Sunday, December 27, 2009

Christmas Songs Quiz

Okay sorry it has taken me a day longer than I said to post the answers.  Just as well I didn't do it yesterday, cause I would have had one of the answers incorrect.  I remember when I did this quiz last year that I was no where near as good at guessing the answers as the other ladies present.  I tried to write down the anwers as they were read out, but with all the laughter & me being a terrible speller I missed a few.  I looked some up on the internet & emailed Jacque my guess at the answers, I had number nine wrong.


1. Rudolph the Red Nosed Reindeer

2. Silent Night

3. Little Town in Bethlehem

4. Good King Wenceslas

5. Joy to the World

6. Hark the Herald Angels Sings

7. We Three Kings

8. Away in a Manger

9. Angels we have Heard on High

10. Oh Come All Yea Faithful

11. Oh Holy Night

12. White Christmas

13. The Twelve Days of Christmas

14. It Came Upon a Midnight Clear

15. Frosty the Snowman

16. All I want For Christmas Is My Two Front Teeth

17. I Saw Mommy Kissing Santa Claus

18. Walking in a Winter Wonderland

19. Deck the Halls

20. Jingle Bells

I hope you all had fun with this, I know I did.  I'm not surprised you were stumped for some of the answers Karen, I was only able to guess at approx half of them.  I do remember playing Christmas Carols on an old stereo as a child, my sister & I would sing along to them.  There is something very joyous & up-lifting in either singing or listerning to Christmas Carols.


Friday, December 25, 2009

Merry Christmas

Merry Christmas to everyone & their families

Last year I attend a friend's Ladies Night at her Church & I remember having a very enjoyable evening, singing Christmas Carols, exchanging a secret Santa gift & playing some fun games.  Yesterday while looking through some of my craft stuff (I was still busy making some last minute gifts)  I found this, it bought back some lovely memories of the evening.  I wasn't able to guess all the answers, see how well you do.  Tomorrow I'll post the answers.

The following words are alternate titles for several well-known Christmas songs

1. Quadruped with Crimson Proboscis
2. Eight P.M. to Six A.M. without Noise
3. Minuscule Hamlet in the Near East
4. Ancient Benevolent Despot
5. Exuberance Directed to the Planet
6. Listen, Aerial Spirits Announcing
7. Trio of Monarchs
8. Yonder in the Hay Rack
9. Cherubim Audited from Aloft
10. Assemble, Everyone who believes
11. Hollowed Post Meridian
12. Fantasia of a colourless December 25
13. A Dozen Twenty-four Hour Yule Periods
14. Befell During the Transparent Bewitching Hour
15. Homo Sapien of Crystallized Vapour
16. Desire a Pair of Incisors on December 25
17. I spied My Maternal Parent Osculating
18. Perambulating Through A December Solstice Fantasy
19. Adorn the vestibule
20. Tin tintinnabulums  

Thursday, December 24, 2009

Quick Little Gifts

Well it's been a few days since I last blogged, I've been very busy making things for Christmas.  I have a bad habit of accidently leaving things until the last moment at Christmas time, this year has been no exception.  As fast as I've made my Christmas cards they have either been sent out or delivered in person - wanted them to arrive in the letterboxes before Christmas day.  So I may be able to find one or two still here that have not yet been finished to blog tomorrow.


Tonight, well I say tonight cause I haven't been to bed yet, it's almost 1.30am, I've been making a few small gifts for family & friends.


These were nice & quick to make.



ooh dear, I'm almost falling asleep at the keyboard, will come back in the morning to finish this post.

Christmas Eve
Today we have been experiencing glitches with our internet connection, we've been off line on & off for hours.

Friday, December 18, 2009

Fast, Quick & Simple

I recently needed to make a small gift & matching card.  Time was at a premium to both design & make them.  This is what I came up with, unfortunately my photos (yes I took these ones myself) don't do the matching lollies inside the cello bag justice.



These were from our cat Neko to a lovely lady that provides him with yummy tidbits through-
out the year.  Mr Neko gets spolit with lamb, chicken & roast beef.

