This Blog is a place for me to share creative ideas thoughts and ventures... whether they be my own or other inspirational people I know. I have been blessed and would like to bless others... Please enjoy.. Lots of Love Ursula
I love making these... It is an expensive hobby but well worth it!!! Take a look at the next 4 photos.. I have these ones on sale if you would like to purchase them $25 per piece... Ready to go easy Christmas gifts.... I'll even gift wrap them so all you have to do is put them under the Christmas tree.. and i will throw in a handmade Christmas Tag.. so you don't have to go buy one of those too!!!
Photo 1
Photo 2
Photo 3 Photo 4 And these are my keepers.... for the moment.. I may change my mind... but now i have a pink, blue, Aqua, Natural tones and a Funky one.. that i need to go buy a new wardrobe for so i can wear it!! hehe.. let me know if you are interested in supporting my new hobby... and making your Christmas shopping easier... oh and at this point any money really does go to the Singapore Tour.... not really to support my hobby.. till next year!!! ;) ... Love Ursula
Call me and come along... It's all got to go.. I am raising funds for my trip to Singapore with the Queensland Festival Chorus in December this year... (09)... I would love your support!!! Check out the Face Book link to look at some of the things that i am getting rid of...
I held the 5th Ave Explosion Memory Box Class this weekend too.. It's been a busy one.. but oh so worth it!!! This Explosion Box is a Wonderful Idea.. Again like the 12x12 Scarap Card... you can take the middle of this one out and scrap it too.. then keep the box to give someone something in... 2 presie in the one... Did I mention that 5th Ave is my FAV Stamp set at the moment??? I love it... On the back tag you can put your photos and the front tag you can put some journaling... JenFraser (click Jens name to check out her blog if you like) mentioned the other day that if you did your box base out of card stock you can attach photos to the outside of the box.. What a cool idea... I like it.. Thanks Jen!!!And I really love Circus Circus too!!! If you want some WONDERFUL ideas on different ways to use Circle Circus take a look at Leonie's Blog Circle Circus is her stamp set of the month.... I'm thinking of doing that.. making a Stamp set Special every month... Let me know if you are interested...
The 12x12 Scrapbook Class was held on the weekend.. And it was a huge Success... Thanks to the ladies that attended.... Here's some pickies of the Project we made... I wanted mine to stay a card so all my photos were put in to face the right way when it is folded... As you can see from the photo below... BUT if you would like to use it as a 12x12 Scrapping page later you can turn 2 or the photo upside down and it will all face the right way when you unfold it into the 12x12 page...The Cards can make a BEAUTIFUL present for Special Friends and Family... And they are not hard at all.. Have Fun CASing.... heheh
Although I did not make this for a Melbourne Cup Event... It could very easily be worn for a Melbourne cup event!!! (It was a special order for a fancy Dress Party) If anyone would like one of their own Creation please do not hesitate to call me... November is not too far away.. And I guarantee that you will not be able to find one of such a High Quality workmanship for such a low price... RRT for this one I estimate at least $250ish.. (NOT what I sold it for) but I would be happy to make a creation for cost of materials plus time involved... This would be much less than you would be charged by a Milliner...
I had an absolute BALL making this.. It was my first ever... With a little idea of customers desired style and the definite colour in mind I went ahead and let my imagination run WILD!! The 5 diamante flower clusters on the half circle with the beaded fanned feathers is the FOCAL point on this piece and was designed and handmade from scratch by me... I even stripped the feathers to thread the beads on..
I think I have found a new Craft I like!!! I was so thrilled with how it turned out that I took it to show the ladies at our weekly Craft Group and they were very impressed... They are thinking of booking me for a 'Fascinating Ball' they have scheduled for next year.... They TOTALLY LOVED it too!!!
I have been told by my customer today that it was a HIT!!! Jane was the bell of the ball and received many many comments and compliments... Check out her costume on her blog... Jane
I would love to make something fascinating for your special occasion, Melbourne Cup or wedding... Please PLEASE give me more challenges!!! I LOVE to GROW!!!!
You are invited to Explosion Cherished Memory Box Class Date:- Fri 18th September Time:- 7pm Place:- Angel Ave RSVP:- Tues 12th Sep.. Please Pay with your RSVP (as I need to order supplies) 0410 602 916 Cost:- $20
In this class you will learn how to make a beautiful box that when you open it... it EXPLODES.. Inside you can put photos and some journaling.. It's a lovely way to present your cherished memories. you will also have an instruction sheet with the measurements to recreate this project at home...
You are invited to "Love Sparkles" with 20 Pages Scrapbook Class Date:- Sat 3rd October Time:- 1pm Place:- Angel Ave RSVP:- Tues 25th Sep.. Please Pay with your RSVP (as I need to order supplies) 0410 602 916 Cost:- $45
Create a Whole 20 page 6x6 Album in one day... you will receive 1/2 a pack of Love Sparkles Simply Scrappin' Kit, ribbon, brads, other embellishments and 6x6 album... Plus you will have the basic recipe to recreate this fast fixing Scrapping method at home... What a Brilliant Christmas present for loved ones.. or simply get your precious memories in an album quick smart!!! And looking TOTALLY Beautiful!!!
Picture to come soon.. but if you want to look at colours you can take a look on page 138 of the Aus/NZ 2009-2010 Ideas Catalogue.. Pictured the in the middle is the Love Sparkles kit...
You are invited to my 5th Ave Scrapbook Card Class Date:- Sun 20th September (originally it was on Sat.. but as 5 ladies really wanted to do it and could not on that day we changed the date) Time:- 1pm Place:- Angel Ave RSVP:- Tues 15th Sep.. 0410 602 916 (3 more spaces) Cost:- $15
In this class we will be making a beautiful 12x12 Scrapbook page that folds into a card.. We will be stamping images with the stamp set 5th Ave and a couple more... You will receive the instruction to recreate this project at home too... It is a great idea for the 'Special' Relatives Christmas Cards... Come along and enjoy the Class...
Nativity Set... I had the opportunity to make another Nativity set for a friend a few weeks ago and I managed to take individual photos... So sorry if you have seen these before but they are really cute... and detailed... As I make more I become better!!! If you would like some please contact me.. The basic set is $60 the whole set with the wise men is $90The box that they come in makes the barn... Quite a cute design really... My friend wanted baby Jesus to not be stuck in his manger.. She had a tradition growing up... She has been looking for a nativity set that facilitated her Childhood Family tradition but has struggled for years to find one... I was so happy to help her out...
The Beautiful tradition was that her Mum used to hide Baby Jesus and the 8 kids would go looking for him on Christmas morning... What a BEAUTIFUL tradition!!! I love it!!! The kids can be just like the wise men!! Looking for the Baby Jesus... Brings tears to my eyes... Very symbolic and brings the real meaning of CHRISTmas back home big time... I think I have to make a new Baby Jesus figurine for my set now...
This is the card I have made for all the WONDERFUL companies and individuals that supported The Arty Farty Morning Tea Party.. Now if you have not received yours yet it is because I have been busy building Angel Ave... I am getting on top of it all slowly... so soon they are coming to you.. Better late than never right??? We raised over $1018.. Thank you so much!! Get ready for next year 2010 The Arty Farty Morning Tea Party II... in May.... There is a little pocket with a Nerada tea bag in it.. Nerada was one of our supporting companies!!! Cute idea inspired from a card I found on Split Coast.. The pocket was our make n take at the event too...
Ok so here's a funny story... In our spring Mini Catalogue it says on page 6.. to "ask you demonstrator how to make these flowers".. well.. lets just say it took a while demonstrators to find where the pattern was for them.. and there was a whole lot of complaints from people who were struggling to find it... I really don't know the whole story.. cause I am not good at reading instructions.. so I didn't even bother to look for them.. and as luck would have it I was not(yet) asked HOW.. (thank you ladies) But we had the opportunity to make them last month in our meeting... (so now I know... *discovery music sounds... dah dar darrrrrrr) And let me just say they are FIdd-A-LEI!!! Definitely not something for the faint hearted nor the beginner!!!
Anyway Liz took this lovely photo of me.. after I had mad it I did not know where to put it so in my usual wacky style I adorned the flower in an attempt to beautify one's self...
Liz had made 3 flowers and arranged them in a tin... these were one of the prizes in the monthly challenge... They are BEAUTIFUL!!! And they look AWESOME in a pot together... What a wonderful bouquet to take to a hospital ward that can not have fresh flowers.. And how much more meaningful is it when you can say... "I made them"...
Forever paper flowers.. 'The gift that keeps on giving'
I CASEd (Copy And Steel Everything) this idea totally form Bec... I went with Liz to Bec's place a few months ago to drop off some stuff for the Urban Scrapping Event... And she had some show and tell.. I hadn't yet played with my White StazON... (Spring Mini Catalogue).. And when I saw Bec's card I really wanted to give it a go too!!! Inspiration PLUS!!! Yeah... Saring is Caring.... and Caring is Sharing...
StayzOn is a specially forumlated ink that will do just that.. STAY ON... you can stamp plastic, glass, material and anything elce you heart desires to stamp on.. It will not wash off... (be careful if you drop it on your clothes while stamping!!!)
As a member of the PaperANGEL group I know we are so fortunate to have such a wonderful group of very talented women who LOVE to share... I've never been involved in such a group.. With a business (stamping up independent Demonstrator) that could have every potential to become very competitive... There is none of that in Stampin' UP!.. I have been involved in a few other 'Party Plan' companies and well let's just say it was all go go go... Sale sale sale... push push push... I HATE that side of the party plan... Where Stampin' Up is Create - Inspire - Share... arrrrhhh.. (*sigh) It is so lovely!!!
