Where do your ideas come from?

I held a workshop for a regular card class attendee and some of her friends this past weekend.  I had such a good time.  These ladies were fun to spend an afternoon with.   One lady even had me take pictures of them crafting and posted them on Facebook.  I think they had a good time too. <grin>


I haven't held a lot of workshops yet.   My usual sessions have mostly been card classes where I've known the attendees ahead of time or at least I know their name and the connection they have with another attendee.    The thing about workshops is you don't know ahead of time if the friends will be veteran crafters, newbies or somewhere in between.   This group on the weekend had it all.


Ahead of time, the hostess and I decided we would make 3 cards and 2 tags at the workshop and hold it as more of a card class than as a demonstration.   Hands on is SOOO much more fun for everyone attending!!!   I had offered for the hostess to choose 3 stamp sets to work with.   She chose:  
       

Christmas Cuties

Peaceful Pines

Snow Place

Aren't they awesome sets?   Peaceful Pines and Snow Place even come in a bundle with matching framelits dies.   I sure showcased a lot of different Stampin' Up Products at this workshop.

We made the following cards and tags:

I was asked many questions that day but one, that struck me as 'interesting enough to blog about' was:  where do your ideas come from? 
This from a crafter but not necessarily a card-maker.   (It's my understanding that she's now hooked, loved die cuts and even purchased a BigShot machine on Kijiji for a decent price! Oh my goodness, she sounds like me after my first card class.   Must contact her to see if she would like to become a demonstrator, too!   teeheehee)

The timing of the question was when we were making the Peaceful Pines card.

 

They really seemed to like this card and tag.  I was so pleased.  You see, the card came from MY mind's eye. ME, the one who never considered herself to be creative!!

My response was: inarticulate at best - but went something like... "I made this one up myself" but I went on to explain about other influences including other demos work, YouTube, Pinterest, and of course, the Stampin' Up! catalogue pages themselves.

For you see, the Merry tree tag and the other two cards were CASEd from the holiday catalogue.  A couple of changes here and there and voila, I had ideas for the workshop.  Sometimes you need an idea quickly and copying is perfectly okay as long as you give credit where credit is due.

What I didn't say is that inspiration can come from ANYWHERE.   I've been inspired from the fall colours when I drive to work, from a pattern I've seen on a bedspread or shower curtain, even from a distant memory that I wanted to try and capture.  And heaven forbid, I'm even starting to see colours around me in terms of Stampin' Up colour coordination.  <grin>

Sometimes, I chose some paper and a stamp set that I've been wanting to use and make a card. I might start out with wanting to try a technique that I had just learned.  And sometimes, ok,  quite often the idea that I started out with... is not even close to what I end up with!!   Anything Goes!!  More about that another time.


Where do YOU get your ideas from?  I would love to hear how your creativity is sparked.


If you would like to book a workshop for you and your friends, please contact me.  I would be happy to work with you.  A workshop can be held at your place or at the MMI office boardroom.  I'm even holding a workshop on PEI in November!  So excited about that one.  (It's at my sister's place with my nieces and some of their friends).

PS -  Stampin' Up! is offering an extra 3% of Stampin' Rewards for event orders over $400.00 until November 9, 2015.  It's a great time to host a workshop!

Until next time...Happy Stamping!

Cathy

Anything Goes Crafts

PPS        Yes, it’s been 2 months since I’ve posted on my blog.  Did you miss me?  I’ll try to do better in the future but I make no promises that life, work or travelling won’t get in the way again.  <grin>
I recently made the comment at a group meeting about wondering whether anyone even reads my blog and one of my fellow demos pipped up saying she reads it so….. thanks Ann!!

Note of thanks to my "no contact" customers

I received a customer order the other day from Stampin' Up!'s on-line demo business website (dbws). It's not the first time somebody has ticked the "No Contact" box - which is entirely their prerogative. I am very appreciative of the business.

So, should you be reading this, I would like to thank you very much for placing your order through me. I do wish that I could say a proper "thank you" and to offer any assistance you might require.

