Celebrating the New Year with my mojo kickers!!

I love the start to a new year and this one will be no exception. 2012 has been a year to remember, and one that has been filled with challenges, love, happiness, and sadness too. But, 2013 will be a year for me to commemorate as it will be 20 years ago that I first started making rubber stamps, and started to explore this crafty world! Ups, downs, new adventures, old memories, and lots of friends have passed through my life! I have always created something, whether it be jewellery or papercrafts, and it is rare for me not to create a little piece of me every so often. I have found this past six months with the opening of our shop, and still making rubberstamps, while trying to create a little bit of art here and there, a BIG challenge.
I am sure that 2013 will be no exception, so I decided that I needed a big kick up the proverbial to keep me on my toes. I am sure this is nothing new , but I decided to make a jar of mojo kickers... little sticks with a prompt on them. Take 2 a month, and make something using the words on them... that is my new year resolution.... care to join me? I am going to make a fun for all challenge every month here on this blog.

All I can do now is wish you the very best for 2013, may your year be filled with joy and happiness and lots and lots of creativity!!!
See you next year!!
Hugs

Poignant Poinsettia

  Ever since I discovered the fact that Tim Holtz's Alterations dies of the Tattered Poinsettia and Tattered Leaves match the embossing folders, I have been making lots of leaves and poinsettias! I have some that were plain, some embossed, and some that were made into faux porcelain using the meltpot. Take a wreath that was plain and quite large, add some green tape to cover the wreath, a hot glue gun, and lots and lots of poinsettias!

 

I wish you a very Merry and Happy Christmas.
Hugs

An early Christmas Greeting...just in case!

Today is predicted to be the end of the world, according to the  Mayans, and in normal Jennie style, I haven't done my Christmas cards (although the thought is there!), so before we are all swept up in an apocalypse, I thought I would show you my Christmas cards that I did make!  These are the easiest cards to make. Take one melting pot, some clear UTEE, a small Christmas cookie cutter, some printed or photocopied Christmas patterns (I used patterns from the net printed on my laser colour printer), a Christmas greeting stamp, some inks, and some cards , of course!
Melt clear UTEE in the meltpot. Smear a little embossing ink around the edge of the cookie cutter to avoid the UTEE sticking.

 Place your cookie cutter onto the printed paper. Pour the melted UTEE slowly ( to avoid bubbles) into the cookie cutter. Allow to cool.

 When cool, lift off the cutter, and peel the paper away from the UTEE. The pattern will stick to the cooled UTEE.

Add a greeting to the card, and glue the snowman ( or tree!) to the card. Simple! I started taking photos of the tree cutter, and then switched to the snowman!! Hence the photos are a bit odd! Must be the cold I developed over yesterdday, which I am taking with me when the world ends!!!

 

 

Now it is a wonder that I didn't make more, and get them in the post!! mmmm....well as the world is ending today, it won't matter. However for those friends of mine who read this post, and usually get a card... I will be sending them next year! LOL that is if we are still here!
Hugs

Lightbulb Moment!

 I have been in the shop all week, as Mal has other things to do, and it always delights me when one of my customers, or in this case, a friend, points out something that makes me go...of course! Doh! In this case, she asked me if the Textured Poinsettia embossing folder matched the Tattered Poinsettia die. Do you know I hadn't even thought about it! let's try it , and we did, and boy I am in love with it! Fits perfectly. It does mean you have to position it perfectly or of course you could cut round them after embossing it. Either way, thank you Mr Holtz, the light bulb this Christmas is now switched on! Check out the leaves , and the wings folder too...( can't vouch for the wings as I haven't got that die, but am guessing  it will!)

I used Core'dinations paper in red and green, cut them out , embossed them , and added some Distress ink to highlight the veins. I added one of The Artistic Stamper Christmas stamps to the tag. It is now hanging on our Christmas tree in the entrance.

If you haven't seen our website this week, we are having a Christmas extravaganza every day on the website, and today all orders, whether it be stamps or not will receive a FREE sheet of our Brand New much more Klingable Kling-On, our own brand repositionable cushioning. You can check it out here 

I am busy today manning the shop, and preparing for my last workshop of the year- Altered Book  IV. There are a couple of spaces left if you fancy a pre-Christmas get away from it all day!

Have very creative day.

Hugs

12th 12th 12th

Today is the 12th day of the 12th month of the 12th year of the century and hopefully this will have posted at 12.12pm... a day that will never be repeated in my lifetime, and what better way to celebrate than making a Christmas tag , and giving you a 12% discount in my shop! Any order qualifies, and we have done the hard work for you , so all you have to do is order:)

 I also have a little tag for you too.. since this is the first day of my advent event. lots of Christmas Distress inks, a few pine cones from Tim's Pine cone die, and a Merry Christmas from The Artistic Stamper.

As it is still a little cold out there, keep warm, and have a creative day

Hugs

It's a Snow thing!

Over at UKS, I was asked to do a Christmas project, and I have made a tag using one of Tim's Sizzix dies, and an embossing folder. The whole concept can be created using different dies and folders, and could be used for any occasion! I have done a step by step project here, and if you have a look you will find lots more projects over on the website.