So anyway back to the Class.. Liz was conducting this class and opened it to our group of Demonstrators too... I wanted to learn this and have the social outlet during the day... so I went along... This is the first page we created... Then with the other pages of the half a pack of DSP once we had the formula we were able to freely create our very own designs... Wow do we get creative when let loose!! And how different are our designs and ideas?? I came up with these two others...
It was a lovely day... In which I learned something and had wonderful adult conversations!!! Come along to the next one if you like.. I would love to take you!!! Liz is Awesome!!!
Last month we held the Springwood venue one at Angel Ave... it seemed a little silly hiring the hotel function room for 17 people.. 6 Demos included in that.. But how good was Angel Ave for the venue?... Wahoo!!! and because we did not have to pay for function room hire we had some budget to pay for catering for lunch.. How yummy was the food!!! I forgot to take photos of the food dang it.. It was sooooooooo devine... EVIVE in Rochedale IGA Shopping complex catered for us... Chris makes wonderful FRESH salads and divine Roast!!! Yum Yum!!!
We created these 4 lovely pages that Bec designed ..Because I had already made mine for samples B4 the day I was able to help everyone and be the host by getting more water for the urn and running around to pick up the food etc... But I did manage to squeeze in some time to create another page with my left overs from the class... (There was enough left overs to make at least 3 more pages)I'll let you in on a little secret here... I messed up the stamping of the F on the first go.. so I re stamped it on some Baja Breeze Card Stock and cut it out.. You never would have know if I did not tell you would you???
I love that I am scrapping more.. I used to Scrap more than make cards.. but now I make sooooo many more cards than scrap.. and that is ok.. it's just so nice to finally put some photos in albums!!! That's why I love doing these classes cause it forces me to become more organised.. and teaches me more things too!!! I loved the embellishment that Bec came up with in the 1" Double-Stitched Ribbon... how cool is that??
It was a wonderful day had by all... Great projects, Great company, Fantastic food and of course an AWESOME venue... Yeah..
This was dreamed up because of Leonie... She came over one day and saw the boxes that Aaron had been busily designing... She really liked the Slice box... And later asked if she could have the pattern because she wanted to enter it into one of our PaperANGELS monthly Challenges... This was our embellishment Challenge in July... She won... I told it cause it was of our wonderful cake box!!! heheh..
So anyway I LOVED it and had to make one for myself.. With this one I have made the flower with the scallop circle punch and our beautiful Raspberry Tart DSP.. I cut out 9 in DSP and one in Rose Red Card Stock. I then pleated each DSP scallop (not the card one) between each hump and then glued them on to the scallop in the center with our Tombow Multi Purpose Adhesive...6 form the bottom layer and 3 sit in the top layer... Then I took my 2-Way Glue Pen and added some glue to the edges of each scallop and sprinkled light Pink Serpernova Glitter on it and shook off the excess....
I LOVE Sparkly bling bling!!! How beautiful is this embellishment... Very special indeed... To add a little more to the outside of the rather white stark box I wrapped it with some Rose Red 1" Double-Stitched Grosgrain Ribbon.. I hid the join at the back of the box with a piece that was overturned to look a little like a buckle... Looking at it now close up perhaps I should have had the stitching run the same way... but oh well that is just minor.. I love it.. How divine would this look on the table for a wedding or 21st or something very elegant and sophisticated... WARNING... It is time consuming making the embellishment and hand cutting the box.. so do not go for hundreds.. else you will be having nightmares of the box chasing you and eating you up!!! ARGHHH... hehe
I can't believe it is almost Christmas again!!! The years seem to just fly by... What a Crezy time we live in!!! With this years Christmas Card Workshop we will be able to 'Spread our Wings' (as true Angels do). Not only will we have our completed Angel Baby Boxes that will be going to at least 3 Queensland hospitals but we are fortunate enough to be able to create some Childrens Activity Boxes. Which will be for Children that are confined to hospital for extended periods of time...
What a wonderful cause to be involve with.. I love that we can care for the children.. As a Mum of 2 lovely little boys that have a very sick father I know how much every little bit of love, friendship and kind gesture means... It means the WORLD!!! It takes some of the pain away to have something different to look forward to other than the treatment for the day... It gives hope and a feeling of worth.. Peace and comfort... And we all need something to look forward to... What better thing to look forward to than paper crafting!!!
If you would like to become involved please contact me ASAP... As this event proves to be very popular and it fills up FAST!!!
The cost is $65 to attend for the whole day.. You will receive a Stamp set (Spotlight on Christmas pg 28 Aus/NZ Idea Catalogue 2009-2010) and one quarter of our wonderful DSP... As well as complete 7 or 8 projects on the day...
Who wouldnt want a girly, social, funraising day away from the family and daily hum drumedness??? Please do join us... I will definitely be at the Springwood and Carina venues... but if someone wants to go to another venue please let me know and I will see what I can do...
Hope to hear form you soon Love Ursula
Please Double Click on this flier to find out the venues and Dates
So Saffron is not a colour in our Catalogue.. so be wise.. and invest in some Stampin' Up product to receive more.. Yeah... Call me to book a Workshop.. I have a little time left...
Book into some classes and have some fun , Learn some new stuff... and make some wonderful creations!!! Remember Christmas is coming up so make some for friends and family too!! Looking forward to seeing you... Love Ursula
Class Schedule
*SEPTEMBER 4th (Fri) ... 7pm Paper Craft Club... BYO projects or a few dollars to cover cost of materials used
*SEPTEMBER 5th (Sat)... 3rd Session …. Techniques class $10
*SEPTEMBR 11th (Fri) ... 7pm Angel Ave... 4 Boys Card Class ... Making 4 Boys Cards... Cost Abt $10-$15..
*SEPTEMBER (Sat)... 10am Angel Ave... 5th Ave Scrapbook Card Class.. Cost Abt $10-$15.. depending on extra materials included..
*SEPTEMBER (Fri)... 7pm Angel Ave... Paper Craft Club...BYO projects or a few dollars to cover cost of materials used
BE SURE TO BOOK IN for Christmas Card Event as it is filling up FAST!!!
The dates for our CHARITY CHRISTMAS CARD WORKSHOPS are now confirmed and I invite you to advance book into your preferred venue and date. The workshop will include a Stamp Set to take home with you and will support the Mater Mothers Bereavement Program. Details will be coming out in the next week so keep your eyes peeled for the official flyer. However, you need not wait for the flyer and I invite you to secure your place for one of the following dates.
*OCTOBER 10th (Sat).... Paper Angels.... Fund Raising... Christmas Card Workshop – Springwood Hotel... 10-4pm
I know I am going a bit backwards with the dates of events a bit but I have just gone through some of my photos and have realised that I really need to do some serious blogging!!! I have been so busy getting Angel Ave ready that I have neglected to add some other things... I've also neglected family, friends, house work and so many other things.. for all that I appoligise!!! I will begin to get around-to-it all now that 'Angel Ave' is nearly ready... Bring on the Shed Warming Party.. And I will be announcing some more classes soon too.. as I am able to design them now.. In 'Angel Ave'... truly "where Creative Dreams come true!!!"
So Back to Christmas in July... This is what all the lovely ladies who attended made.. 5 beautiful cards and one decorated tin all designed around 1/2 a packet of I Wish Scrappin Kit (pg 137 Aus & NZ 2009-2010 Idea Catalogue) then there was enough card stock etc to creat another 15 cards at home... It was a lovely day.. Lots of hard work but well worth it...
The preperation before hand was huge!!! I had been waiting on 'Angel Ave' foundations to be laid for nearly 8 weeks... The rain was holding it all up.. not that i was unhappy with the rain becaues it was breaking the LONG Drought we have had for the past few years... But I knew I had at least 8 to 10 ladies attending Christmas in July.. I thought 2 and one half months would be ample time to get the studio ready.. I resigned myself to the fact that Angel Ave would at least be errected with walls and electricity!! The Friday before hand I had Peter the Plumber, Ben the Plasterer, Paul the Landscaper and Tony the Electrician running around making sure that everything would be finished so I could fit all my wonderful ladies in... Comfortably... I felt soooooo spoiled!!! Tony made a joke that no one in the aera was having any work done that day cause everyone was at my house... hehe... I had to take a photo of all the Tradies vehicles out side our house!!! It was exciting times...
Tony From Tiger Landscapes Did a BRILLIANT job... 0412 672 577
Ben Was wonderful plastering all the walls..
Tony was wonderful and made sure that all our elctricity was hooked up.. We have enought power points and ample lighting to keep us out of trouble!! Tony 0420 906 729
This was the very first workshop in Angel Ave... A little sparse but ready to go none the less...
Everyone enjoyed the day.. Thanks for coming ladies.. and see you all and more customers and friends next year... Cause it just would not be the same without Christmas in July...
