Odd Bits

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Good morning ~

Unfortunately I'm at a funeral today. The grandmother of my son's godmother passed just before Christmas which was very sad. She lived a wonderful 89 years though and I'm sure today will be a celebration of all those years.

I thought I'd post some of the pics I've had sitting around that haven't found their way to being blogged yet. They all have something in common - fairly poor photography, and therefore don't look quite as good here as they did irl.

What you may not be able to see in the pic is that this card has a clear embossed background using the Linen B/G stamp (retired). The base is Early Espresso with some Tangerine Tango.


These are an all in one box containing a set of six cards and envelopes (which I didn't photograph doh) that I gave as Chrissie presents to a few people. I really wish I had taken pics of the cards inside, they looked rather lovely all put together.


This is my first ever stocking - with a yummy assortment of choccies that Gorgeous Kid found under the tree Christmas morning. I purposely left all the 'trimmings' off it as he really doesn't like all the fussy bits. I guess most 10yo boys feel that way lol.


This last card was taken in such poor light (remember all that rain we had) that I haven't been able to 'fix' it up much at all. The chipboard letters are inked in Choc Chip believe it or not and I've used the Play Date dsp (Real Red, Tempting Turquoise, So Saffron). This was a card for an 11yo boy back in November and apparently he absolutely loves that his name is on the front and that it's a bit abstract. I used a little of the dsp to 'coordinate' the envelope also.

Hmmmm I wonder if I could 'borrow' Liam's card back to photograph properly ... not a daft idea, I may just ask.


I'm hoping to do some cyber crafting with a couple of interstate friends a bit later tonight - if anything comes together I'll post again soon. Enjoy your day.

Gift Frames

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Good Wednesday morning ~

I put these little frames together for two of Gorgeous Kid's friends. They are more family friends than just mates and all three spend a fair bit of time together. It was nice for him to give them a little something each on Christmas day.



Until there is a photo to insert I've just put their names inside to use up some of that 'blank' space. Unfortunately frames can be difficult to photograph due to the glass. If you have any questions please leave me a comment and I'll get back to you.

Take care.

A special birthday card using JAI#48 - a sketch challenge

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Happy Tuesday ~

I hope you're all enjoying the public holidays and getting lots of rest and relaxation in. I'm just popping in briefly to show you the birthday card I made for my beautiful grandmother who celebrates her special day this Thursday the 30th.

I used the current Just Add Ink sketch challenge as my starting point, and the colours from this gift I am sending to her. Unfortunately it's not going to make it to NZ on time ... our family is notoriously late for cards and gifts and I really don't know why when we all know these significant dates. Not really good enough is it, so next year I am going to make a concerted effort to correct this - I'll keep you posted lol.

Merry Christmas!

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Good morning and merry Christmas!

Gorgeous Kid had me up at the crack of dawn, which I'm sure is a familiar theme worldwide this morning lol. It seems Santa did a fabulous job this year and I have one very happy boy wearing a grin from ear to ear.

Just a little share this morning. Love this Haute Tote template and I use it a lot. Here it is in Pink Pirouette full of Body Shop goodies. It's going to a teenage girl so fingers crossed she likes it.


I hope you all have a wonderful Christmas, that it's full of people dear to you, that you have happy children and full bellies. Let's hope some of us get a little nap at some point today too *wink*

I know that Christmas can also be a sad occasion for many people and missing loved ones is felt more than ever. Wherever you are, whatever you're doing I do hope it's a good holiday for you!

Thanks to all who follow and check in on my blog. I love love love reading your comments and I do appreciate the time you take to leave them.

Take care.

A Different Gift Card Holder

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Hi and happy Wednesday ~

I'm here to explain my disappearing act recently. Last week a very dear friend of mine died suddenly. It was a tragic accident and a senseless waste of a precious life. So everything went on hold while I dealt with the emotions that go with such a loss. The funeral was yesterday and sad as that was, it was also a celebration of a wonderful life lived. Now I must concentrate once again on Christmas being just a few days away - yikes!

Nothing much has been happening in the craft room, however, I have this little gift card holder to show you. I used Marina Mist c/s and matching dsp, along with some Real Red c/s on the embellishment. I didn't photograph the itunes card which fits a Real Red backing piece with punched 'slits' neatly.


I first saw one of these over at Stampin With Sue here. While I didn't follow Sue's tutorial specifically (my opening/closing is different and my embellishment is attached differently), it is very easy to follow and I'm sure you'll be pleased with the results if you give one of these a try.

