Back from the Creativity Escape

My fears about the Internet connection at the venue were bang on and we had no phone signal either in the main! Today has been about recovering from the whirlwind weekend and resting.
The venue had an ideal cropping room with tons of light and space so everyone could have an entire table to themselves - perfect for scrapbookers like me who need oodles of workspace! We set the shop up in the conference room which gave loads of space to display everything and was the perfect excuse to get up from time to time and stretch your legs. It was nice and secure so we were able to leave it set up the entire time and just lock up when we were done - ideal!! The rooms were basic but to be honest I don't think anyone spent much time sleeping, there was too much scrapping to get done!
We were very fortunate to have two gorgeous make and takes designed and run by Pauline and Sue throughout the weekend. It gave everyone the chance to have a break from scrapbooking and work with some new products. The first project was a gorgeous birthday card that mixed patterned papers and stamping and the second was a stunning pillow box created using a Sizzix die, stamps and embossing folder. I made the time to do the second project and ended up with a gift box that matched my Kath Kidston-esque PJs!! I loved it so much I made two!! I can't thank Pauline and Sue enough for their work on these make and takes, everyone LOVED them and learned a lot more about Stampin' Up and their products.
The five Masterclasses were just the right number and were evenly spread over the weekend to give lots of time to work on them. I think most people got at least one thing completed - Maria completed them all!! We had a good mix of styles, techniques and colours to offer something for everyone. I've learned that it's impossible to please everyone all the time but if there is at least one class that each person loves then my objective has been achieved. We incorporated stitching (real and faux), die cutting, punching, masking, inking, painting, art mediums, spraying, ink dyes, distressing and even ironing in the classes!! No wonder I'm feeling so tired now it's over!
Having someone else do the cooking and washing up was a lovely treat, the food was good home cooking and tasty. We had unlimited tea and coffee all weekend and had access to a fridge for our own soft drinks and the odd bottle of wine! I certainly didn't go hungry at all over the weekend and the staff were really good at finding fast alternatives if something wasn't to anyone's taste.
Our suppliers donated products for everyone to receive a gift bag, the quality was a bit hit and miss so I thought it would be fun to run a tag challenge over the course of the event. Almost everyone created a tag using predominantly their gift bag contents (and even the bag itself!!) and we entered them all into a draw to win a tote bag full of supplies. Sarah won the draw and was stunned - have fun with your goodies hun!
With lovely sunny weather on Saturday and Sunday we were able to get some group shots so I'm sure we will see some of those photos being scrapbooked very soon. I don't think I've seen anything funnier than my Dad and darling hubby weighed down with cameras - everyone wanted a pic on their own! Thanks guys, you were so patient with us all!
The feedback has been amazing and I'm already planning when to run the next one. If you're interested in joining in the fun then just drop us an email to sales@totalpapercrafts.co.uk to be added to our retreat mailing list. We are thinking the next one will be about March next year, what do you think?

Creativity Escape class kit bundles update

We have been inundated with requests for the class kit bundles and unfortunately they have now sold out. We may have a few single kits available which I'll upload to the shop next week after I've recovered from the weekend away!

The connectivity at the venue is a little iffy but I'll do my best to post during the event to let you know how we get on. I know there are some very excited ladies this evening - I've had so many texts telling me they're all packed and ready to go! I have the feeling that this is going to be a really fun weekend with some really lovely people, what more could you ask for?!

Creativity Escape peek - project class

As many of you know, I have a thing for chunky, dimensional projects that have lots going on and the project class for the retreat has allowed me to indulge to my hearts content! This class takes albums to a whole different level as you create it in the round on a goreous replica vintage spool. As soon as I had this idea I commissioned the spools specifically for this class and was so pleased with the finished product! This is something you can add to over and over again and it will look fabulous on display as it has oodles of charms, ribbons and fragments dangling from it. You can choose to highlight the vintage pinks in the papers using pinks and browns or go along the blue route with blues, browns and green so this project can be pretty and feminine, vintage or masculine - whatever suits your personal taste.

The kit contains; a wooden spool, a whole pack of 6" x 6" patterned papers, corrugated card, a whole pack of Anna Griffin ribbons, a selection of Tim Holtz charms, fasteners, tickets and tags, paper clips, film strip ribbon, wire coil

You will need to bring along a paintbrush, wet adhesive (the sample used matte medium), border punches. You probably won't get to the photo stage in the class but it will take 3" x 4" photos in both portrait and landscape. You will need 24 medium brads - silver, pewter or black would work best with the kit (the album can be assembled without but we have a cool technique to show you using them!). You will need brown, pink and/or blue inkpads (the sample used Distress Inks in Vintage Photo, Weathered Wood and Tattered Rose).

Also required and available to use in the classroom are Sizzix On-the-Edge dies and cream paint

I have had loads of enquires about these kits from people who could not make the retreat and I am pleased to tell you that I have a few sets of all the class kits for sale. Numbers are VERY limited so if you are interested I would suggest you email sales@totalpapercrafts.co.uk - it will be first come, first served.

