Convention Team Swaps

Evening all!

Remember me? I used to write this blog! Life has been a bit busy recently, and I've not had much time to keep in touch on here.  I'm due to start a new job soon too, so that will take a bit of getting used to after working where I currently work for the last ten years. It's all exciting stuff though, I'll let you know how I'm getting on.

This evening, I'm in Manchester for the 2013 European Stampin' Up! Convention, and it's my first one ever! I've been a demo for about two and a half years now and I've not managed to go to convention yet.  I was a couple of places short of booking on last year, and left it too late and it was full.  Living in Leeds, I had no excuse not to be the first in the queue this year as it's just a train ride away. I can't wait to share some pictures with you, and tell you all about what I get up to.

There was a few things we had to make to bring with us.  Team swaps, general swaps and a gift for our room mate if we're sharing a room.  I'm sharing with my friend and downline Kylie.  Today I'll be sharing pictures of the team swaps I made.

It's always tricky deciding what the perfect swap will be, and it took me ages to decide what to do.  I decided to make candles, with a Christmas image from My Digital Studio (MDS).  This seemed like a great idea, and I made the first one.  It looked great.  Off I went to Ikea, to buy enough for the 32 ladies who have opted in to the team swaps.   I realised then, that my idea may not have been such a good one after all!  I bought the 32 I needed, as well as a few extra, and by the time I had lifted all 50 candles on to the till, I was bright red and wondered what all the people in the queue behind me thought I was doing with all these candles! The man right behind me congratulated me on my dedication to lifting them all.  Then I realised I had to transport them all to Manchester! Oh well, it was too late to change my mind.

I printed the image from MDS onto normal printer paper, to make sure I had the size right.  After a few adjustments, I was happy with my image, and I then printed the image onto tissue paper which had been taped onto a piece of card with masking tape.  I then cut out the image and used a tiny bit of glue on each corner to stick it lightly to the candle.

 I then wrapped a piece of tissue paper around the candle and gently heated the image using a heat gun.  The heat melts the candle just enough to melt the tissue paper into the wax giving a smooth finish.

 I love this technique and it can be done with any stamped image or printed image. I then wrapped the candle in cellophane and tied a small length of Linen Thread to secure the cellophane then tied a length of the lovely Cherry Cobbler 1" (2.5cm) Stitched Edge Grosgrain Ribbon around into a bow. 

 

I really hope my team like their gifts, and I can't wait to see what lovely things they have made.  It's been fun seeing everyone's updates on our Facebook page, seeing the hours they have spent crafting away, and the excitement building!

Here's a picture of the swaps altogether...see why I realised how heavy they were going to be! The next picture of the candles in the box is just over half of the full lot! My suitcase was very heavy, and one of the wheels broke as I got off the bus in Manchester, and had to drag it down the street to the hotel.  Thankfully I don't have to take them back with me to Leeds!

My Digital Studio Library App

Have you downloaded My Digital Studio yet?  I hope you have, because it's so exciting, there's so much content on there for all your digital crafting.  Now there's an easy way to keep track of what you have purchased, with the new My Library for My Digital Studio app.  At the moment, it's only available for iPads, but they are hoping to release the software for iPhones and Android phones very soon.  You can easily see what is new each week, as new content is added all the time.  You can also add items you own to your collection, you can set up wish lists (mine will be huge!!), you can sort your lists to easily find your downloads, search for new downloads, and can link to the online Stampin' Up! store to make purchases.  What more could you want!  Now I just have to hope Santa brings me something shiny in my Christmas stocking this year (hint hint, nudge nudge if Santa is a follower of my blog!)

If you haven't yet downloaded the software, you can get a free 30 day trial by clicking this link here, and if you simply can't wait and want the full version (it contains loads more content) click here, it costs only £13.95.  

Book your party now - extra £25 of hostess benefits during October!

You may be aware that this year is Stampin' Up!'s 25 anniversary. As a result, they are offering loads of promotions and special offers. The latest offer is too good to miss. If you host a workshop with sales reaching £250, you'll get an extra £25 worth of hostess benefits! That's £65 instead of £40! Contact me now to book your workshop during October.

Best Of...Sale-A-Bration

Morning

Here's the latest Best Of 25 Years stamp sets, and this time it's the best of Sale-a-bration.  There's 5 stamps in the set, 4 from previous sale-a-bration sets so you may recognise a few of them.  The set costs £13.95 and comes in clear mount only.  The set is available until the 31st March 2014, or until stocks last.

All that glitters!

Morning!

I went to a 40th birthday party last Saturday, it was fancy dress in the style of 80s glam, Studio 54 and New Romantic. After much browsing, I ended up with a costume that was designed to be a buccaneer which I thought looked a bit Adam Ant. 

I wanted to do a fancy card for the occasion, and what better design than the Wow card that I've made for a few special occasions. I knew the party was going to be glitzy, and I wanted the card to match. Off I went to my local craft shop, and found the perfect papers.  I used a sheet of 12" x 12" Basic Black card stock, and using the Simply Scored Board I scored the lines to make the folds in the card.  I cut out various triangles of the glitter paper, and stuck them onto the front of the card.  

I used the Curly Cute stamp set for the Happy Birthday sentiment, and the numbers are from the Memorable Moments stamp set, stamped with Melon Mambo ink.  I used the Petite Pennants Builder Punch to make the bunting across the top of the card.

Here's the card all tied up with the band around the middle. The Large Oval Punch was used to punch out the numbers, and the Decorative Label Punch was used for the label.

Items Used

All the items (except the glitter paper) can be bought from my online shop.  Click on the links below.

        

Clearance Rack

The Stampin' Up! Clearance Rack is here!  There's some great discounts, up to 80% on papers, card stock, embellishments, fabric, dies and lots more.  You can buy these items from my online shop - just follow the link here.  

Craft Sale

For any of you out there that live in Leeds, I'm taking part in a craft and table top sale in Roundhay, Leeds on Saturday.  I'm selling off loads of my old craft stash, including lots of Stampin' up! retired stamp sets.  There's some real bargains to be had, and most of the stamp sets are 50% cheaper than their original price.  Please come along and say hello!