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.
This week's focus stamp is called Love & Courage & was produced by Stampin' Up® to help support breast cancer organisations. They donate $4.25(AUD) with each purpose of the stamp set.
I have known a few ladies who have been affected by cancer, not all have survived, so decided to create some cards with this stamp set that I will donate to one of our local hospitals where they have a chemotherapy unit.
This was a simple card to make, using 2 colours - Basic White & Strawberry Slush.
The base is Strawberry Slush with a Basic White matte. I then stamped some words & images in Strawberry Slush on a strip of the same & adhered it to the matte.
Next, I stamped the main focal point on Basic White & die cut it with the Stylish Shapes dies. I raised it on dimensionals & added it to the front.
I then added the ribbon image to the matte before finishing the card with some Strawberry Slush & Pretty In Pink gems. Here's a closeup...
Once I'd finished that (& it was so quick to make!) I decided to experiment a little with the set & created a card with a different focus - Love.
This card is also monochromatic, using just Basic White & Secret Sea.
I chose a similar layout with a strip of cardstock & a central image but this time I chose not to stamp on the coloured cardstock but on the card base.
As the stamp image is half flower, half words I inked up the floral side of the stamp & stamped it on the card base before adding the strip of Secret Sea.
I stamped two more of the floral images - one that was diecut with the Perennial Postage dies & the other which I fussy cut. The diecut image also has 2 of the other stamps from the set.
When fussy cutting the flower I snipped up into the petasl & 'flicked' the edges up a little for a slight 3D effect.
The fussy cut half was adhered to the back of the other half & this was added to the card with dimensionals.
The finishing touch were a few of the gorgeous Drussy adhesive backed embellishments.
Another quick & easy card. In the following picture you can see the 3D effect of the fussy cut flower...
Here are the two cards together...
This was an easy stamp set to work with & can be used specifically for cancer themed cards or to create everyday cards. There are loads of great ideas on Youtube & Pinterest if you would like to get creative.
That's it for this post, now for some news from Stampin' Up®.
Stampin' Up® have many ways of shopping with a physical catalogue, online shopping & in person events. When items are about to be retired or are running low they are put on the 'Last Chance' list which means that there is limited stock & when it runs out, it's gone.
Stampin' Up® 's Annual Catalogue is 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. I explored this in a bit more detail in my
1/1/25 mid week blog & also in
30th April blog. The other cool feature is that they provide card sketch & scrapbook layout ideas for you. This is great for any times that you need a little inspiration.
If you'd like to browse the new catalogue online then click
here. If you'd like a copy to hold in your hands, leaf through & put little notes all over it of what's on your wish list then shoot me an email at craftedbyalison@gmail.com or message me on my facebook page at craftedbyalison.
The mini catalogue is now available online & in printed form. There are loads of gorgeous new products in there. There's scrapbooking ideas & products, great tag dies & lots of Christmas themed products ranging from cute to elegant & traditional to modern. If you'd like me to send you a copy then send me an email at craftedbyalison@gmail.com.
Stampin' Up® also have loads of additional products available only online. These are called Online exclusives & have no end date, when the stock is sold out, that's the end of it.
Stampin' Up® have a great range of Kits including crafting, card making & gift giving. There were brand new kits added to the collection every month. Click here to check them all out in my online shop. As Stampin' Up® have so many beautiful kits available I usually feature a different kit in each blog so that you can see the range.
This week the feature kit is a beautiful kit with special items such as faux wax seals & silver thread & includes a versatile stamp set.
Here's how Stampin' Up® describe it...
Create the perfect card for any occasion using the all-inclusive Everyday Beauty Kit. This kit comes with everything you need to make three unique card designs: printed card bases and coordinating envelopes with lovely botanical patterns, precut paper pieces, timeless faux wax seals, shimmering metallic thread, and a versatile stamp set that you can use on countless other projects.
If you feel that you need to add this to your list then click here to purchase one from my online store.
EXCITING NEWS!
I recently started a Web design course as I want to create a website for my business & am not very tech savvy & needed professional help.
The course runs until the end of the year & by then I will have a brand new website where I can have my blog, a shop front to sell my products & eventually links to a newsletter.
I hope to have this up and running by the new year with any bugs ironed out & all my products transferred to the new site. Currently I blog via this site - Blogspot - my products are available on my Facebook page & I don't have a newsletter yet. Moving to the new platform will enable me to have all of these goals realised & everything in the one place.
This is a work in progress but I will keep you informed as I progress. It's very exciting but also a little scary.
I've learned a lot & have progressed along the course & can't wait to share it with you in the new year! 😁
If you
shop with me then there are some new changes to the rewards program that you should know about. In the past we were able to create a host code & group together individual orders & pass on the 'hostess' benefits to customers with qualifying orders. This has now been replaced with a 'Rewards' program that gives
all customers who place an order with a
qualifying amount a credit of 10% of their order to use on future orders. This will be displayed during the checkout process or your order. Stampin' Up® feel that this is a fairer way of rewarding all customers.
There are some new ways to craft on offer at the moment which I will go through one at a time.
Ready?
1. For the first time ever, Stampin' Up® are having a Black Friday sale!!! From 25th November to 1st December there will be up to 40% off selected items! WOW!! You'd better be quick though as I'm sure things will go fast!
2. Stampin' Up® held it's first ever Online Craft Class with the Traditions of Christmas craftalong & followed that up with a Brushed with Beauty Suite on November 21st.
I had a very busy week helping my daughter move back home & getting ready for a card day with the ladies from Probus BUT, the class is recorded so when I have time, I can simply go to the exclusive Facebook page (a link is provided when your register) & watch the recording at my leisure. I did a similar thing with the Traditions of Christmas class & the recording was very easy to follow as I could pause, craft & then return to the video whenever I needed to catch up with their crafting or just stop for other life things.
3. Stampin' Up® recently offered an Advent Calendar as a trial with lots of products hidden behind windows, just like the chocolate Advent calendars but with craft supplies instead of chocolate. They proved so popular that they are now sold out but Stampin' Up® have advised that they will be including them next year as they were such a hit. I missed out 😢 because I was too slow to order but I will certainly be keeping an eye out for next years special offers!
4. Stampin' Up® will be holding a Virtual Car Making Retreat in January 2026. It has been designed for experienced or advanced crafters in mind but will also have a heap of tips & ideas for those wanting to explore more detailed card designing. To participate you just need to purchase the Retreat kit ($288AU) & this provides you with all of the materials you need & access to an exclusive FaceBook group where the event will be held. It sounds like a bit of expense but from past experience, what you take away from these type of events is well worth it. More information will be available at the beginning of December.
5. Starting soon, Stampin' Up® will be featuring a special 'Product of the Month' item that is only available with eligible purchases. There will be a new item every month with no clues as to what the item will be. It could be stamps, dies, papers - a complete surprise every month. More details coming soon.
Lastly, there have been lots of great items added to the clearance rack which is now called
Last Chance items 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.
I hope you've enjoyed today's post.
My next post will be on Wednesday when I look at how to be prepared for gifting with bags & gift card holders ready to go.
In next Sunday's post I will have some lovely creations made with Christmas DSP.
I hope you can join me for both of them & come back for more.
Til next take, take care & keep creating.
XX Alison
Here are some links to the products that I used today & some craft room essentials.
Stamps, Dies, Embossing folders & punches
Cardstock, DSP & paper goods
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