Retired list and more...

I've just come back from our summer holiday in Florida and although I am missing the days spent by the pool and beach there is plenty of Stampin' Up! news to keep me distracted for the moment!

Retirement list
Hurray! It's SU sale time! With the new catalogue only just round the corner (be sure to email me if you want your copy when it's released on 1 October) the retired list is now out and already a number of items are out of stock. So if there is a stamp set that you have always had your eye on, make sure you order it qucikly before it's sold out. Items on the list will not be able to buy after 30 September. Postage is £4.95 direct to your door by UPS.

You'll notice that all of the new stamp pads are on the retirement list. Fear not! With the exception of the 2011-2012 in-colours which are going for good,  all your other favourites will be back but in a new format. I'll update you on that over the weekend but I didn't want to bombard you with too much info in this post!

Retired Stamps

Accessories List

Autumn/Winter Mini catalogue

For the first time in Europe we now have an Autumn/Winter mini catalogue, so if Christmas and Halloween are your kind of celebration then you will want to get your hand on some of the lovely new products. Becuase I was away I've not yet placed my order but top of my list is the wonderful new Cherry Cobbler tulle, the fabuluous ornament stamp sets, the gold and silver pens (perfect for gift tags) and I could go on and on!

Autumn/Winter catalogue link

Now is a fabulous time to book a party especially with the new Hostess stamp sets available in the Autumn/Winter mini. So if you want to have a fab night in with friends and free stamp sets then get in touch to book your workshop with me!

Summer Enchantment offer!

Summer Enchantment offer click here

Do you remember that gorgeous paper from the Sale-a-bration earlier this year? Well, it's back for a limited time only. And not only that, but it's back with a super cute offer. Spend £45 or more in July and you will receive the Summer Enchantment kit absolutely free. What a perfect time to place an order! And if you have been thinking about being a hostess and earning some wonderful hostess pounds to spend across the catalogue, then this offer is another great incentive to have a fun night in!

As if one great offer wasn't enough, we have just heard some exciting news. Stampin' Up! is going to be launching in Austria and the Netherlands soon! So if you are based in either country and are interested in finding out what it means to become a demonstrator or if you just want to get your hands on some lovely products them please get in touch. As of yet, the date has not been announced as to when the launch will take place but hopefully it's not too far away!

Simply Scored

The Simply Scored scoring pad is here! Demonstrators have been asking for a scoring pad for a while now and Stampin' Up! have obviously been listening! It comes marked in inches with an additional plate in cms available to order separately, if you prefer to use cms.

There is also a Simply Scored Diagonal plate (£10.95 available separately). The diagonal score plate goes on top of the Simply Scored board  so that you can score diagonal lines to make your own custom envelopes.  It's a recent edition and didn't quite make it into the Summer mini in time, but if you'd like to order one just send me an email to let me know.

Hopefully, if I have worked out how to embed video, there should be a useful youtube demonstration below of how the Simply Scored Diagonal Plate works. I have mine on order and can't wait to play with it when it arrives.

New Starter Kit!

 New Starter Kit just £99!

Stampin' Up! have re-launched the Starter Kit. Now for just £99 you can have £130 worth of gorgeous Stampin' Up! goodies plus all that you need to become a demonstrator!


With the new, flexible Starter Kit, you can customise your kit - your way! Each kit contains a business supplies pack (valued at £45 )—things that every demonstrator needs to start her business. After that, the choice is yours. You can choose up to £130  worth of any supplies to create a kit valued at over £175  that still ships for free! Stampin' Up! offers lots of incentives and reward programs for their demonstrators but if that's not for you, and you just want a great discount, then you can still order the kit! There is no requirement for you to host workshops or take it any further if you don't want to. If you do, however, I am here to support you all the way.

And if that wasn't enough join Stampin’ Up! during May and you will receive FREE Registration for this years Stampin’ Up! Convention held 2-3 November in Mainz, Germany, worth an amazing £149! I went to the London Convention a couple of years ago and had a blast. It's a wonderful chance to meet up with other demos, do a bit of crafting and just have a whale of a time.

If you'd like to find out more about the new Strater Kit then please drop me a line: emmakray@yahoo.co.uk

Summer Mini Catalogue Blog Hop!

Hi all. One of the things I love about Stampin' Up! is the team spirit that comes from demonstrators all over the country. The launch of new catalogues is always a great example of this and involves the sharing of designs through a blog hop!

If you have come to my blog direct from Laura  then thank you for taking the time to pop by! Laura's designs are just wonderful. It would be lovely if you could take the time to leave a comment so that I know you have stopped by. After visiting here, why not hop on over to Margaret who has some truely gorgeous cards on her blog. There are two groups for the blog hop. I'm in Group 2 and I've listed the first blogs in each group to help you navigate your way around!

Group 1: Alison's blog
Group 2: Emily's blog 

So without further ado, here is my card that I made for the Summer mini blog hop! I hope you like it. I've used the sketch from The Paper Players challenge #92. I'm loving vertical designs at the moment and I just thought this was the perfect sketch to showcase the gorgeous new stamp set Bordering on Romance.

Ohh, and I only noticed when I uploaded the photo but the flowers are pretty darn close to those on my wallpaper!

The colour inspiration comes from the Colour Coach and should have been Baja Breeze, Calypso Coral and Daffodil Delight but I have run out of DD card so I replaced it with So Saffron, which I think works just as well.

Instructions
I stamped the images in Stazon onto Whisper White cardstock. I then coloured the images in using my blender pens to using the fake watercolour technique. This is a wonderfully simple technique. You just need to squeeze your Stampin' Up! inkpad together and then it will leave a pool of ink on the lid. Pick up this ink with your blender pen and colour in your image. I then added further definition using the marker pen in the same colour and blended it with the blender pen. The whole image is then embossed with the square lattice embossing folder. There is a little pearl in the single flower on the scalloped circle.

Ingredients
Bordering on Romance stamp set (w) 125480/(c) 125482
Card: Baja Breeze, So Saffron, Calypso Coral, Whisper White
Ink & marker pens: Black Stazon, Baja Breeze, So Saffron, Calypson Coral
Other: Pearls
Tools: Blender pens, Square Lattice embossing folder & Big Shot, Scallop Trim border, Scallop Edge border, 1 3/4" scallop circle punch, 1 3/8" circle punch.

Coming soon...

If you are browsing my blog today then welcome! I hope you like my designs and if you want to find out more about the products that I have used, or about my workshops held in the comfort of your own home, then please get in touch.

But ... for the really exciting news make sure you come back tomorrow! Not only will we be launching the new Summer Mini catalogue with a blog hop but there will also be some exciting news. If you have often thought about becoming a demonstrator then ... you'll have to wait until tomorrow!

Let it Snow!

Yes, I know that this post is rather unseasonal of me, but seeing as the north of England and Scotland had some snow last week, perhaps it's not that unseasonal! I suddenly realised that I'd not shared these photos with you, and seeing as this layout was done as a challenge from an American friend of mine, that was rather remiss of me (sorry Lindsay). The challenge was to use part of a Christmas card on our layout and to also include green. Now, I have to confess that I've not been terribly successful at including the green element of the challenge but there is green on the card so I hope that counts!

All the products are by Stampin' Up! I forget the exact name of the paper but it was one of the Christmas designs last year. I've also shimmer sprayed it slightly but you can't really tell in the photo. The cute snowflake was made using the 3-layer doily punch and I've also made a banner with the doily border punch. Both have been covered in dazzling diamonds of an added extra bit of bling!

It's a nice and simple layout but I hope you like it all the same!