! A brand new Mini Catalogue to play with. Click on here to browse the catalogue online. Or to get your own copy mailed to you, please contact me at lindastamps@bigpond.com

I have lots of fun projects to show you that I have made with the new stuff, so stay tuned. Or for anyone that would like to play with these things yourself, I have 2 seats left at next week's catalogue launch. For more details visit my calendar at http://catalogs.shoplocal.com/stampinup/index.aspx?pagename=shopmain&fsid=3ba0ac67-d798-4dc7-84d2-c767aad391f5&storeid=1039381&circularid=15912 and click on the Summer Mini Catalogue launch. The night will be held at Narara, you will make 3 projects and the cost is $15. Hope to see you there :-)

Last day to order from the current Mini Catalogue

Tomorrow, November 30th, is the very last day to order from the current Mini Catalogue. I am excited about the new Mini that begins the following day, December 1st, but I will miss quite a lot of the products that we have been playing with in the current Mini. But all good things must come to an end, and that's life. :-)

So, if you will miss the Ski Slope Designer Paper, then Scallop Oval Punch, and white Stazon ink (just to mention a few) then make sure you contact me before 9pm on the 30th November to ensure that you dont miss out on these lovely things. Every time we close off a Mini catalogue, without fail, a customer attempts to order these things after the final ordering day. Dont let that be you this time!

If you want to view the catalogue, just click on the photo above. Please note that the link will only work until 30th November 2009.

Also I wanted to show you this cute little box made with Ski Slope designer paper... we made it as part of our stamp club last Thursday night, and all the girls loved it. And it's my last chance to show off the paper. Enjoy!

It's been a big week! (And a winner announced)

Sometimes life seems to be on Fast Forward. So many things have been going on - both personally and business-wise, that it has been almost impossible to keep up. We had our Regional Training for Stampin'Up last Saturday (which reminds me I must photograph our Make and Takes from the day and show you what we made) and I had a wonderful day. Just fantastic. The highlight at these kind of events is always catching up with other demonstrators and just enjoying each other's company. One of the girls who was there is fairly new to SU, and she has been involved with other Direct Selling companies. She said it was completely different to any of the ones she has been to before - much more friendly and personal, and I would have to agree. There's something about sharing creativity that brings people together in an amazing way. I'll try to get those project photos on here for you in the next few days.

I also have a class today (the Last Minute Panic Class). Don't panic (!) if you arent with us today, Im doing it again next week for anyone who would like to be part of it. See my calendar at http://www.stampinup.net/esuite/home/lindahiggins/ for full details.

Tomorrow night is our last Stamp Club for the year. I would like to thank all the Stamp Club girls for making this another great club year. I love Stamp Club because over the course of the year we get to know each other well, and we have made some lovely projects together. Dont forget a new club starts in the new year (in fact I will run two - a day and night time club - so please email me at lindastamps@bigpond.com if you are interested.

I also wanted to announce the winner of the comp I ran a couple of weeks ago. Congratulations to Leah Ball who wins a $10 voucher off her next order. She correctly answered the question and left a comment which was what I asked people to do. Leah, contact me at lindastamps@bigpond.com to claim your prize.

And lastly I want to remind everyone that time is running out to order from the Current Spring Mini Catalogue. Last day for orders is 30th November 2009, so please make sure you dont miss out if there is anything in there that you really need or want. In particular I am going to miss:

• The Scallop Oval Punch
• White Stazon
• Parisian Breeze and Ski Slope papers

The card you see at the top of this post uses the Winter Post set (again) but also the Ski Slope Paper, and also White Stazon has been used to cover the background with snowflakes. I restrained myself from using the Scallop Oval punch on this one, but only just.

Enjoy!

Last Minute Panic Christmas Cards

It's about time I posted something on here dont you think?

We are getting to that slightly panicky time of year arent we?

