Paper Obsession

A Stash Giveaway.. a Scrappin' Stampin' Blog Hop.. and a Special Offer!

Today I have three bits of news which I hope will be of interest to you.

1. I'm giving away some lovely stash!

2. Stampin' Up! have a fantastic Special Offer starting on Sunday 1st August which, if you're into stamping, is well worth a look.

3. To celebrate this promotion, there's going to be a Scrappin' Stampin' Blog Hop, starting at my other blog Seaside Stampers on Sunday morning.

So, what would you like to know about first?!

The stash giveaway, right? OK... here's what's up for grabs:

Bo Bunny 'Love Shack' double-sided papers, Super-sized alpha stickers and Combo stickers - 13 papers and 2 sticker sheets

K & Co Brenda Walton 12x12 Citrus Neapolitan Scrap Pad To Go - some sheets used but loads left!

Three wooden flower stamps.. and one wooden handbag & shoes stamp

Dovecraft 12x12 Designer Paper Pack - Wild Blossom by Kate Knight - one or two sheets used

Dovecraft 12x12 Designer Paper Pack - Winter Wonderland - one or two sheets used

Papermania 12x12 acetate sheets - Secret Garden - just the Owls and Flowers sheets

Depending on the number of entrants, I may split the goodies between two or three winners. I will also be adding a few bits & pieces such as ribbons, buttons etc.

Fancy your chances? Here's what to do.

• First, please go and check out my other blog for more details of Stampin' Up!'s August special offer.

• Second, come and join me and my SU! friends on Sunday for the Scrappin' Stampin' Blog Hop! You'll get to find out about how Two-Step Stampin' stamp sets can be used to great effect on your layouts. Leave a comment at each stop on the Hop - and then return to this post and let me know you're entering the giveaway!

• For an extra chance of winning, simply become a follower of Seaside Stampers.

The closing date for entering the giveaway is 10pm on Sunday 8th August.

So please leave a comment on this post - from Sunday onwards - to enter the draw.

I hope you'll be able to join us on Sunday.. I know there'll be lots of inspiring pages to enjoy, and it would be wonderful to see you over there on the Stampin' Up side!

Sarah xx

Here's where I'm at...

As you may know, it's been almost three months since I took the plunge and became a Stampin' Up! demonstrator. It's been quite a steep learning curve.. And yet, in these last few months I do feel I've begun to achieve something.

On Friday 11th June I held my first monthly card-making class at Community Wise, Eastbourne, for the benefit of just two ladies. I fretted all week in the run-up to that class - but I got through it.. and my ladies enjoyed some creative me-time while producing two pretty hand-stamped cards. 

The following week I gave a stamping workshop to a group of ladies who attend a monthly scrapbooking club in Hailsham. I was a little petrified at first - but my hostess and the other ladies were so chilled out and friendly, the evening was great fun.. and also a success in terms of orders!

I held my second monthly card-making class on Friday 9th July - this time at home. It was attended by three ladies this time - well that's a 50% increase on June's numbers! It was the right decision to hold the classes at home - I felt so much more relaxed, and I hope my guests did too. The ladies each made two stunning cards and had lots of fun in the process. :o)

Meanwhile, September is shaping up to be a pretty hectic month. I'll be doing another card-making class, giving another stamping workshop and also holding an Open House event.

To add to the general chaos, Charlie starts school in Reception class and Harry will be doing five sessions a week at Nursery. The logistical challenge involved in getting each child into his respective school within a ten-minute window - all before 9am - is going to be taxing to say the least! (And that's assuming they will both go happily into class without tears or fuss.. eeek!)

{Charlie getting to grips with box-making.. a natural talent!}

I'll be back tomorrow with news of a scrapping blog-hop, a fantastic SU! promotion... and maybe even a big stash giveaway?!!

Fancy a quick nose round my other blog..? Pop over to Seaside Stampers to see a few more of my SU! creations.. I'd be delighted to see you over there!

Thanks for reading..

Sarah xx

fantastic persoanilsed cards-r-us

Last week I was browsing the Netmums Coffee House arts & crafts forum and came across a request:

Anyone make fantastic persoanilsed cards?? (sic)

The lady wanted a special card for her other half's 30th birthday so, feeling public-spirited, I said I'd be happy to help. She then got back to me with some frighteningly specific requirements. She wanted 'something like a bloke on a black and red motor bike', and went on to say her OH's 'fave bike is the Honda CBR 600 RR'.