If you decide that you would like to change that 'no contact' status, please feel free to contact me for a copy of the current catalogue(s). There is no obligation to purchase. My email address is AnythingGoesCrafts@gmail.com

Sincerely,

Cathy Miller
Independent Stampin' Up! Demonstrator

Single layer cards swap

I don't know if I'd ever made a single layer card before.  So when I saw a post advertising this swap, I was curious and really wanted some additional ideas to share with my classes and customers.

Most who attend my classes have heard me exclaim about not really liking a lot of white on my cards so... what to do about a single layer card?  where do I start?... with a piece of whisper white thick card stock!        and then to keep things simple I decided to use just a couple of colours: I'm pretty sure I used rich razzleberry (I had the perfect plum on the table too) for the backgrounds. And memento black ink for the sentiment which is from the Watercolor Words stamp set.  The flower strip in the white stripes is from the Bordering Blooms stamp set and is stamped in the same colour as the background, just really "inked up".

My contribution to the swap:

fresh card stock in the template

fresh card stock being placed in to
the much used template

When I made my original card, I just used some wide washi tape to give me the white stripes but to make 15 of them, I decided to make a template.  Plus you have to be REALLY careful when you peel the washi tape off to not take some of the cardstock.
It's hard to tell from these pictures because my template is white as well as my card stock but...hopefully you can get the idea.




The background technique is quite simple.  Wrap various sizes and widths of elastics around a clear block at various angles and distances apart.  I used a C block.  Add a rhinestone or two if desired (round dots on the card).  Ink up your makeshift background stamp and have fun creating unique backgrounds. No need to ink up after every stamp down on the cardstock; sometimes the second or even the third stamp is prettier.    I then used a sponge dauber and lightly or a bit heavier depending on the look I want to create, cover the area.   NO TWO CARDS ARE THE SAME!

I can't take credit for this idea.  Demonstrator Tina Weller posted about this back last spring.  I really liked the results and have tried it since then on a few occasions.  Like this one from the May 2015 class.

These are the cards I got back in return:

I almost couldn't participate in this swap because it was scheduled at the same time (wouldn't ya know it!) as the 3x3 swap I had already signed up for.   see previous blog post for that card.   But thanks to the wonderful generosity of the organizer, Sandi Risi, I was able to.  She met me earlier in the day to get my swaps, did the swapping for me (although I missed getting to meet the wonderful ladies that were involved with it) and then tracked me down after to give me all the new goodies PLUS that cute little purse in the picture.  What a wonderful person to do that for me.  Thanks Sandi!

Stampin' Up! Demos are awesome -- one big family!  If you'd like to be part of the family or to find out more about becoming a demonstrator, contact me to find out how you can be part of this great team.

supplies used for this project:

Built for Free Using: My Stampin Blog

I'll post the other swaps another time.

Until next time...Happy Stamping!

Cathy

Anything Goes Crafts

My first Stampin' Up! Convention - July 2015

I had such a fabulous time on my trip from July 22nd-26th to the Stampin' Up! Convention held on the Thurs-Sat in Salt Lake City, Utah, USA.   Part of that fun was in the planning to go -- the getting ready.... the organized swaps and the general swaps.

I've been meaning to post more... life has a way of catching up with me.  I even took this picture before I went to convention as a sneak peak of the 4 swaps I made.  Just too busy getting them all done to do a blog post.  lol

I got involved with
       3x3 love note swap (82)
       single layer swap (15)
       general swaps (just 25)
       and the "dinner with some fellow SU Canadian demos" Card Candy swap. (8)  I believe my dinner companions all had the same up-line but me, I'm adopted  :)


I started getting the 3x3 swaps done in early July -- thank goodness for Shallon and Ann (my fellow demos and roommates in Salt Lake), they were on the ball getting their's done and I figured I'd better follow suit.  Good thing I did or I'd have never got everything done on time.

             

                The stamps used are from the
               Birthday Blossoms Set

Bitty butterfly punch with pearls
flowers stamped from the Birthday
Blossoms set on the
In Colors Designer Series Paper and
punched out using the Pansy punch

It went so much faster making them assembly-line style:

since I didn't have enough of any 
one colour - I opted to make 16 of each of the 5
new In Colors and a few extra of the mint macaron.