I am running a class next week on the 25th November at 10.30am for those of us a bit behind on our Christmas cards.. its called the "Last Minute Panic Class". I have two spaces left at this point. The card you see here is a sample of the simple little 4"x4" cards we are doing... we make 15 of these in a session and they are all different but similar in style to the one you see here. The cards use part of a Simply Scrappin' Set called "I wish". I love this set.. you can do so much with it! Cost for the class is $25 and all materials are supplied and refreshments are provided.

Enjoy the card and if you have a free day next Wednesday please let me know. It will be a fun day so come and enjoy.

Reminder - Embossing Class this Monday 9th November

Just a quick reminder that I am running my Technique class on Embossing again this coming Monday night. These technique classes have been very popular and last month I ran this one as a Day class, but was asked by several customers to run it again as a night time class. You will make 3 projects using 3 different embossing techniques and for most people, even those who have embossed before, you are likely to do something different with embossing than what you have done previously. Cost is $20, and all materials and light refreshments are provided. Classes are held at my home in East Gosford. Email me at lindastamps@bigpond.com if you would like to join us.

Look forward to seeing you.

New website and Calendar of Upcoming Events

Hello everyone

I wanted to let you know about my new SU website... these are one of the resources available to us as Stampin'Up Demonstrators and I have spent a little time getting it ready to go. Go take a look:

http://lindahiggins.stampinup.net

The biggest benefit of this site to you at the moment is that you can easily see all my upcoming events in one spot. It's easy to read, and you can easily book in to attend through the site by clicking on the "Contact Me" tab. As time goes by I will start putting more of my own projects on to the site as well. Please note that for those people who have been waiting for me to post details of the Summer Mini Catalogue launch, I have listed it on the new website for you.

For those of you who like to know what is coming up I would suggest that you visit often and maybe even bookmark this site.

I'd like to offer you a little encouragement to visit the site. Have a look and then leave a comment here on my blog to tell me one product used in the picture on the main Welcome page. And feel free to leave me some feedback on what you think of how it looks. Demonstrators can comment too, but only a Non-demonstrator can win a $10 voucher to put towards product of your choice.

Let me know what you think.

Linda
http://lindahiggins.stampinup.net

Winter Post Again... love love love this set

Like it?

Just a quick post today. I made this for a workshop yesterday.. it's actually a Christmas tag.. but put onto a card. I think it's cute if I do say so myself!

Enjoy!

Birthday Parties and other stuff

Hey everyone. What a big week it has been for me! This week I held my first ever at-home birthday party for my almost 4-year-old boy. His birthday is actually on Tuesday but we held the party yesterday. I've always chickened out of holding them at home.. party not wanting to have clean up the mess, and partly just because I am not known for my organizational abilities.. I seem to have missed out when someone was handing out those. But even so, I was really pleased with how it went yesterday. I was terrified it would rain, and as you will see from the following photos, the weather certainly played a part. The morning was cloudy, but after lunch the sun came out and it was perfect. This is the first time I have had a backyard that would allow me to do something like this, and I wanted to make the most of it. In the end it was worth all my stressing. Most importantly Ben had a great day.. that's the whole idea after all.









I am certainly not a cake maker and if you had seen me during the construction you would have seen me about to throw it out the window and go buy one! But it came together in the end.

Finally, I thought you would like to see a Christmas card that we made in our last Stamp-A-Stack. It a CASE from my friend and fellow demonstrator Rhonda Stratham.. she is in Branxton if anyone is looking for a demonstrator up that way. I changed it a little but I was really pleased with it, and everyone that was at the last Stamp-A-Stack enjoyed making it too. If you would like to come and make any Christmas Cards with us over the coming weeks check back here for the Class schedule which will go up in the next couple of days. In the meantime, enjoy the card - it's at the top of this post.

Stamps: Winter Post
Cardstock: Kraft, Riding Hood Red, Chocolate Chip
Ink: Chocolate Chip, Close to Cocoa
Other accessories: Scallop Edge Punch, 1&3/8 Circle Punch, Riding Hood Red Striped Grosgrain ribbon, Dimensionals, Sponges

This card is proof that you dont need lots of stamps, lots of ink, or lots of cardstock to make cards.... you can do lots with minimal supplies.