As PaperANGELS we get together for other occasions.. Not just paper craft events... We had the opportunity in July (2009) to attend a Dichroic Glass class... There was 4 PaperANGELS (Liz, Kathy, Amanda & myself- Bec unfortunately was not able to come.. bummer.. we missed you Bec) and Friends and Neighbours... I think I have found a new craft to become addicted to.. This is my second class and I believe that I may just grow attached to it... and passably even get better at it... One can only hope... I took my camera but forgot to take photos till after everyone was almost finished.. Hence the reason why Kathy features in most of the photos.. as she was the only one left making the peices when I whipped out the camera... But she is such a beautiful subject!!! These are some of the unfired peices I managed to take photos of... After the class some of us went to The Manley Yacht Club and had a hot Drinks and DELICIOUS cakes etc.. It was soooooooooo COLD so some of us wrapped up with the devine Green blanckets... mmmm mmm mmm
And a few days later we were able to pick our peices up... They had been fired and fused together in the Kiln... LOVELY!!! I think our beginners did a BRILLIANT job.. infact I LOVE some of theirs better than mine... Well done girls... It was a lovely day...
Well it was almost 2 weeks ago now... But eventually I get A ROUND to it!!!
Leonie had booked my Studio "Angel Ave" for the day on the first of August... And since it was a Saturday I and the first day of the launch I said to her that i would like to hold a launch and asked her if she would like to hold hers with me too.. seeings that a few of her customers would already be here... So we teamed up and had a blast... Leonie's Christmas Stamp and Stack Class went really well.. And it was kind of weird for me to not be in there... (Angel Ave).. Not that she did not want me there just that it was her class and there was not much I could do to help once we had set things up...
Which by the way things looked GREAT!!! We did a really good job.. And my PINK feature wall is a WOW!! At 4 to 6pm we had a nice little get together with about 16 customers... We had punch (to drink) and nibblies and we talked a little about the Spring Mini.. We offered some FABULOUS specials for the ladies attending on the day...
And we made this wonderful Walk in the Park DSP Make and take.. It was a lovely time had by all...
And 2 of my customers won some prizes.. Yeah!!! How luck are you guys???
Kristy... new to Stampin... Brought along by Adelle.. thanks for bringing a friend love!!! Won a lucky door prize which was her very own stamp set.. So i was able to help her set her first stamp set...Kristy is on the Left.. Adelle in the Middle and Erin on the right... My beautiful mischief Monkeys.. hehe..Lisa Marj and Robyn...
And Robyn won the raffle.. which was an awesome walk in the park coordinated pack!!! Yeah team!!! See it pays to hang back for the prize.. it's called POSITIVE thinking and visualisation!!!
Leonie's customer Carla won the other lucky door prize... (sorry Carla i did not get a photo)
Angel Ave was a hit even though it was just barely set up... It has been such a work in progress but so well worth it!!!
After the event we tidied up a little and took a couple of photos of ourselves.. as you do.. hehe...
Then unbeknown to me Leonie and Liz had organised a pre shed warming... And invited the PaperANGELS team over for a social.. eats and a HUGE surprise for me!!!.. Yeah.. I was sooooooooo Surprised!!! They came sneaking in around 7.20pm ish.. Wheeling the FANTASTIC Ribbon rack!!! Now that's a RACK!!! Ohhhhhhh how lovely.. I was almost crying!!! Thanks girls!!! Much love to you all!!! Love to have you all (customers friends and neighbours) come over to check out Angel Ave... and PLAY with me.. heheh Love Ursula
Ok so I know it is a bit late but I have the winner drawn this morning by my Son Izra..
Drum roll please......(*rat a tat tat rat a tat tat.... brrrrreeerrrrr) Marj & Lisa Holtby.. Yeah.. I have a box of goodies for you.. I know I will be seeing you at the Mini Catalogue launch tomorrow Avo.. I will give you your box then... Congradulations Love Ursula
I bet you didn't even know I went Overseas did you??? Well I did... nar nar nar...
I was needing to get out of the house in June.. a week before The Arty Farty Tea Party so I called up Leonie and asked her if she would like a visitor.. She said yes.. So I drove to the Redland Bay Ferry and went over the sea.... to Macelay Island....
Leonie drove me around the whole island.. We did the touristy thing and took some photos.. It was a fun escape for the day... This is Leonie in her In The Night Garden - Iggle-Piggle pants.. hehe...
see they are the same... Leonie is gonna kill me!!!
That's ok caues there is a photo of me looking hot.. (not) too.....
This was the day The Arty Farty Morning Tea Party Make n Take was dreamed up - with thanks to Splitcoast and a little artistic license...
I just had to take an arty looking photo... The angle is a bit weird but I think it is a pretty good photo... It was a lovely day, spent with a wonderful friend.... Yeah for beautiful people who do crafty things!!! I am BLESSED to be surrounded by them!!! Muwah to you all!!
I have blogged this before but my photos were some what lacking.. I have a new camera now and it takes much better shots.. it's amazing what another 7 pixels will do to the quality of your photos!!!! I love begin challenged... And I love this necklace... I can have my kids (photos) close to my heart every time I wear it!!! I have 2 Hodgepodge (pg 149, 2009-10 Aus/NZ Ideas Catalogue) Designer Labels back to back and using the Designer label punch (pg 152, 2009-10 Aus/NZ Ideas Catalogue) I have punched out the photos and some clear Over Head Transparencies (OHT's). I have put the photos in and stuck the Hodgepodge together...
If you would like me to make you one let me know.. this design takes about 4 hours at least... I would have to sell for at least $130... because of the time factor and all the beads are good quality hand made glass beads... and each one is individually hand wraped with wire...
I am really rough on necklaces so I needed to make it industrial strength... I always lean over chairs or door handles and get my necklaces caught.. of course the non industrial strength ones break.....but this one will stand that kind of cruel and unusual punishment!!!! ;)
If you would like to check out the first blog info click HERE for a short cut...
One of my girlfriends is getting married... And she came to me to see if I could help her... This is what we came up with and we invented some new ways of doing things that I believe made for some BEAUTIFUL cards!!!
Suzie's colour theme is Silver Black and Burgundy... This makes for a stunning very elegant combination!!! Sue wanted half in Silver Card stock and half in Black Card stock...I cut the A4 card in half long ways... And made the' gate fold'. And punched out with the horizontal slot punch to thread the ribbon through so it would hold the card together... I stamped the large flourish from Baroque Motifs stamp set (pg 94, 2009-10 Aus NZ Ideas Book) in silver on the black card and in black on the silver card and we powder embossed - to enhance them...
To make the envelopes match I arranged them on the table and stamped them 4 envelopes together with the Baroque Motifs flourish in the corner... This makes them match but individual at the same time.. Placement Stamping EmbossedA bunch of the Black ones together.... They looked so good!!
Thank you cards - these have also been embossed on the corners to match the Baroque Motifs theme.. As tehy were smaller I used the small flourish from the Priceless set (pg 92, 2009-10 Aus NZ Ideas Book) We made them note card size... they are petite and elegant!
These have got to be the most diet friendly Cup Cakes ever!!! They are so cute... And they never go off!!! They were made from a template... I was over Liz's and she had them all traced and ready to cut out... She really wanted to have them ready for the June PaperANGELS meeting... Only her shower had sprung a leak and her carpet was wet.. plus she had tradies coming in and out to fix the roof storm damage from months ago... so this project kind of was put on the back burner... but I loved them so much that I just had to stay and make sure they got done.. she had done so much on them I couldn't let them go to waste!!! So we finished them.. And how good do they look???When I got home I really wanted to be able to make them too... But I could not get the template.... So I traced them... And thankfully I have a WONDERFUL husband that can do some pretty special stuff on the computer and he has made a template (with a few alterations as it wasn't exactly right according to his engineering skills) I can print out so the next time I want to make these it will be so much easier... If you would like the template just contact me and I will send it to you... (for a price.. heheh.. just jokes)
Here's a close up of one of these gorgeous treats!! If you darken the edges of the Cupcake Swirls you can make the cardboard look like real icing... With a 2way glue pen and some Dazzling Diamonds you can make them look like real frosting swirls!! So cute... Our PaperANGELS meeting challenge this month was Paper Embellishments... and I believe we did an awesome job!! The quality of work and talent is just amazing!! Well done ANGELS!!!... talk about thinking outside the box!!!
Here's how.. When your workshop in June or July reaches $600 in sales you will be rewarded from Stampin Up an EXTRA $40 on top of the Regular $70 Hostess rewards money to spend.. As well as receiving your Hostess stamp set.. How good is that... Are you interested in giving it a go??? You will never know if you never give it a go!!! So call me today and book your workshop for this month.... Ursula ps ignore the colour of this one.. not sure what happened here... Check out Stampin' Up! click HERE
Firstly I would like to say WOW!!! A whole months worth of planning over in a few hours!!! But how infinitely Worth it????(Photo of some bickies I heard about.. I just had to make tehm.. they sounded so cute!! The were a hit.. Ethan and Izra helped me put them together..)
Thank you to all who donated Prizes to the Raffle... Thank you to all the wonderful people who helped!! With out you all this would have not been such a success!!!We had 34 people attend... we raised just over $700!!! At first count it was $617.. but with the amounts donated from the sales of the displaying artists.. And Liz's bargain table... and a few people wandering in after the event.. seeing how much food was left asked if they could donate some money for a hot drink and some food!!! Dar.. of course!!! And Thank you!!!! Again & Again...(Take a look at the sandwiches under the table!!! So much thanks to Lyn & Amanda Hadley for putting the 10 loves of bread together!!!)I managed to take a few photos.. but not too many.. Melissa Gill in the brown was one of my wonderful Entertainers .. She performed a wonderful (very appropriate) Song... Called "Taylor the Latte Boy"... It was a cute song.. And she sounded like a luv struck Angel!!! (Sorry I didn't get a photo of Liss singing.. Cause I was turning pages...)
