Challenge Entry

I'm so excited this morning. I entered my very first cardmaking challenge this week. The challenge is for a forum I belong to called ESAD (Extremely Special Aussie Demonstrators) which is for Aussie and NZ Stampin' Up! demonstrators. I've never been confident enough to enter a challenge before but decided it was time...and I'm so glad I did, because I just found out I won! I'm still don't quite believe it and have to keep checking the e-mail. Thank you to Tanya at ESAD who runs the challenges for choosing my card, it has given my confidence such a boost!

Here is my entry;

Card details:

Stamps: Garden Whimsy, Inspired by Nature, Occasional Greetings

Ink: Old Olive, Regal Rose, Rose Red, Barely Banana, Close to Cocoa, Certainly Celery

Card: Old Olive, Rose Red, Regal Rose

Accessories: Scallop Border Punch

Cheers,

Kylie

Mum's Creations

Oh dear, I have been a long time between posts. Tonight it will be a short post...but will include some lovely creations by my Mum (Barb). Mum has been working on this card and matching bag for her finance's grandson all week-end. She has done a lovely job. And here they are...

I'll be back soon with some of my holiday creations.

Cheers,

Kylie xo

I'm back!

Well, it's been a lovely Christmas and New Year. I have been spending heaps of time with the hubby and kids, hanging out, going swimming...and stamping, of course! It's actually been really nice to just be stamping for fun at the moment without the subtle pressure of upcoming workshops or classes. I love both workshops and classes but a break is nice, too.

Since I joined Stampin' Up! I have been loving the card making, but I have sorely neglected my first love, scrapbooking. For me, scrapbooking is so much more than photo albums. It's about recording and preserving my families history, and when I am scrapbooking I become so absorbed - it's totally therapeutic. So, today I am sharing with you my first Stampin' Up! scrapbook page.

Each year I choose a photo, and write a brief summary of the main events of the year and complete a 6" x 6" double page layout. I always keep them very simple. These yearly summaries live in a special album of their own, so that no matter how far behind I may become with the family album the years are recorded. It has become a great little album to look back on...though I am a year behind. The layout above is for 2008 (just waiting for the photo to arrive from Snapfish). I will share 2009 with you when it is complete.

Here is what I used:

Stamps: Hello Again (Summer Mini, pg 14)

Cardstock: Old Olive, Whisper White, Good Morning Sunshine DSP

Ink: Summer Sun

Accessories: Chocolate Chip Stampin' Write Marker, Hodge Podge Hardware, (non-SU! date stamp)

Cheers,

Kylie xx

First attempt at a mosaic!!

I am so stoked, I finally attempted and completed my first ever mosaic!

Here's the story...my sister has just bought her first house, and I have her and her partner for our family Kris Kringle. Since the Kris Kringle rules are that all presents must be handmade or secondhand I thought something for their new house would be appropriate.

The mosaic house number idea came from some very dear friends of mine who live a couple of hours away. Last time we visited they showed us their beautiful mosaics and I knew I had to give it a go...Steve and Lisa are wonderful people and a huge inspiration to me.

So, of course I left it to the last minute, but it is done and I am surprisingly quite happy with it.

Now, hopefully my sister won't check out my blog until after Christmas...he, he...

Loads of Love For My Boy

I can't believe my baby is turning 2 tomorrow! I know it's a cliche but it really has gone by so very quickly. I made the card below a few weeks ago for a Cyberstamp Challenge and thought it would be a lovely card for my little fellow.

The cyberstamp was for a group of Stampin' Up! demonstrators who belong to a forum called ESAD (Extremely Special Aussie Demonstrators) and I failed miserably :( . I joined in toward the beginning, attempted the first challenge and that was it! In between kids and my SLOW card making I only managed to complete the first challenge, and this is the card. I did have fun making this though...a new stamp set and a colour challenge, yummo!

So, here is the recipe;

Stamps: Loads of Love

Cardstock: Watercolour paper, Garden Green, Certainly Celery, Brilliant Blue, Basic Grey

Ink: StazOn, Certainly Celery

Accessories: Certainly Celery Ribbon (no longer available), Watercolour Pencils, Circle Scissors Plus, Stampin' Write Journaler, Snail adhesive, Stampin' Dimensionals

Thanks for visiting, and happy stampin'...

Kylie

Sour Cream or Sunny Boy...

Okay, so this is my first post including a photo. Yay! This is where the fun starts, and hopefully some inspiration...

I made this Sour Cream container (or Sunny Boy container, if you prefer) for one of my early workshops but I still love how it turned out and use this template regularly. I actually CASEd (Copy And Share Everything) this from my lovely upline Maureen - thanks, Maureen! It's really quite simple to make, and there is a tutorial on Splitcoast Stampers which is where I found my instructions. All products used for my version are Stampin' Up! and include:

Cardstock: Whisper White, Bashful Blue

Stamps: Season of Joy, Basic Phrases

Ink: Bashful Blue classic ink

Accessories: Bashful Blue 1/4" Grosgrain ribbon, Dazzling Diamonds, Eyelet Border, Scallop Oval and Large Oval punches.

Thanks for visiting, and happy stampin'...

Kylie

My First Blog ...

Well, I'm all grown up now and have my own blog!

For those of you who are wondering about my blog title...Stampin' Next Door...let me fill you in: my mum lives next door and shares my love of all things stampin' and papercrafty. It's pretty rare that one of us isn't 'stampin' next door' or at least planning to 'stamp next door' with the other. So, here I am blogging in tribute to this stampy relationship... I'm really looking forward to sharing my creative journey - 'stampin' next door' - with you.