Let's build stuff!

   Hello & welcome to my blog,

My name is Alison & I live in beautiful Melbourne, Australia. For those of you who have previously visited my blog & are now returning, thank you. For those of you who are here for the first time, welcome!

 Here's a little bit about me. I love creating cards & gifts for my loved ones & this blog will show you how to create something special for those you love. I blog twice a week, once on a Sunday where I mainly showcase a stamp set or dies, embossing folders, projects & sometimes special DSP and Wednesday evenings when I highlight a technique, fun folds or tools & tips. I would love to hear from you if you have any questions or suggestions & my email address for that is craftedbyalison@gmail.com.

Stampin' Up® launched their new Annual Catalogue in May & it's a beauty! It's set out quite differently to previous catalogues but there are benefits to that. They now have sectioned it to have beginners, which is a step by step collection of materials in kits, then there is quick & easy where you select base materials & packs of pre-printed or diecut materials plus some stamp sets then there is create your way where you choose all the materials, stamps etc yourself & create your way! In the quick & easy section Stampin' Up® have also provided some inspiration with a colour wheel & information of various ways to use colour combinations. There is a section explaining 4 different ways to vary your colours - Monochromatic, Complementary, Analogous & Triadic. It's a wonderful tool to help with creativity & I shared my first post using it in my midweek blog of 29/5/24 but it's not what this week's post is about, that is something I will explore more in Wednesday's blog. 

This week is for the kids who love trucks & big machines or for a fun card for the grown up in your life who's still a big kid then these cards are for you! This stamp set is unfortunately retired now but it's so cute that I wanted to create with it & also show you that you can swap the stamp set for something similar that you may have already or even one with planes & hot air balloons, like in the Take To The Sky suite or Hot Air Balloon stamps, cars or bikes from the Racing By or Legendary Ride stamps or tools from the Trusty Tools stamp set. There are even space ships in Flying By or Submarines in Submarine Life. The main thing is to have some fun & remember that if you don't have something in your stash then swap it out for something else that works.

Now onto my creations...

This stamp set appears to be a kid focussed set at first sight but I decided to play around a little to show a bit more versatility. I created one card as an encouragement card and the other more for a kid. I'll start with the kids card first.

I stamped lots of different images from the set in Memento Black & Basic Gray onto Basic White cardstock then coloured them all in with Stampin' Write markers & Stampin' Blends. The colours used are Lemon Lolly, Lemon Lime Twist, Parakeet Party, Peach Pie, Pumpkin Pie, Azure Afternoon, Smoky Slate, Light Basic Black & Dark Smoky Slate. Once that was finished I cut them into smaller shapes, backed them with Basic Black then added them to a Basic White card base which had a Flirty Flamingo matte from the Brights Designer Series Paper pack. 

Next I fussy cut 4 presents in different colours then added some glue dots to give a little dimension. Three were added to the forklift & the last one was place just underneath the cable of the crane. 

To complete the scene I stamped a sentiment in Memento onto Lemon Lime Twist cardstock & a small edging of Basic Black before mounting with dimensionals.

For the second card I decided that I wanted a more feminine card with a bunch of flowers. As the Construction Zone stamps don't have anything floral I chose some of the images from Rest, Relax, Enjoy. The vase is stamped tone on tone in Lemon Lime Twist. The flowers are in Melon Mambo with Bubble Bath & Pale Papaya while the foliage is in Lemon Lime Twist also. 

They were then arranged behind the vase, raised with a double dose of glue dots & added to the stamped & coloured forklift image. A sentiment & some 2022-24 Magenta Madness In Colour Enamel dots were added next to finish the scene.

To assemble the card I started with a Melon Mambo base, adding a strip of floral DSP from the Brights DSP pack again, this time in Lemon Lime Twist. The image matte was then added on top & the card was complete!

That's all I have for you this week, I hope you've enjoyed this fun stamp & die set. It's a great set to have on hand as it's versatile for many different occasions, young, old, birthdays or encouragement.

Now I'd like to share some of the latest news from Stampin' Up®.

Stampin' Up® has a number of ways to purchase their lovely products. You can look through their physical catalogue or browse through the Annual catalogue online  but there are also some products that are only available exclusively online that don't appear in any catalogues. These products are called the Online Exclusives & are only online. Check out the online exclusives in my online store. Stampin' Up® adds more product items to the online shop so don't forget to keep checking the store to see what's new. There are some lovely new products now available including kits, embellishments, stamps, dies & embossing folders. Something for everyone! If you would like a copy of the catalogue please send me a message at craftedbyalison@gmail.com or on my Facebook page, craftedbyalison. 

