Zoomin' Santa

Hello Everyone!  Before I get talking about my card, I just wanted to say a huge thank you to everyone who left comments here, on various social media platforms, emails and text messages sending condolences - I was so touched by them all and so proud to share my Fella with you.

Secondly - I have had a couple of emails, I'm sorry I haven't got back to you as yet - you see, for those who don't follow my social media, I had a fall this week and broke my ankle and I've been laid up in a big moonboot and on painkillers all week.  I will be sporting this classy leg accessory until the new year, so life is going to be interesting for a while.......

Sooooo....with all that said, how did I get a card made?  Well, I coloured this Santa up a little while ago and only managed to get the card made and photographed a couple of hours before I broke my ankle and today I finally downloaded it and got it up on my blog!  (I'm also hoping to make a break - excuse the pun - for it and try and get downstairs to my craft space over the week-end and *try* and get a couple of things done.)

So after all this news - here's my card using Action Santa!  As I said, I stamped the image and sentiment from Action Santa onto X-press It Blending Card and coloured him all up with Copics a while ago, then cut it out with Circle Nestabilities and matted it with Cherry Cobbler cut with Adorning Squares.  The base is white and layered with Cherry Cobbler and some Carta Bella Have a Merry Christmas paper.  Around this I've attached two wide green ribbons and then popped up the feature panel on foam tape.  To finish I added a few red sequins!

Stamps - Action Santa (Power Poppy)
Paper - X-press It Blending Card, Cherry Cobbler, White, Carta Bella Have a Merry Christmas Paper
Ink - Memento Tuxedo Black
Accessories - Copics, Circle Nestabilities, Adorning Squares Dies, Green Ribbon, Red Sequins, X-press It Foam Tape

Before I leave, just a heads up - Power Poppy are having a 30% OFF Sale RIGHT NOW!!!  There's also a Mystery Digi to find for only $1!!  So if you have a Power Poppy wishlist (or wanting to get starting on that Christmas shopping for your crafty family/friends), now's the time to do it!  Use the Codeword BIGSALE and find it all HERE!!!

OK, well I'm done for today, time to get this foot up!  Once again - big thank you to everyone for their messages, thanks for popping by today and don't miss the sale!!  :)

My Fella

Hello Everyone - I don't have a card or paper creation for you today, instead I have a post about my beautiful grandfather that we lost this week.  When I was a very little girl, my older cousin (by 4yrs) accidentally called Grandfather....Grandfella.  Being younger, I cut off the 'grand' part and simply called him Fella and then corrupted my little brother to do the same (we were the youngest of the grandchildren).  From then on he was always Fella to us - which he told me many, many years ago that he liked because he didn't feel so old.

Born in 1918, he lived a long, good and happy life although the early years were tough through the Great Depression and then World War II,  he found and married the love of his life in 1942.  Grandma and Fella were married 74 1/2yrs at the time of his passing and he told her until the day he died that he loved her - had loved her all his life and would love her forever.  What a beautiful testament to the life they shared.

He was kind, sweet, humble and gentle soul.  Never one to draw attention to himself or to make a fuss and whose advice on life was to 'always do the right thing, try not to be intolerant of others and to have a loving relationship with your family'. It was the kind of man he was. 

We lived in another town when I was little but have great memories of visiting during the holidays - or when they came to visit us out in the country.  I would cry so hard when they had to leave that many times I tried to stowaway - even packing my little suitcase and stash it in their car!  We later moved to the town they lived in and they were there to share moments like graduation, getting our first jobs and it was Fella who took me to get my Driver's Licence and the first to know I'd passed.

As I grew older I took a great interest in genealogy - quite likely due to the stories my grandparents would tell and teamed up with a lady in another part of the family tree and between us we wrote a book about Fella's family (his great-grandfather) and how they settled in Australia and grew.  We organised a family reunion in 2003 and my grandparents joined my mother, my aunt, my 1yr old son and I as we traveled interstate for this huge occasion. We used to laugh that we were like the Mafia, 6 of us piling into a big black van and driving all over the place. We had the best time connecting with family, seeing the house his father grew up in and other landmarks around the place.  On that occasion, Fella was the oldest member of the extended family and my son was the youngest - we even made it into the local paper.  Such memories....