So what better gift than something made with cat stamps & lollies for Barbara.






The lollies are called Black Cats, something I remember eating as a child they are flavoured with aniseed.
But they looked more of a green colour to me, so they got matched up with Sage Shadow ink & cardstock.






I have a soft spot for cats & own a few non Stampin' Up cat stamps.  This one has been inked up with Basic Black.

Both the gift card & cardstock topper on the lollies have been wheeled with the P is for Paw wheel, using Sage Shadow  ink.  Absolute great value at only $13.95 contact me to place any order for Stampin' Up products.

Wednesday, December 16, 2009

watch out Santa is multiplying

About a week ago I posted a photo of a Santa Gift Tag attached to some chocs in a cello bag.  Well I have had lots of positive comments on my Santa Tag, so today I've been busy making some for a girlfriend to give away as small Christmas gifts.  I just had to take a photo of them all before she came and collected them.




These were fun to make & would make great stocking fillers.
I have used a few Stampin' Up punches (well worth owning as they are very good quality), some cardstock, ribbon & some retired DSP papers.
I got the orginal idea for making these from Sam Post a talented Australian SU demo.

Punches used - 1", 3/4" & 1/2" Circle, I sponged around Santa's nose with Blush Blossom ink.  Real Red, Whisper White, Basic Black & Blush Blossom cardstock.  Dazzling Diamonds on Santa's hat & Dimensionals under his nose & moustache.  Real Red 1/4" Grosgrain ribbon & some retired white organza.  The DSP is Dashing, retired from last year.

Contact me to order any Stampin' Up products, or to learn some new stamping techniques.
 

Monday, December 14, 2009

Stampin' Up Inventory Clearance Sale


WoW! - Stampin' Up have an Inventory Clearance Sale from December 15th - January 24th 2010. Up to 50% off selected items.

Over 20 stamp sets to choose from, plus ribbons, DSP papers, Metal Hardware and much much more!


Click HERE to see the online flyer and contact me if you'd like to order anything, supplies are available whilst stocks last.

Thursday, December 10, 2009

Crafty Talented Friends

Wow there's allot of crafty, talented people around, a couple of days ago my friend Judy gave me a very beautiful Christmas card made using the A Wish For Peace stamp set.  Then yesterday Robyn emailed me a photo of her version of a Christmas Cracker.

Judy has used Going Grey, Whisper White & Bashful Blue cardstock with Going Grey Ink. A very elegant card with its Scallop Edge Punch and lovely blue ribbon. I even recieved an early Christmas present from her as well.





Robyn has made a simply fantastic Christmas Cracker with Real Red cardstock and some non SU items. I love the paper she has used to wrap around her cracker, very festive looking.  She told me the cracker would be filled with chocolate and then given to some lucky person. 
 

Monday, December 7, 2009

To Good To Lose

Some items in the Spring Mini Catalogue that ended on November 31st were just to good to lose, Stampin' Up has announced they are still available for purchase.  Absolutely great news for us crafters, as they are all worth having in any craft room.

112534 Jumbo Brads 5/16" Neutrals Assortment $18.50

112533 Jumbo Brads 5/8" Neutrals Assortment $16.25

114889 Scallop Oval Punch $35.95

106960 StazOn Ink Pad (White pad and refill) $26.95

109196 StazOn Cleaner $11.75




I will be highligting these and many more fabulous Stampin' Up products over the next few weeks of the festive season.

Sunday, December 6, 2009

Cute Santa Gift Tag




The inspiration for this Santa Gift Tag came from Sam Post an Australian SU demo.  I really liked her Santa card made using SU punches, a girl can never have enough punches lol.

I decided to turn it into a Gift Tag and add some chocolate, everyone likes receiving chocolate at Christmas time, I know I do.

I'm quite pleased with myself, I wanted to link this to her blog and with a bit of persevrance, and trying to remember what KarenR had told me, I've worked out how to do it.  I must say I've been avoiding giving this a go, but like all the other things I have learnt to work this blog, it's very easy once you know what to do.