Another Christmas card.. getting sick of them yet??

Just sharing another Christmas card from a recent Stamp-A-Stack. This one we made with the Season of Joy stamp set - still one of my favourites. I have another Christmas Stamp A Stack coming up on Monday 26th October and I do still have a couple of places left. Email me at lindastamps@bigpond.com if you would like to reserve a spot. At these nights you will make 6 Christmas cards (3 each of 2 different designs) for $15, so it's a great way of getting stuck into your Christmas cards this year. And a good night out as well. :-)

I also have a couple of seats left in my Embossing Technique class this coming Wednesday the 21st October. The class starts at 10.30am and you will make several projects and learn some different embossing techniques (such as Emerging colour and Emboss Resist). This class is $20. Just send me an email if you would like to join us. A light lunch is provided if you get hungry!

In the meantime enjoy this Chrissy card. :-)

Linda

Winterpost Challenge and the next Christmas Stamp-a-Stack

On the long weekend I had the privilege of working at the Cantebury Craft Show with some other talented demonstrators. One of my absolute favourite things about being with SU has been the amazing friendships I have formed with other demonstrators, and really, it's amazing when technically we are each other's competition. But it has never felt that way to me, and the fact that most demonstrators seem to be so excited to see each other's businesses do well is a wonderful thing. It's a pleasure to work alongside other demonstrators in any format, but one of the reasons that I enjoy craft shows is because of this cameraderie.





Here are the girls I was working with.. from left Lin Mei, Myself, Vanessa, Annette and Angela. The only person missing was Rhonda who worked on the Saturday when I didnt work. Thanks Rhonda.. maybe next time we will get to work together? Overall though it was a great weekend. Thanks to Angela for organizing the show and inviting me to be part of it.

At the end of the Canterbury show the girls were admiring some of the cards on display made with Stampin'Up's Winterpost stamp set. So I offered a little "unofficial challenge" - create something with this set within a week or so, and put it on our respective blogs for the world to see. So here is mine, and I hope you like it. I love this set.. it's really quite easy to use!

In addition this card will be one of the two designs we will be creating at this week's Stamp-A-Stack on Wednesday 14th October 2009. Currently I have a couple of places left in this class.. so if you would like to join us, please contact me by email (lindastamps@bigpond.com) or on my mobile 0412 375 552. You will get to make 6 cards in total, 3 each of the two designs, and the class costs $15. The class will begin at 10.30am and we will be finished in time to enjoy a light lunch together. Classes are held at my home at East Gosford on the Central Coast, NSW.

I would love to see you there, if you would like to come! Email me to reserve your spot.

Does this look familiar??

You might recognize this card... I originally made this card and posted it on my blog a few months back. It was done with InColors, on a Tangerine Tango card base.

My daughter celebrated her 7th birthday yesterday so I redesigned the card, this time doing it in Pinks and Celery Green (being a Pink girly-girl after all) and adding a couple of punched shapes in there as well. And this was the result.. I really like it. But more importantly, Emma loved it too.

Hope you like it too.



Stamps: Petal Pizazz, On your Birthday
Cardstock: Pretty in Pink, Rose Red, Whisper White, Vellum Cardstock
Ink: Rose Red, Pretty in Pink, Regal Rose, Certainly Celery
Other accessories: Scallop Edge Punch, Round Scallop Punch, Certainly Celery ribbon, Silver Brads, Dimensionals

Two Great new Promotions for October!

I always love waiting to see what specials are coming up each month with Stampin'Up. This month was have not one, but two great promotions. Here they are:








To celebrate World Card Making Day (yes, there really is such a thing!) on October 3rd, Stampin'Up has released a special which will continue for the entire month of October. Purchase either of our Simply Sent Card Elements kits (the Rock Star kit is shown in the picture here) and you will then receive the matching stamp set at 20% off. Prices are shown below.