Hope to be back with more in the next day or two and share some more Christmas goodies. Take care.

Birthday Penguin

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A dear little friend of ours had her 6th birthday party on the weekend. She's a crafty little thing and loves nothing more than visiting my craft room and getting busy - the grin from ear to ear is priceless.

This is the little card we gave her. Totally inspired and fairly well CASEd from this one :o)


This is my first time using the Owl punch as a Penguin - not sure I got 'her' little body the right shape but she has her party hat on so hopefully she looks the part. She's popped up on the new large Scallop punch (available in the Summer mini). I've used Melon Mambo and Pink Pirouette c/s and dsp. The party balloons have been slathered with Crystal Effects and look really glossy irl.

That's it from me for now. Have a great day!

Some more Christmas goodies

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Hello lovely readers ~

Just a few really quick pics for you today.

Some little boxes of choccies for the people I work with. There are many more of these boxes but I think you get the picture :o) I stuck with traditional colours except for one - that Melon Mambo box is for one of the younger girls in the office, she's a delight, always smiling and happy and just a little bit funky too!


Some chocolate sliders - to fit the small Lindt bar perfectly. Tutorial over at Petronela's Keepstamping blog here. I've used Marina Mist, Certainly Celery and Very Vanilla each with coordinating Taffeta ribbons.


A couple of gift boxes containing a set of cards and matching envelopes. The boxes are all in one with a flip top lid, like the one I showed you here. These are for the ladies in the front office at school. They're always smiling and so helpful to the kids who are constantly passing their desks for one reason or another!


Box in a bag, or bag in a box - not sure what these are called. Mine don't follow a tute or template - I made them up as I went along by making a shallow base first and wrapping the c/s around it. The top of the little bags uses the Christmas Ornament punch and that idea I did get from Becky Roberts - she comes up with the best stuff! I used some of the now retired Baja Breeze dsp and tied the little bows around the 'handle' using the Real Red 1/8" Taffeta ribbon.

That 'C' is for Gorgeous Kid and has his absolute fave chocolate Lindt balls inside. I cut the 'C' using the Timeless Type Junior Alphabet die and glittered it up with a lovely deep red from my stash.


This little gift card holder contains a very yummy gift voucher - I'll have to come back and tell you about that after Christmas. I can't be too sure the recipient doesn't read my blog from time to time so best to be on the safe side. Unfortunately on the day I took this pic the weather was a little dull and so you can't see the true Cherry Cobbler/Old Olive colours.


That's it from me, I'll be back again soon I'm sure. Enjoy your day!

A card, a frame and another CD case

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Hi there ~

I'm really excited about this little present I've prepared for my adorable niece, Noah. She turns 8 this week and is all girl - I love it. I had so much fun playing with pinks and flowers and butterflies ...

Her mum tells me she's into Katy Perry in a big way and so the whole family is going to have to suffer this one ... it's the latest CD, once again dressed up using Keesh's tutorial.


Pink Pirouette, Melon Mambo and a touch of Certainly Celery. I love the Petal Pizzazz stamps, they can be as girly as you want to make them.

Next is an 8x10" shadow frame - her bedroom is outfitted in various shades of pink, of course! I have been inspired by lots of frames in blogland, particularly Adele's with all her pretty flowers and bits. I've stamped on Whisper White c/s using an image from the Pocket Silhouettes set in Pear Pizzazz and the freehand reeds are by me! My butterflies are Pink Pirouette, Melon Mambo and Daffodil Delight. Each butterfly has a 'bling' centre and my frame is finished with the gorgeous Satin Ribbon in Whisper White - love that stuff. I've used Sticky Strip inside the frame to hold it all together neatly. I am hooked, I can see myself doing a few more of these frames.


Unfortunately I didn't get a good pic of her birthday card as the light was dull by the time I had let the 'puffy paint' on the scallop edges dry. This next pic shows all three together, and is a little over exposed unfortunately.


Well all these goodies are wrapped up tight and winging their way to New Zealand - I hope it arrives on her actual birthday this Saturday! Happy birthday beautiful Noah ... with lots of love from your Aunty Trice xox.

A CD Case - a la Keesh

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Happy Sunday everyone ~

It's been a bit quiet on the blog front lately because I've been back at the hospital having some treatment on my wrist and it put my whole arm out of action again for a few days (they've been injecting steroids - ewwwwwww it wasn't nice having multiple needles in my hand/wrist). I have to say I wasn't very brave either!

