How great are all the fantastic products you can earn for free during Sale-A-Bration??? Well, you’ve had a couple of weeks to recover from that. Take a deep breath and check out the most fantastic Seasonal Catalogue. It’s another 39 pages of deliciousness  The Artfull Stampers have been stamping up a storm again and we’re celebrating the launch of our new catalogue with another Blog Hop!! I’m 1 on the hop (again! eek!!). You may have come here from Kathryn’s blog.

Today I’m showing you some of the fantastic things you can do with the Sunshine & Sprinkles Suite of products.  I’m using the Cloudy Day Textured impressions folders, the Sunshine & Sprinkles DSP, the Oh, Whale! & Rain or Shine stamps along wiht the Happy Whale Clearlits.  All these products are so bright and happy and I just love them!!! Today I’ve made three cards to show you.

First up is the little whale from Oh, Whale! along with the matching Clearlits Die.  They are super cute to stamp and very easy to use the Clearlits.  I’ve also used the Cloudy Day Impressions Embossing folder.

Next card is using the embossing folder again with the Rain or Shine stamps.The sun is just made from pieces of the Sunshine & Sprinkles DSP cut into long triangles.  The circle is cut from the 1 3/4″ circle punch.

And last card was made using the Pursuit of Happiness stamps along with the Rain or Shine umbrella again. I’m a bit partial to a polka-dotty umbrella!! You might also notice the super-sized rhinestones.  You can get those in the Seasonal Catty too. Nice to have some mega bling choice!!!

I hope you liked the three cards I made for the Hop.  Feel free to leave some comment love along the way as you hop along.  Next stop on the hop is Alisa Tilsner. If you get lost along the way you can come back here and the full list is below.

Happy Stamping!!
Mad

1. Madonna Dunn -http://www.madonnadunn.com.au/
2. Alisa Tilsner - www.alisatilsner.com
3. Anna - http://mylittlecreativenook.blogspot.com.au/
4. Michelle Bartholomaeus - www.inspiredexpressions.com.au
5. Tamsin Adams - http://tamsinadams.blogspot.com.au/
6. Karlie - http://stampingwithkarlie.blogspot.com.au/
7.Nicole Derendorf: www.nicolederendorf.com
8. Melissa -http://www.beedivinedesigns.com/
9.Alison Barclay - http://gothdovedesigns.blogspot.com.au/
10. Kathryn Carr - http://kathrynshandmadecards.blogspot.com.au/

It’s SALE A BRATION time!!! It is our Annual party and it’s where you get the presents!!! You can earn free products by hosting a party, purchasing products or joining to become a Demonstrator yourself. Email or telephone me to find out more details!!

To whet your appetite for all the goodies you can earn it’s time for another Artfull Stampers Blog Hop!! You may have hopped here from Caroline’s Blog.  I’m stop #1 on the Hop and I’m glad you’re here sharing in the fun!!

Today I’m showing you some of the things you can do with the very cute Pretty Petites stamp set.  What is even *better* about this set is that it comes with a matching punch!!!! And we loves our matching punches, don’t we???

First up I made a set of four cards.  I used the Sycamore Street (also a SAB freebie) DSP along with Whisper White, Crumb Cake and some accents using Rich Razzlebery Cardstock.  Very easy to do, super cute to co-ordinate.  See below:

And I was pleased. BUT.  I was having fun with the stamps and the punching and the general loveliness of the Sycamore Street DSP that I wanted more. (We always want more don’t we?) So I kept going and made some very little 3×3 note cards that will be super quick to pop on top of a gift.

And they had to have matching Envelopes. And then they *had* to have a box to go into!! Because, really???!!! How CUTE will this be as a gift??? 6 cute little cards and envelopes!! Perfect to have on hand for a forgotten birthday or even a hostess thank you with a bottle of wine (I drink white or red, just incase you’re invited over!! Lol).

So once I’d made up the box for the 3×3 cards and decorated it I thought it needed to be wrapped and ready to go as a little gift.

So as you can see it was super easy and quick to whip up a few little cards using scraps and leftovers from the big cards. A few hours work and I’ve restocked the card box times 4 and also added a little 3D gift for easy giving.  The Sale-A-Bration papers, ribbons, buttons & Stamps are gorgeous as always!!

What are you waiting for? Email me if you would like to place an order of if you don’t have a catalogue!!

Now click on the link to Melissa’s Blog for the next stop on our Hop. I am sure you will find lots of wonderful ideas at Beedivinedesigns to inspire you. And in case you get lost or there are broken links just pop back here for the full list of stampers taking part in this hop.

Don’t forget to leave comment love as you trip along the hop from blog to blog. We like to know what you think about the things we’ve been doing!!

