Heard of the Sew Easy but not sure what it is? Have a look at this video...
We have them in store here.
What do you think of the Sew Easy? Do you sew a lot on your layouts / cards?
Friday, 21 January 2011
Tuesday, 18 January 2011
Looking for something to do?
There is no better time to get back in to paper crafting as right now! Follow this link to view workshops being run this coming week. Ring now to secure your spot! Don't live in Geraldton? (or would just prefer to Take-away?) Ring or pop in to buy the class kit complete with photo and instructions. Kits are only available AFTER the class has been held.
All kids layouts are available too :) They proved to be extremely popular with the kids (and adults!!)
Hope you have a great day tomorrow!
Sunday, 9 January 2011
Manufacturer in the Spotlight - KaiserCraft
Who doesn't love Kaiser Craft? They have now been around for over 21 years! It wasn't always what it is today....grab a cuppa, sit back, relax and I will tell you the story of Kaiser Craft.....
Stephen Kaiser started a little part-time job in wood working to support his (in his own words) meat pie habit during high school. Then around 21 years ago while operating a joinery business, he was asked by his wife to manufacture some small wood products to sell in her craft store. Seeing a niche opportunity, Stephen soon expanded to manufacturing plastic stencils and added other products such as acrylic paint to the company’s core range. Before long, word spread, and the Kaisercraft brand was soon in demand among Bunnings and Spotlight stores Australia wide. (excerpt taken from the Kaiser website)
In 2005 Kaiser Craft changed direction and started bringing out Scrapbooking Products.After a while they had a great design team and their monthly releases started. They had 4 double sided papers in the collection + matching epoxy brads. Their core range also started expanding including paper flowers etc.
Above is part of the Sakura Park Collection, released in 2008 ( I think! correct me if I'm wrong)
In July 2009 Q1 was released.
Q1 was very impressive. I must say this is when I really fell in love with Kaiser. I liked them before....but now I get excited everytime new collections are released as the Kasier designers NEVER disappoint. They are not always exactly to my taste....But that is because Kaiser has such an eclectic selection of collections - I am yet to find someone who doesn't like any of them.
Kaiser only released 3 Q's as it was too much for 1 month, and then you had such a long break in between releases.
2 collections are being released per month. Each collection includes 6 double sided heavy weight paper, 2 speciality papers, coloured rub ons, black rub ons, printed chipboard, die cuts, clear stamps, 6" paper pad, journaling tags. Occasionally somthing may be added or subtracted to suit the collection being released. For example After 5 only had black rub ons.
Their Core Range includes: (sorry if I miss any!)
The 1 thing Kaiser was always big on (and still is!) is wood items. There are so many to choose from. And all at a very affordable price. In fact I find all of Kaiser is very affordable. There are a group of ladies who have signed up with me to receive every new Kaiser release. They receive:
* 2 of each double sided paper * 1 each of the designer paper * all the matching embellishments (excludes 6x6 paper pad - this is an optional extra) the average cost of the kits are $50.00. (So $100 per month if you would like both) Let me know if you would like to sign up for the kits.
I get side tracked too easily...back to the wood. Kaiser's wood products include bins, storage boxes, paper racks, albums, recipe stands, Christmas decorations and so much more!
Looking for some Kaiser? Visit us in store or here.
Nearly forgot to mention the most important facts....they are an Australian company. All the workshop magazines are printed in Australia, and all the wood items are made in their own joinery. All other items are designed in Australia.
Kaiser is still a family owned business and they support many charities. They own / help run many orphanages in Pakistan and the Philippines. Further info can be found on their website here. Check out the user gallery - many many great ideas! Also their blog is full of inspiration and that can be found here.
How about a bit of blog candy? Answer the question below in the comments section and next Sunday a random person will be chosen (using random.org) to win a kaiser bag of goodies valued at $25.
Stephen Kaiser started a little part-time job in wood working to support his (in his own words) meat pie habit during high school. Then around 21 years ago while operating a joinery business, he was asked by his wife to manufacture some small wood products to sell in her craft store. Seeing a niche opportunity, Stephen soon expanded to manufacturing plastic stencils and added other products such as acrylic paint to the company’s core range. Before long, word spread, and the Kaisercraft brand was soon in demand among Bunnings and Spotlight stores Australia wide. (excerpt taken from the Kaiser website)
In 2005 Kaiser Craft changed direction and started bringing out Scrapbooking Products.After a while they had a great design team and their monthly releases started. They had 4 double sided papers in the collection + matching epoxy brads. Their core range also started expanding including paper flowers etc.
