Thailand Trip Achievers Hop - Holiday Catalogue Sneak Peek!

There are a bunch of things I adore about the trips we get to take with StampinUp! but today I am getting to show you one of my favourite things!  We get given a LOT of presents when we are away (e.g. pillow gifts on your bed every single day!) and this year was no exception.  But because our trip was in July this year it meant that a lot of the gifts we received were brand new products from our upcoming Holiday Catalogue!  There is nothing quite like being amongst the first to not only see the catalogue, but to get our hands on brand new products and have the chance to play with them!

Here it is!?  Do you LOVE it?  I do!

The only frustrating part of that for me was that we weren't able to show you yet!  But as of today StampinUp has given those of us that earned the trip permission to start posting our new projects!  Woohoo!  So if you would like to see a bunch of projects made with as yet unreleased Holiday products I suggest you follow along for this awesome blog hop with demonstrators from all over the world!

We did get to participate in Make and Takes whilst we were at the resort. I loved everything we made,  but so far I am IN LOVE with the Year of Cheer Suite... thats one has beautiful COPPER and CHAMPAGNE foil accents!  Just gorgeous!  Wait til you see it!

So I've come home and made my first few projects with new Holiday catalogue products. Today I am just showing you one of them, but don't worry... there's lots more to come.

This card uses the new stamp set "Watercolor Christmas" for the words, and I've cut my sentiment with the largest circle in the Stitched Shapes framelits.  I also used an aqua painter to watercolour over the circle a little... to ever-so-lightly blur the lines of the sentiment.  (You wouldn't have to do this if you didn't like it, but I do)  The background paper is the "Merry Music" Speciality DSP.. which comes in black and white, but I coloured it with my brayer and 2 shades of ink... Soft Sky and Tranquil Tide. The little silver holly piece below the sentiment is cut with the Quilt Builder Framelit dies (lots more to show you in that set - if you love quilting AND paper craft you are going to love it!) and you might have spotted the other new product... the black and white Striped Ribbon!  This is one of my new favourite things... although for this card I wanted the stripe but not the full width of the ribbon (its 2.2cm across) so I cut the wire edge off to make it a little narrower.  I love that ribbon! You are going to see me doing a lot of creating with it I think!

Here's what is important for you to know:  These products are not available to customers until September 1st, but Demonstrators can start ordering them on the 1st August.  You'll see lots of goodies posted online over the coming month. You can either wait to September... or join as a demonstrator and get your hands on them from next week!  And right now if you join, you will get $356 worth of product in your kit.. which only costs $169! How good is that??  Here are the extras that are only available for new demonstrators who join StampinUp in July:

Thats on top of the $235 worth of value in your kit (which you get to choose... whatever you want up to that value!).  Once you've joined you get a minimum of 20% off your orders as long as you remain a demonstrator. Really its too good a deal to pass up!

Otherwise, if you are happy to wait until September I will have a launch event and other Christmas events and clubs for you to be part of.  Click the Class and Event Schedule up above to see what's coming up!

Thank you for stopping by my blog today.... Scroll down and click on the name below mine to continue the hop and I hope you enjoy all the fabulous creations!!

Happy Stamping!

Video Tutorial: Quick tip for the Lemon Zest bundle!

Yesterday I receive the Lemon Zest Bundle with my order and I couldnt wait to create a card with it.... and here it is!  This was my first attempt at using these awesome stamps and matching punch.... and its a card that came together really quickly.  I also used some of our "Perfect Days" Memories and More kits as I thought the colours would work perfectly with the limes I was planning on creating.  Sometimes I have ideas in my head that don't quite translate to real life.... but this one turned out pretty much exactly as I planned it.

I kinda feel that with our Daisy Bundle being soooooo popular that this one has been somewhat overlooked.  Hey... it needs a little love too!  (And by the way, the Daisy Bundle is once again available in Australia if you want to grab that one whilst you can!)

If you are looking for co-ordinating colours that work perfectly together then I suggest that you check out the Memories and More card kits.  There are 72 cards in each kit for only $17.50 and everything matches!  I love the Emerald Envy and Lemon Lime Twist combo in the cards I used in this card.  I only needed to add the Lemon Lime Twist card base, a bit of Whisper White for my stamping, and a touch of gold glimmer (a card's got to have bling right??).  We have some awesome card kits available, and as you can see, they can be used for much more than just Memory Keeping or Scrapbooking.  They are totally versatile!  I've listed our current kits available below.... so be sure to check them out!