Right then.. I panicked for a minute and wondered what I'd got myself into. Racking my brains, I just couldn't recall any 'blokes on motorbikes' stamps, stickers or even (shudder) peel-offs in my stash. What to do? Admit defeat? Or find a piccie on the tinterweb and add text and such?

To my relief, it was remarkably easy to find a suitable (in fact, perfect) picture.. and the rest came together quite painlessly too!

I made the silver corners with a Diamond Plate Cuttlebug embossing folder. Inside the card, I added an insert which read 'You're not quite over the hill yet'. Ho ho! 

I just hope my customer and her birthday boy like it.. haven't heard back from her yet. Will let you know!

ETA: She liked the card.. and so did her man.. so I'm happy!

Hello campers... hi-de-hi!?

Pontins.  Camber Sands.  The Sun's Holidays for £9.50.  Never again....!

We really should have done our research.. I'm all for a little faded elegance, and generally I adore period architecture and vintage decor. But our 'apartment' was something else entirely. The apartment blocks gave the impression of one of those run-down blocks of flats such as you'd see on The Bill. Yes, we'd left our beloved home in sunny Eastbourne to stay in a one-bed council flat. Happy holidays!

nice paint job..

great views of the neighbours

ok, so this is 'budget'.

The boys didn't notice our dismay and had great fun exploring our new 'home' (which took about a minute). We decided to dine out since the kitchen really wasn't up to much. After a bit of searching round the site, we located the 'Sands Restaurant' and ordered our meals. 'So is this Leigh Delamere or Membury services?' I asked Gareth.

the boys enjoying a cultural experience

After tucking the boys into bed later on, we settled down onto our sofa-bed, each clinging to the edges to stop rolling into the middle, each trying to devise ways to cushion ourselves against the mattress springs. Then a party started in the room below.. and continued til 1.30am. Aaaaargh!!!!!!

Saturday morning arrived.. and so did a deluge of rain.. absolute cats and dogs! We considered abandoning the weekend and going home.. but that would be to admit defeat, so we soldiered on. We'd heard good things about Dymchurch, a few miles away, so off we went to explore. The rain had stopped by this time, so armed with buckets, spades, wind-break and towels, we trekked through the town to the beach. And discovered the beach was made of concrete. The tide was right in, the waves lapping against the brand-new sea defences with not a grain of sand to be seen.

'Beach re-opened for you to enjoy the summer at Dymchurch', says the sign. Oh, thanks.

OK, so it wasn't all bad.. the beach at Camber Sands was indeed huge and sandy. When we visited on Friday evening, the sea was about 3 miles away, it was freezing and blowing a gale. On a good day, though, I'm sure it would have been lovely.

You call this summer?

Saturday night was better - no parties below us, and sleeping on a pillow eased the bruising from the springs. We explored a gorgeous little town called Hythe, and climbed up the huge stone staircases of Bodiam Castle (my thighs are still in agony from the descent carrying Harry). The boys had lots of fun - and that's the main thing, right?!

 

Where's the castle?

If you got this far, thanks for enduring this tale with me! :o)

We'll look back on it all and laugh one day..

Birthday bling..

It was my mum-in-law's 60th birthday on Monday and for a while we had been trying to come up with some special gifts for her.

It just so happened that I recently 'met' online an Eastbourne lady who makes the most exquisite jewellery - her blog is called Lady In Pink Creations and is well worth a look. Browsing Jo's blog, I became really excited at the thought of asking her to make a special gift for the birthday lady! We decided on a necklace and earrings set incorporating Maureen's birthstone, rubies, along with freshwater pearls and swarovski crystals. Jo did a fantastic job - Maureen was thrilled with her gift and looked radiant in the stunning necklace and earrings!

My photo doesn't really do it justice but there's a better photo on Jo's blog here.

And here's the birthday card I made for Maureen...

The card was made with Stampin' Up! stamps, designer papers and punches; further details can be found on my Stampin' Up! blog, Seaside Stampers.