Monday 23 August 2010

Long time no see

I just wanted to pop on and say sorry for the lack of posting, we have been down in Kent.

Normal service will resume shortly. lol.

Friday 20 August 2010

Big and Bold..

Yep.. it's the Big Bold Birthday set. I love this set!!!

I did a project or two using this set the other week, so if you click on the label at the bottom of my post, you'll find it.

Anyway.. here's my project for you today.

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lI have no idea where the project came from. We did it in class the other day, and my downline Sheila found it somewhere on the net.

I've used Soft Suede cardstock (lush!!) and pinks and whites to bring it all together.

The price of this set has been reduced in the August Promo to £19.16 instead of £23.95.. what a bargain eh? (check out the others on the side bar over there -------------------->

If there's anything you fancy on this promotion, just send me an email.. and remember if your order comes to over £40, I'll give you a free ink pad of your choice.

My special offer is the Big Bold Birthday stamp set, cardstock to make four of these cards and three ink pads for a price of £30.

If you'd like to take the offer, then just get in touch by email and I'll sort out the rest for you.

Well.. I must get on. I've got oodles to get through today, and then we're off to the Sunny South..

Happy Crafting everyone.. See you all again soon x

Thursday 19 August 2010

A little spot of gardening..

Not the real sort of course.. even though that needs doing this weekend if I get the chance.. but playing with one of my favourite stamp sets - Greenhouse Garden.

Because it's a two step stamping set, it's on offer this month only for £18.36 instead of £22.95.

Here's my card for today.

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I have based my card on the one that's in the catalogue, and we made this in class the other day. It's a very popular card too, and everyone who made it in class loved it.

I changed the colours slightly and used shades of blues, corals and pinks.

My offer for you today is to have the Greenhouse Garden stamps, cardstock and three ink pads to do a version of this card. The price of the offer is stamp set only at £18.36 (plus postage) or my offer above for £32. I will also stamp you some of the greetings as shown above.

So.. what are you upto today? Leave me a comment so I can pop over and say Hi..

I am busy packing and sorting. We are away for a couple of days this weekend and next, and then I'm getting a bit excited as it's only a few weeks until my Sis, Lesley {aka Wilma}, comes over from Canada.. I can't wait.

Wednesday 18 August 2010

Bird on a Branch

How are you all? Time just seems to be flying these days doesn't it, and I don't seem to have had time to come back on here and update the ol' bloggie.. So... this morning, I thought I'd get up early (5ish!) and make a start on my plans for today. This being the first one. lol. 

I've got a few more Special Offers for you over the next day or so.. and they are all Stampin' Up. We have our special promotional offer of 20% off a selection of two step stamping sets.. Check over on the right sidebar for a clickable link.

Bird on a Branch is one of those sets, and here's my project for today -

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 As I've just uploaded it.. I realised that the bow and ribbons are not attached to the baggie. How did I manage to photograph it without realising?!

Anyway, this set of stamps is on offer for £11.96 instead of £14.95.. how good is that? In the set you will recieve around 5 stamps.. Fantastic if you ask me!

My special offer will give you the stamp set, two ink pads, cardstock and ribbon to make a little bag like this one with some mini cards inside. The price of this offer is £22.  If you'd like to take the offer, then please just email me and I'll sort out the rest. Or if you'd just like the stamp set on its own, then get in touch.

I'll be back tomorrow with a new one.. but before then, here's a little peek -

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See ya later!

Monday 16 August 2010

Not much to report..

There has been a definate lack of crafting at the House of Austin this weekend.. I have a poorly leggie, and sitting crafting definately makes it feel worse.. and to stop it swelling and getting more infected, I have to sit with it up a little. Mind you, I have been out and about with the woofers.

So.. normal service will resume shortly. (Well, later today - I'm having withdrawal symptoms!)

.xxx

Friday 13 August 2010

Where has this week gone?

I just can't believe how quick this year is going.. it doesn't seem two minutes since I last came on my blog, and looking at the dates, it's been quite a while!