Above is part of the Sakura Park Collection, released in 2008 ( I think! correct me if I'm wrong)
In July 2009 Q1 was released.
Q1 was very impressive. I must say this is when I really fell in love with Kaiser. I liked them before....but now I get excited everytime new collections are released as the Kasier designers NEVER disappoint. They are not always exactly to my taste....But that is because Kaiser has such an eclectic selection of collections - I am yet to find someone who doesn't like any of them.
Kaiser only released 3 Q's as it was too much for 1 month, and then you had such a long break in between releases.
2 collections are being released per month. Each collection includes 6 double sided heavy weight paper, 2 speciality papers, coloured rub ons, black rub ons, printed chipboard, die cuts, clear stamps, 6" paper pad, journaling tags. Occasionally somthing may be added or subtracted to suit the collection being released. For example After 5 only had black rub ons.
Their Core Range includes: (sorry if I miss any!)
- Mini Alphas as well as standard sized alpha stickers
- Acrylic Paints
- Album Rings
- Mini ink pads (and only $2 each!!)
- Card and Envelope Packs
- Rhinestones (in 24 diff. colours)
- Rhinestone Strips
- Rhinstone Flourishes
- Pearls (in 24. colours)
- Pearl Strips
- Pearl Flourishes
- Grosgrain ribbon packs
- Organza Ribbon packs
- Paper Flowers (3 sizes per pack)
- Paper Blooms (new release!)
- Mini Acrylic stamps
- Crochet Doilies
- Wooden Flourishes
- Chipboard Alpha
- Brads
- Lace Ribbon packs
- A selection of tools
- Quote Rub ons
- and I'm sure there is more...but without my catalogue in front of me I can't remember :)
The 1 thing Kaiser was always big on (and still is!) is wood items. There are so many to choose from. And all at a very affordable price. In fact I find all of Kaiser is very affordable. There are a group of ladies who have signed up with me to receive every new Kaiser release. They receive:
* 2 of each double sided paper * 1 each of the designer paper * all the matching embellishments (excludes 6x6 paper pad - this is an optional extra) the average cost of the kits are $50.00. (So $100 per month if you would like both) Let me know if you would like to sign up for the kits.
I get side tracked too easily...back to the wood. Kaiser's wood products include bins, storage boxes, paper racks, albums, recipe stands, Christmas decorations and so much more!
 |
| Mini wooden handbag - great to use as a desk pencil holder |
 |
| This tree has proved to be extremely popular. They come as raw wood, sand and paint and voila a jewellery stand! They are only $18.95 |
 |
| Decorate your kitchen in style with these great items! |
 |
| A great memento for kids for their year at school |
 |
| Recipe card holder |
 |
| Tags. The designer made these into maths tables. Love the idea! |
Nearly forgot to mention the most important facts....they are an Australian company. All the workshop magazines are printed in Australia, and all the wood items are made in their own joinery. All other items are designed in Australia.
Kaiser is still a family owned business and they support many charities. They own / help run many orphanages in Pakistan and the Philippines. Further info can be found on their website here. Check out the user gallery - many many great ideas! Also their blog is full of inspiration and that can be found here.
How about a bit of blog candy? Answer the question below in the comments section and next Sunday a random person will be chosen (using random.org) to win a kaiser bag of goodies valued at $25.
What is your favourite Kaiser collection?
Saturday, 8 January 2011
Valentine's Day
A friend of mine sent me an e-mail the other day with the meaning of love as told by 4-8year olds. Such great insights!
'When my grandmother got arthritis, she couldn't bend over and paint her toenails anymore.
So my grandfather does it for her all the time, even when his hands got arthritis too.. That's love.'
Rebecca- age 8
'When someone loves you, the way they say your name is different.
You just know that your name is safe in their mouth.'
Billy - age 4
'Love is when a girl puts on perfume and a boy puts on shaving cologne and they go out and smell each other.'
Karl - age 5
'Love is what makes you smile when you're tired.'
Terri - age 4
'Love is when my mummy makes coffee for my daddy and she takes a sip before giving it to him, to make sure the taste is OK.'
