"Craft Classroom" - 5 new articles
Stampin' Up! Incentive Trip
Yes, I was one of 31 lucky demonstrators from Australia and New Zealand to earn the 2009 Incentive Trip to Noosa - right here in my backyard! I guess I am about the last of the achieving demonstrators to post this event onto my blog, so many apologies for that. We had a fabulous time, however, you can imagine the work that went into my husband and I leaving 4 children for 5 days as well as the catching up afterwards. This of course would not have been possible without the irreplaceable, wonderful and kind Godmother to our children, Bronwyn. Bronwyn drove up from Sydney to care for 4 children aged 7 through to 12 - she is an Angel and Superhero. The photos I am posting are a small collection of my personal snaps and I have just noticed that other demonstrators have shared some more on line - never-mind, I have already collaged these and really I must just get on and put these up before I am lynched or it is simply too late! 
Arriving at the Sheraton on Wednesday after lunch, my husband and I felt so strange - even the car trip up felt weird - where were the fights in the back seat & the 'are we there yet' statements? - if you've ever travelled in the car with kids, you'll know what I mean. Highlights of the first day were learning we had an ocean view room, finding a chocolate shop next door, the welcome dinner and our cute 'Tart and Tangy' Apron Gift for our cooking adventure the next day. Also exciting was that not only were Shelli, Sterling, Aaron and Karen there but Dave the VP of Stampin' Up/International Sales was also there with his lovely wife Jennifer on her first Australian trip. 
Our first group activity was the following day, which was 'assisting' in preparing our own lunch with the guidance of chefs at Ricki's Restaurant on the Noosa River. Nicki and I were in charge of the pasta machine - between the two of us we had lots of laughs, inadvertently disassembling the machine and almost rolling gloved fingers through the rollers! 
We were all divided into different teams, so some were on chocolate truffle duty, whilst the rest of us found their left overs in the kitchen afterwards! Licking the chocolate truffle bowl was certainly more appealing than eating left over uncooked pasta! I just love Robyn's hands! Have you noticed the cutlery - Stampin' Up! detail all the way! 
This was my first attempt to have a decent photo taken with Shelli - a virtual impossibility I have discovered after 3 years! I really tried this time - I got that hair straightener out, but 2 hours later the humidity had done its worst and there I was all frizzy again - Leonie, what that new hair product again? I'm desperate! Shelli repositioned me between her and Sterling after this shot, but sadly a full on view was simply not flattering - made sense then that gourmet ice cream followed the make & take, which is where this photo was taken. 
The farewell dinner was AMAZING and no one guessed what the evening had in store for us. From the secret destination (Cooroy) to the vintage cars to our final locale (The Plantation), every detail was taken care of. I had another go having a photo with Shelli - honestly we are lucky - in the US demonstrators line up for hours for their photo opportunity. Above I am with Karen Scott and Kim Gavarra and below is Sharon, Robyn and Kim.  Ben's Party
Turning 7 was a big event for Ben who has been dreaming and planning his ideal birthday party for months! Whilst we had a family party on the actual day, we had to wait till after school went back to organize his school friends party. I should say with 4 children, we do not do these types of birthday parties each year, which probably explains why Ben was so super excited about his big day this year. Ben's party was at Laser-force, which is a bit of a Brisbane icon as it is the original Laser-force from which many others sprung up around the world. The only sad thing is that it was developed from a disused roller skating rink, so if you know that I used to be a skater you would understand why I am sad about rinks closing. Funny story about the cake. the girls and I chose a 'Flying Saucer Cake', which was always going to frustrate me as I had no chance of making it look as good as the photograph. The base started off quite well - I opted for a ready made sponge and covered it in blue fondant icing with stars to look like space. Next I had to carve a flying saucer out of sponge and elevate it using cake risers. This is where the problems begun because not only could we not make silver icing for the flying saucer but I learned that you cannot use cake risers on sponge as they tend to sink into the sponge especially during car travel. To cut a long story short, by the time we reached Laser-force the flying saucer had crash landed into the base! Whilst we did our best to prop it back into position, when we lit the candles on the base, one had angled itself under the upper layer and started to cause a fire at the perimeter of the craft - It was pretty funny really. Luckily the cake did not burn down and it stayed up long enough for happy birthday to be sung and the cake cut.  All the children had a great time, including the girls. I've never allowed toy guns at home, so the whole idea of Laser-force was a bit foreign to me. Afterwards the children played some of the arcade games including pin ball and air hockey - so much fun. I was so glad Ben had had his dream party as we could see from the look of his face that he was so so happy!
 St Pauls Manly Market Day
Just over a year ago I was asked if I would contribute a stall/display at St Paul's Market Day. One of the lovely things that happened that day was that my friend and fellow demonstrator Jen met Jerry, one of the local parishioners, who then joined our 'Paper Angels' Group of Independent Stampin Up Demonstrators. This year Jen, Jerry and I worked together on the St Paul's Market Day. One of the absolute highlights of this day is the very professional 'sidewalk cafe' known as 'Pauls on Ernest', which serves everything from professional coffee, delicious gourmet breakfasts and delicious handmade cakes. Jerry went to so much effort making the fabulous table numbers, decorating them with stamping and messages inviting people to come and make a complimentary card with us.