October 1-31

Buy a Simply Sent Card Elements kit for $30.95:

Item	Description
112028	Flower Power
112021	Rock Star

and get one of the following stamp sets at 20% off (regular price $24.95, now $19.96):

Item	Description
116779	Wow Flowers
116777	Starring You

And here's our second promotion:






For over 20 years, Stampin' Up! has helped women make a difference in the lives of others by simply doing what they love to do--sharing creativity.

Now you too can become a Stampin' Up! demonstrator and make a difference! For every person who joins Stampin' Up as a Demonstrator between 1st October and 31st December 2009, Stampin'Up will donate $5 to the National Breast Cancer Foundation.

Plus, until 31 December 2009, SU will give you a FREE pack of Raspberry Tart Designer Series paper and a Pretty in Pink Classic Stampin' Pad to help you get started!

How good is that? So if you have been thinking of taking the next step and joining this wonderful company - whether to just make some extra cash doing something that you love, or to turn into a viable business (or anything in between), then NOW is the time. Contact me for an information pack at lindastamps@bigpond.com

I love promotions!

Sad Moments

I am so lucky to have wonderful customers in this business. Many people who started out as customers have become friends to me in an amazing way. Without them I dont know where I would be!

A couple of my customers are also sisters, and sadly their Mum passed away a couple of weeks ago. I wanted to show you the card that I made for them.

"Thoughts and Prayers" is a great set to use when you are not sure what words to say.. I've used it on several occasions.

Stamps: Thoughts and Prayers, En Francais Background Stamp
Cardstock: Very Vanilla, Really Rust, More Mustard, Chocolate Chip
Ink: Chocolate Chip
Markers: Chocolate Chip, More Mustard, Really Rust
Bella Rose Designer paper
Other accessories: Scallop Edge Punch, Large Oval Punch, Scallop Oval Punch, Chocolate Chip Taffeta ribbon, Dimensionals

How cute are these boxes???

I love these! Partly because they are sooooo easy, and very quick to make up. Lucky too because I chose to do these as thankyous for my daughter's birthday get together with her school friends. Dont they look great? I originally got this idea from Marelle Taylor... thank you so much Marelle! It's actually known as the Sevens Box.. because all the measurements are 7cms. That's what makes it easy.

I did a couple of different versions of these as this month's Stamp Club project.. we filled them with cello bags (stamped with white Stazon) full of smarties and they look so cute! Stamp Club is nearly finished for this year so come January 2010 I will be starting a new Stamp Club.. let me know if you would like to be a part of it and I will book you in. Stamp Club works best with 6 people, and we hold club nights every second month. Each time you will make a different type of project. Members commit to spending a minimum of $50 at each Club night, and that way each member gets their turn at being the hostess and getting the hostess benefits over the course of the year. It's a great way to build up your supplies bit by bit.

If you are interested in joining next year's stamp club (yes, I have already had interest for 2010!) please let me know. The first club night will be at the end of January (to take advantage of Sale-A-Bration) so it's first in-best dressed. The first person to join will be the January hostess.. so that's a great one to get things going. Sale-A-Bration is without doubt the biggest promotion of the year.

Club nights are held at my home in East Gosford on the Central Coast, NSW. If you would like to join, or would like further information, please contact me at lindastamps@bigpond.com

More Christmassy stuff

I am just loving the Tree Trimmings set from the current Mini. I have found it so useful, and for a relatively inexpensive set ($24.95 for the four stamps) there are soooo many things you can do with it! And it lends itself really well to a variety of techniques too. On this card I used the Rock and Roll technique to highlight the designs on the ornaments, but you can use markers and chalks effectively with this set and it looks wonderful embossed. So if you are looking for a good well-priced Christmas Stamp Set, then this one is a winner for Christmas 2009.