Danny - age 7
'Love is when you kiss all the time. Then when you get tired of kissing, you still want to be together and you talk more.
My Mummy and Daddy are like that They look gross when they kiss'
Emily - age 8
'Love is what's in the room with you at Chris tmas if you stop opening presents and listen.'
Bobby - age 7 (Wow!)
'If you want to learn to love better, you should start with a friend who you hate,'
Nikka - age 6
(we need a few million more Nikka's on this planet)
'Love is when you tell a guy you like his shirt, then he wears it everyday.'
Noelle - age 7
'Love is like a little old woman and a little old man who are still friends even after they know each other so well.'
Tommy - age 6
'During my piano recital, I was on a stage and I was scared. I looked at all the people watching me and saw my daddy waving and smiling.
He was the only one doing that. I wasn't scared anymore.'
Cindy - age 8
'My mummy loves me more than anybody
You don't see anyone else kissing me to sleep at night.'
Clare - age 6
'Love is when Mummy gives Daddy the best piece of chicken.'
Elaine-age 5
'Love is when Mummy sees Daddy smelly and sweaty and still says he is handsomer than Robert Redford.'
Chris - age 7
'Love is when your puppy licks your face even after you left him alone all day'
Mary Ann - age 4
'When you love somebody, your eyelashes go up and down and little stars come out of you.' (what an image)
Karen - age 7
'Love is when Mummy sees Daddy on the toilet and she doesn't think it's gross.'
Mark - age 6
'You really shouldn't say 'I love you' unless you mean it. But if you mean it, you should say it a lot. People forget.'
Jessica - age 8
And the final one -- Author and lecturer Leo Buscaglia once talked about a contest he was asked to judge.
The purpose of the contest was to find the most caring child.
The winner was a four year old child whose next door neighbor was an elderly gentleman who had recently lost his wife.
Upon seeing the man cry, the little boy went into the old gentleman's yard, climbed onto his lap, and just sat there.
When his Mother asked what he had said to the neighbour, the little boy said,
'Nothing, I just helped him cry'
'When my grandmother got arthritis, she couldn't bend over and paint her toenails anymore.
So my grandfather does it for her all the time, even when his hands got arthritis too.. That's love.'
Rebecca- age 8
'When someone loves you, the way they say your name is different.
You just know that your name is safe in their mouth.'
Billy - age 4
'Love is when a girl puts on perfume and a boy puts on shaving cologne and they go out and smell each other.'
Karl - age 5
'Love is when you go out to eat and give somebody most of your French fries without making them give you any of theirs.'
Chris sie - age 6
Chris sie - age 6
'Love is what makes you smile when you're tired.'
Terri - age 4
'Love is when my mummy makes coffee for my daddy and she takes a sip before giving it to him, to make sure the taste is OK.'
Danny - age 7
'Love is when you kiss all the time. Then when you get tired of kissing, you still want to be together and you talk more.
My Mummy and Daddy are like that They look gross when they kiss'
Emily - age 8
'Love is what's in the room with you at Chris tmas if you stop opening presents and listen.'
Bobby - age 7 (Wow!)
'If you want to learn to love better, you should start with a friend who you hate,'
Nikka - age 6
(we need a few million more Nikka's on this planet)
'Love is when you tell a guy you like his shirt, then he wears it everyday.'
Noelle - age 7
'Love is like a little old woman and a little old man who are still friends even after they know each other so well.'
Tommy - age 6
'During my piano recital, I was on a stage and I was scared. I looked at all the people watching me and saw my daddy waving and smiling.
He was the only one doing that. I wasn't scared anymore.'
Cindy - age 8
'My mummy loves me more than anybody
You don't see anyone else kissing me to sleep at night.'
Clare - age 6
'Love is when Mummy gives Daddy the best piece of chicken.'
Elaine-age 5
'Love is when Mummy sees Daddy smelly and sweaty and still says he is handsomer than Robert Redford.'
Chris - age 7
'Love is when your puppy licks your face even after you left him alone all day'
Mary Ann - age 4
'I know my older sister loves me because she gives me all her old clothes and has to go out and buy new ones.'
Lauren - age 4
Lauren - age 4
'When you love somebody, your eyelashes go up and down and little stars come out of you.' (what an image)
Karen - age 7
'Love is when Mummy sees Daddy on the toilet and she doesn't think it's gross.'