1. Madonna Dunn - www.madonnadunn.com.au
2. Melissa Davies -http://www.beedivinedesigns.com/
3. Anna - http://mylittlecreativenook.blogspot.com.au/
4. Tamsin Adams - http://tamsinadams.blogspot.com.au/
5. Alison Barclay - http://gothdovedesigns.blogspot.com.au
6. Nicole Derendorf http://www.nicolederendorf.com
7. Kirraleigh Brooks http://www.kirraskorner.blogspot.com
8. Michelle Bartholomaeus  http://www.inspiredexpressions.com.au
9. Stamping with Karlie http://www.stampingwithkarlie.blogspot.com
10. Caroline Bennie -http://carolynbennieink.wordpress.com

Until next time stampers!!!

Happy Stamping!!!

Madonna

xo

Hi!!!!

Hope that you’ve all been enjoying the gorgeousness of the Annual Catalogue. The Holiday Catalogue also went live on the 1st of September, but we thought we’d give you a couple of weeks to get into it before we bombarded you with the beautiful things the Holiday Catty brings!!!

So another Artfull Stampers Hop ~ this time to celebrate the Holiday Catalogue Launch!! You may have hopped here from Alisa’s Blog.  I’m stop #2 on the Hop and I’m glad you’re here sharing in the fun!!

I’m showing you a quick and Tag Set with the Scentsational Season Stamps and Framelit Dies.

First of all the box with the 6 tags inside.  The box is using the Fancy Favour Box from the Annual Catalogue.  This is the best, most versatile box!! I use it all the time!!  The paper on the front is from the Festival of Prints Designer Series Paper Stack.  Great value at 48 sheets for only 11.95.  Sheets are only 11.4cm x 16.5cm but perfect for all those little things we do at Christmas. Great size for full cards too!!

Firstly I made three very basic Tags.  You can see they didn’t take much putting together:

Next set of three I stepped up a little.  They were a little more time consuming but I think you could get a production line going and make a whole bunch in no time at all.

And all of the Tags and Box together:

Feel free to get in touch with me if you need any more information on the above.

Now click on the link to Melissa’s Blog for the next stop on our Hop. I am sure you will find lots of wonderful ideas over there to inspire you. And in case you get lost or there are broken links just pop back here for the full list of stampers taking part in this hop.

1. Alisa Tilsner - www.alisatilsner.com
2. Madonna - www.madonnadunn.com.au - You are here!!
3. Melissa - http://beedevinedesigns.blogspot.com.au/
4. Christina Barnes - www.dotdotstamping.com
5. Anna - http://mylittlecreativenook.blogspot.com.au/
6. Alison Barclay - http://gothdovedesigns.blogspot.com.au/
7. Nicole Derendorf - www.nicolederendorf.com
8.  Kay Koufalakis - http://kaykoufalakis.wordpress.com
9.  Stamping With Karlie - www.stampingwithkarlie.blogspot.com
10. Tina Hewett - www.tinascreativestudio.com
11. Michelle Bartholomaeus - www.inspiredexpressions.com.au
12. Kathryn Carr - http://kathrynshandmadecards.blogspot.com.au/

Don’t forget to leave comment love as you trip along the hop from blog to blog. We like to know what you think about the things we’ve been doing!!

Until next time,
Happy Stamping!!!

Madonna 

Hi!!!  I promised I’d be back today!!!

It’s Stampin’ Up’s! New Annual Catalogue Time!!!  To celebrate, some of our Team – The Artfull Stampers – are sharing fabulous projects showcasing a selection of the gorgeous new products available in the 2012-2013 Catalogue!!

You may have hopped here from Alisa Tilsner’s Blog.  I’m stop #2 on the Hop and I’m glad you “hopped” in.

I’m showing you some of the gorgeous Patio Party Designer Papers, the Make a Cake Stamps and the Fun Bitty Banners Framelits and Itty Bitty Banners Stamps.  I’ve made four matching cards and a little gift box/bag to gift them.  I’m also using the DELICIOUS NEW COLOURS!!! Oh My! Summer Starfruit is a firm favourite followed closely by Midnight Muse!!

And when you open it up:

The box fits four cards….and *technically* it should hold envelopes.  It would have, but that I got so carried away I forgot to make my measurements to my envelopes. Sigh.  BUT. I fixed it!  I put the envelopes in a clear cello bag and added a belly band around the middle to hold it to the box.  See?! Fixed!!  It proves my theory: “There are never mistakes, only Embellishment opportunities!!”

All the cards:

I hope you like this little sample of what’s in the new Annual Catalogue!! Now click on the link to Melissa’s Blog for the next stop on our Hop. I am sure you will find lots of wonderful ideas over at Melissa’s to inspire you. And in case you get lost or there are broken links just pop back here for the full list of stampers taking part in this hop.