In fact all these Ladies are in the QPAC Choir with me... (Left to Right) Ann, Melissa Kayleen & Girls... They all sing lovely!!! Thanks for coming ladies!!! Imogeen Dean Sang one of her origionals... I think she called it the Pizza song.. It was a cute song.. She sang like an angel and played amazingly!!! As she always does!!
I am sure some of the PaperANGEL volunteers took some great photos... and they will forward them to me... (*hint) hehe... Please!!! My goal was $500... and thanks to you all we raised above and beyond!! Stay tuned for next year.. I believe I may make this my thing!!! If you would like to be on a committy or to donate.. I will accept all help!!!
This was my idea of something to do for Izra's Birthday.. He really wanted to have a party with all his class mates.. and because of Aaron being sick and The Arty Farty Tea Party having a party with kids was just the last thing I wanted to do... so I did the next best thing... Asked him if I took a cake to school and some party stuff.. would that be ok... He was STOKED!!! So Leonie came over yesterday to help me wrap some more of the raffle prizes and prepare for the Arty Farty Make 'n' Takes... Then she was ever so kind and helped me with 30 bag toppers!!! Yeah... The were a Hit.. and how easy were they??? We did it in about 30mins or so... Well worth the time.. cause it is personalised and really cheep and cool!!!
We used the Party Hearty stamp set (pg 43 Aus/NZ Idea Catalogue)Happy 7th Birthday my little man!!! Muwah... Mummy loves you...
We had a great day.. Even though we did the same class we all chose different Card and DSP and came up with some really lovely variations of the same thing... Take a look
Lisa's Party in a Bag... Lisa was suffering with chronic back pain and she did amazingly!!!Marj's Party in a Bag.. now I was not happy with the handle on Marj's the white card stock i had cut for the handle was just all wrong!! .. So I made her take it apart and change it... hehe..Robyn's Party in a Bag... Robyn really likes to play... I reccon she would be fine if she was lost in my shed for a month or so!!! And because I have now done this bag at least 6 times.. well I was getting a bit board with it.. so I changed it up and did some bleach stamping on the bag....We had a really great day!!! Thanks for coming ladies...
I can hardly believe there is 2 more sleeps to go Till this Saturday... 'The Arty Farty Morning Tea Party"!!! But look at these impressive Raffle prizes!!! there is 35 individual raffle prizes to be won.. so I am expecting that half of the guests will walk away with something!!!! These are great odds!!! Can't wait to see you all there..Also there are still 2 days.. counting today.. to pre-book & pay your tickets.. to ensure that you go into the draw for the Simply Sent kit... there are only 8 people in it now.. so you still have GREAT Chances of wining that!!! Call me... We'll talk... ;) Yeah!!!
Raising funds for the Cancer Council Australia.. Though the Biggest Morning Tea events.
Take a look at these.. you best be coming to take advantage of these AWESOME prizes!!!There is over $800 worth of Stampin' UP! product alone...
Then you have all the wonderful Local community stuff that has been donated!!! Thank You - Thank you- Thank You - To all who have so generously added to our prize pool... God BLESS you and your businesses!!! May your generosity come back to you 100 fold in your business and personal life... Arh... giving just warms the cockles of my heart.. tugs on the heart strings and makes me happy!!! (*air kisses to you all.. that sounds fake but I really man it!!!)
There are vouches for Cafes, Dining out places, fast food places, Hair Dressing We'll also have Floral arangements, Meat trays, Bottle of wine, Crystal Frog orniment,
(I took this photo 2 weeks ago on the first day of canvasing.. it has grown substantially now... ) I am still collecting... there is so much more but it all takes time to gather in the spoils!!!
Adding to the Morning Tea num nums... is IGA Rochedale, Brumbies Rochedale, Nereda Tea is donating Tea Bags.. and some wonderful Mums and teachers at the Rochedale South State School have offered to BAKE something or several somethings for the banquit of yummies. THANK YOU to all of you wonderful people too!!! Every little bit helps!!!
Pre-pay for your tickets.. And you will go into the draw for a Simply Sent Kit valued at $84.50!! There is only 5 people in it to date.. so your odds are REALLY good!!!There is only 2 Saturdays to go... arrrghhh!!! I need to clone me!!! All will be well.. If I could stop blogging!!!! Thankfully this is the last one for the day.. (*Phew.. wipes brow)
I am so grateful for all the support and hope that a Wonderful time will be had by all as we are entertained by professional vocalists, viewing and purchasing splendid works of art, Picking up bargains on heavily discounted scrapbooking supplies, eating numm numms... drinking our hot drinks and socalising with our family, friends, neighbours and community people...
Hope to see you all there!!! Yeah... 10 more sleeps... (not sure that thought will help me sleep though!) Love Ursula
A Plug for the business who have donated so far...
Local Shops/Businesses @ Rochedale Shopping Village
Butchers Kitchen – Mark & Kaysie – Ph 3841 5570
Rochedale IGA (Morning tea supplies)
Rochedale Brumbies Bakery – Sam – Loaves of bread
Rochedale News – Graham
Liquor Land – Donna & Steve –
May Florist – Wendy – Ph 3219 8888
Village Jewellers – Rhys & Sharon- Ph 3219 0699
Hair Alive – Leah – Ph 3341 9392
Rochedale Deli - evive - Chris- Ph 3423 3343
Other donations... Springwood Domino's - Nerada Tea-
Well this is me spreading the love..(*muwah.. air kisses) I wanted to let everyone know how wonderful it is to prepare the (millions) of kits for our big PaperANGELS Events!!! (there is a slight hint of sarcasm in that statement in case you didn't read it right... hehe.... No really I truly do like doing it... It's yet again another reason to get together with the girls)
I am not sure if people actually realise just how much work is involved in preparing for big our events??? So here's the low down... If anyone has suggestions on how they would try to make it faster I would love these suggestions!!! Although after 3 years of running events now we seem to have it a large majority of the kinks ironed out!!!
Well first of all on the Tuesday B4 we wrapped the (millions... well 15 I think it was) raffle prizes.. I taught Kate and Felicity how to do this like the florists do... And how to make the bows... Liz had spoiled us this time as she had made all the bows the night before whilst spending time with her family in front of the TV.. Us women are so talented.. Multi tasking...... She is really good at bows now!!! Must have had a GREAT teacher.. hehe.. (that was me.. just in case you didn't realise... ;)
Liz had also spoiled us in separating the prizes into great bunches... That takes time too!!! It's all a little stressful sometimes... Especially when you have to do it all at the same time.. it's a bit like eating an Elephant in one seating... really hard to swallow!!! But if you do it a bite at a time.. it makes for a more pleasant experience...
How great did they look sitting on top of her shelving!!! I think that would be a great Decor thing to do in our homes... It would make you feel like a winner... Well it would make me feel like a winner!!!! ... but I think it would also be a great dust collector!!! You would then be a sneezing winner... Dough there is always a down side!! You customers are all so luck to be able to enter these wonderful raffles!!! There's like over $800 worth of Stampin' UP! stuff alone!!!! Along with some Riot Art stuff and a BEAUTIFUL set of coffee tables!!! So guesstimating here I would say that is worth over $1200!!! WOW!!! So spoiled!!
We also cut the card stock into each card design... We made 70 kits for Carina.. Bec has more to make for Pine Rivers as well... so all up maybe this event had around 130 kits!!!
Then on Friday when I was finished my stuff I needed to do at home I called Liz... She was having another prep day... When I realised that she was short handed... I really didn't want her to do the rest of the stuff alone and till all hours of the night!!! So off I trod!!! I enjoy the drive to Liz's.. I go the back way.. It's a nice peaceful drive...
Ok so when I go to Liz's I usually bring something to add to morning tea/lunch... but I forgot to grab something on my way out the door this time... BUT I was BLESSED (*la.. the angels are singing!) Liz had FRESHLY baked some delicious choc chip muffins.. They had just been taken out of the oven when I arrived... they were hot... the chocolate was melted still!!! And we (Marjorie, Liz and I) had 2 each (Cause there was only the 3 of us) with a bit of cream on the side.. Oh who says hard work is not rewarded??? Are you all jealous!!! You should be.. It was DELICIOUS!!! Yum Yum Yum... My mouth is salivating with the remembrance of the flavor!!! hehehe
So this is how the table looks when you are preparing for a big event... It's a great thing that Liz has HUGE tables and these neat trays to put all the bits into!!!
And then there is the GREAT (not) job of sorting and dividing the embellishments.. This seems to be something that I am good at!!! So hence the job tends to fall in my lap... So if you get something that is not packed right... missing something or the like.. fell free to blame me.. someones got to be the scape goat!!! (*thinking to my self.... "you can DO IT YOURSELF Next time.. If there is a next time..." *blows a raspberry) opps did I just say that out loud??? My bad!!!
Then we put all the bits into the bags with the instructions... And don't it look grand!!! How professional are we??? I ask you... I am impressed!!! Lucky Liz is such a great organiser!!!
On the day we make it all pretty for the set up... Look at the Raffles!!! Lovely..... (to see more photos of the day go to Leonie'sBlog.. she took heaps of photos... I'm sure she will have heaps up soon...)We raised over $600 for the Marter Mothers Program... That will go to making 3 more boxes for the memory name tags and foot print cards for the Marter ANGEL Babies!!! A BIG 'Thank You' to all who attended.. I'm sure It was a great day had by all...AND well worth all the EFFORT!!!!!!