Mark - age 6
'You really shouldn't say 'I love you' unless you mean it. But if you mean it, you should say it a lot. People forget.'
Jessica - age 8
And the final one -- Author and lecturer Leo Buscaglia once talked about a contest he was asked to judge.
The purpose of the contest was to find the most caring child.
The winner was a four year old child whose next door neighbor was an elderly gentleman who had recently lost his wife.
Upon seeing the man cry, the little boy went into the old gentleman's yard, climbed onto his lap, and just sat there.
When his Mother asked what he had said to the neighbour, the little boy said,
'Nothing, I just helped him cry'
_________________________________________________________________________________________
Aren't they great? As we near Valentine's Day I'm preparing a night Card Making class. Who would like to join me and make around 10 "Valentine Friendship" cards? So you will have plenty of cards to give to all the important people in your life.(I think valentine's should be for more than just your significant other.)
Hope you have a great Saturday!
Marijke
Friday, 7 January 2011
The History of Scrapbooking
I often get asked how did scrapbooking start....Scrapbooking has been around in some form or other for hundreds of years. But Scrapbooking as we know it today evolved from the very clever people at Creative Memories. Creative memory consultant soon got thousands of people interested in Scrapbooking, then other manufacturers and designers jumped in the wagon and the craft continually evolves and grows from there.
For a bit more detail on the history I went to one of my favourite pages - wikipedia.
Here is what they say:
With the advent of affordable paper, precursors to modern scrapbooks became available to a wider array of people. Beginning in the 15th century, commonplace books, popular in England, emerged as a way to compile information that included recipes, quotes, letters, poems and more. Each commonplace book was unique to its creator's particular interests. Friendship albums became popular in the 16th century. These albums were used much like modern day yearbooks, where friends or patrons would enter their names, titles and short texts or illustrations at the request of the album's owner. These albums were often created as souvenirs of European tours and would contain local memorabilia including coats of arms or works of art commissioned by local artisans.[1] Starting in 1570, it became fashionable to incorporate colored plates depicting popular scenes such as Venetian costumes or Carnival scenes. These provided affordable options as compared to original works and, as such, these plates were not sold to commemorate or document a specific event, but specifically as embellishments for albums.[1] In 1775, James Granger published a history of England with several blank pages at the end of the book. The pages were designed to allow the book's owner to personalize the book with his own memorabilia.[2] The practice of leaving pages to personalize at the end of books became known as grangerizing.[2] Additionally, friendship albums and school yearbooks afforded girls in the 18th and 19th centuries an outlet through which to share their literary skills, and allowed girls an opportunity to document their own personalized historical record[3][4] previously not readily available to them.
The advent of modern photography began with the first permanent photograph created by Joseph Nicéphore Niépce in 1826.[5] Photography became available to an ever-widening population with the invention of George Eastman's paper photographs in the late 1880s and the mass production of the Kodak Brownie, a camera designed to be simple (and inexpensive) enough for a child, in 1900.[6] This allowed the average person to begin to incorporate photographs into their scrapbooks.
Old scrapbooks tended to have photos mounted with photomounting corners and perhaps notations of who was in a photo or where and when it was taken. They often included bits of memorabilia like newspaper clippings, letters, etc.
Hope this has given you a little insight to the humble beginnings of Scrapbooking :)
For a bit more detail on the history I went to one of my favourite pages - wikipedia.
Here is what they say:
With the advent of affordable paper, precursors to modern scrapbooks became available to a wider array of people. Beginning in the 15th century, commonplace books, popular in England, emerged as a way to compile information that included recipes, quotes, letters, poems and more. Each commonplace book was unique to its creator's particular interests. Friendship albums became popular in the 16th century. These albums were used much like modern day yearbooks, where friends or patrons would enter their names, titles and short texts or illustrations at the request of the album's owner. These albums were often created as souvenirs of European tours and would contain local memorabilia including coats of arms or works of art commissioned by local artisans.[1] Starting in 1570, it became fashionable to incorporate colored plates depicting popular scenes such as Venetian costumes or Carnival scenes. These provided affordable options as compared to original works and, as such, these plates were not sold to commemorate or document a specific event, but specifically as embellishments for albums.[1] In 1775, James Granger published a history of England with several blank pages at the end of the book. The pages were designed to allow the book's owner to personalize the book with his own memorabilia.[2] The practice of leaving pages to personalize at the end of books became known as grangerizing.[2] Additionally, friendship albums and school yearbooks afforded girls in the 18th and 19th centuries an outlet through which to share their literary skills, and allowed girls an opportunity to document their own personalized historical record[3][4] previously not readily available to them.