Friday, December 4, 2009

Bella Bleu Criss Cross Card


I had an enjoyable afternoon at my friend Robyn's yesterday, while I was there we made this Criss Cross card.

It's made with Kraft cardstock and the very beatuiful Bella Bleu DSP, which has been sponged lightly with Night of Navy. 

These are very versatile papers as they can be used for either masculine or feminine cards.

Wednesday, December 2, 2009

Two Cards Made Using Baja Breeze


Wow! - aren't these cards fantastic!

KarenR showed us on Sunday afternoon how to make the card on the left  - it uses the 'Ocean Commotion' stamp set with Heat & Stick Powder, unfortunately it has not shown up in the photo.  Okay I have just looked at this post & if you click on the photo to enlarge it, you can see the Heat & Stick Powder on the Seaweed type swirl.

The card on the right was Sally's swap made from the new Summer Mini Catalogue - the stamp set is 'Something Sweet'.  A very versatile set that is designed to be used with the Sweet Treat Cups.  I will post more tomorrow about the Sweet Treat Cups.

Both cards use Baja Breeze, a beautiful shade of blue that is part of this year's in-colours.

Tuesday, December 1, 2009

My First Blog Candy Winner

Thank you to all those that entered the -  what comes next in this sequence of numbers?

To all those that either left a comment on my blog or emailed me, give yourselves a pat on the back - every single one of you guessed the correct answer 13 

My son wasn't impressed when I mentioned to him how many woman had answered correctly - over 20 of you submitted an answer  
His response was - "well they weren't trying to complete lots of questions as fast as possible"
He apparently thought he would get extra marks if he finished it as fast as possible.

And the winner is Elizabeth W
I have sent you an email Elizabeth and when I receive your address, I'll be able to send you your Blog Candy - I'd love it if you could send me a photo or two of any creations you make with it.

Monday, November 30, 2009

Wow the New Summer Mini Catalogue is Here

As promised a quick look at some cards made from the New Stampin' Up Summer Mini Catalogue



The card beside the New Summer Mini Catalogue was one of my first attempts to use a stamp set from this fab new mini catty.  I wasn't entirley happy with it so made a better version, but unfortunately I don't have any of the cards left to take a photo - I used them as my team swap on Sunday.






This photo shows some of the fantastic swaps I received at KarenR's team training yesterday.

All the cards are made using stamp sets and embellishments from the New Summer Mini Catalogue.

Sunday, November 29, 2009

Still Time For Your Chance To Win Some Blog Candy

Go take a look at my post from Tuesday 24th November
There is still time to to answer my question and then go into the draw for some Blog Candy
I posted a photo of the Blog Candy on Wednesday 25th Novemember

I will get Jonathan to pull a name out of a hat at midnight tomorrow - and post the winner on Tuesday 1st December - to help celebrate the arrival of the new Summer Mini Catalogue.

The WOW paperKRafters had team training at KarenR's place today. We had lots of fun giving each other swaps from the new Summer Mini Catalogue. Plus I got to demonstrate matching Bride and Groom treat boxes. Karen taught us how to make a cool summer drink card using vellum cardstock, ink pads and sponges, it even has a cute little cocktail umbrella on top. Then Karen provided a wonderful array of nibbles and some fabulous Moet to drink, we were well and truly spolit – plus you should see the fabulous Christmas card she gave to all of us. It uses a fantastic new product from the new Summer Mini Catalogue.

Unfortunately the lighting at the moment doesn’t allow me to post any photos, so check back tomorrow to take a look at what the WOW papeRKafter’s have been making.

Saturday, November 28, 2009

New Summer Mini Launch - come and join us for some stamping fun

Sunday 6th December Summer Mini Launch, a free make and take or two and have a play with some of the new products.

The new Summer Mini Catalogue is bursting full of new products -  fabulous stamp sets, accessories, ribbons, crafting tools and more...

Contact me if you would like to come.
just click on my email details on the right hand side of my blog

Tomorrow I will be posting a few sneak peaks of Stampin' Up's great new line up of products and stamping, papercrafting ideas.