Did you count the layers?

there were lots including the 2015-2017 In Colors

and the 2015-2017 In Colors DSP (Designer Series Paper)
and quite a few dimensionals to pop up the flowers and butterflies.

The final product:

I was going to finish the insides like this but
didn't since it wasn't a requirement of the swap.
And it was already a lot of work to make 82.

And these are the ones that I got in return --  so much talent, a whole lot of great ideas!!

 I'll be highlighting some 3x3 cards at classes this fall - be sure to sign up and you can see these samples in person.  I will be adding more classes but you can find the schedule here.








Supplies list:

Built for Free Using: My Stampin Blog

I'll post the other swaps soon.

Until next time...Happy Stamping!

Cathy

Anything Goes Crafts

Paper Pumpkin July 2015 - great kit and alternate ideas

Well, I'm back from convention and seem to be busier than ever with the "normal" job (really I'm just STILL playing catch up).

I'm so thankful for my monthly Paper Pumpkin subscription ..... it forces me to do what I really want to do anyway ...... create!!!    A couple of the local subscribers get together monthly for the Paper Pumpkin NIGHT OUT and our last get together was this past Wednesday.    We made the kit as proposed by the talented folks at Stampin' Up! / My Paper Pumpkin.  This is my version - note that the envelope comes with the kit and of course, I had to decorate it as well!

The ladies and I always love coming up with ideas of our own - these are from the talented Charlene:
She's a lot quicker than I am with creating and maybe she did have one background ready to go before class  - love her ideas :)

The original  - and then with some added grey background (neither of us is a fan of a lot of white on a card)









 Then some different background effects -    the one on the right has an embossed background.

and this one -- using the vellum from the spring Sale-A-Bration catalogue on the inside of the card and the envelope -- love her ideas!!





Inga and her son, Austin, joined us on Wednesday.   She was checking out the Paper Pumpkin experience so didn't have a full kit for herself but she made the most of current and previous Paper Pumpkin stamps, some paper and the ink colours from the kit.

I only got one picture of Inga's cards  :(  -- loved her idea of "stacking" the cups -- she fussy cut all these out!!   Impressed.   And speaking of impressed... her son is such a talented artist.  










I was a little slower creating -- I wanted to do something REALLY different so I watercoloured the background using my aqua painter and the two ink colours that came with the kit:

and then an additional card using some sponging and some slightly off-centre layering to cover up all that white  lol :

It's a fabulous time to try the monthly Paper Pumpkin kits - they've got the 50% promo on AGAIN!!

Promo Small print --- for new subscribers only --
    If you want to know a bit more about the Paper Pumpkin experience, check out my blog post from May 2015 - http://www.anythinggoescrafts.ca/2015/05/paper-pumpkin-night-out-may-2015.html

But even if you've subscribed before and want to renew your subscription, the price is still decent at $24.95 / month (shipping included) plus HST.
I've seen the next two kits -- you are not going to want to miss out!!
      To sign up  or log in to your previous account:
              https://mypaperpumpkin.com/en-ca/?demoid=2138132

PLUS you get to come out to next month's Paper Pumpkin Night Out for some crafty fun with us!

Until next time...Happy Stamping!

Cathy

Anything Goes Crafts

Happy Father's Day

Happy Father's Day to all the Dad's

Today, we celebrated Father's Day quietly at home with the kids gathered for a lovely chicken dinner mid-afternoon so that hubby & I could come to the office to work this evening..... yea, ok, he's working on actual work and yes, I should be too but, it's been too long since I've posted!!

Both my Dad and my step-father have passed on and both my husband's father and step-Dad have as well so.... today it's all about my husband.   If he had it his way, it would be Father's WEEK.  He's tried now for 26 years and for some reason, it still hasn't caught on.  lololol  - maybe next year, dear!

This first card is from me and was done very quickly this morning -- when the kids hadn't yet made an appearance to give him their cards and being his usual silly self, was lamenting about the lack of acknowledgement that it was father's week -- and yes, I did make him breakfast, and cut the lawn before the rain started --  I quickly whipped up this card - heartfelt and no embellishments - kind of like our relationship!  :)

I used the photopolymer stamp set  Simply Wonderful (not positive of name as I don't have that info with me as I write this, sorry),   because I received a card for Mother's Day using the same sentiment -- and he's wonderful too!  The background has some gorgeous grunge dots. The tiny hearts and some of the inside sentiments are from previous Paper Pumpkin sets - Jan 2015 Filled with Love and March 2015 Sew You. 
  