The advent of modern photography began with the first permanent photograph created by Joseph Nicéphore Niépce in 1826.[5] Photography became available to an ever-widening population with the invention of George Eastman's paper photographs in the late 1880s and the mass production of the Kodak Brownie, a camera designed to be simple (and inexpensive) enough for a child, in 1900.[6] This allowed the average person to begin to incorporate photographs into their scrapbooks.
Old scrapbooks tended to have photos mounted with photomounting corners and perhaps notations of who was in a photo or where and when it was taken. They often included bits of memorabilia like newspaper clippings, letters, etc.
Hope this has given you a little insight to the humble beginnings of Scrapbooking :)
Monday, 3 January 2011
Products Due in Store - January and February
What an exciting start to the Year! Kaiser is increasing their core range as well as bringing out 6 beautiful new ranges. Can't wait to see it all in real life!
We also have a number of goodies on a truck heading our way from the very wet Queensland.
Due in January:
Maya Road
Plenty of flowers, chipboard and Trinket pins from Maya Road
Hero Arts
A stock up of a some wood mounted stamps.
EK Success
Plenty of border punches, shaped punches and the Brand New release Tinkerbell papers.
As well as some papers and sticker featuring Princess Tianna.
Other Disney papers and stickers include: Nemo, Toy Story 3, Monsters Inc, Incredibles.
Bazzill Stitches Templates:
* 20 New wood Flourishes
* 16 new quote Rub ons
* 15 new wood items:
We also have a number of goodies on a truck heading our way from the very wet Queensland.
Due in January:
Maya Road
Plenty of flowers, chipboard and Trinket pins from Maya Road
Hero Arts
A stock up of a some wood mounted stamps.
EK Success
Plenty of border punches, shaped punches and the Brand New release Tinkerbell papers.
Other Disney papers and stickers include: Nemo, Toy Story 3, Monsters Inc, Incredibles.
Bazzill Stitches Templates:
* Rub Ons from Making Memories, DCWV and Pebbles Inc.
* A3 and A4 sized Jac Paper (perfect to use with your cricut and cuttlebug when cutting lettering!)
* 20 different colour of round brads in 2 sizes
* + some other items I can't remember of the top of my head.
February:
I will send out an e-mail this week with the 2 new collections from Kaiser for pre-orders. Everyone who pre-orders a full collection will receive 10% off.
Kaiser is adding quite a few products to their core range in February, including
* 17 colours of Paper Blossoms.
* 6 papers - Timeless:
* 16 new quote Rub ons
* 15 new wood items:
+ 2 new collections! Might have to re-arrange the shop again to be able to display it all :)
Hope everyone enjoys their final Public Holiday Day...well until the 26th January then :)
Saturday, 1 January 2011
HAPPY NEW YEAR!
Hope everyone had a great ending to 2010 and have welcomed 2011. My husband is very excited as this is "his" year - his birthday is on the 20th Nov.
So to start the year off well, I am spending all day Monday updating my website. I have so many products to add....but when I went to add the cuttlebug folders yesterday I realised I have sold quite a lot of them already...so I guess a mini stock take is due first.
Kids classes are starting this week. A couple are already full, so come and see me if you would like to book any before your favourites are booked out.
So to start the year off well, I am spending all day Monday updating my website. I have so many products to add....but when I went to add the cuttlebug folders yesterday I realised I have sold quite a lot of them already...so I guess a mini stock take is due first.
Kids classes are starting this week. A couple are already full, so come and see me if you would like to book any before your favourites are booked out.
I'll leave you now with 2 images of our planned BTP classes. The first is a kid's class for 12+. Make 4 canvases using various techniques featuring the Babushka Dolls. (There will be a boy version too - up soon)
The 2nd is a Desk organiser class which will be held by Celeste. Its a Friday night class, supper included. Contact me, or come in to the store to book.
Good night!
Marijke
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