So.. what have I been upto?

Well some of it will have to remain secret for now, but the rest I can share.

Last weekend, I had a couple of days off. I didn't do ANY craft things at all and it was lovely to take a break. I did some housework (I know! Hush!) and just got alot of stuff sorted out.

On Monday, I nipped into town as I had an appointment with the bank, and on Tuesday I nipped into town again.

This time it was to meet a lovely lady called Sharon. Oh, she's an absolute gem. We hit it off straight away and could have sat and chatted for hours.. in fact, we did - Three! She came to me through Stampin' Up, and we have quite a bit in common. And she lives nearby, so I'm hoping that Costa Coffee Lemon Squishy Cake Date will happen again soon.

On Tuesday evening, I went to meet some more wonderful folks. It was SU training over in Snaith, with Monica, Jo, and the rest of the group. It was a lovely, chatty, casual evening, full of crafty bits and cookies! It's lovely to meet with people you don't see from one month to the next.If you'd like to come along to find out what Stampin' Up is all about.. then just let me know!

This is what we made on the evening.(photos from Monica's blog.. I know she won't mind. These are Mon's cards, as I have no charge left on my camera battery. )

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This card is stunning don't you think? I love the colours and those pansies.... wow. I have made poppies from the butterfly punch, but the pansy colours are just divine. Love it.

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A little Easel card. Again, the colours are lovely.. and that little bit of glitter around the top section of the card just sets it off. I love my Dazzling Diamonds. It's one of those products you just like to look at and not use.. lol.

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This little wallet was so simple to make and contains ribbons. What an excellent idea for a gift eh?!

Wednesday was Craft morning for my group. We had a lovely time and lots of laughs. I have a wonderful group of ladies who come to classes every fortnight. Would you like to come along? More dates are available than the ones scrolling at the top. I just need to learn how to update it now that's on there.. I'll suss it out. It just takes a bit of time! (lol)

And last but not least.. a furball for you. Nope. This wasn't at our training, but in my lounge.

Little Hollypops.. mummy's little dreamboat. She's beautiful don't ya think?!

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Just look at those lickle curly hairs on her head.. just lovely.

I promise I'll be back soon with some more projects. I'm doing a craft fair tomorrow, so will be spending the day getting sorted and creating for that.

See you all soon!

Saturday 7 August 2010

More Big Bold Birthday ...

Two days in a row. Aren't I the organised one? lol.

Today, I want to share some more Bold Birthday cards with you. This Stampin' Up set is going to get lots of use I'm sure. It is such a wonderful set that's perfect for all occasions as it is so versatile. (don't forget to check out my Special Offers above)

The cards that I have to show you today are ones that I did in our Workshop a couple of weeks ago over in Branton, Doncaster. Everyone enjoyed the class, and it would be lovely to see you all again on Wednesday 11th August from 11am if you can make it.

As you can see, we made three cards.

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Don't the colours look lovely together? Chocolate Chip, Apricot Appeal and Pixie Pink.

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3D'd cakes... yum!

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I think this one is my favourite of the evening.

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And lastly.. the ice cream cone.

I hope you like them.

If you'd like to come along to our next workshop, it's a daytime one and it's on Wednesday 11th August from 11am to 1pm. It would be lovely to see you all again.

That's me done for today.. other than to tell you I'll be back again in a couple of days to offer you another Special Offer with another of the stamp sets that are currently discounted.

See you then!

Friday 6 August 2010

Big Bold Birthday **SPECIAL OFFER**

Hello again.


I've had a few busy days crafting with my lovely new Stampin' Up products which arrived recently. It's great to recieve that big brown parcel from Mr UPS..

I have had a few orders to sort out too, so Ben (my Mr UPS) probably knows his way to my house with his eyes closed.. lol. Another order should be arriving on Monday. You have all been fantastic with my special offers from last time, and I hope this one is just as appealing too.