 

The children each had a card for him -- forgot to take a picture of the very funny store bought card though.  oops!

This card was made as part of the May 2015 card class using the same Guy Greetings stamp set and of course, the background is the Hardwood stamp.  The Designer Series Paper used has now been discontinued but it was the adventure bound set.

Love the new triple banner punch -- makes my job so much easier!! The white banner in behind the heading has been put through a crimper - both ways to give it a waffle look.  The little red banner is actually the piece from the end of the long one -- cool eh? waste not, want not!  

Now, my "fussy cutting" isn't the best - I do need to practice more but these very small tools, were embossed with pewter and then cut out.  Not perfect, but not bad.

Another card from the May 2015 card class was also a Father's Day card -- or they could make it into a birthday card.  We try to be very flexible at card class.

I can't recall where I got the idea for the background but I'm sure I saw it on Pinterest at some point. I used the For All Things stamp set for behind the moose and also for under the sentiment, Best Dad Ever, which is from the And Many More stamp set.  The wheat sprigs are also from the For All Things set.  The moose is from the now retired set, Walk in the Wild.   I'll have to check out the new The Wilderness Awaits as a replacement!

This last card was made at a Paper Pumpkin Night Out Party.  I was coming up with alternate ways to use the April 2015 Love You A Lot set - had just viewed a YouTube on this card fold (sorry, can't remember where) and saw someone else use an X on a small dot to make a "screw" head.  Thought I'd give it a try.   There was too much white space so I filled it up with the stars from the June 2014 Pinwheel Party kit.

The inside of the card used 2 other previous Paper Pumpkin kits - the sentiment is from May 2014 Hey Man kit (First kit I got with my subscription), the bike is from the Aug 2013 Pedal Praise and the "tire tracks" are from the March 2014 Glittered Greetings kit.  -- yea, I know, as a subscriber you can get previous kits -  That is cool.  But you have to act fast as they are only available while supplies last.

Hope you enjoyed viewing these Father's Day cards!   Feel free to comment.  I love to hear from you.

Until next time...Happy Stamping!

Cathy
Anything Goes Crafts

Paper Pumpkin Night Out - May 2015

It's been a busy month since I last posted.   I'm beginning to think May is worse than April for work at the office.... Oh well, it just meant that I was VERY ready for this month's Paper Pumpkin kit and the little creative escape that it offers.  

In case you haven't heard of Paper Pumpkin,  it is a monthly subscription that has a small box of crafty goodness coming directly to your door around the middle of the month.  This box sometimes holds supplies to make cards, note cards, or gift bags or boxes and sometimes it holds a "project" that can be used as a gift or a home decor item.  It is always a surprise!!  and who doesn't love surprises?!    The nice thing is that everything you need, except maybe scissors and adhesive, comes in the kit.  Great to take with you on camping trips, to the doctors' office for those long waits, etc or ... to our monthly Paper Pumpkin Night Out held on the 4th Tuesday of each month.

It's THAT Tuesday today and it is the May 2015 version of Paper Pumpkin Night Out!!   so bring your kit and have some fun  .... whether you can be with us physically or just play along with your kit in your own home, sitting in your pjs, sipping on your favourite beverage and snacking on some munchies (be careful not to spill on your supplies now!!)

The kit comes with printed instructions on making the project.  I consider this to be a starting point -- you can make the project(s) as is or you can take those ideas and make them your own. 

 Of course in this technological age, there is also a video on YouTube put out by Paper Pumpkin showcasing this months kit.  The company provides this for every kit.  I love that it's short.

I always start out by making the project the way the directions are laid out.  see pic

So you could conceivably make 6 cards and 4 bags with the supplies in the May kit.  That's really great value!


BUT THEN, I do some research on Pinterest and YouTube to see what other alternate projects have been made - usually I just do a search but these are two of my favourite sources for ideas:
https://www.pinterest.com/paperpumpkin/ 
https://www.pinterest.com/denise_foor/paper-pumpkin-stampin-up/

and THEN I come up with my own -- some are CASEd (copy and share everything), some are versions of what I've found with my own twist.  

