Awesome Autumn !

Don’t you just love the Autumn ….. all the colours of the season continually changing, the cold nights snuggled up under a blanket and sipping hot chocolate …. well hot coffee in my case as I hate hot chocolate – yeuch yeuch !

This layout was again (sorry) made using the fantastic Orchard Harvest designer papers.  These papers are just tooooooo useable !  I’m on my second packet of these papers already !!!

This is a really easy layout to make, and I’ve kept it pretty simple so that it can be used for both new scrappers and old alike.    More experienced scrappers could add spritzing, painting and more embellishments to ‘dress it up’ even more.

Instructions

1. Cut strips of paper measuring 1” x 10” and 11/4” x 10”
2. Distress all the edges of the strips of paper using either the distressing tool on the Stampin Up! cutter kit, or using a pair of scissors.  Then ink all the edges using Early Espresso inkpad and dauber.
3. Distress the edges of the background paper using the same technique as above.
4. Adhere the strips of paper as shown
5. Adhere the photo to a piece of Rich Razzleberry cardstock leaving a 1/14” edge all around the photograph
6. Using one of the NEW large jumbo sticky rounds (only available in the Autumn/Winter catty) and some Crumb Cake tulle, tie a knot in the end o f the tulle and keep wrapping the tulle around the knot – twisting the tulle as you keep turning.
7. Adhere the tulle circle as shown, and then add a tulle bow (finished with an antique brad)
8. Add title and journalling as shown

Voila ! How easy ?!!!!!

As always, if you would like to place an order, or if you have any questions or queries, then please contact me on carole.bryson@gmail.com or 01706 351299/07765 847062

DON’T FORGET – YOU HAVE ONLY 5 DAYS TO ORDER FROM THE CURRENT 2012 CATALOGUE !!!!

Scrapbooking … oh, how I love thee …

Yesterday, I spent a lovely day scrapbooking with my friend Marlene.  For those who come to the Rochdale Crop, you know who Marlene is – for those who don’t come to the Rochdale Crop … why not ?!!!!  Anyway, Marlene helps me run the Rochdale Crop, and helps me prepare for parties, classes, kits and most of the time, my life ! She is the type of friend who just knows how I work, and what is going through my head.  I’m really fortunate that I have a couple of friends who know me this well, and I just wanted to take the time to thank you all xx

Anyway, back to the scrapbooking.  Marlene and I spent approximately 8 hours scrapbooking yesterday and putting the world to rights.  Sometimes we talk.  Sometimes we don’t.  With our friendship, the silences don’t matter because that is when we are creating.  I don’t really like ‘scrapping’ on my own, I need companionship, but likewise I need the silence to keep the thought process going ….. for me, Marlene is the best scrapping companion, and my best critic – until it comes to white space …. jeez, she hates white space, whereas I really love it  ….  keep your eyes peeled over the next few days for my white space projects …. how do you feel about white space ? Love it or loathe it ?  Let me know !  Why not share your white space projects and link them to this blog – there could be a small prize for the best one …….

So, to keep Marlene happy, here is a non-white-space project !

This layout uses :-

• First Edition speciality designer papers for the base
• Orchard Harvest designer papers
• Crumb Cake cardstock
• Very vanilla cardstock
• Rich razzleberry cardstock
• Perfectly Preserved stamp and die set
• NEW ‘secret’ stamp set from the NEW Annual Catalogue
• Ink Pads – rich razzleberry, pumpkin orange, lucky limeade, early espresso
• Two tags die
• Scallop border punch
• Onboard alphabet
• Linen thread

INSTRUCTIONS

1. Trim 1/4” from all sides of the First Edition papers, and attach to crumb cake cardstock base.  Fold up the bottom left hand corner and secure with a glue dot.
2. Trim ‘tartan’ paper to 9” x 6.5”
3. Trim ‘orange’ paper to 2.75” x 6.5”
4. Attach the papers as shown – DO NOT ADHERE permanently, as you are going to tuck the scallop border underneath in the next step).  Also, do not adhere the top right hand corner of this layer as you are going to tuck the tags in there.
5. Cut a strip of rich razzleberry cardstock 1”x12” and punch the strip using the scallop border punch.  Attach to patterned papers as shown.
6. Cut out two tags using very vanilla cardstock using the two-tags die.  Ink the edges in early espresso.  Using a darning needle and some linen thread, blanket stitch around the scalloped tag as shown.  Tuck these two tags under the top right hand layer.
7. Stamp out the apples using rich razzleberry ink and lucky limeade ink, and then die cut.
8. Tie a bow in a piece of linen thread and lay over the layout as shown above.  Attach apples over the linen thread by using dimensionals.
9. Stamp flowers and leaves and cut out.  Tuck these under the turn up on the bottom left hand side of the first edition papers.
10. Using rich razzleberry ink, ink the onboard alphabet title, and attach.
11. Add your journalling using strips of very vanilla cardstock
12. Finally, distress the edges of the complete layout using either a distressing tool, or by running a pair of sharp scissors along the edges of the layout.  Finish the distressing by inking the edges.