Thursday, November 26, 2009

I Just Had To Case This

Oxymorons
1. Is it good if a vacuum really sucks?
2. Why is the third hand on a watch called the second hand?

3. Why do we say something is out of whack? What is a whack?

4. Why is it called "after dark" when it really is "after light"?

5. Why are a "wise man" and a "wise guy" opposites?

6. Why do "overlook" and "oversee" mean opposite things?

7. If work is so terrific, why do they have to pay you to do it?

8. If all the world is a stage, where is the audience sitting?

9. If love is blind, why is lingerie so popular?

10. Why do you press harder on the buttons of a remote control
when you know the batteries are dead?

11. Why do we put suits in garment bags and garments in a suitcase?

12. How come abbreviated is such a long word?

13. Why doesn't glue stick to the inside of the bottle?

14. Why do they call it a TV set when you only have one?

15. Christmas - What other time of the year do you sit in front of a dead tree and eat candy out of your socks?

I saw this on Jacque Pedersen's blog recently and had a real chuckle over it.  Like Jacque I especially love the last one and can relate to the one about remote controls, as our batteries need replacing, but I have forgotten to get some my last couple of visits to the supermarket.

Well here goes, I'm going to attempt to place a link to Jacque's blog now.
Thanks to KarenR helping me, I have linked to Jacque's blog properly.  Amazing how simple, quick and easy things are when you know what your're doing.

Wednesday, November 25, 2009

Photo Took Longer Than I Thought It Would



Well due to technical difficulties, it has taken much longer than I thought it would to post a photo of the Blog Candy I talked about in yesterday's post.

I'm still learning how to take a reasonably decent looking photo lol - judging from my attempts so far, this could take awhile. Finally pinned my son down so he could take a photo for me, and as usual he was in a hurry to be doing something much more interesting to him.  So, I barely had a chance to display the items before he had taken the photo.

Just look at yesterday's post, answer a very simple question, then either email me or leave a comment with your guess at the answer.  A big thank you to all those that have already guessed.

Tuesday, November 24, 2009

BLOG CANDY ALERT - This Should Get You Thinking

My son Jonathan recently had to do an aptitude test, he did very well on it, but not as well as he would have liked.  There were 28 questions, he answered 23 correctly, got 4 wrong and just could not work out the answer to the 5th one he got wrong.  When he came home he asked me if I could answer it and guess what, I actually could - absolutley amazing, I was quite chuffed with myself, but I know I would not have been able to answer 23 correctly like Jonathan did.  He was told 16 was the average and anything over 20 was very good, so I'm really very proud of him.

Here is the question that stumped him: 'what comes next in this sequence of numbers?'

0       1       1       2       3       5       8

I'm going to offer some blog candy to those that can answer this correctly.  I will put all correct answers into a hat and get Jonathan to pull out the winner - this will be done on the last day of November.  Hope you have lots of fun with this.  I with try and get a photo of the blog candy posted later on today.

 

Monday, November 23, 2009

Lots of fun at Karen's Stamp Class tonight


Santa - made up as a Bag in a Box

This was one of the projects we made in Karen's stamp class tonight - yes it's still tonight but only just, midnight is almost here - and duh I'm having a mental block trying to write my post tonight.  I know we all had lots of fun making these with much laughter as almost all of us did something wrong while making Mr Santa.  One lady accidently tore a little hole in her DSP, another punched a hole where there wasn't supposed to be one and me, I should have the the joining seam of the DSP at the back of my Santa, but somehow it's on one side - so I called him my drunk Santa.  Karen was great coming up with ideas and ways to hide or fix the little problems we created for ourselves.  Plus that's how we all learn from our mistakes, some of the best things I have made is a result of hiding something I didn't like, and not wanting to start over from scratch again.

Sunday, November 22, 2009

My First NZSU Challenge Entry


This is not just my first NZSU challenge, but my first challenge ever.  Plus I think it's the first time I have embossed on metallic cardstock.  I have put black Jellybeans inside the box to match the black embossing.