 St Pauls had a fabulous display of historic Christening Gowns which was very special as well as displays and a fashion parade of wedding gowns over the years. Other attractions included the local school band, Caprice Dancers and of course complimentary Stampin Up Make & Takes. I was able to snap some photos of Jerry and Jen showing how easy and fun stamping is. The wonderful thing was that we had a great range of people stop by and we really enjoyed sharing the cute little card we had all come up with for our make & take.
The rector of St Paul's, Canon Keith Colbert, is quite a character (clearly loved by all the parishioners) and has a way with words. In his welcome flyer he noted 'Fetes are occasions to buy goodies not usually available anywhere else. Proper Coconut Ice and Fudge, padded coat hangers and rag dolls, are not common in the shops, but what would life be without them?' Indeed, there is something comforting about finding these traditional items, which like hand stamped cards, remind us of the enjoyment of simple pleasures. Thank you Jerry and Jen for all your hard work and inviting me along - it was a lovely morning.  August 2009 Class ScheduleElizabeth Collett | Independent Demonstrator | Senior Manager | Stampin' Up! Australia 17 Mossvale Dve, Wakerley 4154 | 07 3348 9456 | 0448 896 001 | liz@danichbe.com
Welcome to my class selection for August, inspired by the beautiful new products available in our Spring Mini Catalogue. These classes are all held in my home studio, however, I am happy to run these classes in your home with a minimum of 6 participants.
These classes all include a generous materials pack, full colour instructions & morning/afternoon tea. Each class is strictly limited to 7 participants, so please do book early to avoid disappointment. It would be appreciated if you could either pay by direct deposit or credit card, to secure your booking and enable me to ensure your materials pack is available.
Please bring adhesives (snail, dimensionals, glue dots and sticky strip), scissors, bone folder and cutter to all classes.
If you are unable to come, but would like a class kit with instructions, I am happy to post it to you – please add $5 for postage irrespective of the number of kits ordered
If you are a 'Paper Angels Group' Independent Stampin' Up! Demonstrator, you are also welcome to book a place in these classes. Simply provide your own materials. Cost will be $5. If you would like information on how to become a discount demonstrator, please contact me.
Paper Patchwork $25 
Thursday 30th July 10am till 12 midday Saturday 1st August 2 till 4pm
Create a striking 12x12 scrapbooking page, suitable as a framed page or addition to your family scrapbook. In this class you will learn 'easy to use' techniques to create scrapbooking pages inspired by patchwork, featuring the gorgeous Urban Garden and Urban Oasis Designer Series Papers.
Each participant will receive ½ pack of Urban Garden DSP, ½ pack of Urban Oasis DSP, 1 metre of Baja Breeze Wide Double Stitched Grosgrain Ribbon and Whisper White Cardstock. There will be enough left over DSP to create a further 5 patchwork pages!
Pink Flamingo Double Page Layout $35
Thursday 6th August 10am till 1pm Saturday 8th August 2pm till 5pm
Make a bright, happy, double page layout using our stunning Pink Flamingo Designer Series paper. Learn how to make a cute journalling pocket and designer accents using Crystal Effects.
Each participant will receive a full pack of 'Pink Flamingo DSP, one 12x12 Riding Hood Red Cardstock, one A4 Riding Hood Red Cardstock, Summer Sun A4, exclusive white dotty voile, 2 x A4 Whisper White Cardstock, ½ pack of 'Flower' Designer Brads, 1/8 Ribbon Share of 'Dress Up' Ribbon Originals and 1 metre Riding Hood Red Taffeta Ribbon.
Designing With Paper $60
Thursday 13th August 10am till 2pm Sunday 16th August 2pm till 6pm
Learn how to use scrapbooking paper with flair! In this class you will make 2 gorgeous advanced patchwork scrapbooking pages, plus 2 stunning woven cards featuring our beautiful 'Summer Love' Rub Ons.
Each participant will receive a full pack of 'Walk in the Park' DSP, Baja Breeze Corduroy Buttons, 2 x Basic Gray 12x12, 2 x Whisper White A4, 2 x Baja Breeze A4, ½ pack of 'Summer Love' Rub Ons, and Taffeta Pink Ribbon.
Walk in the Park Scrapbook Page $30
Thursday 27th August 10am till 12midday Sunday 30th August 2pm till 4pm
If you love 'pretty' then this layout class is for you. Combining prettty pink taffeta ribbon and designer buttons with the gorgeous 'Walk in the Park' Designer Series Paper, you will want to recreate this design time and time again.
Each participant will receive a ½ pack of 'Walk in the Park' DSP, pink taffeta ribbon, a designer button share and sheet of dimensionals. Thee will be plenty of left over material to complete another page.
 'Walk in the Park' Designer Series Paper Coming Soon
Isn't this the most gorgeous scrapbooking paper ever? It is called 'Walk in the Park' and will be available to order from our Spring Mini Catalogue, which runs from August 1st till November 30th. I had a great time creating this page on a fabulous craft retreat, which Leonie organised last weekend at Tamborine Mountain. I was surprised how many pages I was able to achieve, however, I will put it down to Stampin' Up's Color Coordinated Products in combination with not having to do anything else (all meals etc were provided and very yummy they were too). The page features some photographs taken at Dreamworld a couple of years ago. I found it really easy to find photos to match this beautiful paper and because it is double sided, there are lots of choices.  More Recent Articles |
