A bit of scrap booking

I don't know that these pages will be inspiring anyone very much but I'm pleased just to get some scrapping done! So many photos of the kids to catch up on so am keeping it so so simple and I'm working on using up all my "old" stuff - you know all those lovely papers you've got sitting there waiting to be used - well I'm just using them up as much as I can!

Rest of my trip

Friday morning was really fun with swapping and make and takes.

Here's Liz swapping her lovely Christmas ornaments with Vanessa who made nifty decorations with the pennant die.

Here's my table for the make and takes. We made some lovely projects with a new stamp set from the upcoming Summer mini catalogue.

The husbands amused themselves for the morning - some went to play golf, others went bushwalking (like Matt did) or just chilled out by the pool.

I spent the afternoon lazing by a pool with Liz and our hubbies having a cocktail and reading trashy mags. :-)

Dinner that night was lovely! The Italian restaurant at the Marina was great.

On Saturday Liz and I and our respective husbands went for a visit to the air traffic control tower! My husband is an air traffic controller in Brisbane and knows the controller on Hamilton so we went to say hi.

It was really cool to spend some time in the tower watching the planes and helicopters come and go and to see the controller doing his thing. Although its probably one of the shortest towers around, it still had lovely views.

After the visit to the tower we grabbed some gourmet picnic hampers from the hotel and went off in one of the gold buggies to have our lunch. Check out the scenery!

Later that afternoon we gathered in the hotel bar to find out our activity for that evening. It was kind of like a treasure hunt! We were put into teams of 4 (there's our buggy buddies in the photo above!) and sent off in golf buggies to hunt down the answers to a bunch of questions and clues. As we drove around the island we stopped at various locations where a Stampin Up staff member gave us prizes - whoo hoo!

The very last clue we found gave us the location of our farewell dinner - the beautiful new Yacht Club. Absolutely gorgeous! We had some pre-dinner drinks and nibblies and then went inside to see...
...the beautiful table settings - lovely! The dinner was by far one of the best meals I have ever had - every element was just perfect. A beautiful ending to a dream get-away.

Hamilton Island Incentive Trip 2010

As many of you may already know, I earned Stampin' Up!'s annual Incentive Trip this year. The Incentive Trip is earned on a combination of sales and team building and there were 25 demonstrators on the trip this year.

I thought you might like to have a bit of a look at where we went and what we did.

Day 1

When we arrived we went to visit the "hospitality suite" which was on the top floor of the Reef View Hotel. The room was a gathering place to meet with the other demonstrators and Stampin Up staff. Each day we could spin the wheel and win a little prize. The room was also stocked with jars upon jars of American Candies for us to eat! (I brought a few home for my lovely team members to share at our meeting!)

Here's me with Kim Gavarra (another Brisbane demonstrator) and her husband Warren. You can see Warren filling up one of the bags that had out for us to put our "candy" in!

Here's me getting a sneak peak of the next Summer mini catalogue that will be available from December 1st. Sorry, I can't show you what's inside - top secret!! But trust me, there is heaps of great new stuff in there - my wishlist is HUGE!!!

We had a Welcome Dinner that night (and of course I forgot to take the camera along!) and when we got back to our room this gift was waiting. Its a wet seal bag containing underwater cameras, snacks and instructions for the next day's group adventure - a trip out to go snorkeling on the reef!

Day 2.

Here's Kim and me waiting at the Marina for our trip to the reef. Gotta love the big hat! LOL! I didn't end up wearing much out at the reef pontoon as it was a bit too windy. The windy weather made for rough seas and most of the boat was throwing up! I was nauseous but managed to keep it all down. :-) They sold a lot of Sea Sick tablets before the return journey!

Once out at the Reefworld Pontoon we snorkelled and sat up on the sundeck. Matt and I spent a bit of time chatting with Shelli and Sterling. (Shelli is the CEO and co-founder) and found them to be very lovely people - very friendly and down to earth. They weren't keen on the snorkelling but Matt and I gave it a go and I'd like to do it again sometime.

We went out for dinner at one of the local restaurants near the hotel with Liz, Martin, Kim and Warren.