NEWS & REMINDERS: 

1. Stampin' Up®'s newAnnual Catalogue is live! It's a beautiful piece of artwork as well as an amazing resource for crafting. As mentioned before, it's very different to any other catalogue that I've seen from Stampin' Up®. They have changed the front cover from featuring cards or supplies to a casual stamping picture as well as a radical change to the layout of the contents. There are still lots of beautiful pics of the products & ideas aplenty, it's just set out differently. I think you'll love it. If you would like a copy of the new catalogue then send me a message at craftedbyalison on Facebook or email me at craftedbyalison@gmail.com & I'll send you one. 
2. Don't forget the Online Exclusive products with new products added and available now Check out my online shop here. Stampin' Up® have also released a whole lot of new items at the beginning of July. As a demonstrator I was able to order in a pre-release which is a great perk of being a demonstrator.
3. Stampin' Up® have a great range of Kits including crafting, card making & gift giving. Click here to check them all out in my online shop. As Stampin' Up® have so many beautiful kits available I will be featuring a different kit in each blog so that you can see the range. 
4. Exciting news! For the month of July, Stampin' Up® have a rewards promotion that gives you credit vouchers to use in August! For every $90 you spend during July, Stampin' Up® will give you a voucher for $9 that can be redeemed in August. This is a great offer that allows you to buy those extra items that you might not have been able to add to your shopping list. Click here for more info.

This week's kit is all about sharing some love and kindness. This is a stamping kit so it comes with stamps, an ink spot, embellishments & diecut images & sentiments plus the card bases & co-ordinating envelopes. Let me tell you, the envelopes are works of art in themselves! See for yourself...

 

Here's how Stampin' Up® describes the kit...

Share heartfelt cards with the Expressions of Kindness Kit. Featuring nostalgic-looking floral designs in beautiful colour tones, this kit is perfect for all-occasion cards for friends and loved ones. Pair the desired sentiment and images from the kit to quickly create timeless cards. Wish happy birthday, send a friendly note, or more, and let the people in your life know you care!

If you feel that you'd like to add this to your list then click here to purchase one from my online store.

A lot of demonstrators use the special Host Code for their customers but I'm trying it this year as a new idea to see if this is what you, my customers would like to use. If you shop with me then don't forget to use this month's host code  4A7DHHDV. This will allow me to pass on any hostess benefits to customers when the sales reach the required qualifying amount.

Lastly, there have been lots of great items in the clearance rack so make sure you check them out using this link to my online store.

If you would like to purchase any of my creations that I feature in my blogs they can be found in my FaceBook shop at craftedbyalison or you can order something unique. 

If you would like me to send you a copy of the current Annual catalogue then please message me via my FaceBook page, Crafted by Alison or send me an email at craftedbyalison@gmail.com.

My next blog is on Wednesday and I will have another Colour Theory creation to share with you. In the Anual catalogue Stampin' Up® have provided a section on how to use colour. I will be using this feature in various different blogs. The first one was featured in my midweek blog of 29/5/24. Sunday's blog will have some gorgeous creations from the Sweet Peas stamp set & dies. I'm really looking forward to sharing both of these blogs with you & hope you can join me for both of them.

Well, that's it for another week. I hope you enjoyed this post & come back for more next week. Til next time, take care & keep creating! XX Alison.

Here are some links to the products I used today & some craft room essentials.

Shop with me

Stamps, Dies, Embossing folders & punches

• Rest, Relax, Enjoy stamp set

Cardstock, DSP & paper goods

• Basic White Thick cardstock
• Basic White cardstock
• Basic Black cardstock
• Melon Mambo cardstock
• Lemon Lime Twist cardstock
• Brights 6"x6" DSP

Inks & Markers

• Memento Tuxedo Black ink pad
• Basic Gray Classic Stampin' pad
• Melon Mambo Classic Stampin' pad
• Lemon Lime Twist Classic Stampin' pad
• Lemon Lolly Classic Stampin' pad
• 2024-26 In Colour Stampin' Write® markers 
• Brights Stampin' Write® markers
• Subtles Stampin' Write® markers
• Neutrals Stampin' Write® markers
• Smoky Slate Stampin' Blends®
• Basic Black Stampin' Blends®
• 2024-26 In Colour Stampin' Write® markers

Embellishments

• No current embellishments were used this week

Adhesives

• Multipurpose liquid glue
• Tear and tape
• Dimensionals
  
• Mini Dimensionals
  
• Foam adhesive strips
• Mini Glue Dots

Tools

• Paper Trimmer
• Take Your Pick tool
• Paper Snips scissors
• Stampin' Cut & Emboss machine
• Heat tool
• Blending Brushes
  
• Embossing Additions tool kit