I hope you like what we have shown you so far, we love the classes and are so excited about teaching them this weekend!!

Creativity Escape peek - Kaiser class

Our fourth scrapbook layout class features the gorgeous Kaiser 'Blae & Ivy' line with its soft and pretty colours and patterns that have a soft vintage look. The rich cream, powder blue and soft sage colours are really lovely and will work really well with colour or sepia pictures. This single page layout has dimension in more ways than one and our technique will show you just what we mean!!

The kit includes; cardstock, three double sided patterned papers, a 12x12 sheet of Blae & Ivy stickers including borders, embellishments and alphabet, a pack of Blae & Ivy rub-ons, a pack of Kaiser adhesive crystals and pearls, a pack of Thickers alphabet stickers, acrylic wadding, crepe paper.

You'll need two 6" x 4" photos (one portrait and one landscape) and you have a choice of two themes 'Friends' or 'Moments'. You'll also need 3d foam pads, double sided tape, pale blue and beige inkpads (sample uses Distress Inks in Old Paper and Weathered Wood), a pale brown ink spray is optional (your beige inkpad could be used - sample uses Glimmer Mist in Bronze), a selection of border punches (a selection of border punches will be available in the classroom).

The last peek should be up tomorrow - what do you think so far?

Creativity Escape peek - Prima class

I have an ongoing love affair with Prima!! I don't think there's any Prima product I don't like so we were really spoilt for choice when picking this contents for this class kit. We went with this year's 'Botanicals' release for the papers, the soft pastel florals in powder blue, sage reen and cream are given a lift with a touch of burgundy. The theme of the single page layout class is 'Memories' so anything pretty much goes as far as photos are concerned. The sample is very pretty and floral, a perfect match to the soft feminine papers.

We'll be creating a faux background effect and use art mediums to alter a simple print into a fabulous feature embellishment. You will also have the chance to play with spray colour to alter flowers in a number of ways

The kit includes; cardstock, 3 patterned papers, a pack of Prima flowers, a Prima stamp set, a pack of adhesive crystals, cream lace, wire, a paper doily, an oh-so-sweet bumble bee charm, water colour paper and paper templates.
You will need two 6" x 4" landscape photos, green, dusty pink and burgundy inkpads (sample uses Distress inks in Bundled Sage, Milled Lavendar and Aged Mahogany), 3d foam pads, a decorative border punch, clear stickles or glitter, a paintbrush and a clear stamp block at least 1" x 2" in size.

Also required and available to use in the class are gesso, Sizzix dies and machine, Glimmer Mist

There's one more layout class peek to come and then we have the project - pop back and take a look!!

Creativity Escape peek - Bo Bunny 'Timepiece' class

I fell in love with the 'Timepiece' collection when it was released earlier this year, I adored the clocks, cogs and natural colourway - no surprise that this line has sold out virtually everywhere so quickly!! In this class we will be creating a double page layout that plays up the 'time' theme to the max and that features an easy and stunningly effective textured background technique!

The sample design uses four 6" x 4" photos - two landscape and two portrait and the theme is 'time' You could choose to show the passage of time with a progression of photos through the years or choose a moment in time that deserves special treatment. The colours of the layout are natural and neutral - cream, beige, black and brown with a punch of green.

The kit includes; cardstock, two double sided patterned papers, a diecut patterned paper, a pack of laser cut chipboard clocks, handmade flowers, silk leaves, a roll of masking tape, brads and a Prima flocked iron-on title.
You'll also need to pack 3 foam pads, beige, brown and black inkpads (sample used Distress Inks in Old Paper, Brushed Corderoy and Black soot), Distress Stickles in Rock Candy or a clear glitter glue and a decorative border punch.

Also required and available to use in the class are; alcohol ink in Latte, cream paint, heat gun, iron.

In the class we will create a textured background and learn a rusted chipboard technique.

Creativity Escape peek - Crate Portrait class

This single page layout kit features the Crate 'Portrait' paper line, a super elegant selection of soft greys, black and warm beige. The patterns are small and easy on the eye and so are perfect for all sorts of different themes of photos. We will be creating our own version of the stunning Prima raffia flowers in the class, a super simple and very effective embellishment for any paper project! We will also be masking, distressing, painting and sewing!!

The sample design uses three portrait photos - one 6" x 4" and two 3" x 4" and the theme is very generic, you can emphasise whatever theme you like using the adhesive chipboard alphabet included.

The kit includes; cardstock, 3 sheets of double sided patterned paper, a pack of Jillibean Soup chipboard alphabet, Prima ruffled rose trim, cotton twill, Prima crystal flower centres, raffia and embroidery floss.

You will need to bring; a sewing needle with a large eye (to fit embroidery floss), a black journaling pen, a paper pricker, strong wet adhesive (sample used FabriTac), 3d foam pads, black inkpad, brown inkpad, distress tool - plus you'll need your basic tool kit.

Also required and available to use in the class will be: a butterfly punch, punch-around-the-page sets, distress stains, cream paint