After dinner Kim and I went up to Liz's room to help her stick her swaps together. Goodness knows how long she'd have had to stay up for if we didn't help! LOL! It took ages! Here's me and Kim being worked like slaves! LOL!

When we FINALLY got back to our rooms, here's what we found: A lovely tin with all the supplies we'd need for the next days make and takes. Can't show you inside as it contains a new stamp set from the upcoming Summer Mini!

Goodness me, this is taking me forever to post. I am going to publish this much, take a break for lunch and come back to finish the rest this afternoon. :-)

Scrunchy flower and funky bird

This is a card I have been demonstrating at my recent workshops. Its a really fun one because you use markers to ink the stamps and also the scrunchy flower is my new favourite embellishment!


Stamps: Cheep Talk
Inks: Concord Crush, Pear Pizzazz, Early Espresso and Peach Parfait Stamp'n'write Markers
Paper: Concord Crush, Whisper White, Dsp is from the Level 1 hostess gift paper stack.
Accessories: Early Espresso Satin Ribbon, Rhinestone Brads (Circle Fire collection)
Tools: Scallop Circle Punch



This one is pretty much the same card, turned on its side, but with a knot in the ribbon instead of the flower.

Cute Owl!

Here's a card featuring the very cute new 2-step Owl Punch.

Stamps: Woodgrain Background, Teeny Tiny Sentiments

Inks: Soft Suede

Paper: Confetti White, Crumb Cake (formerly know as Kraft) Soft Suede, Daffodil Delight, Greenhouse Gala DSP

Accessories: Daffodil Delight Taffeta ribbon

Tools: 1 3/4 inch circle punch, 2-step Owl punch

September Xmas stamp-a-stack cards

Christmas Stamp-a-Stack cards

In Septmeber I held a Christmas Stamp-a-Stack Class. A Stamp-a-Stack involves making multiples of a few nice and easy card designs. Its a great way to get started on your Christmas Card stash! I will be holding another one on the 26th October with 3 new designs.

Here are the 3 designs from September:



This one uses Early Espresso and Crumb Cake. The embossed carstock has been lightly sponged over with White Frost shimmer paint.



This one uses Cherry Cobbler, Chocolate Chip and the Jolly Holiday Designer Paper. The Dasher reindeer stamp has been inked with markers. Then glitter was added with a 2-way glue pen and Dazzling Diamonds.



This Christmas tree is from the Season of Joy stamp set. I mixed a few drops of White Frost shimmer paint with a few drops of Old Olive ink and applied it to the stamp with a spnge dauber. The result is a pearlised Old Olive ink!

Sharing some Scrapping

A while ago I attended my first scrapbooking weekend retreat - what fun! I had a mission to complete my eldest son's Baby Album (just the first year really) and am hapy to report that it is almost all done! (I came down with a virus on the Saturday night so didn't get anything done on the Sunday) There's still some journalling and dates that need to be added, must get onto that soon!

I thought I would just share a few of the pages with you here. The best thing I did that allowed me to get lots done was to get organised before I left. I spent a day choosing my photos and then the papers and embellishments to go with them. I used only what I had in my stash at home so it was not an expensive exercise at all. I find I work best/fastest when I have limited supplies, otherwise I get paralysed by choice! Also, there just simply was not room to take everything I owned!! LOL! I kept the layouts very simple in an effort to just "get it done!"

I'm not going to list all the supplied used since most of it is "retired" Stampin Up product that is no longer available. If you do have any questions you can always send me an email :-)

Ribbon Shares

Are you a ribbon addict like me and you just NEED to have all the different colours and styles?? (Please don't let me be the only one! LOL!)

Well if you are (and I know you are - surely!!) then my RIBBON SHARES are just what you need!

One spot in each share allows you to receive 1 metre of each colour for that style of ribbon. You may even like to purchase two spots in a share to receive 2 metres of each colour.