I've made up a little video tutorial to show how I added the colours to this stamp so that it comes up multicoloured... its super easy and the video only takes 2 minutes to watch! Here you go:

Product List

Lemon Zest Wood-Mount Bundle [145359] $72.00	Lemon Zest Clear-Mount Bundle [145360] $59.25	Lemon Lime Twist A4 Cardstock [144250] $14.00
Whisper White A4 Card Stock [106549] $15.75	Lemon Lime Twist Classic Stampin' Pad [144086] $11.50	Emerald Envy Classic Stampin' Pad [141396] $11.50
Gold Glimmer Paper [133719] $8.75	Perfect Days Card Pack [144209] $17.50

Below is a full list of the Memories and More kits that are currently available as at July 2017.  You can purchase these in the Online store.... just click on the one(s) you want.  Products are shipped straight to your door, anywhere in Australia!

Perfect Days Card Pack [144209] $17.50	Petal Garden Card Pack [144208] $17.50
Bundle Of Love Card Pack [144207] $17.50	Color Theory Card Pack [144210] $17.50

Thailand Achiever's Blog Hop - Thailand Highlights

Welcome to this month's Thailand Achievers Blog Hop!  I'm writing to you from Australia and delighted to be able to join this awesome group of cardmakers and business women in another blog hop.  Because when you start earning trips with StampinUp, you know you are definitely headed in the right direction business-wise too!  My main aim with StampinUp (apart from just the fun bits) is to earn my income from it... and lucky for me, a bi-product of that is these fabulous trips we get to go on!

I have been running my StampinUp business for nearly 11 years. That is to say... I bought a demonstrator kit back in 2006, thinking that it might help me pay for my scrapbooking habit, and looked like it would be a lot of fun.  Since then it has certainly done those things... but also supported my little family during my 7 years as a single parent.  At the beginning I had another job too, but my goal was to be able to earn enough money from the job I truly loved (the SU job!) and be able to drop my other work which I didn't love as much (and was a lot more inconvenient - requiring a long commute).  In November 2012 I kissed the other job goodbye for good, and became a full time StampinUp girl!

Thailand was my 9th trip with StampinUp!  And I loved every minute of it.  StampinUp always pick the most amazing 5 star locations for our trips, and the Angsana Phuket was no exception.  But I have to tell you I can't pick a favourite trip.... it's like being asked to pick a favourite child!  They all have their unique attributes and I love them all for different reasons! I've decided to include a few of my favourite moments from my Thailand trip... here are my

TOP 6 REASONS I LOVE THAILAND.

1. Food!  OMG... I've always loved Thai food, but eating thai food IN Thailand was such a treat! Everything was so fresh and so flavourful.... and as an extra special treat my husband and I spent a morning at a Thai Cooking school and cooked some fantastic recipes.  It even included a visit to the market to learn which spices and ingredients we were cooking with!

2.  Friends!  What makes StampinUp trips special.... the answer has to be friends!  Sure I could spend (a lot of) money and shout myself a trip to Thailand... but it wouldn't be with this crowd of people or with such amazing company!  I miss my demonstrator friends!

3. Adventure! We got to have a LOT of fun whilst away and did some things I don't usually get to do at home. Like quad bike riding through the Thai jungle.... canoeing through caves... exploring a floating village.... swimming in blue blue water......

4. Pillow Gifts!  Imagine coming home to your room.... and there is a gift waiting for you on your bed.  Every. Single. Day.  Believe me... it really is as wonderful as it sounds!  As with every trip... we were SO SPOILED!  Unfortunately I cant show you all the gifts because we were very spoiled with new Holiday products that I am not yet allowed to show!  So here are just a few of the gifts that I AM allowed to show off....

5. Relaxation! Some of you might know that I had a pretty stressful lead up to this trip, as my Mum passed away only a couple of weeks before.  I was definitely needing some down time.... and I found it in amongst all the fun and adventure.  Taking time out is something I don't always make time to do and this holiday was perfect timing.