1. Alisa Tilsner - www.alisatilsner.com
2. Madonna - www.madonnadunn.com.au
3. Melissa - http://beedevinedesigns.blogspot.com.au/
4. Christina Barnes - www.dotdotstamping.com
5. Kathryn Carr- http://kathrynshandmadecards.blogspot.com.au/
6. Anna - http://mylittlecreativenook.blogspot.com.au/
7. Alison Barclay - http://gothdovedesigns.blogspot.com.au/
8. Michelle Bartholomaeus - http://www.inspiredexpressions.com.au/
9. Nicole Derendorf - www.nicolederendorf.com
10.  Kay Koufalakis - http://kaykoufalakis.wordpress.com
11.  Stamping With Karlie - www.stampingwithkarlie.blogspot.com
12.  Carolyn Bennie - http://carolynbennieink.wordpress.com
13. Tamsin Adams - http://tamsinadams.blogspot.com.au
14. Tina Hewett - www.tinascreativestudio.com

Thank you for visiting and if you’d like to leave a comment I’d be very pleased to hear what you think of the new catalogue and products

Until next time (may it be shorter than three months!)
Happy Stamping!!

Madonna

Full list of what was used in the projects above: Box uses 12×12 Crumb Cake Cardstock, Patio Party DSP, Midnight Muse Cardstock, Whisper White Cardstock, Make a Cake Stamps, Best Dad Ever. Cards Use: Summer Starfruit base, Crumb Cake, Midnight Muse and Whisper White Cardstock, Make a Cake, Itty Bitty Banners Stamps & Framelits.  Ink used is Midnight Muse and Summer Starfruit.  I’ve also used various circle punches, the #2 Circles Die and the Extra Large Oval punch.  To round the corners on the box I used the circle1 1/4″ circle punch.

Hi everyone.  Remember me???  I wouldn’t be surprised if you didn’t.  I haven’t been around for a while.  Nevertheless.  Tomorrow a bunch of Super Talented Demonstrators will be showcasing a whole range of goodness from Stampin’ Up’s! NEW Annual Catalogue.  Yep. Just one more sleep until you can see the deliciousness that is inside the new catty.  So pop on back tomorrow for the Hop!!!

Happy Stamping!!

Madonna

Phew! What a big weekend we had!!  It was awesome celebrating Lara’s birthday with some of our dearest friends and family.  My Lara was a little star and coped beautifully with the noise and excitement of her very large extravaganza!!  Wanna see some pics??

Here’s the banner and the tissue paper pom pom that I made:

The cake:

and inside the Cake:

Lara’s Lolly bar

The whole table with all the cakes!

The cool hanging balloons outside. I got this idea from Pinterest.  You thread the balloons along a string….looked really cool!

Here is the birthday girl, ready to have us all sing Happy Birthday!

Here she is modelling her lovely Cupcake Clips in honour of Little Kate who passed away in May. Kate was a “playmate” from playgroup and was very much on our minds during Lara’s celebration.

It was a fantastic day and it’s hard to believe it’s been and gone and now she’s really 3. Scary stuff!

Anyway I hope you liked the pics!!

Until next time!
Mad

xo

Three! Three!! My littlest princess is THREE!!!  Where oh where has those last three years gone?  Well I can tell you they’ve been spent holding her tight and kissing her sweet little cheeks and loving on her as much as we possibly can!  When we started this journey three short and yet interminable years ago I can honestly say we were clueless.  I look back at my naitivity and (I guess that in so many ways I still am) and I shake my head. But I have learnt many things from this road we’ve been down.

I’ve learnt practical things like putting a MicKey Button back in (Yuck!) when I’ve accidentally pulled it out! I’ve learnt patience and tolerance, two things I was lacking before in vast quantities!  I’ve learnt that I would do anything for my children and that I have an inner Mama Lioness inside me who will rip you to shreds if you mess with my babies.  I’ve learnt more about the disability sector than I ever cared to and yet I still know nothing. I have met some of the nicest, bestest, strongest most amazing Women that I think you could ever meet.  I’ve had the honour of being able to call them friend and call on them when I’ve needed to.  I’ve learnt that I am stronger than I ever thought I would have been in the face of the hardest thing put in my path to date. I’ve learnt that even though this journey has been rough, loving Lara is EASY. She is the most beautiful soul.  She’s had to endure the hardest, horriblest days of pain and discomfort and yet she toughs it out and comes out the other end with her sweet little nature in tact.  I’ve learnt that love doesn’t need to be spoken and that it is shared in a look, a lift of the side of the mouth and an imperceptible squeeze.  I’ve learnt that Mark and I really make an awesome team.

My list of what I have learnt could go on and on and fill pages. I know that when we finally realised Lara was different I thought it was awful and that grief I carried for the baby I “should” have had filled my heart for such a long time.  But despite that, I know she is perfect and she is perfect for us. I cannot fathom what my life would be like without her in it.  She has given me an appreciation for what is and isn’t important in this world. And for that I am eternally grateful.

So Happy Happy third birthday my sweet little princess.  Know that you are loved beyond measure and you are sunshine in our lives.

Lara at Birth:

Lara at One:

(Photo taken by Aedita Maree Photography)

Lara at Two:

(Photo taken by Aedita Maree Photgraphy)

Lara Now:

Today I will be Celebrating Lara! We’ve organised 90 or so of our nearest and dearest to come and Celebrate Lara with us as well!! I’ll be back with photos of our day!!

Until next time,
Mad
xo