Voila !  I hope you like this tutorial and will have fun creating your own

STAMPERS GROUP

I only have TWO places left for a new Stampers Group starting in October.  What a great time to start spreading the cost of buying stash with the launch of a new Annual Catalogue !  You commit to spending £15 ore more (plus postage) for 10 months.  During the course of the 10 months, you are the ‘virtual’ hostess for one of those months, and you will earn AT LEAST £25 to spend on anything that you like from any of the current catalogues. 

All you have to do, is make a brew, grab a chocolate biscuit … and browse the catalogues.  You then email me and pay me – and voila ! a few days later, your new stash will be plopping through your door – what could be easier !!!

Contact me on carole.bryson@gmail.com or 01706 351299 to secure your place.   Please let me have your home address, email address and a phone number that I can contact you on if I need to.

NEW CATALOGUE

As I’m sure you all know by now, the new Annual Catalogue is launching on the 1st October !  Believe me, it is absolutely MASSIVE !!!!!  We will then be inline with the catalogues that our Stampin Up! sisters receive in the United States – everything  … lock, stock and smoking barrel.   This catalogue is NOT to be missed !   It is jam-packed full of ideas, inspiration and of course, shed loads of new goodies !!

Sadly, due to the size of the new catalogue, they are extremely expensive to buy and post.  I do not like, and do not believe in charging for catalogues.  Do Asda or Tesco’s charge for you to browse through their shops … nope ….  So, the compromise is …. I will be charging £5 for the catalogue, HOWEVER, I will deduct this £5 from the first order that you place.  Win-win !

As always, if you wish to place an order, or if you have any questions or queries, then please contact me on carole.bryson@gmail.com or 01706 351299/07765 847062

Trip down memory lane … and tadpoles

When my twin brother and I were much much younger, my Dad used to take us on the most amazing ‘adventures’ … in other words, Mum wanted to do housework or washing, and we were under her feet …. We would go ‘big bear hunting’ on Bidston Hill in Birkenhead,  ‘shark hunting’ down to New Brighton, ‘treasure hunting’ around fields where we lived, or ‘frog hunting’ on Bidston Marshes.  These trips although filled with much hilarity at the time, also scared the living daylights out of me, as I never knew what I would actually do if I DID come across a ‘big bear’ or a real ‘shark’ ……

I am so lucky to have such amazing memories, and to have had such a wonderful father with such an imagination – that’s a musician for you !!!

Anyway, when I saw the Perfectly Preserved stamp set in the new Autumn/Winter catalogue, an idea started forming …. then when I saw the teeny tiny frog stamp in the Toxic Treats stamp set – the idea was sealed !

As I was making this project, lots of memories came flooding back, and rather than feeling sad, I was actually laughing out loud … I was remembering the time that my brother and I brought back jars of tadpoles each– hundreds of the boogers – I put mine in an old bath tub in the back yard that my dad had found (he was a prolific hoarder), and how my brother kept his in an empty fish tank in his bedroom.  We watched these little ‘dots’ over the days and weeks develop their ‘tails’ and then start forming their legs …  I also remember my Mum screaming at my brother and dad to get them out of the house … yup, not for one moment did we think those little ‘dots’ would start hopping about as quick as they did … thankfully, it was mine that hopped off first, and we managed to get my brothers outside before they started hopping around his bedroom, and god forbid the house !  However, its the ‘what if' ….’ thought that is making me chuckle more !  My Mum would have had the screaming abdabs if those frogs had managed to hop around our house !!

Anyway, this is my project ……  I thought it would be great as a baby’s congratulations card, but no-one seems to ‘get it’ ….. do you ?

Made using the Perfectly Preserved stamp and die bundle, Toxic Treats stamp set and Orchard Harvest designer papers.

DON’T FORGET – for this month only, spend £50 and earn the chance to win a £10 gift voucher to spend on Stampin Up products, or, earn the chance to be the winner of a BIG SHOT !  ALSO … for this month only, spend £50 on one order, and earn FREE postage.

As always, if you would like to place an order, or if you have any questions, then please contact me on carole.bryson@gmail.com or 01706 351299/07765 847062

Hoppy Crafting !