6. Revelations!  One of the fun things at this trip was the Holiday catalogue launch that we got to take part in.... I can assure you that you are going to LOVE the new Holiday catalogue coming your way in September!  PLUS we got to find out where the next Incentive trip will be to in 2019.... its a cruise around the GREEK ISLES!  Woo hoo!  We start earning that one in October!  (Sorry I cant show you any pics of the revelations..... most of it is Holiday Catalogue stuff that I cant show until next month!)

Im currently working on earning my 10th trip... its an Alaskan Cruise which my husband and I have had on our bucket lists.  Still time to earn it though!

I hope you've enjoyed this group of photos of my trip!  There are lots more on my FaceBook Business Page so feel free to check those out too.  (Make sure you hit the "like" button over there to stay in touch!)

Ever think of doing what I do?  Believe me, I count joining StampinUp as one of the very best decisions of my life!  For more information click the "Join my Team" button above.... and this month there is a fantastic joining special too!

Enjoy the rest of the blog hop!  Click the name below mine on the list to continue.  Have a fantastic day!

Public Service Announcement... the Daisy Bundle is BACK in Australia!

If you have been waiting for this awesome punch and bundle to come back into stock then this is your lucky day!   Stock has arrived in Australia!  Woo hoo!

Im so excited that I can offer it to my Stamp Club tomorrow - they will be making this awesome Accordion Envelope card (thanks so much to Patty Bennett in the US for this fabulous idea!).   And I know a few of them are going to be VERY excited to get their hands on it finally.

Here's the story.... StampinUp expected the daisy punch and bundle to be a popular item so they ordered extras to meet the expected demand.  And yet, almost as soon as it went on sale it because clear that demand was going to outweigh supplies, and early on the decision was made to turn the code off so that we didn't end up in a permanent backorder situation.  In fact, the Daisy punch is our most popular punch (by far) in the past 5 YEARS!!!!

Why is it so popular?  If you visit Pinterest or any online site with StampinUp demonstrators, you will have seen the HUNDREDS of spectacular samples made with this punch and bundle!  It practically sells itself!  So many cool things you can do with it, making it extremely versatile!

So if you would like to jump in and get your own bundle then I recommend that you grab it now.  Not that I am expecting it to go out of stock again, but after the crazy success of this punch I don't want to risk it either!

Here are the products you can see in the pic above: (Click on what you want to be taken to the Online Store, or click HERE to go straight to the store now)  If you are in Australia, products are shipped straight to your door!  Enjoy!

Product List

Daisy Delight Photopolymer Bundle [145361] $54.75	Delightful Daisy Designer Series Paper [144137] $19.25	Stitched Shapes Framelits Dies [145372] $50.00
Whisper White Note Cards & Envelopes [131527] $10.50	Whisper White A4 Card Stock [106549] $15.75	Daffodil Delight Classic Stampin' Pad [126944] $11.50
Gold Glimmer Paper [133719] $8.75	Gold Faceted Gems [144141] $8.75	Gold 3/8" (1 Cm) Metallic-Edge Ribbon [144146] $12.25

Monday Video Tutorial - Recreating my 2017 Thailand swaps!

If you've been following along for a while, you would know that one of the highlights of the StampinUp Grand Vacations for me is swapping with my fellow demonstrators.  Not only is it fun to create the projects, but its a great way to meet lots of the other demonstrators, and to share that creative experience.  This year I had quite a busy lead up to the trip, so I elected to only do 2 swaps this time... the South Pacific Memories and more swap (which you can check out HERE) and the global card swap with other demonstrators from around the world.

For my global card swaps I was initially stumped for an idea of what to do.  But in the last week or so before the trip it started to come to me and I created the card here:

I loved the colours and was happy with the design, but it still wasn't right somehow.  Then I recreated the same card but in soothing blues and silver, and I knew I would be happy with it this time.  Blue has always been my preferred colour, but it was also my mother's favourite colour, and it seemed right to do  it in colours I knew she would love.  Here was the final version:

Today I made a little video tutorial to show how I made the card. I'ts actually quite simple (although on the blue version I did go to the extra trouble of heat embossing some of the elements).   I hope you'll enjoy this card and make it with me.  I include some little tips on how to adhere the acetate, and how i attach the metallic thread.  Here is the video:

Here I am about to deliver my swaps...