I'm not sure I updated following my MRI a few weeks back ... fair bit of damage in there still, although the bones have healed beautifully, the ligaments/tissue/whatever is grating against each other (causing pain and lack of movement) and the only fix is to have wire put in. I see the Specialist in the new year.

Anyway enough of that I've got stuff to show you ... it is my darling Grandmother's 86th birthday just after Christmas, and well by that age there isn't really very much you need. So I got her the latest Susan Boyle CD ... and dressed it up a little. I found a fabulous and simple tutorial by Keesh and I think it just makes a plain CD look like a work of art. It will travel all the way to Timaru, New Zealand very well too.


What do you think? Cherry Cobbler and the gorgeous Satin Ribbon in Old Olive ... I didn't really mean to make a birthday gift in Christmas colours ... I just love these colours together, quite regal - just like my beautiful Gran. This pic doesn't show up the little pearls in the centre of the Vintage Vogue flowers - which I've inked up in Crumb Cake and Cherry Cobbler. If you have any questions please yell out :o)

Have a terrific Sunday and I'll be back with more to show and tell later.

Just Add Ink Swap Hop

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Happy Sunday ~



This is something different and fun for the weekend and the very first time I've participated in a Blog Hop.

Recently the Just Add Ink design team girls had a card swap. A swap is where all participants make multiple copies of one card design and send them off to the rest of the group and you end up receiving a copy of everyone's cards, for your simple effort of designing just one. We thought we'd share them all with you on a Swap (Blog) Hop!

There are 14 stops on our Swap Hop, and it's set up in a loop so it doesn't matter where you start. All you need to do to follow along is click the Swap Hop button at the end of each post and you'll be taken to the next stop!

My swap is a Gift Card Holder using the new In Colours and the level 1 Hostess Gift Designer Series Paper Pack. I've embellished using the coordinating 1/2 inch Stitched-Poly Ribbon and Clear Embossed the For You Flower a la Carte stamp, punched using the Fancy Flower Extra Large punch and layered using the 1-3/8 and 1-1/4 inch Circle punches.

An inside view, with a raised 'slot' for tucking your gift card (or folded money) in safely before closing and securing with your ribbon embellishment.

I hope you like my 'Blushing Bride' Gift Card Holder. You can see all of my In Colour Swaps wrapped in cello bags ready for posting here. Now head off to the next stop (Gorgeous Gardenia) by clicking on the blinkie below and have lots of fun!

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Happy weekend everyone ~

Well if you live in Canberra I'm sure you're feeling as waterlogged as me after seven days straight of rain and storms. It's lovely to have some wet weather following ten years of drought but this is beyond a joke and has definitely worn thin with me :o)

I'm here to show you a money wallet and gift card holder. Each is going to a different friend so it was okay to 'dress' them the same. Gorgeous Kid sat in the craft room with me earlier this week and we pottered about making some things together - a rarity for sure now that he's 10! He chose the c/s and dsp and even the button embellishment (I was so impressed). I did the cutting, he did the corner rounding and applied the SNAIL while I stuck it all together ... it was very much a joint effort and so much fun. I really enjoyed seeing his interest and enthusiasm in being a little creative with his old mum :o)

We used Choc Chip c/s, Holiday Treasures dsp (retired), misc buttons, Linen Thread, small Jewellery Tag Punch & the Tiny Tags Stamp set.

Enjoy the rest of your weekend - hopefully not all of you have developed webbed feet. Gorgeous Kid is away down at the Coast this weekend with a good friend of mine - hopefully they're enjoying some sunshine and beach weather.

JAI#46...Just Add Critters

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Happy Friday lovely people ~

We have a super exciting and fun challenge over at Just Add Ink this week. So so so many options for this one. Funny thing is I didn't come up with anything too outstanding. I had so many ideas running through my head but when it came to sitting and actually doing I was a bit stumped. Talk about decisions ... what stamp set to use, which colours and papers ... you get the idea.

The perfect boy card don't you think? Nice and bright and there are obligatory critters!!!

I've used Real Red, Pear Pizzazz and Pacific Point c/s and inks, Celebrations dsp, Real Red Grosgrain ribbon and my spiral border, 1 3/8 & 1 1/4 circle punches along with a few dimensionals.

Do go over and check out the fantastic JAI design team inspiration this week ... you may even find Noahs Ark :o)

December Frenzy & the new Summer Mini

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During December get up to 50% off a great selection of Stampin' Up! products. Perfect timing for Christmas and some fantastic stocking filler ideas too!

• No minimum purchase and no limits

Click on the December Frenzy image over on the right sidebar to download the flyer!