I have always been particularly close to my grandparents and two of my three children are named after them.  I would sit for hours, listening to their stories, making notes so I could pass them on to my children, pouring over all photographs and trying to imagine growing up in a completely different time to my own.  He would tell me things like being too poor during the Depression to afford a penny ice-cream - so he made up for it later in his life.  Of a time when he was young that a car would drive past and everyone would run out into the street to watch because it was so rare and how the love of the sport of cricket would have him and his father walking into town just so they could listen to the broadcast of the cricket on the 'wireless' in the shop window - and they weren't alone as many would join them.  Fella loved cricket and played as a young man - he would often tell how one game he took all 10 wickets as a spin bowler.  Today my two sons also play and he would take the credit that it was his genes that influenced the younger generation.  He was so pleased to know that the passion for the game is in these two and would enjoy getting updates on how they were doing.  But he also took great pride in all his family in their chosen sport, hobby, work or interest and Grandma would say that they felt such joy that they lived long enough to see the next generation grow.

For us it has been terribly hard to finally say good-bye to a wonderful man we have loved all our lives but we take comfort knowing that he had strong faith in God and in the promise of what was to come in Heaven.  I'm trying not to cry because he is gone, but to take joy in all the memories that I have because I was so lucky he was in my life for so long.

Good-bye Fella, I'll love you forever.

Goodbye JustRite

Hello to all my blogging friends!  As many of you may have seen, JustRite Papercraft had a Design Team Call as the new owners felt it was time for a change.  Of course the old team were welcome to reapply, I like the rest of the team decided it was time to step down.  I joined JustRite back in June 2009, so it is sad to say goodbye especially to Kellie Fortin and Amy Tedder who have steered the team, been our friends and designed beautiful stamps through all those years.  We have been a tight knit group who have cared for and supported each other and these two have been so good to us and I will miss them dearly.  My dear fellow Design Team, it is hard to say goodbye and I will be miss them terribly too - 7yrs is a long time to work beside many of these girls and we have a dear friendship with each other and I know that we will keep in touch.  I also want to thank all the JustRite fans who have faithfully followed this blog over the years, your support and comments have always been valued and meant so much!  Even though I won't be designing for JustRite anymore, I will have more time to 'play' and maybe venture into trying new things and even doing a few tutorials?

As a farewell, I'm posting a card that I had published a while ago using JustRite's Hydrangea Vintage Labels Seven stamp set.  I tried a technique where I've stamped the image in white embossing powder on white card and then used Copic Inks and a Aquabrush filled with Colourless Blender ink to create a watercolour effect.  It's a fun and different way to use your Copic inks and you don't have to worry about damaging your nibs on the embossing powder - give it a go, you may become addicted!

I think it's apt to finish with this sentiment as I have been very thankful to Kellie, Amy, Heidi, Debbie, Michele, Angela, Eva, Darsie, Sheri, Marisa and Kristi as well as all those who I've worked beside at JR over the years.  Miss you girls!  <3

Stamps - Hydrangea Vintage Labels Seven (JustRite)
Paper - X-press It Blending Card, Purple
Ink - Memento Tuxedo Black
Accessories - Copic Inks, Aquabrush, Colourless Blender Solution, Spellbinders Radiant Rectangles, JustRite Vintage Sentiment Tag Die, Purple and White Ribbons

That's all from me today, thanks for popping by and reading through to the end of this post and hope you have a creative day!

Birthday Boy

Hello Everyone!  Last week, my son turned 10!!  He's a big Doctor Who fan and we are currently watching the 10th Doctor (aka the David Tennant years) so I found this super cool image online to use for his card.  I have to say I *loved* David Tennant as The Doctor, although I don't understand why my boy is not scared of some of the monsters - he's obviously braver than me!!  I'm a little late getting this card up since it was last week, but better late than never....obviously I need a TARDIS!  :)

I used a blue base that would match in with the TARDIS and layered with Chocolate Chip and some Attitude paper by Kasiercraft.  Across this I've added a strip and cut the '10' out of Chocolate Chip.  As I said, I found the image online and printed it out on X-press It Blending Card and coloured it with Copics (sorry didn't take note of all the colours I used this time, I was in a hurry since I'd spent so much time making the cake.....).  I've matted it with more blue and attached it as shown.