For this one, I've used the Big Bold Birthday set, which has been reduced by a whopping 20% with the August Promotion. That takes the price from £23.95 to £19.16.

Here are some cards. I'll show you another set tomorrow which I did in class a couple of weeks ago. But here's the first..

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This is the whole collection of cards together, and in this Special Offer you'll receive cardstock, papers, ribbon, and THREE inks to complete your cards,along with written instructions to make the cards above, at the special price of only £30. The colours are Bashful Blue, Pretty in Pink and Creamy Caramel, but if you need to change any of the colours, then please let me know when you email me to order. How about joining in the Stampers 6 group? I have a few places left for the one starting at the end of August. Read about it by clicking on the link above under the header (SPREAD THE COST).

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Here's a close up of the first card from the set - I made two in pink and two in blue. I love this little cakey-bun. So very yummy!

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The white satin ribbon from Stampin' Up is lovely. It is shiny on both sides and it is soooo soft. You can even colour it with your ink pads to match the colour of your project.... but I just left mine sparkling white!

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This card was made whilst trying out a new plaid technique using the ink pads. It gives such a lovely look too if you are using a solid style stamp.

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Here's the plaid in more detail. I added some dazzling diamonds to the cake top to give it some sparkle.

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I created a flower background on the pink cardstock above, by using the bow. The white papers above the punched borders are the lovely Bride papers.. (yep.. you'll get some of this too!)

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I have kept a very simple colour scheme with this card, keeping things to mainly two colours. I love Bashful Blue, it's such a delicate colour.


So. That's my projects for today. If you'd like to order the Special Offer, then please get in touch by emailing me or leave me a comment. (I moderate them, so it will stay private for you.)

I'll be back tomorrow with a few more projects from this set of stamps. It's a fairly new set to me, but it is really lovely. In fact, I have a card to make for Carley's mum-in-law for Monday. So that is my job for later.

Happy crafting everyone!

Thursday 5 August 2010

Now there's a first!

I actually don't do 'proper' scrapbooking. Nope. Not ever. That is, until this last few days when I pulled out a 12 x 12 scrapbooking kit that I got from Stampin' Up ages ago.

And this is what I made -

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A full 12" x 12" scrapbook page!

Now I've dibbled and dabbled with the odd mini album, and the odd 8x8, 6x6 etc, but never on such a grand scale. And it was thoroughly enjoyable!!

So.. what bought on this major change do I hear you ask. Well. I follow Katy's blog, who is a fellow Docrafter, and she joins in a challenge blog called A True Friend. I just love this blog as it's all about using animal photos. And the theme this time was to tell a story. Well, boy do I have a story or two about the furballs who live with us now.. so photos abound, I started with one page only, all about Truly.

Here's some close ups of the page.

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This one just shows Truly cuddled up with her little sis, Holly.

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And this one is just of Truly, in the 6 foot run that she lived in before she came over from Ireland to live with us as a Foster Furball.

I'll not go into too much detail about her life in Ireland, but the fact that she can't see all that well, she has a broken misplaced rib and a foot that isn't quite normal can only tell a story of what happened to her in her short 18months before she arrived. Needless to say that our hearts sank at her situation in the few weeks she was our foster dog, and we kept her forever. Like ya do! lol.

The journalling is about Truly and how she came to stay with us, and is placed under the circle in the middle of the page.

The scrapbook kit is Love Stories {113674 - £15.99} and you get a total of 8 sheets of cardstock, 6 sheets of double sided papers and over 100 elements to help decorate up your pages. Now you can't go wrong at that price can you?? It is such great value and a bundle of lovely colours too.

I hope you like my first ever scrapbook page.. there will be more to come!

Wednesday 4 August 2010

Trendy Trees & a special offer

How are you all today? I'm feeling a bit worn out after our Crafty Evening last night up at Carcroft. We had a small group of wonderful ladies come along to make a scrapbook from the luscious Stampin' Up papers.. I'll share it with you another day. Thank you all for coming though.. you were fantastic!