I made this very quickly so I could enter the challenge - that's why I like using wheels, you can whip something up pretty fast.  They are also very good value for money, once you have the handle  it's either $8.95 for the Stampin' Around  Handle or $12.95 for the  Jumbo Handle.  The Wheels are either $13.95 or $18.95 each.

Contact me if you are interested in making a purchase or finding out more about the Wheels or any other Stampin' Up products.

Saturday, November 21, 2009

Freddo the Frog went to Kindy




As promised a photo from last night's Fundraiser at the Waimauku Kindergarten.  If you look at the front of the table you can see the Freddo the Frog chocolate pull pouches I made.

  



This is a close up of the candles I decorated, using the Soft Holly wheel.
Candles are very easy to decorate with help from a Heat Tool.
Soft Holly Wheel, with Real Red and Old Olive inks and matching grosgrain ribbons
Large and Small Tag Punches


Friday, November 20, 2009

Fun at the Waimauku Kindergarten

Sally and I had a very enjoyable evening at the Waimauku Kindergarten Fundraiser tonight.  I will  post a photo in the next day or so. I now have rather sore feet, from lots of standing and a very sore thoart from all the talking I did. 

I sold lots of Freddo the Frogs and other Christmas treats.  Sally made some wonderful Christmas Crackers with some yummy chocolate inside.  Sally can definately tie much better looking bows than I can, I struggle to get mine sitting straight.

I''d like to say a big thank you to the staff and committee members of the Waimauku Kindegarten, for all the many hours of planning that must of gone into making this event so sucessful for both guests and stallholders.

Freddo the Frog Takes on Christmas



Well in the early hours of Thursday morning I came up with an idea to make Freddo look Christmassy.  I like what I came up with and I hope you do too.

I have had these chocolate frogs in the house for awhile - they were waiting for me to create something for them - just as well I don't like plain dairy milk chocolate or they would of been long gone lol

I have just shortened the length of a chocolate pull pouch to fit the little frogs into, added some Designer Series Paper, a little ribbon and a cute stamped candy cane - coloured in with a Real Red marker and made shinny with some Crystal Effects.  ooh and I added a little red tongue just sticking out of the Freddos mouth

Wednesday, November 18, 2009

Freddo the Frog


Why is Freddo the Frog smiling?

He's smiling cause he's surrounded by chocolate of course

I just love Stampin' Up Punches and all the creative things you can do with them

Freddo was made using a handful of different Stampin' Up  punches

1 3/8" Circle, Large Oval, Small Oval, 1/2" Circle, and the Boho Blossoms Punch for his feet - Plus the Cropadile to make the 1/4" circles

my friend Sally showed me how to make this cute frog last weekend

now I'm just trying to think of some way to make Mr Freddo look Christmassy - any ideas would be greatly appreciated

Tuesday, November 17, 2009

Rudolph the RED Nose Reindeer - Take Two


Yesterday I posted just the topper of this project.
Today I have added a bag of red Jaffas' to match Rudolph's shiny red nose.

This was a very easy treat to make, my favourite kind - fast, quick and simple.

The Creative Inkers recently had a team Christmas Card Swap and Patrice Halliday-Larsen came up with the brilliant idea of having Rudolph's nose glow in the dark.  I was unable to achieve an exact replica as I don't own a brayer and had to make do with sponges. IMO - Patrice's card does look better, but I think my efforts look kind of cute.

Real Red & Whisper White cardstock
Basic Grey Ink
Crystal Effects - used to make Rudolph's nose glow
Dimensionals & Sponges

sorry I have not yet added a link to Patrice's blog as I'm not quite sure how it's done, and my computer wizz is in bed asleep (aka my son) - will add link tomorrow.

Monday, November 16, 2009

Rudolph the RED Nose Reindeer



Today's photo is of an unfinished project inspired by Patrice Halliday-Larsen.

Come back tomorrow and you will see it completed.


Sunday, November 15, 2009

Fun at the Craft Market


Sally and I were at the Greenhithe Craft Market today, we had lots of fun and meeting and talking to crafters about Stampin' Up.