Stamps - Image found online
Ink - Printer
Paper - X-press It Blending Card, Blue, Chocolate Chip, Kaisercraft Attitude DP
Accessories - Copics, MFT Dienamics

To really make his Doctor Who birthday extra special, I made him a TARDIS cake - it's a massive 16 x 6 inches and 3 inches high......a lot of cake and a lot of decorating!!  Anyway, he loved it and that was the main thing!  :)

Thanks for visiting and hope you are inspired to stamp and/or cake decorate!  :)

Outlander Bookmark

Hello Everyone!  Today is something completely different for me.....a little book talk and a bookmark!  I have long had a love of the Outlander book series (here in Australia it's been called Cross Stitch....I have no idea why.....) and read the first one way back in 1995 - it was my cousin's copy.  I did eventually buy my own and have all the first editions from book four.  I even had the privilege of meeting the amazing author, Diana Gabaldon a few years back at a literary dinner when Echo in the Bone came out and she signed my book!

Fast forward to 2014 and the first book - Outlander is now a TV series and currently half way through it's broadcast.  A couple of weeks ago, a group of crazy addicts like myself got together for a lunch and talk about all things Outlander and two lovely ladies (hello Roc and Marg) picked me up since I had no idea where I had to go.  I thought how can I thank these two.....why bookmarks for their books of course!!  (Oh, and of course I made one for me too!)

I followed the Corner Bookmark tutorial on Splitcoaststampers and made the base of dusty blue bazzill.  The top triangle is Baked Brown Sugar and the thistle (Sparrow Single) has been stamped in Versamark in each corner.  The plaid is from the official Outlander graphic (had to enlarge it and cut off the words......anyone watching from Outlander......PLEASE....I need this plaid/tartarn in a 12x12" sheet format!) and has been trimmed and matted with white punched with a scallop punch.  There are NO Outlander stamps out there (trust me, I've looked), so I've taken a picture from "The Wedding" episode, printed it and cut it out with Circle Nestabilities, matted with white.

That's it, pretty easy, the girls loved theirs (and requested more!!  LOL!!) and mine is snug in my book while we wait for the series return in April.  In the meantime.....happy reading!

Stamps - Sparrow Single
Paper - Dusty Blue, Baked Brown Sugar, White
Ink - Versamark
Accessories - Printer, pictures (wedding and plaid), Scallop and Iron Gate Border Punch, Spellbinders Large and Small Circle Nestabilities, Paper Trimmer, X-press It Double Sided Tape.

If you are an Outlander Fan, hope you are enjoying the series and books......if not, hope you are inspired to start!!  :)

A Little About Me And Some Amazing Artists To Check Out!

I was nominated by KATE from Sparkle Tart (you can see her post HERE!) and asked to answer the following questions and share some other artists that inspire me.  I usually don't do this sort of thing, but I thought why not do something a little different and share the love about some of my favourite peeps.

1. What am I working on?
For me, it's always cards, cards and more cards.  Using Copics, stamps, dies and all my favourite things!  :)

 2. How does my work differ from others of its genre?
I don't know how to really answer that - I guess I tend to use very clean and crisp lines and of course I love colouring, particularly florals since they are a big inspiration for me.

3. Why do I write / create what I do?
Basically I just like to create pretty things and this is a way to explore my creative side, make things and not have them fill up my house because I can give them away!  Between work and children, I find taking time out to get lost colouring and creating is like a little oasis in my day.

4. How does your writing / creating process work?
Mostly, it's find an image that I like or want to colour and go from there.  What colours do I want to use?  What paper will match that?  What layout will work with this image?  Clean, Shabby or Bold?  I never really know until I choose the image first and just let it flow from there.


I am supposed to share 3 artists and have them share three blog artists that they admire.  Sadly I only have 2 who are able to join in with me at this time, but what amazing artists they are!!

