Here we go!

What a busy month October has been! Lots of new products have been arriving and some of them don't even make it onto the shelves...especially when the delivery happens during a class...lol! It has been SO busy that I've barely had time to make samples for class let alone photograph them and upload them here. I'm so sorry for the delay, but this is honestly the first chance I've had to do this. Anyway, we are gearing up for Christmas cards each week now so here are the three we'll make this week and next.

 The first one will look familiar to some of you. Each year we make the origami tree with different papers and a new layout...I hope you like this one. I used Bo Bunny paper and Tim Holtz' tattered banners die for the sentiment. The middle card was actually made by Karen on World Card Making Day here at the store and I love it so much I asked her if I could use it for our class...isn't it fabulous? Last but not least is the Nativity card...the silver embossing looks so elegant on the navy cardstock and there is a little surprise on the inside, but you'll have to come to class to see what it is!

Card Contest

Probably not everyone who reads my blog subscribes to my monthly newsletter, so if you are reading this, you may not know about my anniversary card contest. On Saturday October 20th I will be celebrating 3 whole years in business...YAY ME!!!!! Since we haven't had a contest in a while, I asked customers to make a card (front only) with a birthday or anniversary theme and to use only products purchased at Papercraft Cafe. I think the last part is what stumped everyone. We are so used to just reaching into our stash of goodies when we create something, that it's a bit of a chore to go through paper, punches, stamps, dies etc and figure out what we bought where. My reason for insisting that only products from the store are used is simple....people look at the cards and often ask, "Can I buy this stamp" (die, punch, flower etc) and I feel pretty silly telling them that I don't know where it's from or that it's from a company whose products  I don't or can't sell. That's all there is to it....I'm not trying to get people to buy a whole bunch of stuff to make a card...just show me what you can do with the stuff you've already bought here. Please list the products/tools you used to make your card on the back. A few customers have already submitted their cards because today was supposed to be the deadline, but I've decided to extend it until next Friday, because I am really hoping for a nice BIG display of cards to help celebrate my anniversary and to inspire other people to make cards. Voting will begin on October 20th and the winner will be announced on October 31st...BOO!
The winner will receive their choice of 6 x 6 paper pad and bragging rights of course. I hope you will consider entering the contest and be sure to stop in next Saturday for some fantastic specials and the chance to win a free card making class!

Memory issues!

I can't believe it! I completely forgot to post photos of the class cards here. I was late uploading the third card to Facebook and after I finished searching everywhere for my camera (which was right where it's supposed to be!) I took the photo, cropped it and uploaded to FB, then headed over to Blogger to add the same card here. What did I find......LAST WEEK'S cards which I uploaded 2 weeks ago...YIKES! Sorry folks. I really did think I had already put the first two on here already. Oh well...here are all 3!

The first one is a very quick  and easy card, thanks to Spellbinders Cut, Fold and Tuck dies. I used my Silhouette digital cutter to create the leaf shape for the second card, then had some fun with distress inks and a fabulous background stamp. Speaking of backgrounds...take a look at the wood panelling on the third card. It's not patterned paper...it's kraft cardstock which was scored at 1 inch intervals. Then I simply dragged a distress inkpad down the cardstock until I got the coverage I was happy with...easy peasy! That's the last fall card for a while. Starting October 24th we'll be doing three Christmas cards in each class....get ready to sparkle girls...the glitter's coming out to play lol!

World Card Making Day SALE

We are celebrating World Card Making Day today with a super sale! 20% off all Sizzix dies and Framelits, 20% off all punches and 20% off all embossing folders...WOW!  One day only folks so don't miss out! While you are here picking up your bargains, why not sit down and make a card for someone special. Bring your own adhesives and everything else will be provided. Tons of patterned paper, cardstock, stamps, punches, dies etc to help you create your own little work of "heart." Come and join the fun anytime between 10 am and 4 pm today

Pointsettia Peace

Woo - hoo! All 3 cards uploaded before closing on Saturday! It's been a while since I managed that. I love the simplicity of this card. Thanks to Jennifer for loaning her Spellbinders die for the pointsettias. I started out using some of the new Tim Holtz mirrored sheets on this, but it just wasn't working for me with all the white and silver. It is FABULOUS to work with though, so I'll be sure to  have a sample die cut and embossed to show you at class. My boys are on their way here from Cambridge to celebrate their Dad's birthday, so now my card samples are finished, I can relax and enjoy some family time. Have a wonderful weekend:)

Fall cards

It's almost the weekend and it's almost fall, so today I played with fall colours and images for two of class cards. I had fun making these and I like that they could be used for a variety of occasions. Lots of technique here including spray inks...so make sure you wear old clothes..lol! You can't see the detail in the top card, but that background paper has a subtle leaf pattern created by spraying Mister Huey's spray ink over a Crafter's Workshop template. I used scattered straw, fired brick and rusty hinge distress inks for the sky, but you could substitute other colours. Please bring your own distress inks and blending tool if you have them.

The pumpkin on the second card was stamped with the Bo Bunny Apple Cider stamp set and the acorn on the narrow strip is from the same set. The patterned paper strip is also from the Apple Cider collection. The tiny leaves were punched from a scrap of the ink sprayed paper in the previous card and the leaf on the green background paper is also from the Apple cider stamp set and is stamped in Versamark for a watermark effect. that's 3 stamps from one set on this card and there are still 4 others in the set for just $5. It's such a great set that I can't keep it in stock. I've reordered it twice and I'm sure some of you will want it after you use it in class, so I think I'll order a few more. Let me know if you think you'd like one so I have an idea how many to get. You'll also need scissors to cut out the pumpkin and a brown marker (if you have one) for the faux stitching. I'll upload the Christmas card for this class by Monday at the latest. Classes this week and next are on Wednesday morning and Thursday evening. No classes on Tuesdays.

Have wonderful weekend!

Is it Christmas yet????

It really felt like Christmas at the store when two large orders arrived with some of the  fabulous products that I've been impatiently waiting for since CHA in July. If you don't follow me on Facebook...what are you waiting for???? There just isn't time to upload the photos here as well, so if you're not a Facebook user, just click on the link from my web page and you should be able to see all the new goodies. Don't forget...the new Fall issue of Scrapbook and Cards Today magazine is available tomorrow...be sure to pick yours up ASAP! Now I have to decide which of all my new toys to use for next week's classes...... stay tuned!