What a lovely time we all had.. It seemed to go well.. and we learned lots.. I often forget to take photos of my class.. but for once I remembered.. It was because of Robyn I remembered to take photos....
I had a problem though... har har har I hear you laughing .. just one problem??? It was a very BIG one... I kept messing up Robyn and Tracey's names!!! So Robyn wrote her name on the corner of her blotting paper and stuck it to her glasses.. then when she decided she needed 2 eyes to see she stuck it to her forehead... It really did help!!! Oh my goodness.. sometimes ... no scratch the sometimes... I am just soooo bad with names!!!... But Thanks to Robyn's antics I remembered to take a photo.. yeah!!!
Yes since the Lap Dance from the hogs Breath Pig mascot.. well the theme has just stuck!!!
So I thought since it has been made such an important theme from everyone else I should display all I have collected in the last few weeks from others hanging on to the past!!! Hehe.. It’s all appreciated.. but soon the PIG thang has to STOP!!!
Oh yeah and there was some little joke about being careful of what I caught from the pig… seeing that the ‘Swine flu’ was just beginning to hit World News…
Ok so … Friday avo after lunch some of the Girls went to the Canberra shops to get some things they needed for Sat night.. When they came back Liz, Loran and Robin handed me a Marshmallow pig on a Popsicle stick.. unfortunately the stick was inserted into the Mellow Pigs bottom.. Looked rather painful to me.. It was as tough as nails.. but I ate it in appreciation..
(Now someone took photos of me eating that.. If you read this and you remember who can you get them to email me a copy of it so I can have a complete photographic history of how the PIG thing began…. Thanks…)
Then Kate came back after sourcing something for her little man… She promised one of her kids that she would bring him a souvenir… She gave me a fluro pink weird feeling rubber devil
pig bag tag… hehe… oh you are all comedians!!! Thanks Kate…
And on Friday night.. when I was having a shower with all the hundreds of lunch containers from lunch… (ok sounds weird I know but there is a perfectly good explanation.. We had one of those hand held shower head things.. so I took it down to wash the containers out.. they had food scraps in them.. and I figured that leaving them for a few days in that state was not nice… and also I had visions of being hulled over coals for bringing food scraps into another state… and being quarantined or fined big bucks.. so hence the washing of hundreds of containers in the shower… Not at all weird… You would do the same I am sure!!!)
Anyway.. there was this knock on the door… Bec and I were drying the containers…
When I opened the door there was no one there… I immediately thought… oh that is Kate.. She’s come back for some reason and is playing games with me.. to mess with my head… then I did a quick look around and realised that there was only one place to hide so quickly… just up from our door was a little recess in the wall where one person could duck in behind and hide… so over I walked.. and this little blond head peeked out… It was Liz… She was getting up to no good!!! Hehehehehe… I would never have guessed.. Then Robyn and Loran appeared from the other direction… Liz pointed to floor just beside our door… (*Belly giggles.. Tee Heee Hee HEE) there was this cute little pink plush pig assuming the police search & pat down position… up against the wall… They said they saw it and just had to buy it for me to help me remember the day I danced with a pig….
Lovely.. Thank you girls.... Yes while the Mothers are away from their Children, Husbands and responsibilities they do get up to mischief!!! No worries of bad examples to set now.. just lots of good old fashioned fun…
Then when I get home I go to Liz’s for our occasional Friday get together and play or finish project day… She had bought me a pressie to say thanks for the things I did at convention for making everyone feel more like a team.. then she started to apologise… I knew immediately it was a PIG…. But when I unwrapped it…. it was BRILLIANT!!! How perfect… It’s a PIG piggy bank with silver angel wings and a silver halo!!!
How do you come across something so perfect??? I would have struggled to not get it for me too!! Heheh.. Thanks Liz… I'm going to find some rub-ons to add to this wonderful collectors item!!!
So going on my marry way nearly one whole month later.. I think the Pig thing is all over now.. But alas it is not… Leonie came to Liz’s last Tuesday for the morning tea for Fiona Dunlop (a PaperANGEL that moved interstate.. We miss you Fee!) She bought me something to say thanks for the PaperANGLES (wrong spelling) key rings… She gave me a lovely photo of the 2 of us framed with DSP and the ‘forever your friend’ rub-on… (oh I’m Crying… big blooming sook)
And then there was some pink slippers..
and a GORGEOUS book called ‘Pretty in Pink. Why it’s good to be a Girl!’… by Bob Elsdale... ("No pigs were harmed in the making of this book.")And guess what.. the pictures are all of pigs… Some of these are my Favourite pages!!!
but the words are just great!!! I love it!!!
QUOTE
It's good to be a girl.
So give life a twirl!
The world is our oyster,
And everything is coming up roses.
We girls have so many fabulous facets. (This pig has a huge Diamond ring in it's nose!! hehehe)
So follow your Dreams,
The Sky's the Limit. (this pig is flying across the sky with a puff of wind behind.. heheh)
And girls can do anything boys can...
Just with considerably more style.
Every day is a special day.
But when life gets you down,
And you just can't find what you are looking for,
It's important to find time...
For life's little essentials...
Like retail therapy,
And the pursuit of the perfect pair...
To compliment the perfect outfit.
Partying is best of all.
But sometimes...
It's nice to have a night in.
Maybe for a little romance...
Or just catch up on your beauty sleep.
Daily maintenance can be fun. (This pig has the cutest grin.. with a tooth brush in it's mouth!)
But pampering yourself...
Is one of life's joys. (This pig is in a sud filled bath... and squealing like it is having fun!!!)
A little overindulgence is fun too.(head in the cookie jar)
You can always walk it off the next day.
And if things get out of balance... (sadly staring at the scale)
There is always self-delusion. (only front feet ate on the scale)
And when you've had too much of a good thing... (Shopping everywhere!! Is there ever too much of a good thing???)
It's nice to have a break.
To catch up with the girls. (3 little pigs laughing their heads off!!)
And current affairs! (one pig is gossiping in the other pigs ear and the look on the face is OH!!!)
The world is truly our oyster, and remember...
Sometimes our best assets are behind up.
The End...
Bob Elsdale 2007
Close Quote...
Thanks Leonie…
What wonderful friends I have in our PaperANGELS group!!! Love You all!!! Even though you are making me collect PIG things!!! Heheeh
Well we are very blessed in Australia as we are still fairly small that we are able to have dinner on Sat night along with the Awards night..
We all get dressed up in our fineries... And hit the town.... Well Convention Center.. It's lovely to see us all in our best dressed... We had a few hours to fill when we got back to our room.. I was feeling low.. so I decided instead of staying in Canberra for an extra day with some of the PaperANGELS to do the touristy thing.. seeing as it was a public holiday in Queensland... I decided I would fly home on Monday.. If I could change my flight...And I did...
Leonie came back to Bec's and my room... and we all did the very girly thing with getting ready together.. It was like a girly sleep over.. Way cool... I did everyone’s makeup (or something to do with the makeup) Then I had to get ready too.. and my hair just wouldn't work... I was feeling deep sadness.. I had no idea why... Just something was not right... I forgot to put on my Sash and jewellery... I put the sadness down to my being hormonal...
We got to the Convention Center.. I took some photos.. Sat and waited.. And just felt like crying.. I couldn't stop the overwhelming feeling of emotions.. So I needed some me time.. I went for a brisk walk back to our room, without my phone.. or my jacket.. (It was cold.. I didn't feel it...) I found my jewellery and Sash.. Gathered my thoughts etc.. kept telling myself on the way to stop being such a Carrot... Derek's talk about something.. I can't remember now.. but it was really good for the analogy of how you face your challenges... It was a great story.. If someone can refresh my memory that would be great!!! Thanks.. I just remember chastising myself in being such a Carrot!!! With myself pulled together I was able to enjoy the rest of the evening... I had to try out the Cameras 'food' setting.. (Aaron had bought me a new 10 mega pixel Camera for Mothers day.. but gave it to me early for convention so I could take better photos.. he is such a dear!!! And so thoughtful!)I took some photos of the beautiful arrangements on the table and at the entrance to the dining hall... We posed for some group photos... and ate the yummy dinner
Jen Wells adorning the beautiful 'PaperANGELS Stampin' UP! Convention 2009' Memorabilia Sash with pride... and she put some pink in her hair for the night.. Oh I miss my PINK hair!!! Must get it back!!!
Then onto the Awards night.. Several of our group go t to do the walk across the stage in recognition for their achievements in Stampin' Up! sales, recruiting etc for the last year... It was very difficult to catch a good photo.. Most people walk really fast...
Then the highlight of the evening was when Shelly was leading into the Heart of Stampin' UP! award..
This is where we PaperANGELS were glued to our seats!!! We so wanted Liz to be recognised and had been conspiring for months to send in our individual nominations on why we thought that Liz should be nominated... Kate, Leonie and I had even joked that if she didn't win it that we would rush the stage in protest!!! We do have some restraint.. we wouldn't have rushed the stage... But we all felt so strongly that Liz needed this recognition... That she deserved it for everything that she has done willingly and unselfishly for us all...