Cindy Lawrence - The Creative Closet

Cindy is one of the most talented ladies I know who inspires me every time I visit her blog!  She probably doesn't know that I have admired her for YEARS!  This girl's colouring skills are out of this world!  Her floral cards are incredible and I love her beautiful, clean style!  I dream of traveling to the USA and one day sitting down with Cindy and creating and colouring with her.  Not only is she an amazing artist, Cindy is also one of the sweetest ladies I know and I'm very blessed to call her my friend.  If you want to have your socks blown off, pop on over to The Creative Closet and prepare to be amazed!  :)

Julie Koerber - Out to Impress

Julie has such a fabulous style and it doesn't matter whether it is traditional or digi stamping, her creations are always gorgeous!  Her use of fun bold colours are so fabulous and yet she also creates the most amazing elegant cards using soft subtle colours as well.  It doesn't matter what style she decides to use, she combines beautiful colouring, yummy ribbon and beautiful embellishments and she always ROCKS it!!  Add to this amazing talent, that she is such a sweet person, and I'm so thankful for her friendship!  Hop on over to Out to Impress and be impressed!!!

Michele Kovack - Thoughts of a Cardmaking Scrapbooker

Michele does the wildest things with die cuts and using her electronic cutters such as the Cricut and the Silhouette, she constantly blows my mind away.  I just love the way she thinks outside the box to create and adds a good dose of glitter for plenty of sparkly goodness!!!  We have been working on the JR team together since 2009 and even did the Splitcoaststampers Dirty Dozen together in 2013 and even after all these years, I am still amazed at her flair and creativity and I'm sure you will be too!!  Pop on over to Thoughts of a Cardmaking Scrapbooker and be inspired!



A big thank you to Kate who nominated me as one of her 3 inspiring people, what a great excuse to share people I think are awesome in my blogworld!

PS.  Sorry, I had plans to upload photos for this post, but when I went to take them, I fell down the stairs and hurt myself.  No photos today......  :(

2013 Copic Certification Dates

Hello Everyone!  Did you know that the Australian dates for Copic Certification in 2013 are now listed and that there are still a few places available?!!  The following are the ONLY Copic Certifications scheduled for next year.

Standard Copic Certification

• Melbourne- Sunday, March 3, 2013
• Sydney- Saturday, March 16, 2013
• Brisbane- Monday, June 10, 2013
  

Intermediate Copic Certification

• Melbourne- Monday, March 4, 2013
• Sydney- Sunday March 17, 2013
• Brisbane- Tuesday, June 11, 2013
  

So if you are interested in improving your Copic skills, getting a bundle of Copic Products, becoming officially Copic Certified and having a fun day colouring with a group of like-minded people – then please register at: Copicmarker!

See you soon and happy colouring!  :)

Help Darsie!!

Help designer Darsie Bruno recover from a fire in her home

Do you have home owner insurance or renters insurance?  You need to!!  Even if you think you can't fit it in your budget this personal story will make you pick up the phone and call your insurance agent tomorrow morning!!

Design team member Darsie Bruno was awakened Tuesday morning by neighbors yelling that the duplex she lived in was on fire. The fire ignited in the other tenant's side of the duplex.







We are so thankful that Darise and her son were safely evacuated from her duplex and that no one was harmed. Firefighters had to go through her side of the duplex to put out the fire on the neighbors side of the duplex and they fought the fire from her craft room.  Of course her craft room was destroyed. Darsie actual had a price quote for renters insurance sitting on her desk.  She wishes that she filled out that form for renter's insurance and urges each of to get insurance if you don't have it. The fee is so small in comparison to having to replace all your belongings.

I can't imagine what Darsie is going through.  She is currently being assisted by the Red Cross, they have provided her with hotel lodging for three days and she is looking for a new place to live.  Many fellow designers, friends and blog readers have asked how we can all help Darsie.

The following companies -JustRite, Spellbinders, QuietFire Designs , The Stamp Simply Ribbon Store and Splitcoast Stampers are working together on a fund raising campaign to help Darsie find a new home and put her life back together. Of course Darsie will need new craft supplies which we can all help with but what she needs most at the moment is donations so that replace the items in her house that have been damaged by smoke.

If you would like to help Darsie with a small contribution please click on the donate button below and you can make a donation directly into Darsie's paypal account.




Kellie Fortin spoke with Darsie earlier and she is overwelmed by the emotional support and prayers that have been sent her way.  Any donation no matter how small will help.

The outpouring of community support for Darsie has been a true blessing - you can read Darsie's post to all of you this morning here.  The friendships we make in this community are amazing and this week we have been truly blessed that Darsie was not harmed in the fire and that you have been here supporting her.