There is also an exciting new Summer Mini Catalogue to tempt you. Packed full of goodies there are some fabulous gift ideas for your favourite crafty person this Christmas :o)

Click on the Summer Mini image over on the right sidebar to have a look at the online catalogue. If you wish to make an order please email me. Happy shopping!!!

Christmas Treat Gift Packaging

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Hi friends ~

A short and sweet post from me today. I've got an assortment of bags and bits to show you that I've been stashing away the past few days. Most I've found on the web in one form or another, and one is a Becky Roberts tutorial. None have been embellished with tags yet, as I'm not sure where some of these will end up :o)

It's trying really hard to storm here in Canberra this afternoon so the bright sunshine of earlier has been replaced by dull and darkening clouds, therefore hampering my photographic skills - yeah right like that's a factor lol.

Most of my items look a bit bland without their ribbons and tags and funky little embellishments. I hope to have time to take more pics once they're dressed up and on their way to their new homes sometime next month.

Above is a cute little baggie made from two of the Scallop Envelopes. Fits a few choccies perfectly.

Another couple of the Tucked Away boxes in Old Olive and Real Red. Love these for Lindt Balls.

This little bag isn't in Christmas colours because I was using scraps to test it out for size. This will fit all sorts of girlie things - hair clips, lip gloss, choccies...and it's fastened with velcro so can be used over and over.

Those of you who follow Inking Idaho will have seen this cute little bag before. I love how vibrant it is in red! I have some 60ml bottles of Body Shop goodies to pop in here.

This one holds a few cards and envelopes - 4-5 in fact with room to spare. I had to adjust the length of the box slightly to be sure it would fit the Australia/New Zealand A5/C6 card size. It's all one piece with the base and lid attached so it flips open.

Above is a fantastic Christmas Cracker (or Bon Bon) that Delys Cram designed. Delys made a tutorial for the Helping Hudson Christmas Bundle a few months back. You can fit all sorts in here, and how gorgeous to decorate your tree with a few of these.

Speaking of trees, Gorgeous Kid has been champing at the bit and at me constantly about putting the Christmas tree up early. I must say I'm not so keen to drag it all out and make a big mess so keep putting him off with "you know we don't do it until 1 December". He very righteously comes back with "well that's a school day". So we've bantered back and forth and negotiated that tomorrow is the day! He's still going on about it ... I'm sure it's the same in most houses at this time of the year. I do love the excitement he shows so I shouldn't be fussed with the 'chore' of it all really.

Right now I need to rescue my washing from the line before it starts pouring. Enjoy the rest of your weekend!

Just For Fun - JAI ... Sketch #45

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TGIF ~

All of a sudden I realise how close Christmas is and I've gone into panic mode - I'm sure many of you can relate lol. I was up late last night fiddling about making Christmas treats and gift packaging. These little pillow boxes are perfect for stacking and tying together and can hold all sorts of little bits and pieces.

I've followed the fabulous sketch over at Just Add Ink this week.

My two stack uses Crumb Cake c/s and Real Red 5/8" Grosgrain ribbon, along with two of the images from Snow Swirled stamped in Versamark. The single pillow box is Sahara Sand c/s and Chocolate Chip ribbon (now retired). My little flowers are made using the 5 petal punch, I've scored each of the petals and folded slightly then sponged Real Red ink on the edges. The layering is pretty self explanatory, but if you have questions just shout out :o)

Make sure you go over to Just Add Ink and check out all the lovely DT inspiration for this week.

Have a fabulous Friday and enjoy your weekend!

CASEing Danielle

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It's a happy happy day for me ~

I'm officially addicted to my internet connection. I know this how? Because I've been five days without it and totally LOST. Sad but true! The courier man delivered my modem first thing this morning - yes absolutely first thing, his knock on the door dragged me out of bed - such a pretty sight. No time for plugging in as had to get off to work. I was champing at the bit to get home ... now I'm wireless and speedy again. Love it!

I made these cards a week or more ago now. Totally CASEd from Danielle - love her style. While I didn't actually set out to use the same stamp set DD had, the image lent itself nicely to some copic practice for me :o)

Forgive my lousy pics, the camera battery was dying and I was too impatient to wait until I'd recharged so they are snapped on my desk toward the end of the day in poor light. The thread I've used was a gift from BFF, a little something from her last PTI order.

I've made a few Chrissie cards that I'll show you next time. Right now I've got some gorgeous blogs to catch up on ... enjoy the rest of your evening!