Look what's coming your way..... Carols of Christmas early release!

On August 1st you'll be able to jump in and grab this awesome bundle of Christmas goodness. Now that we are in the second half of the year, I've noticed that my customers suddenly are interested in getting started on their Christmas cards, and although our Holiday catalogue doesn't come out until September, Stampin'Up Australia have come to the rescue with this early Christmas release.  (Not to mention that we have several beautiful Christmas sets in our main Annual catalogue too!)

This stamp set is called the "Carols of Christmas" and it is available in red rubber as either a wood-mount or clear-mount set.  There are also matching framelits - called the Card Front Builder framelits.  Of course you'll be able to order them separately, but you'll save 10% if you order them as a bundle. Stay tuned for a video tutorial coming up from me on an awesome project I've made with this lovely bundle... it will be up before the end of the month, and will show off all the pieces in this set so that you can get a good look at them.

In the meantime, enjoy the samples I am making with this bundle, and stay tuned for more.  (If you haven't seen the one I posted last week, click HERE)  To shop in my Online Store for your StampinUp products click HERE.

Lastly don't forget we have 2 great promotions this month:

1.  Every $90 order you place gets you a $9 voucher to spend in August! (So you could put your vouchers towards this bundle if you choose to!)

2. Join as a demonstrator and get $121 extra value on top of the fabulous value already in the kit!  This is open to everyone who joins... whether you are new to StampinUp or have been a demonstrator before!  Its a great time to jump in!  Click "Join my Team" above to get more information!

Both promotions will come to an end on July 31st so contact me today if you need more information.

Happy Birthday Gorgeous in Watercoloured Berry Burst

A quick one for you today.... I love these "Happy Birthday" thinlits because its so easy to make a fun card QUICKLY!   This one was a simple watercolour washed background (in Berry Burst) and I added a few flowers in Basic Black from the co-ordinating "Happy Birthday Gorgeous" stamp set.  So effective and so FAST!

If you are looking for a fast way to make birthday cards... here it is!

If you are in Australia you can order these products right here by clicking on the SHOP NOW button.  Products are shipped straight to you for a low postage charge.  The product list is below... ENJOY!



Product List

Happy Birthday Gorgeous Photopolymer Bundle [145301] $64.75	Happy Birthday Thinlits Die [143700] $35.00	Happy Birthday Gorgeous Photopolymer Stamp Set [143662] $37.00
Berry Burst Classic Stampin' Pad [144083] $11.50	Basic Black Archival Stampin’ Pad [140931] $12.25	Berry Burst A4 Cardstock [144249] $14.00
Shimmery White A4 Card Stock [121717] $14.00	Rhinestone Basic Jewels [144220] $8.75

Carols of Christmas - early release Christmas set!

Here's a bundle that you are going to LOVE!  Introducing the new "Carols of Christmas" stamp set and the matching Card Front Builder framelits.  They will be available as separate items or together as a bundle (10% discount on the bundle) from August 1st and I will be showing off lots of projects with it before the end of the month so that you get a good look at it.  And you'll have lots of ideas to use it for too!

But if you cant wait, there is a way you can get your hands on it right now.  For those of you thinking about joining StampinUp as a demonstrator (and if you haven't thought about it... why not???) then you might like to know that this stamp set is a FREE item when you join Stampin'Up! this month.  PLUS, they are also throwing in a free "Essentials Bundle" of great items on top of your demonstrator kit!  So you get the kit (your choice of products - worth $235) plus the Carols of Christmas stamp set plus the Essentials bundle as shown below....  That's $121 worth of extra products!  So here in Australia you get $356 worth of product for only $169!!!! How good is that???  (And any orders you place as a demonstrator you get a minimum of 20% discount on..... for as long as you are a demonstrator!)  Here are the extra items:

Any questions?  Just ask me by clicking HERE.  I've been doing this almost 11 years now,  and am happy to answer any question you might have.  Or if you just want to jump in and do it, you can click the "Join my Team" button above.  There's lots more info up there too.

Either way, I think you are going to love this awesome stamp set.  Cant wait to share more projects I've made with it too!