Darsie found a new place to live yesterday and is so relieved that she will soon be in a new home. Many of you have mentioned that you would like to send Darsie crafting supplies or cards.  If you would like to send Darsie something please contact Angela Barkhouse at agbark@roadrunner.com and she will send you  Darsie's new address.  I prefer not to post Darsie's new address on the web. Thank you for all your love and support.

Copic Class in Maryborough, QLD

Do you live in the Fraser Coast area of Queensland and want to learn how to use Copics and make a couple of beautiful cards??  There is a new store in Maryborough called Paper Magic Crafts who are running a Copic Beginner Class making the two gorgeous cards above on August 15th!!  You will learn the Copic basics, picking colours, basic blending and colouring embellishments.  The beautiful stamps being used are from FLOURISHES and you can choose whichever letter you like for your monogram.  Who's the teacher - Helen (my Mum) who has made the samples above!!!

Details

Paper Magic Crafts

Cnr Ellena and Bazaar Streets

Maryborough QLD 4650

Ph: 4122 1865

DATE: 15th August 2012

TIME: 9:30 - 11:30am

COST: $20

(everything supplied, but if you have your own Copics, feel free to bring your own) 

Places strictly limited!

Call Chris or visit the store to book your place in the class!

Thanks for popping by and happy colouring!!  :)

Who Won???

Did you enter the Flourishes Blog Hop by commenting either here on my blog, or on the CopicOz Blog, or Mandi's or even on the Copic Marker Australia Facebook Page??  If you did, then I'm sure you will be dying to know who won one of these gorgeous Flourishes stamps!!!!

To find out who won on each of these sites - yes, that's right, a set is being given away from comments on all four sites.....go to the COPICOZ BLOG, where you will find a complete list of winners!!!!

A BIG thank you to everyone who entered and if you didn't win this time, at least you don't have to wait long to buy some photopolymer goodness of your very own - Flourishes stamps are now available in papercraft stores across the country!!!  If you need help locating a stockist, you can Email Sascha who I'm sure can help you find a store near you!!

Happy Stamping!!!
Kathy

BLOG CANDY!!!!!!!!!

Had enough of Easter Eggs? Time for some REAL Blog Candy!!!! To celebrate the launch of X-Press Graph-X new range of Flourishes stamps join us in a special blog hop for a chance to win a set of Flourishes Stamps!!!  Regular followers of my blog will know of my love of Flourishes stamps, I fell in love with this range a LONG time ago and now I'm thrilled to say that X-press Graph-x who brings us Copic Markers is now also, the exclusive distributor for Flourishes Stamps here in Australia!!!  You can now find Flourishes at all good papercraft stores NOW!!!   WOOHOOOOOO!!!!!!

You can find my latest tutorial on the CopicOz Blog showing how to colour the beautiful Zinnias as used in my card above, and to win a Flourishes set of your very own, leave a comment on these sites: 

COPICMARKER FACEBOOK PAGE

COPIC OZ BLOG

INSPIRED TO STAMP BLOG (you are here!)

COPIC ME BLOG

Haven't seen Flourishes stamps before?????  Well, here are just a few sets available to whet your appetite......

You have a chance to win on each of the sites (Open to Australian and NZ Residents only) and the winners will be announced 10am Tuesday. You have until MONDAY, so get hopping and commenting and YOU may be the winner of a gorgeous new stamp set by Flourishes!!!!!!

GOOD LUCK and Happy Colouring!!!!

Kathy  :) 

70 Years

 Imagine it's 1942 and the world is at war.  There is a young couple, she is only 20 years old, he is 23 - in the Army and due to be shipped out to New Guinea to fight to protect his country from invasion.  They've known each other for about 5 years - ever since his family moved into the house behind hers in a large country town.  On this day, 4th April 1942, Grace Hewitt and Sheldon Alexander are getting married.  She has saved her rations coupons to buy fabric for her wedding gown and friends and neighbours have gathered flowers such as Easter Lilies, Tuberoses, Stephanotis, Orange Blossom and Frangipani from their gardens and the local lagoons for her all white bouquet.  Her best friend is the bridesmaid, his best man couldn't get leave from the Army to attend, so a complete stranger steps in to witness their wedding.  It's Easter Saturday and a day they will never forget.