I've decided to offer a little deal with this one. If you purchase the Tree Trimmings set, the Ski Slope Designer Series Paper and the Red-and-white wide Grosgrain ribbon (like the one on this card) or any other roll of SU ribbon for that matter, you will also receive a free marker in the colour of your choice valued at $5.75. This special just runs until the end of September and you need to mention this blog post when you place your order.

How do you order? You can email me at lindastamps@bigpond.com with your order, or you can call my mobile to order anytime on 0412 375 552. I can have your order delivered to anywhere in Australia for a small postage charge.

Enjoy the card!



Stamps: Tree Trimmings (from the Spring Mini Catalogue), and Short and Sweet
Cardstock: Whisper White, Baja Breeze, Real Red
Ink: Chocolate Chip, Real Red, Baja Breeze
Ski Slope Designer paper
Other accessories: Scallop Edge Punch, Large Oval Punch, Scallop Oval Punch, Riding Hood Red striped ribbon, Cropadile, Jumbo Eyelets, Dimensionals

By Request

You all know that I love to make cards and to create. I enjoy all the cards I make. But every now and again I come up with a card that people just seem to love. The card you see here has been one of those cards... and I have been asked by many people if we can recreate it. I've done it at a couple of workshops this month, and I also did it at my last Christmas Stamp-A-Stack. The colours were inspired by the Ski Slope Designer paper. Im not sure why it was such a hit. The colour? The design? If you have any clues what makes this particular card a winner, please let me know!

Stamps: Tree Trimmings (from the Spring Mini Catalogue), and Short and Sweet
Cardstock: Whisper White, Baja Breeze, Chocolate Chip
Ink: Chocolate Chip, Real Red
Ski Slope Designer paper
Other accessories: Scallop Edge Punch, Large Oval Punch, Scallop Oval Punch, Choc chip wide grosgrain ribbon, Real Red and Old Olive Markers, Paper Piercing Tool and Mat Pack template, Dimensionals

Enjoy the card, and I will be back soon with more for you.

Glad to be back guys!

Linda

Scraps for a Good Cause

Anybody wondering what to do with all those paper scraps that they have hanging around their craft rooms? Well here's a really good idea!

Turn these:




Into these:




The play therapists at Westmead Childrens hospital need your help! And Jayne Mercer, my fellow Stampin'Up demonstrator, is putting the word out. For more details please visit Jayne's blog at

http://www.jaynemercer.com/blogs/index.php?blog=2&title=can_you_help&more=1&c=1&tb=1&pb=1

All contributions gratefully accepted!

(I will be resuming normal transmission tomorrow - my Camera died and I havent been able to post my creations. But I've managed to get myself a replacement camera so look out! I'll start putting up some of my Creations in the coming days. Thanks for your patience!)

Christmas Stamp-a-Stack Monday 7th September - a few spots left

Just a quick reminder for those people who are interested in my Christmas Stamp-A-Stacks - I have one coming up this coming Monday night (7th September, 2009) and I still have a few spots left. For anyone who hasn't been before, at a Stamp-A-Stack you get the chance to make a "stack of cards" - 6 to be precise. We make 3 each of 2 different designs, and this is a great way to get on top of your Christmas Cards heading towards Christmas. I hold at least one of these each month. You can see other upcoming classes listed to the right-hand side of this blog.

The cost for the night is $15, and light refreshments are provided. If you would like to join us, please email me at lindastamps@bigpond.com Classes are held at my home in East Gosford, and I can give you my address when you book in.

I hope to see you there!

A gift for you - a fantastic special from Stampin'Up for September

Wow.. September already.. where has 2009 gone???

Stampin'Up is celebrating September with a fabulous offer. Purchase $100 worth of Stampin'Up product (not including Postage and handling) and you will automatically recieve a very special Ribbon Bundle AT NO ADDITIONAL COST! What a great special.

The Bundle includes 9.1 metres each Certainly Celery 5/8” poly-twill ribbon and So Saffron 5/8” grosgrain ribbon. (The Poly-twill is a new product not currently in our catalogues.