Each share contains 13 colours (Whisper White, Very Vanilla, Daffodil Delight, Pumpkin Pie, Pretty in Pink, Real Red, Rich Razzleberry, Night of Navy, Marina Mist, Certainly Celery, Old Olive, Early Espresso and Basic Black)

The exception to this is the In-Colour share which contains 5 colours - Blushing Bride, Peach Parfait, Poppy Parade, Concord Crush and Pear Pizzaz.

Listed below are the names of each share and the cost for 1 spot which = 1 metre of each colour.

If you require your shares to be posted to you (as opposed to being picked up from me or me delivering locally) there will be a postage charge added - it will be actual cost according to whatever Australia Post charges me. (I will keep it as low as possible)
1.
In-Color Stitched Poly Ribbon
$6.55 = 1 metre each of 5 colours
2.
5/8 Inch Grosgrain
$14.95 = 1 metre each of 13 colours3.
1/4 Inch Grosgrain
$10.95 = 1 metre each of 13 Colours4.
3/8 Inch Taffeta
$18.70 = 1 metre each of 13 colours
5.
1/8 Inch Taffeta
$17.35 = 1 metre each of 13 colours

6.
5/8 Inch Satin
$16.95 = 1 metre each of 13 colours.

New Catalogue is Here!

The gorgeous new Idea Book & Catlaogue is now here! Click on the picture above to download your copy. Personally I think it is even better to have a hard copy to browse at your leisure - if you'd like your own copy please contact me and you can either pick yours up from me or I can have it mailed direct to you. Cost is $1o (RRP $12.95) plus $5.95 postage if being mailed to you.

The New Catalogue Is Coming!!!

Are you as excited as me about seeing the new Stampin Up Idea Book & Catalogue??? I have my demonstrator copy already and let's just say, my wishlist is HUGE!!! New stamps, new Big Shot dies and folders, new punches, new colours....
My pre-ordered catalogues will be arriving any day now and here’s how you can get your hands on one!

Come to my “Catalogue Launch” workshop!

Date: Saturday 4th September
Time: 10am
Place: 15 Coral Pea Close, Warner

Cost to attend is $10 – this includes morning tea, 2 make and takes and your copy of the new Idea Book & Catalogue (normally $12.95)

RSVP: Tuesday 31st August - The first 8 people to RSVP with payment will receive a bonus Father's Day card make'n'take kit!

Attendees will also have the opportunity to enter a raffle prize of some great Stampin Up products – cost of entry is a gold coin donation for our Mater Angel Boxes.


If you are unable to attend the Catalogue Launch workshop, never fear, you can still get your copy of the Idea Book & Catalogue!
You can drop in and pick up your copy just about any time – just call before hand to make sure I am home. Cost will be $10.

If you are unable to drop by (i.e. you live too far away) I can have the catalogue delivered direct to you but there will be a postage fee of $6 in addition to the cost of the catalogue.

Want your copy for FREE??? Here’s how:
Book a workshop – hostesses receive a free copy. Book for September/October and collect your free catalogue as soon as they are available.
Place a $100 order during August and pick up your free copy. (if you need it posted to you there will be a postage charge)

The Idea Book & Catalogue will also be available to view online at www.stampinup.com from the 1st September.

If you have been thinking about joining our fun team of demonstrators, you might like to consider attending a catalogue launch 'sneak peak' at our next demonstrators meeting on Saturday 28th August 2.30 – 5 at
Wynnum Manly Leagues Club, Wondall Rd, Manly West. Come along and see why we love what we do! RSVP is essential and cost to attend is $5 and includes 2 make & takes.


_______________________________________

Don't forget - many products and colours are being discontinued at the end of August so please contact me to order any of your must-have items before they are gone forever. If you don't have a copy of the list please let me know. It is available on the Stampin Up Website but I can also email you a copy if you prefer

_______________________________________

Rebecca Ross
stampinwithbec@netspace.net.au
0403 071 367
07 3882 5336

Close to Cocoa, close to gone!!

Hi stampers,

Wow, been a while between blog posts, sorry!

Just wanted to let you know that Close To Cocoa A4 cardstock has just about run out! There will be no more after this so PLEASE, if you need some, order it right away!! It is expected to be all gone in a few days time. Probably a good idea to get the ink refill for you ink pad too if you are stocking up on the colour.