Forward to 2012 and seventy years have passed.  Grace and Shel have children, grandchildren, great-grandchildren and great-great-grandchildren.  They've worked hard, traveled the world and lived a wonderful life.  After all these years, they still love and adore each other as much as they did right at the beginning.  I'm proud to say that these are my grandparents and on this day, 4 April 2012, I celebrate the incredible milestone of their 70th Wedding Anniversary with them!  This week-end, also Easter Saturday, the family will gather from across the country to celebrate with them on this very special occasion!!!  To my Grandma and Fella - I love you more than you know!!!  {{{HUGS}}}

For those of you who want to know a little about my card - I've used a base of Very Vanilla and layered with Chocolate Chip and a piece of white that has been stamped in Green using JustRite's new Elegant Fronds Background Stamp.  Across the middle is more chocolate layered with MME Sunshine DP and added a piece of yellow grosgrain over the top.  On top of this is a paper doily that I've airbrushed with E53 Copic to age it a little.  In the corner I've made three flowers using Spellbinders Bitty Blossoms and Foliage (for the leaves).  I've left kept them mostly white and airbrushed just a little Y35 Copic - I wanted to keep them white because Grandma carried white flowers in her bouquet.  In the opposite corner I've stamped the sentiment from Your Special Day Medallion Labels, lightly airbrushed that with Y35 and matted with chocolate cut with Lacey Circles Nestabilities.  For the feature panel, I've stamped the frame from Spring Rose Medallions in black on X-press It Blending Card and coloured with Copics (E50, E53, G43, G46, Y000) and then cut the middle out of the frame.  Next I printed a photo, lined it up behind the frame and cut both frame and photo using Nested Oval Medallion Labels Dies.  It was then matted with Large Scallop Oval Nestabilities and popped up on foam tape.  To finish I've added a couple of latte pearls to the corners.

Stamps - Spring Rose Medallions, Elegant Fronds, Your Special Day Medallion Labels (JustRite)
Paper - X-press It Blending Card, Very Vanilla, Chocolate Chip, Green Bazzill, MME Sunshine DP
Ink - Memento Tuxedo Black, Rich Cocoa, Bamboo Leaves
Accessories - Copics, Nested Oval Medallion Labels Dies, Bitty Blossom Spellbinders, Foliage Spellbinders, Large Scallop Oval Nestabilities, Small Circle Nestabilities, Lacey Circle Nestabilities, Paper Doily, Yellow Grosgrain Ribbon, Airbrush, Kaisercraft Latte Pearls, X-press It High Tack Foam Tape.

Thanks for visiting and sharing this special occasion with me!!!  :)

Blog Candy Winner!!!

A HUGE thank you to everyone who entered my X-press It / Copic Blog Candy by leaving a comment on my blog post!!!!

The lucky winner, as drawn by my 4yr old daughter is........NO. 7 which is Kasey!!!! Congratulations Kasey - please email me at inspiredtostamp at live dot com dot au with your postal details so I can get your prize to you!!!!

Happy Colouring ~ Kathy

BLOG CANDY!!!!!!!!!!

Did that title get your attention???  I am excited and humbled to realise that my followers (all those faces on the right side bar who 'follow' my blog with Google friend connect) have exceeded 300!!!  Can I just say how much I appreciate all the support and comments on this blog.  It has been over 3yrs since I began this blog and what a ride it has been!!  To celebrate reaching 300 followers, I'm offering this awesome X-press It/Copic Blog Candy bundle thanks to X-press Graph-x!!!

The Prize - A roll of X-press It High Tack Foam Tape,  a roll of X-press It Double Sided Tape, a pack of X-press It Blending Card, a bottle of X-press It Clear Gel glue, a Copic 24 Wallet and a Copic cap!!!

How do you win??  A name will be picked from the comments left on THIS POST next Friday, February 10th (Australian EST) and announced on Saturday 11th!  If you want to tell me what cards/projects or products you've enjoyed seeing on my blog, that would be awesome, but not essential!  :)

GOOD LUCK!!

Blog Candy Winner

Hello Everyone!!!  If you entered the CopicOz Blog Candy, you can find the exciting announcement of the winner of the new 36 Copic Ciao markers on the CopicOz Blog today!!!