Another way to get the free ribbon is to host a workshop in September which has sales of more than $600. If you would like to host a workshop, please contact me at lindastamps@bigpond.com

You can find more details on the Stampin'Up website which is www.stampinup.com.au

Hooray! If you would like to place an order for Stampin'up products there are two ways to do it... either call me on 0412 375 552 or email me at lindastamps@bigpond.com and dont forget that it doesnt matter where you are.. your order can be shipped anywhere in Australia for a low postage charge.

I hope to hear from you soon!

Linda H

Noosa Incentive Trip Days 4 - 5

Day 4 - Saturday

It was up bright and early on the Saturday morning as our tour bus to Fraser Island left at 6.30am. There were 17 of us on the bus - more of a bussed-up 4WD really. And what a great day we had.. it was super windy on the ferry crossing between the mainland and the Island, but once on Fraser we had a really good run. I loved driving at 80kms on the "highway" - what the locals call the highway is known to most people as the beach. Our driver, Tim, knew so much about Fraser Island it made my head spin. We headed up the east coast of the island and then about half-way up we headed inland making our way towards Lake MacKenzie. It was my 2nd trip to the lake, and it never loses it's appeal - crystal clear fresh water and the whitest sand imaginable. Here are a few shots:


The Ferry Crossing to Fraser Island



Me and Georgina braving the wind




The "highway"



This is the first view you get of Lake MacKenzie as you walk down towards it




The girls at the Lake. From left: Myself, Georgina, Theresa, Shelli, Yvonne, Kerri and Kim. Somehow I managed to miss Jacque who was also there.




Me and my friend Kerri



Just me.. how blue is that water?! Just amazing!




On the way back from the Lake we stopped at a place called "Pile Valley" - we went for a bit of a bushwalk and checked out these Satinay trees - they are massive.



And here is our whole Fraser Island group... we had so much fun and it was really a fantastic day! From left at back: Sterling, Shelli, Martin, Yvonne, Kim, Warren, Aaron, Dave, Georgina, Myself, Geoff, Kerri, Jennifer. In front: Gerard, Jacque, Theresa and Paul. I hope I got everyone's names right - sorry if I misspelled anyone.




We crossed back to the mainland and I lost count of the number of dolphins we saw. How wonderful to see so many! Then we stopped at the Coloured sands for afternoon tea. A quick cuppa and some lamingtons, some photo opportunities and then we were on our way again.



We had to be back at the hotel by 3.30pm so we were rushing a bit to get back. But then we had to quickly get ready for our Farewell dinner - it was a big secret, with only the vaguest of hints as to where we might be going. Some of the girls thought they knew where it was (I had made a guess of my own, but I was completely wrong!) We boarded a bus at 4.30pm and rode out to the little town of Cooroy, inland from Noosa. As we rounded the corner to the town's pub, we were greeting by the sight of a fleet of vintage cars waiting to take us to our destination! Such a fantastic surprise. In my car (a Merc) there was Georgina, Sue M, Claire D and myself. Our driver was Scott and he answered all our questions about the car and anything else we cared to ask. We arrived at a place called "The Plantation" (click to see it) and as we entered the gates you could see paper bags lining both sides of the long driveway - in each bag were pebbles and a tea-light candle. So beautiful - especially as the evening got darker. We were helped out of the car by our driver and then shown into the main house - we could wander around and explore the house. There were drinks and fantastic nibblies brought around on trays. Then we were seated for dinner - the tables were covered with red roses and other flowers in beautiful arrangements and at each achiever's place setting was a cream fringed wrap - another gift. Dinner was wonderful. I got to share the evening with Georgina, Tanya, Theresa, Jayne & Gareth and Dave & Jennifer. Great company and such a fitting end to a wonderful few days. Here's a couple of snaps for you:



The Vintage cars lined up outside the hotel.



The tables waiting for us at dinner. So pretty!

