Banners & Ceremonies

As I'm so bad at keeping this blog up to date on a regular basis, sorry about that. I've got so many events and things to tell you about. So let's get started.

The Banner!
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I'd promised last time that I'd give you guys an update on the banner that crafty Lou and Chris had painstakingly created for our Sir Stampalot's Christmas Launch weekend held over the August bank holiday weekend.
Here's a picture of the banners in it's new home:

slightly closer:

and here's some detail shots of some of the pendants:

Lou has been using all sorts on this pendant from cuttlebug embossing folders to nestabilites, versacolour cubes, stardust pens and stamped images.

Lou's used Woodware chipboard shapes to get the photo corner, the brilliant puff white embossing powder to give the snow effect, where would Lou be without a little cream shrink plastic (now back in stock) for the Tilda tag, and the Art Impressions grove of trees design.

This one is my favourite, Lou's used one of the latest designs from the Cling Collection from Hero arts, to create a wish list for Christmas and then shrunk it down on the cream shrink plastic, along with one of the journalling tickets from Tim Holtz. What a neat idea.

The backing papers on most of the pendants are the latest collection from My Mind's Eye. Here Lou's shrunk (surprise surprise!!), Tilda with hood along with the lamppost, moon and robin to create a little scene and of course some puff white embossing powder to finish off the look of snow at their feet.

Chris used little winter Japanese girl from hero and given her some bling with self adhesive gems and shaped the character by using silicone gel to adhere her to the pendant.

Chris loves those "inchies" by Inkadinkadoo and she's used the stamp design from the winter set very creatively with winter jelly embossing folder and decorative squares embossing folder, and some freehand doodling with the inkessentials pen. The inchie stands proud of the pendant by using a inch chipboard square shape from Bazzill, which fits perfectly.

Here's another inchie design from Chris along with ribbons, bling, background stamping, snowflake stamped designs and one of the squares cuttlebug embossing folder as used from the previous set.


All these pendants are now on our online gallery (currently page 1 but that'll change as we put more and more online), Although the pictures are on the gallery, I've still to go back in and detail each one of the pendants, so that will take a little longer.

If you want see more of Chris' fabulous artwork, her blog is 'always about colour'

and crafty Lou has finally taken the plunge and has started her own blog and you can keep up to date with her artwork here, "Crafty Lou's Small World"


Thanks to you both for all your hard work at preparing the banner and to your helpers Fleur and Jo.


SDU event
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Over the last 7 months, we at Sir Stampalot have been running a course for scrapbooking called SDU or "Scrapbooking Design & You". And all the girls completed the course recently, so yesterday we held a little graduation ceremony for them all.

From left to right, Kim, Clare, Lorna, Kay, Me, Lisa, Manita, Henreietta and Jenny.

Kay had been very resourceful and worked out how we could all make our own Mortar Boards, using just 3 sheets of Bazzill cardstock, a tassel and some thin black ribbon - thanks Kay.

The lovely Lorna made a superb Maderia cake:

(luckily there's some left over to have with a cuppa later this afternoon)

And by a stroke of luck, Manita's son turned up to support Manita and we managed to coerce him into taking the photos (and he knows what he's doing more than my Andy):

Thanks Scott. Previously to that, Brenda (Floral Fantasies) and hubby Eddy had popped in and helped out with setting up the photo area. Additionally, a gentleman was with his wife shopping in our store and helped out tremendously with sorting out our indoor lighting - thank you sir.

And if you are in the Peterborough region and require a photographer, it's worthwhile checking out if Scott's available, here's his website with contact details: www.alexander-scott.com

Here's a shot of some of the girls receiving their certificate:

Lisa (our new scrapbook tutor at Sir Stampalot)

Clare

Manita

Jenny

Lorna

Kay

Henreitta

Kim

Well done to you all.


Phew, that one was a big long wasn't it. I'll try not to keep you waiting so long for the next update. I've still loads to tell and show, so hopefully I'll be back soon.

Next weekend we are exhibiting up at Port Sunlight in The Wirral so hopefully see some of you there.

Happy crafting
- janice

It's not the size that matters!

Long over due, but as promised here's some piccies of artwork Chris has made using the inkadinkadoo Inchies stamp sets - so called as most of the square designs on the set are just a mere inch in size.

And don't forget, if you like what you are seeing here, then go and have a butcher's at Chris' blog - "Always About Colour".

This is one of the projects Chris made for Sir Stampalot. She has already posted this on her blog a little while back but I just had to show you the detail that goes into some of her work.

Using versamagic ink to stamp out the Inchies from the Flower Garden stamp set, this is the front of a wallet that is kept closed with the lovely organza ribbon from Creative Impressions that has a lovely swirly design on it. This wallet opens up and contains matching notelets.

This notelet wallet project makes a wonderful gift idea for a birthday present or as thank you notelets to send someone for all the lovely Christmas presents we'll get this year (have we all been good??)

As part of the embellishments on the front of the wallet, Chris came up with, accidently, the 'peanut' flower look:

this is where she has inked the edges of Prima flowers (again with versamagic ink), and dropped the flower into clear embossing powder (this was the accidental bit if I remember rightly!). So she decided to gently heat set this flower covered in clear embossing powder - the texture of the flower and the colour of the ink assisted in the flower petals looking like peanuts! How cool is that?

The centers of the flowers are nicely embellished with cream shrink plastic circles stamped with designs from the same Inchies stamp set. And also a few separate ones adhered in a neat little row on the wallet front.

This is a brilliant, non-complicated card design that Chris came up with. Again using Inchies from the same set as before in 3 simple coordinating colours as the main focal point of the card (designs from the Flower Garden set).

And finished off with a greeting motif from the Woodware Clear Magic set - Circular Greetings, again using the same colours to match the Inchies.

Thanks Chris, these are brill. Just had a peep at your blog and love the new Sarah Kay card you posted on Saturday 1st - it's gorgeous. Looking forward to seeing the second variation you are working on - no pressure or anything!!

More Inchies to come next time .....