I had a couple of friends sign up for this May kit that might not have additional supplies at home so these first projects were made using just the supplies in the kit and I've added whisper white card stock only!  Well, and some adhesive - snail and glue pen.

I loved the colours of both sides of the card - so I cut it in two -- and using the white card stock, made 4 cards. Two of them I trimmed ever so slightly around the edges - and used some of the trimmings on one of the cards -- do you see it?

fringe made from tissue paper
stamped balloon on white and then fussy cut it
"popped" it up with a dimensional

used the negative space of the large balloon

man, I need to practice my "fussy" cutting

used a partial flap from one of the bags
and the trimmings mentioned above :)

I felt like this background needed a banner, so I made 2:  

Tonight, we made projects that use more supplies from my "little bag of tricks" than just the white card stock --
I only managed to get two more done - must have been busy chatting - :0   This card is just the basic card with a bit of extra layers and a flower added.  What a difference!!

and I was so excited to learn a new technique using simple elastics after seeing Tina Weller's video yesterday that I just had to try it tonight.  check out the background for the balloons.  This one also had some embossing:

Charlene joined me tonight and these are her creations.  She is very talented - I love her ideas.   She doesn't talk as much as I do so she got lots done.  lol

You can sometimes find pictures from my friends highlighting their creations on my Facebook page.    You can also check out my Pinterest page  (again a work in progress).  

Were you able to get in on the great deal last month?   If not, then don't despair there is another deal (not quite as good as last month's but still good) available so that you won't miss out next month!  Be sure to sign up by June 10th in order to get the June kit.

I  realize that many of you are skeptical of signing up for Paper Pumpkin...and I understand but it is an opportunity for you to get a taste of "me time" with a fun craft box delivered to your door! If you click here, you will see a great group of ideas that others have created with their Paper Pumpkin Kits on Pinterest!  I have started pinning some of my favourites at my PP inspiration page as well although I don't have many pins... yet!

Right now you can sign up for Paper Pumpkin and save 50% off for your first 2 months...

These are a few of the things that I love about the Paper Pumpkin program...

• It is a fabulous price point to see if it is something that you will enjoy, it is regularly $24.95 per month plus HST (includes the shipping) but for NEW Paper Pumpkin customers who sign up before June 10, 2015, their first 2 months will be 50% off. Remember to put SAVE50 in the promo code when you sign up for Paper Pumpkin! 
• You can stop at anytime if you find that it is not for you.
• If you are a Paper Pumpkin customer, you will be able to have the opportunity to purchase past kits and/or refills if they are available!

For example, the December 2014 kit....All Shook Up Kit - this kit was all about shaker cards and it is one fabulous set....if you are a Paper Pumpkin Customer, you will be able to go back and order past kits (if they are available) and if you already have the kit, you can order refills (like this one for just $9.75) - Wahoo...that is 9 cards that you can make!

• If you want to suspend your subscription a month....no worries - just contact Paper Pumpkin and request to be skipped a month, sooo easy!
• These make great gifts as you can purchase a pre-paid subscription for someone...what a great gift!  You can even buy pre-paid subscriptions for yourself and save money on the 6 or 12 month.  You just wouldn't use the pre-paid on this promotion; you would wait until the August kit to activate it.
• Because everything is in one cute little box, these make a great "me time" for you and some friends  = a great way to have fun and be able to create!

• Well...there you go.... the whats what about the Paper Pumpkin program. I'm sure by now that you can see the value in the program especially with it being 50% off for your first (2) months. GO AHEAD, give it a try.  If you don't like it, cancel before the 10th of the next month.

Remember, once you sign up, you can go back and order past kits/refills if they are available. (This is only a perk for Paper Pumpkin customers - so worth it, if you've been wanting to get one of the past kits, like the May 2015 one! - The kit isn't yet available but the refill is - check it out)

If you have questions...please feel free to contact me or leave a comment and I will be happy to answer them for you.

Until next time...Happy Stamping!

Cathy
Anything Goes Crafts