Wordblooms are blooming lovely!

I've had my eye on these Wordbloom books for ages after I spotted them in the Summer. Shortly after that, I started seeing ads in CK for similar books by another manufacturer and there was a huge interest in them. I felt a bit for 2Daisies as it was their idea and then a bigger company seemed to get all the attention - and so I ordered from 2Daisies. I think its a moral thing and something to do with supporting the underdog, and in any case I had fully intended to order from them in the first place!

We ran a class with these books on Saturday and they were really popular. They are fast to put together and are something very different from the usual sort of mini-book project. I had a blast making up my sample but learnt a few important lessons along the way.....

1. the pages need to be covered with papers that contrast strongly with each other - light/dark or patterned/plain or it becomes impossible to read the word.

2. the space available for photos/journaling/embellishments is only the width of the solid area of the preceeding page - any photos etc that peek out start to mess with the word too!

3. these books are best bound with wire coils or large book rings or they tend to spread apart and make it difficult to see the word.

They are only £4.99 each and with a few bits and bobs from your stash can be a really cheap way to create a gift for someone special. My one is going to Dave's Mum for Christmas as she is cooking this year!

You can find these gorgeous Wordblooms at www.totalpapercrafts.co.uk

Karen :o)

Ready for club tomorrow?

Very unusually for me, I've been super-organised just lately and have had the page for club tomorrow put together for a while! Its a double page design based on a Becky Fleck sketch and the kit is great value for money as it includes a Crafter's Workshop 12x12 template. The papers are 7gypsies but I only used one of them and of the 4 sheets of cardstock in the kit there's still one I haven't touched so I can even knock out a few cards with what I have here - not bad eh?

Saying that though, I did add a few bits including a couple of sheets of black cardstock, black mini-brads and some hydrangeas which I had in my stash as I need to use some stuff up before we move. I have visions of us needing a whole other removal van for the shop stock and my personal stash, I HAVE to use up more of what I have here in my craft room because it doesn't seem to be going down much!!! I can see the local school inheriting a pile of cardstock, paper and stickers from me in the not-too-distant future :o)

If you're joining us tomorrow evening for club, don't panic if you don't have black cardstock and brads as I ordered some in for the shop especially for you!

Karen :o)

Recovering from the crop!!

It has been a long time since I laughed as much and as hard as I did at the crop on Saturday, it was such a fab day! I want to start off by thanking Mandy for teaching three gorgeous classes for us, she is such an amazing instructor and designer that its a real priviledge to have her as part of our team at the crops. I also want to thank my fairy godmother, Pauline. Without her I'd fall to pieces as she not only ran the shop all day for us but before the crop spend many a long hour packing the class kits and pricing the shop stock - thank you so very much for keeping me together!! I'm so blessed to have friends like these who are so amazingly supportive.

I think the highlight of the day had to be Dave appearing in his 'waiter' outfit after lunch - he had me in fits of laughter at home as he appeared wearing it for a giggle while we were getting ready to leave. I explained that the world might not be quite ready for him yet and suggested he try something a bit less revealing but we had a laugh in one of my classes when I told them the story. Later in the afternoon Dave had to pop back home for something and offered to get changed. I laughed that he wouldn't dare - a short while later the class erupted into screams of laughter as he appeared standing at the hatch behind me wearing it!! Thankfully Helen was together enough to grab her phone and take a few pics because I had completely lost it. What was funnier was that a few girls were disappointed that despite appearances, he didn't have the thong on too!

It was such a fun day, it was so fab to see everyone and this time around I actually had the time to get round and chat. We had a lovely mix of regulars and people who joined us for the first time which seemed to work well as the event didn't have a 'cliquey' feel which can sometimes be an issue. Despite being absolutely shattered by the end of the day, I am really looking forward to our next crop on 9th February. I can't promise semi-naked men again but I'm sure we'll have a laugh!!

Enjoy your Christmas pud.

Karen :o)

Sneak Peeks and photo/tool help for tomorrow

Family wordbloom class
You'll need to bring along a small piece of sandpaper, some 3d foam pads and a selection of photos ranging from 1" to 6" wide.


MME Frost class
The class sample uses two 6"x4" landscape photos - you'll also need to bring along 3d foam pads, double sided tape, a soft brown inkpad and a brown journaling pen (I have some in the shop if you need one).