Today, I've got a few appointments to get through, so this is a very quick post from me to show you the cards I promised you all. I made a collection of 6 altogether. Three using the Chocolate chip for the base, and three using the Sage Shadow. Sorry the photo is a little dark... I took it very early (!) this morning and the light was only just coming up.


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The set of stamps that I've used is one of sets on Promotion this month with Stampin' Up. The price of the set is £12.95, but with the 20% discount, works out at £10.36. You get 7 stamps for just over a tenner!!! Fantastic! The greeting also comes in with the stamp set, and it's multifunctional too! You can do lots of things with the tree heads too, which I hope to show you sometime later in the week.

I did promise you a special offer from me didn't I.. and what a better one than this.

For £17 you will recieve cardstock, two inkpads, ribbon AND the Trendy Trees stamp set complete with instructions to make this set. If you'd like to order this, then please let me know by contacting me on 07545 579 096 or emailing joaustin22@aol.com.

This offer will stay until the 31st August.

All the orders I recieve during the Promotion (1st - 31st August) will be placed in a lucky dip prize draw to win a Stampin' Up hamper worth £40.

Tuesday 3 August 2010

Someone's special day...

Well. I promised you another post today with the second Anniversary card I made for Carley's in-laws, and here it is.

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The background is cut and embossed with a new die that I have - isn't it stunning? So quick and easy to create something nice too. I've embossed onto Stampin' Up cardstock, then added a little bit of shimmer with the new Shimmer Paints {these are absolutely fabbie!} and they come in three different colours. I went for the Champagne colour but it blends equally well on any colour card.

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Here's a close up of the rose I made by stamping with the Vintage Vogue set onto pale pink cardstock and versamark. I then cut and shaped all the parts of the rose and stuck them together. The leaves were from the birdy punch.... it's actually the wing!

Again, you can clearly see the shine that comes from the Shimmer Paint. {not a bad photo for 5.30 in the morning!}

Today, I'm going to leave you with a sneaky peak of some cards that I've been making. Check back tomorrow to see them in full and to receive a Special Offer from me. 

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See you soon!

Monday 2 August 2010

A rose is a rose

... especially if it's yellow.

That was my gran's favourite colour rose, well.. actually it was a pinky yellow rose called Peace.

This stamp set from Stampin Up is so beautiful, I thought it was time that I broke it out of it's packaging and made a card with it. And there was no better reason to do it than to make an anniversary card for Carley's in-laws, whose anniversary it is today.

Here's the card -

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I created the background using the smaller roses that were in the set and then placed a piece of Stampin' Up vellum over the top to soften the colours. The rose was stamped, glittered, then cut out and layered up onto the topper.

I reckon it looks quite good.. but I'll be back tomorrow with a different card I made. I like to do a couple, that way Carley can pick the one she wants.

Today, I want to leave you with this photo of Truly {aka Little Toots and the Ginger Whinger!}. I took it months ago and forgot all about it until I was clearing out my phone images! I hope you like it.Isn't she just adorable!? {although looks can be very decieving!}

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Sunday 1 August 2010

Today's the day..

As today is the 1st August, the new promotion starts with Stampin Up. For this month only, you can receive a Two Step Stamping set with 20% discount!

The leaflet for this is up on my sidebar over there ----------------> so you can click on it to make it bigger, or just click on the leaflet above.

Here is a list of the sets you are able to get -



Good eh? I have a few (!) of these sets, so will sort out some samples for you over the next few weeks, along with some special offers if you order any of these sets from me.

Don't forget you can also join in my Virtual Hostess Groups. I have a couple sorted (see below) and they are filling up fast, so to reserve your place, just let me know.

The product share is also coming along - if you are wanting the new colour products from Stampin' Up, then just get in touch and I'll pop your name onto the list. There are a few places left on this one, so you'll need to be quick.

Right.. onto cardmaking ... and cutting ... and sticking .. Busy busy busy this week! lol
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