Distressed!!!

No, not me... but some of my cards lately have been!

This months technique class has been "Distressing"... so lately I've been distressing every papery surface that I could get my hands on! I have to say that distressing is quite outside of my comfort zone... I would call myself a "clean and simple" papercrafter... and that goes whether I am making cards, scrapbook pages or any other paper creation. But given that Distressing is so hot in the papercraft world right now (just look through any Craft mag at your local newsagent) it makes good sense to explore it, and see what its all about.

And here's what I found out. It sometimes is difficult to step out of your comfort zone and create something that goes against your natural preferred style. But it's worth it because the end result will actually take you by surprise. I noticed this with my class attendees the other night... some of them even made faces as they crumpled, stressed, tore and "grunged" up their paper. And yet, at the end, everyone was happy with the result. Even if you discover that its not the way you like to work, there is something very "freeing" about letting go of your need for things to be perfect! So at the beginning of the class I encouraged them to just go with it, relax and enjoy the process... and you know what? I think we all did. I ended up really enjoying it, and am looking forward to next week's class (check the side bar for the schedule). At time of writing though, I only have one seat left.

Where possible I am giving customers the option of purchasing part of their supplies at classes and then receiving a discount on the class fee. In this case, I am offering the opportunity to purchase the Distressing Essentials Kit ($37.95 plus P&H) and then only pay $5 for the class. The alternative is that you may wish to use my supplies and in that case the class is $15.

The card above is one of the cards we made at this week's class. It was really fun to make!!

Please note that I am running two new Big Shot clubs starting in July. Big Shot clubs are awesome as it gives you a way to pay off your Big Shot over time and get dies, tutorials and free products along the way. One club is for people to get the Big Shot and Dies itself... and the other is for people who already have a Big Shot and are after more accessories to go with it. Email me at lindastamps@bigpond.com for more information.

And lastly, I will be wrapping up the Ribbon Shares shortly. Some people have opted for the Taffeta, and others for the Wide striped Grosgrain... and some of you are like me and couldn't decide so you got both! This is the best value way to get lots of colours of ribbon for a great price. Check it out by clicking here.

Below is a close up of the detail of the card at the top of this post. I'll be back with more distressed cards to show you soon....