Hearts & Chocolates
This class uses a 7" x 5" landscape photo plus a soft brown inkpad and some 3d foam pads.


7gypsies Hudson Valley
Bring along one 7" x 5" (or larger) portrait photo for this class plus some 3d foam pads, a black journaling pen, black inkpad and a paper pricker (a needle will do the trick just as well!).

Japanese Camelia
You'll need a 7" x 5" portrait photo, a white gel pen, a burgundy or turquoise gel pen and 3d foam pads.

MM St Nick class
Four 7" x 5" photos (portrait, landscape or a mixture)and eight 6" x 4" photos. Don't panic about getting so many photos together as Mandy assures me you'll have plenty to do in the class and may not get to the photo bit!

Calendar book
You will need to bring double-sided tape and some small photos.

Get in 'bloom'!!

I can finally breathe out - the last class for the crop this weekend has arrived! Talk about cutting it fine, that was too close for comfort :o) Anyway, I think it was worth the wait as its one of the hottest trends around at the moment, a wordbloom book. I loved these when I saw them in Vegas and have been desperate to get them for a class so I was so chuffed to get my hands on the delivery and get working on the class sample (plus thats another Christmas present sorted out!!).

I chose a 'Family' wordbloom as it probably has the broadest appeal and the one in the kit isn't the standard chipboard that needs to be covered. It is already patterned/coloured and so we can spend the time in the class actually putting it together which is great because its the last class of the day and I don't know about you but I need to be fresh for fiddly cutting around stuff! I am so pleased with the finished book, the colours are great for the whole family and it really didn't take that long to put together. The class kit contains the wordbloom book, co-ordinating patterned papers, cardstock, 6 yards of ribbons, flowers, a coiled wire spine and a fun coloured paperclip. You might want to bring along some white rub-ons or a white gel pen plus you'll definately need a small piece of sandpaper - you know me, I love to make a mess!! I bound my book together using the Bind-it-all and I'll have mine there in class so you can finish your book while playing!

We are very busy right now sorting the new stock for the shop on Saturday and packing the class kits but I'll keep you posted and try to get some sneak peeks up on here as soon as I can. Take care, Karen :o)

Get ready for My Little Shoebox!

The penultimate class for the crop this month will go on sale tomorrow and its a beautiful kit using products from the My Little Shoebox 'Japanese Camelia' line. I've asked Mandy to teach this class as I know she'll more than do it justice, Mandy seems to be in her element when she's surrounded by beautiful papers and plenty of ribbon and as a result her classes are stunning! I fell head over heels with this company when we were in Vegas, they are pretty new on the scene but the owner has a great eye and was so sweet when we met her.

The class kit contains cardstock, 3 double sided patterned papers, 3 packs of die-cut embellishments, a whole pack of ribbons and a transparency sheet - all of which are just gorgeous!!! The kit will go on sale tomorrow morning at 9am so be sure to reserve your place because this is a 'must have' kit!

Did you watch 'The Mummy Diaries' last night? If ever there was a reason to spur anyone to scrapbook, this program made it loud and clear. The diaries and memory boxes produced by the terminally ill mothers were a beautiful legacy for their children. While I hope to live a full, long and healthy life, I am comforted by the knowledge that there will always be something of me left behind on my scrapbook pages for those I love. I am now determined to journal more on my pages so that they are meaningful and not just pretty decorated pages with photos stuck on. I've had more journaling on my layouts of late but the program really struck a chord with me. If you didn't get to see it, I can highly recommend it - tune into Channel 4 on Thursdays at 9pm.

Karen :o)

New crop class up tomorrow

The final deliveries of class materials for the crop are starting to arrive now and the one that came in today is just gorgeous. It uses the new 'Frost' line from My Mind's Eye and is beautifully wintry, a nice change from the Christmas papers that are coming out right now. The kit contains 5 patterned papers, a 12x12 die-cut sheet, cardstock, a pack of ribbons and a transparency frame. They will go on sale at 7pm tomorrow evening and I fully expect that places will go quickly so be sure to grab yours!!

The other thing that was in the delivery was the new Autumn Leaves 'Designing with 2008' calendar. These are so much more than a calendar, they are a daily source of inspiration and ideas from the design team at Autumn Leaves. Last year I couldn't get enough of these and even ended up bringing some back from the US in our cases as they were so popular! You can find them on the shop site at www.totalpapercrafts.co.uk

Karen :o)