I was pretty slack on the final morning... I didnt take any photos at all, except on my morning walk. Truth be told I was stressing just a little about fitting all my stuff into my suitcase - thankfully SU had provided us with a fantastic overnight bag as our gift waiting for us in our hotel rooms on the Saturday night. And also thankfully my roomie Georgina had helped me out with the packing too, and had organized to carry some of my additional baggage as carry-on luggage. Wow! I sure bought or received a LOT of stuff! That would be in part the legacy of all the shopping that I did. Oh well. If you cant shop on holiday, when can you do it?

Noosa Incentive Trip Days 1 - 3

Well Im back.. did you miss me? Not only back from the most wonderful 5 days in Noosa courtesy of Stampin'Up (thank you SU - you guys are awesome!!!) but Im just starting to feel that I am also getting back into life generally. Getting stronger every day. And I finally have my internet back on, so hooray to that!

So.. I thought I would start by showing you some photos from the past week on the Incentive Trip, and then I can get back to posting some of the creative efforts that I've been coming up with over the past weeks.

Here we go...

Day 1 - Wednesday

We headed off bright and early on the Wednesday morning - Georgina and I were travelling together. How wonderful is it when your upline is also your friend? We met up with the Perth and ACT girls at Sydney airport and boarded our flight to Maroochydore on the Sunshine Coast. From there we were transferred to Noosa and arrived at the Sheraton Noosa Resort where we were met by the SU Events girls - Janiel and Angie. What an amazing job those girls do! As we arrived we were handed our coconut wine glasses (you know the kind made from real coconuts) with a yummy tropical concoction inside. The best bit of these trips is catching up with the other girls and their partners - we get to see each other so rarely, and it's just great to relax in each other's company and really get the chance to talk. Georgina and I found a fabulous cafe that did amazing salt and pepper Squid, coupled with happy hour cocktails... yum! Here is our room, looking out towards the pool...





Almost as soon as we arrived Georgina had commandeered the desk to work on her swaps.. and they were beautiful too:





The afternoon was at leisure - shopping, coffee, chatting etc - and then that evening we shared the most wonderful welcome dinner at the hotel. SU know so well how to do these kind of events - we were all made to feel very special. Dessert was out of this world! This was the place card at each place setting:





When we got back to our rooms there was a suprise apron and chef's hat awaiting us - this was to be taken with us on the following day. With it was a lovely thank you card from Shelli - here it is:



Day 2 - Thursday

The following morning I got myself up bright and early for a walk along the boardwalk towards the National Park. I love Noosa - it brings back lots of wonderful memories for me - in fact this was my 4th trip there. The first two times were with a girlfriend in the early-mid 90's and the last time was 12 years ago for my honeymoon. (I mentioned this to Aaron who is the BDM for SU Australia and he was horrified - of all places to take you Linda! But actually I thought it was the perfect place to be - like completing a circle IYKWIM?) After a wonderful walk we went out for breaky before all meeting at 10am back at the hotel lobby from where we caught a ferry up the river towards Noosaville. The colour of the water was amazing! We were taken to Ricky's restaurant where we were formed into teams to take part in a wonderful cooking school - each team making a different course for our lunch. The food was unbelieveably good! Dave (Marelle's husband) managed to burn his finger quite badly whilst using a blow torch to caramelize the top of the brulees. Ouch! Here are some of the snaps:



Boarding the ferry for the trip upriver to Ricky's Restaurant





Looking up the river towards the Glasshouse mountains.. how gorgeous is that water?





Here is our group prepping the quinces to make the quince paste to go with our Chorizo and Manchego Croquettes.. they were fabulous! You can see Tanya and Theresa, and also our cute chef Paul who guided us through the finer points of making the perfect Croquettes.