Have a very creative day
Hugs

Rocking around the Christmas Tree!

I thought you might like to see the project we made last Saturday at my annual Christmas workshop. I took some of the little boxes from Tim's Configurations boxes, and made them into little houses with roofs!

 Add an old fashioned snowman made out of cotton wool, a sprayed Configuration tree and lamp or two, and lots of snow and glitter!

 oh and a bauble and angel as well!

 My favourite bit was making the roofs. I used Sizzix Alterations for this, Tim's Brick Wall and cobblestones, and added the die cut out and also used it as a mask! There are lots of way you can use his new decorative strips...but just perfect for roofs!!

I also made a quick video as photographing it in the round was nigh on impossible. Because it has licensed music in it, it doesn't show on mobiles or tablets :((

 

Have a very creative weekend,

Hugs

Christmas out of the box!

 Every Christmas I usually teach a workshop that involves Christmassy stuff. This year I got to teach it in my own classroom, and what comes out of what I show,and teach and what my pupils make , never ceases to make me smile. It is what makes teaching for me one of life's greatest pleasures. Thank you girls, you amazed me yet again!
This year I decided to use Tim's configuration boxes, but with a slightly different view on them. Take an individual box out of the box, ink it, paint, it, add a roof, chimneys,  baubles, angels, and a sweet snowman, lots of snow, and glitter, an Idea-ology tree, and a lamp, and you can create "Christmas out of the box". Here is a couple of views of mine.. (it was really hard to photograph it well) with more to come in another post....

 

 and here are the girls creating a great big creative mess!

 I loved this "village" of all of their creations.

Have a creative day today, and if you are passing us, pop in a and have a coffee with me.. this week I will be in the shop, as Mal is doing a bit of his own creating at our home!

Home for Christmas

Today is the start of the new monthly challenge over on The Creative Team blog. I have been making Christmas tags for a while now, and my piece was one I made for a workshop last month. Love Tim's new wreath die ( what home is complete without one?) , and this is a perfect idea for Christmas cards too! I die cut it from Core'dinations paper, and inked it up with Distress inks, adding berries with Stickles. The tag is distress inked, and a few trees from one of Tim's stamps. Add a greeting, and you have Christmas at home!

Why not add your creation to our challenge, we would love to see it :)
Have a very Merry 1st of December
Hugs

Distressing a little Christmas fun

On Saturday I taught a half day class with lots of lovely ladies. It was a fun filled morning with lots of inky stamps , and distressed tags. One of my favourite workshops to do :)

 Have a look at some of the wonderful creations the girls managed in three hours, and it was only techniques. How Fabulous are these?!, and this was just half of them ....

I have a very busy week this week, but hope to get time to blog too.
Have yourselves a very creative day
Hugs

Stars of my world!

 It isn't often that I get to appreciate how much work my Creative Team do, but when life gets in the way, it makes it important that we don't forget those who help us along the way. With this in mind, my post over on the Creative team blog is for my appreciation of my girls, who colour your world with my stamps every week, and all through the year! They are stars indeed!

Have a very creative weekend,
Hugs

Winner of the Distress Stain giveaway!

Thank you to everyone who joined in my little giveaway this weekend. I got Mr. Random.org to pick my winner, and 

Weasel

 

popped out of the hat (so to speak!). Please email me with your address, so I can send you your goodies :)
I am off to spend the day doing other things, that don't include being creative....but have a very creative day yourself.
Hugs

Stars of the day!

Yesterday was a brilliant day! I held a class in our new classroom creating tags for Christmas presents. I had a lovely bunch of girls who all got into the spirit of it, and spent the day creating and following my very haphazard method of working yesterday!!! Because lots of the tags needed to dry we jumped around doing techniques, and inking and stamping! Even I got lost, but we made it in the end! I really must stop trying to do so much in one class! We did get to play with almost all of Tim's new dies, and the new distress stains, which are just lush! I had a ball yesterday, and thank you to Liz, Lesley, Barbara, Tracey, Naomi, and Rosemary who came along,( see I remembered all the names!! lol).  It was a pleasure, as always, to teach you, and to see the most gorgeous creations, of which I took no pictures at all except this one of the class ( note the very full table! lol) and this one of my star tag.

Have a very creative day, I am putting my feet up today (mmmm!?) and sitting in front of the box to watch Christmas movies...lol
Hugs

Christmas is a'coming!

I have been on a roll this week, creating tags for my Christmas tag workshop later today, and having a ball at the same time! I am definitely not a winter girl, but I am beginning to wonder if the fact that I am forced inside, and cannot get any sun makes me create a little harder?! Or is it because I have to? But I am loving it, and I am loving Tim's Christmas dies: the best set ever! Poinsettias, snowflake rosettes, wreaths, cardinals...seem to be making me quite merry! LOL

I combined my love of faux porcelain flowers dipped in the meltpot with the poinsettia die, , and dipped it into clear UTEE, and added some faux porcelain holly leaves too. Add a Christmas Greeting, and a tad of the new Distress Stains, and Christmas is a'coming!

Have a very creative day.
Hugs