If you entered the Blog Candy here on my blog to win 10 Sheets of X-press It Blending Card, then I am happy to announce the winner is Number 10......

kim said...

love all what you create Kathy. Just got some copics for Xmas and are having fun learning to use them especially with your tutorials that you have on the Copic Oz blog. Kim

CONGRATULATIONS Kim!!!!
Please Email me with your postal details so we can send your prize to you!!!

Queensland Floods

Hello Everyone!  I have been so touched by all the emails and messages from people checking on us as the floodwaters raged through our town.  On Tuesday, heavy rain lashed our region which resulted in creeks bursting their banks in Toowoomba and rushing through the Lockyer Valley.  From our area alone the death toll stands at 16 and there are still 56 people missing.  This does not include those that have been killed since Christmas in Central and Western Queensland.

On Wednesday the Brisbane River starting rising and inundating thousands of homes.  I live in the Western Suburbs in an area known as the Centenary Suburbs.  We are bounded by the Centenary Highway on one side, the Ipswich Motorway on another and the river on the other.  Those homes down near the river have all gone under.  Water has also come up through the creeks, inundating areas well away from the river.  We live high on a hill and we and our home are fine, but we know many who are not.

We lost power on Wednesday morning, and our home phone, so we took the only road out to head to friends who were unaffected (and taking the contents of the fridge/freezer since we couldn't buy any ice!).  We are so thankful to them for helping us! On Thursday we had a bit of a look around since nothing about our area was on the radio.  Here are some photos from our area....

I'm standing on an off ramp to the Centenary Highway, looking back towards the Centenary Bridge.  Just above the green signs you can see a small hump - that is the bridge.  By this stage, the water had gone down - it had been completely under.  Behind that you can see the road going up on the other side of the river to Kenmore.  The river went right down the highway for as far as we could see until the bend in the road.  This is our way into the city.  All this water is now gone.

This shipping container was found on the road opposite the park where my boys play cricket - a couple of blocks from our house.  It must have floated through the park which backs onto the golf course - which has a creek that meets up with the river.

Friends of ours were ONE HOUSE away from going under!  We walked around there on Thursday to see if they were OK.  This photo is taken from the house across the street - it overlooks the golf course I mentioned above.  All you can see is water and if you see the mark on the fence to the right, you can see how high the water actually got - half this house went under.

This is just a small, small part of Brisbane, so you can imagine what it's like all over the city.  As I write this, we have power but no phone or internet.  I have no idea when our internet will be back, so my posting may be a little sporadic.

I was VERY relieved to see that the major Queensland Highway was finally reopened through other flooded districts yesterday.  I have family in Maryborough and near Gladstone and both of these towns have been cut of north and south for about a week with their Supermarkets completely bare, things were starting to get a little stressful up there.  Remember, it is not just Brisbane, Ipswich, Toowoomba and the Lockyer Valley that are affected, we are the latest ones, but so many towns have been affected over the last few weeks.

Thank you to everyone for checking on us - we are fine and so, so lucky compared to many.  If you want to help, please donate to the Premier's Appeal at www.qld.gov.au/floods or if you are overseas, consider donating to whatever appeals are going on in your country.

Vacation Time!

I mentioned in my last post that the family and I were away on a vacation - my hubby had been planning this ALL YEAR and surprised us all!!  :)  He had a business trip on Hamilton Island - part of the beautiful Whitsunday Islands, right in the middle of the Great Barrier Reef!!  Because I now have to madly catch up on my card work, today you get photos from Hamilton Island to inspire you!!  :)

This is the view from our holiday home - looking over some of the Whitsunday Islands, back towards mainland Australia.  Can you see the dark patches in the water??  That is just a small part of the coral reefs that are all throughout the area!

This is Catseye Beach - the main beach on Hamilton Island!  We were there early and had it all to ourselves!  :)

Everyone gets around in a Golf Buggy on Hamilton Island (us too!) - this is Peak Hour!!  :)

Another part of the beach looking east.

Hope you've enjoyed some of my holiday snaps and hopefully next time you visit I'll have some new cards for you!  :)

BLOG CANDY WINNER

Hello Everyone!!!  A huge thanks to everyone who stopped by and entered the Blog Candy draw!!!  It was wonderful to read all your beautiful comments!!  :)  Today the winner has been drawn by Random.child (aka my daughter LOL!!!) and the winner is.......