When Shelly began... It was a little of a mystery.. She told of the many letters that were sent in.. the wonderful and amazing things that our Australian Demonstrators do in their own spare time... How they use Stampin' Up! to bless the lives of those around them.. Especially those in the community... So many wonderful and beautiful things... Then Shelly said something like, 'this demonstrator has 4 children...' Kate grabbed my leg... Now Kate .. She was sobbing beside me... (Kate made me promise that I would not tell anyone... Sorry Kate.. It's something that needs to be told!) I only bought 2 tissues... Thanks to the lovely ladies in front of us.. (I think they were part of Ngaire's down line..) They were able to pass along a few more.. Cause we needed them!!! Then Shelly read out some of Leonie’s letter...
Talking about how she had prematurely lost her Twins... and soon after another Son.. And how this demonstrator had helped her to have purpose and healing with the planning of a fundraising event to honor and support the Marter Mothers Bereavement Program... We all knew it was Liz then... and there were lots of sobs from us all!!! It is all so appropriate that the PaperANGELS support the ANGEL BABIES, and their families... (I'm crying now... My head hurts and my throat is aching!! Holding in the tears is not a good thing....) Then Shelly announced “It is my pleasure to award this years Heart of Stampin’ UP! award to Liz Collett..” Of course Liz was totally humble.. and in true Liz form said to Shelly that it was not all her.. She had lots of help… Of course she did but we wanted her to be recognised above and beyond our own means.. How do you thank someone that does so much and blesses so many? How do you help them to realise they are special and a blessing to many.. Their life works are touching others… reaching above and beyond anyone’s imaginations or realisations!!! When someone’s very existence is a blessing and they are using their talents and love to bless others it is truly a gift from God!!! Thank you Liz!!!!
It was a beautiful moment!!! very memorable!!! We were all so proud!!!
Well Saturday was another great day.... as far as convention goes... We were feed with all sorts of information again!!! Had a few giggles with the Demonstrators on stage as they had foot n Mouth too it seems.. Not anywhere near as bad as me.. but a slight form of it... I Loved some of the witty sayings that I learned too...
Some great projects that were demonstrated were things like the Bag topper... I've made a few.. I will Blog them soon...One idea I loved was if the you host a workshop more than once in a year you are able to choose a stamp ink pad (your colour choice) in place of receiving a Catalogue... I am adopting that now.. I like the idea.. Not only does it help keep consistency in my random gifts because I want to give repeat hostesses something.. but it is great!!! Who doesn't want to collect all the ink pads??? I think this was learned from Marelle Taylor (Demonstrator Presenter form Dandas Vally NSW)
I also learned the Colour Wheel is a great tool.... I must get me one!!! Never used it myself... It takes the guessing out of What colour goes with what...
I learned that you can fold the DSP back on the Sunny boy twist boxes.. and not only does it looks great, but it reinforces it and you don't have to glue it closed.. It makes it reusable!! Some people are just so clever!!! I loved the suggestion to have all workshop attendees close their eyes when you talk about Hostess benefits... as they are not able to purchase the Hostess sets.. Only a Hostess is able to get them for receiving sales at her workshop... That made me giggle... I have to practice that one so it comes as naturally as it does to Pam Morgan (Vice President, Demonstrator Services and Development form U.S).. Who I might say is a real card!!! She has the best one liners.. I am sure her workshops are great fun!!
Did you know that we have a lip stamp??? We all have one... Yes we do... all you have to do is apply some lip-gloss to your own lips.. Kiss the card and sprinkle heat and stick powder, heat then add dazzling Diamonds... and Whala.. Beautiful sparkly kiss stamps!!! This was a great thing that was taught to us by Shannon West (Training Event Facilitator from U.S) I also loved Shannon’s Twilight card... It had 'Together Forever" on the outside with black, red and white.. and lots of Dazzling Diamonds glitter... then inside it said. and ever.. flip over the page and EVER flip over the page and ever!!! What a crack up.. soooooooo Edward!!!I loved Nicky Tidbold's Presentation (Demonstrator Presenter from Loganholme QLD) She had made up these fabulous visual boards with things you can do to make great cards for boys... With the techniques and accessories you can use in your cards... I'm gonna CASE that one!! Cause I have been meaning to do a class for ages on BOYS Cards... It seems to be something we all struggle with!!! Girl cards are just so easy!!! So be prepared for that one... It's in the making.. I am dreaming it up as we speak....
I loved Ngaire Anderson's Presentation (Demonstrator from Kingsly WA) ... She showed us how to use the punches more effectively... I Loved the scallop punch frame... I have used that in a card or two for our recent Monthly PaperANGEL challenge... It is a great one... I’ve not use yet in a workshop... One day yes one day it will happen. Poor Ngaire was soooooooo nervous!! Her hands were shaking.. But how lovely is she??? Soooo Humble.. I reccon she would be a lovely up line..
I haven't even mentioned half the demonstrations (or demonstrators) and the billions of things I learned at convention.. but I could go on about that forever... However I will leave more details for the slow revealing at workshops… Now I will blog about the most wonderful of all things!!! Saturday night... Awards Night & Recognition Banquet...
Bec and I woke at 6am.. and chatted for a while.. then realised that hours had gone by… So we manage to eat our brekkie.. (in house… bought cereal, milk and some bowls from the shops the day B4.. You know the budget style ritsie… hehe… ) We got dressed showered and prettied up all in about 30 mins!!! We walked (the long way) to the Convention Centre… HOW COLD was it???? Let me tell you… It was so cold.. you know when you put on your sunnies in the car after having a hot shower and they fog up??? Well my eyes were doing that!!! No glasses just smoke from my HOT (gerr) breath was foggin my eyes!!! So we were a little later than we planed cause we talked… We lined up to register and caught up with some of the other PaperANGELS who were seated in a group on the floor setting their stamps…I pulled out all the team costuming… From my costume Department… heheh… (I have to go all out!!! Why not??? You only live once.. you may as well enjoy it…) And handed the Angel Halos to Kate and Leonie… We look HOT!!! How freekin cool are our shirts???…And everyone was wearing their name badges!!! I was so honored!!! No one was wearing their sash though.. but you can’t have it all.. Of course I was… I was PROUD and wanted to show it ALL off!!! Convention started… yeah…
Everyone was madly swapping… It was mayhem!!! Leonie and I went to Memento Mall to take a look… We grabbed a basket and a few things along the way…. Bec and Melissa were there already..Bec was trying on the little cardigan thingy.. and Man she looked HOT!!!! How good did it go with her skinny leg jeans & brown boots?Leonie dumped all her stuff on me and raced to get a photo… I pretended to struggle under the pressure of all our Memento items!!! Of course when had to take a photo.. and I discovered the other day that the professional photographer took a photo too!!! He then said that he would be following me round all day… perhaps my silly antics made for a good laugh.. or something.. maybe it was the halo that made me stand out??? I’m not sure..
So onto the hall where we enjoyed the opening.. We learned heaps on the history of Stampin’ UP!.. some of us won some stuff.. LUCKY DUCKS!!!And we watched some great demos… We were all in a row in ourPaperANGELS team…. It was really cool!!!Then we broke for lunch… Which was great!!! And what I loved most about it was the wonderful containers they came in.. I had to grab a few to take home with me.. Leonie and I thought they would be great packaging for some kits to donate to the kids hospital for activity kits or to we could sell some card kits in… When the waitresses were cleaning up our table and they asked what we would be doing with the containers.. They loved our idea and asked if we would like some more.. FREE stuff.. Darr.. Of course… SO two of them returned with a HUGE pile of containers each…Now that was a spectacle.. How to get them home?? I’ll worry bout that later!!! I put them in the cloak room.. And onto the mini information sessions…
Leonie began to Hand out her convention gifts when were all seated in the Nicholls room… These cute little key rings with the PaperANGELS Logo on.. I shared with Leonie my idea for next years convention.. I told here she could use it if she liked as she really wanted to give something to all the girls…So I organised to have them made for her.... So she was happily handing them out.. then Melissa grabbed Bec… turned her around.. and covered her mouth held her stomach and then sighed from relief… Melissa has been a proof reader… She realised that the key ring read "PaperANGLES"… not ANGELS!!! And had a sick feeling in the pit of her stomach thinking that the whole logo was wrong!! That perhaps all our T Shirts and our Sashes etc were WRONG!!! Opps… That's what you get for rushing a job!!! My bad... Trying to help people and make many happy at the same time.. sometimes it backfires!!! I'm glad that we did not rush the Shirts!!! And got the things fixed we needed to with the Aprons!!! (oh yeah it was not my spelling mistake for a change... It was the Laser cutter.. but i RUSHED him!!! - The ANGELS key rings are now collectors items... I am making a canvas with the left over ones.. So tehy can come to some use... Another Story to tell)
We went into the first session with Derek Christenson (Manager, International Support) & Makeesha Byl (Independent Demonstrator from Bedfordale, WA).. They talked about spreading the word.. and how we can grow our business… then there was an open forum.. Derek asked for people to share their experiences and ideas on how they spread the word in 3 areas… He asked Liz to start… Then Bec added more.. Then I felt I had something to say.. I started with how great our team is and how easy it is to tell new people and interested demonstrators how we support one another… by sharing ideas and having our quarterly PaperANGELS Events.. Where they are able to have friends, family and customers come along to and purchase the stamp sets for that class.. Which will help them meet their quarterly sales targets to stay active and maintain their discounted rate.. Then I went on to say 'get your name out there... Plaster your name everywhere.. I have magnets on the side of my car'… one lady jumped in.. oh yeah Vista print.. I love my magnets!!!... then I added I have signs and cards .. Derek must have thought that I was going to dig myself a hole in saying that I use Stampin Up Logo incorrectly… And jumped in with "you need to be sure that you do not breach copyrights" etc… I opened my mouth… and out came the most incorrect ill formed sentence I think I have ever said!!! “Oh we don’t need to use Stampin’ Up! logo.. we have our own now!!!” Then I looked in the audience… and added…. “Oh no offense Shelly”… The Co founder and CEO of Stampin’ UP! was sitting in the back towards the left!!! There was an immediate lack of oxygen in the room…. When everyone drew in their breath and turned…. In shock.. Not believing I had just said what I said… Neither did I!!!! The mike was taken from me… I could not make my wrongs right.. I was cut down!!! There was no turning back… I had dug myself a 10 foot grave!!! And was buried alive!!! SO I hung my head, slumped my shoulders and skulked back to my seat… a couple of others stood up and said their piece… Leonie stood up and introduced herself… “I’m Leonie from McClay Island in Queensland .. I’m also a PaperANGEL, BUT I’m not with HER!!” Pointing to me… again Shame shame shame!!!
