Monday 28 May 2012

TAP BACK IN STOCK FOLKS ....

Wow have you been enjoying the UK sunshine as much as us?  Hope it stays around a bit longer - maybe over the Jubilee weekend and week ahead!  Fingers crossed!  Talking of the Jubilee we have changed the special offer stamp on the website to CI-343, to celebrate.  Its free with orders over £25, and if you are also on our mailing list you will also have heard of our other special offer.  If you aren't yet signed up to the mailing list you should do so now as you will receive details of special offers for your eyes only from time to time - sorry you have missed this one - but do sign up soon on the Home Page HERE so you don't miss out on any more great deals. 

Also delighted to tell you tonight that we now have the artist transfer paper - TAP, back in stock - HERE.  We sold out of this at Port Sunny, but you can now try it out again.  To wet your appetite I have some images of a white paper carrier bag that I have decorated using stamping on TAP - transferred to white poly cotton fabric - hope you all still like pink!


I used CI-345 on the TAP, plus paper from our SHADES OF SUMMER background book, pretty fabrics, paper flowers, an earring, tiny pink mother of pearl buttons which can be found HERE (and only 95p for 8), plus our new polymer clay flowers in pink - love 'em!



!


Love that face in the vase - an old sea dog perhaps?!

Oh and I nearly forgot - I used a carrier bag that you can now also find on our website HERE!

Now to move on and show you some other lovely projects sent over by the 'Team'.  Isabelle Norris has also retired from the team recently to pursue other ventures, however she sent me this lovely piccy of a YoYo she had decorated for a friend - cool idea!  You will find the image in our People & Places Book 2 :


LYNNE has also been busy with our stamps and stuff and below you will find gorgeous images of things she has been making with our newest stamp CI-347:







Such a beautiful collection - perfect for your 'shabby chic' decor!!!

Still more to come from Lynne - plus she has a lovely project made with CI-339 on her Blog too right now.

To finish tonight I have an adorable tag by HELEN using CI-346 -


Nice use of a book page to make that frill!

A lovely 3 piece wall hanging by SUE -


Sue has used lots of CI bits and pieces on this one (and I've run out of puff for linking).  Actually I'll set you a little mini challenge - if you care to list what Sue has used and you email your list to us at info@craftyindividuals.co.uk by Saturday, and you are correct - we will send one of you a rather lovely prize. 

And to finish I have a very nice purse decorated by lovely LUCY recently -


Again lots of our stamps going on here!

Thanks all - have a lovely week - and I think the next post will most likely be to share the details of the June Challenge with you - oooo so exciting!

Jean x

ps We will be at the Craft Barn at the end of June and I believe they will be selling TAP - and I will be demoing it too!!!



Tuesday 22 May 2012

BACK IN BLOGGING MODE ..

I know it has been said many times before - but how time flies!!!  I like to blog at least once a week usually, but the days have just disappeared recently.  Firstly there was the show at Port Sunlight - which was fantastic, and very busy as always - so lovely to see so many familiar faces there, and meet lots of new customers!  Then there has been lots to do back on home ground with orders, designing, and family stuff - but anyway here I am with some more visual treats for you.

We have just introduced some truly 'must have' items to the relevant section HERE.  Scroll down the page to see teeny tiny glass bottles filled with colourful micro beads.  We sold out of these at Port Sunny, and you get 12 bottles in a pack!!


Great for 3D projects, or use the beads and bottles separately to adorn your creations - yummy!

Also we have some micro polymer clay flowers in packs of 20 - these look utterly gorgeous in the centre of flowers.  Adorable in dusky pink or white.




Plus we have also added calico drawstring pouches and white paper carrier bags - perfect to decorate with TAP Paper (which will be back in stock soon - sold out at Port Sunny!).  More on that later.  And little heart shaped mother of pearl buttons, as well as some delicious square handmade ceramic buttons (all different).  I love buttons me!

Talking of drawstring pouches here are two I decorated earlier (also featuring the handmade ceramic buttons and transfer via TAP of CI stamps and images) ..



The pouches are ideal for holding gifts of soap or pot pourri or lavender or sweets or whatever else you might want to pop into such pretty little bags.  Check them out HERE.

Moving swiftly on to showing off some of the 'Teams' lovely work:

I have four piccies of cards made lovingly by Daniele -


Adore this one featuring CI-344 plus!


Daniele just loves this stamp pretty lady stamp CI-346!


CI-347 looking so very sophisticated on this one!

And again featuring cleverly here.  Thanks Daniele.

Now Zuzu has kind of semi-retired recently from our 'Team',  however she will still be creating with some of her favourite CI products from time to time.  And here follows some of her amazing new projects which we have just got to share with you.


Check out CI-336 and CI-305 - perfectly display in this printer's tray, and also in this superb little altered matchbox -



And what a pretty tag using CI-347 ..


I've still got lots more to show you - but you will just have to wait until next time!! Enjoy the summer sunshine if it is shining where you are - it has been a truly gorgeous day here and my spirits are well lifted!

Jean x

Thursday 10 May 2012

A WINNING POST..

This is an extremely brief post to let you know the winner of the blog candy (with a question mark?) featured in my last blog entry.  Many thanks to all of you (x 65!!!) for taking the time to leave such kind words - and the first name out of the hat today is CHRISSIE.  Please would you email us Chrissie, with your address, so that we can send out your goodies poste haste.

We are off in the big white van to Port Sunlight tomorrow morning, for the Happy Stampers show.  As mentioned previously - if you are going to the show (which is a ticket only event), and you are a blog follower, please say hello and collect your free stamp!  I will be demoing fun ways with TAP, as our new order just arrived today!

As I do like my posts to be visual I will sign off with a couple of very pretty images. 

The first is from Helen Chilton's Blog, and is gorgeous -


Helen has used one of our new stamps CI-346 in this creation.

And the second - two lovely tags - is courtesy of Sue Abbott.  Sue has used another new stamp CI-347 in these little beauties.


Thanks for sharing ladies!

Jean x

Saturday 5 May 2012

YIPEE! - FIVE HUNDRED AND ONE FOLLOWERS, AND I MADE THE CRAFT STAMPER FRONT COVER!!!

How totally cool is that?!  Over 500 followers, and a project on the front cover of Craft Stamper - all in one week!!


We have this lovely (even though I say it myself - lol) edition of Craft Stamper on sale on our website HERE.  Inside you will also find great articles by PAULA TIDMAN (who I'm delighted to say will also be joining the CI Team), SYLVIA SHIRES, and CAROL FOX all using CI products, and why not join in the Craft Stamper 'Stamper of the Year 2012' competition - there are fabulous prizes to be won.  We will be sponsoring Round 4!

And as mentioned we now have 501 followers of this blog - which is amazing!  Thank you to all and in celebration I have some more blog candy to give away.  This time it is a mystery bundle (actually this is just because I can't find the photo at the mo) - so it looks like this:


As it is a package full of CI goodies it has got to be good hasn't it?!  And as it is here due to the 500+ followers this time it is only being offered to Followers.  Therefore if you are a Follower please leave a comment at the end of this post and one of you will be randomly chosen to receive the goodies on offer.

Now to move on: -
A couple of posts ago I said I would blog details of our latest batch of fantastic 'Must Haves' so finally I am going to give some of them a mention.  Firstly we have added the current love of my life - TAP (Transfer Artist Paper).  This paper can be put through your computer inkjet printer, or it can be stamped on and coloured (instructions included in the pack). You can then transfer your images onto lots of surfaces - fabric is the easiest - with the heat of your home iron, with amazing results.  It is so much fun and addictive to use.

This is a wood block I transferred some of our background papers to, plus a transferred image onto wood, from our Nature's Beauty Mini Image Book (please see the note on usage and copyright under the TAP image on the site).


And this is a hanging where I transferred the 'bathing beauty' image onto fabric using TAP:


I also added some scrim and ribbons from our new fabric pack which you can find HERE, plus lots of other bits and bobs.



I also used a transferred image to decorate this little cotton bag:


And I will show you how well it works with stamping too very soon.

Now I want to show you a few things I have on my desktop which have been kindly sent over to me.

Sylvia Shires (link above) - was also one of the participants on our Whitby workshop, and she decorated this beautiful clock (which she finished off at home):


I have had some simply adorable items sent to me by Isa of ISA'S ART, where she has used CI Stamps.  Do have a look at her other gorgeous items on her site too.



Beautifully crafted from polymer clay and ready to wear or use to embellish your projects.  Thanks for sharing these Isa!

I was also sent a rather lovely picture of a letter rack decorated by MARGARET using CI-235, which I think would be a very graceful addition to anyone's home and I'm sure you will agree:


As usual I have masses more to show you, but I think I am 'linked' out for tonight, and its time for a cuppa before I get withdrawal symptoms.

Thanks for joining me tonight, and looking forward to reading your 'Followers only' comments!

Jean x

Tuesday 1 May 2012

ALMOST TIME FOR HAPPY STAMPERS, AND APRIL CHALLENGE WINNERS ..

Many thanks to all who entered our April 'Time for Summer' Challenge.  Some fabulous entries as you will have seen, and without your help in taking the time to make your lovely projects and leave your caring comments, it wouldn't of course be possible.  So you all deserve a big hug!  I will move on to the 'prizes' in a mo.

Before that I must mention that we will be having a stand at the Happy Stampers Festival at Port Sunlight (near Liverpool) soon, as usual.  This is a lovely one day, ticket only, event being held on Saturday, 12 May, and I believe there are only 63 tickets left as I speak.  If you would like to visit please go to the Happy Stampers NW Site to check out the event and purchase your tickets.  We would just love to see you there!  We only attend this show (twice a year) at the moment, as we now have several other companies who take our products to shows, and we like to give them the free opportunity to promote our products.  However we do love this particular show - dedicated to rubber stamp lovers, and if you are a Blog Follower of this blog please come and say hello, introduce yourself, and collect a free rubber stamp from the latest issue with our compliments.  There's still time to add your name to our Followers list!

Now then back to the Challenge Winners for April - as usual decisions were sooo difficult to make and I have picked out six winners this time, and could have added several more to the list.  However these are the choices this time around - just irresistible:

1.  A beautiful vase of flowers (x 2) by Joanne:



2.  Such a pretty bracelet by Gio:


3.  A lovely dimensional framed project by Karen:


4. A birdy beauty Summer clock by Karen Clare:


5.  A bathing beauty dimensional project by Emma:


6.  And a very imaginative journal cover  by Laury 55:



Thanks you ladies they are all delicious.  Please email us at info@craftyindividuals.co.uk with your address and stamp of your choice.  When you are a 'chosen one' in the Challenge you should also receive a little gadget image to pop on the side of your blog (if you wish) - Malcolm is in charge of emailing this to you.  If you don't receive it please remind him (just in case his multi tasking skills let him down).

Finally for today a little bit of blogging fun - if you have big problems (like me) keeping your craft room tidy you will sympathise with Jo Capper Sandon on her post HERE!

Lots more to come!

Jean x