Number 4 --- Congratulations KERRIE!!  Please email me (email link on the sidebar) by Friday so I can post your goodies out to you!!!

Thank you so much to everyone that entered and I hope you continue to enjoy stopping by or reading my blog posts!!

If you want to be in the draw to win a 10 Sheet Pack of X-press It Blending Card and a 24 Copic Wallet - there is a new Challenge starting this Wednesday on the CopicOz Blog and you have a whole month to join in!!!  I'm hosting the first one, so I hope you come by and play along with me!!!!!

Hugs
Kathy  :)

BLOG CANDY!!!

Hello Everyone!!!  I noticed recently that my blog counter ticked over 100,000 hits!!!  To celebrate I am offering some blog candy which includes a pack of X-press It Blending Card (perfect for your Copic Colouring!!!!) and a Copic 24 Wallet (thanks to X-press Graph-X) as well as the Plant a Little Love stamp set and matching 3 1/4" Wood Stamper from JustRite Stampers!!!  Of course these flowers are simply divine to colour too!!!  :)

So - do you want to be in the running to win??  Leave a comment on this post and if I find out that you are a follower or subscriber to my blog, I'll throw in a little surprise as well!!!!!  :)  Anyone is welcome to enter and I'll leave this open until 8am Monday 26 July, Australian EST (6pm Sunday 25th July USA EST) and the winner will be announced later that day.  I've 'met' many wonderful people and consider so many of you my friends!!  It's thanks to you that I have hit this milestone and I appreciate every visit and comment more than you know!  THANK YOU EVERYONE!!!!!

HUGS
Kathy!!!  :)

COPIC NEWS!!!

Hello Everyone!!!  I'm BACK!!!  Did you think I was gone for a long time for just Certification...... well you are right, the big secret I've been keeping is that while in Melbourne I spent the rest of my time with Marianne Walker and Lori Craig from Copic USA training to be one of the three Australian Copic Regional Certification Instructors!!!

Here we are with Jacqui and Jonny from X-press Graph-X (The Australian Distributors of Copic).  Jacqui and Jonny are just the loveliest people and we had an awesome week-end (and very busy!!) with them!

L-R: Jacqui, Debra James (Instructor West), Me (Instructor North-East), Mandi-Lee Klinger (Instructor South-East) and Jonny.

On Saturday we all attended the Melbourne Certification along with many lovely ladies.....

Certification is designed for store owners and wholesalers so most of these ladies have their own shops in the area.  Marianne and Lori both presented throughout the class and kept things fun and interesting!! :)  Marianne can be a little off-beat and even coloured HER HAIR with copics!!!!  LOL!!!!  Lori wasn't having a bar of that!!!  :)

I love this photo taken on the day of Certification with me, Lori, Marianne and Mandi!!!!  :)

I also love this pic of Marianne and me.....she'd just signed my official Certification Certificate and we were laughing at something - I think it shows off her personality really well!!  :)  {Hugs M}

And lastly is a photo of me and my new BFF Lori!!!  She is the sweetest person you'd ever come across and one day I'm going to go visit my pea-snapping friend on the prairie!!!  {Hugs Lori}

For a little info on things coming up.......Jonny, Mandi and I will be at the Brisbane Scrapbook and Papercraft Expo and Convention which is held over the Queen's Birthday long week-end; June 12 -14.  We will all be at the X-press It/Copic Stand 55 and Mandi is also conducting 2hr classes there in Classroom 3 from 2.30pm-4.30pm.  If you would like to attend you can book online HERE.  There are fabulous prizes available at the show including the big one - a pack of 36 Ciao Markers, Blending Card and Memento Ink Pad!!!  (The X-press It Blending Card is FANTASTIC and makes Copic colouring a breeze......just ask Marianne and Lori!!!)

We will also be at the Brisbane Copic Certification which is held the following day on June 15th, with the lovely Mandi-Lee running this class and I will be assisting.  If you are interested in attending Certification classes you can find out more about them HERE.

If you've managed to sit through all this - congratulations!!!  LOL!!!  I'm really excited about Copic in Australia and I can't wait for all the colouring fun that lies ahead!!!!