Come Sale-A-Brate With Me!

Saleabration time is here!  22 Jan to 22 March 2013 is the best time of the year for Stampin' Up! - because you earn free products in many different ways!  Most of these products are exclusive to SAB and will never appear in a catalogue again.  Here they are:



But wait, there's more!  This is Stampin' Up's 25th birthday year!  Woo-Hoo!  There is even more reason to celebrate during Sale a Bration!



Contact me today if you would like to learn more.

Contact me today!

Save the date - Sat 23rd February 2013

Caterers have been booked, and we are trying a NEW venue this time!

As usual, we will be selling our retired preloved stamps from our collections,  and there will be raffles, door prizes, and inspiring displays.  Bring a friend!  

Contact me ASAP to secure your spot.

Final Clearance Rack

These clearance items won't last long!  Be quick!

Amazingly Fun Card Class!

Amazingly Fun Card Set

Q:  When is a card more than a just a card? 

A:  When you send it and it brings a smile to a special someone! 

Whimsical designs, bright colors, fun folds, and 3-D designs create a winning combination. In this fun-filled class, youíll make cards that are perfect for kids, friends, and family! With the cards and treat bag, you have truly spectacular gifts to give.  

Your friends will say youíre amazing when you treat them to some fun in an envelope!

Contact me today at louisetsutton@gmail.com to join the celebration!  

DATE:  Thursday, 31st January 2013  

TIME:  10:00am to 1:00pm

COST:  $20

LOCATION:  My home, Brisbane Northside (address given with RSVP if you are new to my classes!)

What are we making?  3 cards plus a treat bag topper.

Please Note:  This class will be repeated on Friday 1st February, 2013 at 7:30pm for those who prefer an evening class.

(RSVP is essential; please indicate whether you will attend the day or evening class when you RSVP)

Here are some peeks at what we will make:

I'd love to see you there!

Clearance Rack Week 3

You know the drill!  Here's the list:

Watercolouring with Markers and an Aquapainter Tutorial

Ever wanted to know the secrets of how to watercolour your stamped images?  Intimidated by the Aquapainter?  Be intimidated no more!

I am in no way the world's greatest painter or watercolorist.  I have become more comfortable with time and practice - I always recommend the Blender Pens to beginners for colouring in their stamped line art images.  But if you are ready to step up from the blender pen, you are ready for this.

What you'll need:

• Basic Black Craft ink
• Clear Embossing Powder
• Embossing Buddy
• Heat gun
• Markers
• Aquapainter
• Whisper White Cardstock
• A plastic stamp case or ceramic plate
• scratch paper
• Line art image stamp

I usually use watercolour paper when using the Aquapainter, because it allows you to work the paper much more than Whisper White, and it is a bit more forgiving of being soaked with water.  This tutorial will show you images I've stamped on Whisper White.

The secret to maintaining control over where the colour goes is to heat emboss the outline image first.  It's a little like cheating, because the raised embossing creates a little barrier and the colours don't run and bleed so much.

I love to use the Basic Black Craft ink with clear embossing powder for this, as there are no little black specks of stray powder when I've finished.

Once you've stamped your image and heat embossed it (for a heat embossing tutorial, check my post HERE), outline your image with a little Sahara Sand ink (it really helps to make the image "pop").  Do this by scribbling with the marker on your stamp case or ceramic plate, then pick up the colour with your Aquapainter.

Then do the same thing to colour your image.

I have slipped a little piece of whisper white inside the stamp case to make it easier to see the ink from the marker.

This cute bunny is from the Storybook Friends Stamp Set.

Repeat with all the colours you want to use!

The finished image, ready to make into a card.

I wanted to keep it clean and simple, so I popped up the panel with the image on dimansionals inside a frame I made by scoring with a stylus and the Simply Scored.  The wooden button added a warm, vintage touch.

It is important to remember that Whisper White will pill and tear if you saturate it with water, so make sure your aquapainter is frequently scrubbed on your scratch paper to get rid of excess water.  The new heat tool has a lower setting which is perfect for drying ink, so if you have accidentally added too much water, you might try drying it with the heat gun before ripping it up and throwing it across the room in frustration!

I made a sweet set of simple notecards with the rest of the Storybook Friends.

I love this Life Shared stamp - shame I didn't notice the smudge in the sentiment!  Same layout, keeping it clean, crisp and white with a button.

Same card in red.  A sweet Engagement card, don't you think?

 I hope you'll try to watercolour with the aquapainter too - let me know if you found this tutorial helpful.