Convention News

Wow, what a whirlwind few days at the Sydney 2010 Stampin Up Convention!

Big news first - you too can join in the fun be becoming a demonstrator for 20% less! From now until the end of July, the starter kit will be only $259! You will receive well over $500 value as well as enjoying a 20% discount on your purchases, a "job" that you can work in around your family life, fun and friendship with other demonstrators and more!

My other piece of big news is that I placed 18th in the demonstrator of the year awards for 2010! I have to admit I really was not expecting to place anywhere in that top 25, let alone 18th so I was very excited and honoured. I couldn't not have achieved that without my wonderful upline Liz (who place number 6 this year!!!), my wonderful downline or team members and of course my fabulous customers and friends. :-)

More news to share later but for now, here are a few pictures from the event:

Me, Shelli Gardner (CEO) and Liz

Liz and Me with our prizes for sales awards

Some of my lovely team members

Liz and me at the Managers' Reception with mega hot chocolates!

Colour Renovation Coming!

Colour Renovation

Wow, some exciting news! Stampin Up is going to be having a "colour renovation" in September with the new Idea Book and Catalogue!

Some of our current colours will be discontinued and there will be some brand new colours introduced, along with the return of some of our favourite in-colours!

Our colours will then be organised into 4 Colour Collections, rather than the Colour Families we know at the moment. Some of the colours have moved into different collections and I just love the way they look - so fresh and vibrant!

There's still quite a bit of time before this comes into effect so don't worry - you will have plenty of time to collect any of your favourite colours that may be discontinued.

If you have favourties that you just can't live without, its a great idea to purchase the ink refill bottle so that your inkpad can last almost forever! And you might like to purchase a pack or 2 of the matching cardstock to see you through.

Personally, I know that I will fall in love with the new collections just as much as I love the current ones so I am not too worried. I do love Kiwi Kiss though so I may have to stock up on that one! LOL!

You'll see and hear more about this as September draws closer, but for now, enjoy your colours and keep stamping!

Brisbane Paper Craft Festival

This past weekend, a few of our Paper Angels team and I held a stand at the Brisbane Paper Craft Festival. What a great time we had! It was an exhausting 3 days but we met lots of lovely paper crafters and had a great time helping them with our free make and take project.

Did any of you blog readers happen to pop by? We'd love to hear what you thought about our stand so leave a comment here on my blog if you like. :-)

Baby Shower for Bell

A few months ago my lovely sister-in-law and (valued team member) Bell had a baby shower. Today she had her baby!!! I will be going to visit and meet my new niece tomorrow but in the mean time, here are some pics of the baby shower gift packaging I made a couple of months ago...

Stamps: Fun and Fast Notes (the pram image)

Inks: Pretty In Pink

Paper: Pretty in Pink, Whisper White, Tea Party DSP, Pretty in Pink Patterns DSP

Accessories and Tools: Butterfly Punch, Certainly Celery Grosgrain Ribbon, Soft Subtles Brads, Chit Chat Rub Ons.

Face Book Fan Page

Hi All,

Just a quick note to let you know I have started a Face Book Fan Page for "Stampin' With Bec". If you're a Face Book User please come and join my page!

Bec.

9th Wedding Anniversary

My lovely husband Matt and I were married on this day, 9 years ago. :)

Here is the card I've made for him this year.

You can see here that I've used Dimensionals to raise up the hearts. I've also used glue dots under the smallest hearts just to get a different height on them. The hearts were punched with the "heart to heart" punch.

I've used the Regal Rose patterned paper from the Level 1 Hostess pack as well as Night of Navy cardstock. I've done faux stitching around the navy cardstock with my white gel pen.

The "Happy Anniversary" is stamped and embossed in Whisper White.

I was really stuck for an idea for this card. I think it is taking me a while to get back into the swing of things after not doing any papercraft for 2 weeks! In the end, I pulled out a card magazine and had a flip through until I found something that caught my interest and then off I went. Here's the card that inspired my creation: