Tips and Tricks Tuesday - On A Roll...

Hello all! Just a brief post from me today, but I want to share with you a trick I discovered to use with any of your Stampin' Around Wheels. When using a wheel, I hated starting halfway through a design, and it annoyed me even more when using a wheel with wording! So I had a think, and came up with the solution, that is very simple, takes 2 minutes and can be completed using office supplies...

You will need:

Stampin' Around Wheel (any size, in any design!)

White Correction Fluid (for example Tippex), ideally in pen form, but the bottles will also work. 

Step 1: Identify the join in the rubber on your wheel - this is where the designs always start and finish.

Step 2: Follow the instructions on your correction fluid (for example 'shake well'), then apply a tiny dot onto the plastic at the side of the roller where the rubber join is. Allow to dry. Repeat on opposite side of wheel if desired.

Step 3: Once dry, insert into your Stampin' Handle, and away you go! It is now easy to see at a glance which section of roller you are using, without having to lift the roller off the page to see!

I hope you have found this little snippet helpful - don't forget to sign up for my FREE newsletter for regular hints and the latest news. I will be back with another Tips and Tricks Tuesday in a fortnight.

Happy Crafting!

This and That!!!

I am very very excited today as Stampin' Up! have released a new product line called 'This and That', which is a fabulous coordinated smash book / journal style range. Not only is is brand new, with contemporary designs and everything you need to get creative... it's on special offer as well!

Check out this video from you tube to see what all the fuss is about:

And take a look below to see the fabulous 15% discount you get when you buy all 5 products as a bundle from me this month! While you could buy them all individually... and they will be available after the end of May... you will not be able to get the discounted bundle! So grab it while you can! They make fabulous gifts and great mementos - how about having one at a birthday party for everyone to write messages in?

Item	Description	Price
131268	Epic Day This and That Journal	13.50 €/£9.95
130814	Epic Day This and That Designer Series Paper	13.25 €/£9.95
131463	Remember This and That Rotary Stamp	6.95 €/£5.50
131271	Epic Day This and That Designer Stickers	5.95 €/£4.50
131269	Epic Day This and That Designer Washi Tape	5.95 €/£4.50
133905	Epic Day This and That Bundle Includes the five This and That products listed above. Only available in a bundle until May 31.	38.76 €/£29.24 15% Off Retail Value!

Happy Crafting!

Tips and Tricks Tuesday - Top 6 Ways to Find Inspiration!

Sometimes mojo just ups and leaves without permission. Hands up if it has happened to you. Well it has certainly happened to me on many occasions, usually just as I have a deadline of some sort looming on the horizon. So what can you do to get it back?! I have given you my 6 top ways to get the creative juices flowing again, hopefully one of them will work for you.

In no particular order:

1. Take a walk: Sometimes the simplest things can make you stop and think. I like to visit gardens, but even a walk to the newsagent can be inspiring! Take a look at the front covers of glossy magazines (Vogue, Glamour and Good Housekeeping are good examples) at the shapes, colours and styles used. Maybe there is a shop window display that has some features you can use. Here are a couple of pictures I took on a visit to Borde Hill Gardens that inspire me:

   

   This photo immediately suggests a colour scheme to me, of bright blues, greens and two different neutrals. The other idea being a layout for a card (the strong vertical element to the right).

   

   This photo of the 'Italian Garden' provides me with inspiration of mirroring elements on a design (the reflections in the water), also of using strong linear / geometric designs, and finally of perhaps creating a frame for a design (as suggested by the dark overhanging leaves around the edge of the photo)
2. Pinterest: Well when things get tough, and you can't go out, and you have run out of ideas, and even chocolate leaves you dead in the water, this is where I turn. If you want to see what inspires me to create take a look at some of my boards HERE.
3. Restrict your materials: I love having access to different designs of papers and stamps and colours and ribbons and buttons and... the list goes on. But sometimes it can just be too overwhelming! In these circumstances I like to take a piece of Designer Series paper, and limit myself to ONLY using colours that appear on there. Alternatively, limit yourself to only using those offcuts of ribbon and card that you have been hoarding (yes, you have been squirrelling them away - admit it!).
4. Enter a Challenge: There are literally hundreds of craft challenge blogs with different themes, days, materials etc... Take a look and find one that suits you - you may even win a prize!
5. Catalogue Browsing: Have you checked out the Stampin' Up! catalogues? If you haven't then you need to as they are full of samples and ideas to inspire. All the projects are beautifully photographed, and full material lists are also available.
6. Sketches: Nope, not the pencil with exquisite shading kind! Sketches are basically layouts for cards or scrapbook pages, and act like a map or a recipe for you to follow. These are what I use when I know what I want to put together, but I am just not sure how it is all going to lay out. Try searching 'free sketch' followed by 'card' or 'scrapbook page' online and take a look.

I hope you have found this useful, and that the creative juices are now flowing! 

Happy Crafting,

Becky