And now for some cute apron shots:


Emma and Sean from NZ



My wonderful friend Vanessa Webb (Ness)



Myself with Ness and the fabulous Jayne Mercer


Once again, we spent the afternoon doing whatever we pleased. I managed to do quite a bit of shopping on this trip, which is unusual for me, but it was wonderful to be able to shop guilt-free. Part of the incentive trip reward is some spending money to use for meals, but I didnt come close to using it all, so I was very happy to allocate some to guilt-free spending. Hooray!

That night (Thursday) was Kareoke down at the Surf Club so a large group of us went down there, and I think nearly everyone got up that night onto the stage. Sooooooo much fun! Highlights of the night included Aaron and the boys doing an excellent rendition of Midnight Oil's "Beds are Burning", and all of the girls getting up to do ABBA's Dancing queen (which is easily changed to "Stamping Queen"). There wasnt a blank space on the list all night - I think that Kareoke guy never had it so easy. I wish I had taken my camera, but alas I left it back at the hotel. There are plenty of photos out there in cyberspace though if you care to look... other blogs and Facebook are just two places that I have spotted incriminating photographs of lots of different people. To say that it was fun would be a gigantic understatment. Cant wait to do it again down the track. :-)

Day 3 - Friday

On the Friday morning I slept in which is very unusual for me, as anyone who knows me well would testify. At 9.30 we heading down to the outdoor area near the pool for our Makes and Take and Swap session. The swaps were, as always, absolutely fantastic! I love having access to all those ideas - only problem is that sometimes I see the swaps and then suddenly feel that I have to buy those stamps sets so that I can do what they did too! Sigh. Then we got stuck into our Make and Takes - and I think that these projects were the best ones that I have done at any event - whether that be Regionals, Convention or the past IT. Just lovely. The previous night our room gift had been what we were using for our Make and Take session - and its all beautiful new stuff out of our upcoming Summer Mini (to be released in December) so that means that sadly I cant show you what we made or the gorgeous new stamp set that we played with. I can tell you though that I believe it is a completely new set - not seen even in the US, and I LOVE it!!!! You will too! There were other new items that we got to play with too - but I cant show you because then I would have to kill you. You'll just have to take my word for it when I tell you that it looks as though the next Mini will have some very exciting stuff to play with!

Here's a couple of snaps from the session:


All busy swapping



Group Photo

At the end of the session "Morning Tea" was served - an Ice Cream/Gelato cart arrived with lots of different flavours of Ice Cream, as well as things to add to your bowl - smarties, freckles etc. A bit like the Cold Rock idea, but we just helped ourselves. That afternoon we just relaxed and did what we wanted - whether that was shopping, the pool, a Nanna nap, reading, cafe-ing or whatever. It was completely up to us. Gotta love that!

That evening some of us went back to Ricky's for cocktails (thank you Dave!) which was fantastic. We were a party of 8 - Gareth and Jayne, Dave and Marelle, Therese and Tanya, and Georgina and myself. It was just such a fantastic night. Although every night was great, this was actually my favourite night on the trip - the company of these 7 people was just perfect and I enjoyed every minute. And I laughed so much - that's got to be a good thing right? After the yummiest of cocktails, we moved on to the Mexican Restaurant next door. We declined menus, and Georgina asked if they could just bring us whatever food they thought was the best and keep it coming! So that's what they did - and it was absolutely fabulous. I'm not always a massive fan of Mexican - but this was truly exquisite food. With plenty of Sangria to wash it down... just perfect.

After this we wandered back to the hotel and then we camped out in Theresa's room with home-made Rocky Road (thanks Theresa!), gelato, chocolate and Ricadonna. We were joined by Nicki Tidbold and Vicki Dean and it was just really relaxing and fantastic company. A perfect ending to a fantastic day.

So I will be back with Days 4 & 5 tomorrow. I wanted to get this up there as I am aware that lots of you have been waiting anxiously for photos. I had problems with my camera, so lots of my photos didnt come out well, but even so, there are lots that I didnt include here. I will upload more onto Facebook for any of you who visit me there.

Hope you are all having a wonderful week, and I'll be back with more soon.

:-)