After the session ended I needed to go to Shelly and do damage control.. To be sure that what she heard me say was most definitely not what I meant!!!
Now what I meant to say was that I stick to the strict guidelines that Stampin’ Up has with the whole we no use the logo (said with a bit of a ethnic accent)… and put the wording “Independent Stampin’ UP! Demonstrator” on all our printed things… She thankfully thought it was funny.. Phew!!!
Poor Liz.. She was hiding!!! I am sure that it is moments like these that one hangs their head and thinks.. ‘Kids and Animals.. NEVER work with them!!!’ I am in both categories at times!!! Heheh..
We had to rush our Make n Take session
so we could attend the 'Lead the Way' (optional session -if you have a team.. and I do now.. although it only is small.. It is up to me to be a good leader.. So I need all the help - in not leading people astray!!! heheh)
I didn't like rushing it at all... And it has taken me a month to get around to finishing off all the Make & Takes... There were some really good ideas in them too...!!! Some of which I have used... in some recent workshops!!!
I think that the rest of the day I was pretty good… I didn’t get myself in any more trouble… That I can remember… ;P perhaps someone can remember something else I did.. I am sure someone will bring it to my recollection…
Ok… so I have been meaning to write to tell all on convention.. You know the saying ‘What happens in …. (insert a place name) let’s say convention .. Stays on convention’.. Well wouldn’t that just be novel??? It seems the stories of my misshapes have traveled far and wide!!! No one can ever accuse me of NOT HAVING FUN!!! Just of having too much fun.. and needing to calm me down.. tame me.. or pull me in… hehe.. but hay someone has to be the story teller or maker as in my case!!! I seem to adjust to that role well.. and it seems that one would often play up to it.. heheh… ;) I just seem to attract attention and embarrassing things… but boy oh boy do I have some great stories to tell!!!
I have been touched by loved ones dealing with cancer in my life several times.. And this is my way to give back to those who have lost the battle, those who are still fighting, and those who have been blessed to WIN the battle!!!
My love and heart goes out to you all!!! May that love warm your heart and bring you joy and happiness as my association with you all has bought to me!!!
I would like to say a special thanks Marelle Taylor for her BEAUTIFUL art work that was a PERFECT match to my 2 little girls at the Tea Party Photo... to see her inspirational Card click HERE or Click on her name to be taken to her site.
My Story....
From the very tender age of 14 I learned about the disease Cancer. I learned how hard the fight against Cancer can be. My mother was diagnosed with a Brain Tumour. My Mother was an extraordinary ARTIST… All that she placed her hands upon became a 'work of art'…. After learning that a possible side affect of having an operation to remove the Tumour could be paralysis, she decided that was too high a risk. Loosing her mobility in her hands would be too much of a loss for her. She would no longer be able to do the things she thrived on, or to earn a living to support us. Her Tumuor was benign.. She managed it with extensive Natural Health alternatives, and managed it well!! Until she forgot to have a 6 month check up because she was working too hard to make ends meet. We ended up taking her to the hospital to get a CT scan. She was becoming more and more frail right before my eyes. When the scans were developed we were instructed to go straight to the RBH. I was 17 and recently acquired my driver’s licence. I had to drive from Redcliffe Hospital to the RBH in lunch time traffic… With Busses and Trucks on either side of me, Tears in my eyes and no knowledge of exactly how to get the RBH I was scared frightened and alone… My precious Mother whom I loved so much was in pain… She could no longer comprehend or respond to my questions for directions. I had to Stop and ask strangers on the side of the road for directions through my tears… My Mother was rushed into surgery. They operated that day. When they received the analysis of the tumour they said it was a very aggressive one. That they could not get it all… That once the tumour grew it would grow fast.. They told us she could have 3 days, 3 Weeks, 3 Months or 3 years… They did not know… Mum lived for 18 months after the opp. She underwent radium therapy and 2 months before I turned 19 she passed on..
My Husbands Maternal Grandmother (Nan) died of Stomach Cancer in 2000… Very soon after nursing her only Son (Uncle Barry) who died of Lung Cancer. We were blessed to live close to her and help look after her in her last few months.
My Father died in 2006 from kidney cancer that had metastasized and spread into his lungs. Sadly it was a very short fight…
My husband was diagnosed in 2005 with Severe Aplastic Anemia a pre-cancerous autoimmune disease that has no "cure" and we have been told by several Doctors and Specialists that it is worse than Leukemia.. if you can call any disease "worse" than others! He is still fighting the battle 3 years on. You can read more about his battle on my blog … Click HERE
During my husband’s fight his Paternal Grandmother (Granny) passed on in 2007. She had fought against bowel Cancer years earlier…
This year My father’s latest wife phoned us recently to talk to the kids and she told me that she has been diagnosed with Cervical Cancer…
I have several friends who have had breast cancer, Cervical Cancer, Bone Cancer, Skin Cancer and may other types of Cancers…
Has my life been changed by others battle? Definitely… This is why I would like to support the Australian Cancer Council in raising funds for research and developments in Cancer treatments and discoveries. I want to help with the education and support of Cancer Patients. This is my small part… that I am able to give back to all of the beautiful and dear ones who have been ‘touched’ by Cancer.
I have been meaning to post this for at least 8 months!!!! And by popular demand I am nowgetting to it!!!! Thanks to Bec.. for the heads up & the questions regarding the process today.. Thanks again to Bec for being my Motivation!!! It's all about sharing great ideas!!! And getting it out there for all to use!!!!
How it all came about.... In our PaperANGEL team meetings we are asked to help out every now and then with the make-n-take sessions... Weather it be to do a short demo of something, help instruct the make-n-take tables... Sometimes we get the easy way out and Liz comes up with the idea... and others (the brave ones- like Bec!!!) come up with their own!!! AMAZING... Some of us give a few minute spiel on classes that have worked or that we are creating... It is a wonderful thing to belong to a team that involves the individual... I believe it makes for a greater feeling of ownership and pride in each member of our team..
Because they are VALUED!!! ... Also I happen to think is only fair we each take turns... As we have so many lovely wonderful talented demonstrators.. Who individually are so ingenious!!! And it takes a little pressure off Liz... so she can enjoy some of the meetings too!!! ;)
Anyway... I have strayed a little... back to the story...
I was STRESSED (a little).... I knew MY TURN would come.. soon... arghhhhh.... RUN HIDE!!!
And well... Do you ever get the feeling that you really have nothing to teach all these wonderfully talented demonstrators??? ... (sounds a little like the Ladies that demoed on main stage at convention!! I feel their pain.. even if it is only in front of 20... I have had a glimmer.. Demoing in front of 450 talented demonstrators... ARGHHHH... I will be running fast... and hiding!!!.. if ever I am asked to do something big like that)... Well that was me... so I did the normal thing in preparation for my inevitable turn... Chewed my nails a bit... I stressed a bit... Researched a bit... and felt like nothing was happening.. I was drawing a total blank... for quite some time...
Then; magically one day a memory from my childhood POPPED into my head... (Thank goodness)
My Mum was a Costume Jewellery Designer and I remembered that she used to dye pearls... With that memory I wondered if I could dye our pearls from our pretties kit? . After all I was getting a bit board with the white and cream pearls.. as lovely as they are.. well I just wanted a change.... you know colour my world... with colour!!! So I did some experimenting...
Then when I thought I had it... I told a couple of people.. and B4 you knew it Liz asked me to take part in one of PaperANGELS make-n-take sessions in our meting... Of course this may have had something to do with my total secrecy in 'the process'.... I wanted to keep it to myself.. I wanted it to be FRESH... NEW and INSPIRING... When I finally unveiled 'The Secret'... (Can you tell I like DRAMA??? Suspense is a great thing.. It makes life exciting.. and surprising.... hehe.. and... I get a bit of a kick out of being a tiny bit evil!!!)
Anyway... I am so grateful for an ingenious Mother!!! Who not only still inspires me even though she passed away when I was 18... but also that she taught me well to "HAVE A GO"....
Muwah (*blows kiss skyward) I Love you Mum...
Damm it now I am crying.... as mum would say.. "You big B.... sook!!! "
Ok so.... on with the tute...
Materials needed.. Pretties Kit.. (of course....), re-inker, microwaveable small cup, paper towels, rubber glove, small funnel, Microwave & pliers or tweezers.
I find egg cups, small par fee bowls or tea light candle cups are the best... The smaller the better as you will use less ink.
First you take the pearls out that you would like to colour..... and... place them in your (microwaveable) cup...
Squeeze in some of your chosen re-inker... enough to totallysubmerge the pearls... (note:- you do need to choose from our stronger colours... Light ones are not pigmented enough to change the pearls...)
Place cup with pearls in microwave for 10 seconds... being sure that it does not bubble over..
(It gets very messy when it boils over!!!)
Be sure to keep listening all the time to ensure it does not bubble & crack too much because you can blister the pearl.. What you want to achieve is for the resin to expand enough to let in some of the colour... Heat is a great way to expand resin and make it more porous...
* You may want to repeat that process once or twice more.. If it bubbles and cracks you need to stop the microwave even if time is not up.. .. allow it to cool a little.. one or 2 mins.. and then put it back in for the remaining of that 10 seconds... Lay out a paper towel with a plastic bag underneath.. or put paper towel on the sink so that if it soaks through the towel the clean up is easier...
Take glass with peals out of the microwave.. (it may be hot... so you may need a oven mitt or a tea towel... Protect those CRAFTY hands they are precious!!!) Allow the pearls to cool in the dye.. You can do it over night or it can be for 10 mins.. this all depends on how the ink takes to the pearl... All colours are different in this process.. so ‘trial and error’ is needed...
While they are cooling you can remove the dropper part in your re-inker and poor the remaining ink back into your container using a funnel... (The heating process will not change the colour... However it will make the consistency a little thicker... but I find that that does not matter.. so far I have not noticed changes in the re-inkers ability to re-ink my stamp pads.. If you were worried about it changing the integrity of your re-inker….. perhaps buy one or two darker re-inkers and dedicate them to your pearl dying... OR add a few drops of water)
When cool take your tweezers or pliers... and remove the pearls from the cup.... (a rubber glove comes in handy for this process.. because you can make a mess dropping the pearl back in the cup..)... Place the pearls on the paper towelling... then dab the excess colour off.. you can also rinse it under water.. both will work...
And whalah.. you have a dyed pearl... As you can see it is a subtle difference...Due to the fact that our re-inkers are water based... (if you want stronger colours you could try using fabric dye.. but that is not Stampin Up stuff....; )
I've only put this in the microwave for 10 seconds and allowed it to cool for maybe 10 mins......
The first two pearls are our cream and white ones from our pretties kit.. the one I am pointing to is the Chocolate Chip died one..
Now if the colour is not dark enough you can repeat the process one or two times more.. It may make a difference... again it is all 'trial and error..'.
* If you do not have a microwave.. You may achieve the same result using a baya-maire set up...
Have some boiling water in a saucepan with the cup and pearls in the water...
You need to boil the water so it is bubbling well...
Then you need to boil the pearl in the cup for at least 20 mins.. you may need to top up the water in that 20 mins as the water will turn into steam and will evaporate... do not let it boil dry.. as you will wreck your pearl... burn the bottom of your saucepan... and may (touch wood that it never happens) burn the house down!!! I do not want to be responsible for that!!! Sooooooooo PLEASE keep a close eye on it...!!!
And here is the finished product..attached to my card that I whipped up for this tute tonight...
This is the techniques card I taught in our PaperANGELS meeting all those many months ago.. with some left over and experimental pearls that I have dyed....
As you can see I BOILED the pink ones a bit too much...They blistered... . (Trial and ERROR)... I used Rose Red re-inker... Then the full round pearls at back close to the card I have used Elegant Eggplant.. again you can do it a couple of times to get it darker... and I think (from my really BAD memory) the one on the card was Night of Navy re-inker.... the 2 in the front that got too much light from my cameras flash are the Chocolate Chip ones I just dyed...
Enjoy Experimenting... xxxx
Ps... Oh yeah and the Demonstrator who told us about her pearl dying 'accident' or rather dicovery... Some people have mentioned that they can't remember how she did it... (sorry I can not for the life of me remember her name!!! I took so many notes in her class too!!! How BAD is that??) How she said she achieved it was to leave the pearl in the reinker for a week or so... and it came out a supprise colour... not much like the inker she left it in..
I did not realise how much work people put into these wonderful tutorials and information sessions.. Until I started to crop the photos so that I could put each up individually... When you are sitting in the audience trying to soak in the information and watching the demos... Well it all happens so fast because of "the magic of television" and "here's one I prepared earlier"... I'm waiting for the stake knives to be brought out.. heheh... I just wanted to say THANK YOU to all the wonderful demonstrators that gladly shared their Time talent and ideas!!! You's are all inspirations... (love the english??? yous... bahh haah haah)
I learned so much form Convention and was so inspired!!! I really want to just sit and create non stop for a month... Of course that is not possible... you need to eat and sleep.. take kids to school... cook and clean... You know do all those hum drum things you used to enjoy b4 you became obsessed with paper Crafts...
With all the information that was shared with us and all the demos and displays.... well you would have to be mute and blind to not have learned something... We learned... how to use tools properly, some different techniques, new ideas on how to run your workshops... Little tips that make them more interesting and exciting for your hostess... We learned some more about our great business tools on the web site, some catch phrases, and selling information.. We laughed we cried we jumped for joy. We clapped & cheered, wolf whistled, ohhed and arhed... we got embarrassed (more on that later) and recognised... Some received free stamp sets... (not me... NEXT year they will be mine... yes they will) Some of us were followed around by the camera man!!! some call that stalking.. but when you do crazy things and wear a Halo.. well that's kind of asking for it!!!.... All in all it was a fabulous time...
But wait there's more..... No steak Knives still... ... heheheh
I highly recommend to all demonstrators (hobbyist to career demos) to start putting some money away each week.... about $15 per week should build a really nice nest egg for next years convention in Sydney...That will give you a bit of spending money too!!! Start stashing!!! take it off your profits of your Workshops...
I have taken group photos of the swaps that I receive... I spent a whole day last week trying to separate all the display board photos form convention... I got really tired of cropping!! so these are going to be all together.. If there is anything you like just double click and save the photo on your computer.. then you can crop them....
Swapping is fun... It's great to get new ideas... and receive cards that may have a different colour combo than you would use.. or cute ideas for hostess gifts etc.. Enjoy looking..
Brought to you by all the wonderful Demonstrators I (and Liz) swapped with at Australia/Canberra 2009 Celebrate Convention... With out them I'd have one design times 75!!!! Thank you all!!!
I have copied the information below directly from our Stampin' UP! Demonstrator web site.. It is information that is for both my team and customers... a few things like Catalogue dates and 3 mini catalogues this year (*yeah.. jumps for joy) I am sure both my Team and Customers will be excited to along with me... Enjoy.. Love Ursula
The following announcements were made at Convention 2009.
Change in Catalogue Strategy
During her address in the first general session, Shelli announced that the catalogue launch date would change from April to September, beginning September 2010. "This means that the catalogue you now hold in your hands will be effective through September 2010, or about 17 months," Shelli explained. During the sales period of the current catalogue, Stampin' Up! will also release three mini catalogues to provide new products and hostess sets. Then, a new catalogue will be available in September 2010. Watch for more information in the coming weeks.
This new catalogue strategy allows Stampin' Up! to
release new products closer to the time they are released in the United States;
keep all product offerings, including In Colors, accessories, and stamp sets, more closely linked to our offering in the US;
help demonstrators offer popular products in a more timely fashion.
Although Shelli didn't announce this, the dates for Sale-A-Bration next year have also been adjusted. Sale-A-Bration will run from 25 January through 31 March.
Watch for more detailed information about the catalogue transition and strategy on the Demonstrator Web Site.
Update on Backorder Situation
During her remarks in the first session, Shelli also noted that the backorder situation has been a top priority. "Backorders will always be a part of any sales business because it's impossible to always forecast, order, and ship perfectly," she noted. "However, we are well aware that the volume of backorders we have had recently is absolutely unacceptable."
Shelli announced several short-term fixes and long-term fixes, including the following:
Stampin' Up! has air freighted a large quantity of products to arrive last week.
In addition, a large container with product is en route to Australia, which will alleviate the immediate concern.
Stampin' Up! is creating a "safety stock" of all products in each international country, which means each country will have extra inventory, over and above what we expect to sell.
Stampin' Up! will also be shipping containers of product more frequently to each country.
Finally, Stampin' Up! will monitor even more closely the forecast and sales numbers and will respond immediately to products that look like they may go into backorder status.
Demonstrator Product Review Board
In his remarks, Aaron announced the creation of an anonymous demonstrator product review board. This group of demonstrators from Australia and New Zealand will be a great asset to us in identifying and providing popular products in the future and helping us ensure the accuracy of forecasts, products, and catalogues.
Move in Office Location
Aaron also summarized the growth that Stampin' Up! has experienced in the Australia and New Zealand area, including growing from four staff members to seven. This growth has necessitated a change in office location, as well. Effective in July, the Stampin' Up! office will move from our current location in Botany to a new facility. Watch the Demonstrator Web Site for more information regarding the change in contact information.
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And these are my keepers.... for the moment.. I may change my mind... but now i have a pink, blue, Aqua, Natural tones and a Funky one.. that i need to go buy a new wardrobe for so i can wear it!! hehe.. let me know if you are interested in supporting my new hobby... and making your Christmas shopping easier... oh and at this point any money really does go to the Singapore Tour.... not really to support my hobby.. till next year!!! ;) ...
Aqua, Blue, Natural tones, Pink and FUNKY....
